“What were they like? The other Guardians.”
“They were...” Zoyra paused to think of the perfect term. “Human.” She shifted her gaze to Kinnard, certain he didn’t fully understand what exactly she had meant, and she knew she had not answered his question the way he had expected. She sighed and set her weapon down. “We were following orders. Among ourselves, we would laugh and sometimes cry, although most of us tried to hide that. We’d challenge each other and compete against each other. We’d argue and tease, but when we were among humans...” She shook her head before meeting Kinnard’s gaze. “We followed orders, kept to ourselves, spoke only when absolutely necessary. We were discouraged from interacting actively with humans. They only viewed us as advanced technology.” She lowered her head and gave a shrug. “That’s how we viewed ourselves too for the longest time.”
Then she fell silent for a long while, reflecting back on those memories. Since the program had been dismantled and the government had changed, things were different for the Guardians. Zoyra couldn’t complain, but despite everything, some things couldn’t be changed, and she shook her head—not wanting to think about it. “Anyway, we should be—”
“Going.”
Anelm’s abrupt statement caused Zoyra and Kinnard to snap their gazes over to her. They saw her push herself to her feet, but there was a glow in her eyes as if she wasn’t completely in the moment but was still in the magic realm. “We need to go,” Anelm insisted once more and didn’t wait for them. She headed off in the direction Zoyra and Kinnard had come from.
Frowning, Zoyra shoved her helmet back on, gathered her rifle, and rose to her feet. “Where are we going?”
“Lorrek. He needs our help—more than we realized.” Anelm left it at that. She didn’t tell them what she was seeing with the eye of magic. She had searched the woods for Lorrek’s bright signature, and it wasn’t difficult to find. However, when she came across him, she found herself locked out from reaching him. Usually a magic user could touch the aura of another magic user, and this was how she had intended to send Lorrek some power to be healed, but when she drew near to him, she had hit an invisible barrier.
She hadn’t had the time to investigate it further as she looked beyond the barrier and saw Lorrek’s unconscious form and could sense his fever. However, that wasn’t all that troubled Anelm. She observed a hostile spike of magic around Lorrek. It didn’t make sense to her, but she needed to get closer to the source in order to find a way to combat it and help Lorrek, so she led them to him.
17
Trapped within his own mind, Lorrek took cover behind a boulder. He winced at his splitting headache, but he forced himself to peer from around the boulder to try and locate Mordora. However, that creature blasted at Lorrek again, forcing him back.
Lorrek looked down at his hands. Although in the magic realm his arm wasn’t broken, it still hurt to move. He wasn’t entirely sure what this thing was or what hold it had over Mordora. He could sense her stubborn will. She wouldn’t have willingly conceded herself to this being. It must have some hold over her, and Lorrek wasn’t sure how to break it.
He winced as his head pounded with a headache. His vision swum, so he closed his eyes and shook his head. He didn’t know what had happened. One moment he was in the magic realm, investigating a lead on Mordora, when he had encountered this creature in the woods. It taunted him, showing him Vixen in danger, and Lorrek lashed out. He wasn’t sure what had happened, but all he knew was Mordora was unconscious, and he was back in the magic realm with this thing latched onto Mordora. Lorrek wasn’t sure what he was facing, but he knew he had to distract it.
“I believe we’ve foregone introductions,” Lorrek hollered from his position behind the huge rock. “I am Prince Lorrek of Cuskelom, the youngest son of King Sindric, brother of King Heldon, and mage of Cuskelom.” He peered over the rock. “I can only assume you are the one called Rykeldan—the one trapped within that bracelet.” Lorrek took cover when Rykeldan blasted a fireball at him.
“You are an insolent, naïve child. Know you not where your magic comes from? Know you not how ancient the power is which I wield?” By the sound of Rykeldan’s voice, it seemed as though he was making a wide circle around the woods.
