“Now, if you please, may I have the Sword of the Spirit?”
“Of course, Little One,” the dragon replied, nodding its head. “As promised, one Sword of the Spirit.”
With one of its claws, the beast slowly handed over the blade. Teryn took it and bowed deeply in respect.
“By the way, what happened to your wizard friends?” the Great Dragon asked, looking around.
“They are safe in Coontan,” Teryn replied, knowing it very well could be a lie. “At least, I think they are.” He wasn’t sure about some of them, but he trusted Talon would get as many of them out safely as he could. After all they’d been through, he could count on Talon to do the right thing.
“I shall go get them now, with your leave, O Great Dragon.”
“Certainly, Little One. Good luck to you. May you find that which your heart seeks, friend.”
Teryn nodded and he and his companions turned to leave the mountain. Teryn wasn’t sure what to think about the dragon’s last words. They were so out of character for the beast. He was certain that it was some kind of warning, though about what he had no way of knowing.
Shrugging, he pulled his companions in close and channeled the Tytin magicks to teleport them all back to the last place he wanted to be right now – Coontan.
Chapter FifteenThe Terrible Night
“And in the end of times, when all seems lost,
The great leader shall come face to face
With the Envoy of Darkness.
And lo, I say unto you, he shall overcome darkness,
And, holding aloft his sword of light, he shall prevail.
In Jheriem’s name, I speak these words. Amen.”
Book of Gallian, 12:10-11.
Year 5000 (Present day)
Teryn took a few moments to reflect on the last few months of his life and the events that had brought him here. The journey had been a rough one, indeed. His birthday had gone by a little while after the Surcram base attack, and no one had said anything – not even Valeria. The last time his birthday had rolled around, their relationship had been fresh and new. They had played tiny pranks on each other and celebrated with a small cake and party favors. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was a fond memory from what felt like a different lifetime.
He glanced over at his remaining companions. Most of the wizards had survived the encounter with the Surcrams, though Teryn’s instincts had been correct in the elevator. The band had been ambushed by a group of scouts roaming the forest. Scott had died instantly and Bill was taken moments later, but everyone else had suffered at most mild injuries.
Miraculously, Lyrad of all people had vaulted into action shortly after the attack had broken out, fending off the assault and forcing the attackers back into the trees with weapons made of pure magic.
His quick actions gave Talon time to rally the rest of the wizards and contact Coontan for an emergency evacuation. If it hadn’t been for the two of them, all the remaining wizards undoubtedly would have been slaughtered.
Speaking of, Talon had stayed back in Coontan for this conflict, citing conflicting duties, though Lyrad had remained to take the place of the wizards that had fallen in the previous battle with the Surcrams.
Even so, not everything had been bad. Teryn had grown closer to Valeria over the past couple of months. The two spent every night together now and few moments apart while they were awake. Their relationship fulfilled him in ways he’d never even known he needed.
Also, Terwain had made good on his word. Teryn had bound the remaining Swords of Valor to him shortly after the Surcram incident and Terwain had spent every free moment cramming Teryn’s head with arcane magicks and tricks he could now conjure forth. He was positive his power now exceeded that of even the Sages of old. And it was a good thing, too. He was going to need it.
He looked up at the sky briefly. It was cold, but the sky was clear and the sun was shining brightly. It was now the chilly month of Ritarnastal, meaning the tumultuous year was coming to a close.
At long last, Teryn turned his attention to the battlefield that awaited them. He had sent out a magical message asking for the head of the Xerczan Wizard’s Guild to meet him in battle on the border of the Guild Complex on this exact day and time. The Guild Leader had certainly made good on that request and had brought an army to support him. Teryn supposed he shouldn’t have expected anything less.
The opposing army had close to two thousand wizard warriors, as was to be expected of a Wizard’s Guild, and that alone would have been enough to stomp his meager force off the face of the planet, but the Guild had much more to back them up.
A hundred or so priests stood at the ready, distributed among the forces, ready and waiting to heal any of the troops that might take damage from a stray spell. It was a sound strategy, when you thought about it.
Near the back of the army were a few hundred of the finest Dragons of Martial Arts Kallor had to offer. They were likely mercenaries, but any one of them could wipe out his small band. Well, maybe not Lyrad – that guy was surprisingly spry – but anyone else.
As if that weren’t enough, the Guild had a rather large army composed of beasts and giant insects. The beasts looked to be some sort of dog or wolf, only larger than normal with clawed feet and menacing fangs. The bugs had giant stingers on their backs that were undoubtedly laced with deadly poison.
Suffice it to say, the odds weren’t in Teryn’s favor.
This spell of yours better work better than you say it does, or we are really in for it, do you understand, Terwain?
He was starting to wonder once again if he could really go through with everything.
The
