Dragon Conjurer 3, page 12
“And this one?” Elisabeth asked while she backed away from Goldie so our posse could start moving again.
“Her name’s Goldie.” I motioned for the group to get a move on, and the three of my dragons branched away from us, but I figured they’d be fine. “I picked her up in Japan. I’m still getting used to her, but she’s great in a fight.”
“I bet.” The redheaded babe blinked again, and her eyes morphed back to the owl orbs. “Let’s keep a fast pace so we can find a campsite shortly. I think we would be wise to settle down for the night soon so we might be well rested for the journey tomorrow.”
We progressed deeper and deeper into the forests like a group of magical explorers on our way to find some ancient treasure. In a way, we were magical explorers, since we were all a bunch of superpowered young people.
This had to be our coolest mission yet.
Even though the light around us was starting to dim, my eyes got adjusted to the dimness around us, and I couldn’t help but stop every so often to take in the beauty of nature around me.
As a kid, I’d dreamed of seeing places like this one day. I’d grown up in the flat farmland around Kansas, and the only trees I saw might have been tall, but they were sparse and gnarled up. There were no ferns creeping along the ground, and when it wasn’t dusty, it was snowing.
Here, everything was lush and green and beautiful. The few leaves under my feet crunched when I stepped on them, and the damp ground produced the sweet smell of rain soaking into the soil. Even though the air around us was quiet except for our own noises, I couldn’t help but get excited by the experience. Everything was just so cool, and getting to camp out with some of my favorite people was more fun than I could ever ask for.
This trip was going to be a blast, and I wasn’t even worried about the monsters we were hunting. I got to rough it for a little while with my best friends, and I got to be a badass monster hunter at the same time. It was a win-win situation as far as I was concerned.
“Hey, Dyl, what do you make of this?” Nick asked from the front of our line.
“Make of what?” I motioned for everyone to stop hiking for just a moment so I could walk up and see what Nick was asking about. “Find something?”
“Nothing huge.” The blond dude stepped aside and pointed to some markings near the base of a nearby cedar tree. “Could be noteworthy, though.”
I bent down close to inspect the markings, and when I did, I got a glimpse of some bark that had been peeled off by something small.
“Weird,” I commented as I dropped down to one knee to look closer at the markings. “I’ve never seen claw marks like this before. A predator couldn’t have done this.”
“What kind of predator would behave this way?” Michel questioned as he and Leon wandered a little closer. “I thought most animals marked their territory with scent.”
“Not always,” Elisabeth explained as she moved in behind me. “Sometimes bears will claw trees, and deer and moose use trees as scratching posts for their antlers when they first grow in.”
“Cougars and lynxes are up in these parts, and they’ll sharpen their claws on the trees, too,” Nick added. “Not so low down as that, though. Same goes for the bear. The slashes are just too shallow and oddly placed.”
“They’re fresh,” I pointed out and dragged my fingers through the scratches in the trunk. “As far as I know, deer and moose grow their antlers in the warmer months.”
“Yes, they typically drop their antlers in the autumn and winter.” The hot redhead placed her hand on my shoulder and crouched down next to me. “I think a monster made these marks. I just don’t know what kind of monster.”
“There are plenty of different monsters who could’ve made this,” I answered, “but I think we have one little bugger in particular to blame for this.”
“What kind of monster is it?” Steffi asked as Elisabeth and I stood up and took our places back in the line.
“Let’s keep moving.” I whistled to my dragons, and the three of them fell into step around us as we got back on our trek for a campground.
“Alright,” Nala said as she put her hand on my shoulder while she walked behind me. “So, what kind of monster do you think we’re dealing with here?”
“I think we’ve got a group of Pukwudgie here in the woods.” I stuck my hands in my uniform’s pockets as we picked up our pace. “They’re a sort of small, humanlike monster originating in Native lore. They’re tricksters, but as far as I know, they’re not related to Fae.”
