The Forsaken Hero

Night had well and truly fallen when I left the Healer’s tent, plunging the world into darkness. Beyond High Valley’s glimmering shroud, thick clouds smothered the stars, and small, frozen flurries danced on the bitter breeze. Flashes of light rippled across the mists as shockwaves and residual magic buffeted the valley.

”Xiviyah, please, you don’t have to do this,” Rylam said, hurrying to keep up with me. ”You’ve fought your battles. You’ve suffered enough. We’ll find a way through this without you risking yourself.”

I stopped, looking at him. ”How?”

Despite the near foot between us, he took a step back.

”I don’t know,” he admitted, rubbing his arm. ”I just don’t like the thought of you getting hurt.”

I smiled faintly, clasping my hands. ”Well, so that you know, neither do I. But Rylam, the church is here for me. I don’t want you getting hurt, or anyone else on my behalf.”

He opened his mouth, but I held up a finger.

”Nope, none of that. I don’t care how firmly Captain Andres told you to keep me away.”

He closed his mouth again, his ears twitching, abashed. I smothered my smile, turning with a swish of my tail. He really did look like Aurle whenever she got chastened by the taskmaster.

Explosions rippled through the quiet, and my wards flared against a sudden shockwave. Shouts rang out from the fort up ahead, and flashes of crimson light preceded gouts of devouring fire that shot up into the sky, dark against the glowing mists.

”They’ve penetrated the barrier,” Gith said, his voice tinged with surprise.

”How?” I asked, aghast. ”I thought no one with ill intent could enter!”

”The inquisitors remained outside. They must have something to do with this,” he responded.

”Then it’s as we feared,” Luxxa muttered. ”They’re going to send their army in, until we get drowned with numbers. I hope you were able to work something out in Haven to lure them in.”

”Me too. Now we have to hurry. They won’t hold for long,” I said, summoning my staff. I took off at a run, then paused, looking back at Fable. ”Except for you. If they see your beautiful fur, it’ll be the same as if they saw me.”

He growled faintly, giving me a little push through the bond, but I was firm. After a second, he lowered his head from my gaze, whining in resignation.

The Crimson Guard had fortified more of the valley in my absence, pushing the walls another few hundred yards toward the closest villages. The main gates of the keep were directly before the entrance, where the mists had been torn open by some unfamiliar magic. Soldiers poured through, shouting war cries and casting spells and arrows at the Crimson Guard.

We had just reached the back of the fort when Luxxa suddenly grabbed my arm and shouted.

”Get down!” she cried.

Everyone scattered as a fireball dropped over the wall, exploding in the courtyard just a few feet away. I huddled against her armor, the sound ringing in my ears. Flecks of flame dissolved into Adaptive Resistance, while shrapnel pelted my wards with strangely musical pings.

”Rylam?” I called, coughing as smoke billowed around us.

”Here,” he grunted, rolling to his feet. ”It takes more than a little bit of fire to put me down.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn’t help a tinge of embarrassment at his nonchalance. He was only fourth level, and even if our opponents were weaker than what I was used to, I couldn’t help but worry.

Arrows thudded into the ground around us. Luxxa casually lifted her arm, catching a shaft as it streaked toward me and snapping it with the edge of her shield.

”Jenna, give us some cover,” she ordered.

”I could just protect us all,” I muttered.

”No, your magic is too distinct. Too many stars.”

”It’s fine. It’s about time we earned our keep, instead of the other way around,” Jenna said.

I shook my head, wondering how she could sound so lighthearted. Or maybe she really was being serious.

Jenna’s magic encircled us in a shell of wind that tousled my hair, and caused my skirt to flutter around my knees. Compressed gales slapped arrows out of the sky, and broke apart explosions and shockwaves before they could reach us.

”Sixth-level?” I asked, turning to her in surprise.

”Been working on this one for a while,” the wind mage said proudly, puffing out her ample chest. ”One of the remnants helped me with the runes. She thinks I’ll be able to break through with the seventh-level version.”

”Time for experimenting later,” Luxxa said, taking the lead. ”We’ve got to get to the top of the walls and figure out what’s going on.”

”Then what are we waiting for? They’re only like fifty feet high!” Jenna said, taking off in a burst of wind mana.

Luxxa’s hand darted out, grabbing her ankle and dragging her back down. Jenna stumbled to avoid a crash landing and turned, putting her hands on her hips and glaring.

”What?”

”How many slaves and deserters do you know that can fly?”

The question stumped her, her cheeks turning pink as her brow furrowed. She crossed her arms, still pouting. ”Well, technically, Xiviyah is both.”

