by Hoyt, Joshua
They traveled through the rest of the day, only stopping occasionally. When it became too dark for them to see Xantar led them as they held on to a rope between them.
Tom’s legs ached and he stumbled over rocks and limbs that lay on the path. He had a hard time keeping his eyes open and wondered how he would make it through the night. If I’m too tired to walk, how am I going to be able to fight when the time comes? Maybe that is what the adrenaline is for? He grinned to himself.
The group traveled through the night, Tom only saw Tanya occasionally. She would dart in and out among the trees and report to John with a simple nod of the head. John continued to push the group through the night, taking no breaks as they traveled. Tom could feel the weariness in his body as they traveled and noticed that many times Aithnea would lean on him. She nearly fell asleep several times. He smiled as he looked at Cody up ahead, How does he do it? He doesn’t look tired at all. He never seems to get down about anything, not even when he’s stumbling through an overgrown forest.
After what seemed to be an eternity to Tom, the group finally came to a halt. The trees didn’t appear to be any different than the last thousand they had past. Why did John decide to stop here?
John sat down. “We’ll rest until morning. I’ll take the watch tonight while the rest of you sleep as best you can. Tanya, I would appreciate it if you could also stay up.” He looked at her with a weak smile.
“Don’t worry about me John, I don’t need to sleep,” Tanya responded sarcastically.
Tom lay down and it seemed that he had no sooner fallen to sleep than he was shaken awake.
“It’s time to get up. Get a quick breakfast, we’ll be leaving shortly.”
“Ok,” Tom mumbled sleepily as he tried to sit up. He was finally able to get himself to stand. He ate a small breakfast as he stretched his sore muscles.
Tom turned to Cody. “This adventuring stuff sure isn’t much fun.”
“What? You mean you like a warm soft bed that you can lay down in without feeling rocks in your back and a warm breakfast to wake up to each morning.” Cody smiled.
Cody was of course in a good mood once again. Tom was always cheered when he saw his smile. It seemed to take away all of his troubles and make life seem doable. Tom watched Cody get his gear ready and put his weapons in their place. Cody was watching Tanya and Tom noticed that the two would catch glimpses of each other when they thought no one else was watching. Tom smiled as he watched the two. When Cody realized that Tom was watching the two of them he blushed and turned away quickly.
“We need to be moving soon,” John said, as he walked around checking everyone’s gear.
The group finished making preparations to leave and huddled around John as he went over the plans one final time.
“We’ll all hit the palace and then we’ll split up into our groups. Cody, Tom and Aithnea will hit the closest tower. Tanya and Caspin will hit the west tower and Kristiana and I’ll hit the east tower. Xantar you’ll need to go and find your people and head to the prisoners and release them. Does anyone have any questions?” John looked around to each one in the group. “Remember that if you are over run we will meet here and regroup. The elves should be attacking shortly to give us more support and to distract most of the enemy.” John looked up at the group giving a reassuring smile. “Be aware of everything and stay focused on the objective. It’s time we get going.” John turned suddenly and led the group toward the edge of the city.
Tom’s breath caught in his throat as he looked at the magnificent city that lay before his eyes. The buildings looked almost as if they had been shaped to appear like trees. The bases were wide and as the buildings climbed into the sky they became narrower and branched off to connect to other buildings. The buildings appeared to be made of crystal and as the sun hit the sides of them they reflected every color of the rainbow. Tom saw that in the center of the city there was a building that all of the other buildings seemed to connect to. It went up much higher than any of the other buildings. This building was as white as snow right after it has fallen and when the sun hit the building Tom could see through the walls into the building.
Three buildings stood around the town that were not as high as the center building but were much taller than the rest. There were walkways that connected the three towers to each other and to the center building.
John turned and looked at the group. He pointed out each tower to each group so that they knew which ones they would be hitting respectively. John turned and headed into the city. The city looked and felt like a ghost town. Why is it so quiet? It feels like a huge weight is sitting over the town.
