He shook his head in mock disappointment, then turned to look at Ramona.

  “You can’t spare even one man on this upcoming battle. Luckily for you, I am temporarily unable to fight. I will ride to the Endless Wood for reinforcements. All you guys have to do is stay alive until my return. What do you say?”

  Ramona looked at the dwarf for a moment, then looked around to her other captains.

  “Well, rude as the little man is, he has a point. I agree, what about you?” she asked in a loud, carrying voice.

  Her question was answered by a resounding cheer from the captains and lieutenants. Smiling, she looked back at the dwarf.

  “It looks as though you’ve got your answer.”

  She slipped a ring from the middle finger of her left hand and handed it over to Hord. “Take this ring and present it to Commander Neff. He is the leader of the Defiants. Tell him we need aid urgently and not to let Juwei bog them down in procedure. If I die because of her, tell him that I will personally haunt him from the grave!”

  Hord accepted the ring with a chuckle.

  “Will do, Co-founder.”

  Turning to Arbor and Grak, Ramona addressed them directly.

  “I’m sure you must be tired from your mission. Go now and rest. We will have someone wake you when the enemy is sighted.”

  Arbor nodded gratefully, but Grak just turned her back without saying a word, and the two of them followed Hord out into the corridor.

  They walked in silence for a few moments before Grak turned at him and burst out, “What was that all about?”

  Arbor was taken aback at the sudden outburst and looked to Hord for help.

  “I’m not getting involved in this,” he said, falling back a few steps.

  Arbor looked back at Grak and saw she looked angry.

  “Can you tell me what I’ve done to upset you this time?” he asked carefully.

  “You!” she said, jabbing her finger into his breastplate, “Once again rushed headlong into danger without a second thought. You could have gotten yourself killed!”

  “I’m sorry,” he said, raising his hands in defense. “I didn’t know what I was attacking, but I needed to act quickly. Otherwise, it would have caught on.”

  Her expression softened a bit as he said this.

  “I know that you needed to act, I just wish you wouldn’t rush headlong into danger like that every time we’re faced with a problem.”

  “It’s not like I go looking for danger. It just seems to find me. If it makes you feel any better, though, I’ll do my best to avoid it when I can.”

  He smiled at her, but she just huffed and sped up, walking quickly down the corridor, and was soon lost from view.

  “She worries about you. She just doesn’t know how to express it that well.”

  Arbor turned back to see Hord still walking behind him. He’d forgotten the dwarf was even there. That alone highlighted how truly exhausted he really was.

  “When do you ride out?” Arbor asked, falling into step beside the dwarf.

  “As soon as I make it to the stables,” he answered. Then he looked at Arbor with a worried expression. “What kind of magic were you using when you killed that monster?”

  “I’m not an idiot!” he said when he saw Arbor’s surprised look. “I could clearly see a difference between how you fought when I first met you and how you fought just now. It was the same magic you used on those lizards, wasn’t it?”

  Arbor’s lips compressed into a line, but he nodded all the same.

  “I don’t know exactly what it is, but I do know one thing. It’s extremely powerful, more powerful than you can imagine. I think that I’ve only just scratched the surface of what this magic can really do.

  “It may be very powerful magic, but I don’t think it’s worth the price I might one day need to pay for using it,” he finished in a quiet voice, remembering the struggle he’d had controlling it earlier.

  Hord didn’t speak for a minute, and the two walked on in silence, finally coming into the main hall.

  “I can’t tell you what to do about your new magic,” he said as they stopped in the middle of the open chamber. “I can say this, however. Whether you like it or not, that power is a part of you now. You can either control it or let it destroy you.”

  He clapped him on the back one more time, and Arbor watched him heading down the tunnels towards the stable.

  He walked tiredly back to his room and closed the door behind him. There was a large tray of beef and bread as well as a change of clothes sitting on the small nightstand. Quickly stripping out of his clothes and armor, he got into the clean clothes and washed his face in a small basin near the nightstand.

