In Search of Auria (25 page)

"Who dare enter the warlock's cave?"

"You've got to be
kidding. 
You
 are here?” Erik expressed in
stupefaction.

Sebastien lowered his head a bit to have a
better look at Erik, but as soon as he recognized him, he exploded
with rage.

"You!" he yelled and descended the hammer.
Erik jumped back and saw how the heavy weapon shattered the
ground.

"You made me like this," Sebastien barked,
"Cannot run, cannot march, cannot go to war! The only thing I'm
good for now is to be confined in this cave, babysitting this
overgrown mosquito." Beam's body lines turned red as he looked at
the big man with hatred.

"I'm very sorry for what has happened to
you, Sebastien," Erik replied, "but you only got what you
deserved."

Sebastien twisted his face and grinded his
teeth, "I may not be able to return to the frontlines, but I will
be content when I slay the creator of my pains."

"Whatever, 'Oddfoot'. Your move!"

The insult boiled Sebastien's blood, "I'll
have your head on a pike!"

He descended the hammer again, Erik dodging
to the right. He wanted to counter, but the hammer was on him
again. He had to drop and roll away. The giant of a man was slow
with the legs, but not with the arms. Stepping away a good
distance, Erik took out his weapons and quickly took a gander at
his surroundings. He hadn’t noticed before, but a few meters behind
was a great chasm. The darkness within assured it was deep. This
was bad for Erik, for Sebastien was on the right position to push
him in. The Beast kept swinging swiftly and Erik dodged and blocked
as best as he could, not having the chance to step close and
strike. Inch by inch he kept losing ground towards the chasm.

“Scream as you fall in, miaflorian!”
Sebastien taunted.

Erik was just a couple of feet from the edge
when Sebastien thrust his hammer forward, trying to shove him in.
Erik struggled as he pushed back with the shield, chafing his
feet on the ground. He finally found footing and pushed the hammer
up. Sebastien plunged down again, but Erik got fed up with the
dodging. It was his turn to go on the offensive. He skipped to the
right just in time to miss the dropping hammer. When it landed,
Erik stabbed over it into the ground, trapping the handle of the
hammer with the cross-guard of the sword. Sebastien pulled, but the
hammer was stuck. The balorian flared with fury and resorted to his
hands. He raised his giant fist and threw a punch down to his
enemy. Erik did not coward as the enormous hand descended on him.
He clenched his own fist and launched his knuckles.

That brief exchange would determine the
loser and the victor. Both fists travelled to their meeting point,
and although the odds of the encounter did not favor Erik, one
thing gave him a certain edge: pure conviction.

I Won’t Fail Again!

The fists clashed, Erik’s knuckles striking
Sebastien’s middle and ring fingers. They both heard a snap as the
bones broke in half.

“Aah!” yelled Sebastien as he shot his hand
up and cringed his body. Erik did not waste time. He pulled back
his sword and threw it to Sebastien’s left ankle. The tip stabbed
directly into the ligaments. The big man blared another scream as
he could not believe the same thing was happening to him twice. As
he felt the jolting pain race up his nerves, he let go of his
weapon to grasp his left leg. With the hammer now free to use, Erik
tossed his shield, gripped the hammer with both hands and swung it
up. He hit Sebastien on the forehead, numbing his body instantly.
His knees gave away and he fell back on the rocky ground. Dazed
wallop, Sebastien could not summon any movement.

“It is time to end the legend of The Beast,”
Erik stated as he drew beside him. He raised high the weighty
hammer and dropped it on Sebastien’s chest. The blow crushed his
sternum and ribcage with a cracking sound. He raised his head, but
no sound came from his mouth. It was his time, and he realized it.
He gently rested his head back and exhaled for the last time. Erik
removed the hammer and lowered his head. He took a moment to ease
his mind.

“Awesome!” Beam blurted in excitement,
startling Erik, “I thought we were doomed for sure.”

“What do you mean ‘we’?” Erik shook his
head, “I’m the one sweating here.”

Erik hurried to the cage and with one good
swing of the hammer, he busted the cell door open. Beam came out
and hesitated before giving Erik a hug, “Thank you for freeing
me.”

“It was nothing, kid,” Erik patted him on
the shoulder. “Now, let’s get out of here.”

