Melegal’s heart sank. “This isn’t bad, this is the end.”
CHAPTER 32
Cass sat on Kam’s bedroom floor, clutching her head and rocking back and forth. “Nooo! Nooo! Nooo!” She’d come up to check Kam’s wound when Blackie returned to battle.
From Kam’s tower window, they had seen the entire battle between the dragon and the spiders unfold. All it took was one lone spider catching the back end of Blackie’s tail with its webbing. Once it caught the dragon, more spiders hooked onto it. Blackie took to the sky, trying to shake the kite string of spiders. The handful of treacherous insects was too quick. They reeled themselves up onto the dragon’s body, nestled underneath his wings, and immobilized them with webbing.
Kam’s heart jumped the moment the grand dragon crashed. Jubilee started crying. Erin, curled up around Cass’s leg, hugged the distraught woman tight. Kam tried to pry the girl away but gave up after a few tugs. Instead, she sat down on the bed beside Jubilee. She consoled the young girl by rubbing her back. “I’m sorry, Cass.”
“Men. All they know how to do is fight. Blackie was no different. He got caught up in the scheme of things, but he should have flown above it.” Her lip quivered. Her face was streaked with wet tears. “I hate this world.”
Kam couldn’t argue with her. They were losing friends as well as the battle. The very walls of the castle were closing in. She was tempted to look outside and see what was going on in the streets. Men and dwarves were hollering at the top of their lungs. The dwarven horns blared out one note after the other. Even in her weakened state, she wanted to fight.
“Cass, I’ll go get you something to drink,” Jubilee said.
“Don’t bother. I’ll never thirst again.” Her chest expanded and her body trembled. She started to stand. “I’m going to get my dragon back.”
“What?” Kam came to her feet. “You can’t go out there. You’ll be killed.”
Her eyes had spaced out. Dragging Erin on her leg, she headed for the portal window. “Blackie needs me.”
Jubilee’s hand clutched Kam’s as she gave her a horrified “what is she doing” look.
“Cass, listen to me. We need you. What about Fogle? He adores you. Don’t leave and break his heart again.”
Two steps from the window, Cass turned. “He has you, doesn’t he?”
Taken aback, Kam said, “Uh, no more than as a friend.”
“The hourglass is about to empty, Kam. Have who you want while you can. I am going.” Her body shimmered and began to transform. Before Kam could scoop up Erin from the floor, Cass became a glorious white owl with rose-colored feathers that matched her all-seeing eyes. The owl sat perched in the windowsill for a long moment with her head turned all the way around. Cass the owl gave both women a simple nod. Her head wound around. She spread her wings and fell out of the window.
Kam and Jubilee rushed to the window. The great owl glided over the wall toward the sea of underlings wreaking havoc on an already harsh world.
“Whoa,” Jubilee said. “I didn’t see that coming. Do you really think she won’t be back?”
“I’m starting to think that there won’t be anything to come back to.” Kam crossed the room. There was a black staff of wood, shod with iron, with a sculpted iron hand at the top that held a large stone much like an emerald. She ran her hand up and down the polished wood. Mystic life pulsed in its fibers. She’d found it in Manamus’s study. The staff had power, and she was drawn to it. “But we might as well fight for what we still have left.” She gave Erin a hug and kiss, and set her on the bed. “Take care of Erin for me. Unlike Cass, I plan on coming back.”
“You better.” Jubilee eyed the staff. “What is that?”
“The Staff of Manamus, I presume. I plan to make good use of it.”
“Kam, you’re too weak to fight.”
“Maybe, but I’m too pissed off not to.”
CHAPTER 33
An underling soldier brought a small, plainly decorated metal chest and set it on the dining table where Master Sinway and Elypsa were sitting. The underling soldier departed, leaving the pair and several cave dogs all alone. They watched a living ring of scintillating colors, shaped like an oval with a live image within. It hovered over the fireplace mantel, clearly showing the battles within the city and beyond. Elypsa had never seen the likes of such powerful magic before.
