Calibot swung Wyrmblade widely. He didn’t even need to worry about hitting the soldiers they fought. The flames gushed from the blade, and Liliana shaped them into deadly killing implements. Eldenbergians fell before him as if they were made of paper. Those who tried to fight him died. The few smart ones fled.
He could tell it would be over soon. He was cutting a path of destruction through them that would leave them decimated. Before long, the tide would turn, and his uncle’s forces would be able to handle the rest. Then Eldenberg would learn the cost of betrayal.
For the moment, though, he concentrated on the task at hand. He could enjoy making the Council of Elders kneel before him after he’d crushed their army.
He felled another swath of five or seven soldiers, and, when the flames cleared, he was amazed to see Lord Vicia striding towards him with her staff raised. Somehow, she’d survived their last encounter. Had she repaired her staff or gotten a new one? Elmanax was right in front of her.
Both of them looked like hell. Vicia was covered in partially healed burns, and she looked emaciated. However she had managed to avoid death, it had taken a lot out of her.
Elmanax looked no better. When Calibot had seen him in Eldenberg, he was fierce and vicious. A wicked light glowed in his eyes. Calibot could still see that fire within, but the body that contained it was brutalized. The gnome leaned on a stick he used as a makeshift cane. Calibot knew by looking at him his powers were diminished.
The nasty, little fairy wasted no time when he saw Calibot, though. He gestured towards the ground and then at Calibot. Stones flew up from the earth, transformed themselves into needles, and then flew towards him. Liliana stepped in front of him, opened her hand, and the needles became flowers, pelting the two of them harmlessly.
Vicia’s eyes flew open wide at Liliana’s magic. Then she pointed her staff at her and released a beam of green energy. Calibot pushed Liliana behind him and swatted the bolt away with his sword. It went back at Vicia and Elmanax, forcing them to dive to the ground to get out of the way.
“Surrender, Lord Vicia,” Calibot shouted as he moved towards them. “You’re no match for me. Surrender now while you still can.”
Elmanax put his hand to the ground. The earth rippled towards them like a wave. Liliana gestured, and the wave froze, making a small hill. Elmanax cursed.
“Your magic is useless against us,” Calibot said. “Between the protection of Wyrmblade and Liliana’s wild magic, you cannot harm us. Surrender, or I will crush you.”
He continued towards them and enjoyed the look of fear in Lord Vicia’s eyes.
***
Zod stared down the cougar as it circled him. He had no idea why the beast was so intent on killing him. Perhaps it was starving. Perhaps it was mad. Perhaps the Elder who summoned it enchanted it so.
Regardless, the great cat flexed its claws and growled as it searched for an opening in his defenses. He kept his sword up, hoping it would discourage the fiend.
Nearby, there was a terrible scream as two of his men finally slew the other cougar. Zod took his eyes off the one he was fighting for a just a moment. The cat sprang.
Zod saw bloodlust in its eyes as its jaws hung open, drooling over the possibility of eating him. Its toes spread wide, and its terrible, black claws reached for him.
He dropped to a knee, to get under the leap. Then he drove his blade upward, goring the beast. The cougar whimpered as it came down, its hind legs hitting Zod in the head. He was knocked to the earth and feared the animal would shred him in its death throes.
But before it could do much more, another of his men raced over and stabbed it in the neck. One great paw smashed Zod in the face as it kicked, but no claws reached him. He rolled away from the cougar and lay panting on the grass.
“Are you all right, my lord?” someone said.
“I think so,” Zod replied, although he wasn’t altogether sure he was telling the truth.
He struggled to stand. His broken foot and separated shoulder screamed. His middle-aged muscles complained at the exertion he’d been putting them through. He seemed to ache everywhere. He had a number of cuts, but he couldn’t tell which were from Eldenbergian swords and which were from the cougar he’d just fought.
He took a moment to assess the situation. The Elder’s soldiers were all dead. He and his men had killed everyone who had fought to defend her. The number was smaller than he expected, telling him some of them had run off when he broke through their line. The wizard herself was gone too.
