“Moz! Look out!”
Moz dove to his right when Mariel screamed, an unthinking reaction to a comrade’s shout. It was well that he did. A moment later what looked like a writhing black octopus made of cloth flew through the space he’d occupied a moment earlier.
The demon didn’t veer off its path, instead slamming into the assassin’s chest and trying to burrow its way inside. Blood, flesh, and bone flew every which way. The way the young man screamed was beyond human. Moz had seen and heard some horrible things in his time on the battlefield, but this would haunt his dreams for as long as he lived.
He pulled himself to his feet and hurried away from the screaming assassin. He joined Mariel on the far side of the circle. She looked a bit gray and wan. Her magical battle with the shadowalker had taken a toll.
“You okay?” Moz asked.
“I’m alive, though for how much longer I don’t know.”
“What happened?”
“When the assassin struck my barrier, it created a momentary distraction. It wasn’t much, but at the end of our battle it was enough to allow the demon to escape.” She shook her head. “I must be getting old. I never would have let that happen twenty years ago.”
“Done is done,” Moz said. He offered no words of comfort and doubted they’d be welcome if he did. “What’s that thing doing to him now?”
“The shadowalker needs a body, something to house its core after I destroyed most of the old one. When it finishes, the human will be no more, only the demon will remain.”
“Okay, how do we kill a demon living in a human body?”
“The same way you kill a demon living in anything, destroy its core. I lack the power to bind it a second time, but I can enchant your blades. You’ll need to stab the core through the human’s body.”
“How will I find it?”
The assassin had fallen silent as the black mass of tentacles finished burrowing into his body, leaving a gaping, bloody hole in the young man’s chest. Moz doubted they had much time left.
“You’ll just have to keep stabbing until you hit it. Watch the way it moves. If the core is shifted out of the trunk, it will affect the way the body moves. If the arms appear slow, the core might be in its legs and vice versa.” Mariel held her hands over his blades. Golden energy flowed out of her and into them.
Across the way a black shell had formed over the dead assassin’s chest, sealing the hole behind the shadowalker. The creature shuddered, its arms and legs jerking left and right.
“Hurry, Mariel,” Moz said. “It’s learning how to make the body work.”
“Don’t rush me. If I make another mistake you won’t be able to cut through its flesh at all.”
He fell silent and focused on the assassin. His body still twitched and moved as if controlled by an apprentice puppeteer, but it was getting smoother all the time.
It turned and stared at him. Moz flinched at its flat, black eyes. All signs of the young man’s humanity were quickly vanishing. Its left hand lengthened, the bones exploding out of his flesh and transforming into four curved bone blades, blades that crackled with dark energy. The right followed suit. His jaw cracked and opened far wider than any human’s ever had. Blunt teeth transformed into needle-sharp fangs.
The monster roared and flexed its arms.
“Mariel?”
“Just another few seconds.”
The demon took a step toward them, seeming much steadier now.
“I’m not sure we have a few seconds.”
The golden light flared then vanished.
“I’m finished. You’re on your own now.” Mariel collapsed in a heap.
He didn’t even have time to check on her before the demon roared and charged. Moz leapt at the beast. No way would he let it get close to Mariel.
He ducked a clumsy slash of its claws and countered with high and low thrusts, punching through its torso and upper left thigh. His enchanted blades passed through its flesh effortlessly, but they hit nothing solid.
It struck again, this time trying to grab his right arm. Moz evaded and countered, slicing across the black covering on its chest.
Still nothing solid.
The demon snapped at him, barely missing his knee with its dripping fangs.
He should’ve asked Mariel how big the thing’s core was. Did he have to hit something the size of a marble, or an egg, or what? If it was the former, he could stab this thing a million times and never hit it.
Not that he expected to last long enough to stab it that many times. His arms already felt heavy. Mariel wasn’t the only one getting old.
Even worse, the demon appeared to be getting stronger by the second as it grew more comfortable in its new home. The sooner Moz ended this, the better.
It roared again, clearly frustrated that it couldn’t land a blow.
The demon charged, arms spread wide. It was going to try and grab him so he couldn’t dodge.
This might be the chance Moz needed.
Instead of evading, he lunged straight at it.
A double cross slash opened its chest wide open.
He saw a flash of something near its left collar bone.
Before he could strike, the demon closed its trap.
Moz dropped to ground to avoid its claws.
Before he could roll away, the demon kicked him in the ribs with enough force to send him flying across the circle. Only his dragonscale armor saved him from a collapsed chest. As it was, his ribs were at a minimum bruised and possibly cracked.
Shoving the pain aside, Moz scrambled to his feet. Now he knew where to strike. He just needed an opening.
Unfortunately, the demon didn’t appear inclined to give him one. It charged with reckless abandon. It was like nothing Moz did could hurt it. Fighting an opponent that didn’t bleed or feel pain wasn’t easy.
And its movements were getting faster. Instead of just dodging, Moz was forced to deflect incoming blows with his swords. The heavy strikes drained his vitality. If this kept up, he wasn’t going to have strength to attack when his opportunity appeared.
