Magic Triumphed

by Andi Van

  “You do this because of a grudge,” Zaree growled, her voice odd even to her ears. She could feel something within her twisting, crying to be out, but she wasn’t sure exactly what was going on. She pushed it aside and advanced on Gisik, glaive at the ready.

  “I do this because it is my right,” Gisik shouted at her.

  “You have no right to hurt our people.”

  “Our?” Gisik scoffed, face skewed with disdain. “You mean that freakish twinned soul I locked away? You really think the two of you can stop me? When I’m done with you, I’ll rip out his heart as well.”

  Zaree couldn’t have held back the inhuman howl that issued from deep within her. It was as though her very being was rejecting Gisik, and she dropped the glaive as she leaped toward him, the blade no longer enough. She needed to touch him, to tear him apart with her bare hands until he could no longer move. She needed to give him pain. She reached out, and her hands were no longer human. She had only four fingers on each hand now, scaled and tipped with claws. As she watched, her arms started to contort, and suddenly she was writhing, unable to makes heads or tails of her own limbs. She had no control over them and could barely keep herself standing even as she willed her body to throw itself at her enemy.

  “Your first time with your new form?” Gisik asked. “Well, that makes it too easy for me, but I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” His arm shot toward her again, much as it had when Josephina had stopped him, and Zaree could only watch as she waited for this blow to mean her end.

  Except the blow once again failed to reach her, and the pained screams she heard were not coming from her. Gisik’s arm lay on the ground, charred and still smoking, and he clutched at his burned stump as he glared at something—or someone—behind Zaree. But even if she’d been able to move properly, she wouldn’t have dared look away from Gisik. There was no need to do so, however, because she could have wept when she heard a familiar voice. It looks like they’ve started the party without us, Tasis.

  “So I see.” Tasis’s voice was terrifying and otherworldly, and Zaree caught her breath when he stepped into view. His body was surrounded by blue flame as his hair danced around him, and if she hadn’t known him as well as she did, and hadn’t been confident in his love for her and their friends, the amount of anger he was clearly carrying would have made her wonder if they were all going to die. He looked around at the battlefield, which remained still as the king’s men stared at the scene before them in fear. Tasis stared back. “You all enabled this.” He turned his attention back to Gisik, letting those who had attacked them chew on what they’d done and wonder at their fates. “Gisik. I require no introduction. Your stench of deceit gives you away.”

  “Ah, you’re such a flatterer,” Gisik returned smoothly. “Forgive me, but I’m not into lesser creatures.”

  “No,” Tasis agreed, putting one glowing hand on Zaree’s neck. She expected it to burn, but it was merely warm. The warmth traveled down her long, scaled neck, through her spine, and into her limbs. She tried wriggling her toes and was relieved that she appeared to have control over her appendages again. Whatever Tasis had done, it had freed her of her paralysis. The new dragon aspects of herself were going to take some getting used to, but that would have to wait until after they’d taken care of Gisik. “You just enjoy torturing anyone you see as beneath you. That ends now.”

  “Tas!” Kelwin called out from behind them a second before Zaree’s glaive slid into view.

  Tasis leaned down to pick it up, not taking his eyes off Gisik, and pointed the blade at the dragon. “Shall we dance?” he asked.

  “I’ll lead,” Gisik growled. Then he pounced.

  Unfortunately for him, he didn’t make his target, as Yldost slammed into him, knocking him away. “You will not harm them,” they shrieked as Gisik shook his head, obviously rattled.

  “I locked you away once and I can do it again,” Gisik roared, pointing his remaining hand at Yldost.

  “No,” Tasis said. “You can’t. Because we won’t allow it.” He stabbed at Gisik with the glaive, grazing the dragon’s scales as Gisik dodged the blow. Several of the garish scales fell to the ground, sliced through.

  It occurred to Zaree that Gisik didn’t seem to know how to handle more than one opponent at a time, and she wondered if it was due to inexperience, if he was off balance due to the missing arm, or if his ego was so large that he didn’t believe someone could actually kill him. Either way, it would work in their favor. They’d all grown to sync with one another, where Gisik had only himself.

