by Dean Cadman
“The other dragons have sensed Ryuu’s presence, so it’s a good bet that Aamon has too,” he shouted back towards Lusam and Neala.
“Should we cancel our obscuring spell?” Lusam shouted back.
“Not yet. Let’s give it five minutes, just in case.” Lusam nodded, and suddenly felt weightless as Ryuu plunged into a steep dive. Neala squealed behind him and her vice-like grip returned once more.
Lusam struggled to keep the amusement from his face as he turned to look at her. “I thought you said you weren’t afraid of heights if you had something solid under you?” he teased.
“I’m not,” she replied tartly, gasping for breath. “Buildings don’t usually fall out of the sky without warning like that.”
Lusam chuckled and she took a playful swing at his arm, before quickly resuming her tight grip on him. Lusam turned back just in time to see the world below come into view through the clouds. They appeared to be about a mile offshore and flying north, parallel to the Afaraon coastline. And they were moving fast. In fact, it wasn’t until he recognised the approaching headland that he realised just how fast. They were already well north of Lamuria and must have also recently passed Prystone, no doubt whilst they were still above the clouds.
Lusam leaned forward in the saddle and tapped his father on the shoulder. “Do you think it’s safe to reveal ourselves yet?” he asked loudly. “I should use the time we have left to recharge what I can of my power reserves.”
“Just take what you need from me. Ryuu will replenish whatever you take long before we reach The Rift.”
“Really?” Lusam asked, shocked by the revelation.
“Yes, go ahead,” his father replied, then added playfully, “If you can.”
Lusam placed a hand on his father’s shoulder and quested out towards his power reserves. He could feel him attempting to block his access, but Lusam simply brushed his efforts aside. The feeling was strangely familiar and more like his experience with the dragon heart in Helveel, than it was with another person. He couldn’t tell if he was sensing only his father’s power reserves, or that of Ryuu too, but the quantity of it was truly staggering. So much so, that when he refilled his own power reserves, it made no discernible difference to his father’s, whatsoever. When Lusam withdrew and opened his eyes, he saw his father had turned to face him in the saddle.
“Impressive,” he called out, “I’ll have to get you to teach me that one day.”
“I’d love to,” Lusam replied, with a grin. “I’m sure that I can come up with a few painful lessons of my own whilst I teach you.”
Arlo laughed loudly and nodded. “I bet you can, son… I bet you can.”
Fifteen minutes later they reached the edge of The Dark Forest and Ryuu slowly began to gain altitude. Lusam guessed that it was to give himself a better view of the forest below, and a moment later his suspicions were proven correct when he heard his father curse loudly.
“What can you see?” Lusam asked, squinting off into the distance. They were still many miles from The Rift, but he knew how good Ryuu’s eyesight was from what his father had told him. His father slowly shook his head, as if he was trying to make sense of whatever he could see through Ryuu’s eyes.
“It doesn’t make any sense,” he said, still shaking his head.
“What doesn’t?”
“There are thousands of Netherworld creatures attempting to overrun the soldiers at The Rift. But they are using blessed weapons, and the creatures seem to be able to breach Aysha’s light.”
“Paladins of Aysha,” Lusam corrected. “The soldiers are called paladins. They were created after the Guardians to protect against any Netherworld creatures escaping the forest, amongst other things.”
“Yes, of course. It would make sense that Aysha would do that. But what I don’t understand is how the creatures are able to pass through the barrier of blessed light.”
“What type are they?” Lusam asked. His father had educated him about all the various types of Netherworld creatures, and how best to kill them during his final month within the hidden realm. And now he looked forward to putting that knowledge to good use.
“That’s the thing, I have no idea what creature I’m even looking at. I’ve never seen anything like them before. Nor have I ever seen a Netherworld creature able to withstand Aysha’s light before.” Arlo’s sword and shield had already begun to glow on his back, and their light steadily intensified with every beat of Ryuu’s wings. Lusam had felt Ryuu’s sudden surge in speed even before his father had spoken, and now they were bearing down on The Rift at an incredible velocity.
