by I K Spencer
His wounds forgotten and seeing a chance to turn the tide, Garrick called for his archers to abandon the gap between the walls and focus their fire on the enemy atop the outer wall. Then with a great roar of defiance he pressed the attack once again. The sight of the wounded guardsman gleefully fighting rallied his comrades and unnerved the Dolonar regulars and the battle for control of the outer wall continued with the result no longer a certainty. The struggle for the wall waged for over an hour but, though they bore superior numbers, the Dolonarian assault began to falter. Finally, with archer support and with the help of the ever-strengthening wind, which rendered the enemy catapults and archers useless, the exterior wall was cleared and retaken, at least for the moment.
A ragged but hopeful cheer rose from the men as they poured back over the plank walkways to defend the outer wall once again. Garrick knew victory was now within their grasp. Tears of joy filled the guardsman's eyes once again and he bowed his head, praying for the safety of Anthen and Teya.
Chapter 54
Anthen's eyes fluttered open. It took a moment for them to focus and recognize his surroundings, then his gaze quickly scanned the interior of the tent, coming to rest on the still form of the traitor slumped against the side of the tent. He started to rise and fell back, dizzy from the stabs of intense pain shooting through his side and chest.
Get up! Shayva's voice boomed inside his throbbing head.
Anthen waited for the dizziness to pass, wincing as he touched the wound at his side. It was a deep gash but he spied little blood. The wound apparently had been partially cauterized by the blue flame of the unearthly sword. Taking care to keep his upper body from moving too much, he slowly rolled over, drew his dagger and cautiously crawled over to Cidrl.
As he came near, Anthen could see the dagger would not be necessary. The traitor's lifeless face betrayed his final emotions—a mixture of rage and shock. Anthen felt for a pulse to make sure but felt nothing; the monster was finally dead. He had dreamt of this moment countless times but the sight of the traitor's corpse brought him no joy. He felt relief but it was overshadowed by a great sadness. He wanted no more than to lay down and go to sleep but he remembered Teya and Kyreial and forced himself to get moving.
His gaze fell to the horns belted around Cidrl's waist. The talismans appeared to have suffered the same fate as their bearer. The charms were just a collection of colorless animal horns, their magical aura gone. That perception changed instantly when he reached to touch one. It glittered and seemed to pull his hand forward. He pulled back in alarm and the horn became inert once again. His hand trembling this time, the wary guardsman reached again and touched the enchanted object. A soothing aura ran up his arm and the shimmering horn felt alive in his hand but also repulsive somehow.
Hurry Anthen! Do as you have sworn!
In answer to the command, Anthen cut the belt loose and rounded up the horns that had come free. With each additional touch of a talisman the pleasant sensation strengthened and the aversion diminished. His grogginess diminished and the pain from his various wounds seemed to have disappeared. He gingerly climbed to his feet, expecting the pain to return, but he stood with little effort or discomfort. Shouts nearby reminded the guardsman of the ongoing battle and he paused to reload both his bows. He quickly chose another blade to replace his destroyed sword, careful not to even touch Cidrl's bewitched weapon. When he turned again toward the exit, Urvena was standing there.
"Thank the gods you are alive!" she said quickly as Anthen took a step back in alarm.
The maiden smiled, though the gesture seemed forced to the wary guardsman. Her hair was tousled from sleep but she looked as beautiful as ever, clad in just sheer nightdress under an open robe. Anthen felt old feelings stir but he quickly pushed them away. She opened her arms and started toward him but the guardsman raised the crossbow and she halted, a look of confusion clouding her beautiful countenance.
"Anthen?" Panic replaced puzzlement in the maiden's visage. "He held me prisoner Anthen. He manipulated me. I—"
"We will talk later Urvena I promise," Anthen interrupted. "I have matters to attend to."
"What is so important?"
Anthen noticed that her eyes were fixed on the magical horns.
"Where are you taking them?" she demanded when he did not answer immediately.
The guardsman started for the exit and Urvena blocked his path, her fear no longer feigned.
