Part 50 (2/2)

Shadows broiled overhead, a flock of angry demons.

Blaine attacked the second shackle.

Duncan howled in pain, his face contorted like a thing possessed. ”He's come! The Mordant comes! Don't let him see you!”

Fear pulsed through the chamber.

The shadows gibbered overhead, dark claws reaching down like a flock of starving vultures.

Kath stared at Blaine. ”Get him free! No matter what happens, get him out of here!”

Blaine struck a mighty blow and the second shackle crumbled to dust.

Duncan writhed against the floor, his face a mask of pain, his mismatched eyes clouding with an inky Darkness. ”He comes! Get back!”

The force of his warning drove Kath backwards, deeper into the chamber. She crouched on the floor, willing Blaine to hurry.

Blaine leaped to the third set of shackles, his blue sword flas.h.i.+ng against the darkness. Metal screeched as if in pain and the third shackle sundered.

Overhead, the shadows laughed.

Duncan convulsed on the floor. His back arched, his mouth stretched impossibly wide, as if he swallowed darkness. And then his voice changed. Another voice, deeper and full of malice, filled the cavern. ”I see you, knight of the Octagon!”

Blaine froze, his blue sword held poised above his head.

Kath gaped, knowing she heard the voice of the Mordant.

”You breach my citadel but the prize is hollow. The battle for the south is already lost. The Octagon is broken, scattered before my army. And your king lies dead, spitted upon my sword.”

Father! Kath stifled a whimper, a splinter of pain piercing her heart.

”You come here at the bidding of the Kiralynn monks. Yet you follow a doomed cause. They have deceived you. The monks will fail, condemned to a terrible end just like the Octagon. I alone will rule all of Erdhe.”

Kath's hand crept toward the crystal dagger...but this was Duncan not the Mordant. Yet what if this was her one chance to slay evil? A chance to defeat the Mordant within his very lair? But her heart cried against it, she could not harm Duncan.

”I alone am the one true power of Erdhe.” The Mordant's voice boomed through the chamber, full of dark seduction. ”Serve me and you shall live. Kneel to me and I will raise you up, granting you powers you cannot imagine!”

Kath stared at Blaine willing him to strike, but the knight remained still as stone, an odd look on his face.

The Mordant's voice grew in strength. ”Swear your sword to me and you will have more than one lifetime of pleasure! Kneel to me and become much more than a base-born knight!”

Blaine shuddered, as if released from a spell. ”No! Never!” His blue sword struck true. Sparks flew and the dark metal shattered. The last chain broke into a thousand pieces.

”You've failed, knight. Remove him and he dies! He's mine or nothing!”

Blaine yelled, ”Go to h.e.l.l!”

”Then feel my wrath!”

Tremors shook the cavern. The earth began to shudder and shake, as if a slumbering dragon sought to emerge. Shadows gibbered across the ceiling, claws and fangs reaching down. Stalact.i.tes crashed to the floor, hurled like stone spears. Blaine stumbled and fell, a sheen of blood on his forehead. Kath lurched forward, desperate to reach Duncan.

Something grabbed Kath's hair, yanking her back.

Something else grabbed her ankle, a cold, searing touch.

Kath fell to her knees. The shadows had gained substance! Darker and somehow more dense, the shadows pounced. Icy fingers poked and clawed, trying to pull her to the ground.

Kath whirled away. Drawing her sword, she slashed at them.

They evaded her blade, as if the touch of steel somehow hurt. Slas.h.i.+ng left and right, she pushed them back, her blade becoming a blur. Steel proved unable to kill them, yet they s.h.i.+ed away, lurking just beyond reach. Making a final slash, she turned and ran for Duncan. Grabbing his arm, she began pulling him from the pentacle.

The shadows attacked, clawing at her, a searing cold. She struck at them with her sword, struggling to pull Duncan with just one hand.

The cavern rumbled and shook, a powerful tremor. Stalact.i.tes crashed down, releasing a hail of dagger-sharp chips.

Shadows swooped towards Blaine, too many to count. His blue steel sword slashed through them. Gibbering screams, they whirled away.

Kath sheathed her sword, desperate to pull Duncan to safety.

Bear and Boar appeared at the doorway.

”Help me!”

A stalact.i.te crashed down, nearly impaling Duncan. Rock chips flew in all directions, a storm of stone. The floor tilted and shook like the back of a mighty beast. Blaine struggled to his feet, his blue sword clutched in his hand. The others leaped to help.

Overhead, the shadows howled in rage.

Bear and Boar lifted Duncan to their shoulders. Staggering like drunks, they bore him from the chamber, narrowly avoiding the stone spears. They raced up the long spiral of stairs, climbing as if demons chased them. Kath followed, fearing for Duncan. The earth shook like an angry beast yet the pa.s.sage remained open. The stairs stretched to forever, but the dawn light finally appeared at the cleft.

They stumbled from the doorway.

Tremors shook the citadel, but these were mild compared to the nightmare below.

”Put him down!” They laid Duncan on the courtyard. Kath cradled his head. ”Come back to me.” She covered his mouth with a kiss.

His eyes flashed open, one golden and the other sapphire blue. His mismatched gaze was clear, without any taint of Darkness. ”I knew you'd save me.”

She bit back a sob.

His gaze roved to the open sky, toward the dawn light. Seagulls circled overhead, releasing a mournful cry. He took a deep breath and then his gaze sought her face, like a man seeking a long lost sanctuary. ”I longed for green, only to find it in your eyes.”

His words lodged in her heart, a searing mixture of joy and pain. She almost cried, but forced the tears back, drinking in his voice, his mismatched stare, every detail dear. ”Stay with me.”

A stolen moment stretched to forever but then he gasped and the pain returned, and with it duty. ”Beloved, there's much I must tell you.”

”Let me find a healer first.”

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