by Frank Morin
"Finally makes sense," Fearghas said.
"What does?"
"You. Never sat right that you ignored my original threats. Course, being Blood of the Tallan, you're a Blade too. Pretty clever, but must've been hard to conceal."
"Sure was." He needed to get some obsidian from them. It was the one primary affinity he still lacked.
"Well I still want first crack at taking one of those Grandurians," Fearghas added with an excited gleam in his eye.
"We'll see." He hated having to keep more secrets, but had no choice.
Ivor and Padraigin had met with him secretly the night before. They would support him, but Redmund seemed obsessed with winning. He seemed to think that if he could best the Blood of the Tallan in battle, he'd win the honor he so desperately sought.
"Heber, I'm glad you're here," Connor told the other Blade. "Stay close because I'll probably need you to run some numbers once we get to see the battlefield."
"Aye, General," Heber said with another salute. "I'm happy to calculate any statistical probabilities, although I suspect you run your own calculations on troop placements and affinity balancing."
"Uh, sure."
Shona joined the group and without preamble gave Connor a lingering kiss, her body leaned close against his. Some of the male students whistled or catcalled, but most of the girls glared at her.
Connor gently pushed Shona back into line. She seemed anxious to solidify her hold over him, but he wished she wouldn't do it when he was trying to organize the army. She was doing more harm than good.
He walked between the columns of his assembled forces, shaking hands and greeting each of the students individually and answering their questions.
Papil asked, "What's it like creating a hurricane, sir? Air and water together could level cities."
"Let's hope it's enough to level the playing field today," he answered with a smile, generating a ripple of laughter. Her idea was a good one, but it got him thinking about ways they could combine elemental powers between different Petralists. Usually the different tertiary affinities worked strictly separate, but why not a Spitter and a Pathfinder working together to produce a hurricane?
"How are you feeling today?" Aifric asked, touching his forehead with one warm hand.
"Ask me in an hour."
She leaned close and added in a fierce whisper. "I'll be watching your back today."
When he reached Catriona, she blushed. "Thank you, General!"
"For what?"
"For choosing me as your sparring partner, of course."
"I thought you were still mad about that."
She made less and less sense. She had even left her hat behind and wore her hair tied back to maximize visibility of the bald spot he'd cut out of her hair. It was starting to grow back in, but was still terribly ugly.
Catriona grinned. "I finally realized what you were doing. I'm so sorry I misunderstood your purpose."
"I'm glad you figured it out." He had no idea what she was talking about.
"Me too! To think, the Blood of the Tallan chose me, and then singled me out for personal instruction. You honor my house and I look forward to the chance to repay you for it."
"For now just fight hard."
"Aye, sir!"
Lorcc arrived with his scouts, escorting Donald with the official battlefield orders. Donald explained that the battle would take place on the rolling plain again, but that a small island had been added to the lake. It would hold the four sacrificial Grandurians.
"Ground's different, sir," Lorcc added. "Still rolling hills all around, but there's now an eight-foot wall circling the entire lake, about a quarter mile out. Smooth ground inside, straight shot to the bridges."
"Bridges?"
"Aye," Donald took up the explanation again. "Each army will be positioned before a gate in the wall on each primary compass point around the island. Straight shot to the lake, with narrow bridges leading to the island and the enemy."
"That seems too easy," Fearghas said. "No one'll need to fight. Just a race to the island."
Donald shook his head. "Not so fast. Only the generals and three supporting troops can enter the gates, and only their assigned gates."
"Still stupid," Fearghas muttered.
"Not when you know the assigned gate is the one directly across from each army's starting position."
"That does complicate things," Heber said.
So they would need to circle the lake to reach the gate on the far side. Only then could Connor pass through and approach the island where most of Ilse's team waited to kill him. Rory had stationed troops at each of the walkways to prevent the Grandurians from trying to escape, but he needn't have worried. They wouldn't run. All the fighting they wanted was about to come to them.
"This complicates things," Declan said. "The other armies will hit us from both sides. If they can drive us back far enough, Redmund can slip past and into the gate."
"That would be his plan," Connor said. "But I've thought of it first."
"What do you mean?" Shona asked.
"One other thing," Donald interrupted. "No fighting inside the wall other than against the prisoners, and no use of any tertiary affinities."
Connor concealed a frown. He'd been thinking of pretending to drown them in the lake. It would offer great cover for them to escape through the secret ruins under the plain.
"What were you saying earlier?" Shona asked.
"Don't worry about the other armies. They'll be helping us."
"Why would you think that?" Fearghas asked.
Padraigin rushed up with fracked speed and skidded to a stop in front of them. "Because we told him so, of course."
"You what?" Shona exclaimed.
"We all fight for the Blood of the Tallan," Padraigin said.
The other captains cheered, but Shona looked troubled. Connor saluted Padraigin, filled with gratitude that she and Ivor were supporting him, even though he hadn't explained his full plan.
"You know the layout?" Connor asked.
Padraigin nodded. "Just finished scouting it. Ivor and I are in position. We'll block Redmund and open a corridor for you to get through."
"Perfect."
