Fredin had been running toward the dwarves. He had almost made it to the fight when fire shot over his head, back up the mountain. He turned and watched as all of the orcs on those stairs were burned. Ten to twenty thousand gone in minutes as the fire slowly worked its way down. It wasn’t possible. Vingaza was supposed to be a match for any wizard in the world, but all he could manage from the distance had been a couple dozen small balls of fire. Then the sky began to darken. The clouds formed in minutes. Then the lightning came in force. Whoever was doing this was unimaginably powerful. Delvidge had abandoned them, Fredin thought. A god must have come to stop him.
Gescheit was running along behind him. He stopped and looked to the smaller orc. “That is a god! We cannot challenge a god. We have to get out of here.” He called the retreat to the orcs as he ran toward the trees. He didn’t care what clan they were; he would gather whatever orcs escaped this and claim them all.
Jabaal and Grizzle fought side by side. Grizzle was smashing his way through the orcs with Gorgon’s Hammer. He wasn’t even bothering to block anymore. His armor was dented in a dozen places. If he wasn’t going to die here, it would have taken an armor smith a day to get him out of the armor. He was going to die, though, and he didn’t care. He cried out to his god over and over as he charged through the orcs. He took solace that his son was with Anwar and his wife was with the dwarves escaping out the lost tunnel. With that thought he charged.
“Booooorrrrrrrrdddddddiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnn!!!!” He called it over and over.
Jabaal was running and leaping and rolling around Grizzle, cutting down orcs. He called out to Kalime. “Kalime Aquida! Kalime Aquida! KALIME AQUIDA!” Each time his faith and determination grew stronger. He was going to die in the service of his god, fighting next to the best friend he ever had. His faith and determination grew with each swing of his sword until the blinding blue light was blinding even him. The orcs were falling as he and Grizzle blew through their ranks. As Jabaal charged forward they all cowered or tried to protect their eyes from the blinding light. Because of this they were meeting little real resistance. It wouldn’t last long, though. They were both giving everything they had in their final charge, but their bodies would give out even though their determination and faith never would. Then a river of fire lit up the sky.
Grizzle didn’t even follow where the fire went. But he knew there was only one man who could do such a thing. His son was with that man. If he was going to die he was going to make sure his son lived. He turned and charged, his hammer swinging back and forth in front of him.
Jabaal ran after him. Grizzle was running recklessly through the orc army. Jabaal was just trying to keep him alive now. Where moments before they had both been determined to die in battle, they were now equally determined to make it to Anwar’s side. He might just be able to save the dwarves.
Grundel appeared next to Anwar outside Evermount, the only home he had ever known, horrified at the sight of thousands and thousands of orcs besieging the mountain. Anwar threw fire on the host of orcs, killing thousands. He let Anwar do his thing, but he did his own. He knew he needed to stay with Anwar and he knew Anwar was the only chance to save his home, but he wasn’t going to stand by while orcs were killing his dwarves.
He threw one of his axes with all his strength. The axe cut through a hundred orcs. Instead of having it just travel back to his hand, though, he had it wind through the ranks of orcs on its way back, butting down a hundred more. Two hundred dead orcs was nothing compared to what Anwar was doing, but he was killing the ones that were closest to them and helping keep Anwar free from distractions. He threw his axe again the second it slammed back into his hand. Another two hundred were dead or dying . It was taking two to three minutes for each throw from the time it left his hand till the time it smacked back into it, covered in the black blood of the orcs. The metal wasn’t even visible under the thick black mess. He threw it a third time. This time he didn’t let it make a full pass, though. He saw that Jabaal, who had been running away from them originally, was now moving toward them. He watched as the paladin leapt into the air, his swords cutting down at the heads of the orcs he scrambled over. It was miraculous how he walked atop the mass of orcs. Then he dropped back down, but just before he did, Grundel saw the head of his father’s hammer rise above the mass of orcs just ahead of Jabaal. He called his axe back to his hand and threw it straight at the spot where he had seen his father’s hammer. He visualized the axe smacking into his father’s chest. He wasn’t sure if this was going to work, but he knew he was going to cut a path for him. He just hoped he didn’t kill any dwarves in the process. The dwarves were all fighting off to his father’s right so he was pretty sure the path would be clear. It was roughly a thousand paces to his father, and he watched as his axe cut through the orcs all the way there. He lost sight of his axe, though, as other orcs filled in behind the ones that fell.
