Soldier Saved

by D. K. Holmberg

  The female rubbed up against him.

  “I can’t take them on in a group like that. I don’t want the others to harm them, so we’ll have to find a way to draw at least one or two of them off so that I have a chance to do the same as what I did with you.”

  The female swiveled her head and fixed him with her intense stare.

  “I intend to help. You don’t have to worry that I will abandon the merahl.”

  She licked his hand.

  Endric turned his attention back toward the grouping. As he did, the female stood, making herself visible, and let out a strange, angry howl. It made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on edge. She repeated it and then bounded away, running down the hillside.

  When she was a dozen steps from him, she turned and crawled back up the hill.

  Her calculating nature impressed Endric. She used strategy to attempt to draw off one or more of the other merahl. Endric didn’t know if it would work, but suspected that their distinct call might draw off the others more easily than if he were to have attempted something.

  He looked down into the valley and noted that only five merahl remained.

  Where had the other gone?

  The merahl moved quickly, but it couldn’t have been so quickly that it would have disappeared. The two merahl with him would have been able to follow it.

  The male suddenly twisted, jumping to his feet and snarling.

  Endric rolled, barely in time.

  The missing merahl landed where he had been lying.

  The female lunged, knocking the newcomer, sending him tumbling down the hill. The two merahl jumped after it, quickly pinning it to the ground.

  The female whined softly and Endric hurried down the hill.

  His heart hammered. He unsheathed his sword as he approached and threw himself on top of the merahl, covering its neck. This was a massive creature, even larger than the two that he’d been traveling with. Without them to help hold this one down, Endric doubted he would have been able to restrain it.

  He peeled back the creature’s lip and found a marking much as had been on the other two. Endric barely hesitated, using his sword to slice through the marking, and then pushed, sending a sense as if he were changing the polarity of teralin. With a flash, a charring changed the marking, obscuring it. He did the same with one on the other side of the merahl’s mouth.

  Before relaxing, Endric pried the creature’s mouth open and looked at the roof of his mouth. There was no marking there.

  Why were there only two for the males but three for the females?

  Or maybe that had nothing to do with it.

  Endric quickly ran his hands through the merahl’s fur, looking for any other markings that he might have missed, but he found none. This merahl had darker fur, brown so deep that it was almost black, and stripes that blended in, making them almost invisible, although the stripes were smoother than the rest of the fur. He released his grip and crawled back.

  The female began licking the mouth of the trapped merahl and a sizzling energy filled the air that reminded Endric of what he’d felt after lightning struck.

  The female released her grip, and the male did the same.

  Endric held tightly onto his sword, prepared to attack if necessary.

  The massive merahl snarled once, then ran his tongue across his mouth and shivered, a trembling that worked through him. When he stood, he sniffed the air and whined softly.

  It would be difficult to trust that this merahl was not still influenced, but Endric would trust the other two merahl for now. If they believed that he had somehow healed this one that quickly, he would have to believe that it had been done.

  “We have to get the others,” Endric said.

  The female let out a soft cry, and the newcomer responded in kind.

  Endric could almost make out what they were saying to each other, though as before, he wondered if that were only his imagination.

  The large male bounded off, disappearing around the side of the hill, letting off a sharp howl. Another answered.

  Endric understood this one. He needed to be ready.

  When the next merahl appeared, he was ready for it. The two that he’d traveled with from the coast trapped it between them and landed on top of the newcomer, but not before he managed to let out a ferocious snarl that echoed across the hills.

  They would be discovered.

  Endric worked quickly, jumping onto the merahl’s back and slicing through the marks. This was a female, and much like the other female, he found one on the roof of her mouth. He searched her fur but there were no others. He released her and the two merahl licked her mouth, leaving energy hanging in the air.

  He might start the healing process, but something the merahl did completed it.

  If this worked, the numbers would be even.

  Four merahl remained.

  Endric crept up the side of the hill until he could once more look out and over it. From his vantage, he made out the four remaining merahl. They stood, two of them sniffing the air. One prowled in a circle. The forth—a massive merahl much larger than any of the others—remained near the captives.

  The merahl knew something was off. Endric needed to work carefully—and quickly.

  He looked over at the female. She crouched next to him, her nose barely poking above the side of the hill and her head tipped so that one eye could peer more easily. Unlike in the mountains when hunting, her fur stood out among the green grasses.

  “They know we’re here,” Endric whispered.

  The merahl sniffed. It was the only reaction she made.

  “Can you take on the others?”

  The numbers made it even, but they needed to capture—and heal—the remaining merahl, not harm them, and certainly not destroy them.

  She didn’t make any sound.

  Endric didn’t know whether he should take that as agreement or whether there was concern from the merahl.

  “We can try drawing another of them off,” Endric suggested.

  The merahl whined softly.

  This time, he was certain he knew what she wanted: Agreement.

  How would he draw off the merahl?

