by Bill Albert
“If you are really that confident there will be no need for you to hide,” Gallif taunted him and waited. “It will take days for them to arrive,” Gallif said calmly, her eyes burning every inch of the room. “You will be in chains before then.”
“My guards have already beaten back most of the traders. You will be next.”
“You blind old fool,” Gallif laughed. “It’s the thousands who served you loyalty for centuries will be your undoing. They will have the keys to the chains and that bind you.”
“And they will trample over your dead body when they flee my wrath.”
“You won’t kill me,” Gallif said without fear. “I know what you desire,” she added.
One of the robes hanging high on the wall ruffled slowly and all three humans travel to face it. There were two blasts of a white, cold light from behind them and Gallif turned to see Krove watching. She was about to rush forward to attack but held her place when she realized that Luvin and Kellis were now frozen statues. Icicles dripped from their limbs and there was frost over their faces.
“As King I still can order powerful expeditions into the Burial Grounds. They will tear apart that library finding out what you know,” he spat at her.
“No,” she said so honestly and plainly that Krove knew she was telling the truth. “You wouldn’t have the power to make the library give you what you want.”
“You’re right,” he said matching her tone. “I can’t kill you. I can, however, make you wish you were dead.” He bowed his head for just a second, spoke something under his breath, then whipped his wand and Gallif’s direction.
Her scream was barely muffled by the thick wooden walls.
In the first few seconds for homes were burned away. She jumped to one side to try and escape the burning acid but no matter where she looked, there was an inch-thick layer of toxic liquid on the floor.
She shook uncontrollably as she turned around looking for someplace to run. She tried to step forward and attack but could only stumble as the acid seared away the muscle in her feet. She tried to brace herself but failed and fell to her knees into an acid pool.
She tried to scream again, but the pain was too much and she couldn’t control the muscles in her legs. On that she did was give a horrible, gut wrenching howl.
She lifted her hands to try and balance her, but her feet had been eaten away and the skin up to her knee that was exposed to the acid was thin and bubbling like hot water.
She cried desperately for Tebiet, or any God, to help her.
The stumps that remained of her left leg was hot and grizzled. She fell to one side. She almost instantly saw blood bubbling from her right leg.
From the shock and pain, she unbalanced and fell forward. Desperate she put her hands down to stop her but lost her fingers in a few seconds. She leaned back and lifted the burning ends of her hands, the fingers only small stumble and screamed.
She gasped for breath knowing her life span was down to a few seconds.
One of her legs started to boil and she finally fell forward into oil. She instinctively rolled back and tried to scream but only blood a mix of blood and acid came from her throat.
“Gallif, you’re okay. Gallif, it’s me!”
She lay on her back reeling from the imaginary pain. Luvin straddled her and used his body to keep her hands to the floor and prevent her from clawing her own throat.
“Gallif, you’re okay. Gallif it’s me!” Luvin called to her.
Kellis cradled Gallif’s head in her hands and kept whispering to her gently hoping it would calm her down.
Slowly the screaming stopped and Gallif stop resisting them. She was covered in sweat and still breathing heavily after a few moments. Finally, she stopped, looked at them carefully, then used all her strength to force yourself to start breathing steadily.
“What happened?” Gallif asked without trying to move.
“It was a cast from Krove,” Luvin said. “The cast on us extinguished but I had to shock you to bring it out of yours.”
Luvin released her hands as he got off her. She quickly looked at her fingers and curled her hands relieved that everything was where it should be.
Luvin and Kellis pulled her to her feet.
“Where did he go?” Gallif asked.
“He went up to the execution platform,” Luvin informed her quickly. “Mekon came back down looking for us before Krove could do any more casts. He went up the secondary set of steps and Mekon one after him.”
Gallif gently shook her body and again looked at her hands then brushed her fingertips against her cheeks. She made sure she had her swords ready then marched to the stairs and went up.
By the time they reach the execution stage a terrible battle had already taken place. Mekon, Tuttrup, and five more Giants had established a hold on the west side near the wall that protected the city.
Krove, the Seventh Minister, Eighth Minister, Ninth Minister, several giant warriors, and a handful of hobgoblin militia had brace themselves on the opposite side. At this position, there was no way out. They could not retreat and there was no way to exit other than over the edge. The advantage they had was Krove’s casting abilities. Mekon’s team had countered the cast affecting their mind and senses, but other castes were very effective. Mekon had several burn marks on his shoulder and his face, two guards were already badly wounded, and another two were already dead. There also scorched and burned planks from the casts and a small post on one of them was on fire.
Mekon rolled from his cover behind one of the chairs that one of the Ministers had used to observe the execution. He was trying to get to another chair and work his way around for attack, but he was too slow. I cast from Krove Kaufman the shoulder and he stumbled in pain. One of the guards turn to help them, trying to get a tight grip on her arm to pull him out of the way, but died with a flaming spear piercing his heart. Before his lifeless body hit the floor, the spear shimmered away.
Gallif, Luvin and Kellis reach the top of the stairs and quickly looked at the scene.
