“Sara,” he called. “Help Beryk with the portal. Tam, Keryn, shield this side while the riders go through.” As soon as he was certain the saiken understood his instructions, he guided his horse toward the back of the column. “We are opening a portal to Lore’s Haven,” he told the soldiers as he passed. “The saiken will shield you while you wait for your turn to go through.”
They had to hurry. He saw some of Bodann’s forces running for the other side, where the Haven fighters would not be shielded, and the creatures advancing up the causeway were getting closer by the second. He had a plan, but he needed to be sure the riders and saiken were safe first.
“Riders! Hurry through the portal!” He looked back as he heard Beryk shouting. Beryk and Sara stood at the edge of the platform. The portal hung in space two paces off the edge of the rock. There had not been enough room to place it on solid ground because of the press of horses. The riders would have to jump the gap to reach it. As he watched, the first rider went through, while more moved into position.
“Loremaster Brin, why do we not fight?” one of the warriors asked him.
“We are at too great a disadvantage here,” he answered. “Our purpose was to draw the enemy’s attention away from the Shanthi, and we have accomplished that. However, we are now beset on two sides, and will no doubt soon be surrounded. We can aid our cause more by escaping this trap through the portal, and then returning to fight again.” He did not mention that he fully intended to strike a blow once the riders were safe.
The ground trembled as he finished, followed by the sound of an explosion from the chasm. He jumped off his horse and looked over the edge. Grithor saiken were attacking the base of the rock, obviously intent on collapsing it before they could escape. Brin focused his power into a brilliantly glowing sphere and sent it down into the shadows. The Grithor shielded their eyes, retreating back into tunnels in the opposite wall.
He looked up at the creatures approaching along the narrow bridge of land. They had apparently noticed their prey escaping, and were advancing more rapidly. He sent a bolt of power toward them and watched as his attack sent several into the abyss to either side.
He looked back toward the portal. The horses were moving more quickly as space opened up where they could maneuver. A concussion filled the air as one of the enemy saiken attacked the shield. He looked at Tam and Keryn. Both were breathing heavily as the strain of maintaining the shield took its toll on them. He hoped they could last long enough, but more saiken were beginning to attack.
Another tremor shook the ground. He looked into the crevice and saw that his dimsai orb had failed. The Grithor saiken were attacking the base of the rock once again. He sent another brilliant crimson orb into the depths, and then threw two more blasts at the approaching creatures. His first volley sent more over the edge, but the second detonated against a shield that appeared in front of the approaching mass. He looked back toward the portal. Just a score of riders remained. Tam and Keryn were clearly at the end of their endurance. He waved at a rider who was looking toward the creatures on the bridge.
“You. Get another rider and take the shield saiken with you,” he said. The man nodded and called to another warrior. A blast threw Brin to the ground as a saiken on the bridge attacked. He threw a shield up just in time to catch the next bolt. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the horsemen in place beside Tam and Keryn.
“Tam! Keryn! Drop the shield!”
Instantly the shield disappeared. The two riders hauled the exhausted saiken across their mounts and sprinted for the portal, just making it through as arrows began streaking after them. Brin climbed to his feet and sent another flare of power toward the force on the bridge.
“Sara! Beryk! Go back to the Haven!” he shouted.
“Not without you!” Beryk yelled back.
“I will make another way! Now go!”
Sara and Beryk looked at each other and then moved to get a run for the leap. Sara started first and then staggered as an arrow pierced the back of her thigh. Brin knew she would not make the jump.
Beryk ran to catch her. He did not slow as he wrapped his arm around her waist and leaped with all of his strength for the portal, which winked out of existence as they passed through.
Now, he thought, facing the creatures coming toward him, now Cale will be avenged! With a cry from the depths of his soul, he raised his hands. A scarlet corona of power erupted around him. All of the grief, fury, and outrage he had been holding inside since learning of the death of his son now poured forth in a paroxysm of vengeance and retribution. Arrows intended to pierce his body disintegrated as his power consumed them.
He sent a barrage of dimsai across the chasm, the volleys exploding just underneath the ledge or blasting through the crowded mass of bodies. As he threw bolt after bolt, he watched the creatures approaching on the narrow ridge of stone. He needed them closer. A tremor tickled the bottom of his feet. The Grithor had returned and were once again attacking the base of the platform.
The fighters on the bridge saw that he was alone and surged forward. When they were ten paces from the platform, he threw out his hand, casting a shield across the end of the bridge. As had happened with the horses, the creatures in the back did not realize their charge had been stopped until they found themselves pressed up against the leaders. The smell of burning flesh filled the air as the leading bodies pressed against his shield.
With his other hand, he gave free reign to his fury, continuing to throw power across the abyss. Sweat stung his eyes and his breath was labored, but he did not, would not, stop. In a few moments, several hundred of the enemy crowded the bridge, unable to move forward while his shield held.
