by Brad Clark
“So I’m part Elf?” Hargon asked.
King Illichian smiled and nodded his head. “Yes, your family lineage, many thousands of years in the past, has an Elf in it. Without that, you would not be able to cast spells.”
“What about his power to heal?” Conner asked. “No other Elf can heal like him, right?”
“No one ever taught me that,” Hargon said. “I just knew how to do it from a little boy.”
“That is a question that I have pondered since I first heard of you,” King Illichian said. “Elves do not need to be taught how to use magic. They need to be taught how to control it and control themselves when they use it. The power of the Web is beyond anything we can really understand. I’ve been alive longer than any, and I think I can say I have an understanding of its power, but only the One God truly understands the full power of magic. The fact that you were able to heal as a young boy without being taught indicates that you indeed are powerful, and more powerful than you might imagine.”
“Well, isn’t that a scary thought,” Glaerion said in a low, quiet voice.
King Illichian heard Glaerion, but he continued as if he hadn’t. “The power of the Web of Magic is more than just something that can be cast through a spell. Magic can be imbued in objects, which can hold its power for as long as that object exists. As you know, your necklace is a part of an artifact that was created many ages of years ago by the One God. As you are so aware, on its own, the Ark of Life gives you more power than you would normally have. It can help protect you from being consumed by your own power if you cast a spell that is too powerful. The spell you used to kill all the goblins should have killed you as well, as you are far from ready to cast that powerful of a spell. It was your necklace that gave you the extra power and protected you from it. Once the gem is added to the necklace to complete the Ark of Life, then its power will be ten-fold, plus you would not have to worry about resting at all, as you would have infinite strength to cast spell after spell.”
King Illichian stepped over to Elissa and put a hand on the Dragon’s Egg while she held it. “Only Elves have the ability to imbue objects with their own power. We can cast illusions on walls, or give strength to steel, or accuracy to our arrows. Humans, though, do not have that type of ability. On their own, at least. They discovered, though, that by using the power of an unborn dragon, they could imbue that power into an object of their choice. Magical weapons, talismans, and other objects were rampant thousands of years ago when Humans slaughtered unborn Dragons to make them.”
“We didn’t kill Dragons just because we hated them?” Elissa asked.
King Illichian shook his head. “Humans slaughtered Dragons for many reasons, and one of them was to get to their Eggs, or to keep the Elves from getting to them. There are many reasons to hate the Humans of the past, and that is one of them. But today, it is what will save us all. We will use the Dragon’s Egg to increase our ability to imbue a simple rock with the same power as the Ark of Life.”
Silence filled the chamber. In the distance, the sound of water dripping from the top of the cavern wall into a small puddle could be heard.
Elissa looked down at the Dragon’s Egg and said with a low, soft voice, “You said you could do this yourself. Why do we need the Dragon’s Egg?”
“My dear Queen Elissa, we are not nearly powerful enough. By using the Dragon’s Egg, we will have a direct link into the Web of Magic which will allow us to imbue at a level that rivals the real Ark of Life gem. It can never replace it, and over time its power will wane and disappear. However, it should last long enough so that Hargon can stand at the front of our army and destroy the Deceiver’s army, and hopefully the Deceiver himself.”
“If this was always an option, why wait until now?” Elissa asked. “Could we not have saved many, many of my people and your people if we had done this months ago?”
“Even Myllia had hoped that we could defeat the Deceiver with the army that we had put together. Humans, Elves, Dwarves, and Dragons all working together for the first time in history was simply not enough. You also have to understand the sacrifice that is about to happen. Myllia’s offspring will be sacrificed for this, and that is not done lightly. Not only because Myllia is the Dragon’s mother, but this unborn Dragon could have restarted her race. This sacrifice may end up sending Dragons into extinction. There is still hope left, but we are running out of it. Myllia has recognized this and is willing to sacrifice not only her offspring but her race for the survival of this world. This is our last chance. If this doesn’t work, then we won’t be able to stop the Deceiver’s army.”
***
If the Deceiver knew fear, it would have caused him to shake uncontrollably as he listened to the words of the Elven king. Maybe his heart would have pounded hard in his chest, hard enough for it to burst. But he did not know fear, so the words of the King of the Elves only gave him the impetus to act immediately, rather than waiting for a more opportune time. He knew the danger of the Dragon’s Egg and wanted to destroy it to keep another Dragon from being born, but now there was another reason to destroy the Egg. He could not let it be turned into a magical talisman that could be used against him.
Then the Human named Hargon pulled out the necklace, and the physical heart in his Human body did begin to pound hard. It was a new feeling that he had never experienced before. His Human body let out an audible gasp, and a warm flow of electricity seemed to flow through all the veins in his body. With the burst of energy, all his Human senses were enhanced. He was focused solely on the thought of the necklace finally being in his grasp. These puny Humans and Elves could not stand up to him. It would be trivial to kill them all and just take the necklace. The amulet hanging around his neck suddenly burned hot, and he knew it was time to make his move.
