For a third time, waves of golden light ripped through the ranks of the undead. The general, however, neither burned to dust nor fled in terror. In response to this divine assault, he drew back his blade, stepped forward, and struck Paul with enough force to knock him flying to the earth.
The young man sat up, his head spinning, and gazed over the scene. More and more undead were rushing toward the conflict and it would only be a matter of moments before they were completely overwhelmed. Sarrac and Darek were doing what they could against the general but, as of yet, they hadn't even managed to scratch him. Nyssa and Myra were keeping the undead at bay, but that couldn't last much longer. Alena couldn't be of much help while she was carrying Joey's unconscious body over her shoulder.
They only had one real hope - to reach the well before the undead managed to swarm through their limited defenses. Fortunately, Sarrac had managed to move the general - and hence the battle - ever closer to their destination. In fact, only about five yards stood between the ogre and the island of life. Instantly, Paul realized what he had to do.
The young man leapt to his feet, sheathed his sword, and cracked his neck. Energy was mass times velocity squared. He had the mass, he just needed to get the velocity. He had never played football, but he had seen it played now and again. He knew enough about it to know that a quarterback sack was a good move - when you could pull it off. With this thought in mind, he dashed in the direction of the general; his shoulder down, and his feet flying as fast as he could move them.
Just before Paul reached their monstrous foe, the creature managed to knock Sarrac to the ground and drew his massive blade up for a death blow. Before he could land it, however, the young man hit him in the side just above the waist. Paul's strength, his weight, and the speed he had managed to muster, all combined to give him the force he needed to lift the undead general from the ground.
Before the creature had time to react, the paladin had crossed the line of scrimmage and deposited his undead enemy on the hallowed ground of the fairy well. Instantly, the monster bellowed in agony as its unholy form was wrapped in golden flames. Seconds later, the general's fleshless body dissolved into dust that was quickly blown away on the gentle breeze that blew through the verdant glade; leaving behind only its massive sword and rune covered armor.
The companions had no time to revel in their victory, however, as a number of undead archers bent their bows the moment their commander fell. The entire band fled into the depths of the small wood that filled the center of the fairy well as one dark shaft after another flew at their backs. In mere moments, they all lay panting in the lush grass; momentarily out of their enemy's reach.
“Can you heal him?” Paul asked, glancing over at Nyssa.
“Possibly,” she replied. “But, I'm exhausted. Do you think you could do it?”
“I doubt it,” the young man asserted, shaking his head. “I feel sick to my stomach already. Three turns really took it out of me.”
“Then, let me try,” she said with a sigh, before fluttering over to the fountain to take a deep drink of its mystical waters.
Having refreshed herself, she flew over to Joey's prostrate form and began waving her tiny hands above his unconscious body. Slowly, the color returned to his face and his breathing became deeper and more regular. He lethargically opened his eyes and began to sit up.
“That's as much as I can do for the moment,” Nyssa asserted, a tone of genuine exhaustion in her voice.
“What happened?” he asked. “I feel like death.”
“You stepped on a ward,” Alena explained.
“A ward?” he repeated.
“Yes,” Nyssa nodded. “A ward. Did it affect your hearing?”
“Not if you're saying the word ward.”
“Well, I am.”
“Okay...” Joey said slowly. “Well, what is a ward?”
“Oh, of course,” the fairy smiled. “I keep forgetting that you don't know anything. A ward is a rune of magical power that has a certain effect if it's touched.”
“In the case of the one you stepped on,” Myra continued, “it was an anti-life ward. It's a miracle that it didn't kill you.”
“It was,” Alena agreed. “That may be why he's here.”
“What are you saying?” Paul asked.
“I'm saying,” she replied, “that, so far, he's saved my life by getting shot and probably saved Darek's by stepping on that ward. After all, he was out in front before Joey took the lead.”
“Ah,” Joey said, nodding quickly. “So, it's your theory that I'm part of operation human shield. Is that right?”
“If by that, you mean that I think you may be here to stand between us and death; then yes, I do,” the ogress conceded.
“So, do you expect me to keep living through it, or is it only a matter of time before I lay my life down for the last time?”
“How would I know?” she asked. “It wasn't my idea to bring you with us... Although, in retrospect, I'm glad we did.”
“Oh, I'm sure of that!” Joey agreed. “After all, it'd be a real shame if one of you had to get shot, or blown up, or whatever's next for a change. I can't ride or fight or do anything useful. The least I can do is almost get killed again and again to keep you guys safe.”
“That's what I'm saying,” Alena smiled. “In that way you're not only useful, you’re invaluable.”
“That would make me feel much better,” Joey asserted, “if almost getting killed wasn't so incredibly painful.”
“Don't worry about it, bro,” Paul replied. “I'm sure you're here for more than that.”
“What makes you think that?” Joey asked.
“Nothing,” the young man admitted. “I was just trying to make you feel better.”
“Well, I hate to disappoint you, man, but you failed. Bad...”
“Be that as it may,” Sarrac chuckled, “for the moment, we should just thank the gods we're all still alive. We need to get some rest and, after that, we need to get to work.”
