The Gems of EL - Separate Paths

by Bill Mays

  “You have done well this time. You may go and tell your chieftain that I am pleased.” Karzack addressed the lizard man condescendingly.

  “Thank you, my King,” the leader hissed and bowed as he moved for the stairway leading from the chamber. “Good luck to you,” he whispered as he passed Dalia. He then stopped and turned to face the King again. “I fear I must warn you that these humansss are ssskilled adversariesss. They ssslew at least twenty of my sssoldiersss.”

  There came a cackle of wheezing laughter from the robed figure. “Your concern is touching. I will be fine. Now leave me to tend to my guests unless you would like to join them.” With his last word, all of the torches in the room flared brightly for a second. Without another word, the three lizard men departed hastily. Another jerk of Karzack’s arm and Flade’s voice returned. “Now I am addressing you, woodsman. Who are you, and why have you entered my land?” The sagging figure leaned forward in his throne in anticipation of an answer. The shadows still clung to him like a veil.

  Flade dipped his head respectfully. “We are but simple travelers in search of our lost comrade. We have reason to believe that he passed through your land not too long ago on his journey to Villinsk. Forgive us, sire, we meant no disrespect.”

  “You use eloquent words for a woodsman,” the King whispered. “Your efforts are wasted, my lady,” he wheezed as his head jerked to face Dalia. “I’m surprised by your presence. I thought your kind were long dead on Pangias. I of all people should know better than to believe such rumors,” he chuckled to himself.

  Dalia had been trying to scan his thoughts. She had hoped to gain some insight into what he had planned for them. She could sense nothing at all. His mind was shut off to her.

  The lady shifted uncomfortably. “I only wished to understand what you seek from us, my lord,” she replied evenly.

  “Yes, what do you want with us?” Petre blurted out. He was tired of all of this dancing around the issue. His nerves were getting the better of him. Every dark archway leading from the large chamber held more watching eyes.

  “You are obviously a commoner, so I will forgive your outburst just this once, boy! I will decide what questions are to be answered here.” Arianna began mumbling another prayer to Rashas to calm her own fear. She felt an intense evil from the man known as Karzack and from every corner of his musty temple. “You there, woman, what are you mumbling about?” The King groaned suspiciously. His grating voice wheezed and his hands shifted beneath his long sleeves.

  Arianna stopped her prayer and shook her head from side to side mutely. She was at a loss for words. When he addressed her, it made more chills rush down her spine.

  Flade spoke up for the frightened woman. “She is a Priestess of Rashas, my lord. Her blessings have carried us through much. She means no harm.”

  “A priestess!” The King screeched.

  He rose to his feet and snatched his scepter from the armrest. His hair fell back and the dancing light of the room washed over his features for the first time. The man known as Karzack was once human, long, long ago. Now he was a shell of his former self. Most of the flesh had rotted from his face, though molding pieces still clung to the bone in places, resisting the pull of time. Only magic had persevered any of his parts over the centuries he had existed between life and death. His eye sockets no longer held eyes, but instead housed tiny pinpricks of crimson light that glared at Arianna with hatred.

  “I knew this day would arrive! It has been too long since the last attempt. You have come to challenge me, haven’t you? Like all of the others before you, you will fail. You want to claim my temple in the name of your god, admit it! You think my kind should not have a temple. You fear that my worshippers will make me like a god. You fear my awesome might. All of your kind is the same. You want my power! Well you are too late! I have commanded that power, and I am the god of these lands!” The undead king grew hysterical. His grating, raspy, voice screeched in anger and his bony, clawed fingers scraped noisily along the arm of his throne.

  Arianna was taken aback with shock, as were her companions. Everyone took a couple of steps away from the creature. Dalia was overcome by fear. The sight of this thing was too much for her. She screamed and drew her blade. The others quickly followed suit.

  “What is that … that thing?” Petre gasped. The boy wanted to charge but hesitated.

  “It’s dead, but it’s talking!” Jillian cried out in disgust. Her hands trembled as she pulled her bow taunt.

