By the Sword Read online

“I will kill them all!”

  “I would expect nothing less.”

  Jalarn ran back out to the training field and found General Waltez.

  “It looks like your old friend has gleaned some information from us today,” said Jalarn.

  “Edandir was at the coliseum?”

  Jalarn nodded.

  “He brought some of his knights, too. We have to find them. Now.”

  “I will get ten of my knights, and we will go at once.”

  “Hurry.”

  Jalarn, Waltez, and ten Malinorian knights mounted their horses and rode into the city. The people rushed out of the way as they urged their horses faster down the streets.

  Show them to me, my prince, and I will destroy them.

  Jalarn slowed his horse to a trot and glanced at all of the soldiers on the street, looking for any behavior that seemed out of the ordinary.

  Jalarn exhaled loudly. It would not be easy pointing them out since they would be wearing stolen Malinorian armor.

  Very shrewd, General Edandir, but I will find you.

  When Jalarn came to an alleyway, he sensed someone’s presence. He never ignored a gut feeling.

  “Why have we stopped, General?” asked Waltez.

  “Wait here,” Jalarn ordered his men.

  He steered his horse into the dark alley.

  There, lying on the cobblestones was Naeshi. He must have been out drinking in the taverns again. Ittonifer would not be impressed.

  Naeshi groaned as he peeled his eyes open.

  “I would march straight back to the castle before my uncle asks for your head,” said Jalarn.

  Jalarn spun his horse around to leave.

  “Wait, General. I fought a lady knight from Sanctus.”

  “What did you say?”

  “She was dressed in our armor. She knocked me unconscious, I think. Pretty little thing.”

  Full Malinorian armor lay piled up a few paces away. Naeshi was not making it up. The girl must have stripped out of it after making a fool of him.

  “How long ago did this happen?” asked Jalarn.

  “I wouldn’t know. I feel pretty groggy.”

  “Another useless senior guard.”

  Jalarn kicked his stallion into a gallop. He and his men raced down the main street and out of the city.

  The spies couldn’t be far. Jalarn would find them.

  They may have reached the forest, but they will not live long enough to reach their mounts.

  Jalarn, Waltez, and the ten knights finally reached the wooded lands. Their sturdy, long-legged beasts traveled easily through the uneven terrain.

  “Separate and find them,” said Jalarn.

  Jalarn stopped his horse and scanned his surroundings.

  A flash of flaxen hair several paces away caught his eye. A slender girl was running through the forest.

  Her!

  Jalarn kicked his horse and the animal broke into a run. He saw the rest of them sprinting toward their dragons.

  “Kill them!” yelled Jalarn.

  It was going to be close.

  Talya was still well behind the others, but she ran faster than she ever had. She could sense that the Malinorian knights were very close.

  Her legs burned, but she gritted her teeth and pushed herself to run faster.

  Once she reached her dragon, she hopped onto the leather saddle. Two Malinorian knights on horseback were only a couple of paces away from driving their blades into her. She kicked her dragon hard and it shot upward with a shriek.

  Below, twelve Malinorians stood gazing up at her. She immediately recognized Jalarn’s lion emblem and the red cape that he now wore.

  This was the second time that Talya had barely escaped from him. Every time they met, she was in a weakened position. It would not happen the next time.

  Talya rejoined the group in the air, still catching her breath from the intense run and close call.

  General Edandir took off his iron mask and tossed it, glaring at Talya.

  “You almost got us killed!” he shouted.

  “I apologize, Sir,” replied Talya, “but there was a girl in trouble and…”

  “It was bad enough that you deliberately disobeyed my orders earlier. I was considering making you a commander after this mission, but your foolishness and lack of respect have cost you a promotion.”

  Tanel and the others stared at her with accusatory eyes, but they said nothing.

  Talya looked away from them. She had never felt so humiliated in all her life. She glanced down at her dragon, who had loyally carried her higher in the air. She patted her mount gently, regretting how hard she had kicked him when the enemy had been so close. Instead of nudging Talya with his nose, he ignored her.

  Looks like everyone hates me right now.

  Jalarn would not let the wench and the others get away. He waited until their dragons ascended closer to the clouds before uttering one of the destructive chants that he had just learned. The old warlock must have known that he would need to use the storm enchantment that day. It had been impeccable timing that he had only learned of it last evening.

  Jalarn’s pulse quickened. It was time to test his new ability. Malinor’s secret as well as his reputation depended on the spell working.

  He lifted his sword and repeated the age-old cantillation with a loud voice. The gale picked up and thick, black storm clouds pushed their way toward his enemies.

  Jalarn’s knights stirred uncomfortably.

  “The storm will not harm us. The prince’s power has manifested before our eyes, and it will destroy our enemies,” said Jalarn.

  A single lightning bolt hit the ground nearby. Thunder roared all around them. The tempest had begun.

  “Jalarn, what are you doing?” asked Waltez.

  “It’s General Jalarn to you. Watch and see,” he said.

  Two funnels emerged from the sky directly in front of the fleeing enemy; more formed around and behind them. They quickly evolved into swirling, violent tornadoes.

