Legends of the Dragonrealm: Volume 04

by Richard A. Knaak

  "You'll do nothing!" roared Darkhorse, but as he moved to intercept his twin's spells, he found something holding him back.

  "You won't do anything, Darkhorse," Aurim stared blankly at him.

  "Very good," commended the horse king. "Hold him there." Lanith took a step toward his shadowy ally. "Don't harm her, imp! She's got too much potential. We can use her to strengthen the Order, make her help conquer her father's own land! Just do with her as you did with Bedlam here."

  "Her mind's all wrong, you fool!" Yureel seemed to no longer care about pretending he was servant to Lanith. "Just like that witch of yours!"

  Lanith clearly did not understand, but Darkhorse thought he did. Yureel could not control either half-breed the way he could humans. Something in the half-breeds' minds must differ from the minds of true humans. He wished he had the time to discover just what. Any advantage was welcome.

  A brief, low moan escaped the Green Dragon. Yureel turned toward him again, his interest in his former captor renewed.

  "Leave him be, damn you!" The Dragon King's daughter seemed not to care that Yureel had the power to tear her limb from limb.

  A brave and impetuous young woman . . . and one about to die horribly because of those traits. Darkhorse struggled to help her, but Aurim held him at bay. The shadow steed stared at his young friend. Aurim stared back, expression still indifferent.

  Gathering his will, Darkhorse tried to contact the mind held prisoner within the sorcerer's body. He knew that some part of Aurim had to be there; it had revealed itself in time to save him before. Perhaps there was a chance Darkhorse could stir the true Aurim to action.

  In his mind, he called the human's name over and over. The sorcerer's expression tightened, as if he was not at all at peace with himself. Darkhorse took the change as a sign and pushed harder to reach his friend. Aurim Bedlam! This is not you! You have the power to shift the balance here! You must!

  As the ebony stallion fought to reach the sorcerer's mind, Yureel looked down upon the drake's defiant offspring. "Yes, you're absolutely right! I should leave him alone . . . at least for now! I should play with you first! I'll make your death an epic in itself!"

  Standing her ground, Yssa cast a spell. A cloud formed around reel, but the shadowy figure shrugged it off with scarcely any effort. He moved nearer, reshaping and solidifying into a massive, dark figure very reminiscent in outline of an armored warrior, a drake to be precise. Even the eyes seemed half-hidden now by a pitch-black helm. The dark knight stood at least a full foot taller than Darkhorse.

  "Kapio's Charger!" gasped the horse king. Darkhorse suspected he had never seen his ally in anything but the most minute of forms. "Imp—"

  "Why don't you change, too, little witch?" Yureel taunted the defiant woman. "She can do it"—Saress blanched and quickly retreated a few steps behind Lanith— "you can certainly do it, too."

  Yssa's response came in the form of another spell, this one a score of bright flashes that burst into and out of existence accompanied by a loud explosion. Briefly startled, the shadow knight backed up a step . . . and walked into a cage formed from the earth. As the entrance of the cage sealed itself, the enchantress fell to one knee, gasping.

  "The box could not hold me," Yureel casually remarked, putting one massive hand against the front of his cage, "and it was your only hope, dragonspawn." The cage shattered, pelting all of them with bits of earth. He stalked toward Yssa, each step leaving small craters. "Now, how shall we begin with you?"

  As he reached for her, his hand swelled, growing all out of proportion to the rest of his form. Yssa tried to vanish, but Darkhorse sensed Yureel counter her attempt. She was still trying to transport herself away when the fearsome knight lifted her up by the waist.

  "Perhaps I'll squeeze you apart first, then absorb the leftovers . . . "

  Try as he might, Darkhorse could do nothing to free her. Aurim kept his powers in check. He stared again at the young sorcerer. Aurim! Do not let this happen!

  Yureel tightened his grip. The enchantress first gasped, then moaned as the shadowy knight started to squeeze the life out of her.

  A silver scythe formed between Yureel and Yssa and without pause sliced clean the hand that held her.

  Hand and enchantress dropped the short distance to the ground. The severed appendage immediately released her and scurried back to its master, who absorbed it and formed a new hand to take the original's place.

