The Sorcerer's Destiny (The Sorcerer's Path)

by Deskins, Brock

  “Even combining our might, we cannot hope to amass even a quarter of what we face, and more than half of our army are conscripts.”

  “The only magic the Scions have at their disposal is the dragons. Yes, they are powerful and frightening beyond imagination, but our mages have been training to deal with them and did so effectively in North Haven. We can stand against them. The biggest threat we face right now is the gates. It did not take long for the Scions to understand what we were doing and send forces to try and destroy it. Thankfully, Miranda and her people were able prevent its destruction. Just before coming here, I spoke to Headmaster Florent. Southport came under attack just as the last of our people evacuated North Haven. They nearly lost the gates in the first few minutes of the battle despite the hasty reinforcements they put in place after I sent them warning. Fortunately, she had the foresight to begin evacuating Southport shortly after the attack on North Haven began, and most of the noncombatants were already through. Even so, their losses have thus far been far greater than our own. I have not gotten a full account of the battle as the Headmaster was rather pressed at the time.”

  “We all pray for their safety,” Jarvin said. “What can we do to protect the gates? If we should lose them, it would be catastrophic.”

  “We must increase the guard, obviously, particularly the number of wizards. The greatest threat to the gates are the dragons, and only the mages can effectively counter them. We can assume the dragons will be given instructions to destroy them at all costs and will be their primary if not sole focus.”

  General Brague asked, “Won’t that leave our soldiers vulnerable?”

  Raijaun nodded. “It will diminish the arcane support for them, but if the gates fall nothing else will matter.”

  “So my soldiers are going to be fodder.”

  “Give me the names of any of your warriors who are unwilling to die for their families and humanity’s continued existence.”

  General Brague sat silent knowing every man and woman standing to defend Brelland would give their lives a hundred times over. Even the most doubtful amongst them now knew the stakes, knew the only option was to fight with no chance of quarter or surrender. Anyone who was the slightest bit unsure before today had heard word from those who fled North Haven and knew their lives no longer belonged to them. They belonged to Valeria and to humanity. They would sell their lives, but only at the highest price.

  “I want every fifth wizard on the walls posted near the gates. We should string additional chains and cables across the streets.”

  “We could make some enormous caltrop-like devices and position them on the streets,” Alex suggested.

  “That is a good idea. We need to get the blacksmiths working on them right away. I estimate we have three days at best before the first wave arrives. I know iron is in short supply, but at this point we have no other use for it.”

  Jarvin’s chamberlain entered the room and cleared his throat. “Your Majesty, several hundred residents of Gifford’s Hollow arrived recently, and I thought you and the assembly would want to hear their Commander’s report.”

  “I think we are about finished here. Please send him in.”

  The Chamberlain made a beckoning motion and a man covered in road grime and dried blood entered the room. He knelt before the King, his battered armor giving off the creaking of leather and the ring of metal.

  “Please stand. I can get you a chair if you need,” Jarvin offered. “You look a bit war-torn and weary.”

  The man stood straight and set his jaw. “I can stand if it pleases Your Highness.”

  “As you wish, sir. What news do you bring us of Gifford’s Hollow?”

  “My name is Captain Martin Frink, Commander of the Gifford’s Hollow militia. Two days ago, a hundred and nine folks from Fowler’s Creek staggered into my town claiming demons set upon them in the middle of the night.”

  “One hundred nine, but there are over six hundred in Fowler’s Creek if my memory serves,” Jarvin said, his voice tinged with the anxiety of what he knew was coming next.

  “Not no more, sir. I set out with two hundred-fifty of my men in search of stragglers and ordered everyone else to Brelland. A couple hours out, we heard a ruckus in the woods not far off the road and set to send these demons back to Sharrellan or whatever hell done spawned them. As we entered the clearing, we spotted what we thought was a boy charge some two-dozen of them demons. Turns out he was a rider from North Haven named Peck. He come to warn us to get to Brelland. I guess he was just a bit too late.”

