Secrets of Arkana Fortress (49 page)

BOOK: Secrets of Arkana Fortress
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              ‘But I doubt it’ll work.’

              ‘At least let me try,’ said Byde almost begging, but not quite.

              ‘Go ahead.’

              Byde straightened himself up and closed his eyes, trying to recall the ancient words he had not spoken for a long, long time.

              Mikos watched Byde as he thought intently. ‘Why, Byde? Why do you fight?’

              His eyes shot open, curiosity etched on their surfaces. ‘What do you mean?’

              ‘Well… you could’ve just kept yourself hidden, or even ran away from it all. Y’know… forget about the world?’

              A stalwart force met his questionable probing. ‘I have a duty as a caster, Mikos. My duty is what my life is bound to whether I like it or not. I cannot allow such an evil as the Providence torture our world any longer. They have systematically killed our kind, and taken each of the Lupian relics for themselves and their evil gains.’ He fired a resolving look at Mikos. ‘You cannot allow it either.’

              It was then that the blood vessels in Byde’s eyes began to glow a strong blue; the veins in his neck pulsated with pure magic, and his lips throbbed. Words poured from his now thinned out mouth, his leathery skin seemingly broken up by lines of light. The words flooded Mikos’s head, each and every syllable flashing in front of his eyes in an ancient language, being spoken by his inner voice. In one way these words were completely alien to him, but in another they were familiar, almost as if he knew them from another life.

             
‘Allow these words to release your bonds and serve you with enlightenment and guidance. Unchain the spirit within you.’

 

***

 

There it was again. The clicking sound had grown louder with each traversed path – a big indication that the pair of them drew closer to the spire’s location.

              A watery fist hurtled forward and engulfed the flailing mage, flinging him across the long hallway. He collided with the wall with unimaginable force, a loud crack reverberating from his spine as he was broken in two.

              A second and third mage were flinging their arms wildly around their bodies, tormented by something invisible. As Byde looked at them he suddenly saw oversized python-like snakes appear, each one wrapping themselves around the mages’ bodies, tongues flicking enticingly at their faces. From the black veil around them, Mikos appeared with the Faceless’s sword and impaled each of them through the heart.

              As quickly as the illusion had first appeared, it was now gone, leaving two bloodied bodies in its wake.

              ‘You’re getting the hang of your illusions,’ observed Byde with an essence of joviality.

              ‘Maybe those wordy things you mentioned are working,’ Mikos panted, exhaustion setting in.

              Byde said nothing and carried onwards through the hallway, his mind flickering with images; daydreams of how they were going to conquer the evil… if they got that far. He felt a lump in his throat and a trickle of sweat beading down his back.

              Being so close to what he considered the finale made him think back to their first chance encounter on Cryldis Island, how Mikos had told him about being driven by something he didn’t understand after finding the papers in the captain’s office in Donnol, and the surprising discovery of his caster heritage.

              Byde had been ever so relieved to find another caster – one of great potential, too. He finally felt like he was not alone anymore. He preferred this current partnership to living in solitude on the Isles of Dinsk; hiding away like a sewer rat.

              Their journey had been tiring and full of surprises – big ones. Byde knew that nothing was going to compare to what they would encounter in the next few hours.

              Mikos, however, was clinging to some kind of false hope – that is what it was in his mind. He reassured Byde that maybe his utterance of those ancient words had done something to his abilities, but he was afraid to admit that it was all a matter of chance that his magic would act. He felt a weight of guilt hanging around his neck. He wanted, more than anything, to back his friend and fellow caster up in this plight, but he still felt as lost as a puppy with the magic he had recently discovered. His only hope was that their enemies were going to have a bad day.

              Click! Click! Click!

              There it was again.

              Byde turned his head to one side and tried to pinpoint where it came from. He raised a hand and pointed down a nearby corridor to his right. ‘That way, Mikos; hurry.’

              The two casters, feeling more tired than either one of them would admit, hurried their way down the adjoining corridor, following the clicking sounds as they grew louder and louder.

              They both felt the anxiety. They both felt their chests pounding inside their bodies. They both felt each other’s fear crawling over their skins. They both clung onto a thin sliver of light among a vast void of darkness and despair.

 

***

 

There it was – the spire – reaching up into the cavern’s crudely carved ceiling and beyond. Its crystalline façade glowed with pulsating colours, the magic running through it undoubtedly at its strongest. A team of about a dozen mages encircled the structure, dressed differently to the other ones the two casters had encountered already – they wore deep red robes with gold rope around their waists, but they were still topped off with bald domes for heads.

              Mikos grabbed Byde’s forearm and squeezed it. ‘Erm… how the hell are we going to get rid of that?’ he asked in a shrill whisper.

              Byde surveyed the room, wondering if anyone had noticed their entrance through a narrow doorway at one of the far corners. Across from where they stood was an elaborate set of wooden doors in an iron framework, rusting in various sections, especially the hinges. Byde was surprised that they managed to stay upright let alone open and close all the time. Above them was a mass of magically carved stonework; the cavern having literally been blown into the solidity of the ground. A hazardous set of spiral steps wound around the room like a vine, reaching ever upwards until they disappeared into a hole into the ceiling – a way out?

              Mikos moved to one side with cat-like stealth, one hand gripped firmly on the hilt of the Faceless’s sword. He bent down into a crouch, bouncing slightly to avoid his knees locking. He peered wondrously at the team of mages whose arms were stiffly raised into the air, a variety of body parts glowing with their magical sources in a mixture of colours and intensities. He slicked his black hair back and cracked his knuckles rhythmically.

