by Chris Miller
“Don’t listen to him!” Sam urged. “If you deny the serpent, come to the scales. By the power of the Author your weight will be held.”
Even from where I stood, I could see traces of blood begin to trickle down the prisoner’s back and sides. Four-one-two-six was more than carrying his share of the load.
“Poor fool,” one of the prisoners beside me began to mutter. “He must be going mad. There’s no one up there.”
“Good riddance,” another said bluntly. “Who does he think he is anyway? Offering to buy our freedom with his blood…”
“Please listen!” Sam cried out. “It is true…you must believe. Look to the man beside me. Freedom is ours.”
Inspired by Sam’s words, a woman stepped forward out of the crowd. “It’s true! There is someone up there, I can see him! He isn’t alone!” In a rush of excitement she accepted the offer and raced up the stairs to the scale. Her example became the first of a flood of others who also saw the man beside Sam. Each one stepped to the scales until nearly fifty had added to the number. Surprisingly, with each added person the weight did not seem to crush the men on the stand…their strength held.
When Four-one-two-six looked my way, our eyes met and I knew at once that he meant for us to come too.
“I want to go,” Trista said, stealing the words from my mouth.
I took her hand and side by side we climbed the stone steps and added our weight to the scales. There was a buzz of excitement among those who were already there.
Sceleris was still unaware of the other man’s presence but he could sense things were getting out of hand. Watching the scene unfold this way was more than he could tolerate.
“Enough!” Sceleris shouted as he floated around the device, hoping to regain control of the situation. His serpentine body arced through the air to face his own graven image head on. “What trickery is this! Why are you not dead? Kneel before your master or I will have you killed!”
“I will not kneel!” Sam said. “I cannot kneel. The Author’s strength is with me. I…will…stand.”
The mention of the Author’s strength made Sceleris’ fiery eyes burn even brighter with anger.
“Finish him!” Sceleris commanded.
With a nod of allegiance, the Scourge guards who had placed Sam in the device slipped into the stone mouth, arming themselves with red hot spears which they formed from the mist. They raised their weapons to put an end to Sam and his courageous act but before the fatal blow could be struck, there was a loud crack. With a powerful rumble the jaws of the stone snake statue began to break in two.
“No more!” Four-one-two-six shouted, and with a final shove the device crumbled from the strength of his power. The scales fell to the ground as it broke apart. The collision sent a shockwave through the floor of the Crux. All who had gathered there fell to the ground with the force of the quake. When the dust finally settled, the head of the stone serpent was no more than a heap of rubble. On top of it all, Sam and Four-one-two-six stood triumphantly, their arms raised in glorious victory. The Scourge that had been sent to kill Sam were nowhere to be seen.
The Codebearer captives began to cheer their approval for the rebellious demonstration toward Sceleris and the Scourge; however, the celebration was short lived.
“Ssso be it,” the form of Sceleris spoke. “You will pay for this treachery.” With that he dissipated into the fog. “Snuff them out…all of them!”
No sooner had he left than a multitude of phantom Scourge took form out of the fog. Like ghosts they flew through the air, diving down and passing through many of the captives around the outer rim. Each time a Scourge slipped through a prisoner, their bodies went limp and fell lifelessly to the ground. The Scourge worked their way quickly inward, leaving a trail of bodies in their wake.
Some of the prisoners swung haplessly at the Scourge with their Veritas Swords, but it was futile. The weapons were useless and the victim’s souls were collected with a final gasp of breath.
“Never alone!” Sam shouted over the cries of the prisoners. “You must believe it!”
One of the Scourge heard his plea and set out to silence the man. As it approached, Sam held his sword in front of him and shouted the battle cry of the Codebearers, “For the Way of Truth and Life!”
Inexplicably, his Veritas Sword suddenly ignited. It wasn’t supposed to but somehow it did! The attacking Scourge had no time to react. Sam held the blade vertically before him and the Scourge collided with it, severing in two. The mist that once formed the Scourge spread out and sank to the floor, coating the ground in a black sooty dust. It was the first time any had seen a Scourge defeated.
