by Jeff Inlo
"Diversion?" Jure wondered.
"Maybe, but distraction or not, we need to stop this before it gets out of control."
"I can smother..."
Jure was interrupted by a second flare, but it took the shape of a fireball as it burst across the sky to the south of their position. It continued to rage high in the sky until it reached a position well above the tallest rooftops. It stopped any forward motion and hung suspended in the air like a mini-sun. Unlike the first fire, gray smoke billowed off its edges.
Just as they looked to the south, Ryson spotted another flash far across the city at the eastern edge of Connel. It burned similar to the first, a huge rush of flames that reached high into the sky like a tower of fire, but it burned without smoke.
"We've got another fire to the east!"
Jure ignored it. The fireball held his attention. He sensed something within the flames, something magical... and something repulsive. There was a presence in the energy. It was thick and heavy, like syrup on a cold morning, but it was also vicious. He wondered if it was Reiculf.
Ryson leapt to a nearby building and climbed to a high rooftop. Taller buildings blocked some of his sight lines, but he commanded enough of a view to see most of the city.
"Only the three fires!" he called to Jure.
"The two flares are inferns," the elder wizard warned. "The fireball is something else."
The wizard probed the magic within the sphere of fire, pressing deeper into the mix of energy. He knew he would be revealing his presence to the caster, but he needed to understand the attack.
As he waded into the magic, he could sense both its power and its colorless nature. Reiculf's energy was being utilized to create the ball of fire. He knew the source, but he could not determine the reason.
"Gnafil," Jure finally revealed to his companions.
"You're sure?" Ryson questioned as he leapt back down to the street.
"Yes."
"What do we do?"
It was a complicated question. The fireball was a much greater threat than the surges of smokeless flames, but Gnafil's spell appeared in a state of suspension, as if it had not yet found its ultimate purpose. Engaging such a spell remained a dangerous proposition.
Jure continued to stare at the ball of fire even as he considered how easy it would be to snuff out the demon flares cast by ordinary inferns. He could probably douse them both in mere moments. In the back of his mind, he prepared a powerful spell of water that would cascade down upon the half-demons and drown them in an instant. He never cast the incantation.
Jure finally took his attention away from the fireball and placed it directly on the delver.
"You have to keep watch on the fireball! Watch the smoke. I can't tell you what to look for, but just keep looking for any changes. There's something very wrong with this, something about the inferns, but you can't worry about that. You need to keep focused on the fireball. That's where the real danger is. Dzeb, stay with Ryson. I'll be back."
Jure teleported away, leaving Ryson to question why he should just stand and watch.
#
Haven could feel the shine of all three fires. The illumination broke through the brilliance of day, and the pulse of radiance called to the yellow glow of her internal energy. The streams of flame were nothing more than a robust display of light and heat, but the fireball over the southern portion of the city contained more than a whisper of dread. The raging edges of light around the flaming sphere burned with a sinister menace.
Holding Scheff's hand, she revealed what her companion could not see.
"There is fire in the city, unnatural light, demon fire. There are streaks of flame close to us, but they do not appear to threaten any structures. There is another fire surge far to the west, where Ansas stationed Ryson, Dzeb, and Jure. The third is a fireball. It is positioned higher in the sky. It hangs overhead, suspended."
"And where is that one?" the blind elf asked.
"To the south of the city center."
"That is the one that is pulling at the air."
"What do you mean?" Shantree asked, taking command as she assessed the assault.
"I can barely sense the fire walls," Scheff offered, "but the disturbance to the south is raging through the skies. It feels as if it is swallowing the clouds."
The elf elder looked to the fireball. There were no clouds overhead, but around the ball of flame, she noted banks of swirling smoke.
"Except for smoke, the sky is clear," Shantree explained.
"The sky is never completely clear," Scheff reminded the elder. "There are always vapors, traces of moisture that can eventually turn into powerful storms."
Shantree realized that Scheff was utilizing the violet magic of the storm within him to cope with his blindness. He couldn't see, but he was already reaching out in various ways with the lavender energy.
"What is it you sense?" Shantree questioned with greater authority.
Scheff pointed directly at the fireball, as if he could see it without difficulty.
"Over there. A great disturbance is focused on a small portion of the vast skies. It feels as if it is feeding on the heavens, pulling at the seams of our existence."
"I sense something as well," Haven confirmed. "Despite the light, there is a great darkness surrounding the sphere of fire. It is not simply smoke. There are shadows waiting at the perimeter. I sense demons, but they have not yet crossed over into this land. The fireball seems to cut across dimensions. I believe it is connected to Demonspawn."
Shantree considered the news. She normally left battle commands to the elf guard, but Ansas insisted she take control of the two elf spell casters. She was also not comfortable standing in the streets of a human city, even if they were mostly empty.
The citizens of Connel had been warned of a pending attack and were asked to keep their excursions to a minimum. Most honored the request, and those who had ventured outside returned quickly to their homes the moment they saw fire in the sky.
