Laugh of Destruction (Book 3 of the Death Incarnate Saga)

by Jr H. Lee Morgan

  Unabashedly the man nodded. “Of course. Every warrior strives to become chieftain. If I become stronger, I will challenge you honorably.”

  Cage grinned. “Then I await such a day. I’ll make sure you’ll be well trained for such a task.”

  “If we’re speaking on the future of the tribe, may I say something?” Meeka asked and many heads turned to her. When none objected she said “I think it would be good if the tribe knew how to write and read. Since we are near Kote, we’ll be trading for supplies we cannot get on the island. After we get settled in I’d like to start teaching everyone, especially the children. I don’t want any of you taken advantage of because you cannot read…”

  Red cheeks of embarrassment allowed Brooke to step in to her woman’s rescue. “I welcome such knowledge. Brothers and sisters, in my time traveling with Cage I was embarrassed to not even understand where we could be housed for a night. We need to learn such a skill if we are to thrive. I’m going to learn myself. Any who are willing will be welcome, but as priestess I say all children will learn as part of their training.” None protested their priestess’s order.

  “I believe it would be a good idea, Priestess. I feel our tribe is changing for the better and the young must grow so that we will prosper.” Elder Shania said while stepping forward. Her eyes caught that of Megdline. “What of you, Magic Woman? What are you planning that will influence the tribe?”

  “As I said before,” Megdline replied casually. “my only responsibility is to further Cage’s study so he can live a full and healthy life. He’s my friend as you’ll all likely one day be. I have absolutely no intention of being part of your tribe whatsoever. Because Cage though has become part of you, I’ll be helping should there be need, especially if he cannot master growing enough to keep all of you from starvation. I have little doubt my intervention will be needed, but just incase, I’m willing to help. I have other duties and inclinations that won’t bind me here for too long. I will not influence the progression of your tribe in any way nor will I teach what I’m not allowed to any but Cage. What he does, is up to him.”

  “What if there is danger, would you help our people?” Shania asked.

  “Only against another mage, should such a thing occur. If there is a situation Cage cannot handle, I will give aid. Anything else, you’ll be on your own.”

  “Very well.” The eldest female of the Utala said. “Chief, is there anything more that is to be discussed before the evening arrives?”

  “No. Everyone, go start the cooking fires and celebrate your new home.” At last there came a cheer from the whole tribe.

  Some hurried over to finish cutting the fresh shark meat while others helped free the animals and finish unpacking. “Cage, a word.” Frill meowed beside Megdline as they approached.

  “Yes?” he asked to the gigantic cat.

  “I didn’t get a chance before to ask, but what were you doing all day?” He then licked his whiskers.

  “I started designing wards on a few crystals that would protect the island from siege. I know Granny said no less than fifty would be required and I assumed that they would need to be spread equally over the perimeter of the island. I had trouble linking the crystals to prevent certain circumstances like tsunamis over a certain height to be prevented by using a wedged barrier to slice the danger away. Any senses of magical usage to forcibly gain access here will first be bound and pushed away from the island and any forced entry would send an inverted barrier to hold them. I found out what damage even a crystal, slightly larger than a grain of sand, is capable of and it had one hell of an impact. As a last resort, one crystal will fly and detonate as soon as the caster or object is touched.

  “I also would prevent flying of anything larger than a large hawk from being allowed to pass the barrier net dome to catch any intruders and ask for a password, just like the pillars did to you earlier. And if they magically fly they would be gripped for a password. Should they struggle to still get closer, an inverted barrier would snare them which causes pain enough to render anyone unconscious, but unharmed. I learned that personally from Skylar’s hospitality. Any advanced attacks will also result in a crystal automatically homing in on a intruder and hold enough power to kill anyone if they do not surrender to the protective island’s wards. Any hostile attacks will be dealt with swiftly. Oh, and any long range magic attacks will be blocked and redirected by an automatic triangulation spell I’ve designed which would calculate the original firing point and send the spell right back at the caster.”

  “But you had trouble, didn’t you?” Megdline asked knowingly.