“Are they dangerous?” Leon asked as he started looking over his shoulder like the little monsters I just mentioned were about to come out and get us.
“Yes, but not like a fairy or imp.” I pursed my lips and squared my shoulders while I stared at the back of Nick’s head. “They’re only about two or three feet tall, but they’re surprisingly intelligent, and they know how to use weapons like spears or even crafted bows.”
“In other words, we need to be on the lookout and make sure they don’t sneak up on us,” Nick chuckled while he slowed his pace down and looked at the rest of us. “It’s starting to get dark fast. I’m going to scout ahead and see if I can find a place for us to set up camp for the night.”
“Be careful, man,” I ordered and reached out to bump my fist against his. “Come back as soon as you find something.”
“Won’t take me but a second.” In a moment, the blond nymph disappeared right in front of us, and even though I’d seen him vanish a thousand times before, it still took me by complete surprise.
“How long do you think it’ll take him to come back?” Michel asked as he eased his backpack off his shoulders and grabbed his rifle off its strap. After he got his pack secured once again, he slipped the gun into his hands and checked to see if it was loaded. “This is just in case we need it before he gets back.”
“I understand,” I said while I slipped one strap off my shoulder and took my own gun out of its place on my pack. Then I took one of the loaded magazines and shoved it into my Walther so I was ready in case a little mischievous monster tried to jump out at me.
I’d be like that Danny DeVito meme, where he’s got his guns and he’s saying, “So anyway, I started blasting.” I was ready to take on any monster who tried to scare me.
Besides, my three dragons were watching our backs. I didn’t think a stray Pukwudgie would try anything while they were around.
The rest of the group followed Michel’s and my example, and they each took their guns off their backpacks and slipped them into their hands. It only took everyone a few seconds to be ready to shoot, so I decided we had a good handle on the situation while we waited for Nick to come back.
Sure enough, our nymph friend returned in just a few minutes, even though it felt longer because we were nervous about what was watching us behind the trees.
“There’s a good-sized clearing about half a mile ahead,” he said as he pointed to the woods behind him. “It’s near a stream where we can have access to running water, and there’s places to set up light sources so we don’t have any surprise visitors. I just need some help to get that going, and we’ll be ready to go.”
“Sounds good,” I said with a nod while I motioned for our posse of people and beasts to get moving and follow Nick. “Might want to take out your weapon. I don’t want any Pukwudgies to sneak up on us.”
“Thanks for the suggestion, man.” The blond dude at the front of our caravan took his own gun off his backpack and held it tight in his hands as we walked toward his campsite. “But I don’t think anything is going to sneak up on us while we’ve got your dragons with us.”
“I’m still listening for any sorts of threats,” Michel said as he turned his head from side to side. In the dimming light, I noticed the shape of his ears had changed so the shell wasn’t as flat, like a bat’s ears.
“I thought you said your powers weren’t like your cousin’s,” Nala piped up as she turned and looked at the French dude. “Looks like you’ve got animal powers to me.”
“I just happen to take on bat ears when I’m listening for things,” the redheaded guy explained as he followed along behind us. “They pick up sounds outside the normal range of a human, but please don’t speak above a whisper right now. It’ll overwhelm my ears if you do.”
I nodded back to the man in understanding, and we all kept our mouths shut while Nick led us to our future campsite.
After about ten minutes of creeping through the woods like a bunch of sneaky thieves, we came across the rounded clearing Nick told us about. The trees opened up around the circle, and the space between the clusters of foliage was about fifteen feet in diameter. The leaves on the ground provided enough cushioning for us to set up right there with nothing between us but the bottom of the tent. Not that we needed anything between us since we were camping. I’d figured we’d be roughing it a little.
But that was just fine with me.
