by J D Dench
Hanika and Ti’a were back-to-back with their daggers, slashing out and spinning in perfect unison that Kayla had never expected from the two of them. Thero stood back, one hand still on Golvannor’s countless ropes while the other held his axe that he swung with ease. He used the Demon like a shield.
In the air still, Kayla swung her arms out. The finger blades flew from her and sank into the flesh of ten wolves. They fell to the ground, their bodies evaporating into the earth vanishing without a trace. The shards came back to Kayla, reconnecting where they had left.
You were amazing before, Lillian. Now, you are absolutely spectacular.
Kayla hit the ground with a roll and caught her footing with ease. She took off running and lashed out as quickly as before. Wolves fell left and right. Before she knew it, she had lost her companions as she confronted one target after another. But she knew she couldn’t waste time trying to find them right now. The main focus was to take out the enemies. Besides, she was confident they could hold their own in battle.
As the fighting continued, though, Kayla could feel her limbs growing heavy. The wolves never seemed to stop coming. She was growing slow and tired. And while the armor protected her for the most part, the wolves were fast and targeted her exposed body parts. Her right ankle was the first to get attacked, knocking her off her feet and forcing her to fight from the ground. When she pushed herself back up, one wolf ran at her and tried to bite at her exposed face. She just managed to get a hand up, clawing away at the Demon’s mouth before it could bite her.
The injuries added up, only making her move slower. Lillian had no more power to give. Kayla could feel Lillian fighting alongside her and steadily growing tired. Kayla and Lillian pushed through the pain and forced their shared body to keep fighting. Sweat coated Kayla’s skin and her breathing was heavy and forced, but she fought with everything she had.
The numbers never seemed to thin out. No matter how many wolves fell, there was always two more to step in their spot. What if the Demons aren’t dying? They are turning into shadows, retreating, healing and then coming at us again?
The thought sent a shiver down her spine. No matter what, though, she knew she had to keep fighting. Just keep fighting. For the Realm. For Lillian. For Matias. For everything and everyone she had to fight with every bit of strength she had.
Olap and the other prisoners had heard the wolves howl. He had heard the doors slam shut and knew that they were finally alone. And in a heartbeat, his cell door was open. Olap walked to the door and recognized the battered face of Leif. His left eye was swollen, and three cuts decorated the right side of his face.
“What happened?” Olap asked quietly. His fingers tenderly reached toward the cuts, and Leif jumped back immediately.
Leif hissed in pain and muttered a string of quiet curses. “You were knocked out by Galruman the instant after Jonn was killed. But not me.” Leif held out Olap’s hammer with a sneaky smirk. “I fought them until that shadow captured me. For some reason they didn’t kill me, but I wouldn’t go down easily.”
“How did you open my door?” Olap reached out and took his weapon back. “How did you get my hammer?”
The Elf held up two fingers and clicked his tongue with a wink. “Secrets, secrets.”
“Olap!” Silvia pushed past Leif and hugged the Dwarf tightly. “I’m so happy to see you! I was worried something had happened to you.”
“You let her out before me?” Olap shot Leif a glare with a grin.
“Poor Jonn,” she whimpered, ignoring Olap’s joke. “He didn’t even have a chance.”
Leif spat on the ground and walked away. “Jonn was a coward. Azzaan did what I wanted to do.”
Olap wanted to resent the young Elf, but Leif reminded Olap of himself. Leif was a warrior that could battle the best of the best, yet he hid inside a silent body and pretended not to care about anything. He did this because showing affection meant you could also show pain. And Leif refused to show his pain.
“There’s no time to mourn now,” Olap said gently, walking out of his cell. “We have to get out of here and figure out what is going on outside the castle. Leif, can you open the rest of the cells?”
The Elf held up two fingers and clicked his tongue again. What does that even mean?
“Silvia, where are the brothers?”
Silvia froze in place. She didn’t say anything. She was halfway turned toward Leif to follow and assist him.
“Silvia,” Olap said again. His voice was more cautious this time. “Where’s Ulp and Gremlin?”
