Amulet of Souls (The Sentinels of Wizgrad Book 1) (16 page)

“I must find Gelmink now!” Astrid said to himself.

The Gnome King Gelmink had come to the town to try and persuade the people of the town to help. The bangs of cannon fire crashed around him as he frantically searched for his ally.

Astrid cursed under his breath. He had no idea where Gelmink was and not only that the town was under siege and people rushed around everywhere in a panic.

A cannonball smashed into a nearby building. He looked into what was left of the wall and noticed Gelmink pushed against a wall with a cutlass pointed to his neck.

There were about a dozen men inside and they all looked dismayed at the cannonball that had torn through the wall.

Astrid noticed six of the men run outside to meet him. They all had their weapons drawn and looked ready for a fight.

Astrid took out a sword that he had by his side and the bandits smirked a smug grin. Astrid was a terrible sword fighter so he instead put it back and pulled out his wand.

The six bandits started to run towards him and Astrid pressed his wand into the floor. Skeletal arms arose from the ground underneath the bandits and grasped the bandits’ legs from behind. The bandits fell to the ground and spiked bones came from the floor at their chests. The smiles were instantly wiped from their faces, they landed on the spikes with a terrible thud.

Astrid then shot a powerful black bolt of energy at the person who held Gelmink hostage. The man swivelled slightly which caused the black bolt of energy to reflect off a shield he wore on his back.

“Go and deal with the Mage,” The man ordered. Four of the men walked outside which just left two inside.

“These people attacking will not spare or side with you, you will gain nothing from doing this” Gelmink said.

“Me men control the seas ere, a few cannon ships dunt worry us. Once the fighting is dun we take arr plunder und riches” The man said back.

Astrid watched as four more people approached him. They all wielded a sword and a shield, but the weapons looked different to standard ones.

Astrid raised his wand into the air and the four men defended themselves with their shields before Astrid cast anything. They continued slowly towards Astrid and carefully stepped over the corpses of their comrades.

As they approached something screeched behind them. Two of the men turned to look and Astrid took the opportunity to launch a black bolt of energy at their backs.

The two men beside him interlocked their shields and blocked the attack. The bolt of energy flew back towards Astrid, who leapt out of the way at the last moment. These men were trained in fighting Mages and knew how to deal with counter attacks.

“Square!” yelled one of the bandits. They formed a square and each stood a separate way.

The bodies of the dead bandits behind them started to groan and they rose to their feet. The dead bandits launched themselves at the four shielded bandits in an attack.

Astrid used the raised corpses as a distraction and ran into the building where Gelmink was held. He could hear the clanks of sword and shield as the four men took down his undead bandits with ease.

Astrid had one more person to get past. Astrid flicked his wand at the man, but nothing happened. He tried again and nothing happened. Astrid cursed to himself and the other man just laughed at him.

“Ran out of juice?” the last man snickered. The large burly man wielded nothing but a massive shield almost the same size of a door. Astrid drew his sword and had no other option but to defend.

The shielded man ran towards him. Astrid knew that he would not be able to defend himself for long. Astrid threw the tables and chairs in the way, but the burly man easily shoved them aside.

“Just run!” Gelmink shouted.

“One more word and you’ll die!” the man said who still had a sword at Gelmink’s neck.

The four-shielded men barged in with no sign they had been in a fight at all.

“You’re finished!” said one of the men. He knocked Astrid over and he landed roughly onto the floor. Astrid grabbed his wand and sent a small bolt towards the man that held Gelmink.

The bolt hit the man in the leg and caused him to collapse on one side. A corpse from beside Gelmink arose and plunged its dagger into the throat of the man who had held Gelmink hostage.

“Let’s get them now men!” yelled the burly man, but he got no response.

The burly man turned to see all four of his friends with swords through their backs and a look of disbelief on their faces. The corpses of the bandits were stood behind them.

“You can’t kill those already dead,” Astrid said to the burly man.

Gelmink pushed the corpse away from him and stepped away. There were now seven undead bandits under Astrid's control. They closed in on the burly man who stood alone in the middle of the room.

