The Shadow Knight (A Shadow Knight Novel Book 1)

by Jason L. McWhirter

  “In Toolm’s name,” Kylin said nervously, her hands trembling as she leveled her crossbow at the creatures. Their dragon-like heads were covered in horns, and their gaping jaws were so stuffed with long teeth that they were forever open, saliva dripping freely as steam hissed from the cracks.

  “Demons,” Jonas said, his tone hard and ready for battle. “They can only be harmed by enchanted weapons.”

  Tyril looked at him nervously. “Are you serious?” The thought of his sword having no effect on the creatures was unnerving. He hated being powerless.

  Atticus drew his blade. “Jonas is right. Tyril, use this,” he said, tossing the weapon to the swordsman. Tyril caught it easily and leaned his against the rock. Then the druid nocked an arrow to his bow.

  Jonas had already done so, and holding the bow with one hand he drew one of his swords. “Bearit, take one of my swords. Your axe will do nothing.”

  Bearit dropped his axe and grabbed the blade. It was long and slender, and looked quite small in the logger’s big hand. “I don’t know how to use a sword.”

  “Then learn quickly,” Atticus snapped, all brevity gone.

  “Why aren’t they attacking us?” Tyril said, his voice strained.

  The demons were looking around the clearing, walking around the edge of the glade but moving quickly back to their location, sniffing the air with their big open nostrils. “They are trying to figure out what they are detecting,” Jonas said.

  “We have the element of surprise,” Atticus said. “I’m going to lower the shield, and at the same time I’m going to make this fire really bright. They can see in the dark, but we cannot. We’ll need the light. When I do so, leap away and attack the beasts with all you’ve got. Jonas and I will hit them both with our arrows. You two,” the druid said, looking at Bearit and Tyril, “will attack the other. Kylin stay back, your crossbow will only make the beast’s mad. Korum and Tulari will join where they think best.” Everyone nodded in response.

  Jonas looked at Bearit, and despite the logger’s firm stance, there was no mistaking his wide frightened eyes. The beasts were demons, and they exuded a strong sense of foreboding, one that would have a very shattering effect on anyone who was not trained to fight them. And Bearit certainly was not. Tyril didn’t look much better, and Kylin was nearly frozen with shock. Jonas reached out and touched Bearit’s shaking arm. “Calm yourself. Breathe deeply, and fight back the demon’s fear. You can do this.”

  “And watch out for their breath. I have a suspicion that they can breathe fire,” Atticus warned. “Ready?” He knew they weren’t, but they needed a countdown. Atticus closed his eyes and the others heard him whisper a few words, then without warning the fire exploded upward in a massive flame, and whether they wanted to or not, everyone was forced to leap into motion. The shielding was gone and the firelight exploded outward.

  Instantly the two hordlings crouched low, their red eyes zoning in on them as they could suddenly see their targets. Then they charged.

  Atticus ran to the right, his bow up and two arrows slammed into one of the creatures before it even made it three steps. The shafts, all enchanted by the Sanga, slammed into the demon. The beast roared but didn’t stop, its massive bulk charging Atticus, both hands, each the size of the druid’s head, reaching for him, long curved horn-like claws ready to rip into him.

  Jonas leapt atop a small boulder several paces away from the roaring fire, his arm flashing three times as he drew his black shafted arrows, nocking and firing, each as fast as a blink. Jonas willed his armor to glow, and instantly Shyann’s symbol burst with a bluish light. The charging beast shielded its eyes as Jonas’s arrows struck, just moments after Atticus’s, and again the demon roared, barely faltering.

  Despite the blinding light, the demon’s huge clawed hands were nearly upon the druid when massive roots shot from the ground, quickly wrapping around the demon’s ankles like powerful snakes, holding the beast in place. The demon roared and shook its huge scaly legs, trying to break free. Atticus shot the beast directly in its mouth, snapping its huge head back. But this time the demon changed tactics, and shooting its head forward, shot a cone of red fire from its gaping mouth, incinerating the arrow in the process. Atticus dove away, but the fire burned his side as it fried the grassy ground where he had been. Rolling, he came to his feet, searing pain shooting through his hip.