She slowly turned toward Olap and met his eyes. Then she looked away, her gaze fixing on something inside of Olap’s cell.
“You don’t remember,” she said silently to herself. Olap heard her.
“Silvia?” Olap went to take a step forward but felt frozen in place. He swallowed what felt like a boulder in the back of his throat. “What happened to Ulp and Gremlin? What…what happened when I was knocked out?”
“Azzaan wanted to make a fair example. He said he killed one elf, so he must kill one Dwarf.” She paused and took a deep, shuddering breath as she recollected the memory of what happened. “You were unconscious, and he wanted you alive, since you were the leader. So he went to kill Ulp. Gremlin fought back, so Galruman…”
“Say it.” Olap’s voice was dry and lacked any emotion. “Say it Silvia. It isn’t real until you say it.”
She swallowed hard too and fought back her tears. “They’re gone, Olap. They were killed.” She reached in her pocket and held out a dagger wrapped tightly in an ancient yellow cloth. “I took this from one of them before we were captured. I think Gremlin said that it belonged to their father. I figured…well, you were so close with them. You should have it.”
Olap looked at the weapon in her hand. According to legend, it held the soul of the father of Ulp and Gremlin, the greatest Demon slaying Dwarf that had ever lived. “The dagger of Ulverich.” Olap reached out and slowly took the weapon from Silvia. “This needs...to go to the Dwarven Kingdom. Where it belongs. Where it deserves to be.”
“I’ll help you get there,” Silvia vowed with a smile. Olap looked from the dagger to her and saw tears stinging in the corners of her eyes. She quickly wiped them away and shot him a wide grin. “I’ll do whatever I can, Olap. I wish I had done more, so it’s the least I could do.”
Olap didn’t say anything back. He walked toward the door that exited the dungeon. He could feel eyes on the back of his head as he walked past people.
These are the people of BlueCrest. These are the survivors who lost everything and everyone they love. These are the people at their absolute weakest. And the only people we have and need.
Olap reached the door and stopped. There he turned around and faced the roughly thirty humans in the room, as well as the two Elves. Almost all of the survivors were men, though a woman appeared here and there.
“Everybody listen up,” Olap said loudly. “I know I am not your king. He is dead. I know I am not your leader. He is probably also dead.”
Mutters were his response. “Silence!” Leif commanded. Instantly, everyone fell silent. Something in his voice made them not only fear him, but some even seemed to show a little respect to him. “Listen to what he has to say or I’ll use my dagger to finish what that Devil started!”
Olap looked at Leif. The Elf gave him a nod, urging him to go on. “I am not your king or your leader,” Olap continued. “I am your comrade, because the only way we will survive this is by working together. Because, for one reason or another, we have been spared death but imprisoned by the Demons. We must use that against them. Forget that I am a Dwarf, and forget that my companions are a couple of Elves. Forget that we are supposed to all hate one another and for once let us work together, bare arms as one, and fight back.
“I cannot guarantee your lives or safety or futures. All I can promise you is that if we don’t go out there and fight as a single body, we will all die. There is no running. They will catch
us. There is no hiding. They will find us.”
His eyes swept the room, and all eyes were on him. He smiled and lifted his hammer to his torso, holding it in both hands. “We must fight and die as one. So if you are ready to trust a Dwarf with your lives and go down swinging, follow me. We will take out every Demon in our path, fight to the courtyard, and figure out what kind of battle is going on outside. And, if we can, we will help fight against the Demons to take them down once and for all.” He cleared his throat and looked to Leif.
He was right, Olap thought to himself. Jonn was a coward. And that’s the kind of coward that gets you killed.
“And if you are a coward and value your life over anything else, then I suggest you run and hide now.” He said this while locking eyes with Leif. He saw the Elf’s eyes glowing as Olap actually listened to what the young man had said. “Run and hide as fast as you can. Before the Demons find you, or worse before your comrades find you. Before we will find you. And we will kill you for your ignorance and selfishness. With or without you all, I am going out there. But I have to say, it will be much easier if you all fight with me.”
