“Well, I did feel like roast human, but I suppose charred elf will suffice.” Demolish sat back down on his chair. His fang-filled mouth grimaced into something akin to a smile. The beast sat in his chair, watching those who would challenge him as they sat before him, helpless.
* * *
Taslessian ducked as another dart of magic flew over his head and another, unnoticed, hit him in the shoulder. Violent pain coursed through his body, but he was quick to counteract the pain with a spell, putting it out of his mind as blue lines of electricity ran over his shoulder and down his arm.
Both Taslessian and Domati stood facing one another. Around them the magical plane shimmered and glowed. They were in a desert with no end, solid underfoot yet to the naked eye, it seemed almost insubstantial; the ground a moving sandy orange and the sky the shade of perpetual sunset.
In retaliation, Taslessian stretched his magic forth, taking hold of the very fibres of the ground. Twisting and turning, the desert floor reached up to swallow his foe, closing over Domati’s head to form a seemingly inescapable prison. However, this only gave the young wizard a moment’s respite before the cocoon of earth shattered, freeing Domati.
The evil wizard’s brow was covered in perspiration as his breathing became more laboured. He had not counted on a fledgling hack of a wizard to cause him such difficulty. With a grin he prepared his next attack, teleporting himself a few metres away, and at the same time, sending a blue electrical whip towards the young wizard.
* * *
Maledorian leapt backwards to avoid Trolog’s deadly sword. Not being quite quick enough, the sword scratched his chest plate with a sound akin to a death scream. It hurt; the sheer force of the blow nearly knocking the air from his lungs. The young knight set his face into a mask of concentration as he waited for the right moment to counter.
Defyance yet again threw a dagger at their foe. Amazingly, as she threw one dagger, so another appeared. Finally, after countless attacks, she met with success, finding a chink in Trolog’s armour, biting deeply into the side of his leg.
Trolog barely got to glance at this surprise wound before he had to dodge Maledorian’s mace. It had already hit him once, shattering his hand, causing him immense and strangely surreal pain.
* * *
Darci gently closed Lief’s eyes. She did not want him to see what she was about to do. Again she gathered her concentration, this time focusing her power on Demolish, bringing all her will to bear on her enemy. As she turned her eyes to the beast that sat before her, her mind filled with throughs of pure hatred. She raised her hand in the air, directing her malice at Demolish, while in her mind she saw images of Lief, rolling his eyes at Taslessian’s pompous tone, holding her hand, his smile… and now he was gone. Her stomach clenched with rage as her body shivered with an energy she had not yet experienced.
Demolish turned to face the small human girl. She had more power than he would have given her credit for. He could feel it growing, an unseen force that was now beginning to push him back into his chair. He dug his claws into the two skulls that adorned the end of the throne’s armrests, cracking them as his claws dug deeper. As he brought his own considerable will to bear he found that he could resist the mortal’s power, but he could not crush her. No matter, he was going to deal with her in a way that she would not possibly be able to defend.
Darci watched as the demon managed to stand up again, reaching behind his horrid throne to draw a sword larger than she. “Your will is stronger than I gave you credit for, girl,” he said, almost respectfully, as if unconcerned by her resistance. “But I tire of this. Let us test your skill with a weapon.” He twisted the sword slowly, showing her how sharp the slightly curved blade truly was.
In her mind she ran through all the possibilities she could come up with to defend herself, and with a humourless smile she chose. With her power fuelled by the raw emotions that boiled inside her veins she began to change, growing in size as the demon watched on in surprise. As her body grew, imagined armour covered every vulnerable inch whilst in her hand a weapon formed.
Once finished, the Offworlder looked an intimidating sight, a towering, armour-plated warrior wielding a massive sword, equal to the task. Fearlessly she approached Demolish as her sword exploded with flaming green light.
* * *
Taslessian let loose the lightning he had been holding within him. This time, Domati was not quick enough. With a pain-filled scream, the evil wizard held his hands to the heavens as electricity coursed around and throughout his body. The ground beneath him blackened with heat, yet physically, he remained. With a ragged breath, Domati fell to his knees, preparing for one final assault.
* * *
Defyance looked down at her blood-covered hands. She had jumped in front of Maledorian after he had been knocked down. Miscalculating Trolog’s reach, it had caught her in the stomach with its sword. Gritting her teeth, the dagger bearer held one arm tightly to her wound as she staggered to her feet to face the monster again.
Maledorian was standing at the ready. His entire right side was numb from the blow that had knocked him over, forcing him to carry his mace in left hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he had seen Defyance take a deathly blow, yet she still stood.
Despite his feelings, he could not worry about her now. Trolog had knocked him down once, but he was not going to let it happen again. The great beast was bleeding from the numerous wounds inflicted by Defyance. He could see his enemy beginning to weaken. It would not be long before this battle would be over, one way or the other.
* * *
Demolish charged at Darci, full of confidence that he could defeat this overdressed young girl. He swung his black sword in an overhead blow, sure to split any mortal in two. With a magic clash that was felt through multiple dimensions, Darci caught his blow only inches from her face with her shield. In a clash of wills as much as strength they stood in deadlock. Demolish using all his might to try to force her to her knees, Darci using all her power to keep the monster at bay.
