Daessar’s dry winds blew over them as Vartan led the way forward. He had surveyed the area, but this new land was unlike anything he had ever seen. The landscape was in sections. An area of dry desert, another of thick forest, and a hazy wall of light on the horizon. When he looked up, he saw no sun or moon.
They headed toward the forest. Looking back, they had emerged from a mountain, the door to Alyanti closed on its surface.
The voice of Talonsphere rang in his mind, as clear as a bell.
Vartan. You have finally arrived after all these years. Come to me now and free me. We can save Marithia, together.
Vartan turned to his companions. “Talonsphere is here. I can hear him.”
Dryden drew his sword and pointed over Vartan’s shoulder.
Anakari readied flames at her hands, but instead of skull-sized balls of fire, she had summoned balls of fire the size of sheep, spinning in a circle above her. “Whoa.”
Vartan remembered that he had left his book of ancients in his room, in Greenhaven. He had not spent any time studying it.
Damn it.
A young elf-like being approached on horseback. The stranger’s face was firm. She stopped a short distance in front of them. “The one of dragon’s blood has finally come? Welcome to Daessar. We have all long been waiting for you.”
Anakari shook off the flames. Dryden sheathed his sword, and so did Yuski. Vartan extended a hand and the ancient took it. “I am Prince Vartan of Marithia.”
The ancient smiled, revealing sharp teeth. Vartan’s eyes widened, but she showed no signs of aggression. “Does my appearance frighten you? I am stationed at the gate to your world, as a guide for the one. My name matters not, but in the interest of courtesy, you may call me Red.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Red. Can you take me to Talonsphere?” Vartan said.
“Of course,” Red said.
As Red headed toward the woods, Yuski stared at her orb, but the colours swirled within it and wouldn’t settle. They followed further into the vast lands, but Vartan contemplated just how vast Daessar was. “What is this place, exactly?”
“This is our home and has been for far too long. It is here, but not here, and is of our creation. That will all change soon,” Red said.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Yuski said, still staring at her orb. The colours continued to spin.
“Maybe not to any of you, but it does to us,” Red said.
The ground shook beneath them, and the horse complained as they all struggled to retain their footing. As abruptly as it started, it stopped.
“What in the name of the gods was that?” Vartan said.
“Don’t worry about it. It happens here. Daessar is a place that never was. It strains against its foundations,” Red said.
Vartan opened his mouth to ask more, but then simply nodded instead. He had little idea of what Red was talking about, but continued to follow her through the forest. The trees of Daessar were similar to those of the Elven Woods. What struck Vartan as odd, was that it was whisper quiet. There were no signs of life through the forest, not even the chirp of crickets.
“Why are the forests so empty of life?” Vartan said.
“Everything stays far away from the edges of Daessar. You entered near the outskirts, in the dry lands. Once we near our home, then you will see far more life. Soon, everything will make sense.”
The entry to Alyanti bubbled, then built to a whirlpool. Mermaids approached the water with their claws extended. Nathalia had never seen anything like it and she was not expecting any visitors. Vartan had been not long gone, and she awaited permission to leave. She ran ahead of the crowd of mermaids, gripping her trident. “Everyone stand back. Be ready for whatever comes.”
She looked to her people, swallowing hard as she caught eyes with Raehar, his pistol drawn and standing in front of Jasmine. She liked him more as each day passed. It was sad that he didn’t know what fate would befall his people, but he would be saved from their retribution. Her sisters could not be violated and turned into floating monsters without the blood debt being paid.
A dark form rose from the water, its armour glistening as it shook the fluid from its surface. His towering form stepped into Alyanti and stood before Nathalia, cocking his head at her as water whipped from his soaked body. The whirlpool ceased and the room fell silent.
“Shindar. How did you find us?” Nathalia said, her voice breaking as her trident trembled.
The demon of the underworld’s dark voice echoed around them. “Keepers of Talonsphere. Bow to me as your God, and you will not be harmed.”
