raised off the ground and ready to throw, Chad gave him the go ahead. Seth threw open the door.
Hurry! Kevik told Bart then removed the ring from his hand so he wouldn’t be interrupted while working magic. Slipping the ring into his pouch, he watched as Riyan and Chad hurled the barrel out the door. Oil droplets poured from the two holes as it sailed through the air. Moving to the doorway, Kevik held out his staff and sent sparks toward the barrel.
Bam!
When the sparks hit the barrel, it exploded in a massive fireball. The concussion from the blast knocked Kevik backward several feet. Riyan caught him before he could fall.
“Damn!” exclaimed Seth, turning to his brother. “Thought you said it wouldn’t explode!”
“So I was wrong,” Soth said.
Chad and Riyan were already getting another barrel in position. Chad turned to Seth and Soth, “Take Kevik and do the same out the back.”
Seth nodded. “Right,” he said. Then grabbing his brother, they soon had a barrel gripped between them. With Kevik following, they went to the back door.
Wham! Wham! Wham!
Blows began hammering the back door with a vengeance as the soldiers strove to break it down. “Set it down before the door,” Kevik suggested.
Seth immediately understood what Kevik was getting at. With his brother’s help, they soon had it sitting atop one of the tables they had used to barricade the door. Then with two quick thrusts with his knife, oil began spilling from the barrel.
“Now, out of the room!” urged Kevik as he made for the door. Once he and the twins were out of the room he swung the door almost closed then put the tip of his staff through the gap.
From the front area, another explosion rocked the dawn as the second barrel thrown by Riyan and Chad erupted in a massive fireball. Black smoke filled the air. “Come on!” Riyan yelled. “We’ve got to get out of here!” Already, the smoke from the burning oil was making its way into the distillery and was getting thicker by the second.
“Hang on!” Kevik yelled back to him. Turning again to the barrel sitting atop the table by the door, he saw cracks begin to appear in the door from the blows of the guards. Bracing for the impact, he cast his sparks spell.
Bam!
The sparks hit the oil and exploded. The door behind which Kevik stood snapped off its hinges and struck him hard. Flying backward, Kevik’s back struck the edge of the table, knocking the wind out of him.
Soth was quickly at his side. “You okay?” he asked.
Kevik gave him a nod and tried to get up. That’s when he felt a white hot flare of pain erupt in his back. Leaning heavily upon Seth, he managed to get to his feet. The pain was horrible and constant. “I think I broke something,” he said.
Wham! Wham! Crack!
Seth and Chyfe were using one of the tables as a battering ram against the side wall. As Riyan came to help Soth with Kevik, the wall cracked. Another two blows saw a section of the wall large enough for a man to pass through give way. Immediately, black smoke began issuing through from the outside.
Drawing his sword, Seth passed through the opening. Chyfe had his sword out as he glanced back toward where Riyan and Soth were supporting Kevik between them. “What happened to him?” he asked.
“Not sure,” Riyan said. He had one arm under Kevik’s shoulder while he carried Kevik’s staff in his free hand. “He’s hurt bad though.”
From the other side of the opening in the wall, the sound of swords striking against each other could be heard. Chyfe immediately rushed through to Seth’s aid. Chad raced for the opening and was soon through to the other side as well.
“You guys will never make it with me,” Kevik groaned. Every step was pure hell as pain tore through him.
“We’re not leaving you behind,” asserted Riyan.
“That’s right,” agreed Soth. “Either we all make it, or we all die trying.”
They reached the opening and the sound of battle came through from the other side. The smoke was so thick, they couldn’t see anything through the opening. Where the fighting was or who was fighting, they just didn’t know.
Riyan moved through the opening first and when they were all on the other side, Kevik mumbled something. “What?” Riyan asked.
“The…gem,” Kevik said, struggling to get each word out.
“The gem?” asked Soth confused. Then understanding came. “The healing gem!”
Kevik nodded his head.
They paused there on the other side of the opening while Soth quickly searched through Kevik’s pouch for the gem. When he finally found it, he put it in Kevik’s hand. A moment later, it began to glow as it worked its healing magic.
Just about ready to resume moving from the building, Riyan heard a crackling sound coming from within. Glancing back, he saw fire beginning to spread from the office area to the front. Flames were coming dangerously close to a stack of barrels positioned against the back wall.
“We don’t have much time,” he said to Soth and Kevik.
“Where to?” Soth asked.
Riyan tried to pierce the fog of black smoke, but was unable to see even indistinct shadows. So thick was it that they soon began coughing as it worked its way into their lungs.
“My staff,” Kevik gasped.
“What?” asked Riyan.
“Give me my staff,” he said, reaching out for it.
Riyan glanced at him and could see the pain that had been so apparent in his eyes beginning to ease. Once Kevik had staff in hand, Riyan drew his sword. A moment later, a breeze could be felt as Kevik cast his wind spell. Not nearly the magnitude of earlier winds he’d created, this was more of a gentler breeze to aid in dispersing the smoke so they could locate their comrades.
The thinning smoke revealed Seth and Chyfe standing shoulder to shoulder as they fended off four combatants. Chad was a few feet away as he too strove to keep two guardsmen at bay. Working primarily on defense, Chad was able to avoid being struck. But as coughing fits due to the smoke began wracking him, his defense began to suffer.
Riyan glanced to Soth, caught his eye and nodded to Kevik. “You got him?” he asked. As soon as Soth nodded affirmatively, Riyan released Kevik and raced to Chad’s side. Coughing from the effects of the smoke as well, he reached his friend and struck aside a thrust that would have assuredly taken Chad in the side if he hadn’t arrived just then.
“About time you got here,” Chad said. Striking out, he successfully blocked an overhand hack and even managed to leave a two inch cut along the man’s forearm.
Concentrating on the man before him, Riyan didn’t reply. As the skills developed with the fat-uglies came to the fore, he deflected strike after strike. He had just successfully knocked his opponent backward several feet with a well placed blow when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. More guards were headed their way. Through the smoke he could make out at least six.
Bracing for the inevitable clash that was sure to leave him dead, Riyan was surprised when the guards unexpectedly halted. A green layer of goo had suddenly enveloped them and stopped them cold. Casting a quick glance over his shoulder, he saw Kevik give him a nod. Soth no longer supported him. Leaning upon his staff, Kevik suddenly turned and fired several energy missiles toward two soldiers, knocking them back.
The pain in his back was greatly diminished as the gem clutched tightly in his hand continued to work its magic. A crash from inside the building drew his attention. Glancing through the hole in the wall, he saw part of the back wall collapse. Kevik’s eyes widened in fear as he saw the burning wall collapse on top of two barrels of the oil. “Down!” he yelled and threw himself to the ground.
Ke-Pow!
