Blood of the Earth

by David A. Wells

  “I’ll find a way to send you back, Shivini,” Alexander said, advancing toward the shade. Abigail flanked him on his right, Isabel on his left.

  “Enough of this,” Shivini said. “As much fun as this is, I’ve come with a more important purpose. My master would address your war council.”

  Shivini pronounced a word from some long-dead language and Phane materialized, standing in the middle of the table. Everyone froze for just a moment before they began making preparations to attack.

  “Hold!” Alexander commanded again. “It’s just a projection.”

  “Some projections can do harm,” Kelvin said.

  “My dear Guild Mage,” Phane said with mock indignation. “I have no desire for unpleasantness. I only wish to be heard by this esteemed council.”

  Alexander caught Erik’s eye and pointed to Boaberous. Erik nodded, directing his Rangers to surround the giant. Once Shivini was cordoned off, Alexander turned to face Phane.

  “How can he do this?” Abigail asked.

  “I don’t know,” Kelvin answered with a frown.

  “My dear Abigail, are you referring to how I managed to penetrate Blackstone Keep’s security or how I’m projecting an image from so far away?”

  “Both,” Abigail said.

  “He must be using an enchanted item of some sort to relay the projection,” Kelvin said.

  “Very good, Mage,” Phane said. “You could yet serve me. In fact, I would be willing to accept the surrender and fealty of everyone in this room, save Alexander, of course.”

  The room fell deathly silent for a moment before Isabel started laughing softly.

  “You won’t turn any of us, Phane,” she said.

  “Don’t be so sure, my dear. All it would take to end this war for everyone on Ruatha is Alexander’s head in a bag and the Sovereign Stone delivered to me. I would even let dear Queen Abigail rule in my name.”

  “You must have actually loved that imp of yours,” Alexander said.

  Phane lost his composure, his face contorting in a mask of rage and sorrow for just a moment before he reclaimed control.

  “You should never have murdered Kludge, dear cousin,” Phane said. “Before that, I would have killed you quickly, or even allowed you to rule in my name—didn’t matter to me, so long as the Sovereign Stone was surrendered to me. But now it’s personal.”

  “It was personal the day you killed my brother, Phane,” Alexander said.

  “Oh, but I never killed your brother,” Phane said innocently. “Your protector, Commander P’Tal, was the one who ordered your brother killed, and yet you have forgiven him.”

  “He sent an assassin to prevent Darius from threatening you,” Alexander said, “but it was always about you.”

  “If you’d had the good sense to die two thousand years ago, none of this would be happening,” Isabel said.

  “Perhaps, my sweet, but I didn’t want to die,” Phane said with a shrug, “and I usually get what I want.”

  “Did you really go to all this trouble to try and turn my friends and family against me?” Alexander asked.

  “Oh no, dear cousin, I wanted to tell you what’s going to happen next,” Phane said with a boyish smile. “You see, I created the wraithkin with a very specific purpose: vengeance. I know about Isabel’s rather unique magical abilities. Quite impressive really; she will make a formidable Lady Reishi, once I’ve turned her, of course.”

  “That’s never going to happen,” Isabel said.

  “Oh, but it’s already begun,” Phane said gleefully. “The taint left by the wraithkin’s blades was meant for you. In a way, you should be flattered. You have no idea how much trouble I went to. You see, I knew you would attempt to heal those injured by my wraithkin, especially after more conventional means of magical healing failed. When you did, the hook was set. Now Azugorath, the wraith queen, has her tendril into you and there’s nothing you can do about it. The transformation will take some time, but it will happen and it can’t be stopped by any power within your grasp. I’m afraid, dear Isabel, that you will become a wraithkin as well, and when you do, you will give yourself to me willingly.”

  Phane laughed at the stunned looks worn by everyone in the room.

  “Of course, there is a solution to your dilemma, Alexander,” Phane said, “one that would save you Isabel’s inevitable betrayal as well as rid the world of the shades. Kill her now, and the shades will be drawn back into the netherworld through the closing passageway within her mind. Of course, they’ll also claim her soul in the bargain.

