The Merchant and the Menace (57 page)

Kael shot a glance at Eidyn.

“They are honor bound to retreat until the sun
travels its width three times across the sky.” whispered Eidyn.

Sherta glared at Granu and muttered to himself. He
fidgeted with the heavy blade of the ax and glanced back to his troop. The
Keltaran warriors murmured amongst themselves. Kael noticed one of the cloaked
figures from the back of the formation moving up just behind Catra. Sherta
mumbled loudly.

“We will... ah... must ... We need to consult on
the matter.”

“There’s no need to consult,” stated Catra.
“Grannak banished Prince Granu and gave him an oath of protection from all
Keltaran. To bring him home is illegal and to kill him is treason. When we rode
from Keltar, Grannak was still king. It’s time to end this farce and ride on.”

Kael saw a flash of steel from the cloaked figure
behind Catra. A powerful, tattooed forearm shot forward and slammed a blade
into the giant’s exposed ribcage. Catra’s eyes went wide with surprise. The
assailant’s other hand looped a cord over Catra’s head and yanked it tight
around the giant’s throat. At the same instant, the killer’s motion caused his
hood to fall away. Kael stared into the red glowing eyes of Tepi.

Illustrations of fire breathing Malveel covered the
trader’s arms. Strange symbols tattooed his face. He muttered incantations as
he neatly dropped Catra’s body to the ground. Suddenly, his voice boomed in
fury.

“You are the Maul of Fenrel, his chosen warriors!
Ignore this traitor who would force you to serve the Zodrians!” bellowed Tepi
pointing to Catra’s body. “Do your master’s bidding and you will receive glory
in the halls of Keltar! Take Granu the lame and make him a sacrifice to Amird!”

Events were happening so rapidly, Kael felt
overwhelmed. He watched green fire crackle about the hands of Ader. The Seraph
grew as he stared down from atop his stallion.

“You seal the fate of your soul today, warlock,”
shouted Ader raising his hands.

The sight of Ader caused the Keltaran to hesitate.
Kael was unsure if the giants would charge or run. Tepi’s eyes widened in shock
as green Seraph fire encased Ader, revealing the old man’s identity. However,
the evil warlock quickly recovered.

“Save your breath, lapdog,” snarled Tepi. “It is
known to all, you cannot hurt another human. Your weakness allows you only to
protect yourself.”

The entire assembly froze for a moment like the
tapestry Kael viewed in Rindor then erupted in action. Sherta flipped the blade
of his battle-ax. In one smooth motion he snatched the handle out of the air
and directed the blade toward Granu. The Keltaran leader’s shaggy warhorse
bolted forward. Granu leapt aside, dodging the heavy blade and thrusting his
staff at Sherta. The momentum of Sherta’s mount carried him directly into the
tip of the staff. Granu stood firm, legs braced against ground. The staff’s tip
hammered Sherta across the bridge of the nose and the Keltaran leader’s head
snapped back with a sickening crunch. Sherta’s entire body rose a few inches
off the saddle of his warhorse then flopped lifelessly to the ground.

The roadside flared into a swirling confusion of
noise, weapons and horses. Kael quickly drew the Needle of Ader and was stunned
to see it glowing with the same green flame that surrounded the Seraph.
Keltaran charged toward the road with weapons drawn. Kael heard a strum to his
left as Eidyn loosed an arrow into their midst. Tepi wheeled his mount and
shouted to the back ranks of the Keltaran formation.

“Concentrate on the old man, fools!” blared the
warlock.

The remaining two hooded figures threw back their
cowls. For the first time in his life Kael’s eyes fell upon the sight of every
Zodrian child’s nightmares. Two hulking Ulrog, nearly as large as the Keltaran,
raised rusty cleavers and charged through the Keltaran formation toward Ader.
Kael’s frightened childhood visions didn’t compare to the waking horror that
rushed the old man. Sloping, hairless heads covered in bits of rock and filth
sat upon huge rounded shoulders. The Ulrog were built with no necks to speak
of. Their heads simply connected directly to their powerful shoulders. Cords of
knotted muscle and chunks of rock covered long, mud colored arms. Kael was
amazed at the reach of the beasts as they raised their cleavers on high.