  Sanctus’ precious general and his knights would be swallowed whole by the storm.

  Chapter Six

  The knights looked frantically around, searching for a possible way around the tornadoes. No natural force could have formed multiple twisters so close together. General Edandir and his knights had been ensnared by a spell.

  Talya steered her dragon close to Edandir.

  “This is my fault!” she cried.

  “Talya, you didn’t cause this.”

  He wanted to hold her as he had when she was a small child, but their bond had been broken because of his own pride.

  “They found us because I slowed you all down!” she shouted above the howling wind.

  Edandir reached over to hold her hand, but both of their dragons struggled against the strong pull of the tornadoes.

  “Surely He will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler.”

  Edandir felt something stir his spirit. Cheap sorcery paled in comparison to his God’s power. They couldn’t escape out of the trap on their own, but with their Heavenly Father, they could.

  The general bowed his head.

  “What are you doing, General?” shouted Timlin. “We can’t just stay here. We need to find a way out.”

  “With your sword, foolish brother?” called Pori.

  “We are God followers, let us act like it. Pray!” boomed Sir Endil.

  Talya’s dragon shrieked and writhed, distracting Edandir from his prayer. Talya patted its neck, but the spooked animal still flew further away from the group.

  “Talya, get back here!” cried Tanel.

  “I’m trying!” she shouted.

  Talya tried frantically to control the dragon, but they were rapidly being pulled toward one of the dark, windy cones.

  Edandir clenched his teeth. He was not going to let some demoniac magician destroy his daughter.

  “Please, Lord, stop this madness. Don’t let my daughter die by the hand of the devil. I don’t know ho
w to stop this spell, but You do.”

  Edandir kicked his dragon’s sides and went after Talya. If he couldn’t save her, he would die trying.

  “Lord Jesus, we cannot do this on our own. Save us. Give me another chance with Talya. She is so young still. Save her and my men!”

  Edandir grabbed Talya’s hand and pulled her toward him just as her firedrake was pulled into the closest tornado.

  *****

  Jalarn watched his enemies struggle in the violent sky. They were trapped. Even from where he stood with his men, the roaring caused by the powerful winds was almost deafening. Soon, the magnificent force of the tornadoes would draw all of them in to their deaths. Malinor’s plan would stay a secret and Ittonifer would be very pleased with him.

  “Magnificent work, General,” said Waltez.

  Jalarn nodded.

  Then, the twisters began to lift from the earth. They lost their intensity as they rose back into the sky.

  Jalarn’s heart raced.

  “They’re getting away, General,” said Waltez.

  “I can see that.”

  Jalarn started the chant again. He would not be bested by a little disturbance. The gale picked up again as funnels began to re-form at the base of the clouds, but the enemy was moving away too quickly.

  Desperate, Jalarn yelled the chants. He willed the tornadoes to follow his enemies, but they would not cooperate with him. He gaped at his retreating foes.

  The sky cleared. Bright sun shone into his eyes. Heaven was mocking him. No. Edandir’s God – whatever he was – was mocking him.

  All of them had escaped, save one meaningless dragon.

  How could I have failed with the prince’s power?

  Jalarn clenched his fists and yelled at the top of his lungs. He turned to his knights, who stared at him with stupefied looks. He unsheathed his sword and stabbed the most annoying one through the chest.

  “General…” began Waltez.

  “Stay away from me.”

  Jalarn shoved the commander out of the way as he strode over to his horse.

  Ittonifer was not going to be pleased.

  *****

  In the dank, musty sorcerer’s lair, Jalarn stormed over to the bookshelves. He grabbed the master spell book and quickly flipped through the pages until he found the tempest spell. It was the very manuscript that had been penned by the prince himself.

  I have done something wrong. I need to find out what that is.

  Shifting footsteps approached from behind. Jalarn made out a rickety form in the dimly lit room. It was Aterun.

  “Why are you here? What do you want?” growled Jalarn.

  “Do you know who you happen to be addressing?”

  Jalarn stalked over to the man and looked down at him.

  Insubordinate old fool.

  He wrung his strong hands around the elderly man’s bony neck.

  “Tell me why that spell failed today!” shouted Jalarn.

  Aterun wheezed. Jalarn lessened his grip.

  “There is nothing wrong with the spell,” said the magician. “You just don’t have enough experience yet to know how to combat an opposing force.”

  “You mean, conquer their God.”

  “Yes.”

  “I want you to show me how I can do this. I cannot have a slip up like that happen again. I gave Ittonifer my word that Edandir and his spies would be dead right now.”

  “You are too hasty, young General. I cannot feed you meat when you are but a babe in the knowledge of the dark arts.”

  “How dare you insult me, old man? I’ll have you killed!”

  “You will do no such thing. I simply meant that you are attempting to accomplish too much, too soon.”

  The gall of the warlock aggravated Jalarn, but the man was his only hope when it came to conquering the power of Sanctus’ God. He needed him. For now.

  Jalarn ran a hand through his tousled hair. He would have to study far more than he had been. There was so much to know, and he needed to learn it all before the battle.

  “Be patient. You want to know things that I have devoted many years to learn,” said Aterun.