When he was certain no more could fit onto the bridge, he turned his full attention to them. He brought back up the emotions that had threatened to overwhelm him in the Circle chamber; dredged up the indignation he had felt during the Shadow Lord’s visit. He poured all of his outrage, all of his pain, into one massive surge of power and focused it on the bridge. His senses sought out weaknesses in the stone, and he sent his power to attack those points. Fractures appeared. Cracks streaked through the base of the bridge.
When the creatures on the bridge realized what he was going to do, they tried desperately to reverse their course. As they pushed and jostled to escape, some fell tumbling into the shadows below. Shouting Cale’s name, he pulled more power from within. With a groan of tortured stone, the bridge collapsed, carrying all of the enemy unable to make it back to solid ground plummeting into the darkness.
The platform, now deprived of the support from the bridge, shuddered underneath his feet. He could feel it beginning to sway, and the Grithor’s attacks came constantly. He had known this would happen. As he felt the platform begin its fall, he threw a few more bolts of power into the enemy. Then, his mind filled with thoughts of his son, he ran for the edge and leaped out into empty space.
*****
“Jason! Are you well?”
Jason barely heard Seryn as he stood frozen, staring blindly at the battlefield. The two armies were little more than an afterthought as the memories rushed back. Passion and focus…
~~~
“Passion can come from emotion or desire,” Nyala said. “Either alone is sufficient. Together they can be a formidable force. You must be careful, though. Dimsai called by emotion alone can be unpredictable, often guiding, rather than being guided by, the user. You must learn to focus your desire, tempering emotion when necessary. The more you use the dimsai, the more easily it will respond to your call...”
~~~
Jason saw the two armies come together, the stars that represented the saiken sending off sparks of power in all directions. He saw the ground crumble away beside the column of horsemen as they rode to the aid of the Shanthi…
~~~
They started small, with Nyala trying to teach him how to create a ball of power as she had done. Over and over he tried. Time and time again he failed.
“K
eep trying, Jason,” she said.
After hearing it for what seemed like the hundredth time, he lost his temper.
“I am trying!” he snapped, and then gasped as a sparkling sphere appeared, floating over his open palm.
The shock at the ball’s appearance broke his concentration, and it winked out almost immediately. But he had done it. His anger vanished, replaced by giddiness. He had done it! He felt the same way he’d felt after Tracy Jacobson agreed to go out with him. He had to stop himself from giggling…
~~~
The column of riders was trapped, Bothan’s forces cutting off their exit. Jason saw the warriors escaping through the portal. Once all were gone, the red star exploded with power like a supernova. A few moments later, the bridge, and then the platform, crumbled and the star disappeared into the depths…
~~~
Six months they had been in the past. Jason practiced for hours every day. He learned quickly. Even Nyala had been surprised at his progress. With her help and guidance, he learned in months what took other students years. She taught him how to move objects and how to reshape them. She taught him how use his power to see the strengths and weaknesses of the things around him.
He learned to accelerate and guide the growth of plants. She explained how to heal injuries, although there was no way for him to practice. She taught him how to open portals, and how to use his power to move quickly from one place to another. Then she taught him how to use his power in battle…
~~~
The Haven army engaged Bothan’s forces. The ring of steel and shouts of the warriors rang faintly in his ears. Dimsai flashes reflected in his unblinking eyes. The ground rumbled as the riders that had been on the platform charged past, racing back to the battle…
~~~
“You’ve done well,” Nyala said, “we are ready to return. However, for reasons that I will explain to you after we go back, I must block all memory of this from your mind.”
“Huh? Then why teach me all this stuff? If I’m just going to forget it?”
Nyala smiled. “If I tell you my reasons now, you won’t remember them. Don’t worry. I promise you will remember at the proper time.”
He’d learned that arguing with her was pointless. “Fine,” he said. He looked around the clearing. Blasted trees and rocks surrounded them from his battle practice. “Wait, I missed one,” he said as he spotted an unblemished tree. He sent a bolt of power crashing into the trunk.
A bird’s scream startled him. He looked up to see a fortunewing launch from the branches above as the tree shuddered. The bird was clearly agitated, trying to get back into the waving limbs and leaves.
He sent his senses searching through the branches. There was a nest halfway up the tree. As he focused, he saw an egg teetering on the edge of the nest, bounced there by the shaking limb. Then it rolled off, plummeting toward the ground.
He reached out with his power and caught the egg before it hit any of the branches. In the grip of the dimsai, the egg began to crack. He could tell the chick inside was too young to survive if it hatched now. But the egg was already cracking open. He didn’t think, just sent his power into the chick, encouraging its growth. Within seconds, a fully grown fortunewing appeared, shaking bits of eggshell off its feathers as he set it gently on a branch. Then his eyes went wide as he turned to Nyala.
“He says his name is Crin.”
~~~
Jason blinked dust from his dry eyes as the memories came to an end. He looked to the skies. Crin!
“Jason! You remember me!” A surge of joy accompanied Crin’s answer.
Jason grinned. Yes, I remember you, and I will never forget you again.
“That is good,” the bird answered. “But the battle has begun. You must hurry.”
