Balestone (15 page)

Chapter 21

The climb back up the stone wall wasn’t difficult, but Tiberius was tired when he reached the top. The bronze soldiers weren’t moving and in their static state didn’t seem all that frightening. Tiberius took his time settling in on the wall. He threw one leg over the edge and settled onto a fat block of stone.

“Okay, I’ve got you,” Rafe said as he settled in beside Tiberius. “If you need anything, just say the word.”

“I could use a hot meal, a bath, and a good night’s sleep.”

“That sounds wonderful indeed,” Rafe said. “You take out these statues, and I’ll make sure you get all three very soon.”

Tiberius chuckled and then closed his eyes. He had to calm himself down. Working magic took a great deal of mental focus, so Tiberius had to clear his mind of everything but the spell he was about to cast. Somewhere in the ruins of Devonyr, Lexi needed him, but he couldn’t think about her at that moment. The wizard Gunderlyn wanted Tiberius dead, but he would have to worry about that later, too.

He opened himself up to the magic around him. There was a slight breeze coming off the mountains, and the ancient city smelled of dirt. He could feel Rafe’s hand holding his belt, so he didn’t worry about falling of the wall. He focused his mind on magic. He could feel a strong, magical radiance coming from the bronze warriors below him. The entire troop of warrior statues were enveloped in a mysterious magical bubble. Tiberius didn’t know if that magic would affect his own spell, but he couldn’t worry about that, either. His total focus had to be on casting the crucible spell. Tiberius didn’t even know what it would do, but he knew that a crucible was used by smithies to melt metal.

“
Conflo Fervefacio Aestifer,
” Tiberius began to chant slowly. He was careful to enunciate each syllable. “
Conflo Fervefacio Aestifer
.”

He felt the portal of magic appear. The healing spells he used from the First Order of magic utilized the magical energy inherent in every living thing. Healing Rafe had drawn out the magic that gave Rafe life and used that magic to speed the healing of his own body. The spells of the Fourth Order where different. They called on a much greater power, utilizing magic that was not part of Tiberius’ world.

Tiberius continued to chant, but he was completely focused on the magic he was wielding. He didn’t feel the wind or the stone block he was perched on, not even Rafe’s hand holding him steady. There was nothing but the spell and the portal of magic. He clamped down on the portal, willing it to obey him. Immediately he felt the powerful heat — not physically, but mentally he could feel the surging power. He remembered spending time in the earl’s smithy in Avondale. The billows were pumped by young apprentices, and the forges raged so hot that he had been dripping with sweat after only a few minutes in the blacksmith’s shed. When the master blacksmith opened the door to the forge, Tiberius could see the heart of the flames burning furiously and he knew instantly that the heat contained within that forge was not just deadly, but transformative. Put in stone, and it would be reduced to liquid; put in metal, and it would be softened. He also knew that, if he were thrust into that furnace, he would be rendered to ashes within moments.

Tiberius felt that same power again, and he knew that if he unleashed that power on the world around him, it would be forever changed. Suddenly he remembered walking in the gardens of Avondale with his mother when he was just a child. He had been chasing a beautiful butterfly and had finally caught hold of the little insect’s fragile wing. He had carried it back to his mother, expecting to surprise her with his lavish gift. Instead she scolded him. He remembered seeing the color flaking away from the wing under his finger and seeing how weak the little butterfly seemed.

“You can’t touch a butterfly’s wings, Tiberius,” his mother had said. “They’re much too fragile. If you touch them, they can’t fly. You’ve killed this butterfly.”

She had walked away; the disappointment on her face dashed Tiberius’ hopes and made him want to cry. Now he couldn’t help but wonder what would happen when he released the magic of the crucible spell. Would his friends look at him differently? Would they turn away in disappointment the way his mother had? Tiberius felt fear rising up and sapping his mental strength. His hold on the powerful magic wavered for a split second, and Tiberius realized he couldn’t give in to fear. Nothing could make his resolve waver, not even for a moment, or disaster would overtake him and the people he cared about.

Carefully, letting his mind move the portal of magical power over the rear ranks of metal soldiers, Tiberius released a sliver of the portal. Nothing happened that the naked eye could see. Tiberius opened his eyes for just a moment. He could feel the power cascading through the gap in his mental hold on the magic, but there was no flash of light, no flames, no awesome display of his power. But then those bronze warriors underneath the magical onslaught began to bend. Their heads began to glow, their swords folded, and beads of bronze ran down their faces like sweat in the heat of battle.

“Oh my God,” Rafe whispered.