The remaining Codebearer prisoners each glanced at their weapons, wondering as I did if theirs might work too.
“You must believe,” Sam repeated. “The Author is here and he is with us now!”
The words were more than simply inspiration. Prisoner Four-one-two-six stood beside Sam and to any who saw him—to those who looked on him—belief became easy. Our weapons ignited, giving hope to our cause.
The battle was no longer one-sided. Invigorated by our ability to divide the Scourge, those who truly believed attacked the enemy with reckless abandon. The Scourge were no match for the light of truth, even here in the darkest part of Dolor.
Out of the mist, Sceleris took form once more, his eyes blazing with a wild fury as he watched the scene unfold. Maddened by the newfound strength of the Resistance, Sceleris decided to end the fight himself. His form began to twist and spin until it appeared more like a tornado than a serpent. Only the flaming eyes remained stationary as the clouds around him billowed and added to his violent form.
One by one, the remaining Scourge were pulled into the power of Sceleris, causing the Shadow lord to grow in stature with each added spirit. The remaining captives gathered together near the rubble of the tower. The horrid winds of Sceleris’ power whipped around us and blew dust and debris in every direction.
“This is not over,” he said at last. “Dolor is mine. Everything here submits to me.”
Without another word, he dove into the ground, leaving a deep pit where he descended. For a brief moment all was silent, the wind died, the stormy clouds subsided. It didn’t last long. The earth began to quake beneath our feet, a rumbling that cracked the ground around us. Something was burrowing below ground, raising a trail across the surface of the crater. Then, out of the dirt a giant, black fangworm, twice the size of any we had previously encountered, erupted from the ground only a few feet from where we gathered. Sceleris himself had become the worm.
“Fwwheeeeeh!” the gruesome creature squealed. It lunged forward, swallowing a captive whose blade was still unlit. Those with weapons began to attack the worm at its middle. Unfortunately, with each cut the Veritas Swords made, the worm’s skin began to reform within seconds. The damage was never permanent, and it certainly didn’t stop the worm from continuing its attacks.
The fangworm slithered across the ground in search of another helpless victim. With nowhere to run and the Veritas Swords deemed useless, the scene quickly dissolved into chaos. Codebearers were running every which way to escape the giant fangworm and its razor sharp teeth.
“Trista, take out your bow,” Four-one-two-six called out.
“But I’ve never shot it before,” she said, pulling it off her back.
“It’s time you did,” he said, explaining his plan. “It will take only one shot. One well-aimed arrow from Hope’s bow will finish that beast…and I want you to take it.”
Up until now, Trista had not even been able to generate a single arrow from her bow, let alone target it with any precision. Clearly, the situation was more than she could handle.
“You want me to kill that thing?” she said, pointing at the giant fangworm which was in the process of swallowing another swordless victim. “But I can’t! I don’t even know how to fi
re an arrow.”
“Nonsense,” he replied, “it’s not about what you can do, but what you are willing to do when you are asked. The arrow will fly true if you are willing to be used. Are you willing, Trista?”
At first, I thought Trista would say no, she looked so frightened and unprepared for this moment. Four-one-two-six locked his calming gaze on her, and her fears gave way as she became more confident. She looked to me for advice.
“You have to believe, Triss,” I said. “Have faith.”
“I do,” she said at last.
“I knew you would,” Four-one-two-six smiled. “Now, aim for its hearts, the sixth segment down from its head.”
“Hearts?” Trista said in surprise.
“Yes…five of them. You will only have one shot before the beast comes at you. One arrow alone, but its light should be enough to burn through all five hearts.”
Trista looked more than a little concerned.
“But what if I fail?” she asked.
“Just let your arrow fly,” he encouraged her.
