Return of the Dragon Slayers, page 1
© 2021 Brandon Mull
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher, Shadow Mountain®, at permissions@shadowmountain.com. The views expressed herein are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the position of Shadow Mountain.
All characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
(CIP data on file)
ISBN 978-1-62972-930-5
eISBN 978-1-64933-033-8 (eBook)
Printed in the United States of America 7/2021
Publishers Printing, Salt Lake City, UT
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Cover illustration by Brandon Dorman
Book design © Shadow Mountain
Art direction: Richard Erickson
Design: Sheryl Dickert Smith
Author photo by Busath Photography
Also by Brandon Mull
Series:
Fablehaven
The Candy Shop War
Beyonders
Five Kingdoms
Dragonwatch
Books:
The Caretaker’s Guide to Fablehaven
Fablehaven Book of Imagination
Spirit Animals: Wild Born
Smarter Than a Monster
Legend of the Dragon Slayer
To Calvin—MY tiny hero!
And to Emily Watts,
who has helped me since the start.
Chapter 1: Refugees
Chapter 2: Escape
Chapter 3: Devastation
Chapter 4: Solitude
Chapter 5: Mayor
Chapter 6: Showdown
Chapter 7: Pillagers
Chapter 8: Divide and Conquer
Chapter 9: Pool
Chapter 10: Divining
Chapter 11: Celebration
Chapter 12: Stratos
Chapter 13: Giants
Chapter 14: Captured
Chapter 15: Ethershard
Chapter 16: Giant King
Chapter 17: Lizelle
Chapter 18: Vision
Chapter 19: Wounded
Chapter 20: Radiance
Chapter 21: Flight
Chapter 22: Tower
Chapter 23: Diverging
Chapter 24: Talizar
Chapter 25: Second Try
Chapter 26: Bernice
Chapter 27: Muster
Chapter 28: Magdalena
Chapter 29: Duel
Chapter 30: Batoosa
Chapter 31: Homecoming
Chapter 32: Miguel
Chapter 33: Scheming
Chapter 34: Gerwin
Chapter 35: Traveler
Chapter 36: Campfire
Chapter 37: Prison
Chapter 38: Vez Radim
Chapter 39: Delivery
Chapter 40: Nadia
Chapter 41: Fairview
Chapter 42: Mission
Chapter 43: Source
Chapter 44: Alderfairy
Chapter 45: Dragon Storm
Chapter 46: Ethergem
Chapter 47: Reinforcements
Chapter 48: Ronodin
Chapter 49: Healer
Chapter 50: New Beginnings
Acknowledgments
Note to Readers
Reading Guide
About the Author
For the first time since he had arrived at the Museum of Gigantic Achievement, Knox heard no sounds of dragons wreaking havoc above. No buildings collapsing. No primordial roars. Only silence.
Protected by an iron door, the dim room occupied a corner of the lowest level of the museum. The mismatched furnishings looked like they consisted of the surplus from diverse displays showing giant civilization over time. A huge board against one wall showcased taxidermied animals—horse, cow, elk, tiger, boar—pinned and labeled like insects. Off to one side, a young giant girl cut the final pieces of an apple, feeding the wedges to a younger giant boy, who accepted the bites of food around his whimpering.
A matronly giant with her hair bound in a scarf, a massive infant cradled in one arm, stared upward hopefully. Trickles of dust no longer sifted through the cracks in the ceiling. The woman was tasked with caring for the eight giant children in the room and the ailing, elderly giant on the bed while the city was under attack. Knox, Tess, and the two satyrs, Newel and Doren, were doing their best to share the space without ending up taxidermied themselves.
“Are the dragons taking a break from trashing the town?” Newel asked.
“Setting a trap, more likely,” Doren said. “Hoping to lure careless satyrs topside.”
“I’m not sure we’re a priority,” Knox said. “If they knew we were down here, they could get to us easy enough.”
“Watch your tongues,” the matronly giant whispered. “Many dragons have excellent hearing. They hunt best in stillness.”
“She makes a valid point,” Doren whispered.
Newel shook his head. He spoke quietly. “Sounded like the whole museum came down. The demolition might be over. We’re beneath a pile of rubble.”
“I’m hungry, Nesha,” Dirk, an eight-year-old giant, said. Knox was barely taller than the boy’s knees.
“Tighten your belt, lad,” the matronly giant replied. “I’m no magician. We already ate what we brought. There wasn’t time to gather much.”
“Don’t get any funny ideas about us,” Doren said warily. “We’re guests of the queen. Plus, we’re gamey.”
“They won’t eat us,” Tess said from where she stood by a four-year-old female giant three times her height. “We’re friends.”
“The wyrms will come for us,” croaked the old giant on the bed. “They have a score to settle, mark my words. They’ll ferret us out one by one.”
“Shut your trap,” Nesha said. “You’ll frighten the children.”
