Battle Mage Bonds (Tales of Alus Book 13)

by Donald Wigboldy

  As the army strode confidently across the river, the defenders could see that this force might have the power needed to break Tenalin for the first time in its history. Smaller armies had tested them since the Dark One's army had come into Alus, but never in winter like this. It had been hard to reinforce the frontline cities, but Kardor had always managed to hold. With the death of the Dark One, whoever was in charge seemed to have grown bolder and decided that Tenalin was a target worthy of so many resources.

  Catapults launched large stones aiming for the ice of the river. Smaller groups of stones flew from others hoping to score a deathblow from the many heavy projectiles loaded into each basket. The first wave of stones went quickly. Tenalin had prepared as they waited. Men hurried to reload the weapons leaving a delay even as they staggered some of their attacks.

  Elzen used his magic to magnify his view of the army as they crossed and thought few if any of them were hurt let alone killed by the catapults. They were weapons that could be devastating when aimed accurately, but their payloads were obvious and flew slow enough that individuals could often dodge them by moving early. Soldiers in larger numbers in tighter groups were powerful but could get in the way of each other. That was when the most lives would be lost.

  The large stones fell striking the ice or near shore. They bounced forward, but large shields held by yutan and trolls could take the brunt of those projectiles without much harm. Smaller stones rained down, but the magic of the icy winds wielded by warlocks that remained hidden cast many of their deadly number aside.

  Battles weren't won with such weapons usually, but the defenders continued to reload and fire their catapults regularly. They slowed the army on the river and the mage watched as the next wave of projectiles was lit on fire by a group of wizards. With oil applied to these, they remained on fire as they soared hundreds of feet to the river. Flames lapped at those who blocked or were struck by the projectiles. The oil spread the flames and Elzen thought that the enemy's footing changed as the heat melted the ice. It wasn't enough to restore ice to water fully, but it made for slippery footing for those without claws.

  Some of the yutan picked up the smaller stones. The size of a man's head, or even a little larger, some weighed more than a hundred pounds. As if they weighed next to nothing, the huge creatures tossed the stones back towards the outer fortress wall.

  Like a bombardment from the catapults, the stones struck the wall sending tremors through the bricks that the men on top could feel easily. The stones were too small to shatter the walls, but they chipped and cracks formed in places.

  When the army's frontline passed the center of the river, Elzen turned feeling a rise in magical power from the inner turrets of the castle. Tenalin was formed of three layers of walls and turrets. From the second wall giant waves of fire lifted over the outer wall before dropping like water dropped from a bucket.

  Shields were raised and the freezing winds attacked the fire. Both kinds of magic were powerful, but as the mage watched not every enemy wind could blow the wizards' fire aside. A torrent landed among the monsters' left flank. The large black shields blistered with the heat. Smaller creatures caught by the spreading flames caught fire and ran from the wizards' magic. Others rolled around on the ice heating it even more. More melted, but even losing an inch or two of ice wasn't enough to keep the enemy army from plodding forward.

  The first of the friendly portal gates opened as the first of the yutan stepped onto the near side of the river. Soldiers and wizards proceeded out of the gates looking a bit confused after the distant jump. Luckily they were far enough away to avoid contact with any of the enemy. Another gate formed inside the courtyard where Tenalin guarded Sebastian's lodestone point. More troops poured into the courtyard at a slower rate than those outside the city. As they entered the city, the men and women began to spread out guided by the guards beside the gate.

  Officers moved to take charge of the new reinforcements making sure each man and woman moved to a place where they would be most useful.

  Looking up towards the tower where Ashleen stood watching and waiting, Elzen wondered how long it would be before Sebastian returned with an idea to deal with the enemy once more. The owl would come up with something to drive the dark army back, he was certain. Pitting Kardor's power against this force would mean many deaths for their side. They would be bodies that would be hard to replace as a military and impossible to replace as people.

