The Battle of Ebulon (19 page)

Attor liked her words and
the feelings that came with them. And it wasn’t just the feeling of
power—this wise little snow leopard gave him a feeling of peace,
something even better than power. It was something he’d always
yearned for, but never experienced.

Attor nods. “Shall I meet
you at the base of the mountains?”

“No, you shall carry me on
your back.”

* * *

The view above the rest of
the world was amazing, a scene Nova knew only dragons, harpies, and
birds had seen. Yes, being on top of a mountain, taking in the
grand view of everything below was something that many non-flying
beings had seen, but soaring through moist wisps of cloud and
feeling the streaming currents of wind against her fur was more
wonderful than anything she'd experienced in a very, very long
time.

Gazing at the ground, Nova
watches the Orcs marching on the wide, snowy plane below, trailed
by a huge swath of mud churned up by thousands of hooves, claws and
feet. With her keen vision, she can see ice particles forming on
hair and fur from heavy breaths. It is cold, even for
her.

Suddenly, several Orcs
stop and point up at them flying overhead. Some of them duck, as if
afraid a dragon is going to swoop down and snag them for an evening
snack. The Orcs fear dragons a lot more than they fear humans. To
them, a dragon is like a god, something to avoid no matter
what.

Nova takes her eyes off
the massive army and shifts her attention to the oncoming stone
structures of the great and last remaining human stronghold,
Ebulon. Her heart feels for it as she extends her aura out to it,
showing her true self to all of the city's inhabitants.

To the dragon, nothing has
changed other than a nice feeling of peace that had engulfed him.
But, to the oncoming city, they could see something else. They were
all staring at the sky with their hands off their swords, their
bows dropped to the ground, and some were even walking away from
the catapults. King Yadi is the most impressed, giving an audible
‘ahhhh’ as he watches from the window of a large tower and scrapes
his beard with his fingers.

They all see a Being of
violet light pulsing energy like a beating heart. It looks like an
illuminated orb outwardly shooting rays, raining a calm radiant
energy over the city. As it draws closer, some of the combatants
regain their wits about them and start pointing and discussing the
marvel that is occurring. Is it a message from a god coming to
protect the last living humans? The Elves, though, know. They can
see Nova through the light. It is a good sign, they think, but not
a god.

“Attor!” yells Nova. Her
voice echoes across the planes, bouncing off the mountains and
ringing in the ears of the city inhabitants. “Today he is our
ally—no weapon shall be lifted against him unless he strikes
first!”

Nova figures that Attor
isn't dumb enough to attack a fortified city readied for attack.
He'd be dead before he hit the ground.

Landing on top of the
parapet wall, Attor exhales loudly as smoke trickles out of his
nose. He looks around suspiciously, feeling a little uneasy about
the situation. But, seeing his friend Aldoren softens his gaze. He
dips his head, bearing a slight smile. “My friend.”

Aldoren dips his head in
return, “Attor.”

* * *

The enemy army had massed
on the plane surrounding Ebolon during the night, but it is just
before dawn when Nova hears it. A large explosion from a hefty rock
encased in fire hits a large outcropping on the ground, just
missing the wall. It is the first attack.

“It's begun,” whispers
Palin, who stands next to Nova. She can feel his body tense,
filling with fear.

All of the troops that
line the walkway ready their stance and aim their arrows. Nova
looks down upon the city courtyard, seeing the mass of fur covered
armor moving into position, readying themselves for the coming
storm.

Palin picks up his
brother's bow, which was leaning against the wall of the walkway.
“Mark. Your bow.”

Mark hastily grabs it.
“Thank you, brother.”

Attor, perched on a wall,
looks down at Nova. “When shall I attack?”

Standing next to his
friend, Aldoren reaches out and touches his scaly reptilian skin.
“When we see a clear line of them, that's when you shall
strafe.”

Nova looks at Aldoren,
seeing the love he holds for his friend, and gently smiles. There
is hope.

Aldoren turns to her and
says, “My friend and I have shared a number of battles.” His eyes
become sad. “All of which could have been avoided.”

Another explosion bursts
chunks of stone into the courtyard. Several troops are blown
backward. Some are a burnt mess, some have fire flaming from their
flailing arms, while others were dead before they hit the
ground.

Nova surveys the landscape
below the mountain, looking beyond the massive army to see more
Orcs streaming toward the main body, coming from many different
directions. She scans the mountainside roads, observing bands of
Orcs moving cautiously and using the shadows to hide. Aldoren sees
them as well. Pointing, he yells, “Be ready! They’re coming!” Nova
pads over to him. “I sense many scouts climbing up the mountain,
just over the lip of the cliff in front of us. It's how I came to
this wall. I'll divert them.”

Aldoren dips his head, and
then places his hand on her cheek. “You're in service to others and
I thank you for that.”

Nova gives a nod, then
jumps the wall, landing with a soft thud. She walks to the edge of
the precipice and peers over it. Just as she had sensed, she sees
several small Orcs, nimble and agile, climbing at a rapid pace. She
is about to hop down to an outcropping, but suddenly stops. The sun
peeks over the horizon, showing the first light of day. Attor can
find a line of sight now.

Just as she thought he
would, Aldoren has sent the dragon swooping high into the air.
Attor is gliding toward one of the roads winding up the middle of
the mountain, to the gate closest to Nova.

Minutes later, Nova hears
a dragon's roar and sees a fountain of flames shooting from the
dragon's mouth, engulfing the road and sending the Orcs running
back down the mountainside. Many of them are on fire. Orc screams
fill the air, sending a pang of sadness through Nova.

She shakes off the
feeling, then steps down to a lower rock for a better
view.

