Three fire elves stroll on over to us, resting their hands on the pommels of their sheathed swords. The red and black plate armor completely covers their bodies. It’s smooth and the shoulders are like upside down bowls; their helmets muffle their voices while simultaneously deepening them. Each of them has a sash draped between their legs bearing a phoenix with its wings fully open—the Magma Kingdom’s symbol; the middle guard also houses a silver star on his right breastplate. A captain, maybe?
He addresses us with the uttermost mannerism, “greetings lord zouvxes, Zarvick and Crystalline. The Red King would like to have a council with the two of you.”
“That’s the craziest thing I’ve heard all day. And it’s not even midday yet,” I respond.
Zarvick, on the other hand, is a little quieter. He’s studying them with concern. I start to notice what has tripped him off; a faint black smoke is evaporating from their armor. Peering into the souls, I see shadow larvae swarming around inside of them. This is just great.
“How did he know we were coming?” Zarvick inquires.
“Three kingdoms fall and you expect the rest of Elvendora not to catch wind of this,” the captain responds. The other two guards don’t speak, they are just lackeys.
Nothing else is said and they lead the way. This place could be much larger, however, the lava flowing beneath us says otherwise; everything including the palace and buildings is all made from rugged obsidian. The only lighting in here is cast out by flares here and there.
I haven’t seen any elves walking around like before; just a few guards standing at their post.
I don’t like this, “Zarvick, they could be leading us into a trap.” I keep my voice low.
“I doubt it,” he smiles, “if Reaper wanted us dead, we would be.”
He’s right. I never considered that; that beast needs us to fulfill its plans if we die that defeats the purpose. What if the royalty is actually taking it easy on us? That’ll certainly punch a hole straight through my self-esteem.
The castle looks like a giant black bubble waiting to burst at a moment’s notice. The guards lead us through a small hallway boxed in by fire before we approach a giant portcullis. On the other side is the throne room, the volcano's opening lies just above it. Allowing the sunlight to shine on the only place in this entire kingdom without any lava or fire in it.
Sitting at its epicenter is none other than the Red King himself. His plate mail armor is a deep red outlined with black, the exact opposite of his guards. In addition, to its rather demon-like appearance, the armor is rugged all over with spiked boots and gauntlets. He bears no helmet, however, the king’s hair is short, actually, it’s composed of a red flame with a bluish tent. His complexion is a subtle burgundy with deep grey eyes. What tops it all of is his size, he’s a mass of muscle and most likely the biggest out of all of the royal council members.
The long handle of his weapon sticks out from behind his throne. I wonder what the Red King use as murder device.
An eerie grin stretches from ear-to-ear as we walk in. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet the two of you,” he bows his head sarcastically ( what an ass), “I want to make a proposal for the two of you to consider.”
“Which is?” Zarvick slides his hand over the dragon glaive.
“Pledge your allegiance to me and together we can rule Elvendora.”
“Okay, somehow we must have entered an alternate reality where everyone is just out of their minds today,” I think aloud.
“Why would you betray Reaper?” Zarvick ignores me.
“Reaper never had us follow behind it, it never asked. We just died, one-by-one because that beast thought it could take over. With my power and your help, we can destroy the menace that is the dark form. Besides, you can’t expect loyalty from people you don’t keep a firm grasp over.”
I shake my head and take a step forward, “you won’t be able to escape Reaper’s grasp. The stone inside you is the only thing keeping you alive and it’s linked with its magic. Anyways, there are shadows all over your kingdom.”
The Red King takes a look around almost mockingly. Dumbass.
“There are no shadows here other than those that are augmenting my guards.”
“Augmenting?” We ask simultaneously.
“Surely you’ve seen them already, Crystalline. They are premature shadow essences with just enough energy to stay alive but not enough to corrupt their host. Their sole purpose is to empower them. Just like Zarvick’s soul fragments.”
