Deke Brolin Rhol (43 page)

“Who are you talking to boy? What are you waiting for? C
ome to me! Fulfill your destiny,” Solharn droned.

Elissa’s voice would not relent. “Do not listen to him
, Deke. Remember what your focus is. Remember your true path.”

“I have
decided my path,” yelled Deke as he started once again to walk toward Solharn.

“Yes boy, come and our
paths will join. We will be one,”  Solharn responded, thinking Deke was talking to him.

Deke reached out for Solharn’s hand. Mary yelled for him to stop
, but her voice was only a distant echo to him.

Ω

Deo hissed and rolled over taking Jayden with him, pinning him to the ground. Black veins branched out across his face. His mouth was open and he was screeching. His breath smelled like a rotting corpse. Deo’s hands were wrapped around Jayden’s neck, choking the life out of him. Jayden struggled to breathe. He was slipping into unconsciousness and was seconds from death.

He thought he was dreaming as he watched a cloaked figure approach Deo from behind and place a hand on his shoulder. Deo immediately became silent. Jayden watched as the black veins slowly disappeared from his face and his eyes faded from black to their regular ashen grey. A
ir began to fill Jayden’s lungs. He could breathe again. Deo still sat on top of him. Realizing he had done something horrible, he began to apologize profusely, but Jayden was more interested in the figure that he had seen.

“Deo, it i
s fine. I know it was not your doing but please get off.”

Deo immediately rose apologizing once again
. “Never mind, Deo. Did you see somebody? Anybody?”

“I s
aw only you Jayden, no one else,” Deo responded.

Palto landed beside them
. “Jayden, Deo. Are you alright?”

“We are fine. Did you see a figure by us Palto?” Jayden asked.

“No, only you and Deo. Why?”

“I saw somebody, something,
” Jayden answered.

“You can figure it out later
, Jayden. We must move quickly. The others await us and Deke needs our help. Quickly, both of you climb on.”

Ω

With Deo’s revival Deke suddenly felt normal again, if only for a fleeting moment. He felt rejuvenated as if his outer spirit had returned to him. He could see clearly again, and took a step back when he realized how close he was to Solharn. The words of Elissa came flooding back to him; they had meaning once again. No longer were her words drawn and incoherent.  She was repeating the same thing over and over again trying to bring him back.

It wouldn’t last though, it couldn’t.
Solharn’s hold over him was too strong. He took a step toward Deke and stretched his hand out toward him. “Are you ready, Deke! Are you ready to begin the next phase of your life?” Solharn preached.

“I am,
” Deke responded.

Palto could see that Deke was no longer who he once was. He had taken the amulet from his neck. He was going to relinquish it to Solharn. Palto realized that hope for Rhol was evaporating before his very eyes. Without the boy of earth, everything would be lost. They could not fight Solharn without him or Elissa. Palto could never relinquish himself to the Dark Angel. Nor could he allow the Sacred Amulet of Rhol to fall into Solharn’s hands. That would be blasphemy.

It was apparent that Kaelyn had come to the same conclusion. He could see her running toward Deke
with her sword poised to strike, but she was too far away to get to him in time.

Palto
tried desperately to communicate with Deke through telepathy, trying to convince him to back away from Solharn, but Deke did not appear responsive. With a heavy heart Palto came to a decision. There would be no time to save the boy and even if he could, what kind of life would he have. He was Solharn’s now and there was nobody left who had the power to remove that curse. No, Palto knew this boy well enough to know that he would prefer death over a life in which Solharn controlled him. He also knew Deo would never let the boy die, not knowingly. So Palto did not reveal his intention to Deo or Jayden as he made his final descent.

Ω

Solharn could feel the power of the amulet. It was so close he could practically taste it. “I am glad to see you have finally come to your senses, Deke. We will be an unstoppable force. You will have what you have always craved, a life with no worries in which you and only you command. You will finally have the life that you deserve. You possess a special gift Deke and it will grow over time. Now, you depend too much on the Amulet of Rhol as the source of your power. You must learn to nurture your own powers first, without depending on the amulet. Only then will you understand its full potential. Only then will you be able to manipulate its powers. It will make you the most powerful being in all of the five worlds. Isn’t that what you want to be? Isn’t that what you crave?”

“Yes, I can see
it now. I had not realized it until this moment but it is all I have ever wanted,” Deke answered.

“Then you will have it, Deke Brolin, but first you must give me the amulet. It is too tempting for you to use and to
o valuable a tool to leave in anybody else’s hand but mine. When you are ready, when I have taught you all you need to know and understand, then and only then, will I return the amulet to you and then you will realize your full potential, your destiny.”

Deke reached for the chain around his neck and removed it. He did not notice Solharn drooling at the prospect of finally possessing one of the five items that would make him a king, a god amongst the minions tha
t inhabited the five worlds.

Ω

Jayden was puzzled. His father had taught him everything about combat and war. He had spent countless days patiently explaining every technique a Pegapire uses in battle. His father had emphasized how important it was to understand them so that Jayden would be able to fight alongside a Pegapire, as a team, as one, as it was meant to be.

That was why he was confused. Palto was flying far too fast to be able to
effect a rescue. His body was poised in such a way that it suggested he was moving in for a kill. His ears were pinned back, his wings were cupped and his muscles were tense. These were all signs of an impending attack but he was not heading for Solharn, he was closing in on Deke.

