Herald of the Nine

by Tiger Hebert

  That was brilliant, Draece, she thought.

  Vacinne and the others charged ahead from four different angles, closing the distance quickly. But the Warlock Supreme was quicker. He spun back toward them. His hand shot out toward Thrazen. Magical blue and purple chains shot out of the ground and snared the deadly dwarf. The sorcerous bonds grabbed him by the wrists and ankles, stopping him dead in his tracks. Thrazen roared as he fought against the magical restraints, but couldn’t break free.

  Demons in the vicinity recognized the dwarf’s plight, and they shifted their focus to him. Vacinne watched as they descended on her friend. She stopped her pursuit of Jherenon and rushed to the dwarf’s aid.

  Renlar charged hard after Jherenon, his daggers already loosed like a hail of arrows. Jherenon released dark magic at him. An undulating magic wave of black and purple hues swept over a wide swath of ground. It was coming right for Renlar.

  Renlar cursed and changed his course, but the sorcerous attack was fast. Renlar dove to his left, but he did not clear the magic’s path completely. Virulent magic burned and clawed at his lower legs. Agony shot through his lower body. Renlar cried out as he crashed hard to the ground.

  He looked back at his legs. His pants and his boots were charred with burn holes throughout. Bitter pain surged through his legs. He clutched at them and drew them close. His flesh was badly burned and blistered from the knees down. As he watched, the blisters began to pop, oozing hot putrid goo, which only increased the pain. Renlar screamed.

  Draece narrowly dodged a bolt of swirling dark magic. He had Jherenon’s full attention now, but his Spirit was depleted and his energy was waning. He knew he was operating on adrenaline alone now. He dove and rolled below another bolt of foul magic. The blast behind him exploded with deafening force, releasing noxious gasses. Despite evading the attack, Draece was not entirely spared. The fumes hit him, and hit him hard. The acrid odor swept into his lungs. A sour taste filled his mouth, and the burning began. Draece coughed, but the burning did not relent. He dropped his sword as he clutched at his throat. Draece collapsed and was swallowed by the black cloud of noxious gas.

  Jherenon lowered his staff and aimed it for the place where Draece was. Renlar cried out from the ground where he lay maimed. The wind gusted. He sent a storm of steel at Jherenon. All twelve blades surged toward the heretic. The green glow of the daggers trailed behind them as they soared. The warlock moved with unholy speed. The daggers flew right past him and obliterated a demon just beyond him. Jherenon countered. Blue and purple chains of magic shot up from out of the ground to wrap around Renlar’s wrists and his ankles. The sorcerous shackles bit into the tender burned flesh of his ankles, and Renlar screamed.

  Vacinne met the first goblar in the face with her shield. Her blade followed with a swift strike. Then another. Two demons fell before her. Another small pack of the green demons charged at her. Thrazen roared as he fought against the restraints, but all his hope was on Vacinne.

  She’d fought well, they all had, but demons continued to pour through the portals. A few dozen had emerged just since they reached the courtyard. The Wardens wielded mighty weapons and incredible powers, but they were overwhelmed too, and for every demon they felled, another one or two seemed to take their place.

  The pack of goblars drew near to Vacinne. She spun to her left and swung a wild neck level slash. The tip of her blade ripped through one demon’s throat, spraying black blood everywhere. Vacinne readied for her next strike. A demon hammered her from behind. She staggered forward, fighting to catch her balance. She crashed into the onrushing pack of demons. They caught her with their strong hands, and wrestled her to the ground right before Thrazen’s feet. He watched the demons rush her.

  A terrible, bone rattling roar echoed over the battlefield. Even the throes of battle ceased for a moment. Something terrible had been unleashed.

  The dragon was a comet of frozen death descending upon the battlefield. A storm of icy destruction carved a swath across the courtyard. Demons caught in her wrath were flash frozen, crystallized instantly. Over a dozen demons simply shattered under the power of Ausaliia’s mighty breath.

  The great white dragon slammed down into the courtyard near Thrazen. The goblars roared and howled at her presence, but the distraction worked. The dragon’s tail struck like lightning. The blow knocked the impish demons flying through the air.