The group quietly ran from building to building as they wound their way toward the palace. Suddenly there was an explosion of sound that came from the other side of the city. Tom could hear battle cries ripping through the heavy air toward him.
“They have begun the assault, we must hurry they’ll be putting up the protective barrier and my people will have to retreat,” Tanya said in a hushed tone.
The group continued at a quicker pace and Tom could hear the battle beginning to die down and suddenly the air was filled with electricity. A bright light flashed around the city and he had the distinct feeling of being trapped inside a bubble. Looking behind him he saw the trees shimmering as if a film was placed between him and the trees.
The group made it to the center of the city. To Tom’s relief there were only a few guards outside the palace. Four guards who all wore black leather armor with an even blacker image of a spider that wrapped around their bodies in a protective fashion. The guard’s helmets were also black with black hair coming out of the tops. Each guard wore a long sword at his side and each had a rifle cradled in their arms.
“Those are part of the Black Widow’s elite guard. Their bullets are dipped int a poison that if not neutralized will kill a grown man in a matter of minutes. They also have psionic ability and communicate with each other through their ability. We must be careful.” Xantar said.
Tom saw worry or maybe it was fear cross his face.
“Kris, we’ll need a shield if we are to reach them, Caspin prepare to neutralize any hits. Tanya, Xantar cover us with your bows. Cody and I will take the lead, Aithnea help cover us with a shield and Tom, well Tom surprise us,” John said with a quick smile.
Kristiana and Aithnea began to chant while Tanya and Xantar readied their bows. Cody gave a quick smile to Tom and Tom smiled back hoping that his friend would be ok. Tanya and Xantar released their arrows at the same time and before the first arrow was half way through its flight they had both notched and let loose another arrow. John was a half second ahead of Cody as they sprinted toward the four guards. Tom’s mind went blank and then filled with the fire spell he had used earlier to enchant his sword but instead of enchanting his sword Tom allowed the fire to begin to form in his hand into a small ball. He flung the ball toward the four guards and it split into four equal parts as it screamed past John and Cody.
The first set of arrows hit the guards square in the chest dropping the first two guards before they knew what had hit them. The next two guards reacted without hesitation, lifting the rifles to their shoulders they fired at the two men racing toward them. There was a tremendous sound and then the shield surrounding Cody and John wavered, Cody faltered slightly but John didn’t even flinch.
The small fire balls raced toward the guards and Tom saw that the guards finally registered the first feelings of fear that they had probably ever felt in their lives. Two balls slammed into the two guards already on the ground causing a small explosion of flames while the other two balls slammed into the second two guards throwing them to the ground. To Tom’s surprise and disappointment the two guards were back on their feet almost as soon as they had hit the ground and pulled their jagged swords from their sheaths.
John was on them first with Cody only a step or two behind. John swung his sword in a downward arch toward the first guard who being already caught off balanc
e was barely able to bring his own weapon up in time to deflect the blow from a fatal hit to one that cut deeply into the guards shoulder. The second guard swung in toward John but Cody had moved in to engage the guard and brought his own sword up to stop the downward slash toward John’s unguarded side. The strength of the blow had seemed to surprise Cody a little but he was still able to deflect it safely away.
Xantar and Tanya had drawn their own weapons and were racing across the small courtyard toward the combatants. Tom was close behind them and he could hear the others behind him as he raced across the courtyard with his weapon held high.
When he was half way to the guards he saw the doors to the palace open and several more of the elite guards, with their red hour glass markings, poured out of the doors. John brought his weapon across the guard’s chest and looked up at the oncoming group of dark elves. Cody was still engaged with the other guard and Tom figured that he wouldn’t need any help so he turned his attention to the group that was exiting the palace. Several of them pulled their guns to their shoulders and were preparing to fire. Aithnea and Kristiana began to chant as the guards fired their deadly guns at close range. All but one of the bullets smashed into the same invisible barrier. The one that made it through created a long red mark across Cody’s forearm. Cody fell and Caspin pushed past Tom toward him.
