“Karliss!” it bellowed. “Time to die!”
“Couldn’t we talk about this?” Batu muttered.
“You two get back,” Karliss said. “Let me handle this.” As he was speaking he was gathering the wind to him, shaping it, compressing it. Then he threw out his hand, palm outward, and let it go.
The compressed air shot across the intervening space and struck Tharn in the chest. The impact rocked Tharn back on its heels, but that was it. Tharn looked at Karliss and shook its massive head. Then it started running toward them again.
“Get out of here!” Karliss snapped. “I can’t fight that thing and protect you two at the same time.” He threw his reins to Hulagu and jumped down off his horse. “Go!” he yelled.
The other two fell back and Karliss turned to face Tharn. Though his heart was pounding hard, he felt strangely calm at the same time. He’d prepared for this. He wasn’t helpless.
As Tharn drew closer, he hit the thing with another blast of compressed air, giving it everything he had. Tharn was knocked backwards and fell down this time, but almost instantly it was running at him again. Briefly he considered using the Stone word of power he’d tried the day before, but quickly dismissed the idea. Tharn was too big, too powerful. And even if he could manage to control the creature, what would he do then? He wouldn’t be able to hold onto it for long before the word got away from him, probably injuring him at the same time.
It was time for the new word of power he’d learned.
“Akuy-ken-shai!” he yelled.
The power flowed outwards from him and instantly all the aranti in the area turned toward him. He collected them with the power of the word and directed them with his will, throwing them at Tharn, who was now less than fifty yards away and coming on fast.
The aranti came shrieking in from every direction, dimly visible glowing shapes moving at incredible speed. Karliss threw them at Tharn and they clustered around the Guardian.
Tharn slowed, then came to a halt.
Behind him, Karliss could hear Batu give a small cheer.
Karliss realized he had a problem. He was holding Tharn back, but he had no idea what to do with the creature. The aranti were fighting him, trying to get away. Already he was tiring from the strain of controlling them. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold them.
Abruptly Tharn switched tactics. The creature quit trying to move forward and crouched down. It swung its mighty fists and slammed them into the ground.
The ground underneath Karliss shook so violently that he was thrown off his feet. He hit hard, the impact breaking his concentration. A few of the aranti got away from him then and that was all Tharn needed. The Guardian began to make its way forward again. Its progress was slow, but unstoppable.
Karliss got to his feet and backed up.
Tharn slammed its fists into the ground again, hard enough that the ground cracked. Karliss was knocked down again and he lost a few more aranti. The ones remaining were slowing the Guardian, but not that much. Karliss backed up some more, thinking desperately.
Tharn was passing by a rock face now and suddenly the creature stopped. It slammed one fist into the rock face, fracturing it. Large chunks of stone broke free and crashed down around its feet. It bent, grabbed up a stone in each fist—the stones each the size of Karliss’ head—and flung them at him.
Karliss managed to duck the first one, but the second one came too quickly afterwards, and he had to quickly snatch at the wind. He was able to blast the rock with the wind just enough to divert it past his head.
But in doing so he lost his hold on most of the remaining aranti.
Tharn grunted and charged at him again. The thing was remarkably fast, considering how large it was. It covered the remaining distance much more quickly than Karliss would have thought possible. Clearly there was no way he could outrun the thing on foot.
Tharn covered the last few yards separating them and one huge, boulder-like fist swung for Karliss’ head. He threw himself to the side and barely avoided the blow, which came so close he heard it whistle by his ear.
He rolled and came to his feet, but any hope of a respite was quickly dashed by how fast Tharn recovered. The Guardian spun and came at him again.
Karliss acted on instinct. He knew there was no way he could move fast enough to get out of the way in time, so he did the only thing he could…
He channeled a blast of air at the ground to the side. The rebound from the impact pushed him the other way a split second before Tharn’s fist went through the spot where he’d been standing. It was strong enough that he was thrown a half dozen feet or so and he fell down when he landed.
Tharn turned and charged at him again. Karliss barely had time to make it back to his feet and channel another blast of air at the ground. He pushed harder this time and the rebound flung him a good dozen feet. He landed better than before and managed to stay upright.
Tharn slammed its fists on the ground, knocking Karliss down, then charged furiously. On the ground, with no time to recover, Karliss threw up a quick whirlwind in front of Tharn. The whirlwind picked up rocks and dirt, temporarily blinding Tharn, giving Karliss time to get back to his feet.
But he’d twisted his ankle on the last fall. He could keep dodging, but he didn’t know how long he’d be able to avoid the monster. How long before he made a mistake? If Tharn hit him one time, even a glancing blow, it would all be over. He’d have multiple broken bones. He might even be killed outright.
Suddenly, he got an idea. It was crazy, but it might work.
He channeled another blast of air at the ground, putting a little more space between him and Tharn, giving himself a couple more seconds to work with.
“Akuy-ken-shai!”
All of his desperate need went into the command, guided by focused intent. Dozens of aranti answered him, compelled by the power of his need. Again he threw them at Tharn…
But this time he didn’t try to stop Tharn.
This time he commanded the aranti to pick the Guardian up.
