by David Wind
As the tip of the arrow penetrated Lessig’s stomach and buried itself directly into the seat of her female power, the shield shattered. Then the whirling gray cloud reformed around Lessig and, seeing it, Neleh recalled their powers and sent a bolt of fire encased in blue and white light at the Afzaleem sorceress.
Just before the gray cloud encased her, and with a scream that would echo in their minds forever, there was a burst of light and Lessig’s body disappeared.
<><><>
Roth charged at the oncoming ghazi horde, Noslen and the Sixes raced behind him while Enaid, Ilsraeth, Layra, and two other women formed a semi-circle behind them, both shielding their warriors from the women within the ghazi and seeking those women out to do battle.
As the riders drove into the ghazi, their swords slashing down at anything that moved, the archers on the high ridge fired waves of arrows at the ghazi and sweeps of varying colors of lightning-like bolts crisscrossed the battlefield. Yet, the deeper Roth and the leaders charged, the thicker the ghazi fighters became.
A half dozen ghazi surrounded Roth and, grabbing his kraal, tumbled the high king to the ground. Behind him, Enaid screamed a warning and released her weapon of blue lightning, striking down as many of the ghazi as she could while Noslen and his Sixes fought their way to Roth.
Jumping from his saddle, Noslen killed two ghazi standing in his way and then, spinning and pressing his back to his king, faced the circling fighters. As the ghazi attacked, the rest of the Sixes hit them from behind.
The fighter attacking Roth, his face a distorted mask of mutation and fear, swung at the high king. Roth ducked the wild swing and struck across the ghazi’s chest, splitting the leather wide and slicing through the man’s ribs and heart.
As the ghazi fell, the one next to him charged Roth with an axe. Before he could bring the axe down, Enaid’s white gorlon tore into the axe wielder. Irii’s large canines ripped through the ghazi’s throat, her body bringing the fighter to the ground. Roth spun as two other ghazi attacked. He killed the first, and as the other ghazi swung his axe at Enaid’s aoutem, Roth reversed his sword and in a lightning stroke, severed the ghazi’s arm at the shoulder. Screaming, the fighter fell, writhing on the rocky ground.
Within minutes, the ground was awash with dead bodies lying in flowing streams of blood. Then, like time stopping, everything froze. The ghazi, and the women controlling them, stopped fighting, turned, and raced away from the Nevaens, while from above, Northcrom arrows continued to pour down on the escaping ghazi.
Roth held up his hand to stop his people from following and looked at Enaid. “What?”
Enaid shook her head. “I know not.”
<><><>
With the sun over her left shoulder, Sirod watched the ghazi below continue to use the battering ram against the keep gates. The Masters were on the wall, guiding them. The People with her on the parapet struck down any ghazi foolish enough to stand within range of their slings. Throughout the night, hundreds of ghazi had died. No one within the keep had been hurt.
A sudden wave of emotion struck her. She grasped the balustrade top rail and took a steadying breath. She turned to Racso, the elder. “The battle in the pass is ended.”
Ham, standing next to the elder, pointed to the wall across from them. The Masters were gone and the ghazi below, between the outer walls and the keep were moving to the gates, abandoning the battering rams and the ladders that had failed to do the job. Like ants streaming out of their nest, the ghazi half-walked, half-ran to squeeze through the East Gate.
The People on the eastern parapet fired stones at them until the fleeing ghazi were out of striking distance. “Hold,” Sirod called.
Ham turned to Sirod. “What does this mean? Have they given up?”
Sirod’s brows furrowed. She shook her head. “They go to join the rest of the ghazi near Dees.” She looked up at the tower on the north parapet, toward the messenger birdcages. “I must get word to Enaid.”
CHAPTER 36
BELOW THEM, AREENNA and Mikaal watched the battle ebb and flow on the bloody ground of the mountain pass. One minute the Nevaens were fighting the ghazi, in the next, near the southern entrance to the pass, the ghazi turned and fled. To their right, what was left of the ghazi at the northern entrance were trapped between the Nevaen riders and the Northcrom army and had no choice but to fight and die.
