Deliverance (4 page)

“Yes, my brother,” said Malcolm, “Gaull was
a destructive and demonic being. Even the holy mages of Caris could
not defeat him. They could only seal him away into a stone pillar.
Gaull’s followers managed to get his power in the form of a gem out
of the stone.”

“It is said that when a human host comes
forward and places the stone into the pillar, Gaull’s power will
enter the host and all hell will break loose,” added Halmez.

“So in other words, Bogdan will become
extremely powerful and destroy everything, correct?” asked
Crystal.

“And he will gain immortality, so there will
be no stopping him if he succeeds,” replied Ydon.

“Immortality does not mean invulnerability,”
Crystal pointed out.

“But with that power, you will not be able
to touch him anyway,” said Leldor.

“Well then, I will have to do my best to
prevent Bogdan from getting the Eye of Gaull,” said Crystal.

“And we will help,” replied Gavril.

“Once again, thank you for your help, all of
you,” said Malcolm.

“When can we expect the invasion?” asked
Crystal.

“The soldier said that the attack will
happen within a fortnight, and that was seven days ago,” replied
Bredewig.

“So we have another week to prepare,” said
Gavril, “That should give plenty of time for the others to
arrive.”

“You have more coming?” asked Saitar.

“Well of course,” Gavril replied, amused,
“You can’t expect us to fight off an entire army with only the
seven of us helping, can you? Though we believe every little bit
helps, we intend to be fully prepared.”

Saitar stuttered, embarrassed, “Of course
not . . . I apologize.”

Gavril said, “Not a problem, Elder,” and
then he turned to Malcolm and added, “We have given the other
rebels a secret phrase to give to the gatekeeper so that they may
enter. They will arrive in several groups, and so can you deliver
the message to the men at the gate?”

“Of course, I will see to it that the other
rebels enter the city without a problem,” replied the high elder.
“In the meantime, I am sure that you are all tired, so I will have
your rooms set up right away. In the morning, we will discuss
further plans for defense.” He then turned to Ydon, “Please tell
the housekeepers to set up bedrooms down the hall.”

“Yes, High Elder,” replied Ydon, who then
left the room.

“Thank you for your hospitality, High Elder
Malcolm,” said Crystal. She then reached out her hand to shake his,
which he accepted.

“You are welcome, my dear,” he replied.

The rest of the rebels then shook the hands
of the other elders. Crystal turned to find Maryn and Taryn fast
asleep in the chairs they had claimed. She smiled and shook her
head in amusement; meanwhile, Sigurd shook his head in shame of the
twins. Crystal nudged their shoulders in an attempt to wake the
twins.

“Wake up, you two,” she said, “You’ll be
able to sleep in a nice warm bed soon.”

Taryn shot up. “If the beds are any better
than these chairs, I won’t be waking up in the morning!”

Maryn, in a half-yawning voice, said, “They
had better be that good for me to get up and make the effort to
walk to one.”

Malcolm laughed. “Much better, young ones.
You will rest well tonight. I guarantee it.”

The twins then forced themselves to leave
their haven of comfort and walk groggily toward the door.

The other elders left to return to their
quarters while the housekeepers led the rebels one by one to the
rooms that were waiting for them. The twins bolted into their rooms
to find two small beds waiting for them. They jumped into bed
without even removing their shoes or pulling off the blankets and
fell instantly asleep.

Crystal’s room was at the end of the
corridor past the stairs. It was a fairly large room, much bigger
than her one at the hideout. It was not too gaudy but decorated for
her taste, so she found the atmosphere comforting and welcoming.
The bed was covered in the softest cotton sheets she had ever felt,
and it wasn’t long after she rested her head on her pillow that
sleep found her.

CHAPTER 2

The grand castle in Cartigo, the capital
city of Cierith, stood high against the full moon and cast a heavy
shadow across the city. The forest surrounding the city whispered
eerily throughout the night, and the townspeople bolted their doors
shut in fear of the soldiers who patrolled the streets looking for
an excuse to arrest someone. The man responsible for this tyranny,
on the other hand, sat comfortably on his stolen throne and ruled
the land with an iron fist.

