Champion of the Gods Box Set

by Andrew Q. Gordon

  It was a risky gambit. If they slowed too much, they would become the focus of the Chamdon behind them. But without Heminaltose she didn’t like their chances.

  “If what you say is accurate, the wizard can blast a path through their soldiers.”

  “Tell him to test it. After a few blasts if no one turns to face you, my information is true.”

  “Understood.”

  Zenora fired at her opponent and rattled the master supporting the leader. Before he recovered, she sent a powerful blast, hoping to take him out before too many other wizards arrived. The ball detonated and the man’s knees buckled as the shield failed. Her last strike was relatively weak, but it was more than enough to kill the unshielded wizard.

  “Klissmor?”

  “Yes?” The response sounded almost distracted.

  “They’ve changed tactics. Their wizard has given the Chamdon a last command and pulled the handlers to her. She’s trying to take us out before you can defeat her Chamdon.”

  “And if she defeats you first?”

  “She’ll have the firepower to beat our remaining wizards.”

  “Why don’t you match her strategy?”

  “The wizards with the troops are there to shield the soldiers.”

  “But if there are no wizards to face them, they aren’t needed.”

  “In a normal battle that would be true.” Zenora fired on a pair of low-level masters trying to reach their leader. They flew back from her blow and were quickly trampled beneath a group of running Chamdon. “Unimpeded by other wizards, our mages can use their power to keep our casualties low. I’d rather err on the side of our soldiers this time.”

  “Winning the battle will be meaningless if we lose our most powerful wizards.”

  “Heminaltose, Kel, and Farrell will survive.”

  “I’d rather employ a strategy that minimizes all casualties, including our wizards.”

  “Agreed.”

  Behind the enemy, an explosion tossed dozens of Chamdon in the air. More followed the first blast, and the bodies affected grew closer.

  “Heminaltose is trying to force their way through. If that fails, then I’ll pull our wizards.”

  “I will consult with Nerti, but remember, the final decision is Miceral’s. As overall commander, he will decide what is best.”

  The not-so-subtle reminder that Miceral would do what Klissmor said was not lost on her. But he was right. “I understand. Let him know I would like input before he pulls the other wizards.”

  “Of course.”

  She glanced at Heminaltose’s progress. The detonations were close enough to distract their foes. She targeted four who turned their backs on her. They died under her attack. Zenora smiled at the frustrated scream from the grand master. Shifting her attention, Zenora struck the grand master’s shields. It was as much to tweak her for failing to pay attention as to give Darius an opening.

  The wizard snarled at Zenora, but it lasted only a second. Darius pressed his attack, and she turned to face him. It probably irritated the woman that a “mere” master wizard could test her. Anything that robbed her of focus was good.

  Zenora wanted to punish her and the others, but she remembered Tarnin. He couldn’t defeat two master wizards alone. He’d stepped out of her shields and had done a good job of keeping his foes off-balance. That forced the two he faced to pool their resources against him. Now Tarnin could do little more than defend himself. It also gave her an opening.

  The pair were so focused on killing Tarnin, they forgot about Zenora. She spun her staff overhead and brought it down hard. Energy flared from both ends, and she directed it to maximum effect. A tremor raced toward the pair seconds ahead of a blast of blue energy. The twin attacks coupled with a third from Tarnin almost broke their defenses.

  Wizard’s fire erupted from a dozen sources and peppered Zenora, Tarnin, and Darius. Black-robed wizards appeared from the ranks of Chamdon. A quartet of strong master wizards Zenora hadn’t detected before moved closer to the grand master.

  She motioned to Tarnin and they moved closer to Darius. She strengthened her shields around the group and prepared to defend them. Much as she hated to take anything from the soldiers, she needed help. “Klissm—By the Six!”

  An explosion rocked the area between the two sides. Judging from their reaction, it hadn’t come from their enemy. A large shadow covered them, and she looked up just before something landed. The ground shook, and Zenora couldn’t see through all the dust.

