Rocious flicked his finger and created a tiny explosion right behind Falcon’s head, “Pay attention.” Falcon rubbed the back of his head until Rocious snapped his fingers, “Resonance is a term I came up with because what you are basically doing is hijacking someone else’s emotions to amplify your own. The amplified call pulls ambient magic from an exponentially larger area.”
Falcon glanced at the advancing army. They were no more than half a mile away and closing fast. If they did not do something in the next minute, the fight would be over before it began, “Might want to hurry.”
“We are going to link with some of these men in the same way as resonance. But instead of using their emotions to amplify our own, we are going to tear them away,” Rocious squeezed Falcon’s hand, “Center yourself.”
Rocious closed his eyes for a moment then opened them, “This will feel—” Rocious paused to clear his throat, “Um, never mind.”
Before Falcon could ask any more, Rocious linked with him and a handful of Laza’s savages. Excitement ran through them like children playing in a puddle of water on a hot day. It was a beautiful feeling tainted only by the prospect of bloodshed.
A horrifying memory flashed into Falcon’s mind. In their memory, one of the savages fought to the death. The moment he came out victorious he filled with the same excitement he felt now. Then the scene repeated. The faces were different, but the excitement was the same. Over and over the scene played out, blood, death, and excitement. The emotions were the same, but every time the faces were different. Each of those faces was burned into his mind as he experienced the savage’s joy of killing. The memories ended, but the worst was yet to come.
With a sharp breath Rocious tore the source of those emotions from all the men who owned them. The link broke immediately as all six men dropped dead. The magic that had once been theirs was now under Rocious’s control.
Falcon stumbled forward almost losing his balance, but Rocious caught his arm. Rocious tried to help Falcon stand up straight, but he jerked his arm away and puked.
“I can’t,” said Falcon wiping his mouth.
Rocious simply nodded his head, “I know, but you must. Keep your center and don’t lose control.”
Falcon covered his mouth as his chest heaved again, “I can’t.”
“You wanted to lead your people, to protect them. This is what it takes. You must face the ugliness of the world when everyone else turns away. To do the horrible deeds that turn weak men into monsters,” said Rocious.
“You don’t want me to face the ugliness, you want me to become it.”
Rocious’s eyes flicked to the army less than a minute away from reaching them, “You always have a choice who you are.”
Falcon followed his eyes, glanced back at Fort Reed then raised his hand to link with a group of the savages. Rocious squeezed his hand and let go breaking their connection. Without the reassuring touch of his master’s hand Falcon’s hands shook with anxiety for the fast approaching battle. Instead of fighting that nervious anticipation he used it to link with a group at least twenty savages. Their memories blurred through his mind when he heard Rocious say something, but he was too focused to comprehend the words. Just as Rocious showed him, he tore the source of their emotion away. As the men died Falcon absorbed the potent magic that had clung to them. With that magic came a rush of pleasure more intense than anything he had felt before.
“Dammit!” barked Rocious snapping him out of his euphoria, “I said only a few.”
Falcon regained focus only to find the army had stopped cold and dozens of bodies littered the ground around them. In the blink of an eye he had killed dozens of them and he’d enjoyed it. Dozens though, was nothing compared to the thousand or so men they faced.
Rocious was the first to act, launching himself at the hoard with an explosive burst. No time to linger on their death, Falcon focused on what needed to be done and launched himself into battle.
Dominick ran through Fort Reed’s front gate back down the road to Dominion at full speed, but he still had no clue how he was going to get his army around Eikard and through the city. His original plan was to lay siege to Keld to force Eikard into choosing between Fort Reed and his home. But that plan required time, time he did not have now that the barrier was down.
Dominick stopped twenty paces past the gate when he saw a group of men on foot enter the Valley from the south. He glanced down the main road to his left, but there was no sign of Greko and the ninth. He looked back to the group coming in from the south; a band of cavalry swooped around the group and took up formation on the main road. The cavalry were nowhere near as disciplined as his legions, but they were organized and fast.
