All Things Impossible: Heartstealer, page 32
Thalon waited. He couldn't do anything else. He certainly wasn't going to leave the girl here alone while he tried to find his way back to the cottage. Uneasily, he looked around into the dark heart of the night. Darkness changes the world, and paths and even familiar trees were dangerously deceptive. He wrapped his arms around himself and waited.
He waited and waited, until finally the starlight drained from the sky and was taken over by the mute pre-dawn grayness before true sunlight. His orange chemmen eyes could see their best in this light.
Chloe coughed and he grabbed her hand.
"Where's my uncle?"
"Gone. He gave you these." He pushed the rose and flute into her hands. The boy waited a second. "You know he's a vampire, right?"
Chloe pulled the flute up to her chin. "I knew that, Grandfather told me, but when's he coming back? I - I just thought he would be here with me."
* * *
"This is the worst idea you've ever had! We're surrounded!" Peyna bumped his chin against the dirt in anger.
Thistle raised an eyebrow. Beside him, Erastus huddled against the ground, holding Chloe. Thalon had squeezed up right next to her. Through the trees ahead of them lay the river, shimmering like a thousand diamonds in the sun. But, between them and the river, marched Urael's army. And, Thealith's army dissolved any possibility of withdrawal back to the east.
Thistle watched a column through the trees. The sun glinted severely off their mail and weapons. A cloud of dirt and dust followed them. His meager vantage point was only a little hill, but it was enough to see the gathering storm over the river.
"We'll never make it inside Urael now, you know," Peyna huffed.
"I know."
"Why did I ever listen to your ridiculous plan? Oh, Urael is the last place that bastard will look for her. She is going to be exposed here! That bastard is only two hundred yards away!" He grabbed a fistful of dirt and heaved it in the general direction of the river.
Thistle sighed. "Then may I suggest that you shut up?"
Peyna hurled a fistful of dirt in Urael's general direction. "How dare you say that to me! I am the royal physician, the best physician in the world!"
Thistle's face remained nonplussed. "And yet, you couldn't help Chloe."
Peyna opened his mouth as if to scream, but only a small croak escaped. "You - you don't understand what was being done to her!"
"Perhaps not, but it was the vampire who truly did, and not you. Now, can you use another glamour to hide us again, here?"
The physician exhaled, and hunched his shoulders. "No, he saw through my last one with ease, and I haven't prepared for any type of magical combat. Besides, nearly all of my magic is in regards to healing."
"Too bad."
"I want my uncle." Chloe peeled her face away from the ground. Both men turned to her. She continued, "He could get us out of here."
"Yes, he would have been useful," Thistle murmured.
"So, Dad, how do we get out of here?" Thalon whispered.
"Not sure." The chemman shrugged. His orange eyes fell on Chloe, who stared right back at him with nothing but trust shining on her face.
He sighed, and spoke in elvish, "I wish we could use the girl."
"She'd die!" Peyna fired back. "That damned wizard is here, right here, and you're considering it!"
"No, I'm merely acknowledging a fact. Using her ability may be the only way out of this."
"She'll perish. And now I expect you to counter with but the rest of us will survive, but damn it, man, I am not sacrificing a child!"
"I never said you'd have to," the chemman responded softly.
"How could you even say that?"
"How could you even assume that I'd be so cruel in the first place?" He sighed. "I know what my brothers are, but I have proven that my loyalties are with my son. So, tell me, why would I harm his new friend? Why would I harm any child?"
"I - I..." Peyna sealed his lips closed. "I only..."
Thistle flashed a toothless smile. "Don't worry, I have no idea what to do either."
* * *
On either side of the Dismal Horvath, the armies moved to the commands of the trumpets. Urael's army lined up in front of Thealith's army, while the rest of their troops slowly negotiated the river crossing on large rafts. The water was wide and shallow for the most part and entangled in many smaller channels and sandbars.
Standing in the ranks, Sergeant Lynon of Thealith's Royal Army from Malfax drew his sword as he watched the other army. His helmet was already heating up in this sun and the wind stung his cheeks through the open face.
