The Spirit of Revenge (43 page)

As the last few soldiers crossed the bridge, Darius shouted up to the towers. “Raise the bridge!” The grinding of gears sounded once again and the drawbridge lifted off the riverbank.

Several soldiers still along the bridge screamed in fear as it began to rise from the earth. Higher and higher the bridge climbed, and the men clung desperately to its planking as they were lifted far above the heads of the enemy.

Several lost their grip and slid down the bridge, falling into the beasts below with dreadful screams. The Arzecs and Andreds tore them asunder, entrails spewing and blood gushing from where bodies were only moments before.

The armies of Andred suddenly dove off the docks and charged across the river ice. A vast sea of black soon covered the entire Alar as the enemy began a reckless charge toward their escaping prey.

The ice then gave way beneath the immense weight and plunged thousands of Andreds into the icy depths. They quickly sank beneath the shattered ice, buried instantly in a watery grave.

Yet they continued undeterred, climbing over their drowning brethren and scrambling across the now exploding ice. Countless Andreds were engulfed in the chaos and gripped by the churning tides, silent death warring before the eyes of terrified men.

The Andreds stumbled through the clutches of the Alar and many soon reached the opposing bank. The Alliance held their ground, shields and swords flashing with undying ferocity. Andreds and Arzecs alike were instantly slaughtered upon reaching the north bank, blood now spilling into the Alar.

Thousands began crossing the river’s gauntlet to storm the north bank. An endless tide of black soon poured across the Alar to death’s embrace.

Above the rushing tide of Andreds, Isroc desperately clung to the now vertical drawbridge. He peered down into the awaiting eyes of thousands of Andreds, fear gnawing at his heart.

An arrow embedded itself near his face and he screamed as several of the beasts began shooting at him. Arrows plinked against the planking around him as he began to climb up the length of the bridge.

Soldiers around him followed his lead and began climbing to the nearby towers. But as they struggled to avoid their fates, death met their escape. Arrows plunged into their backs, sending their bodies dropping into hordes of ravenous Arzecs. Spared by fortune, Isroc continued climbing up the bridge, arrows clinking around him.

A soldier reached down for Isroc as he neared the top of the bridge. However, an arrow struck through the man’s neck and he fell silent into the masses below, limbs instantly ripped from his body. Isroc cursed and reached desperately for the tower, mere inches beyond his grasp.

A Gehet burst from a side street and charged at the bridge. With one fell blow, the drawbridge blasted from its chains and hurtled over the river. Isroc clung for his life as the bridge’s remains exploded into the icy Alar, crushing hundreds of Andreds beneath its weight.

The Alliance fought beneath an ever-enclosing sea of Andreds, slowly losing ground under a relentless assault. It was only a matter of time before they broke. Death ruled the night, chaos filled the skies; the end was imminent.

The ice chunk Malecai and Cain were on suddenly lifted as all of the river’s ice rose for the skies. Alanis stood on a nearby ice chunk, sword held at his side and hair dancing in the wind. He jumped for them and raised his sword to strike them down.

The Warriors leapt desperately from the ice, free falling several yards back to earth. They leapt between the ice chunks, sliding across their surfaces before bounding toward another, working their way quickly down to the river. They soon landed heavily on the river ice and looked up to the sky.

Alanis plummeted straight for them, swiftly maneuvering through the ascending ice. He swung his sword, and with a burst of light, cut through a chunk of ice, the remains of which rocketed towards Cain and Malecai.

Malecai dove over Cain and raised his hands, a wall of wind whipping over them as the ice crashed harmlessly into an unseen wall. Alanis landed before them with a great blast of water and ice.

Cain and Malecai leapt off a chunk of ice and onto another as frigid water gushed around them. The two men weaved across the river, desperate to avoid the crashing waters.

Alanis shot through the torrent and their swords clashed yet again. Ice and water smashed around them as they battled across the fracturing ice, the entire surface of the Alar falling apart around them.