He walked back to retrieve his weapons when
a shockwave hit his back and threw him over Sebastien’s body. Beam
turned to the entrance of the cavity. From the tunnel emerged a
chalky colored man with markings on his face and hands. He wore a
blue garment and held a grey staff. He exhaled a cold mist through
his teeth. Beam tried to summon his remaining energy to cast a
blinding light with his wings, but a wave of the man’s hand made
him freeze, literally. He began to shiver as a sheet of frost
covered his body. He trembled to the ground as he hugged himself
for warmth. Erik stood and saw the man walking his way.

“You have done much work on my cave,” the
man gruffly said as he looked at Sebastien’s corpse, “but what you
have not realized is that you’ll never get out of it.”

“Who are you?” Erik asked.

“I am Dirge, spellbinder of the north,” he
replied.

“Of the north? So you’re the northern fellow
Vallias talked about.”

“Indeed. As for you, I have no need to know
your name or history, for soon you shall be dead.”

Dirge pointed his staff at Erik and hissed,
“Atiao!”

An ivory ray lashed out from the staff’s end
and bounded Erik like a rope. Dirge now controlled him. Whichever
direction he pulled his staff to, Erik would be flung to; like a
ball being pulled by a string. He repeatedly threw him to the wall
of the cave, until he flung him back to the ground. All the tossing
and bouncing made Erik weak and nauseous. The warlock then grabbed
the staff by the bottom end and gave a full swing to the
ceiling.

“Rajia luneta!” he roared as a white
crescent formed and shot its way up. It blasted the stalactites
above, making them fall down to Erik. He rolled and missed them
just in time, but Dirge was not done yet. He made the ivory rope
spell again and hurled Erik back to the entrance of the cavity.

Erik wavered, but managed to stand. There
had to be a way to stop the spellbinder.

“This is a great opportunity for me,” Dirge
spoke while facing the chasm. “My mother shall have the adult one,
but I’ll secretly stay with this one. All I need to do is wait for
it to mature, and I will have its blood. I will have its
power!”

Erik saw Beam shuddering on the ground. He
took off the cloak and covered him while Dirge talked. He was left
with his gambeson and the glass gauntlets on his arms.

“The plan is set, it only needs time,” Dirge
continued, turning to Erik. “Unlike you, warrior, for you only have
time to die.” He gave a full swing of his staff and another white
crescent shot out; this time it was a big one and it was headed
straight for Erik. The crescent came so quickly he could only raise
his arms and receive the impact.

The crescent came, bounced off the glass
gauntlets and hit the wall. Erik was stunned with surprise, as was
Dirge. The warlock created another crescent, but it bounced off the
gauntlets like the first one.

“What? But how?”

The pitch George had for selling the
gauntlets was true; they really do protect you from magic!

“I believe your tricks won’t work anymore,”
Erik said with a smile. He ran to him as the sorcerer shot icicles
from his magical staff.

“Konyel!” he shouted every time, but the
icicles crushed to bits as they came in contact with the gauntlets.
Erik finally reached him and grabbed the staff. They both struggled
with it, until Erik gave him a head-butt and snatched it from his
hands. He then swung it down and smashed it Dirge’s shoulder,
breaking both the staff and his collar bone. Dirge screamed and
fell back, but what was behind him was the chasm. He slipped in
with a gasp.

Erik didn’t stop to rest after Dirge fell
into the hole. He quickly retrieved his sword from Sebastien’s
ankle and prepared himself for anything. What if the spellbinder
wasn’t dead? With all that magic flying around, who knew if he
suddenly came out flying, shooting lightning from his hands. But
instead, Erik heard a strained moan coming from within the chasm.
He cautiously walked to the edge and saw Dirge holding onto a lumpy
rock beneath the ledge. He could not lift himself up. Being a
sorcerer that dealt with spells, he did not have the strength or
powerful body a warrior like Erik demanded.

"Help me, don't let me fall!" Dirge
begged.

"Tell me what I want to know and I shall
take your hand."

"Yes, I'll do it."

"What does Vallias want with the fairy?"

"I conducted an arrangement with him. He
would give the fairy to the witch of the north in exchange of a
potion to prolong life. He would then vanquish the kingdom and have
a long rule... Please, I'm slipping."