  The horns blared again drawing his attention. A group moved through the heart of the enemy army. A group of orcs dressed differently from the others around them strode forward. Two men with the power of wizards joined them, the first human men that he had seen.

  Their magic formed even as the two sides seemed to size each other up. The catapults paused as the man, who appeared at least part orc, spoke loud enough for all to hear for a mile. Magic made his voice carry as he stated, "I am Relgar, king of Ishton. I demand your surrender. Surrender or have your fortress broken into rubble and your people slain."

  A portal formed in front of the castle wall and from it strode a single man. Elzen started in surprise as he realized that it was Sebastian. Shaking his head; the mage wasn't surprised by the owl's audacity, though his friend's timing was intriguing.

  An air spell was created by Sebastian and his voice was magnified as he answered in return, "Relgar, I am the Owl Sebastian. Your Dark Emperor is dead. Return to your home and consider peace. If you try to push past this shore, we will consider you an enemy that must be destroyed."

  The mage's voice was calm, but demanding.

  Deep laughter came from the self proclaimed orc king. "We know the emperor is dead. Now is the time of kings. I, Relgar will take this kingdom for my own before I take the seven cities of the empire. All will see my power and bow before me!"

  Shaking his head, Sebastian proclaimed, "You suffer delusions of grandeur. Your army is powerful, but it will not stand against the power already coming against you. You used portal magic to cross the distance. We are already bringing many times your number. You will be destroyed."

  With a roar, the orc king shouted, "Who are you to challenge me? You are a bird that will have its head chopped off to be roasted over a fire. I will see to it that you die, human!"

  Sebastian touched the Hollow Sword to the ground. While Elzen couldn't hear his spell, he could see the sword glow bright white. Electricity seemed to ripple around the weapon before the owl released a portion of the sword's stored spell. Lightning lanced out striking the ground well short of the enemy forces.

  "I will warn you only once more, King Relgar. Turn back or be destroyed!"

  The orc might have been impressed, but he didn't bother to answer the mage directly. A shout and chop of his hand at the air sent his army moving forward at a swift pace.

  When half their number made it onto the shore and was rushing towards Sebastian, the mage swung his blade as if he could reach them with the glowing steel from there. Lightning erupted three times as powerful as the first warning shot had been. A wave of lightning struck the front line of yutan warriors. Massive shields sunk to the ground quick enough to receive the lightning. Even those defenses were forced back. Here and there a yutan was thrown to the ground and many of their shields broke under the strain of his single blow.

  Even this powerful attack wasn't enough to stop Relgar's army, however.

  Those who fell weren't dead, but while they recovered new soldiers took the front line and they pressed forward once more watching the mage as he made his stand in front of them.

  Elzen realized that Sebastian had drawn his staff as well and wondered what he needed it for when the Hollow Sword could increase one man's power ten times or more. When the staff was planted, he felt a surge in Sebastian's power that likely surpassed any living wizard in Southwall. The ground trembled and rose beside the mage in a spell that he had never seen the man perform before as two mounds grew taking shape like crude looking, giant, stone men wielding stone clubs. I
ron appeared to slither up the right leg of each until the metal wrapped the clubs in twisting bands for strength.

  Fully formed and ready, the two massive golems launched forward running quickly. Elzen had seen earth golems before. They could react well, but their weight made them slow in a wizard's hands. Unlike the usual creations, these two moved like giant men instead. Sebastian touched his sword to the ground again charging it with lightning before blue wings formed to launch him into the air.

  Like some avenging angel, the owl guided the golems to attack the line of yutan and crag trolls. Their clubs swung like mirrors of each other. Lightning rained down from the dragon mage into the orcs and goblins behind the front line throwing the creatures to the ground paralyzing many for a time. Those not struck looked confused and frightened. One man was taking on their entire army and looked capable of winning.

  More portals appeared north and south of Tenalin as more reinforcements emerged from the forts and cities that the mage had sent wizards to help. The sight of the battle mage waging war alone caused those to arrive to look on in awe. Officers did their best to line up their soldiers, while wizards prepared new spells if their champion should fall, though Elzen had a feeling none of them thought that they could do better.