  Gisik must have realized this, too, because he yelled at the small army behind him. “What are you useless humans waiting for? Attack them!”

  “I wouldn’t,” Tasis boomed at the guards, his voice deadly as the flames surrounding him grew brighter. “If anyone here thinks I wouldn’t burn down the world to protect those I love, they’d be sadly mistaken. Qelmar’s Rule wouldn’t be enough to stop me.”

  The name seemed to unhinge something in Gisik, and he let out a primal roar. “Do not mention that worthless brother of mine!”

  “Worthless?” Tasis taunted, stabbing at Gisik again as he dodged the swipe of the dragon’s hand. “Qelmar is the one helping to create life, and you just want to destroy it. It’s not your brother who is worthless in my eyes.” This time the blade made contact, sinking a couple of inches into Gisik’s flesh before he could move out of the way. The blood that dripped freely from the wound was thick and inky, smoking when it met the air.

  Watch out for the blood, Rin advised. It looks to either be acid or at least hot enough to burn you.

  “Understood,” Tasis said aloud, his eyes not leaving his opponent. He stabbed at Gisik again, but this time the dragon was prepared for it, leaping up at just the right moment.

  He knocked Tasis onto the ground and stood over him, and Rin must have been right about the blood because Tasis screamed as it dripped onto his skin. It sizzled every time it hit, and Gisik grinned wickedly.

  “Did you really think I’d let you win?” He opened his mouth wide, displaying the rows of sharp teeth before he snapped his neck forward, clearly intending on killing Tasis right there.

  Unfortunately, he seemed to have forgotten he was not the only dragon there. Zaree tackled him, knocking him off Tasis and rolling across the grass with him until she was atop him, her claws digging into his flesh as she pinned him down.

  “You will not harm my brother,” she hissed. “This ends now.” She opened her mouth wide, as Gisik had, intent on ripping out his throat.

  “Enough!”

  The thunderous voice above them shocked Zaree into stillness, and she looked up to see two serpentine dragons approaching the isle, winding about each other in a graceful dance. Zaree recognized the white dragon. It would be impossible to forget the Maker, no matter which form she took. But the dragon who landed next to her was an unknown entity, identical to Nirena except that, instead of being pure white, this dragon was pitch-black at first glance. At second glance, it was easy to see that the scales bore the same iridescence Nirena’s did.

  “Beautiful,” Zaree breathed, and the newcomer preened at her words.

  “Aunt Diondi,” Yldost said with a bow. “It has been a long time.”

  This, then, was Nirena’s sister, the dragon of death. Zaree bowed her head nervously, not sure if she should let go of Gisik or not. It was an odd position to be in, greeting one powerful being while pinning another down. Diondi must have sensed her discomfort, because she smiled and nodded toward Gisik’s prone form. “Put more force behind it,” she suggested, sneering at Zaree’s captive. “I want to see him bleed.”

  “Diondi, you bitch,” Gisik seethed. “I imagine you must be pleased to see this.”

  Diondi’s form shifted, and she stood next to Zaree in a human guise, looking at Gisik as though she’d come across a nest of cockroaches. Her skin was nearly as dark as her scales had been, and she lost not a whit of her beauty in the transformation. “Oh, I am
,” she confirmed. “You know how long I’ve wanted to make you pay for my sister’s suffering at your hands. You were told the rules, Gisik, and you were told what would happen if you broke them. Now I get to make you suffer as you’ve done to others.” She cocked her head and narrowed her eyes. “Don’t worry. I’ll try not to enjoy it too much.”

  “He killed Josephina,” Tasis told Nirena, choking out the words as the flames that had surrounded him sputtered out and tears trailed down his face.

  “I know,” Nirena answered softly as she, too, shifted forms. “The second death.” She took in Tasis’s face before giving him an encouraging smile. “But also the second birth.”

  That gave Zaree pause, and she squinted at Nirena. “What?”

  “Do not grieve, children,” Nirena proclaimed, extending an arm to point out across the sandstone cliffs to the open sea. “Vashk has caught your beloved Josephina and given her new life.”