“How is your faith in me now, Elypsa?” Sinway pulled his eyes away from the image and opened up the chest.
Through the image, Elypsa had witnessed the spiders outside of the city wall take down the dragon. The image shifted to the battle in the streets and the blockades that were being overrun by the underling army. It was as if she was standing on the battleground herself but seeing it from another person’s eyes. “You thought of everything. Cursing the water supply in the wells proved to be their undoing, but I swear, my faith never faltered, Master Sinway.”
Master Sinway slid a bright solid-gold bracelet encrusted with priceless gems over each wrist. Each stone twinkled with a sparkle of magic. Sinway’s hands blazed crimson. He sucked through his teeth. “Ah… nothing like adding more power. As for the poisoned water, yes, it was indeed a brilliant plan. I was eager to use it sooner, but timing is everything with such delicate matters. There is such delight in seeing the men turning on the dwarves and their own. The beauty is that our enemy didn’t see it coming. Soon, the city will be ours.” He fished out an amulet from the chest and draped it around his neck. The bright diamond-like stone was the size of an egg but flat. Lightning shimmered within. He tucked the amulet into his cloak.
“If the battle is won, then why are you adorning yourself with protection?” she asked, while keeping her gaze on the image. She wasn’t sure how she could see what she saw. Somehow, Sinway, using his power, tapped into the sight of another underling. Whoever that underling was, he was a brilliant swordsman. The wielder carved down men and dwarves as if he were chopping through saplings made of meat. Her hands flexed on the pommels of her weapons. She chewed at her lip and said, absentmindedly, “I want to be there.”
“Your time will come, Elypsa.” Sinway closed the lid to the chest. “My enemies will come for me, and though I am confident of my conquest, I’m not going to underestimate them, as your brothers, Verbard and Catten did, or as my father, Master Sinway. These enchanted baubles will bring my powers to their full zenith, making me virtually unstoppable.”
“You’re confident it will stop the Darkslayer.”
“He won’t be able to lay a finger on me.”
“And what about me?”
Using his mind, Sinway slid the chest over. “Help yourself.”
She opened the box. A pair of earrings that matched the bracelets lay inside. She took out the ruby studs from her ears and replaced them with the small hoop earrings in the box. The moment her fingers touched the set, warmth spread through her. The euphoric feeling of energy enhanced her once she put them on. She came to her feet so fast she knocked her chair over. Her swords whisked out of their sheaths. She flashed them around her body in a blur of steel. Her beautiful face lit up as she said, “I feel invincible!”
“That’s because we are invincible.”
She dropped to a knee before him. “Master Sinway, you must let me fight. I beg of you! Let me lead the charge on the East Gate. I want to be there to tear it down.”
“You might run into the Darkslayer.”
“I can take him. I know it this time. I’ll split his bowels open and dance on them. Please, let me have this honor.” She squeezed his hand and kissed it. “Please, Master.”
“I’d miss your company, Elypsa. And it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if they didn’t send their finest after me. I can only imagine there will be one last final attempt to end me. The blood rangers could show up. They often prove to be troublesome. There are mages that match your brothers’ own powers. It would be nice to see you run your swords through them.”
“If the battle is won, then
you shouldn’t have to worry. You can stay here and watch their demise unfold.” She pointed at the image over the mantel. “Look at them. The enemy falls like the rain. The dragon is dead, and we have them where were want them. Oh please, I’m not one to beg, but let me have this.”
Sinway caressed her cheek. “I suppose you are right, Elypsa. You’ve proven to be a fine servant, so I will grant your request.” He held up his finger. “But, you better hurry. By the time you get there, they might all be dead.”
“Thank you!” she said as she ran out of the room.
“Make sure I don’t regret it.”
Elypsa weaved through the castle, down the halls, and full speed into the streets. The underling army was still marching forward. She hopped on the back of a spider. It sped down the road, climbed the sides of a building, and hopped from rooftop to rooftop. The miles-long stretch from the West Gate to the East Gate took several minutes. When Elypsa arrived at the front lines, the battle was in full swing.
Elypsa pumped her fist. “Yes! This is what a battle is!”