He scanned the battlefield and found her quickly, engaged in combat with someone. Was that Calibot? And Liliana? It was impossible to say from this distance. It looked like Calibot, except whomever it was fought with a lot more courage and skill than Zod attributed to his nephew. But he was wielding a flaming sword. It had to be him.
“All right,” Zod said. “Let’s go. I want to end this quickly.”
He took one step, and pain shot through his right leg. Grimly, he set his jaw. Then he started limping towards Calibot and the lord. This was going to end one way or the other.
***
Devon slashed at the man in front of him. He could see Calibot fighting Lord Vicia – How was she even alive? – and he was determined to get there to help. But the infernal Eldenbergian soldiers kept intercepting, refusing to let him come to his love’s aid.
His fear not only for Calibot’s life but also for his soul drove him to fight with a savagery he had not previously known. He’d fought battles for the duke before, but he’d always foregone passion on the field. He found it a distraction that led to taking unnecessary and often-fatal chances. He always stayed well within himself.
Now, though, with each frustrating obstacle to Calibot’s side, he grew angrier and more scared. He just wanted this man out of his way, dead or otherwise.
He swung again and screamed when the soldier checked his blow. He raised his sword up, intending to bring it crashing down with all the force he could muster.
But he didn’t get the chance. Someone grabbed his tabard and yanked. Devon was pulled off balance. There was another man on the opposite side of the horse trying to pull him down!
Meanwhile, the Eldenbergian he was fighting tried to finish him off. Devon managed to get his sword in the way to block the other man’s strike, but the force of it was enough to break his balance. He went over backward and landed on top of the other fighter.
Panic coursed through him like wildfire in a dry forest. He couldn’t die now; Calibot needed him!
He bit down on his fear, so it wouldn’t control him. Then he rolled off the soldier who’d unseated him and came up on one knee. The other man was still stunned from Devon landing on him. Devon gored him and then stood up to face the mounted Eldenbergian.
Devon ducked a blow from his opponent and then stabbed his horse in the flank. He felt bad about harming the animal, but this was war, and he needed to survive. The warhorse squealed when it was wounded and took off at a gallop to get away from Devon, taking its rider with it.
Devon turned back in Calibot’s direction and wiped sweat from his eyes. His love and Liliana were still battling Lord Vicia and Elmanax. Devon couldn’t tell who was winning, but he was determined to tip the scales in Calibot’s favor.
“Hang on, Calibot,” he said as he took off at a run. “I’m coming.”
***
Elmanax was furious. Calibot had somehow merged the Eye of the Dragon with Wyrmblade, and it made him into a seemingly invincible warrior. Not only was Calibot impervious to magic while he wielded the sword, Gothemus’s apprentice had somehow become a real sorcerer overnight. The two of them appeared unstoppable.
Elmanax knew how Calibot had done it, of course. Gothemus had left one final postmortem spell behind. Whatever happened in the tower, it allowed Calibot to get the Eye out and fuse its magic with the sword’s. Gothemus had arranged everything.
“Give me the Eye of the Dragon, you whelp!” he raged. “Give it to me now, or I swea
r I’ll kill you!”
He put his hand to the earth and a swarm of scorpions rushed at Calibot. Gothemus’s infernal son waved Wyrmblade in their general direction, hardly taking his eyes off Vicia as he advanced on her. A small ball of fire came off the blade, landed amidst the scorpions, and exploded, destroying them.
Vicia summoned another pair of cougars to deal with him, just as she had with Zod. But before they landed, Liliana transformed them into house kittens. They both looked confused when they landed.
Vicia called down a lightning bolt, but with a raise of her hand, Liliana forked it so that it struck the ground on either side of them. Calibot did not appear dazzled or otherwise troubled by the blast.
“Don’t you understand?” Calibot said. “There is nothing you can do to stop me. Nothing! If you don’t surrender now, I will kill both of you and every Eldenbergian here.”
She threw an eldritch blast at him, but he swatted it aside like he had many of her other spells. Then he reached her. He swung, and she parried the blow with her staff. He swung again, forcing her to block a second time. He continued to press, backing her up.