  They looked out to where she pointed, and they could see a redheaded figure in the water, clinging to another figure, that one with long, dark hair. They were too far to see clearly, but the redhead had to be Triv. None of the other merfolk had red hair. Tasis dropped to his knees, and Kelwin was by his side in a second as he wept with relief.

  “You see, Gisik?” Diondi asked, bending close to Gisik until her face was directly in front of his. “You’ve failed at that as well. You’re persistent, I’ll give you that, but maybe it’s time to leave my sister and her creations alone. Because you just. Keep. Failing.” She patted Zaree’s hand, and Zaree lifted it obligingly. Gisik jolted as though attempting to escape, but Diondi merely pinned him back down despite being a fraction of his size and smiled. “Do you understand?” she asked him, her smile gaining a gleeful malice that made chills run down Zaree’s spine. Everything Zaree had heard of the dragon of death had indicated a gentle, loving soul who wouldn’t harm a fly, but Diondi seemed to have gained a vicious streak when no one had been looking. Considering everything Gisik had done since basically the beginning of time, Zaree couldn’t blame the woman. If someone kept trying to destroy everything that was dear to Tasis, she’d probably act in a similar fashion. She paused, eyes going wide. No, that’s exactly what had happened. Gisik had tried to destroy Tasis and all he held dear, and she’d reacted.

  “You’re the third death,” Diondi concluded. “Because I’m about to take you with me.”

  Nirena stepped up to them, placing a hand on Diondi’s shoulder as she frowned at Gisik. “I tried to stop you,” she said sadly. “I try to stop you every time. Why, Gisik? Why do you persist?”

  “Because I love you,” Gisik shouted at her.

  “No,” Tasis said. His face was a mess from the crying, and he looked ready to shatter into a million pieces. He struggled to stand from where he still knelt, either from exhaustion or due to the burns Gisik had left on his body, and Kelwin immediately helped him up. “You’re obsessed with her, perhaps, but you don’t love her. You want to own her.”

  “He’s right,” Nirena said to Gisik. “I’ve seen love. I see it in my children here, who care about each other selflessly. What you’ve been offering me for so long isn’t love.”

  Gisik opened his mouth to argue, but Tasis sighed. “Oh shut up,” he said tiredly. “I’m sick of listening to your whining. I’m sick of dealing with you. But know this, Gisik. If, when you’re done with your punishment, you try to destroy another world for your own selfish desires, we’ll figure out how to cross worlds just so we can stop you again. And again, and again. We’re done letting you hurt people.”

  Diondi smiled at him. “I believe you would too.” She turned her attention to Nirena. “I’m taking Gisik now,” she said. “I’ll be in touch, sister.”

  “And the thing we spoke of?” Nirena asked her.

  “What thing?” Zaree asked. It wasn’t any of her business, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. It was like she was turning into Jorget.

  Diondi’s smile grew wider, but she didn’t look at Zaree. “Consider it a reward for your children, for a job well done,” she said. “I withdraw my claim and leave them in your care.” Only then did she nod at the others. “We will meet again.” The words were made ominous by the fact she was death itself, though Zaree was fairly certain she hadn’t meant it that way. With that, she disappeared, taking Gisik with her.

  “Is it over?” Jorget asked wearily, looking as if he’d sleep for a week.

  “Almost,” Reikos said, looking at his father. The king was staring off into space, with no indication whatsoever that he was aware of what was going on around him. “Is there anything that can be done for him?” he asked Nirena. “I may hate him, but he was under Gisik’s influence. For all I know, he may have been a good man if Gisik hadn’t made that deal with Falcon’s father.”

  “I’m sorry.” Nirena’s words were all the answer they really needed. There would be no help for the king. “Gisik’s curse was made to slowly remove their consciousness in order to quite literally use those in the originating king’s line as puppets. We’re probably lucky they had a tendency to go mad and get themselves killed before Gisik could fully make use of them.”

  “Reikos is safe, though?” Zaree asked. She really couldn’t bear the thought of him turning out like that. Whatever they were to each other in the future, he was a good man who deserved better than insanity.

  “Yes. With Gisik defeated, the curse is broken.” Nirena bowed to Reikos, a small smile playing at her lips. “Your Majesty.”

