Malus did not spend the evening alone, however.
The General sat before him, bearing much greater news than the lot of superficial nobles who yammered about fashion, politics, and favours. His matters were actually of importance regarding the fate of Alban.
‘The boy has the sword, my lord,’ he announced with an air of indifference.
Malus listened, his red eyes gleaming with lethal interest. He was in an extraordinarily foul mood, but curious at the same time. ‘And how can you verify all of this?’ he asked.
‘I was there, my lord,’ the General answered in earnest. ‘I saw Hargonnas take on the god-cursed boy, known as Kairos Azel. I saw the boy wield the sword.’
‘The god-cursed was holding the sword?’ Malus paused, frowning in thought.
‘Yes, my lord.’
‘Nothing happened to him?’
‘No, my lord,’ the General answered. ‘It is as you surmised. The sword did not affect the god-cursed boy in the least. I know this, because I saw him strike Hargonnas down.’
The dark elf raised an eyebrow. ‘Captain Hargonnas is no more, then?’
‘Captain Hargonnas is no more,’ the General repeated, then corrected, ‘Or shall I say that your former captain, Stephon Hargonnas, is no more. He attacked the boy and the girl with powerful spells. Even against the former captain’s considerable magical prowess, the boy was able to cut him down with the sword.’
‘Truly?’ Malus was amazed.
The General, not often prone to strong emotional reactions himself, was quite surprised at the dark elf’s response. Then again, he remembered that he, himself, had watched the fight with rapt curiosity.
‘Truly, my lord,’ the General said. ‘The sword absorbs magic spells, thus confirming your suspicions of it being the Devourer. The sword devoured a variety of attack spells, and even a shadow spectre. However, it appears that magic spells that manipulate physical objects are effective. Hargonnas did use such spells, and they worked to great effect. Had he continued that line of attack, he might have succeeded. But as you presumed earlier, his arrogance proved to be his downfall in the end.’
‘Go on,’ Malus urged.
‘The boy impaled Hargonnas, my lord.’
The dark elf snorted, and opened a bottle of wine. He poured two glasses and handed one to the General. ‘Hargonnas had his uses, but that leather-clad buffoon was an imminent disaster, or shall I say, ‘shit in the butter churn’. He always resorted to his way of doing things, so he deserved his fate.’
‘He will not be missed,’ the General agreed, taking a sip of the wine. ‘Excellent vintage, by the way. What’s it called?’
‘Salforian Summer, a deep red wine,’ Malus said with a scornful smile and raised his glass. ‘In honour of our fallen comrade, the late Captain Hargonnas.’
‘To the former captain,’ the General said, also raising his glass.
‘Speaking of which, were you seen?’ Malus asked.
‘No,’ he responded, then after a pause, ‘I appeared before an innkeeper in Chendre, stating I was from Valour Keep and passed along a healing tonic for the boy. I wore my cowl to conceal my appearance.’
Malus nodded and took a sip of the wine, savouring the taste before continuing. ‘Why didn’t you attack them? Even with the sword, you could have defeated him.’ The red eyes gleamed as they stared at the General.
The General shrugged. ‘Two reasons. Firstly, I don’t like to kill children. True, they are almost adults, but to me, they are children. Secondly, say that I did destroy the boy, then what do I do about the sword? I cannot approach it, move it. Even from a distance, I could feel the sword’s hunger for mana.’
‘That’s because you have a much larger store of innate mana than the others, even Hargonnas,’ Malus said. ‘It’s of little concern. What’s done is done. The boy has the sword, but he doesn’t know that he is merely a game piece for the Pariah, or his god. We may have lost the initiative, but we still carry the advantage. You’re right,’ the dark elf conceded. ‘It’s better that the boy carries the sword for now. Who knows what disaster would befall us if we allowed the sword to sit unattended in the wild?’
‘My thoughts precisely, my lord.’ The silver-haired man bowed.
The elf took another sip. ‘Have you learnt anything else?’
‘Yes, milord,’ the General said, setting his glass of wine down. ‘Lord Galen Avenal is on his way back to Vadost as we speak. I could never discover the nature of his mission. Grandmaster Eribus has kept that secret even from the high ranking knights of Valour Keep.’
‘Drat,’ Malus said. ‘He will be a nuisance.’
‘Shall I prepare for the next phase of your plan?’
‘Yes, General Argent.’ A leering grin spread across the dark elf’s face. ‘Or do you prefer Professor Argent?’
Argent casually waved the question away. ‘Titles are rather presumptuous, my lord. Either are fine, if you so insist.’
‘Very well, General,’ Malus responded. ‘Let’s make preparations.’
‘Your orders?’
Malus poured himself another glass of wine. He offered some to Argent, but the General politely declined and looked out the window. The crescent orange of Vay hovered over the distant mountains, giving them the appearance of golden, jagged spikes. The dark elf sat back in his chair and took another sip, smiling.
‘Return to Valour Keep. Here is what you will do...’
Argent listened intently, his face a stoic mask. After the dark elf finished speaking, the General reached for his wine glass. A hint of a smile formed on his lips, though his eyes still remained cold and emotionless.
‘An ambitious plan, my lord. Perhaps I will have another glass of wine.’
Godshard Chronicles
Our list of other titles is always growing. To find out more and to see our selection of titles, visit us at:
www.godshard.com
This book is dedicated to the memory of Jason Dubose. Although he no longer lives among us, his journey in Alban will continue on.
About the Authors
Elmon Dean Todd grew up in the Florida Panhandle. He attended the University of West Florida and University College Cork in Ireland, and graduated from the University of Florida with a BA in Literature. He has taught English in Switzerland and Japan, and currently works as a police officer.
* * *
J. Murry Blanchard is a contributing author and tabletop game designer for the Godshard series. He currently resides in Nebraska and is a member of Mensa. In his spare time, he listens to horror podcasts, Geocaches, and spends time with his lovely children.
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