The Turquoise Queen

by Pedro Urvi

  The fighting between the two sides became fiercer with every slash, every sword-stroke, every accurate shot. The Peoples of the Frozen Continent fought with greater strength and brutality, while the Norghanians had more military understanding, better training and greater skill with weapons. The Semi-Giants were a brute force of Nature. With a single blow of their colossal axes and clubs, they could kill two or even three Norghanian soldiers. The soldiers did their best to evade the blows and went for their colossal opponents’ legs, seeking to fell them as if they were huge trees. Only when they fell to the ground could they jump on them and kill them.

  The Arcanes of the Glaciers had stayed a little behind, conjuring powerful spells from the Frozen Continent. These confused the Norghanian soldiers’ minds. Some were left stunned, as if they had been hit on the head and did not know where they were. Others fell asleep on the spot under the influence of a powerful spell which made it impossible for them to stay awake even in the midst of a brutal battle. But the worst of all was when the Arcanes managed to dominate the soldiers, who then turned against their own comrades. The ones being attacked did not know what to do. They did not want to kill their own comrades, and yet if they did not manage to stop them, they would lose their own lives,

  Gatik realized this. “Kill the Arcanes!” he ordered his Rangers. “Don’t let them cast spells on our men!”

  With their great marksmanship The Royal Rangers managed to kill the closest group. When the Shamans saw this, they protected their own people with spells of protection against attacks with piercing weapons. Now, although the Rangers went on releasing, their arrows could no longer penetrate the protective spell.

  “Use Poisonous Gas arrows!” the First Ranger shouted.

  The attack which followed was not piercing but gaseous, and hence the protective spell had no effect. When the arrows hit their targets the containers shattered, creating poisonous clouds. Some fell under the effect of the poison, and most of them had to flee to avoid it reaching their lungs.

  Several Semi-Giants realized what the Rangers were doing and pushed their way through to deal with the threat. Gatik ordered his people to release at them before they succeeded. They had no more special ammunition left, so they were forced to use plain arrows. These impacted those huge torsos, but the Semi-Giants simply went on advancing with the fixed idea of crushing the Rangers with their enormous wooden axes and clubs.

  Lasgol was watching all this as he endured as best he could the tremendous cold in his legs. He did not know how much longer he could go on, but if he collapsed, the great spell would come to an end and they would have failed. He knew he had to go on somehow. Meanwhile Eicewald went on conjuring with his eyes shut, chanting words of power, invoking his ice magic. The other four Magi were doing the same. Lasgol looked up at the Snowflake and had to avert his eyes because the blue brilliance was dazzling.

  Suddenly Eicewald opened his eyes and stopped conjuring, followed by the others. The spell was over. Eicewald pointed his staff at the Frozen Specter in the middle of the battle. A bolt of light shot out of the staff and reached it. Eicewald gave a command of power, and the Eternal Snowflake seemed to explode in blue light. A tremendous bolt rose to the sky, and a moment later it fell on the Frozen Specter.

  The creature gave out an agonizing scream. It stopped in its tracks and stopped its attacks on the Norghanian soldiers, who were moving away from it in an attempt to stay alive. Its twisted face of horror became more terrible still.

  Eicewald repeated his command of power, and a new explosion issued from the Eternal Snowflake. An instant later, a second great blue bolt rose to the sky. Lasgol followed it with his eyes as it fell on to the Specter, hitting it fair and square. The Creature from the Frozen Continent gave another roar of pain and bent double in pain, as if the blue bolt were torturing its soul.

  The Norghanian soldiers and the forces of the Frozen Continent went on fighting with all their might, not realizing what was happening to the Specter. Nobody yielded a foot of terrain in the battle, and the fighting was ferocious. The battle had reached a crucial point. The opposing forces were finely balanced, and in a moment, victory would fall to one or the other side.

