“Who's attacking you?” Tamara yelled at the image in the mirror.
“Well, it sure as hell isn't Octavian,” Malcolm shouted back. “He's hanging over there,” he gestured vaguely into the distance, “from the arch in the middle of the front gate. Which is wide open, by the way.”
“Octavian's dead? Who killed him?”
“Hang on a second!” Malcolm exclaimed and they watched him jump to his feet, race down a flight of shadowy steps and swing his sword twice at a vague target. There was a shuddering scream and then he picked up a limp figure, about half his size.
“Do you recognize this?” he asked as he shook the body.
Simon stared, slack-jawed, at the limp figure. It was wearing ragged leather armor and dripping black blood, but the pointed ears and hooked nose were all too familiar, even in the darkness.
“God damn it,” he exclaimed as he got over his shock. “It's a goblin! What the hell is a goblin doing in England?”
A whistling scream tore through the air and Malcolm ducked. A loud explosion followed and lit up the entire area with a red flash.
“I don't care about that,” he told them as he savagely shook the body again and then hurled it away. “I want to know why they've allied themselves with goddamned dragons!”
“Dragons? What about the wards guarding the castle?” Tamara asked loudly.
“They're down, thanks to our late friend Octavian. One of the guards said she saw him running along the walls muttering incantations. I guess he was canceling the wards to let in the goblins. How he was connected to them in the first place is beyond me, but considering the fact that they've strung him up, I'd say that they weren't the most trustworthy of allies.”
“Oh, this is madness!” the mage exclaimed. She had laced her fingers through her hair and was pulling at it unconsciously.
Simon looked at her and then exchanged a worried glance with Aeris. They needed the old Tamara, strong and resolute. If she crumbled now, they could be in big trouble.
“Sorry,” Malcolm told them as he climbed back up to the top of the wall. “We won't get a chance to question him about Sebastian now, I'm afraid.”
“If Octavian was allied with the goblins, it's more than likely that Sebastian is their prisoner,” Simon told him as he watched Tamara. “We'll go after him once this mess is cleared up. Stay there, Malcolm. I'm coming to you.”
The big man smiled grimly.
“Hurry,” he said simply.
“You think that those goblins have my brother?” Tamara asked as Simon dropped the mirror and hurried across the room.
“Aeris, get Kronk in here. Now.”
The air elemental nodded and disappeared. Simon opened his clothes cupboard and took off his shoes.
“I think it's quite likely, yes,” he said as he grabbed a pair of heavy boots and slipped them on. “Goblins have magic-users among them; I'm guessing that's who was casting spells just now. They'd be quite interested in a human mage, I think.”
He stopped and looked compassionately at Tamara.
“Look, I don't want to sugarcoat this; your brother may or may not still be alive. I choose to think that he is. But before we can try to find him and rescue him, we have to defend Nottinghill Castle. Are you with me?”
She stared at him blankly for a long moment, then seemed to catch herself and snap back into the present. She set her jaw and nodded abruptly.
“Damned right I am. I love my brother but those are my people fighting out there and right now, they are my first concern.”
“Agreed,” the wizard told her, feeling a wave of relief wash over him. He hurried to pick up his staff as the elementals both raced into the tower.
“Aeris said we are leaving, master?” Kronk asked him calmly.
“We are. Nottinghill is under attack and we're going to help them.”
Simon looked at Tamara, then at Kronk and Aeris.
“Guys, we're Gating into battle. There are goblins attacking, both warriors and spell-casters. And there is at least one dragon involved as well.”
He focused on the mage.
“This is your home we're going to and you know it best, so you can decide where and when to attack the goblins. I'm going to Gate to the wall and get your wards back up. At least then we can concentrate on the two-legged attackers because the dragon or dragons will be blocked.”
“Good idea. I can't make any decisions until we get there and I see the situation firsthand. Then I'll coordinate with Malcolm and go from there.”
“Right. Okay, everyone gather round. I'm going to shield all of us and, once we arrive, Tamara, you can go ahead and cast your own protection. Unless you want to cast your shield now and Gate there by yourself?”
She smiled grimly.
“All for one, one for all, my friend. Let's go.”
He nodded and concentrated on the wall where Malcolm had been standing with the thick night around him. Simon felt the image of the castle lock firmly into his mind's eye and knew that he was ready.
He held up his staff and looked at his friends one last time.
“Shield,” he said and the barrier appeared with a loud crackle of power.
Simon took a final deep breath.
“Gate,” he said and they disappeared into the void.
The night air was chilly and Simon felt a vague regret that he hadn't put on a jacket before he left home.
Don't be such a granny, he told himself in disgust and looked around for Malcolm.
The four of them were standing in almost complete darkness near one of the corner towers of the castle. Simon had intentionally Gated to the shelter of the tower that he'd seen behind the big man to give them a chance to assess the situation before entering battle.
“He is there, master,” Kronk said over the sounds of battle.
They all followed the little guy's pointing finger and saw Malcolm on some steps that led down to the shadowy courtyard. He was speaking with another figure and Simon thought that he recognized Liliana's silver armor flashing in the gloom.
