Previous: Help
The two enchanters were locked in an arcane duel, clashing swords unleashing new spells with each strike. Sparks cracked and sizzled along the blades, and each glowed red-hot. The air shook and vibrated as the magically enhanced blows connected. Lithra’s staff, now devoid of the crystals that had once adorned its top, lay discarded to one side. Lithra was doing poorly.
He was parrying off the blows, but he was getting on in years, and his recent fall from transcendency had left him weaker than normal. I charged forwards into the shallow crater, coming up behind Resca, hoping to catch him by surprise. He was taller than I expected. Whispering a silent command, lightning burst across my blade, mixed with swirling fire. I swung for Resca. With the speed of a cat, he whirled and intercepted my blade. The enchantments on my blade died away as soon as they came in contact with Sa’Lithra. He spun again to dodge Lithra’s next attack. He struck towards me again, faster than the eye could follow. Operating on pure instinct, I attempted to parry the blow. With a ring, my trusty Avian saber fell to the ground, shorn in two. My arm went numb from the jarring force of the blow. He’d cut through the steel as easily as if it were a piece of soft cheese.
I stumbled back to hold my aching arm, and Resca resumed his merciless rain of blows against Lithra.
“Why, Resca? What drives you to do this?!” Lithra demanded breathlessly between the clash of swords.
Resca sneered, never ceasing his onslaught. “Because I can unite the North, make it great again. No one else has the tools, the power, except me. If not for you, the North and South would be united into one empire!”
He locked swords with Lithra, and a shoving match ensued. The air began to shimmer as a sword brimming with energy made prolonged contact with the sword designed to counter it. It was like looking through flames, the air quivering and trembling. Even the sound of their conversation was quaking, staggered by the opposing forces.
“At what cost?” asked Lithra, with no malice in his voice, only concern for a fallen friend. Resca let loose an annoyed yell.
“At any cost! Even you!”
The lock was broken, and a furious flurry of blows followed. Scratches and bruises appeared on the fighters as both scored dozens of near misses. Then, with dextrous twist, Resca seemed to wrap his blade around Avenger, and wrenched the weapon out of Lithra’s grasp. It cartwheeled up and out of sight. Lithra drew a quick gasp as Resca barked an arcane command, and golden light sprung from his hand, propelling Lithra back. He slammed into the soft loam of the craters edge and collapsed, unconscious.
Resca strode towards him, murder in his eyes. Sa’Lithra burned with an angry red glow, as its new master prepared to kill its maker.
No.
I charged at nefarious enchanter, screaming to gain his attention. I threw my hunting knife at him, which he easily sliced apart in mid-air. I shrugged the aethersteel shield off my arm, holding it in both hands, and attacked him. I pushed the shield towards his face, hoping to blind him to me, keep him occupied, when he swung Sa’Lithra down in a vicious arc, and cleaved straight through the strongest metal ever discovered. Following through , he landed a solid kick directly to my chest, long robes swirling around him. I was thrown backwards by the magically enhanced blow, holding half a shield in each hand. My energy vanished as the armband sucked up my strength to protect me from the blow, spreading it across my entire body instead of in one area.
Resca resumed his purposeful walk towards his fallen former mentor, savoring his victory. I couldn’t let him kill the old man, but what could I do? Then inspiration struck. Struggling to my feet, I grabbed Lithra’s staff from the dusty ground. I moved towards him again. Fumbling for the latch, I removed the heavy metal bracers. I was too weak to power them anymore, and I would need speed. My arms felt almost unsettlingly light free of the restrictions of the heavy metal objects. I stalked Resca from behind, holding the staff ready for a quick thrust. I would have one chance.
Out of the blue, I received a miracle. Zephyr appeared at the craters edge, and for reasons I cannot fully explain, charged directly towards Resca. Startled, the traitor swung his sword at the mare, but missed, unused to a beast of this power and speed. It was all the opening I needed.
In the King’s court, seemingly ages ago, Cartan had present Lithra with the magical crystals. I had noticed there were five altogether, but only four were mounted to the head of his ornate staff. The last was hidden, contained inside the metallic bottom point of the stick. I had noticed him checking it one night on the journey over here. My curiosity was finally paying off. I swung the pole at him in a short, brutal swing, and spoke.
“Avai, traitor.”
The air broke and splintered into a thousand shards, like broken crystal. A prismatic spectrum flashed around me in the strangely silent explosion. Shrapnel whistled as it sliced through the air around us, mostly moving in the direction of my swing, which ended directly on Resca’s head. The staff itself must have countered the effects of the blast, for I was not affected.
The world pieced itself back together again, and Resca lay broken before me, his long chase ended. The monster was dead.
I could only pray Lithra wasn’t.
Next: Restoration
