Destiny

by Jason A. Cheek

  Dread filled Lúthien’s heart as she suddenly recognized the corpse-white creature for what it was, a Tuonellian Hulk. As a young Elf, she had spent many years studying every tomb of learning she could find on the Horde’s races. The implications of were staggering. If the invaders were back, she had to warn her people. Not waiting to watch the outcome of the savage fight, Lúthien dragged her screaming cousin to her feet rushing for the doorway.

  “Enelya, we have to go now!” They made it to the top of the steps before Enelya dragged her to a stop. Swinging around, Lúthien slapped her cousin across the face with an open palm screaming at the top of her lungs. “Stop fighting me! There is nothing we can do to save Argus’ life, but we can warn the Council of the Elders about the Tuonellians’ return!”

  In a cold rage, Enelya shoved her away. Blood matted hair fell across her face as she staggered into the wall behind her. White-lipped with pain, she glared at Lúthien through black dreadlocks, the tribal tattoos of her face giving her features an almost menacing look.

  “Then go, warn the clans!” Hacking uncontrollably, Enelya doubled over in pain retching blood, the spasms lasting for several long moments before settling down once again. Wiping the blood from her lips with the back of her hand, Enelya met Lúthien’s gray eyes speaking in a harsh whisper. “I will not leave my soulmate to die alone.”

  Incredulously, Lúthien watched her cousin shove herself away from the wall. On unsteady feet, Enelya staggered back down the corridor heading for the library when a blood-curling screech rang out down the hall. Almost immediately after Argus flew through the doorway. Bouncing off the calcimite walls, he slid to a stop on the smooth marble floor at Enelya’s feet streaming blood. Falling to her knees, Lúthien watched her cousin drape one of Argus’ forearms over her shoulder as she struggled to help the mortally wounded Wenci to his feet.

  “God, she’s such a savage!” Swearing in annoyance under her breath, Lúthien ran to Argus’ other side. Looping his bloody arm over her shoulder, she helped Enelya lift the Wenci to his hind legs. As she began dragging them both down the corridor, Lúthien heard the Tuonellians’ voice ring out behind them.

  “Sound the alarm. I want the gates locked, and those animals dragged back to me in chains!” There was a loud crash as the monster bellowed in rage. “Now go!”

  As the clanking sounds of heavy armor echoed throughout the corridor behind them, Lúthien glanced over her shoulder to see the Ironidium Knights charging around the corner in pursuit. Reaching the top of the stairwell Lúthien took a firm hold of Argus. Not bothering to slow down she pulled them down the stairs after her at a fast run.

  The plan almost worked. At the bottom of the steps, they wiped out from the momentum as soon as the floor leveled out. Sprawling to a stop, Lúthien leaped back to her feet. Running back to the bottom of the stairwell, she was just in time to see their pursuit reached the top.

  Ignoring the guards racing down the steps, Lúthien urgently searched for something that would slow the knights down. Seeing an old spider web at the base of the lowest step, she knew what to do. Scooping up the sticky material, Lúthien stood directly in the path of the armored mass of Ironidium Knights. Spreading her fingers, she called forth her power.

  “Kónguló Vefur!” Energy flowed through Lúthien‘s body as she pictured the spell in her mind. Immediately thick gossamer strands spewed forth from her open hand in an explosive wave. Spreading out across the opening, the webbing completely filled the stairwell before coming to a stop in front of her.

  The knights on the stairs were instantly caught in the spell’s grasp. Lúthien was just breathing a sigh of relief when she saw the runes on the magically enhance armor the Ironidium Knights wore flare with runic power. Grimacing, she raced back to Argus’ side. The spell didn’t need to stop them, just last long enough to allow them to escape.

  Quickly Lúthien lifted the Wenci to his feet with Enelya’s help as they quickly began making their way to the exit. Looking once more over her shoulder, a cold shiver ran down her spine as she watched the knights attacking the mesh in utter silence. Already they were breaking free of its sticky embrace. Reaching the far end of the chamber, Lúthien flung open the wooden doors to the great hall, when suddenly an armored fist shot out of the corridor.

  “Aaaeeeiii!” Lúthien’s scream was cut off sharply as she was jerked into the air by her long hair.