  Tyril moved to his left and nearly dropped his sword and ran when he saw the massive creature bearing down on him. He sensed Bearit was beside him, and knowing that gave him strength. The demon planted its feet firmly and swung a massive clawed hand towards them both. Tyril knew that if he tried to block it that it would simply crush him. So he angled his sword up with both hands and dove under the demon’s attack, slicing the magical sword through its fury forearm, narrowly avoiding the powerful limb. There was a flash of light and the druid’s blade bit deep into the creature’s flesh.

  Bearit was behind Tyril and jumped back just in time as the fist swung by him. Then, faster than the creature’s bulk belied, the demon brought both clawed fists together above its head, and stepping towards Bearit brought them both down to crush him in a powerful downward stroke. Bearit knew he was going to die, there was no way he could avoid the devastating attack, and he certainly couldn’t block it. But it never came as Tulari had leapt from the rock face and crashed into the demon’s face, knocking it off balance and causing it to stumble backwards. No normal weapon could harm the demon, and Korum’s claws would do little damage, but Tulari was no normal night wolf, she was a creature born of Shyann’s will, and that gave her abilities far beyond her breed. Her front claws dug into the demon’s shoulders as she tried to hang on, her snapping jaws ripping into the thing’s face and neck, her back claws raking across its belly, digging deep rivulets in its flesh. But the damage was momentary as the demon grabbed her heavy body with its three pronged hands, their long claws digging deep into her flesh, and with a powerful heave threw her into the night. Tulari howled in pain and landed hard, skidding sidelong across the grassy ground to crash into a nearby tree.

  Bearit pushed away the fear, realizing that Tulari had just saved him, and hoping to capitalize on that. As the demon stumbled backwards with Tulari ripping into it, the big logger ran forward and rammed Jonas’s sword into the distracted creature’s stomach. There were few stronger than him, and Jonas’s sword, blessed by Shyann herself, sank all the way to the hilt. The demon howled in pain. There was a flash of light and steam burst from the wound just as Tulari was thrown through the air. Bearit ripped the sword free and sliced it across the demon’s side as he dove away, knowing full well the speed and ferocity of the creature’s attacks and not wanting to be anywhere near the demon. And luckily he did as a huge leg swooshed through the air where he had been, barely missing him.

  Tyril was up and he swung his silver sword across the leg that had narrowly missed Bearit. The demon roared in pain again but did not stop, snapping its head forward and launching a cone of fire from its giant mouth. Tyril saw the fire coming, and was readying his body to jump out of the way, but he knew he wasn’t going to be fast enough. Just then Bearit smashed into him, knocking him away from the demon’s fire. But the flames licked across the logger’s legs as they both tumbled across the grassy ground.

  Atticus worked his bow with miraculous speed, and at point blank range as the beast tried to break away from his entangle spell. Two arrows struck the creature in the neck just as it snapped the roots holding it in place. Clawed fists swung toward the druid and the agile warrior dodged them easily, ducking and turning, nocking another arrow in the process, drawing and shooting as he spun under another attack. The arrow slammed into the demon’s chin so hard that it rocked its head back. This time it didn’t regroup so quickly, stumbling backwards the beast roared and fire shot from its mouth into the air as it futilely tried to rip the magical shaft from under its chin.

  Jonas glanced at the other creature and saw that Bearit and Tyril were in troubl
e. It looked like Atticus was faring better so he jumped off the rock, firing an arrow into the back of the demon that was now stepping towards the men, both of whom were tangled on the ground, smoke rising from the grass where it had been burned by the demon’s fire. The demon arched its back in agony as his blessed arrow hammered deep into its fury flesh. Growling in pain, the demon swung to meet the charge

  Jonas, Shyann’s mark still glowing from his chest plate, was moving fast and had quickly decided on his course of action. He had been working on a cognitive defense that he was eager to try, and now seemed to be the perfect opportunity. Striding towards the great beast, Jonas quickly focused on the energy around him. Drawing the particles in, he formed them into a translucent shield that was tethered to his bow arm, just like a normal military shield. He had practiced this many times with Allindrian, and had yet to use the tactic, his twin blades seeing him through his past conflicts.

