Deliverance

by Brittany Comeaux

  From the time the High Elder announced the plans to the city to the day before the invasion was set to begin, Thaddeus worked side-by-side with his elder brother and they both contemplated the plans for the days ahead. Crystal and Gavril helped plan at times, but any other moment of their time was spent preparing the rebels for the battle. Gavril heavily trained some of the less experienced swordsmen for a week. The more experienced fighters, including Crystal, also helped to teach the less experienced and weaker fighters.

  Crystal also practiced with her short sword. She had especially trained to fend off sneak attacks, a skill she learned from the elves. She became very quick and agile over the years, and she vowed to never be taken by surprise. Even though she had trained as a mage for many years, she still admired how her father and Gavril would spar in the garden area at the castle. She had always yearned to train with a sword, and when she begged Gavril to teach her after the invasion, Thaddeus came up with a suggestion.

  Over the years, Crystal trained primarily in magic with Thaddeus, but the dwarves forged a short sword for her and Gavril trained her to use it as a secondary skill. When the halflings began to take her side, they also taught her to use the light weapons that they used. It was this reason that she did not carry a staff, but rather, wore her necklace to control her power. That crystal necklace was in fact how she got the idea for her new name.

  About three days before the attack was planned, Gavril approached Crystal while she was training. He watched as she navigated through rocky terrain with the speed and agility that could have rivaled those of an elf. She swung her short sword around in a deadly fashion. She was the best fighter in rough terrains because she often took the enemies by surprise with her quick reflexes and impeccable precision.

  “You’ve gotten better, I see,” Gavril called out to her. She then dropped onto the ground a few feet from him and caught her breath.

  “I do not take any chances.” she said, “I will be at my peak physical condition when I fight Bogdan.”

  “Well, I can see your agility is in check,” replied Gavril, “but how would you like to practice your sword skills with me?”

  “You know I can never refuse a challenge, Gavril,” said Crystal. She then pointed her sword at Gavril and he repeated the gesture with his own sword.

  “Neither could your father;” Gavril replied with a sly smile, “On the count of three. One. Two. Three!”

  In less than a second, Gavril swung his sword at Crystal, to which she instantly blocked with her short sword. He swung again, this time from above. Crystal brought her sword above her head and she bent her knees and crouched slightly. Gavril’s sword bounced off of hers. More slashes came from Gavril’s end, and Crystal effectively evaded and blocked all shots.

  “I must admit something,” said Gavril, while still swinging his sword.

  “What is that?” Crystal asked.

  “You have become far too quick for me,” replied Gavril, who finally stopped swinging his sword.

  Crystal laughed and admitted, “Well, only because I stay focused and do not get distracted easily. If I had lost that focus, with your strength, you could easily have overpowered me.”

  Gavril sheathed his sword. “Strength can only go so far. It takes a lot of skill to defeat your enemy, and you have it. The way you deflected a larger sword with a small one like yours takes a lot of practice. But it can be done, obviously,” he said.

  “That’s true. I have always valued skill and intelligence in battle over brute strength, because in the end, I want to outsmart Bogdan and beat him at his own game,” Crystal stated.

  “I will help you until the end, Princess,” Gavril replied, bowing.

  “I already scolded High Elder Malcolm for calling me ‘Amelia,’ so please do not use my title either, Gavril,” Crystal corrected.

  Gavril chuckled. “Sorry, Crystal. It’s been ten years, but it still seems to slip sometimes. You are worthy of that title, so don’t you forget it.”

  Crystal looked at her feet again to hide tears that were trying to form in her eyes. She did not want to hide who she was, but to protect her people she had to make them all believe that the only surviving member of the Cierith royal family was dead.

  “I won’t, Gavril,” she quietly replied.

