As Louis and Crystal’s hands met, a fierce glow surrounded both of them. The light reached out and engulfed the rest of the group.
The swords of death began to repel off of the dome once again.
“What’s happening?” Gus said in surprise.
“Our shield seems to be recovering its ability to protect us, although I cannot explain why,” Mr. Bixbee said.
Mr. Bixbee’s observation was correct. The warriors were finding it harder and harder to penetrate the invisible shield. Within a matter of minutes, they couldn’t breach the protective shell at all.
“The glow appeared when we held hands,” Crystal noted.
“It was more than just us holding hands,” Louis now understood with absolute clarity. “We formed another ring when you helped me up and we held both of our hands together! Get it? The prophecy says ‘a true ring within a ring, indestructible, can never be torn’. Gus, Mr. Bixbee, Shining Star, and Chalandoor formed the first ring, and we form the true ring inside them. I misunderstood the prophecy. There are two rings, not just one.”
Mr. Bixbee added with perception, “We evidently received partial protection because you two were within our ring of friendship. The full protection of the shield could not take effect until the ‘true ring’ was formed by the two of you.”
“But why are we the ‘true ring’?” asked Crystal.
“I don’t have the answer to that question. All I know is that we are safe again,” replied Louis with great relief.
While everyone was trying to take all of this in, Louis’s sweater began to glow and throb with intense white light.
“Louis, what’s happening to you?” Crystal said in alarm.
“I don’t know, but no matter what happens, don’t let go of me. Everyone else, keep holding on to each other’s hands. We need both of our ‘rings’ to be unbroken.”
The sweater continued to glow brightly. It became so bright that none of them could gaze upon it.
“Close your eyes and turn your eyes away from Louis! At this rate of the light’s increasing intensity, we’ll all be blinded if we continue to look at him!” Mr. Bixbee said with urgency.
Even with their eyes shut, the sweater’s brilliance was unbearable. The intense light seemed to saturate and penetrate everything.
For the Shadow Warriors, it wasn’t just unbearable, it was completely agonizing. The light emanating from the sweater blazed through their bodies as easily as light passing through tissue paper. The grotesque steeds whined in anguished screamed as they suffered with their riders. The mighty hoards fell to the ground at an unbelievable rate.
The radiance continued its unchecked escalation. Crystal was soon enveloped by it and glowed as brightly as Louis. The light generated by both of them moved outward to their circle of friends. Within seconds, the whole group radiated with immeasurable brightness.
“No, this cannot be! What is happening to my army of soldiers?” Qruzer said astonished.
His proud army was devastated by the pure light. Warrior bodies lay everywhere; many of them groaning in pain as the light continued its furious onslaught of brightness.
“Retreat, retreat I say!” commanded Qruzer. But his desperate words fell upon ears that were no longer listening. There would be no victory for them this day. The warriors continued to fall until only Qruzer was left standing.
“I cannot accept this! I. . .cannot. . .be. . .beaten!” But his words were empty of meaning as Qruzer himself was finally overcome by the unstoppable brilliance. He fell to the ground, his sword still clutched tightly in his massive hand. With the fall of the last Shadow Warrior, the light started to diminish in energy until it extinguished itself.
“The light has regressed. I believe it is safe to open our eyes now,” said Mr. Bixbee.
They were astonished at what they saw. Outside the safe haven of their protective dome were hundreds of horses and Shadow Warriors lying on the ground. None of them moved.
“What happened to them?” asked Crystal.
“My conjecture is that the intense light has affected them in some adverse way,” surmised Mr. Bixbee.
“Are they all dead?”
“This is hard to ascertain. I observe some of them still breathing, but there are so many horses and warriors strewn about, it is difficult to determine if they are living or deceased.”
“Can we let go of each other now?” asked Gus. “They don’t look like they’re going to do much fighting now.”
“I guess it would be okay. As far as I can tell, there is no danger,” replied Louis. “But just to be safe, we should stay close together. I don’t want to take any chances.”
“I believe that is a very prudent course of action,” said Mr. Bixbee.
Louis and Crystal took the lead in inspecting the battleground. They walked among the fallen and realized that many, if not all of them, were still alive. They appeared to be breathing but unconscious.
Crystal realized that something strange had happened to Louis.
“Do you feel different?” she said.
“I don’t know about feeling different, but I feel pretty happy that we survived, that’s for sure!”
“No, I don’t mean that. Look at your right leg.”
He glanced down and found nothing particularly interesting, except for the fact that his pant leg was cut through during the battle.
“I guess I need a new pair of jeans.”
“Look at your leg again. It isn’t bleeding anymore and you’re walking without limping.”
The gash inflicted by Qruzer had disappeared. The others inspected themselves and realized that their injuries were also healed.
“I think the light made us well,” Gus speculated.
They heard a faint voice moaning for help among the bodies.
“Please help. I need help. . .”
“Look over there. It’s Qruzer!” Crystal said.
They ran over to him. He seemed to be the only one not rendered totally unconscious by the gleaming light.
“Please help. I am in great pain. Please help,” he said in a raspy voice.