  Lasgol realized that the spell of the Magi was working and the Specter was being defeated. All that was needed was to put an end to it. Once they had done that, there was no doubt that victory would fall to Norghana. Realizing that he would be unable to hold up the Snowflake for much longer, he called upon his Cat-like Reflexes and Improved Agility skills. There was nothing else he could think of, and they might give him a trace of extra support. He did not even worry about whether any of the Magi had noticed that he had called upon power. Two green flashes had run through his entire body as he invoked his two skills.

  He clenched his teeth hard and held on. Time seemed not to be moving, but on the other hand the suffering went on. He made a final effort and noticed that the Object of Power was barely shining. Its energy was running out. Lasgol went from optimism to fear in the blink of an eye. They had to do it. He glanced at Eicewald, who was staring at the Eternal Snowflake with half-closed eyes. He too had realized what was going on.

  “We’ve got to destroy the Specter,” Lasgol said. “I can’t keep this up any longer …” He was on the brink of collapse.

  The Mage gave a command of power. There was a final blue explosion, and a third bolt of light rose from the Eternal Snowflake into the sky. The Snowflake died out, its energy exhausted. Lasgol could keep going no longer and collapsed. He could not feel his legs, and he fell as if they were made of crystal and had shattered. From the ground he saw the bolt of light fall on the Specter. He hoped that it would kill it once and for all. The being screamed in pain, a chilling sound that could be heard across the whole battlefield. It fell to the ground and was still.

  It had worked! They had killed the Specter! Lasgol was so happy that even though he could not walk and his legs were in agony, he did not care.

  “We did it …” he said.

  Ona moaned, worried about him.

  Don’t worry, I’m fine, he messaged to her.

  Help? Camu offered.

  No, stay close but don’t reveal yourself. I’m fine, I really am.

  Eicewald was still looking at the Specter on the ground. The Mage looked drained; the spell had consumed him. Lasgol saw that the other Magi too were deeply affected by the efforts they had made. It was as if, quite apart from the magical energy they had consumed, they had given a part of their own vital energy to the spell.

  “Wait a moment …” Eicewald said. He was leaning on his mage’s staff.

  Lasgol turned to look at the Specter again, and his soul froze.

  It was beginning to rise.

  Specter not dead! Camu called in warning.

  “No!” Lasgol cried in horror.

  The Specter slowly got to its feet. It shrieked with rage, a shriek that froze the blood in his veins.

  The soldiers tried to finish it off, but once again their efforts turned out to be useless. They died at the creature’s spectral touch.

  “We didn’t succeed,” Eicewald said sorrowfully.

  Lasgol could not believe it. “We didn’t? But why?”

  Specter still Power, Camu messaged him. He could still feel its magic.

  Eicewald picked up his Eternal Snowflake from the ground and put it away. “It’s empty. Its power is exhausted, and so is ours, very nearly. There’s nothing more we can do.”

  Lasgol feared the worst, and was not mistaken. The battle which had been on the brink of being decided was suddenly clear. The Specter went on robbing lives, and the Norghanian soldiers lost their hope of winning that battle. They began to withdraw, while the Specter and the forces of the Frozen Continent moved forward, gaining territory, and with it the battle.

  Sven and Gatik saw this. Sven rode to the Magi.

  “You haven’t destroyed it!” he said accusingly.

  Eicewald shook his head. “We weren’t able to. Its power i
s stronger than we thought.”

  “Hellfire! Then the battle’s lost!”

  “The troops had better retreat,” Eicewald advised him.

  “Is there nothing else you can do? There must be something that can kill that being!”

  Eicewald shook his head. “There’s nothing more we can do.”

  “The King will skin us alive if we fail! We’re not going to leave here defeated! I can’t let that happen!”

  “We must retreat, or else we’ll all die,” Eicewald insisted.

  Sven watched the battle for a moment longer and had to resign himself.

  “Retreat! Call the retreat!”

  The horns sounded. The Norghanian soldiers obeyed the signal as soon as they heard it and began to withdraw in an orderly manner.

  “Cover the retreat!” Gatik ordered his Rangers.