As the battle waned, Mikaal looked at the blood dripping from Areenna’s broken fingernails, and skinned fingers and hands. “We need to tend to those,” he said, taking one wrist and looking closer at it. Before he could say anything else, she pulled her hand free.
“Later.” Then she pointed to the northern end of the pass, “Do you see them?”
Mikaal followed her finger and saw two women sneak into the woods, and disappear within the foliage.
Neleh saw them as well. Two dark sorceresses. We must stop them.
Areenna sent Gaalrie an asking, and the treygone flew from her shoulder and descended into the wooded side of the mountain. Neleh did the same with Duv, dispatching the sure-footed, giant hunting cat down the mountain, a tawny blur weaving through the trees.
They raced after their aoutem, knowing Gaalrie would still be joined with Duv even as Areenna, Mikaal, and Neleh were joined. From Gaalrie’s eyes, they saw the women running southeast.
Duv sped faster, angling directly to where the women headed. Three minutes later, Duv emerged ten yards in front of the women, turned, and growled a warning.
One of the women raised her hand to release a power at the rantor. Before she could, Gaalrie dove and struck the back of her head, using her razor sharp talons to slice across the woman’s scalp and tumbling her to the ground. The second turned to the first, the knife in her hand arcing toward Gaalrie when Duv left the ground and hit the woman in the chest with the full force of his body.
She slammed into the ground, the knife flying from her hand. Duv stood above her, his long, curved fangs a quarter of an inch from the vein pulsing in her throat.
“Move and you die, woman.” Areenna drew her sword while Mikaal caught the second woman’s wrist and yanked her to her feet. Blood ran down her forehead and into her eyes, blinding her, but she reacted by releasing a force at Mikaal, which he deflected easily. “You have not the strength, woman.” He freed her wrist and at the same time, sprayed a stream of fire to surround her. “Move not and live.”
Neleh called Duv to her while Areenna, her shortsword in her right hand, motioned for the woman to stand. When she did, she nodded to Mikaal who ended the fire.
“This way,” Areenna said.
“Kill us now,” the second woman said.
“Kill you now? We kill not those who are helpless. Think you that The Masters care anything about you? Think you your dead mistress ever cared?”
“More than anyone else,” she replied, her voice barely a whisper. “Kill us now,” she pleaded.
Areenna looked at Mikaal, who shrugged. “Rather than kill you, we would have you come back to us.”
The injured woman wiped blood from her eyes, then looked at the other woman. Both burst into laughter.
“They are beyond our help. We need to bring them to my father and mother. They will know what to do with them.”
<><><>
The sun was closing on the western horizon as Roth, Mikaal, Darb, Timon, and Noslen returned from their inspection of the Nevaen forces. A half hour earlier, Enaid and several Women of Power had returned from tending the wounded.
In the midst of the encampment, Neleh sat on Areenna’s left, their afternoon spent healing the cuts and tears on Areenna’s hands and fingers while the men and women from each domain buried their dead, marking the graves with rocks as others prepared to feed the tired and hungry survivors.
Within minutes of Roth’s return, Enaid, Layra, and Ilsraeth joined the rulers of the domains who sat on the ground like every warrior of Nevaeh, in a battlefield version of the council of rulers, with Roth at the apex. Areenna a
nd Neleh sat a few minutes later.
Roth waited until everyone was quiet before speaking.
“Our losses are significant: a thousand Northcrom died this morning, almost two thousand of our riders died or were injured, but our numbers are still strong. Close to nine thousand remain.” He stopped talking to glance at each ruler.
“The main force from Tolemac is fourteen thousand. They will be here by nightfall. We face extreme odds, perhaps four or five to one. Each of you must tell your people of this. They have a right to know before the fighting begins again. I would not have them go into battle unaware.”
“Many may leave,” Prince Trebor warned.
Roth stared at him for several seconds. “Such is always the possibility, My Prince, but I think not. I believe everyone knows what little future will remain under the rule of the Dark Masters. My faith is in the people of Nevaeh. Would you turn and leave if given the opportunity?”