  “Surrender now!” Farrell shouted from atop Qurol’s carcass. “I’m in no mood to be merciful if you fight me.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Farrell scanned the group in front of him. His half sister was the only grand master, and she didn’t appear as powerful as Vedric. The others with her appeared ready to soil themselves. He’d bet Trellham’s treasury they’d flee if they got the chance. He’d make sure they didn’t get one.

  He jumped down and slammed his staff onto the ground. As he hoped, everyone flinched. They didn’t pay close enough attention to stop him from taking over the area sealed against Doors. No mercy for Meglar’s minions.

  “You made a grave mistake, Vedress.” He smiled at her expression. “But as I told Vedric before I killed him, arrogance is one of the many failings of the house of Vedri.”

  He heard a few gasps from behind him and regretted he hadn’t had time to tell them what he’d seen with the Eye.

  “How dare you!” Vedress’s eyes narrowed. “How dare you!”

  “You’re as articulate as your father.” He smirked but kept his spells ready. “Barely smarter than the Chamdon you hide behind.”

  Vedress screamed and lowered her staff at him.

  “Princess! No!” an older woman who had just arrived shouted.

  Either Vedress didn’t hear her or didn’t care. She fired at Farrell, and he countered immediately. Farrell’s magic struck Vedress’s, absorbed it, and continued toward her. It was a variation of the spell Meglar had used to incapacitate him on the Seafoam Rose. He would have killed her, but a new shield appeared in front of Vedress at the last moment. The hastily erected barrier didn’t survive the impact. It did take enough of the force out of Farrell’s strike that it washed harmlessly over Vedress’s shield.

  The magic that protected Vedress came from the woman who’d warned her. Farrell turned his attention to her, but someone attacked her first.

  “Hello, Felna.” Zenora assumed a fighting stance with her staff pointed at the other woman. “Keeping tabs on your cousin?”

  Felna’s sneer only partially hid her fear. “His Majesty said you’d survived.”

  “Not that you will heed my advice, but you’d do well to surrender.” An explosion interrupted her. “Qurol is dead, Heminaltose is cutting a path through your army, and Kel is on his way.”

  “The House of Meglar does not surrender,” Vedress said.

  She pointed her staff at Zenora, but Farrell struck before she could fire. He skipped a verbal response. Meglar’s family lived in the dream world he’d created for them. It didn’t have room for the possibility they might lose.

  The attack struck her shields and interrupted her spell. Zenora engaged Felna as a full-blown wizard’s fight erupted around them. Farrell ignored everything other than Vedress. His fight with Vedric taught him he gained nothing delaying the inevitable.

  He pounded Vedress’s shield with wizard’s fire. It kept her on off-balance enough for him to cast a spell to end the fight. A wizard to the left of Vedress burst into flames just as he launched his attack. She didn’t react to the small green dot that shattered harmlessly against her shield. The color spread quickly and grew so faint it wasn’t noticeable.

  He kept up his attack long enough for the spell to finish its work. Another wizard in a black robe screamed as her shield collapsed. A ball of wizard’s fire ended the sound as her body burst apart.

  Vedress flinched, and Farrell saw the fear in her face. He tamped his staff on
the ground, and a series of blue fireballs shot toward the spot affected by the green energy. The first three cracked the shield. Vedress’s eyes opened wider a split second before her protection failed. Her shield crumpled like thin ice hit with a hammer.

  Farrell battered her personal shield without pause. The unrelenting barrage left Vedress no time to recover or recreate a new outer shield. Her shield grew hot under the onslaught, and Farrell raised his left hand and fired a large ball of energy.

  The weakened shield, never meant to take the punishment Farrell inflicted on it, shattered. The last of the blue balls from Farrell’s staff hit Vedress in the chest and sent her flying backward.

  Felna screamed, but it was cut short by a vicious series of attacks from Zenora. Although it was a breach of etiquette to interfere in a personal battle, Farrell fired on Felna. It swept away her defenses and killed her.