  There was a moment of indecision among the hosts of the Frozen Continent. They could not decide whether to chase after the Norghanians. They saw that the Specter was not moving from where it was. It seemed to be wounded, and had no intention of chasing the soldiers. Instead, it turned and set off to the north.

  Sven saw this. “Forced retreat!” he shouted.

  The soldiers broke into a run.

  The three leaders beside the Totem saw the battle won. When they gave the order to pursue the Norghanian soldiers, their forces hurled themselves in pursuit.

  “Move on! Quick! Forced retreat!” Sven ordered.

  “We’ll delay them,” Eicewald said. He called his Magi, and the five of them began to cast a final great spell with what little energy they had left.

  The soldiers meanwhile were fleeing south as fast as they could. And while they fled, the Magi completed their spell. Suddenly a wave formed behind the Norghanian soldiers, nine feet high, and as long as the enemy line that was pursuing them. At an order from the Magi, the wave moved forward and fell on the enemy. As they stopped, it broke over them and soaked them all.

  The Wild Ones laughed at the spell when they realized that it was unable to sweep them away, which they thought was what the Magi had intended. But that was not what Eicewald and his assistants had conjured. The enemy line broke into a run once again to continue the chase, and instantly the water which had fallen on them froze on their bodies in the form of great blocks of ice and frost. They were unable to move or to advance, not even the Semi-Giants, who were frozen from the waist down.

  “It won’t kill them, because they come from the Frozen Continent and low temperatures don’t affect them,” Eicewald said, “but it’ll delay them a little.”

  “Retreat!” Sven shouted. “Everybody run!”

  The whole Norghanian army fled toward the south, putting a distance between themselves and the Wild Ones, who were still trying to break the blocks of ice that held them prisoner.

  “Someone take care of Lasgol,” Eicewald said. He himself was barely able to stand.

  “We’ll look after him,” Enker said. Quickly, with Misten’s help, they tied Lasgol to Trotter and took him with them.

  You okay? Camu’s message reached him, full of concern.

  Yes, little one, don’t worry. It’s just that my legs are frozen and I can’t move them, but it’ll pass. I’ll be all right.

  Sure? Camu was very worried.

  Yes, so don’t worry. We’ve got to run. You and Ona get to safety. Don’t let them catch you.

  Ona moaned beside him.

  Ona and I with you, Camu transmitted, still sounding unconvinced.

  Fine. But be very careful, and don’t let the enemy catch you.

  Not catch, Camu assured him.

  In that moment of utter defeat, Camu decided to try to help instead of doing what Lasgol had asked of him.

  I try.

  No! Don't try anything!

  Camu did not obey his command. The creature scuttled in his invisible state until he was within a hundred paces of the Frozen Specter, who was standing still, behind the ice-covered enemy lines. He tried to use his power to negate that of the Specter. There was a flash of silver which Lasgol sensed, and immediately he knew it was Camu. His heart skipped a beat.

  No, Camu! It's too dangerous!

  I try, the creature insisted.

  The Specter turned to where Camu was standing. He could not see him, but he had felt the magic. Camu tried again, and used his power to attempt to destroy the Specter. There was another flash of silver. The Specter screamed, not from pain, but from rage. Camu's power was affecting him, but not strongly enough.

  Not working. Specter very powerful, Camu realized.

  Get out of there! Come back!

  He tried a third time, refusing to accept the evidence. The Specter screamed in rage and stretched out its arms towards him.

  Not worked. Specter magic too powerful.

  Run!

  Camu finally decided to listen to Lasgol and ran as fast as he could to meet him. The Specter, realizing that its attacker was gone, turned and set off north, leaving the battlefield.

  The enemy hosts chased after them for days, never stopping. Sven and Gatik forced everyone to keep going until they reached the pass, which they managed to cross before the enemy reached them.

  The Peoples of the Frozen Continent did not cross the gorge, but stopped on their own side and turned back.