"Think for a moment Anthen. Consider what the talismans can bring you. Bring us. Our future will be assured. We will travel the world like royalty."
Anthen knew she would promise anything but as she spoke, the guardsman began to feel doubts. With each word she somehow seemed to make more sense and the more his doubt grew, the better he felt. The horns' aura seemed brighter than before.
"We will be together my beloved and think of what good we may do." Urvena's radiant smile affirmed her promises; the maiden seemed to grow more beautiful with each word. "We can use the power for good instead of evil, Anthen. We will feed and clothe the poor and fight oppression."
Anthen! It is work of the dark magic, not the whore alone. You must be strong!
"Leave me be!" he screamed back at the commanding voice in his head and it felt good.
The wondrous horns seemed to caress his hands. He needed to think. Maybe the horns could help win the war and destroy the Dolonarians forever. He smiled at Urvena and she came forward and embraced him, hugging the magic between them.
"Take me my love. I have missed you so," the temptress murmured in his ear and moved her body seductively against his.
Somewhere deep inside the guardsman, perhaps spawned by the hint of panic that remained in Urvena's voice even as she offered herself to him, the truth began to assert itself against the dark magic of the disembodied horns. It was not even a conscious thought at first but as it grew strength, the reality revealed itself and as he saw more clearly, the mesmerizing effect lost ground.
He drew back and gazed at the face of his first love. Though beautiful and ever beguiling, he saw the truth in her eyes, which remained both hard and fearful. With a purposeful effort, he fought to keep his grip on reality, focusing on the pain in his battered body and the sounds of battle beyond the thin tent walls.
"Anthen what is it?" Urvena asked, alarmed by Anthen's sudden rigidness and obvious pain.
"Urvena," he spoke through gritted teeth. "The magic. It seeks to control us."
"Let it Anthen. It is wondrous!"
"No," he replied angrily and pushed her away. "I must destroy it."
"No!" she shrieked and hurled herself at him.
Urvena frantically grabbed for the horns with one hand and clawed at his face with the other. Her face, lovingly beautiful a moment ago, was now contorted into a look of pure hatred. Her ferocity stunned him for a moment, then he recovered and pushed her away.
Urvena spied a crossbow near one of the dead Dolonarians and dove for it. Anthen had a clear shot but could not do it. Maddened by her desire for the dark magic, she did not hesitate, pointing the weapon at his chest and jerking the trigger. In her haste she shot a bit off target and he was just able to twist out of the way. His former lover threw the weapon at him and lunged at his legs, howling curses. Knowing the crazed woman was beyond reason, he kneed her hard in the midsection and she fell to the ground, gasping for breath. Seeing his chance, he staggered from the tent into the bright morning sunshine.
Blinking against the bright sun and dizzy from pain, Anthen wheeled around, trying to locate the shore. He finally oriented himself and started forward, his entire body trembling with the effort it took to overcome the dark magic. Teya and Kyreial were busy fighting several of the remaining members of Cidrl's party but Anthen was oblivious to all except his tremendous inner battle. His ears filled with a buzzing sound and his vision dimmed as he dragged himself ever closer to the shore. It was only about fifty paces from the tent but it felt like a mile.
The farther he went, the w
orse the guardsman felt. The buzzing in his ears grew louder and his head throbbed. Retching, he stumbled and crawled the last few feet until his hands felt the pure, cold water of the lake. The horns seemed too heavy to lift and impossible to heave but somehow he staggered to his feet, telling himself that everything he saw and felt was just an illusion.
As he tensed to heave the terrible burden into the lake, the buzzing in his ears changed to a shrieking sound. Looking up through blurred vision he saw Urvena running toward him and realized that the terrible keening noise was coming from her. As she came closer, the guardsman could see that her once ravishing face was twisted with madness. She carried the enchanted black sword clutched in both hands and he knew she would use it to kill him without a moment's hesitation.
