Catalyst (Book 1)

by Marc Johnson

  She nodded.

  I created a condensed and focused fireball, making it provide more light than heat.

  “May the gods walk with you,” Sharald said.

  “Fight well and die harder,” Lenora said.

  Krystal and I led the group, the rest falling in behind. My heart pounded, ready to explode. I exhaled and said quietly, “This is it.”

  Krystal’s hand brushed my arm. Her purple eyes stared into mine, calming me.

  While we walked, I parted the fog around us just slightly so the princess could see better, though I was careful to keep it thick enough that we were invisible from a distance. She navigated the level terrain easily, only pausing now and then to correct our direction.

  To my ears, the light clattering of weapons and armor sounded far too loud. I kept glancing at those rattling chainmail or clattering quivers of arrows. The soldiers fingering their weapon hilts or scratching their beards added to the noise. Even the sound of their soft footsteps in the patches of grass on the flat ground rang in my ears. I tried not to think about such things and focused on the task at hand.

  When we arrived at the city's walls, I let out a breath, thankful that we hadn’t been spotted so far. I craned my neck at the towering walls, hearing the constant movement from the heavy creatures patrolling. Worried that they might see us, I drew the fog around us.

  “Please put out the flame,” the princess said. She walked along the wall. Her eyes scanned for something while her fingers danced on the stones. She slowed down to a crawl, then stopped. “Here it is.”

  Krystal pressed one of the stone blocks. A small opening appeared in the wall. She stepped in, and I followed her. The others poured in past us, into the dark hallway. After we were all inside, Krystal pushed another stone on the inside of the entrance. The doorway closed, sealing us in the small, cramped, pitch-black hallway. It smelt stale and stuffy.

  Even though the city walls were deep, it was too small inside the passage, especially with so many people. I hadn’t thought it would be like this. The space was only two people wide, and all the warm bodies made me feel trapped. I leaned on one of the walls, my hand tracing the lines in the stone. My chest heaved, and I closed my eyes and clenched my teeth. My heart vibrated through my ears. My breathing seemed louder than the entire force.

  “Hellsfire,” Krystal said, keeping her voice low. “Hellsfire, are you all right?” She reached out from the darkness and grasped my shoulder.

  I took a deep breath, trying to breathe normally. I remembered all the people outside who had far harder things to do than I did. “Forgive me. I'm…fine, Your Highness.”

  I squashed my emotions and focused on my magic. It was hard to use only a small portion of it. The need to use more almost overwhelmed me, but my fear of hurting the others controlled it.

  I created a fireball in my hand, illuminating the hallway. Monstrous shadows danced on the walls. Their pupil-less eyes forever watched us. That’s one of the main reasons I hate small spaces—your mind plays tricks on you.

  The princess led me past the others to the head of the line, and we moved out. Although we were inside the wall, there were a lot of twists as well as branching passageways. They must have been put there to confuse people, or perhaps they led to other places in Alexandria.

  A long time passed, and no one said a word. Only the scurrying of rats, the dripping of water, and the sound of the fire in my hand accompanied the tread of our feet.

  My thoughts kept straying to those outside these walls. As much as I worried for them, I was thankful for something to occupy my mind. Thoughts of their well-being kept me distracted from the cramped corridor.

  The corridor slanted steeply down and opened up, big enough for a cart and horses to travel through. The ceiling was much higher; I couldn’t even see it in the darkness above. The princess stopped. We all huddled around her. The stone had disappeared. We now seemed to be underground, and the tunnels were dirt shored up by timbers. Unlike the section we had just walked through, unlit torches hung on the sides of the walls.

  “We’re underneath Alexandria and close to the castle,” the princess said. “Watch your step from here on out, and don’t touch anything. You may trigger a trap.”

  Everyone moved uneasily. “Traps?” I asked. I didn’t like the sound of that. “Can you disarm them?”

  “Unfortunately, no.”

  I raised my hand. The flame left it, bouncing along the torches, reigniting them. That small bit of mana wouldn’t be enough for Premier to detect.