  Farrell targeted the surviving enemy wizards rather than look at his mother. They’d talk later, but he needed the fight over with so the mages could help take out the Chamdon. Several of Meglar’s wizards tried to flee. He and his mother targeted them with deadly precision. Darius and Tarnin left to help the soldiers, leaving Zenora and Farrell to finish.

  The last wizard, a midlevel master, begged for his life, but Farrell ignored him. He’d offered them a chance to surrender when he arrived and they refused him. There were no second chances. He searched for any other wizards, and finding none, he turned to his mother.

  “I’m sorry for interfering.”

  She appeared confused for a moment. “Felna?”

  He nodded. “I shouldn’t have gotten involved in your fight.”

  Zenora made a face. “Why not? Meglar and his wizards would think nothing of doing the same. In fact, they do it all the time.”

  “No mercy for Meglar’s minions,” he whispered.

  “What?”

  “I was repeating something Kel told me. He told me not to show Meglar’s people mercy.”

  “He’s correct.” She turned her attention to the east.

  Farrell followed her gaze and saw Nerti leading the other unicorns. Heminaltose blasted a gap through the last few Chamdon between him and Farrell. The Muchari fell on their enemy and cut them down from behind.

  “The handlers sent the Chamdon forward and then abandoned them?” Farrell asked.

  “That’s my belief.”

  Farrell closed his eyes and created a spell. A small cloud appeared over his head. It grew larger as he fed it energy. Once it reached the right size, he moved it and added the last detail.

  As it moved over clumps of Chamdon, a hail of golden slivers of energy rained down. The magical daggers only targeted the warped creatures. Still, Farrell kept it away from his own troops to avoid distracting them. When he couldn’t find enough targets, he dissolved the cloud.

  He tapped his staff again and a swarm of red dots flew from the tip. The specks sped away in all directions, growing as they moved. The bits of red elongated and expanded into red ribbons that each targeted a specific Chamdon. Less than two minutes later, the fighting was over.

  “That was impressive,” Zenora said, adding a nod of approval.

  “Kel taught me both spells.” He put his hand on Qurol’s corpse, unsure what to do with the dead behemoth. “If they hadn’t been Chamdon, I’d have incapacitated them instead.”

  The healers and the support personnel fanned out, looking for survivors. For a battle of this size, the number of casualties was low. Garreth’s army had relied too much on Qurol to contain his enemy’s wizards. Fools.

  “This will become the leading example of why you never want to lose your wizards in the middle of a fight,” Darius said. “Though, the spells you used might not be something we can teach.”

  Rojas loped across the field next to Nerti. Another unicorn carried Heminaltose. They made good time despite having to pick their way through the dead.

  Wonderful. Farrell sent Rojas to Haven in the hope he’d stay there. Next Jagwin would appear with two hundred dwarves ready to shadow his every move. For a moment he considered flying away, but the desire to see Miceral outweighed the urge to flee the others.

  Magic swirled nearby, and he and Zenora pointed their staffs at the area. Rojas stopped moving and stared at the ground. Between one moment and the next, Basje and Tojas appeared.

  Zenora lowered her staff when Farrell walked out toward his friends.

  “The Shaman and She Who Guides,” he said.

  “Why are they here?”

  “That’s what I’m going to find out.” He heard the irritation in his voice but didn’t care. He’d been all over the world the last two months. He was tired of people inserting themselves into his affairs.

  “Ancient One.” Basje bowed deeply. “I wish I could greet you with good tidings, but I’ve come to warn you of a grave danger.”

  “Should I gather the others first?”

  Basje stroked the fur on Tojas’s back. “My words are for you. Whom you share them with is a decision I can’t make.”

  “I will tell Klissmor and Miceral,” Nerti said. “They’ll assemble the others.”

  “Come.” He jumped on Nerti’s back and held his hand out for his mother. She raised an eyebrow but accepted. “Best to have everyone hear it at the same time.”

  Nerti led the way without his directions. Farrell’s mind raced with the possible “grave dangers” Basje had come to warn him about. It seemed unlikely anything could come from the Southern Wastes. But the Bendari didn’t monitor the rest of the world closely. He tried to calm his anxiety, but the more he tried the less he succeeded.