"Redmund has sworn to defeat you, to prove he's mightier, despite your advantages."
"I love it when they're optimistic."
Redmund had grown intensely hostile since the truth about Connor's curse had been revealed, and seemed more determined than ever to win. Padraigin raced away with another salute and a fanfare of invisible trumpets.
Lorcc whistled softly. "You know, if I didn't hate that woman so much, I could fall in love with her."
Shona smacked him on the side of the head. "Keep your focus."
As the others began organizing their forces, Shona pulled Connor aside. "What did you promise Padraigin in order to win her support?"
"She was a little vague," Connor said with a shrug. "Said she'd think of something."
"You can't make agreements like that," Shona exclaimed. "She could come up with anything."
"I've decided to trust her."
He loved how that boiled in her mind. She grew so mad, she couldn't come up with a good reply. Mingled with the anger was a flicker of fear. Perhaps she was realizing that she needed to approach him more carefully. The balance of power in their relationship was shifting. It had to be driving her insane.
Perfect.
Chapter 68
Connor stood at the head of his army on the west side of the walled lake, the side closest to the Sculpture House. Padraigin held the south and Ivor the north, while Redmund faced Connor across the lake.
It was a strange twist to face the final battle with Redmund his primary opponent. Everyone had assumed he and Ivor would face a desperate final confrontation, but everything had changed.
He hoped he could change it further, or people were going to die.
"Do you think they'll really keep their promise?" Shona asked close beside him. It wasn't her assign
ed position, but she had moved to stand with him after everyone settled into ranks, and he couldn't spare the energy to argue about it. She was a familiar presence, like a boil on the skin. Thinking about it just made it itch more and he couldn't exactly poke her with a knife to make her go away.
"We have to trust them."
"Either one of them could turn against us. They could let Redmund slip right through."
"It's not their style."
"Well, they could be plotting together to betray all of us and win through to the island first."
"I know."
"And you're still going to let them?" She looked genuinely confused.
"Look Shona, if I refused to trust anyone, I would've cracked a long time ago. If either or both of them betray us, I'd rather know about it right away. And either way, at least some of us will be clear to secure our gate."
Shona slipped an arm through his, a soft smile on her face. "I love your attitude."
He disengaged his arm. "I'm supposed to be a general, remember? People will start doubting me if it looks like you have to hold me up."
The other captains joined them. "All forces ready," Fearghas reported. "No fancy tactics today, General?"
"Didn't have time to build anything. Besides, Frazier warned me he'd cut off my thumbs if anyone borrowed any more of his equipment without asking first."
"You should have asked him right then."
"I did. He said no."
Lorcc ran up with the scouting report. "Sir, looks like Padraigin was right. Both her army and Ivor's are oriented against Redmund, with no apparent rear guard. Redmund looked pretty upset. Not sure if he's going to commit to one direction, or split his forces.
"Let's hope he splits them," Shona said. "He'd get crushed."
"He'll keep them together," Connor predicted. "Probably attack through Padraigin's army. He is a bit stronger in earth than she is, so he'll try to overwhelm her."
"Double strength that way," Heber said. "Increases his shock and awe coefficient by forty eight percent."
"And their stench factor by five hundred," Shona added to general laughter.
"We can work with it," Connor said. "When he attacks, Catriona will lead our Boulders to join them, with Declan in support. The rest of us will join Ivor and move against the far gate."
"Who's in your final attack squad?" Fearghas asked. The Blade kept glancing across the lake toward the island. The Grandurians waited there, and the last time Connor had tapped quartzite, they'd actually looking bored. He could have sworn he'd heard Erich snoring.
"I still think a rear guard is a good idea," Catriona said.
"No," Connor said. "We strike hard. If something goes wrong, we'll still have the advantage in the race to the gate."
A ball of fire streaked across the lake, signaling that the battle was about to begin.
"Join your squads," Connor told them. "Whatever happens, know that I'm honored to lead you."
Connor stood at the crest of that low hill alone as his captains returned to their ranks and he scanned the area one more time. All of his worries drained away, leaving him feeling surprisingly calm. Somehow he'd convince the stubborn Grandurians to cooperate one last time, although he still didn't know how he was going to rescue Ilse.
The only thing he really needed to focus on was the battle.
A thrill of excitement grew in his heart. He finally faced an open, honest competition, no mask, just himself. He was ready, and would show them what a common linn could really do.
Just as a gout of fire erupted over the battlefield, signaling the start of the contest, the ground shook so hard, many students stumbled and fell. A bellowing roar so vast and deep it sounded like a living avalanche shattered the air. Connor turned with everyone toward the distant heights of Mount Murdo, scanning for the source of the disturbance.
It wasn't hard to find. The ground beyond the northern arc of the great outer wall, beyond Ivor's army, erupted upward like the back of a giant charging torc. That rolling wave of earth, which cast a boiling cloud of dust into the air above it, crashed into the wall and consumed a hundred feet of it.
A monstrous being so vast it strained Connor's ability to believe it erupted out of the ground at the point of impact. It landed on eight gigantic legs, and Connor felt the tremors through his boots.
It wasn't a dream.