“Ok ok! I give up, please don’t kill me!” begged the man. He got on his knees and laid down his sword.

“It’s your say Gelmink,” Astrid said.

“No, don’t kill him. I have a better use for him.” Gelmink said.

Dozens of ships crashed into the harbour nearby and countless men sprawled out. “Get on shore men! Leave no survivors!” shouted one of the Commanders.

The men killed anyone in sight. Men, Women and Children, there were no prisoners. They destroyed everything in their path and plundered anything they could get their hands on.

<<          >>

Plode and the others spotted several silhouettes on the horizon, which came towards them. The silhouettes approached slowly and were all armed with one large burly man in the centre.

“The town is already overrun. However they have no intention of leaving until their backup arrives,” shouted a voice. It was Astrid, Gelmink, three of the undead fighters under Astrid's control and the large burly man that surrendered.

“Where did ye get those shields?” Dakho asked in amazement.

“We stole them from a museum” the Burly man admitted proudly.

“I believed these to be forever lost,” Dakho said. He grasped one of the shields from the undead completely oblivious that the man was dead.

“What are they?” Plode asked.

“These are ancient dwarven shields, created even before the time we know. They are supposed to be able to absorb a spells power and reflect it back.”

“There has to be some catch to something like that?” Gelmink said.

“Yes, they hurt the wielder every time it deflects a spell. However in the hands of the undead…” Dakho said and he looked at the undead troops Astrid controlled.

“We have no time to waste, let’s take them out before they get reinforcements,” Plode said.

The Gnomes, Great Wolves, Mr Pannett and the two Foxes, along with Plode, Dakho, Efrundle and Astrid marched to Southport, but the Great Wolves were faster and arrived first.

Southport was a very strange town. Strategically it was the best place to secure. It had a natural defence that was impossible to avoid. The small port was not very big and the docks spread the entire length of the coast. Around the town was a huge mountain range that circled around it on all sides. The mountains were so steep it was nearly impossible to climb. The only two ways into the town were by sea or through a small fortified gate that was carved out through the mountain at the other end.

The Great Wolves effortlessly pushed through the open gate and swarmed the town. The men from the boats did not stand a chance against the massive wolves. The pack overpowered them by size and number as they ran through the town swiftly and secured it before the others had arrived. The entire pack howled in unison. The howl resonated through the town itself in a powerful howl that would set fear in any enemy. Night had set in and there was no moonlight to light the way.

“Not a single wolf injured, a great start” Loona said. Their mood was soon dampened by the look on the horizon. Countless more ships approached the docks. The torches on the boats lit up the horizon like it was sunrise. The bandits from before must have been a scouting party, now the real battle was about to get started.

Dakho got down on his hands and knees, the floor began to shake violently. Spikes of rock shot out of the sea and pierced through the empty ships on the docks.

“That should slow them down a little” Dakho panted. Many of the boats could not slow quickly enough and they crashed into the rocks.

The rest of the boats kept their distance and did not approach. Plode and many of the others removed the debris from the front of the docks to make it easier to defend. They threw all the rubble into the sea to hinder the enemies further.

“FIRE!” came a shout from one of the boats. An enormous wave of flames soared into the air as thousands of flaming arrows were shot into the air.

Most of the Gnomes and men dodged the attack, but the Great Wolves were much larger and not able to defend themselves. If they did not die from the arrow itself, the fire would soon finish them off. The whelps of pain were heard through the town instead of cries of victory.

“Get inside the buildings!” yelled Loona. She had taken an arrow through one of her paws. She snapped the shaft with her jaws, turned into a human and pulled the rest of it out with her hands.

The buildings and docks had now started to set fire from the arrows and would soon be fully ablaze.

“FIRE!” yelled the same voice.

Loona hid inside a nearby building and on the next opportunity ran out to try and find a building that was not on fire. She soon spotted one, an old church made purely of stone. She turned into her wolf form and howled as loud as she could. She ran to the church and howled once more. Her second howl was echoed by several other wolves. Soon any remaining Great Wolves arrived at the church and took refuge inside. Astrid and many others spotted the Wolves run in one direction and followed them to the church.