  Miranda gasped. “Is peck all right?”

  “Aye, Lady. He got chewed on pretty good, but he fought like one of them demons. We brought him with us and handed him over to the healers. It wasn’t easy until we were able to promise him his horse made it and was coming with us.”

  “It must of have been an extraordinary fight. How were your casualties?” Jarvin asked.

  “We gave a lot better’n we got. A lot of our folks hunt bear, and we got some tricks that work almost as well on these demons.”

  “Anything you know that we can use to kill these creatures would be appreciated.”

  “Aside from leg traps, we like to use what we call a grabber. A grabber is like a man catcher only it has two long poles attached that lock at a downward angle if dropped. The ends dig into the ground or trip up its fellows as it thrashes around until we fill it full of arrows or spears. It slows ‘em down real good.”

  “Thank you, Captain Frink. I would like you to show our smiths how to make these. If it helps us kill them, then it is worth the effort.” Jarvin turned to his generals. “It appears some of these creatures are traveling ahead of the main host. I want company-strong riders sent out to scout for any advanced parties and help any refugees reach the city. If no one has any more questions, I think we all have work to attend to.”

  “I’ll have at least a thousand questions before this war is over,” General Brague huffed as he stood and departed with the rest of the assembly.

  “Raijaun, could you spare me a moment of your time?”

  “Of course, Highness. I am here to serve.”

  The King licked his lips and swallowed nervously. Despite Raijaun’s seemingly calm and kind disposition, he was a towering figure looking like a creature straight from the darkest pits of the abyss, and Jarvin could not help but feel intimidated by him.

  “The last meeting between your father and I did not end well as I am sure you know.”

  “Whatever issues you and Father have are between you and him. It will not affect my actions in defending this city or its people.”

  “I am very happy to hear that. You cannot know how glad I am to have your help. My concern, many people’s concern, is your father and his whereabouts. Does it have to do with the bitterness of our last meeting? Has he abandoned us to our fates because of me?”

  “My father will never abandon these people, no matter how obstinate and vexing they may be. We shifted the old tower and a considerable source of our magical power to alternate dimension in hopes of keeping it safe from the Scions. Father was required to be inside the tower to ensure its transition. His intention was to return immediately after the tower was secure. The fact he has not means that some complication arose, one that obviously is taking some time to deal with.”

  “Could he be dead?”

  “I like to think I would know if he were. He and I are connected on many levels, and his death would likely resonate even between worlds. No, Azerick Giles is alive, and the world will tremble beneath his wrath.”

  CHAPTER 18

  Wolf watched the flying ships return through his small, brass spyglass. They were barely visible against the smoke-shrouded horizon as North Haven burned just a few miles away. The largest of the vessels broke away from the others and appeared to be coming toward him, but he soon saw that it was cutting a path toward the school. The half-elf blinked back tears as the ship began raining fire and lightning down onto the now empty tower and b
uildings, setting another blaze to obscure the view of his sky. The school was his second home, but Wolf was still surprised at the strength of his emotions seeing it razed to the ground.

  “They should have stayed and fought,” Wolf said bitterly to Ghost. “They should have fought for their home like us. They won’t take my home without a fight.”

  Wolf turned his spyglass back to the city and saw large groups of the creatures called ravagers gathering outside the eastern wall. One of the ships was lowering a pair of obelisks by means of ropes and pulleys while a few, slightly more human-looking creatures, helped guide them into place.

  Within minutes, the obelisks stood as a matched pair perhaps two hundred feet apart. A minion at each obelisk inserted a rune-inscribed disc into a matching recess in the stones’ surface. The disc flared brightly, and a shimmering gate sprang up between the two pillars. Hordes of ravagers and other creatures streamed through the gate, and Wolf quickly gave up trying to count them.

