The Tower Of The Watchful Eye: The Legend Of Kairu Book 1 (41 page)

“
I thought we weren’t counting,” I said as walked over to him.
“How’d you get in?”

“
Harik’s leading the front, I’m leading the Special Forces,”
he said with a smirk. “My troops are already working their way
through the city to help the citizens overthrow the Mages. Snuck in
under cover of darkness. What happened here? The towers too much
for you?”

“
They were waiting for me,” I replied. “Had to break my way
out of jail and take Desroche down with a frying pan in his private
quarters.”

Nerrilok
laughed. “Bludgeoned to death by cookware. Not the greatest story
told.”

“
He’s only knocked out,” I said. “Just tell everyone I subdued
him with my ‘Diason’ magic skills. I have to be the proper folk
hero after all.”

“
Way ahead of you, kid,” Nerrilok replied. “Pick a tower to
start with.”

“
The one on the right,” I pointed.

“
What’s the plan?” he asked.

“
To figure out what they are doing and stop it,” I answered
with a shrug. “We’ll enter through the bottom and clean it
out.”

Nerrilok
picked up my sword from where Wrinkles lay. “Do you mind? I don’t
think the bow will help in there.”

“
Take it,” I said.

Nerrilok and I
headed for the tower. The war in the air was still raging so we
were able to approach it from behind without incident. Nerrilok
looked nervously towards the sky as if searching for any sign of
the young Chieftain.

“
He’ll be fine,” I said as we reached the door.

“
He better be, everything rides on his young shoulders,”
Nerrilok said sternly.

Nerrilok
opened the door while I stood with my hand up. The entrance was
empty and I signalled Nerrilok in. He quickly headed for the stairs
and I followed him up. The stone stairs echoed loudly as we marched
up the tower. Louder than expected, actually.

The Mages must have enchanted the stairs to alert them of
trespassers,
Cathy suggested.

Sure enough, a
couple of Mages appeared from around the bend and shouted out in
alarm as we approached.

“
Come on, you spark shooting pixies,” Nerrilok growled picking
up speed. “It’s time you tasted vengeance.”

He shoulder
charged into the two Mages before they could even raise their
hands. Plunging the sword into the first’s chest, the second tried
to scramble up and I launched an Ice Bolt into his chest. Nerrilok
climbed over the bodies and continued up the stairs in a blood
rage. I struggled over the bodies and hurried to catch up. Another
Mage was unlucky enough to get in the way and was felled without
Nerrilok breaking stride.

When we
reached the top, all the Mages turned to our direction in
anticipation. Nerrilok didn’t waste any time and immediately
charged the nearest Mage near the opening. The Mages were leaning
outside to ensure no Evenawks tried to climb in and Nerrilok shoved
one of them out of the tower. The remaining four Mages turned at
one towards him and I sent out a Pulse with both hands to throw
them off balance.

“
You get two, I get two,” Nerrilok shouted as he charged at
the next Mage near the opening.

My two were
near a strange device in centre of the room. Finally realizing I
was a hostile, they raised their hands and I unleashed a wave of
fire at them. I felt them quickly change to a Ward and I pushed the
attack walking towards them. Their shields grew weak but they held
on. Feeling their shields break and then hearing them starting to
scream, I stopped the power and took a deep breath.

They collapsed
to the ground and Nerrilok walked over. “Nasty way to go,” he
chuckled.

“
Takes a lot out of you though,” I said taking another deep
breath.

“
Time to destroy this blasted machine,” Nerrilok said as he
walked over to the strange device.

The device was
tall and pedestal-like. A crystal sat in the middle with a hood
covering it except for a small section. A circle with a cross
through it sat on the hood and the body of the pedestal held an
opening where a glowing Staff was visible.

“
Have you seen anything like this before?” Nerrilok
asked.

I shook my
head. You?

Never
, Cathy answered.