  Ausaliia moved over to Vacinne, who was now freed. Vacinne’s face was dirty and blood ran from her mouth and one of her cheeks. The dragon roared in defiance. Her lashing tail and frigid breath destroyed anything that moved close as Vacinne climbed onto her back.

  “Get me out of here,” shouted Thrazen.

  Vacinne turned to her friend. She had no idea what she was doing, but she focused on the chains that held him. She envisioned golden light breaking the chains.

  She roared, “By the Light!”

  A pillar of roaring golden fire burst forth from the Heavens. A storm of flames shot down upon Thrazen. He was nearly lost in the blinding light. The heavenly fire consumed the darkness that held him. In seconds, the magical bonds were broken, unleashing the berzerking dwarf once more. With a rage-filled war-cry, Thrazen rejoined the battle.

  Vacinne linked her mind with Ausaliia’s. If we don’t help Renlar and Draece, they’ll be killed!

  The dragon sent an icy blast at a charging minotaur. The icy shards ripped right through the demon’s torso, before crystallizing outward from there. The demon was completely frozen in place, with a massive hole ripped right through its chest.

  Ausaliia dropped low, and let loose a mighty roar before using her powerful legs to leap into the air. Her mighty wings beat as she lifted them up and away from the courtyard. By now, the dragon had drawn the warlock’s attention. Jherenon responded with a flurry of fireballs from his staff. Vacinne was running low on Spirit, but she drained herself dangerously low to cast a protective shield around herself and Ausaliia just in time. The fiery orbs slammed into the shield as the dragon rose higher into the storming sky.

  Vacinne whispered into Renlar’s mind, are you okay?

  I’ll live if you can keep him off us.

  She replied, we will keep him distracted. Get out of there.

  I’ll see what I can do, replied Renlar as he pulled upon his magical restraints.

  Renlar heard coughing in the distance. He tried to look to see where it came from, but the restraints held fast and he could barely lift his face from the ground. The coughing drew closer.

  Through the coughing, the voice called out. “You still alive Blackie?”

  “That you, Skullie?”

  “Let’s get you out of here,” rasped Draece with a ragged voice.

  Draece summon the last vestige of his Spirit to create an anti-magic sphere over his old friend. The yellow sphere with moving runes appeared around Renlar just long enough for the magical chains to fade away. Then the sphere disappeared. Renlar groaned as the magical tethers released his wrists and his badly burned legs. Before he knew what was happening, Draece, who seemed like he barely had the strength to stand on his own, was pulling Renlar’s arm over his shoulder. Renlar did everything he could to get to his feet, but standing sent pain shooting through his feet and legs. His legs faltered and buckled beneath the weight and pain. Draece dropped low, but he managed to keep Renlar from hitting the ground.

  “Dammit Blackie, help me out!”

  The chaos of battle swirled around them, with enemies drawing closer with each heartbeat.

  “I’m trying,” gasped Renlar through clenched teeth.

  The pain was too much for him though. His legs buckled under him once more. Draece tried to catch him, but Renlar’s weight dropped too quickly, and he hit the ground. Renlar cried out in pain.

  The Nathrene snarled, “I’m getting you out of here...”

  Draece squatted down and threw his arms around Renlar. With all the strength he could summon and a roar, he lifted Renlar from the ground and stood up. />
  “...even if it kills me!”

  With his friend in his arms, the blue-skinned bounty hunter scanned the courtyard. He’d spotted stairs that led to the top of the walls. It led to a small section of the battlements occupied by Wardens. Step by labored step, he rushed toward the stairs. It took all of his strength to carry Renlar up the battlement. Draece roared as he mustered all his strength into getting his friend away from the battle. As he neared the top of the stairs, two nearby Wardens rushed to their aid, helping the two, pulling them behind the protection of the small pocket of Wardens that had formed nearby. Draece and Renlar collapsed on the rampart’s stone surface.

  Lightning flashed through the dark sky. Cold, wet air whipped through Vacinne’s hair as she soared over the battlefield on the back of the white dragon. From this height she could see the battlefield clearly. The massive defensive walls of the temple grounds framed the huge rectangular courtyard, with the temple at the far northern end. The battle that carried out below was awful. At its center, the three hell rifts all remained. The red flaming portals to the Hells would continue to allow demons to pour forth into the mortal realm if it wasn’t closed.