"Answer this one quickly. What does the
witch want with the fairy?"

"The blood of a daystar holds the essence of
its powers; fire, light, warmth. She wishes to drain her of her
blood and create a concoction that will grant her the power of the
sun. With that new power, she will become even more powerful and
expand her realm."

Erik stretched down his left arm and grabbed
Dirge's hand, but he only lifted him half way up. Slowly he raised
his sword.

"No, wait, you said you'd save me!"

"Wrong! I said I’d take your hand." And
the blade descended.

*

The severed hand felt cold to the touch.
Dirge was a man full of deceit, ruthlessness and hatred. And in
front of me was another man of the same kind. The only difference
between the two was this: one of them was dead, and the other was
not. But, the time was nearing. Vallias would soon draw his last
breath and embrace his death.

"I'll give you a hint," I said as I
continued waving the severed hand I held, “it belongs to the one
who made the chains and collar that imprisons Auria." I could see
in Vallias’ eyes a staggering loathe taking shape.

"You killed my son!" Lorana barked,
stressing her hands before her, creating a fume of blue sparks.

"Yes, I did! And now that he's dead, maybe
you can clear up a doubt I’ve been having. When a witch man dies,
does his magic die with him?"

The sparks plashing from Lorana’s hands
stopped. Vallias stared at her awaiting an answer to my question.
Then, they all looked back as they heard the sound of metal
tearing. Auria was breaking her chains and cracking the glyph block
off her neck. Her eyes were golden, and her lines were as vivid as
the first day I met her. She could have broken free since the
moment the spellbinder perished, but her anguish didn't make her
realize she was no longer under his will.

"Quick, subdue it!" ordered Vallias, but it
was too late. She was already bending the iron bars. A soldier was
about to beat her with a lance, but my flying dagger reached his
back first. She finally separated the bars wide enough to fit
through, and up she flew to the skies. While everyone watched her
take flight, I charged. The first one on my sights was the witch
man that shot the disc at me. While he looked up, I slashed him
across the back.

I couldn’t see Auria very well because of
the brume created by the Enchantress. Lorana hid the potions in her
gown and fired spinning blue orbs at her. She used her bare hands
to create the magic. Being the “Matron”, I guess she did not need a
staff. The other witches ganged around her in a protective circle
as she launched the spheres. Since she was missing her shots and
the witches stayed with her, I focused my attention on the
soldiers.

“All of you, kill him!” Vallias commanded.
They went at me one after the other, but I fended them off. The
first one came with a slash to my head. I knelt while shielding my
face and cutting his leg. The second tried to slash me from the
right. I blocked with my sword, stepped in and rammed the rim of my
shield on his throat. Now three soldiers remained, and one of them
was Vallias’ bodyguard. His weapon of choice: a flail with three
spiked weights. The three soldiers attacked in unison, jumping to
strike. I hopped backwards to dodge, and at that moment I saw a
blue flash flicker out the corner of my eye. Suddenly, a ray
streaked in front of me and a wall of ice formed. The ice wall
shaped itself around Vallia’s men, trapping them inside. They were
dead in an instant.

“I missed,” a witch man said from afar. He
had left Lorana to come after me.

“You imbecile!” I heard Vallias shouting
from the other side, “You killed my men!”

Unable to continue toward him, I turned my
attention to the witch man. Unfortunately, he wasn’t finished with
his spells.

“Convo empal,” the sorcerer chanted and
stomped the ground with his staff. From where he stood, a row of
stalagmites rose from the earth toward me. I dodged and rolled to
the right. I sheathed my sword when I saw he continued summoning
the impaling stones. I ran around in a closing curve, evading the
stalagmites. And when the timing was right, I ran directly to one
of the incoming rows. I quickly put my shield beneath my feet, and
when the stalagmite rose, it launched me to the air. The witch man
yelped as I landed on him, and with one quick punch he fell
unconscious.

I looked forward and saw Lorana still firing
at Auria. Auria did her best to swerve, trying to absorb the few
rays of sunlight that made it through the brume. She avoided the
spells long enough until one of the orbs hit her calf. Her leg
cramped with a frosty white, like the snow around Lorana. I
unsheathed my sword to go and confront the witch, but like
lightning, Beam flew from out of the woods and tackled her.