  “Either way, I will have my vengeance.”

  Chapter 19

  Isabel was dumbstruck. Alexander’s eyes glittered with smoldering rage. The rest of the room was too stunned to speak.

  “You’re wrong, Phane,” Alexander said. “I know about your wraith queen, I know where she is, and I’m coming to kill her. I sincerely hope you try and stop me.”

  “Dear cousin, I would draw you a map,” Phane said. “It would save me the trouble of coming to get the Sovereign Stone. Of course, I don’t really believe you will ever leave the room you’re standing in.”

  Phane faded away with a malicious grin and Boaberous, possessed by Shivini, attacked the cordon of Rangers surrounding him, smashing the first to the ground with a single stroke of his war hammer. The Rangers attacked as a group but Boaberous swept his hammer across them, knocking several to the ground in a jumble.

  Alexander spun to face the possessed giant as he tossed the collar to Jack, who caught it and flickered out of sight. Boaberous knocked Isabel out of the way with a backhand stroke that hit her shield spell with enough force to move her aside as he headed for Alexander.

  Alexander raised Mindbender to meet Shivini’s attack when Jataan, still sitting, threw a knife at the charging giant. It buried in the side of his chest, piercing his lung, but it didn’t slow him down. Shivini slapped the blade of Mindbender with such force that it sliced his hand nearly in half lengthwise but also knocked the sword from Alexander’s grasp, sending it clattering to the floor under the table.

  A moment later Shivini launched himself at Alexander, crashing into him in a diving tackle. They both started to fall to the ground … and then they were both gone. One moment they were there and the next they were simply gone.

  Alexander felt the sudden burn of cold like nothing he’d ever imagined. There was no air and the world had gone strangely translucent. In a moment of terrible realization, he remembered seeing the world like this once before—when he’d bonded with Chloe.

  Alexander was in the aether.

  The chill penetrated into him with such force that he was paralyzed by it. His lungs burned with need of air. For just a moment, Boaberous was there with him and then he was back in the world of time and substance, leaving Alexander trapped in the aether like Malachi Reishi. He fell back onto the floor but felt a strange lack of sensation. Instead, he felt only an all-encompassing cold and a desperate need to breathe. Within moments, the strangely translucent world started to go dark. Just before he lost consciousness, a ball of light flitted up to him and then suddenly he was back in the world of time and substance, gasping for breath.

  But everything was still dark.

  “Are you all right, My Love?” Chloe asked urgently in his mind. “Was I fast enough?”

  “I’m alive,” Alexander said to her. “Thank you, Little One.”

  Through his all around sight he took in the turmoil surrounding him. Everyone was shouting in confusion as they mustered a defense against the rampaging shade. Boaberous had rolled to his feet and immediately turned and hit Hanlon hard. The Forest Warden went down, unconscious. Regent Cery scrambled to get out of Shivini’s reach but Boaberous was quick, despite his size. He grabbed the Regent by the arm and flung him across the room into the wall.

  Anatoly vaulted onto the table and dove headlong at the giant, tackling him and driving him to the floor. Boaberous would have been more than a match for Anatoly, except for the m
agical belt of strength he wore. They grappled for a moment before Anatoly wrenched the giant’s arms around behind his back and pinned them in place.

  Shivini started to laugh but stopped abruptly when Jack snapped the collar around his neck. Jack stepped back from the flailing giant, held fast by Anatoly, just as Magda released her spell.

  An arch of amber light leapt from her hand and struck Boaberous in the head. In a blink, he was completely encased in amber light, paralyzed by the spell. Anatoly disentangled himself from the immobilized giant and got to his feet.

  Isabel was at Alexander’s side a moment later.

  “Are you all right?” she asked.

  He nodded tightly. “I think so—except … I can’t see.”

  “Dear Maker,” she whispered, helping him to his feet.

  He stood stiffly in spite of the preternatural chill that still ached within his bones. His normal vision was gone—the cold had damaged his eyes.