  ****

  Just days before his assault was set to begin, Bogdan led his army to the east of Cierith toward the City of Magi. He and Blaze rode their horses and the generals walked on either side of them. Both father and son wore heavy battle armor and black capes. Bogdan’s armor consisted of dark grey metal gauntlets and shoulder, chest, and leg armor. Blaze wore the same color armor on his shoulders and forearms and wore a similar metal around his waist like a belt. Both of them wore black, dark red and gray clothing underneath. The soldiers wore similar, but less elaborate armor and colors.

  “Now remember, Orodan, you will lead the frontal assault on the city. You must stall at least for half an hour; do not take the enemy out too quickly,” ordered Bogdan.

  “Understood,” replied Orodan, who was barely shorter than the king, even though the king was riding a horse.

  The King then addressed his dark elf general. “After the first assault begins, Perun, you will wait half an hour with your troops and then attack the city from behind while their forces are defending the front gates. There is very rocky terrain that your men can sneak behind. Once again, you must stall so that phase three can be initiated as planned.”

  “Yes, my King,” replied Perun.

  “What is phase three?” Blaze asked.

  “You will accompany Saitar and me and sneak into the city with us. According to Saitar, there is a secret passage outside of the city that leads into the meeting room in the Elder’s Hall. The secret entrance to the Eye of Gaull is in the meeting room. We will sneak in, grab the Eye, and I will use it to gain its power,” the king explained.

  “Very well, so we will go in after Perun’s army moves in?” asked Blaze.

  “Yes. Orodan’s troops will set off the catapult and launch a fire ball into the city wall. That will be Perun’s signal to start his assault and our signal to move forward. Saitar will meet us outside of the city beforehand and guide us there. He said that it is well hidden from the eyes of the city as well, so it will be too easy to get in undetected,” Bogdan explained.

  “So what will you do about the rebel leader after you have the Eye? Will you find her and kill her?” asked Blaze.

  “Not just kill her,” Bogdan replied, “I will publicly incinerate her so that nothing but her ashes remain.”

  “What of the other rebels?” asked Blaze.

  “I know slave traders that could use plenty of humans to sell;” said Perun, “You could make them live for the rest of their lives in chains.”

  “That sounds like a fitting punishment,” replied Bogdan, “But I will decide that all when everything is said and done.”

  “What about the elders?” asked Orodan.

  “I am sure Saitar will decide what to do with them. After all, control of that pathetic city goes to him after all of this,” replied Bogdan.

  Blaze still felt uneasy about the elder’s request, but he did not dare mention his doubt to his father again. He was glad that he would accompany his father with the elder, because he could keep a close watch on Saitar. Something about him made Blaze feel anxious, but he could not put his finger on it.

  “We shall set up camp a few miles from here before it gets dark. Have the soldiers set up my tent and Prince Blaze’s tent as well. We will also need watchmen for the night,” Bogdan ordered a commanding soldier marching behind them.

  “Yes my King,” said the commander.

  The king then turned to Blaze and said, “In less than three days, my son, we will have the power to abolish all of those who oppose us. You and I will become more powerful than anyone can ever imagine, and no one will ever be able to stop us. Are you prepared to stop at nothing to get this power?”

  Blaze grinned
smugly and replied, “Naturally. Now let us get ready to destroy the rebels.”

  Bogdan grew a twisted smile and replied, “That’s what I wanted to hear.”

  CHAPTER 4

  Malcolm hurried down the corridors of the Elder’s Hall toward the meeting hall. He had just received word that the Daldussan army had been spotted about two miles outside of the city. The elves who had sighted the army rushed back to the city and delivered the message straight to Malcolm first, as he had requested. He then gave the order to the elders to announce to the city to get ready for battle.

  As he rushed forward, several council members and other mages ran frantically from room to room, some carrying scrolls outside and others getting their equipment together while rebels readied their weapons and bravely marched outside to await the upcoming battle.

  Malcolm entered the meeting hall and discovered not only Crystal, but Gavril, Thaddeus, Kerali, Sigurd, Taryn, and Maryn waiting for him to arrive.

  “My goodness, all of you will be protecting the Eye?” he asked.