The Demon stepped back so that he could swing again. This time however, Darci caught his sword with her own. So great was the titanic blow between the two Offworlders that an explosion between their swords knocked them both off their feet, sending them to opposite ends of the hall, leaving behind a glimmering tear in reality.
Barely glancing at the anomaly, Demolish was again on his feet, striding towards the stunned and fallen girl. His hooves echoed like thunder on the marble floor, yet he took his time. The pathetic mortal that lay before him was barely conscious. Changing his grip he held his sword in both hand, ready to strike.
Darci had not fallen well, the blow against the wall had struck all the wind from her lungs and her head spun. In her peripheral vision she saw movement. A swirling purple void filled the centre of the room, and then Demolish was upon her, his massive sword falling to the marble floor. She yanked her head sidewards, avoiding the blow by mere inches. Rolling to the side in an attempt to get away, she noticed that the sword had caught her hair.
“Where are you off to, little girl?” the demon asked turning his head to leer at her.
Darci scrambled to her feet just in time to deflect another swinging blow. Her heart sank into her stomach as she realised that Demolish was playing some kind of sick game with her. Only now did she realise that he could have killed her already. She was helpless.
“You know, I don’t have to kill you. You could always accommodate my wishes, as it were, and then your friends could live.” Darci’s eyes rose to see a malicious grin on the grotesque face of the demon. Images flew through her mind as she tried to conceive what he meant: slavery, torture, an appetiser… or worse.
“I will have to kill you eventually though. I cannot be the ultimate victor without your lifeblood… so, tell me child, do you want to play some more?” His eye’s traced every curve on her armoured body as a serpent-like tongue licked his leathery lips.
All
hope was lost, she realised. She could never defeat him like this Darci’s shield dropped and faded into nothingness before it even hit the floor.
The demon laughed in triumph as he placed his sword back in his belt.
Despairing in her thoughts, the shimmer of the magical rift caught Darci’s eye, giving her one last, desperate idea. Throwing her sword at the demon, she ran towards the tear in reality.
Demolish avoided the missile easily, but it gave Darci all the time that she needed. It took him but an instant to figure out what she was going to do, but it was too late. By the time he had caught up to his foe all that remained was her hand. As he tried to pull her back out of the rift, both were sucked into the void.
* * *
Taslessian paused. Something had happened back in reality. With the wind swirling around his slightly burnt robes, he began to chant. Raising his hands at the same time as the wind reached its zenith, the young wizard fired an all-consuming fireball at the fallen form of Domati before blinking out of sight, back to reality.
* * *
Maledorian gritted his teeth and closed his eyes as he waited for the final, fatal blow. Defyance was lying unconscious in a small pool of her own blood. They had been defeated. Despite the impossible amount of injuries inflicted on their enemy, it refused to fall. The ground shook then and the knight dared open one eye. Where Trolog had once stood, a small boy lay on the floor, covered in numerous cuts and bruises, cradling an unrecognisable hand. The knight nodded in satisfaction as he realised that Taslessian had won. It was a pleasing thought as darkness overcame him.
The Last Chapter
Falling, light, colours, something behind me, falling… falling, darkness.
With a start, Darci woke up from her nightmare. She could not quite remember what she had been dreaming about, yet she was filled with an overwhelming sadness and hopelessness. Then the realisation dawned on her: something had woken her up. There were no lights on, so that meant that her parents were not yet home.
Quietly, she wriggled out from under her covers before sneaking around her room to arm herself with an old hockey stick that had been collecting dust in her cupboard. I’ll be buggered if I’m going to let someone sneak into my house, she thought.
A cold silence interrupted only by her breathing surrounded her as she crept around the house. Cautiously she looked at any dark corner that could conceal anything. Unnoticed to her, the young girl kept flexing her hand. Upon it lay a golden gauntlet.
Anxiety had crept into her heart but she forced herself not to think about what could lie in wait for her in the large house that, hopefully, only she occupied. Darci had to quickly squash her imagination as it began to flick through all the horror movies she had seen. An axe murderer hiding behind the next door; Freddy Kruger creeping up from behind; an alien hiding in the roof, all of them ready to get her… She paused, taking a deep breath before continuing.
From room to room, Darci nervously opened cupboards and poked curtains. Suddenly, she saw something in the corner of her eye. She jumped around, hockey stick knocking down her assailant!
The tense teenager gave a nervous laugh as she realised she had assaulted her mother’s hat stand. Gently placing it back where it belonged, she gave the hat stand a quick look-over, relieved to find that she had caused no damage.
Like a frozen hand gently brushing down the back of her neck, Darci again felt fear as she turned around to face the rest of the house. She turned on the light for each room to look for the expected monster lying in wait, feeling a mixture of relief and anti-climax, and yet finding nothing to justify her apprehension.