Rundo watched as Anwar threw fire and Grundel threw his axe. He had nothing so effective. His daggers flew from his hands the second they appeared, though. He focused solely on the orcs that were closest to them. The orcs didn’t dare come near them as they had seen Anwar throw fire at the mountain, but when the fire was gone, they started charging. Grundel’s axe cut through them like butter. He loosed his daggers into the faces of the nearest orcs. With the defense raised by him and Grundel, no orc had made it within a hundred feet. Then Rundo saw Grundel throw his axe the other direction. Rundo’s daggers returned to the sheaths on his legs the second they were released. The orcs were still getting closer. He couldn’t throw them fast enough. Then he heard Kalise’s voice in his head.
“Use the staff. Find yourself.” He lifted the staff that was strapped across his shoulder and held it out before him. He wasn’t really sure what to do. Then he remembered Navaeh calling the golem outside of Istan. He drove the staff into the ground, calling on the goddess he had submitted to. Somehow he knew she would answer him, and she did. The ground around the staff lifted up, and in seconds there was a twenty-foot earth golem standing in front of him. He wasn’t sure what to do. Then he saw the orcs who had been rushing at them. He guided the golem like he had guided Messah, letting her feel what he wanted. With the golem he had more control, though. He knew he could somehow look through the eyes of the golem if he wanted to, but he would have a better vantage point from behind it for now. Following his mental command, the golem walked forward. Its mighty arms of stone and dirt hung almost to the ground. The golem swung them back and forth, sending orcs flying through the air two and three at a time.
Grizzle was charging through the orcs. His legs were on fire, his lungs were burning, and his arms weighed a thousand pounds, but he continued to fight through the orcs. Then he took an axe in the chest, or he thought he did. He felt the impact as the blade cut through his armor. The blade stopped before it cut into him. Then it went flying head over handle back the way it had come. He chased that axe through a path of bloody, falling orcs. He took a couple more passing blows from orcs, but nothing serious. He slipped on the grass that was thick with blood once. Falling down at the feet of orcs during a battle was nearly as sure a way to get yourself killed as charging in with no armor, but Jabaal had him by the collar and was dragging him back to his feet without stopping. He just kept pumping his legs. The orcs started to file back in to the line behind the axe but the reformed ranks were much thinner. Finally they burst through the line of orcs and were in the open. Grizzle was half running, half stumbling as he ran toward his son and his friends.
Jabaal was chasing after Grizzle. He had seen the fire. He saw the lightning flashing behind them. The storm was growing overhead. That could only be the work of one person. He knew Grizzle was rushing to his son. He had already lost his father. The question was, would he be able to get him there safely? Grizzle was running with blind determination. He only fought to get through obstacles. He didn’t block and he had taken dozens of blows.
Then he saw the huge earth golem. Navaeh was in
the fight. The tide had turned. The orcs had no idea what they were in for. To be honest, he wasn’t sure anyone knew what they were in for. It was Anwar, after all. He had challenged a god. Who knew what he was capable of? He was summoning nature itself to come down and fight for him. There was a huge tornado slowly making its way toward the ground. Lightning was crashing down. Then he saw Grizzle fall. He lifted him up as he was running by. His other hand shot back and forth, deflecting the few clumsy attacks that came. Grundel’s axe had cleared the way. They just might make it out of this. He just wasn’t sure how long they would last once they did.