  The princess led us closer to the castle and our destination. She paused every so often, peering through the dim light at the tunnel walls or the ground.

  The princess stopped suddenly, and I almost bumped into her. There was a slight clicking noise.

  “Down!” she yelled.

  She fell to the ground, grabbing my robes and pulling me with her. I barely had time to put my hands out in front of me before my face hit the tunnel floor. Something whirled through the air above us like birds in flight.

  We heard thuds and grunting as elves and dwarves flung themselves to the ground. One landed on top of us and didn’t move. The whirring echoed down the passageway, deadly in its quiet tune.

  “Princess, what is it?” I asked.

  “Quiet!”

  The whirring noise stopped. None of us moved until the princess rose again. Two dwarves and an elf had fallen with tiny needles sticking out of their faces, necks, and arms. Their eyes bulged and their mouths were open. Their veins stuck out of their bodies, as if trying to leave their skin. Poison. Krystal’s face grew tight.

  We were just starting to move the bodies to the side of the passageway until we could return to claim them, when a low rumbling noise surrounded us. The elves moved their ears, trying to pinpoint the sound. It sounded like it came from above.

  “What—”

  A stone the size of an ogre’s head crashed down on the elf standing next to me. I heard his skull crunch, and green blood splattered my face. Part of the stone chipped off and hit my forehead, causing a deep scratch. Stunned, I reached up to wipe the blood out of my eye.

  “No time!” the princess said. “Run!” She pulled at my arm, forcing me out of my shock. She sprinted down the tunnels, and we followed.

  The ceiling kept dropping stones. It sounded like the growling of a thousand monsters. The princess was barely ahead of the tide. Rocks landed near me, forcing me to dodge and leap them. The soldiers behind us had the worst of it. Their heavy armor provided them little protection from the rocks, and it slowed them down. As much as they darted and weaved, not all of them were able to avoid the rocks. Behind us, we heard deep dwarven grunts, and the higher-pitched yelps of elves. I wished I could use my magic, but it was impossible while on the run. The rocks fell too fast and too erratically, and my control of earth mana wasn’t strong enough to manipulate this many without stillness and concentration.

  After a few minutes that seemed like hours, the princess reached a smaller passageway and turned off. The others funneled in behind us, and we waited, panting, as the deadly rain poured down in the main tunnel. We heard faint cries from those left behind. I winced with every one, until they went silent. The soldiers stared straight ahead, stony-faced, as did the princess.

  Finally, it was over. Krystal held her left side and panted. All of us breathed hard in the stale air. The sweat ran down my face, mingling with the blood from my forehead. I ignored it, creating a fire so everyone could see.

  “What happened?” Demay asked, leaning over with his hands on his knees.

  Krystal's eyes narrowed. “Someone tripped one of the traps.”

  “How many did we lose?” Jastillian asked.

  “Three to the poison darts,” the princess said. “I don’t know how many to the rocks.”

  We did a quick count. Out of the fifty we had started with, fifteen were missing. Jastillian and Prastian went back down the tunnel to check for survivors.

  Blood an
d sweat ran into my left eye, and I wiped it aside.

  “Hellsfire, you're hurt,” the princess said. She ripped off a piece of her tunic and wiped the blood from my face. She tied the cloth around my forehead.

  “Thank you, Your Highness.”

  Prastian and Jastillian returned, looking grim. Prastian caught the princess’s eye and shook his head once. No survivors. All fifteen missing were dead.

  “Can the rest of your elves and dwarves continue?” Krystal asked.

  “We can, Your Highness.”

  “I’m glad,” she said. “This is going to put us behind.” She peered down the tunnels. “We must press on, but we can no longer take the shortest route.” She looked back at the rubble. “Please watch yourselves, and do not touch the walls. I don’t want to run into any more traps.”

  We continued our journey through the tunnels, hurrying to make up for the lost time. Everyone hugged their weapons close to their bodies so they wouldn’t scrape against the walls. We made sure we didn’t touch anything but each other. I even wrapped my loose wizards robes closer to my body. The princess insisted on leading the way, so that everyone could follow in her exact footsteps. I didn’t like letting her go on alone, but she was in charge of this expedition, so I obeyed her.

