Chapter Twenty Eight

______________________

 

 

 

Shortly after leaving Baerustin, Kerith-Ayxt received word of the destruction wrought at the School. His mind at first was unable to come to grips with what the mage who brought him word was actually telling him. When the mage finished relating the tale, all the other mages who were traveling with the High Lord Magus stood in stunned silence.

Loss of the library? Unthinkable!

Twice he had the mage restate the message until the facts finally sank in. Many of the mages with him thought he would erupt in a fit of rage, but all he felt was unimaginable loss. The library had held the works of some of history’s greatest minds. Leaps in the workings of magic that propelled generations onward to greater understanding are now lost.

Despite the edict given by Lord Cytok, he sent all but a score of his mages back to the school with a most insurmountable task. To write down their knowledge before it too becomes lost. Even with that, it may take centuries before the School is once again able to train the caliber of mages they have now.

Finally, anger begins to set in. He’s not sure how, but this has to be the work of that rogue mage who has caused the Empire such troubles the last year. Even from beneath the sands at Baerustin, still he is able to accomplish such destruction.

His anger requires an outlet, someone upon whom he can vent the anger and sorrow that seeks to consume him. The mage may lie dead beneath Baerustin, but he can seek vengeance on those who traveled with him. Black Hawk and those who ride with him shall know the wrath of the High Lord Magus.

Maintaining a harsh pace, he finally comes to within a day of Black Hawk’s forces. His rage, which once was a white hot sun demanding action, has now calmed into a calculating anger. One doesn’t become the High Lord Magus by allowing one’s emotions to get the better of them.

To the north he locates by magical means a force of soldiers heading to the river in an attempt to cut off Black Hawk’s retreat from the Empire. Keeping a steady pace, he maintains the gap between his mages and the Death Hawk. He plans to keep this pace until he can hit him at the same time as the other attacking force.

When the bridge blew and the army was forced to proceed further north to find a bridge to cross the river, his rage almost got the better of him once more. But logic won out and he continued as he had been and simply kept pace with Black Hawk.

Finally, once the army made it across to the eastern shore, he knew it was time. Quickening his pace, he moved to close the gap for the attack.

 

Their horses on the verge of collapsing, James and Jiron see the cloud of dust that hangs over the battlefield. Too late to join their comrades before the onslaught, they arrive shortly after it’s begun.

From the ranks of the defenders, a flight of crossbow bolts is launched through the air and lands with devastating effect among the Empire’s charging cavalry. They see Illan marshalling his forces and repulsing the initial attack of the enemy. The recently freed crossbowmen send another volley toward the Empire’s cavalry and more riders fall.

The bulk of Black Hawk’s Raiders face off against the foot and cavalry to the north. On their southern flank, the Hand of Asran work to counter the magical attacks from mages. James’ skin crawls from the amount of magic being used down there. When before he sensed magic it was a mere tingling or prickling, this time it’s like bugs crawling over and under his skin. A light flares brilliantly followed by the roar of an explosion a moment later.

“The Hand is holding its own,” observes Jiron. The flash of a startling white light tells them Miko is there with them.

Illan’s force is completely surrounded except on the side where the mages are hammering away at the Hand. James removes a piece of rope and secures himself to the saddle. Scanning the battlefield quickly, he finds what he’s looking for then turns to Jiron and says, “Follow me.” Kicking his already tired horse, he races across the desert.

Rather than riding toward the mages like Jiron thought he was going to do, James angles toward the rear of the enemy soldier’s line. They’re almost upon them before the enemy even realizes it. Shields spring to life as James encases them both in protective barriers.

Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!

Explosions rip through the ranks of enemy soldiers, clearing a path for the charging steeds.

Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!

Dozens of men and horses are thrown into the air as the ground erupts beneath them. Crumph! Again and again, James unleashes the power of magic to clear a path to the beleaguered men in the center.

“James!” Scar calls out after the first explosion.

“It’s Jiron!” cries Stig as his mace pulps the soldier’s face that he’s locked in combat with. Using his shield, he pushes another man aside as he strikes out at yet a third, crushing the man’s shoulder with a thunderous blow.

Crumph! Crumph!

Suddenly, Jiron’s horse collapses and he’s thrown free. The shield surrounding him winks out as he lands amidst enemy soldiers. He comes to his feet quickly with knives at the ready and begins laying into them with amazing speed. As packed in as the enemy soldiers are, their own numbers hamper their ability to use their swords. Knives flash and men fall before they’re able to defend themselves.

Oblivious to Jiron’s predicament, James continues on toward their line. Crumph! All of a sudden, the way is clear to the defenders within the ring of attackers. Kicking his horse, he races for the opening. Jorry and Uther are there and stand aside as he jumps over the ring of dead before them.