Tiberius could feel Gunderlyn’s magic rushing back from Ti’s own powerful spell. The bronze was pooling on the ground, covering the dust that had blackened and then floated away like ash. At the edges of Tiberius’ flow of magical power, they could see the thick cobblestones that had paved the city streets. Those stones were glowing and turning into gelatinous magma. Tiberius moved the spell, opening the portal a little more. It felt as if he were waving a dripping paintbrush over a masterpiece, marring the image and altering the picture forever.

Soon half of the metal army was at least in some state of liquefaction. Tiberius didn’t wait to destroy the bronze warriors completely. As long as the soldiers lost as least some of the bodily form, Tiberius knew they couldn’t attack him. He ran the portal of magical power all the way around the tower, then he focused his mind on closing the portal.

Holding the magical power in check had been difficult. Closing the portal was almost impossible. He stopped chanting the spell, but just like with the focusing light spell, the portal remained open; the power on the other side was anxious to reach Ti’s world. He had to focus his mind on closing the portal, and it felt as if he were trying to hold the raging crucible in his bare hands. Pain lanced through his brain, then down into his body.

“Aaaaahhhh!” he cried.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” Rafe asked.

Had Tiberius been aware of what was happening around him, he would have felt the immense heat that was rising up like an oven from the molten metal around the tower. Both he and Rafe were soaked with sweat. When Tiberius cried out in his effort to close the magical portal, Rafe moved forward and wrapped both arms around Tiberius’ shaking body.

The pain was so immense that for several moments Tiberius could do nothing but sit frozen, completely in the grip of the all-consuming pain. He realized that working such powerful magic was changing him. It was taking all of his strength, both mental and physical, to close the portal, but he refused to give up. He knew that the power on the opposite side of the magical portal could consume not just the ruins of Devonyr, but the mountains beyond and perhaps even the entire world. He forced the portal closed. It was a slow process, and as the portal shrank down, the pain intensified, as the push of the magic to get out of the portal grew stronger.

“Noooooooooo,” Tiberius shouted, refusing to give in, even though his bones felt like they were being ground into dust and his muscles like they were being ripped apart sinew by sinew.

“I’ve got you!” Rafe shouted, and for some reason the message got through.

Tiberius felt his friend’s strength around him, holding him together. Tiberius knew he could do it — he could close the portal. He had wrestled with his brothers, struggling desperately to fend them off as they pummeled him. He had been a child then, and all his magical efforts to that point had been as a child, but suddenly he felt a new strength swell up within him. Tiberius had never been physically strong. He wasn’t athletic or a skillful warrior. He had never had much stamina, but suddenly he found a strength within himself that he never knew existed.

The battle to close the last few inches of the portal was overwhelming. He felt as if he were trying to lift the entire stone tower, but he refused to give up. And slowly, to Tiberius’ utter delight, he found himself doing what he thought was impossible. The portal snapped closed, and Tiberius’ body sagged. He was completely spent but completely exhilarated at the same time.

“Tiberius,” Rafe said with concern, “are you all right?”

Tiberius laughed. He felt so good he couldn’t contain it anymore. He had worked the most powerful spell of his entire life, but more importantly he had discovered something about himself. He could master magic. He had found a strength and resolve he never knew he had, and while working powerful magic would always be difficult, he suddenly realized to his great delight that he had the strength to do whatever he needed to do. He was, he realized for the first time in life, a true wizard. He wasn’t just dabbling in a forbidden art or an apprentice struggling to learn a skill all on his own. He was an accomplished wizard. He had no need to fear his power or shy away from wielding it.

“Tiberius!” Rafe shouted.

“What?” Tiberius said, coming back to himself at last.

“We have to get off this wall!” Rafe shouted.

At first Ti was puzzled. What was Rafe so worried about, and why was he shouting? But then he felt the tremendous heat radiating up from the ground below. As Tiberius turned, he felt the sting of sweat dripping into his eyes. Rafe’s face was darkened, the way a blacksmith often looked after hours of working at his forge. His hair was blown back and clinging to his head in wet bands. Sweat ran down the young warrior’s face and down his bare chest.

“Let’s go,” Tiberius said.

They were careful climbing down. Their hands were wet with sweat, but once they were off the rim of the tower, the stones deflected the enormous heat. It was still hot in the tower, but not as bad as above it.

As they got to the bottom, Rafe took his friend by the shoulder.

“That was amazing,” he said, “but how are we going to get out of here?”

“I have a plan,” Tiberius said.

He was tired and weak. His stomach was growling angrily, and his throat felt like leather left out for days in the sun, but he ignored all of it. Instead, he cleared his mind once more and cast a spell.

“
Flabra
,” he said.

