"You and I . . . are we the same?" she asked.
"We are," he said.
"Then . . . is that going to happen to me?" she asked.
"No," he answered immediately. "That will not happen to you."
Ivy smiled. The sudden snap and crackle of ice drew their attention. Ether had chosen to rise. After climbing from the frozen pool, she shifted to her human form once more. Ivy gave her a sneer.
"Well, now that this exercise in weakness is over, I trust we can continue," she said.
"Not yet. Myranda isn't up yet," Ivy said.
"Myranda is meaningless. She and the lizard have fulfilled what little role they had," Ether said.
"Well, I'm not leaving without her," Ivy said.
Ether's eyes narrowed. Quickly she forced composure on herself. She would not give this creature the satisfaction of showing anger.
"Very well. If you wish to waste time and further damage our cause, by all means, do so," she said.
"No need," came Myranda's voice wearily.
She hoisted herself to her feet and stretched her stiff joints. She had barely slept, and was chilled to the core, but she refused to burden the others. Myn restored her own warmth with a few bursts of flame. Myranda opened and closed her hands a few times until the feeling began to return to her fingers with an agonizing vengeance.
Lain continued on his way, setting a pace that most easily matched. Myranda had to fairly run to keep up. As she did, she allowed tiny doses of magic to restore enough warmth to her ailing body to convince herself she was out of danger.
In the distance, there was a fair-sized stand of trees beside a small, icy lake. Myranda searched her memory for the name of either, but in all likelihood this unremarkable spot in this icy plain simply didn't warrant one.
"What are you thinking about?" Ivy asked, breaking the trance-like wandering of Myranda's mind.
"I was wondering if this place had a name," she said.
"Why?" she asked.
"Well, it helps me to keep from thinking about less pleasant things," Myranda answered.
"Well, you and I could talk. No one else seems to like to talk," Ivy said.
"Yes . . . I would like that very much," Myranda said.
Engaged in the rare luxury of mutual conversation, the journey seemed to pass more quickly. It was a little difficult at first. Ivy didn't know enough about herself to answer any questions Myranda asked, and Myranda had to take special care not to upset her again. Instead, Ivy asked scores of questions about Myranda and the others, and about the world in general. She seemed to be only vaguely aware of some of the most significant events of the past few decades. Hearing of the war bothered her, but she seemed very interested in anything Myranda had to say about Kenvard. And so Myranda spoke, and Ivy listened.
Chapter 20
Ivy was in the middle of yet another enthusiastic question when a gust of wind from the south caused her, as well as Lain and Myn, to lock their eyes on the horizon.
"What is it?" Myranda asked.
"I smell something," Ivy said.
"Nearby," Lain added quietly.
Myn planted herself in front of Myranda, claws dug deep into the frozen earth, teeth bared and wings spread. Whatever was near was a significant threat. Ether sampled the air with her human nose, and when it proved insufficient, plucked a hair from Ivy's head. After a few moments, she stood as a perfect duplicate of Ivy, complete with the sense of smell she desired. Myranda looked desperately about. There was nothing to see. Then . . . he appeared. Perhaps fifty paces ahead of them, near the bank of the lake, the spell he had used to conceal himself slipped away like a dropping curtain and there stood Arden--or, more accurately, Epidime.
"You disappoint me. I have been waiting. The party has grown, I see," he said.
He held his weapon, identical to that held by the wizards he had sent after them in recent days. Lain burst forward, sword drawn, ready to make short work of this foe once and for all. At the same instant there was a flicker in the gem of Epidime's halberd. Lain stopped suddenly and retreated slightly. Ivy gasped and hid behind Myranda. Myn dug her claws deeper, and Ether abandoned the malthrope form for her fiery one.
"What is wrong?" Myranda asked.
"So m-many . . . too many," Ivy stuttered, terror in her voice.
"Dragoyles. Dozens of them. I couldn't smell them until now," Lain said.
A second flicker and the landscape darkened with no less than fifty of the crude, horrid beasts. They stood as if posed, perfectly at attention and perfectly still.
