 |  |
|
|
Everyone in the Lost Shrine looked up with a start, the battle forgotten as they struggled to absorb the meaning of the mocking taunt. "That's Kromos' voice!" exclaimed Jonitrus. "What's he doing in Sanofainus' speaking chamber?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Ectar said wearily. "And one more thing - does it strike anyone as odd that we haven't seen Bogavus since we got here?"
Leoric frowned as he realised Ectar's words had given voice to the unease he had been feeling throughout the battle to topple Sanofainus' evil regime. It wasn't that he had expected to find Bogavus waiting for him the moment he and his party entered the Lost Shrine, but the wizard had been conspicuously absent throughout all the struggles. And, if Leoric knew anything about rogue wizards, it was that Bogavus' absence more than likely meant he had one more surprise in store.
"You're right, Ectar," he admitted, bracing himself to rush Kromos when he emerged from his hiding place. Standing defiantly tall, the Spectral Knights' leader called out his challenge to the new ruler of the kingdom that had stolen his friends. "Kromos, you cowardly scum!" he shouted. "Why don't you come out and fight like a man instead of hiding behind your precious Sanofainus?!"
"Sanofainus is dead!" Kromos retorted as he appeared at the top of the stairs to the workings. "I now rule the Lost Shrine - and soon, all of Prysmos will bow before me and tremble!" He launched into a gale of mocking laughter as he visualised the world he would build, a world where freedom was dead and all Prysmosians lived only to serve his elite order. That was the dream Sanofainus had held for many years and Kromos meant to see it become reality.
"Go chase a basilisk!" Atla shot back from where she stood with Pallenne and Yilly. "I think you'll find you're missing one of the Crystals you need to control us . . ."
"Maybe so," Kromos said as he descended the stairs. "But Sanofainus believed the remaining Six still hold enough power and, when my slaves find them, I will rule Prysmos! I will achieve the ambition Sanofainus never . . ."
"I think not!" It was Bogavus who had materialised as if out of thin air, his spiked weapon drawn ready to throw. With a practiced air, he drew back his hand and launched the deadly spike at Kromos who barely had time to cry out before he fell to the floor, dead. "I don't need mortals to rule," he said with feigned calm as he waved his hand and the spike embedded deep in Kromos' chest magically extracted itself and flew back to its owner.
Bogavus continued to smile wickedly as he thought of how easy it had been to depose Kromos, thereby removing another obstacle to his ambitions. From the moment the Darkling Lords accidentally sprang him from the Wizards' Jail, he had been determined to ensure that he remained free no matter what the cost. Denying that he had any true magical knowledge when the Spectral Knights caught him and hauled him before Merklynn had been a useful stalling tactic, but he was only too aware that sooner or later someone would realise just how powerful he really was - Merklynn had already begun to doubt his integrity within hours of the test that had supposedly cleared his name.
It was this that had led Bogavus to join forces with Sanofainus and Kromos, knowing that through them he would be able to gain access to the Crystals of Power and eliminate all opposition. Even Merklynn, the most powerful wizard on Prysmos, would not be able to stand up to the power of all the Crystals, but he had fourteen knights serving him and he was bound to send them on a quest to recapture him sooner or later. And, since he perceived the Spectral Knights as the bigger threat, Bogavus had spent many hours plotting their downfall . . .
And now his plans were finally coming to fruition - he had outlived Sanofainus and Kromos and all the Spectral Knights were exactly where he wanted them. "I thought you'd find a way to follow me," he told Leoric as he gazed dispassionately at the Spectral Knight. "You're too noble for your own good, Leoric - and I intend to destroy you!"
"Not so fast!" Leoric retorted, rising to the bait against all common sense. "First, you and I have a score to settle, Bogavus!"
Nearby, Feryl had recovered and had staggered to his feet just in time to see Leoric standing face-to-face with Bogavus, the former's chest-plate glowing as he prepared to assume his Lion form. In that instant, Feryl recalled the way Bogavus had trapped him when he tried to attack him in his Wolf form . . .
"Leoric!" he shouted as he drew level with his leader. "Whatever you do, don't use your Totem!"
