Chosen (Majaos Book 1)

by Gary Stringer

  Princess Mystaya didn’t regret her actions one bit. Vorden had teleported her out of Shakaran Castle, which should have been impossible with the shields active, as they always were. She didn’t know where they were, but they were surrounded by chaos monsters that materialised with them and tore into the poor people of the village. It had been terrible to witness, but never once had she cried out. She had been trained well, and knew that she had to use her head if she was going to survive this. There was no-one around that could help her, so screaming would do no good. Neither would it help her to ask him why he was doing this or what his intentions were. That information, even if he gave it to her, would not make her any less his prisoner. So she remained silent, acting as if she was too scared to speak, when in reality it was a strategy. She gave him no reason to gag her, thereby holding on to her voice to maybe, somehow, use as a weapon when the right moment came.

  This had been her chance and she had taken it. She had known she would only have time to say one word. Since none of the newcomers had used her kidnapper’s name when he revealed himself, which would have been the normal reaction, she assumed they didn’t know it.

  She couldn’t be sure if it would help her would-be rescuers or herself, but it was the only thing she could think of. Returning his attention to Eilidh, Vorden said, “There will be no negotiations. I’ve sent him my terms. His only choice isto come here or stay away like a coward. I’ll kill his brat either way, but there are many ways to die. I want him here so I can kill her right in front of his eyes. He won’t have to grieve for too long because his own death will follow swiftly thereafter. Should he decide to stay away, I will kill her slowly...after I’ve had some fun.”

  Loric growled. Eilidh could feel his rage building and placed a gentle restraining hand on his arm. “Not now!” she whispered.

  “Oh don’t misunderstand me,” Vorden said. “I’m not going to ...do... anything to her. Not like that. That’s not my style. I just like to watch. That’s all it ever was.”

  “What do you mean?” Loric demanded. It was Calandra who answered. “Vorden! I remember hearing the name while I was at the city temple. It just took me a moment to bring it to mind. It must be – what– over ten years ago now? Vorden was a Life Gifted sorcerer and court illusionist. Besides giving instruction on Shadow magic, he was also well known for putting on popular stage shows.” The story made her sick to her stomach but she told it anyway. Her companions needed to know what kind of monster they were dealing with. “He had been working at the castle for months before he was caught. Prince Garald walked in on him while he was….doing things to one of his many teenage students.”

  “He just burst in!” Vorden complained. “Didn’t knock or anything!” As if that was the issue here.

  “Prince Garald was excited,” Calandra explained. “He was going to book Vorden for a private show for his daughter’s birthday party!”

  “It’s all lies!” Vorden protested, vehemently.

  “An investigation revealed quite a history—“

  “-I wasn’t touching them!” He interrupted.

  “You were caught in the act!” Calandra screamed.

  “No! That’s what they all said but it wasn’t me! Not meme!” “What’s that supposed to mean?” Taka yelled. She was helping Hannah and Phaer to hold Loric back, but at that moment she wasn’t sure why she wasn’t letting him go and rushing forward with him instead. Except of course, they couldn’t rush forward, only around, and who knew what magic this Vorden could throw at them in the time that would take?

  Bunny’s eyes widened. “A copy!” she realised.

  “Yes!” cried Vorden. “That’s it! Of course, you’re a sorceress, you understand! You can tell them! Tell them I was innocent!”

  “What is he talking about, Bunny?” Phaer asked. “Sorcerers can make illusory copies of themselves,” she explained. “It’s one of my favourite tricks. At higher grades, or perhaps at some strange convergence of magic, the copy can take on a kind of life of its own.”

  “There! You see?” Vorden demanded. “A life of its own! That’s it exactly. I didn’t do anything. It was the other me. All I did was watch! Garald was all for executing me but I tricked him. Oh yes! I tricked him good! All he executed was my copy. That was it, justice done, but no! He wasn’t satisfied with that! He sent Enforcers after me!”

