by Logan Petty
Sawain shook his head, "No problem at all. In fact, you're just the lady I needed to see."
She waved him off with a sly grin, "Oh stop it, I'm married ya know."
"I'm not," Violet giggled, "YET!"
Sawain stifled a grin, "Magina, do you think you could rally what's left of the Uuthri clan to our cause?"
She flexed, "'Course I can! And I'll act as liaison for Caer Teallagh while I'm at it. The oafs have it stuck in their skulls that I'm going to become the next Segrammir. I keep tellin' them it's not fer me, but as long as they're listening to everything else I say, I suppose I can round them up while Vi grabs the rest of her friends."
"You can counts on me, Svainy-poo! Us gobs'll helps you saves yer home like you did for us!"
He smiled warmly, "Thanks you two. Everyone, get some rest, tend to your wounds and spread the word. Tomorrow morning, we are leaving for Anvilheim."
Chapter Twenty Four:
The day moved slowly for Sawain as he scavenged the mountainside for enough wood and rocks to build a pyre for Jatharr. His friends offered to help, but he turned them down. In his mind, this responsibility fell squarely on his shoulders.
At day's end, as the sun cast golden rays on the land, Sawain finally laid Jatharr's body on his makeshift altar. The members of the newly formed Stagwarden Coalition gathered around as he stared at the small bundle. Kyra placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm... sorry, Sawain. I know you must have a lot on your mind right now, but maybe you should say a few words for Jatharr. Give him a proper send off."
He nodded, choking back the first wave of emotion, "You were a good friend, Jatharr. More than a friend. You watched over me while I was still inexperienced. You taught me about the land and its inhabitants. You stayed by my side until the end. What you did... Whatever your motivation... Was Malsivith's manipulation. You showed me that with your last act of heroism. You saved my life, chose to betray whatever contract the dragon laid on you for my sake. As far as I'm concerned, you were always one of us. And you always will be. Hammerhold will know of mighty Jatharr, the fearless warrior who fought against evil in Hammerhold's hour of need. Your deeds shall never die. Find peace in the Lands Beyond knowing that I forgive you and... I thank you for everything."
Eldingbál nudged Sawain's shoulder. He nodded to the drake, who stepped reverently up to the pyre. He exhaled a gentle stream of flames that enveloped Jatharr and ignited his pyre. Everyone watched the brilliant blaze in awe as Jatharr's ashes began to take flight. Sawain blinked through his tears as he thought he saw the image of his father-figure in the smoke. He smiled at Sawain and gave one last nod before vanishing in the billows. Sibilach appeared at his side.
"You have done a great deed here today, Swerdbrekker. Anyone else would have given a traitor's corpse to the crows. You, however, saw your friend off as a hero."
"A wise woman once told me that mercy is the greatest judgment a hero can dole out."
Sibilach cackled jovially, "Ah ha ha! So you were listening! And they say you can't teach teenagers a thing!"
"Can I ask you something? And please, answer me honestly. Did you know Jatharr was the traitor?"
Sibilach watched the fire crackle in silence a moment before answering, "Not until after that morning in Glittervein Gulch."
Sawain nodded slowly, "That's when you intervened."
Sibilach laughed softly, "You are sharper than most give you credit, young Swerdbrekker. I merely pulled you into another plane of existence for a few hours. One akin to Penumbra."
"Did he... try to kill me that night?"
Sibilach stared hard at Sawain, "You do not need an answer to that question. You have already forgiven Jatharr, raised him up among the stars as a hero of Hammerhold. Do not tarnish his memory so soon."
Sawain nodded, "You're right, as always. Sibilach?"
"Mmm?"
Sawain watched the remains of Jatharr float over the open wilderness, where he knew the old halfling would be the most happy.
"I just wanted to say thank you."
"Oh stop," she cooed, "I am not planning on dying any time soon. Now, go and rest, my young friend. You still have much to do."