The urgency in his friend's tone caused Leoric to stop himself just in time. Unfortunately, Feryl's words distracted him and Bogavus quickly took advantage of his momentary lapse to cast his spiked weapon at him. Leoric instinctively made to dodge out the way, only to find that the lethal spike changed its trajectory and continued to pursue him relentlessly, its point constantly aimed at his neck. Bogavus gloated with satisfaction; this was working out better than he had hoped when he first hatched his fiendish plan. Soon, the Spectral Knights would be just a bad memory of seven thorns in his side . . .
"Cryotek, do something!" Galadria pleaded from where she and her fellow Spectral Knights stood watching helplessly as their leader tried to avoid the enchanted weapon.
Cryotek did not need telling twice. Wasting no time, he pulled out his Power Staff and, shouting:
"Three Suns align, pour forth their light,
and fill the archer's bow with might!"
summoned a magical archer which shot Bogavus' weapon down in mid-flight seconds before it lodged itself in Leoric's neck. "That's for what you did to Belizar!" Cryotek shouted as the deadly weapon broke into three pieces. Then, as Bogavus stared speechlessly, too stunned to even think about using his magic, Ectar and Gawalar pounced, seizing the wizard from behind and chaining him with a discarded pair of slave manacles.
"Gotcha!" Ectar said, breathing heavily as he clipped the chains round Bogarvis' wrists. "You picked the wrong knights to tangle with, you wolf in sheep's clothing! Er . . . no offence, Feryl," he said to the young knight, who happened to be standing nearby.
"None taken," Feryl replied with a wry smile. "Now, I guess we'd better . . ."
He was cut off by a commotion in the crowd as Leoric fought to restrain Fletchen as she made to rush at Bogarvis with a rock in her hand ready to throw. "Let go of me!" she yelled, struggling to free herself and get to the wizard. "That fiend killed my father!"
"Fletchen, calm down!" Leoric ordered in as firm a voice as he could muster. It was obvious what had happened - either Bogarvis or one of his slaver-monks had told Fletchen that her father was dead. "You don't know what really happened."
"I know enough!" Fletchen said bitterly. "That first day, one of the slavers told me Bogavus murdered my father and Beli . . ."
"He thought they were both dead," Leoric corrected her gently. "But Gleering is alive, Fletchen - I don't know how, but Bogavus' weapon only wounded him."
Fletchen looked him full in the face and knew in that moment that what he said was true; Leoric of all people would never lie about something like that. With a strangled sob, she dropped the rock and flew into his arms. "All this time, I've been thinking he was dead," she said through tears of happiness, thinking back to the day Gleering had comforted her following Leoric's alleged death. It all seemed so long ago now, even though it was actually a year at the most and she was no longer the naive village maiden she had once been.
While all this was going on, Darkstorm and his followers had been busy trying to win the defeated guards round to their cause. Even though Sanofainus and Kromos, both of whom had been potentially useful allies, had been slain, Darkstorm was determined to ensure that the trek to the Lost Shrine would not be completely wasted. And since, as a magic-user, he could not be exposed to the Crystals of Power, that meant there was only one thing he could do.
"My friends," he told the assembled guards, who had been milling around aimlessly, unsure what to do now that their leaders were dead or captured. "My friends, I know a way you can avenge your fallen leaders! Pledge allegiance to the Darkling Lords and I will help you banish Leoric and his . . ."
He got no further before Arzon swooped down in his Eagle form and began attacking the guards with beak and talons. Darkstorm watched with mounting fury as they tried in vain to grab the Eagle and frantically urged them on to greater and greater efforts. He meant to defeat at least one Spectral Knight and was not about to leave the Lost Shrine until he did.
"Er . . ., Darkstorm?" Mortdredd ventured, tapping his commander on the shoulder.
"Not now, Mortdredd!" Darkstorm snapped impatiently. There were times he wished Mortdredd would stop fawning round him and give him a bit of breathing space. "Cravex! Fly up and bring that mangy bird down! Well?" he added when Cravex showed no signs of moving. "Get on with it!"
"Darkstorm?" It was Reekon who spoke this time. "I think you'd better turn round . . ."
Slowly, Darkstorm did so - to find himself facing the Spectral Knights and their allies who had circled around while Arzon distracted them. Before he had chance to react, they leapt into action. The male Spectral Knights assumed their animal forms and charged headlong into their midst, while Galadria, unable to use her Totem in her current environment, fought alongside the rest of the freed slaves. She, Fletchen and Casiusa had each liberated a spear from a defeated guard and the three young women were now using them to stick any enemy who ventured too close.