“James!” they cry as he lands among them.

“To Jiron!” they cry once James is past and the fighters from The Ranch wade into the enemy in an attempt to come to his aid.

Off to his right he sees Delia and the other slingers loosing slugs as fast as they can. Next to them, Hedry and his archers target the enemy crossbowmen that stand further back. Many within the defender’s circle lie dead with bolts protruding from their bodies.

“Glad you could make it,” Illan shouts as he comes toward him. All of a sudden there’s solid bang as a crossbow bolt strikes Illan’s helm. Leaving a dent, it gets deflected away. Several other fresh dents show upon his helm as well.

“Didn’t want to miss the fun,” he says. Glancing back, he sees Scar and Potbelly reaching Jiron’s side. Scar’s double swords take the enemy out as Potbelly rushes through the opening. Using his knife to deflect a sword’s thrust, he follows through with his sword and drives it to the hilt in the soldier’s chest. Side by side with Jiron, they begin to fall back to their line.

Jerking his thumb to where the Hand is battling the mages, Illan says, “They really need you.”

“On the way.” Untying himself from the saddle, he dismounts quickly and works his way through the defenders to where the Hand and Miko are battling the mages. One of the brothers lies unmoving on the ground, Brother Willim and the other three face the mages with green glows surrounding them.

As fast as green shoots begin to leave the earth, a mage burns them with fire. Bugs appear and are quickly destroyed. Another brother cries out as his chest cracks open. Falling to the ground he soon lies still.

James runs forward, his shield shimmering around him. Summoning the magic, he lashes out…

 

Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!

 

…but has little effect other than throwing dirt in the air to create a smokescreen to obscure their vision. The mages themselves remain untouched.

He comes to a stop between Brother Willim and Miko. With Star raised high and shining brilliantly, Miko turns to him. “Knew you would come,” he says.

“We can’t hold them much longer,” says Brother Willim as he throws another seed in the air. Moving forward rapidly, it grows into a ball of tangled vines and lands near the leading edge of mages. The vines move rapidly upon the ground and entangle the feet of two of them. Yanking them to the ground, the vines begin to squeeze and tighten, constricting like a giant snake.

Then another mage comes to their rescue and the vines literally explode off of the two trapped men.

“I’ve already lost two brothers,” Brother Willim states. “You’re the Gardener, do something.”

Gardener?

Turning back to the mages, he lets the magic surge forth and the ground begins to rumble. Suddenly, the earth cracks open but then slams shut again as opposing magic works against him.

A cloud of birds swoops down from the sky toward the mages. Bolts of energy fly from the assembled mages and begin taking them out before they can close. Explosions of fire light up the sky as whole groups of birds are incinerated in massive fireballs.

James reaches to the clouds to pull them in but magic again works against him and his effort goes to naught. The dust from when the ground exploded is beginning to settle and he looks across to see one of the mages, an older one, staring at him. It almost seems as if time pauses as the two stare at each other. Then the mage raises his hand and the onslaught begins.

 

When the ground erupted, Kerith-Ayxt felt it was slightly different than the magic of those he faced when the attack first began. Then when he stared across the battlefield and saw the mage he couldn’t believe his eyes. Never has anyone succeeded in escaping Baerustin.

It must have been he who had attempted to crack open the earth beneath them and to summon a storm. The High Lord Magus had easily countered such basic magics. He is amazed at the lack of finesse this mage has in what he tries to accomplish.

Now to finish it. Raising his hands above his head, he summons the magic. And with the knowledge of centuries of mages behind it, lets it loose.

 

The tingling sensation flares worse than ever as the mage raises his hands. Pouring more of his reserve power into the barrier, he extends it to encompass Miko and the rest of the Hand. When the full force of the mage’s magic strikes the barrier, James is literally knocked backward a step and the shield collapses. Reinstating the shield again, his mind boggles at the amount of magic that was just used against him.

Miko and the Hand continue to counter what the rest of the mages are throwing at them; fireballs, lightning, and many other types of destructive magic. All they’re able to do is simply keep them at bay without any opportunity of using offensive magic of their own.

Again the mage sends a wave of magic toward the barrier. A blinding light flares when it connects and James is momentarily blinded as the barrier again falls. His nerve endings tingle and he staggers back again. Miko catches him with the hand not holding the Star.

It’s a struggle to replace the barrier once more. Another attack like the last one and he may not have anything left in him, it’s taken the rest of his reserves to bring it back up this third time, he doubts if he’ll be able to do it for a fourth.

Miko glances to his friend and sees the strain showing on his face. “You okay?” he asks though he already knows the answer.