Chapter Thirty-One
A Power that Consumes
Anwar was feeding the storm. He was oblivious to the fight around him. Those closest to him would have to fend for themselves. He had to end the war. He had to finish off Delvidge’s army. A couple of wizards had thrown magic at him after he had shot the column of fire up the stairs, but they had been like pebbles against steel plate. He fed his lightning. Hundreds of bolts were coming down onto his enemies. He fed the funnel. It was nearly to the ground. He continued to feed that cloud. The world around him was silent, as he was deafened by hundreds of shouts of thunder that had gone roaring across the field. He pushed more magic into that cloud and forced that tornado to the ground. He dragged it and guided it all the way to the edge of the retreating orc army. They were running in every direction. He wouldn’t show them any mercy. They had taken his family. They had taken his wife. They had taken his brother. Now he was going to take all of them. He guided the tornado back across the battlements. Thousands of orcs were swallowed up into the to angry tunnel of wind. The orcs flew into the air and then were flung in all directions. Around that tornado lightning rained down. Anwar was getting his revenge. The lightning came down faster. The tornado grew. He pushed it further along the field. It was a hundred feet wide now. It was swallowing up the orcs and spitting them out. The orcs didn’t have a chance. Was this the best that Delvidge had to offer? This was disappointing. His storm roared on.
Grundel watched his father come bursting out of the line of the mass of orcs. The orcs were in chaos now. There were some small groups that were still fighting simply because they couldn’t disengage, but most had started running when the storm started. One large group that had escaped into the trees and others were still running that way. Grundel saw that his father was beaten up pretty badly. A couple of orcs tried to chase after his father and his friend, so Grundel let his blood-soaked axe fly. His father was safe, but Grundel had no idea where his grandfather the king was.
Once they were free of the orcs, Jabaal wrapped an arm around his stumbling friend. Grizzle walked straight toward his son. His armor was dented everywhere and his helmet was missing. There was blood running from a half a dozen cuts on the dwarf’s head. His lip was split open, and Jabaal was pretty sure the huge gash in Grizzle’s forehead had happened when he head-butted an orc . It looked like there might be a piece of tooth sticking out of the wound.
Rundo watched as his two friends came toward him. Jabaal was practically carrying Grizzle, but it looked like he was using him to steady himself as well. They were both covered in black blood. Grizzle’s own red blood mixed with the black in his hair and beard. It made for a disturbing sight. Jabaal had lost his blue glow when they had come free of the orcs. He seemed to have a limp, and the bottom of one of his pant legs was soaked in red blood. They were a haggard sight, but a welcome one.
Vingaza watched from the tree line as Anwar summoned the storm. He had fired his strongest ball of dark magic at Anwar, and it had shattered against his shield like glass on stone. He had no way of fighting an opponent like that. Anwar’s brother’s final words echoed in his head now as he watched that storm. “You don’t know, do you? Anwar didn’t challenge your god. He pulled him into the mortal plane. The other gods had to come and stop Anwar from killing him. Your god is afraid of him. Killing me only guarantees that the Black Dragons will be destroyed. My life for all of yours? That is a sacrifice I am happy to make.”
As he watched the storm Vingaza realized that the man had been telling the truth. Lighting was raining down where not long ago there had been a sunny sky. A tornado tossed orcs through the air where there had been no clouds. He couldn’t even imagine how to begin to do magic like that. The amount of power it would take was unimaginable. He knew if he went back to Ambar, Anwar would come after him. The only option he could think of was to stay with the orcs. Malvagio and Cattivo had stayed with him. Once they got away from here he would send them out to bring word back to him.
Anwar continued to let his magic pour out into the storm. The tornado split into several and chased down the orcs. Lighting was crashing down still. The sky flashed over and over as hundred of bolts came down. Anwar finally was feeling the pull of magic again. It was ecstasy. He poured more power into the storm. The field was filled with lightning, orcs were dying by the thousands, and he split the tornadoes again. Some of the funnels darted across the field of battle while others chased down the escaping groups of orcs. Before he knew it there were a dozen tornados. He could feel the power. He finally was feeling his magic again. After everything that had happened, he was able to feel something besides pain. He relished his revenge. He shouted up into the sky.
“Is that all you got, Delvidge? Was this the best you could do?” He split the tornadoes again. He began to laugh. “Come on back, Delvidge, you coward! Let us finish this. Are you such a coward that you are too scared to face me?”