Caspin put his hands on Cody and began to pray while John, Tanya and Xantar quickly ran the short distance to the guards that had exited the building. Tom’s mind raged again as he saw Cody lying on the ground and his mind filled with fire once again. He enchanted his blade with the fire and he could feel the heat coming off the sword as he rushed the closest guard.
Tanya was fighting with her two weapons as she faced off against two of the guards. She blocked one blow from the first guard with her dagger and then with a quick movement brought her long sword across the second guard’s wrist causing him to drop his weapon; turning her dagger in an upward motion she thrust it to the hilt into the second guards gut causing him to double over and fall to the ground with a groan. Unable to pull the dagger free in time Tanya left it in the guard and pulled a second one from the small of her back and blocking an attack from yet another guard at the same time.
Tom was now in the melee with his fire sword swinging down toward one of the guards. The guard threw his sword up to block the fire sword that descended fiercely from above. When Tom’s sword hit the guard’s, fire seemed to leap from the sword onto the guard’s hands and body causing him to scream out in pain. Tom quickly took advantage of the elf’s confusion and brought the sword back across the elf’s body cutting a small line across his armor, catching the leather armor on fire for a brief moment. The elf jumped back and another elf appeared before Tom was able to advance.
The second elf had two small blades in his hands; he feinted with one catching Tom off guard. He then made a cutting motion toward Tom with the other blade, wounding Tom across his right arm almost causing him to drop his weapon. Tom quickly stepped back seeing that he was outmatched by this elf. The elf started forward slowly and Tom’s mind raced for a way to catch the elf off balance. The elf smiled cruelly as he approached him and once again came at Tom with his weapons.
Tom reached out with his mind toward Aithnea and connected as he desperately warded off the elf’s attacks. Aithnea’s and Tom’s mind connected and Tom was filled with the confidence that he needed. His mind was filled with the fire once again. He made a circular motion with his hand and the fire began to fill the space between him and his assailant. The elf dropped back quickly, not knowing what to expect. Tom blew the flame toward the man and a jet of flame shot from his hand toward the elf. The elf turned as the flame hit enabling him to avoid taking the full brunt of the magic.
The elf screamed out in pain as the flame heated the leather on his back and Tom jumped forward with his sword and plunged it into the elf’s back. Tom felt the blade slip through the armor easily and pierce the elf’s body releasing another agonizing scream from the elf. The elf fell to the ground, no longer moving. The field had been cleared. Cody looked to be doing well, thanks to the faith of Caspin.
Xantar dropped to the ground clutching his head. Through gasps of breath he said, “We must find the queen quickly; she has noticed us and will take us out one by one. She should be in the palace somewhere, we must hurry.” Tanya helped Xantar up, still gripping his head, and headed toward the palace doors. By the time they reached the entrance Xantar was able to walk without help but sweat poured down his face.
The group entered the palace; a huge staircase was going up to a landing high above them. A shiver ran up Tom’s spine. This is exactly what I saw in my dream from the night before. He looked over at his companions and saw that they must have had similar dreams.
Suddenly Tom felt as if his mind had been hit with a sledgehammer and his legs buckled under him. He felt himself falling toward the ground. The last thing he remembered before losing consciousness was Xantar grinning broadly.
Chapter 21:
Tom felt sweat trickling down the back of his neck and his head pounded harder than it had ever done before. He looked around and saw that he was in the entryway to the palace and that all of his companions were gone. He tried to sit up but the pounding in his head doubled in intensity when he raised his head off the ground. He lay on the cold stone floor for several minutes as he tried to force his eyes to focus. He hoped that the pounding in his head would subside enough to allow him to sit up.