  Unlike the smaller orcs and goblins, the larger monsters of the army seemed less impressed. Crag troll and yutan alike shrugged off the lesser bolts of lightning. Sebastian was rationing the lighting spell generated from the Hollow Sword since he was in the air. Unable to touch the ground without landing, he couldn't recharge without drawing power from his rune wells or his basic magic.

  Seeing the problem, Elzen drew his Hollow Sword and created a gate. Standing a hundred feet in front of the wall, the mage touched the sword to the ground and ordered, "Flame."

  Glowing a bright yellow, the sword felt near to breaking with the power. He had less practice with drawing power from the ground, but Elzen felt that he was a quick learner. Pointing towards the line of monsters closing around the two golems, he released a blast of fire.

  The fire roared and cast a brilliant glow. Yellow and white flames melted the snow beneath their path until the flames crashed into the massive beasts trying to pull down the golems.

  As a purple line seared into his vision for a moment, the mage tried to blink it away. Before it had completely faded, he looked at the enemy that had taken the brunt of the fire. Two of the yutan had metal armor still glowing orange while they rested on their knees and forearms trying to recover from the attack. Their skin and pelts might resist flame, but the blazing heat had brought even these beasts to their knees.

  A handful of shield bearers moved past the golems letting their comrades continue hacking at them with clubs and hammers. The yutan even attempted to shatter Sebastian's creations with their metal banded fists. While the army slowed to deal with the golems and Sebastian, those who had passed them focused on the new threat Elzen posed.

  He released another torrent of fire into the advancing shield bearers. Metal on the shields glowed orange. Paint blistered and wood caught fire as well. Much of his magic in the sword was released in two more casts of the fire; but as one of the golems fell, more of the army began to filter past the remaining golem intent on the second mage and the fortress behind him.

  Arrows began to rain down from the archers on the wall. More flew from the armies lined up flanking the stone of the fortress. Minor distractions to the tank like soldiers, they helped mask as Elzen planted the sword once more.

  "Quake," he called sending a wave forward through the ground causing tremors beneath the advancing army. Several stumbled to their knees. "Stone spears," he followed up the first spell. With the strength of the earth helping increase his range, Elzen created dozens of thick spears that rose from the ground beneath the beasts. Their thick hides could resist the damage from the stone, but several remained skewered by the attack. Those skewered squirmed for a moment before the pain or blood loss caused them to weaken.

  "Stones," he cited a new spell. Earth wizards could do this and the mage only had to form the idea with the word and his mind. Using the extra power borrowed from the earth, dozens of stones lifted from the ground around him. The spell flung the heavy stones like several catapults at once. While they weren't likely to kill this kind of soldier, the stones still hurt and caused damage.

  The first line fell back from the battle mage leaving several of their kind behind in the stone spears or on the ground unable to move.

  Before he could hope that the fight had left Relgar's army, Elzen spotted a new threat rising behind the soldiers on the ground. A flock of large black birds flew over the army, but they looked vaguely human in shape. When the lead birds began to channel spells towards Sebastian, the mage's jaw dropped in shock. Were these warlocks that could transform into giant shrikes that could still wield magic? If so, Elzen looked to Sebastian and wished that his friend had taken the time to teach him dragon magic; but even then they would be outnumbered by more than eight to one.

  Elzen prepared to support Sebastian as he planted the sword tip into the frozen earth and waited for his chance.

  His golem spell had gone off without a hitch. The mage had practiced with smaller amounts of dirt after watching the wizards from his team create them in the past. While the spells had proven useful, the concept of making a golem wasn't the hard part for a battle mage, maintaining it was. A golem took a lot of a wizard's strength. Most mages weren't strong enough to make one most likely. With the rune wells and his staff, Sebastian had found a way to get around that problem and the second one as well.