Trista nodded and set her sights on the worm, pulling back the bow and targeting the neck of the beast to the best of her ability. The difficult task was made even more challenging by the erratic movements of the squirming creature. The chilling screams of another victim were cut horribly short by the crunching jaws of the carnivorous worm. Then, out of nowhere, the tail of the beast whipped around and crossed through our small gathering in the center of the Crux. The tail knocked Trista and me apart and scattered the others. Falling to the ground, I hit my head on a stone and blacked out for a moment.
When at last I was able to pick myself up from the floor, I looked back in hopes of spotting Trista. She was nowhere to be seen. All I saw was a towering shadow fall over me and the heart-wrenching sound of the fangworm’s roar from behind my shoulder.
“Fwwheeeeeh,” it roared, spewing a shower of sticky slime all over me.
I turned slowly around to find I was face to face with a hundred razor sharp teeth, each easily as large as my body.
“Did you have to do that?” I pleaded, trying not to be nervous.
The beast roared a second time, coating my front side as well.
“Guess so.”
Having found its next meal, the fangworm lunged at me with a ravenous appetite. Somehow, I managed to spring aside just fast enough to avoid being swallowed. The worm’s face plowed into the ground where I once stood.
I tried to run away, but the slime on the ground caused me to slip and I fell once more. Before I had time to stand again, the worm recoiled and was already looming overhead. That’s when I caught a glimpse of Trista to my left, trying her best to arm her weapon.
“Please help her,” I whispered in prayer to the Author.
A glowing orb of light began to form in the space between the bow as Trista focused her thoughts on the Code of Life. “Everything for a purpose!” she repeated as the orb stretched out to form a gleaming arrow of light. Then, holding her breath she released the bowstring and let it fly.
Thwoosh!
The arrow soared high, far and terribly off mark. Trista looked away, disappointed in herself. With a shot like that the only damage the arrow would make would be to alert the beast of her new weapon. But something extraordinary happened to change the course of events that would have ended in failure. As the arrow streaked across the sky, the giant fangworm flipped back on itself and twisted its ugly head to let out a victorious roar. Unknowingly, the beast’s haphazard move had put it directly in line with Trista’s stray arrow, which pierced the sixth segment at a perfect angle.
The arrow of light lodged in its chest like a splinter beneath its flesh, burning into the hearts of the beast. The fangworm fell down with a loud crash and curled around itself in pain. A few moments later the once frightening beast ceased to move, falling limp in a pool of its own blood. Against all odds, Trista’s arrow had found its mark.
Four-one-two-six’s plan had been executed with flawless precision. It was as if he had known all along that Trista’s arrow would stray and that the beast would move at the last second. But how could he have known it? How could anyone have known where Trista’s shot would go or how the fangworm would move, for that matter?
The corpse of the fangworm melted into a pool of black tar as a hundred tiny Scourge escaped from its form. Knowing they had lost, the phantom-like Scourge retreated up and out of the Crux.
“That’s right,” one of the Codebearers shouted. “And don’t come back!”
There was a joyous uproar as the surviving prisoners gathered around Four-one-two-six to celebrate the impossible victory. Never before had the walls of Dolor faced defeat. Clearly, the tides had turned.
I hurried to Trista’s side to congratulate her on shooting her first arrow and to thank her for saving my life. Before I could speak a word, another man’s voice shouted out.
“We’ve got company. Lots and lots of company.”
Sure enough, appearing over the ridge of the Crux and up the steep incline of Dolor’s slopes, a thick oppressive fog began sliding down the hill like an avalanche. The ashen fog was swirling with a horde of countless Scourge. Even with the use of our blades, the sheer number of the Scourge that approached would easily overpower us. It would take an army to defeat them all and our number was less than fifty.
With the blanket of death-fog rolling in on all sides, I turned to Trista and offered a word of encouragement.
“Whatever happens, you did good, Triss!”
“Thanks,” she nodded back. “It feels good to believe.”
She took my hand and squeezed tightly as the horde of Scourge poured into the Crux, rushing toward our small band of Codebearers.