The Royal Roadway was now in full control of the underling army. They filled the streets in front of the castles from one end to the other. The men and women of Bone, soldiers and all, retreated inside the castles. From there, they battled against the relentless siege. Elypsa crossed from one building to another. The spider walked over the tops of her own men. At the East Gate, the final battle for the City of Bone that was once in full swing had come to a halt. Flame walls rose between the underling army and the men. It made a barrier from one end of the gate to the other that linked to the castles on either side. Ten feet high, nothing could cross the searing heat.
Elypsa stopped a few feet away and climbed off her spider. She held out her hand. She didn’t feel the heat. She turned toward the ranks. “What are you waiting for? Are you cowards, or are you underlings?” She turned, drew her swords, and ran straight into the flame.
CHAPTER 34
Venir swung through an underling’s body.
Slice!
Georgio sunk steel into an orc’s belly.
Glitch!
Brak bludgeoned an ogre full in the face.
Crunch!
Chongo chomped.
Bodies piled up all around from both sides, but the army of Bone was diminishing. Venir cut away at every fiend or goon that came his way. They went down, but they kept coming. He caught Mood’s flowing red beard out of the corner of his eye. “Mood!” He hacked down another underling. “I don’t suppose you have any tricks left up your sleeve, do you? I think it’s time to put the helmet on! I don’t see another way out of this!”
Mood chopped out the side of an orc that slipped behind him and took a poke at his ribs with a spear. “No! I’ve got something ready. Blood rangers, sound off the Horn of Flame!”
From opposing ends of the castles on either side of the East Gate, the dwarven men blew their brass horns. The bullish sound startled the enemy. In a hiss, flames poured out of the horns, streaked across the road, and met in the middle. The raging wall of fire rose ten feet high. The enemy on the other side vanished behind the flames.
Though, the men and dwarves were far from safe. They still battled against the underlings, orcs, and ogres trapped on the inside of the wall of fire.
Brak finished off another orc. He failed to notice two underlings that slipped into his blind side and charged at his ribs with spears. Venir called out. “Brak! Move!” It was too late. Brak turned right into the enemy’s path.
Clatch-zip!
Thwunk!
The underlings pitched backward with missiles sticking from their heads. Billip and Nikkel gave Venir a thumbs-up from atop the city’s wall and reloaded. Battling against the throng of evil, Venir swung with all his might.
Chop! Glitch! Slash! Slice!
He gored the enemy with the tip of Brool. He hewed through bodies using fierce slashes to the left, and pulling the axe right for quick counter attacks. The odds were turning in their favor, but in the back of his mind, Venir knew the wall wouldn’t last forever. The last one from a battle at the Warfield long ago hadn’t lasted, either.
It’s time to put the helmet on, Venir. It’s now or never.
Seeing his comrades take control of the current situation, Venir called out to Brak and Georgio, “I’m going up on the wall. The both of you, retreat to the castles! All of you!”
“We can’t abandon the gate!” Brak yelled.
“You’ll have to trust me, son. I have an idea.” He started up the ladder to the top of the wall. Halfway up, he said, “Mood, get what’s left of your men and get clear of here!”
The blood rangers still had their hands full clearing out the enemy. Brak and Georgio kept at it with the lust of battle in them. Venir made it to the top and said to Billip and Nikkel, “Bail them out, will you?”
“We are trying, Venir.” Billip unleashed arrow after arrow. His arrowheads found purchase in a neck and a chest. “What is your plan?”
“I’m going to put the helmet on.”
“Is that supposed to scare them away?” Billip said.
“We’ll see.”
“Lo and behold.” Nikkel paused from his firing. “That woman just ran through the flames. She’s gorgeous!”
“Elypsa,” Venir said.
“Oh, should we kill her?” the young man asked.
Taking aim, Billip said, “She’s an underling, isn’t she? We should have killed her long ago.”
“I’ve never shot a woman.”
“She’s an underling.” Billip let his shaft rocket off the string. Elypsa chopped the arrow out of the air. “Impossible!”