Louis knelt down beside the tribal leader and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”
“I need you to stop this pain. I am in agony!!” Qruzer pleaded.
“But I don’t know how to do that.”
“Your garment. It has the power to heal. It is made from the wool of a beast with healing powers. If you touch me, I can be free of this horrendous pain.”
“Louis, I don’t know about this. Can you trust him? After all, he was trying to kill you only a few moments ago,” cautioned Crystal.
“But we can’t let him suffer like this. Besides, he’s defeated. It won’t hurt to see if my sweater can help him out of his misery. I’ll be careful. Don’t worry.”
Louis placed his hand on the huge shoulder of Qruzer, not realizing that the tribal leader was still clutching onto his destructive sword.
“Are you feeling better now?” Louis asked.
“Please come closer. I need to tell you something,” he whispered to Louis.
“What is it?”
Crystal saw the huge arm of Qruzer slowly rise with the sword and screamed, “Look out, Louis!”
In a blink of an eye, Louis jumped back and out of range of the sharp weapon.
“No, you don’t understand,” replied Qruzer. “You are now my supreme leader. You have defeated me. I want to relinquish my command and give you my sword.”
Qruzer slowly sat up and managed to rise to his knees. With great effort, he was able to just barely lift the sword with both hands. He offered the object of war to Louis. He bowed to him in subservience.
“I am yours to command.”
Louis reached out and was startled to find how light the weapon seemed to be.
“Only the leader of the tribe possesses the power to lift the sword so easily,” Qruzer remarked with reverence and fear.
The implications of the comment were not lost on Chalando
or. He spoke to Louis and said very seriously, “You have been victorious over Qruzer and his tribe, you have.”
“You state the obvious to Louis, my friend,” said Mr. Bixbee.
“You understand me not. He has defeated the evil ones in battle, Louis has.”
Louis was perplexed at what Chalandoor was saying. Why state something that was already evident?
But they missed the true meaning of what the Wise One was trying to impart.
Hundreds of Shadow Warriors started to stir. First one, then another and another until the entire army stood.
“Oh, no. Here we go again!” Gus said with panic. “They’re going to attack again!”
“Not correct, you are not,” Chalandoor said.
The entire army struggled to their feet and picked up their weapons.
“Get back together in our circles!” Louis shouted.
Before they could do so, the Shadow Warriors abruptly knelt on their knees, raised their swords, and pointed them in the direction of Qruzer and Louis.
“All hail our king. We serve you!” they shouted in unison.
“I guess they really have a strong dedication to Qruzer. They respect him so much that they still pledge their allegiance to him,” Louis said in admiration of their devotion.
“It is not Qruzer, they pledge to, it is not,” Chalandoor spoke.
Louis was about to ask what he meant until the answer came from the voices of the Shadow Warriors.
“All hail our king! All hail Louis, the new king of the Shadow Warriors!”
CHAPTER 15
A SALIENT SOLUTION
“What are they talking about?” Louis said confused. “Why are they calling me their king?”
“It’s just like the other times, don’t you see? Whenever a tribal king is defeated, the winner is made the new leader. Sometimes, I wonder about you Louis. You seem so smart and dumb at the same time!” Crystal laughed.
“She is correct in her assessment of what has transpired. In your victory over the tribal leader Qruzer, the leadership position has been transferred to you. I might add that you are the only one who has ever defeated this tribe so decisively. It is no surprise that Tetrans hold you in such reverence and fear,” commented Mr. Bixbee.
“You’ve done it! You beat the Shadow Warriors! You’re the greatest!” said Gus with enthusiasm.
“Not me, Gus. It was all of us. If it weren’t for everyone here, all of this couldn’t have happened. It was because of friendship that they were defeated,” said Louis.
“Well, I guess you’re sort of right. But you have to admit, you were the one who figured out what the prophecies meant. If it weren’t for you, we never would have figured it out,” insisted Gus.
“He’s right! I know you don’t like all the attention, but you are responsible for this. We helped, but you were the one who led us. Don’t argue with me because you know it’s true!” Crystal said sternly.
Louis was speechless.
“You know something, Louis?” Gus asked.
“What?”
“I think fighting with Crystal is scarier than fighting the Shadow Warriors!”
Crystal walked over to Gus and promptly punched him in the arm.
“Ow, that hurts! And I thought I was the only bully around here.”
They all started to laugh uncontrollably. It felt very good.
Their mirth was momentarily interrupted by the voice of Qruzer.
“King Louis, what would you have us do? What is your first command to us, your servants?” he said with obvious pain on his face.
“Qruzer, you’re still hurt!” Louis asked.
“Yes, but I deserve the pain that I and my tribe have incurred as a result of the battle. It is the wages of war.”
“I guess I didn’t get a chance to use the sweater on you because I thought you were going to attack me,” he explained. “But I can give it a try now.”
Louis surveyed all the warriors kneeling on the ground. They were shaking from the effects of their encounter with the light and were in a great deal of discomfort and agony.
An idea occurred to Louis.
“Qruzer, you say that my sweater has the power to heal?”
“Yes, the wearer of the garment can do this.”
“How does it work?” Louis asked.