  Aurim stepped in front of the king, eyeing the monstrous shadow with new and growing defiance. "I've . . . killed for you. I've ravaged . . . a land . . . for you. I've seen more . . . death . . . than is right for. . . any one person. . . to want or have to witness!"

  "Return to your place!" commanded Lanith, reaching for him.

  The younger Bedlam glared at the horse king, who suddenly thought better of touching a powerful spellcaster in anger. "I am."

  "You little whining traitor!" Ponteroy raised his staff, but Aurim blinked and the staff suddenly burst into flames. Gasping, the other sorcerer dropped his fiery weapon and kicked it away. A slight wave of Aurim's hand sent the burning staff flying in the direction of Lanith's advancing warriors. A breath later, they heard it explode.

  "Go home, Ponteroy," Aurim added. "I know your former liege in Gordag-Ai will be pleased to see you. You've told me that often enough."

  "No—" was all the arrogant spellcaster managed to spout before vanishing. If Aurim had sent him back to Gordag-Ai, it was doubtful he would be returning soon, if at all. The kingdom's spies likely knew every traitorous action the overdressed sorcerer had been involved with since his arrival in Zuu and without his staff, Ponteroy was not as much a threat.

  The two remaining sorcerers retreated to Saress, who still watched Lanith nervously. Her own fear that he would realize what she was kept her paralyzed.

  Not so Yureel. "Naughty boy! Behave yourself or I'll just have to strike you from my epic!"

  Aurim's expression instantly slackened. He started back to the other spellcasters.

  "Fight it, lad!" Darkhorse roared. Belatedly he realized that Aurim had dropped the spell holding him prisoner, probably at the same time the sorcerer had turned on his foul master. Now nothing prevented him from using his power. The ebony stallion immediately focused on Yureel, trying to strike between the eyes. If he could distract his murderous brother—

  Yureel easily deflected his spell, but as Darkhorse had hoped, the attack gave Aurim the reprieve he needed to recover control of himself. The young sorcerer gritted his teeth and stared at his former master. Aurim was frightened, but doing his best to face the source of his fears.

  Two of the spears dropped by the sentries rose into the air and darted past Aurim. Behind him, the king of Zuu, sword drawn, tried to protect himself from the unexpected attack. Lanith had clearly intended on stabbing the spellcaster from behind, realizing, perhaps, that without Yureel, his own dreams of victory would remain just that. If it meant sacrificing even so valuable a pawn as Aurim had been, so be it.

  The treacherous monarch managed to deflect the first missile with his sword, but the second came too fast. Lanith tried but failed to raise his weapon in time. The head of the spear buried itself in his shoulder. Grunting, the horse king dropped his weapon and stumbled back.

  Hissing, Saress went to his side. She pulled the weapon free, passed her hand over the wound, then signaled the other spellcasters to come to her aid. "I've stopped the bleeding, but more needs doing! Get him away from here and see that he's healed completely or you'll face me later! Go now!"

  The two immediately took hold of the king and carried him away. Saress stood and glared at the source of his agony, the Dragon King's daughter. Yssa, though, had already forgotten the murderous king, her concern once again for her injured father. She did not even notice the other woman start toward her.

  Knowing that the drake lord's daughter was too distracted to be of good use, anyway, Darkhorse called out, "Take him away from here, Yssa! Somewhere safe! Do
it now!"

  Looking relieved yet guilty, Yssa carefully scooped up her father. The drake's hand was a burnt ruin, probably unsalvageable even through high sorcery. The Dragon King breathed in short gasps. Yssa hurriedly opened a path of escape, clearly aware of how weak the drake had already become.

  With an inhuman roar, Saress flung herself after her disappearing rival. Occupied with Yureel, Darkhorse could do nothing to stop the furious sorceress. Saress vanished only seconds after Yssa and her father did.

  Yureel continued to prove more resilient than the stallion had hoped. The dread knight had so far fought Darkhorse and his companion to a standstill, something that should not have been possible. True, Yureel had always maintained greater reserves of strength due to his horrific habit of eventually devouring any source of power he came across, but Darkhorse was at his peak and Aurim was possibly the greatest spell- caster in generations. Even Yureel with his parasitic link to the other spellcasters of the Order should not have been able to stand against the pair, unless. . . Aurim was unconsciously holding back because his confidence had begun to erode again.