  From the corner of her eye, she saw a silver streak pounce atop the knight reaching for Enelya as Argus’ battle shriek rang out around them. Slamming into the back wall of the corridor, Lúthien’s eyes focused on the cold metal of the tinnearlian visor staring back at her.

  Pain laced through Lúthien’s scalp as she wrapped her hands around the cruel guard’s armored wrist. Not bothering to struggle against the magically enhanced strength of the spellforged armor, Lúthien blocked out the feeling of her hair being ripped out of her scalp as she called forth her power once more.

  “Galdur Eldflaugum!” Starbursts of light suddenly shot from Lúthien’s chest. Flying around her like an angry swarm, they slammed into the Ironidium Knight’s breastplate in a series of mini explosions as the Klavikian runes engraved in the metal flared with defensive energy against her magical assault. Lúthien felt her feet touch the ground for a moment as the guard’s body shook in agony. Still focusing her thoughts, another light burst of stars flared into the air around her when blinding pain racked her body.

  For a second, Lúthien didn’t know what had happened. Her face ached like nothing she’d ever felt before. As her vision began to clear, it was just in time to see another balled up fist slamming into her face as the knight slugged her again.

  The sound of the wet meaty impact was cut off as bright lights flashed before Lúthien’s eyes. Immediately the starbursts streaming from her faded away as the pain of the physical blow broke her concentration and the connection that linked her to the magical power of her birthright.

  As her consciousness began fading in and out, everything seemed to happen all at once.

  Lightning fast, a thin arm snaked around the knight’s plate mail elbow. In a blur of motion, Lúthien dropped to the ground as the guard was suddenly propelled into the opposite wall with a resounding metallic crash that was instantly muffled by a swirling gray shadow.

  Falling to her hands and knees, she saw Argus sail through the air with her swollen eye as the Ironidium Knight he was battling lurched back to its armored boots. Immediately a caterwauling shriek rang out as Enelya launched herself through the air at the armored guard. As Enelya wrapped her hidebound legs around the knight’s thick waist, Lúthien flinched at the loud scream of grating metal as Enelya slammed her tinnearlian daggers through the shiny helm’s thin horizontal eye slit.

  Immediately every muscle in the guard’s body went ridged as blood began gushing down its runic faceplate. For a second Lúthien’s eyes widened in shock that her cousin had managed to kill one of the infamous Ironidium Knight’s by herself when the guard suddenly staggered backward stopping its fall. Terribly wounded and very much alive, the knight smashed Enelya violently to the ground with a brutal strike to her head.

  Time seemed to slow as Lúthien struggled to push herself back to her feet. The entire side of her face throbbed with pain as the blood pounded in her ears in time with her beating heart. Helplessly she watched the knight shamble after Enelya on unsteady feet. As the armored boots reached her side, a swirling gray cloak suddenly flew through the air blocking Lúthien’s vision.

  Immediately the knight was thrown to the ground with a loud crash. Floating back into the air, the cloak rippled again flowing directly for her. As the rippling shape came to a stop directly in front of her, Lúthien shrank back in fear as a leather gloved hand pulled the cowl back from the shadowy face underneath.

  “Please forgive me, Princess. I was held up by traitors.” Hearing the strong familiar voice of her guardian relief flooded through Lúthien as she saw the battle-hardened face looking back at her in co
ncern.

  “Warden Morwen!” Wrapping her arms around the Warden’s broad shoulders, Lúthien sobbed into her armored shoulder. “Mother and Father are dead!” Wiping the tears away with the back of her hand she spoke haltingly. “I don't know when it happened, but a Tuonellian Hulk now sits on the High Throne and wears my father’s face like a mask.”

  Feeling Morwen’s shoulders tense, Lúthien blood suddenly ran cold. Remembering Knight-Captain Valandil’s betrayal, she fearfully began pushing away from the Warden, when Morwen’s ironidium grip stopped her. In one swift motion, Lúthien was pulled to her feet.

  “The Ironidium Knights have been compromised, but I have not.” Dragging her to Enelya’s side Morwen spoke quickly. “Trust no one Princess. I do not know what has happened to our people, but whatever it is. It holds even the most steadfast of our people in its powerful grip. We must find Princess Amaurea and get the three of you out of Daeron Fortress immediately.”

  Lúthien felt the blood drain out of her face remembering her cousin’s mutilated corpse. “Princess Amaurea is dead.” Morwen’s face was unreadable as she gently lifted the Enelya to her feet.

