by M. D. Grimm
Aishe looked at me, concerned. He touched my forehead.
“You’re burning up.”
I grunted. “Let’s get this done.”
***
I had two of the gargoyles transport Aishe and me to the ground. The path that I had made for Aishe would have taken too long, and I didn’t even think I could have endured that long standing. They flew off after depositing us, and I managed to walk on my own. Aishe stayed close to my side, and I could feel his tension.
I couldn’t show weakness. I may have been sacrificing most of my reputation by giving in, but I didn’t have to look like a weakling doing it. Ramubjek crooned to me, begging me to take it, use it, cause war and chaos on my enemies. I resisted, Aishe’s presence a solid buffer to those calls.
We stood in the middle of Vorgoroth, on the trail, my fever making the cold even more unbearable. The sky was still gray, but the wind had lessened. The chill still crept through the fabric of my coat, and I had to clench my jaw to keep my teeth from chattering.
I knew Nanna and Dyrc would be watching, and they would hear and feel Rambujek’s call. I feared that if I did just one more spell, I would collapse or faint. I’d rather just wait than humiliate myself. It didn’t take long. Nanna came first, Dyrc following closely. He’d healed his wrist from where Aishe had shot him, and there was no evidence of the wound. Aishe stiffened beside me.
“Morgorth.” Nanna’s voice was grave.
“Nanna.” Sweat began to slide down my back, and my legs began to tremble. Damn fever. I’d managed to wipe my face before they arrived, and I prayed that they couldn’t see my trembling hands.
“I wish to first apologize for the shame Dyrc has brought to this situation,” Nanna said with dignity. “This need not have gone that far.”
Dyrc said nothing. He stood a few paces behind her, his posture submissive. But he was far from defeated -- he glared at the ground, and his jaw looked to be clenched tight.
“You’re right about that,” I said, struggling to keep my voice cold and calm. Damn winter. My body was beginning to shiver. In a few minutes my teeth might have even started to chatter. “I didn’t think the Council condoned such hexes.”
“They do not,” Nanna said quickly. Her face was pale, and her eyes were weary. She was as tired of this as I was.
“And Dyrc will be punished for such a breach, I promise this to you. And now I ask you: Have you made your decision concerning Rambujek?”
“You know I have, as I’m sure you can hear it,” I answered.
Nanna inclined her head. “There is no reason we cannot be civil about this.”
“No reason?” My voice quavered. “You invade my home, threaten the village under my protection, and raise not one but two necromantic armies to destroy my home?
And you don’t think there’s a reason we can’t be civil?”
Nanna’s lips pulled tightly across her face. “As I said.
Dyrc will be punished. I was unaware of his...activities as I awaited your answer about the stones.”
I nodded slowly, not completely believing her. “Of course. My mistake.” I put as much sarcasm and disbelief in those words as I could. Her eyes narrowed. “And yes, I have made a decision. Rambujek for Puejuek. A major stone for a minor one.”
Nanna stepped forward, and I didn’t move, knowing that if I took one step, I would fall. I untied the pouch that held the ruby and stretched out my hand. Nanna took another step forward and untied her own pouch that held the peridot. But before she could raise her hand, Dyrc rushed up behind her and gripped her arm.
“Dyrc!” she snapped.
“Wait,” he hissed and narrowed his eyes at me. “Don’t you see how weak he is, Nanna? Don’t you sense it? We don’t need to give up any of the stones. We can just kill him now and be done with it. The Council’s problems with him would be solved!”
“Dyrc, that is not sanctioned by the Council,” Nanna argued, her eyes flashing. “And you have already jeopardized our mission with your foolish actions. Do not make it worse on yourself.”
So, they didn’t know the Council’s true intentions. Or they were incredible actors, but I doubted that. But whether they knew or not, Dyrc was determined to carry out the Council’s real mission.
“The Council would reward us!” Dyrc glowered at me, his eyes alight with the hope for death.
Aishe pressed to my side and nocked an arrow to his bow. I touched a hand to his, halting his movement.
“Give us your other stones, Morgorth,” Dyrc ordered.