“Agreed,” Paul nodded, before falling back in the lush grass and closing his eyes.
Chapter 5: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
“How long did we sleep?” Paul asked with a stretch, turning his gaze to Sarrac.
“About an hour,” the ogre replied, glancing up at the sky. “I hate the loss of time, but I felt we needed it.”
“Oh, we did,” Joey asserted, half opening one eye. “In fact, I could use a lot more than that. I still feel like death.”
“You will for a while,” Myra pointed out. “At least, you will unless Paul or Nyssa feel up to healing you a little more fully.”
“I can give it a try, now that I've had a little rest,” Paul replied.
The young man moved over to where his friend lay and had him sit up.
“Be healed!” he cried, slapping Joey on the forehead with enough force to knock him back into the lush grass.
“Do you have to hit so hard when you do it?” Joey asked, reaching up to gently rub his forehead.
“I have no idea,” Paul replied. “I was just doing what I thought would work. Did it?”
“It did. But, try to be more gentle about it next time. You hit Myra like that, you're gonna give her a concussion - and you might squash Nyssa.”
“He wouldn't,” the fairy replied confidently. “I'm a lot tougher than I look.”
“Well, either way,” Joey chuckled, “he should try doing it with less force. And you need to heal your face, bro. That looks painful.”
“It's not too bad,” Paul replied, reaching up to feel his reddened cheek. “I think I just got a touch of frostbite. Not that I've ever had frostbite before... Still, what else would you get from freezing cold fire?”
“No idea,” Joey said, shaking his head. “But, try to heal it - whatever it is.”
“Alright,” Paul nodded before gently patting his face and saying “Be healed!”
Nothing happened.
“You might have to do it a little harder t
han that,” the fairy observed.
“Be healed!” the paladin said again, slapping his face with a little more force.
Again, nothing happened.
“Be healed!” Paul cried with more vigor and a more resounding slap.
Nada.
“This is great!” Joey smiled. “Try it again, but really let yourself go.”
“Alright,” Paul sighed, drawing back for a terrific slap. “Be healed!”
The young man almost knocked himself to the ground, but a pleasant warming sensation immediately spread across his face, completely healing his mild case of frostbite.
“Well, that worked,” Joey nodded. “And, it was a lot of fun.”
“Agreed,” Nyssa smiled. “But, that's enough of that. We need to get to work.”
“Where do we start?” Paul asked.
“I start by grabbing things and carrying them to the vault,” the fairy replied. “You start by sorting everything into piles and making things as easy for me to carry as you can.”
“And, how can we do that?” Joey asked.
“Uhhh,” she sighed, rolling her eyes. “I know that you don't know anything, but it seems like you should know something. Tie things together or put things in bags. I'm strong enough to carry four or five swords at a time, but I can't exactly hold that many can I?”
As she asked this question, she held her remarkably small, delicate, and graceful hands out for his inspection.
“Do we have any ropes or bags?” he asked.
“We'd have been pretty silly to come without them, wouldn't we?” she asked in reply.
“Good point,” Joey nodded. “But, couldn't you just make us all invisible so we could help you?”
“That's a brilliant idea!” she exclaimed. “But, no, I couldn't. I don't know how.”
“You can become invisible at will,” he observed.
“Exactly!” she replied. “I can become invisible at will. That doesn't mean I know how to make you invisible. Now, stop asking me stupid questions and start helping get the equipment organized!”
“Fair enough,” Joey said with a nod. “Where is it?”
In reply, the beautiful fairy wiggled her tiny index finger in a follow me fashion before flying to a nearby clearing. Weapons, armor, books, and bottles, were strung all over the forest floor.
“We didn't have time to sort through any of this after the sack of Daelfaun,” she explained. “Thaelen meant to get to it, but he never had the chance.”
“It looks like you guys got quite a haul,” Paul observed, gazing over the equipment with a wide smile.
“We did,” Darek agreed with a nod. “And it's going to come in very useful once we've gotten it into the hands of the Warriors.”
“The sooner we start, the better,” Nyssa observed, flying down to grab a sword before completely vanishing from sight.
“Hold on a second,” Joey said, a thoughtful expression on his face. “You just made that sword disappear.”
“Of course I did!” Nyssa's disembodied voice replied. “The undead might think it was just a little odd for swords and armor to suddenly start floating into the vault.”
“Well, sure,” the young man replied. “But, I thought you couldn't make us invisible.”
“And, I can't.”
“Then, how'd you do it to the sword?”
“I'm touching it,” she explained, a tone a mild condescension in her voice.
“Okay...” he replied slowly. “But, how does that work?”
“Well, obviously,” she began, appearing right in front of his face, “whatever I touch becomes invisible when I do. Otherwise, I'd have to take all my clothes off in order to be completely invisible; wouldn't I?”
“Mmmm,” he hummed with slight smile. “I guess so.”
“That wouldn't make sense would it?”
“In what way, make sense?” Paul asked, a hint of confusion in his own voice.
“Well, the creator gave fairies the ability to become invisible to protect themselves,” the miniscule maiden explained. “That would hardly be useful if it didn't work on our clothes. I mean; imagine if it were cold outside.”