  Karzack’s hand raised into the air, leaving the folds of his robe to reveal white bony fingers with bits of flesh and dried veins tangled between them. He spoke arcane words that none present understood. Suddenly, Arianna lifted from the ground and hurtled through the air some forty feet to crash into the back wall of the chamber near the stairs where they had entered. She screamed as she flew until her breath was knocked from her lungs. The priestess then crumpled to the floor.

  “It is a mage!” Flade called out as he assumed a combat stance and maneuvered away from the others. “Spread out and watch yourselves! Don‘t give it an easy target!”

  Karzack began his wheezing laughter again. “I am no simple mage, woodsman. I am Karzack, the legendary Gem Mage! Welcome to my Temple of Death. My magic cannot be opposed! You are like mere insects to be crushed beneath my heel.” He wheezed in a hissing laughter. He raised his golden scepter and the rod took on an amber glow.

  “You think so, huh?” Flade hurled his enchanted blade into the chest of the undead king. The dagger sank in and lodged itself between the sorcerer’s ribs. It got his attention, but seemed to have little effect beyond that.

  Another sharp word accompanied by a gesture and a wave of dark crackling energy shot from his scepter to engulf the ranger. Flade tried to spring away but it was too fast for him. The slender swashbuckler fell to the ground writhing in pain. The crackling energy broke into tiny worming strands and pierced holes all across his body. Lesions opened on his skin. Blood seeped from them, as did a thick puss. When the energy faded, he could no longer see. Petre saw the ranger fall and rushed the morbid King with a cry of rage. As he drew close for the attack, he struck a field of magic that flared brightly and threw him to the ground hard. It felt like he crashed into a brick wall. There had been a powerful protective spell in place about the sorcerer. It was designed to damage anyone who came too close. The boy absorbed the force of that magical shield. Wisps of smoke wafted off his prone body. Petre lay still on the cold stone floor. Two arrows sank into Karzack’s robes, but their effect was less than that of Flade’s dagger. A third, well-placed arrow, took the scepter from the undead man’s hand and sent it clattering to the floor behind him.

  Dalia watched in a state of horror as the battle ensued around her. She was paralyzed with fear. The lady forced it from her mind. She focused on her mental training to push the fear away. Her friends needed her. She charged the undead mage who had just turned his attentions to Jillian. The thing raised his hand and a green fire began to build in his palm. The girl screamed, and threw up her arms in a last ditch attempt at defending herself.

  “Leave her alone!” Dalia cried out as she slashed the sorcerer across the waist.

  The blade bit deeply and Karzack pulled away with a jerk and a groan. It hurt him. The elfin blade actually hurt him. His fiery spell launched at the lady. Dalia grimaced as she prepared to burn. This time the runes along the sword had the glow of a faint greenish hue and the fire dissipated before striking her.

  “You will pay for that, wench!” He rasped.

  Instead of conjuring another spell, he clawed at Dalia with his bony fingers. The lady fell back into a defensive retreat. She could feel an unnatural chill radiating from his hands. The thought of his touch repulsed her. Two more arrows struck the creature, but he paid the archer no heed. His sights were set on the lady in white. Dalia used her rune-engraved sword to weave a pattern of slashes between her and the king’s clawed hands. She would do anything to keep it from touching h
er.

  “Get back!” She screamed in horror as her blade clipped the tip of one of his moldy fingers from his hand.

  The severed bone chip bounced across the stone floor with a rattling clack. Karzack screeched in pain and then came at her more forcefully. His eyes burned with that inner fire.

  Flade stumbled around trying to find a wall or some other reference point. “I’ve been blinded!” He shouted to the room. Every step caused more pain and more yellowish puss to seep from his many lesions. It proved an effort to move.

  He called for his dagger and it pulled free of the king’s chest to return to his hand. The ranger’s whole body bled from the puss-filled sores that had spread across him. He was inflicted with a magical disease of some sort. It pained him immensely just gripping his weapon.