“We have lived here before you arrived in this world. I know of how you began, and the ancients have told me much of how you turned into what you are now. We will never bow to you,” Nathalia said.
Shindar breathed heavily through his helmet’s demonic mask. He reached for his sword. “So be it.”
The mermaids readied to attack, fangs bared.
“I know more about Angeline!” Nathalia said, her chest heaving.
Shindar released his sword, bending low to come face to face with her. Every hair on Nathalia’s body stood on end. “How dare you speak her name? What do you know?”
“If it is Talonsphere you seek, and want to know what really happened to her, then you need to enter Daessar,” Nathalia said.
Shindar reached up to his helm, and there was a collective gasp as he removed it. Nathalia had expected to be horrified by what was underneath, but she found herself facing a rather handsome man, as pale as a ghost. However, there was no mistaking the madness in Shindar’s eyes.
“Do not play with me,” Shindar said.
“Don’t underestimate us either,” Nathalia said.
The other mermaids hissed at Shindar, taking steps toward him. Shindar growled and his hands glowed as he was surrounded in spiralling balls of fire. “My powers are already returning to me. I could find out just how destructive they are, right here.”
“Step back, all of you!” Nathalia said, moving away from him.
Shindar retained his fiery exterior, but kept his attention on Nathalia. Her body trembled at being this close to the Lord of the Underworld, but she tensed her muscles to steel her resolve.
“I saw what happened to Angeline, all those years ago. Are you to tell me that I saw wrong?” Shindar said.
“I cannot provide you with the answers you seek. I only know of what the ancients told me about you, and that Angeline was not an ordinary Marithian. The people you need to ask are in Daessar, but I am afraid that we cannot allow you to enter or find Talonsphere. It would be against our agreement with the ancients,” Nathalia said.
Shindar grimaced, then replaced his helm and reached for his sword.
“Wait!” Raehar said.
Nathalia joined Shindar’s gaze at the young man holding his hands in the air.
Shindar reached out and lifted his arm up. Raehar was swept off his feet, then flew half way toward the demon lord, falling to the floor.
It seems I am not the only one who may be bluffing, Nathalia thought.
Her chances of defeating Shindar were minuscule, and she knew it, but it was all the more possible with him weakened. She gave the nod and the mermaids converged on Shindar. He drew his sword and swung it hard, cutting through the closest two attacking mermaids’ skulls. Blood splattered and joined brain matter dropping to the floor. Their bodies fell limp to the ground, twitching. Nathalia raised her trident, ready to strike.
“Stop!” Raehar said, firing a shot into the air, startling everyone in Alyanti. “Nobody else has to die!”
“You have seconds to speak before I kill the rest of you,” Shindar said, gripping the hilt of his sword.
“Where I come from, there be a code. Nathalia, I understand yer agreement, but ye have already fulfilled it, haven’t ye? Vartan’s already in Daessar,” Raehar said.
Nathalia cringed and bit her lip.
“Vartan is already there?” Shindar said.
“Aye. Through the door to Daessar is everything ye want, right?” Raehar said.
“Not everything. Who is this boy who dares address me?” Shindar said.
“I be but a pirate from Grenlees—” Raehar said.
“Raehar, that’s enough. Although he has a point. We could let you pass if you let us be free of this place, but cannot open the door for you. Know that we would never bow to you or anyone else for that matter,” Nathalia said.
Shindar looked to all the mermaids. “Then lead me to the door, and stay out of my way. The ancients will not survive to punish you for breaking their agreement. Do we have an understanding?”
Nathalia nodded. “Yes, we do. Come with me. All of you, take to the water. Raehar must wait here until we return.”
The mermaids fled to the water, leaping in and swimming far below the surface. Nathalia, Shindar, and Raehar were left behind.
“Follow me then,” she said, leading Shindar toward Daessar.