“Palto, what are you doing?” Jayden asked.

Palto did not answer confirming that Jayden’s memory had not failed him. “Palto, no! This is not the way to end this!” Jayden screamed.

“It is the only way,
” Palto answered.

“Only way to what? Jayden
, what are you two talking about?” Deo asked.

“Palto, you cannot do this!” Jayden
repeated.

“Do what?” Deo yelled in confusion.

“Kill, Deke! He is moving in to kill Deke!”

“What? Kill him! Palto, no! You are making a huge mistake. Listen to me!”

“I did not expect you to agree with my decision Deo. But my decision has been made,” Palto retorted.

Deo was panicking. He was told not to mention Elissa under any circumstances for fear Solharn would find out.

“You do not understand, Palto...it is what was supposed to happen...Elissa…”

Palto would hear nothing of it. “Elissa is but a dream now
, Deo. Deke could not save her. This war is over. It is the end.”

He was nearing Deke at a ferocious pace. Deo could not believe that it had come to this after everything they had gone through, everything they had accomplished. It couldn’t end this way.

“Jayden, do something!” Deo begged.

But there was nothing he could do.
Palto would not change his mind; it was not in his nature. He was a leader and as such, he would make the decision that he felt best served his people and he would deal with the consequences of that decision later. That’s what made him who he was.

As Palto soared in for the kill, a blinding flash of light suddenly exploded in front of them. Palto was forced to change his course. The power of the blast knocked Deo backward. If not for his feet catching Jayden’s legs
, he would have toppled off the back of the mighty Pegapire. Jayden had managed to hold on. He was searching the skies trying to determine the source of the light that had suddenly pierced through the darkness. He looked past the place he had last seen Solharn and Deke. His eyes followed the ridgeline of the great mountain that formed the backdrop of their battleground. He was sure he saw something or someone standing there. He cupped his hand above his eyes trying to shade the light that was so desperately trying to blind him and confirmed what he had seen. There, high on the ridge stood a cloaked figure that remained motionless, poised against the rage of the winds that threatened this world. The same cloaked figure that he had seen before was once again revealing itself to him. This time however, the figure did not gaze upon him. It gazed down upon what was the final battle of Rhol, the battle that would determine the fate of everyone.

Ω

Delca was in extreme pain, but she would live. Duffy had spotted Mary from the air, and was desperately trying to protect her from the objects which the wind hurtled through the air toward them. He cringed as he watched a tree soar through the air just over their heads and come crashing down behind their place of refuge. Solko flew down to them immediately.

They all tried desperately to move
Delca but her body was far too weak and broken. A simple touch of her skin caused her to scream in pain.

“She cannot be moved. W
e will be alright Duffy. Help the others! Help Deke! I am not sure that he controls his actions anymore,” Mary said desperately.

Duffy just smiled at her
. “We will not leave you here to die like this,” he said driving the Cortuc into the ground and creating a half dome shield around them.  He could not have timed it better as a huge boulder broke away from the mountain and toppled over the shield.

Delca felt the effects of the shield immediately. Without the wind a
nd the rain she felt warm again, and her trembling body relaxed. Slowly her pain relented enough for her exhausted body to rest.

“Thank
you Duffy, Solko. I am indebted,” Mary said.

“Nonsense,
” Solko said looking down upon her. “Everyone has a role on this day and ours is here with...”

“Oh, god!
” Mary whispered under her breath.

Solko could see that her expression had abruptly transformed from one of relief to
one of panic. He turned to see what caused the unexpected change. He saw Issa, distressed and badly injured. She was trying frantically to slow her decent as Kaelyn fought to hold on to her.  He watched in dismay as her body struck the ground with such force that it seemed unlikely that either would survive.

“Duffy, drop the shield! I have to help them!” Solko begged.

The shield vanished allowing Solko to escape its confines. He quickly leapt from the ground and took flight.

“Solko, look out!” Duffy yelled
, but the wind whistling around Solko’s ears prevented him from heeding the warning. He didn’t see it coming, and was crushed instantly by a jagged boulder that fell from above.

“Duffy
...I am so sorry…,” Mary sadly said.

Duffy could not grieve at that moment. His anger
toward Solharn had taken over his emotions. There was a long distance separating him from the cause of his anguish, but Solharn was not so far away that Duffy couldn’t see him. The more he stared at the Dark Angel, the more his anger grew. This was Solharn’s doing, all of it. He had wiped out Duffy’s entire family and brought pain and misery to all who lived on Rhol. He had practically destroyed it. It seemed to Duffy that even Deke, who was now standing in front of him, had succumbed to Solharn’s evil and now Solharn had taken Solko, his friend. He had to have his revenge, his reckoning with this evil. He looked at Mary and then at Delca whom she was comforting.

Mary looked into his eyes and inquisitively called his name. The sound of her voice resonat
ed through him. If he left them they would die, but if he didn’t he would never have another chance to avenge Rhol.

He would not have to make the d
ecision he was lamenting over, for a sudden explosion of blinding light burst across the terrain and continued over the mountain top taming the dark skies. The light gave him hope, if only just for a moment. For in those fleeting seconds he had caught a glimpse of what would be their redemption.

Ω

Phanthus managed to gain control once again but the injury slowed his speed drastically. The Balane had still not given up their pursuit and were almost upon him.