It charged right at Ivor's army.
Fearghas, who stood close by Connor muttered, "Oh, we're grouted."
Chapter 69
The nightmare monster looked a lot like a gigantic scorpion made of earth and stone, but with the enormous, flat head of some kind of angry fish. Its sinuous, rectangular torso extended about two hundred feet in an unbroken mass, propelled by eight thick legs. The deadly claws on all of its three-toed feet looked longer than Connor. Spikes sprang out from the rim of its rounded torso, the knees of every leg, and all over its head. It flicked its forward-arcing tail over its back, whipping the tip and cracking it all the way above its head.
As cries of alarm echoed through all four armies, Connor applied quartzite to his voice. "Ivor! Get out of there!"
Padraigin was busy urging Redmund's army to join hers. None of the soldiers needed much encouragement. They fled around the walled lake, making for the dubious safety of the other army lines.
"Boulders to the front," Connor shouted. "Striders get out on the plain. Pick up stragglers. Everyone else, brace to take in Ivor's people and meet that monster!"
As his captains barked orders and soldiers scrambled to redeploy, Connor tapped quartzite to his eyes, and his vision swooped in on the beast, that was closing the distance to the lake with alarming speed.
As their armies merged, Ivor joined Connor atop the low hill.
"What were you thinking?" Ivor cried.
"What? You don't want to join forces against that monster?"
"Didn't you summon it?"
Connor could barely summon a squirrel.
"Call me crazy, but I don't think anyone could summon something like that."
"I will not," Ivor snapped.
"Not what?"
"Not call you anything else." He looked frustrated. "Your name is Connor. Accept it, and stop changing it."
"It's just an expression," Connor exclaimed.
"You can't use that expression, not with how often you change your name."
The monster paused at the far tip of the wall circling the lake and shifted its head back and forth like a bloodhound sniffing the air. Only, this dog had three narrow, vertical nostrils. It opened its huge mouth to reveal four rows of jagged teeth that looked like stalactites, and roared so loud it sounded like the mountain of Alasdair blew up again right in their faces.
Shona rushed up to them and grabbed Connor's arm, her eyes wide with fear and her skin far paler than granite gray. "It's an elfonnel!"
"Impossible," Ivor breathed.
"You've got to be kidding," Connor exclaimed. The stories Jean had told him about the elements raging to life and laying waste to entire towns chilled him. "You can't call that an elfonnel. The name doesn't fit."
Shona gave him an incredulous look. "Seriously?"
"I think you're right," he clarified. "It can't be anything else, but now that I see it, I realized that elfonnel sounds too happy. It doesn't convey the proper sense of terror."
Ivor said, "You've lost it, haven't you?"
The monster took a pounding step forward and rotated its massive head to better focus on them. It sported two huge silver eyes on both sides of its head, and it looked like it was trying to decide which side of the lake to trample.
Connor silently urged it to chase Redmund.
"Call it what you want," Shona said. "That think is an element incarnate."
"They're not supposed to be real," Ivor protested.
"It doesn't get much more real than that," Shona said. "Bonded to earth."
She was right. The stone-like shape of its armored hide and the earth tone of its head made the eleme
nt clear. Connor tapped slate and extended feelers of thought toward the monster, but stopped after little more than a hundred yards. In the distance he could feel a vast presence throbbing through the ground, as if it held the beating of the earth's very heart. He shied away from approaching any closer and that brief contact terrified him more than anything he'd seen.
"We have to get everyone out of here," Shona said. "If it attacks--"
The elfonnel bellowed again, louder than ever, and lunged toward them.
"Make that when it attacks," Connor shouted.
"What do we do?" Shona cried.
"Run!" He and Ivor shouted for their armies to retreat.
Their forces fled back toward the Sculpture House, but Connor could already see running would not help. The monster could step right over the inner Carraig wall and trash the entire complex. There was nowhere to hide.
The constant thunder of the elfonnel's approach drowned out his words as he tried to organize a rear guard, and students began to panic. He tried to think back on what Jean had told him about elfonnel's, but all he remembered was that they laid waste everywhere they appeared, and fighting them had always proved futile.
Of course, that's exactly what he had to do. He might not be able to kill it, but there had to be a way to slow it down.
The elfonnel closed with terrifying speed and the sight made him want to absorb basalt and run right over his own troops to get away. He forced down the urge and grabbed Shona's arm.
"Organize the rear guard!"
"Don't do anything stupid," she shouted back, looking terrified but in control.
He gave her a reassuring smile. "Trust me."
Strange enough, that didn't seem to ease her worries, but for once she rushed to do his bidding.
Connor found Ivor marshaling his tertiary Petralists. "Come on! We have to slow it down."
"You're crazy!"
"What other emotion has any hope of helping?"
Ivor blinked. "Good point."
As he pushed through the last of the retreating army, fighting against the flow, he tried to calm his mind and come up with some kind of plan. How could he stop a raging element come to life?
He needed Jean, but didn't have time to find her. The monster rounded the corner of the wall around the lake, clearing its path straight to Connor and the fleeing armies. Connor reached for his elemental powers. He had to make some kind of a stand.
