The Dragons of Decay Read Online Free PDF Page B

of
sound and Simon saw him reappear near the gates, just as the wall of
snow slammed into the tower.
    The entire structure actually
shuddered slightly; an amazing feat considering that Kronk and his
fellow earthen had reinforced the building after two red dragons had
attacked about a year earlier.
    The glass in both windows actually
creaked and chimed as the glacial winds pushed against them and Simon
cursed under his breath. He hated to do it, but it was obvious that
he'd have to close the shutters over the windows, at least the ones
on the second floor.
    It was a battle to seal all of the
windows. The wind hurled blinding snow and ice pellets at him each
time he opened a window to pull the metal-reinforced wooden shutters
closed. He gashed his palm once as he hammered at the bolts inside
the covers to slide and lock them, but he finally finished with the
last set in his bedroom.
    He staggered a bit and wiped cold
sweat off of his forehead. Then he hurried downstairs to rinse the
deep cut on his hand and wrap a bandage around it.
    Simon was just finishing his first
aid when Kronk slammed open the front door, a howl of wind, snow and
deep cold accompanying him. The little guy turned and forced the door
shut, once again exhibiting his amazing strength.
    He looked over at Simon, a small
crust of icy snow covering his head and shoulders.
    “ The horses are secure,
master,” he said brightly. “The stable is clean and they
are fed and watered.”
    He skittered across the room, jumped
on to the kitchen table and then stared at the wizard's
freshly-bandaged hand.
    “ Master! You are wounded!”
    “ I'm fine, Kronk. Don't worry.
It just took a little more force than I thought it would to close the
shutters upstairs.”
    “ You should have waited for me
to do it, master,” the earthen said with his tiny fists on his
hips. “You mustn't take chances like that.”
    Simon filled the iron kettle and hung
it over the fire.
    “ Oh, for God's sake, I'm not a
child. I can actually do some things for myself, you know.”
    “ Yes, master, I'm sure you
can,” Kronk answered in a tone that meant the exact opposite.
“At least Aeris should have helped you.”
    He looked around the room.
    “ Where is he anyway?”
    Simon leaned back against the counter
to wait for the water to boil.
    “ Oh. Well, just before the
storm hit, I checked the gates and noticed that they were open a bit.
I have no idea why, but Aeris popped out to close and lock them
again.”
    “ The gates were open?”
Kronk sounded stunned. “But that is specifically against
standing orders, master. I have told my brethren that under no
circumstances may the gates be left open unless the order comes from
you, either directly or through myself or Aeris.”
    He shook his head in confusion.
    “ What were they thinking?”
    Simon just shrugged, a little amused
that the earthen was taking what was obviously a mistake so
seriously.
    “ No worries, my friend. Aeris
will close and lock the gates and probably chew out the others for
their error.”
    “ No doubt, master. No doubt.”
    Kronk looked at the wall of white
just beyond the window near the front door. Then he gave a convulsive
little nod, as if winning an argument with himself, and jumped off of
the table.
    “ Wait, where are you going?”
Simon called after him as Kronk ran across the room.
    “ Just checking for myself,
master,” the earthen said as he reached the door. He stopped
and turned, giving Simon a penetrating look.
    “ Aeris should have returned by
now, master. Perhaps you should get your staff,” and he nodded
at the length of wood and metal leaning next to the door. “Just
in case.”
    And with those cryptic words, he
jumped up, opened the door and closed it tightly behind him.
    “ Just in case?” Simon
repeated out loud. “Just in case what? It's just a frigging
snowstorm for God's sake.”
    A howl of wind slipped past the
tower, sounding remarkably like a child screaming and the wizard
jumped