With a final scream of desperation, Anthen whirled around and hurled the horns with all his strength, falling forward with the momentum. He knew Urvena was coming but he had no strength left to fight her or even face her. The screaming figure ran up to him but he never felt the fatal blow he expected to end his suffering. Instead the wailing continued past him and he heard her splash into the water.
"Urvena! Nooooo!" Anthen yelled as he realized what she was attempting to do.
The guardsman struggled to his feet to try to stop her but paused when he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"No Anthen," Teya said softly. "She is too late. Look."
Urvena was struggling through waist-deep water, using her arms like paddles to move faster. A few paces beyond her the lake began to churn and bubble like a simmering soup. The crazed woman, oblivious to all except the precious magical horns, made it to the center of the foaming liquid and dove beneath the surging waves. She disappeared for a moment but then shot straight up out of the water, crying out with piercing screams of obvious agony. Anthen started forward but his comrades held him fast; it was too late to save her and any attempt would be mere suicide. She convulsed and jerked, in agony as much as from trying to escape the boiling water, now spreading to several feet in all directions around her. All three seasoned warriors turned away from the horrible sight of her blistered and burnt face and tried not to hear the inhuman sound she made. Thankfully the shrieks stopped after just a few moments and when they turned back, they saw no sign of her in the churning roiling water.
Anthen felt the sting of tears in his eyes. Although he now had no doubt that she willingly played her role in Cidrl's treachery, no one deserved such torture and he could not erase the fact that he had once loved her.
The storm unleashed in the lake did not abate with the maiden's death. The boiling water spread in all directions and the center churned more and more violently. The resulting heat forced them well back from the shore and from there they mutely watched the spectacle, in awe of the powerful forces at work. Huge geysers formed great clouds of steam and the entire surface of the lake was soon a bubbling cauldron. They heard a deep rumbling sound and moments later the earth started to shake beneath their feet. Explosions boomed from the cliffs above them and Kyreial pointed out a spout of fiery molten rock spewing from the lake's center.
"What about the unicorns?" Anthen asked in alarm, remembering their purpose.
"Gone," Teya answered, her attention on the growing carnage in the lake.
"What do you mean gone? We failed?"
"No Guardsman," the elf said. "We freed them all and they took their leave."
The trio exchanged knowing looks. Their home now defiled and unsafe, the celestial beasts would create another sanctuary but first destroy this one, along with all its remaining inhabitants. That is why Shayva had demanded that Anthen swear that he would cast the horns into the lake. The three warriors held no illusions that their lives meant anything to the mystical creatures and each began to prepare for the inevitable.
The heat drove them farther back, through the empty camp and toward the higher ground. Teya and Kyreial helped the near-dead guardsman, who could barely walk, to a fallen log near the woods. Anthen turned to Teya and saw tears in her eyes. She smiled bravely through her tears and embraced him. Anthen turned to Kyreial and saw the elf too, was fighting powerful emotions. Anthen clasped his hand.
"You have fared well Guardsman. I would have welcomed you as a brother to my home, but ..." Kyreial's voice trailed off, offering a sad smile instead of reminding all that none would see his or her home again.
"Words cannot express my gratitude, to you both." Anthen, in obvious pain, struggled to get the words out. "It seems I never had a choice in this quest but you both joined willingly, sacrificing everything."
"Ah but you always had a choice too Anthen," Teya said gently. "You could have abandoned the quest but you would not. It was because of your conviction that I followed."
The elf nodded in agreement. "If I had not believed in you I would not be here."
Anthen chuckled sadly, wincing from the pain it caused. "And you would not be in this predicament. I just pray we were in time for Isaencarl. Cidrl pledged that Dolonhold would fall this day."
Kyreial shrugged, then steadied himself as the ground shook violently beneath them. "We have done all that we could. At least that battle is now in the hands of soldiers and not sorcerers."
