by Logan Byrne
“Lexa! Watch out!” Blake yelled across the room, and I looked up to see a golem about to break his sword over my head.
“Arma Maximus!” I screamed. The sword slammed into my shield and I was thrown to the ground from the force of the hit. He lifted his sword again, striking it against the bubble, as it cracked beyond repair. I knew a third hit would break it. He lifted his sword once more, and I scurried out, crawling away. The golem’s sword broke through the bubble before rupturing into the ground.
“Britta, melt them!” Charlie yelled.
“Ignitus Maximus!” Britta yelled, a giant stream of fire setting a golem ablaze.
“Yes! Just like that!” I yelled, smiling. My smile quickly faded, though, as the golem walked through the fire towards her, and she had to end the spell and duck for cover. Her magic didn’t do anything—not even a little part of him melted. They were ice, but at the same time they weren’t. It was as if nothing could stop them.
I looked over at Blake as he ran up to one of them, trying to stall him, but the slashes from his claws didn’t even leave a mark on the golem. “Trip them up!” Faus yelled from the sidelines.
“Wait,” I mumbled, as an idea hit me. I looked down, rubbing my foot along the ice, feeling the grit and grip of it. “That’s it!” I yelled, as Britta looked over at me.
“Glacio!” I yelled, pointing at the ground, as a slippery layer of clear ice began to cover it.
“Is that the best idea?” Charlie yelled, as he ran laps around a golem.
“The ground isn’t slippery, it’s textured! If they can’t walk, they’ll come tumbling down!” I called, as Britta’s eyes widened.
“Glacio Maximus!” she yelled, and the floor around her quickly turned to smooth ice.
The golems began to approach again as I waited for their feet to come onto the ice. “Did you think you could stop us with that?” one asked, laughing, as my smile quickly disappeared.
“Guys!” Faus yelled, before I quickly turned and saw him running from a golem that was chasing him, making the ground rumble under us.
“Faus! You need to shift!” Britta yelled.
“I can’t,” he said, visibly trying to hold it back.
“If there ever was a time for you to be angry, it’s now!” I screamed, and the light instantly left his eyes as he let the animal inside take over. As he ran, he began to shift, growing three times in size as his smooth skin turned furry and horns sprouted from the top of his head.
I heard him start to roar, feeling the vibrations before he turned around, steam puffing from his snout, and he began to charge the golem that was chasing him. He charged horns-first into the golem’s leg, taking it off balance, and it flew backwards and fell to the ground.
As the golem struck the icy ground, I fell over. It felt like the plates beneath us had shifted and caused a massive earthquake.
I sprung up after a moment, flinging off bolts of energy, but my spells smacked the golems and ricocheted off them as if I were a fly trying to attack a human. Faus roared again, charging another golem, his anger spiraling out of control as his eyes began to turn red.
“We need to stop him before he collapses this place!” Blake yelled as Faus stampeded into another golem and took him down, the impact sending the icicles above crashing to the ground.
Faus turned a corner, spinning around, when he was hit. A golem struck him with his sword, the blunt edge hitting Faus head on. The impact blew my hair back a little as Faus was sent barreling into the wall. He crashed into it, sliding down, moaning, his eyes closed. He didn’t move.
“Faus,” Britta said, running over to him.
I looked at Blake and Charlie. We were starting to lose the battle. None of us was capable of taking on the golems. The two Faus had knocked over got back up, neither looking damaged at all. They’d completely brushed off the attack as if it were just a small annoyance.
I looked to my left, seeing the golem who had challenged us earlier walking towards me, shaking his head. “You thought you could defeat us, child, but we are eternal. Merlin himself created us, and only Merlin himself can defeat us. I will give you a swift death,” he said, as he raised his sword.
“Lexa!” Blake roared, before being smacked by a golem and flung against the wall near Faus.
I looked at Charlie, his cat-like whimper echoing through the arena as a golem threw him across the room, sending him sliding into Britta as she tended to Faus. I dropped my wand, looking back up at the golem holding his sword at its peak, and then it came barreling down.