Trebor stiffened. He stared back at Roth and shook his head fiercely. “I would as soon open my veins.”
Roth held his gaze on the younger man. “Think not every man and woman who follows us would do less? When it comes time to fight again, our people will stand firm.”
“That they will,” Timon agreed, sitting beside his queen.
“It will be up to you,” Roth said, sweeping his arms in a semi-circle, “To not only tell your people what we will face either tomorrow morning or the day after, but to make them understand that this will be our last battle, win or lose.”
“And the battle plans?” Tamor of Kashold asked.
“Majesty,” Roth said, turning to Tamor, “I will have our final plans by tonight. In the meantime,” he added, speaking to everyone, “go to your people, explain what we face, and tell them there is only one outcome for us: victory.”
As the leaders stood, a traimore swooped low and then dropped to Enaid’s waiting arm. Taking the message from the bird’s leg, she sent the traimore to a branch to wait. When she finished reading, she stared at the note for several more seconds before looking at Roth.
“The message is from Sirod. We know now why the ghazi withdrew from the pass today… The Masters at Tolemac discovered the main body of our fighters was gone. The ghazi and their two Masters have left Tolemac, they move east. Tolemac stands yet, the people within the keep alive and well. There was but a single Nevaen death, one man. Sirod says many ghazi died…their army marches toward us. Solomon, another twenty-thousand come.”
Roth remained silent, as was his tendency while he took in her words. Then he nodded. “Nothing has changed except timing. I will have the plans ready by morning.”
The rulers stood and left, but Roth, Enaid, Mikaal, Areenna, and Neleh remained. “The two women you captured… have we learned anything?”
Enaid shook her head. “Layra worked on them, but they budge not.”
<><><>
Fires dotted the early night for a quarter mile in each direction from the center of the pass, and a quarter mile into the pass as well. The ranks of the Nevaen army had swelled with the appearance of the main force just before nightfall.
When they’d arrived, Areenna had raced toward the banners of Freemorn, and just as her father dismounted, his silver hair waving in the wind, she went into his arms. “I cannot tell you how happy I am to see you,” she said, hugging him as tight as she could.
When her hold lessened, the King of Freemorn drew slightly back to look at her. “Nor can I put into words what I feel, seeing you now. I was so… afraid.”
Areenna nodded solemnly. She held his eyes, eyes that were a mirror image of her own. “Roth needs you at his side for what comes.”
Nosaj nodded somberly. “As in the old days, I shall stand with him and with you.” The King of Freemorn gave orders to his captain as Tissel joined them. Areenna embraced her cousin warmly. “Thank you for keeping him safe.”
Tissel shook her head. “It was a peaceful ride. We found no enemy.”
Areenna looked at her cousin for a moment. “You will, tomorrow or the day after.”
Two hours later, with the newcomers settled into the camp and the entire strength of the Nevaen army together, they ate their evening meal. Following the meal, they would prepare their weapons and armor for the coming battle.
In the center of the army, Roth sat surrounded by his family and those closest to them. Enaid was next to the high king, Mikaal and Areenna on his other side with Neleh and Nosaj. Laira sat with Tissel, next to Nosaj.
Roth chewed, swallowed, and turned to Enaid. “The two women continue to prove useless?”
“They are blocked as if Lessig still lives. Is this possible?” She looked at Areenna on her last word.
Areenna looked from Mikaal to Neleh. “I see not how it is possible. The force we used, our weapon… she could not escape it.”
“Unless The Masters took her. They did so once before,” Enaid said.
It may be so, Mikaal sent.
If that is true, then The Masters know we are here now. She looked at Neleh. Your thoughts?
Neleh shrugged. Your arrow pierced her stomach. Could she survive?
“Do The Masters have the healing abilities?” Areenna asked.
Enaid’s eyes went distant for a moment. “It is possible.”
Areenna thought hard at this unwanted possibility. “If it is conceivable, then it has happened. They could have taken her just before death.”