  “New plan, Ghost. We will let them pass through our woods, but we will take a toll from the stragglers at their rear. Hey, don’t give me that look! I might be idealistic, but I’m not suicidal. You know, for someone who bathes using his tongue, you are very judgmental.” Ghost cocked his head. “I bathe plenty! If you are through with your disparagement of my character and hygiene, I would like to focus on the plague of monsters bent on killing us and everything else in this world.”

  The ravagers did not move with the ordered discipline of soldiers but in massive herds tens of thousands strong. Most of these herds headed in a south-easterly direction, likely on their way to Brelland and stopping only long enough to decimate any homes and towns in their path. A smaller group of perhaps three to four hundred broke away and headed due east just a few miles south of the Northern Range.

  There were only a few small settlements to the east, and Azerick had made sure they were all warned to leave. Wolf had seen a group of Peck’s riders going that direction a few days ago. Still, it was unlikely they reached all of the homes dotting the forest, and there were always those who would refuse to go and would fight for their homes no matter how ridiculous such an action was. Wolf found he was able to relate to those foolish people. If these creatures thought they could just traipse through his woods unmolested, they were wrong.

  Wolf and Ghost padded through the forest as quickly and silently as a soft breeze after the ravagers. The pair ran swiftly at an oblique angle to head off the much faster-moving invaders. Wolf and Ghost caught up with the tail end of the marauding band just as the forest resumed to the east of what was left of the school. Wolf considered the stupidity of his actions once again as he sighted down the shaft of his arrow before releasing it into the back of one of the creature’s necks. Two more arrows were in the air as the ravager plowed face-first into the ground and tumbled to a halt.

  The mass of ravagers skidded to a stop and searched for the ambusher. One of the creatures took a deep breath through its nose and locked eyes with the half elf. Wolf put out one of those beady, black orbs with another arrow and the chase began. The ravagers let loose with shrieks and howls as Wolf slung his bow, grabbed a rope tied higher in the tree, and swung through air. Ghost raced along below him as ravagers clawed at the ground in pursuit.

  Ghost sprinted away into the shadows; the only sign of his presence were the occasional brief but furious sounds of battle when a solitary ravager got too close. Wolf swung from ropes and darted across shaky rope and plank suspension bridges he had spent the last couple years erecting throughout hundreds of acres of his forest. He also had a dozen bows and scores of quivers packed with arrows tucked away in the branches and on platforms, wrapped in oilcloths to protect them from the elements.

  Wolf used the platforms and bridges to pepper the ravagers with arrows until he ran out or they began climbing the trees to get to him. A ravager stepped onto the shaky bridge spanning over to the tree he was perched in, but Wolf knocked it off with an arrow to its chest. Ravagers began climbing trees all around him, and he knew it was time to move on. Grabbing another rope, Wolf swung out across the span between trees and raced across his primitive bridges with ease. The ravagers were not adept climbers and had a far more difficult time following him. Most leapt from the trees back to the ground where they possessed a significant speed advantage.

  The half elf led the creatures through areas rife with all manner of traps designed to cripple, maim, and kill his attackers. Whip traps and spike boards impaled bodies, and snap traps pierced the ankles and legs of dozens of ravagers. Wolf swung out over a wide expanse, released his grip, and leapt to a mace trap hidden high in the trees. He grabbed the rope and heaved with his legs, riding the thousand-pound spiked log like a sled racing down a steep hill. Wolf used his weight to guide the log into the tightest knot of ravagers and smiled as he plowed through dozens of the monster, pinning several on the log and crushing a host of them before arcing back up and leaping into another tree at the apex of its swing. A sharp cry brought his attention to the north.

  “Ghost!”

  Wolf recklessly leapt from tree to tree using their branches like a squirrel when he lacked ropes or bridges to make the crossing. He found Ghost surrounded by ravagers looking like a piece of flotsam in a sea of murderous creatures. The big wolf kept his backside to a massive tree as the ravagers closed in around him. His black coat glistened with fresh blood, not all of it belonging to his enemies.

