Heroes Rise and Fall (Tales of Grandeur Book 1)

by C. J. Strong

  Andrum looked back towards Styir who seemed to be enjoying the duel. “You monster!”

  “The Tilturians are such primal and foolish people. So easy to control,” Styir said as he moved his fingers and Salitar coiled up for the next strike.

  “Kick his ass dad,” Valden said as he watched on.

  Styir moved his hand a bit and Salitar turned towards the spectators. “No,” Valdar said as he lunged after the snake. But it was too late, Salitar had wrapped his body around Valden and Babah.

  “Tell me Valdar, how much do you care about thessse two?” Salitar said as he constricted them, causing Babah to let out a yelp.

  “You’re sick. Stop this right now,” Andrum commanded as he summoned his conjuring book.

  “Interfere and they’re both dead,” Styir said.

  Valdar roared once more and dashed towards his son. “Let them go—“

  “Or elssse what?” Salitar asked. “I’m actually grateful this happened. I’ve always hated you and your son, Valdar. Zorm has just given me a reason to take their lives.”

  “You mean you actually enjoy this?” Valdar said as he cautiously approached.

  “Don’t listen to him, he isn’t who he once was,” Andrum said.

  By this time, Ashurd had slowly made his way around the room, sneaking behind Styir while the battle was taking place. He nodded to Andrum who had been watching out of the corner of his eye and was just about in position. Andrum tried to keep Styir’s attention by talking to him once more. “How did you ever become like this Styir?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? You brought this chaos upon us. It is you who are to blame! Changing fate can be a cruel—“ Styir said before catching a glimpse of Ashurd through the reflection of his staff’s orb. In an instant, Styir turned and Ashurd tackled him to the ground, breaking control over Salitar for just long enough so that Valden and Babah could escape Salitar’s grasp.

  Valdar pounced on the snake as it slithered around in confusion, sticking his claws through its body so it couldn’t move and then tearing its head off with his mouth. “Die you bastard,” Valdar said as he spit the head out.

  Ashurd, was not so lucky in his attack however, as Styir had burnt a hole through his chest with a lightning bolt as soon as he had tackled the corrupt Head Magniff. Styir rolled Ashurd off of him, and stood back to his feet, brushing the dust off his robe. “What a shame.”

  “No!” Andrum said as he rushed to hold Ashurd’s wound.

  Valdar transformed from his lion form and Valden ran to him in an embrace. “Thank you Ashurd, you just saved my child.”

  “I guess… those Tilturians are worth dying for after all,” Ashurd said as he coughed up blood.

  “Ashurd! You silly heroic bastard you can’t die on me now,” Andrum said with tears rolling down his face.

  “You and Yuralia saved me once,” Ashurd said as his eyes turned glossy. “This time, save Styir.” Ashurd said in his final words before his heart stopped.

  “You son of a bitch!” Andrum cried as he looked up at Styir who had a smug look on his face. “I challenge you to Ult-Dak-Fin.”

  Chapter 33

  Gallagher woke up not long after the drop, and pushed Benry off of him. As he rolled him over, he noticed that his sword had punctured straight through the heart of the beast. It must’ve got him when we fell.

  He stood up and looked around, unfamiliar of his surroundings. Countless bookcases full of cobwebs and books were in the room, and it seemed as if there hadn’t been a visitor in ages.

  “Gallagher, you okay?” a voice asked from above. He looked up to see Omna peeking out from the hole in the ceiling.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” Gallagher responded and she hopped down the debris.

  “What is this place?” Omna asked.

  “Your guess is as good as mine,” Gallagher said as Omna walked over and dusted off an old book.

  “Amazing. I’ve never actually held a book before, let alone read one,” Omna said.

  “You haven’t?!” Gallagher said as he came up behind her. “Well maybe one day I’ll teach you. But come on, we gotta get back up there.”

  Omna gently put the book back in its place and the two of them looked for the exit. Gallagher quickly realized that the doorway leading out of the room had been blocked by fallen bookcases, and motioned towards Omna to help him move them out of the way. As Gallagher struggled to push them aside, Omna used her unusual strength to knock the book cases back into their original positions and cleared the way.