  The benefit of the cognitive shield was that the swarming particles formed a wall of energy that redirected any power that struck it. Normally, if something as big and strong as the demon before him struck a metal shield, it would destroy it, breaking the arm holding it in the process, or worse yet, killing the wearer. But the cognitive shield, although it was difficult to maintain for long, acted no differently than if there was a stone wall between him and the attacker. He might feel a slight thud, but the energy of the attack would be dispersed across the particles and released harmlessly to the side. At least that was what he hoped.

  His body was a blur as he brought up his shield, stopping the beast’s closed fist as it swung from high up to crush him. The beast’s fiery eyes flared in confusion as its fist struck the shield and stopped it in its tracks. Without pausing, Jonas spun past the massive arm, ducking under it and slicing his magical blade across the beast’s side, opening a large gash. The creature stepped back, still trying vainly to shield its eyes from Shyann’s light and attack at the same time, swinging its other arm around. But Jonas agilely avoided it by ducking extremely low, and using the strength of his legs he launched up and rammed his sword into the demon’s exposed armpit. The blade sunk in deep and the demon’s roared in pain, stumbling back.

  Jonas was relentless, stepping forward and blocking a desperate attack by huge claws as the monster tried to distance itself from the dangerous warrior, all the while futilely trying to avoid the glare of Shyann’s light. His blade followed the block, the edge flaring blue as it sliced across the demon’s exposed belly. Finally succumbing to its wounds, the demon fell to its knees, and Jonas reversed his swing, the razor edge of his sword slicing deep across its muscled neck. Gurgling black blood, the demon swayed, its eyes flashing and turning black before it fell sidelong onto the grass.

  His adrenaline was roaring through his body, and he spun quickly to check on the other demon. Atticus was walking towards him, his face strained but his lips tight with the energy of battle. Korum was walking beside him. Atticus had kept the big cat out of the battle, knowing that its claws and teeth would do little damage. If it wasn’t necessary, he did not want to risk his longtime friend. “Well done,” he said as he approached Jonas. Jonas saw the body of the other demon lying on the ground behind him.

  “You too,” Jonas countered, letting Shyann’s light disappear, returning his chest plate to its normal plain appearance, and releasing the energy of the shield. His head hurt, but he would live. He hadn’t held the shield for long and soon the ache at the base of his skull would fade. Quickly, he turned to check on the others. Tyril was standing and helping Bearit do the same. Tulari was slowly ambling towards him, her side drenched in blood. Running to her, he put his hands on the side of her massive head. “Are you okay?”

  Hurt bad, she said, nudging his face, claws deep. Need rest.

  “Let me help her,” Atticus said as he knelt beside her, one hand touching her body while the other dug into the soft grass. Closing his eyes, the druid whispered a series of incoherent words, and within moments blue light grew around the hand that was touching her. Jonas could see the deep punctures on her side close and feel her demeanor change as the druid’s magic moved through her.

  Feel good…better…she said.

  “Thank you,” Jonas said sincerely.

  Atticus stood and ruffled the fur on her massive neck. “Of course. Now let us see to these two,” the druid said.

  “Your side is burnt,” Jonas stated, looking at Atticus, noticing the burn along his hip.

  “That is true,” Atticus replied. “I will look at it once I see to them.”

  By this time Kylin was next to Tyril helping Bearit stand. Jonas went to him to inspect his wounds. “Where are you hurt?” he asked.

  Bearit cringed in pain but stood tall with the help of Kylin and Tyril. “My legs were burnt.” Jonas looked down and was shocked at the damage. It was bad. The demon’s fire had disintegrated his leggings, exposing blackened flesh from the back of his thigh to just above his high boot.

  “He saved my life,” Tyril said. “That demon’s fire would’ve killed me.”

  “He will be fine,” Atticus said firmly, stepping before Bearit. “Sorry, but you need to lie back down. I want you as close to the earth as possible.”