The missing piece of the puzzle we’ve been trying to solve and the Red King has already figured it out. If I can learn how to reverse that magic, it could change everything; Asvarp and I could combine our power to purify Reaper once and for all by dispelling its connection to the realm of shadows. That would ensure Elvendora’s safety from all sorts of black magic.
“I’m sorry but we are far more powerful than you. It’s up to us to put an end to Elvendora’s suffering.”
What?! “Zarvick, sweetie, let’s consider this proposal and all it has to offer?” I elbow him in the ribs. He’ll ruin this for me.
“I am going to accomplish what we are meant to do,” he responds firmly.
With that, he pulls out his glaive and leaps over the guards; the king quickly gets to his feet and meets Zarvick with a flaming double-bladed battle-axe. Both weapons clang together with a loud thud before their wielders are at a stalemate. The aftermath of their clash has made the room quake mildly, the heat is rising.
The captain unsheathes his flaming sword and swings for my head; his lackeys follow his lead but aren’t as agile. Evading the captain, I form two sword constructs and parry the guards. Pushing against their blades I stomp their leader’s knee, jump off of him and slash at their chest. The gash through their armors glimmer a dim light but neither of them seemed fazed by it. All three of them easily regain themselves and surround me. My fight is starting to pick up speed. I block one flaming sword, dodge the next, plunge my blade through a lackey, and then chop the other’s head off; this causes the shadow to leak out of his body, in the place of his blood, evaporating the instant it’s free.
That’s peculiar.
I slide my construct up through the other guard, cutting his upper body in half. The captain—now wielding two swords—charges me; astonishingly, his battle prowess is remarkable. Unlike the other two, he is quite capable of standing toe-to-toe with me in combat. Then again, I am definitely not some mere mortal.
After I fend off his onslaught of attacks, I elegantly counter. First, I transform my right sword into a hook and stab it into his hand. Second, I cut off his other hand leaving him weaponless. Third, I form chains and fling them into his shoulders where I launch myself forward and kick my feet off of his chest; with the captain dazed, I withdraw my bow and an arrow in midair, firing it once I land. It sparkles with a blue light as it spirals towards him. It penetrates his body and soul with a burst of purifying energy that causes him to explode. I never grow tired of seeing that.
Zarvick is knocked into a nearby wall with a fireball. Honestly, I forgot he was here.
“Are you alright?” I ask as I make my way over to him.
He ignores me and dashes forth. The Red King has split his axe in half and effortless fights with him. They dance together with a single intention, murder; it doesn’t take long for his majesty to wrap things up. He brings his axes down, Zarvick blocks them with the glaive’s shaft but is pushed back by the force. Knocking the weapon out of his hands, the king bangs one blade against his rib and the other on the side of his helmet. With Zarvick stunned, he brings his battle-axe back together and releases a heavy stream of flame. My love is blown through the throne and into the farthest side of the room.
“Not so strong now, are we?” The king’s deep voice roars above the fire.
I release another arrow that grazes across his face just as he spins away from the missile. Swinging his axe at an angle releases a lace of fire that glides towards me. I’m actu
ally impressed by his skill. Cartwheeling out-of-the-way, I draw another arrow.
“Do you really think that you can defeat Reaper if you can’t even defeat me without struggling?”
I contemplate his words. I honestly don’t think we have a chance at killing Reaper no matter what happens but, of course, I don’t tell him that. I say, “we’re going easy on you.”
Hopefully, he’s not doing the same.
His majesty slams the axe into the obsidian floor and breaks it; lava begins seeping its way into the room. As my arrow fires forth, my spiritual energy takes the form of a rhino; the king swings his axe their the animal soul and destroys it, however, the arrow still pierces his chest. Just an inch away from his heart.
Fuck! I missed! Really hate myself right now.