If it appeared.
Moz leapt back to give himself some breathing room. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the assassin’s dagger lying on the ground, forgotten by the demon.
This was going to be tricky, but it might give him a chance.
Moz slipped his toe under the dagger and kicked it toward the demon as it charged in again.
The demon raised its arms to slap the dagger aside.
Moz rushed it. His right-hand sword lashed out, forcing the demon’s claws aside. A small gap opened. His left sword darted through, slamming into the monster’s shoulder. He hit something hard and felt it shatter.
The demon threw its head back and howled. Moz rushed to Mariel’s side, crouching in front of her helpless body to shield it the best he could.
A black mist rose out of the demon’s body. When it stopped, the assassin’s corpse flopped to the ground. All the wounds Moz had inflicted were back along with the gaping hole in his chest. Around the clearing, the golden circle vanished.
Moz blew out a sigh and winced when his abused ribs complained. It appeared that they’d won. Thank the gods for that.
Chapter 18
After a day and a half of all three ships crisscrossing the sky, one of Leonidas’s lookouts finally spotted a group of horsemen that included a little blond girl. It looked like they had been spotted in turn as the riders were kicking their mounts into a gallop and veering off the road toward a forest about three miles distant.
He grimaced. The last thing they needed was to have to dig them out of another forest. Word of their attack would reach Rend City soon enough. The army didn’t especially concern him – the number of normal weapons that could threaten his flying ships was minimal after all. The problem would be forcing a large detachment of soldiers to hand over Ariel. It would be better all around if they grabbed her and escaped Rend before the army showed up.
“Get ahea
d of them,” Leonidas said.
The ship shuddered and lurched to the right. He was forced to grasp the rail to keep from falling.
“What’s going on?” he demanded.
“The wind spirits are fighting my commands,” Domina said. “It’s like someone is trying to assume control.”
Leonidas scanned the sky. One of those bards had summoned wind to blind them back at the college. If she did that by controlling wind spirits, it was possible that was the source of interference. But where was she hiding? The irony of their foe using actual clouds as cover wasn’t lost on him.
If his eyes wouldn’t reveal her position, maybe his ring could. Leonidas closed his eyes to better focus. Where was the magic coming from? Maybe he couldn’t absorb the wind spirits’ magic, but he could still blast the woman out of the sky.
Another lurch, this time to the left, shook the ship. He ignored it and continued to focus. She had to be here somewhere. Maybe not close, but within view of the ships.
There! It wasn’t much but he sensed something unnatural emanating from a thick cloud bank directly ahead of them.
He pointed and a crimson energy beam lanced out.
He hit nothing, but the ship stopped bucking, allowing Domina to get them back on course. The riders were only a mile from the tree line. No way could the ships get ahead of them now. The bard had done her job well. But maybe not as well as she believed.
The forest was at the very outer edge of his ring’s range. Still, it was worth a shot. He pointed and sent a scythe of red energy arcing in at the trees nearest the road. The blade of energy hit them and six fell across the road. The riders’ horses slowed and reared; no doubt the attack had left them terrified.
“Hurry, Domina.”
“I’m pushing the spirits as hard as I can,” she said.
The wind was stronger on his face than usual. The riders had their mounts under control now. Knowing the ships were above them should force the bards to avoid the road. The forest didn’t look dense enough to stop them, only to slow them down. Men on foot could run down horses in that tight cover.
They still had a chance.
When the maple trees came crashing down in front of them, it was all Callie could do to keep her horse from bolting and Ariel from falling out of the saddle. At least the girl stayed calm. Adding a screaming kid to their situation wouldn’t be at all helpful.
As the others wrestled their mounts back under control, she risked a glance over her shoulder. Now that she knew what to look for, the fake clouds that hid the flying ships were easy to spot. They were headed this way in a hurry.
“Callie?” Tamsin had finally brought her horse under control.
“Into the woods, quick. They can’t target us if they can’t see us.” Callie flicked her reins and led the way.
The maples were tall, broad, and well spaced. They wouldn’t be rushing, but the horses would have no trouble traveling through the forest. With any luck it would stay this open the entire way. Above, the canopy was a mass of crimson. If they’d been two weeks later, there wouldn’t have been any cover to speak of. It felt like the first bit of luck they’d had in days.
The real trick would come when they reached the far side of the forest. A modest-sized town was a few miles from the edge of the woods where Callie planned to buy supplies. The Dark Sages had clearly demonstrated they cared nothing for anyone that stood between them and Ariel. Could Callie really lead that sort of danger to a town full of noncombatants? Did she have a choice?
None of her options were appealing.
“Why won’t they just leave me alone?” Ariel asked out of the blue.
“Because you’re special. They want to use your talents for their own ends. I’m not sure what those ends are, though I doubt they’re good.”
Ariel looked back at her. “Even if they get me, I won’t help them. I hate being special.”