Though the crowd dispersed, Sawain sat beside Jatharr's pyre a while longer. Eldingbál curled up behind him, giving him someone to lean back on as he sat and watched the embers glow in the failing light. His mind wandered, reminiscing over the adventures they shared. He did not shed a tear, because he knew Jatharr would not like it. Instead, he simply remembered him. the soft fall of footsteps snapped him from his daydreams. Kyra sat down beside him, resting her head against the drake.
"What a week, huh?"
"Yeah," he muttered softly.
The crackling of burning wood punctuated the moment of silence between them as Kyra started again, "Sawain, is there anything I can do for you?"
He smiled at her, "This is good enough. I could use a friend at my side. Not trying to take a jab at Eld, but he's not one for conversation."
The drake snorted and turned his head away. Kyra giggled.
"You're handling everything surprisingly well on the outside, but you must be a mental wreck."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, for one," she started, "We are days away from facing Tharixos. He is the one who started all this and you are the only one who can stop him. He knows you're coming. He has to know. That means he will throw everything he has left at you in order to win."
Sawain nodded, "Yeah, that's true, and maybe I should be concerned, but I'm not. Really."
Kyra scrunched her brow in disbelief, "How can you possibly not be terrified?"
"Well, I could still be recovering from killing a dragon, but I think it's simple. I have something Tharixos doesn't."
"What," she snarked, "The power of a god?"
"No, not that. I'm pretty sure he has some divine power, even if it's dark. No, my advantage against him is that my army fights for me because they believe in me. His is nothing but wave upon wave of soulless puppets who do not feel or care about their master's well being. When I saw my mother, she told me to seek love. It’s the most powerful weapon a hero can wield. So… With all my friends at my side, how can I lose?"
She smiled as she placed her hand on his. He blushed as he looked into her sparkling eyes. Something in them changed. She stared into his eyes in a way he had only ever seen once before as she leaned toward him.
"I'm glad that I could be by your side at the end of the war. Sawain, can I tell you something?"
Eldingbál lifted his head as Sawain nodded, not noticing the drake's movement. Kyra's cheeks reddened as she bit her lip.
"There was a reason I spent so long looking for you, never giving into the rumors of your death. I was so happy the day we met you again in Jordborg... There's a reason I chose to endure months of exile in this wilderness to ride by your side. I don't know if it's the emotions of the moment, seeing so many die and watching their friends weep as they never had a chance to properly say goodbye... I guess what I'm trying to say is... I love you, Sawain. I have for a long time, since you joined Dawnstar."
His jaw went slack as his dry tongue clung to the roof of his mouth. Her expression shifted to one of embarrassment as he stared at her in silent shock.
"I said too much didn't I? It's Mari, right? I was too late, wasn't I? Oh I'm so stupid..."
"No," Sawain interrupted as he leaned in, "You're not too late. I love you, too."
She gasped as he kissed her, lingering on the experience a moment before pulling away. She smiled and threw her arms around him as Eldingbál lowered his head back to the ground, watching a heart-broken Mari sneak from her hiding place behind a large boulder back to the main camp.
Tears spilled from the young elf's eyes as she sniffled, unable to properly cry, as her voice now belonged to a dragon. A voice she sacrificed to save the boy she loved. The same boy who was currently confessing his love to another girl. She ran silently through the shadows, avoiding the
campfires spread around the mountain until she reached Songrandir. She quietly woke her drake from her nap and led her away into the darkness.
Songrandir cooed in confusion as the tear-streaked face of her friend rubbed against her muzzle. Mari signed to her drake.
Mari climbed onto the drake's back and turned her toward the east. She jumped in surprise as she turned to face two dark figures right behind her. Mari's distressed eyes took a moment to filter the light around them and reveal their identities.
Loraleth stood with her arms crossed and Timbrell took a step toward Songrandir. He looked up into Mari's face as he spoke, his voice trembling.
"I saw what happened... Forgive me, but I had to follow you. When you ran off... I knew it would be trouble, so I went for help..."
Mari gestured angrily at Timbrell. He raised his palms defensively, wincing at her words.
"Okay, okay, I might have deserved that, but please, don't leave, Mari. I need you! We need you!"