More tremors interrupted their words. Boulders crashed down from the cliffs above, on all sides of the valley, bowling over the trees as though they were mere twigs. The lake was gone, replaced by molten rock, and the surrounding shore burned out of control. Kyreial and Teya helped Anthen further up the slope to a more protected spot, though they all knew it was just a matter of time. If the guardsman had a choice, the falling rocks were more preferable to the fiery sea below.
"Anthen?" Teya turned to him, smiling through her tears, though the smile could not hide the sadness in her face. "I do not know how much longer we have. I just wanted you to know that I love you like no other." She paused, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. "I know we are from different lands and bound by duty but I hoped we would find some way to be together at times and ... in better situations. I always treasured the night in Portal and dreamt of more such times. ... I just wanted you to know."
Anthen wiped his eyes and touched her cheek.
"I feel the same. I think it was such thoughts that kept me going. Teya, you are like a part of me now. I cannot imagine a life without you in it."
The lovers held hands and gazed at each other. At least they would be together at the end.
While the other two embraced and waited for the end, Kyreial scanned the valley through the smoke and fire. His mission had yet to be completely fulfilled and he hoped for one more chance at the phaantor. The cursed beast was likely far away but he sensed otherwise, though that notion went against all reason. A bright flash passed through his peripheral vision and the elf turned to find it again.
"Look!" Kyreial shouted and jumped to his feet.
Anthen and Teya followed his gaze. An unmistakable shining white form was racing along the edge of the woods toward them. At first only the elf could see the second, nearly transparent form beyond the brilliant white of the unicorn.
"Shayva?" Anthen and Teya asked in unison.
"And behind her the winged one," the elf answered, jumping to his feet and racing towards the burning meadow.
Teya raced after him and Anthen followed as best he could.
"What can we do?" Teya cried to the quick-footed elf’s back as they ran.
"Pray for a good shot," he yelled over his shoulder and lit a prepared arrow from the nearest burning tree.
"Shayva!" Anthen yelled. He couldn't imagine that she could hear him but maybe she could sense his warning. "Behind you!"
Kyreial raised his bow and aimed at the approaching pair.
"They are too far," the elf said in a strained voice.
Anthen fumbled for his telescope and brought the distant white form into focus. Shayva's eyes were wild with terror and her muscles taut as she strained for more speed. He shifted the glass slightly and the nearly invisible figure of the
winged beast loomed behind, dangerously close. Time seemed to stand still as he waited for the elf to shoot. She would never outrun it. The beast closed and Shayva broke to the left. The phaantor overshot but corrected quickly. Shayva dodged again and Anthen flinched as the beast's claws sliced into her back leg. Anthen could see that she was tiring quickly.
"Please," Teya pleaded.
"Just a moment longer," the elf replied coolly, intent on only the shot. "There, open your mouth you coward!"
Exhausted, Shayva turned and reared up against the killing machine. Anthen roared with frustration and didn't hear the elf fire as the demon swooped down with its deadly jaws open. The beast was nearly on top of the cornered unicorn, then suddenly seemed to falter. It righted itself and wheeled toward the three warriors, its gleaming red eyes open wide.
"What?" Teya asked, seeking an explanation for the abrupt change.
"Watch," Kyreial instructed.
The eyes focused on the elf as the shimmering shape approached, gathering speed. Anthen raised his bow and sighted the left eye, getting larger by the second. He was about to loose an arrow when, without warning, the growing shape erupted into a huge ball of flame with such force that all three were knocked back a step. The tower of flame passed quickly, leaving every inch of the beast's surface illuminated by fire and for the first time, Anthen and Teya could see the its hideous gargoyle form clearly. Though engulfed, the beast kept coming for several seconds, then finally dropped, disappearing into the raging fire that had once been a crystal, clear lake. Anthen and Teya looked to the elf, who met their gaze with a big grin.
"Now I can die with honor," he said softly.
You will have many more opportunities to dishonor yourself again Elf. Quickly! Follow me!
All three turned to see the wondrous creature before them once again. Teya ran to inspect her bloodied leg.
"Are you hurt?" Anthen asked.
Never mind that! Do you not have eyes? Follow me if you want to live!