  “I don’t care!”

  “No need to lose your temper. A good magician must remain relaxed and at ease in order for a spell to work properly.”

  “You are going to make me into a master magician before the battle or…”

  “Of course, General,” said Aterun.

  It aggravated Jalarn that the scrawny magician never showed the slightest hint of fear in his presence. In fact, he carried himself with nearly as much confidence as Ittonifer. Jalarn would speak with his uncle about that one day soon.

  “We’ll resume your education this evening,” said Aterun.

  “How soon before we get into the meat?”

  “Soon enough.”

  *****

  Chrissa had finished her evening spell book reading. She left the quiet library and traveled back down the candlelit hallway toward her bedchamber. She passed by her father’s study quietly, relieved that his door was closed.

  He did not approve of her wandering around the castle alone after dark, but that never stopped her. Things were brutally dull in her wing of the castle. She would go mad from boredom if it were not for the great collection of books that were at her disposal in the library.

  There were two muffled voices coming from Ittonifer’s room. Chrissa stopped and listened.

  “I am deeply sorry, my lord,” said Naeshi.

  Chrissa tiptoed to the door.

  “After four incompetent senior guards, I thought that you were finally one that I could trust. Instead, you go after my daughter without my permission and corner her in an alley!”

  Chrissa covered her mouth. How did he know about that?

  “But…” started Naeshi.

  “Silence!”

  “My lord, she was taunting me with her feminine wiles. That girl ought to be married instead of wandering around town flirting like a mere commoner.”

  Chrissa bristled.

  “Right now we are talking about you. She will be punished accordingly,” said Ittonifer.

  Knots formed within Chrissa’s belly.

  I did nothing to encourage that boor, but how will I convince my father of that? He never listens to me!

  “I expect professional conduct from my guards. You were my head guard. Instead of watching over me, you were out hunting her as though she were nothing more than a common wench. Worse still, you shamed the prince by being defeated by an enemy sword maiden on our own soil.”

  The room fell silent.

  Chrissa held her breath. Ittonifer had killed the last four of his senior palace guards. She despised Naeshi, but she did not want him to die. She had known the fool all of her life.

  “I liked you, Naeshi. Really, I did. But you have more muscle than mind. Your late father would be very disappointed with you. If you weren’t still young, I would have killed you by now. Luckily for you, I can use your skills in our infantry.”

  Thank the prince.

  “Infantry?” spat Naeshi.

  “Still, I feel that I have been much too easy on you. I wouldn’t want anyone to view me as… merciful. I have a reputation to keep.”

  There was a hint of a smirk in his tone.

  Chrissa’s heart raced. She knew what that voice meant. Their meeting would not end well. Her sadistic father was going to torture Naeshi.

  She turned to run away from the pained cries that were soon to follow, but her feet were glued to the floor. She gritted her teeth and tried to lift her legs. She was stuck.

  What is going on?

  Her father’s castle was full of strange enchantments, but this one drove a chill down her spine.

  Chrissa covered her ears with trembling hands in an attempt to blot out Naeshi’s shouts and groans. She hated her father. She hated that castle. She hated everything about her life.

  The door flew open, leaving a startled Chrissa standing before her father. I
ttonifer stood there, staring at her.

  Chrissa looked away from his cold, black eyes and focused on the two guards that stood behind him.

  They gripped Naeshi by the arms. A stream of blood flowed from where his left eye used to be, trickling down the side of his chiseled face and splattering around his feet.

  Chrissa gasped and closed her eyes at the gory sight, but she would never forget it as long as she lived. Naeshi had endured that punishment because of her. There was no telling what he would try to do to pay her back.

  She crossed her arms, trying in vain to stop shaking.

  The guards dragged Naeshi down the hall. His remaining eye glared at her until they disappeared around the corner.

  Chrissa shuddered. She looked down and moved her legs. The spell, wherever it had come from, had been lifted from her.

  If only I knew who, or what, caused it.

  She turned to flee back to her room, but ran into her father. His demoniacal glare seemed to pierce straight through her eyes and into her soul. She backed away from him, shaking.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  His angry voice echoed down the hallway.

  “I was coming back from the library and overheard your conversation with Naeshi. I’m sorry.”

  “From now on you are not to go there or anywhere after dark, understand?”

  “Father, I…”

  “Not another word. You have gotten yourself into enough trouble lately. Guard, take her back to her room. Do not unlock the door until morning.”

  Another guard stepped out of the room then. Naeshi’s replacement, she assumed.

  Chrissa opened her mouth to protest, but Ittonifer slammed his door in her face.

  She stared at it for a moment. Her father could not even stand to look at her anymore. She knew that it was only a matter of time before he tossed her over to some man and then forgot about her completely. It was simply the way that things were done in Malinor. But she had thought things could be different for her.

  Maybe they still can be. I can learn a few spells and then ask the prince for a favor.

  “M’lady, we must go now,” said the guard at her side.

  As Chrissa followed him down the dimly lit hallway, the ache in the pit of her stomach sharpened, creeping up into her chest. Chrissa knew that she had never been written on her father’s heart, but his indifference wounded her deeply.