He brought Wyrmblade over his head and followed with a crushing blow. Vicia had no choice but to bring the staff up, but she evidently had thought about how to keep him from shattering it again. She blocked the blow and then turned the staff and pushed the sword away.
Calibot had tricks of his own, though. For the moment that sword and staff were locked together, he caused Wyrmblade’s flames to surge. When Vicia pulled away from him, the staff was burning. Her face flashed fear, then turned to determination. With a quick pulse of magic, she extinguished the fire.
In the moment that took, Calibot acted. He brought up his sword, hooked her staff, and wrenched. Weak and overmatched, Vicia couldn’t hold on. She lost her grip, and the staff sailed away from her. Calibot kicked her in the stomach, knocking her down.
“You were warned,” he said.
He raised Wyrmblade and prepared to drive it into her. Vicia was too exhausted to do anything other than raise an arm up in a vain defense.
“Calibot!” a voice called.
Everyone turned to see Calibot’s lover running in their direction. Elmanax saw an opportunity to turn the tide. He waved his hand at Devon, and the earth reached up and grabbed his arms and legs, holding him fast. Elmanax moved between him and Calibot.
“Give me the Eye of the Dragon, boy,” he said. “Give it to me now, or I’ll kill your lover.”
Calibot turned and stabbed the sword into the ground. A wave of fire rushed out of it, zipped towards Elmanax, and exploded right in front of him.
Elmanax was thrown into the air, and his shirt caught fire. He landed hard and felt all the air rush out of his lungs. Flames reached his skin, and he screamed. He rolled over and put them out.
“You have no idea whom you’re dealing with!” Calibot shouted. “I have the sword and the Eye! I have the power, and I can kill even an immortal fairy! You will release Devon, and you will kneel before me, Elmanax. Or you will die.”
Elmanax couldn’t ever remember being afraid. What did a gnome have to fear? But he was terrified of Calibot. He was too weak to stop Gothemus’s bastard. The little shit could actually kill him.
Before he could act or speak, though, a spine-chilling roar came from behind them. It was deep and ominous and filled with both rage and gusto.
Elmanax turned and stared in wonder. Seven dragons came soaring across Silver Lake. He had seen dragons before, but never seven at once. His mouth fell open as he watched the great wyrms beat their wings and alter course to come straight for Calibot.
Chapter 33: King of the Known World
Calibot watched as the dragons flew in tight formation, like some deranged flock of monstrous geese driven towards revenge. They zoomed across the lake, arrived overhead, and then circled several times like giant vultures surveying a massacre.
Then six of them shot off in different directions. Each landed beyond the edges of the battlefield. They walled in every human so there could be no escape. For a moment, Calibot thought they meant to use their fiery breath to roast alive every person here.
But they only waited. The humans moved away from them as best they could. Everywhere Calibot looked he saw terror.
The lead dragon circled overhead until his companions were in position. Then he took one last turn before lighting with a thud to Calibot’s left. The earth shook with his weight, and Calibot had to struggle to keep his footing.
The dragon was an impressive beast. His dark green scales glistened, even in the overcast light of the day. His head was larger than a human’s entire body. He looked as if he could swallow Calibot whole. When he landed, he stretched out his wings fully, and they looked bigger from end to end than any sailing vessel Calibot had ever seen or heard of. Black claws the size of a large child gleamed wickedly from the ends of four massive “hands” that looked like they could easily grasp and use giant tools. The dragon coiled an enormous tail around him; Calibot didn’t doubt it could hit with tremendous force in battle. The beast leered at him through yellow eyes, and when he opened his mouth, foul breath scented with brimstone engulfed Calibot and offended his nostrils.
Despite the dragon’s magnificence, Calibot faced him boldly. He knew through the sword he was immune to the fiend’s fire as long as he held Wyrmblade. That took away its deadliest weapon and gave him some sort of a chance should it come to a fight.
“You are Calibot Draco, son of Gothemus,” the dragon said.
Despite his size, his voice was smooth and melodic. It was deep and ominous, but it sounded not at all like a growl. It resembled a song.