  Bunny let her vampire side out, her long, sharp fangs flashing in spite of the dim light. “Then maybe I should finish their jobfor them.” “Bunny!” Eilidh warned her. Vorden was obviously highly unstable. They might be able to use that to their advantage if they chose the right moment, but this wasn’t it. She was as deeply affected as any of the others, but she knew they had to keep their heads. “Not now!” she warned her.

  “Don’t try it, vampire! I can make you crumble to dust in an instant!” Vorden threatened, before continuing. “I was running for my life, being hunted down, but then I met someone. Oh yes! She soon sorted out those Enforcers! She took me into her service and I learned a great deal. Like these chaos creatures. I worked with them, learned to control them. You see, with the right kind of mental manipulation, chaos creatures like my friend over there can get quite...playful. Though they do tend to break their toys, as you may have seen from my little sideshow out in the village. All that screaming sent them into such a frenzy, I didn’t even have to do anything after that initial push. I could just sit back and watch them play. I watched them for hours until some dragon girl blundered in to spoil my fun. Put up quite a fight, she did, even though I’d bound her to her human form. Then, after she was dead, well, I just sort of lost the mood, you know?

  “But I’ve got it back now, so it’s time for my fun. The prince knew my terms but he’s obviously too busy to watch his little girl die. Never mind, maybe it’s better this way. If I can just have a few moments of silence to prepare myself, I can get Mr Green and Scaly over there nice and excited. Then I can just sit back and enjoy the show as he plays with the princess. I could even use chronomagic to make a Time recording for His Grace to watch over and over again. It’ll only take a moment or two to set up.”

  That was more than Loric could stand; he threw off the hands that restrained him and shifted his weight to throw his sword like a javelin. He might not be able to charge at Vorden, but the death snare wouldn’t stop his sword burying itself in his chest.

  With a scream of rage, he let it fly, but Vorden flicked his hand, negligently, and Loric's sword flew across the room. Loric tried to use that distraction to run around the snare, but he found he couldn’t move no matter how he strained against the unseen barrier.

  Eilidh had known that would be futile, but she had used the distraction to move close to Granite. She knew he would be able to sense the Nullmagic spell that was cutting Mystaya off from her magic, just as well as she could, confirming that the sorcerer Vorden had somehow acquired Enforcer powers. The spell was strong, but if she and Granite could connect their Catalysts' powers and push together, they should be able to break through and give back Mystaya's ability to defend herself. "Granite," she whispered, trying to look casual. "Life Link. Cancel Nullmagic. On my signal."

  "Got it," He agreed, indicating his understanding.

  “I can crush you like a bug, Black Dragon of Avidon!” Vorden threatened. “Oh yes, I know who you are!”

  While he was busy gloating, Bunny tried to run the other way, using her vampire speed, but she had barely taken two steps before she, too, was stuck.

  “You are mine, all of you, until I decide to end your pitiful lives. If you only knew what was to come, you might even thank me.” “Now what's that supposed to mean?” Phaer whispered to Eilidh. The Catalyst had a rough idea, but kept it to herself. However, the sharpeyed ranger caught her change of expression. “You know something, don't you?”

  “Not now!” Eilidh whispered harshly. Vorden see med not to notice the exchange, but issued a final warning. “If any more of you try to move, my scaly friend here will slit the girl�
��s throat. He can kill her long before you can get anywhere close to me. It’ll spoil my fun, but if needs must...”

  “Vorden!” came a strong tenor voice from behind the doorway. “Thou art truly a coward deserving naught more than to be put down like a rabid dog! Thine execution is at hand!” A new focussed beam of light illuminated a tall Dark Knight of Zhentilon with a small assortment of companions of his own.

  “Greetings,” he said to Eilidh’s group, with a formal bow. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Sir Linarceo Leonis, Knight Warrior of Zhentilon and these are my companions...” The female Catalyst was Elice Relta; the dark cleric was named Franckel Ash; and finally came Tincershi - the only non-human of the group - a hobbit Warlock.