As the elf elder scanned their surroundings, she noted the dwarves of the city remained active. The fires briefly grasped their attention, but most quickly returned to their duties constructing one structure or another. They knew magic when they saw it, but even energy of pure evil could not dent their stoic nature. They abhorred magic in any form and felt such displays should be left to the concerns of wizards and sorcerers.
Shantree, however, was not so lucky. The fires required her attention, as well as a decision.
"Should we act?" Haven finally asked.
Shantree believed they could deal with the closest wall of fire. Scheff could probably douse the flames with minimal damage to the city. The fireball was another matter, but that particular disturbance was just beyond their reach.
In the end, she deferred to the directive given to her by Ansas.
"Not at this moment. We were told to monitor this section of Connel and only act if the city was in jeopardy. The flames closest to us serve as a display of power, but I see no one at risk. We will wait for further instructions or for a change in the severity of the attack."
Scheff heard the words, even obliged himself to obey the command, but he could not agree with the sentiment. He knew the city was under siege. They would have to act eventually, and when they did, a choking storm of gloom would descend upon them all.
#
"Why would inferns become willing targets?" Jure demanded.
Ansas did not answer. He frowned, rubbed his chin, and finally moved to a window in Enin's study to stare down the streets.
Jure's sudden appearance irritated him. He knew the wizard had teleported to Enin's home to question him, and he didn't like questions. He realized both Enin and Jure were waiting impatiently for an answer, but he took long moments to consider the inferns' actions.
"I asked you a question," Jure finally demanded of the sorcerer, unwilling to wait for further musings.
Ansas avoided the issue by asking a question of his own.
"What do you make of the fireball?"
The response annoyed the wizard, but he answered to place greater emphasis on the issues at hand.
"That's not an infern's magic. That's Reiculf's. Gnafil cast that spell using the daokiln's energy."
"I agree, but they are all connected."
"Obviously! But why send two inferns into the city to basically send out flares? They're not destroying anything. They're just sending up flames in the air. It's not a distraction. It's something else. It's also interesting that they appeared near positions covered by our forces. It's like they want to be destroyed. You seem to know what Reiculf is doing. Explain this one!"
"I need more information."
"No, you don't!" Jure countered. "If I can see the problem with this, so can you. I could crush both inferns in moments. Enin could do it in the blink of an eye, barely using any of his energy. Even Scheff could end the flares with little effort. The purpose is clear. We are being baited. Reiculf wants us to snuff out these inferns. Why?"
"To cause the death of a half-demon within the city," Ansas finally replied as he turned from the window and faced Jure directly.
"And how would that help Reiculf? I understand inferns are low level demons, not even full demons. Reiculf could lose hundreds and replace them with ease, but why make it easy?"
"The fireball is the key. It's not simply a light in the sky."
"I know that. I told you it was Reiculf's magic."
"Not completely. The fireball is creating a dimensional gateway, but it's something beyond an ordinary portal. It is like a window that is currently closed, but certain entities can now look into our realm."
Enin immediately understood and offered an answer to Jure's question.
"Darowks. Smoldering demons. They're watching through the fireball. Reiculf has power over all the demons, but he can't force them to leave Demonspawn. They have to leave of their own accord. If darowks see half-demons die, they will open the window themselves."
"And what will that mean to us?" Jure questioned.
"It's an ingenious move," Ansas replied.
"I don't want to hear about Reiculf's brilliance. I want to know what it means!"
"To understand the meaning requires appreciating the genius of the tactic. Darowks breed like roaches, but are difficult to control. It's as Enin said. Reiculf cannot force them out of Demonspawn. But watching a half-demon die in a human city will send them into a frenzy. Their rage will be so great, they will ignore the consequences of their actions. They will swoop down of their own accord. They will use the dimensional gateway within the fireball and invade the entire city."
"That puts us in a perilous position," Enin added. "If Reiculf wishes to sacrifice the half-demons, he will be willing to go to any length to force our hand. If we don't attack the inferns, he will make the inferns do more than simply send up waves of fire. The half-demons will threaten to set the entire city aflame. We will have no choice. The moment we strike them down, the darowks will enter. They will engulf the city."
Jure needed no further explanation. He knew what would happen if the smoldering demons assaulted Connel. It would take enormous amounts of magical energy to fight them off. Gnafil could simply stand back and wait for an opening. With such a prospect before them, Jure questioned why the half-demons chose to be so passive in their initial attack.
"Then why don't the inferns start burning the city now? Why are they just sending out fire waves?"
"Reiculf would rather not risk an all out fire," Ansas answered. "He will order them to burn buildings if it becomes necessary, but that creates certain hazards to individuals he hopes to capture. Demon fire raging through Connel is unpredictable, and though I'm certain he is after Enin, he also hopes to eventually take Shantree and regain control of Scheff as well. He would not want to risk losing them in a city ablaze with demon flames."
"Can't we just teleport the inferns away, back to the dark realm?"
"Gnafil would just recall them, and perhaps bring others as well. That would make things worse."
"Then what do we do?"
"We keep the inferns from dying," Ansas answered as if there was no other alternative.