Callie sighed. What bard hadn’t felt like that at one time or another? Being different had its perks, but the downsides were considerable as well.
“Hang in there, Ariel. We’ll get through this together, don’t worry.”
“Callie?” Albert, their earthmaster, said. “We’ve got multiple people in the woods all around us. Still distant but closing. I count twenty distinct sets of footsteps.”
“Gods damn them!” The Dark Sages must want to deal with them where there were no witnesses. If it was just soldiers, there’d be no problem, but if the wizards had come down as well, they were in for a battle.
“Albert, take the lead. Head for the ones with the heaviest tread. That’s apt to be soldiers in armor. If you have to bury them to make us a path, do it. Tamsin, where are the ships?”
“Spread out above us,” Tamsin said. “One south, one west, and one east.”
Great, the one direction open to them was the one they didn’t want to take. Going north would only bring them farther from the capital. If they could only lose the ships for a little while…
Wait, if they went north, there was some heavy fortification on the Carttoom border. They could hole up there for a few days, talk to General Rend and get a military escort. That would give the Dark Sages pause.
“We’re heading north. Let’s go.”
Albert took the lead. Lucy nocked an arrow. Her ability to control snakes was useless in a situation like this one, but she was a fine shot with a bow and wasn’t afraid to use it. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
The best speed they could manage through the trees was a trot. It felt horribly slow to Callie. At the front of the line, Albert guided them with steady confidence. Not a single soldier showed his face. For half an hour they traveled through the dappled shadows. Any moment Callie expected a squad of soldiers to appear out of nowhere.
“We’ve almost reached the edge of the woods,” Tamsin said. “There’s an empty field ahead and the three ships are facing away from us. This might be our chance.”
A shiver ran through Callie. Something was wrong, but she couldn’t put her finger on what exactly.
They burst from the woods and Albert kicked his horse into a gallop. Before the others could follow suit a shimmering filled the air ahead of them. Fifty feet away stood a group of twenty soldiers along with two of the wizards that had attacked the college and a third one in a dark hooded robe.
It was a trap.
How could she have been so stupid? They left the gap on purpose so the bards would ride right to them.
“Back into the woods!” Callie wheeled her horse around and found herself facing a bristling wall of soldiers armed with shields and spears. They weren’t riding through that.
The older, aristocratic man she fought earlier stepped closer, his black robe fluttering in a soft breeze. “You’re trapped. Surrender the child and no more of your bards need to die.”
“Never!” Callie said.
“We’re going to take her anyway. Surrender is the only way to assure your survival.”
Callie hissed and called on her power. A wave of energy shot out at the man. It struck an invisible barrier and was absorbed harmlessly.
“Your powers can’t stop me.” He raised his hand and displayed a black ring set with a crimson gem. “This is your last chance. Hand her over and live.”
“No.”
A crimson beam shot out at Lucy, but an earthen wall sprang up to take the impact.
Behind them a roar went up as the soldiers charged.
On the saddle in front of her Ariel trembled. Poor kid was probably scared to death.
“No more!” Ariel screamed.
A moment later a huge shadow passed over them. The earth shook when the massive yellow-scaled dragon hit the ground in front of Callie. It roared loud enough to shake the air.
A tail as thick as a tree trunk lashed out, sending the enemies in front of them flying in all directions.
The dragon turned, its eyes glowing.
Its head snapped forward.
A blinding bolt of lightning streaked o
ut into the soldiers behind them.
“Smash their boats!” Ariel commanded.
The dragon roared again, forcing Callie to cover her ears. It leapt into the air and Callie strained to follow its path. A second burst of lightning seared the air followed by an explosion that sent a flying ship crashing to earth.
From the heap of bodies ahead of them, a dark streak shot into the sky.
There was another explosion as a second ship crashed to earth. Callie tore her gaze away from the dragon to look at Ariel. Her sweet face was twisted into a fierce scowl of rage and her eyes glowed an angry yellow.
Callie had seen this sort of thing before. The girl was now one with her dragon.
Leonidas’s shock at the dragon’s appearance nearly got him killed. When its tail came sweeping in, only instinct got his shield strengthened in time. He ended up sprawled in a heap fifty feet from where he started. His men along with Domina and Jax lay scattered about him like trees after a tornado.
He forced himself to his knees. The dragon’s roars combined with the crack of its lightning breath assaulted his ears even from a distance.
Where the hell did it come from? He hadn’t sensed or seen any sign of it in the area. Something that big didn’t just appear out of thin air. At least he didn’t think they did. Given how little they really knew about dragons, anything was possible.
Possible, but not likely. The girl’s fear must have called the monster. The possibility of a dragon showing up had occurred to him of course, he’d just assumed he’d have some warning. The dragon took to the sky and a moment later another explosion rang out.
“Leonidas,” Jax said.
He turned to see the dark-robed wizard crawling toward him. Jax’s hood had been torn off revealing the fish-belly-white skin of his face. The flesh was so pale and thin, the blood vessels were visible.
“Are you okay, old friend?” Leonidas asked.
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