“Michel, you and Leon go get some firewood,” I instructed as I slipped my pack off my shoulders and put my gun and holster into one of my uniform’s pockets. Since my uniform was in one piece, I couldn’t slip my holster into my waistband, so I’d just have to keep it inside my pocket until I changed into something else. “Beyblade can get a fire going, but we need fuel first.”
“As you say, Conjurer,” Leon rumbled as he and Michel left their backpacks on the ground and headed off together to find some wood for a fire.
“Nala, while we wait for them to come back, I want you to hollow out a fire pit.” I walked to the center of the campsite and pointed down at my feet. “Right here. We’ll make sure it’s buried when we leave in the morning.”
“You got it, boss,” the dark-haired goddess giggled as she pulled me out of the way and created the two-foot wide pit in the ground for our fire. “Good enough?”
“Perfect.” I grinned and rubbed her shoulder. “You made that like it was nothing.”
“Before you came along, it would’ve been a bit of effort to do something like this.” She looked up at me and smiled with her perfectly white teeth. “You’ve made me a lot more confident about my powers, so I don’t feel so uncomfortable about showing off a bit. Now, I’m just eager to get hands on any way I can, and I have you to thank for that, Dylan. You really are an amazing guy.”
“You’re an amazing girl.” I pulled her into my side and bent down to kiss the crown of her head. It wasn’t as easy as it looked, since she was so much smaller than me, but I liked her being so small. She was like a fun-sized snack, but her sass and personality were way too big for her little body. She was a little firecracker, and it made her even more fun to be around.
“What do you want the rest of us to do?” Elisabeth asked while she started unpacking her tent and sleeping bag. “We can be helpful.”
“I know.” I looked around the campsite and thought about what we could do next. There wasn’t any way of getting a perimeter set up without any firewood, so we’d have to wait until the French guys came back. But the four of us could start assembling the tents around the fire, so we wouldn’t have to wait to get settled in.
“Get your tents out,” I ordered as I walked back to my own bag and started to unwrap the sleeping bag from around the bundle AIMM packed for us. “We’ll start setting up for the night. Steffi, I want you to help shed some light while the rest of us work on getting the tents up.”
“Yes, sir,” the golden-eyed beauty teased as she summoned two balls of equally shimmering fairy magic in each of her hands. Then she followed me around the camp as I dropped each tent at equal, three-foot intervals around the fire pit Nala had made.
Even though I had no idea just how big or small the tents would be once they were pitched, I figured they wouldn’t be too big since they were supposed to be single-person tents.
After I dropped the last tent on the ground, the four of us started to work while Steffi walked around and gave us light when we needed it. There were seven tents to pitch, and only a few of us to get them up, but the work went much faster after we figured out what we were doing.
I was right about the tents, and they were single-person designs with a floor space of about three feet wide. They were eight feet long at least, to accommodate our packs at the foot of the tent, and the roof reached three feet up in a domed shape. Each temporary home came with a tarp to throw over it in case there was real heavy rain, but I could tell by the fabric that the tents were designed to be waterproof as well. Not a bad set up considering we were in the Canadian Rockies with winter lurking around the corner. Probably wouldn’t hurt to have the tarps just in case things got damp in the mornings.
“It’s starting to get cold now that the sun’s going down,” Steffi commented as she crossed her arms under her bust and stuck her hands beneath her armpits. “I think I’m going to change into something warmer while we wait for the guys to come back with the wood.”
“Agreed,” Nala added as she slipped into her tent. “You think they’ll get back soon?”
“Yeah, they’re here now,” I said just as the two French dudes arrived with arm loads of firewood.
“We were looking for dry wood,” the redheaded guy explained as he dropped his armload into the fire pit. “Although I suppose your dragon can get a fire going whether the wood is dry or not.”
“He can, but I appreciate your dedication.” I patted each of the guys on the arm and pointed to their tents. “Go ahead and get coats on. It’s only going to get colder, and the fire won’t do much.”