  Lasgol recovered the use of his legs, with Eicewald’s help. With barely any rest, they made their way back to the capital. They needed to report to King Thoran what had happened, and they were all very much aware of what his reaction would be.

  They had failed, and they would be made to pay.

  All of them.

  Chapter 17

  “This is outrageous!” Thoran yelled as he rose from his throne. “My army and my Magi defeated!”

  Sven, his head bowed, was telling him what had happened in the Frozen Territories. They had just arrived in the capital after days of forced march.

  “We came very close to succeeding, your majesty,” Sven added apologetically.

  “Very close?” Orten, the King’s brother, retorted with a sneer. He was sitting on the right of the throne. “A defeat is always a defeat, whether close or crushing.”

  “The battle went awry at the last moment.”

  Thoran, his face red with rage, raised his fists to the heavens. “You left with three thousand soldiers and all my Ice Magi! How could you have failed? How?”

  “Your Majesty,” Sven said, “the soldiers fought like brave Norghanians.”

  “Then it was the leaders who failed,” Orten said accusingly. He jabbed his finger at Sven and Gatik. “I told you to let me handle it, brother.”

  “No. It was their business to deal with it, not ours. We have enough problems without having to deal with this too.”

  “Well, they’ve been defeated by a Specter and a few Wild Ones of the Ice,” Orten said. “It doesn’t look to me as though they’ve proven their worth, if anything, the opposite.” He was staring at Sven and Gatik with clear disdain.

  “Your Majesty …” Sven said apologetically. “The Specter … we were unable to destroy it … we’d have won if we could’ve killed it.”

  “You infernal good-for-nothings! Must I do everything myself?” Thoran’s yells bounced off the walls of the throne hall as though they were echoing, which made them even more unpleasant. The soldiers of the Royal Guard who were standing along the walls shrank back with each yell, as if it were striking their faces.

  “Neither steel nor arrows could do anything to that abominable being,” Gatik said. “Only magic had any effect.”

  “That’s what he’s already told us!” the monarch shouted. He jabbed his finger behind Gatik at Lasgol, who shrank back in the face of the accusations.

  “It’s true that only magic can destroy it,” Eicewald agreed. His gaze was dark, his tone calm but grave.

  “Well, it doesn’t seem to have!” Thoran shouted, this time directly at the Ice Mage.

  “Your Majesty is right, our magic could not ove
rcome the creature. Nevertheless, it did manage to harm it. This is very significant. It means that we tried the right approach, and our strategy for destroying it was the correct one. The great destructive spell we used was the right one.”

  Orten laughed. “The right approach, the cretin says, and he comes back defeated.” He dismissed the Mage with a wave of his hand.

  “The only thing that means is that my Magi are a bunch of incompetents!” Thoran added, barking like a mad dog. “Why wasn’t it destroyed? Why?”

  “Well, your Majesty …. you see, the type of magic we used as an enhancer for the great spell wasn’t the appropriate one. It didn’t allow us to finish the creature off, even though it let us hurt it, which I insist is a very important fact. If we hadn’t done that there would be no hope of destroying it, but now we have a chance, and we need to take it before the creature becomes even more powerful.”

  The reply made Thoran think. He seemed to calm down a little, and sat back on his throne. “Explain yourself, and in a way we can all understand.” He indicated his brother. “No arcane nonsense.”

  “I’ll try, your Majesty,” Eicewald stared at the King with his dark gaze. “Yes,” he explained, his voice gentle and unhurried, “the spell we worked was successful, because it weakened the creature. We made it fall, and it was on the brink of being defeated. And yet it recovered, because the type of magic we used to enhance the spell wasn’t the right one. That’s why we weren’t able to destroy it completely, only to hurt it.”

  Orten folded his arms. “What a load of nonsense! In that case, use the right kind of magic!”

  “That represents a certain added complexity, my lords,” Eicewald said, sounding troubled.

  “A problem, you mean, so I understand from your tone of voice.” Gatik said.