“I'll join Malcolm,” Tamara told them “Do you need me to point out the location of our wards?”
“Nope, I can feel them,” Simon told her as he canceled his shield spell. “You go ahead. I'll join you as soon as I can.”
She gripped his arm and gave it a grateful shake and then ran off along the wall, chanting as she went. A shield flickered into place around her and the wizard felt some relief as he saw it. He recast his own at the same time, just in case.
“She'll be fine,” Aeris said as he bobbed in the breeze. “You'd better get on and re-energize those wards, before those things come back.”
“What things?” Simon asked with a frown.
Aeris pointed at the sky beyond the castle wall. The night was clear and bright with the moon almost full. And against that light, the wizard saw three massive winged shapes flying in formation. They were miles away but banking slowly, turning back toward the castle.
“Oh crap. Dragons. I count three.”
“I do as well. Time to move, I think,” Aeris told him.
“Yep. Kronk, could you go and join Malcolm and the others, please? They might need your help.”
“Of course, master. Good luck.”
The little guy took off, running so quickly that his short legs were a blur. Simon opened his shield for him and watched as he disappeared into the gloom.
“Any instructions for me?” Aeris asked as the wizard began to trot along the wall, extending his senses and feeling for the wards.
“If you want to help, please do. I'm not going to order you into battle. You know that. But if you'd like a suggestion, go to Tamara and see if she needs you to scout out the goblins' movements.” He gave the elemental a quick grin. “Remind her that you can turn invisible; she may have forgotten.”
“Ah! Good point. Very well, I'll do that. See you soon.”
Aeris vanished with a quiet pop just as Simon felt a trickle of power ahead. He sealed his
shield spell and hurried up to a point on the wall that was slightly discolored. He knelt down and squinted into the shadows. He was tempted to summon a light but that would only make him a target at a time when he was trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.
He ran his fingertips over the cool stone and felt the jagged lines of a rune cut into it.
There you are, he thought with satisfaction.
He placed his hand flat against the stone and muttered the incantation for the warding spell.
“Invectis,” he whispered and felt the power gather in his chest and then race down his right arm and into the ward. It flashed brightly for a moment, the rune glowing with cold fire, and then faded again.
“That's one,” Simon muttered. “Three more to go.”
While the wizard was running around the castle walls to energize the wards, the battle continued. There were shouts and screams, loud bangs and the hum of arrows in flight. The harsh goblin voices were easy to pick out of the din; their language was as guttural and foul as they were.
Malcolm had rounded up some guardsmen and stationed them along the wall. They crouched there with bows at the ready, taking the occasional shot down into the courtyard. The problem was that targets were hard to make out and the warriors were obviously afraid of hitting their own people.
Simon took in the situation as he raced around the wall but couldn't help until he was finished with his own task. A quick glance at the sky showed the trio of dragons heading back toward the castle. Their huge wings flapped almost lazily but they were moving fast. He guessed that they would be within striking range in less than five minutes.
Three wards had been re-energized before the goblins finally noticed the wizard. Simon guessed later that one of their magic-users must have felt him casting spells. But however it happened, as he approached the location of the final ward, a barrage of magic missiles slammed into his shield, momentarily blinding him.
Sparks erupted from his shield and he staggered back.
“Crap. Ah well, had to happen eventually, I suppose,” he hissed between his teeth.
He channeled energy into his shield to reinforce it and then watched as a literal storm of blazing missiles descended from the top of the castle wall, far across the courtyard from the wizard's position, to slam into the goblins below. Tamara had answered the attack on Simon with one of her own.
“Thanks,” he murmured as he heard the shrieks of agony from the goblins.
He looked up once again and saw the dragons tightening up their formation, preparing to strafe the castle.
He felt a swoop of panic in his stomach and ran along the wall, feeling desperately for the inert ward.
Ah, there it is!
Simon dropped to his knees in front of the engraving as if in prayer, slapped a hand on the stone and chanted the spell. As he invoked the magic a faint sparkle seemed to race along the castle walls and he felt the wards mesh together.
He pushed himself to his feet with his staff and looked up at the attacking dragons. The shield didn't cover the entire castle. There needed to be a central tower or high podium of some sort with a ward that would channel the power of all the others and make a dome over the entire structure. But if the dragons wanted to attack now, they would have to dive straight down and land in the courtyard. They would be blocked by the wards if they tried strafing the ground with fire.
Simon still didn't understand dragon senses but as the wards snapped together, he saw all three monsters immediately back-wing and stop their attack. They hovered in the sky and he heard a cacophony of enraged roars from the group.
“Now, will they be stupid enough to land and attack from the ground?”
The wizard turned to see Liliana approaching, her armor gleaming in the moonlight.
“Do you think it would be stupid?” he asked her as she joined him. Both of them watched the dragons.
“Don't you? You are here, my friend, and I assure you that those dragons know it. You've killed primals, and those three?” She snorted in disdain. “They are lesser dragons. I doubt that any of them want to die today.”
“You're giving me too much credit,” Simon protested.
