“NO!” she screamed. “Please, have mercy!” She franticly tried to pull her frozen limbs away. Slowly her movement became more limited as her torso was locked into place, followed by her arms and finally her head; her face was frozen in a final, silent scream.
Sensing only stone energy coming from it, Calla walked up to the statue that had once been her stepmother. She gazed at it for a while, until she finally kicked one foot into its upper body. It broke at the knees and toppled backwards, smashing into many pieces and clouds of dust on impact with the floor.
As Calla took one step away reality caught up to her. With that step the wound in her side flared with pain, and with a sharp intake of breath she dropped to the ground. Someone came up and caught her, cradling her in their arms. She opened her eyes to find herself staring at Hiran. As he held her with one arm he pressed his other hand down hard on the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. Calla screeched—the pressure only caused more pain.
“It is all right,” Hiran said softly. “You are strong. You will be all right.”
Calla stared at the massive pillar she had struggled to raise three days ago. It stood at an odd angle, and a series of cracks had formed along its entire length. Still, it at least looked solid enough for her to work with, and even if it did fall apart it wouldn’t cause too much of a problem. She closed her eyes and focused on it, reaching out to touch the energy within it while picturing in her mind’s eye a towering oak tree. Carefully she pushed against the stone, molding it with her mind into that shape, willing it to grow and come alive by feeding it some of the energy found in the soil. In little time it started to grow even taller, numerous branches sprouting out of its side as it rose ever higher; just as quickly they went into leaf. Rock slowly shifted to become wood with loud cracks and groans. In minutes the new tree stood at least fifty feet tall.
But Calla wasn’t finished with it yet. As she stared at the forked branches of the tree she suddenly pictured a stag in her mind. With a loud rustling of leaves and snapping of twigs something dropped from the branches to the ground. It lay there for a moment, then quickly scrambled up and turned in her direction, walking gracefully towards her. With each step it grew, its legs growing long and slender, its neck extending, antlers sprouting from its head and growing. She let go of the energy wavelength coming off it as the large buck’s antlers finished forming.
He walked towards her gracefully and leaned forward to nuzzle her neck with his wet nose. You are pretty, he said.
Laughter broke out a few yards from where they stood. Kosh and Miin sat on a fallen log off to the side watching them, clapping their hands excitedly with broad smiles on their faces.
The buck panicked. Yikes! Forget I said anything—I am out of here! He crossed the clearing in three bounds and was gone.
Kosh stood up, her smile lighting up her wrinkled face. “Yes!” she cried. “Yes! That is mastery! That is how you can use Earthmagic!”
Miin hopped over to embrace Calla. “And you kept doubting yourself this whole time,” she said. “That was beautiful.”
Kosh walked over and placed her weathered hands on the girl’s face. “There are no doubts now: you are the Lady’s champion.”
“Of course she is.” Calla looked over her shoulder to where Hiran sat close by. “Kosh, you make it sound like she was going to be completely useless otherwise.”
“None of us had any way of knowing what would happen. It would seem that Fate has decided to grant us some favor, even if only to level the playing field. It may not be enough, but it will be something.”
“Do not give her cause to lose any more hope, Kosh.” Hiran came up and wrapped his arms around Calla’s shoulders. “That the darkness is closing in on us is bad enough.”
“I understand that, lad. I was just saying—”
Calla! CALLA!! A loud yipping from some large canine creature rose up from behind them. Both Calla and Hiran turned to look for it, but not before the large red-brown creature came barreling between them. Calla started to fall as her legs were knocked out from underneath her, but Hiran was quick to catch her again. She winced as she felt a dull aching in her left side. The Nymphs had used their skills to only partially heal her injuries; her body needed to do the rest of the healing on its own. The deep wound was going to take a while to mend.
Breathing heavily, Calla glared down at the animal. “Lina?” she said. “Where’ve you been?”
The Tri-tail had flopped onto the ground on one side, panting heavily. She lifted her head slightly in Calla’s direction. Running, she said.
Calla rolled her eyes. “Could you at least be a little more—”
We do not have time to fuss about details. With a growl Lina sat upright. She fixed one golden eye on the girl’s face. Forget about where I have been for now, Calla—we all have bigger problems to worry about. The Dark Lord’s army has crossed the border; they are heading straight this way.
XXXV
Elenia
Elenia stepped out of the large fireplace in the front hall, sparks and ash flying off her clothes and scattering across the floor. She strode into the middle of the room. It was completely deserted. It was just as well—her rather dramatic entrance would probably have frightened everyone away anyway. But she needed to be here, and had chosen one of the faster modes of travel: by fire.
Tension and fear now filled the air. She went through the door and into the corridor, making her way to the Council meeting hall. She had sensed the ripples of these happenings in her own sanctuary, something that usually never happened. As she walked she could feel her worst fears become confirmed.
Bralon and his forces were almost upon them.
She sniffed at the air and hissed at it in spite of herself. The wind was bringing the stink of decay with it. It should not have been so strong—the closest part of the border was only about a two day walk away from here now. It made her more irritable.
