By the Sword Page 22

  *****

  Hundreds of Malinorians fell at the hands of the Chirian army. Edandir’s army fought with a renewed vigor, with the relief of the other soldiers.

  After taking down several more enemies, Edandir searched again for Ittonifer. The man had been making his way toward Roselyn and Uittan earlier. He had intended to stop the man before his unexpected ally had unleashed its pandemonium on the battlefield. It had caught the Malinorians off guard again.

  Ittonifer was running out of surprises.

  The general scanned the field once again for Malinor’s cruel ruler. Ittonifer was standing at the base of the hill that Uittan and Roselyn stood on. He blinked. They were conversing with one another.

  Edandir could not imagine what Roselyn would have to say to that man, or why Ittonifer would be wasting his time talking rather than fighting. Very strange.

  Edandir started in their direction. Now was the time to finish off Ittonifer for good.

  *****

  “She’s alive,” said Ittonifer.

  Roselyn’s heart pounded against her ribcage, as her knees grew weak.

  “You are cruel,” said Roselyn.

  Alive? No… it can’t be. There’s no way that he would have spared her.

  “I spared Chrissa’s life that day, but you had already left me. All of these years you have lived without her while she has been here with me. I enjoyed the irony for a time, but today I will finally kill her.”

  Roselyn trembled. All of that time, Chrissa had been existing as the daughter of Malinor’s oppressive ruler. She really was alive. A living young woman now.

  But he said that he is going to kill her.

  Ittonifer had already turned away from her, walking back toward the battle. Roselyn started to run down the hill, but Uittan gently held her back.

  “Wait! Why would you kill her now? Your own daughter. The one that you have raised!”

  Ittonifer stopped.

  “She turned her back on me and has joined Sanctus… like you.”

  “Where is she?”

  “Fighting, but not for long.”

  “Don’t fear, Roselyn,” said Uittan.

  Roselyn ignored the prophet.

  “Ittonifer, stop! You can have me. Just don’t touch my little girl!”

  He didn’t stop this time. He started running toward the raging battle. She would never be able to save Chrissa from him. Her child was in trouble and she couldn’t even help her.

  “God, save my baby girl!” she cried.

  Enveloped in a cloak of helplessness, Roselyn sank to her knees and wept.

  *****

  Ittonifer was stalking toward Chrissa now.

  Instead of retreating, Chrissa saw Ittonifer and started to run toward him.

  “Chrissa, get away from him!” shouted Edandir.

  He will kill you!

  The girl jumped into the air and swung a diagonal arc with her sword at her father’s stomach. He merely stepped aside and avoided the blow. With Ittonifer’s superior size and skill, she did not stand a chance. He sent Chrissa’s sword flying out of her hand with one powerful, perfectly angled swing.

  Chrissa dove for her weapon and managed to block Ittonifer’s next stab just in time, but now he had her legs pinned to the ground. He began to press all of his weight down on her arms, forcing her own sword down toward her neck.

  “Stop!” Edandir shouted.

  Edandir broke into a sprint. He was not going to allow Ittonifer to end the life of the child that he never deserved.

  Out of breath, Chrissa knew that she would be dead soon. The blunt end of her sword was almost at her neck. She closed her eyes, avoiding her father’s cold glare.

  “I always knew that you hated me, but how could you do that to Jalarn?” she said.

  “He meant as little to me as you always did. I only use those that benefit what I want.”

  A tear slipped down her cheek. It would be the last one she would ever cry.

  The blade of her weapon grazed her neck.

  “Edandir!” Ittonifer snarled.

  Ittonifer leaped away from Chrissa just in time to stop Edandir from impaling him.

  Chrissa managed to stand, but she could barely see through her tears.

  “Chrissa, get out of here,” said Edandir.

  She ignored Edandir and came at her father while his back was still turned away from her.

  Ittonifer spun around and then slammed his gauntlet into her jaw. She stumbled backward and landed on her backside. Weaponless and dazed in the muddy grass, she shut her eyes until the dizzy spell passed.

