by Doug Backus
“That is strange, but even if he failed to alert reinforcements I am sure the seventh Phit that was chasing me did. He veered off toward the camp less than half way back.”
“Did you find what became of the other Nightstalkers, the remainder of them?” Oisin asked.
“The good news is they are still alive; the bad is that they have been possessed with the essence of Solharn, which for now makes them our enemies. He has sent them back to our camps. They will be at least an hour ahead of Toltad and the remaining warriors. Kaelyn and Issa will have no idea what has hit them and unfortunately, we have no way to warn them in time.”
“What are we to do then, Jayden?”
“The only thing we can. We must get back to our camps. It will not be easy for daylight has come and Solharn’s army will be starting to move. We will go now and hope for the best. We have no other choice.”
Oisin and Jayden left the safety of the woods and began to move across the fields using the cover of whatever they could find. Jayden knew it would not be long before they were discovered but he was counting on having some time. They had gone less than half a mile when they heard the rumble of thousands of their enemies behind them. They would not make it. Even if they could out run the Kaltaures, they would be overtaken in no time by the Ralcriff and the Phits.
Jayden was sure that Oisin would be wondering why he had made the decision to leave now instead of awaiting the cover of darkness. There was only one reason. He knew Kaelyn was taught many of the same battle strategies that he was. After all, his father had taught them both. He was hoping she would have sent a scout over Solharn’s camp in the morning as he would have done. Jayden knew the only chance such a scout would have of seeing them would be in the open. It was a gamble he wished he had not taken, at least not with Oisin’s life.
They had run maybe another quarter mile when Oisin stopped and grasped his sword with the only arm he would be able to use in a battle.
“Oisin?” Jayden said turning briefly to look at the droves of Kaltaures and Phits that were quickly closing in on them.
“I will run no longer Jayden. We will be overrun any minute now and if I am to die it will be fighting, not running away.”
Jayden smiled while pulling his sword from his side and his father’s knife from his boot. “I am sorry that we will die so soon in this quest Oisin, but I am honored to die with you.”
Both turned and ran toward their enemies. It would be their final battle but one fought for the pride of Leal and the love of Rhol. They screamed their allegiance to Rhol, and engaged their enemies who had already taken too much from them. They fought with unsurpassed valiance. Fourteen Kaltaures, two Ralcriff and four Phits lay dead on the ground before Oisin received a blow to his leg causing him to fall to the ground. Jayden stopped and stood over him swinging his sword in wide circles.
Oisin could see the blade glimmering with blood in the sunlight as it sliced through the bodies of anyone who dared get near. Oisin had never seen anything like it, and as Jayden fell beside him; a sword impaled in his side, Oisin rose to his knees and continued where Jayden had left off.
He was exhausted, his arm burned trying to tell him that enough was enough, but he continued to swing. He was amazed that the thrusts of his sword were causing so many of his enemies to fly through the air away from them. One by one they disappeared. When he looked down to see that his arm had given out, he could not understand. He was no longer swinging, but it didn’t matter; neither Phits nor Kaltaures nor Ralcriff could get within ten feet of them.
All at once he felt a tug on his shirt and found himself staring down at his enemies from high in the air. He was riding on the back of a Pegapire. They had come, they had found them. He looked around for Jayden to give a victory yell, but no matter how hard he looked he could not see him. He was not there. Jayden was gone.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Issa and Kaelyn flew around the outskirts of Aura in search of a place where they could safely rest and build a home base. They had located a small ridge in the mountains just west of Aura. The caves located around it would provide shelter for the wounded and tired warriors. There was no way to access it on foot, which allowed them some peace of mind that they would not be surprised by an attack.
After several hours, all of their warriors had reached the safety of their base with the exception of the Lealian Nightstalkers. The Nightstalkers consisted of one hundred warriors that were highly trained in stealth fighting tactics. When night fell they would slip into their enemies’ camps undetected and slit their throats while they slept. Each warrior would return to a designated meeting spot after completing one kill. If every warrior returned safely they knew they had not yet been discovered, and after a brief rest they would return to the enemy camp and repeat the same process all over again. If at any time one of the warriors failed to return, the mission would be discontinued out of an abundance of caution that they had been compromised. It was really quite a brilliant war tactic, and over time it drastically reduced their enemies’ numbers, while they suffered very few casualties.
Issa had sent Yita, an eager young Pegapire, to remain at the Nightstalkers base and report back frequently on their progress. She had already returned twice to advise they had successfully entered the camp, returning unscathed and were in the progress of mounting a third and final attack.
Things seemed to be going as planned. After a brief rest Kaelyn and Issa began to strategize and pair off the Lealian warriors with their Pegapire counterparts. They would be prepared with a plan the next time they met Solharn’s armies.
It had also given them a chance to replenish their arrows which had been depleted during battle. Kaelyn had sent several Lealians to places in and around Rhol to retrieve wood from Orler trees. Jayden’s father had once shown her a map detailing the location of several hundred of the well hidden trees. Her hope that her memory served her well was answered when she saw two of the three Lealians return with large amounts of wood tied to their Pegapire counterparts.
