by Bob Blink
“We show up with the intent of surprising whichever we spotted, not knowing the other has been alerted and is here, or will be once the fighting starts,” Daria said. “Once the encounter begins, things suddenly turn out differently than we expected. At the very worst, the Brryn could hope to eliminate many of those supporting you, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t have some tricky idea how to get at least one of you two.”
“That’s my guess,” Rigo said.
“So how does this help us?” Kaler asked.
“Let’s go back to Nals. I think I’m getting an idea.”
Rigo’s idea was to take on the two Brryn, simultaneously, but not at the time and place of their choosing. He wanted two attacks, at different locations. The initial idea fell apart, but as the group argued through options, a plan that might work started to emerge. It was tricky, and depended on luck, and the fact the Brryn thought they held the upper hand. It could easily fall apart, but with luck, it might be possible. Rigo had to accept that if it worked, there was no chance he would get to question either of the Brryn. That meant Mitty would remain trapped. Sadly, there simply weren’t many options. They had only a partial set of the Brryn magic, and had shown themselves to be weaker than either of their adversaries. There was no place to gain more, and there were no allies to help them. They had to take the risk.
The plan involved two groups, two separate attacks, as well as surprise and trickery. The groups would have to coordinate their attacks, as certain conditions had to be met before proceeding, or they would reveal all they knew without any chance of overpowering their enemies. The attack on Kytra would involve no magic, beyond Suline’s creation of the Ghost Doorways. Despite arguments against, the team would consist of four Baldari, led by S’erom, with Daria and Kaler as backup.
“The Baldari have suffered at her hands as much, perhaps more, than we,” Nycoh argued. “They deserve this chance to revenge their people.”
Rigo had wanted Daria and Kaler to make the move against Kytra, but had lost the argument.
Rigo, Nycoh, and Jeen with her Linking team, would concentrate on Hyndl. They would have a couple of chances to abort without revealing themselves, but once committed, they had to hope for success. Jeen would set up in one of the less obvious spots for the encounter.
Almost a week passed before the proper circumstances put the plan into motion. Both sides were trying to make it look natural, for different reasons, and it took time for a believable spotting to take place. Rigo and Nycoh wanted the confrontation to take place later in the day. For that reason they delayed following up on a lead that took them where Hyndl was waiting to launch his own plan.
When Rigo and Nycoh spotted Hyndl, he did a marvelous job of looking surprised, and then disappearing. Of course, had he not been trying to lure them to a pre-selected spot, he might have simply attacked. Rigo thought it a weakness in Hyndl’s strategy, but the Brryn wanted to lead them to the cabin, and didn’t know they were aware of that, and so they played along.
After Hyndl disappeared, Rigo, Nycoh, Jeen and the rest moved into position, Transferring into a pair of the concealed viewing spots. At this point, Hyndl couldn’t know whether they had followed or not. Once in place, Rigo triggered the signal bracelet that let Suline know they were in place and that Hyndl was in the cabin. Then they waited. There was always the possibility that Hyndl would alert Kytra immediately, and she would Transfer here to support him. She had shown a tendency since they had been observing her of ending her days early, returning to the island a glass to a glass and a half ahead of Hyndl. Earlier, Suline had signaled that had been the case today, and that’s when Rigo and his team put their plan into motion. If Kytra responded to a signal from Hyndl, they would abort. It was important that Hyndl wait until he spotted Rigo and Nycoh before alerting Kytra.
Long minutes passed, and there was no signal. It appeared that Hyndl was waiting to spot them as they had hoped. Enough time had passed that Rigo knew the plan was unfolding at the other end.
Suline was more nervous than she could remember as she opened the enlarged Ghost Doorway that would allow the Baldari warriors, as well as Daria and Kaler to step into the faraway island and confront Kytra. She positioned the Doorway as close as possible to Kytra. She personally believed that Daria was right, and a crossbow bolt should be fired as the Baldari stepped into the room, but that had been decided. Three of the Baldari had swords drawn, and as they stepped into the Doorway with the weapons extended they would emerge as the blades pierced the back of the unprotected Kytra. The fourth Baldari carried one of the bands to slip into place, a precaution against her being able to draw upon her magic even while wounded and possibly escape, fight, or heal herself. Kaler and Daria would move in right behind the Baldari warriors. It was unfortunate that the opening wasn’t wide enough for them all to step through at the same time. It was time to go. Rigo and his team were waiting.