They jumped between chunks of ice, balancing across their surfaces. Swords clashed and sparks flew, their wielders mere blurs among the ice as they fought without reprieve.

Cain ducked and narrowly avoided Alanis’ swinging blade. He lashed at his opponent’s feet and Alanis jumped, the blade slicing harmlessly beneath him. Alanis spun and deflected Malecai’s sword before sending a wave of flames gushing from his palm.

Cain jumped before Malecai and threw his weapon before him, the flames bounding harmlessly off the cerebreum blade. He ran forward and twirled his sword, sending the flames returning to its sender. Alanis dove for a separate ice chunk as the flames seared past.

The two Warriors rushed at the Iscara, swords raised with a murderous cry. Malecai threw himself forward and skidded across the ice towards his opponent. He pulled his arm back and tossed his sword at Alanis again. Alanis deflected the flailing sword and sent it into the air.

Malecai flipped over the Knight and caught his weapon in mid air, spinning around as he landed to block a strike.

As their swords met, Cain rushed forward and released a fearsome barrage. Alanis fended off the roaring blade before jumping to a different hunk of ice.

He lifted his hands, and again the river’s ice rose into the air. Cain jumped off as their platform rose slowly into the air. Malecai and Alanis continued dueling across the ever-rising ice, water and ice swirling around them as they ascended higher into the skies.

Alanis turned from the fight and jumped to a separate ice chunk. Malecai bound and landed beside him. The Knight jumped again and leapt between the many ice chunks, Malecai close behind. Their swords sped near a blur as they strafed back and forth, struggling to push the other off the still ascending ice.

Alanis feined right and dove forward as Malecai’s blade sped past. He slammed his palm into Malecai’s chest and with a flare of wind and light, blasted his opponent off the ice. He landed painfully on his back on another chunk as Alanis descended upon him. The Knight swung his sword and cleft the ice in two.

The river’s ice fell swiftly back to earth and Malecai fell helplessly among them, knocked about by every slab of ice. The ice crashed into the river and Malecai disappeared in an explosion, freezing water gushing around him.

Alanis landed lightly as the water fell back to the river. Malecai groaned with pain amid a fractured platform, near buried in ice. Alanis stepped over him, a smirk on his lips at the sight of his downed opponent. Cain cried out to his friend, but separated by several yards of water; he could do nothing but watch what was to happen.

Alanis kicked Malecai’s sword away, sending it sliding to a stop feet away. Malecai clenched his chest and tried to crawl toward his weapon, but every crack of his ribs forced him to stop.

“Look at me,” Alanis ordered before kicking him in the side. Malecai rolled over and looked helplessly up at Alanis. The Knight brought up his sword and swung it across his ribs, throwing a spray of blood into the air. Malecai let out a feeble gasp.

“No!” Cain screamed as Malecai struggled to crawl away from his advancing opponent. A trail of blood poured from Malecai’s open chest, and Alanis stepped slowly over him, bloody footsteps in his wake. Alanis grabbed Malecai’s arm, and with a forceful throw, sent him rolling across the ice.

The Iscara walked forward and stepped over his dying opponent. Malecai lay in a crumpled mess atop the ice, blood gushing from his open chest. He gasped for air, struggling to fill his collapsing lungs.

Alanis rested his sword tip against Malecai’s neck. He looked down his weapon at him and sneered. “Get up…” He knelt down, grabbed Malecai by the neck, and pulled him to his knees. “At last…you are human.” He propped a boot against Malecai’s bloodied face and pushed.

Malecai fell back through the ice and was quickly swallowed by the depths of the Alar. He reached for air, flailing above the water’s surface for a few precious moments. Slowly he slipped through the ice and his body disappeared beneath the depths. The stream of air bubbles ceased and the ice caps slowly rolled back in place, sealing his watery grave.

“Malecai!” Cain screamed out in agony. “Malecai! No!”

