by Sam Ford
Just for a moment, the shadows rippled into a rainbow of colors, drawing the Demon into it. Then the darkness folded in on itself--once, twice, thrice. Cale pulled Sword free,
And Malicent was gone.
Cale stood back, horrified at what he had just seen, at what he had just done. It was nothing like what he had imagined. Sword was right--this was a war between the Swords and the Demons. Humans were never meant to have a part in it.
And Cale had just chosen a side.
There was a shout. Galway was dragging a soggy and bleeding Vyk to shore. His skin was pale and cold-looking in the hot, summer sun. This wasn't good.
Jazreal cradled Vyk in her arms. "Not again. Please, not again."
Cale could see the wound was bad. The Demon's talons had pierced his chest and blood was spilling all over the ground. The piercing wound kept gurgling, frothing red blood everywhere.
Just like Lydia.
Cale look around, trying to find a physician. To a man, the Rangers had all fled. Only Galway remained, a pale appearance on his face. They had been friends once, Cale realized. He didn't want Vyk to die any more than they did.
"Sword, we've got to do something."
I'm sorry, Cale. If he were an Imperial Knight, his Sword might be able to save him. We can offer limited protection and healing to our Bearers. But he isn't, and we don't have a spare Spirit Sword.
"We could give him Jazreal's!"
No, Cale. That is her Sword. The bond wouldn't take.
"Isn't there anything we can do?" Jazreal cried, looking at Cale with pleading eyes.
"Not without a Spirit Sword." Cale was crying. "I'm sorry. If I had just been faster, none of this would have happened."
"He knew the risks. He knew he couldn't hurt the Shadow Dweller and yet he battled beside us all the same." Jazreal reached for her own Sword. "We can give him mine! Quickly, what is the process?"
Cale shook his head. "It won't work. Swords have to be with a person for a long time. That one is yours. He needs his own. I'm sorry."
Vyk sputtered and coughed, looking paler by the minute. He tried to sit up, to move, to talk. He had no energy. Jazreal held him close, stroking his hair. Then Vyk reached into the pocket of his trousers and withdrew a handful of wet, red rust. The same dust he'd placed there two days ago.
"What is this?" Jazreal caught his hand, holding the red sand.
"What's left of a broken Sword." Galway said. "It was his father's, and his father's before him."
Cale's eyes widened. He looked at Sword, and Sword looked back.
A dead Sword.
"Will it work?" Cale barely breathed.
I... don't know. I just don't know.
"Well, there's only one way to find out. What do we do?"
Get some water. Quickly!
"Water!" Cale screamed.
"Here!" Galway tossed his canteen. Cale caught it in midair and removed the cap.
Mix the Nahaki into a paste. It should be the color and thickness of congealed blood.
Cale poured out half the water and dumped all the rust into the container. He stirred as if a life depended on it.
It did.
Now make him drink. All of it.
"Is this going to work?" Jazreal looked into Cale's eyes.
Cale was scared. He felt like crying, but he needed to be strong. For her. "I don't know."
You should pray.
"I don't know any words."
Then I shall intercede before the Creator on your behalf.
Vyk choked down the paste with more than a few coughs. The wound was sucking, bubbling with every shallow breath. Jazreal held her hand over it, trying in vain to stop the bleeding. The flow had slowed. That wasn't a good sign. Vyk was barely moving, barely breathing.
"How long does this take?" Jazreal didn't even try to hide her tears.
I am sorry, Cale. It would be a tall order, even for me. The odds were never very good.
Cale laid his head on Vyk's chest, trying to stem the flow of tears. Jazreal clenched her hands tighter. Vyk smiled softly, his eye unfocused.
"It's okay." He looked up a Galway. "It's okay."
Galway's voice cracked, just a bit. "Say hello to your mother and sister."
"She's beautiful." Vyk closed his eyes, whispering softly. "I'll tell--arugh!"