“Or we destroy you and your little pet.”
I kept my face and voice impassive. “What makes you think I have any more stones?”
“I know you do.” Dyrc took a step toward me. “Rumors abound, and the ludki like to talk about lucrative trades.”
I knew he was lying. Ludki would never volunteer such information. They were little miners that I had a deal with; if they found a stone of power, they would hand it over to me, and I would pay them in gold and silver. And stone, if they wanted that. They were simple-minded and had no use for the stones. The stones wouldn’t help them build better mines or search for minerals. They were also not known to brag. They were modest, humble, and I had great respect for them. It was likely Dyrc had tortured one or two to get that information. My hatred for him bubbled just under the surface, but a quick spark of pain from my magick served to quell my anger.
“If you can’t keep a simple deal, then you get nothing and your shame doubles,” I said coldly.
“Who are you to deny us anything? You can barely stand!” Dyrc teased. “I can smell the stench of your sweat and see the trembling of your legs.”
Damn it to the underworld.
Nanna was silent, considering. She pulled back Puejuek, and I could see calculation behind her eyes. Anger against them both flared, and I was unable to hold it back. It speared through me, and I gasped, doubling over.
Aishe dropped his bow and grabbed me, keeping me upright.
Dyrc laughed. “See, Nanna? He can’t even fight! He’s weak.”
I glared at him, but I knew how helpless I was at that moment. My icy fear threatened to weaken me further, and I fought it off as best I could. Fear would not help me. I forced my mind to think of a way out.
“Give us the stones, Morgorth!” he demanded. “Or we’ll just kill you and take it anyway.” Dyrc grinned wickedly at Aishe. “And I’ll take your pet and teach him some manners.”
Aishe shook, with fear or hate, I wasn’t sure. I knew I shook with both, and that kept the pain shooting through my muscles, not allowing me to stand up straight.
“I’ll kill you if you touch him,” I warned. “If you kill me I will lay a death cyrse on you. On both of you!”
“You don’t have enough magick left to make it a strong one,” Dyrc taunted. He turned to Nanna. “Come on, Nanna.
Let’s rid the world of this pest.”
Snarling, desperation driving me, I held up the pouch where Rambujek was hidden.
And opened it.
Nanna and Dyrc froze. My other hand hovered over the opening.
“You want me to do it,” I whispered, unable to keep my voice from trembling. “This is what you expect me to do, isn’t? Then that would give you an excuse to kill me?
Guilt-free? Council-sanctioned? You have to know that’s their real mission, right? They want to provoke me into declaring war on them, so they can destroy me.”
I bared my teeth, battling between my two desires: to use the stone to destroy the mages, or to destroy the actual stones. What would I become if I grabbed Rambujek at that moment? What could the ruby do to me? For me?
“You want me to lay waste to this world? To my home?” My voice rose with strength despite the weakness of my body. “You want me to prove that I am like my predecessors, that I am the seventh son of a seventh son?
Should I kill you both to prove that?”
Rambujek, sensing my weakness, sung to me. It crooned and promised, c
ajoled and simpered. The ruby pulsed inside the pouch, against my hand. It pulsed to the beat of my rapidly throbbing heart. Would Puejuek protect Dyrc and Nanna -- should they activate it -- from my rage empowered by Rambujek? Would the blessings of the Mother prove to be more powerful than the essence of war?
If I grabbed the ruby, would Nanna grab Puejuek?
I had a sudden vision of standing on Mount Shelain, the tallest mountain on Karishian. I stood there, Rambujek in my hand. I was strong, confident, fierce. I ruled, and everyone else followed. The world was mine -- I commanded it. It worked the way I wanted it to. The Council was destroyed, and there were only a few select mages still alive. All were afraid of me. The vision changed, and I stared at a lake, deep red. It was filled with the blood of the mages who desired my death -- the ones who had shown up at Muelsel, ready to kill me as a child. I had power. I had fear to rule those under me. I was second only to the Mother. Vindication was mine.