The portal opened once again, and Tiberius let the wind come pouring out. He kept the magic outside of the tower, but they could hear the howling wind and see the dust being blown up in great billowing brown clouds. Tiberius was perfectly still for several moments with his hands held up as his mind directed the wind that blew across the melted bronze, powdery ash, and molten cobblestones.

“What are you doing?” Rafe shouted above the gale.

“Cooling things off.”

After several minutes Tiberius let the portal close, and the wind died down. He sagged against the stone wall of the tower, catching his breath.

“What now?” Rafe asked.

“Now,” Tiberius said with a grim determination, “we go find Gunderlyn and make sure he can never do this again.”

Chapter 22

Tiberius wasn’t steady riding bareback, but he had no choice. His horse and Lexi’s were still in the tower, and there was no time to go looking for their saddles, which had been left in a building near the edge of town. Rafe led the way out of the tower’s wide door, and the horse leaped over the swath of half-melted bronze warriors, who had returned to solid, immovable objects.

Tiberius hadn’t been ready for the sight that greeted him outside of the tower. The streets of the ruined city had been covered with fine powdery dirt, but no more. The wind had swept the dirt away and left the streets as they had been centuries ago. The cobblestones had been tightly placed, and most were still in one piece. Many were black now from the intense heat of Ti’s crucible spell, but in many ways the city looked new.

Rafe led the way down the street. The dog he’d killed still lay where it had died with piles of dirt heaped around it. The effect of Tiberius’ wind spell did not go far beyond the tower. When they rounded a corner, they found the streets covered with the silty dirt again. And down the road a short way stood Rafe’s horse.

“At least one of us will be able to ride in the saddle,” Tiberius said.

Rafe didn’t reply, nor did he offer to let Tiberius take his horse. Instead he flashed his friend a grin as he slipped off Lexi’s horse and climbed up into the saddle of his own.

Tiberius took the lead from that point. He had to find the old man, and the only way to navigate the ruins of the old city was to use magic. Tiberius didn’t have a spell that would locate the elder wizard, but he could feel magic if he concentrated. The magic around them seemed dark, much like the ruined city itself, but it still moved like a brackish river around the ruined buildings and through the streets.

There was a central core to the magic of the city, and Tiberius assumed it was Gunderlyn, so they rode carefully through the town looking for the old man. Ti hoped that Lexi was all right. The vile old wizard could have done any number of heinous things to her by now, and Tiberius only hoped the old man had been kept busy with his spells and not with Lexi. They were almost to a tall triangular building that they had glimpsed between the ruins for some time, when they heard an excited trilling sound.

“Look at that,” Rafe said, pointing up to the rooftop of a building that was only halfway destroyed. “It’s Lexi’s pet.”

“What do you think it’s doing?” Tiberius asked.

“I’ve seen it get excited like that when there’s danger present.”

“Or maybe it’s trying to tell us that Lexi is nearby.”

Tiberius slipped off his horse and tied both his and Lexi’s mounts to a small post on the side of the street. Rafe remained in his saddle and tucked the spear he carried under his arm like a lance.

“I’ll see what’s in that alley,” Tiberius said. “If I need help, you can ride to my rescue.”

“So the usual plan?” Rafe said with a smirk.

Tiberius ignored him and hurried up to the dark alley beside the ruined building Dancer was perched on. He glanced quickly into the shadowy space between the two tall walls on either side. It was hard to see anything in the thick gloom, but there appeared to be some type of creature or mound of rubble.

“
Fulsi
,” Tiberius said softly, and he felt the power of the spell behind him.

He let the light shine in one thick, bright beam down into the alleyway. The creature at the far end roared and shook. It didn’t like the light. Tiberius waved at Rafe, who came riding up toward the alley, but his horse slowed, then shied away.

“What are you doing, Mars?” Rafe said loudly.

The horse neighed but continued backing away from the alley, which was as bright as noontime in Avondale, with Tiberius’ magical light shining down the long, narrow space. The creature roared again and began shuffling toward the street.

“It’s coming this way,” Tiberius said.

Rafe slid from the saddle and turned to face the alley with his spear held ready. Tiberius backed up but kept the light shining down the alley until the creature emerged. It was a huge beast, with a round head that was taller than a horse. Fat jowls hung from either cheek, and one was bulging as if something was stored there. When the creature opened its mouth, there was no sign of teeth, but long tentacles came out, each one dripping with a thick ooze.

“What the hell is that?” Rafe said.

“I don’t know, but we better kill it,” Tiberius said, hefting his own spear.

“Why?”

“Because I have a hunch.”

“A hunch … really?” Rafe said in disbelief.

“That’s right, a hunch. You have to trust me.”

“We could go around.”

