Wielder's Fate (11 page)

For the last stretch of the battle, Blaize had joined with the surrounding soldiers in watching with awe as Traven dispatched all of the remaining galdaks.  It had truly been a sight to behold.  Pride had swelled within his breast as he watched his onetime pupil demonstrate an almost inhuman mastery of the sword.  He had known for a long time that Traven was special, but the young man still continued to amaze him.

Blaize grimaced as he turned from watching Traven walk away and looked out over the battlefield.  The small force of galdaks had taken a great toll on the army.  He didn’t want to think of what might have happened if Traven hadn’t been there.  He would have to wait for an official count, but it appeared he had lost over half of his twenty thousand troops camped outside the city.  A cold lump settled in the pit of his stomach.  Much needed to be done to prepare for the impending attack of the main horde.  His work for the night had only just begun.

9

“Master.”

Traven sat up groggily and opened his eyes.  He wasn’t sure how much sleep he had received, but it hadn’t been enough.

“What is it, Darian?”

“General Commander Blaize is in the antechamber.  He is anxious to speak with you.”

“I’ll be out in a minute,” Traven said.

Darian stepped back out into the front room and closed the door.  Traven rolled out of bed and got dressed.  He splashed some water on his face and tried to fully wake up.  He wished Blaize had let him sleep in longer, but he knew his friend had surely gotten even less sleep.  Whatever he needed Traven for, it must be important.  He rubbed his eyes and pushed open his door.

Blaize and Darian were sitting next to one another discussing the night’s battle.  They both looked tired.  Blaize had a slight gash across his left forearm and a small scrape on his cheek, but those appeared to be the full extent of his injuries.

“How do you feel?” Traven asked.

“Great,” Blaize said with a smirk.  “I lost ten thousand men last night and didn’t get to sleep until the sun was beginning to lighten the sky.  I was woken up two hours later with reports that the main horde of galdaks is more numerous than imagined.”

“How many are there?”

“Hundreds of thousands,” Blaize replied.  “At least that’s what the scouts say.  I find it hard to believe there could be so many galdaks.  Where did they all come from?”

“There’s no telling how many there were hiding in the Parched Mountains,” Darian interjected.  “It seems like an exaggerated number, but it is possible.”

“That’s why I’m here,” Blaize said.  “I was hoping you would try screeing the approaching horde again.  Maybe this time we’ll be able to see it and get a clearer idea of what we’ll be facing.”

“I’ll give it a try,” Traven responded.  “But I can’t promise anything.  I’m not sure there’s anything I can do if another wielder blocks me.”

He went back into his room to retrieve the washbasin.  When he returned, Darian was already finishing shuttering all the windows.  Traven wondered if the effort of screeing was worth it but supposed that at the very least they would have a good idea of the horde’s progress.  He set down the basin, waited for the water to settle, and pulled up an image of the countryside to the east of Calyn.

Surprisingly, there didn’t appear to be any obstruction to his screeing at all.  He enlarged the image and froze with amazement.  The scouts had not exaggerated.  The horde of galdaks was gigantic.  It indeed appeared that there were hundreds of thousands of the creatures.

Beside him, Blaize expelled a heavy and frustrated breath of air.  The camp of the galdaks stretched all the way between the two small villages closest to Calyn.  Traven enhanced the image and moved it back and forth over the enormous galdak camp.  Most of the tents were set up haphazardly not far from the highway.  There seemed to be large concentrations of tents scattered throughout the length of the camp, and it looked as if there were smaller camps within the main group.

As he moved the image towards the nearest village, the placement of tents became more organized and uniform.  Apparently, there were different levels of discipline within the horde of galdaks.  He was about to let the image disappear when he noticed a point of light emanating from one of the houses in the center of the village.  He focused on the light and enlarged the house.

“What’s so important about that structure?” Blaize asked.

“I was curious where the light was coming from.”

“What light?” Blaize asked with raised eyebrows.

“Right there,” he replied as he pointed at it.

Traven watched as Blaize looked to Darian.  The elf shrugged in response.  It was obvious he couldn’t see the light either.  At first Traven wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him, but suddenly he realized what was going on.  He was seeing the aura of the enemy wielder.  It would only be visible to another wielder such as himself.

