by Jeff Inlo
Far deeper in Scheff's spirit, the elf fought against the demon lord, cursed his connection to the daokiln. He did not wish to align himself with such diseased desires. Though he could not break Reiculf's control, his essence shied away from the beast's wishes.
Jure could sense the uncertainty growing within the elf. He knew he had to keep Scheff confused; had to create the moment of opportunity necessary to free his foe.
"You have Reiculf's power, but not his full attention. Isn't that true? He has allowed you to take action, to plot the course. He allows that because it's the nature of his being. He is strengthened by the decisions of others, but that means, in some ways, you're on your own. You have to come up with the way to beat me, but you don't know how. You lack conviction."
It was true, but the accusation only served to heighten Scheff's anguish.
"Conviction is irrelevant. Only raw power matters."
"Then why did you fail?"
"Because I underestimated you."
Jure found the answer absurd. It was not his own magical abilities that had saved him, nor was it the addition of Enin's magic. He considered what he and Haven discussed before the plague magic struck the elf camp.
His mind raced back to the moment he teleported Scheff and Macheve far off into another existence. He should have perished, but he survived—not by his own efforts, or by those of an ally—but by the will of Providence. He spoke with greater passion as he placed his faith in the guiding hand that led him into yet another test of his magic... and trust.
"It's not me you underestimate. It's the strength that exists beyond demons and darkness. Reiculf is not the supreme power of our existence. He never was and he never will be."
"I am not battling all existence," Scheff replied almost desperately. "I am only battling you."
"And that's where you're wrong! Do you honestly believe that Reiculf would be unopposed, that he would be allowed to pass his influence into other lands without having to face the same power that once restricted him to Demonspawn?"
"But he is no longer restricted!"
"In a way, he is. He can't reach out himself. He has to use others... the way he's using you. He's vulnerable and you know it."
The accusation irritated the elf, not because Scheff didn't wish to believe there were greater powers in existence than the daokiln, but because he didn't feel as if he ever had a chance to defeat the beast.
"You speak of things with which you know nothing about."
"Really? Then why am I here? Why didn't I die in the explosion that sent you and Macheve out of this existence? I was standing right there with you. What kept me alive? Certainly I couldn't have saved myself. Something else saved me. Something that's greater than Reiculf."
"You were saved by luck, nothing more."
"Luck? You can't be serious. Luck may be finding a coin on an empty road or winning a bet when the odds are against you, but luck can't save you from your destiny. I was put here for a reason."
"And what of me?" Scheff demanded, as he considered his own circumstances. "Was I not also put here for a reason?"
"Maybe you were. Maybe this is your chance to bury your own demons, bury Reiculf."
"I can not do that. I must answer to him."
"No, you don't. You only think that way. You're hiding in your own weaknesses."
Weakness.
The word angered the elf spell caster, tortured him. It felt like blame, a misplaced and unwarranted accusation. In a way, Scheff had wanted to believe in the wizard, hoped he might find a way to free himself from Reiculf's control, but he could not accept his personal limitations had anything to do with his fate.
When his will was taken from him in Dark Spruce Forest, he had tried to fight against Macheve, tried to withstand Reiculf. The invasion of the daokiln was too much for him, and he believed it was too much for anyone.
"You think I'm responsible for what's happening?" the elf questioned harshly.
"You're the only one I see standing here."
"Then you are not looking deep enough."
"You want me to believe Reiculf is pulling all the strings? Can't do that. I know he's got his hand in this, but he couldn't be here without you. You could fight him... if you wanted to."
"What I want is immaterial! The very reason I am here is proof enough of that. I am here to take Shantree Wispon, but for what reason? I have no need for the elder. This is about her and Reiculf."
"And you're nothing but a messenger? I can't accept that, either. You're as much a part of this as he is. You're allowing this to happen."
"Allowing?!" the elf wailed. "The daokiln takes what he wants and does not care for the desires of others!"