“And who are you?” Calibot replied.
“I am Sear, King of Dragons,” the dragon said. “You have something I want.”
Calibot wasn’t surprised. Since he’d joined the Eye of the Dragon and Wyrmblade there was a constant flow of knowledge – his father’s knowledge – that came to him whenever he needed it. He knew what Sear wanted. Nevertheless, he also understood power, and one could take it by forcing others to beg for what they desired.
“And what would that be?” he said.
Sear frowned. Anger flashed through his yellow eyes. He moved his head close to Calibot – close enough he could bite him in a flash.
“I want the Eye of the Dragon,” Sear said, his brimstone breath assaulting Calibot’s nostrils.
Calibot smiled. Sear couldn’t just take it from him. If he could have, there’d be no need to ask for it. He would have simply killed Calibot and flown away with the sword before anyone realized what happened. That meant Calibot had more power over him than he initially realized.
“That’s not an uncommon want,” he said. “Elmanax the gnome wants it so he may return it to the underworld. Lord Vicia wants it, so she may use it to give Eldenberg power over the Known World. Tell me, King of Dragons, why do you desire it?”
Sear withdrew his head. He reared up and gave Calibot a quizzical look, as if he were trying to decide if Calibot were really serious. He seemed to be saying, “Are you truly that ignorant?”
“You know very well why I want it, human,” Sear said. “The Eye gives one power over dragons; it gives one power over the Wild Lands. I have come for it, because I do not wish my people to be enslaved.”
“Enslaved?” a voice said.
Calibot turned and saw his uncle approaching. Apparently, he’d decided to join the party. He limped painfully but determinedly towards Calibot and the dragon-king. His face was a war of agony and fury.
“Prior to Gothemus taking control of the Eye of the Dragon, the Wild Lands was the most dangerous place in the Known World,” Zod continued. “No human was able to enter without paying a price in blood.”
“What is the difference between that and a dragon or other creature leaving the Wild Lands, Zod the Fearless?” Sear said. “Your so-called Known World encompasses only the reaches human beings have seen and understand. Anything not human
that wanders into it is slaughtered as a monster. You want access to the Wild Lands to further your commerce, but you do not wish to gain it from its rightful citizens. You prefer to conquer them and take what you like.”
“We’re the rightful owners of the earth!” Zod shouted. “The gods have decreed it!”
“Your gods,” Sear said. “We do not acknowledge them. We have gods of our own. And if you humans are so superior, then why do you cower in the presence of my soldiers?”
“He’s right,” Elmanax spat. “You’re nothing but thieves. You and your brother stole the Eye of the Dragon, so you could mine iron where you didn’t belong and steal the Wild Lands away from its denizens. Your gods decreed you were the rightful owners of the earth? Then your gods have stolen the earth too and offered it to the unworthy.”
“Don’t insult us, Elmanax,” Calibot said. He was surprised to hear his own voice, as if someone else was speaking through his mouth again. “The earth belongs to those with the strength to take it.”
“Calibot,” Devon said, sounding shocked.
“How right you are, human,” Sear said. “So let me make myself plain. I want the Eye of the Dragon. I want my people to be free of the fear of slavery. Give it to me, or I will have my soldiers burn alive every person here.”
A gasp of fear went through the two armies. Even Vicia looked frightened. The soldiers all turned and stared in horror at the dragons surrounding them. The great wyrms leered at them evilly.
Calibot pulled Wyrmblade out of the ground and set his shoulders. He smiled grimly.
“Let me tell you what you’re going to do, Sear, King of Dragons,” he said. “You’re going to bow before me.”
A second gasp went through the crowd. Sear looked shocked. Calibot raised the sword above his head and triggered the magic of the Eye.
“I said, ‘Bow!’” he shouted.
“Calibot!” Devon protested.
“Shut up, Devon,” Calibot snapped. “Watch and learn.”
Sear was already drooping his head. He put his chin on the ground. Calibot looked around. The other dragons had done the same. His heart soared in triumph. Father would be so proud! He turned to Lord Vicia.
The Sword and the Sorcerer Page 22
