Gavin came toward him, a shovel clenched in his large hands. Mayor Ivan was somewhere, probably in the tavern, quickly planning, trying to get things prepared before the young heir destroyed the power source of the barrier. It was a race for time.
Drake watched as Gavin approached. His eyes occasionally moved to the red thread that led to the creator of the token, meant to erase him. Mike and Chad were at his side. The 'x' was still marked in its spot, but Drake didn't trust that it would stay there. Magic seemed like it had its own set of rules. It was a set of rules that he didn't know or understand.
Taking the shovel from Gavin, he began to dig in the hard, packed dirt. He had to go three feet down. The dirt was firm, making it hard to dig through.
Taking turns, the three boys continued to dig, unaware of what was taking place at the gargoyle's lair.
***
Gargoyle Lair
Three men stood looking at the treehouse village, their armor glistening in the sunlight. The man in the center wore dark green robes, his eyes glowing with a soft green glow.
The man in robes turned to one of his companions. "As you stated, this is our fight. The only way we can fight it is while the boys are trapped in Draco Town. Once the barrier is down, there is nothing we can do." He pointed his sword at the thread of red light. "That is our first target. We take out the shaman, then as many of the army as we can. If you see one of their leaders who leads their army, they are the priority. If you see the king, he is my responsibility."
"They are all in their underground lair. How will we get to them?" one of the men asked.
The one in robes turned to the man who spoke. "We walk through their front door."
The three men followed the red thread through the village. The robed man scanned the structures, his eyes glowing bright. He was using one of his skills, looking for life. There was none. This made the robed man smile. There were no captives.
Continuing to follow the thread it led them to the entrance of the underground lair. The steam from the heated chambers below puffed through the entrance. The Dimension Master turned his green eyes to his companions. "We have a priority: Shaman first, Leaders of the army second, King last. However, anything that comes your way, kill. We need to clear all the ones that are a threat if we can. If you see the human flesh eaters, they need to die as well."
His companions nodded solemnly. Not all the gargoyles ate human flesh. There was a group amongst them that was tied to the king who did.
The red thread led to a small chamber; the shaman, hunched in his cloak, was watching the link to his totem. In his mind, as long as it remained, his charm was active. A sinister smile was on his face. The Dimension Master held his hand out, shooting a sharp, glowing beam. It was bright green and razor sharp. It hit the shaman in the neck, severing his head. The head fell to the stone floor with a thud, the body soon after. Particles of light filled the chamber as the shaman disappeared. The red thread faded immediately. There was nothing for the runed stone to link with. Its enchanter was dead.
"One down," the archer of the group snickered.
The trio made their way through the chambers, avoiding most of the inhabitants. Their goal wasn't to wipe out the race, only the ones that were the biggest threat.
When they reached what would be considered the army's training ground, there was a wide stone table with all six of the leaders of the army.
The Dimension Master smiled, "How convenient. They're all in one location. Easy pickings."
His words echoed through the chamber, catching the attention of those in the room.
His swordsman companion smiled widely. "We can handle these guys; you find the king."
The man's green eyes flashed, a wide grin spreading on his handsome face before disappearing around a corner.
Several chambers down, in a large room. A cloaked gargoyle sat on his throne. Behind him was his group of flesh-eaters. Sensing someone had entered his throne room, the king turned his head, his eyes landing on the Dimension Master.
Seeing everyone present, his grin grew. "Convenient," he stated cheerfully. His glowing green eyes moved through the group, taking in all who were present.
The king stood from his throne; the flesh-eaters behind him moved to flank their king, ready to fight with him.
The Dimension Master clicked his tongue as his whip uncoiled from his wrist. The blades' sheath was already removed. A soft glow of energy filled his palm as the group of flesh-eaters moved past their king to fight.
The king stayed where he was, a malicious smile on his fanged mouth. He was confident that his flesh-eaters would make short work of the robed man in front of him.
With a swish of the Dimension Master's whip, the battle began.
***
Draco Town
Drake watched Mike dig up the last bit of packed dirt from the power source. He was momentarily distracted as the red thread flickered, then disappeared, vanishing without a trace. He frowned, eyes narrowing as he studied the spot where the thread once glowed. There was nothing there to see.
Chad, noticing Drake's troubled expression, looked in the direction his friend was looking. "What's wrong, Drake?" he asked. "What are you looking at?"
"It's gone, the red thread is gone," he stated evenly, not knowing why it would have vanished all of a sudden. "The stone out of the totem was linked to the enchanter. It just vanished. I don't know why."
Mike listened as he finished digging and began to pull the power source out of the deep hole. "It's out. I guess all we need now is to destroy it."
Drake turned his attention to his friend. He held out his hand. Mike placed the large stone in his friend's outstretched hand.
Taking it, Drake started walking toward the barrier. "I don't want to place it on the ground. It might sink back down."
They walked to the barrier. With one hand out, they attempted to touch it. Their hands pressing against an invisible force.
Drake turned to his friends. "Have your weapons ready. I'm going to set it down. If it starts to sink, act fast. If it looks like the powers from your weapons are making the power source stronger, don't use them."
Mike looked around them, finding a large rock. "There," he pointed. "Maybe you should set it on something more solid."
Just before Drake set the power source on the large rock, Mike picked up another rock, which was the size of a bowling ball. He held it in his hands, ready to try to smash the power source.
Gargoyle Lair
The Dimension Master stood in the center of the throne room, surrounded by bodies. Most had lost their head. The king stood on his dais, seething in anger as he stared down at him. The Dimension master snapped his whip, a wide grin on his face.
Movement came from behind him. Without turning, he spoke in an even tone. "Finished already."
The archer stepped forward with the swordsman close behind. "Easy work."
The robed man chuckled. His eyes began to glow brightly, and a soft green glow filled the room. "It appears I'm out of time." He stated, a sinister edge to his cheerful tone.
The glow brightened, then flashed with a blinding light. Once the light had disappeared, the Gargoyle king was standing alone on the dais. The Dimension Master and his two companions had vanished.
Draco Town
Mike smashed the stone down onto the power source as hard as he could. It shattered the power source with little to no resistance. The runes glowed for a split second before the stone burst into small shards and crystal dust.
The barrier flickered with a light glow as it disintegrated into nothing.
Drake held his hand out as he took a step forward out of the barrier. The barrier was no longer there.
"Let's go find the mayor and let him know it's down. We need to prepare for another attack." Drake stated, then started walking purposefully toward the tavern where he knew Mayor Ivan would be.
Unknown Location
Looking down at the glowing orb, a man in a black cloak, his hood hiding his features, frowned. "The barrier is down. How did the heir know how to take down the barrier? Why would he take it down? It was protecting the town!"
The man walked to his scrying mirror and looked at the still surface. It was a black bowl filled with enchanted water. Waving his hand lightly over the surface, he willed it to show him the gargoyles' lair. Before him, in the mirror, showed the gargoyle king surrounded by his dead flesh-eaters. Moving the view throughout the lair, in their training, all of their army leaders lay dead on stone, and most of the soldiers were among them.
The man smiled. "I guess it doesn't matter anymore," he laughed. The sound of his laughter echoed throughout the room. "It seems I need to speak with the gargoyle king."