  Lúthien had always heard Wild Elves were resilient to physical injuries, but that didn’t explain how her cousin stood before her now. Her injuries would have killed a normal elf. Blood ran from Enelya’s nose and mouth with each painful breath, but somehow her cousin ignored the worst of her terrible wounds as she followed the Warden to the Wenci’s side.

  “Help Enelya get Argus moving.”

  Hearing the clanking sounds of armored, Lúthien looked over her shoulder with a start. Still covered in sticky fibers, the guards she’d immobilized in the stairwell were rushing into the chamber behind them. As Lúthien’s heart began pounding in her chest, she hissed in frustration.

  “We don’t have time for this. The guards are going to be here any second!”

  Enelya glowered angrily back at Lúthien as she looped Argus’ arm over her shoulder, but it was Morwen who responded. “Do you want your cousin to die?” Seeing the confused look on Lúthien’s face, Morwen spoke harshly. “What do you think soulmated means to a Wild Elf? Do you think the Wenci is just another beast of the forest?” Not waiting for an answer, Morwen answered her own question. “If Argus dies, your cousin will too!”

  Coming to a stop, Lúthien’s mind raced as her thoughts made the connection her books had only hinted. Suddenly it all made sense! Morwen’s rough hand on her shoulder snapped Lúthien out of her reflection as the Warden’s hard gray eyes bore into her soul. “Wait for me at the entrance to the courtyard. With or without me, be ready to seal the doors at my command.” With a hard shove, she pushed them towards the door at the end of the corridor. “Now go!”

  Not waiting to see if they followed her orders, Warden Morwen spun around. Her cloak flapped behind her as she charged into the chamber throwing herself headlong at the Ironidium Knights. Drawing her slim runic sabers, she somersaulted into the air. Lúthien could only watch in amazement as Morwen slammed into the lead knight feet first. As the guard pitched backward from the force of the impact, the Warden rode the armored chest into a forest of deadly blades.

  The dance of death was like nothing Lúthien had ever witnessed before. In the blink of an eye, four knights dropped dead as Morwen slid her sabers underneath the gaps in their overlapping armored plates in a wild spinning attack. Tears ran down the Warden’s face as her blades flashed into the armored waves like a whirlwind as the knights forced her back by their overwhelming numbers. Before Lúthien could see more, her cousin began dragging her away down the corridor. Glaring at Enelya, Lúthien snapped angrily.

  “We can’t just leave her.”

  Gritting her teeth in pain, Enelya spat back in anger. “If you want to help her, then just do as she says. Otherwise, you may as well have killed her yourself.”

  Giving her cousin a sour look, Lúthien took more of Argus’ weight. Quickly they began dragging the Wenci down the corridor as the sounds of combat rang out louder behind them. The ringing sounds of metal on metal were coming so fast that it was almost a steady noise. Glancing over her shoulder, Lúthien saw Morwen forced back into the corridor as the knights poured into the corridor behind them.

  Morwen had been called the Mistress of Blades during the Tuonellian War and was a living legend throughout Irlendria as a swordmaster beyond compare. That she could stand against the spell powered armor of the Ironidium Knights, even for a short time, was a testament of her incredible skills, but no matter how good Morwen was, Lúthien knew there was no way she could hope to hold back the force boiling forth from the bowels of the keep.

  Reaching the doorway, Lúthien skin crawled as she faced the unnatural silence of the terrible battle. Her heart caught in her throat as one of the knights hooked a gauntleted fist in Morwen’s flapping gray cloak. With a ferocious jerk of its spell powered strength, the knight slammed the Warden into the nearest wall with a loud crash.

  Bouncing back to her feet, Morwen’s blades sliced the cloak away from her shoulders as she swayed unsteadily on her feet. Swinging her blades up before her defensively, Morwen fought on with grim determination as the knights pushed on over their own dead without pause.

  Leaving Argus with Enelya, Lúthien closed the doors just wide enough for a single Elf to fit through as she screamed to be heard over the crashing sounds of combat. “Morwen, we’re ready!”

