Five Kingdoms: Book 07 - Wizard Falling

by Toby Neighbors

  She only slept a few hours, her rest haunted with bad dreams. She felt Selix returning and went out to meet the golden dragon just before dawn. The sky was still dark, but the shadows were fading. Selix was tired, but the dragon had feasted on two old dairy cows that were wandering aimlessly through the countryside.

  “We have to find Wilam,” Brianna told him.

  Selix nodded. Brianna knew the dragon needed to rest and she promised herself that after this trip she would insist on it. But for now, they had one more task to complete.

  Brianna jumped up and flipped through the air, landing lightly on Selix’s back, just before the dragon took to the air. They rose up, higher and higher, flying north as the sky lightened and the sun appeared. They flew for over an hour before they finally spotted the long column of dwarves and supply wagons making their way through the western pass of the Walheta mountains.

  Selix dropped quickly toward the pass. Brianna looked for Gyia, but the purple dragon was nowhere in sight. She saw Wilam riding his horse near the rear of the long procession of wagons, men, and dwarves. He looked happy from the air. Three officers rode with him, talking and laughing. A lump of dread formed in her stomach. She wasn’t sure what she wanted from Wilam. Zollin had told her she didn’t have a choice but to marry the prince. She had accepted Prince Wilam’s proposal in front of the entire court at Orrock. Changing her mind would shame her family and make them outcasts throughout the kingdom, but marrying Wilam wasn't fair either. He deserved someone who would make him truly happy and she didn’t think she could do that.

  If Zollin wasn’t in her life, Brianna didn’t think she could ever be happy again.

  Selix roared just before they came swooping down onto a small rise near the pass. Wilam’s stallion and the other horses shuffled nervously, but the experienced riders soon had the horses back under control.

  “Brianna!” Wilam shouted.

  He jumped off the horse, tossing the reins to the man nearest him and raced toward Selix. Brianna slid off the dragon’s shoulder and moved quickly toward Wilam. She had meant to greet him warmly, but he snatched her off her feet, spinning her around and kissed her passionately. She was so surprised she didn’t resist.

  “Oh, I’ve missed you,” he said breathlessly. “It is so good to see you again.”

  “And you, Wilam. But I’m afraid I have bad news.”

  “What is it?” he asked, his face suddenly pinched with worry. “Are we too late? Has Gwendolyn’s army attacked already?”

  “No, the witch’s army isn’t here yet. It’s your father.”

  “What?” There was a note of anguish in his voice she had never heard before.

  “He was killed,” she said. “He took the army south and marched on Luxing City.”

  “King Zorlan killed my father?” Wilam asked in astonishment.

  “No, King Zorlan is in Walheta’s Gate just a few hours from here. King Felix was killed by General Corlis.”

  “That traitorous bastard!” Wilam said, staggering back, but sounding more relieved than upset. “I should have known that snake would strike sooner or later. My father should have seen it, too.”

  Brianna was surprised that he seemed so relieved. Then she realized he had expected her bad news to be an admission that King Felix had forced her into accepting his marriage proposal. She thought Wilam must have been worried sick when she went to find Zollin and didn’t return to him. Jealousy has a way of seeping into the kinks of even the best armor.

  “How did he die?” Wilam asked, his tone more solemn.

  “Corlis struck him down from behind,” Brianna said. “The Royal Guard supported Corlis, but Zollin and I killed him. The army is returning by sea under the command of General Tolis.”

  “You killed Corlis?”

  “Yes.”

  “Already the queen,” Willam said, pulling her close. “And will the army follow me?”

  Brianna reached into her pack and pulled out the crown that had fallen from King Felix’s head and had been worn by Corlis, the usurper. She raised it with both hands and set it on Wilam’s brow. Then she took a step back and dropped to one knee before him. The three officers who made up Wilam’s staff, dismounted and bowed as well.

  “Symon,” Wilam said to one of the officers. “Send word to Bloc that I am flying ahead with Brianna and will meet him this afternoon in Walheta’s Gate.”

  “Aye, my liege,” the officer said.

