Meric the Storyman: Rega and the Dragonstones
Chapter 33: The Black Pearl

As Rega sat next to Dexir’s cot getting his leg bandaged, Cupramos came up to him. “Rega, I have a special request to ask you.” he said. “Actually, you and your half-orc friend.”

“With the remaining evil dragons being hunted down, Bahamut would like to send a small group to scout out their main lair to see if anything useful is left behind. Right away, I thought of you, Rega.”

“Why did you mention you needed Doman too?” asked Rega.

Cupramos replied, “Although we know he is more, they don’t. He will be there to act as our captor in case it comes to that.”

“You mentioned ‘our’. Does that mean you are coming with?” asked Rega.

“Of course.” was the reply. “We need to get there fast, so I will be taking you there. As soon as I get equipped with a dual saddle, we will be leaving. Gather what you think you will need.”

The dragon then left them. Rega and Doman did not need to discuss anything. Both knew the other was in on the plan. Rega turned to Dexir.

“Make sure you remain here and rest. You fought well today. Doman and I will try to get back as soon as we can.” said Rega to his friend.

“Sure thing, Rega.” said Dexir, weakly. “Be careful.”

Only a short amount of time passed before Rega and Doman, riding Cupramos, were headed south to the lair of the evil dragon army.

Cupramos followed the directions he had been given. Being a large copper dragon allowed for a faster flight. Unfortunately, his two riders were not used to traveling so fast. Upon landing, it took them a few minutes to regain their composure.

The copper dragon changed form to the human one Rega had known from before. The three entered the cavern and let their eyes adjust before continuing. Rega took out a rope from his pack and tied some fake knots around his and Cupramos’ waist. He gave the end to Doman so at first glance it would appear the half-orc was bringing in two prisoners.

There were several passageways. Rega chose the closest and continued onward. There were doors to rooms and other intersecting passages. Rega would stop to listen at each door before continuing. Finally, the passage they chose ended in an open room. There was an overwhelming, foul stench of an unwashed humanoid that reached them before even getting to the room.

Rega signaled for Cupramos and Doman to stay put as he untied the fake knot around his waist. He then hid and sneaked noiselessly into the room. A few seconds later the two waiting in the hall heard a scuffle, a muffled cried, and then a large thud. Rega, wiping blood from his dagger, soon reappeared and motioned for them to enter the room.

Lying on the floor was an ogre. Blood was still flowing from the slice in the neck.

“I had to jump up a bit to get him, but it still managed to quiet him.” said Rega, proudly. “Now to see what he was guarding in here.”

Rega began inspecting the walls and floor of the room. The room itself was about 12 feet wide by 20 feet in length. A couple of lit torches were in torch holders on the wall on each side. Other than the ogre’s corpse, the room looked to be empty.

Rega checked the walls by moving his hands along them. At one point, he searched an area of the wall and stopped. He traced his fingers back a couple inches, still feeling the wall. He stopped again and said, “There appears to be a hidden lock. Let me check it for traps before I try opening it.” He then motioned to the ogre on the floor with his head, “Keep your eyes open for some of his buddies while I do this.”

Rega opened his pack and brought out his tool set. He checked what looked like a small hole and after a few moments started poking around in it with his lock picks. An audible click sounded and a hidden doorway opened in the wall. He grabbed one of the lit torches and entered the dark, narrow passageway that was now visible.

“Again, I can see why we hired you.” said Cupramos as he and Doman followed.

Rega advanced, moving the torch to the floor and to the walls, slowly checking for traps. None were found. As they moved along, they all noticed a thick layer of dust settled on the floor. Nothing had passed through here in a while.

They continued moving along. The passageway curved back and forth several times before finally revealing a small chamber. In the center of the chamber was a chest.

Rega checked the floor around the chest and then checked the chest itself for traps. Satisfied, he pulled out his lock picks again and worked on the lock. It did not take long for him to unlock it. He lifted the lid, releasing a small cloud of dust in the process, and peered inside.

Cupramos and Doman had both moved to the chest once it was opened. They looked inside too. Cupramos was the first to say something.

