by RG Long
Before the king even a moment to spare, Commander Sefen had drawn his sword and driven it through the dwarf’s armor, right through his stomach.
“Farewell, oh Fra, King of Taystone.”
Commander Sefen drew out his blade and shoved the dwarf to the ground. He held his sword high above his head so the remaining dwarves could see.
“Your king is dead!” he yelled. “You have no leader. Follow me, or be obliterated. Dwarves of Taystone. Swear loyalty to me, Commander Sefen of the Blackthorns, and fight for one who would lead you to victory, and not defeat!”
Cyna looked out and saw some of the dwarves looking distrustful at one another. Their king was dead; his broken body lay before Sefen. She saw them looking between each other with questions in their eyes. Would they seek revenge? Would they die to the last dwarf in defending their king’s honor? Or would they serve another?
One stood and put a hammer to his chest.
“I will serve Commander Sefen of the Blackthorns. Leader of the army of Taystone.”
One by one, the dwarves rose and saluted in such a manner.
Some stayed sitting, defiance in their eyes.
“Cyna,” Commander Stefan sad. “Mark those who are now seated in my presence.”
She looked out at the two dozen or so dwarves who had not stirred. She knew what the order would be even before he spoke it.
Commander Sefen handed her his own sword.
“Show them the bite of death that claimed their king.”
Dutifully, Cyna obeyed.
42: Precautions
Ealrin stood at the wheel of the Sky Dart, marveling at how smoothly it was flying. It had been such a long time since he had flown the ship that he didn’t realize that all of the other ships in Rerial had been much smoother than his own. Now that he was able to get behind the wheel after Jill had worked some of her mechanical magic down below, he was pleased to find that his ship sailed as smoothly as it ever had, if not more so.
That was the only thing that was taking away the concern within his heart.
He still felt uneasy about their company chasing down the man in the tower. They knew so little about him; only that he was worshiped by the people of Darc and considered to be a king by the Council that had condemned them to prison.
When they confronted him, what would happen?
He didn’t know.
He steered the ship east as they sailed through the sky further away from Perin, the city they had come from. Their course was set for Larin, the capital of Darc in the far reaches of Redact.
The suns were setting, and a cool spring breeze seemed to be propelling them forward. It was calm. Ealrin felt that perhaps it was unnaturally so.
“You look like you got hit over the head,” a voice said from behind him.
Ealrin turned to see Elise standing beside him with her arms crossed. He didn’t know how long she had been there. His musing had taken up all of his thoughts. He turned his attention back eastward.
“I feel like I’ve been hit over the head,” he admitted.
“That would explain why you’ve gotten uglier,” she said as she touched his face. The ship wavered a bit, and he quickly did his best to correct it gently.
“Watch it down there, flyboy!” Silverwolf called from above. Ealrin looked up to see her in the crow’s nest. Her white hair was flying behind her in a braid as she glared down at him.
“If I die by falling, I will curse your name the whole way down.”
Ealrin ignored her, though he smiled a bit to himself.
“You asked me if I knew I was doing the right thing,” he said. “I’m honestly still not sure.”
Elise stepped forward and grabbed onto the railing in front of them. She looked out over the landscape in the same way that Ealrin was.
“It’s hard when they're so many options out in front of you. “
“What I want to know is how we can go on from this point?” Ealrin asked.
“What do you mean?” Elise replied. Ealrin let out a deep sigh. “Peace in this world. That’s what we have been searching for, what we have been attempting to accomplish ever since we left Ruyn. The problem is, we never find it. We only get some small semblance of respite every so often. Not real peace.”
He shook his head.
“It feels like we’re just spinning our wheels. Like gears inside of the airship. What if the only thing we’re accomplishing is giving people a year or two of peace before some other conflict tears at their nation? Is that worth even doing?”
Elise was quiet for a time. Ealrin knew that she was thinking. What have been the reason for the coup? Was the rebellion really just a chance to change power, or was it an attempt to find peace?
“I don’t know of any gears in an airship that turn for no reason,” she said after a long pause.
“Correct. Many people can die in a year,” Holve said as he came close to them.
Ealrin turned around and saw the old man holding a spear and looking out ahead.
“And a lot of people can thrive in a year as well. If all we can do is give people a year of peace, there’s definitely a part that’s worth it.”
Ealrin sighed.
There was a part of him that agreed. A part of him that knew that peace was worth it no matter the cost. There was a part of him that agreed with that sentiment. However...
“We’ve been fighting for peace.”
Even saying it sounded odd. It was a strange dichotomy inside of him. One part of him desired peace more than anything else. The other part knew that to attain peace; sometimes, it meant that there must be an element of war. Why though? Why was it necessary to fight in order to stop fighting?
Ealrin was conflicted.
“There it is,” Holve said as the airship turned around a mountain. Ealrin could see a city laid out before them. And above that city, halfway up the mountain, there was a large tower of stone.
