The Merchant and the Menace (11 page)

The creature’s chest puffed outward.

“What is it you seek?” asked Ader calmly.

“I seek the new Seraph. Perhaps he is here among
you?” hissed the beast. “We feel his presence. He creates a heavy pulse in the
spirit pool. I must seize him for my master.”

 The creature stepped over Aemmon’s body and moved
toward the group. A forked, black tongue tested the air.

 “Hold your ground, Malveel!” commanded Ader as he
held up his hands.

“Your spirit is strong old one. Its pattern is
familiar,” pondered the creature as it slowed.

“Perhaps you remember our encounter on the peaks of
the Great Mountain, Methra.”

 The red eyes of the beast went wide. A low
rumbling formed in the depth of its belly and seeped out as a hiss.

 “Ader....”, came the voice of recognition.

 “I’m not as young as I was then, but a man changes
after a thousand years,” growled Ader. “ Amird the Deceiver saved you from me
then. He can’t save you now!”

“SAVED! I was not saved.” snapped Methra. His eyes
narrowed and sparked with crimson fire. “You disappeared from me. Else your
bones would be bleaching as we speak!”

A bright green glow formed around the outstretched
hands of Ader. The glow came alive and leapt about on his hands like a flame.

“Amird allows his bastard children to stray too far
from home this time,” shouted Ader. ”It is unfortunate you can’t use those
wings to flee from here. I’ll not allow you to escape a second time.”

The creature rose to its full height and enveloped
its body in the protection of its heavy, armor-plated wings.

“Their purpose has never been that of escape, old
man,” smiled the beast wickedly. “I will bring your charred body back to Amird
as an offering!”

 Waves of crimson fire burst from Methra’s eyes and
shot across the road toward Ader. In the same instant, the green glow around
Ader’s hands pulsed and encircled his body. The crimson wave of flame was so
bright it blinded Kael as it engulfed the trader. The boy shouted in alarm. However,
the wave of red flame diminished and Kael clearly saw the form of Ader standing
unscathed within the green globe.

Methra roared in frustration and moved forward,
hurling flame as he advanced. His efforts were rewarded as the deluge of fire
penetrated the pulsing green globe, forcing it to contract. Ader’s clothes
smoldered and he cried out in pain, closing his eyes.

The veins in the old trader’s forehead pulsed as he
struggled to maintain the protective sphere. In a few moments the green light
grew in strength and expanded. The flames from Methra’s eyes once again were
left ineffectual by Ader’s shield. They struck the globe and were harmlessly
turned aside.

Manfir backed away from the combatants, putting
distance between himself and the dance of fire. His blade was drawn and his
shield held high. Kael stood behind the silent warrior trembling. The beast slowly
circled Ader, unleashing bursts of red flame at the old man.

The red flame remained ineffective against the
green shield. Inside the pool of pulsating light, the old trader stood with
arms raised and hands held high. His eyes remained tightly shut and his brow
furrowed in concentration.

Kael’s heart pounded as he tried to shrink down
behind the broad shoulders of Manfir. He closed his eyes, trying to banish the
terror that washed over him. A roar snapped them back open as a fresh wave of
red flame slammed on top of Ader.

The boy’s breath came in short bursts, each pant
filling his lungs with the acrid scent of brimstone and smoldering tinder. Kael
fought hard to control himself. His eyes darted down the Nagur path. He wanted
to run, but his legs felt like columns of stone. He wanted to scream, but his
desire to disappear was even greater.

His mind reached out for an anchor to rescue him
from this madness. He longed to see his father marching down the path toward
him. An image of his mother filled his mind. Aemmon!

Kael turned and stared at the lifeless form of his
brother laying on the dirt path. The boy edged from behind Manfir, drawn to the
body. The battle raged before him but it no longer mattered. He stood tall and
a tear streaked down his cheek.

Questions flooded Kael’s mind, but ultimately he
was left with just one. Why?

 A roar from Methra ripped Kael’s attention back to
the fight. The creature circled right and attacked the old trader once more.
Kael felt the hair on the back of his neck tingle and stiffen. Ader’s hands
adjusted to the flow of the crimson flame. The green sphere thickened near the
points of attack as the old man manipulated his own powers. A new wave of
crimson fire splashed across Ader’s shield. This time Kael sensed exactly how
the trader responded. Kael’s body came alive. He felt the flow and structure of
Ader’s power and found himself following along as the old trader influenced the
composition of the sphere.

Methra struck again and Kael guessed the old
trader’s response before it occurred. The boy understood. Ader diverted power
from other areas of the globe to suppress each attack.

Manfir backed into Kael and pushed him further from
the battle as Methra’s movements brought the beast closer.

“Old one, you were no match for me on the Great
Mountain and you are no match for me now. Lord Izgra will be pleased when I return
with your blackened bones,” growled Methra.

“He is lord of nothing, and the king of emptiness!
His servants are witless mongrels he uses to inflict his pain!” shouted Ader.

A wave of red flame lashed out at the trader. This
time however, the trader reacted slowly to the attack. Methra’s flame scoured
the surface of the globe and Kael sensed Ader’s power weakening.

The boy’s panicked eyes darted to the old man. Ader’s
clothes smoldered again and his face was red and sweating. His eyes were
tightly closed and his brow knit in furious concentration.

Methra circled and threw spattering bolts of flame
at Ader. The creature’s upturned sneer divulged its thoughts. Methra was
winning. He wore down Ader’s defenses.