  The two of them took each other’s hands and entered the great hall, where they then took the staircase leading into the room where they were previously held prisoner.

  “I challenge you to Ult-Dak-Fin,” Gallagher heard as they came up the steps.

  They entered and immediately Gallagher noticed Ashurd’s corpse laying in the middle of the room. “What happened?” he whispered to Moldur as they rejoined the group.

  “Shit’s about to go down,” Moldur whispered back as Valdar and Valden joined them at a safe distance.

  “What are your terms, foolish one?” Styir asked Andrum.

  “If I win, Zorm’s influence over you disappears,” Andrum said.

  “And what’s in it for me if you lose?”

  “Zorm will have finally won. My soul and Xurion’s are one in the same. So if I lose, there will be no one else to stop you from taking over the Mainlands.”

  “Hmm… very well. I accept! But only on one condition: If I defeat you, I get the boy as well,” Styir said as he pointed at Gallagher.

  “Wha—“ Andrum began.

  “—Deal,” Gallagher said. “I’ve seen you fight Andrum, you can kick his ass no problem.”

  “If you insist,” Andrum said as his eyes shined blue and he summoned his book.

  “It is settled then. What do you say we change the battlefield a bit hmm?” Styir said as he tapped his staff onto the ground. The orb atop the staff exploded into the air, and the room started to spin.

  “What the hell is going on?” Valdar asked.

  The roof of the castle tore off and flew through the air as if it was stuck in the middle of a hurricane. Everyone looked up, and a portal appeared above.

  “Come and join me, if you dare,” Styir said as he leapt into the air and was sucked into the void.

  Andrum quickly gave chase, and the others cautiously followed suit. In an instant, every person who had entered the portal were dropped into a completely new environment. Gallagher was one of the first ones to go through, and crawled back to his feet while looking around.

  The heroes found themselves in a windy red desert, as if in the middle of a sandstorm. Each of them blocked the incoming sand with their arms, and struggled to stay up right until the wind temporarily subsided. “Is anyone else going to ask where the hell we are?!” Gallagher said.

  “I think you just answered your own question boy,” Valdar said.

  “Welcome to the Eternal Lands! Or at least a recreation of it anyway. You see, not every place in the Eternal Lands is as heavenly as some of you imagine. Some of it, is ruled by none other than Zorm himself,” Styir explained. “And ever since Xurion left, the Demon Lord has seized the opportunity to conquer as much of it as possible.”

  “If this is just a recreation then does that mean all of this is fake?” Gallagher asked.

  “Oh no, of course not. Think of this as my own personal conjuration, and it is very real,” Styir said as a tumbleweed flew through the air, just missing Gallagher’s head.

  “You’re fight is with me Styir, leave him be!” Andrum shouted as he summoned a pair of magik swords.

  “Very well, then let us begin.”

  Chapter 34

  Andrum started off early, assaulting Styir with strike after strike. Each fearsome blow that Andrum struck however, was met with an overwhelming power that surrounded Styir, causing an impenetrable aura to form around him. It was as if being in this fake world had increased his power significantly, and wit
h it Zorm’s control over him.

  “I can’t land a single hit,” Andrum said.

  Styir laughed as his aura grew even stronger. “That’s because you cannot hurt me.”

  “Release your inner spirit,” Gallagher shouted as the sand storm picked up once more.

  Andrum nodded and kept his distance from Styir, beginning to channel Xurion from within. His body started to shake, but before his eyes turned Styir lunged at Andrum and punched him directly in the stomach. Andrum coughed up blood as Styir kept his hand against his belly, opening his fist and beginning to twist and turn his nails inside.

  “Stop it,” Gallagher yelled while running towards the action before being stopped by Valdar.

  “Do not interfere,” Valdar said holding him back. “No matter the odds, no matter how unfair it seems we must only watch. It is their tradition to duel one on one, and if we were to try and stop them then the binding contract would be void.”

  “I don’t care, he could die!” Gallagher said as Styir grinned, digging his claws in deeper.

