“How am I supposed to do that from inside?” the forest tracker asks before lowering his weapons. Kicking a bone off the mountain, he notices a plume of smoke coming from the top of Rainbow Tower. “I don’t have time for this. You may think you’re helping, but you’ve only made things worse. There’s nothing I can do. Why didn’t you use your one chance for when Nyx or Timoran arrived?”
“Because they aren’t you,” the halfling calmly states as he puts the ring back on. Feeling the Lich stirring in his head, he begins to make his way down the mountain. “I saw you take on a Hellfire Elf when you were an inexperienced warrior. You even convinced me to charge into a battle with Spadix and Cyclopes. One thing I know about you, Luke Callindor, is that there isn’t a problem that you can’t solve. That’s why I trust you more than any other champion when it comes to taking this barrier down. The Baron may have planned for anything the others can do, but I doubt he’s really ready for you. The fact that you’re still alive after that first fight is proof of that. So, think of a way out of this even if it’s nothing more than telling your big sister to tear it down. Good luck and have a fun life. This is probably the last time we’ll ever meet and I’m glad to help you out one last time.”
Luke watches Nimby disappear behind the first bend in the road as he whispers, “Thanks, old friend. I’ve been getting a lot of lectures lately, but I think I needed that one more than the others. Get ready, Arthuru, because I’m only getting started.”
*****
Rainbow Tower lies cracked in half and the surrounding garden is still smoldering from the magical flames that brought the building down. Huddled around the only surviving tree, fifteen citizens avoid looking directly at the Baron. Having retreated to the caster tower instead of evacuating, the three families had hoped they could wait out the battle in the warded shelter beneath the famous structure. Even as the memories began returning, they were sure Willow and Cyril could protect them from the immortal. Now, the ancient casters have vanished and only their staves are left behind, the cracked remains driven into the ground like grave markers. An infant continues to cry no matter how much he is comforted, the noise of the brief attack still ringing in his sensitive ears. The child finally stops when the Baron casts a sleep spell that transforms into healing magic, the new spell coating the terrified group.
“I do apologize for scaring all of you, but I had no idea anyone was left in this city,” the warlord states as he gets closer. With a wave of his hand, he revives the garden and offers a peach to a little girl. “My intention was to test the masters of this tower, but they appear to have not been home in quite some time. Now, I do not wish to hurt anyone here. Please understand that I plan on being a kind and generous ruler.”
“We know what kind of monster you are,” an old man declares, his body shaking as he stands. Freeing his arm from his cautious son’s grip, he limps forward and tries to stand as straight as he can. “You kill and destroy in order to get your way. Those who question you are tortured and put to death simply for disagreeing. I’m old enough to have seen people like you try to claim power and they always say the same thing. A man like you doesn’t know the meaning of words such as kind and generous.”
“I admit that I made some mistakes in the past, but those were less civilized times,” the Baron insists, reaching out to repair the man’s crooked spine. His hand is stopped by the mortal’s cane smacking it aside, which breaks the incantation. “You are a brave and stubborn goat, which I say with the utmost admiration. One would say to respect your elders, but I have been alive much longer than you. That means I have seen the same things you have, but on a grander and more repetitive scale. I can tell you that I am nothing like the simplistic despots that you have encountered. They lack the vision and benevolence that I have.”
The old man spits on the immortal’s boot, causing his family to avert their eyes. “More words that you say without knowing what they truly mean. If you’re going to kill me then do so without jabbering. You’re never going to get me to accept you as anything other than a man who prefers to be a monster.”
With a respectful bow, the Baron raises his sword and aims for the mortal’s neck in order to kill him quickly. To the warlord’s surprise, the old man refuses to turn away or close his eyes, which continue to burn with defiance. The immortal’s arm is still pulled back when Luke drops from above and punches him in the face with a saber hilt. Having the griffin’s top speed and momentum behind it, the blow sends the Baron crashing to the ground and skidding into a thorny bush. Grinning with pride, the champion stands between the Baron and the old man, who hurries back to his family.