  A golem didn't move without the help of a wizard. Their magic gave it life seemingly. A flow of power made it move and react like a living being, but the creations made by Southwall's wizards weren't alive. They were simply elaborate puppets that moved with invisible strings of magic.

  Using Bairh'loore, Sebastian had more than enough power to create the two golems. His rune wells filled, the mage could also give them the strength to move. He was surprised how comfortable moving the puppets was for him. Few wizards operated more than one golem at a time. Feeling the rush of power from the ground, he had built two. His thinking was that if he could only make one follow his orders, the second could stand ready in case the first one fell.

  The yutan and trolls were powerful foes. He wasn't surprised when the first golem was finally broken down to the point that its magic was gone.

  His lightning spells cast through the Hollow Sword had disrupted the remainder of the army, while the second golem continued to fight. He could feel the magic in it weakening already, however, so Sebastian prepared to retreat to the castle wall to try making more. Using Bairh'loore he could create another pair to replace those he had lost and while on the ground he could refill the Hollow Sword with another lightning spell.

  He felt the source of more magic before he even saw the black forms of the shrikes. Mountain birds normally, the mage had fought a group of them controlled by the Dark One's army last fall when they had been attacking a group of nomads. The dragon girl Cheleya had told of a small group of the creatures that had a spell caster also.

  When the human shaped shrikes began to channel magical power to create spells, he was only slightly surprised. Magic could do so much. Some things it could do defied the imaginations of normal men, but the owl mage wasn't a normal man.

  "Shields," he called out making five of the blue mage barriers.

  Manipulating the shields as he watched the flying warlocks, Sebastian managed to catch fireballs, ice spears and what he believed were poisonous liquids flung in his direction. He could dodge using his wings as well, but the dragon mage wanted to see what these creatures might bring. If they were truly warlocks using their magic to change into shrikes, then they likely knew more spells also. If they were magical creatures that only used limited magic based on their instincts, then his job might be simpler.

  Intellect would define a warlock as opposed to a magical being that the
Dark One might have created in some laboratory.

  Swinging the Hollow Sword, Sebastian released the lightning in three quick bursts. Instinctively the birds managed to avoid the magic while returning fire with their spells. Moving the shields again, the owl mage caught each counterattack; but two of the shields shattered forcing him to make two more.

  "Night shield," he called up three of the black barriers. Moving them closer to one of his mage shields, the three creations of night appeared to absorb or eat the blue energy as the glow was torn between the three.

  There was no time to marvel at the sight as the shrikes spread out to attack from more angles. Sebastian let them close a little more before surging forward to bring the fight to them. He was fearless facing so many, but the mage was hoping that these creatures were human originally. If they weren't naturally versed in combat, the mage would show them what it was like to fight someone raised to battle.

  In and out of their range, he slashed with the sword; but his hopes were quickly dashed. They were agile and fast. Claws slashed at him before he could defend with the sword. His runes would likely have saved him from harm, but the mage was quickly growing frustrated with their ability to evade his attacks.

  Shields swirled around him deflecting or absorbing their spells while their comrades would dart in and out of the spray of magic. He didn't even see the attack that finally connected knocking him from the sky.

  Chapter 29- Turning the Tide

  Ashleen looked beyond the battle between the castle and the river. More gates had formed spilling out more soldiers and wizards. Their numbers should have meant that they would win easily, but the wilder's hopes faltered when a second wave of troops marched from the east towards the river.

  They had wondered whether the orc had led only monsters, but using magic to increase the distance of her vision; Ashleen could make out the lines of black armored men mounted on horseback leading line after line of foot soldiers. Robed warlocks rode behind the cavalry and had probably been held back to finish bringing the rest of Relgar's army. Her sight also noticed the blizzard had suddenly lapsed into a gentle snowfall. Without that magic draining his warlocks, she feared that they would now be able to use other spells to wreak havoc on the armies outside the castle and the defenders manning the walls.