  “If you interfere now, we may all die. This is his world that he has created, and only he can let us out,” Valdar said as Andrum turned his head towards them and motioned that he was alright.

  Andrum’s eyes lit crystal blue and he cracked a smile before upper cutting Styir, knocking him several feet into the air while blood gushed from Andrum’s stomach from the open wounds. Just as Styir landed on the ground, Andrum shot blue laser beams from his eyes, and his opponent barely rolled out of the way in time.

  “Now we have a fight!” Styir said, crawling to his feet and checking his mouth for blood.

  Andrum’s muscles started to grow as he flexed, powering himself to full strength. Styir waved his hand and out of nowhere a storm kicked up viciously as he disappeared with the wind. Andrum looked around, and at the last second caught a glimpse in his peripheral vision of Styir’s red eyes before he attacked from the side. Andrum dodged, with Styir’s sharp claws nearly scratching his face.

  “Just like old times, aye Zorm?” Andrum smiled and said in a deep voice.

  “Yeah, except this time I will win!” Styir yelled as he grabbed hold of Andrum. Andrum tried to break free but could not, and with Styir’s arms wrapped around tight, he began to headbutt Andrum repeatedly. “I don’t care if I have to sacrifice this body to do it, you will lose Xurion!” Styir said as both of their heads bled profusely.

  After taking blow after blow, Andrum staggered around struggling to keep himself up. Styir laughed manically as he remained latched on to Andrum’s body. Andrum decided that the only way he could break free was to do something risky, and so he did. He jumped into the air and tilted his head towards Styirs before they both slammed to the ground. The crown of his head dug into the chin of Styir, stunning him for just long enough to break free.

  Andrum stood back up as blood dripped down his face. Styir had landed on his back, and remained still as Andrum planned his next move. The sandstorm picked up again, and Styir once again disappeared within it.

  “Hide from me all you want you coward,” Andrum said as the storm became deafening. He then spun his hands together faster and faster, rotating them while blue magik radiated from his hands. As if conjured out of thin air, a sword started to form in between his circling hands. Once it was created, he grabbed hold tight and slashed it through the air, cutting through the sandstorm and silencing its power. The forged sword lit with blue engravings and was sharper than any sword he had ever crafted. It seemed as though this environment had boosted Xurion’s power from within as well. If it were anyone else who faced off against Styir in this conjured Eternal Lands then they may have lost, but because Andrum had the soul of Xurion within him, it magnified his magik significantly.

  With the storm now over, Andrum scanned the parameter, looking for his opponent. “Yoohoo, over here big boy,” Styir said while floating in the air high above him.

  Andrum leapt from the ground, creating a shockwave that followed behind as he shot into the air. As soon as Andrum flew towards Styir with his sword, Styir took his hand from behind his back, revealing the same staff he had used back at the castle. The magik of both warriors met as their weapons clashed, causing them to bounce off of one another. As each of the warriors stopped themselves from spinning in the air and readjusted, their auras started to form. Andrum’s magik illuminated a crystal blueness around him, while Styir’s was a reddish hue. Without warning, Styir shot a lightning bolt from his staff which pierced through Andrum’s aura. Andrum deflected the attack with his sword, sending the bolt of lightning crashing down into the ground below.

  “Hey, watch it up there!” Gallagher shouted as they came at each other once more.

  Both weapons and aura’s collided, causing the entire conjured world around them to shake. Again and again they met, countering each other’s strikes and blows. They were both as evenly matched as could be, except Styir had home field advantage.

  In an effort to finally gain the upper hand, Andrum threw his blade to the side, temporarily distracting Styir. He then flew through the air at maximum velocity, breaking through Styir’s barrier and landing a single punch. Styir was knocked unconscious by this blow, letting go of his staff and gracefully descended back to the ground. Valdar, Gallagher, Omna, Moldur, Valden and Babah all cheered as Andrum hovered in the air, admiring his handy work.

  “You did it,” Gallagher said as Styir’s staff finally landed, cracking the orb a bit. The world shook once more, this time slicing the sky around them in half and spinning into a vortex.

  Andrum lowered himself down as the rest of them looked around. “What the hell is happening?” Moldur asked.