Red flame shot past him and slammed into Ader. The
boy flinched and covered his eyes. Tepi sat near the back of the formation,
eyes aglow. Flame covered the bald man’s hands and he raised them above his
head.

“He’s weak from his encounter with Lord Methra.
Finish him!” cried Tepi.

The Seraph threw up a wall to protect himself from
Tepi’s assault and was distracted. The Ulrog were almost upon him. Manfir
slammed his warhorse into their path. His sword slashed down at the nearest
Ulrog. The beast threw an arm up and met the blade. Kael sat stunned. Manfir’s
sword glanced off the rock-encrusted arm in a shower of sparks.

The Keltaran giants moved in. Granu stood at the
forefront of Kael’s group spinning his staff and blocking ax chops. Eidyn
worked feverishly with his bow, slowing the enemy with a quick rain of arrows.
Several found their mark. Two Keltaran dropped to the ground clutching arrow
shafts. However, the enemy was too close and heavily armored for the arrows to
halt their charge. Kael sat helplessly while the enemy remained focused on
Ader, Granu and Manfir.

The Zodrian prince drew a second blade and
struggled to protect himself from the cleaver wielding Ulrog. Tepi allowed the
battle to move away and blasted fire at Ader. The Seraph worked hard to shield
himself and Manfir from the fiery assault. Many of the Keltaran focused on
Granu, but several finally realized the damage Eidyn’s bow accomplished. Three
swung free and stormed toward the Elven prince.

Instantly, Teeg blocked their path. The lead
Keltaran snarled and hefted his heavy ax in his left hand. Teeg sat motionless
as the Keltaran charged and cocked the ax head back. The old Elf leapt to a
standing position on the back of his horse as the Keltaran approached within
five yards. Teeg smiled. The Keltaran swung the ax at the old Elf. An instant
before contact, Teeg leapt into the air throwing his feet up over his head. The
Keltaran’s ax whistled through emptiness. The Elf twisted and spun, tucking his
arms in close to his body. The giant’s arms and shoulders lurched forward and
he desperately tried to slow the movement of his heavy ax. A glint of steel
flashed from the Elf’s cloak and hammered into the back of the giant.

Teeg affected a perfect landing on the broad back
of his mount. Kael recoiled in fright as the Keltaran rumbled toward him. The
giant dropped his ax to the roadside and both of his hands struggled and
fumbled with something on the back of his neck. His eyes were filled with
dismay. His huge, shaggy horse galloped past Kael. The giant’s hands were
wrapped around the hilt of Teeg’s dagger. It protruded from beneath the rim of
his steel helm. The doomed Keltaran slumped forward, dead in the saddle.

“Kael! Move!” shouted Eidyn

 Kael wheeled to face Eidyn. A second Keltaran
chose the Elf prince as his quarry. Eidyn bumped Kael from his way and loosed
an arrow at his attacker, but it glanced off the Keltaran’s armor. Eidyn
fumbled with a second arrow while the Keltaran charged from his left. The
giant’s ax came down hard toward the Elven prince. Eidyn quickly slid from the
mare’s back to her side, nearly falling to the ground. The ax glanced off the
back of the beast tearing its flesh. Eidyn squeezed his legs around the
stallion’s midsection and avoided being unseated. The Elf loosed another arrow
from this prone position as the Keltaran passed. The bolt shot upright and
glanced off the breastplate of the giant. Its steel tip ricocheted off the
armor and traveled upward, catching the Keltaran under the chin and driving
into his head. He too traveled a few more yards before falling to the ground dead.

The third rider was focused on Kael. Eidyn was
unable to right himself in order to notch another arrow and Teeg was just
dropping onto his mount’s back. Kael panicked. He yanked hard on his mare’s
reins and turned her from the fight. Frantically he hammered her flanks with
his boots. The mare lurched forward and sprinted across the road. The Keltaran
howled and gave chase. Wild-eyed, Kael stared over his shoulder at his pursuer.
The Keltaran leveled a long, barbed pike at Kael and gained ground. The boy’s
vision shot forward searching for an avenue of escape.

Movement in the bush caught his eye. A red flash
whistled past his head. Kael rode hard for a few moments more then dared a
glance over his shoulder. Shockingly, the Keltaran halted. He sat clutching his
throat as his mount slowed to a walk. Kael stopped and circled. The boy saw red
feathers protruding from between the Keltaran’s fingers. After a moment, the
giant’s face turned a deep crimson, followed by a sickening purple. He finally
succumbed to the poison that tipped the dart in his throat and he too fell to
the ground dead.