I reached into
the opening and felt power radiating from the staff. With a scaled
hand, I grabbed the staff but nothing happened.

Try without the scales
, Cathy
suggested.

The scales
returned to skin. I felt a connection form between me and the
staff. I pushed power through the connection and the staff glowed
brighter.

“
The crystal is glowing brighter,” Nerrilok said moving away
from the opening. “I don’t like it.”

I continued to
push power through the bond until I felt the power release and saw
a stream of fire shoot out of the crystal section. The fire
travelled out towards the Evenawks and I released the staff.

“
HA!” Nerrilok exclaimed. “Can we use this against
them?”

“
Can’t imagine why not,” I said looking for a way to rotate
the pedestal.

Nerrilok
grabbed the hood protecting the crystal and it slid from side to
side.

“
Good, aim for the other tower,” I said.

“
Is it going to do any good?” Nerrilok asked.

“
It will for what I have planned,” I answered with a smirk.
“I’m going to do what I did in Nesqa.”

Nerrilok
rotated the hood and looked through the little circle on the top. I
could feel the power pulsing from the staff.

“
Alright, you are lined up,” he said.

“
Stand back,” I said as I seized the staff.

The staff
glowed slightly and I started gathering my power inside myself. I
closed my eyes and focused on the building pressure.

Can I borrow
some of yours?

Don’t go
crazy, she replied as more power surged through me.

I forced all
the power through the bond and the staff started to shake. I opened
my eyes and immediately looked away from the brightness of the
staff. Power erupted out of the crystal as a massive ball of fire
exploded the pedestal and wall, knocking me and Nerrilok back. The
ball hit the other tower and the top of it exploded into a ball of
flames. Stone rained down in every direction.

Did you see that?
Cathy asked
excited.

“
You are one crazy guy, Diason,” Nerrilok said
stunned.

“
I have to live up to my name,” I replied.

Nerrilok
laughed and helped me to my feet. Both towers were in ruins and the
Evenawks immediately flew into the city. The battle would be over
shortly.

I fished
through the debris of the pedestal and found the crystal. The
glowing started to fade as it returned to a state of calm. It fit
into my hand perfectly and was a shade of dark pink. I wanted to
bring it back to the Tower and study it when I was done with this
adventure.

“
I think it is safe to assume this crystal should stay with
me,” I said to Nerrilok.

He nodded. “I
don’t need that magic stuff. Can I keep the sword though?”

“
That’s a fair trade,” I said. “Enjoy.”

Nerrilok slid
it into his quiver and headed for the opening, his arms
transforming into wings. “I have to go find the Chieftain,” he
said. “Meet us at the city hall. Any Mages you kill on the way
would be helpful.”

He smiled as
he looked back at me before jumping out of the tower and joining
the others.

“
We might have actually done it,” I said out loud. “We helped
the Evenawks regain Scert’chak.”

But it’s not over yet,
Cathy
said.
Come on, there’s more killing to
do.

“
I’m pretty drained. Unless you want me to use your powers,” I
suggested.

Check that. Maybe we will wait
, she
answered.

“
I thought so,” I said as I started climbing down the
stairs.

Chapter 35

The Evenawks
won the battle and everyone knew it. The townspeople fought with
the rage of a lifetime of anger. The rebels fought with the hope of
seeing their loved ones again and the remaining Mages quickly
surrendered. Harik, Nerrilok and Bak quickly preached the need to
take them into custody after their surrender. The leaders' example
of civilized society spread through the ranks like wildfire.

I suppose you are going to gloat and take credit for
it?
Cathy asked.

Only a little.
We did get the ball rolling.

‘
We’?
Cathy asked.
I only wanted to see heads rolling.

After the
trial there will be plenty of that.

Legal murder...interesting...
she
mused.

My walk
through Scert’chak was more real then my first trip. The Evenawks
moved with renewed purpose as I followed them through town.
Whenever a civilian would make a move for me they were stopped by a
rebel solider and whispers of the mysterious ‘Diason’ were
exchanged.