“I was wondering when you would return,” the warlord says as he stands and wipes the bruise off his face. With his feet barely touching the ground, he lunges forward to drive the half-elf away. “Still no sign of the others, which does not bode well for you. While that last strike was impressive, I can still sense your weakness. You will not get another opportunity now that I am focused entirely on you. Surprise was your only friend and you failed to use it for a killing blow.”
“Says the benevolent monster with a tooth missing,” Luke replies, pointing at the gap in his enemy’s smile. He charges and spins to the side of the rapier, but his slashes harmlessly skitter off the flexible platemail. “My friends will get here soon enough. There were a lot of demons and Nyx can get a little carried away when a battle starts. Your only worry should be surviving me long enough to face them.”
“An empty threat to hide your fear.”
“Not anymore.”
“Then, what are you feeling now?”
“Excitement.”
Luke ducks the Baron’s swing and rolls through the taller man’s legs before flipping him into a nearby pond. Untouched by the water, the warlord leaps out and rapidly stabs at the champion in order to drive him toward the fallen tower. With the ground becoming uneven and covered in debris, the forest tracker is forced to hop and jump to avoid tripping. His enemy is unhindered by the obstacles, the lower half of his body becoming intangible and allowing him to calmly continue walking in a straight line. Pink magic coiling around his sabers, Luke dives at the Baron’s ghostly legs and dispels one of them. An elbow to the back of his head drives his face into a chunk of rainbow-colored rock, stunning him long enough for the immortal to revive his missing limb. Blood dripping from his broken nose, the half-elf leaps away from a chop that explodes the ground and sends him tumbling. The dust is still settling when the Baron appears behind Luke and picks him up by the neck.
“I am through playing with you,” the warlord growls, tightening his grip. His rapier flips up to open Luke’s shirt and leaves a cut running from his right shoulder to his left hip. “I believe you once hoped to have a third scar, which makes a triangle. Too bad you will die before the wound has time to heal. I will tell your friends that you put up a good fight since this is where your destiny ends.”
“Leave him alone!” the citizens shout as they pummel the Baron with rocks.
The projectiles bounce off his armor, the few that hit his head doing nothing more than irritating him. A disintegration spell begins to form in his eyes, but the small crowd refuses to back down. Before the deadly blast can go off, Luke flips and hits the Baron in the chin, which sends the beam slamming into the dome above. Twisting free, the half-elf slices off the immortal’s arm and kicks him in the face to break his nose. The instant he lands, he rushes forward and is about to swing for his enemy’s waist when he is forced to block a downward slash to his head. The ground beneath Luke’s feet cracks and his legs start to buckle, but he musters the strength to push back and avoid falling to his knees. The brief delay is still enough to stop his momentum, which gives the Baron time to float out of reach and focus on healing his fresh injuries.
“Where did all of that strength come from?” Luke asks while resetting his broken nose. His eyes fall on the gathered citizens, who still have rocks in their hands and are ready to continue their assault. “It
was them. I saw their courage and it drove me to fight harder with a strength that I haven’t felt before. No, I have felt this before. Whenever I fought alongside someone who had no fear, it made me stronger. The champions don’t just get power from their own core. They gain it from the people around them. In turn, we inspire and energize them. That’s why you and the Lich wanted this dome. It cuts us off from our real power source, which isn’t the temples or ourselves, but the people we’re defending.”
“And the final piece of the puzzle falls into place,” the Baron declares while examining his regenerated arm. He pulls his armor back into its original shape and takes a step toward the mortals. “Unfortunately, I would have let them live if you had not figured it out. You only have yourself to blame for this.”
“It’s about time!”
“What?”
“Sorry, I wasn’t talking to you.”