  Hundreds of demons had already infiltrated the courtyard and waged war on any living being they found. Rift Wardens fought valiantly but their forces were fractured and scattered. One remnant fought from the northern end around the tower, while other groups fought in different spots along the battlements and courtyard below.

  Ausaliia swept in a wide gliding loop as she twisted back toward the battle field. The dragon beat her wings, thrusting them forward. Vacinne’s eyes studied the battle as they made their swift approach from the south.

  Vacinne held her mind-link with the dragon. We’ve got to keep Jherenon busy, but let’s help out as many as we can along the way.

  A low rumble sounded deep in the dragon’s belly, sounding her acknowledgement. Vacinne held tight to the dragon. Ausaliia flew low, barely ten feet above the tops of the battlements. They raced past a small, outnumbered group of Wardens who’d been backed into a corner. The mighty dragon opened her mouth, and with a roar, she loosed her deadly breath. The storm of ice swept down the length of the wall where demons pressed the attack on the Wardens. Shards of ice and frigid air laid waste to the throng of demons. Shards of frozen demon flew in every direction as the bodies simply shattered. Vacinne watched behind them. The Wardens cheered at their reversal of fortune, and with new resolve they charged headlong into the next wave of foes.

  Vacinne whipped her head back around. Just like that, in a blink, Ausaliia had already taken them halfway across the battlefield. Her deadly attacks carving out multiple frozen paths through the demon horde. There was still more than could be counted, but it would at least give them a chance.

  Vacinne’s eyes caught something bright.

  “Ausaliia, look out!” she shouted.

  A ball of fire raced toward them. The dragon roared in response, and maneuvered to her left. The fireball sailed past them. Vacinne’s eyes traced back to where it had come from. Jherenon had already unleashed several more. The fiery attacks filled the air. Vacinne dropped low and clutched at the dragon’s neck. Ausaliia shifted into more evasion maneuvers. Fireballs zipped past them on all sides as the dragon danced through the air with an uncanny grace.

  Ausaliia beat her wings, increasing her speed toward her target. The distance between them and Jherenon closed rapidly. Ausaliia released another torrent of icy death. Everything between them and the warlock turned white as the frozen path raced toward him. The shards of ice descended upon him and passed right through the place where the warlock stood, but he was no longer there.

  Jherenon had disappeared. Ausaliia flew away from the temple grounds. Vacinne heard a roaring sound and turned back around. Four fireballs were hot on their heels. Her heart raced.

  “Higher, Ausaliia, higher!”

  The dragon heeded her desperate cry. Her powerful wings lifted them skyward, allowing them to narrowly escape the warlock’s counter attack.

  Even with a dragon, you’re no match for me, child, Jherenon rasped in her mind.

  She tried to force his words and the sinister laughter that followed from her thoughts. They needed to end this, and they needed to end it soon, before it was too late. Ausaliia climbed dangerously high into the storm clouds and disappeared.

  Draece helped Renlar find a spot to sit atop the high walls that lined the battlefield’s perimeter. A group of six Wardens fought for their lives less than fifteen feet from them. Renlar breathed heavily as the pain in his legs refused to leave. Draece stood at his side, doubled over, panting from sheer exhaustion. Renlar realized Draece had not only depleted all his Spirit, but he’d extended beyond that, tapping into his Will. It was dangerous, but so was war. Renlar realized his friend wouldn’t have the strength to fight anymore, it was nothing less than a miracle that Draece had even been able to pull him from the battlefield. Draece had, no doubt, just saved his life.

  “I owe you,” he said as he stretched out and put a hand on his friend’s back.

  “If we get out of here alive, all debts are settled,” said Draece as he threw his hands out to the sides, indicating he was finished.

  Renlar said nothing, he scanned the battle around them. Pockets of Wardens were still holding up. Some better than others, but still they fought. Vacinne and Ausaliia had obliterated dozens of demons, but still more came through the rifts. He realized that they had to close them down, but unless they could take out Jherenon, he didn’t know how they’d manage.

  “How do we do it?” asked Draece, seemingly reading his mind.