Propping himself up on one elbow, the old giant gave a wheezy chuckle. “No use coddling them now. Their folks are dead, and they’ll soon follow. Our days of feasting are over. The hour of becoming the meal has arrived.”
A couple of the giant kids began to cry.
“You shush,” Nesha scolded, flinging a wooden saltshaker at him. “Now you’ve done it. If the dragons didn’t hear us before, they do now.”
The old giant flopped back on his pillow. “Bah. Best to have it over and done with. We played with fire longer than we should have. We all knew what we were doing. It’s time to get burned.”
Knox shuddered. It had been ugly up in the streets.
Knox had expected to find the city secure when he, Tess, and the satyrs arrived at Humburgh through the queen’s passage from Terastios. Humburgh should have been under the protection of Humbuggle and his Wizenstone. Instead, the sky giants guarding the Humburgh side of the passage informed them that the defenses had mysteriously crumbled. Humburgh, particularly the section of the city called Big Side, where the giants dwelled, was under attack.
A giant guard named Morgana had been dispatched to take Knox, Tess, Newel, and Doren to a safe room within the thick walls of the museum. After placing the four of them in a cage for transport, she had carried them outside, the cage tucked in her arm like a football clutched by a running back.
When Morgana exited to the street, a two-headed dragon armored with jagged purple scales glided overhead, just above the rooftops, widespread wings momentarily blocking the sunlight. The pair of heads sent a deluge of fire and lightning onto the street, and Morgana had ducked into a recessed doorway, raising a huge rectangular shield to deflect the conflagration. After the dragon passed, Morgana proceeded across red-hot cobblestones, passing windows that had exploded inward, a blazing vegetable cart, and a pair of charred giant corpses.
As Morgana ran, Knox became petrified with overpowering dragon fear, Tess clinging to his waist. Immobilized inside the transport cage, they had absorbed the sights and sounds of battle. Dragons snarled, buildings buckled, fire crackled, and thunder boomed. Giants shouted orders and bellowed challenges. Smoke hazed the air, but through it, Knox could see dragons strafing Big Side with acid, flame, and lightning. Dozens of dragons approached in the distance.
After dodging around a corner, they found a greenish gold dragon harnessed and bridled to pull a wagon. The dragon wrenched against the harness, twisting and bucking, trying to break free as the driver of the wagon, a broad giant with a bushy beard, flogged the creature liberally. Leather creaked and wood splintered as the dragon struggled, rocking the wagon from side to side while the giant driver cracked his whip.
An enraged maroon dragon with black markings swooped in from one side, and a gray, speckled dragon attacked from the other. The maroon dragon bit off the arm holding the whip, then sprayed the giant with an exhalation of orange gel that made him fall from the wagon, screaming and tearing at his skin. The speckled dragon destroyed the restraints, freeing the greenish gold dragon, who turned and pounced on the driver as he attempted to rise.
Knox looked away as the dragons converged to feed.
The giants were formidable, but Knox could see that the attack was going to be a massacre. The magical barriers Humbuggle had put in place around the city would have prevented an attack from outside, but clearly those barriers had failed. And the giants, who had grown to view the dragons like domesticated animals, seemed shocked by their unbridled power and fury.
The Museum of Gigantic Achievement was a grand stone building crowned by three domes with statues of mighty giants, arms upraised, serving as pillars. The marble façade was blackened in places, and the charred remnants of flags and banners dripped bright embers. Avoiding the stairs that led to the main lobby, Morgana had used a side entrance and raced down a flight of stairs, along a hall, and then to the iron door where the safe room was located. After a shouted conversation through the door, Morgana had left her charges in Nesha’s care.
Sword drawn, Morgana had swiftly departed, and a horrible clamor had continued from above ever since.
Until now.
“I think it’s over,” Knox said quietly. “The dragons don’t need to be subtle.”
Doren held up a finger. “Unless they decided it’s easier to let the stragglers come to them than to dig for us in the rubble.”
“Go have a look if you can’t keep still,” the old giant suggested from his bed. “Better you than any of us.”
Dirk tugged on Nesha’s skirt. “I don’t want the dragons to eat the little goatboy.”
“I’m not holding anyone captive,” Nesha said. “The satyrs have minds of their own.”
“I’ll pop my head up,” Newel said, crossing to the door. “If trouble lies in wait, I’ll hurry back.”
“And lead them right to us,” the old giant griped. “Once you’re out, stay out.”
“Pipe down,” Nesha said. “This is my nursery. You’re here as a courtesy, not to bark orders.”
“I could crush the lot of you,” the old giant griped, ending with a fit of coughing.
“Don’t mind him,” Nesha said. “I’d like to know what the quiet means. Check it out if that suits you. Don’t lead trouble to us or I’ll make sure you’re squished good and flat. If you survive undetected, return and report.”
“If I were in my prime, nobody would be hiding,” the old giant claimed. “I’d tie those dragons in knots.”