  Kel and Rothdin had joined the others, and his grandfather beamed at him as he dismounted.

  “Well done!” He squeezed Farrell’s shoulder. “Not just Qurol, but the way you controlled the spells on the battlefield. Your skills are beyond even my considerable expectations.”

  Farrell blushed but smiled back. “Thank you.”

  “You’ve earned it, and you know I’m stingy with praise.” Kel patted Farrell’s back and turned to their guests. “The news you bear must be important for you to travel so far from the Endless Snows.”

  “Yes, friend Kel, it is,” Basje said. “My fellow shamans and I have been monitoring the lands north of our snows. As you know well, the servant of the Deceiver has conquered the lands south of the mighty river.

  “He has gathered every person in these lands and herded them to the city by the river. His foul magic has turned everyone, young and old, into those creatures he sent to test my people.

  “His wizards arm these beasts, put them in formations, and then they go to sleep. The dead on this field would be but a portion of the number he will send to follow.”

  “You were right.” Zenora looked at Darius. “This campaign, from the first battle to this one, has been a feint meant to drain our resources.”

  “I would that I had been wrong, Your Majesty.”

  “I think I speak for most here when I say I’m confused by your words, Queen Zenora,” Farrell said. “Can you explain what you mean?”

  “Before the fight began today, Darius told me we were missing something. Garreth could have pressed his attack as we retreated many times but didn’t. He allowed our reinforcements to join us and never struck when he had the advantage.

  “Once Meglar turned Garreth and his army into Chamdon, however, it made sense. He had no more use for them. This battle was the reason Meglar recruited Garreth to attack the other princes.”

  Farrell nodded. “This was a distraction.”

  “It was, but it didn’t work out how he’d planned,” Kel said. “He meant to weaken our corps of wizards. But once Farrell killed Qurol, we defeated his army with minimal casualties. More, Rastoria, Dumbarten, and Ze’arder have sent us reinforcements. And because He Who Protects traveled with us, the Shaman and She Who Guides were able to warn us earlier than later of the true threat. Far from demoralizing, distracting, and defeating the west, Meglar has
helped us prepare.”

  Kel’s optimism buoyed the spirits of the others as they discussed the next step. Troop movements and battle tactics weren’t Farrell’s strength, so he tuned them out. Miceral excelled at strategy and no one questioned his authority. That allowed Farrell a chance to rest.

  “I echo Kel’s praise,” Nerti said a moment before her horn touched his shoulder. “You did very well.”

  “I had a lot of help.”

  “Yes, but it was your arrival that turned this fight into an easy victory. A fact Kel, Miceral, and your mother are pressing very hard.”

  “Why?” He started to move, but Nerti pressed her horn against his shoulder.

  “No. You will not stop them. Everyone knows you did not fight the battle alone. Those who do not know you well needed to see firsthand why you, not Kel, lead this war. Today’s effort shouted your fitness.”

  Farrell decided it wasn’t worth the effort needed to stop his family. Even arguing with Nerti required more energy than he wanted to use.

  “Queen Nerti is correct.” Rothdin’s booming voice felt surprisingly soothing. “And I add my approval of your efforts. Qurol avoided my justice long enough. It gives me endless satisfaction and joy to know my sons avenged their uncle and not someone else.”

  “I hope you expressed your pride to Grohl.” Farrell scanned the area and found his brother. He stood with a few other peregrines with his feathers out in a good way.

  Rothdin laughed. “I am a wise being. I know which of my sons needed to hear my words first.”

  The peregrines around Grohl reacted to something and Farrell smiled. “He finally has something to make Takala jealous. Killing Qurol will give him air above his brother even though he wasn’t chosen first.”

  “And your Takala will not cede a speck of height to Grohl,” Rothdin said. “They have achieved a stalemate and that is good.”

  It was good. He watched his brother recount their fight and felt a longing to go home. He’d not seen the children in over a month nor slept in his bed in the familiar surroundings of his rooms.