  We traveled like this until we reached a door.

  “Past this door, we’re in the castle,” Krystal whispered. “There are no more traps and people shouldn’t hear or see us unless they know of the hiding places. Be quiet, though. I don’t know what or who is in the castle. Hellsfire, I’m going to need you to shrink your fireball so the light doesn’t give us away. ”

  “As you wish.” The fire in my hand compressed, leaving those farther away in total darkness.

  The princess opened the door. We once more faced a narrow stone passageway, in which only two of us could stand side by side. I stood by her, being her human torch. The way inclined, at times turning into flights of steps. Passageways branched off. At one intersection, Krystal paused for a second before choosing one.

  The floor leveled out, and we began to occasionally pass holes in the stone walls, where people could spy on what was happening in the rooms or corridors on the other side. Light seeped through them, and the hallways began to lighten. Dawn had broken. The rest of the army was going to commence the attack, whether or not we freed the imprisoned Guardsmen and raised the city. I looked at those around me. They clenched their teeth and kept glancing at the spyholes, as if looking through them would allow them to see the battle. It was impossible, but they did it anyway. So did I.

  We continued our silent trek. I wanted to ask Krystal how much longer until we were freed from these suffocating tunnels, but I refrained.

  “We’re here,” Krystal said.

  “Thank the gods,” I said under my breath.

  The princess bent down and pushed three stones in an order known only to her. The wall moved, and another opening appeared.

  She was about to go through when Jastillian said, “Princess, allow us.”

  She nodded, and Jastillian and half of the others went through the opening. I stayed behind to guard the princess, my magic at the ready. After a few tense seconds, we were given the all-clear to come through.

  The rest of us exited the tomblike passageway and poured into the room. My entire body relaxed as soon as I stepped out, glad to breathe fresh air and escape the oppression of the tunnels. Krystal leaned down and pushed a stone, sealing up the entrance once more.

  We were in a library. It was three times as big as Master Stradus's library, and much fancier, with carved shelves and expensive rugs, but I doubted it contained anything like the information he possessed. The strike force began to fan out to check the exits. I started to follow, when my back straightened and my shoulders tensed. Something was wrong. I felt something…magical. Not Premier—at least, not a spell he was actively casting. It was far too weak to be a direct threat. Still, I didn’t like it.

  “Wait,” I said.

  “Hellsfire, what is it?” Krystal asked.

  “I'm not sure. Give me a second.”

  I closed my eyes and focused my magical senses. I let the faint magic guide me, slowly and carefully, lest it was a trap and pulled me into it. I opened my eyes and saw the door. A web. I turned to the other doors and saw webs on them too. I walked closer to the first one, getting a better look. What bothered me wasn’t that the webs were there. I was bothered by the type of webs they were. They weren’t meant for detection, entrapping, or killing. They were meant for concealment.

  That was when we found out what was behind them.

  CHAPTER 23

  Creatures from the Wastelands poured into the dim-lit library from behind the concealment webs. Everyone drew their weapons, backing away from them and forming a ring, protecting each others’ backs. We stood as one, but the creatures had us surrounded and outnumbered.

  A large ogre came forth and snarled. He pointed a long, jagged sword at Krystal. “By the Wizard's orders, surrender or die.”

  The princess held her head high. There was only one option.

  The creatures sensed this. The goblins, smaller than elves, slobbered and bounced in their packs. If not for the huge ogres in front of them, holding them back, the goblins would have attacked. Square-headed trolls wore twisted smiles. Their bulky muscles tensed and twitched in anticipation.

  I didn’t see Premier. He could still be behind the webs, watching and directing everything, not wanting to get his hands dirty. On the other hand, it was possible that he had simply left guards at every exit from the tunnels, just in case. If he was here, I would reach that crossroads when he appeared. Like Master Stradus said, I had to focus on the now.