“What about Neala?” Arlo called over his shoulder.
“What about me?” Neala called back.
“It’s not safe down there,” Arlo said, glancing back at her. Neala removed two of her knives and they began to glow with Aysha’s light.
“Don’t worry, I can take care of myself,” she said, defiantly. “Besides, my best friend is down there, and I have no intention of leaving her to fight those things alone.”
“She reminds me a lot of your mate,” Ryuu growled.
Arlo laughed loudly. “Indeed she does. And I knew when to back down from an argument with Samara, too, so I will say no more about it.” Neala nodded and replaced her two knives in her belt.
“So what’s the plan?” Lusam asked.
“We’ll make a single pass over the clearing. Use that time to get Neala inside the defensive perimeter of blessed weapons. But be careful, we don’t know what else those creatures are capable of yet. They’re about to overrun the paladin’s defences, so we’ll be fighting in very close quarters. Maybe it would be best if you concentrated on pushing them back from the perimeter, whilst Ryuu and I take care of the masses. Just remember, use only the power that you need, and no more. There’s nothing to be gained from exerting more energy than is required.” Lusam nodded, and with a sky trembling roar, Ryuu dived towards the clearing.
Neala leaned forward and kissed Lusam’s cheek. “Be careful,” she whispered in his ear.
“You too,” he said. “If it starts to look bad, take refuge within the temple foundations until we regain control.” She nodded, but deep down he knew she would never abandon her friends.
“Get ready!” Arlo called out, as Ryuu approached the clearing.
“Seven Hells!” Neala cursed, as she got her first glimpse of the battle below. Thousands upon thousands of Netherworld creatures surrounded the paladins and were slowly pushing their way through their defences.
“Go! And may Aysha watch over you both,” Arlo shouted over his shoulder. Lusam nodded and immediately levitated himself and Neala away from the saddle, then quickly descended towards the battle below.
***
“Hold the line!” Alexia commanded, as three more of the Netherworld creatures broke through their second line of defence. She had assigned every paladin with a shield to form a moving barricade against and creatures that made it through, but they were losing the battle, and everyone knew it. With every passing minute more and more of the creatures made it deeper into the barrier of light. At first, they had been able to hold them back, killing them before they were able to penetrate too deeply. But their numbers continued to grow, and soon they found themselves fighting them off on all sides, not just on their northern flanks.
Alexia released another arrow and it flashed brightly as it plunged deep into the side of one of the creatures. It fell lifeless to the floor, and she notched another ready to fire again. Paladins stabbed relentlessly at the advancing creatures, but no matter how many they seemed to kill, more always appeared to take their place. Men and women swayed on the edge of exhaustion, but still, they battled on. Three of her paladins had already suffered fatal wounds, and several more had sustained injuries which prevented them from fighting effectively. Worst still, the healers had not yet managed to find a way to cure the poison. The best they had been able to do was slow its effects. It was a boon for the recently infected, often allowing
them to rejoin the fight after treatment for their other wounds. But it did nothing for the others who had been infected during that first encounter, only prolong their suffering.
“Bind shields!” Alexia commanded, and as one a wall of shields struck the ground, forming a fresh barrier of Aysha’s light within their camp. Four creatures hissed and screeched loudly as they became trapped within the new light, then quickly fell silent again as they died on the tip of a paladin’s blessed weapon.
“EAST!” Renn bellowed. Alexia turned and her heart jumped into her throat. One of the earth-bound weapons had been dislodged, and dozens of Netherworld creatures were now pouring through the gap.
“SHEILDS EAST!” she commanded, but it was already too late. Four of the closest paladins had already been overrun and were being torn apart by the creatures. Alexia stood frozen to the spot, horrified by what was unfolding before her. The paladins screamed in terror and pain as they were disembowelled by the swarming mass of black creatures. In one swift motion she drew her bow, and as her paladins rushed past to plug the gap in their defences, she opened fire. One after another her arrows flew past the advancing paladins, carving a path to the opening in their defences. One creature pounced towards the lead paladin, but it barely made it off the ground before another of Alexia’s arrows found it.