  He was blind.

  Focusing on his all around sight, he made his way to the immobilized giant, trying not to think about his lost vision. He examined Boaberous through his all around sight, scrutinizing his colors. He was dying. The wound inflicted by Jataan’s knife was fatal, barring some form of extraordinary healing magic.

  “How long will this spell hold him?”

  “Only for a few minutes,” Magda said.

  “Long enough,” Alexander said, as he fumbled in his pouch for one of the vials of deathwalker-root powder that Lucky had given him. He carefully sprinkled the powder into Boaberous’s mouth and onto his upper lip so that he would inhale it the moment the paralyzation spell failed.

  “Will that be enough to keep him out for a while?” he asked Lucky.

  “That should render him unconscious for several hours,” Lucky said.

  “Good. Empty your bag and help me get him inside,” Alexander said. “It’s the only way I can think of to take him through the shield guarding the top chamber of the tower.”

  Lucky nodded and started emptying his many belongings onto the table. Once the magical bag was empty, Anatoly helped move Boaberous inside it.

  Alexander hoisted the bag onto his shoulder and turned to Jataan. “I’m sorry,” he said.

  “As am I,” Jataan said. “Boaberous swore to serve the Reishi. He would willingly face death in battle. This is no different, except his death will achieve a greater victory than most.”

  “You’re going to sacrifice one of your own?” Regent Samuel asked indignantly. “If you’re going to kill someone, it should be your wife. She’s the real threat. You all heard what Prince Phane said. She is the reason the shades are in the world in the first place. If we must sacrifice someone, it should be her.”

  “Don’t be a fool, Samuel,” Regent Cery said, as he sat with his back against the wall trying to recover from Boaberous’s attack.

  “Lord Reishi himself said that the shades are the most dangerous threat we face,” Samuel said. “If Lady Reishi’s sacrifice can save the world, then we must consider it.”

  “Maybe he’s right,” Isabel whispered.

  Alexander whirled on her and took her by the shoulders.

  “He’s not! I’ll find a way to send the shades back where they came from without hurting you. I promise.”

  “What if you can’t?” she asked. “I will not be the doom of the world. If I can save all that I love with my death, then I have to consider it.”

  Alexander pulled her to him and hugged her fiercely. “No! It’s not an option.”

  “Promise me, Alexander,” Isabel said. “If you have to choose between me or the world, you’ll let me go and choose the world.”

  “I can’t,” he said, his voice breaking.

  “You have to. You’re Lord Reishi,” Isabel said. “It’s your duty.”

  Alexander couldn’t speak past the lump in his throat. He held her, shaking his head back and forth.

  “We’ll find another way,” he said, once he’d composed himself. “For all we know Phane was lying. Right now, I have work to do. We’ll reconvene in two hours,” he said as he headed for the door with Anatoly, Jack, and Abigail trailing behind him.

  He walked in a daze through the halls of the giant Keep. So many thoughts fought for his attention. He couldn’t lose Isabel, and yet he feared that Phane was telling the truth.

  “My Love, I can see a dark thread in the aether leading from Isabel to the south,” Chloe said in his mind. “I’m so sorry.”

  He swallowed hard, fighting the tears that threatened to overcome him. His friends didn’t try to console him or even talk about all that had transpired, they simply followed, offering their silent support.

  His blindness wasn’t getting any better. He’d hoped that the effects of the cold would be temporary. Without his magical vision, he would’ve been helpless. Even with his all around sight he was still a bit disoriented.

  Through all of the terrible things that were swirling around in his mind, he felt a nagging guilt for his willingness to sacrifice Boaberous. The giant had been a steadfast ally since the moment Alexander had bonded with the Sovereign Stone.

  He told himself that Shivini was too dangerous to be left alive. He told himself that only he had ever survived Shivini and then only through Isabel’s magic. He told himself that Boaberous had stood with him in battle time and again, risking his life for Alexander’s cause, that he had volunteered to face Alexander’s enemies, yet none of it seemed to assuage his guilt.