  “Ghost!”

  Wolf began showering the ravagers with arrows in hopes of creating an opening for his best friend to escape through, but there were simply too many of them. Wolf swung to the massive fir tree towering over Ghost as ravagers began clawing their way into the branches below him. He looked at Ghost helplessly as he continued loosing arrows into the mass of snarling bodies. He could hear more of the creatures crashing through the forest not far away. He and Ghost were less than a minute from being overwhelmed.

  Wolf grabbed some shredded, pitch-covered tinder from a pouch on his hip and stuffed into the recesses of a dry pinecone. He fought to control the shaking in his hands as he struck steel against flint, sending cascades of sparks onto the highly-flammable fibers. The pitch-laden tinder snapped and popped as it burst into flames. Wolf touched the burning cone to a branch over his head, setting the dry needles aflame before pitching the fiery pinecone into the dry, brushy ring surrounding the tree.

  A small fire erupted almost immediately as the parched needles and twigs combusted. Wolf grabbed at the cones and drier branches in reach, touched them to the expanding flames just over his head, and hurled them into the forest, driving some of the ravagers away from Ghost and erecting walls of fire between him and the packs of ravagers racing toward them.

  He had gained Ghost some time, but now they were both surrounded by ravagers and fire. More of the killers arrived, lunging at the expanding flames and darting away. A few braved the fire and leapt over or simply charged through, ignoring the searing of their flesh to reach Ghost. Wolf fired shaft after shaft into those that disregarded the fire. Ghost was capable of handling any single ravager who got past Wolf’s sniping, but they were both tiring, and the tree they used as a key to their defense was rapidly being consumed by flames. In the next few seconds, the ravagers would cease their hesitation and rush Ghost, and all Wolf could do was look helplessly on, exacting revenge until he ran out of arrows or burned up.

  Ghost looked up at Wolf and saw him grip the hilt of his sword as he prepared to throw himself into the throng of vicious monsters before deserting his friend. Ghost’s body contorted, his black fur vanished, and he stood on the naked legs of a human.

  “Throw a rope!”

  Wolf’s eyes went wide, but he dropped a rope without hesitation. Ghost used his human arms to scamper up the line as the ravagers leapt through the ring of fire and slashed at the air where he had been standing. Ghost climbed hand over hand up the rope until he took a perch next to a glaring Wolf.

  “You and I are going
to have a very long talk if we survive this,” Wolf said. “How long have you been able to do that?”

  “Since I was about five.”

  “You don’t think that was something worth mentioning in all these years? Oh my god, you were there when I was with Becky and Louise! Oh, you were right there watching when I was with Rachel, you furry little pervert!”

  “It’s not that big a deal.”

  “Hey, it’s plenty big enough!”

  Ghost rolled his eyes. “Not that, the…do you really think this is the best time to have this discussion?”

  Ghost looked at the ravagers sinking their claws into the thick tree bark and slowly making their way up its surface even as the branches above his head combusted and sent a wave of searing heat against his unprotected skin. “I suppose not, but you can bet we’re going to talk about it later. Can you swing?”

  “I’ll learn.”

  Wolf grabbed a rope and pulled it to him. “Grab it just below my feet. We’ll have to swing together since you didn’t bother telling your best friend you could turn into a person.”

  “Let it go already! I’m sure you have secrets too.”

  “Not as many as I thought I did just a few minutes ago.”

  “Are you referring to Rachel?”

  “I am referring to Rachel.”

  “It wasn’t a secret. She told everyone.”

  “How do you know?” Wolf demanded.

  “People talk around me.”

  “What did she say?”

  “It was flattering.”

  Wolf smiled. “I guess it’s okay then. Still, women are blabbermouths. You keep your big yap shut.”

  “I kept this from you for the last fifteen years. Do you think I’m going to share it with someone else? Now those things are right below us and our rope is on fire. If your rope is still strong enough to support us and your massive ego, I would really like to leave now.”