  They were smart, which meant he would have to outsmart them. They were fast, but he now had four other merahl who would help him and would protect him if they managed to move past him.

  They’d already used the merahl to try and draw the others off. That meant there needed to be a different approach.

  It would have to be Endric.

  He stood.

  When he did, the merahl in the valley turned to him immediately. They howled softly, enough that it echoed, the sound bouncing off the hillsides. Were they in the mountains, he imagined it would be an impressive sound.

  None started toward him.

  He had hoped that he would be able to pull at least one of the merahl off, but they remained near the captives.

  Endric started down the side of the hill. He kept his sword unsheathed and his body tense. Pain still throbbed through his ankle where it had been injured, though it was much better than it had been. At least he could walk. If it came to a battle—if he had to use his sword to fight off whoever twisted the merahl—he wasn’t certain that he would be able to do so. All he had to do was undo what tainted them. Then they would have enough support.

  The closer he got to the merahl, the more impressed with the massive creature he was. She—and there was no question the merahl was female—was almost half again as large as the female Endric had restored near the sea. The remaining others were equally impressive but didn’t draw his attention in the same way.

  Endric paused to consider who had been captured. There were Urik and Tresten, but he realized with shock that his father and a dozen or so Denraen with him had been captured as well. Only Tresten stood. The rest were sitting.

  That surprised him. The Denraen would not sit, especially his father. Not when they were trapped and standing might give them an opportunity to escape. Had th
ey given up?

  Endric pushed the thought away.

  There was another figure in the middle of the circle, one he should not have been surprised to see.

  Novan.

  All members of the Conclave.

  The betrayal must have been real.

  Could that be why the merahl attacked?

  Endric glanced behind him. None of the merahl he’d restored crested the hillside.

  Was it a trap meant for him?

  Had he not restored the other merahl?

  His heart hammered. Dendril shook his head. A long gash ran along one side of his face—likely made by a merahl claw. Novan sat in the middle of the circle, no sign of his staff.

  Tresten watched Endric. All traces of the fatigue and the weakness that Endric had seen in his eyes were gone. He was the same powerful Mage Endric had known before.

  One of the merahl howled.

  It was a harsh and painful sound, and it made the hair on the back of his neck stand.

  Other merahl responded, but none who stood in the clearing.

  And they weren’t behind him.

  There were more.

  There might be four remaining twisted merahl, but that wasn’t the end of them.

  If he didn’t act quickly, he would be outnumbered again.

  And now they knew he was coming.

  33

  Endric glanced behind him, expecting the other merahl to appear, but they did not.

  He turned his attention back to these. He had to stop them—and had to repair whatever had been done to them. He didn’t believe he’d been forced into a trap, and he didn’t believe the merahl he’d helped intended to attack him.

  But that didn’t mean they could help.

  The others in the clearing would need to help.

  Endric started down the side of the hill once more. With each step, he felt a growing unease. Whatever happened would need to be quick. The distant howls were growing closer. He figured he had a few minutes, but not much longer. After that, he would be overwhelmed by attacking merahl.

  He needed help. The merahl he’d restored needed to assist him, but he wasn’t sure whether they could.

  What choice did he have?

  As he neared, Tresten spoke. His voice was soft but managed to carry to Endric, as if drifting on the wind. “I don’t know what you’ve done with the others, but you cannot destroy them. There’s something wrong with them.”

  Before he had a chance to answer, one of the merahl lunged toward him.

  Endric held his sword out and pushed through it, preparing to use it to undo the damage to the merahl.

  Light glowed along the blade.

  That was the first time he’d seen it do that. Was it because the teralin prepared for what he intended or was there another answer? Did he somehow access a strange power? For him to change the polarity of teralin, he would have to have some connection to power, as strange as that might be to admit.

  Did the answer even matter?

  The merahl leaped and he ducked.

  Within the clearing, someone gasped, though Endric ignored it.

  He rolled, holding onto his sword, and grabbed a handful of fur.

  A single thought reverberated in his head: He had to act quickly.

  Endric threw his arm around the merahl’s neck, pinning it.

  He threw himself on top of the merahl, holding its face to the ground, avoiding the attempt at clawing him free. Vaguely, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye and risked looking up.

  The other restored merahl had arrived.

  Two merahl pinned the others to the ground—all but the largest of them.

  Endric worked quickly, lifting the lip of the merahl and slicing his sword through the marking. The merahl managed to nip at his hand, drawing blood, but he ignored it.

  Switching sides, he pulled the lip on the other side, doing the same.

  He checked the inside of the mouth, but there wasn’t a third. A male, then.

  Endric released him.

  When he rolled to his feet, he saw the massive merahl stalking toward Tresten.

  With a glance, Endric realized the other two merahl were contained. He had time—at least until the others appeared. Tresten might not.

  Endric ran toward the massive merahl, but not before she lunged.

  “No!” he cried.

  Endric threw himself at the merahl, landing atop her back.