Suddenly, the visions vanished, and I was standing in Vorgoroth once more, staring at Nanna and Dyrc, who seemed to be holding their breaths. My hand shook over the pouch. Rambujek sung louder, echoing in my ears, my mind, my heart. My hand lowered.
“If you want a war, I can give you one,” I threatened.
Nanna and Dyrc were still. They seemed lifeless, their eyes glued to my hand. My fingers were a breath away from touching the pulsing stone, when I felt Aishe’s arm tighten around my waist, his fingers clenching into my coat.
“I am with you,” Aishe murmured in my ear.
I stilled. My hand froze. He wasn’t going to fight me. He wasn’t going to try to stop me. My dark visions cracked, and I suddenly, acutely felt Aishe’s arm around me. His warmth seeped through my coat and into my skin. His strength and loyalty showed in those four simple words.
I am with you. His smell filled my nose, and those words echoed in my head. Whatever my choice, he would be with me all the way. If I became a monster, he would be beside me. He’d linked his fate with mine, latching on to me no matter what the consequence.
And that was why I found the strength, the resolve, to reject Rambujek’s call. With my fingers nearly touching the singing stone, I managed to pause and know that I would not use it. In my weakened state, who knew what it would do to me? Who knew if I could let it go after using it? I might become one of those addicts, those creatures I detested and pitied.
But Nanna and Dyrc didn’t have to know the decision I’d made.
“Now it’s your turn,” I growled at them. “You give me Puejuek and be on your way. Or I take hold of Rambujek and kill you both and take it anyway.”
Silence fell. Even the forest held its breath.
“You declare war,” Nanna whispered. She was visibly trembling.
“I threaten war,” I corrected. “Your next decision decides whether I declare it.”
We were at a standoff. Then-- “You can’t harm us!”
Dyrc flung his hand at us. Aishe managed to roll us out of the way of his fire lance. I cried out in pain, and the pouch nearly fell from my hand. I gripped it and could have sworn I felt Rambujek struggle to get loose. I had nearly touched it. We hit the ground, and I’d only managed to yank my hand away at the last minute, before instinct would have me clamp my hand on the stone. I called to my magick, and pain was my only answer.
“I... can’t... fight...” I gasped.
“Just hold on to the ruby,” Aishe said, his voice hard. He grabbed his bow and rolled us off the trail just as another fire lance came shooting at us. I could hear Dyrc and Nanna arguing even as Dyrc continued to attack. I gripped Ramujek’s pouch as Aishe tossed me over his shoulder. He tried to run into the forest, but even as he turned I saw Dyrc aim a punch of pure force at us.
“Duck, Aishe!” I shouted.
Aishe ducked and swung around so he faced Dyrc. The force slammed into my trees. It caused their trunks to crack, and their branches broke and flew away, snow flying through the air. Even with me over his shoulder, Aishe nocked an arrow and let it fly toward Dyrc.
I looked over my shoulder in time to see Dyrc scoff and fling the arrow away with little effort.
“Dyrc, stop!” Nanna grabbed his arm. “We need to talk about this!”
Dyrc flung Nanna from him. “Enough talk! Now we take action against this parasite.”
I was useless, and that pissed me off. Incredibly. But pain was the only result from calling to my magick. Desperate, staring at imminent death, I had no choice.
“Aishe, leave me and run!” I demanded.
Aishe gripped my leg so hard that his nails dug through the thick material and into my skin.
“Fuck you, Morgorth,” Aishe growled as Dyrc lifted his hand. “I’m not leaving you. We die together.”
Suddenly, even as Dyrc lifted his hand and Nanna stood, howls pierced the forest in all directions. Shrieks filled the sky, and snarls and roars came thundering toward us.
I slipped off of Aishe’s shoulder, and he kept his body between me and the mages with another arrow nocked. I looked around in awe as the trees thrashed, their groans and creaks mixing in with the cacophony of sound around us.
The forest was alive, and it was enraged.
I gripped Aishe’s shoulder and found it as hard as stone.
Dyrc and Nanna looked around, shock and panic on their faces. They should be afraid -- they were about to see the brute force of my own army. Dyrc had only had a taste of what my minions could do on that battlefield. Now he was going to see their true strength.