Precisely what he needed to defend the city.
Perhaps surviving the fall from Eikard’s attack or successfully saving Frederick had caused him to lose his mind. But somehow ending the lifelong feud with Eikard and taking command of his army seemed simple compared to his previous challenges.
He sprinted down the main road when a band of cavalry led by Lord Quintus Werval broke off to intercept him. Another irrelevant challenge that he did not have time for, the army was all that mattered.
Dominick stopped running and let the band of cavalry surround him. He fought down the urge to draw Altor and kept his hands relaxed at his side, “Get Eikard.”
Werval shifted his weight slightly redirecting his mount to face Dominick, “Its too late for that. Lay down the sword, and come along quietly.”
“I wasn’t asking, Quintus,” said Dominick as he wrapped his fingers around Altor’s pommel, channeled magic from the sword to his amulet and amplified his voice, “Eikard, we end this now! Just us!”
Werval raised his hand to signal the men surrounding Dominick when a wave of cheers came from the group of cavalry in formation on the road behind. Werval turned to see Eikard riding out from the pack to the cheers of his men. This was the fight they had wanted to see for decades, and Werval knew it. Dominick gave him a smug grin and walked down the road as if the army surrounding him was a flock of sheep.
Eikard stopped thirty paces from Dominick and dismounted, “You survived that fall, lucky.”
“Yeah, it was luck,” said Dominick refusing to let Eikard bait him.
Eikard raised his hands and looked at his men, “Luck’s run out.”
Dominick cracked his neck and took in Eikard’s army, “They seem well trained. Not as disciplined as I’d like but I look forward to making a real legion out of them.”
“Not likely. Even if you defeat me, they will never fight for you,” said Eikard.
Dominick put his hand up to stop Eikard’s approach, “Give me your word. No matter the victor—”
“I give you nothing,” said Eikard before Dominick could finish. Werval rode between the two men stopping at Eikard’s side.
Dominick waited for Eikard to meet his eyes, “Defend the city,” he said to Werval.
Werval slid out of his saddle effortlessly and removed a thin saber from his mount’s saddlebag. Eikard kept his eyes on Dominick while he extended his hand for the saber, “Funny request, considering it’s your men attacking.”
Dominick grunted, “As blind and foolish as always.”
“Enough talking,” said Eikard a split second before he dashed into battle.
Dominick and Altor were ready, the pair in perfect sync. They had a singular desire: protect. Protect the men and women he ruled; defend their homes and their lives. No matter the price. Right now that price was Eikard’s life. Or was his life the price this time? No, Eikard would never be able to put aside nobility and honor to do what needed to be done.
Dominick was the only one willing to put aside his humanity and taint his soul for the good of the nation. At that thought Altor flared to life. Just like the time Falcon unlocked the blade, a flaming lion shot from the blade toppling Eikard in the process. Before Eikard could recover Dominick crushed his sword hand with a stomp and followed it up with a lunging kick to th
e face.
Dominick had not even looked up before Eikard’s men started charging in for revenge. Altor leapt over Dominick, swatting the men back and scattered them with a thunderous roar.
Dominick sucked in a deep breath and amplified his voice for all to hear, “You all came here to defend the people of Reed. That is what I command you to do. The same command I have given my legions. They come here to defend not only the people of Reed, but to defend all of Lora. I ask you now, stand with them! Stand with me! Fight with us today or I promise you will be begging for your lives tomorrow.”
Werval was the first to speak, “You expect us to believe you as your men prepare a siege on Keld?”
“Believe that the barrier came down and now Frederick and Falcon are the only thing between us and an army from Laza,” answered Dominick.
“Reed’s boy is dead,” shouted someone drawing a wave of agreement.
Eikard lifted his head slightly, “I saw it myself.”
