“Why should I not send him down that pit? Why?” Kade asked, anger in his voice. Why not make him suffer?” he asked as he turned to glare at Morg with pure hatred in his heart.
“Kade,” Darcienna said gently as she put a hand on his chin and turned him back to face her. “Because it’s wrong. You have to ask yourself if it benefits us to end his life.”
“It will make me feel better,” Kade growled as he turned once more to glare at the Chosen.
“Will it really?” Darcienna asked, turning him back to face her once more. She looked deep in his eyes. He hated that she was right. Killing Morg would do nothing to change the way he felt. He had beaten the man and that should be good enough. Sending him to his death would not make anything better, but still…. Kade turned to the queen.
“Surely you would agree that he should die?” Kade asked Rakna, some of the fire gone from his voice. The queen climbed out of her despair to look at him. By way of answer, she grabbed the webbing that was hanging off Morg and dragged him over to Rayden where she firmly affixed him to the dragon’s back. Rayden tensed as the queen worked.
“A decision to take a life should never be made from an emotional standpoint,” Rakna said, but her tone was one of confliction. Kade could sense that she wanted Morg to suffer just as the evil Chosen had made others suffer. Kade was also certain that she wished he would have perished in the battle. But, regretfully, seeing as he did not, they were obligated to deal with things as they were, without taking a life if possible. She would never admit this, but it was clear, nonetheless.
Kade clenched and unclenched his fists over and over as he felt the urge to kill still coursing through his veins. Oh how he craved to see the life spill from this man. He exhaled in exasperation and turned on the pit.
“You cannot have him!” Kade said firmly.
He wanted nothing more than to shove this man screaming over the edge to suffer at the hands of the voice. He knew Morg would be treated to incredible agony, and something in him wanted that desperately, but as the anger drained from him, he understood more and more that it was wrong to give in to the voice. No, he was not going to give them what they badly wanted.
“GIVE HIM TO US! WE WILL NOT BE DENIED! GIVE HIM TO US SO WE CAN PUNISH HIM AS HE DESERVES! GIVE HIM TO US NOWWWWW!” the voice echoed through the mountain. The ground shook with the fury.
“No,” was Kade’s simple reply.
“THEN WE SHALL TAKE HIM AND THE REST OF YOU, TOO!” the voice boomed and the ground continued to shake.
Kade looked into the hole and saw something forming in the blackness deep in the mountain. At first, it was just a faint, red spot barely showing through the darkness. Kade felt a waft of heat gently blowing in his face as he narrowed his eyes, trying to make out what he was seeing. The faint redness turned into glowing red crimson as it came rushing up the hole. The heat it pushed with it became hotter by the moment. Kade’s eyes widened in panic as he watched the molten lava rush to fill the pit. It was only moments away from making it to the top.
“RUN!” Kade screamed as he raced over to Darcienna, grabbed her by the hand and almost yanked her off her feet as he sprinted for the tunnel.
Rakna left her despair behind and ran for the exit. There was a steady flow of heat pouring into the room, increasing the temperature quickly. Kade raced by the bookshelf, and for just a split second, regretted leaving behind what had to be an immense amount of knowledge. Doren would, most likely, die trying to scoop up as many of the books as possible, but he was not Doren. The books were only a momentary thought, and then, he was back to racing for his life.
Kade rounded the corner with Darcienna close behind as he pulled her along. A wash of heat hit him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw red dancing on the wall.
“Kade, it is coming too fast!” Darcienna screamed.
“We must mount. It is our only chance!” Kade yelled, fear of being boiled in the lava filling him. “Rayden, down so we may ride,” he commanded.
Rayden skidded to a stop and dropped to the ground. Rakna skittered up the dragon’s tail while Kade grabbed Darcienna and threw her up onto the dragon’s back. If he used any more strength, he would have slammed her into the ceiling. He vaulted up just as the monkey form of Ven swung up to hang around his neck. He held the staff between his arm and body as he used his hands to grip the dragon.
“Go Rayden, GO!” Kade yelled.