“Sorry,” he said with a chuckle.  “The wielder with the horde of galdaks is inside that house.  I can see his aura.”

The explanation left Blaize just as confused, but Darian smiled.

“Oh,” the elf said with a chuckle of his own.  “That makes sense.  Should we take a look at him?”

“Why not,” Traven replied.

He slowly enhanced the image and passed through the roof of the home.  His eyes grew wide at the sight.  An incredibly old looking galdak lay sleeping in the midst of a pile of furs.  A dull aura of light glowed around the bony, wrinkled figure.  The wielder wasn’t human.  He was a galdak.  Traven looked at Darian.

“I thought there were only human wielders,” he said.  “There aren’t elven wielders, are there?”

“No,” Darian replied.  “All elves have a small portion of the power of the ambience within them, but none are truly wielders.  I’ve never heard of a galdak being a wielder, but I suppose it is possible if this misshapen creature before us is in fact a wielder.”

Traven turned back to the dish and recoiled with surprise.  The ancient galdak’s eyes were wide open and a fiendish grin split his furrowed face.  The image then disappeared and was replaced by a haze.  Traven released his hold on the ambience, and the water returned to only reflecting the ceiling above.

“At least we got a look at our enemy and his army,” Blaize said gruffly.  “We’ll need to prepare our troops immediately.  The horde is close enough to attack during the night if they choose to.  Will the ancient wielder be a problem?”

“I don’t think so,” Traven replied confidently.  “His aura wasn’t nearly as bright as Kadrak’s was.”

“What are you talking about?” Blaize interjected.  “You keep talking about an aura, but I have no idea what that means.”

“Wielders have a glow around them,” Darian explained before Traven had a chance to reply.  “Only other wielders can see it.  It allows them to judge other wielders’ strength in the ambience.”

“Hmm,” Blaize said with a thoughtful look.  “So you know that you are more powerful in the ambience than the galdak wielder?”

“No,” Traven replied.  “I can’t see my own aura, so I can’t really say that.  However, since the galdak wielder is much weaker in the ambience than Kadrak was, I don’t think he will be too much of a problem.”

“Understood,” Blaize stated.  “Let’s go find Gavin and report what we know.  Regardless of the strength of the galdak wielder, the horde he is with is almost innumerable.  I fear we’ll be hard pressed to defend the city even with the large army we currently have here.”

Traven followed Blaize out the door as Darian deftly donned his hooded cloak and hurried to join them.  Blaize led them to the other side of the palace.  Traven had never been in this part of the palace before.  It appeared much the same as where his rooms were located, but there were more people and servants in the halls.  It was apparent that more occurred in this section of the palace than near the guest chambers.

As he followed Blaize, Traven noticed that many of the people he passed would stop what they were doing and stare at him.  He wondered if it was unusual for them to have visitors in this section of the palace or if they recognized him specifically.  It still made him uncomfortable, but he was slowly becoming more accustomed to the attention.  They finally left the halls and were directed to a large waiting room.  A clerk informed them that Gavin and the baroness would join them shortly.

“Are you ready?” Blaize asked.

“Ready for what?” Traven responded.

“Our meeting.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” he asked.  “Besides, you’re the commander general.  You’ll be doing all of the reporting.”

“I’m not talking about that,” Blaize said with a mischievous smile.  “If Gavin and the baroness will both be here, you know who else will be with them.”

Traven’s stomach did a somersault.  The Princess Kalista would soon be in the same room as him.  Their previous meeting had been on his mind often.  He supposed he didn’t have to worry.  They wouldn’t be interacting at all.  Yet, he still wondered what the princess thought of the moment they had shared yesterday morning.  Perhaps she had already forgotten about it.

“That’s what I mean,” Blaize said as he started laughing.  “You’re speechless at the very thought of it.”

Darian joined in chuckling as Traven turned a bright shade of red.  The city was on the brink of a large scale invasion, and Blaize was making fun of him.  He shook his head.  He supposed in difficult times it was good to be able to maintain a sense of humor.