  Tresten caught the merahl’s front legs and pushed her back. The merahl had to outweigh Tresten by a significant amount but he managed to hold her, keeping her off him.

  “Work quickly, Endric,” Tresten said.

  Endric shifted his grip, sliding up the merahl’s fur, and reached for her neck.

  With a furious shake, she threw him off.

  Endric went sprawling.

  He landed near his father.

  This close, Endric could see the injury to his father. It was more than only a massive gash along his face. His arm was mangled and his leg looked as if it had been broken. The other Denraen were similarly injured. They didn’t sit because they’d given up but because they couldn’t stand.

  What of Novan? Had the historian been hurt as well?

  Endric rolled, looking for the historian, but couldn’t see him.

  When he jumped to his feet, he understood why.

  Novan helped Tresten, and together they pushed the merahl away.

  Surprisingly, Urik helped as well.

  Endric limped toward the merahl. She was snapping at Novan but he managed to move out of the way, keeping her from getting too close. She strained to get free, but Novan and Tresten gripped her front legs, holding her. Urik had wrapped himself around her back legs.

  “Force her to the ground,” Endric said.

  “It is more difficult than you suggest,” Tresten said. He didn’t sound stressed but Endric couldn’t imagine he was anything but strained by the effort of holding the merahl in place. “She is quite powerful.”

  Endric glanced over his shoulder. The merahl he’d restored when he first came to the clearing lay on his side. Had he been too aggressive with him? Endric didn’t think so. Maybe it was the fact that he needed the merahl to use whatever ability they had to help complete the restoration.

  He would need to finish this first.

  The merahl stood on her back legs, shaking her body back and forth as she struggled to get free. Novan and Tresten managed to hold tightly, anchoring her.

  Endric climbed onto her back.

  He gripped her fur, pulling himself along, wrapping his legs around her body. She attempted to throw him again, but he was better prepared than the last time, and he managed to hold onto his grip and resist getting thrown.

  “What are you doing?” Novan didn’t mask the tension in his voice nearly as well as Tresten had. It trembled slightly, much like the way his arms trembled. How much longer would he be able to hold on before he lost his grip on the merahl? When he did, Endric doubted Tresten would be able to hold her for much longer.

  “Attempting to end this.”

  “You can’t destroy this creature,” Tresten said.

  Endric gritted his teeth. “I didn’t destroy any of the others.”

  He reached the merahl’s head. Holding onto her back like this, it would be difficult for him to confine her enough to burn off the marks. Could he wrap himself around her throat and drop her? That was how he’d managed to stop the other merahl. She was almost too large for him to get his arms around.

  There was another concern.

  Doing so would require that he drop his sword.

  If he did, he risked not having it if he had to do something more aggressive to slow the merahl. If he didn’t, he might not be able to stop her from harming them.

  Endric released his grip on the sword. It dropped near the merahl’s rear legs.

  He grabbed her around the throat and squeezed.

  She thrashed, but now that he’d dropped his sword, he had a better grip than
he had before and he managed to hang on. Endric continued to squeeze, but the thrashing continued.

  Novan lost his grip and went sprawling.

  Endric squeezed tighter.

  “You need to hurry,” Tresten said. He no longer spoke as calmly as before.

  Endric squeezed. There was a balance between squeezing hard enough to drop the merahl and so hard that he crushed her throat. He didn’t want to do that.

  Her rear legs managed to get free.

  She thrashed, jumping into the air, carrying Tresten and Endric with her.

  Endric started to slip but squeezed even more, bracing himself for their landing.

  Where was Tresten?

  Had she crushed him?

  Endric clung to the merahl’s back. She was incredibly powerful. This merahl needed to live and hunt groeliin. It would be devastating if she could not.

  Howls filled the air.

  Endric tried not to think about how close they were. They continued to reverberate, filling the air, but he needed to hold onto this merahl and finish it. If he could, the others could be restored and they would have the numbers needed to help the arriving merahl.

  Finally, the thrashing eased.

  Endric held on until she stopped moving.

  He looked up. Urik stood above him with his sword. Endric’s heart hammered. What would Urik do? Would he attempt to attack Endric now that the merahl had incapacitated him—and Dendril?

  Urik flipped the sword around and handed it to Endric, hilt first. That was Endric’s hilt, Endric’s sword. Urik was actually helping and Endric gave silent thanks as he took it and pulled back.

  Endric took it and quickly pulled back the merahl’s lip, slicing through the markings there. He did the same on the other side of her jaw, as well as the roof of her mouth. When he was done, he leaned against her a moment, catching his breath.

  Where was Tresten?

  Endric stood. His legs shook; the effort required to hold him on the merahl’s back had left him weakened. He staggered toward the other two merahl, both trapped by those he’d already restored.

  “Endric?”

  It was Novan’s voice. Endric ignored the historian as he made his way to the nearest of the merahl. It snarled at him, but the others held it down.

  Endric quickly destroyed the markings in his mouth and went to the other merahl.