Chapter 24
The Rescue
As the raging horde closed in on our position, I focused my attention on the one who had led us into this battle. Four-one-two-six stood unfazed by the approaching storm, his eyes fixed upward, a trace of a smile on his rugged face.
Who is this man? I wondered. So calm under pressure, so free of fear and worry. A master of faith, the very model of a true Codebearer.
In his eyes I noticed a spark of fire begin to grow. It was small at first, but it quickly brightened, a reflection of something overhead. I followed his gaze skyward and watched a blazing beam of light rip through the oppressive cloud cover, barreling down upon us. The pillar of fire touched down twenty feet in front of us, then drew a line of flames around our small gathering like one might circle something important on a page.
Looking back over my shoulder, I discovered Four-one-two-six had vanished once more. Where to, I couldn’t imagine.
As the first of the Scourge approached the firewall, they attempted to cross the flame but were immediately and completely devoured in its light. A plume of black smoke rose skyward from the battle line.
“Looks like you could use a little help!” a familiar voice shouted from above. I looked up in time to spot Philan flying low on the Bridesmaid. Behind him a dozen more Sky Ships followed—each ship filled with Torporian Codebearer warriors. He had done it. The remnant of Torpor had been roused at last by Philan’s leadership and they had come to our rescue.
The fleet began its assault on the Scourge, launching a barrage of arrows into the swirling mass of fog. Immediately, the fog thinned out from the onslaught, disintegrating into black dust. Lines were lowered from the Sky Ships and a new squadron of warriors dropped to the ground to join our number. Rushing headlong into the fray, they chased the Scourge out of the Crux and up the incline of Dolor.
The ground assault was reinforced by the ships overhead, which continued to follow the Scourge with a rainfall of arrows. Only one ship remained, lowering itself into the circle of flames. It was the Bridesmaid. A gangplank was lowered and we watched as Philan and Rob marched down to greet us.
“Rob?” I
said in disbelief. “Is that really you?”
“Surprised?” he asked.
“Yes, I thought you would never fly again.”
“Well, I had to make an exception. My friends were in trouble,” he said, cracking a smile.
“Wait a minute. How did you know where to find us?” Trista asked.
“It was easy, really. Just had to follow the Flame!” He opened his hand and held Hope’s medallion out toward me. I couldn’t believe my eyes; Stoney had stolen the medallion from me the night we were betrayed. If he was a Shadow spy as I had suspected, how could it be here now?
Excited, I took back the medallion and immediately, the wall of flames that once surrounded us on the ground rose into the air, gathered together into a small powerful spark and returned to the medallion.
“Where was it?” I said, looking Rob in the eyes and trying to figure out what had happened.
Rob stepped aside. Behind him, standing at the top of the gang-plank was a tearful Stoney, who looked worse for the wear.
“Hello, Hunter,” Stoney said quietly. His usual boisterous personality had been dampened considerably.
I eyed the man suspiciously, unsure what to make of his presence here. He had betrayed us to the Shadow; because of him we had been sent to suffer on Dolor. How could I possibly trust someone who denied even being a Codebearer only a few days ago? He was a traitor.
“Now, before you say anything,” Stoney began, “I just want you to know how sorry I am for what I done to both of ya. I never meant to hurt you guys…honestly.”
“Then why did you do it?” I replied coldly, still unwilling to trust the man or even consider forgiveness.
Stoney started to choke up as he answered.
“There is no good reason for it. I was a coward. I didn’t know it was the Shadow behind it all. I thought it was only Zagzabarz who was after ya. When I got back to me ship, Zagzabarz’s men were already waiting to interrogate me about what I knew of the the three of you. They claimed you were a threat to the safety of the kingdom—plotting to overthrow the king’s power. I tried to set them right, but they wouldn’t listen. They gave me a choice. I could either help them identify you and be rewarded for it or else they would burn my ship and take me prisoner.”