I approached
the great city hall with the remaining Evenawk rebels. It was nice
to visit this building of my own free will, instead of being
dragged here unconscious. There’s a certain beauty to the design
when you know you are free to leave whenever you want.

“
Diason!” the voice of Bak called out from the crowd. When I
saw him he motioned for me to follow. “This way.”

More whispers
could be heard as Bak and I walked through the crowd. We joined
Nerrilok and Harik in front of the town hall and Harik smiled
brightly as he shook my hand.

“
Warlord Narrilok just finishing telling me about the towers,”
Harik said. “We saw the blast. Did it really come from
you?”

Nerrilok
smirked and I nodded to Harik. “Yes it did.”

“
And this was after you broke out of prison and disabled
everyone in the city hall?” Harik continued excited.

I looked at
Nerrilok still smirking away before turning back to Harik. “There’s
a hole in the wall from where I broke out.”

“
That’s amazing,” Harik smiled. “Your actions are the stuff of
Legends. You should be in books or songs.”

“
I assure you that any book about me wouldn’t be very
interesting,” I said to him.

He laughed and
turned to Nerrilok. “It is time to address the Evenawks,
Warlord.”

“
They wish to hear from you, Chieftain,” Nerrilok
said.

What’s with the ranks all of a sudden?
Cathy asked.

Perhaps they
are trying to establish a class system in their new society.

Harik stepped
towards the group and raised his hands. The murmur from the
Evenawks died down until it was completely silent. The Mages on
their knees in the front looked up waiting to hear of their fate,
Harik looked back towards us and grinned.

Still just a kid,
Cathy
chuckled.

“
Evenawks!” Harik boomed looking back to his audience. “I am
Harik, last of the Karorik bloodline and leader of our fight for
freedom. Today marks a great day; the day we took back our
capital!” The crowd cheered. “For the first time in the Second Era,
an Evenawk city is free.” More cheers. “We all owe thanks to the
great warriors behind me but now it is time for all Evenawks to
stand up and be great. Across the Ghanlar Plateau our brothers and
sisters still live in slavery. Join me and together we will free
all Evenawks!”

The crowd
erupted into cheering. There would be a massive celebration
tonight. The crowd already looked like they weren’t going to wait
for the Chieftain to begin celebrating.

“
What of the Mages?” one of the Evenawks called
out.

“
The Mages will be given a fair trial for their crimes,” Harik
answered. “Let it be known across the land that any Mages found
guilty of crimes against the Evenawks will have a noose placed
around their neck and be thrown out of the trees.”

The Evenawks
cheered in approval and Harik turned to Bak. “Commander Bak, take
them away.”

Bak nodded and
I leaned closer to him. “Red Jacket Honey.”

“
Are you hurt?” he asked.

“
No,” I chuckled. “Place it on the restraints around the
Mage’s wrists and they won’t be able to cast magic. Like what I did
with Desroche and Spencer.”

Bak nodded.
“Thanks for the tip.”

Bak, a few of
the rebels and I gathered the Mages and led them into the building.
Harik told the Evenawks to start their celebrations before joining
me and Nerrilok.

“
Join me inside, where it is quiet,” he said.

I followed
them both inside and noticed the small group of dead Evenawks to
the side. They were dressed in guard uniforms and it looked like
the rebels were unable to break their brainwashing. Harik continued
through the main hall to the small lounge area I found weird when I
first walked through. I removed my pack and placed it on the
ground.

“
How’d I do out there?” Harik asked as we sat down.

“
You certainly got them worked up,” Nerrilok
smiled.

“
I don’t think I had anything to do with that,” Harik
chuckled. “This is a day nobody would have dreamed of seeing.” He
turned to me. “I have you to thank for that. However little you
think you did, I wouldn’t be sitting here in my ancestral home
without your help. You will be the only Mage welcome here for a
long time.”