“The wearer simply touches the afflicted individual. The garment makes everything whole again. When I was in possession of the garment long ago, I used it in this capacity to heal my injured warriors.”
“Correct, is he. The garment is made from the wool of the Rothgan. The creature could heal itself, it could,” added Chalandoor.
“My first command to you all is to form a circle by grasping each other’s hands.”
They were puzzled by the request, but the Shadow Warriors obeyed immediately.
He turned to his friends and said, “Okay, you join hands with them too. I’ll finish closing the circle. I’ll be the final link.”
“But I don’t want to hold hands with those monsters!” Crystal said.
“Yeah, me either!” agreed Gus.
“I know it’s hard to do, after what we’ve been through. But do it anyway. They won’t harm us.”
“Well, if you say so,” Crystal said skeptically.
Louis had Qruzer to his right and Crystal on his left. Chalandoor, Mr. Bixbee, Shining Star and Gus took their places in different locations throughout the enormous circle.
“As you can see, we have made a giant circle by connecting our hands,” he said loudly for all to hear.
“As your new leader, I proclaim that all of you joined in this circle are now my friends!”
The Shadow Warriors looked at one another, perplexed at what Louis was saying to them. A murmur of disbelief rose from the proud combatants, for never had they been considered friends of anyone. It was a strange proclamation, they thought to themselves.
“You are all my friends,” Louis shouted. “I am your tribal leader, and I declare this day that all of you are my friends!” he repeated for emphasis.
Qruzer spoke and said, “If our new king decrees we are his friends, I will obey and be his friend.”
When Qruzer finished speaking these remarkable words, he and his army saw the familiar glow starting to emerge from Louis’s sweater once again.
The Shadow Warriors immediately started to panic at the sight. The possibility of being assaulted by another volley of excruciating light terrified them.
“No! Hold your places, I command it!” Louis said. “No harm will come to you!”
In spite of the raw terror the Shadow Warriors felt, they obediently stayed in their places.
“What are you up to, Louis?” Crystal asked.
“Wait and see. I’ve got an idea.”
The soft glow from Louis’s sweater remained diffused, to the relief of the dark army.
“Crystal, I want you to look at the Shadow Warrior next to you and call him your friend,” Louis said.
“Are you kidding? One of these ‘friends’ almost cut me to pieces!”
“They have already surrendered. They no longer are our enemies, don’t you understand? If they aren’t enemies any longer, that means they can be our friends,” said Louis.
Mr. Bixbee listened to this and said, “Your logic, although quite unconventional, is an acceptable proposition.”
“Okay, Louis,” she said.
She turned and looked up at the menacing figure next to her and said, “Will you be my friend?”
As she uttered the words, the soft glow from Louis expanded and also covered her. The Shadow Warrior holding her hand wanted to pull his hand away but stood still, transfixed at the sight of Crystal glowing.
The glow expanded its reach to this warrior and covered him. But this time, instead of inflicting unbearable pain, the light seemed to have a soothing effect.
This oddity repeated itself where Chalandoor, Mr. Bixbee, Shining Star, and Gus stood. Soon, the whole circle was saturated with the gentle
light. It infused everyone.
The pain that once seared through the Shadow Warriors was replaced with calm and well-being.
“I feel remarkably well,” said Qruzer. “I believe I have been made whole again.”
In fact, not only did Qruzer feel this way, the entire circle felt the healing effects of the light.
The white glow engulfing everyone became increasingly brighter.
“Please stay where you are. We need to remain connected,” Louis tried to calm everyone. He certainly didn’t want a stampede on his hands.
“What’s happening now?” Crystal asked.
“I don’t know. Let’s wait and see.”
Qruzer looked at himself and the rest of his warriors. Their armor had transformed into the color of the mysterious white glow.
When the glow stopped, the Shadow Warriors were standing amazed and in shock.
“Hey, look at all of them,” Crystal said overwhelmed “Their armor is white now!”
“Their swords changed too,” noted Gus.
The menacing dark swords were now a gleaming white.
“Louis, what has happened to us?” asked Qruzer.
“I don’t know. I just wanted to help everyone get well. I figured, if we all held hands, the healing might go around the circle.”
“You mean you wanted to make another ring of friendship, right?” Crystal guessed.
“Yes. I thought if everyone were friends, the sweater might heal, instead of hurt the warriors.”
“It would seem your leap of logic has proven correct. Our former enemies seem to be well now, not to mention their interesting appearance,” Mr. Bixbee said.
Each warrior glimmered. Their horses, frightened by the spectacle, ran quickly away from them.
“Wow, they sure have changed a lot. I don’t even recognize them anymore. What a difference! Strange, I’m not scared of them either,” Crystal said.
“They really are different. They aren’t the same terrible army that we knew before. . .” Louis’s voice trailed off as he realized something astounding.
Louis’s eyes locked with Chalandoor’s across the wide circle. He let go of Crystal and Qruzer and met Chalandoor in the center of the new ring of friends.
Chalandoor said, “I know what you are thinking, I do. The last part of the prophecy has come to pass, has it not?”
Louis in the Land of Tetra Page 20