He checked over his shoulder. His soldiers weren't new to combat - there were brigands aplenty hidden beyond the unclaimed borders of the kingdom. This time, they were lucky enough to be near the back, but he knew they wouldn't remain there for long.
Crossing the river was going to be difficult, especially with archers loosing arrows on both sides. He felt a stab of pity for those still crossing the water. He knew that Urael had been building fords by night - their scouts had mapped those carefully, in order to use them for themselves.
Lynon shifted his feet uneasily, and then tried to hide the action from the men behind him. He never heard the order to combat. He wasn't at all sure if they should be fighting, not with the rumors about dragons and wizards flying around. Too late now though, battle was like a flood, once it started, it caught everyone in its path and it could not be stopped. The river valley flooded with heavy metal thunder.
* * *
The osprey circled overhead, and the ruby crowned kinglet bounced on Alcomm's head. He laughed where he stood, soaking in the sights and sounds, even the vibrations under his feet. He smiled as thousands of men and horses collided in a clash of flesh and metal. The flat floodplain soon began to run with rivers of screams and blood.
He savored the view as someone else might pause at the vista of a majestic waterfall. Overhead, the osprey squealed, diving down at a thicket of trees on a small hill.
At the top of the remaining dead leaves, the bird flapped its wings and shot back into the sky.
Alcomm grinned to himself. He twirled his staff and began to saunter through the swords and battle.
* * *
The wind suddenly stormed through the trees. Thistle cursed and slipped the black sword free of its sheath. "Keep them safe." And then he was gone.
"What's going on?" Chloe screamed above the abrupt wind.
"I don't know!" Thalon struggled to draw both of his long knives at once. "I don't know!"
"Is it him?" Erastus clutched Chloe tighter.
"No, worse," Peyna spat. He rose to his feet, shaking his hands.
"I am prepared this time, elf, are you?" the wizard sang.
Peyna spun in a complete circle. "Where are you?"
"You know, I never needed the girl alive. I just need to be here when she dies." He raised his free hand.
Chloe screamed. She pinned her hands against her ears and squirmed against the ground, shrieking. The physician thrust out his hand and drew up an arc of shimmering energy between the wizard and the girl.
Alcomm staggered back as if he'd been struck a blow. The kinglet flew from his head, squealing. Peyna stepped in front of the children.
The wizard ground his teeth. "You will not stop me!"
"I will," whispered a voice behind his shoulder. Then, a sword slid through Alcomm's thick robes. He opened his mouth to bark a spell, and felt the air pass through his throat and over his tongue. Yet, he made no sound. He felt bile and panic rise up his throat next. He froze.
Thistle thrust deeper; he hadn't yet felt the kiss of the blade into the skin. He planted his feet and shoved the sword in as far as he could, but it seemed entangled in the robes as if it were knotted in strings.
Alcomm spun toward him, bringing the staff around like the wrath of the gods. Thistle ducked and shifted back as easily as a well greased wheel.
The staff was still there. It shouldn't have been possible! There was no way the wizard could have followed him that quickly!
Crack!
The stave smashed into the chemman's head, and also, a transparent, yet visible wall of solid air pushed Thistle irresistibly backward. He finally slammed against the ground. The black sword rolled from his fingertips.
He didn't get back up.
"Dad!" Thalon screamed.
Peyna caught the boy by his ear as he jumped forward. "Stay here!"
"But, but-"
"Stay!"
Chloe pulled herself away from the ground and Erastus's grasp. She bunched her fists at her side. "I want to help."
"You'll die!" Erastus wobbled to stand upright.
Peyna growled, "Child, you can't, you're the one he wants to kill for some reason. He's the one who made you so ill."
Alcomm swept closer, entering beneath the trees. "Yes, come to me, child."
Chloe, with tears in her eyes, inhaled. "No!" Above her, the osprey flew away from the sound of her shout.
Peyna crossed both his hands behind his back, weaving his fingers in a pattern. Sparks trailed after his moving digits.