Her eyes widen. Fangols
had joined the climb and they are quick, easily out climbing the
scouts. These are very handy creatures for the Orcs to have. Taking
a step back, she yells at Aldoren, telling him to have the
sharpshooters aim at the small humps of the Fangol's upper backs,
then she feels an abrupt tug on her tail.

The Art of Defense teaches
to use your opponent’s energy against them, something Nova has
taught her students for thousands of moons. This proves to be very
handy, indeed.

Looking behind her, she
sees who has her tail—a Fangol. He has it between his teeth and
sends a low growl her way. He flings his head back, hoping to throw
Nova off the mountain, off the rocky cliff. She goes with the flow,
flipping as he throws her, using his energy to arch herself more
toward his back than over the side of the mountain. She unsheathes
her claws and sinks them deep into the Fangol's back. She uses his
back to pull herself up as he groans with pain, and then shoves her
back legs against its head. He slides backward, bumping into
another Fangol, causing it to lose its footing. It falls to its
death.

In the next moment, a
dozen Fangols and a handful of scouts climb over the lip of the
cliff. For an instant, they all freeze in place, and not of their
own will. It is because of Nova's wizardry. She has them locked in
an energy grip, but she lets go the moment arrows come flying,
hitting the invaders. They drop to the ground and Nova looks up,
eying the Elf sharp shooters. They were fast.

The flap of heavy wings
pulls her attention to Attor, who is just above her. He dives,
shooting blasts of flames at the climbing enemies. Nova feels
confident that she isn't needed in this area anymore and turns her
attention to her right, where the road meets the closest gate. The
Orcs were advancing quickly, and at any moment they might break
into the city.

Seeing that the dragon had
secured the cliff and realizing that no Orc would be crazy enough
to continue to climb with fire blazing down on them, she turns
toward the large wall and leaps to the top. The sharpshooters
firing into the battle raging at the gate are picking off the Orcs
with incredible speed and accuracy, while easily avoiding their
battling friends.

Nova sees Palin draw back
his bow. He lets his arrow fly, then he gasps. His eyes are wide as
he falls to the ground. A spear has plunged into his stomach,
almost penetrating through to his back.

“No!” Mark shouts.
Dropping his bow, he races over to help Palin. Nova jumps from the
wall, onto the walkway, and quickly pads over to the brothers.
Blood leaks through Palin's fur covered armor as puddles form
around his body. Palin’s eyes are full of tears.

“No, no, no!” screams
Mark, shaking his head. “Don't fade, Palin. We'll get you to a
healer!” Mark's eyes are full of hope, but his voice carries
doubt.

Palin's eyes dart back and
forth, but no words leave his lips no matter how hard he tries. His
hands grasp at the heavy spear stuck in his stomach. He pulls on
it, doing his best to stop the pain.

“Keep it there, Palin,”
whispers his brother. He starts to lift Palin, but Nova places her
thick tail between them. Mark looks at her with confused
eyes.

“Let him pull the spear
out.”

Worry strikes Mark's face.
“That will surely kill him. And even if I allow it, the spear is
too heavy.”

“Then help him lift
it.”

Just as Mark goes to speak
again, Nova places her tail on his shoulder. In an instant, Mark
relaxes as understanding fills him. A tear falls from his cheek.
There is no healing for his brother, not by any healer, not by any
sage. The best he can do for Palin is to end it quickly by pulling
out the spear.

“I love you, brother.”
Mark run his fingers through his brother's hair as Palin's eyes
continue to dart around, clearly in shock from the trauma and pain
he is experiencing. Overcome by grief, Mark wails as he holds
Palin's head in his arms. He kisses his brother's forehead. Then he
stands up. In one quick motion, he lifts the spear out of Palin's
body. A cry of pain drifts from Palin's mouth as his chest
convulses. His eyes start to drift as a dull haze begins to settle
over them. Mark drops to the ground on his hands and knees, next to
his brother, weeping. Blood is everywhere.

But something happens. An
unexplainable light radiates from the sky above. It is so bright
that it distracts Mark from his dying brother. He looks up, seeing
luminescent light pouring down from the heavens. It is saturating
the battle and everyone within it. The light begins to move like a
vast whirlpool, funneling downward. Mark is shocked when his eyes
follow the funnel to the glowing snow leopard leaning over his
dying brother with her eyes closed. She seems to be drawing light
down from the skies into her head and through her body, where it is
exuding through her paws that are laid on his dying brother. Palin
begins to glow, and to Mark’s utter amazement, his brother’s
stomach wound vanishes right before his very eyes! How is it
possible? Then Mark notices that all of the fighting around him has
ceased. Many of the participants are gazing at the heavens and many
are staring at Nova and witnessing the scene of a grief stricken
warrior obviously trying to save his dying brother, who is now
glowing.

Nova opens her eyes and
says, “Take your brother away from here. His life will now be
changed forever, but he must rest for many moons.”

“How did you—”

Nova holds her tail up and
says, “Prana.” Then she stands, lifting her head high, and jumps to
the courtyard below. She searches for the gate. Those who had gazed
at the sky and witnessed all that had just occurred only moments
ago are fighting again. She roars loudly. This battle is far from
over.

This Entry Point features
a character or characters from:

The
PureLights of Ohm Totem (Book I of the PureLights Series) by
Brandon Ellis

Now
Available.

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Entry Point 8
– by L. Blankenship

The portal of woven kir let me pass, tearing like
cobwebs across my arm held before my face. Fresh snow on paving
stones crunched under my boot. And the moment my ears reached this
new world, this place that had begged for help, the crashing and
shouting of battle filled them.

I stood in a small
square, at the foot of a snow-covered statue of a knight on a
rearing horse, within sight of city walls and a barred gate. The
battlements stood above the timber-and-shingle houses, full of men
fighting and surging back and forth.