  “I—I don’t know.”

  “Our forces are too spread out. I don’t know how to help the Wardens, stop the bastard, and close the rifts. We need more help!”

  “I know,” sighed Renlar.

  Then his eyes saw something in the center of the courtyard. He looked again. He didn’t see anything at first. Then he saw what appeared to be a tiny twinkling golden light, but then it seemed to vanish. Renlar blinked. His eyes must be playing tricks on him.

  Once more he saw a tiny, brief flash of twinkling golden light, which seemed to dissipate. He rubbed his eyes, but the spot turned into three.

  “What’s the matter with you?” snapped Draece.

  “My eyes... do you see lights over there? Golden lights?”

  Draece turned to face the direction Renlar pointed.

  “No.”

  “What’s wrong with my ey—”

  “Wait a minute...” said Draece.

  They both turned and watched as three twinkling lights emerged one after another, until all three were visible. The once faint lights were now three glowing orbs of swirling golden light at their core.

  “What in the Nine Hells are those?” demanded Draece.

  “I’ve never seen anything like them,” admitted Renlar.

  “Well, what in the Nine do you think they are?”

  Renlar said, “I don’t think they have anything to do with the Nine, anything at all.”

  Renlar and Draece watched as the three golden orbs at the center of the courtyard began to grow into what looked like three large oval windows. Renlar’s suspicions were confirmed.

  His mouth dropped open and he whispered, “Vei’thalo,” and hope roared to life inside of him.

  18

  Vei’thalo

  Renlar watched as the massive twelve-foot-tall Seraph stepped through the portal. The giant holy warrior was clad in white linens and golden plate armor. His breastplate bore the graven image of a raging lion that on second glance seemed to actually be alive.

  “How can that be?” rasped Renlar aloud.

  He blinked and looked again. The lion on the breastplate was indeed moving! Its mane shifted like the glowing flames of gold, yellow, and orange that bathed the massive angel. The Seraph’s face looked human, but with eyes of jasper that burned like coals. Upon his head sat a heavily jeweled crown of gold. The angel turned
toward Renlar for a moment. Those intense eyes bored into his own as if they could sear his soul. Renlar panicked and felt trapped as those eyed bored deep into him for what felt like an eternity.

  The angel offered no expression. He simply nodded his head, before he turned away, releasing Renlar from his gaze.

  Renlar sighed in relief and nearly collapsed.

  “What in the Hells was that?” demanded Draece.

  “I—I don’t know... I’ve just... never felt fear like that before,” he eked out from the battlement floor where he collapsed.

  “They’re supposed to be on our side!” shouted Draece.

  Renlar shook his head. “No. That is where you... where we are all wrong. It is us that need to be on their side.”

  Draece nodded like he understood, then said, “Uh, what?”

  Renlar didn’t respond. He stood transfixed as he watched the towering angel of war prepare for battle. The Seraph stretched out his arm and held out his closed fist. He opened his fingers and held it there for a moment. White and yellow light flashed as a massive two-handed hammer materialized in his grasp. The ornate warhammer was made of a bright white material. Runes made of liquid gold moved like water upon the surface of the gigantic weapon. The weapon came up to the Seraphim’s shoulder. Renlar guessed it had to have been at least ten feet long. Strips of bright crimson leather crisscrossed all the way up the weapon’s long haft, forming the hammer’s grip.

  Two other Seraphim stepped through their portals, and joined the mortal realm. Each similarly armored, each wearing a jeweled crown. The first war-angel turned toward the flaming hell rifts. The second and third stretched out and drew their weapons. Heavenly weapons materialized in their grasps like the first, then they too turned toward the hell rifts.

  In unison, the three voices boomed and cracked like thunder. “For the Light!”

  The mighty warriors of the Heavens waded into battle at the Hell Rifts. Demons of all types continued to spill forth. An avwrest charged the first Seraph. The gigantic red demon bellowed as it bore down on its foe. It hurled the first of two black glaives. The war angel twisted his body. The blackened blade glanced across his breastplate, before ricocheting away. A violent explosion of crimson energy was released upon impact. The Seraph tottered slightly, before turning back toward the avwrest who was closing fast.