  For a second, Lúthien thought the Warden hadn’t heard her as she threw herself into the advancing charge once more, but the attack was a feint. Breaking away with a spinning backflip, Morwen turned and sprinted down the corridor as the Ironidium Knights surged after her like water bursting from a dam. As Morwen dove through the opening, Lúthien slammed the doors shut calling forth her power. The spell took shape in her mind as she released the energy flowing through her body with a word of command.

  “Galdur Blokk!”

  The entire doorway suddenly glowed red as the magical barrier shot across the entrance a second before the doors shivered under the force of a massive impact. Immediately, loud booming blasts began hammering at the doors as Lúthien slowly backed away from the archway. Seeing Morwen unmoving on her knees, she rushed to the Warden’s side speaking quickly.

  “Morwen, I don’t know how long the spell will hold against …” Seeing the Warden’s tear stained face and haunted eyes, the words died on Lúthien’s lips as she silently sank to the ground next to the Warden. Finding her voice once again, Lúthien gently put her arm around her guardian’s shoulder speaking softly as Enelya and Argus approached from behind. “What’s wrong Morwen?”

  Shaking Lúthien’s arm from her shoulder, Morwen stood up wiping the tears away breathing in ragged gasps. “What’s wrong? Do you not know?” Covering her eyes with the back of her hand, Morwen pressed her gray eyes shut. “I’ve dedicated my entire life fighting against the Tuonellians that slaughtered so many of our people, only to be forced to kill the same people I’ve sworn to protect because of their trickery!”

  For a long moment, Morwen’s jaw clenched shut as her body shook in silent rage when the call to arms gong began ringing from the topmost tower. With a start, Morwen lifted Lúthien to her feet snarling. “We must leave now.” Putting her arm under Argus’ shoulder, Morwen headed for the courtyard urgently speaking as they passed in-between the smaller buildings outside the central Keep.

  “No matter what happens to me, you are to head through that gate. You must reach the Forest Clan and let King Elladan know that the Tuonellians have returned.” Gripping Lúthien’s shoulder, Morwen pulled her close. “Make him understand what has happened to our people!”

  “I don’t understand why you can’t tell him yourself?”

  Morwen ignored her question as they passed between the last buildings before the central courtyard, when Lúthien’s breath suddenly caught in her throat as she saw the ranks of Ironidium Knights arrayed in formation before the main gate. Without stopping Morwen headed directly for the
middle of the formation turning to Enelya.

  “Have you passed the test of Ilmatar?” Seeing the looks of shock in young Wild Elf’s eyes and Argus’ furry face, Morwen smiled grimly pressed her forefinger and thumb together spreading out her hand. “I am Torrakusan, little sister.”

  Surprise changed to reverence as Enelya lowered her gaze. Grimacing from the pain, she gasped in short breaths. “Spirit Mother never spoke of your honored status among the Clan, Gray Mother.”

  Meeting the Warden’s eyes, Enelya answered the question as Lúthien listened intently. She had never heard of her cousin’s Clan accepting an outsider into their midst, let alone giving them a title of honor. This was a side of Morwen she never knew existed.

  “Ilmatar has accepted me as worthy.”

  “I need you to perform the Vindbylur?”

  Enelya’s eyes flashed towards Lúthien questioningly as Morwen spoke quickly. “You understand what I desire?”

  Looking towards the silent line of Ironidium Knights blocking their escape, Enelya nodded her head slowly. “I understand, only I have no spear for the spirit dance, and my body is broken, Gray Mother.”

  “Just do your best. A pure heart and a true need are all that Ilmatar requires. Have faith and he will heed your call.”

  Reaching the halfway point across the courtyard a shattering explosion suddenly ripped through the air from the direction of the Keep’s main doors as a rasping metallic sound rang out across the courtyard. Fearfully Lúthien watched as the Ironidium Knights drew their massive two-handed swords. As the entire armored line began to advance as one, Morwen hissed urgently.

  “Now little sister!” Lúthien staggered as Morwen forcibly pulled her to the Wenci. Quickly they changed position as Argus mewed in agony as his arm was draped over Lúthien’s shoulder. “When I charge, grab your cousin and head for the gates. No matter what happens to me, do not stop.”

  Before Lúthien could speak, Morwen had already turned away. As the Warden drew her curved blades from across her back, Enelya began stomping her feet in a quick double-step. At first, her cousin clutched her ribs as she swayed from side to side, her faced beading with sweat from the pain of her internal injuries, but slowly her movements became more fluid.