  “Noruk, Vance, see that the supply train keeps moving. Keep everyone marching until they catch up with me.”

  “You’ll go through a village in the valley,” Brianna said. “There are a lot of refugees there. Keep moving south and you’ll find Walheta’s Gate at the entrance to the pass.”

  “Aye, my lady,” said the two officers in unison.

  “We must go and meet with Commander Hausey,” Wilam said. “Does he know what happened to my father?”

  “Yes,” Brianna said.

  “Can Selix carry us back?”

  “I think so,” Brianna said. “But where is Gyia.”

  “I haven’t seen Gyia in days,” Wilam confided. “We were traveling along together, although I hadn’t been up with Gyia much. Then suddenly I felt her leave. No warning, no explanation.”

  Brianna knew instantly what had happened to the dragon, it had fallen under the control of King Felix. What Brianna didn’t know was how the king had taken control of the dragons or what had become of Gyia since then.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked, noticing her look of intense concentration.

  “Nothing,” she said. “It’s nothing. Are you ready?”

  “When you are,” Wilam said.

  Brianna jumped high into the air, twirling like an acrobat before landing softly on Selix’s broad back. Then the golden dragon lowered his body to the ground and Brianna helped Wilam climb up.

  “The king and I are ready, Selix,” Brianna announced.

  The golden dragon roared and took to the air. Wilam hunched low on the dragon, one hand holding tight to his neck, the other holding tight to the crown which had slipped on his head.

  “I’ll have to get used to wearing this, I guess,” he shouted over his shoulder to Brianna.

  “I’ll have to get used to calling you King Wilam.”

  Chapter 4

  Zollin laid on his side for a long time, his feet moving first toward the abyss, then away from it. He wasn’t sure what was so frightening to him. He had been in the dark halls of the dwarves without feeling afraid, but something about the abyss was different. Finally, he swung his legs out over the edge and found divots in which to dig the toes of his boots in the sides of the giant crack in the earth.

  Zollin could feel the dark magic rising up out of the abyss. It was cold and sinister, like waking up from a bad dream that tried to cling to your memory and pull you back into its hideous embrace. He was surprised at how dark it was inside the abyss. He lowered himself, finding hand holds and then slowly moving first one foot down and then the other. He knew he could use his magic and levitate down, but he didn’t want his magic to alert any of the evil creatures that might be hiding in the darkness. It felt good to stretch his muscles and exercise his own physical strength. His hip ached with the effort, and he didn’t want to tire himself too much, but he thought he would rather be physically tired than exhaust his magical strength before he even found the witch’s lair.

  At first the climb was easy, even though he couldn’t see anything. Above him there was a strip of light, but that light didn’t seem to penetrate into the darkness around him. Still, the sides of the abyss were sturdy, dry rock, almost like two puzzle pieces had be pulled apart instead of the earth cracking open.

  Zollin climbed for a while, then stopped to rest whenever he came upon a place with enough space for his feet to support him comfortably. He didn’t know how deep the crevasse was, but he wasn’t in a hurry. He knew that in all likelihood, he wouldn’t survive his confrontation with the evil sorceress. He ha
d already prepared mentally to do whatever it took to stop her, even if it meant dying in the process. Whatever waited for him in the depths below, he would let it come, but he wouldn’t go rushing into it.

  Hours passed and slowly the texture of the wall he climbed down changed. At first the stone felt damp, then it became slick with a thick slime that smelled of rotting flesh. Zollin was forced to slow his pace, check and recheck every hand and foot hold to ensure that he didn’t slip and fall. And as he climbed down through the slime, he began to feel terror. At first it was just a shadow that fell across his mind, but before long the darkness around him didn’t seem like the mere absence of light anymore. It took on a thick, viscus quality in his mind until he felt like he was drowning in it.

  Before long Zollin was shaking. He felt weak. All he could think about was falling into the darkness, of dying alone, forgotten and unwanted. He tried to fight his fear, but before long he simply couldn’t stand the darkness anymore. He tried to tell himself that using his magic wasn’t an option, but his fear only fed the churning of his inner reservoir of power. He could feel the heat growing inside him, swirling and straining to be released. Finally, almost without thinking, he gave in and kindled a flame above his head. The light from the small flame shown down around him.