“If this man is who I think it is,” Holve said. “He is more dangerous than anything we have faced this far.”
“Nothing can be worse than that terrible Rayg,” Serenity said as she came up beside them with Alma at her side.
“It is possible if there are things out there darker than the demons,” Holve said with a flat tone.
That revelation did not bode well with Ealrin. What was worse than demons?
As he began to bring the ship lower to the ground, he began to wonder if they had made the right decision in coming here. He landed the airship from what he guessed might be an hour’s walk to the city. What type of people they would find there, he did not know.
Everyone came onto the deck as Holve addressed them.
“If we thought we were unwelcome in Perin, I think we will find that by comparison we were much more warmly received than we might be in Lerin. Take what supplies we need with us. Come prepared. Weapons, magic, whatever you have.”
“You’re setting this up to be kind of dangerous, us going into the city, you know,” Trotta said with her arms folded.
“I told Ealrin, and I will say the same to you all. If who is up in the tower is who I think it is, they are more vial than the demons and more dangerous than Rayg. Be cautious.”
Somber nods followed this statement as Ealrin tugged at Edgar by his side. The sword gave a frosty feeling to his hand.
“Galp, you should stay behind. You’re not strong enough yet for this. Someone willing to stay with him in mind the ship?”
Jill and Jaxon both nodded.
“No reason for us to come. We’ll keep an eye on things and check on the ship.”
Holve nodded his agreement as he looked back over the group. Ealrin saw that they had already gathered most of what they needed. All that was required now was to head over the side of the ship and make their way into the city.
“This might be the most difficult battle we have faced thus far,” Holve said. “Stick to the trees, so we stay out of sight until the very last possible moment.”
With those
encouraging words, they began to disembark we are ship.
43: Entrance
As a group, they made their way around the city. The forest that surrounded the area gave them small cover, even up to the wall of Lerin. Blume couldn’t help but feel an uneasy calm seemed to cover the area. There were hardly any sounds coming from the city. The suns had only just set and yet there were no sounds of people from within the walls.
It was an eerie quiet.
“Glad to see you finally put those books down, Miss Blume,” Jurrin said as they traversed the rocky terrain around the walls. “I didn’t think you would ever come up for breath after Miss Teresa gave you that new book.”
“Honestly it’s been rather hard to understand,” Blume said.
The book Teresa had retrieved was what she had hoped it would be. As she went through the book, she was able to check each of runes from her newly found treasure, and then compare them to both the ones they found on Ladis and the one that Jurgon had.
Some of the runes matched exactly to Jurgon’s book. Others, she had to look up from the book from Ladis.
“Do you remember how the theocracy worshipped a god named Deccolas?” Blume asked.
Jurrin shook his head and shivered.
“I don’t think that’s something I’m going to forget, Miss Blume. Not easily,” he said.
“I think the book from Ladis talks about who Deccolas was. It looks like he’s even mentioned in Jurgon’s book. But he’s not a god. He’s just a man. Well, not exactly. More than a man.”
The group was making their way around the wall of the city, staying far enough away to retreat back into the trees if they neede, but close enough to where they could attempt to climb over if some threat came from the forest. Blume found herself checking both directions often.
Jurrin scratched his head.
“I’m not sure I understand you, Miss Blume,” he said.
“I’m having a hard time understanding it too,” Blume admitted. “It sounds like there’s another race. One that lives longer than elves and possesses a better understanding of Rimstone than the dwarves.”
“The sculpture of the man from the tower of magic? He’s in there too. Fi-Dash. From what I can understand, it sounds like they sailed from a faraway place and settled on Galin. I can’t tell where the faraway place was. Only that there were demons there too. Maybe Irradan? It talks of being a seat of ancient magic, and that sounds right.”
“Another race? On Gilia? I thought surely we had encountered them all,” Jurrin said.
“So did I,” Blume replied. “But I think there aren’t as many of them as are there are humans and elves. Not even as many of them as there are halflings. At least not anymore. There might’ve been more at one time, but There was some type of rebellion and a war with the demons. That’s all I can understand right now.”
“Do you think we’ll ever stop running into mysteries, Miss Blume?” Jurrin asked.
“I doubt it,” Blume said. “As big as The world is, there’s always going to be another mystery. Something we don’t understand. It might take a whole lifetime for us to figure it out. And maybe not even then.”
“The elves haven’t solved all the mysteries of the world,” Serinde said. “Think of you Irradan. It’s an ancient elven empire, and even they were blind to some things. Like how the demons were not something to be worshiped, it’s something to be fought and destroyed.”
“If such a reality is possible,” Holve said. “We’re coming to the base of the tower. Everyone prepare yourselves. I don’t know what we will face.”
The trees had become sparser as they made their way around the city walls. A part of them still lingered just as they reached the tower. A road led from the city to the tower, but it looked to be in disrepair. Blume thought that was odd. If the people worshiped the man in the tower as a god, why would they not keep his road well maintained?
Maybe they feared to get close.