  She opened her eyes to see Ittonifer standing over her again. This time she looked him right in the eyes. He had to be a monster. No human could be that heartless.

  “I’m about to do what I should have done to you years ago. You always were disappointing, but I never took you to be a traitor.”

  Chrissa spat at him, shaking as rage surged through her.

  “You betrayed me from day one, Father.”

  “Wench.”

  Ittonifer drew back his elbow, ready to drive the blade of his sword straight through her, but Chrissa looked past her father at Edandir.

  The general blocked Ittonifer’s lethal stab with his sword. Here was a man that actually cared for her.

  Ittonifer laughed hollowly as he swung his sword at Edandir’s stomach. The general blocked it.

  “Get out of here, Chrissa!”

  Chrissa got up and ran away, fighting another wave of nausea. Too weak to rejoin the battle, she ran to a clearing, away from the other warriors, and watched Edandir and Ittonifer fight one another.

  “You know I’ll finish her after I’m through with you,” Ittonifer sneered.

  Chrissa’s stomach knotted and she vomited.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Edandir blocked another swing and attempted to drive his blade through Ittonifer’s chest, but once again he missed.

  “Look around you, General,” Ittonifer said. “You’re losing. Even those giants are useless against so many of my men.”

  “Your army isn’t as large as it had been before Chira came.”

  Ittonifer studied Edandir for a moment.

  The thunder had ceased and the downpour had transformed into a light drizzle. Queen Roselyn’s melodic voice resounded hauntingly in the damp evening air alongside Uittan’s solemn, deep one.

  “When I am finished with you and the little traitor, I’m going to slit your precious queen’s throat.”

  Despite the evening’s damp chill, Edandir’s face flamed with fury. He fought the obscene man with a greater ferocity than before.

  “You may think that she’s protected from me,” said Ittonifer, “but when I kill her daughter that will all change.”

  Daughter?

  “Oh, didn’t she tell you? Roselyn and I were married long ago. Then, she left me to join your pathetic country. Now she’s getting what she deserves. You will, too.”

  Roselyn was Ittonifer’s wife? The mere idea of that amazing woman being married to the sick tyrant was outrageous.

  “Her heart will be filled with grief and rage when I slay Chrissa,” Ittonifer went on. “She will run to me and then I will kill her.”

  Edandir jabbed at his enemy’s stomach, but Ittonifer blocked it with maddening ease. The earth rumbled again.

  “General Edandir, look out!” shouted Sanere.

  A crack in the ground branched out and rushed toward Edandir. He leaped backward and barely missed stumbling into the dark abyss.

  Ittonifer stared at him from across the division.

  “Two can play at this game!” Ittonifer said.

  Magic.

  Dark, rancid smoke emerged from the deep trench as a low growl resounded from within.

  Edandir backed away.

  Ittonifer’s jet-black eyes watched in fascination as a long reptilian foreleg gripped the soft earth. It clawed at the muddy ground with its free leg and then pulled itself up. Enormous, black b
at-like wings rose out of the chasm followed by a warty, bearded face. It roared, showcasing layers of sharp teeth.

  Its pupil-less red eyes stared into the general’s. It towered over him, at nearly three times the height of the giants. It was another monster, but even uglier and more hellish than the ten demoniac creations before it. He wondered where Ittonifer had found it, or if it was yet another product of his species modification experiments.

  It stepped toward Edandir with its teeth bared. Its decaying body bent toward him, inching its snout close.

  Edandir held his breath as a sickening odor emerged from its mouth.

  “The Lord is my protector and redeemer,” said the general.

  “We’ll see. After Roselyn and Chrissa are gone. Come, beast.”

  The animal backed away from Edandir and flew across the trench to Ittonifer like an obedient dog.

