Shadow Fire (36 page)

"Taranis is right," Loki says, ending the argument. "If we go tonight, we go in fighting."

Four pairs of eyes turn to me, waiting for me to make a final decision. Gathering my courage, I pull away from the comfort of Zane's arms and turn to face my allies.

"We go. Now, before he has a chance to recover any further from his very busy day," I say as I grab my pack and sling it over my shoulders. "How do we get there?"

"Hosea, Taranis and I will teleport and scout the area," Loki says, pacing in front of us, thinking aloud. "Zane and Ashlyn will ride the griffin; she should be able to get you there quickly."

"One problem," Taranis interrupts, "I can't teleport."

"I'm strong enough to take you with me, pirate," Loki says, baring his fangs in a feral grin.

"Yeah, I don't think so," Taranis replies, backing away from the demigod. "The whole teleport thing is creepy at best."

"I'm going with you, Loki," Zane says as he adjusts his silver armor. "If anyone can lure Delistaire out, it's me." When I begin to argue, Zane silences me. "I won't use you as bait, Ashlyn. Ride over with Taranis, I trust him to keep you safe. Meditate and prepare to use your light magic. This time my father won't escape."

"We need to rescue Caleb before attacking," Hosea says, crossing his arms over his chest. It seems he's expecting a fight over this.

"Why?" Zane asks in a careful tone. "The last thing we need is to get caught wandering around his tower. We need to lure Delistaire outside his comfort zone."

"You stayed in his tower every winter when you were a child. You know every nook and cranny," Hosea replies. "Caleb is a very powerful mage, we may need him. He can protect Ashlyn." Smart of him to go for Zane's weak spot.

"Delistaire must be resting after expending so much energy today," Loki says. "He should have Caleb locked up somewhere. Is there a dungeon in the tower?"

"Yes," Zane replies through gritted teeth, "I'm well acquainted with that dungeon."

His voice is filled with anguish present even after all these years. I pull him into my embrace to offer solace. He leans over me and buries his face in my neck, inhaling slow, deep breaths. My eyes meet Loki's as I run my fingers through Zane's hair.

"Hosea and I will go in after Caleb while Zane stays outside on watch," Loki says after observing Zane's current emotional state. Zane straightens back up and pulls away from me.

"No, I'll go with you. Hosea's right, I spent part of my childhood in that appalling place, I know my way around," Zane says, turning his back to us, probably to regain control of his emotions.

Watching the man I love experience such torment firms my resolve to reduce Delistaire to ashes ground beneath my boot heel. Without thinking, I wind my arms around Zane, leaning into his back. Whether he wants it or not, I can't help but try to comfort him.

"All right then, let's head out," Loki says. "Hosea, find someplace to hide near the tower and wait for us to return. Taranis keep Ashlyn safe."

Taranis offers a salute to the demigod. Turning in my arms, Zane gives me a chaste kiss before pulling away and walking over to Loki.

"Be careful!" I call out as they disappear into the night, Hosea quickly following. Unbidden tears form in my eyes and a few escape to run down my cheeks.

"They'll be okay, Ashlyn," Taranis says, pulling me into a tight embrace. "Just have faith in them." He kisses my forehead before releasing me from his arms. Freya ambles over to us, and Taranis boosts me up onto her back.

"Where's Shadow?"

"He ran off to the west right after Zane left," he says as he mounts the griffin and settles behind me.

I bury my fingers into Freya's tawny mane. Taranis nudges my pack aside and wraps his arms around my waist.

"Let's go, Freya, as fast as you can," Taranis says.

The griffin takes off into the dark sky and streaks toward the western side of the island, following the river. The ground isn't visible in the darkness, but judging by Freya's speed, it would just be an indistinct blur. Taranis is a perfect gentleman, refraining from lecherous comments and roaming hands. Leaning back into him, I close my eyes and try to calm my racing mind, in preparation for the upcoming battle. This time Delistaire won't escape.

****

Gentle shaking awakens me from a light sleep. It seems I'm becoming quite adept at sleeping in the oddest places. Fortunately Taranis didn't fall asleep or we might have plummeted to our deaths. A dark shape looms before us in the distance. The tower is black, visible only as a darker spot on the night-veiled horizon. There's something sinister about the tower, like it's emitting malevolent vibrations into the air around us. When my eyes begin to burn, I avert my gaze.