Alanis stepped back in silence and sighed at his victory. He turned and looked over his shoulder at his last remaining opponent.

Cain stared on in disbelief, Ceerocai held limp in his shaking hands. His friend had just been murdered, swallowed up by the depths of the Alar. Cain blinked slowly and lowered his head, fighting the disbelief that swirled in his mind.

He had struggled to drown out his revenge, his bloodlust, but now it swelled within him, fighting to be freed one final time.

“Yes, Cain,” Alanis muttered, “show me the animal you really are.”

Cain raised Ceerocai and looked up at his friend’s killer, hate pouring into his heart. The sword in his hand suddenly began to glow a bright scarlet, pulsating with every beat of its wielder’s racing heart.

Alanis staggered back and eyed the glowing blade curiously, its light beating now with a life of its own. Cain closed his eyes for a moment and felt the heated steel in his hands and its bloody light flicker against his face.

He opened his eyes and charged forward, nearly a blur as he rushed toward his opponent. Cain jumped from the ice and blasted through the air, a bloodthirsty scream on his lips as he sailed the several yards toward his foe.

Alanis jumped back as the sword slammed into the ice with a shower of steam, cleaving the ice clean in half. He burst from the falling ice and shot towards his opponent, screaming in rage.

Their swords met with an explosion of sparks and they began a violent exchange of steel, flying across the ice with inhuman speed.

Under the fury of Ceerocai, Alanis relented and jumped off the ice chunk, landing lightly on another.

Cain landed beside him and spun as Alanis struck out at him, swords meeting in a lock. The two men fought across the ice for several moments, swords howling with every clash of steel. Alanis deflected a blow from his opponent and thrust his palm forward, sending Cain flying backwards through the air.

Cain quickly stabbed his sword in the ice as he rocketed through the air, and using the momentum of the blade, swung himself back to the ground. He pulled the sword from the ice and jumped backwards. The blade tore the ice apart, splitting the platform in two overhead. He landed on one of the halves and the ice crashed into Alanis, water erupting about them. Cain burst through the flood and descended upon Alanis. Ceerocai plowed into Alanis’s sword and instantly shattered it.

The Iscara faltered and stared at the useless stub in his hand. Cain returned his glare, their eyes locked in the quiet of the falling snow.

Suddenly, the weapon in Cain’s hands shook violently. The entire sword trembled and threw forth growing rays of scarlet across the ice.

The sword raised itself and pointed towards the heavens. A great wind shot down from the skies above. A resounding clap echoed through the air, stirring the skies and river below.

The clouds swirled and parted, and from them, a great light fell. The fiery light shot down from the heavens and crashed into the ice with a tremendous explosion.

Cain cautiously peered from behind his hand at the strange light. Slowly it faded and revealed some unearthly creature.

It stood many yards above even Gehet and many more in length. Its blood red scales shimmered dully, as if the light of day never left its flawless surface. Depthless eyes glowered down at Cain, ebony jewels amid its massive, ruby head. Seven horns adorned its head, each curving out like the prongs of a crown, and one curving out far before its face.

Above its fanged maw were two slits of nostrils. A long row of spines extended from the top of its neck to the tip of its sword-like tail that stretched as long as its body.

The beast stood on four legs as thick as the trunks of trees. Ebony claws extended from each of its colossal feet, its knife-like talons impaling the ice upon which it stood.

The animal flicked its shoulders and four bony limbs lifted from its side. They stretched out from its body for several yards, revealing four massive wings of membranous tissue.

It was surreal, grotesque, and yet strangely beautiful. The very fires of hell seemed to glow within its ribs, playing across its ruby scales with the radiance of a dawning sky.

The beast’s wings shuddered and it stooped its great chest low to the earth. With a deep, bloodcurdling growl, it turned its head to Cain, a thin wisp of smoke rising from its grimacing maw.

Cain held Ceerocai unnervingly before him, the blade now flickering a fierce crimson with every pulse of light that arced along the beast’s scales.