I put up my hands, closing my eyes, and let the power surge through my body once more. A massive barrier of blue light blocked the sword, and the golem pushed down harder, trying to break through. My vision changed, and the light let itself in.
I focused my powers, trying to hold back the overbearing weight of the sword wielded by the powerful golem, as the ice began to crack around me. I began to scream, but the mark was protecting me and not allowing the golem to take my life.
“What is this? I don’t understand,” the golem yelled, as the others looked on in awe.
“My name is Lexa Blackmoon, daughter of Oliver and Charlotte! I am a bearer of the Mark of Merlin, and I will bring peace and order back to these realms!” I screamed at the top of my lungs as the light around me grew so bright it blinded me.
I felt the surge of power, the entire ice floor beneath me cracking as I screamed, and the golem’s sword shattered into a million pieces before he stumbled backwards. Huffing and puffing, I stood there, staring them all down, until they began to kneel, their heads down. “You, Lexa Blackmoon, are worthy of the crystal wand. You may approach,” the golem I had defeated said.
I walked forward, looking at my friends. All of them, even Faus, who had come to, looked in awe as I glowed like a bright star in a dark night sky. I walked up the steps to the wand, where it was standing on its end, a fountain of ice propping it in place. I’d done it, I was finally here, and I’d defeated the golems. I took a second, staring at it, before reaching out slowly, my hand inching closer.
My fingers touched the wand, the snowy white quartz cold against my hand. I turned it, looking at the veins of gold swirled through it, before I turned around, aiming the wand outwards. It glowed, my mark using it like an antenna, and I felt a new surge of power flow through me.
“Eruptico!” I yelled, and the ball of fire detonated against the far wall, blowing a hole larger than a golem in it.
Kiren didn’t stand a chance.
15
I came back to my normal self, the mark fleeting, but this time I felt better than I had the past couple times it had taken over me. I didn’t feel tired, or like I was going to be sick. Was it the wand? Did it act like a grounding rod, able to keep my surging power in check?
Just as I was about to walk down the steps and rejoin my friends, there was a rumble. I looked around, my eyebrows furled, as the chamber began to shake. “What is that?” I mumbled to myself, seeing the golems looking puzzled as well. The door we’d come through was blasted open, a plume of smoke filling the immediate area, and a group of seven duskhowlers prowled through.
They were smiling, no longer hiding behind their masks. “Thank you for leading us here and doing all the heavy lifting,” one sneered, his black hair pulled back in a ponytail.
“Who are you, and why have you desecrated our sacred chamber?” the main golem’s voice boomed.
“We are here to retrieve that,” the man said, pointing at the crystal wand in my hand.
“You are not worthy of the crystal wand. You shall not have it,” the golem said, as the other golems came and stood by him.
“Oh, I don’t need your permission to have that. My master requires it, so I will make sure he receives it,” he said.
“If Kiren wants my wand, then he can come pry it from my hands himself instead of sending his lackeys to retrieve it,” I shouted, as the man started to look angry.
“You’re the girl with the mark, I presume? Lexa Bla
ckmoon?” he asked.
“And don’t you forget it,” I snapped, standing strong.
“Well, Ms. Blackmoon, prepare to meet your doom,” the man said, before raising his wand above his head. He swirled it around, sending a trail of raging fire towards me without even incanting a spell.
I planted my feet firmly on the altar as he flung the fire forward. It swirled around violently before slamming into a golem who stepped in its way. The golem was pushed backwards, stumbling, coming right at me. I ran down the steps and out of the way as he crashed down, shattering the altar as the ground beneath rumbled.
“Too afraid to fight, girl?” the man asked, laughing.
He motioned and his men started to spread out, the golems moving to meet them, as they were bound and determined to protect both the wand and their space. “I’m sorry, was somebody speaking?” I asked defiantly.
“You won’t have that attitude when you’re begging for me not to kill you,” he said, before raising his wand again. He flicked it forward, sending a bolt of green firing out, and I swiped my wand in front of me, the crystal wand glowing as it blocked his spell.