Her feet scuffed along the floor, the sound echoing in the nearly-silent hallway. As she walked through the corridor loud voices drifted towards her from a nearby room. Elenia stopped to listen. She was just outside the Council hall. She could pick out a few of the voices: Ren’s boomed up quite loud, that of an older woman named Kaltin she had met on a walk years ago sounded just as loudly, and Calla’s voice rose up louder than any of the others. The girl sounded furious.
“Just what are you thinking, Councilors?” Calla snapped. “What is it you hope to accomplish by having us all march to a guaranteed-gruesome death?”
Tense silence followed. Even from out here in the hall Elenia thought it actually felt heavy. None of the twelve Councilors seemed in any hurry to answer her. Elenia stepped closer to the massive doors. One of them was slightly ajar, and she put her eye up to the space to see into the room beyond. She couldn’t see much, just the sleeve of someone’s gray robe and part of the wall farthest from her. She stepped back and settled herself over by a window across from the doors as she projected her mind into the room to listen.
Wood scraped against stone abruptly as someone stood up. All other noise in the room subsided instantly. The person cleared their throat to get everyone’s attention. “Calla, we took a vote on this before you came.” The voice belonged to Kalnin, elected as the new High Councilor. “It was a unanimous decision. Enough time was wasted already by our predecessors; we stand to certainly lose everything if we wait any longer. We can at least attempt to preserve what we have left by meeting the Dark Army now with what forces we have.”
“Preserve what? What is the point? You will lose even more by acting like this!”
“What is the point of waiting? We cannot sit around and wait for more help that will never come, nor would we be any stronger if we did. This battle is ours to fight as much as it is yours, Calla. We do not doubt this to be the final battle foretold long ago. But the Dark Lord has made it clear that He expects the day to be His. If you were to go alone what chance would you have?”
“See reason, Calla,”
came Ren’s voice, softer than before. “This force the Dark Lord sends is meant to distract you, to give you something else to fight; He knows you have survived all his assassins, so He wants to try wearing you out so you are easier to eliminate. For our forces to march against his main army will help ensure the battle of the prophecy takes place without hindrance. Perhaps, like you think, it is just madness on all our parts, but it is the best and only hope we have. It is a risk we have to take.”
“You are the chosen one, Calla,” said Kalnin. “We are all looking to you. The fate of us all is in your hands.”
“But I don’t—”
“We must begin preparations,” said a voice Elenia didn’t recognize, cutting Calla off. “We need to determine where best to intercept His army. Only two of the ten scouts we sent have come back…”
Elenia closed her eyes as the voice droned on, their words becoming a buzz in the background as she drew her consciousness back. The stone was cold against her skin as she rested her head against the wall. She could feel the fear pulsing in the world around her. The natural world around her was crying out in despair. But what could she do? Perhaps she could create an earthquake, split the ancient rock open wide and let the fires of the earth’s heart devour the army of darkness.
But tearing the earth to expose its core would mean the end of days.
Hopelessness—this must have been what it felt like to the mortals. To see doom coming and be unable to do anything about it. It made her sad as well; she felt as though she was betraying them all, leaving all life to suffer this way when it was her duty to guard it. She silently cursed at Fate. Why did it have to be this way?
It was the same question Calla was asking days.
Elenia heard the door creak open behind her, then slam closed again. Light footsteps echoed across the stone, followed by a heavy sigh of frustration. The girl stopped somewhere behind her, and unaware she had company out here smacked one fist against the wall.
“We’ll lose everything like this,” Calla said bitterly to no one in particular.
“But what more can we do?” Elenia asked in return, turning to face her. “Our time is running out—there is little we can do now.”
Calla didn’t meet her gaze; she leaned up against the far wall with her left shoulder to the stone. “Lady Elenia,” she said, “are we just being doomed to die in the darkness?”
Elenia let her eyes drop to focus on the floor between them. “Such dark events make it hard to imagine otherwise,” she said. “Fate has dealt us the cards—now we must play with them as best we may.”
“This hand is the worst yet.” Elenia thought she heard Calla’s voice crack.
“We have to act. The Council’s arguments are sound—we have gathered as many people as we can, but we are an island in a raging sea that threatens to swallow us. There is no other choice.”
“I’ve never felt so helpless and afraid like I do now.”
Elenia came over and wrapped one arm around the girl’s shoulders to try and comfort her. “There is no shame in admitting you are afraid. It is whether you decide to let it control your actions that matters.”
“I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to face him again—not after what he did to me and what he was planning to do.”
“You must, if you wish to be truly free of him once and for all.” Elenia stared hard at her. “It is not just because he will gain his victory over us if you do nothing, but because of what he will gain by having you once more. He has not forgotten you in all this time: he knows full well where you are now. He plans to accomplish much in just a few steps, and it will be far from pleasant for you. For you it will be worse than before.”
Calla turned her head to look Elenia in the eye. “What should I do?” she asked.