He lobs a fireball at me that I easily evade; using my soul dash I close the distance between us. I kick his knee out, twirl around off the kick and bring my heel to the back of his head. I synthesize a chain that wraps around his face and I hurl the Red King across the room. Getting up, he throws his fist in the air; the earth beneath me crumbles and I backflip just a second before a pillar of lava erupts upwards. My past images fade into me as I land and somehow force me backwards, out of the rang of the lava. That was close, too close.
Withdrawing another arrow, I release it just when an opening in the molten rock appears. The king waves away the attack with the flat side of his battle-axe, additionally ripping the other bolt in his chest out and burning it. I dash behind him where I stab a dagger in his leg, shift my bowstring over his neck and flip him over my body; retracting my bow, I sit on top of the king and reach for my quiver. This is where the fun begins.
I attempt to impale his face with an arrow but he catches my forearm with his free hand and heats things up. Despite the armor being indestructible (well, as far as we know) I still feel my skin boiling up. Energizing the arrow, it detonates with a flash, furthermore freeing me from the Red King’s grasp.
An explosion of melted rocks and fire blast me off of the king. I place my hands by the sides of my head, lift my lower body and push myself up into a squatting position. I encase the lava on my armor with a blue glimmer and wipe it off.
“That’s quite some protection you have,” he chuckles.
“I wish I could say the same.”
Three daggers fling out from my hand as a distraction; his majesty catches the bait by sweeping his axe through the constructs. My arrow soars through the space between us—withering into the energy—then vaporizes his battle-axe. Leaving behind nothing but a smoldering handle. These kings and queens are so dependent on their weapons, it’s pathetic.
“How did—” his eyes widen with what I assume is fear, “you ignorant whore (who the hell does he think he is, calling me a whore?!)! I am going to kill you!”
The Red King becomes ablaze as the fire and lava swirl about him, absorbing into his interior. A barrage of fireballs zips in my direction. This clearly isn’t good. An obsidian wall rises in front of me, shielding me from the attacks and melting it in the process.
Zarvick sprints for the king who has produced a bright red-orange orb between his palms; as my love springs onwards with glaive raised above him, his majesty throws his arms out to his sides detonating the sphere. A flash of fire and light emits, reducing Zarvick to ash and blows away his scorched armor. The dragon glaive pierces into the ground next to me, my faint reflection stares back at me. I’m paralyzed.
“It looks to me like the two of you greatly underestimated this situation,” his voice is full of accomplishment.
Despair, anger, hatred rush through me. I hear my heart pounding beneath my breast, I feel my veins pulsating beneath my skin, and, worst of all, I can smell the lingering scent of burnt flesh. The king continues to talk but his words are lost to me. His armor melts off from his upper body and his arms combine together to create one giant stream of lava and fire. Instinctively, my soul erects a barrier. I don’t see the point in keeping it up since the love of my life just died, nevertheless, if Genu taught me any social skills its revenge.
Conjuring the spirit of a fire turtle within me, I fly through his flames and open a gash across his chest with a jagged sword construct.
“You’ll pay for what you’ve done,” I scream at the top of my lungs.
Opening a portal behind the king, I tackle him through it. We are thrown into the spiritual realm version of the Magma kingdom which is much cooler than its counterpart. His skin shimmers as his fiery hair alters to a blue flame, a minuscule light peers out behind his skin.
A midnight blue shimmer courses about me like water. This world is mine to control.
Five spheres gingerly form around me, once they all reach about half a foot in diameter they burst. Narrow beams race towards the king, blowing an arm and a leg off, punching a hole through his chest, and taking a chunk of his head off. Shockingly (I’m actually grossed out by this), his majesty’s body regenerates by replacing the missing limbs and organs with fire and reverting it back to flesh.
A thrust of his hands summons a jet of blue and black flames that lash out at me; not only does it break through my shield but it knocks the wind out of me as it rams me into the wall.
“You’re not the only one whose power grows in this plane.”
Stomping his foot open cracks in the throne room, the volcano thunders with life. Searing hot lava geysers around us. Three spirits pop into view before me: one is an old man, the next an even older man, and the last is perhaps older than dirt. Together they push aside the lava and block the king’s fireballs for me.
