Dragon Alliance Dark Storm : Dark Storm Read Free Page A

the Creator will bind us and keep us strong.” All the weir dragons quickly settled into place in the circle of thirteen, with Gallanth sitting opposite of Michenth, and Talonth and Trikenth on each side of the gold dragon.
    The weir lead dragons arranged themselves in the circle, with their position in relation to Michenth mirroring their weir’s geographic relation to the Capital Weir and Draconia on a map of the republic. Valianth and Falcanth were to either side of Michenth, with the remainder of the Capital dragons in an outer ring behind them. The mithril dragon took the final few steps to his position, his wounds from the Great War and the dark crystal weapons still clearly painful to him, as evidenced by his severe limp. Those wounds were healing slowly and were still present even thirty years later. What evil power they must have had to cause the mightiest dragon in the world such injury, in spite of his tremendous healing powers.
    Mkel, Dekeen, Ordin, and Toderan sat in front of Gallanth while Jodem moved to the center of the amphitheater area to a huge, expertly carved crystalline table for the thirteen high council wizards; three senior generals and admirals; King Denaris and Queen Eladra; and King Drekar of Minara, the dwarf capital city in the Ferranor Mountains. His long gray beard was tied neatly with a gold cross hammer broach that hung well below his waist. Ordin was distantly related to the dwarven royal family, but it went back several generations—several hundred years.
    King Drekar walked over to Mkel and his comrades. “Greetings, mighty Gallanth, Rider Mkel, and Draden Weir comrades,” he said as he gave a slight bow to Gallanth and grasped Mkel’s hand. “Ordin, my dwarven kin from the east, I heard you had a great fight at Battle Point, and you felled many giants.”
    “Yes, Lord Drekar. We sent a whole tribe back to the underworld, with a little help from Gallanth,” Ordin answered with a smile.
    “It has been since the Great War that I have crushed a giant. I envy you and your hammer, my brother,” Drekar reminisced.
    “If I could slay half as many giants as you, my king, I would be honored,” Ordin replied.
    “Don’t be an understating elf; I heard you personally slew several of the foul brutes.”
    “Ordin fought well. We could not have been successful without him and Donnac. He and my inner weir council stood alone against a whole giant clan until Gallanth and I could get back to them,” Mkel explained.
    “Ordin has always and continues to be an integral part of our weir. King Drekar, his strength and fortitude are a rock from which we anchor,” Gallanth said in compliment to Ordin.
    Mkel had been brought up on stories of the Great War. Ordin himself told Mkel of a battle that King Drekar was a veteran of, where he had led a small contingent of dwarves from his main army and was ambushed by a clan of not less than thirty fire giants with a company or more of orcs. The dwarven king personally slew twelve giants that day with his powerful pure mithril ax hammer, which was powered by a large diamond dragonstone given to him by Michenth. They survived the ambush, but over half the dwarves were slain and Drekar was wounded. He was carried off of the battlefield by his personal guards back to his main army, leaving in his wake thirty broken and sliced giants—and fire giants at that!
    “I have faith in you all, for I feel that conviction will be tested soon. We must be seated now, as business is at hand, but I will have ales with you all later. Raproch , my friends,” the dwarven king said as he raised his dragonstone ax hammer; he complimented them with the dwarven word meaning “honored and respected comrade or warrior.”
    All nodded an acknowledgement, even Gallanth. Mkel noticed the carved inscription on the hammer and blade of his weapon. It read in dwarf language, “ Saeud Slamalous .” He whispered to Ordin, asking what that meant, to which Ordin replied, “The Hammer