Astrid ran up the staircase to the bell tower. He looked over the docks and noticed more ships approach from the horizon. Being up high did allow him to use his undead troops much better. He spread the undead forces evenly among the docks with their shields ready. The church was now the only building in the town not on fire.

The barrage of arrows had stopped, but the ground now quaked violently. Astrid watched as the large spikes Dakho had made sank into the sea. A swarm of Yin and Greelong advanced in all directions towards them. He then saw figures come out from the sea. The sight filled Astrid with fear and dread, it was something that he had not seen for many years and hoped never to see again.

“Oh, this is bad,” Astrid said. He ran down the stairs as quickly as he could. He had to warn the others.

A chain of massive translucent blue figures came out of the sea. They looked like Ogres but twice the size. They were made entirely from diamond and had no faces. Astrid made them many years ago when he was undercover with the enemy, but he was sure he was the only one able to control them, but clearly he was wrong. Astrid had used this army to destroy many towns by himself and the Crystal Golems, as he called them, were ruthlessly efficient.

A small portion of Astrid’s Crystal Golem army smashed into the docks and quickly waded through the rubble that was thrown into the sea. They cleared a path for the boats and they swiftly docked. Hordes of Ogres and Seckle poured from the ships.

The Seckle weaved in and out of the Golems, which were slow and bulky. Astrid relayed what he knew about them and everyone admitted that if they stayed in the church, it would kill them all. They ran out of the church and into the unbearable heat of the flaming town outside.

The Ogres and Seckle had already spread through the town and rummaged through houses looking for someone or something to kill.

They soon met the bite of the Great Wolves who were again first to attack. This time, the fight was much more dangerous. These troops had been in battle before and the Great Wolves were cautious.

The Greelong and Yin had joined the fight and sent spells and arrows into the fray. The Gnomes sent spells back at them but were at a disadvantage. They not only had to dodge the Yin and Greelong, but the Seckle and Ogres were on foot also. The blazing town limited their paths and made things even harder.

The Crystal Golems stretched out into a single long line. They slowly made their way forward and broke through anything that was in their way.

Many had died, as they struggled to defend against the onslaught. Dakho noticed something even worse swarm over the mountain which reminded him of the Puck that swarmed him at the Dwarven Caves.

The swarm navigated down the mountain and showed no signs that it would slow down.

“We’re doomed!” Dakho yelled.

“Retreat back to the gates! Retreat back to the gates!” Plode screamed at the top of his lungs.

The church had been destroyed by the Crystal Golems and even though they fought well against the Ogres and Seckle the Golems had not taken any damage at all and the Yin and Greelong were too high to reach.

The swarm from the mountain side was nearly on them and they were almost at the very back of Southport. The gate had been sealed shut from the outside and part of the mountain had collapsed. They were trapped in a corner and the enemy closed in quickly.

Several Greelong and Yin that flew above had cornered Dakho in a dead end alley. The Greelong pulled back on its bow and then the Greelong suddenly vanished from the air and hit the roof above. The Yin looked to the side and then the swarm attacked them.

The swarm had arrived and thankfully it had missed Dakho. He stood and hoped not to attract any attention. He waited for the swarm above him to stop. He ran out from the alley to see what it was and it was not what he expected at all.

He looked upon hundreds of Kijiar and two golden plated figures at the front. They leapt from the rooftops and took out the Greelong and Yin. Many had jumped down to help those on the ground. Liamar and Koruko were successful and it turned the tide of the battle dramatically. The Kijiar were fearsome warriors and could comfortably fight in the dark.

“Liamar, Koruko, Just in time!” Plode yelled.

“How are we supposed to kill these things?” Liamar and Koruko asked. Even the Kijiar could not fight the Crystal Golems.

“You can’t!” Astrid yelled.

“What do you mean you can’t! There is always a way,” Ponzepen said.

“They can’t be killed because they don’t live! They can only be controlled” Astrid argued back.

“Of course! Control!” Gelmink said to himself.

