Sword of Ice and Other Tales of Valdemar

'Then once you and this forest fall, he shall have no protection.' With that Ke'noran swept her arms outward and a wall of mage-fire appeared, not anywhere near Vanyel, but for dozens of paces on either side of the two mages. Driven against the wind into the forest, the blue-green flames began to grow rapidly as they licked at the trees and underbrush.

Surprised by the unorthodox attack, Vanyel hesitated a bit before beginning his defense. Quickly he weather-magicked the nearby clouds to grow, making them suck up the water vapor in the atmosphere, swelling into gray thunderheads that covered the sky. With a flick of his hand, the water poured down, drowning the flames in the forest. Fully on guard now, Vanyel went on the offensive, calling all of the power at his command and sending it at the woman before him.

As soon as Treyon saw the flames appear at the forest's edge, his bandit's intuition knew that a trap had been laid and they had walked right into it.

A whinny of alarm turned his head toward Yfandes, just in time to see a dark, blurry shape, all claws and teeth, leap out of the surrounding woods at him.

:VANYEL!:

'Van!'

Until he heard the mind-cry and shriek of terror simultaneously, Vanyel had actually been enjoying the battle. Ke'noran was extremely strong, but it was the strength of blood-magic, easily gained and stored, but not so easily replenished once used. Eventually, if he and Yfandes had read her right, the Mage-Gift she had Siphoned from some unfortunate soul would eventually be exhausted, and he could make her forget all about using blood-magic forever. That had been the plan, but Ke'noran had seen fit to change the rules.

Boosting his shields enough to hold off Ke'noran's next assault, Vanyel turned at both cries, one of alarm, one of pure terror, and saw something explode out of the forest in a spray of leaves and branches. It would have been as tall as a man, save for its hunched back. It moved as fast as a wyrsa, but on two legs, and appeared to be a mix of human, bear, and wolf, with ursine features and thick, gray-brown fur. What was most frightening was what it carried in its mouth. Treyon, the collar of his shirt tangled in the beast's teeth, was being borne toward the battle with magic-fueled speed.

Behind the beast, but at a safe distance, galloped Yfandes. Vanyel thought he had never seen her look so frustrated.

:Vanyel, she's going to get him.: she sent angrily.

:Can't you stop it from reaching her?: Vanyel asked.

:No,: came the fear-tinged reply, .7 can't even get close to it. She's laid a trap-shield on the construct, and now Treyon's inside, so it's around him as well.:

:Trap-shield?: In that instant Vanyel realized just how ruthless Ke'noran really was, remembering that if any magical or physical attack was directed at the construct, the shields would react instantly, destroying whatever they surrounded by lethal backlash. .-Great good Gods, maybe I can Fetch. . . :

:No, Vanyel, any Gift will set it off, even mind-magic!: Yfandes sent.

:Hells, that thing moves fast. Come to me then. She may have the ability to steal these powers, now let's see if she knows how to use them:

In the time the two had Mindspoken this much, the construct had already reached Ke'noran, and had been admitted inside her shields. Vanyel bit his lip in frustration and he saw Ke'noran take the boy as she snapped a guttural word at the construct, causing it to sit back on its haunches, its hooded eyes becoming glassy. With his Mage-sight, Vanyel saw the sorceress' shields flare even brighter now as she added the power the construct had been using to her own protections.

By this time, Yfandes had swung away from her pursuit and ran over to Vanyel, coming around to stand behind him. Vanyel put one hand on her mane as he watched the barbarian.

:Get ready to give me power on my signal,: he sent to her.

.7 hope you know what you're doing.:

:Now that she has him, it's the only way. I just need a little more time

Ke'noran slammed Treyon down on the cairn, knocking the wind out of him and effectively preventing any struggle. Holding him down with one hand, she reached underneath her cloak with the other and brought out a dagger-sized wooden wand covered in rough runes and glowing brightly with power. Ripping open Treyon's shirt, she touched the focus to Treyon's chest, outlining his heart, the wand leaving a glowing trail wherever it touched the boy's skin. Looking up, Vanyel once again saw her feral smile as she said, 'Spirit, you have defied me, and for that you will be destroyed. Once I have taken this one's Gifts, I will take everything else you hold dear.'

'Ke'noran, hold!' Vanyel threw out his hand as if offering it to an unseen person. Recognizing the gesture, Ke'noran looked down at Treyon, who was still lying motionless beneath her. Her head snapped up to look at the silver-haired mage before her. At that moment she felt her shields actually buckle as the impact of Va-nyel's magic hit them. For a moment, everything stopped as the two mages' gazes met. Vanyel smiled as he saw the sorceress' eyes widen as she realized what was about to happen.

Ke'noran recovered quickly, however. Raising the wand about her head, she screamed the final word of the spell out as she plunged the stake down at Treyon's unprotected chest.

The wand ripped through the empty air where Treyon's body had been a moment before to shatter on the rocks of the cairn. Now uncontrollably released, the magic contained by the wand surged back though Ke'tt-oran's body. Held in by her shields, it redoubled in intensity, arcing and snapping as it contacted the restraining magic walls. Ke'noran didn't even have tune to scream. In seconds the wild energies had destroyed everything in the area of the sorceress' shields. As her protections vanished, all that remained was a circle of burned ground and two small piles of ash and bone.

Vanyel watched, unblinking, cradling Treyon to his chest, burying the boy's head in his chest to prevent him from watching. When it was over, Vanyel just held him while glaring at the brigands, who had watched the fight at a safe distance. Under his stare, they quickly broke and left for the hills, and silence once again fell over the Forest of Sorrows and the small plain.

'Vanyel... I can't breathe.' Treyon gasped from his shirt. Standing up, Vanyel slowly let go of Treyon, watching all around him as if waiting for Ke'noran to suddenly appear from the grave and wreak more havoc. When nothing happened, his shoulders slumped as he relaxed, slowly fading into translucence.

Seeing this happen, Treyon quickly stepped over to Vanyel, meaning to hug him. But when he tried to wrap his arms around the other's slim body, he met nothing but air. Off balance, Treyon just managed to avoid falling over. Before Vanyel could speak, Treyon waved an arm through the middle of Van's body, watching it pass through the misty form as if there was nothing there at all.

Treyon was hesitant to say it, but he did anyway, 'What happened ... I thought you defeated her.' His eyes overflowed with tears again as he thought he realized what had happened.

Vanyel, realizing what Treyon was thinking, was quick to correct him. 'No, no, Treyon, that's not what happened. Using so much power so quickly can drain even a legend for a time.' Seeing Treyon's expression as comprehension dawned, he added, 'Yes, I am the Vanyel of the legends and songs. I have been like this,' he pointed , a hand toward his insubstantial body, 'for decades. I have been a part of this forest for over thirty years, guarding the northern border against bandits and mages like Ke'noran. In a way, I am the forest around me, every tree, every plant, every gust of wind that moves through the brush, I feel it, react to it, as far as I can see. And to things that enter the forest. Ke'noran couldn't kill me or Yfandes, not without destroying every last bit of the woods around us, and that, I think, is next to impossible. But she almost got you, and that was something I never wanted to happen. I had no plans to put you hi danger. You deserve better than that.'

'Why?'

'Why? Just because of who you are.'

'What, I'm just a boy, that doesn't make me anything special.'

'Well, then, how about what you can give back to Valdemar.'

'As what, a brigand? Vanyel, how can I help Valdemar?' Treyon was growing more and more exasperated.

'As a Herald,' came the soft reply.

'What? A Herald? Me?' Treyon's mouth was gaping like a fish.

For the first time since the battle had ended, Vanyel smiled. 'Don't you remember me telling you about your