“I’m about wiped out,” he admits.

“We can’t win this can we?” Miko asks.

Shaking his head James says, “After the mage’s next attack, I’ll be used up if not dead.” He nods to the Star blazing in his Miko’s hand and adds, “Then it will all rest on you.”

Miko glances to the Star. An incredible source of power, but in his inexperienced hands it isn’t being used to its fullest potential. If only James could use it, his experience augmented by the power of the Star would be formidable. Only problem is, if James touches it, he dies for only those born upon this world can touch it and live. James’ friend Dave learned that at the cost of his life.

Then suddenly, the mage lets loose the most massive attack of magic yet…

 

Around them, the cries of battle rage as the Empire’s soldiers batter at the defenders. The crossbows from the former slaves continue sending wave after wave of bolts into the attackers. But for every enemy they take down, two take his place.

Illan has joined the fighting now that the defenders have suffered losses. Rallying his men to greater valor, he uses his sword with devastating effect.

Scar and Potbelly are suddenly surrounded by enemy soldiers and all seems lost until Jorry and Uther come to their aid. The two pairs, so at odds when telling their tales, stand shoulder to shoulder as each saves the lives of the others. Bodies begin piling up as they kill all who come.

Atop one of the wagons, Shorty stands next to a case of knives liberated from one of the towns they passed through. One after another, his knives fly over the heads of the defenders to take out soldier after soldier.

 

Aaaah!!

James staggers back as the full force of the magic strikes the barrier, shattering it. Momentarily disoriented, he soon returns to his senses.

Miko could feel the effect of the magic as it struck the barrier. It almost seemed as if a shockwave went through James to him from where he had his arm around his friend, helping to keep him standing. Then suddenly, a memory surfaces of an earlier battle after they just met.

They had gone with Rylin to rescue Sheila and her mother from the bandits after they destroyed their caravan. During the battle, he had lent James his strength so he could vanquish the bandit leader. Glancing at the Star, he wonders if they could do the same thing here.

“James!” he hollers. “Use the Star!”

“I can’t!” he yells back. “It’ll kill me.”

“No,” Miko counters. “Use it,” he looks James in the eyes, “through me.”

Could it work?

Miko stretches out his hand but James shakes his head. “Call forth the magic of the Star.” As Miko connects with the magic within the Star, James creates a leech line between himself and Miko. Immediately, the power of the Star flows into him. Such power. Such raw, primal power suffuses him.

This magic is different than that which he had always used. Perhaps it’s the difference between priest magic which comes from the gods and regular magic found in the world around you.

Gathering new strength from the flow of magic coming from Miko, he disengages from him and moves forward. A spike in the tingling foretells the release of the magic as the mage again sends a devastating attack. Using the magic from the Star, he erects a barrier stronger than any he’s been able to accomplish before. When the magic strikes it, an enormous, blinding flash of light explodes. Unlike the previous times, James hardly feels any effect. He looks across the battlefield at the surprised look on the mage’s face.

Sure to have destroyed him, Kerith-Ayxt stares in shocked wonder at James standing there unfazed then quickly comes to a decision. “Aezyl!” he shouts over the roar of battle.

“Yes milord,” his aide replies coming to his side.

“Form the Lattice of Power,” he says.

Aezyl’s eyes widen. “Yes my lord,” he finally replies then turns to the other mages and makes ready.

The Lattice of Power is a means through which many mages link in order to supply a single mage with their collective magical reserves. The First Circle mages are linked to the Second who are in turn linked to the Third and so forth. It’s very similar to what they do with slaves during spells requiring more than the usual amounts of magic. The only problem is that once the Lattice is formed, it can only be undone by the one at the Lattice’s focal point, either by a conscious will or his death.

Before the Lattice is readied, James unleashes a wave of force toward Kerith-Ayxt. Countering the blast, the High Lord Magus gasps at the sheer power of the attack. Behind him he hears, “Ready my lord.”

Casting the spell to bring the Lattice to life, Kerith-Ayxt is suddenly suffused with power as conduits merge with him, channeling the power of the most powerful mages in the Empire. The power now at his beck and call is incredible, almost makes him feel like a god. With a grin, he unleashes a devastating attack of fire and air at James. The battle is joined…

 

Between Delia’s slingers and the enemy, stands a line of Raiders mixed in with recently armed freed slaves. The Raiders are faring well but the slaves are dropping fast. Delia has her slingers target the enemy as they appear in gaps of the lines to aid the fighters but there are simply too many.