Gelmink cursed to himself. They had been so focused on trying to kill the Golems, it slipped everyone’s mind that they had the ability to control them. Gnomes possessed the power to control machines and animated creatures, these Golems were no different.

“Gelmink what the hell are you doing?” Ponzepen shouted. Gelmink ran past the front line and directly at the Crystal Golems.

Gelmink darted toward the Golems and dodged a massive arm swung from the nearest Golem. Gelmink went to place his hands on the Golem’s leg when it raised its leg up high and stamped down on Gelmink.

Gelmink jumped out of the way but not far enough. The Crystal Golem crushed one of his arms in a bone crunching cry. Another Golem beside him raised his arm to kill him. Gelmink closed his eyes and he was sure it was the end. The arm made contact and Gelmink thought he was dead as he felt no pain. Gelmink looked up to see Plode wrestle the arm of the Golem in his giant hands.

Gelmink placed his other hand on the leg of the Golem that trapped his arm. Within seconds, the Golem moved from his foot and deflected an attack that was aimed at Plode.

Plode took no time to ponder and grabbed Gelmink from the floor and ran away from the Golems at full speed.

Ponzepen slapped Gelmink across the face. “What the hell were you thinking!” she yelled.

“Tell all the Gnomes that the Golems are controlled just the same as our contraptions. If we can take control of them we have won,” Gelmink said.

Ponzepen was the first to run up and control the next Golem. They now had two golems and could work both left and right. Some of the braver Gnomes took up the challenge and soon had dozens under their control.

The Gnomes had singlehandedly completely changed the tide of the battle. The Golems no longer forced them back and began to fight amongst each other. The Kijiar swiftly dispatched the Yin and Greelong and the Great Wolves and everyone else finished those on the ground.

The Great Wolves gave out a victorious howl and everyone let out a sigh of relief. The battle was over for now.

The town was a complete ruin and almost every single building was destroyed or on fire. The bodies of both friend and foe were scattered everywhere and the smell of death lingered in the air amongst the thick smoke from the fires.

Astrid called forth more undead to carry the magical shields which they recovered from the battlefield. Everyone gathered at the furthest docks and looked out to the dark sea that would bring the next wave of battle.

Cacophonies of shrieks were heard from over the sea, which was quickly followed by a very distant orange glow. The shrieks were loud even from across the sea, and no one knew what it was.

“Argh!” shouted a thunderous boom.

Everyone turned to see Plode and a stranger stood next to him. No one had seen the stranger during the entire battle. He held the end of a sword that was now through Plode’s chest. Thick black blood leaked from the gouge in his chest. Plode’s faced angered and he coughed up blood. Plode wrapped his massive hand around the stranger's neck and lifted him off the ground.

It was the cloaked man who took the Amulet from Iris. He was young and healthy, but there was no Amulet around his neck. Plode fell to his knees but still held the man in the air.

“Kill him” Plode managed to get out. His grip loosened and he fell face first to the floor.

“One down,” the cloaked man said with an evil smirk. The man then disappeared into thin air.

Gelmink threw one of his gadgets into the empty space which wrapped around something they could not see. An enormous blue light flashed and the man appeared again, his hair stuck on end and his clothes had smoke coming from them.

Liamar, Koruko and Dakho were first to run over to Plode, but it was no use. Liamar checked his pulse and he had gone. The blade had pierced his heart and there was nothing even a cleric could have done to save him.

The three of them fell to their knees and tears streamed down their faces. Plode had been a close friend to them all and this was a tragic loss.

Dakho filled with rage and directed it at the now unconscious man on the floor. Dakho took his axe in his hands and swung it at the man.

His axe hit a large golden shield held by a huge Kijiar much taller than the others.

“We must not kill him yet,” The Kijiar said.

“Who the hell are you to tell me what to do!” Dakho yelled outraged. “Get out of my way!” he demanded.

Dakho grabbed the shield to pull it out of the way, but it did not budge.

“Dakho!” Liamar yelled. The large Kijiar raised his hand to signal it was fine.

“This man will have vital information about the enemy. We cannot kill him yet, and it looks like we have more trouble coming our way” The Kijiar said.

They looked toward the sea to notice a cluster of Dragons head straight for them.