Lava splashed against the wall as it rounded the corner and started down the tunnel. The mountain shook and rumbled as if it were alive. The voice in the pit continued to scream in fury as its prey raced for their lives.
Dust started to sift down from the ceiling as the tunnel threatened to collapse. The dragon stayed low so as not to scrape its passengers along the ceiling. Unable to stand, Rayden struggled forward, but it was still considerably faster than being on foot. Kade and Darcienna ducked low, but even with that, they feared injury. Kade could feel the brush of the ceiling on his hunched shoulders as he hugged the dragon. Darcienna had to lean slightly to keep from hitting the rocks that were jutting downward.
Rayden rounded the next corner and raced headlong into a trap. Kade flinched as the calling on the side of the tunnel went off. A boulder half the size of Rayden hit the ground and rolled to block the passageway. Rayden slithered by but not before the boulder caught his tail. He let out a roar of pain as he was jerked to a stop, unable to pull free. The riders lurched forward, almost pitching over the dragon’s head. Rayden roared in pain and fury as he pulled, but the boulder had him trapped. Lava was starting to seep around the edges of the rock. The heat was intense and started to eat through the boulder. Rayden let out a roar of pain as the lava started to boil his tail.
“Hold on Rayden. This may hurt, but if we want to live, it has to be done,” Kade yelled as he swung the staff around.
An explosion rocked the tunnel as lightning slammed into the boulder where it had the dragon pinned. Rayden cried out. Kade hit the boulder again and it split, freeing the dragon’s burnt tail and the lava at the same time. Rayden lunged forward. Kade cringed as he saw the blackened tail. He called on the healing and sent a continuous steam into the dragon. The silver flesh spread over the tail quickly, leaving no trace of the burn.
The roof grew higher, giving Rayden the much needed room to stand and run instead of the half-run, half-crawl. He still needed to keep low, but now he was able to stretch his legs and put some speed into it. Kade felt a blast of heat against his back. He turned just in time to see the lava filling the tunnel fast as the boulder gave way.
“Darcienna!” Kade screamed as he pointed.
She turned and threw up her hand just as the lava was closing on the dragon. The shield phased in and out as the molten rock pounded it brutally. As exhausted as Darcienna was, the fact that she was able to call on her shield at all was a blessing and the Apprentice Chosen knew it.
Kade swung around to search for the opening. There! Straight ahead, just seconds away, was escape. He spun and saw Darcienna’s shoulders shaking as the shield gave way. He recalled her saying something about it being difficult to hold the shield while moving and mentally thanked her for this much.
Rayden stretched forward as far as he could and planted his front feet as he readied himself to launch. Kade gripped the ridges tightly, waiting for the powerful burst that he knew was coming. Next, Rayden brought his hind legs as far forward past his front legs as he could and then dug in. His muscles exploded, propelling himself with every bit of strength he had. They shot out of the cave. Its four legs trailed behind as its streamlined form shot through the air. The dragon’s wings gave a sharp pop as they expanded to catch the air.
“Bank hard right!” Kade screamed. The dragon reacted immediately and the lava shot by, barely missing the dragon.
As if staying on after that last burst was not difficult enough, Rayden turned so tightly that Darcienna lost her grip and slid off. She let out a shrill scream of terror. Kade’s reflexes took over an
d his hand shot out to grab her by the foot just as she was falling away… and missed. Ven leapt off Kade’s shoulder and dove for Darcienna as she plummeted. The shapeshifter changed into the flying creature Kade had seen back in the spider’s lair as she fell. As soon as she finished the change, she folded her wings and her legs tightly to her body and descended like an arrow slicing through the air. As Ven closed in on the falling woman, her talons extended to grab Darcienna by the shoulders and her wings came open. She struggled to level off but was unable to fully extend her wings as the weight was too much. The best she could do was to slow their fall in hopes that the dragon could reach them in time.