The Ulrog surrounding Manfir chanted and pressed
their attack. They hacked and slashed at the Zodrian prince, keeping him on the
defensive. Tepi pressed his assault upon Ader and Manfir. Several Keltaran lay
scattered around Granu either dead or severely wounded.

The stones and rocks embedded in the Ulrogs’ skin
flared red. The beasts’ cleavers burst into flames and they attacked with
renewed strength.

“Ulrog priests!” shouted Manfir.

Worry crossed Ader’s sweating face. The Seraph
encountered tremendous difficulty with Tepi. The warlock’s robe fell away.
Tattoos marked his arms and symbols scarred his skin. Tepi raised his right arm
and Kael saw Amird's name deeply carved upon it.

“That is correct Seraph. You contend with three of
us. Fear the power of my Lord Amird!” squealed the warlock and flame shot from
his hands.

Ader narrowed his eyes and produced a wall of green
fire to deflect the onslaught. The Ulrog slammed their fiery blades down upon
Manfir. The stone men drove the prince low against the back of his mount. As
the Ulrog raised their blades once more, Manfir slid from the back of the Black
and rolled to the ground. He darted under his horse’s belly. The Ulrog were momentarily
confused.

 The Zodrian prince dashed forward between the
horses of his opponents. The Ulrog tried to hack at him with their weapons, but
their long arms made it difficult to fight in close quarters. Manfir rammed one
of his blades into the knee of an Ulrog. The monster howled in pain as thick
black blood oozed from the wound. The beast’s mount wheeled in fear, knocking
into his companion’s horse. The second Ulrog lost control.

Manfir struck. He leapt into the air and plunged
the second of his blades into the exposed back of the Ulrog. The creature
howled and gnashed its crumbled, stone teeth. The blade lodged deeply in the
Ulrog’s rocky hide.

The fire faded from the stone men’s blades as they
struggled with their wounds. The pair turned upon the unarmed Manfir. The
Zodrian prince lie trapped between the Ulrog and the melee that surrounded
Granu.

Flair rushed past the green, sputtering fire of
Ader. The Ulrog were unaware of his approach from their rear. The Southland
boy’s horsemanship rewarded him. Flair drew a hatchet from the pack slung by
the side of his horse. In his other hand he held the sword given to him by his
grandfather. He directed his chestnut with his knees. The horse dodged past the
conflagration created by Tepi and Ader. The horse spun to its left then charged
directly between the Ulrog attackers. Flair stretched to meet their height. The
young man’s right hand whipped forward launching the hatchet. It spun through
the air and caught one Ulrog at the base of its head. The sharply honed blade
sparked against the Ulrog’s rock encrusted skin, but penetrated and wedged
there tightly. Flair’s right hand quickly met his left on the hilt of his
Grandfather’s sword. The boy howled and he rammed the blade into the second
Ulrog as the chestnut sprinted past. The sword caught hard and was ripped from
his grip. The mortally wounded Ulrog lost control of their mounts. Flair shot
between them and leaned over extending an arm to Manfir. The Zodrian prince
locked forearms with the boy and swung onto the chestnut as it passed. The
crazed mounts of the Ulrog slammed into one another once again and spilled
their riders to the ground.

The momentum of Flair’s mount carried it into the
fray around Granu. Flair's chestnut hammered into the back of one of Granu’s
remaining opponents as the Keltaran prince expertly unarmed the second. Manfir
leapt from the back of Flair’s horse and retrieved a Keltaran battle-ax from
one of the dead. A giant lie face down sprawling on the ground. The prince
screamed as he raised the ax and sent it crashing toward the Keltaran. Granu’s
staff slammed into the ax and deflected it harmlessly into the earth.

“Hold, Manfir!” boomed the giant.

 Manfir glared at Granu with a look of shock,
followed by fury.

“You will not butcher my brethren. They’re beaten!”
shouted Granu.

The two remaining Keltaran lay at the feet of Granu
and Manfir.

“You ask me not to butcher butchers,” cried Manfir
in exhaustion.

“I tell you not to.” stated Granu.