"That's not my understanding," Jure countered. "Reiculf isn't the final word on anything. Maybe if you believed in something more than your own power—or Reiculf's—you wouldn't be here."
"If that is true, then why are you protecting the elf elder?" Scheff challenged. "If it is possible to defy the daokiln, certainly she has the ability to fight off the demon lord. Let her come forward and test Reiculf's power."
"I can't do that. I was brought here to protect her, brought here by a force greater than you or me... and greater than Reiculf."
"Then your words are meaningless... and I can defeat you."
"Then try again."
Off to the east of the clearing, Ansas nodded his head in appreciation of the elderly wizard. The sorcerer stood besides Neltus and Haven. In exclaiming his surprise, he had to compliment the wizard in front of others, but yet again, he gave Jure his due.
"The old spell caster is even more cunning than I expected. He is baiting the elf into absolute distraction."
Ansas then turned to Haven. He had told her she would be needed to defeat Scheff, but he refrained from revealing how far she would have to go. He only claimed she would be needed to break the link between Reiculf and Scheff.
"It is almost time for you to act," the sorcerer revealed.
"What must I do?" Haven asked.
"Jure has managed to agitate the elf beyond reason. Scheff is about to attack once more, and he will do so with almost all of his power. When he does, he will be vulnerable to your magic. You have great control over light, and it is with that light you must weaken him. You have to blind him."
"You mean a spell of blinding?"
"No, I mean you must physically blind him. The spell must do actual and permanent damage. It cannot be an illusion or some momentary dazzling effect."
"Use the light to cause harm?" Haven asked, aghast at the proposition.
"Yes."
"To Scheff? I can not do that."
Ansas knew he would face such difficulties. He avoided the issue until the last moment to make time his ally, and he placed the pressure of urgency directly upon Haven.
"Then turn Shantree—as well as Enin—over to Reiculf yourself. We have little time to debate this issue. You will have this one opportunity to strike. Look into the clearing. Scheff is about to cast his spell. When he does, Enin and Jure will fight off the assault for as long as possible. They will not outlast Reiculf's energy which feeds the elf."
As if on cue, Scheff unleashed another spell. He was forced to keep the casting narrow in scope in order to avoid harming Shantree, but he meant to use Reiculf's power to prove Jure wrong. He had no desire to cause suffering, but he could not accept that the fault of his misfortune was his own.
Scheff released a burst of hurricane winds. Once more, he targeted the center of Jure's body. The spell would force the human wizard back into the trees, eventually crush the breath—and the life—from his body. The sheer force of the blast moved through the air in a thin shaft, like a long spear that extended from Scheff's hand all the way toward Jure's chest.
The wizard made no attempt to sidestep the attack. He remained beside the elf elder, determined to protect her. He knew the wind spear—just as the plague—would not harm the elf leader. It was meant to separate them... and probably kill him.
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If he was killed, or if he stepped away, Shantree would be defenseless against Reiculf's magic. She would most likely be whisked away and forced into the demon master's service. He could not accept that outcome. He had not miraculously survived one encounter with Reiculf only to fail in the next.
Again, Jure cast a spell of deflection, and a ring of white magic encircled the ground upon which he stood. When Scheff's battering spell crashed into his defenses, the force of the impact nearly knocked him unconscious.
He gasped for breath. Even as the wind spear failed to reach his body, it exerted so much pressure that the air around him shook with fury. If not for another sudden boost from Enin's magic, he would have lost his footing and sailed backwards into the trees.
No one could see the flow of magic from Enin. The powerful wizard from Connel remained hidden by a curtain of magic. The white energy from one wizard flowed seamlessly into the magic of the other, and there was no indication Jure was receiving aid.
Scheff, however, would not allow surprise or doubt to stop him again. He did not wish to aid Reiculf, did not want to be a pawn, but his desires were mere pebbles thrown at a wall of granite.