Rayden did not need to be told what to do as he folded his wings and dove. Kade felt his stomach float up into his throat as he gripped the dragon tightly to keep from joining Darcienna in her fall. They were catching up quickly but Kade feared he would not get to them before they entered the clouds. Just as the clouds came racing at them, he reached a hand out and clamped it tightly around her wrist. Kade gripped the dragon’s ridges for leverage and grunted as he pulled Darcienna back onto the dragon. He felt the familiar small hands of the small monkey on his shoulder as it swung around to cling to him. He hugged it tightly, vowing to repay Ven for all she had done.
With a bit of maneuvering, Darcienna found her seat and latched onto Kade so tightly that he found it difficult to breath. The staff shifted dangerously just as they came out the bottom of the clouds. Kade shoved it back up into his armpit and clamped his arm down hard. He glanced at the ground and imagined the staff spinning away toward it. He became dizzy at the thought. Then, the image of Darcienna falling away flashed through his mind and he almost got sick.
Rayden banked again, but this time, he was much gentler as they descended. Kade pried Darcienna’s hands loose and turned to check on her. She was ghostly white and there was a profound fear in her eyes.
“Kade,” she said, forcing her throat to unclench. “That was too close,” she said, latching on tightly around his waist again. She was on the verge of crying but was doing her best to stay in control.
Chosen, we must get back. I fear that even with what we have done, the clutch may still be destroyed. Is there a way for that staff to help us return home quicker? Rakna asked in his mind.
“I have one thing I can try,” Kade yelled back as he searched his memory, his heart still pounding. If the staff worked the way it was supposed to, and he remembered the calling as well as he hoped, then they had a chance. “I am going to try to transport us there…if this staff is imbued with the calling.” Darcienna let out a slight whimper just barely loud enough for Kade to hear. “We have to try,” Kade said over his shoulder. Darcienna could only nod her head. She desperately wanted to have her feet planted firmly on the ground.
In his mind, Kade pictured the page with the Transport Calling on it. He visualized the symbol that was at the top of the page and wondered if it was somewhere on the staff. He knew the word in the ancient language that was needed and he also recalled the simple instructions:
Visualize firmly in your mind the destination. Complete the moves for the calling and then intone the ancient word for travel.
Kade readied himself. It felt odd and extremely uncomfortable to use this powerful of a calling with only the staff. He was scared to death. For ten years, he was taught to fear callings of this magnitude. There were more moves to this calling than any other he had ever performed. But mostly, it just did not feel right to cast this without performing the motions to activate it.
“Hold on,” Kade yelled as he held the staff out.
Kade pictured the symbol from the calling, unsure if this was needed, and then visualized the cave. When he was sure he had his destination firmly etched in his mind, he gripped the staff tightly and intoned the word. The staff came alive as Divine Power surged through it and out into the world. The staff vibrated so strongly that Kade found it almost too difficult to keep a tight grip on the artifact. Everything spun wildly. Kade could not tell if he was falling or still on the dragon. Darcienna screamed. Ven latched on so tightly that Kade felt his breathing cut off.
There was a pounding so intense in Kade’s head that his stomach clenched tightly. The world stopped spinning as a tree just outside the cave came into focus. Kade could not keep his balance and fell to the ground. His stomach heaved hard and emptied itself. There was nothing to empty, and yet, it tried over and over again as it clenched as hard as a rock. Kade struggled in agony to get in a breath between heaves. Darcienna hit the ground next to him and suffered the same fate. Rayden struggled to stand as he shook his head violently from side to side, trying to escape the misery.
Kade cracked open an eye and reached for the staff. He put his hand on the ancient wood and then rolled onto his back as he put his other hand on Darcienna. He focused as best he could and called on the healing. He had no way of knowing if the casting had worked. He turned his head and retched so hard that he could not even tell if the Divine had done his bidding. His mind spun and the heavy thrum made it difficult for him to open his eyes. And then…all of a sudden…it was gone. Kade inhaled as if he had been held under water for what felt like hours. His lungs burned. After just a moment, he looked up to see Darcienna sitting over him with her hands wrapped around his head. She still had sick on her chin. She wiped her lips with the back of her hand and fell onto her haunches. The queen did not appear to be affected as she quickly climbed the tree to be with her clutch.