Grekel came into view first, but I felt the presence of more bodies behind Aishe and I. Eyes stared past us. The sound of their harsh breathing met my ears. I glanced up, and until now I never really knew how many fasion called Vorgoroth home. I’d say it was over one thousand. Their black bodies filled the sky, blocking the sun, the clouds.
They flapped their large wings, filling the air with their shrill calls. They continued to gather, casting us all into darkness.
“Morgorth!” Dyrc shouted. “What is this? What have you done?”
“It’s what you have done,” I said, and stood, using Aishe to push me to my feet. I took a step forward, finally able to swallow my anger and calm my breathing. Aishe stood behind me, his steady presence comforting.
“Morgorth?” Nanna’s voice was hushed. The calls of my minions diminished, and the silence was almost worse. I knew that Nanna and Dyrc could feel the numerous eyes on them. They could hear the breathing and the lumbering of large beasts. The flapping wings of the fasions as they circled above was eerie -- like carrion birds waiting for a feast.
One fasion suddenly shot down out of the flock. It streaked past Dyrc, close enough to scrape his cheek with one of its wicked claws. Lansa settled on my arm, folding his wings, glaring beadily at the mages.
“You called me weak,” I spoke softly, knowing everyone heard me. I glanced at Grekel, and he stopped his steady approach toward the mages. He kept his body low to the ground, vibrating with the desire to pounce. The eyes of the other wichtln gleamed around us, restless. A couple of truls with large clubs were in view, their small, gray eyes hungry.
“My strength does not rely on magick alone,” I continued. My heart still pounded, and it still took all the strength I had to stay standing. But I kept my voice steady, hard, and as cold as the air currently biting our flesh. “If you want to kill me, you have to go through them.” I nodded around us.
Nanna took a cautious step toward Dyrc, her head swinging all around, perhaps finally realizing just how surrounded they were.
“You would hide behind your minions? Pathetic,” Dyrc spat. But I heard the fear, and it eased the tension in my muscles.
“Hide? Who’s hiding? At least I’m not one who hides behind the Council’s robes, relying on them to govern my actions and give me purpose in life.” I held out my hand.
“Puejuek, if you please.”
“Don’t give it to him, Nanna,” Dyrc warned.
Grekel and the other wichtln growle
d and came closer.
Dyrc formed a fireball in his hand, but that only provoked my minions. They crept closer.
“If you don’t, I will have to assume you wish to become my minions’ supper.”
“You c-can’t kill us,” Nanna stammered, her face gray in the dim light.
“I won’t be killing you.” I smiled and tilted my head slightly. “As far as I’m concerned, you and Dyrc left my territory with Rambujek. Whatever happened to you after that, I have no knowledge of.”
“You bastard!” Dyrc took a threatening step toward me.
Grekel launched himself on the mage’s back.
I bit my tongue to keep from ordering Grekel back. I couldn’t bluff, not this time. Grekel tried to bite the back of Dyrc’s neck, but the mage was too quick. He used pure force to blast the wichtln alpha off of him. Grekel flew through the air and slammed into Nanna. She fell hard into the ground and lay still for a moment. I suspected her shock slowed her reactions. Grekel rolled a fair distance before staggering to his feet. He let out a piercing howl that raised the hair on the back of my neck and arms.
Dyrc gained his feet as the rest of pack charged. I watched silently as the wichtln used claw and teeth to try and rip Dyrc to shreds. They paid extra attention to his hands, which were a mage’s greatest weapon. Hands directed magick. Only a few older, skilled mages could direct with their minds and have their hands remain motionless.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nanna stir. She must have hit her head hard because it seemed to take a lot of effort to sit up. Her eyes were dazed, blurry. She still clasped Puejuek’s pouch in her hand. She looked dumbly at the wichtln attack and didn’t seem to understand what was going on.
I kept myself cold, detached, as the pack ripped into Dyrc. He fought well. He injured some, even killed a few.
But wichtln claws were made for cutting through thick hides, and Dyrc had made the mistake of not wearing armor, or even enchanted clothing.