Wounded, Mekon crawled for cover but a barrage of three flaming spears caught him in the back, board through his body, and embedded themselves in the floor. The spears shimmered and vanished. Mekon, covered with his own blood, made another attempt to crawl for cover but stop moving in plain sight.
Gallif signaled for Luvin and Kellis to secure themselves behind more of the chairs on the west side and they hurried for cover. Luvin almost returned when he realized that Gallif was not following him but Kellis held him back.
Gallif sheaths her swords and walked out to the middle of the platform. She took a single leap and stood on the execution table they’d she had been strapped to just a few days before. She was in plain sight with nothing to protect her. Anyone of Krove’s guards could have a run at her and cut her in half. Krove himself could have made a single cast that would have turned her into his mindless slave, instead, silence fell on the platform.
“This is how your kingdom begins?” She asked looking directly at Krove. “A kingdom of blood and death ruled by a savage. Is that what you are?”
The Seventh Minister, Eighth Minister, and Ninth Minister east looked at their king. He felt their eyes on him and stepped away from the guards that were protecting him.
“The kingdom forged in fire will survive fire,” he responded.
“No,” Gallif shook her head. “Look around you. Look at the fires you started.”
No one had to look to understand what she meant. There were thousands of people from every inch of the land around the wall and the execution stage. So many with torches it was as if the sun had risen. Looking from here it was easy to believe that the entire Land of Starpoint was on fire.
“These people will serve me,” Krove said. “They will be my loyal and faithful servants just as they were to Pala, or Fedoro, or Burnau, or anyone before me.” “They have many questions that you can’t answer,” she tormented him with her confidence. “The days of blind rule and lies by the Gi
ant Lords are over today,” she declared.
“I will rule this land from this point on,” Krove demanded back at her. “If they will not follow me willingly then I will rule them by force,” he said. He pulled a wooden tube from under his robes and pointed up to the sky. He spoke no casts but there was a sudden burst of concentrated, deep red light that shone impossibly high into the sky. It was so intense it could have been seen all the way to the horizon.
There was a flash of light from one of the large metal tubes that crowned the midpoint of the Rainbow Mountains. Two seconds later a wrenching thunder shook the Great Wall, the buildings of Spring Field, and the execution stage they were standing on. A thunder so loud many believed it signaled a return of the gods.
Instantly following an impossibly large burning metal disc erupted from the tubes and growled like a lion across the sky. No one would ever be sure exactly how long it took no one would forget the silence of thousands as the disc arched up and over, finally turning down, and smacked into the ground of the distance. There was a collective gasp as thousands realized a portion of the city of Dakteria had been destroyed.
“This is my power,” Krove yelled his eyes wide and wild. “I can choose the life or death of thousands,” he declared. “There are dozens of those tubes up and down the Rainbow Mountains and they are all under my command. They give me enough power to bring down what remains of Starpoint Mountain,” he laughed. “Another signal,” he warned them holding the tube straight up again. “Another color, perhaps a green,” he smiled. “How much land and how many farmers will I destroy with a single shot?”
“No!” Gallif pleaded. “No more killing innocent lives.”
The Giants behind her, horrified at what they had seen, put down their weapons and stood. With this ability to slaughter thousands they knew they could not fight him. Luvin and Kellis move next to Gallif and stood with her.
They could hear gasps and screams from the people below them. Those on the outer edges of the fields of fire has already turned and fled.
The Seventh Minister, Eighth Minister and Ninth Minister also left the areas they were using for protection and stood in a row behind their king.
“Is this what you expected?” Gallif asked the Seventh Minister directly. “When you became a Minister, took an oath to rule the land, is this what you wanted?” The Seventh Minister’s shifted uncomfortably in the Eighth Minister spoke first.
“We stand with our King,” he said. “We serve and defend the new era of the Giant Lords.”
“He didn’t answer my question,” Gallif pointed. The same man who knew the truth about the elves, all those years, and chose to use it to his own advantage. Would your gods reward you for his lies?” She asked and noticed the Seventh Minister shifted uncomfortably.
“Ignore her. More ridiculous lies from the confessed murderer of the King,” the Ninth Minister said. “There’s no truth or honesty and her. It’s impossible.”
“Is it?” Gallif said and jumped off the execution table and faced the Seventh Minister. “Impossible to believe the torment they’ve lived under for 1000 years?”
“Of course, you pathetic human,” the Eighth Minister sneered at her. “That they had a choice? That they were that easily seduced to a path of monsters is impossible.”
“Look at what’s happening here,” Gallif challenge them all but still stared hard on the Seventh Minister. “Look how quickly you turned against each other. Giants killing Giants,” she said pointing to Mekon’s wounded body. “That’s after just a couple of days. How fast did it take you to turn on each other? And you have the ability to choose.”
The Seventh Minister blinked several times when she finished speaking.
Krove’s laughter brought their attention back to him.
“Perhaps I shall create a new position for you and making them,” he said. “A court jester who tells impossible stories might be the part for you. NOW KNEEL FOR YOUR KING!”
When Gallif didn’t move Krove fired another, brighter, colored light into the dark sky. There was another flash of light from the mountains followed by thunder. The Seventh Minister and the Ninth Minister slowly took a step away from Krove. This time the projectile from the mountains was headed in their direction.