  He was soon sitting on his bed and wolfing down his meal, the delicious flavors of the seasoned beef and crusty bread lifting his spirits. Up until he’d seen the food, he hadn’t realized just how hungry he was, and it didn’t take him long to polish off the entire tray.

  A short while later, Arbor found himself lying in bed, thinking over what Hord had told him.

  When he now thought of using his new magic, he felt fear grip his heart. A fear unlike any he’d felt before. His heart pounded in his chest as he replayed the feeling over and over in his mind.

  The glowing magic, the blow he’d struck against the Infiltrator, the gaping hole he’d left in the creature, and finally, the last attack that had split it in half. It wasn’t the death of the Infiltrator or the gruesome way he’d killed it that was gnawing at him. It was the unknown that made his heart begin to pound, and a cold sweat break out on his brow.

  He didn’t know what this magic was or how it worked. He could understand his Perception magic. If he pushed too hard, it would cost him. But at least he knew his limitations, and exactly how it worked. This other magic felt different. There seemed to be endless possibilities, as though it weren’t constrained to any single type of magic.

  Arbor shuddered and tried to force his mind away from such a dangerous line of thinking.

  He couldn’t use this magic carelessly, no matter how much power it gave him. Hord was right about one thing, however. He would need to resolve whatever this was or be destroyed by it. He allowed himself to admit, at least internally, that he was afraid, but not of any person or thing. He was afraid of himself, of what might happen if he lost control of the magic. How many people would die as a result if he ever did…

  An urgent pounding at the door awoke Arbor from a troubled sleep. Getting quickly out of bed, he went to open the door, rubbing tired eyes and yawning widely. Grak stood there, dressed in her armor with her rapier strapped to her belt.

  “Scouts just reported back,” she said, throwing a bundle of clothes at him. “Get dressed. The gremlin force will be here in an hour.”

  She turned her back on him as he stripped down to his underclothes, further highlighting the seriousness of the situation, and put on the shirt and pants she’d brought him. She then helped him tighten his breastplate with the roaring jaguar’s head embossed on the front. He tied on a hardened leather skirt, similar to the one Grak wore, and buckled his belt on over them. Lastly, he slid on his bracers and greaves. He’d finally received a pair made of steel and was happy to be going into battle with a little more protection.

  He slung his glaive over his shoulder and looked at his companion.

  “Let’s not keep them waiting, then,” he said, and the two of them headed out into the corridor towards the main hall.

  52

  Sylvester looked on in horror as Karria hit the ground, the deep gash in her side pumping out blood at an alarming rate.

  “Kill her! Then cut me free so I can get my turn!” Nina shrieked.

  Sylvester looked over to see that only a small portion of her upper body still bound.

  He cursed himself quietly for losing his concentration and quickly had the cursing girl bound up again. He took a step toward Nina, but Eletha’s voice stopped him in his tracks.

  “Take one more step, and I cut her throat.”

  Sylvester looked to her and saw her kneeling over Karria, with a dagger pressed to her throat. His heart beat ever faster as he watched the pool of blood under her growing with each passing second.

  By the way she was bleeding, Karria had two minutes left, at best, before she died.

  “That’s a good boy,” Eletha said as she shifted a bit on Karria’s prone form.

  He noticed then that she grimaced in pain as she did so, and seeing the injuries covering the girl, he was shocked she was still alive.

  “Now, you’re going to release my sister, then you’re going to let her tie you up. Try anything, and I’ll kill the Sow.”

  She pressed the dagger harder to Karria’s throat, causing a small line of blood to appear.

  Sylvester didn’t know what to do. On the one hand, he had to protect his sister and he knew that if he released Nina, they’d all be killed. Karria would die soon, of that he was certain. The only question remaining was if he and Kya would be joining her.

  “Make it snappy. We don’t have all day!” Eletha screamed, pressing the knife down a bit harder.

  Sylvester didn’t move, wracked once again by indecision.