A moment later the paladin plunged his sword into the ground and the gap was closed once more. Several other paladins had already made short work of the creatures that had entered their camp, but it was far too late to help the poor souls who had been closest to the breach. Their bodies lay broken beyond all recognition, and Alexia couldn’t help retching at the grisly sight. She turned away and her revulsion was instantly replaced by horror. Their entire western flank was about to be breached by a swarming mass of creatures.
She cursed loudly to herself. But before she could call for a general retreat to the temple foundations, a monstrous shadow passed overhead and an ear-splitting roar filled the air. She instinctively ducked, expecting a sudden attack from above, and when she looked up and saw the immense winged creature above her, she thought their fight was finally over. But almost immediately she noticed Lusam and Neala descending towards her… and she cried with relief and joy.
Chapter Fifty
As he descended towards the ground, Lusam saw the writhing mass of Netherworld creatures about to breach the paladins’ western perimeter. He extended a magical shield to block any further advance, then gently touched down in the centre of camp to the loud cheers of the gathered paladins. Alexia was the first to greet them, but even before she could speak, Neala had enveloped her in a friendly hug.
Ryuu’s shadow suddenly passed overhead, and when Lusam looked up he saw hundreds of tiny lights appear in the air below him. They hung there for a moment like a thousand sparkling icicles, then as one, they fell from the sky into the undulating swarm of Netherworld creatures. The small shards of light ripped through their shiny black carapace-like skin without even slowing down, killing hundreds of them in a single stroke. The paladins cheered loudly, but the creatures’ incessant chattering and advance continued unabated.
“You’ve no idea how glad we are to see you, Lusam. And I see that you’ve brought a friend, too,” Alexia said, looking up in awe at Ryuu, as he passed overhead once more. Lusam saw the sudden realisation pass across her face when she noticed his father on Ryuu’s back. “Wait… is that… is he…”
“A Guardian, yes,” Lusam replied, with a grin.
“But… but how?” Alexia asked, her mouth hanging wide open in shock.
“If you think that’s strange, wait until you find out who he is,” Neala said, chuckling to herself. Alexia looked from Neala to Lusam and back again for an explanation, but Lusam just winked and walked off towards the western side of camp, leaving Neala to fill her in on all of the details.
The Netherworld creatures were pushing relentlessly against Lusam’s shield, but he knew that he couldn’t push back without risking the possibility of dislodging the blessed weapons from the ground. He was just about to try something different when a heavy hand struck his shoulder from behind.
“It’s good to see you again, lad,” Renn said, beaming him a smile.
Lusam smiled and clasped his arm in greeting. “It’s good to see you too, Renn. What can you tell me about our friends here?” Lusam said, nodding towards the struggling Netherworld creatures. Just then Lusam heard Alexia issue a command to strengthen their eastern perimeter. Puzzled, he scanned the camp for Hershel, but couldn’t see him anywhere. When he turned back to ask Renn where he was, he saw the answer in his eyes. Renn slowly shook his head and lowered his gaze.
“How?” Lusam gasped.
“It’s a long story, lad. But needless to say, they got him. Them and their damned poison,” he said, nodding towards the creatures. He glanced back at the wave of paladins rushing to strengthen the eastern perimeter and sighed. “I’d better go and help them, lad. We can talk about it later,” he said, clapping him on the shoulder again. Lusam nodded and watched him rush off towards the eastern edge of camp. “Make them pay, lad… for Hershel,” he yelled back over his shoulder, and then he was gone, leaving him alone to absorb the sad news. He closed his eyes and said a silent prayer for his friend, Hershel. And thanked Aysha for the opportunity of knowing him. When he reopened his eyes, he looked upon the Netherworld creatures with a renewed sense of hatred.