“You grow weak old man. Maybe a thousand years HAS
changed you,” hissed Methra.

“A thousand years of watching you and your kind
scurry and whine under the heel of a madman,” replied Ader.

“DIE THEN!” shrieked the creature.

 The bubbling cauldron of Methra’s life force
spewed forth a deluge of crimson flame. It shot across the forest and engulfed
the entire form of Ader and his shield. Kael completely lost sight of his
friend, as Methra poured forth his hatred.

 The frightening onslaught subsided and Ader slowly
came back into view through the smoke and haze which hung across the forest
path. The grizzled old man stood motionless, centered in the tattered and
weakened green sphere. Methra stood heaving with exhaustion. The monster was
momentarily wasted as well, but his power was evident under the surface,
building to erupt again.

 Ader, arms still raised, gasped for breath and
crumpled to his knees. His clothes were black and sooty. His beard and hair
singed. His face and hands red and blistered. The green light surrounding him
flickered and thinned.

Methra, his head and body slumped low, panted and
slobbered like a dog in the summer sun. A wicked sneer played across his face.

“I have you now old one. I will become Izgra’s
favorite for destroying you. I will supplant Sulgor and lead the Malveel,”
wheezed the creature.

Kael sensed Methra’s power returning. The Malveel’s
greedy dreams fed his confidence.

“Your death has been a long time coming,” snapped
Methra.

Kael desperately wished to act. Panic consumed him.
He yearned to stop this insanity. He longed to make this creature vanish.

“However,” hissed Methra, “my errand is to discover
the new Seraph and capture or destroy it. Perhaps I shouldn’t kill you, but
torture you to discover its whereabouts.”

 Kael watched the red wildfire surrounding Methra
sputter and spark. The power grew. The green globe looked weaker than ever.

“I suspected this boy as the Seraph,” snarled
Methra as he nodded toward Aemmon’s corpse. “His spirit was strong. Yet he was
no match for the Malveel.”

Kael recognized the ploy. The pause in the battle
allowed Methra time to rebuild his strength. The boy sensed power returning to
the beast. Kael’s desperation grew. The mention of his brother’s murder outraged
him. He hungered to crush this evil thing. He wished to stamp out this raging
fire of hatred. Snuff it out.

Kael’s feelings of anger, loathing, sorrow, fear
and panic transformed into a desperate need as he witnessed the Malveel
preparing one final assault on Ader. Need charged to the front of his mind. The
Need to help. The Need to punish. The Need to avenge. Need coalesced into a
thin veil of crackling blue flame around the boy’s hands.

“Kael! NO!” shouted Ader.

Something inside the boy lashed out. A small, blue
bolt of flame sped through the forest air toward the Malveel. It struck
Methra’s forepaw, searing the hair and scales off a small area. The creature
thrashed its body back and forth, howling in pain and anger. Flames meant for
Ader sprayed the forest, igniting the trees. Methra wheeled to face Manfir. The
creature’s body coiled toward the forest floor.

Kael’s eyes widened in horror. Fear once again
reigned supreme. What did he do? How did he do it? He glanced at his hands. The
blue flame slowly dissipated. The Malveel inched forward.

 “So, my errand is near an end,” hissed Methra.

 Manfir tightened his body and braced himself in a
fighting stance, his shield and blade held high. Kael stumbled backward, lost
in fear and confusion. He felt the creature’s hatred wash over him. He
desperately wanted to be home at “The King’s Service”. He longed to see his
father. His thoughts cried out to Aemmon. He felt utterly alone. The boy spun
and fled down the Nagur path.

“Methra, you lap dog, come and finish me!” cried
Ader.

“Later,” snarled the beast, eyeing the running boy,
“but first....”

The creature sprang, in one leap reaching Manfir.
Razor sharp claws lashed out, knocked aside the shield and slashed deeply into
the warrior’s face and shoulder. Manfir’s sword glanced ineffectually against
the heavily armored scales of the Malveel. Without halting, the creature passed
the warrior and scrambled toward Kael. The boy ran like he never had before,
but heard the curses of the monster grow as it closed the gap.

“Methra will tear out your innards, boy,” growled
the Malveel.

Kael sprinted down the path, his heart gripped by
terror. The voice sweetened.

“Do not run from me, boy. I must speak to you. Slow
down.”

The voice floated down the path in a strange singsong
manner. Kael’s racing heart slowed and he filled with the desire to comply and
obey this voice. He was exhausted. His mind reeled. The death of his brother
and all those Elves, as well as the emotional events of the last few days took
their toll. He stopped and bent over to catch his breath. Methra was there
instantly. The Malveel approached to within ten yards and crouched low.

“Look at me,” commanded Methra.

Kael turned toward the creature and met its gaze.

“Much too impish and young for what I expected,”
assessed Methra. “The other one with all the cursed Elves appeared much more
like the genuine article. Izgra wants the new Seraph brought to him alive or
dead.”

 Kael stood motionless, caught in the creature’s
hypnotic gaze.

“Your display of power proves you to be the Seraph,”
said Methra, licking his oozing wound, “but why should I bring you to Izgra? He
will turn your mind and make you his right hand. My wound shall serve as the
perfect excuse for your demise. I shall claim you were too powerful and I
fought you to the death, receiving injuries along the way. Does that sound good
to you, boy?”

Kael stood mesmerized, nodding his head in
agreement. Methra snorted.