  Vorden was growing impatient, but the Dark Knight answered his look, saying, “Despite the situation, sir, we shouldst not forget our manners.” Eilidh took heart from this man's dark courage, the way he acted as if everything were under control, so she introduced everyone. At the very least, it would buy time. Everyone was polite and courteous, except Loric, who was eyeing the Knight suspiciously. There was something familiar about him. Something that made his every instinct want to strike him down where he stood. However, under these dangerous circumstances and with his sword lying on the floor across the room, even though the sorcerer’s magic bound him no longer, he allowed his good sense to prevail over instinct...at least for now.

  Once Eilidh had finished with the introductions, an increasingly agitated Vorden said, “Well, now that we're all acquainted, it is time for me to decide what I am to do with you. Eilidh, your fate is sealed - you and your friends will die. However, as for you, Sir Knight, with you there is perhaps room for negotiation.”

  “Thinkest thou that I shalt permit thee to harm these people, or the girl?”

  “Come now, don't make me kill you, too. After all, we both serve the same dark mistress.”

  “Thy words may be even truer than thou knowest,” the Knight replied.

  Phaer leaned close to Eilidh and whispered, “Now what's that supposed to mean?”

  “I don't know,” she whispered.

  “But you suspect something,” Phaer pressed, reading between her words. “You know something don't you? You know what's going on and you’re not telling us,” he fumed.

  “Not now, Phaer!”

  “That’s all you ever say. `Not now!` When exactly is `now` going to come, eh? And why do you get to decide that?”

  “Phaer, just shut up will you?” She hissed back. “I’m trying to think!”

  Phaer did not take kindly to being dismissed in such an offhand way, but he swallowed his feelings for the time being and just quietly seethed in the background. Eilidh tried to remind herself that coincidences were a common part of life, but she couldn't convince herself. This particular coincidence was a little too neat. Why should they turn up here, now? How did they get here since the bridge from Avidon was destroyed? She had no idea where Marina Fells was in relation to the human cities of Mythallen with which she was familiar, but wherever `here` was, she was willing to bet that it was too far out of the way for this mismatched group to have just `happened by`. Still, at the moment, there was nothing they could do except watch the scene unfold and be ready to act whenever the opportunity presented itself. The `now` was coming, but it was not `now` yet.

  “Thou art a coward to use a child as a hostage,” Leonis was saying, “and while I may not be a fullyfledged member of my order, I still uphold many of its principles.” That admission roused Lady Hannah to anger - for her, the only thing worse than a Dark Knight, was a renegade Dark Knight. The effect on Loric was even more profound, for he at last knew who this man was. It didn't seem possible; it had been far too long for a human to still be alive, yet there was no doubt in Loric's mind. This man had been the leader of the renegade Knights that attacked him, willing to sacrifice the young Sara.

  Elidh sensed his rage building anew and once more caught his arm. “Not now!” She supposed she was saying that a lot at the moment and knew her entire party was getting sick of it but she didn’t care. They could hate her all they wanted if they got out of this alive and the only way they had a chance of that was to think and wait.

  “Whatever your grievance, think of the princess. Just wait and be ready.” Loric nodded slightly in agreement. She was right - things were coming to a head - his chance would come soon enough. So, he let his fury continue to build, ready to unleash when the moment came.

  “Last warning, Sir Knight!” Vorden announced. “Remember I have the princess!”

  “Then I hath decided,” the Knight proclaimed, “that thou shalt hold her no longer.”

  “What makes you think you have any say in the matter?” Vorden demanded. “This!” cried an unseen female voice from the shadows. Before anyone could react, the serpentine creature that was Princess Mystaya's would-be executioner fell to the ground, dead - an arrow stuck in its throat.

  Vorden cancelled his darkness spell and light flared, filling the entire room. The arrow had belonged to a ranger-thief that had been hiding in the darkness ready to strike. Her elfsight had helped her to pick out her target and remove Vorden's one advantage; the threat to the princess that had been holding everyone back.

  In the next second, the death snare was disabled; the Life Flow that had been powering it somehow froze, robbing the snare of all magical energy. Eilidh had no idea how that was possible or who had done it, although old Artisho was looking quite pleased with himself, suddenly. She wasn’t going to complain, though, or waste time asking questions.

  The other party instantly took advantage of the situation and advanced on Vorden who backed away, frantically deflecting long range missiles and spells.