His hair was as black as his heart, as was
his right eye; his left eye was whitened from blindness. The long
scar that stretched from his forehead, across the left eye, and
down his cheek, was the very reason for his blindness. No one knew
for sure how he received the scar, but then again, few people
wanted to know. His sharp facial features gave him a fierce and
threatening look that even the toughest and bravest warriors
feared.

Bogdan Dracnov was his name, and on that
night, he sat on the throne and gazed proudly down upon the young
man who knelt before him. He was a fine, well-armored warrior whose
skills in battle were second to no one but the king himself. The
young man bowed his head with respect and pride, and Bogdan
couldn’t help but grin with triumph as he finally spoke.

“You have done well, my son,” Bogdan said to
the young man who continued to kneel before him. He then asked,
“Was there any further resistance?”

“None, Father. The soldiers who revealed
your plans were dealt with and the villagers who heard the plans
were exterminated.” replied the young man, “I oversaw everything
and can guarantee you that not a single person who heard the
soldiers boasting in the village is alive. The soldiers I brought
with me took care of that.”

“That is very good, indeed. That will teach
those incompetent fools to blabber secret matters.” replied the
king, “You may stand now, Prince Blaze.”

The young man did as he was told. His long,
straight, jet black hair no longer covered his face and he looked
at his father with ice blue eyes. His face was regal and stern, but
he envied the sharp features of his father’s face, for he was
always told that he mostly resembled his late mother.

“Thank you, Father,” he replied.

The king then turned to his two generals
standing a little way behind the prince and said to them, “Perun,
Orodan, I would like to congratulate the two of you as well.”

Perun, a dark elf, stepped forward and
bowed. “I speak on behalf of all my people in Dwyp, allies of
Daldussa, when I say that it is an honor to work with you, King
Bogdan,” he said. He then looked up to the king with his gold eyes.
(Gold was the most common eye color for a dark elf, but two
features every one of them had was dark gray skin and white hair,
and General Perun was no exception.) The general also wore light,
black armor and a dark purple cape. His weaponry consisted of a
sword and several hidden blades.

Orodan then stepped forward. Being well over
seven and a half feet tall, the enormous general easily towered
over the others. His size was only outmatched by his strength. It
was because of that strength that Bogdan chose Orodan as a general.
His body was covered in multiple scars, or “trophies,” as he liked
to call them, and he was completely bald with dark eyes.

“I easily outnumbered those weak little
peasants,” he bellowed in a deep, loud voice, “I am the strongest
there is!”

“Yes, Orodan, your brute strength is second
to none, and with Perun’s cunning and swiftness, the two of you
combine the best qualities of battle, and with my son learning my
strategy skills, my army will be unstoppable,” said Bogdan.

Blaze smirked, “I learned from the best mind
in Daldussa, possibly the world.”

“I will not be possibly the best for long,
my son,” said Bogdan, “For you see, I am planning an invasion of
the City of Magi to claim an artifact that will give me the utmost
power. I will be a god!”

“You mean that city full of mages? Father,
how do you intend to fight masters of the magic arts?” asked
Blaze.

“Do you doubt your father’s skills, Blaze?”
Bogdan asked.

“Not at all, Father, I already stated that I
think of you as the best mind in the world. I only wanted to know
your strategy,” Blaze replied.

“Well, if you must know, I have recruited
help from within the city,” replied the king.

“So this is going to be an inside job?”
asked Perun.

“Not just any inside job,” said Bogdan. He
took a pause and then said, “I have enlisted the help of one of the
city’s Elders.”

“You mean you convinced one of the city’s
leaders to help you?” asked Blaze.

“Actually, he came to me out of the blue and
told me about the artifact,” explained Bogdan. “He came to the
castle and offered to tell me how to get unimaginable power and
only asked for control of the city after I claimed it.”

“So who is he?” asked Blaze.

Suddenly, a cloud of black smoke and ashes
appeared and then faded as the shape of a man began to form. Once
he took complete shape, the man walked forward and approached the
throne.