Luke sprints as fast as he can, his sabers spinning as he repeatedly crosses and uncrosses his arm. His swords are blocked by the immortal’s rapier, which gets trapped between the thicker blades. Before he can get free, the Baron hears a sword swinging at him from behind and holds up his arm. The glassy shield emerges from his gauntlet to block Delvin’s bastard sword, which continues to push against the slick disc. Both of the champions kick at their enemy’s legs, neither of them willing to give ground. Confused by the pointless blows, the Baron is content to let them continue their flailing while he figures out their plan. It is only when he hears gurgling water that he begins to worry, but he sees no sign of Sari and all of the ponds are still. Focusing through the obvious illusion, the gypsy comes into view at the edge of a nearby fountain. With a snap to his senses, a stronger invisibility spell is broken to reveal Dariana charging forward with her arm encased in a giant fist of churning water. Luke and Delvin dive out of the way as the punch strikes and becomes an icy gusher that drives the Baron through the distant wall. He has no time to recover due to Timoran waiting in the street, the barbarian using his great axe to bat the immortal high into the sky.
“This is where Queen Nyx attacks with her usual fiery blasts,” the warlord says, amused by the joint attack. Without warning, a magical force yanks him through the air and rapidly draws him back to the arena. “What in all of Windemere is that?”
The Baron tries to use his own magic to fight against the pull of Nyx’s spell, which has taken the form of a black orb above her head. Small objects are sucked into the condensed energy, which begins crackling with amber lightning. All of the immortal’s spells are absorbed by the bloating sphere that has become larger than the channeler. When Nyx’s violet eyes open and she smiles, the Baron raises his rapier to defend himself from the inevitable blast. A final pull brings him so close to the orb that he cannot get away when it is hurled. His weapon pressing against the dense magic that smells of burning ozone and cherries. Struggling against the attack, the immortal is sent flying into the ocean where the spell explodes into a wall that immediately implodes. A second eruption shakes Gaia and sends the water away from the shore, the gallons trapped inside the dome running up the sides and coming down like rain.
“I call that one Star Crusher,” Nyx announces as she joins her friends. Giving Luke a tight hug, she holds on until her head clears. “That didn’t kill him, so we should get to the docks. One more of those blasts might finish him off. What in all of Windemere are citizens doing here? All of you need to get into that basement! The wards are still there even though the tower fell. Do not come out until this is over!”
“I’m sorry, Nyx, but I don’t think we will be able to give you enough time to cast that spell again. My father will be watching for it,” Dariana says, her nose bleeding from the dome’s constant pressure. She scans for the Baron, but realizes that her range is limited to only a few blocks. “That second explosion wasn’t your spell, so I think we destroyed the Sword of Xan. Oh, I’m sorry. Good job holding him back, Luke. Luke? Where are you going? My father is in the other direction.”
The forest tracker is already halfway across the garden, but skids to a stop to yell back at his friends. “Nimby told me that I have to find a way to get that dome down. We get strength from the people around us, so we need those armies to join the fight. At the very least, we need the barrier down to feel their influence. Think you guys can keep the Baron busy while I work on this? You do kind of owe me a break since you took so long getting here. Thanks for taking over!”
“You know that we defeated a demon swarm and demolished a primordial god’s castle, right?” Delvin asks, his voice carrying over the distance. He laughs at the brief applause he receives from the departing forest tracker. “There he goes again. Very little explanation or much of a plan. Unbelievable.”
“But oddly comforting to see him so much like his old self,” Timoran replies, patting his friend on the shoulder.
Sari whistles from the hole in the wall, her body covered in protective water. “Enough standing around! You don’t want him to get all of the credit for this fight. Last one to land a blow on the Baron has to buy the first round of drinks.”
“With their own money,” Nyx adds, catching up to the gypsy.
“Do we really have to go over the rules again? Your money is my money.”
“Just be careful, little sister.”
“Aren’t I always?”
