Lusam: The Dragon Mage Wars Book Four

by Dean Cadman

  At first he didn’t know if he could, or even wanted to go on alone in the world. But then a second image flashed before his eyes—Neala. The surge of love he felt for her instantly banished the darkness from his heart. Through the haze in his mind, he remembered that she was still waiting for him somewhere out there. And it was at that moment, that he knew he must go on. Not for his mother, or even for himself, but for the girl he loved. For Neala.

  His lungs burned, and his head throbbed as he slowly sank down through the cold water. He knew that he didn’t have the strength or time to swim back to the surface again before he would blackout through lack of air. He reached out with his mind, and was amazed to find so much life all around him. It was everywhere in the water. Thousands of tiny creatures occupied every drop of water around him. He felt guilty about killing them, but realised that he must to survive.

  He reached out with his mind and pulled all of the surrounding magic into himself. His throbbing head began to ease instantly, but his lungs continued to burn, as he fought the overwhelming urge to take a desperately needed breath. As he collected the magic, he began to propel himself towards the surface of the water. Even though his eyes were mostly closed, he could still see the flashes of bright light all around him, and it was just before he breached the surface that he realised what it was: magical missiles from the stronghold.

  He shot through the surface of the water, and gasped to take his first lung full of air in far too long. Magical missiles struck the water all around him, exploding and sizzling on contact. He spun around in the water, and looked up at the stronghold hundreds of feet above him. Three windows had been broken, and were now occupied by magi firing constantly in his direction. Now that they could see him more clearly, their aim became far more accurate. He slammed the shutter up over his aura, closing it off entirely from the outside world, and the missiles briefly stopped. At first they must have thought he had been killed when his aura had suddenly vanished. But with the absence of a death-pulse, that didn’t remain the case for long, and the firing quickly resumed.

  He desperately gasped air in and out of his lungs, and tried to focus his mind. He continued to gather what little magic he could from the surrounding water, but it wasn’t enough to create a shield capable of withstanding such powerful attacks. As he looked up at the stronghold above, he saw dozens of magi beginning to pour out through the gates of Irragin. Soon they would be in a position to rain down hundreds of missiles on him. He knew he couldn’t stay on the surface of the water and simply swim back to the boat. One hit and he’d be dead.

  Forming a weak barrier around himself, he reached for the seabed far below and anchored a line-of-power to it, then pulled himself under the surface. As he descended the pressure on his barrier increased, and he was forced to feed it with more and more of his limited power. He pulled in magic from as far as he could reach, and fed it directly into his weak barrier. He sent a second line-of-power out in front of him and anchored to the seabed, before dispelling the first and pulling himself forward with the new one. Repeating the process, he clawed his way across the sea floor, whilst missiles rained down all around him. Twice he had to surface and renew his air supply, and both times he narrowly missed being hit by massive fireballs.

  By the time he had almost reached the large pinnacle of rock, he had begun to build up a small surplus of power from the surrounding ocean, and felt confident that he would make it back to the boat, and Neala’s waiting arms. That confidence proved unfounded, however, as just a moment later, he was struck on the surface by one of the powerful missiles.

  His shield instantly collapsed, and he blacked-out in the water.

  ***

  Neala paced back and forth on the deck of the small boat, desperately trying to get a view of Irragin, but no matter how hard she tried, the massive pinnacle of rock obscured it from her sight. All she could see were the vertical sides of Mount Nuxvar, and a few small windows of Irragin above. Durlan had complained several times about her upsetting the balance of the small boat when she moved around, but she had paid little attention to what he said. She had even asked if they could move the boat to get a better view, but Renn had flatly refused, saying they were far better staying hidden until Lusam returned. She knew he was right of course, but it did little to ease her worry over Lusam.

  Time seemed to drag on so slowly for them as they waited patiently for Lusam’s return. The wind had begun to strengthen slightly, and although it made keeping the small boat hidden behind the pinnacle of rock more difficult, Durlan assured them that it would help ensure a swift retreat later.

  Renn had been more concerned about not being able to see any approaching enemy ships, than he had about not being able to see Irragin. He had frozen at the slightest sound of any waves lapping against the pinnacle of rock, and his head had constantly swivelled from side to side in search of potential danger.

  The minutes ticked by like hours for Neala, especially after she had seen the hundreds of bright flashes appear in the windows of Irragin. She presumed they were the result of Lusam’s battle with the resident magi, or even Lord Zelroth himself. And even though Lusam had been confident of victory, she couldn’t help worrying about him all the same. The windows became her new focal point, and the only time she averted her eyes, was when she said a prayer to Aysha for his safe return.

  Even though the bright flashes had stopped several minutes earlier, Neala still watched the windows for any signs of movement. Suddenly there was another bright flash, and the glass seemed to explode outwards. It took her a moment to realise that it wasn’t just glass that she was looking at, there was also someone falling through the air along with it. Her heart all but stopped in her chest, as she realised who it was.

  “LUSAM!” Neala screamed out, watching helplessly as he plummeted towards the water below. A moment later someone appeared at the broken window and began firing missiles at him as he fell.