  “Actually, my brother, I was about to let my comrades know that I would like to join you in helping with the battle outside,” said Thaddeus.

  “You won’t guard the Eye with us?” asked Crystal.

  “I am confident that all of you are able to protect it well, and Malcolm and I planned on investigating the enemy’s strategy more,” Thaddeus explained.

  “I would greatly appreciate your help, Thaddeus. Something seems unsettling to me about this whole thing, although I cannot understand why. I could definitely use your help figuring it all out, Brother,” replied Malcolm.

  “Very well,” replied Thaddeus. He then turned to Crystal and said, “Do not worry, I have trained you well, and I believe in your abilities. I will meet you once we figure out the plan.”

  Crystal paused and then nodded after Thaddeus gave her an assuring look.

  “Well then, let us go to the chamber, but before we do that, I must do something really quick,” said Malcolm.

  He then walked to the open double doors, looked side-to-side in the corridor, and then closed the doors. He then waved his staff and a glowing lock shape appeared around the door handles.

  “Why are you locking the doors, brother?” Thaddeus inquired.

  “Aren’t we going to the chamber?” Gavril added.

  “Yes, we are, but you see, the entrance to the chamber is right behind you,” replied Malcolm. The rebels turned around to see the desks that they saw the elders sit at during the meeting.

  “Where?” asked Crystal, “Behind the desks?”

  “Not behind the desks, in the desks,” Malcolm replied. Without acknowledging the confused looks on everyone’s faces, Malcolm motioned for the rebels to step aside. Once they did, Malcolm stepped in front of his middle desk and traced the symbols carved into it with his staff. The glowing gem on the end of his staff left a glowing trail as it scratched across the silver granite. Once the symbol was finished, the glow became brighter and eventually disappeared, leaving an empty archway that led down a dark hall.

  “Astonishing!” exclaimed Thaddeus. Maryn and Taryn ventured off on either side of the desks and peeked behind the other side.

  “No way! There’s nothing here!” exclaimed Maryn.

  “No tunnel or anything behind the desks, just empty space!” added Taryn.

  “The tunnel you see here is a portal that leads into the nearby mountain. Only an Elder has the ability to open it and no one can blast it open from the outside. We are given special magic abilities when we are elected, so even if someone memorizes the spell pattern, unless they are an elder, they cannot activate the spell.” explained Malcolm, “Now, then, follow me.”

  The rebels followed the high elder as told, and he led them through the tunnel, which was shrouded in complete darkness. As soon as everyone was inside, the tunnel door sealed shut again. No one could see the person in front of them, so navigating through it proved quite difficult.

  “OUCH Taryn! You stepped on the back of my heel!” shouted Maryn, startling everyone.

  “HUSH you! Don’t shout so suddenly when it’s this damned dark!” scolded Sigurd.

  “Did they frighten you, dwarf?” asked Kerali, from behind Sigurd.

  “HA! As if I would scare so easily! No one asked you anyway, elf,” replied the disgruntled dwarf.

  “Would you all be quiet? There is an echo in this corridor and you are far too loud!” ordered Crystal, who was walking directly behind Malcolm.

  “We are nearly there, everyone.” said Malcolm, “No need to fret.”

  “How can you tell? It’s nothing but black in here!” said Taryn.

  “There is a red glow up ahead,” Kerali answered.

  Sigurd snorted and muttered, “Leave it to an elf to see things before anyone else and to brag about it,” he said.

  “You brag about your ‘toughness’ and ‘endurance.’” countered the elf prince, “I merely pointed out the obvious.”

  “I can last for days on end in battle! I have a right to brag!” replied Sigurd.

  “You are all talk and no brains,” Kerali remarked.

  “LISTEN YOU DAMNED EL—”

  “That is ENOUGH!” Gavril shouted angrily from behind Crystal. Even elves and dwarves knew to keep quiet at that point. With everyone finally quiet, Malcolm instructed everyone to stop.