  He looked down trying to see how far he still had to climb but the small light was swallowed by the darkness before it even reached his feet. He was just about to turn and focus on climbing when something below him caught his eye. Zollin turned his head, twisting against the rocky side of the crevasse, straining to see below. Two bright points of light shone below him.

  At first Zollin felt a sense of relief. He guessed that the lights were at the bottom of the abyss and that some sort of activity below him was taking place. Then the lights flashed off and back on again. Then more lights appeared, always in pairs. At first his mind refused to accept what he was seeing, but as he watched the lights, flashing on and off, he recognized what he saw. Eyes, reflecting the light from his little flame. He couldn’t be sure that he had woken the creatures; perhaps they had been staring at him all along and he just couldn’t see them in the darkness.

  Then the silence, like the darkness, became oppressive. Zollin had trouble breathing, he was panting and sweating and cold at the same time. He turned away from the eyes waiting below him and focused on the wall. He hadn’t looked at the wall since kindling his flame. His first instinct had been to look down, hoping to see an end to his climb. But now he looked at the wall in horror. The wall he thought was covered in slime, was actually covered in dark, red blood.

  Once again he nearly lost his grip. His instinct was to move away from the bloody wall, not cling to it. His heart seemed to skip a beat as his grip trembled on the wall and his center of gravity swung out.

  “No!” he shouted, renewing his grip.

  The word, shouted in a moment of terror, echoed down into the abyss. Zollin looked up but the light above him was weak, merely a line of grayish light that neither cheered him or gave him hope.

  Then he heard a fluttering. Somewhere in his mind the idea of wings registered but that thought was cast out by the screech of the beasts below. Though he feared what he might see, he looked down over his shoulder. The lights were moving, streaking across the darkness below him. Zollin couldn’t stand it anymore and he sent a ball of fire falling down into the darkness, hoping to see what they were. The magical fire fell, casting a dim light onto the walls of the abyss. At first Zollin was cheered by the light, but before the light reached the creatures the sounds of their fluttering wings changed. They were rushing up toward him now. He saw flashes of dark fur, before he closed his eyes and pressed himself against the bloodied wall.

  Zollin raised a magical barrier around his body to protect himself from the creatures just before the first one hit. Zollin felt the blow, as if he were being kicked by a horse. At first the blows came one by one, but it was only a few seconds before the creatures were fighting each other to get to him. His shields held, but the pressure grew intense. Zollin held onto the wall of the Abyss, his magic flowing through him into the shield. He was screaming, but the creatures were shrieking so loudly that he couldn’t hear himself. The creatures looked like huge bats the size of eagles, with thick, leathery wings, pointed ears, and long, vicious fangs. Their teeth were barred and white foamy spittle dripped from their fangs.

  They were in a frenzy to get to Zollin, and seemed enraged that Zollin’s magical shield held them back. It took a moment for Zollin to calm down enough to think clearly. The dark terror still held his mind like it was in the grip of a blacksmith, but he realized that perhaps the creatures were drawn to his light. He extinguished the small flame and almost immediately the creatures’ frenzy seemed to slacken. It still took several minutes for the blows and screeches to stop completely, but soon the attack was over.

  He breathed a sigh of relief, but didn’t drop his shields. The terror of the darkness soon returned, however, bringing with it the certainty that some horrible creature was creeping up out of the darkness below. He had to fight the urge to climb back up and out of the abyss. He stood rooted to the spot on the wall, his arms and legs ached with the effort, and sweat ran down his back though he felt cold. He wasn’t sure how long he stood that way, too frightened to move, knowing the bats were waiting for him below, before he heard the fluttering of wings again. He held tight to the wall, trying not to scream. His teeth were clenched so hard his jaw ached, but the creatures flew right past him. Zollin, realizing they didn’t seem interested in him, looked up. The strip of light above him was gone. He could still climb out of the abyss, the darkness of night was like a sliver of gray in the darkness above him. He could see the large bats flying out, their sheer numbers made the sound of their wings like a roar.