"Timbrell's right," Loraleth interjected as she dropped her hands, stepping toward the girl, "I know you're hurting right now. Believe me, I know better than anyone. I went through it too. I felt so betrayed because he left me alone to die in my time of need. When I came to my senses, not only Sawain, but my own brother had abandoned me in a place so dark I could barely see. He left me among the corpses, like I was already one of them. I hated him for it. Both of them... All of them. When I awoke the next day, I was like you, I just wanted to run from it all."
Loraleth thought a moment before answering, "Running only turned my heart on itself. My fear and pain turned into hate, then all I could think of was revenge. I didn't set out to help you originally. I set out to kill you. All of you. Thankfully, Sibilach intervened. It cost her a lot of her powers, but she helped me. She introduced me to the Master of Candles and helped me find a new purpose in life. She helped me understand something very important that I hope I can help you understand now before you go."
Loraleth tried to smile, "That sometimes, your personal feelings are less important than the greater good. There's still a war raging for Hammerhold. If you leave now, you aren't running from your problems, you're abandoning the entire world. You are doing the same thing to all your friends that he has done to you."
Mari snorted as she steered Songrandir away,
Songrandir tried to glance back, but Mari forced her forward. Loraleth sighed as she slithered away.
"Go after her, Timbrell. Keep her safe. We'll need her some day soon."
Timbrell glanced up at Loraleth, "What will you tell Sawain?"
She thought a moment, "I'll just tell him I recruited the two of you for a special mission. Don't worry, I won't be far behind you. Just... Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid."
He sighed as he bounded off after Mari, "I always try but haven't succeeded yet."
Loraleth whispered under her breath, "Today's as good as any to start."
She shivered alone in the cold as she watched the trio sink below the other side of the mountain. Another drake sauntered up to her from over the ridge. Her scales and mane coloration matched Huggan’s perfectly. Loraleth ran her fingers through the drake’s fine hair.
“Hello, Gjalda. Did you come along with Sibilach? I’m glad you’re here, I’ll need your companionship soon enough. Do me a favor and go find my brother and yours. I need to talk to him.”
Gjalda stalked away deliberately, leaving Loraleth with her thoughts. The battle for Anvilheim loomed and now their forces would ride into battle without their bards. She prayed that the loss would not prove their downfall.
Chapter Twenty Five:
Axel Rimebeard tapped his armored fingers against the cold stone battlements above the gates of Anvilheim. The shield mages to either side of him dripped with sweat despite the frigid air that filled their lungs. Another barrage of arrows loosed by the thousands of archers outside the city clattered against the arcane barrier. Axle snarled as he stared out at the sea of undead that clawed at the translucent wall that separated his home and the people he served from swift destruction.
"They're toying with us. What's the Grey King's play?"
A tall muscular human stepped up beside him. He wore dented and weathered armor that bore the crest of Anvilheim on his shoulder. His short black hair bore several strands of gray. A leather patch covered one of his dark brown eyes, and a jagged scar ran down his face and into his beard. Two well used war axes hung from his side.
"His play," the man said in a gruff voice, "Is to use us as bait."
Axel jumped when he noticed the man, then gave a quick bow, "Lord Jaren! When did you get back?"
"Minutes ago. And stop calling me Lord, Axle. You know I don't like it."
The dwarf shook his head, "No title better befitting Anvilheim's future Segrammir. How did your mission fare?"
Jaren sighed, "Not as well as I would have liked. All of the secret paths out of the city are barricaded. It's as if someone intimately familiar with Anvilheim is working against us."
Axel nodded grimly, "Makes sense. All it would take is for the Grey King to get his hands on any sneak-thief from the Hold. He probably has plenty of them out there. So that's it then. We're trapped in here. If our shields hold out, our food and water will be gone in less than a few weeks at this point. What should we do?"
Jaren leaned on the battlements as he glared out at the army of the dead. A boulder the size of a horse slammed the barrier a few feet away. The wall shuddered and the mages groaned, but it remained intact. Jaren slammed his fist onto the stone he leaned upon.
