The Teeth of the Red Dragon loomed overhead like rounded vertical walls, extending tens of thousands of feet into the sky. True to their word, the Draconic Paladins had used their fire magic to clear a long stretch of the forest. The clearing continued all the way to the edge of the escarpment overlooking a ten-thousand foot drop. The hour was late, and the Teeth cast long shadows into the basin beyond the escarpment.
A runway had been constructed in the clearing, and geomancers in gray robes roamed around holding wooden levels. Twenty five aircraft were parked along the edges of the runway, twelve on each side, and at one end the Paladins were practicing their magic by flashing huge plumes of crimson fire into the sky. Shane gently lowered Astrid and Brigid down toward the end of the runway near the edge of the forest beside the runway. Astrid gazed out over the escarpment at the advancing armies.
"How exciting! Brigid dear, please make sure that the excitement does not spoil our relaxation."
The Purple Dragon sauntered off into the forest. Brigid remained.
"Greater Daughter of the Queen of Dreams!" Brigid cried.
A tall, pale cyan Elemental appeared in front of Brigid. It was half again as tall as Brigid, but it was nowhere near the size of Elvira's High Daughter. The Elemental's face twisted into a naughty smile, and then she began to dance playfully through the air.
"I am imagining a construct. It stands one hundred feet tall. It carries a bow of the correct scale. It can create arrows of the correct scale. If any of the mortal spawn of the Blue Dragon are within range, then the construct will attack. It will remain in this area and guard Princess Astrid. I Wish that such a construct would appear before me now."
The Elemental flew up into the sky and began to glow. The air shimmered with a mix of magenta and cyan light. Like the body of the constructs living in the purple spires, a cloud began to form as the light coalesced into mist. Massive sheets of armor appeared, and then a massive bow appeared in one hand. The resulting monstrosity was vaguely similar to Brigid herself in shape. It even had purple hair made from thin strips of some felt-like material, cropped into a bob-cut. It turned to face Brigid, and with each footstep the ground shook.
"Can your Elemental make flying machines?" Shane asked.
"Ask her yourself."
The Dream Elemental left a trail of cyan mist behind her as she fluttered down to Brigid. Shane said to her: "Elemental, I Wish I had a flying machine."
Shane heard a giggling sound in his mind. I can't make something like that, silly. Her voice sounded childish.
"Why not?" Shane asked, but even as the words were leaving his lips he already knew the answer.
Forbidden by the accord with the Elemental Queen of Darkness. Obviously.
"What accord?"
That would take too long to explain, and also you are not tall and attractive. You know, I can help you fix that.
"Enough, you are dismissed." The Dream Elemental vanished in a flash of cyan light. "Shane, if by chance you end up in possession of a Dream Elemental, never, never listen to their advice."
"Noted."
Shane saw a flash of purple light out of the corner of his eye, originating from the forest nearby. He drew upon his Realms and floated into the forest, skimming over the roots on the ground. Astrid was waiting in the middle of a tiny clearing, holding the glowing purple crystal in one hand. He lifted her up off the forest floor, as the purple crystal began to float away.
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A new purple crystal spire appeared in the forest. It looked like a tiny splinter, framed in the sky by the Teeth of the Red Dragon far beyond. The shadows of the trees had consumed most of the runway already. There was not much time left. Felix walked up to the naked edge of the precipice and glanced out over the basin far below. The enemy struck no camps and they built no fires. They allowed themselves to be consumed by their dark mother's succor.
Neasa strode up alongside him. "Commander, the last of the Paladins have demonstrated proficiency. We await further orders."
"Bring me Cliona," Felix said.
Neasa marched off. Felix turned his gaze to the cloudless sky. Pale cyan had long since turned to dull orange. A slight breeze struck him from behind as cold air poured over the escarpment like a waterfall. This wind caused Cliona's gray robes to flutter like flags. Her face was shrouded by half a dozen nested hoods. Neasa stood at her side. Her long, blood-red hair streamed in the wind, blotting out her face.
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"You have orders, Commander?" Cliona asked.
"Have your geomancers create streams of lava along the runway to aid with landing. I want to be able to see the glow from far away."
"Won't that draw the enemy to our runway?"
Felix pointed up at the one-hundred foot tall animated armor that darkened the sky near the edge of the forest.
Cliona nodded. "It will be as you say, Commander."