  Ittonifer jumped on its back and it lifted the two of them into the sky. Its deafening, high-pitched cry echoed off of the nearby mountains. Some of the soldiers stopped what they were doing and gaped at the gigantic flying animal coming toward them.

  “It’s just another one of that devil’s cheap tricks!” shouted Endil as he clobbered his mace into a foe’s forehead.

  Edandir would be forever grateful for the God-fearing warrior.

  “Don’t give in to what you see!” shouted Edandir.

  Many listened, but some began to run as the dragon neared them. Several of Edandir’s men had been caught by the animal’s strong jaws and swallowed whole.

  Ittonifer laughed as he directed the monster toward Chrissa.

  *****

  Talya didn’t know where she was, but a thick mist surrounded her in an otherworldly forest. Everything was white – the trees, the leaves, the dirt. She was walking barefoot on its soft floor. No sticks or dried leaves scratched the soles of her feet. The painful bruises and wounds that had weakened her before were no longer there.

  A flowing, white gown now replaced her tattered, bloody tunic and pants. She had always abhorred dresses, but she didn’t mind this one. It seemed as though it was made just for her. It allowed her to run as fast as she wanted to and she was able to jump over the quiet brooks that flowed through the alabaster bush.

  For a moment, Talya wondered if she was dead, but if she had died, her Lord would have met her already. She felt lonely for Him.

  “Lord, forgive me. Forgive me for ignoring You for so long. Forgive me for all the lives I have taken. My enemies are the ones that needed You, and I took away any chance they had of finding You.”

  Talya sank to her knees and wept, feeling ill as she thought of all the damage that she had caused.

  She raised her hands to the sky.

  “Lord, I know now that all I need is You.”

  Indescribable peace flooded through her and she knew that God was with her, even in the shadow of death.

  “Peace, Talya. I am the God that healeth thee.”

  She could feel His love encircling her, and she began to laugh tears of joy.

  She opened her eyes, but darkness had flooded in. Talya thought that she was drifting back to sleep until a flash of red caught her eye.

  Then she saw him. Jalarn. He was being dragged by something. A demon.

  “Jalarn!” Talya cried.

  Hideous, gnashing teeth and wails came from below and filled the air.

  Talya trembled as despair flooded through her veins. Jalarn was going to hell.

  “Jesus, help him!” cried Talya.

  There were so many agonized voices. It made Talya want to rip her ears out. Some were there because of her.

  Her exhaustion returned, forcing her to leave the brutal cries of torment, and she drifted back to a deep sleep.

  *****

  A sickening odor assaulted Chrissa’s nostrils as she rushed back into battle. Her nausea from before returned, which was very bad timing. Flapping wings and a low snarl made her look up. The most horrific face that she had ever seen glared down at her. Saliva dripped out of his mouth onto her. She grimaced at the offensive fluid on her armor. Then, she heard Ittonifer’s menacing laughter.

  She backed away, but Ittonifer steered the dragon closer to her. He had become obsessed with killing her.

  Ittonifer’s hateful eyes were even colder than the hungry giant reptile’s. Her father was possessed, another casualty of the devil’s deception.

  A shiver ran down her spine just as the dragon snapped at her. She stabbed at it with her sword. It shook its head and scratched at its wound, but then came at her again.

  She leaped backward and barely avoided its sharp teeth.

  “I’m not afraid of you!” she shouted.

  Overwhelmed by fatigue and nausea, Chrissa tripped over a dead body and landed on the ground.

  She looked up, expecting to see the large winged animal lunging at her, but instead it was arching its back. It let out a deafening scream.

  Chrissa covered her ears as she moved away from it.

  Ittonifer leaped off of the dragon as it writhed on the ground. A sword stuck out of its spine.

  Tanel emerged from behind the beast and fired an arrow into its skull. The reptilian monster lay still at last.

  *****

  A gust of wind stirred Talya’s unkempt hair, tickling her cheek. As her eyes fluttered open, she was startled to discover she was lying in a strange white tent.