“Who the hell are you people?” I raise my voice.
“We are the three previous kings of the Magma Kingdom,” the youngest one speaks, “and I am his father.”
Great! So, I now have his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather coming to my aid. It’s not like anyone asked for their assistance but if they want to help me kill their degenerate descendant, I’m all for it.
Creating two sword construct alarms the great-grandfather. He’s not particularly gentle when he pushes me back against the wall. What an ass.
“No weapons! You’re going to do this right and extract that damn fragment from his soul,” his voice is harsh and dull with age.
“Wh—”
All at once, they lunge for the Red King additionally forming a triangle shape around him. Stretching their arms out to one another, small runes appear at their palms and forge lines between the former kings; spreading their fingers not only boxes in the Red King but also sucks out a fiery light from deep within him. His majesty’s power drains into his predecessors.
“Quick,” the grandfather shouts, “while he is weakened!”
I fly above them and drop down in front of that son of a bitch of a king. He tries to shoot a fireball at me, yet it rapidly extinguishes. The elders mutter something under their breaths and a newfound knowledge makes its way into my mind. I place my hands, with the palms an inch apart, parallel with his neck, thus withdrawing his soul.
The ruby has darkened in his chest cavity, a network of black veins has sewn their way into his essence. Pulsating red lights flow through the dark vessels, in-and-out of the ruby heart. It’s appalling to watch, despite what he did to Zarvick I have a certain level of pity for him. This is torture. Which is why I synthesize a transparent sphere around the gem, purifying the veins and ripping it from his soul. The shadowy silhouette fades away from him.
Just as his essence dives back into his body, an illumination spreads out from where his heart once was dissolving his physical body. The former king's ball their hands into a fist, ending their magical engagement.
“What just happened?” I’m dumbfounded.
“You purified the corruption within him, setting him free,” his father smiles as he helps his son to his feet.
“Now all you have to do is destroy that stone,” the grandfather points to my hand.
This is a conundrum, “if I destroy, the kingdom will
fall.”
“Yes, we know. It is our doing that causes them to be destroyed,” the great-grandfather has a sour tone.
What the…?! “I’m sorry, run that by me one more time.”
The father starts off, “the former kings and queens, like ourselves, have come to an agreement that when a soul fragment, such as that ruby, is terminated we will combine our spirits to eliminate our respective kingdoms.”
The grandfather continues, “this is because the corruption of our descendants has opened gateways in each of the six mortal kingdoms. Those gateways allow the shadows to enter the spiritual plane of existence.”
The great-grandfather finishes, “thus destroying them, closes those gateways but we can only do so if your friend’s soul fragments are returned to him. Or else the gems negate our ability to do so.”
“What happens to you all?” I ask regretfully.
“We cease to exist,” they say simultaneously in different emotional tones.
Speaking of which, “Zarvick is dead.”
Watching them look at me as if I’m stupid gives me the motivation that I need to crush the gem beneath my grasp; without warning, the volcano erupts and the kings’ souls shine with a blinding light. Empathy fills my body as I sense the sorrow behind the light, nevertheless, I jump through a portal leaving them alone.
I soul dash myself over to my bow, only to have chunks of obsidian rain down on me. I manage to dodge most of them but a boulder the size of Asvarp’s tower nearly crushes the shit out of me. However, Zarvick slashes through it with his glaive just before grabbing ahold of me and turning us into lightning.
We fly through the black clouds of smoke hanging above the volcano and strike down at its base. Now we witness lava and rocks flying in all directions, basically killing animals and plants alike within one mile of us. Zarvick disintegrates a few rocks along with douses the waves of magma coming our way. It’s actually impressive.
Once we are safe, I sock him across the jaw and punch him straight in the gut.
Dark Form_Book 1 of the Shadow War Trilogy Page 28