“Ah, speak of the devil, here he is now,”
said Bogdan. He then stood from the throne and said, “Welcome,
Saitar.”

Saitar bowed before Bogdan. “Good evening,
my king.”

“You may stand.” replied Bogdan, “So how are
things in the city?”

“I am afraid there is a problem,” replied
Saitar as he stood up.

Bogdan’s grin faded quickly into a frown. He
slowly walked down the steps beneath his throne, never taking his
eyes off of the elder. In a low, eerily steady voice, the king
said, “What kind of problem? You know how much I despise for a plan
to go astray.”

“I-I . . .” Saitar stammered, “W-well, I
hear that some of your soldiers have revealed your plans.”

“Yes, Saitar, I am quite aware of that.
However, it has been taken care of. The village was burned to the
ground and the villagers killed,” said Bogdan. He then stopped
smirking when a thought crossed his mind. “Wait a minute, how did
you know about that?”

Saitar gulped. “There was someone from the
City of Magi who was traveling in the village at the time your
soldiers were there. He overheard what the soldiers said and left
before he was discovered to warn the city,” replied Saitar.

“Well who the hell was it?” Bogdan
asked.

“It was one of the other elders, my king;
Elder Bredewig, to be exact,” said Saitar.

Bogdan stood as still as a statue for some
time. After what seemed like an eternity, he slowly approached a
small table and, without warning, grabbed it and threw it through a
nearby window. The window shattered and the table flew to the
ground below and smashed into pieces.

“You mean to tell me that the mages know of
my attack? The whole mission could be compromised now! Surely now
they will build their defenses before the invasion!” Bogdan
bellowed.

“I-I am afraid there is more, my king,” said
Saitar in a weak voice.

“What else could possibly be wrong?” Bogdan
asked angrily. When Saitar began to speak again, his voice became
weak and frightened.

“The high elder has contacted the rebel
group, Deliverance, and they have agreed to protect the city,” said
Saitar.

To everyone’s surprise, Bogdan did not
become angrier; rather it seemed as though he became calmer. He
even managed a weak grin.

“Yes . . .” he muttered.

“Father, what do you have in mind?” asked
Blaze.

Bogdan paced and stroked the sides of his
face. He kept muttering to himself, but eventually spoke. “Perhaps
this is not a bad thing,” he said.

“I beg your pardon?” asked Saitar.

“If I can plan the perfect strategy, perhaps
I can eliminate the leader of the rebels. Without their leader, the
rebels will surely fall. They have been a thorn in my side for
three years, so perhaps I can now make an example of those who try
to stand in my way,” explained Bogdan. He then asked Saitar, “Have
you met the leader?”

“Yes I have, my king,” replied the elder,
“It is a young woman who goes by the name, ‘Crystal.’”

Bogdan stopped in his tracks. “A woman?”

“Yes, my king,” said Saitar.

“You mean to tell me that a woman has caused
me this much trouble? I should have known! Women always cause
trouble when doing a man’s task. I have always had distaste for
women who try to be equal to a man. Can you imagine that? It’s
preposterous!” said the king.

“Well, I am afraid I do not know much more
about her; she only gave that name. I do know that she is also a
mage, but I do not recall her ever training in the city. I also
couldn’t help but notice how oddly mature she was for her age;
she’s barely out of her teen years!” explained Saitar.

“Well, Saitar, you will have to introduce me
to this woman so that I may make an example of her. Maybe I won’t
kill her. How would you like a lovely wife, Blaze? You are
twenty-three, after all, and that is a good age to find a wife,”
said the king.

“Maybe I could if she is appealing enough,”
replied Blaze, “But by the sound of it, she won’t take orders from
a prince.”

“Well, we shall see how things turn out.”
said the king, “For the time being, I want you to bring plans to
the City of Magi, Saitar. Inform the other elders that you
interrogated one of my commanders and found out the attack
strategy. However, I will not give you the real one. Give me the
night to make a plan and return here to get them from me. We will
fool the mages, sneak to the Eye of Gaull, and I will claim it.
Understood?”

“Yes, my king,” replied Saitar, “I must
return now before they find my bed chamber empty.”