"We takeoff to the north, against the wind, away from the cliff edge. We organize the same way we did before, six squadrons of four Paladins, flying in a diamond formation. The leader of each formation has absolute authority. I will fly alone tonight. First and Fifth squadrons to the west of the Teeth. Second and Third squadrons directly in front of the Teeth. Fourth and Sixth squadrons to the east of the Teeth."
"Acknowledged," Neasa said. "Commander, I have a request."
"Speak it."
"There is talk among the Paladins that you are sending them to their deaths."
"That is true. They are soldiers. The enemy did not offer us more time to train and test our aircraft."
"Felix, please. Talk to them. Give them some words of encouragement." Neasa marched off and began issuing orders to the six squadrons.
The animated armor summoned a massive arrow in one hand. It nocked the arrow and drew. The otherworldly bow bent back with the sound of a cracking tree trunk. When the construct released the arrow, the open runway resounded with a dull crack. It was not as loud as lightning, but it was close. The tip of the arrow created its own cone-shaped cloud as it rocketed through the sky. It struck an enemy drake that was approaching the cliffs, causing the creature to explode in a cloud of blue blood and chunks of meat. But that did not stop the arrow. It kept going, falling in a long arc and vanishing into the forest below. The construct summoned another arrow.
Felix marched over to the other Paladins and took up position in front of the group. He waited until Neasa stopped speaking. Uncertain eyes turned to regard him. He looked each Paladin in the eye, whether they were a veteran or a recruit. With his chest puffed up and his head held high, Felix stared them each down. They needed to see confidence in their commander, if nothing else.
"All of you have flown before. All of you have practiced circles. Most of you have scored confirmed kills. It is our belief, our cherished superstition, that battles at night bring bad luck. Many of you would rather drink poison than fly tonight.
"Think about the soldiers on the ground. They will be forced to face foul sorcery and the madness of melee. Their crossbows will be ineffective against the magic that protects the enemy airships. They are being sent to their deaths tonight, and without us, they will die in the flames of enemy drakes. It is our job to give them a better chance. We have been chosen to protect the skies, and we will be remembered.
"Our numbers are small, and our aircraft are untested. But someday soon, the full might of our nation will be devoted to creating such craft. Thousands of pilots will need to be trained. And they will line up to join us. They will not shy away from flying, because they will learn from this night what happens to the soldiers left behind on the ground. Our force will be the most envied and the most respected fighting force in our nation. And everyone gathered here has the honor of being the very first.
"Your orders are to kill the enemy drakes. Our men on the ground do not have an answer to the drakes. Be prepared for a long battle tonight. Squadrons, move out!"
The first squadron marched off toward their aircraft. Neasa approached Felix. "Commander, I have information for you," she whispered.
"What's this about?"
"Me and the other women. We have decided that we are going to return to the runway if we need to use the bathroom."
Oh right, that problem again. Deorwine had designed a solution after one male Paladin returned from a flight and nearly pissed himself. Each aircraft included a special wineskin under the seat that could be used to store urine. However, Deorwine also claimed that women in his nation were not going to fly, so he did not bother to refine the solution further. It was one of the many, many issues that slipped through the cracks because of the sudden invasion.
"That seems fair, carry on."
The air cracked with another arrow being fired from the massive animated armor. The arrow vanished into the shadows of nightfall, and while Felix could not see the impact, he heard a loud screech. The first of the engines started, and the first propeller began to spin. As more aircraft started, the noise drowned out even the thumps made by the construct's massive bow.
The first of the Draconic Paladins was led by soldiers on the ground to the edge of the runway, just a few dozen feet from the escarpment. None of the aircraft had brakes and there was no way to rotate the wheels. The soldiers on the runway manually dragged the wings and the tails into the correct position. They formed up, four at a time, into their diamond formations, with the squadron leaders in the rear. The soldiers sprinted with them as they began to accelerate, to hold the wings steady before the airspeed across the rudder was high enough to provide control.
Finally Felix seated himself in his own aircraft. The gathering darkness made it difficult to see the markings on the airspeed indicator. "Clear the propeller!" he cried as he closed the glass canopy over his head. Under his own power, he drove the craft across the ground slowly to the edge of the runway, and waited for the soldiers there to drag his tail backwards.
The crimson trails of the last squadron formed long roads in the sky. At full throttle the crimson trails streaming from his own engine were enough to illuminate the airspeed indicator. The ball rose above the stall threshold, and Felix pulled back on the stick. The ground dropped away. He followed the other Draconic Paladins, up and away, into the darkness.