“Ready yourselves!” shouted one of the Kijiar.

“No! They are with us” Loona shouted. She let out a single howl, which was swiftly followed by the rest of the pack.

“That’s Loona, they are victorious,” Zelkith said into King Tyraths ear.

Iris looked down at the chaos and destruction of Southport “My God. Look at it,” Iris said.

“Hmm nice and toasty just how I like it,” said Mersoth the largest of the Dragons.

“Mersoth! Many innocent people may have died here,” screamed Tyrath.

The Dragons landed in the town and flattened many of the buildings which put out the fires around them.

The Gnomes looked up in amazement at the massive creatures. Zelkith had already taken flight and flown straight towards Loona and the rest of the pack.

Mireylon was the first to jump off and he ran directly over to Plodes body, quickly followed by Iris. They both noticed Plodes body held up by Koruko and Liamar. They then saw the unconscious man nearby. He was also the same man who killed Thorna, Mireylon felt the rage build inside him. Why did the Kijiar in Golden armour guard him?

“We spotted a large settlement on the flight here, in the large port town the other side of the sea.” King Tyrath spoke out loud for all to hear.

“What are we supposed to do, there’s no telling when he will wake up and he cannot remain unpunished,” Dakho said. He pointed at the cloaked man with a look of disgust.

“I believe we should once again take our Council with the Dragons, and seek their guidance,” Mireylon said.

“It has been many years since that has been the case.” King Tyrath said. He gave a concerned look at Rhaegos, The King’s Adviser of the Council.

“We may not know the real power of our enemy. However they do not know that we are back, and we must use that to our advantage before Dartis can build defences,” The King said.

“What do you suggest?” Mireylon asked.

“There is a large forming of clouds coming towards us, heading towards our enemy. I suggest that we use the clouds as cover with as many of you on our backs. It will be our only chance for a surprise attack” King Tyrath suggested.

“What about Plode, we can't just leave him here,” Dakho said.

“The Gnomes shall stay here. We must be close by to keep the Golems from losing control. We will protect Plode’s body until your return.” Gelmink said, the Gnome Chieftain.

“Yes, and please hurry. We cannot keep the Golems under control forever” Ponzepen added.

“I will also stay, I don’t think I will be of much use in a battle,” said Mr Pannett. His leg was badly hurt and not even a Dragons tear would heal it.

They agreed on a plan of attack on the information they knew, and Liamar, Koruko, their King and Queen and the majority of the Kijiar mounted most of the Dragons. Dakho, Mireylon, Morton, Aymon, Astrid and his four undead servants, Efrundle, Loona and several of the strongest Great Wolves also mounted the Dragons. Iris sat on the back of Zelkith, who could now fly himself.

“Here take these, you need them more than I do,” Efrundle said. He handed Iris
Limbo
, which used to be her mothers.

“Thanks…” Iris said. She was still uncertain how to use them, but it was better than the two swords she had with her.

“Now’s the time, let's fly!” boomed Mersoth. He leapt into the air and soared into the sky. The Kijiar on his back held on tight as he whipped through the clouds.

The other Dragons soon followed with Zelkith behind them. The cloud was relatively slow and the Dragons gently hovered above them seamlessly.

“Remember, the Amulet is our prime objective. Get the Amulet, and the enemy has lost. Zelkith and Iris, I’m counting on you” Mireylon shouted.

Zelkith and Iris were to search the area for the Amulet and then warn the others the moment they found it.

They now loomed close to Alphaport and prepared to take the decent. Iris could see the rays of orange sunshine on the already overrun city of Alphaport. Dawn brought the sunrise behind them which would help cover their descent.

“Now’s the time!” Tyrath ordered.

The Dragons flew down from all angles towards Alphaport. Iris saw a large group of Crystal Golems wade into the sea towards Southport. There were also groups of Evil Men, Ogres and Dark Elves onboard hundreds of boats all along the docks.

“Mersoth take out those boats, they must not leave the docks! Everyone else spread out and take the town. Zelkith and Iris we leave finding the amulet to you two,” The King ordered.