Page 91 of Morel Dilemma

They’d already ducked low, but Rylana pushed them all the way to the tiles, wanting them below the level of the plant-draped railing surrounding the rooftop.

At her words, the overhead branches that comprised the top of the pergola seemed to lower themselves. Was that her imagination? Or something the elven magic was doing to make it harder for archers to see the people under them?

“I’m summoning the golems,” one of the gnomes yelled.

The dog Willow was barking and almost drowned out his words.

“Cursed knots,” one of the elves nearby snarled.

Another arrow arced out of the darkness, coming from the rooftop of the tavern behind the bakery. Crouching low, Rylana endured zaps of angry magic to string her bow and work at the knots tying her arrows into her quiver. The hunting horn tumbled out—she’d forgotten she’d tucked it inside for safekeeping. If only she could use it to summon peacekeeper reinforcements.

She tucked the horn behind the bar and pulled out two arrows, nocking one as she rose to her feet. Clangs, shouts, and thuds sounded all around her.

Tassani had disarmed the elf he’d bowled into, but more of his troops were fighting now. Largely with each other.

“Long live the Shaldona family!” someone cried.

“Set down your weapons, my people,” the queen called over the clamor. “There is no reason for us to fight amongst each other.”

Some remained loyally around her and Sylin, but other elves attacked them. And more arrows streaked out of the night toward the rooftop. There were multiple snipers in multiple locations. One arrow sailed just over Sylin’s head.

Rylana spun and fired in the direction that one had come from, but night’s darkness made it too hard to see targets. Theirs was the only rooftop with lights, which made them much easier targets.

“You’ll need the high ground,” came Jildarin’s voice from behind Rylana. “Come with me.”

He’d run up the stairs and pushed past the elves, pausing to knock one who was angling for Sylin off the roof. The rest he left for Tassani and those remaining loyal to deal with, only glancing to make sure Fareesa was safe before charging to the storeroom section of the roof. As Rylana ran after him, bow and quiver in hand, she noticed Fareesa crouching back to back with Sylin. Somehow, both of them had found knives to grip and were poised like warriors to deal with any threats that slipped past the elven captain.

“Where are Lysireth, Mylasen, and the rest of our allies?” a warrior battling Tassani yelled. The blond-haired elf glanced toward the stairs, but only Jildarin had come up that way.

Come with me, Jildarin commanded Rylana, switching to telepathy. We will defeat the presumptuous traitor elves who dare attack an invited guest in the lair of a dragon. He’d found room to change into his winged form and crouched, waiting for her. The fiery indignation in his emerald eyes promised he wouldn’t wait long.

Rylana scrambled onto his back and not a second too soon. Jildarin sprang into the air, wings beating hard enough to batter the leaves on the branches of the pergola.

The pillar in the nearest intersection started gonging, whether because elves were attacking or because Jildarin had changed, Rylana didn’t know, but she worked on loosening the ribbons around more arrows. They could deal with the repercussions of engaging in violence in Tranquility later. After they ensured Sylin and the queen were safe.

Jildarin started to fly toward a warehouse that archers had fired from earlier, but two elves climbed onto the rooftop of the diner from the back of the storeroom, the same way Sylin had come. With bows on their backs and daggers clenched between their teeth, they couldn’t have anything good in mind.

Jildarin banked hard and flew toward them. Rylana flattened herself to his back and almost lost her bow as she struggled to keep her balance.

Barks and a gnomish call came from the front of the rooftop terrace, Bixtok yelling for the elven attackers to stand down. His voice was almost lost among all the shouting—Captain Tassani was issuing similar orders even as he fought sword to sword against the treacherous elves. Jildarin roared as he descended upon the pair who had reached the roof, and Rylana barely heard another gnomish voice warning that golems were coming.

“Watch out for the dragon!” one of the elves dropped onto his belly on the rooftop, barely avoiding being knocked over the edge as Jildarin dove low.

The other wasn’t as quick. Though he reacted with the swift athleticism of most elves, Jildarin was even faster. He flicked his head on his long neck and knocked the elf flying.

An arrow streaked out of the darkness and clinked against Jildarin’s scaled shoulder. He roared in indignation, twisting in the air, but he focused on the elf he could reach. For the moment, he couldn’t do anything about the archer.

But Rylana could. She managed to keep her balance on his tilting and twisting back and nocked an arrow. This time, when she peered across the dark rooftops, movement allowed her to spot a target. The archer was running toward a chimney for cover. Rylana loosed an arrow, hoping to catch the elf before he disappeared. It clipped him in the shoulder, spinning him around, and his bow flew from his grip.

With alarm gongs sounding from multiple intersections now, Jildarin flew around the rooftop of his diner, snatching up the enemies who were trying to reach Sylin. She and the queen remained calm, like a pair of experienced knife fighters practiced at fighting back to back, though few enemies were getting close to them now. Between the elves Jildarin had tossed to the ground and Tassani and his loyal troops, the traitors were outnumbered.

That didn’t keep another sniper from launching an arrow toward the rooftop. In the dark of night, Rylana wouldn’t have seen it streaking through the sky, but it glowed silver.

“Look out!” she shouted as she nocked another arrow and tried to pick out the archer. The silver arrow had been fired from the rooftop of the tavern.

The trees on the terrace rustled, and two glowing thorns shot from… Had flowers fired those projectiles?

One sped into the sky and intercepted the arrow, and it exploded with a fiery thwump of ignition. The other glowing thorn struck the upper arm of an enemy climbing up from below. He managed to gain the roof but rolled about, gripping his shoulder. Willow barked, and one of the peacekeepers ran forward and tapped a baton to the rolling elf. Sparks flew, and the climber’s back went rigid. Another gnome threw a net, ensnaring him.