  It took several minutes for all the bats to fly out of the abyss. Zollin was just starting to relax as a sliver of hope sprang to life in his mind, but then his wounded hip suddenly cramped. The pain was excruciating and Zollin lost his hold on the wall. Before his mind could come to grips with what was happening, he slammed into something in the darkness and passed out.

  Chapter 5

  Zollin’s left shoulder hurt. At first that was all he knew. His eyes could only open slightly, but there was nothing to see. His right arm was very cold. All his senses were slowly returning and he remembered falling. He couldn’t believe he’d survived a fall to the bottom of the abyss. He tried to move but his neck ached terribly. His right arm was hanging over a rough ledge. He slowly pulled it up and held it close to his body hoping to warm it up.

  He groaned as he turned over onto his back. He had landed on his left side and he could feel the wall close beside him. He let his magic explore his body. He was bruised and sore, but not injured. Then he let his magic explore the space immediately around his body. He was on a small ledge on the side of the abyss. It was larger than anything he’d come across on his climb so far and he felt relatively safe there.

  He forced his eyes open. It was strange to open his eyes and see nothing but blackness. It made his eyelids feel heavy, made opening them feel somehow strenuous. He turned his head, craning to see the sky above. He could tell that it was still night, or perhaps the next night. He really had no way of knowing how long he had been unconscious. He had forced himself to climb down into the abyss for what seemed like hours and had spent more time clinging to the wall after the huge bats attacked him. He was tired, he knew that much. Tired and thirsty.

  He reached for his pack. It had been slung over his shoulder and around his neck as he climbed down. Now it was on his stomach. He opened the flap and found his canteen. It was still intact and nearly full. He sipped some of the lukewarm contents, then closed his eyes again.

  When he woke up next his body was aching from lying on the cold stone, but his joints felt less sore. He started to roll over and then remembered he was lying on a narrow ledge. He felt around with his hands until he was certain where the edge of his smal
l perch was. He levered himself up, resting his back against the wall and letting his legs hang over the ledge.

  He drank more water and ate some of the stale bread in his pack. He had no idea how long it would take to find Gwendolyn, so he made himself ration the water. He was still very tired, but he could see the weak strip of light high above his head. It was day and that meant the bats were probably back. He used his magic to heat the stone around him and did his best to rest. He would wait until nightfall and then continue his journey. Night and day meant nothing in the all consuming darkness of the abyss.

  He had no concept of time, but he spent the day thinking of Brianna. He could see her in his mind, standing in the glorious sunshine, her head tilted back as she laughed. He could almost hear her voice. The thought made tears sting his eyes. He felt a sense of depression come over him. By the time night fell he was nearly catatonic. He didn’t even raise his magical defenses when the bats flew past him for the night. He felt the air, normally stagnant, whipping around as the bats flew by. He drew his legs up to his chest and waited, almost hoping that the beasts would attack him and end his misery, but they merely fluttered past him.

  He had planned on continuing his climb down once the bats left the abyss, but he couldn’t conjure up the energy do anything but sit and wait to die. Time became a blur. His body slowly grew weak. Days passed, marked by the coming and going of the bats. Zollin stopped eating, he barely had the will to take a few sips from his canteen as the hours past. He slept longer and longer, although he had no real way to keep track of time. He felt his life slowly ebbing away.

  Finally he fell into a deep sleep. He dreamed, although he couldn’t see anything in his dream; the darkness of the abyss had invaded even there. He felt turmoil around him and a sense of urgency, although he didn’t know what was happening or what he needed to do. The sense of urgency grew stronger and stronger. Then he began to hear a voice, it was familiar but he couldn’t place it. The voice was weak at first, he couldn’t make out the words and trying to understand it was so hard. He didn’t really want to try. He just wanted to be left alone, to sink into the darkness and disappear forever. But the voice grew louder, it seemed to come closer and closer to him. Finally he could make out the words.