Shindar marched alongside her, dwarfing her in his shadow as he spoke. “Your people are strong. When I return, you can change your mind and bow to me, before we cross paths in battle.”
Nathalia smirked. “I doubt we will meet in battle, Shindar, but we are not afraid of you.”
He turned to her for a second. “You should be.”
They approached the stairs toward Daessar, and Nathalia waved her guards away. “Let him pass.”
As they descended the stairs, Nathalia asked, “What is it you plan to achieve in Daessar?”
“I do not discuss plans with mortals,” he said.
They soon reached the testing room. As she had suspected, it had already reset. Her guards drew swords at the sight of Shindar, but Nathalia shook her head before waving them away. They sheathed their weapons and marched up the stairs.
Nathalia retreated to the stairwell, pointing toward the door to Daessar. “That is the only way in.”
Shindar charged at the door. Nathalia’s face lit up as he reached the centre of the room, and the floor quaked. She grinned as the spikes fell down, but her smile was wiped when he distended a large shield from his arm.
If he survived the room, then he will blame me for everything, she thought.
She stepped backwards, not wanting to turn away from his possible demise.
The black shield glowed amber and he slammed it upward, colliding with the spikes in an impressive array of sparks. He growled as he pushed the ceiling upward, but struggled with the weight.
She lowered her trident, pointing it at Shindar and pushing it forward. A bolt of electricity surged into him, covering his body in shards. He shook his armour as the power of the projectile dispersed.
Shindar’s other hand glowed blood-red as he dropped his sword and in a flash, the ceiling was pushed back into place, covered in a maroon glow.
“You disappoint me,” he said, turning to Nathalia and raising his glowing fist at her. She narrowly avoiding blasts behind her. A stone fragment struck her thigh, drawing blood.
Damn it!
She ran up the stairs, wincing with every limping step, until she reached the top. The impacts continued. Shindar would be attacking the entrance to Daessar.
Nathalia came to an abrupt halt as she exited the stairwell. Before her was a soaking-wet army of humanoids with glowing red eyes, ransacking her city.
They must have followed whatever portal Shindar had opened.
Before the demons had a chance to react, she gritted her teeth as she fled to the entrance to Alyanti, diving in and hoping that Raehar had hidden well. Her people would be waiting for her, just like they had always practiced.
Vartan approached the city of the ancients. Once they had cleared the forest, they were presented with a bright city, as if the buildings were covered in a shimmering layer of light. There was a tall castle with many layers of external staircases spiralling around it. Red led them straight toward it.
Another rumble sounded from far behind them.
“What was that?” Vartan said.
Red narrowed her eyes. Something flashed on the horizon.
“That is coming from the entrance. Were you followed?” Red said.
Vartan had seen nobody follow them to Alyanti, but he had spent his time looking forward, never backwards.
“I doubt it,” Vartan said.
The thought of being so close to Talonsphere was always on his mind. His lip trembled when he spoke, but he wasn’t sure why. He knew what needed to be done.
Why do I fear death? Vartan thought.
They entered the city outskirts. There were ancients everywhere, busy running to and from buildings, and unlike Red’s leather garb, they wore plain clothing. What struck Vartan as strange was that the outer ancients looked starved. Their cheeks were sunken in, and they were all too thin. Looking through the open doors of the small hut-like buildings, Vartan saw that the ancients were busy practicing magic, and looked to be enchanting weapons. The further they went, the more that the ancient civilisation was similar to their own. The most notable difference was the wide use of magic.
As they continued, Vartan heard what sounded like hammers hitting anvils. The ancients noticed their entrance, stopping to glance at them, but then looked to Red and resumed their duties.
“What happened to the people here?” Anakari said.
“Times have been hard, and our crops are not enough to feed everyone. The magic that created this place sucks the life out of the earth. This is why we need your help. If you activate Talonsphere, and rid us of our enemies, then we can return to Marithia. We could survive a hundred years in Daessar, maybe more. If we were stuck here, then we’d become extinct,” Red said.