  Arianna came to her senses as the dark chamber swam back into view. She brushed the hair from her face and cobwebs from her arms. The priestess sat upright groggily. She lay at the foot of the staircase. She could see Dalia struggling to keep the undead thing at bay. Petre was down and Flade looked to be badly injured, leaning against the far wall. Jillian stood over the fallen boy and fired thru tears at the undead King, but her arrows had little effect, if any. Arianna knew she had to do something. The priestess struggled to her feet and staggered to reach Petre. She nearly swooned from the effort. Her head ached where it had slammed against the stone wall. She mumbled a quick prayer to heal the boy and was relieved when his eyes fluttered open.

  “W-what happened?” Petre mumbled weakly as he gazed up into Jillian’s eyes.

  “You darn fool! You tried to charge that monster and got zapped! But what do we do?” Jillian begged the priestess for guidance. “I can’t even hurt it! It’s like I’m throwing pebbles at a bull!”

  The priestess swallowed a growing lump in her throat. “I fear this is something that only I and Rashas can deal with,” Arianna replied with a false confidence. “Get Petre and Flade to safety. I’ll help Dalia.”

  Jillian nodded and walked the injured boy in the blind ranger’s direction. “We’re coming for you, Flade,” she called to keep the man from accidentally lashing out at them in his blinded state.

  Karzack rasped a sharp word and Dalia felt her feet lift into the air. She was hanging about a foot off the ground, unable to move in any direction. The lady thrashed about wildly in an attempt to escape the creature’s hold. It did no good. His magic was strong. She began to panic.

  “You cannot challenge me. Relax and let me feed on your noble blood. If you taste good enough, I may let you become one of my servants in death for the rest of eternity. You’ll come to relish my grand temple as have the many others before you.”

  His words rasped straight out of a nightmare. She felt her panic welling up inside of her, but she forced it back down. She tried to lash out at his mind, but it had no effect. Dalia was growing desperate as the king moved closer. She focused on a technique that used mental energy to move objects. It was a field of study that she had little practice in, but what did she have to lose? The thought of winding up a walking corpse terrified the lady beyond anything she could imagine. Dalia tried to push Karzack away. She focused all of her considerable mental strength on that one thought. She pictured the creature flying away from her and slamming into the far wall. Sweat beaded on her forehead and pain shot through her skull. A tiny trickle of blood came from her nose. He did not move away; instead, she shoved herself away from him.

  “Nice trick, but where will you run to, my dear? Why do you resist?” The undead thing mused.

  “Karzack turn and face me!”

  The shout caught the king’s attention. Who dared to speak to him that way? There stood the Rashan priestess. She had to be confident. Her faith was her greatest power. The sorcerer turned to face off against Arianna. She stood poised and beautiful. She shook her head and her lustrous hair fell about her shoulders. Her ample chest was thrust forward. The priestess’ hands rested on her hips, displaying her girdle prominently. No hint of fear could be seen.

  “By the graces of Rashas, I command you to be gone creature of evil!” She cooed seductively.

  Her beaded girdle began to glow. The power of her faith poured from the holy symbol. Karzack hissed and groaned as the radiance hurt his eyes. He raised his hands for protection, and looked away, but he did not flee. He was a being of great power. Arianna was just not strong enough to force him away.

  “Dalia, go to the others! I will hold him off,” the priestess called out.

  With the girdle holding him at bay, his focus was broken. Dalia fell to the stone floor landing on her feet. The stairs they had entered by were near, but the others were on the opposite side of the room. She was drained from her mental strain, but fear carried the lady past Arianna to join Jillian and the others near the throne. The priestess could see them watching, and waiting for her.

  “Get out of here! I don’t know how long I can hold him,” Arianna called out desperately.

  “Fools! You cannot escape my temple of death!” Karzack resisted the priestess no more. He pulled back and out of the girdle’s soft radiance towards the stairwell. “My lovely priestess, you should not have challenged me, not here. You are in my domain.”

  Arianna pushed forward after him, to bathe the king in her radiance once more. Karzack groaned and turned away again. He began a wheezing laughter.