  "We have him, lad! Keep at him!" He hoped he sounded encouraging. Aurim needed to believe in himself.

  The human did not respond and his face was horribly pale. He still worked alongside the shadow steed, but it was clear that he recalled too much of his enslavement. Fear made him hesitant, something that threatened to be fatal for both of them.

  Aurim! He cannot harm you anymore! You have proven your will superior to his! Darkhorse repeated himself, uncertain as to whether the boy paid any attention to his plea.

  He made me . . . I couldn't do a thing, Darkhorse . . . he made me kill for him! I thought I was strong enough, but now I don't know . . .

  But you saved Yssa and the drake! You broke free, Aurim! You broke free!

  At first Darkhorse believed that his words had had no impact on Cabe's son, but then he sensed a new onrush of power behind the spell that Aurim cast next. Yureel certainly felt something, too, for although the spellwork itself was invisible, the shadow knight's reaction was anything but. Yureel's form glowed crimson and he stumbled back, crushing the tent.

  "You are ours, Yureel!" Darkhorse meant his cry not only for his twin but for Aurim, too. The young mage needed more encouragement if the pair of them had any hope of victory. Aurim had finally freed himself of Yureel's control and now had the insidious demon at the disadvantage, but events had a habit of changing quickly in such dire situations. "Your epic will have to remain incomplete!"

  The monstrous creature regained his footing. "I'm very disappointed in both of you, brother! You've misbehaved! I will just have to absorb you . . . but not before I teach you your place."

  "Your power is not enough to withstand both of us, Yureel. That should be obvious even to you!"

  He expected Yureel to retort again, but instead the shadow knight did something that caught both Darkhorse and Aurim completely off-guard. He flung himself into the air and flew off toward the east, his speed so great that he was little more than a speck by the time either of his adversaries realized what had happened.

  "Darkhorse—"

  "Aurim! Mount quickly!" Darkhorse waited only long enough for the sorcerer to obey, then leaped into the air after their foe. Yureel had already flown halfway to the battlefield, a destination dangerous even for so deadly a creature. What he planned, Darkhorse could only guess.

  Still behind the Zuu lines, Yureel began to descend. The shadow steed could not readily detect who or what Yureel flew toward, but he thought he sensed sorcery there. A sudden suspicion started to gnaw at him.

  "Hold tight, Aurim! We must reach him before it is too late!"

  The sorcerer had already wrapped his arms around his friend's throat, but he tightened his grip. Sorcery was in play all over the battlefield despite the fact that both armed forces had come together, and it was likely difficult for the spellcasters to separate friend from foe. Even one stray spell might be enough to slow Darkhorse and possibly brutally injure the human astride him.

  Yureel disappeared from sight, but Darkhorse still sensed his presence below. He now also sensed the presence of several sorcerers: the remnants of the Magical Order. Without Aurim, Saress, and Ponteroy, the Order was severely weakened, but the potential for danger still existed. If anyone knew best how to exploit that potential, it was Yureel.

  "Be ready, Aurim. I fear the worst."

  They were suddenly buffeted by earsplitting shrieks from every direction. Aurim screamed, and it was all the eternal could do to keep from following suit. The shadow steed spiraled toward the ground, just barely able to maintain control. In the distance, he caught sight of at least half a dozen figures positioned in a recognizable geometric pattern.

  In the center stood the huge, shadowy figure of Yureel. Darkhorse touched the earth still facing the group. A quick probe verified his fear; Yureel had taken Aurim's place as the Order's focus. Worse, he had thrown off the mask of independence under which they had operated. Now he controlled each and every one of them.

  "Darkhorse! He's made them like me!"

  "I know that, Aurim! We cannot allow that to dissuade us, though."

  "You don't understand, Darkhorse." The sorcerer gripped his companion's mane tight. "In a link of that complexity, they become so much more than a group of low-level mages."