"I am no leader of nations, Axel. I am a warrior. I have no second thoughts about throwing myself over this wall and killing everything out there until something kills me first, but making a decision that can shape the fate of an entire city? That takes one with far more clout than I."
The dwarf tugged his beard in frustration, "Lord Jaren, please! You are the only leader left in this city since the Segrammir abandoned us! Like it or not, the people look to you for direction. Our forces rely on your council!"
Another rock shattered itself against the barrier a few hundred feet to the left this time. Jaren growled under his breath.
"I would very much like to feed the giant that is throwing those stones my axes. If it was up to me, my friend, I would have us die on the field of battle, not curled up in our beds while hunger takes us. We have been hiding for far too long behind this magic bubble. No help is coming. For all we know, the other Holds have already fallen."
Axel ran his hand over the handle of his warhammer, "I'm all for dying on my feet, but I am far more partial to winning fights. Perhaps there is still a way."
Jaren raised an eyebrow, "What do you have in mind?"
"Well," he began, "Syd told me the other day that he noticed the top of a conversion tower poking out from the small valley just north of the city."
"The one near Redknoll glade? How can that elf even see the glade from the city walls?"
Axle shrugged, "He's an elf, and an exceptional one at that. I wouldn't be surprised if he saw it up close and personal. Syd has a bad habit of slipping out at night and returning covered in dirt and zombie gore."
Jaren's eye narrowed, "You expect me to believe that he can just casually go on a stroll through that?"
He pointed out over the fells, which Axel could only assume still existed beneath the rolling waves of dead creatures. Sydarion's cheerful voice spoke from behind, making them both jump.
"It's less of a stroll and more of a vengeful warpath. It doesn't do much to thin them out, but it helps me sleep."
Axle cleared his throat in an attempt to hide his surprise, "Syd, welcome back. Please tell me you have good news."
The elf's expressio
n darkened, "I wish I did. My team and I tried to get the distress message out, but all our birds were shot down and we barely made it back inside with our lives. Terina's hurt, one of those rune-beasts got to her. Binze is with her, but we can only do so much with the fever outbreak in the Forum District keeping the city healers busy."
Axel grit his teeth as anger stirred within him, "Can't those... Bureaucrats think of someone other than themselves for once?"
Sydarion shrugged, “But what’s this I hear about a plan to turn the tide of war?”
A fireball exploded against the shield, throwing its red light over the dwarf hero. His eyes glittered with determination.
“I’m not ready to give Anvilheim up to the Grey King. This city is still full of capable heroes. All we need is a plan.”
Suddenly, a bolt of pale energy ripped through the shield and struck one of the mages in the chest. She gasped as she crumpled to the ground. Her fragment of the shield shattered with her death. As her corpse rose from the ground, Sydarion placed a magic arrow through her head that turned her into ashes. Axle and Jaren peered out across the battlefield to where a giant shaman danced triumphantly, releasing more ethereal bolts that effortlessly pierced the shield and dropped the exhausted mages. Axle drew his hammer as the magical wall crumbled around him.
"Seems that the cat has tired of the mouse. Alright, Jaren, what is your call?"
The man climbed onto the battlements, axes already in hand, "We give chase to the cat."
Before Axel could react, Jaren flung himself over the wall and into the horde beyond. He watched in awe as Jaren broke his fall by digging his axes into an undead troll who roared as his spine split down the middle. The old warrior wasted no time hacking into the mass of creatures that fell upon him. Axle raised his warhammer.
"What are we waiting for? Everyone protect Jaren! Syd, can you kill that giant?"
"On it," he shouted as he leaped from the wall, firing a single arrow at the shaman. As soon as it struck the giant, Syd dissipated in a wisp of blue smoke, then reappeared on his target's shoulders, inches above where the arrow struck. The elf quickly placed three more bolts into the giant's neck before bounding away. He fired another arrow at Axel. It bounced off the stone and exploded into a cloud of blue smoke. Axel coughed as he pulled the dangling elf back onto the city walls.