  “Yes, I need a central control crystal with which to properly regulate the output of magical energies and direct them where they’re most needed. Since the crystals will be small and limited in number, they will be in danger of a two-sided attack. If that happens I’ll have to rely on the attack wards implanted in those pillars to take up the slack and send their vast stores to the other location to ruin any foolish attempts to bypass the natural reef barrier surrounding the whole island. I’ll need to create more crystals out of the beach sand to make a more efficient defense system since I don’t have enough money to buy crystal in any large quantity. It will be good practice in understanding crystalline structure and why they have such a functional use for us. It will take weeks just to make one small crystal. I’ve already begun storing mana in one of my diamonds for the expressed purpose of crafting more crystals from the sand. I will rest easy only when I have no less than six hundred crystals with which to mount a decent defense. Until such time, it will take a while to fully saturate the current number of crystals, but I believe it will be effective.”

  “Effective?” Megdline rolled her eyes. “Cage, if I didn’t know you were raised on Earth I would swear you were a master strategist with no less than sixty years of magical knowledge under your belt. Seriously, I believe you’ll soon have the defenses of a city like Vin’re or Castle Emroc before long. Since gems are highly regulated by the Magical Council, your best option is to make your own, as you already figured out… unless you suddenly become rich. Have you stumbled upon a way to disguise yourself from being spied upon?”

  “I’ve tried, but every time I look for an object I spell, I see a black dot where I was looking. That won’t work since someone could still easily learn the location just by studying the area. It’s like a rock under a blanket. Yes it’s covered, but as soon as you run your hand over it the rock will easily be found.”

  “Good analogy.” She responded. “And you won’t be able to hide forever the way Twilight’s observation spells affect you from being targeted. The mana of the island’s plants, animals, people and yourself won’t be able to amount to the level Twilight absorbs from all the mages and dragons who can withstand more powerful siphoning spells. The most effective spell you can implement will work just like the enchanted castles do. Any spying will be unable to clearly see or hear anything that occurs inside an affected zone which will encompass the whole island, which I assume is your goal?” She got an affirming nod and smiled at his honesty. “It can be done, but you’ll need to speak the spell in order for it to be effective. The control crystal, as you call it, must be in nearly the center of the zone you wish to create.”

  “Granny, I need to ask, do you have any crystals I might borrow till I make more?” Cage asked. “The ones I have are too small to regulate properly.”

  “I don’t think so, but let me see…” She shoved a hand down a pocket, whispered and removed an empty hand. She shifted hands and did it again, this time even she was pleasantly surprised. Megdline extracted a hand and removed two raw crystals about the size of large walnuts. “Well what do you know… these… I haven’t seen since I made my topaz.” She smiled. “I have no need for them. Here.” Megdline held out the two egg size crystals.

  “Thank you.” He took them and sensed for what they contained. He paused. “Ah, Granny, they’re full.”

  “I know, they took months to fill. Y
ou can use the energy. Use it to recover so we can get started on creating this design you’ve thought up.”

  “CAGE, NOOO!!!” Daku roared a second too late.

  Megdline could sense Cage mystically pulling on the crystals she used to store her mana. There was only the ward preventing over-absorption and nothing else. She didn’t expect what came as a result.

  He tried recovering by using the great quantity stored within one. He pulled with but a thought as he’s used to with his diamonds. The energy came willingly enough, but then every muscle in his body cramped as the foreign energy bonded to his own. His mind lost immediate consciousness, but his body crumpled into the dirt to begin thrashing.

  Daku raced over with wide eyes and seething hate to demand “Megdline, why the fuck did you tell him to take your mana!”

  “I… I…” She stuttered and looked down to see Cage foaming at the mouth while seizing violently. “Wha… What have I done?”

  The worried roar gained everyone’s immediate attention. Brooke and Meeka instantly turned to see their mate struggling as if possessed. Dread filled them till they went cold of spirit as Daku yelled and Megdline shook fearfully. The two women screamed for their love and ran, dropping what they were doing. Brooke’s longer legs made it to Cage a moment before Meeka. The priestess dropped to her knees and tried to hold him down to suck in a breath. “He’s burning of fever! What happened!” She demanded of the griffin and withered sorceress.

