“I don’t understand,” King Arik said a moment later. “My head suddenly cleared and his shields went away. What happened here?”
“I helped Tanya with her shields,” answered Jenneva. “That allowed her to block his hold on your mind.”
“I felt that,” the queen nodded, “but I am also confused. How were you able to aid me and still shield both Tedi and yourself. You were even separated by a fair distance from him.”
“I dropped my physical shields,” answered Jenneva, “and Tedi wasn’t shielded at all.”
Tedi swallowed hard as the meaning of Jenneva’s words struck him. “I wasn’t shielded?”
“Explain,” frowned the queen.
“K’san was not about to attack me physically. I was too far away for him to do that. If he was going to strike out at anyone, it would have been Arik, and you had him well shielded. As for Tedi, K’san did not even know that he was here, and I had instructed Tedi to attack when K’san’s attention was on me. Therefore, he didn’t need to be shielded.”
“But he was ready to cast spells at me,” Tedi protested.
“I said that it would require proper timing,” smiled Jenneva. “I didn’t step into the room until Arik was ready for his next attack. That meant that you would get your swing in before K’san could react to you.”
“And Arik would strike K’san before he could attack Tedi,” Tanya nodded thoughtfully. “I think I see what you were aiming for.”
“But the shields?” questioned the king. “Why was I able to strike K’san this time and not the other times?”
“Physical shields absorb energy,” explained Jenneva. “Each time you struck K’san, you weakened his shields a bit. Mind you, his shields were rather strong and your hits did not have much effect on them, but it is the principle that matters here.”
“But my hit did?” asked Tedi.
“Oh yes,” smiled Jenneva. “While both the Sword of Heavens and your staff have the ability to kill K’san, your staff has other properties as well. That is why you are able to pulverize stone walls with it. When the Mage gave you that staff, he told you that you controlled its force with your mind, and I told you to hit K’san with all you had. The force of your hit was enough to shatter his shields completely, even if it never made it through to strike K’san. That is why the timing was critical. Arik had to be ready to strike as soon as the shields were down, and I had to help Tanya with her shields so she could clear the king’s mind.”
“Well thought out, Mother,” smiled the queen. “I can see that I still have much to learn from you.”
* * *
The Knights of Alcea gathered in front of the temple and surveyed the devastation in the valley. Blood soaked the ground, and scavengers were already attacking the hundreds of bodies scattered across the land. King Arik shook his head in sadness.
“What of the ones that got away?” he asked.
“The gypsies are pursuing them,” answered Prince Midge. “Button has also been sent to alert the Lanoirian army. They will not escape.”
The king nodded as his eyes scanned the Knights of Alcea. “And what about us?”
“Some minor injuries,” answered Alex, “but nothing a good healer can’t handle. The Knights of Alcea have made you proud this day, Arik. I have to admit that I harbored some doubts when I learned of the size of this encampment, but it turned out well enough.”
“The Knights of Alcea always make me proud,” smiled the king. “You are the greatest group of warriors ever assembled, and the finest group of people that I could ever hope to know. Long live the Knights of Alcea.”
THE END
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Knights of Alcea Page 45