The aranti swirled madly around Tharn, so many of them that it was hard to see the creature. Tharn looked around disbelievingly as it began to rise into the air. His weight was tremendous. The aranti could only pick the creature up a few inches off the ground. Tharn slapped at the aranti, but the stone fists had no impact on them.
“Akuy-ken-shai!”
This time Karliss sent the word out further, compelling more aranti to respond to his command. Another dozen of the aranti answered, racing in and adding their strength to the ones already swirling around Tharn.
Tharn rose higher into the air. Karliss focused every ounce of strength he had, driving the aranti mercilessly, forcing them to push up against the very limits of what they were capable of.
Tharn rose still higher. The Guardian was twenty feet or more in the air and still rising. The aranti were fighting against Karliss. There were thirty or forty of them and he knew he couldn’t hold them much longer. He gritted his teeth and concentrated, trying to hold on for a few more seconds.
Now Tharn was a hundred feet in the air at least. The Guardian was fighting and thrashing, but there was nothing it could do. It bellowed angrily. Karliss kept pushing. Tharn was getting smaller and smaller, rising into the clouds.
Right before Karliss started to lose his hold on the aranti, he let them all go.
Tharn came plummeting back to earth. The Guardian hit the ground with bone-shaking force, so hard that Karliss staggered backwards. A cloud of dust rose up, partially obscuring it.
Karliss stared at the spot, hoping. The dust began to settle. Hulagu and Batu came riding towards him. He held up his hand to stop them when they got close.
“Is it dead?” Batu called.
“I don’t think so,” Karliss said.
“Then let’s get out of here!” Hulagu said, and spurred his horse forward, leading Karliss’ horse.
The dust settled enough to see. Tharn began to move. The Guardian sat up. The
re were new, deep cracks across its torso and one arm was hanging at a crazy angle.
Hulagu and Batu came riding up. Hulagu handed Karliss his reins. “Come on!”
Karliss climbed on his horse, his gaze still fixed on Tharn.
Then Tharn did something unexpected.
“No more,” Tharn rumbled. “No more.” The massive head turned and its eyes fixed on Karliss. “You are Kasai’s problem now.”
The creature pulled itself to its feet, then turned away and shambled off.
Batu was shaking his head. “That was amazing,” he said. “Just when I think…” He trailed off, unable to find the words.
“Congratulations,” Hulagu said. “You defeated one of the Guardians.”
“It’s a good thing,” Karliss replied. He was so weak he was having trouble staying in the saddle. “Because I don’t have anything left really.”
“Come on. Let’s go home,” Hulagu said.
Chapter Twenty-two: Fen
Fen and Ravin stood in a darkened corner by the back wall of the castle, partially hidden by the corner of an old storage shed, and watched the dust settle from the collapse of the old tower. Soldiers and servants began to gather and soon there were a couple dozen people staring openmouthed at the destruction.
“I knew that heap of rubble was going to come down,” one servant said. He was an old man with crazy white hair and a withered arm. “I said it myself only the other day, I did. I told them it wouldn’t last, but did they listen? No, they didn’t.”
“Shut up, Willem, you old coot. Ain’t nobody listening to you now!” one of the soldiers yelled. Fen knew him. It was Ely, a thick-shouldered sergeant with a taste for drink and a bad temper.
Willem cursed Ely but there was no real heat in his voice.
“You think the Ankharans were in there?” another soldier said. He was a young man Fen didn’t really know.
“I hope so,” Willem said, spitting on the ground. “They’re demon spawn is what they are and we’re best rid of them.” Willem was a devout man and the god he worshipped was one of the first ones who was killed, his temple desecrated.
“You’d best keep your voice down, if you know what’s good for you,” Ely said truculently.
“And you’ll shut your fat gob if you know what’s good for you,” Willem shot back, though he did lower his voice.
“I hope so too,” Fen said to Ravin. She was leaning into him, gripping his hand tightly with one of her hands, while with the other she held onto his upper arm. “I hope they all died in there.” Ravin shivered and pressed in closer to him. Fen looked down at her. In the dim light he could see the curve of her cheek and the sparkle of her eyes. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I know I shouldn’t say that.”
“It’s okay,” she whispered back. “I feel the same way.”
There was a commotion over by the palace and a minute later the Fist came walking up. He was fully dressed and didn’t look like a man who’d been sleeping. He crossed his arms and regarded the wreckage. “Did anyone see what happened?” he asked.
Faces turned down. There were muttered no’s all around. Then Willem spoke up.
“The hand of god, that’s what it was,” he said loudly. The Fist turned toward him, and he broke off and took a step back.
“What makes you say that?” the Fist asked in a low voice.
The old man shrugged. “One of those things,” he replied.
“You think the gods did this,” the Fist said.
“I dunno, sire,” the old man said meekly. “It seemed the thing to say.”
“Curious way for the gods to finally make themselves known, don’t you think, knocking over an old tower?”
“There’s no telling,” Willem said, a little defiance creeping back into his voice.
“Be careful what you say,” the Fist said mildly. “Times have changed.” He turned as four figures came walking up out of the gloom. Fen saw with a sinking heart that it was the Ankharans. They had their cowls pulled up over their heads. Willem staggered backwards as if he’d been physically struck, his face going white.