  Daku’s rage lessened as his eyes tore away from Megdline’s. He looked down to his flailing partner as worry grew higher. Neither of the two women had the strength to keep Cage from thrashing in the sand. Still, Meeka and Brooke tried their hardest to hold him down. Old knowledge returned as the griffin said “Get him into the water before he dies! Hurry, before the damage is too great!”

  Brooke and Meeka didn’t question and grabbed an arm. Although Cage is tall and leanly built without obvious large muscles, his weight explained just how solid he is. The sand made it difficult to drag in conjunction with a powerful seizure.

  Help arrived as the whole village rushed to the pair. Hands reached down to get hold and some were struck by the violent movements before they firmly secured the chief and ran him straight into the water. “Help me keep his head up!” Meeka shouted over the struggle.

  Most of the tribe stood in the water to help while the children stood worriedly on the sand. Strong men of the tribe gathered and held on with every ounce of strength to restrain their chief without question. Each one gained new respect for how much he held back, but as a group they held him secure as he fought unconsciously. Brooke and Meeka held his head above the water while those restraining, held the rest of him below the surface. His body felt on fire, even below where the water was much cooler.

  Daku waded into the water to worriedly look down upon his partner. He then heard Meeka shout and use one of Cage’s sayings “What the hell is happening to him?”

  Eyes turned upon the Familiar and none could deny the anger and worry in his tone. “He cannot absorb another’s mana.”

  “What do you mean?!” Megdline broke her reverie of what happened. “I’ve taken in another’s mana without something like that happening. What happened?”

  His darkened blue eyes turned on the sorceress and even she could tell he was nearly ready to kill her. “He’s a warlock, Fool! His mana is completely different than yours. He cannot absorb any mana other than his own. Absorbing mana is far worse for him than eating meat. It can kill a warlock.”

  “But…” Her frightened grey eyes turned to her still writhing pupil. “But the books say he can to the same kinds of magic… What have I done?”

  “Megdline,” Daku forced himself to maintain restraint. “your ignorance on warlocks are too great. No mage today can ever hope to understand a warlock. You’ve already bore witness to him doing things once thought impossible. He healed a spirit, cut through a warded castle unaided… I can keep going, but you get my point. Warlocks are utterly unique. Yes, they can use the same kinds of spells and use wards with multiple mana sources, but haven’t you wondered why he does things all on his own? Has he worked his diamonds to absorb anything from other than himself? No, he hasn’t. Cage didn’t recognize why, but he was protecting himself without even realizing it. His mana cannot mix with anyone at all. You have your own mana and can assimilate from some other sources to make it your own. He cannot. Even as his partner, he cannot even use my vast mana for himself.

  “By taking your mana into himself, he risks death if he cannot cool down till the time he awakes. Other’s might be able to heal him, but no mana can mingle inside him without him intending. Only he can pull on mana to allow another’s in. That said, you can try and push your mana towards him, but until he allows it, you will just be wasting vital energy. It is like your gem, only you can store and retrieve your energy. You can do it, others cannot. It is the same for warlocks.

  “All we are left to do now is hope he pulls through. I just hope we weren’t too late and he didn’t absorb much.”

  “Is there anything I could do?” Megdline pleaded.

  “Haven’t you done enough!” Daku snapped back. Then a thought appeared. “There might be… Megdline, cool the water and trap him in ice. He needs to keep cool so his mind isn’t ruined to the point his spirit leaves his body and so that he doesn’t hurt himself further.”

  “No, I’d freeze him to death.” She explained.

  “His body is too hot for that. Do it or if he dies you’ll be dead before I too drop to never draw another breath.” A deep, resonating growl emanated from his chest that all felt. It was a promise.