Dominick shoved Eikard onto his back with his foot, “I don’t care what you think you saw. Listen Quintus, there isn’t time to argue. Fortify the city, just start with Laza’s gate.”
Dominick glanced around at the faces of Eikard’s men, and realized Eikard was right. These men would never follow him, not willingly anyway. He flipped his grip on Altor and stabbed the sword into the dirt, and let go of the grip. Instantly Altor broke apart and returned to the blade.
“Hurry.”
Battle always turned into chaos, no matter how many soldiers there were or how brilliant their strategy. Men screaming, dirt flying, blood spilling. The master of that chaos was none other than Rocious. Everywhere he went men scattered, ears ringing from his explosions they ran screaming for escape. But he was only one man. It was only a matter of time before someone took command and had them knocking down Laza’s gate. He had only one idea to stop that. Let Falcon keep them away from the gate while he searched for their leader and killed him.
Rocious shot a handful of sparks into the air then used an explosion to leap into the air. The sparks popped creating a series of loud bursts and illuminated the entire valley. As he flew through the air he searched the horde for anyone giving orders or organizing the horde. All he saw was a sea of people, far more than they originally thought. Even if Dominick brought all his legions they would be outnumbered.
As he reached the apex of his trajectory there was a sharp twang of a bow and arrow. The sparkling flashes did their job as the arrow whizzed by harmlessly. Rocious was about to launch himself at the archer when he felt Falcon drain the lives of more men.
“Dammit!” cursed Rocious as he launched himself back toward Laza’s gate.
He should never have taught him to drain a man’s life force. The rush of power was great, but it changed you. The dead mens’ life force clung to you, making their desires your own. It had taken Rocious decades to learn to separate their desires from his own. He was a fool to think Falcon could handle it.
He knocked Falcon into the gate with an explosion, turned around and threw up a wall of flames between the hoard and the city walls.
“What the hell’s wrong with you!” screamed Falcon.
Rocious knocked him back against the city walls, “You’re done, get back inside the city. I’ll take care of the rest on my own.”
“The hell I am, this is my home. It’s not over until every last one of them is gone!” said Falcon.
Again Rocious knocked him back into the city walls, “You planning to suck the life from all of them?”
Falcon shoved Rocious back with a wave of force, “If that’s what it takes.”
“Gonna fight me too?” said Rocious.
“Move!” complained Falcon sending another wave of force at Rocious, but this time Rocious was faster. He launched himself forward catching Falcon’s shoulders.
Rocious pushed Falcon into the stone walls, but spoke in a low voice, “You’ve had enough. Either use that power to help or get out of the here.”
Falcon tried to push himself free, “Are you blind? I am helping.”
Rocious held him in place, “You continue down this path and you’ll be draining your own people when they get here. You want that?”
Finally Falcon stopped fighting then looked down, “No.”
“Good. I found their leader, but he’s surrounded by archers,” said Rocious letting Falcon go.
“So what’s the plan?” asked Falcon.
“I don’t have much left. The flaming wall took a lot,” said Rocious.
Falcon looked down at the burnt grass, it almost looked like a pattern. Then looked up at the city walls, “That’s how. How long do you need?”
Rocious watched the flames begin to die down, “Thirty seconds, at least.”
“Okay, but hurry. I don’t know if I can power it that long,” said Falcon.
“Power what?” asked Rocious.
“The city,” answered Falcon right before he launched himself on top of the gatehouse.
As a boy he remembered his father showing him around the city, constantly lecturing about some useless piece of history or some ancestor that nobody else cared to remember. The whole time he thought his father’s lectures were meant to teach him about his family’s past. But that was not it at all; he was teaching him how to use the city’s defenses.
Just like his bedroom back in Dominion, the city was covered in a network of runes. All he had to do was find the control point for the gatehouse, and keep them back until he heard Rocious’s explosion.
“Please be here,” mouthed Falcon to himself, “Fuck!”