"Attack now and I shall have them kill you. Try to run and I shall have them kill you. Behave and we shall have a calm, intelligent discourse. Then I shall have them kill you. I think that the choice is clear. Consider it for a moment. Consider for a moment the possibilities and opportunities that these precious few minutes will provide you. Perhaps you will work out some miraculous battle plan that will afford you a victory. Perhaps you will outwit me. It really doesn't concern me," he said with an alarming level of calm.
Lain stood, sword readied. Ivy cowered. Slowly her fear crept outward. Myranda could feel it tingling in her spine. Her hands shook as she held her staff defensively. Eyes turned nervously to Ether. She floated just over the ground. She alone might begin this battle prematurely. Fortunately, she lowered herself to the ground and shifted to stone. From her expression, her decision was motivated by the sheer size of the task ahead.
"Well done. Now, I must congratulate you. Bagu made a rather sudden and very angry appearance in the capital. I have never seen him so badly injured, nor have I ever seen him so furious. He immediately sent me out to find and destroy the lot of you, with special emphasis on the shapeshifter. That is rather out of character, and quite at odds with the standard course of action. Demont is the beast wrangler, he would be best left to leading these creatures, and the precision strikes are usually led by Trigorah. Worst of all, killing even one of you before all of the others have revealed themselves is a terrible waste of time. Frankly, I consider this an act of folly," he said.
"Use the bow. Aim for the mouth," Lain instructed.
Myranda nodded, slowly sliding the weapon from her shoulder. Epidime continued as though oblivious to the action.
"Now, I am quite satisfied with my knowledge of the shapeshifter. I do not object to her demise. I would like a look through Lain's head before he dies, and a second try at Myranda would be satisfying, but my real fascination at the moment is with that cowering bit of fluff behind her," he said.
Ivy shrieked and crouched down, hugging her knees and rocking back and forth. The spike in fear sent a visible shudder through her, and a similar one through Myranda and Myn. The event did not go unnoticed by Epidime.
"We put a great deal of work into that little project. I was beginning to wonder if any of it would bear fruit. Forced empathy is intriguing. What else do you have to offer, I wonder?" he asked.
The intimidating man took a step forward; Myranda drew an arrow and made ready to let it fly. Lain shifted his stance.
"Yes, I suppose the time for battle has--" Epidime began.
Before he could finish, Ether had shifted to her fiery form and burst toward him. He deflected the attack with his halberd and willed the dragoyles into action. The earth shook and the sky blackened as dozens of massive beasts leapt into the air and thundered across the ground.
Lain released a trio of dagger-like weapons he'd pulled from his cloak. Two met their mark, both beasts reeled back in pain. The less fortunate of the two let out a pained roar as orange light flashed brilliantly from its mouth. A moment later, the unearthly orange glow emanating from the hollows that served as the creature's eyes faded and the beast literally crumbled to the ground. The second recovered and tried to locate its target once more, but Lain swept in and drove his sword nearly to the hilt into the creature's mouth. With equal speed, he withdrew the blade and evaded the spray of the horrid black acid that came spewing forth from the beast as it flailed about before crumbling
away.
Myranda took aim and launched arrows as best she could. It took all of her strength to fully draw back the bow, her hands shaking from fear and effort. She made up for her poor aim by guiding the arrows in flight. Despite the fact she did not hold her staff, and her focus was severely impaired, she still managed to knock a few from the sky.
Myn heaved great bursts of flame that did little more than draw the attentions of the beasts. As they approached, she took to the air, expertly avoiding their leaping attacks and puffing away clouds of black breath with the wind from her wings. She managed to distract a handful, but with so many, it was clear that Myranda could not afford to stand her ground for long.
"Ivy, I need you to try to make it to the trees," Myranda said.
"N-no! I c-c-can't!" she stammered. She had her eyes tightly shut and was fairly whimpering with every breath. Around her, somehow, there was a faint blue glow.
Ether was mercilessly assaulting the halberd-wielding wizard. He wore the same unconcerned, superior look he always did, not a bead of sweat betraying the unimaginable speed and precision of his reactions. Ether's fiery glow faded ever so slightly with every clash with the gem. Finally, she managed to land a single flaming swipe down the side of his face. Anger rather than pain finally found its way into Epidime's expression. He shifted and drove his halberd deep into her form. She cried out as the gem began to ravenously tear at the very core of her strength. She desperately tried to pull herself away, but the gem seemed to have a grip on her.