  Seeing that Sylvester was not making a move to free her sister, a nasty smile crossed Eletha’s face.

  “Very well then,” she said and raised the dagger high over her head.

  “I think you’ve done quite enough.”

  Sylvester jumped, and Eletha faltered, stopping the dagger mid-stroke, as a man walked into the clearing.

  Sylvester turned slowly, his eyes widening in recognition. He knew this man, knew him for what he really was, and it terrified him. The mere sight of him standing there scared him more than the deranged elf standing over his friend.

  “Who the hell are you?!” Eletha demanded, glaring up at the stranger who’d interrupted her, right when she’d been about to get her revenge. “This is none of your business, human. This is the Goldenleaf Forest. Now get lost!”

  “I think that it is my business. After all, that dagger is not yours,” the man said, approaching Eletha and the prone Karria. “It belongs to the girl you’re currently threatening. And seeing as I have a vested interest in seeing her live, I’ll have to ask you to get off her. If you don’t, I’ll have no choice but to remove you.”

  “Remove me? Do you have any idea who I am, you stupid human?” Eletha shouted, waving the dagger in the air. “I am the strongest battle mage in the Goldenleaf School of Magic! Take one step closer, and I will destroy you!”

  Sylvester took an involuntary step back from the two of them and almost tripped over Nina’s prone form, hearing a groan escape through her gag. He did not want to get in Silver’s way.

  “I somehow doubt that you’re a battle mage,” Silver said, a look for scorn on his face. “In fact, you’re barely an Enhanced Mage past the 4th Tier. Where I come from, even a child would chew you up and spit you out like the garbage you are.”

  He turned to Sylvester then, his eyes narrowing.

  “This is the second time you’ve nearly gotten her killed.”

  He did not look happy.

  The grin that Sylvester was used to seeing on the man was no longer there. Instead, he had an expression of burning anger.

  “How is this my fault?” Sylvester asked, indignantly.

  Unfortunately for him, his voice cracked as he spoke, greatly diminishing his attempt at being outraged.

  “If you hadn’t stopped Karria from killing her, this weakling would by lying on the ground instead of her!” His voice grew lower and more dangerous now. “If this happens a third time, no one in the entire world will be able to save you from my wrath, boy! Do you understand?!”

  Sylvester took an involuntary step back, and this time, he did trip over Nina, landing hard on his ass. He looked up in fear at the man standing just feet away and nodded quickly.

  “I promise it won’t happen again!”

  Silver nodded then turned back to Eletha, who was staring at him, her mouth open in disbelief.

  “What do you mean almost killed?” she asked, waving the red dagger in front of his face. “None of you will be making it out of here alive! I’ll kill…!”

  She was cut off by Nina’s muffled shrieks and rolled her eyes.

  “I’ll kill you, then cut my sister loose so she can kill the prince. Then I’m going to cut the lovely Princess’ face off. Won’t that be nice?” she asked with a deranged smile. “She won’t look so pretty anymore, when she doesn’t have her face!”

  “I’m going to tell you one last time,” Silver said, taking a step forward. “Drop the dagger and release the girl.”

  Eletha just cackled madly and lifter the dagger, then brought it plunging down towards Karria’s chest.

  “Not a chance in hell!”

  The dagger never made contact with Karria, as Eletha was blasted off the girl and flew through the air to land ten feet away. A shriek of pain was forced from her throat as her already mutilated body hit the ground with a thud.

  Silver was at Karria’s side in a flash and quickly placed his hand over the still bleeding wound. Sylvester could see that Karria had gone a deathly pale. He wasn’t sure what Silver could do for her, but he really hoped that he would be able to save her.

  There was a flash of light and the smell of burning flesh where Silver had placed his hand. When he removed it, the wound was sealed shut, and a large burn mark surrounded the area.

  “Sylvester,” Silver snapped. “Get over here and look after her. I’ve closed the wound as best I can, but I’ll need to be able to fight without any distractions.”