Still, Lorrek had to chuckle at Rykeldan’s words. Insolent and naïve—those were the words commonly used by those who thought themselves more powerful than anyone else, who thought themselves untouchable. Lorrek wouldn’t play Rykeldan’s game. “I may not be as ancient as you, but Princess Mordora is your host, is she not? Without her, you have no influence over the world. You would be trapped within that bracelet once more. Yet there’s one thing you should know. I cast a sleeping spell upon her. Without me conscious, she cannot wake. This means you are stuck here as well.” Lorrek rose to his feet, turning to face Rykeldan fully. His power crackled at his fingertips. “And I intend to keep you here.” With that, he blasted Rykeldan.
Outside of the magic realm, Vixen pinned Lorrek down as his body arched while Reven held down Mordora’s. Theran and Draben observed this, uncertain what to think. Draben looked at Theran. “I’m assuming this isn’t a good thing?”
Theran shook his head. “Two magic users locked in their minds—they’re likely battling each other.”
“And if one of them dies...?” Draben trailed off as he let the question linger.
“Then they die in real life, but Lorrek isn’t waking. Theran!” Vixen cast Lorrek’s eldest brother a frustrated look after she tried to shake Lorrek awake.
Theran growled as he marched up to his brother then dropped to his knee but stayed a safe distance from him. He wanted to observe him—not hurt him again. “I can’t do anything. I would wager a guess that Mordora purposely has him under some spell that’ll keep him unconscious.”
“How can she do that?” Reven asked as she dropped onto the ground beside Mordora, finally taking a break from pinning her down. “She’s unconscious.”
Theran let out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t know! Magic has never been my forte.”
“Maybe I can help.” A new voice entered the conversation, and everyone tensed, but Theran and Vixen relaxed when they saw Anelm with Zoyra and Kinnard. Anelm acknowledged them with a nod and went straight to Lorrek. “I was told he needs some healing.”
“He needs to wake up,” Theran corrected, but he rose to his feet and moved out of her way as she went to tend to Lorrek.
Anelm touched Lorrek’s arm and closed her eyes, channeling her power into the wound. After a moment, she pulled her hand back and inspected it. “I healed the injury, but the infection is still there. It would take much more time and strength to thoroughly eradicate the infection from his body. However, we have more pressing matters.” She stood and turned to Mordora—her eyes locking onto the bracelet on Mordora’s wrist. She jutted her chin toward it. “The bracelet of Rykeldan?”
Reven nodded. “Yes.” But when Anelm stepped forward to inspect the bracelet, Reven barred her arm over Mordora as if she shield her. She shook her head. “You’re a magic user?” When Anelm nodded, Reven shook her head again. “This bracelet is specifically designed to kill any magic user who attempts to tamper with it. You don’t want to touch it.”
“Then what are we going to do?” Kinnard asked the question on everyone’s mind, and Anelm sighed as she glanced between the two unconscious magic users.
“We need to get that bracelet off her.” She fixed her gaze on Zoyra. “Your ability is to unlock anything, correct?” When Zoyra nodded, Anelm continued, “I want you to try to unlock that bracelet.”
“Wait.” Draben spoke up. “We already told you any use of magic near the bracelet will kill whoever tries to touch it.”
Zoyra chuckled as she approached Mordora. “That’s the nice thing about my power. It’s more technology than magic.”
Theran drew near as well. “And I’ll be here to break it if necessary.”
Reven didn’t like the sound of any of this, but at least the
y had a plan, and if the thymords acted quickly enough, they could snatch the bracelet up themselves and put it away—far away from anyone. However, Reven shifted her gaze back to Anelm. “What are you going to do?”
Anelm smiled. “Enter the magic realm and see what is happening.”
With that, she closed her eyes and slipped into the magic realm in time to sidestep something flying toward her. She looked back and saw a very strong signature, and she frowned but then looked back ahead to see Lorrek staring at her, confused. She offered him a smile. “I thought you could use a hand. Speaking of which, I’ve healed your arm.”
However, Lorrek was focused the threat rising behind her. “Anelm, look out!”
He moved to push her out of the way, yet Anelm spun around and thrust out her hand, but before she could erect a shield or shoot out a blast, she halted when she realized the threat had frozen as well and was staring at her.
“Therina?” Rykeldan breathed as he took a step toward her.