"I think not." Alcomm raised his free arm and his staff. Smoke erupted from Peyna's fingers and the sparks jolted him.
"I told you I was prepared this time!" He leveled his staff at the elf.
The physician's feet rose from the ground. He gasped and kicked out in reflex. Alcomm wiggled his staff and the elf flipped upside down.
"Damn you! Stop this!" Peyna reached for some exposed roots, but they bobbed just out of his grasp.
"So, tell me, can you heal this?" The wizard raised his staff and hand, and Peyna shot into the air as if exploding from a volcano. He smashed through branches and limbs while he flew skyward. At first, he shielded his face with his arms, but at the height of the trees, he was no longer moving. He crashed into a branch at the top of a tree, where his tunic and trousers caught in the branches and twigs. He still failed to move, and a few drops of blood fell back down to earth.
"Oh, no," Erastus moaned.
Thalon dropped a knife and snatched one of Chloe's hands. They gulped in unison. Together, they dragged their eyes forward. No one else stood between them and Alcomm.
"Leave my friends alone!" Chloe bunched her free fist. Beside her, Thalon raised his remaining knife, ready to throw.
Alcomm smiled. "Yes, yes. That's right, child."
Erastus dropped to his knees. "Please, please, my lord, please don't hurt her!"
"I can't make that promise, old man." He swung his staff in the grandfather's direction. "However, I could just kill you first." The end of the wooden stave began to glow red.
"Stop!" Chloe cried.
The tip of Alcomm's staff exploded. He jumped back. "How did you-" He narrowed his eyes. "You are not a match for me, little girl."
Thalon threw his knife. It stuck in mid-air. Alcomm pulled a blade as curved as a sickle from his robes, and stepped forward intently. The children stared upward.
And then, the entire world morphed into ash and flame.
Alcomm crossed his staff and free arm, shielding his face. He dropped the curved knife, and the steel evaporated before it ever hit the ground. But, the flame ricocheted off an invisible shield around the wizard.
"Dragon!" Chloe yelled.
Thalon pointed. "Goldie!"
The incredibly massive dragon soared through the air, and his wingspan covered the entire battlefield. Panic shot through both armies faster than a hail of arrows. Swords slipped from hands as the soldiers stared at the magnificence above.
The osprey screamed as it circled the wall of flames. Goldie flicked one giant talon, and sent the bird tumbling uncontrollably through the air. With a swish of his majestic tail and hands, he swept the children and old man up into his palm...
And disappeared.
"No! Alcomm scrambled to his feet. "No!"
* * *
Erastus and the children suddenly dropped on the ugly raft, splashing water dangerously high over its edges. The small golden ball of dragon collapsed into Der's hands, panting like an out of breath dog. He craned up his slender head on his long neck. "Did I get him?"
Jakkobb shaded his eyes. "I don't know."
Der pulled her cloak over the dragon as the raft bumped against the edge of a large sand and gravel deposit. His eyes closed and he continued to pant.
"Well, now what?" Kelin asked.
"How did he know?" Thalon asked, nodding at Goldie.
Der shrugged. "He just took off."
"You must be Chloe." Mora knelt in front the children. "Nice to finally meet you."
The girl bobbed her head up and down. "Yes. Is the wizard dead?"
Spike shook his mane. No, I can still feel him. He looked sideways at the knight.
Most of the battlefield could not see them, and all eyes remained skyward, searching for the dragon. Then, one soldier saw his opening and struck at an enemy, who was still looking to the sky. He fell. His shield mate thrust at the original attacker, and then another soldier retaliated against him. And, like pebbles cascading into a rockslide, the war began anew.
Jakkobb spun toward Der, Kelin and Mora. "You stay here, and guard them!" He stabbed a finger at Erastus and the children.
"No, we're coming with you!" The Pallens sword came alight in Der's hand as she jumped off the raft.
"No, you're not."
"But-"
Jakkobb's voice thundered louder than the roar of the battle. "Der! Take an order! Stay here, guard them!"