Reiculf had a firm hold of the elf spell caster, but the demon did not manage every decision, every movement. The daokiln influenced the elf in a much more subtle and diabolical fashion.
Scheff was not quite an empty shell, but rather more of a walled prison where every mistake and misjudgment he ever made filled the cells within. His past had been used as a gateway, like a portal that connected one dimension to another, and Reiculf magnified the elf's shame. Scheff's guilt made him vulnerable to the control of the demon master, and the pain of his history erased his future.
"You may have found a way to tap into the energy of the surrounding forest," Scheff guessed as he raged against Jure's strengthening defenses, "but even all the magic of Dark Spruce will not allow you to survive. That will prove what you are up against... what I was up against. You will see that nothing can stand against Reiculf... not you, not me, not anyone. It is a futile battle, and you will be destroyed."
Away from the conflict, Ansas pressed Haven into a decision.
"Did you hear that?" the sorcerer asked. "The elf has the power to overcome all the magic of Dark Spruce. He does not know that he is fighting both Jure and Enin, but it won't matter. He believes Jure has tapped into the power of the forest, but he continues to attack. He knows he will ultimately prevail, and so he will... unless you do what is necessary."
"Let me at least attempt a temporary blinding," Haven offered, hoping to avoid casting a spell that would cause permanent harm. "It may suffice."
"No, it won't. Reiculf's magic will quickly overcome a temporary spell, and it can heal insignificant damage. You must do damage that is irreversible or your attempt will be pointless. Worse, you will alert Scheff to our presence. Reiculf will then act appropriately and it will all be over. He will recall the serp and the infern and use all three pawns to capture both Enin and Shantree. Uton will ultimately be destroyed because you failed. It is your choice, but you must act now!"
Searching for any possible alternative, Haven looked toward Scheff and found her answer. She could not deny the fury in his face or the rage in the spell he cast. She saw the hate of Reiculf as it infected Scheff's entire being. As she watched him attack Jure—and more revealing the elf elder—she knew she had to strike. Scheff meant to turn Shantree Wispon over to Reiculf, and while Haven's elf heart still beat, she could never allow that to happen.
Focusing on the eyes of her target, Haven prepared a spell of concentrated brilliance. She whispered a few words and brought her hands up in front of her. A glistening triangle, burning so bright that Ansas had to shield his own eyes, formed between the palms of her hands. The triangle broke apart into two separate sections and both condensed further into two small stars no larger than her thumb. With a quick flick of both hands, she sent the gleaming projectiles of energy directly toward Scheff's face.
So focused was Scheff on overcoming Jure's shield, he did not see the attack until it was too late. Two points of stunning light rushed toward him at unbelievable speed. As each tiny star soared toward his eyes, Scheff's vision became filled with the growing brilliance. A flash of yellow radiance was the last thing he saw.
The explosion of light forced Scheff to end his spell as he staggered backward. He could no longer see Jure, Shantree, or even the surrounding forest, and he could not afford to harm the elf leader. He stumbled about in the clearing, waving his hands in the air as he tried not to crash into a nearby tree.
Realizing he had been blinded, Scheff quickly used the magic within him in an attempt to flush any spell from his body. The distorted energy blurred the space around him, but he still could not regain his sight.
"You see?" Ansas stated to Haven as he pointed to Scheff. "If you tried to disrupt his sight without causing damage, he would have purged the spell. Now, prepare yourself. You will be needed again."
Ansas stepped out into the clearing as he called to Jure.
"Strike now, as I instructed!"
Jure had ceased his spell of deflection when Scheff had been blinded. Using his remaining magic, he went on the attack. He flung a circle of white magic at the elf spell caster, and when it encircled Scheff, he pulled tight upon its boundaries. Maintaining a connection to the lasso of power, Jure held firm and fed all of his energy into the spell.
"Enin!" Ansas directed. "Take as much magic from the elf as you can!"