  Sylvester nodded and quickly rushed over, reaching for his Origin. Using the roots under the ground, he moved her gently over to Kya, then stood protectively in front of them.

  Silver nodded his thanks and turned back to Eletha, just in time to catch a bolt of lightning to the chest. There was a huge explosion and Silver was completely engulfed in smoke.

  “What did I tell you about interfering, human?”

  Eletha was somehow back on her feet, completely shocking Sylvester.

  Silver was most certainly dead after that! He knew he was about to die but had to marvel at the insane girl’s tenacity. She had a stab wound in her leg, a shattered rib cage, a broken arm and a nasty gash on her scalp, yet she was still standing.

  “Damn it all. I really liked that shirt,” Silver’s voice drifted out of the smoke cloud as if taking a bolt of lightning to the chest was no bother at all.

  The smoke soon cleared, and Sylvester could see that somehow he was completely unharmed. His shirt hung in tatters and he was looking down at it forlornly.

  “I’ve noticed you have a bad habit of attacking people when their backs are turned,” he said dryly.

  “How are you not dead?” Eletha was staring in shock at the man. “No human could survive that!”

  “Oh, that’s pretty simple,” Silver said, taking his shirt the rest of the way off and dropping it to the ground. “You keep calling me human. Why would you assume that I am human?”

  Sylvester could hear his voice deepening as he spoke, and felt his heart skip a beat. He wouldn’t really do it here, would he?

  Silver looked back at him then and smiled. It wasn’t his usual kind and friendly smile, though. It was a predatory smile, full of hunger and the promise of death.

  “The elf behind me knows what I am,” Silver said as he turned back to Eletha, who had now gone a sickly pale as she watched Silver’s transformation.

  He was growing taller as he spoke, and his shoulders were noticeably broadening. His pants began to strain and finally tore at the seams, muscular legs showing underneath. His skin was darkening as well and was soon black as pitch. His skin seemed to crack in certain places, leaving glowing, violet lines all over his body, tracing strange patterns on his skin.

  The sky darkened overhead, and a wind began to blow, sending leaves fluttering in all directions. The transformation finally came to an end, the entire thing taking place in seconds, but seeming to take an eternity. Silver now stood nearly eight feet tall and towered over the elf girl. His glowing purple eyes were glaring down at her.

  A white aura surrounded him, wisping off his skin, and the air crackled with unspent power.

  Sylvester was not one of the rare few who could sense magic, but even he could feel the immense power radiating off the man.

  No, not a man, he thought to himself, with a shiver of fear. A monster!

  Eletha took one step back, then another and another, finally feeling her bad leg buckle under her and she went sprawling backward on the ground. A look of pure terror crossed her face, and she knew true fear for the first time in her life.

  She’d never been this afraid before, not when she’d nearly killed Karria and had to run for her life. Not when she’d broken into the city to take the princess. Not even when she’d killed those guards at the gate that had nearly caught her.

  Now, looking at this man, she could feel her heart seizing up and her breath catch in her throat as she desperately tried to escape from this monster.

  “That’s impossible, all the Salamanders are dead!” she screamed, trying desperately to cobble together some magic as a defense.

  She never got the chance. A loud, piercing scream rent the early morning air, as she was engulfed in a brilliant white light and her entire body was torn apart. When the light faded, not a shred of evidence was left to suggest that Eletha had been lying there just a moment before. In her place was a massive crater with jagged cracks running in all directions from the center. Nothing else remained.

  Silver then turned back toward Sylvester, his glowing eyes on the still bound Nina and he slowly approached. The vines melted off the elf girl who was now frozen in fear, looking up at the approaching nightmare.

  “Leave her alone!” Sylvester said, stepping directly into Silver’s oncoming path and spreading his arms out wide.

  “What do you think you’re doing, boy?” Silver boomed, the very air trembling as he spoke.

  “She didn’t actually hurt anyone. She only did as she was told,” Sylvester said.

 

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