  Bearit didn’t complain, but when he tried to bend his legs to lie down, he moaned in pain, the burn on the back of his legs cracking. Trying to speed up the process, he simply dropped to the ground, arching his back painfully and swearing through the agony. Once he gained control of the pain, he opened his eyes and looked up at them. “That really hurt.”

  “Burns are very painful,” Jonas said, kneeling beside him. He didn’t have to reach far into his memory to bring forth the terrible pain when his face had been burnt by Prince Nelstrom during Malbeck’s War, Kiln’s son who had been raised by King Gavinsteal of Finarth as his own flesh and blood. The young prince had been corrupted by the Forsworn, becoming something of great evil, a demon that had killed his adopted father in his sleep and had nearly killed Jonas. But Jonas had survived, killing the prince during their battle. But he nearly died in the fight, his face burnt and destroyed, a sword through his gut nearly killing him. Shyann had saved him that night, healing his physical wounds. But he would never forget the pain.

  Atticus knelt on the other side. He placed one hand on the thick grass and the other on Bearit’s chest. “Don’t worry, it will soon be just a memory.” Just as he did with Tulari, he closed his eyes and drew power from the earth. His hand lit up with blue light, and as it did, Bearit’s eyes grew wide with astonishment. Then his painful grimace slowly turned into one of contentment. “Feeling better?” Atticus asked as he withdrew his hand.

  Bearit slowly stood, looking behind him to inspect his legs. The skin was pink, no longer black and charred. “That was amazing. And the wound on my hip is healed as well. Thank you.”

  Atticus nodded. “The skin will be pink and tender for a day or two. But you will suffer no more pain.”

  Suddenly the light from the flaring fire began to slowly recede, shadows growing around them. “What’s happening to the fire?” Tyril asked.

  “The spell is wearing off,” Atticus answered. “Let’s add some wood and return to it. I don’t think we are in any further danger tonight.”

  “What about those demons?” Kylin said, indicating the two bodies that were now hid in darkness. Her expression was clear. She didn’t want to be anywhere near those things.

  “Too heavy to move,” Jonas answered. “Out of sight, out of mind. I agree with Atticus. We need some rest after that fight. Let’s come up with a plan and get some sleep. I’m afraid we have a lot to do in the morning.”

  Atticus reset his shielding and they talked a bit longer into the night. But the exertion of the fight finally got the best of them, and soon they were all sleeping next to the roaring flames.

  The morning came quickly; their restless dreams keeping them from a well needed sleep. They ate a cold meal of dried horsemeat, hard stale bread, and lots of water. They
were all eager to be on their way. Lanard was in danger, and they wanted to get there as soon as possible. That night they had worked out a plan, and once they repacked their supplies and slung their packs, they were well on their way.

  Atticus stepped towards Jonas. “I’ll see you soon,” he said, shaking his hand in the warrior’s grip.

  They had agreed that Atticus, who could turn into a bird, should leave on his own to warn the castle, and especially Prince Peron, who was now the last member of the Rothar royal family. After looking at the map, they reasoned they were a good four days from Lanard. Atticus would get there in a day.

  Jonas nodded, gripping the druid’s hand firmly. “We need a plan to kill this demon.”

  “I’m working on it,” Atticus said. “I’ll see you in four days.” He said his farewells to the others, and in a flash turned into a giant black raven, flying high and disappearing through the thick canopy of trees.

  Chapter Seven

  Kyron was helping Peron position the strange wood contraption near the far window facing the main door to his sleeping chambers. “What is this again?” his friend asked, clearly bewildered by it.

  “I’ll show you in a moment,” Peron said, turning the covered contraption towards the front door. The wood structure was about his height and maybe a pace wide. A gray piece of cloth covered it. Peron smiled and gripped the edge of the material. “You ready to see my greatest invention yet?”

  Kyron hurried him on. “Of course,” he said. “Now show me. I have to get going. I’m meeting with General Moore in less than an hour.”

  Peron was happy for his friend. Ever since his father had ordered the reserves in, business had picked up for Kyron and his father. They needed armor, weapons, and even clothing for the thousand or more reserves that were being brought in from the fields and farms. No one really knew what was happening, but King Rothar preferred to be safe rather than sorry, and before he left to Angar he had reinforced the army.