Taking one of the four crystals from the last remaining sack of crystals in their possession, she sets it to sling and sends it far over the heads of the enemy. A minute later, men drop as spheres appear among them. Bolts of electricity flash as the orbs begin discharging the magic that they drew from the soldiers now lying still on the ground.

After sending more slugs into the enemy, she removes another crystal and sends it flying. Again, men drop and spheres appear firing bolts of electricity. Dozens of men are dropped by the initial leeching of their magic by the crystal and scores more are dropped by the subsequent discharges of electricity.

She continues to do that. While waiting for the men to again group closely together, she sends slugs to fell the attackers. Once a sufficient number are together, she sends another of the crystals flying into their midst.

When the last sphere of the last crystal has disappeared, she looks on at the still overpowering numbers of the enemy. Feeling hopelessness sapping her will, she continues felling men with slugs.

Unfortunately, the rest of the slingers aren’t doing nearly as well as she. Terrance is hitting men primarily on parts of their body covered in armor. A dull thud and a dent is all he’s managing to accomplish.

The others are doing a trifle better, some are connecting. Perhaps not killing blows, but enough to injure which slows down their defenses, enabling Raiders to get within their guard better.

Off to one side, the line buckles. The Raiders who were holding are suddenly inundated by a two score of Parvatis and they go down fast. Their dual swords opening up a swath twenty feet wide, they are soon among the crossbowmen.

The crossbowmen fall back fast, loosing bolts as they retreat. They take down over half the Parvatis before Illan, Ceadric and other Raiders move to engage them. By the time they take out the last of the Parvatis and reestablished the line, two score crossbowmen lay dead as well as half a score of Raiders.

Ceadric and Illan hold the line while others move to assist. The defender’s line is slowly shrinking in on itself as more and more of the defenders fall.

Ka-Boom!

A gigantic cloud of smoke and flame reaches to the sky from where James is battling Kerith-Ayxt. He, Miko and the three remaining members of the Hand of Asran stare in awe at the flame burning on the other side of the protective barrier. Using the power of the Star, James extinguishes the flames and then concentrates on the ground before the mages.

A rumbling begins and the earth cracks open. Suddenly, a gigantic rock hand emerges as Rocky begins climbing out of the ground. Eight feet high and made of stone, Rocky turns on the mages and lurches forward.

Brother Willim and the other two members of the Hand work to keep the soldiers at bay. Large patches of thorny vines impede their way while others actually grasp them, constricting until they’re dead. The death of any man is a hard blow to the Brothers even though it is in defense of their lives.

Miko sits cross-legged on the ground with the Star in his lap clasped between both hands. The funneling of power to James is taking its toll. His system is simply not used to having so much power passing through it for so long. Breathing has become labored and he’s soaked in sweat, sort of reminds him of how James gets now and then when he does too much.

Kerith-Ayxt lashes out with power and Rocky explodes sending a myriad of rocks flying in all directions.

Just what James was hoping for, he sends out the power and takes hold of the flying debris. Stopping it in midair, he then sends it flying back toward the mages. A shield springs to life to protect the mages from the barrage. It manages to deflect all but a couple which had already passed beyond the edge of the shield. One of the rocks manages to strike a mage in the side of the head. Staggering backward, the mage’s legs collapse and he hits the ground hard where he remains unmoving.

A slight drop in the power coming to Kerith-Ayxt tells him the mage that was hit is dead. Putting the fallen mage out of his mind, he brings his hands together then opens them up to reveal a shimmering ball. Launching from his hands, the ball flies toward James.

Using the power of the Star, he strikes the ball before it has a chance to close the distance and…

 

Ke-Pow!

 

…an intense explosion knocks him backward. A backlash of magic rips through him like a hot knife and for a moment, all his defenses are down.

“James!” yells Brother Willim. Rushing to his side, he grabs him as he teeters on the brink of falling.

His mind reeling, he takes hold of Brother Willim’s shoulder and rights himself just as another shimmering ball flies toward him. Summoning the magic, he attacks the ball.

Ke-Pow!

Again the ball explodes sending another backlash of power burning through him. His legs buckle and if it weren’t for Brother Willim, he would have hit the ground. He’s not sure if he’ll be able to survive another attack like that. Realizing that even with the Star, he isn’t going to win this battle, he mumbles something to Brother Willim.

“What?” Brother Willim asks.

“Tell your brethren to halt all magic, now,” he says with more strength.

“But we’ll be killed,” he states.

Shaking his head James shouts, “Just do it!” Pushing away from Brother Willim, he makes his way to Miko.

“Shut it down!” he yells to be heard over the roar of the battle. “Shut it down now!”

Miko is so caught in maintaining the flow that he isn’t paying any attention to him. Stepping back, James kicks the Star out of his hands. When the Star leaves his hands, Miko collapses into an unconscious heap.