Falcon was about to give up and choose one of the rune clusters at random when Lily appear next to him, “Here.”
Without hesitation Falcon slammed his hand where she indicated and powered the runes.
“Now this one,” instructed Lily.
Again Falcon obeyed and powered the runes immediately.
“This one.”
Falcon slammed his hand on the last one, and felt the full length of wall energize, using him as the battery. A wave of force shot across the ground in front of the wall, leaving a field of bodies in its wake.
The city fed on his power and caused his vision to narrow, but he fought the exhaustion. Another wave force shot from the city walls. Still he heard no explosion. The room spun threatening to steal his balance.
Lily placed her hand on his, “No more.”
This time he did not obey. A third wave of force shot from the city. A moment later the whole gatehouse shook, but still no explosion. He clawed at the wall to pick himself up and fell again.
Lily knelt next him, “Stay. Your companions have arrived.”
Falcon listened and let his exhaustion take hold. The last thing he heard was Lily’s voice, “Welcome Home.”
Chapter 25
Home
Rocious wandered through the halls of what was supposed to be the Reed’s home; the place was just as confusing as Dominick’s castle. He was considering exploding his way out when he heard footsteps farther down the hall. A young girl with sandy blonde hair walked over to him carrying a tray of food.
“Are you lost Master Lockland?” asked Mary.
“Uh yeah, who are you again?” replied Rocious.
Mary nodded for him to follow, “I’m Falcon’s friend Mary. We’ve met.”
Rocious grunted. He was looking for directions not a conversation.
“Are you looking for Falcon’s room? That’s where I’m headed. His family’s quarters are on the top floor, but the rest of the keep is used for housing and feeding anyone who needs shelter from the weather. It’s always snowing here, so the place is usually pretty busy,” babbled Mary.
Rocious grunted, “I don’t like snow.”
“I suppose you have more of an affinity for fire. I think they have the fires going in the main hall downstairs, I can take you there after I drop this off. Oh, and there’s the fountains, the water stays warm somehow.”
“I don’t like w
ater either,” said Rocious.
“I can make you some warmer clothes. You probably don’t have anything warm other than your cloak.”
Rocious put up his hand letting his hands catch fire, “I’m fine.”
Mary’s eyes bulged, “Right, fire.”
When they reached the top floor Rocious thought he somehow offended the girl, as her constant chatter turned into complete silence. He was about to say something when he saw Falcon’s friend Thomas leaning against the wall down the hall.
Thomas pushed off the wall, “Hey Mary, Master Lockland. He’s still in bed, but trust me he ain’t sleeping.”
“I’ll take the tray,” said Rocious.
Mary opened her mouth and stopped. “Ah, okay,” she said handing over the tray.
Thomas opened the door for them, but held his hand up to block Mary. Rocious looked around the room, in search of Falcon. The place was huge and filled with natural light. No wonder Falcon said Dominick’s castle felt like a dungeon. He quickly spotted Falcon, grabbed a chair from near the balcony and sat down next to the bed with the tray of food.
“The girl brought you food. I’m gonna eat it if you don’t,” said Rocious.
Falcon rolled over, but said nothing.
“Oh and I think your friend is in love with you,” continued Rocious diving into Falcon’s food.
“Mary is just a friend,” said Falcon.
“I meant Arthur’s boy, he stood outside the door all night,” replied Rocious.
Falcon sat up straight, “What!?”
“Stood. Outside. All. Night,” said Rocious.
“Arthur who?” asked Falcon.
“Fetch me something to drink, and I’ll tell you,” said Rocious.
Falcon flopped back on the bed, “Get it yourself and stop eating my breakfast.”
Rocious put down the tray, “Sitting here isn’t going to make what happened any easier. Besides, you’re a count now in more than name, that’s probably the only thing Dominick and Eikard aren’t fighting about.”
“Atleast they haven’t killed each other,” said Falcon.
“Not yet,” said Rocious.
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