After several minutes the pounding subsided slightly and Tom was able to sit up. He slowly got to his feet wondering why they left him here and what happened to them. He staggered as he made it to his feet and reached for the banister that ran up the staircase. Steadying himself, he looked around once again seeing that the walls were transparent enough to allow sunlight to come through but he was unable to see anything through the walls.
As Tom looked around he noticed that the plants grew directly from the floor and walls. There were bright colored flowers hanging around the room and trees growing up through the floor. Tom looked up the stairs to the landing above and he thought he caught a glimpse of someone darting from the balcony. He slowly began to ascend the stairs putting his hand on his sword reflexively.
When he reached the top of the stair case he saw two hallways leading away from the landing; he followed the one heading left. He thought he had seen someone run down that one. As he went down the hallway he noticed several doors without handles. He tried pushing on some of them but none would budge. At the end of the hallway there was a door that was slightly ajar and as Tom pushed on the door it opened into a room.
He had an overwhelming feeling of relief as he saw Aithnea and Cody. They were drinking from goblets and talking cheerfully with each other as Tom approached, though they seemed not to notice him. Tom touched Aithnea softly on the arm and she turned to him, but seemed to look through him.
Aithnea turned back to Cody and frowned. “I thought for sure I felt someone touch my arm.”
“Aithnea it was me,” Tom said. Why are they acting so weird? What game are they playing?
Aithnea did not appear to hear him because she went back to talking with Cody. Tom once again touched Aithnea’s arm. “Aithnea, stop playing this isn’t funny at all.”
Once again Aithnea turned in Tom’s direction but again did not seem to notice him. She rubbed her arm and began to cry softly.
Cody reached out his hand and pulled Aithnea in close to him. “What’s wrong Aithnea?” he asked.
Aithnea put her head on Cody’s chest still crying. “I’m not sure; I just feel so sad all of a sudden. It feels as if an old friend has just died.”
Cody held Aithnea close rubbing her back gently with his hand and whispering to her in a calming tone. Aithnea looked up at Cody and smiled. Tom’s heart jumped remembering the smile she had given to him those many mornings ago in the cabin.
Cody leaned down and kissed Aithnea tenderly on the lips and Aithnea kissed
him back.
Tom’s mouth dropped open in shock. Then hurt.
“Cody! Aithnea!” Tom said.
There was no response once again. He slowly turned away from the two and walked out of the room. Why would Cody do this to him? Why would Aithnea? How could they betray him like that?
In the hallway Tom noticed a door with a doorknob How did I miss that door? Tom walked over to the door and slowly opened it. He looked into the room and saw Caspin and Tanya. As Tom walked toward them, the door slammed shut behind him. Tom turned and tried to pry the door open, but was unable to.
He turned. “Tanya, Caspin?” Tom said timidly. What if they are like Aithnea and Cody?
Tanya suddenly pulled her weapons from her belt and stood back from Caspin who was transforming into a werewolf. Caspin’s mouth dropped open into a menacing grin as he looked at her. The saliva was dripping from his mouth. Muscles in the creature’s arms and legs tensed preparing for the fight.
Tom ran between the two, hoping that he would be able to stop the imminent battle. Caspin gave a short laugh and then lunging toward Tanya went right through Tom as if he wasn’t there. Tanya quickly brought her weapons up in a defensive stance trying to block the initial strike. Caspin swung with both clawed hands toward her body. She was able to deflect the powerful swings but was knocked off balance by the force. She stepped back regaining her balance.
Tom watched, horrified at the speed and agility Caspin had in his werewolf form.
Without hesitating Caspin swung a bloody arm again toward Tanya and hitting her in the shoulder knocked her to the ground. Tears came to Tanya’s eyes as she tried to regain some ground. She rolled to the side, barely evading Caspin’s clawed foot as he kicked at her. She got to her knees and jumped back to her feet before Caspin was able to hit her again. She swung her long sword at Caspin, forcing him to step back and then charged in with her dagger. Catching him off balance, Tanya quickly took advantage and slashed with her silver long sword cutting him across the chest.
