A Lich's Love (Death Knight Series Book 5)

by Michael Chatfield

  Rumbling thunder and smoke shook the ship.

  Even hundreds of meters away, the barrage sounded deep in Raye’s chest.

  Cannon balls smashed through the crystal lines, tearing gaps in the Chaotic beasts.

  They went off in powerful explosions, scouring the beach, leaving nothing of the enemy.

  The Second ship cut in firing its own barrage.

  The gods of destruction had revealed their might and the warships were their instruments.

  “Cutting in!” Captain Devra yelled, he grabbed the wheel using all his strength he turned it, the ship lurched as it changed its heading suddenly.

  “Fire!” The cannons were activated, glowing with power before the powder was ignited, sending the cannon ball across the sea and the beach, into the enemy’s teeth. The cannons shot backwards one after another, along the length of the ship, smoke covered and stained everything as the lower deck fired.

  Raye felt their raw power through the wooden decks of the ship. Smoke covered his sight; the powder burned his eyes as he watched the rain of cannonballs strike the crystal defenses. The first ship fired their reloaded cannons.

  In series the different ships fired, rolling thunder from their bow to stern as they altered the beaches landscape.

  The Drafeng shot out chaotic beams at the ships.

  Mages in the different casting nests fired out spells to interrupt the Drafeng’s attacks and create mana barriers to defend against those they couldn’t hit.

  The sky above the fleet bloomed with new suns to light the field of battle.

  The Second Fleet started to move, unfurling their sails. They formed up a line, a large space between their lead ship and the trailing ship from the First Fleet.

  There were four or five ship spaces between each ship as they unleashed rolling thunder and cannonballs upon the Drafeng defenses.

  “Signal the Second Fleet to use anti-personnel cannonballs,” Raye said.

  The signal officer changed the flags.

  “Second Fleet acknowledges,” the signal officer said.

  The First Fleet was in a straight line, running across the frontage of the enemy position. The Second Fleet turned and followed in their wake; their ships surged forward as they started to fire their cannons. The cannonballs struck the ground in front of the defenses. As they hit the ground, the enchanted cannonballs activated. Some exploded among the Drafeng. Others created illusions that would twist the enemy’s minds, making them think that friend was foe.

  The scene in front of the defenses was chaos.

  The first ship of the First Fleet turned to its port and circled behind the fleet, now with their portside cannons facing the enemy. They cut their sails; their enchanted ships increased their speed as they went against the wind.

  As they passed the gap between the second and third ships, their port cannons fired, raining down on the defenses.

  The second ship turned and fired behind the flagship and the fourth ship in the line.

  This was the rotating bombardment formation. It was impossible to carry out without the enchantments that allowed them to move their ships without their sails, and without their training.

  The Third Fleet unfurled their sails and followed the Second Fleet into battle.

  The three formations would make a large ovaloid in the water: one side would be firing with their starboard cannons as fast as possible, the other side would shoot between their allies with their port cannons. It nearly doubled the firepower that they were able to bear, and it allowed their cannons to rest between bombardments. The force that was closest to the shore could use their mages to defend the rest of the fleet and give the mages behind them time to recover.

  A cloud of black and gray covered the fleet and their enchantments could be seen in the dark clouds. Destruction rolled over the beaches as the chaotic beasts and Drafeng were killed.

  The Drafeng and the chaotic beasts underwent evolutions with the chaotic power that filled the beaches.

  “Guardian Thunderwing, permission to fire Guardian-blessed cannonballs?” Raye asked.

  “Permission? You have it. Let’s see what kind of fireworks it creates.” Thunderwing’s body shifted as the lightning within broke out and touched the cannons on the deck.

  “Send the signal!” he told the signal officer.

  The flags were hoisted and the Guardians who were seeded on different ships imbued their power into cannonballs and cannons.

  “Wait until you have a shot—put it right into the middle of the bastards!” the gunnery officer called out as he walked between the cannons.