Myn was causing chaos. The dragoyles, mindlessly attempting to annihilate her, trampled, sprayed, and rammed each other. One or two had succumbed to accidental crashes and lay in broken heaps on the ground. Her nimble maneuvers kept her just beyond their reach, but as more and more of the beasts joined in the task of removing her from battle, the escapes became ever narrower.
Lain had his hands full evading the attacks of those beasts focused on him. The air was thick with their caustic breath, and even one as skillful as he could not avoid contact with the evil fumes entirely. It sizzled against his clothes and fur wherever it touched. Quickly slipping through an opening, he charged toward Epidime and the ailing Ether.
Epidime pulled his halberd free to block Lain's blow, allowing the shapeshifter to shift to air and launch skyward. As she rose up, she began to stir the air around her, drawing up the black mist, clearing the battlefield and concentrating the vile stuff. As dozens of the dragoyles spiraled after her, she rose higher and higher. Finally, she released the accumulated ball of acid at the trail of beasts. They had been immune until now, but even their tough and stony hide was not enough to withstand so concentrated a dose. A half-dozen of them dropped to the ground, writhing briefly before collapsing outright.
Lain hoped that the beasts would stay at bay for fear of injuring their master as they had in the past, but such was not the case, and he found himself dodging powerful blows from behind and lightning-fast strikes from in front.
Suddenly Ether swept down, clutching the shaft of the halberd and pulling steeply upward again. Rather than release it, Epidime was lifted into the air. Ether launched skyward, dragging the foe behind her. Despite the rapidly receding ground behind him, Epidime seemed unconcerned. He willed the unholy light into his gem and began to assault her with pulses of energy. She continued to climb. A string of the beasts followed. Finally, wave after wave of dark energy took its toll and Ether released the weapon. Epidime plummeted only a short distance before one of the creatures plucked him out of the air. He moved to the dragoyle's back and turned to the ground. Ether soared upward, far enough out of reach that their attentions were turned elsewhere. Her strength was already beginning to fail, and if she hoped to see this battle through to its end, she would need to choose her attacks wisely.
More than half of the arrows in Myranda's quiver were gone. Not nearly enough remained to fell the beasts that were focused on her. Despite Myn's best efforts, at least five had turned to her. Myranda searched her mind for something in her mystic arsenal that might be of use. Her eyes turned to the lake. She grabbed her staff, conjuring a blast of flame to melt away some ice, and drew out a long stream of water. Compared to her test in Entwell, this was effortless. She shaped a dozen or so spikes and froze them instantly. Maneuvering the ice was easier, and Myranda was able to direct most of the impromptu projectiles to their targets. Unfortunately, the ice was not as effective as the arrows, and only two of the beasts fell. The three that remained were joined by four more and the creatures were moving in fast. She and Ivy desperately needed cover.
"Ivy, quickly, we need to head for the trees!" she said, taking the shivering creature by the arm.
"I can't. I can't," she whimpered.
Myranda knelt to attempt to hoist the malthrope onto her back. Suddenly she felt a piercing, crushing pain in her shoulder. She was torn from the ground. One of the creatures had snatched her up in its jaws. Her shoulder was shattered. She drew together her tortured mind and made ready to unleash all that she had on the beast that carried her, but a voice stopped her.
"If you even attempt to escape, this creature will dissolve the flesh from your bones," said the voice.
On the back of the creature that held her was Epidime. The pain was unimaginable, and grew with each jarring thrust of the creature's wings. A long, fatal fall already stood between Myranda and the ground. Tears streamed down her face and she screamed out in pain. Suddenly there was a flash of heat. Myn was rushing at Epidime, spewing flame. He leveled his weapon at the dragon and released a powerful wave of darkness. Myn dodged with a nimbleness that the dragoyles still on her tail lacked. The first of the pursuers was destroyed by the blast. The next collided with Epidime's mount. The collision jarred Myranda loose.
Ether shifted to flame again and took full advantage of the confusion caused by the creature's collision, unleashing a flurry of attacks on Epidime. Warding her off and remaining atop the creature proved difficult. She scored slash after slash.