“Perhaps. But it isn't my opinion that counts in this situation,” Liliana replied with faint amusement. She nodded at the hesitating dragons. “It's theirs.”
The paladin was right. The three dragons waited for a few moments, staring balefully at the warded castle and then peeled away and shot off toward the south, quickly disappearing from view.
“See? Now we just have to deal with these damnable goblins.”
Liliana led the way around the wall toward the group commanded by Tamara. When Simon and the paladin arrived, he saw that she'd been joined by Malcolm, Aiden and several others, including the mage, Keiko.
“I see you got the wards working again,” Malcolm said with a wide smile. “Those dragons turned tail and ran. A lovely sight.”
“Well, technically, they turned tail and flew, but yeah, they decided to fight another day,” Simon answered with a grin. “How's the rest of the battle going?”
“Hard to say,” Tamara answered and gestured for Simon to join her.
He dropped his shield so that he could get closer than six feet from the others and stepped forward. The mage pointed at several low buildings.
“Most of our people are safe. Malcolm and Aiden got them to the towers and they've barricaded themselves in. Some are inside the castle itself and they're also locked in. But those buildings down there, mostly used for storage, have been taken over by the goblins. They have either archers or casters on the roofs and we can't even get close to them.”
“Apparently the damned creatures can see in the dark like cats,” Aiden growled. His armor was splattered with dried blood and a small cut on his chin had left a ragged trail of red down his neck. “We unfortunately don't have that advantage.”
Simon looked around at the group.
“So where are Kronk and Aeris?” he asked.
“Scouting,” Tamara said with a tight smile. “The little earthen is underground while your air elemental friend is flitting about invisibly. Before we do anything further, I wanted to know exactly what we are facing. Happily, at least with the wards up we don't have to worry about a dragon attack.”
“For today. When we have the time, we'll have to talk about you guys erecting a central tower so that we can put a ward there and cover the entire castle.”
“Sounds good, Simon,” she replied. “But one problem at a time, please. By the way, the last time you were here, we didn't exactly have the opportunity for proper introductions. So, allow me to do the honors now. Simon O'Toole, wizard, meet Keiko Nishikawa, mage. Keiko, this is Simon.”
“How do you do,” the woman said gently, her voice barely louder than a whisper.
She bowed formally to him and Simon awkwardly returned it.
“Pleased to meet you, as a friend this time,” he said with a smile.
She nodded, her pale face blank of all emotion. She was wearing a very formal robe with starched shoulders that almost looked like wings. The shadows made it impossible to distinguish the colors of her clothing, but they were somber, like the woman herself.
How the heck did she manage to starch that thing, Simon wondered.
“Finished warding the place, I see,” Aeris said as he popped into view. Keiko stepped back abruptly, clearly startled.
“Ah, forgive me, lady mage,” the elemental said. “I didn't mean to scare you.”
The tiny woman made a dismissive gesture and Aeris bowed to her.
“Okay, my dear wizard. Here is the situation.”
The elemental pointed at several buildings, dark blotches against the shadows in the courtyard.
“There is a mage on the roof of that building there with a pair of archers. The one next to it has three archers on the roof. There is no one inside either structure. The last two, across there near the far wall, each have a caster on the roof with several archers an
d a total of a dozen fighters inside. The building to the right is going to be the biggest problem, I think.”
“What makes you say that?” Malcolm asked as he squinted, trying to peer through the darkness.
“There is someone inside who is very powerful. I could feel that power as I approached the structure.” He glanced at Simon. “Not a wizard, I think, but possibly a very powerful cleric. There was a taste of unholy magics in the air.”
“A cleric?” Liliana asked. She scowled as she looked down at the distant building. “Not to worry, my friend. I will deal with the cleric.”
“Are you sure?” Tamara asked her. At the paladin's look, she held up a placating hand.
“I don't doubt you, lady, but the gods of Chaos are powerful; I daresay that they are stronger at the moment than your patrons, the lords of Light.”
Liliana smiled tightly.
“Perhaps, my friend. But I have something that that cleric probably does not, evil or no.”
“Which is?” Malcolm wondered.
She clapped a hand to the weapon on her hip and her smile widened.
“An enchanted sword and a very bad attitude.”
There was a startled moment of silence and then everyone, even the reserved Keiko, burst out laughing.
Simon could feel the tension of the group lessening and he silently thanked the paladin for changing their moods for the better.
“Then how can we lose?” Aiden said, still chuckling. “Simon, I wanted to ask you something.”
“Yes?”
“Is there a way for you to illuminate the courtyard? We can't fight what we can't see and, since those goblins can see in the dark, I thought that maybe if we lit up the area, they'd be blinded for a moment or two. It could give us an advantage.”
He looked around the wall at the vague shapes of the dozen or so archers who were trying to get a clear shot at the enemy.
“Just give our people some light, and we can deal some real damage to those bastards.”
Simon walked to the edge of the wall and scanned the area.
“Yes, I think I can do that.” He rested the butt end of his staff on the ground and looked over his shoulder.
Tales from the New Earth: Volume Two Page 26