Cale leapt back. Vyk sat up, coughing and hacking blood. The wound on his chest was no longer bubbling air. Jazreal screamed and pulled her hand away, clutching it. Cale took her place. Vyk's chest felt burning hot beneath his hand. Jazreal fell back and Cale bore through the pain as Vyk rolled to his side, still coughing.
"It burns! Oh, it burns. What did you do to me, lad?" Vyk clutched his chest.
"I don't know! Sword?"
It is working. I almost can't believe it. Miraculous!
"Ugh." Vyk looked up at Jazreal. "What happened? I saw my mother."
"You almost died!" Jazreal burst into tears, clinging tightly to his chest. Cale hugged him, too.
"Ow! Ow, careful. I'm tender."
"What happened to the other Ranger? Where is Galway?" Cale stood and looked around. The Ranger was long gone.
"He was never one for goodbyes," Vyk told them, lips frowning in derision.
"I'm just glad you're back." Jazreal hugged him. "Cale, what is that sound?"
There was, if fact, a sound. A low rumbling, way down in the ground, like an earthquake or an avalanche. Cale could feel it in his bones and the back of his teeth.
Something was very wrong. The birds took to the air in panic, sensing something was terribly amiss. Jazreal stood beside Cale.
"What is that?"
Cale shook his head. "I don't know. But I've got a bad feeling about this."
Chapter XXXI
The world rumbled, trembling in shock like the sound of a million galloping horses. Cale stared at Sword. They both knew what was coming.
Those fools! They breeched the dam!
"How did they know?"
They must have felt Malicent pass on. They used to be Swords, you know. It was their failsafe, no doubt, but I never thought they would actually use it. They never intended for you to survive this encounter.
"And all that water..." Cale turned, looking back at the city and the thousands of people in the flood's path. "What can we do?"
If it were Oltho, he could have diverted the river. You, though... we simply have not had enough time together, Cale. I am sorry. We should have trained harder.
"Save it. The Rangers are all running."
They think those city walls will save them.
"Will they?"
Possibly.
Cale looked around. "We could run, too."
We could.
"But then all those people outside the city would die."
And perhaps those inside the city as well. Yes.
"I can't leave them," Cale decided.
Alright, Sword Talker. What is your plan?
Cale was smiling. Sword was proud of him. He just had to find a reason to make him even more proud. "If we can't run, and the river can't be moved, then we will just need to stop the flood."
Cale, I am a Sword, not a shield.
"I know that. But there has to be a way. I read something about it in a book."
You are speaking of the unstoppable force meeting the immoveable object, yes?
"That's the one."
Cale, you may be an Imperial Knight, but you are still just a boy. This is a torrent of water. If you try stopping it, it will not only succeed in moving you, it will break you.
"Water." Cale thought aloud.
Pardon?
"You said water. If the unstoppable force can't be stopped, why not change what the force is? You said it's a wall of water. What if we turn the flood to steam? Steam won't drown anyone. If the wall of water hits a wall of fire, it should all evaporate, right?"
You would not be able to sustain it for long.
"We don't need long, just enough for Jazreal and Vyk
to get everyone inside the city walls. It might leak through the stones, or flood the river, but it won't be moving so fast by then and people will survive."
The strain will be immense. You could die.
"If we don't, all these other people will die."
Now you're thinking like an Imperial Knight!
Cale ran forward. Jazreal was still cradling Vyk, but he was alive. That's all Cale needed.
"Are you feeling any better?"
"Oh, wonderful." Vyk coughed.
"He is still very weak," Jazreal informed him.
"It beats being dead, trust me. I don't know how you did it, lad, but you saved my life. Thank you, Cale."
"I owed you one." Cale smiled. "But we've got work to do. Can you stand?"
"What's the mission?" Vyk got to his feet, leaning heavily on Jazreal.
The rumbling was growing audibly louder now. "We need to get all these people into the city."
"All of them?" Jazreal stared at the refugees. Many had been camped outside the city, cold and hungry, for over a month.
"If we don't, they're going to die."
"I don't think the guards will let them in."