Olap turned away from them. Nobody said a word. The room was as silent as a graveyard, but Olap walked toward the door and pushed it open. He led the way to the courtyard, where very few Demons were lurking. He led two Elves and thirty humans to take up arms and fight against the Demons in the courtyard, giving everything they had and leaving it all on the line. They fought bravely, and Olap was amazed to learn only a small handful of them died.
They avoided the front gate when Olap spied a portal open there. He climbed up to the throne and saw the darkness of wolves swarming from the portal in large masses that never seemed to end. From where he stood, he could see the wolves going from the gate down toward the trees that still stood. There were sounds of intense combat down there, though he couldn’t make out who the Demons were fighting.
He saw Galruman down there. The large Demon was somehow silent as he walked behind one of the warriors. The warrior was spinning in impossible patterns and slashing in every direction. Wolves jumped at the individual and fell instantly. The speed and precision were unheard of. Olap’s jaw almost dropped. It wasn’t until a second figure flew out of nowhere, tackling through the wolves and charging into Galruman that Olap’s jaw actually did drop. Olap could only see what appeared to be armor made of stone strike Galruman like a truck and send the giant Demon sprawling.
“We have to help,” Olap muttered to himself. He had no idea Leif was right behind him.
The Elf put his hand on the Dwarf’s shoulder. “What’s the plan, then? The castle is clear.”
Olap shook his head slowly. “I don’t have a plan. But I just feel like I need to be down there. With that person in stone. I feel a connection to them and I can’t help but feel like they need my help.”
“We’re behind you,” one of the men shouted from the ground. Olap turned and saw all of the men looking at him, their hands up in a salute. There were twenty-five of them left. With the two Elves and Olap, that made a total of twenty-eight.
Will that be enough to fight a never ending army of shadow Demons and get to that warrior in time?
“Then let’s go get ourselves another Demon for our collection,” Olap shouted, raising his hammer. The men all raised their weapons with a loud shout, and as one they all went to the front gates to battle an army.
Chapter Twelve
Liz swung out with the Eternal Flame and slashed across the torso of a wolf. On her follow through, a second wolf jumped out and bit her hand. The force of the wolf sent the blade away from her, and as she reached back to rip out her Frostbite she found it had already been torn away from her back.
She was weaponless.
As she turned to face the next wolf head-on, two more attacked the backs of her legs. She fell over onto the ash-coated forest floor. And the only thing in her vision was darkness. Darkness of the wolves as they closed in around her. As they circled their victim. Their prey. She closed her eyes and braced for the final attack. Prepared for the sinking of teeth and claws and sharp blades in the forms of fur.
And when she opened her eyes, she was in a foreign room. No, not a room. A cabin. Darkness still surrounded her, but this was a still darkness unlike that of the wolves. The only light in the room was from a fire. Two chairs sat beside the fire. In one of the chairs sat a woman. A beautiful woman, her beauty unlike anything Liz had ever seen. Her silver hair wrapped around flawless skin, and her crystal clear gaze seemed to search Liz’s thoughts and judge her soul.
The woman smiled a smile that could pierce the coldest of hearts. “Elizabeth,” the woman said, her words sinking straight into Liz’s chest. “I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s incredible to finally meet you.”
Liz tried to respond but found no air in her lungs. She took a deep breath. She found she was unable to look away from the woman. “You’ve heard about me?” Liz asked, her voice, cracked and dry. She cleared her throat and tried to speak again. “Where did you hear about me? Who are you?”
“Look inside your heart, Elizabeth. You know who I am.” The Elf stood up and took two graceful steps toward Liz. “And you know how I know you.”
Liz didn’t say anything. She thought for a long time before a gasp escaped her lips. Quickly, she put a hand over her mouth in embarrassment. “Impossible,” she said, but she also knew it was true. “You’re Lillian, aren’t you?”
“Yes.” The Elf took another step toward Liz, and then another. “And I have been meaning to talk to you for some time. Because of all the Elves in the entire Realm, I believe that you are both the most powerful and the most brave of them all.”