  Talya sat up and immediately remembered the nightmare about Jalarn. She was shaking and covered with sweat. Her father must have brought her back to the camp after rescuing her.

  She tore off her blankets and then jumped out of the bed.

  “Show me what to do, Lord. Show me where Jalarn is so that I can help him.”

  She glanced at herself in the small mirror. She was amazed to see that the bruises and cuts on her face were gone. She touched the skin just above her once blackened eye. God had healed her.

  “Thank You, Lord.”

  As she removed the bandages that had been wrapped around most of her body, her eyes widened. Not even scars remained where she had been slashed by Ittonifer. Her pulse raced when she looked at her smooth upper arm, where the slave branding had once been.

  She had to get to the battle quickly now that she was well. Talya opened the sack that sat at the end of her bed and was surprised to see her armor and a change of clothes. She decided not to waste time wondering how they had gotten there, breathing another prayer of thanks. She quickly washed herself and then changed into the clean tunic and pants before putting on her armor.

  When she emerged from the tent, she saw the surgeon resting by the fire.

  Great. Now I’m going to have to waste more time explaining to Seline that I am fit to fight now.

  But as she approached him, a chill rushed down her back. Seline’s eyes and mouth gaped open in corpse-like fashion. An arrow stuck out of his chest. He was dead. An enemy had come into the camp. She cringed as her father came to mind. He was going to miss the doc a lot.

  Talya backed away and quickly scanned her surroundings. They were probably still there.

  Talya needed to get a weapon fast. Hopefully, someone had left a dagger or something around their sleeping quarters.

  She rushed into one of the tents and searched. Nothing.

  When she turned to leave, a strong arm wrapped itself around her waist. The cold, sharp blade of a dagger came to her throat.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  The sun had already begun to set and the battle showed no sign of ending anytime soon, yet several voices declaring God’s promises filled the air. It was an amazing sight to see – hundreds of people putting their faith in God all at once.

  A heavy-set Malinorian with an oversized mace thundered toward Tanel. Tanel leaped backward, avoiding a blow, and slashed his sword over the man’s arm where there was no armor. The man yelled and charged at him again.

  Tanel ducked out of the mace’s path and then stabbed the man’s leg.

  “As it is written, n
o weapon formed against me shall prosper,” said Tanel.

  The warrior glared at him.

  “Do you honestly think those empty words are going to save you, little knight?”

  Refusing to answer, Tanel backed away. He continued to move backward, inching closer to the opening in the earth. The Malinorian bared his teeth like an angry dog and took a run at him.

  Tanel dove out of the way as the man stumbled into the abyss, falling into the deep hole with a furious cry.

  *****

  Talya’s captor snickered as two other Malinorian knights emerged from behind another tent.

  “What are you waiting for?” said the taller of the two. “Kill the wench.”

  “We have a war to get back to,” said the other.

  “Not yet,” said the one that restrained her. “Why don’t we have some fun with her first?”

  The other two exchanged uncouth grins before nodding.

  Talya’s mind raced. She had easily defeated three of Ittonifer’s brutes at a time during the battle in Cardamon. This should be no different, especially after just being healed of several brutal wounds.

  I just need a weapon.

  Talya assumed that the man holding the dagger at her throat was a knife thrower. They usually kept at least two sheathed knives on their person. She glanced down at his thigh. He had another knife, after all.

  She quickly reached for his other weapon and then drove it through his stomach. His pained grunt immediately pricked her conscience. He dropped his dagger and collapsed, clearly caught off guard. His colleagues stood in stunned silence for a moment before running toward her with their swords drawn.

  Talya jumped to the side and blocked a swipe from the tallest one’s sword. She gritted her teeth as she attempted to strike at the other one’s back, but he whirled around and blocked her.

  I don’t have time to waste on this! My country needs me.

  Talya sprinted across the camp, trying to think of where there might be extra swords. It was unlikely. Every solider, knight, and commander had his own custom-made sword. No one would have brought along extras.