Elenia took the girl’s chin in one hand, gently rubbing her thumb along the jawbone. “You must face him,” she said firmly. “You have grown so much in these dark days, both in skill and as a person. You are no longer the timid creature who shied away from the darkness and doubted herself. As I look on you now I see a woman who sees the good in others; who may fear the future, but is willing to face what it has in store; and who will do what she feels she must to protect those she cares about. You are more than ready and capable to show that fool how wrong he was to try taking you, and show him how strong you really are. You can make him rue the day he first laid eyes on you.”
Calla nodded her acknowledgment, but Elenia could see the lingering doubt in her face. She smiled and tousled the girl’s neat hair a little. “You will rise to meet this,” she said. “You always have, and always will.”
A small smile crept across Calla’s face. “Will you be with me?” she asked. “At least, will you watch over me?”
Elenia patted her cheek. “If I could, then I would.”
Calla’s face fell.
“I have my own battle to prepare for,” she continued. “I must call on one I have not seen in over five millennia. What lies ahead will affect him as well, but he is so hard to pin down these days.” Elenia turned and started walking down the hall. She glanced back over her shoulder as she went. “I will not say goodbye, because I do not see this as the end for us. I feel we may cross paths at least once more before we finally part ways. Therefore I shall simply say, until we meet again.”
Confusion briefly crossed the girl’s face, but vanished so quickly it could have been just a trick of the light. Calla bowed to her. “I hope we might, Lady Elenia.”
Elenia heard the pattering of paws from around the corner. The Tri-tail Lina skittered across the stone tile floor as she came into view, sliding to a halt by Calla’s feet. There you are, she started to say. Hiran is looking for you. The orders to prepare for battle are being issued…
Elenia didn’t stay to hear the rest of the conversation. With barely a thought she melted into the wind and soared back up the mountain, passing through the gateway to her sanctuary. Her Nymphs would have to make preparations of their own, to protect this place from the demons of darkness. As she started giving her own orders, she silently prayed to Fate Herself to watch over them.
XXXVI
Dranl
Dranl walked alone to the top of the next hill some distance from his main army. The roars and shouts of his soldiers cut through the chill morning air behind him, loud and harsh against the stillness. He ignored them as he stopped and stared across the living landscape that stretched out before him. A cold wind blew through his hair, and he felt the skin on his arms prickle as it passed. It didn’t bother him, it made him feel more alert than ever. He turned his gaze to the eastern horizon, absentmindedly running his tongue along his lips.
He was so close now he could almost taste his victory.
Dranl let himself smile. This would be too easy—they all knew it. What hope did the Malc have? Their defenses were brittle and weak, their morale undoubtedly at its lowest, their chances of stopping him nonexistent. He could hardly wait to add this wide space of land to his own territory, proving the strength of his house. There was a little too much space here—it was too open, it needed a little something more—he could create something to put here later. Yet he couldn’t help but feel something was missing in all this…
A mirage of an Elven girl with flowing red-brown hair drifted past him, causing his heart to quicken. Calla…he had forgotten about her in all this time. He cursed quietly as the vision faded. He had sent so many search parties out to find her with only a few of them coming back, all empty-handed. Well, that would change. The girl’s Malc defenders would fall and she would be his once more. As thunder rolled in the sky overhead Dranl smiled at the thought of holding her slender body against his own.
—That shall never be.—
Dranl jumped as Lord Bralon’s voice boomed through the air. He cast a nervous look back towards his host; the soldiers simply continued with their previous activities, oblivious to the sound of the Master’s voice. Dranl had to remind himself only he, his mystics, and a smal
l handful of other chosen people could hear Him.
He stared skyward. “I will have her again, my lord,” he said aloud. “Even now, the Malc defenses are no match—”
—It is too late for that now. She must die by your hand.—
Dranl was shocked. “My lord?”
—My other servant charged with eliminating her has failed; she swore a blood-oath and has since paid the price.—
Dranl cringed. He had heard about making blood-oaths, where one would swear on their blood to take some task and then seal the vow with three drops of blood dripped onto a flame, usually one of a black candle. If the oath was somehow broken the spell would cause the person’s blood to ignite and they would burn from within, unless they had been hit with some other kind of spell that prevented it; with the destruction of the body the person’s soul would be torn apart by the dark spirits that followed them since the original casting. Such oaths were sworn only as a last resort, a kind of self-given incentive to succeed.
—The Forest Child has discovered her full potential and will fight against us. She has become too dangerous now for you to even hope to continue your games with her. You must destroy her at all costs.—
Dranl felt the anger building inside him. His hands curled into fists at his sides. “I swore I would have her and I will have her!”
—You are a foolish child to keep this continuing. She is beyond all hope of control.—
“I refuse to leave without her!”
—Then keep her corpse; you can reanimate it later. It is not like you would have kept her as her mind is now. With various spells she will be even more loyal to you than she was with your last attempt at control.—
Dranl scowled and stared back at the grass. “It would not be the same…”
—Get over it. You were trained to kill the Forest Child champion. You have a duty to perform, so do it. — With another rumble of thunder Bralon’s presence disappeared.
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