All seven of us slipped into our tents to change, and I decided to go ahead and strip completely while I was at it. I didn’t want to freeze later tonight or change right before bed, so I took my uniform off and traded it for a woolen red shirt, a thick pair of gray cargo pants, and a matching gray parka. I slipped a pair of black gloves over my hands and a plain black beanie over my head before I stepped back out of my tent, and as soon as I got out, I saw everyone else in my group had the same idea as me.
“Smart thinking,” I laughed as I snapped my fingers to get Beyblade to come over. “Hey, bud, give us a spark for our fire.”
The red dragon reared his head back and spouted a jet of hot orange flames into the center of the fire pit. Within seconds, the fire engulfed the wood, and we had a warm and roaring campfire burning for us.
“Thanks, Bey,” I said as I stroked my dragon between the eyes before he wandered back to the perimeter of the camp with my other dragons. “Alright, let’s huddle up and get warm.”
We sat down around the fire, and the AIMM girls took their places on either side of me. The other guys sat on the opposite side of the fire, and Elisabeth folded her legs next to her cousin.
“Before we dive into tonight’s rations,” I began as I put my arms over both Nala’s and Steffi’s shoulders, but before I could even finish my thought, the sound of a bunch of little feet scurrying through the fallen leaves caught my attention.
Then I jerked my head around, dropped my arms, and reached for the holster I’d stuck into my pants’ waistband.
“Something’s out there,” I whispered as the others got to their feet around me and got ready for a fight. “I don’t know what it is, but I think we need to be ready for a fight.”
“I bet it’s the Pukwudgie,” Nala murmured as she moved the slide back on her Glock.
“You’re right.” I looked around the edge of the camp and saw my dragons closing in around us. “Get ready, we’re in for it now.”
Chapter Nine
As the seven of us grouped up around the fire, I gripped my pistol in my hands and motioned for my dragons to close in around us. Since they’d been on the edge of camp, I’d guessed they hadn’t seen what we were up against just yet. I didn’t like how much noise we could hear without seeing what was going on past the walls around our campsite. If the monsters were making so much noise at this kind of distance, there must’ve been a lot of them coming our way.
This wasn’t good.
“Should we use our guns?” Michel asked as he pressed his rifle into his shoulder and looked down the barrel to the sights. “I can’t see anything, and I don’t want to fire in the dark.”
“Agreed,” Leon rumbled as he set his gun down where he’d been sitting. “I wouldn’t be of any use in a long-distance fight, and I think we’re about to be ambushed.”
“Alright,” I agreed and pushed my gun back into its holster, and then I clipped it to my belt. “We’re using powers in this fight. Everyone, get ready, and watch each others’ backs.”
Steffi shed her coat and dropped it on the ground as her wings lifted off her back and caught the firelight behind us. The golden light cast from her dragonfly-like appendages sent a kaleidoscope of color around us, and for a moment, it was easy to forget about the approaching danger.
“If we’re fighting small humans,” Elisabeth began while her body started to morph right before my eyes, “I’ll shrink down to something tenacious enough to take these monsters down!”
Tawny-colored hair sprouted off the redhead’s limbs and face, and her body started to shrink as she got on all fours. Her head changed shape, with tufted ears springing out of the top of her skull, and her eyes became yellow and slitted like a cat’s orbs. Then her hands and feet shape-shifted into paws with retractable claws, and she shifted the pads around on the dirt while a stubby brown tail grew out of the base of her spine. With that, her transformation was finished, and where a foxy French babe once stood, there was now a lynx crouched like it was ready to take down its prey.
Her powers were so fucking cool.
“I’ll see if I can find where the horde’s coming from,” Nick offered, and he disappeared before we could say anything to him.
At least he didn’t waste time when it counted.
“I’ll work on our defenses,” Nala suggested while she started to move some dirt around and create barriers on all sides except for right in front of us to create a choke point for our enemies. The earth she manipulated thickened and rose out of the ground until the walls around our camp were about five feet high and probably six inches thick.