In the last room, her parents’ bedroom, she again found nothing. Indiana had not barked a warning, and she was confused that she did not find anything to explain her awakening. She switched off the lights; the light peach curtains covering the window in the room were still illuminated with a soft glowing light. A barely audible swishing sound tickled her ears, a result of the curtains moving, as if there were a light breeze.
Darci audibly swallowed the new fear that began to rise up within her. She knew that all the windows were shut. Who, or what, could have moved the curtains? Quickly trying to rationalise what she saw, she knew that the light was not coming from outside. The streetlights in Seymour were not green.
“Come out from behind the curtains or I’ll call the cops!” she said in a quietly threatening voice, even managing a humourless smile. She sounded a lot braver than she felt. Nobody answered her, for that reason, she swallowed once before pulling back the curtain. There was nothing there, not even the window that was supposed to occupy that space. She turned to look back at her parents’ room. With a strange sense of déjà vu, Darci realised she was no longer afraid.
She closed her eyes to try to clear her head. When she opened them again, she found herself sitting on the grass in a forest with abnormally large trees.
“You look exactly like you did the first time.” From somewhere behind, an old rasping voice addressed her.
Darci turned around to see a middle-aged man with long white hair and an even longer beard. He was wearing many layers of expensive- looking clothes that gave him an impressive appearance. In his hand, he held a wooden staff.
“Who are you?” Darci asked the stranger. She was confused; there was something at the back of her mind, a forgotten memory trying to break free.
“Have you forgotten me already?” The man actually smiled fondly at her. “I am Taslessian.”
With that name came the key to unlock her confusion. Memories flooded into her mind, faces of dragons and people. Grisham the Great, Sahat, Afradities, Maledorian, Defyance… Lief… She raised her hand to her face as she began to catch the tears that fell. Lief. Moments ago she had held him in her arms. If only she had been quicker… and now he was gone.
“What happened?” she asked, voice breaking as she tried to control her raw emotions. She had to know if her plan had worked.
“We did not win,” answered the man without preamble. A lot of time had obviously passed since that fateful battle. “But neither did Demolish, and so another battle must be fought. As of yet, he has not returned, and we are not sure that he will, but something is coming, which is why I have summoned you again…”
Epilogue
Scale-covered eyelids closed with fatigue and the weight of knowledge from eons of existence. Grisham the Great forced his mind’s eye to look back into the world around him, into the past.
He could not see what had occurred on that fateful day between Offworlder and demon, yet so much had happened in such a short time, he was finding it difficult to keep his time lines together. How much time had passed between that battle and the return of the Offworlder? He could not tell.
Searching the balance, he knew she had not won the battle, yet, she had not lost the war. At least, not yet. Events were in motion, some having already occurred with their outcomes still unknown. What he did know, however, was that this time would be different. Others had been summoned to battle; their fates changed forever, their actions crucial but their destinies unknown.
Tallen –Quest of the Demon Aftermath 1
Growing up not far from the road to Chinta on the edge of the Jungle Dragon, Tallen is excited to have her two brothers home. Recent times have been hard, Tallen herself barely surviving an attack by a derelict stranger in their very own barn. The war that never was has relieved them of their duty at Chinta, so much so, that her father, the Sergeant of the Guard, is able to return for a visit, bringing news of a possible suitor for Tallen, given that she is almost of that age.
Tallen is not sure what she wants, but the man her father brings home is not what anyone expected. But at least she knows that her family has her best interests at heart when the pompous, self-interested merchant’s son is sent back to Chinta.
The outcome for the Quest of the Demon remains unknown, but the forces of good are being summoned again. Such a trivial meeting develops into a journey that throws
Tallen’s life into turmoil and sets her on a path from which there is no return.
TALLEN – Out now!
Elflings - Quest of the Demon Aftermath 2
Elonan is rudely awoken by an argument in the middle of the night to find his ship, the Elspeth, has been hijacked, and that he, along with the rest of the crew, are now stranded in the distant and icy wastelands of Menarik.
As an experienced sailor, Elonan knows this was no simple theft, and must have been orchestrated by the group of five who had been part of his original cargo. He knew that they were different, but he never expected them to be thieves.
With no ship due for weeks and a burning need to discover the truth, Elonan sets off on foot into the Snow Dunes of Mengah, where he discovers the fabled Sahat, a wizard from the past, and through their magic, a young woman who is destined to become a part of his future.
ELFLINGS – Newly released, out now!
Silence Rising - Quest of the Demon Aftermath 3
Brothers Olay and Ulav hail from the far north. They are taller than most, and stronger than all – at least according to Olay. They sail the oceans on the Nightrider, transporting contraband, fending off hijackers, and meeting the strangest of people. It's an eventful lifestyle: drinking, brawling, women, and, in Ulav's case, one woman in particular, whom he only recently met.
Their regular routine of sail, avoid the tax ports, and deliver cargo, is abruptly interrupted when Elonan arrives unexpectedly with a real, living elf as a travelling companion. There is evil afoot, he tells them; a friend is in trouble, and a daring rescue must be planned, would the brothers would care to assist?
An adventure so great would be the talk of storytellers across the land? Of course they agreed!
If only they had known what they were getting themselves into...
Due out Dec 2013
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