Vartan’s burden increased. He had more people relying on his sacrifice. He couldn’t understand why they were stuck there. “You are a race of magical beings, far older than any of us. Could you not leave this place?”
“If we leave here, then Daessar will cease to exist, and everything that you see around you will disappear, including Talonsphere. But if Talonsphere is activated, by our design, it will return to Marithia, and then so can we,” Red said.
As they neared the castle, the surrounding buildings increased in size, and the ancients that lived in the closer buildings were of a healthy weight. As he opened his mouth to ask about them, the city illuminated with a bright light that made them wince. They looked to the horizon and saw billowing smoke.
I can almost see you now, you are so close, Talonsphere said.
Vartan’s mind flashed, and he cried out as his brain was assaulted with images.
Vartan saw a blurry vision, as if he was watching from another being’s eyes. He heard voices, and footsteps approaching. Vartan recognised them as female ancients, but these were wearing gold, ornate jewellery.
“Has the chamber been prepared?” an ancient said.
Vartan watched as a young dragon’s tail flickered above him, then saw it was his own, or whatever he was seeing the vision from. He felt everything that the dragon did, and his heart raced as he struggled against chains.
“Yes, it has been enchanted by the scaled ones. We are ready for Talonsphere’s creation.”
“Good, good. The visions have shown us that we may need Talonsphere, if he fails us. Prepare the blades. Infusing this one’s soul into the chamber will not be an easy task,” an ancient said.
“It must be done. Everything we have created relies on this fall-back.”
“I know. Must you remind us of that, every day? But what if he succeeds?”
Vartan heard blades sharpening and he shrieked, the voice escaping as a dragon’s roar.
“Then we will not be requiring Talonsphere at all. Creating a prophecy, and one that must reach fruition, is delicate. Whenever a prophecy is created, an opposing prophecy will exist, and they will discover this... he will discover this.”
“Then this is a risk that we are willing to take. The elders have already agreed on this. This is the only way to secure our future.”<
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The ancients approached with shiny blades, and the dragon looked to the end of the long room. There sat Talonsphere. The weapon looked like a giant golden egg, the size of an elephant, but with surrounding metal talons holding it upright. The egg was split open into halves. On its exterior surface was an imprint of a human body, stretching out like a star. It was made for someone to place themselves inside it.
“Yes, you speak the truth. We do what we must for the ripples of time to flow in our favour.”
The blade pierced the dragon’s stomach, sending white hot pain surging through the dragon’s body. As it was shoved deeper into the dragon’s stomach, Vartan tensed and thrashed.
Vartan screamed as he returned to his body, and he looked to his startled companion. “How long was I gone?”
Yuski’s face contorted. “Whatever do you mean? You haven’t gone anywhere.”
“The entrance may have been destroyed. Our elders would know you are here already, and there is no time to waste. Come now,” Red said.
They ascended the castle’s stairs, coming face to face with two stocky ancient guards. Their helms reminded Vartan of Marithian Knights, but their suits of red leather and iron armour were built for speed, wearing iron on their arms and legs. Their hands were bare, and glowed white, motioning to open the giant doors to the castle.
“We’ve been expecting all of you. The elders await,” a guard said.
Vartan followed Red through the doors, entering a room as large as the training room in Greenhaven, with guards in long rows, and five thrones. Three female ancients wearing crowns, and jewellery like in his vision, stood from their seats. The other two seats were empty.
An ancient queen stepped forward. “I am elder Livae, and I speak for all elders, including the kings who could not join us today. We have waited a very long time for your arrival, Vartan, as has Talonsphere. Come now and let your fate be completed.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Elder Livae. How do you know my name?” Vartan said, stepping toward the thrones, checking to ensure his companions were near to him.
Legends of Marithia: Book 3 - Talonsphere Page 25