***
Marila shook with fear. She suddenly realized who the stranger was, and the thought of him so near was overwhelming her newfound emotions. At one time, she had dreamed of being in the Deceiver’s presence, basking in his evil glow. Now, though, it made her shiver and feel ill with guilt. She had always known what he was, but all she had ever known was his evil. In her mind, there had been some idea of what good was, but it had always been something that she couldn’t really grasp, so she didn’t care about it. Now that she’d experienced this world and the goodness that it was, she could see how wrong, and how awful, she had been. She had served an evil whose only purpose was to destroy others. She knew that she could never be accepted by these people and by the One God, regardless of what she did. Having gone so far down the path of evil, there was no way to come all the way back.
That didn’t mean she couldn’t help these people, though. They had fought hard against an enemy she thought for sure would overwhelm them. Instead, they had not only survived, but they had defeated a horde of thousands of goblins. If she didn’t do something, though, all their victories would be for naught. The words of the Elven King struck her hard. The sacrifice of so many would not have been worth anything if she stayed silent and did nothing.
So, she acted.
***
Conner listened intently to King Illichian’s words as he let his eyes wander around the group that had assembled. He was annoyed that Lord Martin brought two of his henchmen into their midst. He recognized one, but the other had the hood of his cloak partially obscuring his face. Standing on the other side of the half-circle was Marila. Although he trusted Elissa’s judgment, he still was not sure how he felt about her. Even though she had helped Hargon back into the castle after he had cast his spell to destroy all the goblins, it was hard for him to believe that a follower of the Deceiver could turn good as quickly as she had.
On the other hand, if she was not on their side, she had the opportunity to kill Hargon without anyone knowing. By allowing him to live, Marila should have finally convinced them all that she was changed. He knew that she needed to accept who she now was, for she had done that with all the other people that he had come across. Glaerion had
not been friendly to him, or any Human, at first. Now though, he was Conner’s best friend. Hargon had been Emperor of Taran before being poisoned by his brother and removed from his rightful throne. Maybe Hargon had not changed as much as Glaerion, but he was certainly not their enemy. Even Hemli, who had tried to sacrifice him to the Dark Elf, was now fighting at their side. Just because Marila was not born of this earth did not mean that she wasn’t deserving of the same grace and forgiveness that he showed all his other friends. At that moment, he finally convinced himself that Marila was on their side.
He had been watching her as he processed his thoughts, and she began to act oddly. She looked around nervously, pulling her cloak tightly around her body as if she didn’t want to be seen. As King Illichian’s finished speaking, Marila moved with a grace and speed that he forgot she had. In one smooth move, she tossed off her cloak and leaped at Lord Martin’s cloaked henchman. If he had realized that it was the Deceiver she was attacking, he might have started his attack immediately. Instead, he watched with a surprised and dumbfounded stare.
The leap was so long that Marila seemed as if she were flying through the air. Her hands were outstretched, reaching out for the Deceiver’s face. He reacted a heartbeat slow, and he put up a hand to defend against her attack, but it was clear that she was going to crash right into him. But, at the last instant, Marila was suddenly thrust backward, tumbling through the air. As she spun, her illusion disappeared, revealing her hairless gray body. When she landed, it was on all fours, legs crouched underneath her, ready to spring her forward.
The Deceiver did not stop his attack with Marila. With quick precision, he turned and aimed his palms at each of them. The force of his attacks sent everyone else tumbling across the hard ground. The Elven Guard was closest to him, and they took the brunt of his attacks. Two of them twisted as they fell, their necks breaking with a loud crack. King Illichian tried to jump out of the way, but he was caught in the attack. He rolled more than tumbled, which saved his life, but his arm got jammed underneath him and snapped.
Conner drew his swords and charged, even with bodies flying around him. He still did not know that it was the Deceiver he was attacking. If he had known, it would not have made a difference. Elissa had not yet been attacked, and he knew that he needed to get to this man before she was. With an angry cry, he pulled a sword back and prepared to slice the Deceiver in two.
The Deceiver smiled and casually put his palm towards him. Conner felt the tingle of magic as it swept over him, but nothing happened. The Deceiver thrust his hand out again, trying to force more power out of himself, but Conner raced forward confidently, sword cocked and ready to strike. Conner’s confidence was not in knowing that the Deceiver’s magic could not harm, but from the fear that this man who was attacking them could kill Elissa. Without thinking about how his Hurai blood had just saved his life, he slashed down, slicing off the Deceiver’s arm.
The Deceiver’s eyes went wide in a mix of confusion and fear. He grabbed his arm and watched incredulously as blood pumped out of it.
Conner did not pause or hesitated. He slashed his swords across the front of the Deceiver’s body twice. The Deceiver stumbled backward, his face frozen in pain, his mouth open, but no sound coming out. Then Conner slashed his sword horizontally through the Deceiver’s neck. The head tumbled down a moment before the body fell.
Conner stood over the dead body, his heart pounding hard in his ears. He did not hear anything around him. His entire focus was on the dead body in front of him. Whoever it was had cast magic to try and kill him but had failed because he was Hurai. He began to wonder who else could be like Hargon, able to cast magic. Somehow the Elves had missed sensing him among them, and their mistake had nearly killed them all. Fortunately, he had reacted out of instinct and took care of the problem. A hand touched him on the shoulder, and he turned to see Glaerion and Hallendrielle standing next to him. Both their eyes were wide, and their mouths hung open.