Kytra felt an intense pain in her lower stomach, and looked down to see what might be the cause, and was momentarily stunned to see three sharp blades protruding from her body, the blood flowing down her front. Even as she realized the weapons were typical Baldari fighting swords, she felt the bodies moving behind her. How could there be Baldari here? There was no time for questions, and she turned against the pain of the weapons. The Baldari were fierce fighters, and they would rip her apart given the chance. Her sudden movement caught the Baldari with the headband by surprise, and he missed as he attempted to slip it over her head.
Kytra realized there were more than just the Baldari, and as she turned she released a beam of killing magic as she raised her shield into place. The beam caught the Baldari to her right who disappeared in a bright white flash. The beam was so powerful, it continued on beyond her initial target. Unfortunately Kaler, who had realized what was going wrong, had moved to that side of the group in hopes of getting a clear swing with his sword in hopes of taking Kytra’s head before she could raise her personal protection. The beam that had consumed the hindering Baldari, caught him on his left side, taking his arm at the shoulder. The cut was clean, the beam of powerful magic consuming his entire arm, leaving only a short section of white bone protruding. The blood from the open wound shot out and Kaler screamed and tumbled to the floor.
Daria had seen what happened, and despite her immediate concern for Kaler, knew that unless something was done immediately, they were all lost. Kytra already had her shields raised, and the remaining Baldari were unable to extract the swords, now trapped by the shields as they protruded from her body. She had already unleashed another beam that had taken a second Baldari. Knowing her weapons were now useless, Daria made the only move that might have a chance. In a tumbling leap, Daria scooped the fallen band from the floor, and as she rolled over, launched herself toward the back of the Brryn, slipping the band over her head as Rigo had described had been done to Tryll.
It was unlikely that anyone other than Daria could have made the move. The result mirrored almost exactly what had happened to Tryll. Kytra screamed, and her shield collapsed. S’erom was finally able to withdraw his sword, which he did happily, and with the barest of pauses, swung it and completed the move that Kaler had in mind when he had been blasted. Kyra’s head spun from her shoulders as the body was collapsing to the floor.
Daria had made it to Kaler’s side, and was attempting to staunch the flow of blood. She grabbed the heavy body of the unconscious Kaler and tried to drag him toward the Ghost Doorway. She suddenly felt someone helping, and noted that the second surviving Baldari was helping her. They stepped through the space where the return was, and exited where Suline stood in shock.
Suline had to close the Doorway to be able to access her magic. She wasn’t one of the great healers but she was able to seal the wound and stop the flow of blood. There was nothing she could do about the arm. She had seen the missing member flash in the magical flame. It was gone. She hoped that she had been able to seal the wound in time. Kaler looked impossibly pale.
/>
Knowing that Rigo would want to know about Kaler, but having no way to inform him, she simply broke the signaling band. Now they would know that Kytra wouldn’t be able to come and support Hyndl. She hoped the confrontation of the other end would go better. Knowing there was little time, she opened a Doorway to a secret spot where there was someone who would be better able to help Kaler. She would come back for S’erom later.
Rigo sensed the signal that told him Kytra was no longer a threat. He smiled and looked at the figure beside him. “It’s time,” he said. Now they would see if they could end this once and for all.
This wasn’t about being subtle. Rigo unleashed a beam of magic that blasted the front face off the building where Hyndl was waiting. As the rock flew and pieces of mangled wood rained down, Rigo smiled. He was certain that would annoy Hyndl. If he could make him mad, and therefore maybe a bit careless, so much the better. It looked like it was working. The Brryn stepped out into the evening light and stared at Rigo.