Kaelyn smiled as several warriors immediately retrieved the wood and began to form the wiry branches into arrows. Even the wounded, some of whom could not even walk, were handed wood which they instantly began to forge into the slender long arrows. It made her proud to be a Lealian. They never tired of making a wrong into a right. They would not stop until Rhol was saved, or until they could no longer fight.
Kaelyn’s thoughts were interrupted by Yita who landed too quickly and skidded across the ground, narrowly missing her before coming to a stop. Issa ran to her side.
“Yita, what is wrong?” she asked.
“The Nightstalkers! Only twenty-eight returned, and they just sit on the ground staring into space. They will not talk or move. Daylight is almost upon them and they just sit there. They will be slaughtered when the Kaltaures discover them,” Yita panted.
Issa wasted no time gathering twenty-eight Pegapires and flying off with Yita to retrieve them. She took ten Lealian warriors along with her in case the Nightstalkers were unable to move themselves.
Kaelyn watched as the last Pegapire launched into flight and hoped they would return safely. The Lealians could not afford to lose any more of their dwindling army.
Ω
“Excuse me sir,” Abednego stammered. “Several of our soldiers did not report to their post. When we went in search of them we found they had been murdered, their throats slit while they slept.”
“How many?” Solharn’s voice boomed.
“Two hundred, sir.”
“Nightstalkers.”
“Nightstalkers?”
“For someone who claims to be a skilled warrior Abednego, you woefully lack the most important skill; knowing your enemy. Your ignorance makes you weak. Nightstalkers are skilled Lealian warriors who work during the night to reduce the numbers of their enemies. They use only edged weapons and work in silence. They will keep returning until they lose one of their own. How many did you say have been killed?”
“Two hundred.”
Solharn sneered. “Then prepare your warriors. They will be back for another strike. Depending on whether you allowed them to sneak into the camp unnoticed once or twice will determine how many there are. In case you don’t understand the reasoning Abednego, that means there will be either one hundred of them or two hundred. It will not be an easy task as they will travel on their own once they near the camp. Capture them alive if you can and bring them to me. We will use them to our advantage. Now go! They could return at any moment.”
Abednego ran off ensuring that his warriors were ready. Solharn had been right. Within an hour they had captured twenty-eight Lealian warriors, five more had been killed, but the remainder were nowhere to be found.
Abednego was confused. They could not have escaped. He had sent an army of Kaltaures soldiers to lie in wait just outside the camp for any that tried to flee. Frustrated, Abednego rode out to where he had positioned his men. They would pay for letting them slip by. When he got there, he found there would be no need for punishment. They were all dead.
How was it possible that they were discovered, and furthermore that no one heard the battle? Out of an entire troop of Kaltaures warriors surely one would have been able to provide a warning. He cursed and turned back toward the camp. It seemed unlikely, but the Lealians must have left some warriors back that had discovered his trap.
Solharn would not be pleased and this worried Abednego enough that he decided to tell Solharn that the rest had been killed in battle. Who would know? In the end, at least they had captured several alive he thought. Abednego ordered his men to bring the captured Nightstalkers to Solharn.
The Lealians stood in a line with their hands and feet so tightly bound that the ropes cut into their skin. A Kaltaures soldier stood behind each one to ensure they did not escape. Abednego was taking no chances.
Solharn approached them hovering just above the ground, gliding slowly up and down the line.
“Who would like to tell me where your armies hide, and save themselves from what will come?”
Although the mere sight of Solharn would make most answer his question, the line remained silent. They knew they would soon meet their end, but there was not a Lealian alive who would not die for the other. To betray their fellow man was far worse than death.
“Ahhh,” Solharn gurgled. “You would all bravely die for each other, is that it? You are all so very loyal to a cause which is destined to fail. Very well, but before you make your hasty decision I should warn you it is not death you should prepare yourself for but much worse. Commander bring one forward.” Solharn bellowed.
Abednego quickly grabbed one of the Nightstalkers out of the line and threw him at Solharn’s feet.
“It just would not be fair,” Solharn laughed. “If I did not at least demonstrate what is to become of you, should you keep up your brave front,” Solharn said as he moved closer to the prisoner.
The Lealian looked to the ground but showed no fear of what was to come. Solharn motioned to Abednego instructing him to force the Lealian to gaze at him. Abednego grabbed the soldier by the chin forcefully pulling his face up toward Solharn’s gaze.
Solharn reached out placing his hand over the soldier’s head, and moved it around in a circular motion, blood began to ooze from his ears and nose. When the soldier began to scream, Solharn’s lower jaw dropped down and just hung there, waving in the wind. A steady stream of a black fluid poured from his mouth into the soldier’s, which caused the screaming to change to a disturbing gargling sound.
The sight of it caused the remaining Lealians, and even some of the Kaltaures, to look away in horror. With the transfer of fluid complete, the soldier fell to the ground. His body was convulsing and his face was contorting in ways that made him unrecognizable. It took several minutes for his body to stop moving and go limp. The Lealians looking on breathed a sigh of relief thinking the soldier had finally passed on relieving him of this horrific pain, but it was not over. Solharn, who had backed away slowly, floated over to him again.