“This man thinks the gods knocked over your tower,” the Fist said. The four figures turned to regard the old servant. The other people gathered there began backing away. “Some kind of divine judgment.”
“Judgment comes in many forms,” one of the figures said to Willem. “Would you like to see a different judgment?”
Willem was shaking visibly. Ravin’s hand tightened on Fen’s. “Don’t hurt him,” she whispered. “He’s only an old man.”
The figures advanced on Willem, who stood rooted to the spot, shaking visibly. One hand came up to clasp the religious symbol he wore around his neck. It looked like he was mouthing a prayer. One of the Ankharans stretched out a pale hand toward him…
At that moment there was a crash as a piece of the tower wall that was still standing collapsed suddenly. The Ankharans turned as one toward the rubble. Willem seized his chance and hobbled away as quickly as he could, the other gathered servants and soldiers melting away at the same time.
“It’s a good thing you weren’t in there,” the Fist said to the Ankharans.
They did not reply. One of them turned and looked at the spot where Fen and Ravin were concealed. Fen and Ravin took a step back, huddling deeper into the shadows. Fen felt the familiar pressure start inside his skull, along with the feeling of heat in his chest. But it wasn’t very strong, as if his affliction was sated from the earlier release.
“We will find you new quarters in the palace,” the Fist said.
After a long moment, the Ankharan who was staring at them turned back to the Fist and nodded. They all walked together toward the palace.
Fen let out the breath he’d been holding and turned to Ravin. He touched her cheek. “Are you all right?” he asked.
She nodded. “I still feel a little woozy, but it’s nothing. I’m more frightened than anything. What was going on down there? What was that thing?”
“I don’t know,” Fen said. “But they had scores of people in there, maybe a hundred of them, and they were all covered in what looked like gray spider webs. Drops of light were running from them into this pool of purple light.” He shuddered. “Those poor people. I wish I could have saved them.”
Ravin looked over at the rubble of the tower. “At least they aren’t suffering anymore. And you killed that horrible crab-thing. Where does something like that come from?”
“The Ankharans. They must have brought it in their ship.”
“I don’t see how. That thing was huge.”
“I’ve been inside their ship. It’s no normal ship. It’s almost like an opening to another world in there.” Fen thought for a moment. “When the Fist killed that assassin a couple of years ago, I saw white light come out of the assassin’s mouth and go into the Fist. That was what healed him.”
Ravin frowned. “I never heard anyone say anything about a white light.”
“No one else saw it. But I did, I’m sure of it. I think the Fist drained that man’s life that day, and I think those people down there were having their lives drained away into…” He shrugged. “I have no idea.”
“And they were going to do that to me, but you saved me,” Ravin said, throwing her arms around Fen and hugging him tightly. “How did you know I was there?”
Fen remembered Amma then. “It was Amma. She saw the man taking you and came and told me. We should go find her. She probably thinks you’re dead. I don’t think we should stand around here anyway. We don’t want anyone to see us and think we were involved.”
There was no one around as they snuck past the rubble. As they neared the palace, Ravin came to a stop. “Wait. I think I hear something.” Fen listened. Faintly he could hear the sound of someone crying.
They found Amma sitting on a bench under a tree near the palace gardens. Ravin hurried to her and when Amma looked up and saw her, she gave a little squeal.
“You’re alive!” She jumped up and threw
her arms around Ravin. “When I saw the tower come down I was so sure you were both dead.” She let go of Ravin and wiped her eyes. “How did you escape?” she asked. “I never saw you leave the place.”
Fen’s heart leapt into his mouth when Ravin replied, afraid she was going to tell his secret, but he didn’t need to worry.
“It was a miracle,” Ravin said. “The stones fell all around us, but none of them hit us. Once it all settled down, we were able to crawl free.”
“That’s incredible,” Amma said. “And so romantic. Fen rescues you from the kidnapper and then when the tower falls you climb out of the rubble and walk away.” She looked at Fen. “You took care of the kidnapper I hope.”
“He did,” Ravin said. “He was very brave.”
Amma went inside a few minutes later and the two of them sat down on the bench. “Thank you for not telling her,” Fen said. “For a moment there I was pretty worried.”
“You secret is safe with me, Fen, I promise you.” She stroked his arm as she spoke and suddenly pulled her hand back. “What’s wrong with your arm?”
The light coming from the palace was weak, but Fen could see that his arm looked reddish. He touched it. It felt like stone. The other one was the same. “It’s something that happens when I…” He trailed off, not wanting to say it, still afraid to speak his secret shame. “When it happens.”
Ravin only hesitated a moment, then she put her hands back on his arm. “It feels like stone,” she said.
“I think it is.” Fen pulled and a piece of it came free. Quickly he broke the rest of it off and tossed it away, except for one piece that Ravin took. She peered at it, then looked at him.
“What did you do in there, Fen?”
“I don’t really know,” he admitted. “But it seems I have some kind of power over stone, or I’m able to tap into power that’s in the stone or something. I don’t understand it at all.”
Sea Born (Chaos and Retribution Book 3) Page 26
