The Woodsman: Chapter Eleven

 The sword was stuck in her side so deeply he could not pull it out. He tied a rope to the hilt, praying the blade did not cut the hemp, and tied the other end to the trunk of the most giant, most deeply rooted tree on the hilltop. She kept a close eye on him as he worked, and he put his weapons and his shield far out of reach of the area he worked in.

He worked with a wounded animal and kept his movements slow and deliberate. He also announced everything he was going to do before he did it.

He kept securing the rope and tied another loop to the hilt, securing it with a rope spiral. “So, if I may ask, how did you get this stuck in you?”

She sighed, the rumble shaking him to his feet. “Paladin. On a winged horse. She was trying to kill me, and we were both airborne. We collided, and her sword struck its mark. She fell from her mount, and her horse dived after her. I howled in pain and fled, knowing I was wounded.”

He nodded. “And how long has this been in here? So much blood is caked around the blade I had to clear some with my ax. Sorry about the pain.”

“As long as you did not drive it deeper, human.” She growled, fresh blood flowing from the wound, and it covered his hands. “Months now. I was worried you would drive it into my heart.”

“Thank you for trusting me,” he smiled.

“I don’t trust you, human,” she growled, “I hate your kind. But we have a few mutual interests that benefit us working together for a short time.”

He tied a knot to fasten the loops of rope on the hilt. “Why is it you hate my kind?”

“Your mages farm our kind for ingredients for their alchemy. Even your love knows this. That blood on your hands is probably worth tens of thousands of gold to a wizard.”

He laughed. “Watch me rinse it off in the nearest river, and no offense. I have no care for profiting off your misery. I want a chance to be with the one I love.”

She growled, and he knew the beast was thinking of her children. He did not mention the point or say them since she could feel threatened. He just wanted to get this over with, finish the deal, and be on his way with Ophelia.

“I don’t make the rules of this world, Vaishali,” he said. “And I know my love has no interest in spilling your blood nor selling your innards. She follows the Church of Magic, and while I do not speak for their faith, I know in her heart she is no butcher of noble creatures and certainly none so terrible.”

The dragon gave him a slow, disbelieving blink at his choice of words, and he returned a smile.

“Watch your twist of phrase, human,” Vaishali said. “It could get you killed.”

“I am an honest man,” he nodded, “and I apologize. Besides, there is a bit of irony in my offer and my efforts. I promise you no bard shall ever hear of this tale, as much as I can promise such a thing. If my love’s goddess wishes to tell this story later, that I cannot guarantee.”

She closed her eyes and shook her massive head. “If you think I am worried about what people think of me, you don’t know dragons.”

“Nor do I intend to find out,” he laughed. “If this is my last encounter with a dragon, I would be eternally happy.”

She growled. “If the sword does not come out, I can guarantee it shall be your last.”

“Trust me,” he said, “I know to leverage my knots. I had an expensive metal wedge stuck in a massive ironwood tree once, and this is exactly how I pulled it free. Well, I had two horses and a pulley, but the mechanics of this is the same. And this time, I have a dragon helping me pull.”

“There is a big difference between a tree and my flesh, human.”

He smiled as he looked her in the eyes. “You worried about a little pain?”

She narrowed her eyes. “I should smack you with my tail and fling you from this hill.”

He smiled and laughed. “Name one doctor who pays you for services rendered, dragon. I should say you are coming out way ahead on this deal.”

“If you don’t kill me,” she growled.

He sighed. “All I want is to be with my love, noble Vaishali. Whatever I must do is a step in the road I take to being in her arms again. Trust me; this is not a road I chose, nor like, to walk.”

“There,” he said as he examined his work. “Let me tell you how this is going to work. Since the blade is so deep, you will need to pull it out with strength. I have tied the blade as securely as possible given the rope I have, so that should hold. When I say move, you pull to the side and free the blade. You should be strong enough to yank it out. But you must move to the side, not forward or back. You could snap the blade, so it needs to be directly sideways. Understand?”

She sighed and nodded.

The wave of death magic sent him to his knees as the dark power washed across them.

He felt his life slipping away as the dragon howled in pain and agony.

He turned to see the smiling face of the death mage and the braided mohawk hanging from the devil’s grinning head.

He felt his heart grow weak as the cold magic of death gripped him in its grasp.

And his hand gripped the hilt of the sword.