“Are you feeling any better?” Elyse asked. “Grast gave me some of this before we left Brakith. He said he had a feeling it might come in handy. And I think it just did!”
I managed to nod. The powerful brandy was definitely helping, but I’d need a lot more than just liquor to rejuvenate me.
“Transport yourself to the gray tree,” Isu instructed, obviously knowing that brandy was insufficient. “The energy from the souls there is used to grow new skills, yes, but you can also use that energy to fortify yourself in situations like this. Cut the tree and drink the sap that oozes from it. It will replenish your energy.”
“You could have told me that long ago,” I croaked.
“You didn’t ask.” Isu flashed me a cheeky wink. “Go to the tree and do as I’ve told you. It will temporarily stunt the development of your new skills, but it will help you to restore your strength, which is more important right now.”
I closed my eyes and journeyed to the black plane. I staggered across the glass-smooth surface toward the great sentinel, every step requiring monumental effort. New skills were tantalizingly half-visible through the fog near the upper branches, but they would have to wait. Right now, I needed to get back into fighting shape.
As Isu had told me, I used Grave Oath to make a cut in the trunk of the gray tree. I couldn’t help but be surprised at what came out of the incision. Liquefied light, glowing brightly in the same yellowy-green hue as the eyes of my undead creatures.
“Well, here goes nothing,” I said and leaned forward and started slurping up the gooey sap, thick as treacle.
Thankfully, the glowing liquid tasted about as sweet as treacle too, so it didn’t require much effort to consume a fair bit. With each mouthful of the tar-like but sweet substance, strength and energy surged through my muscles. The strength I’d lost when I’d resurrected the Jotunn was returning to me in leaps and bounds. After a couple of mouthfuls, I felt like a new man… god.
With a jolt, I catapulted myself out of this realm and back into my body. I sat bolt upright in Fang’s saddle. The world itself seemed to have improved as well; colors looked more vivid, shapes were crisper and more defined, and even the air seemed to smell better.
“Damn,” I murmured to nobody in particular, “that feels good.” I looked up at Mur, who was waiting with his huge arms crossed over his chest. “How do you like your new army, Mur?”
“They look like strong warriors,” he boomed, clearly impressed. “You are right; I believe that there is a good chance of victory with this force.”
“Don’t forget that I’m adding my troops to it as well,” I said. “We’re gonna crush Engroth, my gigantic friend! What are we waiting for? Take us to Engroth’s castle!”
Mur grinned and boomed out a chuckle that all but shook the ground. “It is a half day’s march from here. Follow me.”
He took off at a brisk walk, and I directed both my army and my new force of undead Frost Giants to follow him. I’d been expecting to have to fight the Frost Giants; I just hadn’t expected that we’d have some of them on our side too. I only hoped this detour wouldn’t give Rodrick too much time.
One thing at a time. That was how we would get through this. One thing at a time.
By the time Engroth’s castle was in sight, dusk was falling. It was enormous. If it came to a siege, there was no way we’d be getting in, not for months, or years even. It was surrounded by a huge moat filled with black water, large chunks of ice drifting atop it.
“Tell me, Mur,” I said, joining him by his side. “How good is the night vision of the Jotunn?”
“Our eyes are accustomed to seeing in bright snow,” he said. “So we can deal with bright lights very well and cannot go snow-blind. In darkness, however, our eyesight is very poor. Worse than that of humans.”
I clasped my hands together. “Excellent.”
“Why do you ask?”
“We don’t need to wait until tomorrow to attack.”
“We do not have the time to build siege engines and cut down trees for battering rams now. There is no way we can attack tonight.”
“I don’t intend for this to be a siege, Mur.”
“You do not?”
“Look up. It’s going to be a moonless night. I know a much better, much faster way to do this.”
“You do?”
“My troops—and your new troops—are undead. They don’t need to eat, drink, sleep… or breathe. This means they cannot drown. Ice cold water might slow them down a little, but not by much. You see where I’m going with this?”
Mur turned and looked at the huge moat that surrounded the castle, and he nodded slowly. Then he started to laugh, a slow chuckle at first, undulating into a full-blown, raucous roar that rattled the trees. When he was done laughing, we set to work.
We decided to attack an hour after midnight. The thick darkness of the moonless night made it impossible for any of the Frost Giants inside the fortress to see what we were planning, nor did I allow anyone to light fires, so we had no need to hide. We also decided to delay the attack until this time because, according to Mur, Engroth and his warriors would be feasting tonight after their victory and getting drunk. By the early hours, they would be heavily inebriated, their judgment impaired and our chances of victory increased.
Once the appointed hour arrived, I set off with my party and Mur. This time, we were all carrying large torches. I wanted them to think we were preparing for a siege as we trekked down the road that