Hyndl had initially planned to wait until Kytra arrived, but the annoying attitude of the one called Rigo changed that. Hyndl didn’t see why he needed to wait. Kytra would be here shortly, and he had faced these same upstarts before. This time the situation was more under control, and there would be no opportunity for the surprises that had prevented him from dealing with them that time. He had nearly defeated the two wizards with advanced magic in that confrontation. They simply weren’t strong enough to face him alone, and soon they would have Kytra to deal with as well. This time it would be different, and any friends they had brought were in for a surprise.
Rigo watched as Hyndl looked at him with open contempt. As the Brryn stepped forward, Jeen unleashed a bright beam of Linked Greenfire at him. It flashed and dissipated against Hyndl’s shield. With a pleased grin, the Brryn somehow triggered a series of explosions around the compound. Had Rigo been able to distinguish the individual explosions, he would have counted eleven. They destroyed every hiding place that Rigo’s team had scouted during the previous visits. Too bad for Hyndl there was no one there. Rigo could sense the magic behind the explosions was augmented by the kind of magic that would defeat the shields that Jeen and her supporting wizards could manage. Rigo also knew, that Jeen was to escape immediately after triggering the Greenfire. Hyndl would believe she had relocated to another firing position when he sensed the Bypass, and that his blasts would have gotten her wherever she had moved.
Then he turned to face Rigo. The confidence that Hyndl displayed was almost humorous given what Rigo knew and he didn’t. Rigo wondered how the Brryn would have reacted if Rigo told him that his partner was dead, and that he was on his own. It wasn’t something Rigo had any intention of doing. News like that might have triggered flight, and Rigo wanted the Brryn confident and focused on winning the upcoming flight. Once he was gone, who knew when or if they would get another chance at him.
Almost immediately Hyndl targeted Rigo with a bright helix beam. The swirling colors of the inter-linked helixes flashed across the space between them, rocking Rigo as it struck. Rigo had stepped forward and in front of Nycoh just before Hyndl released his attack, and the beam struck Rigo’s protective barrier full on, in the region where he had strengthened it. The strength of the attack was impressive, but Rigo felt it less than he had the other day. Hyndl was testing him for some reason.
Rigo was stronger than before. He still didn’t know why, but he could feel it. He had also learned a great deal about control in the previous encounter, and knew how to vary the position and strength of his shield and attack magic. He had asked Nycoh about herself, and she had been surprised at his claim he was gaining strength. She could sense no change in her own. She also hadn’t been aware of the control that Rigo demonstrated to her. That had surprised Rigo more than anything. Nycoh was usually the first to discover such things. When they had tested their abilities, Rigo’s magic shone with a brightness she couldn’t match, whereas they had been nearly equal before.
With the first attack pushed aside, Rigo sent his own beam of magic back at Hyndl. He carefully measured the strength, and made sure it was no more powerful than the magic he had displayed the other day. He was now capable of considerably more power, but not enough to overcome the Brryn’s shields, at least not unless he was stupid enough to simply stand there and let Rigo hammer at them until they failed. For the same reasons Rigo wouldn’t have alerted Hyndl to the loss of his partner, Rigo didn’t want the Brryn concerned and thinking about the strength of Rigo’s attack. Rigo wanted him confident he was in control as he’d been the other day before Fen and the other Casters had altered the situation.
Hyndl launched another attack, and Rigo moved to shield Nycoh and let his shield seem to falter, before he recovered. The grin on Hyndl’s face was easy to spot even this far apart. Now was the time. They didn’t want Hyndl to start wondering why Nycoh hadn’t joined in the battle. Rigo sent another modest attack toward Hyndl, who brushed it away effortlessly.
As the last exchange was taking place, Nycoh Transferred to a point a half pace behind the distracted Brryn. This was the real Nycoh, not the one Hyndl was seeing next to Rigo. Lyes was who Hyndl was seeing, the illusion he’d created working as well against the dangerous ancient as it had against the Saltique some time ago. Hyndl was focused on the only two wizards he felt worthy of concern. Because he believed they were both in front of him, he had neglected to keep his attention on what lesser wizards might be doing behind him. They were too weak to represent a true danger.