“Oh, I'm imagining,” Joey smiled.
“Shut up, bro!” Paul chuckled. “Anyway, Nyssa; what would happen if you were to touch me when you did it?”
“This,” she replied, reaching out and laying her hand on his cheek.
Instantly, both of them vanished.
“So you can make us invisible, then?” Joey asked.
“Well, yes, I guess I can technically,” Nyssa said. “Of course, I'd never tried it on another living thing before. Paul, take Joey's hand.”
“Actually, man,” Joey replied. “Just grab my shoulder.”
“Not a problem.”
Almost immediately, Joey's breastplate disappeared. Though the rest of him remained quite visible.
“That's weird,” Paul chuckled.
Seconds later, Joey's breastplate reappeared, but his entire body vanished; leaving his clothes and armor standing there seemingly empty.
“Okay, that is weird,” Joey said. “Get your hand off my face, bro.”
“One sec,” Paul replied. “Myra, take Joey's hand.”
“I can't see it,” Myra pointed out.
“It's on the end of my arm,” Joey assured her.
“Alright,” the fair maiden replied, reaching out toward Joey's empty and uplifted sleeve.
Her hand looked as if it grasped around nothing and she remained perfectly visible.
“Well, that's interesting,” Nyssa observed, as she and her formerly invisible companions popped back into view. “It seems the things I touch can make the things they touch invisible; but the things they touch, can't.”
“So it would seem,” Myra agreed.
“Magic is crazy,” Joey asserted.
“At times,” Nyssa nodded. “Sarrac, you can carry a good bit more than I can. You load up and I'll make us invisible and we can head for the vault.”
“Gladly,” the ogre said with a broad smile, before lifting a number of swords in his large and powerful hands.
Moments later, the pair were on their way while the rest of the band began sorting the equipment and making it as easy as possible for Sarrac to carry.
“Quick question,” Paul said, turning his eyes to Myra as they worked.
“And, that is?” she replied.
“What caused the undead to realize we weren't undead? Joey was the only one who touched the ward.”
“It had nothing to do with that,” she explained. “Well... Not nothing, but very little. When he set off the ward, they knew something alive was in the camp. Then, they saw Sarrac pick Joey up and realized we weren't on their side.”
“But, we still looked like undead to them?”
“Of course.”
“Then, why did they attack us?”
“It was rather obvious that we were enemies,” she replied. “They'd've gladly slaughtered us all, even if we actually had been undead. They knew we were heading for the well and that we had something alive with us. That was enough reason to kill us. The undead fight amongst themselves readily enough; it's just that they have a common enemy in the living.”
“I see,” he replied with a nod. “One more question: why was General Kass giant?”
“I wouldn't say giant,” she said. “He was just a little large for an ogre, that's all.”
“He was an ogre?”
“When he was alive, yes.”
“So Sarrac really is short?”
“A little,” Alena nodded. “But Kass was tall, so it's not really fair to compare them.”
“Sure, sure. But, that actually leads me to another question.”
“What's that?” she asked.
“Where are all the other ogres? You two are the only ones I've met in Zanoth.”
“Most of them live far to the north,” she replied. “Sarrac and I headed south in search of the it - and we found him. One day we may head b
ack - and you along with us – but, for now, we have enough to deal with here.”
“Understood,” Paul said. “I just thought maybe you guys were rare.”
“Only down here,” the ogress smiled.
After about an hour's worth of organizing, roping together, and bagging up, Joey sat down at the foot of a large tree and began flipping through a book he had pulled from one of the piles.
“Taking a break?” Paul asked, glancing down at his friend.
“For a couple of minutes,” Joey nodded, turning the current page without lifting his gaze. “I just wanted to give this a look.”
“Hoping to find some pictures?” Paul chuckled as his companion flipped another page.
“Not really,” Joey smiled. “It's interesting enough without that.”
“In what way?”
“Just because it's a spell book, I guess,” Joey shrugged. “I mean; I find it pretty cool that magic is real here. Don't you?”
“Sure. But, what makes you think that's a spell book?”
“I would say the first thing that tipped me off was the cover,” Joey replied, closing the book and showing his friend the volume's rune covered face.
“I guess it does kind of look like a spell book,” Paul nodded. “But, then again, it might be anything.”
“Well, seeing as the title is The Spells of Nimras, and it is, in fact, filled with spells, I thought spell book was a safe bet.”
“Are you saying you can read it?” Myra asked, moving over to Paul’s side and gazing down at the tome in Joey's hands.
“Yes...” he replied slowly. “Reading's actually a pretty common skill where we come from.”
“Well, I can't read it,” Paul pointed out.
“That's hardly surprising,” Myra replied, “considering the fact that it’s written in magical runes.”
Having said this, she took the book from Joey's hands, flipped to a section near the front, and handed the volume back to him.
“Read that,” she said, touching a passage near the top of the page.
“Cantrips making use of light or sound are an excellent teaching tool for young magic users,” he began. “They're not only very simple to learn, but many younger...”
The Fortress of Donmar (The Tales of Zanoth Book 2) Page 8