  Now that they had reached the origin of the dull, red glow, Crystal could barely make out everyone’s silhouettes. The glow was coming from a wall at the end of the corridor with strange symbols much like the ones Malcolm had carved into his desk. The high elder then began muttering an incantation and before anyone knew it, the wall disappeared. The hallway continued and everyone could see a dim light ahead.

  “This is where I leave all of you. There are no more doors to open here, so you can go on without me and wait. My brother and I will now return to the city. Good luck to all of you,” said Malcolm.

  The rebels gave their farewells to Malcolm and Thaddeus, and Crystal then led her team forward towards the dim light.

  ****

  Bogdan and Blaze hid amongst a densely rocky area, waiting for their chance to strike. The frontal assault was moving in, and from where they were hiding, the king and the prince could hear the mages begin casting defense spells. Blaze sat near the top of a large boulder, giving him a decent view of the battle.

  “There are warriors charging from the wall with swords. Rebels, no doubt,” Blaze called down to his father.

  “They are most likely defending the gates. Fools, they are playing right into the trap,” laughed Bogdan.

  Blaze continued to keep watch of the battle, giving feedback to his father here and there. After a few minutes of telling his father what he saw, Saitar appeared out of nowhere right next to him atop the boulder.

  “Sorry I am late. It is a frantic mess in there,” Saitar said.

  “No kidding,” Blaze replied sarcastically. He then dropped from the boulder and landed next to his father. He swung his head to get his long, black hair out of his face. Bogdan and Blaze then looked up to see Saitar contemplating a way down.

  “Just jump down, Elder,” said Blaze.

  “As easy as you make it look, Prince, I regrettably do not have the leg power to handle such a landing without my bones snapping in two,” replied Saitar.

  Blaze rolled his eyes and muttered, “We’ll be here all day.”

  Eventually, Saitar could not find a safe way down, so he disappeared and reappeared next to Bogdan.

  “That’s quite a convenient power there,” commented the king.

  “Not many mages can do it, or choose to do it,” replied Saitar.

  Suddenly, a large explosion sounded from the battle. Blaze, who had peeked over another boulder, saw that the catapult had been launched.

  “That’s our signal.” Blaze said, “Let’s go.”

  Saitar then led the two through the rocky area closer to the city wall. They hid behind boulder after boulder
in hopes to avoid detection from the city. Fortunately for them, the boulders blocking their view of the city were densely packed together.

  “You will see why the mages put them together like this soon,” replied Saitar after Blaze questioned it.

  Eventually, they came across an old well that was surrounded by a wall of thick, tall boulders. Saitar approached the well and removed the wooden lid. Dust and cobwebs flew off of the top and a thick cloud of dust came out of the well.

  “Here we are,” said Saitar.

  “You mean that the entrance is in this filthy well?” asked Bogdan.

  “Yes. The rock formation was kept like this so that if there was an emergency, the elders could escape from the Elder’s Hall, go through a secret tunnel and come out of this well. The rock formation would block them from view of the city, and so they could escape while avoiding detection. We are doing the exact opposite; we are sneaking into the Elder’s Hall. From there, I shall guide you to the chamber where the Eye of Gaull is kept,” explained Saitar.

  “How cunning it is to use their own escape route against them!” replied Bogdan, “I like the way you think, Elder.”

  Saitar then unrolled a rope ladder on the rim of the well and let it fall into the hole.

  “Here is where we go down.” he said, “I will go first.” He then climbed over the edge of the well, latched onto the ladder, and climbed down. Bogdan went in next and then Blaze followed behind him. When they reached the bottom, they saw an old tunnel that opened at the bottom, and one at a time, they each walked through it. At the end of the tunnel was a door with no doorknob, but that was decorated with strange symbols. Before Bogdan or Blaze could ask questions, Saitar muttered an incantation and the door disappeared.

  They then entered through the round archway into another tunnel. The walked around curves until they could no longer see any light, at which point Saitar lifted his iron staff and tapped it on the ground. This caused tip end to glow, lighting the way for himself, the king, and the prince.