The real Nycoh quickly released one of the shimmering clouds immediately behind Hyndl. One of the difficulties with the cloud magic was the relatively slow pace at which it moved. While it could overcome any shield, an individual could easily move away before it struck if he was aware of it. By releasing the deadly magic a mere pace behind Hyndl, the slow rate of motion was overcome. Already the magic was within a hair’s breath of contacting the shields that protected the Brryn. Once contact was made, there was no way to escape the deadly cloud. Even the ability to Transfer was momentarily neutralized.
Nycoh had quickly moved to relocate upon releasing the cloud, although her own release posed no threat to her. She wanted to be away from Hyndl, who could still trigger dangerous magic, and her shields were not so strong as Rigo’s. Rigo had been able to spread his shield to protect both himself and Lyes, and still relatively easily deflect Hyndl’s attacks.
As Nycoh withdrew, Rigo pounded Hyndl with another blast of magic. Then the cloud made itself known. When one small corner of the cloud touched a section of the Brryn’s shield, the black shimmering haze acted as if it were wicked, and flowed almost instantaneously to enfold the whole of the protective barrier. Crackling snaps were heard as white fingers of lightning flashed all around Hyndl. His shield glowed a dull red as the disruptive magic ate away at his protection. Even though Nycoh had attempted to move away, the touch of the cloud triggered an instinctive reaction from Hyndl, who shot the most powerful beam of the day behind him, where he struck Nycoh squarely in the chest. She was blasted across the courtyard as her shield flickered and failed. Lyes had attempted to break free when he’d seen her hit, but Rigo had restrained him, warning that Hyndl was still capable of killing him
Hyndl had a couple of major problems. He couldn’t Transfer, and escape the situation. He couldn’t rebuild his shield until this one was consumed and the cloud magic dissipated. Any attempt to rebuild would result in the cloud attacking that as well. He had two choices. He could choose to attack, and hope he could overcome his adversaries, now three in his mind, before his shield degenerated to the point they could target him and kill him, or he could shed the shield completely, and try and rebuild a new one before his attackers could respond. Most likely they knew when his shield would fail, and were waiting for that moment. It would only take a second or two to shed the current shield and rebuild a new one. He would be exposed for only that long. These rebels weren’t experienced enough to be able to respond so quickly.
Once his shield was back, he would Transfer away from here. He had realized that Kytra had not yet arrived to support him. There was more to this encounter than he understood.
Boldly he dropped his shield. Unfortunately for him, Rigo had anticipated the move. As the cloud faded away, Rigo unleashed his strongest beam of Greenfire he was able at Hyndl. The Greenfire wasn’t able to counter shields, but for the brief period open to him, there were no shields. The power of the Greenfire beam far exceeded that of the helix in terms of shear destructive potential. Rigo’s beam struck within the small window of time when Hyndl was exposed. Nycoh was supposed to have done the same, but she was still down across the way. Rigo’s magic was more than enough, however, and the Brryn was instantly transformed into a greasy ash which exploded in all directions from where he had been standing.
With Hyndl eliminated, Rigo released Lyes and let him run to Nycoh. Rigo delayed only long enough to take a quick scan of the area, then ran over to check on her as well.
Chapter 88
Six Month’s Later
They had won! The Brryn were gone, all of them defeated and destroyed. Through trickery and the use of an anomalous Doorway that no one other than Suline had ever been able to create, they had separated the two remaining Brryn, and preyed upon their respective weaknesses. That, and a great bit of luck. Mostly luck. Their chances hadn't been good.
Meanwhile, Mitty remained trapped inside the strange cage of magic in which the Brryn had imprisoned her. Rigo had hoped, irrationally probably, that with the death of the Brryn, the magic would have dissipated and freed her. That hadn’t happened, of course. He still didn’t know if she was dead or alive in there. The cylinder had been moved here to the recently opened, although still under construction, College of Magic, located in Sulen, not too far from where the royal castle had once stood. The combined knowledge of the surviving wizards and Casters was being applied to finding a way to unlock the magic that held Mitty prisoner. Rigo no longer held out much hope of success.