  “We have to help him!” Neala screamed. Two more windows were broken, and two more magi filled the gaps ready to fire on Lusam. Neala gasped as he hit the water, and held her breath as she waited for him to resurface.

  “What are you waiting for?” Neala screamed at Durlan. Renn shook his head at Durlan, and turned to face Neala.

  “We can’t go out there, lass. They would sink us in seconds. You heard what Lusam said about the enchantment he placed on the boat. He said it would only take a few direct hits at most. If we go out there to try and rescue him, they’ll destroy us for sure,” Renn said, looking back at the spot where Lusam had entered the water. Missiles were now raining down all around the base of the vertical cliffs, but there was no sign of Lusam anywhere. All of a sudden Lusam burst through the surface of the water. His bright aura glowed like a small sun to Renn’s vision.

  “He’s alive!” Renn said, not knowing if Neala had already spotted him amongst the dozens of missiles exploding in the water all around him. The missiles suddenly became far more accurate now that he was visible on the surface, and a heartbeat later Renn gasped as he saw Lusam’s aura vanish. For a heart-sickening moment, he thought one of the missiles had killed him outright, but soon realised that there was no death-pulse. He knew then that Lusam had completely shuttered his aura to make it more difficult for the attacking magi to see him in the dark water below.

  “What happened?” Neala asked frantically when she heard Renn’s gasp.

  “It’s alright, lass. I thought for a moment that he’d been hit, but he only hid his aura to make it harder for them to see him.”

  “Where is he now? I don’t see him…” Neala fretted, with tears flowing down her cheeks. Renn didn’t reply, and kept watch on the surface of the water for any signs of life. Not even bubbles made it to the surface, and after the first minute or two had passed, Renn began to worry more and more about his chances of survival. He knew how powerful Lusam was, so he knew without doubt that he could withstand the missiles being fired at him under normal circumstances. He had also seen how hard
Lusam hit the water, instead of levitating himself down in a controlled manner. Something had happened to him inside Irragin. Something that had either blocked his ability to use his magic, or seriously drained his power away to the point of near exhaustion. Whatever it was, it had left him extremely vulnerable to their attacks, and there was nothing that he, or any of the others, could do about it right now.

  The missiles continued to pepper the water in wide area around where he had last seen Lusam. They exploded and sizzled on contact, creating a steam bath effect in the small cove at the base of the cliffs.

  “There!” Neala called out, pointing to ripple in the water as Lusam broke through the surface. Renn could clearly see the water running off Lusam’s magical barrier, and breathed a sigh of relief as he realised how he was able to remain underwater for so long. It wasn’t only Neala who had seen him resurfacing, however, the Empire magi had too. The magical missiles suddenly concentrated on his position, one narrowly missing his head by mere inches. Neala screamed out his name, as he vanished once more below the dark surface of the water.

  “He’s going to be alright, lass. He’s using a magical barrier around himself to trap air so that he can breathe underwater,” Renn said, hoping to alleviate her fears somewhat. But it seemed to have little effect judging by her continued tears and sobs.

  A couple of minutes later he surfaced again. This time he was much closer to their boat, and had covered more than half the distance to them. The missiles once again targeted his new location, and again he narrowly missed being hit by one before disappearing back under the surface of the water.

  Renn couldn’t see beyond the pinnacle of rock, but he had a good idea of how many magi were now firing on Lusam. He guessed that they were firing from the road outside Irragin’s gates, and knew that they wouldn’t stand a chance against so many magi once they broke cover from behind the rock. Their only chance would be to use the pinnacle of rock as a barrier between themselves and the magi, and hopefully by the time they came out from behind its cover, they would be too far out of range for the magi to get many accurate shots at them.

  “Durlan, when we leave here, we need to keep this rock between us and those magi for as long as we can. I doubt that Lusam will be in any fit state to help us defend against any incoming missiles, so we’ll be relying on the shield he made with those barrels of nails. The further away we can get without being seen, the more chance we’ll have of surviving this. Or at least we will, as long as we don’t encounter any more Empire ships,” Renn said.

  Durlan looked out across the water and studied the wind direction for a moment before replying. “It won’t be easy, but I think I can do it. You’d just best pray the wind doesn’t shift its position, or we’ll be in big trouble.” Renn nodded, and returned his attention back to the water without replying. He knew that Lusam must be close now, and a few seconds later he saw the first telltale signs of him resurfacing not too far away from their boat. The missiles immediately honed in on his new position, and before Renn could even speak, one exploded on his barrier, and he slumped face down in the water.

  “LUSAM!” Neala screamed, pushing Renn out of her way, and diving head first into the water.

  “Neala… no!” Renn called out, but it was already too late as she hit the water and disappeared under its surface. Magical missiles exploded and sizzled as they made contact with the water. One even impacted against the pinnacle of rock, showering them and the boat with debris. Renn held his breath and watched as Neala surfaced right next to Lusam, and turned him over in the water so that he could breathe. Two massive fireballs narrowly missed them both, as she desperately started to drag him back towards the boat. It was only a relatively short distance, but it felt like an eternity for Renn, as he watched Neala struggle to pull Lusam along behind her.