  “The world is crumbling around us, and we need to find a way out,” Valdar said.

  “Not so fast,” Styir said as he stumbled back to his feet.

  “We had a deal. If I beat you, you relinquish your hold over Styir and return us home Zorm,” Andrum said as he held out his hand and his sword magically came back to him.

  “You’re right, we did have a deal,” Styir said as the fire in his eyes started to dwindle out and he dropped his arms defenselessly.

  “Good, now then let us leave this place,” Andrum said as his voice slowly started to change.

  Styir turned towards the group, waved his finger around in a giant circle and then pushed through the middle creating a vortex just behind everyone. The crowd then faced the portal and sighed in relief as Andrum’s magik sword melted away and disappeared. Omna was the first to go through, followed by Valden and Babah. Valdar came next after seeing his son make it to the other side. But before Moldur could step into the portal, Styir ran up and grabbed him from behind.

  Styir pulled a knife from one of the pockets of his robe and held it to Moldur’s throat. “Make one wrong move and I’ll gut you like a pig,” he whispered in his ear as Gallagher and Andrum looked on in horror.

  “Ha, that would almost be funny if it weren’t so predictable and evil,” Gallagher said.

  “You may have won the battle Andrum, but my influence will forever remain,” Styir said as his eyes burned a brilliant red.

  “You bastard, I knew I shouldn’t have let you off the hook,” Andrum said as he tried to muster up the strength to fight once more. It’s no use, he thought. I cannot summon forth Xurion’s powers again. I’m just too damn tired.

  Chapter 35

  “You’re going to have to save your friend yourself kid,” Andrum said as he collapsed in exhaustion.

  Moldur tried to move but was held tightly in place by Styir. “Nervous? You’re sweating like a pig.”

  “The first pun was acceptable, but now you’re just pissing me off,” Gallagher said as dug his feet into the ground. “Never send a man to do a boys job. Always kill the bad guy. You never just let him go!”

  “You’re exactly right,” Styir said as he slid his blade across Moldur’s throat and tossing him to the ground.

  Gallagher ran to his friend as Styir laug
hed, but instead of trying to save Moldur, Gallagher surprised Styir and tackled him through the portal. They were teleported back to the castle, where Gallagher wound up on top of Styir with his eyes lit blue and red. “I bet you didn’t see that one coming did you, you piece of shit?” Gallagher said.

  Before Styir could respond, Gallagher grabbed him by the head and begun knocking it to the floor as tears rolled down his face. “Why. Do. You. Keep. Killing. People. I. Care. About?!” Gallagher said while smashing Styir’s skull continuously.

  Valdar and the rest of the group watched in shock as Andrum limped through the portal, dragging Moldur’s corpse along with the broken staff in his other hand. He dropped both and placed his arms around Gallagher, pulling him off a motionless Styir. “He isn’t worth it,” Andrum said.

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Gallagher said as he struggled to break free of Gallagher’s grip to attack Styir once more.

  “If you kill him, then Zorm wins,” Andrum said.

  “Please, listen to him Gallagher. You are our Savior, and you have already saved us. We have won,” Omna said.

  “Tell that to Moldur,” Gallagher said as he kicked his feet and tears flew off of his face.

  “Valdar, can you please take him. I think I have a way of freeing Styir of Zorm’s evil once and for all,” Andrum said passing the fit throwing teen to Valdar.

  Gallagher quickly stopped as Valdar stared at him. “I’m not a child you know.”

  “We know you aren’t, you’re a hero!” Valdar said as he pulled Gallagher close and put his arm around them.

  Andrum walked over near the portal and picked up the cracked staff, tapping on the ground once and closing the rift next to him. “I believe that with this, I can extinguish the evil from within Styir, and reclaim the book that he stole from me.”

  Styir awoke in a puddle of his own blood, glossy eyed and looking around. “Wha- what’s going on?”

  “Nice try,” Andrum said as he put his foot on Styir’s chest, pinning him to the ground. Styir’s eyes returned red with fire as he attempted to squirm out of the predicament. “Summon forth the book and give it to me!”