He reached out towards them with his magic and levitated their entire mass into the air, then hurtled them backwards beyond the line of earth-bound weapons. He was about to launch a second attack on the creatures when he heard Ryuu’s deafening roar. He glanced up and saw him diving towards the group of creatures, and watched in awe as he opened his giant maw and sprayed them with his liquid fire. The creatures screamed in agony as their skin blistered and burned away before his eyes. A moment later all that remained was a pool of smouldering black goo and a few scattered body parts. It was brutal, but it was also very effective.
Seeing an opportunity, Lusam began to make his way around the entire perimeter, levitating and catapulting the Netherworld creatures away from the blessed weapons. He held the first group within a magical barrier until Ryuu and his father circled back around, then removed it as soon as Ryuu was in range. Hundreds of Netherworld creatures died with each deadly pass, and Ryuu roared his battle prowess louder and louder with each killing blow.
Soon the entire perimeter of Aysha’s light around camp was free of Netherworld creatures, and those remaining outside in the open were easy prey for Ryuu and his father. Thousands of them died in a matter of minutes. Their black insect-like corpses and melted flesh littered the ground all around them. And when the final creature fell, Ryuu roared his victory to the heavens, and the paladins joined him in a chorus.
Lusam had not seen Neala during the entire battle, but judging by the sticky black substance coating her knives, he assumed that she’d not been idle. He began walking towards her and Alexia and was almost sent sprawling by the sudden downdraught of Ryuu’s enormous wings as he came into land. The paladins’ celebrations ceased instantly, and everyone stared silently at Ryuu and his father.
Lusam couldn’t help himself and walked directly up to Ryuu and gave him a firm pat on the neck. “I’m very impressed, Ryuu. That was amazing. Well done,” he said, loud enough for his father to hear. Ryuu seemed to almost purr under the adoration, unlike his father, who seemed to get quite upset over it.
“Hey, it wasn’t just him you know,” he said, climbing down from his saddle.
“Well, I didn’t see you breathing any fire,” Lusam replied, turning away before he could see the smirk on his face.
His father began to walk towards him, then stopped abruptly and turned back to face Ryuu. “Of course you do,” he said, sounding slightly exasperated. “You like anyone who pays you a compliment.” Ryuu growled deeply, but it sounded more like mirth to Lusam, than a warning.
“Why are they all staring at me like that?
” his father whispered, glancing around the camp.
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s because you’re one of the legendary Guardians that they’ve all read about and revered for most of their lives,” Lusam replied.
“Really?” his father said, sounding quite pleased with himself and standing up a little straighter.
“Don’t worry,” Lusam replied, patting him on the back, “they’ll soon get to know you like I do.”
Arlo frowned, but before he could reply Lusam had already walked off towards Neala and the others, leaving him behind to catch up.
“What are you grinning at?” Neala asked.
“Oh, nothing,” Lusam lied, as his father joined them. “Alexia and Renn, meet Arlo… my father.”
“Your father!” Renn gasped, offering him his hand. “Well… I suppose that explains a few things,” he said, chuckling to himself.
“It’s good to meet you both,” Arlo said, shaking their hands in turn. He suddenly looked past them towards The Rift, and a puzzled look spread across his face. “How long has that black mist been there?”
“It reappeared a few days after Lusam left, so about three weeks, give or take,” Alexia replied, looking back at the swirling blackness.
“Reappeared?”
“Yes, it first formed shortly after The Rift was reopened, and it caused us quite a few problems at first,” Alexia replied. “Initially we managed to hold it back with Aysha’s light, but eventually it breached our defences and claimed the life of one of our men, as well as several blessed weapons. It wasn’t until later that we realised it was adversely affected by the sun. But once we did, we cleared the surrounding trees and it’s pretty much remained the same size ever since. It still expands during the hours of darkness, but it shrinks back again during the day.”
“Yes, it will feed on any kind of energy that it encounters, including blessed weapons and people. Just like many other things from the Netherworld,” Arlo said, not taking his eyes off it.