  The cannons were run out, pointing at the shore. They passed another ship in the fleet.

  The ground rumbled and smoke filled the air as the cannonballs shot through the skies. They arced over the waters and struck among the Drafeng forces.

  The cannonballs exploded into purple flames that seemed to have met dwarven powder. They covered the Drafeng lines in flames, converting the chaotic power of the Drafeng back into the power of Dena. Purple cannonballs landed among the wreckage of the defenses.

  The mana density climbed up swiftly and a mana storm started to form. Blue lightning crackled across the beach, turning sand into glass and causing the black stone to explode as the waves crashing upon the shores were stirred up.

  Enchanted cannonballs landed, their power increased by two or three times by the ambient mana in the area.

  Chaotic beasts were blasted apart and the crystal walls were shattered. The crystal stopped glowing as it dropped to the ground and crystal dust was thrown up.

  The Drafeng’s bodies contorted as they started to fire out more blasts.

  “There are more Drafeng coming,” a quiet mage off to the side said. She was looking into a crystal ball that was rooted to the deck.

  “Reinforcements? How many? How long until they arrive?” Raye asked, moving with the roll of the waves and the shaking of the cannons.

  “Nearly twice the number of Drafeng; three times the chaotic beasts. They come from where I can’t see,” the mage said.

  “Damn chaotic power blocking us,” Thunderwing complained.

  “How long?”

  “They will arrive within a half day,” the mage said.

  “Giving them all night to reinforce and repair,” Raye said as he did some mental calculations. “Show me.” Raye stepped up to the crystal ball.

  The mage grabbed onto Raye’s shoulder and held the crystal ball.

  Raye felt he had left his body as he looked over the battlefield from the heavens. The Drafeng were being forced back. Their defenses had been torn apart; their chaotic beasts lay broken on the shore. With the thin chaotic power on the ground, he could see through it with greater clarity.

  Multiple Drafeng lay dead on the black sand. There were a few hundred remaining.

  Either we strike out, establish the beachhead and then we have a surprise waiting for the Drafeng when they reach us, or we wait. If we wait, then tomorrow we will need to do the same thing—ground down their people. If they move their forces back, have more commanders or work together, then they can decisively engage our forces. We don’t have unlimited ammunition; we have the army belowdecks who are taking up much of our supply room. We will only get supplies in two days.

  He moved across the sky and looked at the rotating formation and then over the lands. The mage guided him to the reinforcements that were coming.

  They were covered in a haze of chaotic power, making it hard to get an understanding of their numbers. Looking at the density and the size of the chaotic obstruction, the mage had been able to guess the forces.

  Raye pulled his consciousness back. He closed his eyes, working to balance himself and his head, which were at odds with each other.

  “Second Fleet is to break off and head toward the shore. Second Army will lead the attack. First Fleet will move to Second Fleet’s port side to offer assistance and will bombard the Drafeng defenses. Third Fleet will be to Second Fleet’s starb
oard side. Once the First Army has made it to shore, then Second Fleet will move away and Third Fleet will deposit the First Army. Contact Generals Axion and Mora to get their agreement, or see if they want to adjust the plan,” Raye said to the signal officer.

  They started to run the flags and pass the orders.

  The left side of the bay was rocky and would be hard to land troops. First Fleet could moor there and fire into the defenses, covering the army as they deployed to the right side. Once formed up, they could send a signal, stopping the First Fleet from firing as they rushed forward to take the defenses.

  “The fleets and the armies agree to the plan,” the signal officer said.

  “Carry it out.” Raye blinked. His stomach was still calming itself as he walked to the side of the ship.

  The Third Fleet didn’t turn fully around as it was their turn to rotate to the front. Their enchantments blazed to life as they rushed inland.

  The First Fleet turned. Their sails dropped down as they caught the crosswind and rushed after the Third Fleet, heading to their far port side.