“What can this matter? She cannot create more of her creatures, not overnight. She has no control of anyone in our ranks. No harm can be done in that way.”
Mikaal took a drink. “The two women? Could they know?”
“Two can do much damage from within,” Enaid said.
Roth’s brows knitted. “They are prisoners. What harm can they wreak?”
“They’re blocked from us; we block them from The Masters, but when we fight, we can’t spare two of our women to guard them, to keep them blocked. We need everyone.”
Roth held silent, taking in her words, and working them through his mind. “I think it may be better to let them go than keep them here.”
“Give them two more Women of Power to use against us? Why?”
Roth cocked his head sideways; a shadowy smile tugged his lips. “Why can we not use them ourselves?”
Enaid shook her head. “We cannot break their block. They remain loyal to… them.”
“Of course they do. So loyal in fact, that perhaps they should overhear a conversation… Let them learn that twenty-thousand more Nevaens are coming from the upper domains. They will reach us by late afternoon.”
“But that’s not so,” Darb objected. “And what of the ghazi coming from Tolemac? They will join the main body if The Masters wait another day.”
“They will not be a factor if we can get The Masters to bring the battle to us, tomorrow.”
“The two women…” Enaid reminded Roth.
“Yes. We let them ‘escape’ after they hear the conversation. They will go directly to The Masters or Lessig if she lives still. The Masters will explore every part of their minds, and because they play no part in our deception, except as pawns, they will be believed. Then The Masters will thin their own ranks by sending ghazi toward the west to stop the ‘army’ from reaching us.”
Mikaal leaned forward. “Even if this works. We still must face The Masters with what forces we have. Masters, Father, not just ghazi.”
“It will be hard.”
“There is only one way to stop them,” Areenna said in a voice just loud enough for those closest to hear.
Roth raised his eyebrows in a command to speak.
“We must kill The Masters, all of them. It is the only way.”
“Kill Eight Masters?”
“Do you know of another way?” She looked at Enaid. You know the truth of this.
Enaid turned to Roth, and covered his hand with hers. She leaned forward and brushed her lips across his knuckles. “She speaks wisely. Without The Masters, the ghazi
are mindless animals.”
“But to kill all The Masters.”
“We need to think of a way.”
“Tell me,” Roth said. “How did you learn of the nightmoss and the bacteria?”
Areenna closed her eyes and brought up the memory of being beneath the Island. She spoke softly and clearly, detailing everything that was necessary to tell him and, as she went through her story, Roth appeared dumbstruck.
After several moments of dead quiet, Roth spoke. “For several months before the ship left, there were rumors of a theory being tested, this theory was…” Roth paused, trying to find the wording they would understand. Slowly and carefully, he explained the scientific principle of Artificial Intelligence, but from the blank stares surrounding him, he gave up the attempt and said instead, “I believe what happened, was that this woman, this scientist, had somehow combined herself with what we called computers, which were… machines that think faster and better than we can. If this is what happened—and I know how impossible it sounds—I understand what this Sophia told you, but how it ended with abilities…. with magic, I…” his words faded as he stared off into the sky.
A moment later, his features shifted and his eyes widened. “Of course! The nightmoss is only one byproduct… The powers… the paranormal abilities, are another. And if I am right, then Sofia is the mother of them all.”
Areenna turned to Mikaal, He understands…
“When this is over, I would meet… Sophia.”
Areenna and Mikaal looked at each other. “If she allows it,” Mikaal said.
Roth’s eyes pierced them. “Oh, she will allow it, have no fear of that,” Roth stated as he again looked up at the star strewn sky. “But that comes later; right now we have to stop The Masters to even consider it. If we don’t, and if Sophia is correct, Nevaeh will cease to be and we will either die or be their slaves. The children yet to come will mutate into… ghazi.”
Areenna’s gaze went from Roth, to Enaid, to Mikaal, and back to Roth. She took his hand in hers, and met his hard gaze with her own. “Then My Lord, our answer is as simple as the deed. We will not fail.”