*****
Turning all of her armor into a thick shield, Sari tries to deflect the Baron’s two-handed broadsword. The weapon shatters the ice and thuds into the ground, the point sticking into the cobblestones an inch from the gypsy’s foot. She runs up the blade and hops over the immortal before he can finish casting a lightning spell. Diving into a barrel of rainwater, Sari launches herself onto the roof as the crackling bolt is whipped around. Windows shatter and walls ignite as the energy ripples in a circle, which rises along the metal torch poles that turn bright red before the melt. The Baron is about to fire another spell when Timoran tackles him from behind and hurls him through a wall. The barbarian waves for his friends to stay out of the way, the immortal rushing out of the building as a mace appears in his hands. With an echoing boom, the two warriors collide and try to push each other back, the champion slowly losing ground to the ancient warlord. Seeing a hazy scorpion tail rising from the Baron’s back, Sari leaps off the roof and hurls multiple daggers that bounce off the man’s scuffed armor. When one of the blades strikes the immortal in the eye, he is stunned enough for Timoran to deliver a headbutt that drives the weapon further into the socket.
“It will not be that easy,” the Baron growls, the dagger sliding out of his face. A single blink repairs the damage and he swings at the barbarian, the ungainly blow knocking the warrior through two small houses. “Your jaw broke my mace. Though I feel that I got the better of that exchange. It is amazing that Luke gave me more of a fight than the five of you. Not that I was fighting with all of my strength. Perhaps the crests have gained more power than I realized or you have been weakened by the demons.”
“Barely broke a sweat with them,” Delvin says while pouncing on the Baron. With his forearm pressed against the man’s head, he summons his shield and has it slam into his enemy’s face. “I don’t think you’re having as easy a time as you think. We already took out the Sword of Xan, so no teleporting around for you.”
Grabbing the shield, the Baron forcefully pulls it forward enough that he can slip his head free. Spinning around, he hurls Delvin over the ocean and sends a swarm of poisonous javelins after him. The warrior blocks and deflects the projectiles as he falls towards the water, which swirls into a geyser that meets his feet. With a faint plunk, he is sucked beneath the surface and the remaining javelins shatter against the dome. Knowing that Sari is behind the rescue, the Baron snaps his fingers and ignites the building that she is standing on. The gypsy jumps over an alley at the same time Delvin is launched out of the water, the warrior rocketing toward their enemy.
“A strange tactic, but-” the immortal says, his voice cut off when
Sari lands on him. The gypsy kisses him to deliver a fear spell that fails, his hands grabbing her by both wrists. “That is simply insulting! Pathetic emotion magic would never work on a man like me. I should rip you in half for even thinking about touching my lips.”
“Well, I wouldn’t kiss you even if my life depended on it,” Sari happily claims as she fades away. The illusion disappears completely when Delvin drives his sword into the Baron’s stomach and releases the weapon. “Do it, Nyxie!”
Hovering above the battle, Nyx hurls the biggest lightning bolt she can create and strikes Delvin’s weapon. The blast leaves a wide crater in the street and one of the surrounding houses tumbles into the hole. Glowing white hot from the strike, the bastard sword has been driven into the earth. Sensing that the attack failed, Nyx creates a protective bubble in time to stop the Baron from hitting her. Coming from her left, the immortal pries open the spell and yanks the champion out by her arm. Fire explodes around them as they wrestle for control, the channeler taking every opening to deliver an enhanced punch. A blast of crimson light from the warlord’s hand stuns the channeler, making it impossible for her to defend herself. Feeling hands grab the sides of her chest and start to crush her ribs, Nyx magically fortifies her bones and organs to resist the immortal’s strength. Whenever she tries to turn into smoke, the Baron casts a spell that threatens to tear her incorporeal body to pieces. Knowing that she cannot fight back for much longer, she creates a blast of wind that strikes from above and slams her into the ground. Bleeding cuts are on the half-elf’s sides and they burn as she struggles to stand. With a blue fireball in one hand and a black one in the other, Nyx prepares for the Baron to swoop down at her.
“Retreat with the others!” Dariana shouts, diving into her father’s path. She catches his curved sword between her hands and snaps the blade with a simple twist. “The crests need to be destroyed or turned off to give us a chance. I can sense Luke doing something on the other side of the city, so go to him. If not that then find a place to hide. Only I have the strength to hold my father back right now. The rest of you need to stay alive until the dome is down and you can access your full power.”
Warlord of the Forgotten Age Page 29