Another shimmering ball flies toward him, the mage grinning in triumph. Sending out his magic, he explodes the ball and once more he’s hit by what must be a backlash of power which sends him to his knees.

Turning back toward the mages, James gazes at the mage standing there. The look on the mage’s face says he’s sure of victory as another of the shimmering spheres appears between his hands. Using the last vestiges of power, he casts one final spell. A shimmering bubble leaves his hand and floats its way toward Kerith-Ayxt. As his sight fades to blackness James sees the look of victory again on the face of the High Lord Magus, then passes out.

“Is that the best you can do?” Kerith-Ayxt asks.

With a thought, he sends the sphere to destroy the bubble. Instead of being destroyed, the sphere appears to be absorbed by the bubble. Then suddenly something latches onto the flow of magic coming from him and begins drawing magic.

The High Lord Magus tries to cancel the flow but realizes in panic that he is unable to. Growing in intensity, the bubble begins drawing more and more power from him. Behind Kerith-Ayxt, mages fall as the Lattice pulls ever more magic from them to replenish his reserves that are being drained by the bubble.

Sparkles begin dancing within the bubble from the accumulation of magic stored within. Brother Willim and the two remaining followers of Asran watch in awe as the bubble glows with growing intensity, the sparks within it increasing in number and intensity.

From across the battlefield, Jiron blocks a soldier’s downward hack with the crossed blades of his knives and kicks him backward. Momentarily free of attackers, he glances around the battlefield and sees the light coming from where the bubble is growing. Suddenly, another soldier appears before him and thrusts with his sword.

Deflecting the blade to the right, he lashes out with his other knife and takes him in the side of the neck. As the man falls, his eyes are again drawn to the now blindingly white light. “Oh no,” he breathes as recognition comes.

“What?” asks Stig from where he’s parrying a series of attacks.

“We’re all dead,” he says with finality. Memories of the explosion that rocked the night when they escaped the City of Light play through his mind. Casting one more glance to the growing doom behind him, he turns back to the battle at hand.

 

The High Lord Magus, the most powerful mage in the Empire, is on his knees as magic continues to flow from him. Unable to stop it, he watches as the bubble before him grows ever larger. At one point, the light coming from it robs him of his sight as the brightness burns his retinas away.

As he falls to the ground he can feel his skin beginning to shrivel itself upon his bones as his life leaves him. Sadness grips him. Sadness of the loss of magical advances. Sadness over the loss of the many friends already dead behind him. But most of all, he’s sad for what the future may hold. The School of the Arcane helped control and direct those who practiced magic so the world wouldn’t have to endure atrocities. Now, without their influence, how many more Baerustin’s will there be?

His lungs quit working and finally, his heart grinds to a stop. Kerith-Ayxt, High Lord of all the Magi, dies.

 

The bubble, now brighter than the sun reaches critical mass. The magic within it too great for it to last much longer. When at last the bubble gives out…

 

Schtk!

 

…and time suddenly freezes just as the magic was about to explode outward.

Men stand frozen across the battlefield. Poised to attack, their swords remain stationary in the air. Arrows are halted in midair on their way to their targets. A surreal quiet settles over the battlefield as all sound is stilled.

Moving across the field of battle, a man winds his way through the men frozen in combat. On one side he sees a Raider with the point of a sword protruding from his back from the thrust of an enemy. On the other a head that was shorn from a nearby headless torso hovers two feet from the ground, waiting for time to start again before finishing its fall.

The man reaches where the Star of Morcyth lies upon the ground, still pulsating with light as if in defiance of the stoppage of time. Next he comes to Miko and pauses. Bending down, he runs his hand along the side of his face, caressing it as a father would his beloved child.

Standing up again, he continues along until coming to James. Glancing over to the bubble, frozen at the moment of detonation, the man shakes his head. “Why did you have to do that James?” he asks. “Couldn’t you see another way?” Gazing at the unconscious James, a tear wells from his eye.

Of all the probably outcomes of bringing James to this world, this was one of the ones they feared the most. The only one they had feared more was his death before he finished what he was brought here to do. Now, the world stands upon the brink. Time, once a friend has become the enemy.

Returning his gaze to the man in whom the hope of the world had been placed, he just shakes his head sadly. Raising his hands, he creates a protective barrier around James and the rest of the defenders, a shield against the blast. That much he is allowed to do, no more. What happens from this point on rests in James’ hands.

Once the shield is in place, the man straightens his blue vest and pushes back his felt hat. “Good luck, James,” he says then vanishes. Once the man is gone, the passing of time resumes.

 

Booooooom!