However, Lorrek came to Anelm’s side in an instant and erected a shield between Rykeldan and them. He scowled at the kelliph. “Come closer, and I will end you.”
Rykeldan never took his eyes off of the pale-skinned, blonde-haired woman before him. He hadn’t seen that face for over a thousand years. He thought he would never see it again, but here she was—beautiful, resilient, and ready to face him once more. “Therina, please...” He stepped forward once more. “I swear—”
“Stay back!” Lorrek blasted him back once more, but then he quickly turned to Anelm. “Therina?”
She gave a wary nod. “I shall explain another time, but we must keep him preoccupied while Zoyra works to remove that bracelet.”
Outside the magic realm, Zoyra dropped to her knees beside Mordora. “I hope this works.” She seized the bracelet on Mordora’s wrist and watched as a jagged line snaked across the surface of the bracelet. Zoyra smiled. “I think it’s working!”
Reven and Draben let out a sigh of relief and shared a look with each other. As soon as they saw that the bracelet was off her, they would move in to take it.
Zoyra held on and watched the bracelet slowly unlocking its grip from around Mordora’s wrist, but the bracelet began to glow. Zoyra frowned. “Something’s happening...”
Reven stepped forward to inspect it, but before she could get too close, the bracelet opened. As soon as it did, a blast of blinding magic shot Zoyra, blasting her and everyone else nearby.
Theran blindly scrambled to his feet, trying to orient himself. “Zoyra!”
“Theran!”
Hearing his name, Theran turned to see Kinnard kneeling beside the fallen Zoyra, and Kinnard tossed something to him. Theran caught it then opened his palms to see what it was, and he stared as the bracelet of Rykeldan crumbled in his hands.
“No!” Draben and Reven dove for it, but when they saw it was irretrievable, they shared a frustrated look, and Draben gestured to his partner. “Well, love, it looks like hell is about to break loose.”
Reven glared at Theran. “You have no idea what you’ve done!”
“We’ve got another problem,” Kinnard’s words drew everyone’s attention to him, and they saw him holding Zoyra, who had a black blast mark through the center of her armor, and by the looks of it, it went straight through. Kinnard shifted his eyes to each person around him, uncertain what to do, and he finally locked eyes with Vixen. “She’s not waking!”
Vixen pressed her lips together and went to Zoyra, kneeling to press her hand against Zoyra’s neck to feel for a pulse. She shook her head and told Kinnard, “She’s gone.” She then looked at the unmoved form of Anelm still kneeling beside the unconscious Lorrek. Why hadn’t they emerged from the magic realm yet?
Kinnard stared at Vixen when she declared Zoyra was dead, and he shook his head, looking back at Zoyra in his arms. He had known a life of peace here in Talhon. His father dealt with the conflict of the court, but even then Kinnard had never witnessed anyone dying directly in front of him. He’d never killed either. Here this stranger—and a woman at that—had just sacrificed her life, but for what? He looked at Theran, at the bracelet in his hand, and Kinnard shifted his jaw to try and form words when he saw a glow coming from the crumbled pieces of the bracelet. “I think we have a bigger problem...” He nodded at Theran.
All eyes shifted to Theran, who stared at his hand as the broken pieces of the bracelet glowed and began to levitate off his palm and off the ground. Theran stepped back. “Um...what’s happening?”
Draben growled. “That blasted kelliph’s coming back!”
“Everyone, down!” Reven warned, and everyone dropped to the ground and shielded their faces when a brilliant blast of light shot out from the shreds of the bracelet.
They lifted their heads to see what had come from the blast. Their eyes settled on a tall, pale skinned individual with silver-white hair. He reminded Vixen of an Athorian but was much taller, and his robes dark green with golden embroideries—not the colors of Athorim.
He stared at his hands and flexed his fingers like a man who had finally been freed from paralyzing imprisonment. Then he lifted his gaze, observing all those around him, noting their hostility, but he ignored them as his eyes settled on the unmoved figure of a woman he had once loved. “Therina.” He stepped toward Anelm.
“Oh, no you don’t!” Reven jumped between Anelm and Rykeldan with her handblade drawn, and Draben quickly joined her side. Reven glared at the creature before her. “This bracelet has the power to strip away all your lives and kill you for good.”