  As First Fleet cut on an angle, their starboard cannons rumbled, continuing to fire on the defenses. As they crossed, the Second Fleet had formed up into a diamond formation. Inside the formation and to the rear, they had dragged out boats and were hoisting them over the sides.

  The Third Fleet pulled out boats on their starboard side as the army that had been belowdecks now moved out of the holds and got onto their boats.

  The Second Fleet pushed forward at a slower pace.

  “Offset the boat guns! Continuous fire!” Raye called out.

  “Odds and evens!” the gunnery officer called out. The odd-numbered guns would fire, then the even, the two of them alternating so that the Drafeng were under pressure the entire time.

  The Second Fleet reached the shallows, their mages defending against Drafeng attacks that were focused on them. Mages from the First and Third Fleet targeted the Drafeng with long-range spells.

  Boats descended from the Second Fleet. Enchantments flared to life as they charged out across the waters, dodging between their mother ships, and spread out.

  They bounced up and down on the waves. The men and women aboard held on for dear life, their eyes focused on the black beach ahead of them.

  Drafeng fired out, striking boats and killing some. The boats continued on doggedly, weathering the increasing incoming attacks.

  The mages on the landing craft and ships tried to defend them as much as possible. Aboard their decks, new boats were being readied to move the remaining troops.

  The Third Fleet’s waters were filled with action as the boats pushed forward.

  Raye saw as landing boats were lost from the Second Fleet before they reached the shore. The boats still made it to the shoreline. The army jumped off their boats and moved onto the shore.

  Mages created barriers and they advanced up the shore. Enchanted barriers were placed down, the army pushing forward behind them.

  As soon as their cargo was out, the landing craft pilots pulled back from the shore, turned around, and headed back for the main ships to pick up their next group. The Third Fleet’s boats holding the First Army reached the shore and pushed along the right flank of the Second Army, creating a line across the shore: First Army on the left, Second Army on the right.

  More ships crossed the waters as the armies advanced.

  Raye and all of the gunnery officers and captains were watching their shots as they did their best to suppress the enemy while making sure that their allies weren’t in their line of fire.

  “Friendlies moving through! Hold your fire!” the gunnery officer called out. The cannons of the First Fleet started to go silent as the army increased the speed of their advance, pushing into where the cannons had been firing just a few seconds before.

  The Drafeng started to poke their heads out of their defenses and fire down on the army, hitting the mana barriers that protected the landing zone and created a path up the shore.

  People were still hit; lady luck plays no favorites on a beachhead.

  Raye turned to the mage. She held his shoulder again and he saw over the battlefield.

  The army advanced up the shore, taking losses, but they worked like a well-coordinated machine. The two armies had broken up the Drafeng defenses and were pushing along its length, finding the weaknesses and pinning down its strengths with spells and ranged attacks.

  The wall was breached in multiple locations.

  Reinforcements were pushed up to the front. They gathered their strength near the weakest breaches. Guardians and mages used their blessings on the force, increasing their power.

  They charged up through the black sand and rock, staining their wet clothes and armors. They pushed forward through the breaches; the buffed and armored tanks took on the attacks as the ranged attackers used them as cover and attacked the Drafeng.

  There weren’t many left as they stopped firing on the beaches and had to focus their attacks on those closest to them. A few started to transform into their close battle forms. Their limbs changed into multiple weapons. They charged forward, leaping over their broken comrades and the shattered walls. Attacks hit them, killing many, but a few got close to the breachers. They were met with shields and spears as they fought on.

  One Drafeng detonated his remaining power, killing dozens close to him.

  Guardians fought at the front, using their power to stop the Drafeng from detonating themselves.

  More of the army circled around and pushed through other breaches, now unopposed on the beach.

  They circled around, as the Drafeng were cut down by the First and Second Army’s combined efforts.

  Healers were called up as everything settled down. The army pushed through the defenses, killing everything Drafeng.