Kade steadied his breathing and struggled to his feet. Ven was rapidly shifting through different shapes. Kade quickly reached for her body, that seemed to be ethereal, and sent waves of healing into her, also. The shapes she took slowed and then stopped. She was lying in her birth form, panting heavily. It took her a moment, but she struggled to her feet. With several more healings, she completely recovered and looked around, readying herself for battle. She leapt into the air and changed into the formidable flying black creature. With an ear splitting screech, she blinked from sight and dove at victim after victim.
Next, he turned and caught up to the dragon. He had to duck its wild motions as Rayden swung his head violently back and forth. It was not lost on Kade that he could be knocked out or even killed if he was too careless. Rayden was out of his mind as he thrashed about, trying to get away from the torment inside his head. Kade tried to connect with the dragon in an attempt to communicate, but nausea flooded the link, making his stomach heave. He quickly slammed the link closed just as his stomach was threatening to empty again. Kade waited until Rayden paused, and then he lunged, making contact. He opened himself to the power of the staff and let the healing flood into the dragon. Rayden slowed and then collapsed, panting hard with his tongue lolling out of his mouth. Kade continued to let a steady stream of healing infuse the dragon.
“By the great Nature’s Gift, I do not EVER want to travel like that EVER again!” Darcienna vowed vehemently. Kade wiped his mouth and spat out a string of curses that made her eyes grow wide. With that, she knew he shared her dislike for that form of travel.
Kade heard the sound of another getting sick and turned to see Morg suffering the same fate. He firmed his resolve not to help the man, expecting Darcienna to show compassion. He turned, ready to stand his ground and locked eyes with her. Darcienna was watching the evil Chosen with her eyes narrowed in thought. After several long moment of contemplation, she turned her attention to Kade. With the slightest of movement, she shook her head. Kade’s eyes came open wide in shock.
“This is all his fault,” Darcienna said as she swept the area with her arms. “He can deal with it,” she said by way of an explanation. Kade grinned and loved her even more for sharing his lust for revenge. He knew it was wrong, but he did not care. Morg should be grateful that he was going to live.
A buzzing worked its way into his mind. His vision cleared more and more and then the scene around them came into focus. There were bodies strewn for as far as he could see. Many were spiders but most appea
red to be creatures that he did not even know existed. There were reptile species and bird-like creatures. There were two dead grimalkin closer to the cave, but there was one still very much alive. It was half inside the cave, struggling furiously to get in at something. Occasionally, it would jump back quickly only to lunge in again.
“Kade,” Rakna hissed in panic.
“I have this,” Kade said as he stood and turned on the creature. Before he could bring the staff to bear down on its target, Rayden sent a thought so strong through the link that Kade flinched. It translated into one simple word and it took no effort to decipher. MINE!
Rayden leapt to his feet and tore after the creature, sending dirt spraying high into the air as its claws fought for purchase. If only the grimalkin knew what was coming for it, it may have had a chance to run for its life. Kade watched as the dragon and its one lone, trussed-up passenger took off to do battle. He shook his head at the poor creature that had no clue how bad it was going to suffer. He also knew he should do something about Morg, but he just could not get himself to care.
Morg caused this, so he gets to see it up close, Kade thought. Maybe he would survive, maybe he would not. At least he was not actively trying to kill the man, even though he was not actively trying to save him. Was there a difference? he asked himself. He did not get to answer that thought.
There was a battle raging around him and it was his turn to unleash death on those that dared attack his clutch. The buzzing that he had heard in his head formed into sounds that he recognized. The trees erupted into a cacophony that almost drowned out any other sound. The spiders were growing into a frenzy as they looked down on the battle field. News of Kade’s arrival spread quickly. Their hero and savior had appeared from out of nowhere to pull them from defeat and bring them victory.
The Divine Unleashed (Book 3) Page 23