As Freya descends lower, I see Shadow racing across the plains below us. A quick scan of the surroundings shows few places to hide on the vast open plain leading to the menacing black monstrosity in the distance. Freya's senses are sharp. She manages to locate Hosea in a thicket of high brush to the north. When Freya's paws alight with the ground, I jump off and race to Hosea's side.

"Any sign of them?" I ask in a soft whisper, crouching on the soft earth behind the bushes. Taranis moves to my side, throwing his pack to the ground and removing mine from my back.

"Not yet," Hosea replies, "but they haven't been in there for long."

The archsage is sitting on the ground with his legs crossed, his arms resting on his knees in apparent meditation. Unable to pace for fear of revealing our hiding place, I collapse onto my back and stare up at the sky. My heart is racing, my breathing irregular. I'm so worried about Zane and Loki skulking around in the enemy's lair. Two sets of blue eyes block my vision of the stars, one fenrir, one human, but both quite similar in color. Shadow lies down beside me, whimpering in an attempt to soothe my frazzled nerves. Taranis sits on my other side not speaking but offering silent comfort with his presence. I continue to stare at the sky, admiring the stars and watching the half-moon inch across the heavens.

When the moon reaches the position overhead, there's a crackle of energy in the air. Loki appears bedside us, easing the blond boy he's carrying to the ground. He disappears again without a word, leaving the injured boy behind with no explanation. His injuries are severe, but with all the blood and bruising it's hard to tell where to begin healing.

"Ashlyn, you can't heal him," Hosea says. "You need to conserve your magic to fight Delistaire." Taranis arrives with a cloth, which he hands to me.

"I'll use a water spell to clean him up a bit." Taranis says, dripping some water onto the injured boy.

Being careful not to hurt him, I clean the blood from his face and his bare chest. He's covered in bruises and oozing lash marks, Delistaire appears to have beaten him senseless. He moans and opens his brilliant emerald eyes; they reflect debilitating fear followed by immense relief when he sees me.

"His jaw's broken. I'll have to use magic to heal it. Use a healing potion on the lash marks on his chest then we'll roll him over," Taranis orders.

Hosea hands a potion to me, which I spread over each lash mark with the lightest touch I can manage. The dull blue glow from Taranis's healing spell surrounds the wounded boy's jaw, producing a few cracking pops as the bone is realigned.

"Caleb," the boy rasps once his jaw is healed, "please help Caleb."

"Our friends will rescue him, Ethan," I whisper, stroking his face. "Rest while we heal your wounds."

"You know him?" Taranis asks, whipping his head to gape at me.

"Yeah, he's a mercenary," I say while stroking Ethan's blond hair. "My twin brothers love him. He comes to Verdane and plays with the orphans all the time."

Ethan closes his eyes, his body relaxing under my touch. Taranis rolls him to his stomach with a gentleness that surprises me. We clean and spread potion over the lash marks on his back, too many to count. My motions are robotic as I try to remain detached from the horrible mess Ethan's back has become. Before we can finish, Loki returns carrying another boy. As soon as he sets the boy on the ground, he disappears again.

"You must be Caleb," I say. "Are you injured?" He shakes his head and crawls to Ethan's side.

"Is Ethan okay?" Caleb asks, turning his dark, forlorn eyes to me. In the dim moonlight, his eyes appear almost black, giving them an ominous air, though the expression in those black eyes is anything but menacing.

Taranis rolls Ethan over onto his back after I finish applying potion to the final lash mark. Handing the potion bottle back to Hosea, I turn to comfort the grief stricken boy.

"He'll be fine," I reply, stroking Caleb's long black hair in an attempt to soothe the boy. "Once we defeat Delistaire we can finish healing him."

He nods and settles down on the ground at Ethan's side, pulling his head onto his lap.

"Delistaire used you to steal the Goddess Statue." It's a statement not a question but Caleb answers nonetheless.

"Yes, he captured us and threatened to kill Ethan if I didn't comply," Caleb says in a leaden voice. "I knew he'd kill us anyway, but I just couldn't refuse. I didn't want Ethan hurt. He's my savior and my best friend."

Ethan opens his eyes and smiles up at Caleb, suffering still apparent in his green eyes.

"I'm sorry he hurt you so badly."