“Just kill it,” Tiberius said.

Rafe drew his sword and then hurled his spear. The weapon flew true and buried itself in one of the many black bulbous eyes above the gapping maw. The creature roared in pain and began rolling sideways. The tentacles flew about wildly, and then the beast regained its feet and charged at Rafe. Tiberius had never been very adept with a spear, but the creature rushing toward them was so large he could hardly miss. He threw the weapon, and it sailed into the beast’s mouth.

Another roar, and this time the creature stopped its charge. It tried to cough and hack out the spear but it couldn’t. Black blood came bubbling up to be spit out toward the tentacles. Rafe was fending off the snake-like appendages with his sword. The creature was writhing in pain and not really trying to attack them. The tentacles were flailing wildly, and the beast was whining in pain.

Rafe and Tiberius stood back, waiting to see what the creature would do, when suddenly Lexi’s head and shoulders appeared. She looked dazed and confused, but she was struggling to free herself from the creature’s flap-like jowls. If the beast had possessed teeth, she would never have survived, but the massive tongue was shaking, and blood poured from the upper palate where Tiberius’ spear had stabbed.

“Lexi!” Tiberius shouted in surprise.

Without thinking he dashed forward, running to save the woman he loved. Lexi didn’t seem to hear him and was still struggling to free her legs from the slime-filled pocket inside the creature’s mouth. She grabbed the spear to pull her legs free, but the pain caused the creature to spit madly.

Rafe was running just behind Tiberius, slashing with his sword whenever a tentacle came too close. Lexi was spit out of the beast’s mouth, along with a torrent of blood. She landed hard on her side, and Tiberius reached her a second later. He bent low and grabbed Lexi beneath her arms and began pulling her back.

Rafe kept running and jumped up to where his spear protruded from the creature’s eye. His momentum tore the weapon free, and Rafe quickly stabbed another eye with the spear. Then he turned in one fluid motion and severed the smaller of the two tentacles. He had to duck to avoid the second flailing appendage, but the creature’s movements were slowing down. More blood seeped out of the huge mouth, along with the thick slime that seemed to be the creature’s saliva.

Tiberius was still pulling Lexi away from the creature when Rafe jerked the spear that Ti had thrown. He pulled the long weapon, which was now covered in blood and slime, out of the beast’s mouth. Then he stabbed the creature over and over again, finally stabbing through the thick tentacle and wedging the spear into the ground so that the beast screeched but couldn’t escape.

Finally he ran back, his hands and arms covered with blood and the foul ooze that leaked from the creature’s mouth.

“I think that just about finished it,” Rafe said as he panted for breath.

Tiberius was on his knees beside Lexi. She was staring up at him with a vacant look. Tiberius used his shirt to wipe the ooze from her face as he spoke to her.

“Lexi? Lexi, can you hear me?”

She didn’t respond. But then Dancer came sailing down from the building, trilling excitedly. It landed on her stomach, and Lexi scooped the little animal up.

“You’re alive!” she said.

“Yeah, we’re all alive. Thanks for noticing,” Rafe joked.

“Tiberius,” Lexi finally acknowledged him.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded. “I think so.”

“We’ve got to get you out of here.”

“Is Olyva...” Lexi couldn’t finish the question. She looked frantic.

“She’s fine,” Rafe said. “She’s weak but okay. I got her out of the city.”

“Rafe, take her and go. I’ll retrieve our spears and follow you.”

“Are you sure?”

“There’s some unfinished business here,” Tiberius said.

“I don’t want you to face it alone,” Rafe said. “Wherever that bastard is hiding, we’ll find him and finish him together.”

“No,” Tiberius said. “I know exactly where he is, and this is a fight I need to finish. Take Lexi and get her safely out of the city. I won’t be long.”

“You having another hunch?” Rafe asked.

“He’s on top of the pyramid,” Lexi said weakly.

Tiberius smiled at Rafe. “And now I’m certain. Go! Get her out of here.”

Rafe scooped up Lexi as if she were as light as a toy doll. He sat her in his own horse’s saddle then pulled himself up onto Lexi’s horse. He looked back at Tiberius, who raised his hand to reassure his friend, then Rafe and Lexi rode away. Tiberius watched them go. He was glad that Lexi would be safe and he had meant what he said about unfinished business. He wouldn’t leave without confronting Gunderlyn one last time, but he also had an ulterior motive. He wanted the old wizard’s books — at least any books that were specifically about magic. Behind him the huge creature that had eaten Lexi shuddered and died. Tiberius spat on the stinking beast as he pulled one of the spears free. He went around the huge carcass and walked toward the massive temple, where he knew Gunderlyn was waiting.