  “If I don’t stop you, my minions will.” He raised his arms to the ceiling. “Awake my guardians! Awake and claim my enemies! Their blood is your reward!”

  Dust rained down from the ledge high above them. Several of the statues lining it began to shift. The ones that moved were the ugliest ones. They had wings and horns and tails that thrashed about. The demonic carvings turned their hateful gazes down on the humans.

  “What are those things?” Jillian cried out in fear.

  “Gargoyles!” Dalia shouted. “We must flee this place at once!”

  Karzack continued his calling. “My servants of undeath, come and feast on the hearts of those who still breathe! Come and taste their fresh blood!”

  From the many passageways leading into the throne room, came creatures. They came down the half-spiraled staircase as well. There would be no leaving the way they had entered. Zombies, skeletons, and ghouls, dressed in remnants of finery shambled towards them. They were once the servants of Karzack in life, and so they had become his servants in death. More and more of them stumbled into the chamber followed by others that were not so well dressed. These were the victims brought before the king over the years. There were humans, elves, beast men, lizard men and things not so easily identified, all shambling forward in an unnatural semblance of life.

  Dalia screamed and bolted for the only archway not pouring forth the undead. It led deeper into the temple. A gargoyle swooped down and lifted the fleeing lady from the ground. Two arrows sent the creature off balance and slamming into a wall. It dropped Dalia in the process and crashed to the floor. She sank her blade repeatedly into the creature, finishing it off before it could recover from the fall. The lady’s attacks were wild with fear. Screeches of its brothers reminded her to keep moving. Jillian walked as fast as she could with the two men in tow. She was trying to catch up to Dalia. The girl paused to launch a couple of arrows into a zombie that blocked their path. The mindless thing moaned and slumped to the ground, destroyed.

  “By all the gods, what have we gotten ourselves into?” Petre gasped as the undead rolled in and the gargoyles soared above him screeching.

  “What’s that sound? What’s happening?” Flade asked repeatedly before he got an answer.

  “Trust me, you don’t want to know,” Petre replied with a groan as he hobbled faster towards the archway. “Just keep moving!”

  Arianna could see the shambling servants moving towards her friends. The things avoided the priestess and her beaded girdle. The radiance of her faith repulsed them. She pulled back from Karzack and rushed to aid her companions. A quick flash of her holy symbol
sent several of the undead back to death where they belonged. Their bodies collapsed to the stone floor. It also cleared a path for her to reach the others. She thought to make a stand, but there were too many to deal with, and the swooping gargoyles only made matters worse. They were not undead and were not affected by her holy symbol. Clawed hands gripped her cloak as one of the winged beasts flew by. She used her club to bat it away. The companions scrambled through the archway. A chant from Arianna lit the dark passage. Her hand radiated like a torch with a pink light. Tiny sparkles drifted to the ground wherever she moved. Karzack’s grating laughter echoed out behind them filling the halls with the macabre sound.

  “Which way do we go?” Jillian asked as she scanned two possible hallways. The third branch contained more zombies that looked to be dead lizard men. Luckily, they stumbled at a slow pace.

  “This way!” Arianna called out as she took the lead.

  Flade clung to Dalia, while Jillian supported Petre. Dalia tried not to notice the yellowed puss oozing from Flade’s numerous sores onto her clothing. The moans of the mindless servants rang out behind them spurring them onward.

  “We need to find a place to stop and regroup,” Flade called out to the priestess. He winced with each new painful step and with every word.

  “I’m looking! I’m looking!” Arianna shot back in agitation.

  The temple was vast. The hallways stretched on into darkness everywhere they turned. Many doors were dotted along these hallways, but none felt right to the priestess. At least the undead moved slowly. They rounded two more corners and came upon a door that looked different from the others. It was much more ornate. Carvings depicting some strange ritual were etched into its surface. She felt a pull to this passageway. Arianna whispered a quick prayer to dispel any warding that might be in place. A spark alerted her that her instincts had been correct. She silently thanked Rashas for watching over them. She pushed the door open cautiously. When nothing moving presented itself, she ushered everyone inside and closed the solid door behind her.