“Impossible,” he growled.
“If you want that wand, you need to go through me, too,” Britta yelled, walking over to me. Recovered, Faus stood up, no longer in his shifted form, as Charlie and Blake both stumbled over, neither of them looking like they were anywhere close to full health.
“Have it your way,” the man said. “Attack!”
The duskhowlers started to throw out bolts. The golems tried their best to help, but the spells still slipped through. Britta and I did what we could, blocking the spells that came towards us, though the duskhowlers were gaining ground. “We need a shield,” Blake said.
“Lexa, you do it. Your wand is more powerful than mine,” Britta said, as she fired out a bolt.
“Arma Maximus,” I incanted, swiping my wand from left to right. The bubble formed instantly, no longer taking its time. I looked at the wand in my hand and saw it glow faintly for a second before returning to normal.
“That was quick,” Britta said, as the duskhowlers’ spells hit the shield like insects zapping into a light.
“Yeah,” I muttered.
“Leave now, and protect the wand at all costs. It must never fall into the wrong hands!” the golem yelled as the duskhowlers started to gain the upper hand on them.
“Ready?” Britta asked, her wand up, ready to commence the teleportation back to the camp.
“I don’t want to leave them,” I said, feeling conflicted on whether we should stay and fight or retreat, leaving the golems to die.
“They said before they were eternal,” Charlie said.
“And they did just tell us to leave,” Faus quipped.
“Fine,” I said, raising my wand. Rays of blue light pulsed around us before we teleported back into the camp, a crowd of people starting to form around as as we landed.
“They have it,” one whispered.
“I can’t believe it’s the crystal wand. It’s real,” a woman said.
“You’re back,” Pote said, rushing to the scene a minute later.
“We were attacked on our way out,” I said, standing up from the mud where we’d landed.
“Is that?” Pote asked, her eyes wide.
“Lexa did it,” Britta said.
“We all did it. I never would’ve gotten anywhere near this thing if it weren’t for them,” I said.
“She’s the one who defeated the golems. They bowed before her and everything and told her that she was worthy. It was spectacular,” Britta said, smiling and patting me on the shoulder.
“Is this true?” Pote asked, looking me in the eyes.
“Yeah, it is,” I said, “but I’m not some hero or anything. It was the mark, not me.”
“The mark is a part of you, Lexa,” Mirian said, walking up, as the crowd parted for him. “The mark isn’t some other thing that lives inside you, it is a part of your very essence and soul. It picked you for a reason, and that reason has become quite apparent. Come with me.”
“Mirian, I think we should—” Pote said.
“Heta, this is my area of expertise. Please, it will only be a short while,” Mirian said, and the two of us walked towards his tent.
“Is something wrong?” I asked, after we walked inside.
Mirian’s tent was huge, though it was completely unassuming from the outside; he’d probably used a charm to give himself extra space for the massive library of books he’d collected over the years.
“Not at all, Lexa. How are you?” he asked.
“Fine?” I said, confused.
“What you did out there isn’t a small feat, Lexa. Nobody has ever done it before, but you did it. You aren’t even a fully trained witch, yet you did the impossible,” he said, congratulating me.
“Like I said out there, I couldn’t have done it without my friends. I never would’ve made it on my own,” I said.
“Tell me more about who attacked you in there, other than the golems. What did they look like or say?” Mirian asked, sitting down in a purple velvet chair.
“They were duskhowlers, and they definitely worked for Kiren. They said as much. They didn’t even bother wearing masks, and instead just came with their faces exposed. I think they expected to kill us in there, so they didn’t care if we saw them,” I said.
“What did they look like?” Mirian asked.
“The man who did the talking was white, probably about your height, with black hair in a ponytail. He had a wand, but he didn’t speak any spells he used,” I said.
“Wilmeth Killiam,” Mirian said, stroking his chin.
“Wait, you know him?” I asked, in shock.