  Darkhorse understood that also, but before he could say so, Yureel and the Order struck again. Tremendous pressure threatened to flatten the eternal to the ground. Next to him, Aurim fell first to his knees, then on his face.

  "We—must—work together! Give me your mind!" The moment he said the words, the eternal realized his grave mistake. Animal fear overwhelmed his friend, fear based deeply in the human's recent captivity. Aurim saw Darkhorse as too much like his twin.

  The pressure continued to build, but now the ground changed, liquefying. Sorcerer and shadow steed quickly sank. It was all either of them could do just to keep their heads above the surface.

  "Aurim! I am not Yureel! I will not seize control of your mind and body! We will work together. It is the one weapon we have that he can never understand well enough to use himself. We must link and become one together, not one held by the will of the other!"

  The spellcaster shook his head. "I can't! Not again!"

  "If you do not, then we have no hope. I must intertwine our powers so well that whatever Yureel attempts, he will be unable to separate them. Divided we are two against many. Together . . . we have the power to see to it that he will never cause such devastation and terror again."

  Aurim nodded. His mind opened up to Darkhorse and although the eternal still sensed some lingering fear, he also noted building resolve. This time, Aurim Bedlam would not falter.

  It was nearly too late. Darkhorse bound his power with that of the sorcerer just as Aurim's mouth sank below the surface. The human's eyes widened, but he did not give in to panic.

  It is done! We are one in our strength now. The binding briefly gave Darkhorse a sense of double thought, but he immediately sorted out his own mind from that of his young companion. With the stallion to guide them along, the pair lifted themselves from the earth.

  Yureel forced his thralls to attack again, but this time the pair shrugged off the spell. With Aurim once more atop him, Darkhorse closed in on his counterpart. Neither he nor his companion attacked in turn; the spells they cast simply acted to deflect those of the Order toward the forces of Zuu. Each time Yureel attacked, he dealt damage to his own cause.

  At last, only a few yards separated Darkhorse and his brother. Yureel looked slightly smaller and less fierce; controlling so many during so relentless a struggle had taken a toll even on him. The spellcasters looked even more bedraggled, but they had no choice.

  "You are wasting your weapons, Yureel," taunted the shadow steed. "You can never make use of their full power while their spirits are trapped. Your very desire to control means that full control can never be yours."

&
nbsp; "Still you preach, my brother, my self. Still you preach and no one listens!"

  "Look around you! The power you threw against us has instead fallen upon the warriors of your supposed ally! Do you call that control? In the past few minutes, you have probably done more damage to the legions of Zuu than the Dragon King's own forces have."

  Yureel hesitated, icy orbs shifting momentarily in the direction of the two battling armies. Like Darkhorse, he could sense that the horse king's warriors no longer had the advantage; the deadly spells the shadow steed and Aurim had redirected had struck Lanith's army at its most vulnerable points. The power that the dark knight had thrown at his foes had caused such damage that in some places the defenders were now pushing westward.

  "My epic . . ." Yureel glared at the duo. "All my lovely work . . ."

  "Worry not about your epic so much as yourself, Yureel. The box might not have been able to hold you, but there are other cages. The Void awaits your return."

  "I will not go back there! I will not! I will not! Never again!" Arms burst from the shadowy giant's body, enough arms with which to seize the defenseless sorcerers around him. The arms retracted the moment each had hold of its prey. Darkhorse tried to sever the limbs as Aurim had earlier, but Yureel was too swift. The unmoving mages disappeared into the recesses of the knight's monstrous torso without so much as the slightest scream.

  "God!" Aurim nearly slipped from his back. Darkhorse could not help shivering. He never ceased to be amazed at Yureel's complete lack of respect for life. The sorcerers had meant no more to him than a blade of grass or a fly.

  Yureel no longer seemed weary, pushed to the edge of defeat. He looked stronger now, stronger and larger. The ebony knight had threatened to absorb his twin and make all that Darkhorse had been a part of him. He had done exactly that with the mages. Their lives and especially their power were his.

  By themselves, they had not been spellcasters of great ability. As part of the Order, their combined might had made them strong, but not impossibly so. As a part of Yureel, though, a part of his very essence . . . Darkhorse feared that once more his brother had snatched victory from him.