              ‘Do you have to?’ Byde hissed as he went to one knee.

              ‘What?’ Mikos asked, baffled.

              ‘Crack your damn knuckles like that?’

              ‘I’m limbering myself up,’ he snorted at Byde.

              ‘Well do it quietly… we need to keep down low for the moment.’

              ‘How are we going to proceed?’ Mikos asked with a wilfulness flowing through his face, more to get this over and done with so he could have aq well deserved drink.

              ‘We need to take out those mages quickly, but they outnumber us six to one. We need to work together heavily on this.’

              ‘What if the other non-cabbage mages turn up? What the fuck do we do then?’

              ‘I’m more capable of dealing with them, so you’d have to take out the mages one by one while I took those two clowns on.’ Byde scratched his chin and rolled his tongue around his mouth. ‘Of course the question is – would you be able to take on a dozen mages on your own?’

              Mikos suddenly felt his heart stop and drop into his gut. The prospect of 12 skilled mages against him was intimidating to say the least. What if that scenario came to fruition and he failed? He and Byde would undoubtedly be killed, and with it the last two casters in existence would be no more. It was terrifying.

              ‘We need to make a move,’ he murmured to Byde.

              Byde nodded in agreement. ‘You’re right. We need to do this as quickly and quietly as possible.’

              ‘What if they see us before we strike?’

              ‘I imagine their concentration is solely on the spire and nothing else… we could scream in their ears and they wouldn’t react I reckon.’

              ‘You hope…’

              ‘Well, yes, there is a certain degree of that in it.’ He smirked. ‘Mikos?’

              ‘Yeah?’

              ‘It’s been a pleasure.’ He held out his hand, his wide palms inviting.

              Mikos took his hand and shook it gently. ‘It’s certainly been an experience,’ he replied with a smile. ‘Surreal, in fact.’ He laughed softly. ‘But we’ll survive this and carry on… what d’ya say?’

              Byde nodded in silent approval, a smile broadening his face.

              After a few more minutes of anticipation they both started toward the spire, keeping to the concealing shadows as best they could. Moving like prowling assassins, they grew closer and closer to the spire mages, nothing but forced murderous intent in their minds.

              As soon as they had reached close enough to the spire to make a move, something in the air in front of them started shifting. It was nothing that could be seen or heard, but could be touched with the mind.

              Mikos crept forward, the sword weighing heavy in his sweaty grip, nearly slipping to the floor. He suddenly grunted as he toppled back, his feet losing their hold on the uneven surface. He landed with a hard thump, cracking the bottom of his back on a jutting piece of rock in the floor.

              ‘Ah fuck,’ he growled. ‘What the hell was that?’

              Byde had stopped a little bit behind Mikos and started peering at the point where his friend had fallen back. ‘Must be some sort of magic barrier protecting them.’ He screwed up his lips in thought. ‘Damn it.’

              Mikos groaned as he rubbed his sore back. ‘We’d better hurry this up. We’re treading a thin line as it is.’

              There was a sudden burning in the air.

              ‘Byde!’ Mikos screamed as he dived at him, shoving him out of the way of an oncoming ball of flame. The magical fire pounded against the barrier and dissipated instantly, licks of heat tasting the stale air.

              ‘You think that you two are going to destroy the Providence’s plans that easily?’ Blaigen stood a dozen metres away from them, his eyes glowing fiercely, fire dancing on his palms like women of the night.

              Vicana stood a little to his right, her age old staff held in an aggressive manner, an orb-like jewel atop it throbbing with raw magical energy. Her long white hair was tied back in a ponytail revealing her fine features that were twisted with hostility.

              Mikos caught the look in her eyes, however, and saw a wavering loyalty. He could feel it surrounding her mind; almost see it clouding her soul. He had always been told that if there was a chance to do something good from a situation then he should take it.

              He edged forward slightly. ‘Miss? You don’t have to carry on with this,’ he said in a soft, fatherly tone.

              She glared at him, locking into his eyes. She suddenly heard her mind scream, the look in this man’s eyes drilling into her with unbridled intrusion. ‘Don’t even try and get into my head… I’ve seen what you can do.’

              ‘Following this maniac is madness.’ He saw Blaigen bear his teeth, but chose to ignore it. ‘You’re a good woman…’

              ‘Vicana don’t take any notice of this manipulator,’ Blaigen growled as he began to conjure more fire into his hands.

              ‘Vicana,’ Mikos pleaded with enough sincerity to be convincing. ‘You can stop this.’

              It was then that she started to hesitate, her eyes reflecting a wave of suppressed regret from deep within her past.

              Byde suddenly made a move and hurled a funnel of water at the confused woman, her body flying through the air like an arrow, and landing limply onto the floor. The water screamed in the air like a thousand sirens.

              A wave of energy slammed into the casters and flung them back into the wall. They grimaced and grunted from the impact, their faces contorting with relentless agony.

              ‘Byde, we’re sitting ducks if we stick together. We need to split and divide them.’

              ‘Don’t get killed, whatever you do,’ Byde murmured as he conjured a shielding wall of water, meeting a barrage of fireballs that hurtled towards them. ‘I’ve got this guy.’

              Mikos patted Byde’s shoulder and got up to his feet as quickly as he could, moving to his left under the cover of the water. Droplets of spray hit his face as the magic grew in ferocity and power, his friend gradually finding his feet against the scarily powerful mage. He gripped his sword loosely, trying not to cramp his hand. As he moved he glanced out of the corner of his eye at the magical altercation. He knew that this Blaigen character was strong, maybe stronger than his friend was, but he kept a flicker of hope inside him.

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