  Immediately Megdline said “Everyone back away quickly.” Only Brooke and Meeka remained close enough to keep his head above the water. Neither were able to bring themselves to leave. The others pulled away, one man got a knee to the sternum when he let go and didn’t get away in time. Megdline’s topaz began to glow with a fiery golden hue as she wove a freezing spell upon the water. It was difficult to accomplish due to the salt, but the water’s temperature plummeted as ice formed protectively around Cage’s feet and crawled up each leg before firmly locking them together straight. Ice grew rapidly around his body, giving much greater restraint than a dozen slippery hands. Soon his middle became encased. The ice began to float, holding Cage on his back. His arms were soon pulled and frozen safely to his side. At her command, Meeka and Brooke reluctantly released their hold and as soon as they did, most of Cage’s neck, head and face became immobile. Only his eyes, nose, mouth and the top section of his chest lay exposed so he could breathe. He was frozen, encased in ice, but his expression and foaming at the corners of his mouth showed he was still in a traumatic experience.

  Cage lay in an ice coffin, floating on top of the water.

  “It’s done. He won’t be able to hurt himself.” Megdline stated as her staff stopped glowing.

  The worried griffin put a large hand to hold the ice prison steady while putting his back to the oncoming waves to take the impact before they could do anything to his partner’s vulnerable position. Brooke and Meeka stood to either side, keeping the ice from any form of movement. Meeka put a hand on Cage’s bare chest to say “He’s still burning of fever. Daku what can you tell me that will help?”

  “There is nothing more we can do.” His beak clicked in frustration. “All we can do is hope he will recover from this. It didn’t occur to me that something like this would happen so soon. His mana is trying to expel the foreign kind, meaning they are at war. If only I knew how much he consumed I could say he’ll live or that the two of us will leave these physical bodies before long…”

  Megdline’s sudden movement caught the eyes of many. Some drew knives, blaming the magic woman for this. They stopped when they saw her drop to a knee to dig in the sand as she searched for the crystals. She located the two and narrowed her eyes in focus. Megdline stood and said “He didn’t take much. I think he tried recovering enough to continue working, but n
ot so much as to be refreshed.”

  “Then there is a fair chance he’ll pull through.” Daku said no more.

  Nightfall arrived and still Daku, Meeka and Brooke stayed in the water, holding onto the ice. The tribe was subdued as they ate, many keeping an eye on the water or on Megdline as she sat in the sand looking miserable at what she ignorantly did. The water’s constant motion kept circulating the chill caused by the ice so neither of the two women needed to warm up, though they wouldn’t leave his side if it were the case.

  Rena and Sean sat together quietly with the other children. They were worried for their dad, but had to eat. Few seemed to enjoy the shark’s tough meat, but it was filling.

  In the darkness Daku’s sharp eyes noticed a subtle change. Cage’s tense facial expression began to slack and the white foam at the corners of his mouth stopped frothing. “Check him again.” Daku said softly.

  Meeka reached to lay a hand down on Cage’s chest to let out a sigh of relief. “Thank the gods, he’s finally cooling down and breathing easier.”

  “Thank you great spirits.” Brooke praised in relief.

  The griffin stood fully on all fours and his movement in the dark was quickly noticed. As he said “I believe it is over. Let us push him to the land.” the tribe began standing one by one before hurrying over. Together they got him up on the beach. “Megdline, please remove the ice now.”

  She nodded and approached. She then held a hand out above the ice to create a warm orange flame with the sole purpose of melting ice. His wards activated at his, but the heat managed to soak in while the actual flame was resisted. Megdline began moving her arm up and down the ice’s length, melting the solid liquid into streams. She continued the process under watchful eyes.

  When the flame disappeared, most of the ice had melted from the warlock. All were worried he’d begin thrashing again, but he didn’t move. It was like he slept, but the pale pallor of his usual golden tan explained he’d gone through something traumatic. Meeka felt for his pulse and counted without being interrupted by questions. “His heart is beating steady again. Help me get him on some soft bedding.” A few approached and grabbed hold to hoist him carefully and bring him over to the fires where Rena and Sean had unrolled their mother’s fur out on the sand. They laid him down and backed away as Daku lay down just above, and used a furry hand to lift Cage’s head and lay it down on a soft arm as one would use a warm, if wet, pillow. Meeka found a cloth which she used to dry off her love.