Liz’s face burned red. She coughed into a closed fist, trying her hardest to regain any of her composure. “What is it you seek, Lillian?”
“Now that’s the warrior princess I have come to know and admire.” Lillian took a couple more steps until she was standing in front of Liz. “Or I should say warrior queen, shouldn’t I? Elizabeth, Kayla promised me she would do everything in her power to protect Elves and the entire Realm for the rest of her life. But I know she can’t do this without your help.”
Lillian paused and stepped over to the window that appeared in the darkness. Outside the window was only darkness. No stars in the sky. No grass or ground. “I could not have ruled, had it not been for my sister Arrieta. Arrieta saved my life more times than I can count. She supported Hamerst and I’s love. She was there for everything, and her death was a tragedy.”
“Arrieta?” Liz fell into the seat Lillian hadn’t sat in. “You had a sister?”
Lillian gave a sad nod of her head. “She protected me, and I protected her. But she was killed by that evil Dwarf.” Lillian turned to face Liz, waving her hand. “That’s another story for another day. The point is you are Kayla’s closest relative. I believe you are to Kayla as Arrieta was for myself. And I believe Arrieta, among all other Elves, would want you to have the weapon I wish to bestow upon you. But I cannot give it to you, they must. Because this weapon is not my own.”
“What do you mean?” Liz wanted to take a step back but was held in place by Lillian’s stare. “How can you give me something that isn’t yours to start with?”
Lillian was so graceful, she didn’t skip a beat in her reply. “It is a weapon that was created for me by the Elves I fought for. It is not my weapon. It is a weapon of the people. And I believe deep in my heart, and what is left of my soul, that the people would choose you, because Liz you rule and fight exactly as I used to.”
“A weapon? Made by the people?” Liz couldn’t believe she was standing in front of the Elf she had dreamed of for so long. The words she spoke were impossible to believe. “I must be dead.”
“No, Liz, you are far from dead. The Demons you face are weak, and the Chosen Ones will kill their leader. But it will cost one of them their life. Unless you do what you need to do and take this weapon. Unless you become Kayla’s Arrieta.” Lillian�
��s stare grew more intense. “It is the mythical weapon, lost to the wind, known throughout the Elven Kingdom as Arrieta’s Bow.”
Arrieta's Bow? Of course Liz had heard the story of the Bow. It was strong enough to destroy an entire stronghold in a single shot. It was the most powerful weapon ever constructed. But it came with a terrible price.
“Tell me more,” Liz answered.
Lillian bowed her head and winked. “Hold out your hand, Liz.”
Liz hesitated but obeyed, holding out her right hand. Lillian took her hand and pushed two fingers into Liz’s wrist as if she were taking Liz’s pulse. There, a black mark appeared. It looked like a teardrop. Then, a second appeared, followed quickly by a third. The three drops faced three different directions, a circle forming between them. Liz could feel the power flowing through her from Lillian. Her blood accelerated. Her heartbeat tripled. She felt as if for the first time she was wide awake.
“Now you have the Bow,” Lillian informed Liz, “but use it with caution. For every shot of Arrieta’s Bow takes a piece of your soul with it. The power of a soul is devastating, but missing the shot could be even more so. If you miss, you may never get your soul back. And if you don’t get your soul back soon enough, you die.”
“A bow that shoots your soul?” Liz stared at the mark. She couldn’t stop her hands from shaking. “And what if I just want to shoot arrows or something?”
“Shooting something else with the bow uses a piece of your soul. If you shoot an arrow, your soul will go into the tip of the arrow, giving it more impact and allowing it to slice through armor as if it were made of feathers.” Lillian put her hand on the mark and gave Liz a look she couldn’t quite place. “But missing with a single arrow like that will still hurt you and impact your life force.
“I trust you alone, Liz, with this incredible power. But with it comes incredible responsibility. Use the Bow right, and you will save lives. But the Bow must be used properly. Even if it isn’t you who shoots it. Do you understand? Can I trust you with this?”