Myranda dropped like a stone. A moment later, small, deft claws gripped desperately under her arms. The little dragon had caught her and was putting forth a heroic effort to bring Myranda safely to the ground. Barely half of the woman's size, Myn could only hope to slow the decent. Worse, doing so robbed her of the agility that had kept her safe. The ground was rapidly approaching and Myn was beginning to lose her grip.
Suddenly, the noble creature's grasp was torn free. One of the dragoyles had grabbed hold of her left wing and was whipping her like a rag doll. Myranda fell to a painful impact on the ground. The pain in her shoulder didn't matter, the fact that the air had been knocked from her didn't matter. As she struggled to pull her unwilling body to its feet, her eyes locked on the little creature.
Lain had managed to dispatch three more of the beasts when he, too, saw the dragon. He had no more daggers to throw, and the creature was well out of the reach of his sword. Myranda reached for an arrow, but they had fallen from the quiver. Scrambling for the one that had fallen nearest to her, she realized that the bow had been broken by the fall as well. Without an open mouth to target, the arrow would do no good anyway.
Hastily, she drew her limited knowledge of black magic to mind. She’d never truly believed that she would have any use for it. The thought that she would ever want to utterly destroy something was detestable, but in this moment, the only thing that mattered was freeing her friend, and punishing the beast that had her. Raising her staff, she cast a burst of raw, destructive magic.
Myranda was staggered by the effort of the unfamiliar technique. The crude, poorly-formed spell crackled viciously through the air, seemingly passing though the dragoyle. As it did, the monstrosity convulsed wildly, and one of the wings fell lifeless. Its jaws released a motionless Myn and both creatures fell to the surface of the frozen lake. Myn bounced horridly off of the surface before the dragoyle came crashing through. The whole of the lake surface broke into shifting sheets of ice, and Myn slipped through a crack into the fri
gid water.
"No!" Myranda screamed. She looked to the cowering, defenseless form of Ivy, then to Lain. With a glance, each knew what had to be done.
Myranda ran to the shore of the lake, shedding the bags and packs she had been carrying, and making her way onto the shifting ice. She had to make it to Myn. Lain took her place defending Ivy. He knew better than to try to carry her. It would rob him of the speed he would need to evade their attacks. For now, he would have to attack and distract those beasts that had remained focused on the ground. The rest were overhead, where Ether's clash with Epidime continued. In her insubstantial flame form, the beasts could do nothing to harm her, while she was quite capable of harming Epidime. Finally, she knocked the halberd from his hand. He suddenly gripped desperately to the back of the beast. A second creature snatched up the halberd and both turned sharply to the north.
Ether made ready to pursue, but as the swarm of beasts that had been interested in her turned their attentions to the ground, she became aware of what had been transpiring there. Lain was swiftly becoming surrounded. Ivy was curled up on the ground, paralyzed with fear. Myranda was sliding precariously across one of the pieces of ice on the lake. She turned again to the retreating Epidime. Her strength was waning. If he regained the weapon, she could not be sure of defeating him. Memories of the dire state she found herself in after their last encounter crept to her mind, sealing the decision. She returned to the battlefield.
Ether's arrival was not a moment too soon. Lain was having trouble keeping the creatures from Ivy. More than one deep gash betrayed the losing battle he was fighting. Ether shifted to stone, taking her place beside him. As the creatures approached, she delivered blow after earthshaking blow. Most of the dragoyles had already felt the bite of Lain's sword, bearing long scores across faces and along necks. The heavy stone hands opened these wounds, letting a weak orange light leak through before each creature fell.
Myranda reached the point on the ice where Myn had fallen through. Without a moment's hesitation, she plunged in. The cold of the water cut like a knife. She felt as though her chest had caved in. Her tightly closed eyes opened slightly. The pain seemed to surge through to the back of her head. In the pale blue light filtering though the ice, the motionless form of Myn drifted just ahead of her. She worked her frozen limbs, moving toward her friend. The shattered shoulder was nearly useless, her hand clutching loosely at her staff, but still she struggled. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, she drew nearer. Her lungs screamed for air, her shoulder screamed for relief, her body screamed for warmth, but she pressed on.
The Book of Deacon Anthology Page 70