“I’ll be just fine,” he replied, composing himself.

* * * * *

“I am worried,” Gavin stated as they walked through the hall towards the room where Commander General Blaize was waiting with a full report of the approaching force.  “When the Balthans invaded, we clearly had superior numbers.  We were faced with the unknown of a wielder, but at least we were facing other humans.”

Kalista looked up at Gavin’s concerned face as she held tightly to his arm.  The baroness walked tiredly on the other side of him.  No one had received much sleep the night before.  They had been awakened in the middle of the night with reports that the army was under attack.  Despite her pleadings and those of Gavin’s mother, he had quickly gotten ready and headed to the battle.  Both she and the baroness had waited anxiously until he returned to the palace safely.

Fortunately, Gavin had not been injured.  He had fought bravely and helped to turn the tide in favor of the Kalian Army.  She could hardly believe her fiancé had led the cavalry in a charge straight into the middle of an army of fiendish beasts.  From what she had heard, the galdaks had been ferocious and unyielding.  Eventually, the bravery of men like Gavin had overcome the vicious attackers.

She understood why Gavin was so worried.  Rumors were spreading that an innumerable host of the red creatures was marching for the city.  The Kalians had won the battle the previous night but had sustained enormous casualties.  He was greatly concerned for the safety of his city and its inhabitants.

They reached the doors to the waiting room and strode inside.  Kalista realized with surprise that the meeting would not only be with Commander General Blaize but also with Traven and his cloaked servant.  Traven lowered his eyes when her gaze swept over him.  She was both glad and unsettled at the sight of him.  She had not thought of him at all today while occupied with everything else that had been happening.  Now, the memories of their encounter the previous morning came rushing back.

“Commander General,” Gavin said in greeting.  He glanced at the other two but didn’t say anything to them.  “Please proceed with your report.”

“There have been multiple reports received this morning that the galdak horde numbers in the hundreds of thousands and that they are heading towards the city,” the commander general stated.  “With Traven’s assistance, I have seen the size of the horde with my own eyes and can confirm that the reports are accurate.”

A small gasp escaped from the baroness, and Gavin stepped to his mother’s side to offer his support.  It appeared the rumors were true.  Hundreds of thousands of galdaks?  Where had they all come from?

“We also discovered that there is a galdak wielder with the horde,” Commander General Blaize continued.  “He is old and weaker in the ambience than the Wielder Kadrak was but is still a potential threat.  Traven should be able to eliminate him if it becomes necessary.”

Kalista glanced at Traven.  The young wielder stood confidently with his eyes no longer averted.  Their eyes locked for a moment, and a small smile played across his lips.  She was glad to have him on their side.

“The horde is close enough to strike as early as tonight.  It would be wise to begin mobilizing the entire army as soon as possible,” the commander general advised as he finished his report.

All was silent for several moments as the reality of the situation settled in.  Gavin finally cleared his throat to speak.

“How many soldiers do we have left?” he asked.

“A little under seventy thousand,” Commander General Blaize responded.  “We lost around ten thousand last night.”

Gavin reached up and raked his hand through his hair in frustration.  Kalista felt the same way.  They were greatly outnumbered.  She was surprised to hear that the casualties suffered the night before had been so high.  The Kalian Army had been taken by surprise, but it was nonetheless frightening to think that a relatively small group of galdaks had worked so much destruction.  At least they now knew what to expect and had the advantage of the city wall to protect them.

“Begin mobilizing your soldiers,” Gavin stated.  “We will send messages to gather in the rest of the villagers living in the nearby communities.  We will also send a proclamation through the city announcing the coming siege and requesting additional recruits for the army.”  He paused and then continued.  “Traven, you will refrain from hand to hand combat.  Your ambience wielding skills will be of more value to the army than your sword skills.  You will not foolishly place yourself in danger as you did last night.”

Kalista was somewhat taken aback by Gavin’s command.  She wondered what Traven had done the night before.  She glanced at the young wielder and found him standing rigidly as he stared back at Gavin.  A look passed between the two of them before Traven nodded his head in acceptance.