  “Who the hell is she?” Bunny wondered.

  Phaer had the answer and he spat the name like a curse. “Z'rcona.” Eilidh, too spoke a single word.“Now.”

  Chapter 22

  Mystaya felt the Nullmagic spell leave her. Bunny was with the princess in the blink of an eye, but Mystaya had already used her magic to free herself. The girl immediately sprang up and surprised her would-be rescuer by stealing her sword, pulling it clear of its scabbard and rushing at Vorden.

  That was all the time Loric needed. He closed his eyes and in an instant Soul Crusher was in his hand once more, brought to him by the souls of those the blade had killed. A scent seemed to hit him, the memory of the scent of Sara. It filled him with only one thought: the death of the Dark Knight that had so long ago tried to kill him and young Sara. How it could be possible for him to be the same man was irrelevant. That he was here was all that mattered.

  “Linarceo Leonis! You lowlife scum, I remember you from all those years ago! You are no Knight if you prey on the weak and the young.”

  “Ah, the Black Dragon my old quarry, 'tis thee! I am sworn to prey on all those who oppose the will of the Mistress of Death. The strong rule, the weak die. That is the order of things.”

  “Why don't you put aside your hunting and scheming and fight me like the Knight you pretend to be?”

  “Thinkest thou canst defeat me? Thou shalt soon discover how much in error thou art.”

  “Come on then! Feel the pain that you’ve caused; pay for the lives that you have taken. I am going take great pleasure in killing you!”

  “Very well, then, have at me! Thy death shall bring the rule of my Mistress that much closer.” Loric yelled as he launched a one-man war with Leonis and his band. He cared for nothing else; the battle frenzy was on him, rational thought left far behind. The princess, Vorden, his new friends, all of it was swept away. There was only one thing on his mind - death to the Knight and all those that were with him if they should get in his way.

  The Dark Knight met him, blocking his route to the others, clearly showing that to get to them, the dragon would have to go through him. That suited Loric just fine. He wasn’t interested in them anyway and so the battle was joined.

  Eilidh's Catalyst's eyes could see that thi
s Z'rcona was Magically Dead, which was how she had remained undetected by Vorden's magic. She briefly berated herself for not thinking to use Phaer in such a strategy herself - it was why she had brought him, after all. Still, there was no point dwelling on it now. She would just have to learn to do better...assuming she lived long enough.

  Meanwhile, Mystaya was the first to reach her captor. She gave no battle cry – she hadn’t spoken to him so far, and she saw no reason to start now. She simply thought to run him through while he was busy countering what Z’rcona and her party were throwing at him. When her blade slid though his ribs and into his heart, however, she realised it had been far too easy.

  “He was a copy!” Bunny called out, confirming Mystaya’s own suspicions. “So where is he really?” demanded the princess. “Right here!” came Vorden’s voice from the East wall. “My, my! This is entertaining! Please, go ahead, kill each other save me the trouble! Actually, though, if you don’t mind, I’ve got some friends with me who want to play, too. Would you like to meet them?” Without waiting for a reply, he cancelled the illusion spell from the East wall and a portion of it disappeared, allowing a horde of chaos creatures to pour in, snarling, drooling and dripping with slime.

  The great horde surged forward, forcing Loric and Leonis apart. Phaer instantly began shooting his arrows as fast as he could, while Rochelle, Granite and Taka fended them off with steel. Hannah managed to fight her way to the princess. “Your Highness, I do swear to be thy Knight Protector to keep thee from harm until my death.”

  “I appreciate the thought, Lady Knight,” the princess replied, taking the head off a monster that had slipped through Hannah’s defences, “and I do accept thy pledge of service, but right now we need to get out of here.”

  “You’re not going after Vorden?” Bunny asked before biting chunk out of a chaos creature’s neck. She wouldn’t be doing that again - its blood tasted foul. “Oh, believe me, I want Vorden’s head on a plate, but I want to live more, so I suggest you get on with rescuing me.” She broke off to sever some twisted creature’s spine. “Sorry about stealing your sword, by the way. I would have asked, but I was in a hurry.”