"Leave that to me." Vyk stepped forward. "Jazreal, start rounding them up, women and children first. Into the city. I will deal with the guards."
"That's a good plan."
"Where will you be?" asked Vyk. "That flood is getting awfully close."
"Leave the water to me and Sword. You two just get all the families into the city."
"I can't." Jazreal looked at Cale. "They won't listen to an Indian."
"They'll listen to you." Vyk placed his hand on her shoulder.
"How do you know?" She stared into Vyk's face. They both had the same eyes, Cale noticed.
"You're not just some Indian." Vyk rubbed her head. "You're a princess."
"My cousin was the princess." Jazreal smacked his hand away, but there was no malice in it. She was smiling.
"I've seen your feisty side." Vyk smiled. "Trust me, they'll move."
"Alright." Jazreal beamed up at him. "If you say so."
"Are you ready?" asked Cale.
Jazreal hugged him tightly, wrapping her arms around him as much as possible. Cale had the wind squeezed from him as her chest pressed against his. He couldn't breathe. Not that he minded so much, honestly. She let go with a growl.
"Thank you for everything, farm boy." She gave him a peck on the cheek for luck. Cale froze in shock, seeing stars. "Just in case we all die and I never see you again."
"Cheery. Where's mine?" Vyk smiled.
"In your dreams, Ranger." Jazreal ran off, heading to the nearest family tent.
"Don't worry, Cale. You'll never get over that one." Vyk followed at a slower pace, heading for the city gate.
Cale stood, gob-smacked. He didn't want to save the city or stop the water. He just wanted to relive that moment over and over. This was the best day of his life, and he didn't care if they were all about to die!
Cale.
"Right." Cale shook his head and rushed for the city gate.
The climb was far more grueling than he expected. He didn't know how guards made this ascent twice a day. By the time he reached the parapets three stories up, he was winded and his legs ached. The fight must have taken more out of him than he thought. The guards up top just ignored him, rushing to the rail.
"I'm out of shape," Cale gasped.
See? I told you, you need some meat on your bones.
"What are they all looking at?"
See for yourself.
Cale moved to the railing along with the other guards. In the distance, the birds were all screaming, flying up in a massive flock. The low rumble could be heard even all the way up here. The wave of water was clearly coming. Down below, some of the peasants had started to scream, realizing what Jazreal had said to be true. They rushed the gatehouse. Vyk had barely got the guards to let them through without killing any. They were doing their jobs well. Now Cale needed to make sure he did his.
We need to be higher.
"Right." Cale started climbing the parapets, standing atop the capstone. His mother and brothers had never let him climb trees back home, yet here he stood, on top of the world. "Is this good?"
It will have to work.
"Sword," Cale took in the scope of the work before him. "I don't think I can do this."
I will be with you, Cale Tannor. Even to the ends of the earth.
"Thank you," Cale drew Sword from his scabbard, remembering how much they had been through together already. "What should I do?"
Alright. Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Concentrate. Clear your mind of distractions.
"Kinda hard with all those people screaming."
Don't focus on them. Focus on me. Focus on the fire within you.
The wind picked up, rushing ahead of the torrent. It whipped the pennants into a frenzy and sent his hat sailing. Cale could smell the water now, rushing headlong through the forests at breakneck speed, destroying everything in its path. He kept his eyes closed and tried to focus, but it was hard with the screams of the panicked children, the cries of the birds and the calls of the beasts. He tried to concentrate. He had seen the fire before. He had felt it within himself. He knew it was in there--he just had to find it.
Cale.
"Working on it."
We are running short on time, Cale.
"Not helping!" Cale squinted his eyes tighter.
Focus on my voice. Feel the fire within. It is a warm place in your chest. Think of the ones you hold dear and your love for them.
"Right. I've got it," answered Cale. Jazreal, he thought to himself. Think of Jazreal.
Alright. Now pour that energy into my blade. I shall draw it out as a blacksmith draws hot iron.
"Okay, ready? Go!"
Cale.
"What?"