"Yes, sir." She dropped the point of the blade and stepped backward onto the raft.
Spike stepped off the raft, his massive feet sinking in the loose sand. He snorted and pawed the ground like a bull. This is what he is after, Derora, if he gets to her, then this whole adventure has been for naught.
Jakkobb heaved himself up into the unicorn's saddle. "Protect them!" Spike reared, and he and the knight dashed into the battle.
Scowling, Der turned around and pushed Goldie into Thalon's hands. "Watch him." The dragon squirmed feebly.
"I'm going too!" Mora pulled up her skirt and hopped off the raft.
"What?" Kelin and Der echoed.
"I'm going." She looked at them over her shoulder. "He's not a magic user. He's going to need help."
"Me too." Kelin, drawing his sword, stepped beside her.
"Jakkobb said to stay here!" Der's foot hovered over the edge of the raft, but she pulled it back and watched the couple head off to war.
* * *
The knight grinned through his grimace. "Come on, Spike, we've been in worse situations before."
The rhythm of Spike's hooves almost beat to the drums of the soldiers. Yes, and how did those situations end, pray?
"I didn't need to be reminded of that right now." He glanced over to where the armies were slicing at each other's throats. The poor bastards, he thought. It wasn't their fault. They'd got orders. They didn't know who was playing this violin. And, they're the ones who paid the worst price.
Lost in his own thoughts and watching the battle, he failed to look ahead. Blinding lightning obliterated the ground where Spike's hooves had just treaded.
"Shit! Spike, run!"
"I am losing my patience!" a voice sang over the clashes of battle.
Spike hopped sideways. His instinct saved them from their unseen nemesis. Lightning seared through the air, inches from Spike's nose. The energy crackled and sizzled, and he smelled some of his own fried hair. He dropped to two knees, and Jakkobb flew free from the saddle.
The knight rolled away, and the ground lit up with another bolt between the two of them.
Alcomm marched toward the knight. "What did you do? I know a dragoon when I see one, and you bring dragons! Where is she?"
Jakkobb raised the axe, and another bolt struck it from his hand. The knight coughed. He didn't want to believe it, but he knew how easily it could all end. Especially against a magic user without a plan...
The knight looked up to see the end of the staff glowing with the white hot brilliance of the stars. "Last chance!"
He shook his head.
"Very well!" He raised the staff. The lightning shot forth, arching toward Jakkobb's head.
It suddenly changed direction and shot off into the heavens.
"Stop!" Mora lowered her hands. Around her hands, a blue glow flashed brightly and then disappeared.
Alcomm blinked. He blinked again. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Well, well, well. Morana. What are you doing here? Not the scared little waif I knew not long ago. I see that you've spent too long in the company of heroes, dear girl."
Mora growled and tossed her hands free of her sleeves over her head. She stepped away from Kelin. "I'll keep his attention. You get him if I don't." Red light flared between them and sweat broke on her forehead.
The magician leaned casually on his staff and grinned. "This will be quicker than you think, dear. You know you cannot match me."
"No, I just have to out think you!" Fire swelled up between her hands. She launched it.
He caught it on his staff. "What was that, you- "
The magician whirled, barely avoiding a stream of fire. Mora raised her hands and another fireball grew.
The wizard raised his staff and hands in self defense. "Oh, no, no! How? Why?"
"Yes!" Mora breathed. "I - I got him!"
The sound of laughter cut across her triumphal shout. Alcomm smirked and murmured a single word beneath his breath.
Mora's eyes and mouth opened wide. The flare above her hands viciously bit into her skin. They glowed sickly red. The color flooded down her arms and onto her face. Smoke drifted up from the hem of her dress.
She opened her mouth to scream and flames soared upward from her throat. A crimson cloud erupted from her exposed skin and shot high into the air. It swelled overhead, showering red sparks, and casting an ugly shadow over the Dismal Horvath.
"Mora!" Kelin hollered as she collapsed. He dashed over to her, collapsing over her body. "Mora! Mora! No, oh gods, no!" Her body twitched and shook uncontrollably.