No longer needing to hide, the powerful wizard also stepped out into the clearing. He knew what Ansas was going to ask of him, and he had prepared a siphon spell that would attempt to draw out as much energy from Scheff as possible. If it succeeded, the power would be flushed out into the skies over Dark Spruce where it could do no harm. If Scheff resisted, which the elf initially prepared to do, the confrontation would still drain him of magic.
"Excellent!" Ansas shouted as he reveled in the battle. He was forcing a servant of Reiculf to the ground; a victory of unimaginable scale. "He is blind, held, and losing power. All that is left is to cut Reiculf's hold."
The sorcerer turned to Haven one last time.
"He can't see, but the light of your magic can break through certain barriers. You know how to reach into and take hold of the light of other dimensions. Use Scheff's connection to Reiculf to grasp the dim and lifeless light of Demonspawn. Flush that light into his core."
"But that will reinforce Reiculf's hold," Haven countered. "We must break the connection, not strengthen it!"
"Do not question me! I have not brought us to this point to fail! Do it!"
Haven did not understand the command. It seemed her spell was in direct opposition to their plan, and yet, she could see the zeal in the sorcerer. He was intoxicated with the battle, and she knew he was fighting to win.
Hoping she made the right decision, she followed Ansas' orders. She reached past the spells of Jure and Enin and delicately probed the light surrounding the elf spell caster. The tainted illumination that sprung from Demonspawn was impossible to miss, and its abhorrent qualities almost made her recoil from the filthy light.
Fighting off her revulsion, she pulled upon the dingy glow and forced a greater surge into Scheff. The connection between Scheff and Reiculf doubled, and then redoubled. The flow not only threatened to tear Scheff apart, it broke Jure's hold and blasted back upon Enin's spell.
"Ansas!" the wizard shouted. "What are you doing? I can't siphon off that much power!"
"You were never meant to!" Ansas roared, but then he turned his own magic upon the intensified connection to Demonspawn.
A ring of pure blackness swirled around the sorcerer's upper arms as he placed both hands together and pointed them at Scheff. He snarled strange words and let the spell of total transformation fly.
"Watch what the power of alteration can accomplish!"
The ebony energy spilled into both Enin and Haven's spell. With Jure's lasso
broke, there was nothing that contained the elf spell caster, but it was no longer necessary. Even as Scheff found the opportunity to move freely across the battlefield, the black magic completely altered his link to the daokiln.
Enin's siphoning spell reversed. Instead of pulling Reiculf's energy away from the elf, it forced it back into Scheff's core. For one very brief instant, the elf was immensely dangerous, but he never had the opportunity to unleash the power building up within him.
Haven's spell was also transformed. Rather than pulling light from Demonspawn into Scheff's essence, it forced Reiculf's energy out of the elf and back into the veiled portion of the dark realm. When the last strains of the daokiln's energy raced out of the elf's essence, the connection between Scheff and Reiculf was broken.
The complete draining of Reiculf's magic, as well as his influence, was near instantaneous. Once it was complete, every spell dissipated in one sharp crackle of energy, and Scheff fell to the ground.
Jure and Shantree ran to the fallen elf.
"He's alive!" Jure shouted.
"Of course he is," Ansas replied with a grin almost glowing with a sense of unbridled victory, "but he is no longer in Reiculf's control."
Haven also moved to Scheff's side. She took his hand and helped him up. She carefully guided him to a large rock where he could sit down.
Scheff continued to blink as he wiped at his eyes with his fingers.
"I cannot see," he whispered.
"I know," Haven admitted, her voice shaking. "I caused it. It is not a spell I can remove. It is permanent damage, damage that cannot be healed through magic or time. Ansas said we had to do it. He believed Reiculf was using you, that he could see through your eyes."
"Ansas?" Scheff asked, turning his head about as if trying to find the ebony casting sorcerer.
"I have returned from Baannat's realm to defeat the daokiln," the sorcerer stated with too much pride and very little sympathy for Scheff's injury.