  Reikos took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “I suppose I’d better get used to that.” He looked at the others, then looked at his father again. “I’m going to take him back to Archai. And then I’m going to start fixing what my family has been breaking for so long.”

  “I can take you to one of the nearest gates,” Kelwin offered. “Either one is a bit of a walk to Archai Castle, but….”

  Reikos shook his head. “No. Thank you, but I’ll go back on my father’s ship. I need time to come to terms with things, and I also need to weed out the guards that need to be dismissed.” He looked out at his father’s men. They looked shocked and confused, and that was perfectly understandable. It was the ones who also looked displeased who worried Zaree, and she imagined those were the ones Reikos was planning on dealing with. “The trip will be easier on my father and Shan too. I need to talk to Shan about Chadar.” He looked at Falcon and shrugged. “Unless you want to govern Chadar. You were raised for it.”

  “No,” Falcon said vehemently. “I did not want that responsibility a millennium ago, and I do not want it now.” She looked off in the distance, a frown on her face, before squaring her shoulders. “But I will accompany you. I was, as you say, raised for it. I can be of assistance while you organize the kingdoms.”

  Zaree looked at her in surprise. She certainly hadn’t expected that, and something in her felt hollow knowing that their friends would be departing now that their shared mission had been completed. “You’re sure?” she asked Falcon, hating that she sounded a little lost.

  Falcon smiled, though, giving her a shrug. “I would like to be of use, and my place still is not here. We will see each other again.”

  “You should all come to Archai once things are a little less messy,” Reikos offered, giving Zaree a hopeful look. “You could take a gate over and visit for a while. See what Archai’s like when no one’s trying to kill you.”

  “That would certainly be a change,” Tasis said with a chuckle.

  “I’ll want to talk to you about some actual official things too,” Reikos told him. “Treaties and deals and all those things you and I don’t need in writing but the rest of my people will. Maybe we can start to heal the rift between the everyday citizens and the magic users.”

  “We’d all like that,” Emlynn said. “Both the visit, and for things to be less hostile.” She turned her attention to Nirena and gave her a short bow. “Forgive me, Maker, but I have a question.”

  “Yes?” Nirena asked
, giving her an encouraging smile. “What is it, child?”

  “You prophesied six births, and there have been only two. What of the other four?”

  Nirena’s smile spread, and she gave them a full grin. “That’s what Diondi was speaking of when she said she was withdrawing her claim. You see, because of Gisik, many of my children are gone. But the dragons I birthed are vital to your world, so I must provide you new guardians. There are four souls I wished to use for this in particular, but as they were deceased they were in her care. She was saying I could do with them as I would.” She gave Tasis a pointed look, then Zaree. “Don’t fear. I imagine you’ll get along with them quite well.”

  Zaree felt like she should have been able to grasp what Nirena was hinting at, but it escaped her.

  “Oh no,” Tasis groaned. Clearly he’d figured out whatever it was that Zaree had missed.

  “You’re displeased with this?” Nirena asked, raising one eyebrow.

  “No, just….” Tasis let out a heavy sigh, his shoulders drooping. “Please tell me you’re not going to let them bring the giant dogs with them.”

  Zaree’s eyes grew wide at what Tasis was suggesting, and then she began to laugh. Everything was going to be just fine.

  Epilogue

  VASHK’S MAGNIFICENT head nearly blotted out the sky beyond the end of the dock where Kelwin stood, facing the crowd. Kelwin looked petrified. Vashk looked amused and couldn’t help commenting. “You know, if you’re having second thoughts….”

  Kelwin glared up at him, and Daro—the wolf, not the former man who was now a dragon, as confusing as that was—who’d taken up his usual position at Kelwin’s side wheezed a noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh. Triv, who was waiting in the water at the end of the dock with Corrin and Josephina, giggled. Corrin made a shushing sound at her as Brolt began to play his enormous harp, but it did no good. The door leading into the cavern from the stronghold opened slightly, and chuckles escaped from others in the crowd when K’yerin, walking with every bit of pomp possible, strode elegantly down the wooden planks of the dock. A blue bow had been tied around his neck at a jaunty angle, and Kelwin wondered how Firea, who’d jumped on the opportunity to plan the entire occasion, had talked the cat into it.