  While the ogre waited for Krystal’s answer, I acted. I lit all the torches in the library and every candle on the tables. They exploded into great balls of fire. It stunned and blinded everyone but me. My hope was that it would cause the creatures more difficulty. They had excellent eyesight at night, but like other animals, I gambled on their eyesight being sensitive to light.

  It was.

  Our forces understood. They attacked before the creatures could recover. I hoped it would be enough to make up for the losses we suffered earlier.

  Fire swirled into my hands until it became great and deadly balls. I slung them, guiding them to the creatures’ scarred, twisted, ugly bodies. One struck an ogre, igniting his side. Another ogre dodged in time. The ball smashed into a hanging tapestry and incinerated it.

  I guarded Krystal's weakened left side. The crowded room forced me to be careful with my spells; otherwise, I could harm our own side. When the small fireballs hit the creatures, they roared in pain. Two trolls advanced towards me. The fire exploded in my hand, tripling in size. They froze. Three dwarves led by Jastillian cut down the monsters, hacking them with their axes.

  Three ogres charged at me, crashing through tables and crushing the books beneath them. They knew I was their biggest threat. They even killed some of the smaller goblins on their way, but they didn’t seem to care. I couldn’t stop them with the weak and easy spells I was using. I had to risk a bigger one.

  I pushed my hands out in front of me. The trio of ogres trampled two elves. The lead one then rammed his sword through a dwarf, lifting him high into the air before he flung him off.

  I built up the fire inside of me, waiting until they were close enough and all my allies were free from their rampaging destruction. There was one dwarf in the way, but he fell to a troll’s massive club. He toppled over with half of his face smashed in. The three ogres were still coming.

  I put my hands up and released the thermal blast. The flames smothered the ogres. The carpets and tables around them caught fire. One ogre slammed to the stone floor, shrieking as his skin crisped and blacked. Another followed.

  The last ogre burst out of my inferno. In his burning rage, he moved too fast for me to stop my spell and get out the way. The beast roared, lifting his rusted sword towards me. Before he co
uld bring it down, Krystal ran him through, pushing him out of the way. She pulled her black-soaked sword free, and the flaming carcass collapsed to the ground.

  I panted, “Thank you.”

  Before she could respond, a group of tightly bunched goblins charged her. I grabbed the princess’s arm and pushed her behind me before hurling wind mana at the frenzied goblins. The rushing wind knocked them off their feet and sent them smashing against the bookshelves. Krystal sent me a quick smile before lifting her sword and resuming the fight.

  I glanced around at the chaos in the once pristine room. We were holding our own, but the sheer numbers and recklessness of the creatures had begun to take their toll.

  Despite my well-armed allies, the mindless creatures didn’t hesitate. All the goblins lacked any sort of armor—their fighting strategy was to stay in groups and mob people, killing them with their filthy teeth and claws. Two dozen goblins buried a trio of elves. A troll used his tremendous strength to club a dwarf until the red blood bathed his hands. Only the ogres had some restraint. Their dented, ill-fitting armor and unsharpened swords helped. However, that made them more deadly killers. We were losing too many people.

  A fallen bookshelf was the tombstone of two elves. A dwarf lay as broken as the table he sprawled across. An ogre and a dwarf were locked in a lover’s embrace, a fallen tapestry blanketing them.

  I had to do something.

  The lit torches and candles that hadn’t fallen over or burned out gave me an idea.

  “Princess, I need you to guard me. This ends now.”

  Krystal nodded, and with one fluid movement slashed one green goblin and finished another with her backswing. She corralled a couple of dwarves and elves. They surrounded me, taking the brunt of the attacks while I slid into a trance.

  I focused on all the fires that still burned, feeding my power into them. They blazed and burned as bright as the sun. I opened my eyes, and the flames danced straight up, moving to an unseen force.

  The creatures didn’t flinch. They pushed their advantage. My friends and allies took defensive measures. They slashed and cut the creatures’ arms—any opening that was exposed. Dark blood sprayed everywhere. The disciplined soldiers made no move to lunge for the finishing kill.