“Did you see that?” Nikkel said. “Your arrows are too slow, Billip. Let me try.”
Elypsa engaged in battle with a blood ranger. Her swords struck like snakes that made the burly dwarf’s finely honed skills with an axe seem clumsy.
Nikkel fired. Clatch-Zip!
Elypsa, with both hands filled with flashing steel, knocked the bolt aside while disemboweling the blood ranger at the same time. With his bowels hanging out, the blood ranger fought on. Elypsa cut him into hunks and pieces then turned her sights on Brak and Georgio, who were coming her way.
Time seemed to freeze. Elypsa moved in like a jackrabbit. She ducked underneath Georgio’s swing and gored him through the chest. As he collapsed, he turned to look at Brak. She chopped him in the leg. Venir’s son went down.
“Brak!” Venir yelled.
Elypsa caught his eyes and smiled. She jabbed her sword into Brak’s throat.
CHAPTER 35
Melegal and Lefty joined Fogle on one of Castle Kling’s many terraces that gave full view of the courtyard and the city streets. Every man they had left fought from on top of the castle wall behind the parapets. The underlings came like a swarm of locusts. Victory blazed in their gemstone eyes.
“The hourglass of life is running out right before our eyes, Fogle.” Melegal scratched his nose. “Don’t just stand there with your eyes rolled up in your head. Find Sinway.”
“I am doing all that I can.” The mage looked straight on, his eyes wide and spacey. “There are only thousands of underlings to sift through, and those are the ones that I can see.”
Melegal gave Fogle’s eyes a deeper look. He could see tiny windows of a bird’s-eye view from the sky. “There!”
“What is it?” Lefty said. The little halfling balanced himself on the back of a chair. Standing tall, he looked over Melegal’s shoulder.
He got nose to nose with Fogle. “I see Elypsa coming out of that castle.”
“I don’t see her,” Fogle said.
“How can I see it and you not see! There, she comes underneath the barbicans now!”
“I don’t—”
Melegal slapped Fogle in the face. “Look harder!”
Fogle’s jaws clenched. With heated words he said, “Yes, I see her now, and you better never slap me again.”
“Just find Sinway,” Melegal said. “Sh
e had to have been with him, and that castle is just as good a place to hide as any.”
“I’m sending Inky in.” Fogle’s head moved in stiff, birdlike movements.
Melegal tapped his foot.
“Are you nervous?” Lefty said. “I’m not used to seeing you fidget.”
“I’m impatient. I want to get this fight over with.”
“Even if I find Master Sinway, who are we going to fight him with? It’s just us. We need Venir,” Fogle said.
“Just find him. We’ll worry about Venir later.” Melegal moved to the edge of the terrace. Underlings were slipping through the castle’s defenses. “This is not good.”
Lefty hopped onto the terrace wall. “We aren’t going to make it, are we?”
“Would it be so bad if we didn’t?”
The halfling shrugged. “I suppose not.”
Fogle let out a startled “Whoa.” He shuffled back a step. He rubbed his temples. Holding onto the back of a chair, he steadied himself. “He’s there.”
Ebenezer and Rayal emerged on the terrace. The handsome father and daughter looked like they’d just escaped the battlefield. Ebenezer asked, “Who’s there?”
“Master Sinway,” Fogle said. “I’ve located him. We need to find Venir.”
“He’s stationed at the East Gate,” Ebenezer said, shaking his head. “He’ll never make it back here. If we have a chance to strike at Sinway, now is the time. He’ll be expecting Venir, but he won’t be expecting us.” Ebenezer drew his sword. “Now, we must strike.”
Fogle looked at Melegal. “He’s right.”
“I know, but he’s a royal.” His eyes met Rayal’s. “I don’t think we have time to debate the matter.”
“I can open a portal and keep it open a long time,” Fogle said, eyeing Rayal. “But I’ll need some assistance on the other side. Can I count on you?”
The Darkslayer: Series 2 Special Edition (Bish and Bone Bundle Books 6-10): Sword and Sorcery Adventures Page 63