“Care to test it?” Draben raised his brows as he too stood with his handblade ready.
Rykeldan glowered at them, but he knew his limitations. He had been trapped for far too long. He needed to regain his strength, determine his weaknesses, and understand his surroundings before he could move forward. He cast one last look at Anelm before nodding at the thymords. “We will meet again.” And with that, he magicked away.
As everyone emerged from their hiding places and as the thymords stood down, Vixen sheathed her own blades and placed her hands on her hips. “I believe an explanation is long overdue.” She stared at the thymords, unwilling to budge.
Draben sighed and walked over to where Rykeldan had been, then gestured sharply into the darkness. “That was the deranged kelliph King Rykeldan, who nearly wiped out the entire human population of our homeworld, and you just freed him.” He turned to the party once more and crossed his arms, glaring at them. “That bracelet was the only thing that could contain him. No one was ever supposed to put it on, and if someone did, and if it was ever taken off, it wasn’t supposed to be broken because that’s how he would escape!”
“Well, it’s not like we meant to break it.” Disgusted that the blame was being placed unfairly on his shoulders, Theran wiped his hand of the dust of the shattered remains of the bracelet. “Besides, you sounded confident your handblades will do the deed.” He gestured to them.
Reven looked down at the handblade on her wrist and sighed. “Yes, it should. These handblades are crafted after the handblades which helped end the Kelliph Wars, but he was always the most powerful of all kelliphs—and the angriest. Tracking him down and containing him would be nearly impossible in our own world. Who knows what to expect here?”
“He called me Therina.” Anelm spoke, and everyone turned to realize she had emerged from the magic realm and was staring at the location Rykeldan had been when he magicked away. After a moment, she shifted her gaze to look at the thymords then rose gracefully to her feet. “Perhaps we can use that to our advantage.”
Kinnard cocked his head to a side and narrowed his eyes. “I suspect there’s something you’re not telling us.”
However, Reven ignored him as she stared at Anelm and nodded to her. “Could work.”
Vixen didn’t like the sound of this and crossed her arms. “What are you not telling us?”
Looking at the assassin, Anelm overlooked her question and went on to s
peak. “I healed Lorrek, but the infection is deeper and further spread than I have time to heal. He needs medical attention. The technology in Jechorm may be able to help him.” She shifted her attention to Theran and Kinnard. “You two will take Princess Mordora back to Radella and Skelton.”
Kinnard lifted his hand. “I still don’t know where that is.”
But Theran told him, “I do,” then kept his narrowed eyes on Anelm. “And what do you intend to do?”
“And why do you think Mordora would go along with them?” Vixen spoke up.
Anelm didn’t answer either of them but went to Mordora and knelt beside her. With a gesture over the princess, Anelm commanded, “Wake,” and Mordora’s eyes snapped open wide, but Anelm placed her hand on Mordora’s shoulder. “All is well. You are safe.” When Mordora struggled to sit up and looked around, bewildered, Anelm settled beside her. “He is gone from you—Rykeldan. You are in your own mind.”
Mordora shot Anelm a glare. “What right did you have?! Who told you that you could take that from me? You had no right!” She stumbled to her feet and pushed away from Anelm but then noticed the people around them and how they were on guard. She recognized Vixen and Kinnard, but the others were unknown to her, and she conjured up a fireball.
“Here we go again,” Theran muttered under his breath while everyone else took a step back. He noticed though how the thymords almost rolled their eyes and unsheathed their handblades. They were not impressed with the show of magic. However, in order to prevent the situation from getting out of hand, Theran lifted his hands and slowly removed the helmet from his head, tucking it under his arm. “Mordora, it is I, Prince Theran. I once offered you safe haven in Cuskelom after Countess Verddra overthrew your own kingdom.”
Watching him closely, Mordora was ready to strike at him if he made a wrong move, but when she saw his face, she recognized him and grew still. “Theran?” She took in his armor and furrowed her brows. “That armor is not of Cuskelom.”
The Chronicles of Lorrek Box Set Page 91