In a soft voice that he rarely used, Glaerion said, “The power he drew from the Web was stronger than anything I’d ever felt, and it was just getting stronger. If he had another moment to cast a more powerful spell, he would have killed us all. How did you know to attack him so quickly? He had hardly started when you were on him.”
“What?” Conner asked, not sure what his Elven friend meant. “I don’t know. I saw Marila attack him first, and then I just acted on instinct.”
“Is it really him?” Hallendrielle asked. “We did not need the Spear?”
“Him?” Conner said. Slowly, the realization came to him. “It wasn’t him, was it? Did we just kill the Deceiver?”
Glaerion squatted down next to the body and touched it as if it might somehow stand up and move without a head. “He is dead, so I guess it’s over.”
Marila, still in her natural form, walked over to the body and gave the head a swift kick. In any other circumstance, it would have been comical. In this one, though, it seemed entirely appropriate.
“You killed the body!” Marila said sharply. “Now we don’t know where he is!”
“What?” Conner asked, confused.
“You can’t kill the body without killing his essence first!” Marila continued with frustrated exasperation. “Your Human swords do nothing to him! He does not fully exist in this realm like me or his other creatures. Only his essence exists in this realm, and it can move from body to body.” She reached down and grabbed the leather pouch that had held the Ark of Life gem. It was wrapped around the part of his neck that was still attached to his body and came up into her hands easily. She squeezed it to show that it was empty. “Whoever has the gem is the Deceiver.”
Hargon was still sitting on the ground. He rubbed his chest where the Deceiver’s spell had struck him while he slowly scanned the cavern. “Where is Elissa?”
“What?” Conner asked, unsure if he heard Hargon correctly. Then he started to spin around, looking for Elissa. She was nowhere to be found.
“Elissa!” Conner cried out in a desperate panic. He took two steps and stumbled. A fuzzy blackness filled his vision, and his head started spinning. Glaerion caught him before he collapsed, and gently guided him to the ground.
“No,” Conner said with a shake of his head. “No.”
“Lord Martin and the other one are not here anymore, either,” Glaerion whispered into his ear. “It is likely that the Deceiver took one of their bodies. He would certainly not take the body of a pregnant woman.”
Despite Glaerion’s words, Conner’s head continued to spin. Lights flashed in his eyes, and the darkness threatened to overtake his vision.
“Get it together,” Glaerion said sharply. “We’ll find her, but you need to have your mind straight.”
“She’s my wife,” he stuttered. “My child.”
Glaerion’s eyes narrowed, and his nostrils flared. “Everyone has lost someone, and if they haven’t, they soon will. This war is far from over, but if the Deceiver gets away, we may never have this chance again!”
Conner allowed himself to breathe, and his vision slowly returned to normal.
“The longer we sit here wallowing in despair, the farther away he will get!” Glaerion said. He pointed at Marila. “You! Can you track them?”
“Yes,” Marila replied. “He can try and hide his presence, but I now know what it feels like when he is near. It feels like death, and that is something I will never forget.”
Glaerion pulled Conner to his feet. “Is your mind right, now?”
The fear and despair that had swept over him were gone. In its place was pure rage. “Death will be too easy for him when I catch up to him.”
“Good,” Glearion said. He pointed at Marila again and said, “You, let’s go!”
He turned to leave, but a shout from King Illichian stopped. “Glaerion!”
King Illichian held his broken arm close to his body. His eyes were glassy, and it looked like he was about to pass out, but he shuffled over to Glaerion. In his good hand
, he held Spear of Salvation, which he lifted and presented to Glaerion. “You will need this.”
Glaerion looked down at the weapon, and for a brief moment, he feared that touching it would burn him like the Ark of Life did. When he and Conner had first discovered the black gem, he had touched it, and it sent a burning pain through his body. He had been stabbed, slashed, and stuck with all sort of weapons, but none had been as painful as what he had felt then. But the shaft was just cold, solid wood. King Illichian was holding it, so it should not harm him. He reached out and took it, expecting to feel something, but it felt just like any other weapon. When he looked up, Conner had an anxious look on his face.
“Are you ready?” Glaerion asked.
Conner gave a sharp nod and turned to Marila. “Lead us!”
Marila looked around the cavern for a moment and held up her nose to the air. “This way,” she said. Not waiting for either Glaerion or Conner, she started jogging off towards the back of the cavern.
***
King Illichian was helped down to a sitting position by Hallendrielle. He moved his broken arm and let out a sharp cry. Hargon, who had been absently looking around, brought himself out of his confused state. He rushed over to the king and kneeled next to him. Closing his eyes, he let his healing power be released through him and into the King. A moment later, he opened his eyes and looked into the king’s eyes.
“You healed me,” King Illichian said.
“Of course,” Hargon replied.
“You should have saved your energy.”
Hargon shook his head. “You were in pain. I could not just let you be.”