  Guardians used their purple flames; a haze of mana surrounded the forces on the beach. Engineers and mages got to work. The landing craft dropped off the remaining soldiers and started to drop off war supplies.

  Sand and stone melded together, creating walls that rose from the ground. A new wall was formed, facing inland. It was wide and simple. As more mages added in their efforts, it started to grow in complexity.

  “Start moving all of our supplies to the beach. Once the Second Fleet has finished deploying their supplies, they’re to drop off half of their cannons and three-quarters of their remaining ammunition. They will intercept the supply fleet, cross loading supplies and bringing them back here with all the speed they can muster,” Raye ordered.

  The signals were hoisted as First Fleet started to get to work. Boxes were pulled out from belowdecks. With some magic, the boxes unfurled into sections; these sections fused together to create landing crafts. They were loaded up and lowered into the water, carrying supplies to the new camp.

  Cannons and ammunition were quickly brought up and placed upon the new defenses. Enchantments were added to the walls and three Guardian Flames were started on the shoreline. A second base was created on the water’s edge. The walls here were much taller and docks of stone were raised out of the water to speed up the process of loading and unloading the boats moving among the fleets.

  They would also be the escape route if the force needed to retreat.

  The main camp’s walls were made from the stone, sand, and crystals that were piled on. It was gray and black, with cannons inside the five larger rounded towers and along the straight wall that connected them. First Army held the left and Second Army held the right, with a third of their forces in the supply camp, moving items and ready to support them if they needed reinforcements in the fighting.

  As the light started to dim and lights appeared on the walls, Raye looked in the distance, remembering the thick cloud of chaotic power that rushed toward them.

  Chapter: A Different Home

  Aila had been riding hard for two, nearly three days. She had to bypass several normal routes that had been destroyed. She found an entrance into the underground. Fa
miliar with the old tunnels, she was able to find a path through the maze.

  A wall covered in ancient carvings stood in front of her.

  Aila spoke out in the ancient Elvish tongue. Power flowed through the carvings. With a groan, an line split the flawless wall, light flooded out.

  Glowing plants made it seem like a warm summer day as water fell in a circle from above, walkways passed through the openings in the waterway. A pillar with different buildings carved into it, rested in the middle of the waterfall.

  It has been so long since I returned home. I hope that not too much has changed. She felt her heart twisting at the thought.

  She nudged Ryan forwards, Rachel trailing behind.

  The doorway started to close behind her. As two elves walked out of the shadows with their bows raised.

  “State your name and purpose.”

  “Aila Wranoris.” She removed her ice-encrusted hood and scarf that was starting to melt, revealing her face.

  The two lowered their bows, looking to one another.

  “Is something wrong?” Aila asked. Ever since she had become a Guardian, her senses had been heightened and her gut instincts were stronger than ever.

  “You must have come for the trial,” the female guard said.

  “Trial?”

  “Your father is on trial for poisoning your mother and attempting to kill her,” the male guard said.

  “What?” Aila’s blood ran cold. “That can’t be true.”

  “He admitted it himself.” The male guard’s eyes were cold, filled with disdain as he looked upon her.

  “Where are they now?”

  “Your mother is with the healers and your father is set to face his execution shortly,” the woman said.

  “How soon?” Aila asked.

  “Midday,” the woman said.

  Aila looked to the light coming through the waterfall above. “Come on, Ryan,” Aila said.

  Ryan let out a grunt and ran forward. Rachel followed behind as they ran through the streets.

  They dashed past the artfully carved homes and along the streets. Ryan’s claws cut into the stones as he turned toward a bridge. He let out a snort as he ran onto the bridge. It dropped off into the glowing waters below. Ahead of them, there was a break in the waterfall. Inside, there was what looked like a massive stalagmite. It had been carved out and was covered in glowing plants that flowed down its sides. The top had been leveled off, creating an area nearly a kilometer across, where a city had sprouted out from. A small stream of water fell from above into a building that surrounded it.