"Watch your back, Fletchen!" Galadria called.
Fletchen whipped round and felled Brother Delven seconds before he grabbed her. "Got him!" she said, smiling with satisfaction at having downed that particular slaver-monk. "Casiusa! Behind you!"
Casiusa ducked her head just in time to avoid the muscular guard who was about to knock her senseless with a thick plank of wood and proceeded to trip him up with her spear-haft. Unfortunately, she failed to hear Cravex flying towards her in his Phylot form until one of the creature's vicious talons raked her back and she sank to her knees as Feryl ran over to reinforce the trio.
"Casiusa, are you all right?" he asked as he helped her to her feet.
"Sure - it's just a scratch," she replied. "How's it going up your end?"
"We've managed to hem most of the guards in - Gawalar and Dagan have taken charge of Bogarvis," Feryl explained. "But something tells me this isn't over yet . . ."
Darkstorm watched with mounting fury as Leoric and his followers continued to advance like a human tidal wave, liberating the few slaves not already freed as they did so. The guards had been thoroughly routed and were in no mood to fight even though he tried to win them round with promises of "handsome rewards" for their loyalty. Once again, the balance of power had shifted firmly in favour of the Spectral Knights . . .
Arrogant as he was, Darkstorm knew there was no way the seven Darkling Lords could defeat the Spectral Knights plus a vengeful army of freed slaves in hand-to-hand combat - for one thing they were heavily outnumbered. But, maybe, there was something he could do . . .
"Cindarr!" he snapped, turning to the only one of his followers whose Power Staff hadn't been used during this bizarre adventure.
The brutish Darkling Lord raised his head, wondering what it was he had done this time. Cindarr had never been very quick on the uptake and, as a result had frequently been derided as a simpleton by his fellow Darkling Lords. "Yes, Darkstorm - d'you want me?"
"Call forth your Power of Destruction," Darkstorm said in a low menacing voice. "I want this place . . . caved in!"
Cindarr hesitated briefly; he had never been particularly adept at being as ruthless as the other Darkling Lords, having joined up with Darkstorm primarily for the board and lodging at the latter's Castle. "But won't that kill a lot of people?" he asked, wincing as Darkstorm prodded him with his own Power Staff.
"Who cares about that? Now, do it or, the second we get back to the surface, I'll make you wish I'd left you down here!" he snapped in a tone that no Darkling Lord dared disobey.
"By nature's hand, by craft, by art,
What once was one - now fly apart!"
shouted Cindarr as he raised his Power Staff. And a massive Beast wearing a necklace of human skulls emerged with a growl and started bashing at the walls of the Lost Shrine.
The Darkling Lords wasted no time in getting out of the Lost Shrine; they were in their vehicles and driving away by the time the Beast of Destruction winked out of existence.
Down below, Leoric was trying to marshall everyone together in a bid to get them out before the Shrine caved in on them. Flanked by Ectar and Witterquick, he called on the freed slaves to follow his orders carefully if they wanted to see the outside world again.
"Keep together and help the children as much as you can!" he ordered. "And, whatever you do, don't panic! We have only minutes to get out of here and panicking will cost us time. Ectar," he added to his fellow Spectral Knight, "would you escort Bogavus?"
"No problem, Leoric," Ectar replied as he grabbed the captive wizard from behind and began to frogmarch him away. Bogavus offered no resistence, knowing that the Lost Shrine offered no further secrets and would shortly be wiped off the face of Prysmos. Not that it mattered too much; he would bide his time and, maybe, just maybe, another chance to outsmart the Spectral Knights would present itself.
It was while they were beginning the ascent of the stairs that led to what had been Sanofainus' quarters that Arzon glanced round with a puzzled expression on his face. "Where are the Darkling Lords?" he asked. "They were here, weren't they?"
"Never mind them!" retorted Feryl from further up the flight. "We've got to get away from here!"
Even as he spoke, the Shrine's walls - weakened by the Beast's vicious assault - began to crumble and dust started to fall. Then, an echoing rumble signalled the impending collapse of what had been the main slave-workings.
| |
bravenet.com