He looked toward the battlefield. There was something different about it. Besides the dimsai auras, there were hundreds of thin lines, almost like a ghostly mesh blanketing the armies. Movement at the base of his vision caught his attention. Looking down, he saw an ethereal thread extending skyward from his chest. Following it with his senses, he discovered that it led to where Crin circled high above.
He looked back at the armies. The threads all converged on the sickly star on the opposite hill. That’s how he got them all to fight together. Somehow, Bothan had made connections to the creatures fighting against the Haven forces. If he could break those connections…
“Jason, are you well?” Seryn laid a hand on his shoulder.
In answer, he turned and created a small orb of iridescent light. “I’ve remembered my power,” he said. Like the reflections from the globe of light, he saw hope and anticipation begin sparkling in her eyes. “I have to get to Bothan,” he said. Then he turned and sprinted toward the battle, using his power to speed his way.
As he descended the hillside, he saw a bright green star in the midst of the battle. Reyga. He ran toward the Loremaster. At the edge of the battle, he stopped and focused his power on the nearest Trellin, trying to break the connection between it and Bothan. The creature started toward him, and then hesitated as the thread vanished. It shook its head, and then turned and attacked a nearby Manarach.
He nodded in satisfaction, then focused his power again. More of the threads vanished, but only those that were closest to him. The creatures began fighting whatever happened to be the closest target. After a few moments, the threads re-established themselves. The creatures were once again under Bothan’s control.
He would have to get to Bothan. If he could cut all of the threads at once, they might have a chance. But he wanted Reyga with him. Using his power to blast a way, he ran toward the emerald star.
Confrontation
Reyga sent a green flare of power at a hissing Trellin before it could bring its sword down on the back of an unsuspecting warrior.
“My thanks!” the man gasped, as he turned and realized what had happened.
Reyga turned his horse away, swinging his staff in a wide arc, the blazing emerald at the end leaving a crackling trail of green hanging in the air. A cry to his left caught his attention. Another warrior caught in trapsilk. Reyga incinerated the thread, and then sent a blast toward the Manarach that had thrown it.
He had been separated from the other members of the Circle as the two armies collided. Now he was using all of his power in an effort to keep the warriors around him alive. An arrow grazed his sleeve. He realized sitting on his horse made him a more visible target, but he was loathe to dismount; this vantage point allowed him to view the battle. Another arrow flying past made his decision for him, and he slid to the ground. He slapped the horse’s hindquarters, sending it barreling through the throng.
He sent power flying into the mass of enemy fighters. In the chaos it was difficult to know which way to attack first. A Trellin leaped toward him, bringing its sword down in a lethal arc. Reyga deflected the blow with his staff and then slammed the end of the staff into the side of the creature’s skull. As it staggered backwards, he threw a flare of dimsai at it, sending it crashing into the creatures behind.
He felt something wrap around his legs, jerking him off balance. His staff bounced away as he hit the ground, stopping just outside of his reach. He rolled over to see a Manarach looming over him, ready to impale him with a spear.
A blast of power sent the creature flying away. Another flash cleared a small area around him, which was suddenly encompassed in an iridescent curtain.
“I figure I owed you that one,” a voice said, as the trapsilk around his legs dissolved into ash.
He looked up to see Jason holding his hand out to help him up.
“Jason, you have your power!”
Jason pulled him up. “And I know what I need to do with it. I have to get to Bothan. Will you come with me?”
“Do you believe you can defeat him?”
Jason shrugged. “I won’t know until I try. But even if I can’t beat him, I think there’s one thing I can do that might help.”
Reyga looked
at the battle raging outside the shield. He could stay here, hoping to protect the handful of warriors he could see, or he could go with Jason, perhaps to save them all. He had been there when this all began, when Jason first arrived. It seemed only fitting that he should be with Jason if it was coming to an end.
He nodded. “I will come with you.”
*****
Gatlor jumped from his screaming horse as it went down, several Trellin bloodfangs broken off in its flanks. He landed beside Seerka and Calador, who had stayed near him as they charged the enemy. The battle raged around them as he and Seerka took up positions shoulder to shoulder. Behind them, Calador’s axe and maul kept the creatures there at bay. Between the clashing of blade and shield, and the hissing and roaring of the enemy, he could barely hear himself think.
“I suppose popularity has its price,” he yelled over the din, yanking his sword from the Trellin he had just dispatched.
“Naturally,” the Ferrin shouted back. “It is difficult to go anywhere without being noticed.”
A thread of trapsilk landed on his arm. He sliced through it with his dagger before the creature could pull him off balance. The Manarach gave ground to avoid the slash of his sword. He could see flashes of dimsai in the throng surrounding them, but was unable to determine if it was coming from Haven saiken or the enemy. A reptilian body thudded against him. Before he could react, it slid to the ground, blood pouring from the gashes in its neck.
“You owe me an ale,” Seerka laughed as Gatlor shot him a look.
“Aye,” he answered. “Perhaps more than one.”
He heard Calador roar from behind. Sparing a glance over his shoulder, he saw that two of Manarachs had the Dokal warrior entangled in trapsilk. They were unable to pull the giant off balance, however, and for the moment, his armor-like skin was deflecting most of the damage from Trellin swords.
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