He reached in and pulled out a black robe with blue dragons sewn on the sleeve. “I know what this is. It belongs to the Clan of the Dralmag Dragon.” Seeing a look of questioning on both Doman’s and Rega’s faces, he continued. “They consist of a group of humanoids, mostly human and half-orc, who worship the dragons in the Dralmag Desert. This sect looks to be one that worships the blue dragon.”

Under the robe was what looked to be a leather-bound manual and a scepter. Attached to the scepter was a large, fist-sized, black pearl. Cupramos took the manual and scepter and wrapped them with the robe. He used the rope that had previously been used as a diversion to tie the bundle together.

“I’d like to stay and continue looking, but I get a feeling we may want to get these items back.” said the copper leader. “Tie this bundle to my saddle once we get back outside.”

At the same time, both Rega and Doman realized that there was no saddle currently on Cupramos’ back. They both checked, all the while wondering where the saddle went while in human form.

Cupramos laughed.

Those dragons injured, but able to walk, were brought to a makeshift healing area. Zekil and Marissa were both busy applying HG-107 cream, distributing healing potions and peppers, and applying bandages. There were also clerics and druids healing with magic. Cots were set up in case any humanoid creature needed assistance. In addition to the ones currently occupied by Dexir and Nomis, several more were in use.

Those dragons unable to move from where they fell were attended by a group of elves. They carried a variety of items able to help relieve pain and help with minor healing. In a couple cases, harnesses were set up and some of the younger dragons would lift the injured dragon back to the makeshift healing area.

For a few of the downed dragons, there was nothing that could be done. A quick prayer was said before moving on.

The elves did find the brass dragon that lost his right wing in the acid attack. The fall knocked him out, but he was still breathing. HG-107 cream was applied to the visible wounds and harnesses were then brought in. He was lifted to the healing area. He would never fly on his own again.

The patrolling group of goblins stopped when they spotted the slain ogre. Two were sent to bring back help. The other eight went into the now-revealed passageway. They soon spotted a light from a torch getting closer.

As the torch-bearer came into view, they saw it was a male human. He was followed by another male human and then a male half-orc. The three stopped when they saw the goblins.

The goblins ranged in height from three to three and a half feet. “Odds look good.” said the patrol leader in goblin. “There eight of us and three of them. Kill!”

All eight goblins charged. Only the one in front noticed the half-orc make some gestures with his hands. By then it was too late. A large ball of flame appeared and started rolling directly towards him. He stopped, causing several of the ones behind him to crash into him and then each other.

The ball of flame incinerated the front goblin and bounced onto the next one before the remaining ones ran back out the other way. Doman continued the spell long enough to have the sphere give chase before he finally stopped the spell. This had been the first time he had tried the spell since learning it in Estu. Not for the last time, he was glad he spent the time there.

“We will need to go quickly.” said Rega. “They will most likely be calling in reinforcements.”

Rega stepped around the small, smoldering goblin-corpses left behind and exited the hidden passage. He looked around, checking to see if there were any ambushers, but did not see any. He started running in the direction that they had entered. Cupramos and Doman followed. None noticed the lone goblin that had been hiding around the corner.

Although Rega was sure of the direction, he did slow down as they approached each intersecting passage. By doing this, it gave reinforcements a chance to slowly start catching up. All too soon, the three heard the noise of many feet running behind them.

Rega no longer slowed down. “This will be close.” he said, starting to breath heavier.

The three did manage to make it out, but they were still in danger. Cupramos would need a little time to change to dragon form, so Rega and Doman stopped to face the oncoming patrol. They soon noticed that the goblins were now joined by several orcs and an ogre.

Doman gathered the correct components and started the entangle spell. He watched as spiky, cactus-like plants came out of the ground and started wrapping around the legs of the charging enemy. This managed to stop them. The added bonus was the cactus needles causing pain. No javelins were thrown because everyone was trying to get untangled.

This gave Cupramos the chance to shift to his copper dragon form. “Behind me!” he yelled to Rega and Doman.

They quickly did so.

Cupramos then released his line of acid breath weapon, sweeping over all who were entangled. Once done, he turned to Rega and Doman, “Tie the bundled robe to my saddle and then get on. We need to leave.”

Rega and Doman tied the items to the saddle and then buckled themselves in. “So, where exactly does the saddle go?” asked Rega.

Cupramos laughed again and jumped into the sky.

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