People near the execution stage started to look for cover. As many as could fit huddled under the stage for protection.
This disc hit the ground barely a mile away. The giant wall that protected the capital city of Spring Field wavered in the aftershock and a large section collapsed to rubble. The shockwave was felt in most areas of the city and at least one building near the zone of impact was shattered.
Everyone on the execution stage struggle to remain standing.
Krove’s eyes were wide in the glory of his power.
“There will be no need for anymore,” Krove said. “After all, I will rule everything.” They all heard the screams of terror from the torch carrying mobs outside the gates. There was no doubt hundreds of them have been killed when the wall fell, and panic was spreading across the crowd.
“Kneel before your King,” Krove demanded of all the fighters on the platform. “Pledge your lives to serve me and I will spare the port city of Luckana on the southern coast and the Under City of the dwarves in the north.”
Slowly, reluctantly, the Giants on the platform step forward, kneeled and bowed their heads. They had no doubt from what they had seen that he had the power to strike those cities so far away. Except for Gallif, Luvin, and Kellis everyone else on the stage also kneeled and bowed.
“Bout to me, Gallif, the future of the land, maybe even your soul, depends on what happens next,” he warned her and pointed the tube up at the sky again.
Gallif took a deep breath as she looked up at the giant with all the hatred she’d ever known. She was about to bow her head when she heard Luvin’s cry of anger.
“Damn you,” Luvin yelled. “You fired another one!”
They all looked to the south end of the Rainbow Mountains as another impossibly large globe of light rose into the sky headed towards the northeast. They knew the farmlands would be directly in its path.
“Pledge your lives and loyalty to me now!” Krove ordered but Gallif notice there was something odd in his voice. Something she hadn’t heard from him before.
“Why is it turning?” Kellis asked.
Everyone, including Krove turned quickly to see the globe changed directions. They knew the people below had seen it as there were screams and calls warning everyone that it was now moving towards them.
Gallif stood and took one giant leap back up to the execution table. She looked up at the fireball, then into Krove’s eyes, then slowly started to laugh. “Well, your Majesty,” Gallif said calmly. “Your kingdom is ending the same day it started.” Her voice was so strong and clear everyone stood and turned to look up at her. “Maybe we can stop you, but they will.”
“They?” The Seventh Minister asked.
Gallif looked at the Seventh Minister with tears of joy streaming down her face.
“What’s that noise?” Kellis asked.
Gallif raise her hands in joy in cheered.
“THEY’RE SINGING!!!!”
There were hundreds of thousands of them in the sky. Each one of them following the bright green glow of Lincilara. Each of them echoed her song.
She had freed them by teaching them the jump casting. She had worked quickly to find the Elder Mothers and explained to them what had happened during their imprisonment. The truth about the elves, the dragons, the Giant Lords and what she had learned from Novelevon. The Elder Mothers gave her their trust and leadership. Then she decided to go find her best friend.
Every being in the world took a moment and listened. Even the aquilus with the darkest hearts stopped to hear the song.
Lives were lost in chaos
Unable to choose their fate
Know no difference in between
The warmness and the hate
Freedom you will see
The difference will be bright
Your minds will all come clear
When the sun is burning bright.
When they reached the outskirts of the crowds surrounding Spring Field they started dropping out of the globe and dancing in joy as they met people. The people, amazed by the miracles they were witnessing, started to lose their anger and fear of the Giant Lords as everything they knew changed forever.
Lincilara held her place in the lead flying faster than she’d ever flown. She knew Gallif was somewhere near and could smell her when she was several miles away. The fairies sensed the combination of fear and fury on the platform, so strong the waves of hatred push them back, but there was nothing that could keep her from where she wanted to be.
She kissed Gallif on the cheek as she circled her. She sensed something, something bad, and knew there was a terrible rage directed at Gallif as she landed in Gallif’s shoulder.
“Don’t even think about it,” she ordered Krove, then stood proudly on Gallif’s shoulder.
“It’s a glorious moment you’ve given me,” Krove said to Gallif.
Even the Ministers that supported him looked at him in confusion. He was obviously serious that this was to his advantage.
“My coronation will be legendary,” Crow smiled. “Any doubts as to my strength and influence will be removed, overpowered by the thrill and miracle we are seeing.”
Gallif took a deep breath as she realized any chances of ending this peacefully were running out. This giant was unshakable and determined to rule any way he could. No matter what the cost. She drew her swords and faced them ready for final confrontation.
“No,” the Seventh Minister said in a low, flat voice. “You can’t take the throne this way.”
The look of confidence faded from Krove’s face as he looked over at the Seventh Minister.
“Do not betray me,” Krove warned him. “I must speak,” the Seventh Minister said. “Look at what your rice to the throne has caused. For 200 years we benevolently ruled the Land of Starpoint, protecting it and its citizens from the evil aquilus. Protecting them from this. Only a few days of your kingdom and we’ve proven we weren’t really any better,” he said stepping over, so he was next to Gallif. “If we are as good as we’ve tried to be, we must make this choice because we do know the difference.”