There is no fire.
"What?!" Cale opened his eyes. Sure enough, Sword was as cold as the day they had met. Worse, the wave was now easily visible over the horizon. A thirty-foot tall wall of water was hurtling toward them.
I thought you were concentrating? You said you had it.
"I did! I was thinking about people I hold dear."
Who were you thinking of?
"What? You don't need to know that."
Was it Jazreal?
"What's wrong with Jazreal?"
Nothing is wrong with Jazreal. She is a very lovely girl.
The water was getting closer "Alright then. You said to concentrate on someone I am in love with, so I did."
No, I said to think of the ones you hold dear and your love for them. I cannot help what your hormone-addled brain heard.
"Okay, so shut up and let me concentrate."
Besides. You are not in love with Jazreal.
"What?!" Impending doom completely forgotten, Cale broke concentration. He brought Sword right to his face. "How do you know?"
Cale, you just met her.
"So? People fall in love at first sight all the time in stories."
This is not a book, Cale! This is not a fairy tale! You are very young. You do not know what those feelings are yet. Cale, I do not know what the future holds. Maybe you two are destined to be together. Maybe you will fall in love. I do not know. But that is not where your faith is. She is not your rock. You do not need that kind of love right now. You need faith.
Cale was at a loss for words. If he couldn't think of Jazreal, who else was there? He didn't feel about Vyk that way. Certainly he was admirable and treated him much better than Aaron and Byron ever had, but that didn't mean he loved him. Cale was missing something, something deep down inside. Something he had almost forgotten.
Ready?
"Hang on."
Cale. It is getting closer.
"I'm trying!"
Focus, Cale. I know you can do it.
"I can't."
Yes you can.
"I can't!"
Yes. You. Can.
"How do you know?!" Cale screamed. He was in tears, but he didn't care. The wind and salt and sand stung his face. "How do you know so damn much?!"
Because I have faith.
"What good does that do?"
Faith is everything, Cale. It is the first lesson I taught you. Faith is an assurance of things that are hoped for. It is evidence of things humans cannot see. You cannot see love, just like you cannot be sure of hope. Faith bridges that gap perfectly. But you must believe, you must have faith. We have not yet seen you command fire, but I am sure you can. Because I have faith in you, Cale. Do you have faith in me?
Cale bit his thumb, closing his eyes. Faith. That was it. Faith was a belief.
So who had faith in him? Who believed in him? Who had been there from the very beginning? Before Vyk and Jazreal, before adventures and journeys? Before even Sword himself? The person who was always with him? The person whose love never faltered, whose hope and faith walked with him every day? Who greeted him in the mornings and bid him good-night at bed? The one he longed so desperately to see again, just once more? The person he held dear to his heart and loved more than anyone else in the entire world?
"Tully."
Cale's eyes snapped open and Sword flared to life, bright white and blindingly hot. The sound was both holy and horrific, a screech of superheated steel, burning at full blast. The runes on Sword's blade sang out, iridescent and perfect. The tidal wave was upon them now, cresting monstrously high as it raced downriver.
Cale felt the energy surge through him like nothing he could describe. It wasn't combat mode. This was different, fuller. As if he had lived without his other half for his entire life and had finally found it. The world burst into a rainbow of colors, sharp and in beautiful contrast. The swirling jet of flame grew seven, ten, fifteen-feet long. An impossibly long sword for an improbably young boy. Cale and Sword didn't even need to communicate. They moved as one, fully in sync. It was not a matter of question, only action.
No more words or wisdom or questions or conversations. Cale and Sword both knew what to do.
With a swipe of Sword, the flame leapt from the tip, falling to the ground. It landed, spread and rose. A wall of fire surged forth, rising as tall as the city armaments. The flames danced red and orange, burning, yet not consumed. The surrounding guards retreated, some leaping from their posts to the ground some twenty-five feet below. Cale hoped they landed on something soft. The peasants and refugees outside the city gates finally all made it through, slamming the doors and bolting them tight.