"And once they start burning the city?" Enin pressed, unhappy with the solution. "You know they will."
"Then we will contain the flames. It will be easier to manage fires than to face an assault of darowks. We can keep the damage to a minimum, but we cannot have the half-demons perish."
"That is not the only answer," Enin replied.
"And what am I missing?" the sorcerer challenged.
"Gnafil. He will eventually force the issue."
"Of that I am sure, but let him make the mistake. Frustration comes easily to an infern, especially one pressed into service by the daokiln."
"I can not allow that," Enin stated firmly. "If he uses Reiculf's power to strike out at Connel, many will die."
"Many more will die if Reiculf gains control of your powers," Ansas warned.
Enin, however, examined the struggle from a different perspective.
"But Gnafil is already using Reiculf's power. The fireball. Think of the energy that is required to keep a transitional gateway open indefinitely."
"Child's play for Reiculf."
"But this isn't Reiculf. It's Gnafil. There are limits to the energy that can pass through a half-demon."
"I'm well aware of the limitations."
Enin ignored the sorcerer. He began to consider the implications of magical connections and dimensional gateways. His mind raced with energy computations and interactions between dimensions. He could not speak entirely of his thoughts, as words could not fully express or define his understanding of magic, but he began to mumble his rambling considerations.
"If Reiculf could extend his full power through these pawns, he would have no need for such games. The limits exist, but they are also complicated. The magic is transitioning... not only through physical barriers but also dimensional paths. A connection between a daokiln and a half-demon has to create its own restraints. The half-demon would simply explode without a regulation of power. An infern could reach certain potency, but the strain of an existing spell would be its own drain."
Enin stopped suddenly. He looked up at both Jure and Ansas. It was clear he had made his own decision.
"This is our chance! If I attack Gnafil now, I can defeat him or force him to shut down the gateway. We must not waste the opportunity."
"No," Ansas replied staunchly. "We must wait."
"We don't have to wait. This is the mistake! Gnafil has already made it. He is vulnerable."
Enin said nothing further. He teleported from his study to the southern section of the city where Gnafil waited.
Chapter 20
"Protect the infern?" Ryson questioned in disbelief. "Protect it from what?"
"From anything that might endanger it," Jure explained. "We need to take care of the one closest to us. Holli was sent to Shantree's position to advise her to do the same for the one in the east."
"What about the fireball? What's the story with that?"
"It was cast by Gnafil, but it's not just a fireball. It's a dimensional gateway. It's closed, for now. It's like a window. Darowks are watching us. If the inferns die, the darowks will come through on their own and destroy the city."
"Can we shut it down before they get through?"
"I'm not sure. I think that's what Enin's planning on doing, but when he left, Ansas exploded. He was in no mood to explain. He said he had to go save Enin. He gave orders to Holli and me to protect the inferns and then he teleported after Enin."
The delver's curious mind erupted with a flood of questions. Protecting inferns sending flames high over Connel was enough of a mystery. Ansas' actions only added to his confusion. He couldn't imagine how Ansas could possibly protect Enin. The sorcerer was indeed powerful, but even his pure ebony magic was a thin shadow compared to Enin's vast energy.
"How does Ansas save Enin?" Ry
son asked, obviously amazed by the notion.
"I'm not sure," Jure answered. "And like I said, Ansas wasn't offering any explanations."
"So how do we handle this?"
"Let's move in on the infern casting the fire wave. We can make sure no one gets close to it. With regular citizens remaining indoors, we'll only have to worry about the dwarves and the town guard. The dwarves won't want to get mixed up in magic, and the soldiers know we're patrolling the city and watching for something like this. If we don't attack, I doubt anyone else is going to get involved. We just have to make sure the infern doesn't alter its spell. As long as it keeps sending flames into the air, we leave it be. If it starts to burn the city, we'll have to put out the fires and try to restrain it. We just can't destroy it, no matter what it does."
"I guess that will work," Ryson offered without gaining any greater understanding of the absurd situation. "I'll move ahead first, scout the area and the surrounding streets, and make sure everything is clear. If I don't run into any problems, I'll take a position on a rooftop to the southeast of the infern."
"I'll move straight in with Dzeb from here," the elder wizard offered. "We'll meet you there."
Ryson nodded and raced down a narrow alley. He kept to the side streets, always listening for the roar of the flames which gave away the infern's position. Using merchant shops as cover, he circled the area without ever being seen by the half-demon.
All shops had been closed. Not a single citizen of Connel ventured near the wide crossroads where the infern stood. Ryson noted quite a few dwarves working at different sites scattered around the edges of the city, but none were close enough to present a real concern.
Moving back toward the wave of flames, Ryson climbed to the rooftops and leapt from building to building. From the higher elevation, he could easily see the wall of fire that still burned to the east—good news, for it meant that the infern under the elves watch was still alive.
The fireball also remained active, and before making his final rush toward the rooftop near the infern he meant to guard, the delver paused to take a long look at the sphere of fire. He shielded his eyes from the center and instead focused on the spiraling smoke circling the edges of flame.