“Be glad you’re down here,” Nesha said. “I’ll wager plenty of brave giants met their end today.”
The old giant gave a snort. “What brave giants are left? That was my father’s generation. Mark my words, we had it coming, and it came, and none of us were giant enough to stop it.”
“I’ll be right back,” Newel said.
“Be careful,” Knox said.
“I’ve got a knack for dodging trouble,” Newel assured.
“And dragon fear fries my thinking,” Doren whispered. “I don’t perceive any right now. Based on that, I’d bet my horns they’ve gone.”
Newel unfastened the latch he could reach. The door was more than ten times his height, with locking mechanisms at various intervals. Nesha crossed to the door, unbarred it, and slid aside a huge bolt.
“We need a secret knock,” Knox said.
Rapping his knuckles against his palm, Newel did two slow taps, then, after a pause, three quick ones.
“That will serve,” Nesha said.
“What about a knock for if you’re under duress?” Knox said.
“Clever, that one,” Doren said. “They don’t call him Knox for nothing.”
Newel gave his palm an experimental tap, then followed it with five rapid smacks.
“If you’re under duress, don’t come back,” Nesha hissed. She hauled the heavy door open a little, and Newel slipped out.
“I’ll wait outside,” Doren offered. “Just so I can better hear what happens up top.”
Nesha closed the door behind Doren, then rebarred and rebolted it.
“Don’t worry,” Dirk announced to the room. “I’ll fight the dragons.”
Tess moved close to her brother. “They’ll be okay,” she said.
“Sure,” Knox said, one hand on the object hidden beneath his shirt. Only he knew that he secretly carried the Giant Queen’s crown.
Knox, Tess, and the satyrs had witnessed the moment when the Giant Queen was struck down by Celebrant and a mob of dragons. Her enormous crown had been left on the floor of the throne room, unnoticed as the dragons continued to raze Terastios. Hoping it would help their cause, Knox had gone back for the crown, and when he reached for it, the crown had shrunk to a size that would fit on his head.
Knox had kept the crown hidden since then. In the commotion of getting away, the others had barely registered his absence.
Were the dragons aware the crown was missing? Was anyone looking for it? Had any giants at Terastios survived?
Could the crown have been forgotten?
Knox wrestled over what he should do with the crown. Did he have a responsibility to return it to the giants? Might there be a reward? It was probably needed for when they selected their next monarch. How did that work exactly? What if possession of the crown determined the ruler?
If Knox put on the crown, would he become the Giant King? Might he even transform into a giant? Or at least be filled with tremendous power?
What if the giants had to obey him? Could he unite the giants against the dragons? What if he used the crown to help win the dragon war? This attack had caught the giants unprepared. There had to be survivors. With the right leadership, the giants might still have a major impact against the dragons.
Then again, what if as soon as he tried to wear the crown, Knox was labeled a traitor and a thief? Was there a chance the giants might take revenge against him for the death of their queen?
Keeping the crown might be a liability. If he hid the crown in an unlikely place and walked away, he could always return for it. Or he could forget he had ever known anything about it, ditch the responsibility.
There came two slow knocks on the door, and then three quick ones. Nesha undid the locks and opened the door enough for the satyrs to slip inside.
“All clear,” Newel reported. “The way up is choked with rubble, but it can be navigated. Might be harder going for you giants. I wriggled through some tight spots.”
“Did we drive them off?” Nesha asked.
“The skies are empty,” Newel said. “I felt no twinge of dragon fear. Big Side is leveled and scorched. The rest of Humburgh is damaged but mostly standing.”
“Tried to tell you,” the old giant griped. “This is the end of the road for us.”
“For you, maybe,” Nesha spat. “Any giants moving about?”
“Not yet,” Newel said. “Hopefully others are hiding.”
The silence that followed did not feel hopeful.
“What if the dragons come back?” Tess asked.
“They’ll roast you and eat you,” the old giant predicted.
“We should take advantage of the lull,” Newel said. “See what we can learn over in Small Town.”
“You’re free to leave as you please,” Nesha said. “But if you venture out into the open, don’t return.”
“Good riddance,” the old giant grumbled. “Let us mourn in peace.”
“Do you need protection?” Dirk asked.
“We’ll manage,” Doren said. “You’re needed here to help watch the young ones.”
“Let’s go,” Knox said. “I want to find out what happened.”
Seth examined the dungeon corridor by the maroon light of his blade. The radiance was a darker red than when Seth had previously wielded Vasilis, but he supposed that made sense. Since his last time carrying the fabled sword, he had served as an agent of darkness, and the experience made a visible difference to the energy his nature projected.
A glance over his shoulder showed his oversized, misshapen shadow on the uneven wall, made extra strange by his wings. He could not see far in either direction because the corridor turned sharply. The other cells within view were empty, though he could sense entities elsewhere in the dungeon. The wraith at his side remained a cold presence, the humanoid shape absorbing light rather than reflecting it.