“I’ve been keeping tabs on him for quite a while, outside my duties at M.A.G.I.C. I didn’t tell anybody, not even Heta, but now I must, as my fears are confirmed,” he said.
“What fears? Who is he?” I asked.
“He’s a rune mage, just like Kiren. He’s Kiren’s right-hand man, the person he has doing all the important dirty work so Kiren can keep his hands clean, at least theoretically. He’s a very advanced wizard, probably more so than I, and the fact you escaped his grasp is a miracle,” Mirian said.
“He wanted the wand for Kiren. The golems gave him a fight, but I’m not sure they made it in the end. They forced us to leave and save the wand,” I said.
“That’s their sole duty and purpose in life, to protect that wand. I just don’t know how they found you,” Mirian said.
“They said they’d been tracking us. Maybe somebody in Ilulissat gave us up. We were pretty much sore thumbs there,” I said.
“Maybe, I don’t know. He isn’t going to rest until he gets that wand, Lexa. No matter how powerful that wand is, or how much your powers have grown, Kiren knows you possess both the mark and the crystal wand. He will stop at nothing now,” Mirian said.
“Then I’ll strike first before he can reach me. I won’t back down,” I said confidently.
“Whatever you do, never lose that wand. The rest of the world is counting on you,” he said.
“Mirian, we must speak at once,” Pote said as she came into his tent while the two of us sat there talking.
“What is it, Heta?” he asked, standing up.
“Lexa, will you please leave us for now?” Pote asked.
“No,” Mirian said as I stood up, ready to leave. “Whatever needs to be said can also be said to Lexa. Given what she has, and what she’s capable of, she should be included.”
“Fine,” Pote snapped.
I looked at both of them, feeling a bit awkward, as I knew that my presence was causing problems. “We have received word that Killiam has begun attacks on those creatures who will not join him and Kiren.”
“Who have they attacked so far?” Mirian asked.
“So far, he has attacked pixies and Minotaurs, and we believe he is in the process of attacking merpeople,” Pote said, with a sense of urgency in her tone.
“So he’s going to commit genocide on those creatures who either won’t join him, or want to remain neutral? Despicable. I knew they were trying to gather forces, but to do this? This is a crime against all magical beings!” Mirian shouted, obviously distressed.
“Who do you think he’s going to attack next?” I asked.
“That depends on what kind of message he wants to send. The pixies and merpeople would be fairly easy for him, but I’m surprised he got the upper hand on the Minotaurs. They are a strong race, as you’ve seen with Faus, but their numbers aren’t huge like some others. That’s probably why he targeted them,” Pote said.
“Maybe we should contact Rafael,” Mirian said, but Pote started shaking her head.
“Mirian, you know he explicitly said he and his people would not join either side. They don’t want any part of this,” Pote said.
“Heta, what are our options? If they know about Lexa—” Mirian said.
“Who are we talking about here? Who is Rafael?” I asked.
“Rafael is the king of the high elves. They are a strong species, but they made it known they will not have any part of this. They want to live in peace, within their kingdom, and have no outsiders taint their walls,” Pote said.
“Rafael said that before, but he might change his mind. If he knew what Kiren was planning, he would see that the fate of the realms is at stake. If he knew about Lexa, he might change his mind,” Mirian said.
“One message. We will send him one message, but that’s it. If he agrees to meet with us, we will go there, but I’m not expecting much. Get it sent out immediately,” Pote said, before leaving the tent in a huff.
“I haven’t heard much about them, the high elves. I don’t think I’ve ever even encountered one,” I said.
“They’re a secretive and self-sufficient race, that’s for sure. They’re rarely seen in the realm outside their own little kingdom,” Mirian said.
“Wait, the woman in Ilulissat, she said she was part elf, but it wasn’t a large part. One of her parents was a mortal, and so were some grandparents or something,” I said.
“That sounds about right. There have been defectors, nothing serious, just those elves who wanted more for their lives. They aren’t too keen on letting anyone out or in, so those elves risked a lot to do that,” Mirian said.