It certainly appeared like they were the first group to find their way to the tower any time in recent memory. The road was covered in dirt without a single footprint to be seen.
“Bah,” Gorplin said. “Why didn’t we just buy the airship right up to the top part of the tower and knock on the window.”
“Because I want us to survive to see the morning,” Holve answered. “Quietly now.”
Blume almost expected them all to walk into the front door the way Holve was walking. He was making his way up the path, but not alongside the road. Rather, they walked under the trees beside it. She expected him to turn towards the door at any moment. Then she saw the window to the left of the entrance.
“Jurrin, peek in and see if you see anyone home,” Holve instructed.
Urt held the halfling up so that he could see through the window.
“So far as I can tell, it’s empty in there Mister Holve. No guards or anything.”
“I’m not surprised,” he replied.
“You’re not surprised there aren’t any guards?” Silverwolf asked. “You’re not making any sense old-timer.”
Holve ignored her.
“Blume?” he asked. “Is there any chance you can make us a very quiet doorway?”
Blume nodded, grabbed her amulet, and touched the wall with her hand. She began to mutter her words of speaking, expecting the stone to melt away and form a door for them to walk through, as she intended.
Then a green, blue spark emanated from her fingertips, and she recoiled as pain shot through her fingers. She pulled back her hand and shook it in the air.
“Ouch!” she exclaimed. “What was that!?”
Holve sighed.
“Something I was afraid of,” he said. “I don’t think rimstone will work inside these walls or on them. Which means...”
He looked over at Alma, who swallowed and nodded.
“Quietly,” Holve reminded her.
Blume was still nursing her hand as she looked at the younger girl. She was a bit upset that Holve hadn’t said anything about there being magical defenses. What if she had been hurt worse? And now Alma was going to be able to get them inside? Blume had always been the one who could use magic. She didn’t appreciate her skills being undercut.
Alma closed her eyes and concentrated. Her hands were replaced with long blades of red energy. Everyone took a step back, including Blume who watched Alma closely. When the girl opened her eyes again, they burned red. Slowly and cautiously, she inserted her blades into the stone. It melted through it.
Using careful strokes, Alma cut a large swath of stone away from the wall and ran her arms in a zigzag pattern through them, chopping up the remaining walls into rubble and dust.
It wasn’t long before there was a hole large enough for them to stoop down and crawl through in order to gain entrance to the castle tower.
“I’d hope for something we could hide after we entered,” Holve said. “But this will do.”
Blume saw him take his spear from around his back and hold it tightly in his hands as he crouched down to enter the hole. A cold, odd-smelling wind came at them from within the tower. Blume thought it smelled like a cave they had been in before. She grabbed her dagger, letting go of her amulet that apparently would not work within the walls of the structure.
“Weapons drawn and ready,” Holve said. “Be prepared for anything.”
44: Fear and Gates
Only one more pitiful nation stood in his way. Severn. Darc was well within the grasp of the Blackthorns. LeGrove was a little more than a nation of a few small towers left to ruin. After he dealt with the defenses of Severn, the elven towers would fall. Then he would destroy whatever parts of Redact were left before he sought out new frontiers of dominate.
The speakers he had with him were weary. They had used much of their energy and the assault on Poral and in ensuring that the airships arrived in the southern part of the continent with all of their troops.
No worries.
The last few victories Sefen had handed the Blackthorn�
��s almost seemed hollow. There had been no sacrifice on the part of his army — no real fight. No real blood spilled.
This would be a chance to keep his dreams fresh. The defenders were already weary from a siege with the dwarves. According to one of the soldiers, they had already been under attack for several days.
How much longer could the defenders hold against reinforcements?
“What are your orders, commander?” one of his captains asked him.
“Prepare the ballista’s,” he said. “Fire them from the airships. Show them the might of what they are dealing with. Then after a round of that, we assault the gate.”
In moments, the large crossbows mounted on the ships began to fire at the central gate of Severn. Though it was large and formidable, it shook with the impact of the barrage.
Sefan was sure it was magically reinforced. They would test the boundaries of that magic today.
“Fire again!” he commanded. The balistas were reloaded, and another barrage of crossbow fire was sent towards the gates. He could feel the reverberations as the enhanced bolts exploded against the door. Ripples of magic force shook the gate again.
He knew they could easily just descend on this city in their airships. He knew they could send out the griffin whenever they wanted.
But Commander Sefen thirsted for blood. He wanted to spill blood with his own hands, not watch the devastation from afar. They would storm the gates of Severn like battles of old. And he would show them why they must fear his name.
45: Two Ways
Teresa looked warily down the hall as they continued to climb the tower. Each time they came to a corridor, they inspected it for guards or soldiers or sentries.
Over and over again, they found none. Teresa was beginning to become more concerned with the lack of guards. She would have preferred they needed to fight guards on every floor.
“What type of man builds a tower so vast but leaves it empty? I haven’t seen evidence of anyone living here yet,” she asked.