Thrusting his hand out, he began to smile as he motioned the soldier to stand. He immediately did. Solharn ordered him to bring another Lealian forward, and he complied without hesitation. As if the pain had not been enough, Solharn had now taken the soldier’s very soul forcing him to do what no Lealian would ever do, betray a fellow Lealian. The others did not blame him. They could see he was no longer who he used to be. His eyes were black and his face was blank, devoid of any expression. Solharn was in complete control of him, and they knew they would all suffer the same fate in a matter of time.
“Do you still wish to remain silent? Come now, who among you wishes to avoid this most unpleasant experience?” Solharn smirked.
Solharn was surprised by the silence that his question was met with. Even after witnessing the same thing twenty-seven more times, no Lealian came forward. Nevertheless, Solharn enjoyed the pain he was able to inflict upon each of them.
He also liked the end results. He now controlled the twenty-eight Nightstalkers and they would lead him to their camps whether they wanted to or not.
Solharn addressed the Lealians who were now simply standing there staring into space. They were devoid of any real thought process of their own.
“You will return to your meeting place, and await there until you are rescued by your fellow Lealians. Once you are back in their place of refuge, you will await my instructions.”
The Lealians walked off in silence through the dark. Solharn could now see and control everything they did. Now he had a powerful army ready to attack from inside his enemies own ranks.
Ω
“Are they alright Issa?” Kaelyn asked when she saw the first few soldiers arrive.
“I do not know. They seem to be in shock. It is strange. They just stare into space refusing, or at least unable to speak.”
Kaelyn looked sadly at the soldiers as one by one they were carried from the back of the Pegapires to a nearby cave. Their bodies appeared limp and lifeless, as they dangled from the shoulders of the warriors that were carrying them.
What could have possibly caused them to return in this state? These warriors were fearless and what of the rest of them? Were they dead or merely held captive?
“Kaelyn, we must prepare for battle. The sun will rise in less than an hour; we have little time.”
“Very well, can you send a scout over the enemy camps at first light Issa, to see if there are any signs of the missing stalkers?”
“I would be happy to Issa,” Yita, overhearing the conversation, chimed in.
“Good,” responded Issa. “I can’t think of a better choice.”
Kaelyn just nodded and began to assemble the Lealians. They were going to need some help. She wished Jayden were here. Perhaps he would know what had become of the Nightstalkers. Perhaps he would know what they might face when first light came.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Palto had been looking at the cave walls for well over an hour now. He could not see the passage, or the hatchet Duffy had described, even though he was sure that he was in the right area. He was running out of time.
He knew that the hatchet would not be easy to find after ten years of weathering, but he was hoping he would see the opening Duffy described. Palto was thinking of heading back to Solace, when he felt it…a distinct feeling of warmth that was becoming warmer.
He quickened his pace looking frantically up and down the walls, when right in front of him a thick branch appeared, poking out of the wall. It was tucked back into a crevice in the cave, which appeared almost like another tunnel except that it ended in less than ten feet. Slightly wilted vines adorned the wall disguising what Palto hoped would be the hatchet. It would explain why he had passed it so many times.
Palto nuzzled at the vines pushing them aside and found what he had been looking for. He could not believe his luck. The small crevice within the tunnel had protected the vines and the hatchet from the burning flames of the dragon.
The fact the vines even grew here was a good sign as they needed sunlight and water to grow.
He looked up to the ceiling of the cave, but could see nothing aside from the massive leaves covering whatever was behind them. Palto suspected their roots started at the top of the mountain where Duffy had tumbled through ten years ago. Over time they must have grown to cover Duffy’s escape route.
Palto ran and jumped into the air. He could feel the searing heat of the flames passing by him as he pushed off the side of the wall. He hoped that the alternate exit would be big enough for him to maneuver through. Breaking through the vines, he was relieved to find it was bigger than he had expected. It twisted through the walls of the cavern like a winding road allowing him to use his legs periodically to gain more momentum. In less time than he thought it would have taken, he broke through the ground which had hidden the entrance over the last decade.
Palto walked around breathing in the fresh air that his lungs had craved over the last couple of days. He listened intently for a sign of anyone, but the sound of the falls gushing down the side of the mountain was all he could hear. He was a mere six hundred yards or so from where Phanthus was lying in wait. Palto knew his initial plan of avoiding Phanthus would not be possible. There was no way the people of Solace would make it up the tunnel. Even if they could climb the vines, it would take hours. They would remain trapped in the realm unless he was able to, at the very least, distract Phanthus. He would need Solko and Preta before he even thought of trying it and would have to return to get them.
As he made his way back to the Sacred Realm, he noticed that the ground was covered in ivory white bones that gleamed almost disturbingly in the sunlight. It had to be the remains of Duffy’s family. He thought about removing them so Duffy would not have to bear the pain of realizing they were no longer alive, but then Palto realized it would be worse for Duffy to continue searching endlessly for loved ones that no longer existed in our form. He was not looking forward to giving him the news.