  “Grab onto this,” Durlan called out, as he threw a short piece of rope towards Neala. She grabbed hold of the rope, and they both suddenly surged forward through the water towards the boat, as Durlan quickly reeled them in. It was fortunate that he had, because only a moment later, not one, but two massive fireballs exploded right where they had been mere seconds earlier.

  “Give me his arm,” Renn called out over the side of the boat. Neala lifted Lusam’s arm towards his grasp, and Renn dragged him straight out of the water and onto the deck of the small boat. Neala tried to climb into the boat herself, but Durlan was already there to assist her.

  “Durlan, get us out of here. Now! If they didn’t know we were here before, they certainly do now,” Renn called out, whilst attending to Lusam.

  “Lusam!” Neala cried, scrambling towards him on her hand and knees. Lusam suddenly began to cough up seawater, gasping for breath in-between ragged coughs. Neala all but dived on top of him, and dragged him up into her arms.

  “Oh, Lusam. I thought I’d lost you,” she said, crying uncontrollably. Lusam continued to cough and splutter as he tried to clear his lungs of seawater. He felt Neala’s tight embrace, but he didn’t even have the energy to hug her back. His vision darkened around the edges, and his head throbbed like someone was hitting it with a sledgehammer.

  “I failed, Neala. She’s dead because of me…” he said weakly. A single tear ran down his already wet cheek, and then he let the darkness finally take him.

  “Oh, Lusam. I’m so sorry,” Neala said quietly into his ear, “I love you.”

  Neala never even noticed how expertly Durlan piloted the small vessel during their retreat, always keeping the pinnacle of rock between themselves and the enemy magi behind them. Or the three missiles which eventually struck their boat once they were clear of its protection. All she could think about was how Lusam could possibly live with what had just happened to him. She knew how important it had been for him to rescue his mother from Lord Zelroth. And she also knew he would blame himself for his failure, and her death. She closed her eyes, and prayed continuously for more than an hour, begging Aysha to help him overcome his loss. Then she lay down by his side, and pulled him even closer to her, unable, and unwilling to let him go again.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Zedd collapsed onto the ground as the Guardian book finally released him from its grip. He groaned and held his throbbing head, as Cole came forward to help him stand.

  “Are you alright?” Cole asked, trying to help him back to his feet. Zedd doubled over and retched, as the full impact of reading the Guardian book was suddenly felt by his body. He felt different now. Like he was more than he was before, somehow. His head spun, as the new information vied for position in his mind. He could tell the shard was also processing the information, and knew without doubt that the Guardian book would have killed him without the shard’s vast capacity to store the knowledge. It had acted like a buffer between himself and the book. The information had been delivered at such an incredible rate, his own mind would never have been able to deal with it like the shard had. Now the shard filtered it back to him in smaller, more manageable chunks so that his mind could absorb it. Even so, it was still overwhelming for him, and far from a pleasant experience.

  “I didn’t think you were ever going to wake up,” Cole said, helping him towards the exit of the room.

  “How long was I unconscious?” Zedd asked, leaning heavily on Cole.

  “A couple of hours at least. After the first few minutes I though Lord Zelroth or his Darkseed Elite would show up and kill us for sure, but no one came,” Cole replied. Zedd began to laugh, then regretted it instantly as the intense pain reignited in his head.

  “I told you he would think it was a trap,” Zedd whispered, grinning widely. As the pain in his head started to diminish, he began to understand far more of what the book had taught him. But it was when he examined his own power reserves that he was most shocked. At first he thought the book had drained his magic away, and left him depleted of power. But then he realised that he had the same amount of power as he had before reading the Guardian book, only now his capacity for storing that magic had vastly in
creased. It was difficult to tell, but he guessed that he was now at least several times more powerful than he had been before reading the Guardian book. And since bonding with the shard, he had already been far more powerful than he had ever been before.

  “What does my aura look like to you now?” Zedd asked curiously. Cole whispered a word of power and invoked his mage-sight. His eyes went wide, and he cursed under his breath at what he saw.

  “It’s… it’s incredible. Your aura looks just like Lord Zelroth’s!” Cole said, staring dumbfounded at the blindingly bright aura.

  Zedd’s grin widened still further. “Now we’ll never have to worry about Lord Zelroth, ever again.”

  “Maybe, but he could still kill us using our rings,” Cole replied. As soon as Zedd heard Cole’s words, he knew how to deal with the problem. The relevant information flooded into him from the shard, as if it knew exactly what he needed to know. Zedd knew instantly where Lord Zelroth had gained the knowledge to create the Necromatic rings, and exactly how to counteract them. The Guardian book had imbued him with the knowledge of how magical power worked. Not in the sense of how a spell worked, but actually how magic itself worked, and how it was connected to other things. He knew instinctively that the knowledge he had was not complete, but it was enough to deal with the rings.

  Zedd placed a hand over the top of his ring, and spoke a short incantation, sealing the direct link the Necromatic ring had to his power reserves. Then he grasped the ring between his forefinger and thumb, and pulled it free from his hand. Cole gasped as the ring left his finger, but nothing happened. He should have dropped dead right in front of him, but instead he simply laughed at the shocked look on his face.