  He had sworn to protect the Old Law and he was choosing death for another to spare the world the horror of Shivini’s presence. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t reconcile the conflict. He had no right to take Boaberous’s life and yet he knew that he would. He had to. Shivini was simply too dangerous.

  He had to be destroyed, even if it cost Alexander his soul.

  He touched the mark on his neck and lamented the turn of events that had brought him to this place. He’d long since embraced his duty, but he still longed for a simple life spent with those he loved in a world free of the ambitions of those who would rule over others.

  As he ascended the seemingly endless stairs leading to the top of the tower, he imposed order on his emotions and focused his mind. He was fighting for a world where people could be free to live and love without fear of those with the ambition to rule. His cause was just. His sacrifices were necessary.

  He reached the top room of the tower and laid Boaberous out on the floor of Mage Cedric’s Wizard’s Den.

  “I’m sorry, Boaberous. I wish there was another way.”

  He looked at the sleeping giant for a long time before he stepped out of the Wizard’s Den and drank the transference potion that Lucky had made for him. Only a moment passed before he felt the effects. He closed his eyes and found the place of stillness within himself. After a moment of final deliberation, he decided that his course was set.

  With a word, the door to the Wizard’s Den closed, sealing Shivini and Boaberous away for eternity.

  Alexander sat down, put his face in his hands and cried.

  Chapter 20

  When the war council reconvened, Wizard Ely reported that he had found the device that allowed Phane’s projection spell to reach so far. It was a metal disc six inches in diameter that had been affixed to the underside of the table. After Mage Gamaliel carefully examined it, he handed it to Abigail and asked her to cut it in half with the Thinblade. Alexander watched the aura of magic fade as the device was destroyed. They speculated that Shivini had brought it into the Keep when he originally entered in the body of a Ranger or a soldier.

  The afternoon session of the war council was spent discussing Phane and his revelation that Isabel would turn against Alexander and his cause. He listened to the nobles and his friends and family explore every option from imprisoning Isabel to attempting some form of magical intervention.

  He allowed them to go on because he wanted to give them the opportunity to surprise him with some way of saving her from
the terrible fate that Phane had devised for her, but he knew in the end that they wouldn’t. Phane had spent considerable time and effort engineering this outcome and it was unlikely that anyone at the table would have more insight into the situation than the Reishi Sovereigns.

  Alexander already knew his course. He’d told Phane that he was coming for the wraith queen as a ruse. He knew full well that he didn’t have the power necessary to penetrate the underground fortress where Phane was holding the linchpin of his plan. Alexander intended to pursue the only other option available to him: the potion that the sovereigns had described. That course would take him where he needed to go anyway.

  During the discussion, Isabel sat straight-backed, listening to others debate her future. After a heated argument between Hanlon and Regent Samuel over killing her to eliminate the threat of the shades once and for all, Alexander stood up. The table fell silent.

  “If you wish her dead, then come try to kill her,” he said to Regent Samuel. The tension in the room was heavy and oppressive.

  Regent Samuel blinked, then swallowed as the truth of what he was calling for became real to him. He remained seated.

  “Here’s what’s going to happen,” Alexander said. “We’re going to follow through with our plan as it stood before Phane’s visit. Nothing has changed … except the death of Boaberous and Shivini.”

  “And you’ve been blinded,” Bella added. “You might want to reconsider your part in the plan. Surely there are others you could send to recover the keystones and the ingredients you need.”

  “No, Mom,” Alexander said, shaking his head. “This is my part. Even blind, I can see better than most, and what I can’t see, Chloe can.”

  Prior to the resumption of the war council, Lucky had given him a healing draught but it didn’t restore his vision. He surmised that the complete coldness of the aether had literally frozen his eyes, rendering him permanently blind … barring some extraordinary healing magic. Isabel cried quietly at her inability to call on the light to restore his vision, but he just smiled at her and told her that she had lost her light saving him from a fate far worse than blindness.