Rain and lightning came down so hard that Rundo’s golem was coming apart. The wind was so strong he could barely hold himself in place. He called the golem back. When it was close enough he let it go. The dirt and stone fell to the ground leaving a hill with his staff sticking out of the top. He rushed up to grab it. Lightning came crashing down less than fifty feet away. He ran back to Anwar’s side. He tried to yell. His ears were ringing. He couldn’t hear anything, but he screamed at Anwar.
“Anwar! Anwar! You have to stop! We have won! They are retreating! YOU ARE GOING TO KILL US ALL IF YOU DON’T STOP THIS!” Anwar didn’t even seem to notice him. Jabaal came up next to him.
Rundo was trying to help Grizzle, but there wasn’t much he could do. He helped him to the ground as Grundel came running over. The storm seemed to be getting out of control. A few minutes ago it had been an angry storm directed at the orcs. Now it seemed to be ready to destroy the whole valley. He heard Anwar screaming, but he couldn’t hear what was being said. When he looked up, Anwar was laughing into the sky. He was going mad. He saw Rundo standing next to him screaming, but Anwar didn’t seem to notice. Anwar was going to kill them all.
There were dozens of tornadoes now. Lightning crashed everywhere. Dwarves and orcs alike all ran for cover, the fighting done. All parties were trying to escape the storm that Anwar was feeding. Jabaal ran to his side. He let his own voice join that of Rundo’s, but Anwar didn’t seem to notice. He grabbed his friend and tried to shake him, but Anwar didn’t even acknowledge his presence; he just laughed into the sky as the storm grew more violent. Anwar was going to kill them all if they didn’t stop him. Rundo tried hitting him, but his hand slammed into the shield wrapped around his body like armor. He hated what he was about to do but he had to stop him. He looked at Rundo then raised his sword hilt and tried to slam it into the back of Anwar’s head. It bounced off the shield. Lightning was crashing down around them know, dangerously close. Jabaal felt the hair on his head and arms stand on end. He ran and picked up Grizzle’s hammer. If anything could get through the shield it was the blessed hammer. He apologized to his friend before swinging the hammer at his back. The hammer rebounded off. Anwar didn’t even flinch.
Then a man appeared next to him. Jabaal looked at him in confusion. He had to be some kind of wizard to have appeared out of nowhere like that, but Jabaal had no idea who he was. The man had dark brown hair down to his shoulders and a short beard along his jaw. There were hints of grey showing in both. H
e looked at Jabaal, and somehow he knew the man was a friend. Then he reached a hand up to Anwar. There was a flash of light and Anwar fell to the ground. Then the man raised his hands to the sky. The clouds began to spread apart, and the tornadoes began to recede from the ground and fade back into the clouds. Minutes later the black clouds faded to gray and retreated across the sky away from Evermount. A minute later the clouds were gone altogether and the bright sun was shining down on the blood-soaked battlefield. The man looked down at Jabaal and Rundo as they knelt beside Anwar.
“I will be back for him soon. Tell him not to worry. I will help him control it,” he said, and then the man was gone.
Chapter Thirty-Two
The Ones Left Standing
Dwarves were gathering around. Grundel stood over the dead body of his grandfather. Grindel Stoneheart was lying on the ground, surrounded by dead orcs. His hand was buried in the chest of the biggest orc Grundel had ever seen. Yesterday that might not have meant anything, but now he was surrounded by tens of thousands of them. All of them were dead. Thousands had been thrown in every direction by the storm, but not these. This image was here for all the dwarves to see. Their king had fought the biggest orc on the field and killed him. He had killed countless others, but he had died in single combat with this huge monster. He already was hearing the stories of the dwarves who had been nearby. The huge orc had killed dwarves and orcs alike. One of the dwarves was saying that the orc had cut down other orcs just for interfering. In the midst of chaos these two champions had gone to war, and found each other worthy.
Rising of a Mage: Book 03 - A Mage Risen Page 17