”I don’t fly,” I muttered, brushing past the two. I was beginning to see why I always left them behind. At least Gith was useful, scanning the walls for signs of danger. So far, the battle seemed contained on the other side of the fort.

We finally found the back entrance, and slipped through, passing the tense rear guard. There were only two of them, both first level. Neither looked a day out of training.

”My lady,” they whispered, bowing stiffly.

”How goes it?” Luxxa asked.

”It’s...grim.”

An explosion caused everyone to flinch. A chunk of the wall collapsed from above, crashing into the courtyard. Several soldiers tumbled with it, tossed like ragdolls by the blast. One of them had been torn in half, and was streaming blood and viscera.

”Restoration!”

I soul cast instinctively, ensnaring them in tendrils of life magic before they hit the ground. Before they even had time to die. New limbs formed, and pale faces flushed with blood. They hit the ground and bounced, stunned, unconscious maybe, but alive.

”Go, get them to the healer’s tent!” I cried.

The soldiers stared at me, frozen stiff, before Luxxa startled them with a burst of aura. They stumbled forward, dragging the fallen away from the wreckage. M

We made our way past rushing soldiers and spells to the walls of the inner keep. I panted lightly as we reached the top, and finally laid eyes on the battle. I’d seen it before in Haven’s illusions, but it still caused my chest to tighten, and a lump to form in my throat.

The inquisitor’s forces had overrun the outer fortifications, and were using the old, ruined forts to siege our walls. Their archers’ arrows kept our soldiers’ heads down, while their mages slowly dismantled the walls, piece by piece. A few squads had fought into the trenches, forcing the Crimson Guard to abandon them, slowly pushing our forces into the keep.

”It’s so...loud,” I murmured, gazing out over the destruction.

”What are you saying?” Rylam asked, his ears twitching anxiously. ”This is war!”

”I know, but...” I gestured helplessly.

How was I to explain what raced through my heart? I was used to muted, unnatural silence during battle. But here, the explosions were deafening, but only because they weren’t actually loud enough to trigger my wards. When was the last time I’d partaken in a battle where the craters were only a few feet deep, or the casualties to a spell less than a dozen?

Even more remarkable was that I could see the actual fights playing out. I could actually see them run around and exchange blows. No wonder Luxxa wanted us to keep our heads down. Never mind flying, even sixth-circle spells were rare, flashing across the battlefield only a few times a minute. If I summoned a single elemental, even a simple elemental spirit, it would likely dominate the battlefield. And that was exactly what the inquisitors were waiting for.

”We won’t hold for long,” Luxxa said.

While I’d been studying the enemy and the battle in the valley, she’d been eying our own troops. The walls of the keep still stood, but they were pockmarked with craters. Captain Andres was on the ground beneath the walls, leading the Crimson Dawn against one of the patrols who had managed to approach. Our archers were growing low on arrows, and the mages were running out of mana. They killed five soldiers for every one that fell, but the odds were too great, and the hopelessness of our situation dampened their fighting spirits.

”Gith, Jenna, see if you can help a little. Keep them off the walls,” Luxxa said. ”Once they fall, the keep is lost.”

Gith knocked an arrow and fired, sending it streaking toward one of the old, ruined forts. It punched directly through the wall in a shower of stone, shattering the wards of a fourth-level mage and embedding itself in his chest. Jenna followed suit, sending a few third-level lightning bolts stabbing into the squad of soldiers attacking Captain Andres. They exploded with enough force to send them all flying, stunned. The Crimson Guard swarmed over them, killing them before they could stand.

”Gah, I wish I could let loose, use a real spell,” Jenna muttered. ”Take a couple hundred of ’em before they knew what was happening.”

”Actually, do that,” I said suddenly, perking up.

”What? But that’s going to--”

”They already know there’s a power expert here, remember? That’s how I broke in. And maybe if you do enough damage, that’ll bait the inquisitors into the mists. And then we can deal with them without Fate being able to see what’s going on.”

”Assuming that the ninth-level doesn’t make a move,” Rylam said.

I hesitated, then nodded. ”Yeah, but I’m still not convinced he is ninth-level. He could walk through on his own, ignoring anything we had, and crush this entire valley with a single attack. There’s a reason he’s not. There’s a reason none of them have engaged yet, even though they pushed their army to attack so quickly. They’re worried about something.”

”So, give them something to worry about?” Luxxa asked.

”Exactly. But the two of you won’t be enough on your own. Even if they lose a thousand more because of you, you’ll still fall to their entire army. Just draw their attention. Luxxa, get me to the tower, please,” I said, pointing to the main tower resting over the crude keep. ”I’ll do the rest.”