"I'm much better now, Caleb," Ethan whispers. "Please stop worrying about me."

Caleb nods and turns to face me.

"Zane said I'm to safeguard and assist you in the upcoming battle," Caleb says, bowing his head to me.

There's another crackle of energy and Loki appears again, this time with Zane in tow. Leaping to my feet, I fall into Zane's arms, relief flooding me. He holds me against him as I capture his lips with mine in a brief but passionate kiss.

"I was so worried," I murmur against his lips. "It seemed like you were gone forever, then Ethan came out looking so bad, and I worried you might suffer the same fate, and I'm rambling so I'll shut up now." When I glance up at Zane he's smiling, his fiery eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"I'm fine, but Delistaire will be here any minute," Zane says, placing one last kiss on my lips before pulling away. "We'll use the same strategy Taranis and I used earlier since it seemed to work quite well. Everyone needs to use a different elemental attack. Loki use earth, Taranis wind, Hosea water and I'll use fire. Hit him with quick attacks increasing in strength each time. Caleb and Ashlyn, hide back here with Ethan. Caleb will help you determine when to attack, Ashlyn. We don't want Delistaire to know you're here or he might flee again. Any questions?" he asks. When there's no response he turns to Caleb. "Keep a strong shield around her until she needs to attack. Don't let any of her light aura slip through."

Caleb nods his understanding. I feel a warm presence encircle me. The shield relieves my nervousness while lending me strength. Caleb's shield is clear. I suppress a snicker at myself for my silly pink bubble. Turning to Caleb I give him a melancholy smile, before watching the four men walk toward the ebony tower to await the arrival of the evil sorcerer Delistaire.

"Do you think he'll attack soon?" I ask in a whisper. Caleb and I peer through the bushes watching our companions approach the tower.

"Zane left a 'present' for his father in the dungeon," Caleb says with a wicked gleam in his eyes. "It should be going off any minute now."

We wait in the darkened silence for a short while, and then a loud explosion fills the night. The blast came from the direction of the tower, but from our vantage point, nothing appears to have happened. Seeing my confusion, Caleb laughs before explaining.

"Zane used some explosive chemicals and a long fuse for an impressive blast in the dungeon. I hope it leveled the place, it's barbaric on every level."

Caleb's eyes darken, and I wonder what he experienced in the dungeon. My thoughts are interrupted by a loud clap of thunder followed by the sizzle of power crackling through the air around us. Delistaire appears in a flash of brilliant white light. Even from our hiding place, it's easy to see the sorcerer is seething with rage.

"Zane, this time you've gone too far!" Delistaire shouts, his deep voice echoing around the plains.

For a brief moment the sorcerer seems taken aback when he sees the four men blocking his path. He covers his lapse with a simple shrug of his shoulders. The dark scowl returns to his features when the men encircle him.

"Where's your pretty little light mage, Zane?" he asks. "She must be around here somewhere, yet I can't feel her aura. Who could be powerful enough to completely disrupt her aura? Perhaps Caleb? And I so wanted her chained in my dungeon begging and pleading at my feet."

Zane is silent as he sends a barrage of fireballs at his father. They all bounce harmlessly off the sorcerer's shield.

"Guess you're more skilled with explosives than magic," Delistaire continues to taunt him, but Zane just gazes at him with a dispassionate stare.

The sorcerer is bombarded with rocks, wind and hail yet he doesn't flinch as his shield is battered. My attention is drawn away when Ethan manages to sit up, and I help him to his knees.

"I don't want to miss this," he whispers.

Based on the degree of injury he suffered at the sorcerer's hands, I can't say I blame him. Caleb and I try to support his weight between us, but Ethan surprises us both by holding his own even with the myriad of injuries he sustained. He flashes a brilliant smile at me before turning his attention to the battle. While we were aiding Ethan, Delistaire took four more elemental attacks, which we heard but were unable to witness their effect on his shield. The sorcerer is still standing and cackling gleefully so I think it's safe to assume he remains unaffected.

"It's really a great strategy," Caleb whispers, "using Delistaire's hubris against him."

"We almost had him this morning, or I suppose it was probably yesterday by now," I ramble a bit, cringing when Delistaire shoots a lightning bolt at Zane. Once it misses I relax again. "The coward teleported away right before my attack hit."