“All set,” added Nilsa.
“Release!”
The arrows flew, each of them toward one of the three nearest ships. They struck the masts high up, and there came three small explosions of fire.
“Again!”
Three new arrows of fire hit the masts, which quickly caught fire.
“Twice more! Volley! Now!”
The arrows flew again and struck the center of the masts, and these too began to burn.
There came shouts and the ringing of alarm bells, and the crews of the three ships hurried up on deck. Crab-men, octopus-men, and other fusions of men and marine creatures tried to put out the fire, but by now it was spreading down the masts and consuming the sails which were gathered against them.
With one last volley, this time directed at the bases of the masts, Ingrid gave the order to disappear. They paddled hard, while the crews and half the fortress who had been stirred into action by the bells, tried to put the fire out in the three ships, amid much shouting.
Lasgol could now hear the alarm bells, which were clanging throughout the fortress and audible underground.
“The distraction,” Astrid confirmed.
Olagar too heard the bells. He gave a signal and said something to his guards, a dozen of whom left at a run. The group prepared to confront them, since they were approaching their own hiding-place. There was only one exit.
“I’ll deal with them,” Eicewald said. “Stay close to the wall.”
He conjured under his breath, pointing with his staff at the opposite wall as he did so. A freezing bolt issued from the staff a moment before the octopus-men reached their position. The Mage went on conjuring, this time pointing his staff at the floor. When the guards came to the bolt and raced across it, twenty three-foot stakes of ice emerged from the ground beneath their feet, piercing them and bringing them an icy death. They fell dead without even realizing what had happened to them.
“Remind me never to make this Ice Mage of ours angry,” Viggo muttered.
“We’ve got to finish this,” Astrid said, and hurled herself into the attack. Viggo followed her like lightning.
Lasgol called upon his Hawk’s Eye, Cat-Like Reflexes, and Improved Agility skills. Eicewald, beside him, was covering his body with an icy armor to withstand physical attacks of swords, spears and suchlike. After this he conjured an anti-spell protective sphere to repel enemy magic.
The moment Olagar saw them appear, he conjured two spheres around his person. The first was a greyish color, which looked like the skin of an octopus and protected him from physical attacks; the second was purple and protected him from spells.
At his order, the octopus-guards left the prisoners and went to deal with Lasgol and the group. There were more than a dozen of them attacking with swords and knives in their hands, with their tentacles flailing in the air around them. Astrid dodged the first one’s sword-thrust with one of her knives and attacked with the other. The octopus-man blocked her attack and tried to grab her head with his tentacles, but she ducked swiftly. The guard tried to run her through with his sword, but she rolled to one side and in the same movement launched an accurate slash at her enemy’s leg. The octopus-man launched two more thrusts, which she dodged, and began to have difficulty moving. Astrid realized that though the poison did not kill them, it affected their wounded limbs. With great speed she attacked, managing to cut off two of her opponent’s tentacles, reach his throat and kill him.
“The poison only slows them down!” she warned Viggo.
“I love it when you bring me good news!” he called back as he defended himself from the attack of two guards by sliding from one side to the other with tremendous agility.
Lasgol launched an arrow against another of the guards in an attempt to help Astrid, who was surrounded by three enemies. He got him in the head, but failed to kill him. His second arrow struck its target, but the octopus-man, far from falling, went on fighting with two arrows embedded in his head. He focused on one of its eyes. It would take him a moment to invoke his True Shot skill, but if he succeeded he had a chance. A guard jumped on him before he had finished his invocation, and he knew that if he defended himself he would not have time to finish and hence would be unable to help Astrid.
Ona and Camu came to his aid, hurling themselves on the octopus-man and bringing him down by biting his arms. Ona managed to disarm him and began to claw at his tentacles, while Camu kept him pinned down on the ground by clamping his other arm tightly.
Lasgol managed to complete his invocation and released. The shot struck the guard in the eye and penetrated his brain, and he fell dead. Astrid managed to finish off the other guard, and was already fighting the third. Lasgol aimed at the one Camu and Ona were holding against the floor and sent two arrows into his stomach, killing him.
Eicewald meanwhile was casting spells against Olagar and his two acolytes. He had generated a winter storm over them, but all three had protection against spells and for the moment were withstanding the effects of the murderous storm. Olagar now sent a purple-black smoke to surround Eicewald. It was magic of Transformation and Death, but luckily the Mage’s defense held fast. The two acolytes each hurled a bolt, also purple-black, and held them over the anti-magic sphere of the mage to weaken it.
Lasgol spun round and released at Olagar, and though the arrow reached the grey sphere it failed to penetrate it. He swore and released again, with the same result. He had managed to damage the sphere, but not seriously. He calculated that it would take him a good while
