Chapter 10
The War
The resultant force was like being shot out of a cannon. It was unlike anything Terrill had experienced with the previous Lifebloods and their methods of transportation, and was the only reason he didn’t panic upon finding that he was tossed out in the air. On further, and immediate, reflection, he wanted to hit himself for not realizing that the Lifeblood of Wind would have to remain detached from the land itself, and its lanes would put them in the same type of spot.
Lumen, on the other hand, did not keep himself calm. “We’re falling!”
The boy instantly wrapped his arm around Terrill’s, clinging to him as his sole lifeline while they began to fall. Terrill looked down, noticing that where they had emerged was above a sprawling fort, a singular turret rising high into the sky, its base the only safe place to land with all of the people running below. In the chaos, none of the soldiers noticed the pair falling and he took his time to act, pulling up a wall of earth atop the rampart that he caught to prevent them from splatting on the concrete below. It did no favor for their bodies, battering against the wall before they dropped down and landed upon the turret. Lumen gasped, taking a moment to regain his breath.
Terrill ran to the edge, taking a three-sixty of the battlefield as all of its sounds finally came to him. There was shouting and screaming; the twangs of a bowstring firing arrows rebounded off the fortress walls; the loud bombardment of cannons and catapults rocked the very foundation upon which they stood. Terrill almost pitched off the turret when it fired a cannon underneath his feet and blew apart the ground. That was when Terrill officially saw it.
The center of Gladius, where Fort Tierial was located, had been eaten up. It wasn’t clear to the visible eye what had caused it yet, but the longer Terrill looked, the more he could tell he was inside that dome of shadows they had seen upon approach to the Seaman’s Trough. Particles of darkness floated on the air, creating a fog that made it impossible to see, and Terrill knew that was only an extra contribution to the hopelessness of war that surrounded them. The panic of the land being gouged out, as if the shadow had taken a bite out of it, was palpable. It was only on one side, allowing a means of escape for the Valordan forces, but the Invarian ships had taken advantage of the sea filling in where part of the continent was missing.
The longer Terrill looked, the more he saw that it was less the shadow eating the land, and more like it was burning it away, aided by a shadow rising from each soldier fighting in the war. A war which had no clear winner. Not yet, at least.
The whizzing of a cannonball could be heard and, not wanting his head knocked off, Terrill fell to the roof, gripping Lumen tightly. Still, no one had yet to pay them any mind and Terrill began to look for a safe way down from the turret. Lumen interrupted this process with a tug to his sleeve.
“There’s nothing to be scared of, Lumen. You know the battlefield. Fought against Golbrucht, after all,” he said, hoping to cheer the boy up and get his head in the game for the incoming fight.
“That’s not what I’m worried about. It’s Atrum. Terrill, he’s-” Terrill forced the boy’s head down as another cannonball nearly missed them, the heat creating welts at the back of Terrill’s neck. They needed to find a way down from this location and soon. “Titus mentioned about blessings and magic and erasures and it just made me realize something. I can use magic even though I’m Dimidian, but I have no idea how, and Atrum, he keeps calling me broth-”
“Contemplate it later, Lumen. We’ll deal with Atrum when get to him. There’s a more immediate issue.”
“Evacuate the tower!” a cry yelled from below, one of the watchmen on the ramparts seeing an incoming rock from a catapult. Safety flew out the window, and Terrill grabbed Lumen, leaping without thinking. They dropped farther than intended, with Terrill stretching out his hand to create a soft spot of earth. It was counter-intuitive to his usual spells, and he couldn’t afford the focus of an incantation or name. All he could do was hope that they wouldn’t become bloodstained splotches on the cement.
The spell worked, though, and both of them landed in the soft dirt that dulled their impact. It still vibrated through their bodies, each groaning as they made to stand. Luck had been on their side, too, as the rock broke through the tower. Moments later, outside the fort, there was a mass explosion from one of the cannons that sent Invarians flying. Terrill grimaced, hating the needless loss of life.
“Which way do you suppose the king is?” Lumen asked, dusting his cloak off. He had set aside his qualms about Atrum and done as Terrill suggested, eyes focused on the war raging all around them. Terrill was momentarily concerned with whether Winifred was there, but he couldn’t feel her wind. That said nothing when it came to the Fiends.
“Likely the interior of the fort, somewhere far away from the action,” Terrill explained, drawing his sword in case anything got in their way between there and here. His hand bumped against his pockets, rattling something within and he almost chuckled before taking it out, surprised he had both forgotten about the object and that it was still here after all this time. Without skipping a beat, Terrill thrust the royal seal he had picked up in the woods into Lumen’s hand. “You might want to take that. Could help us get in.”
“My seal! I was wondering where it had gotten to!” Lumen beamed gratefully and stowed it away inside his breastpocket. Terrill was surprised he still had his wardrobe assigned as a Chosen One, but turned his eye to the citadel at the center of the fort, in the middle of the sprawling courtyard. “I suppose King Phillip was willing to see me outside of war, but this will prove useful for wartime.”
“Have to get there first. This warzone won’t make it easy.” Lumen grunted with agreement, holding fast to his weapon as they faced the expanse of stone and soldiers that led to the central citadel. Only now did Terrill realize they had fallen quite a ways from the tower, and the shadows of the sun were growing long. Sunset was coming, and the Lifeblood’s dire warnings became ever-so-real.
Another rock, this one flaming, came flying into their path, and Terrill held Lumen back as it hit the ground, bouncing and leaving destruction in its wake. A group of soldiers were in its path, carrying their own sets of rocks up the fort’s walls, unable to move at the flaming projectile coming to strike them. It wasn’t much, but Terrill stomped the ground, creating a stone wall that the fire bounded off of and came to a stop. It wasn’t the only such thing, and between many cannonballs and other related artillery, the courtyard of Fort Tierial was littered with signs of the battle. Dead soldiers, too, but Terrill tried not to pay attention to them. He didn’t want to watch them vanish.
Unfortunately, his stunt seemed to have caught the attention of some soldiers that were guarding the gates inward or otherwise doing nothing, each of them young rather than old. Terrill knew where this was going, his memory of Valorda still sharp.
“Hey, where is your armor, soldier?” A mustached man, perhaps a decade older than Terrill, had called out to he and Lumen, turning his spear in their direction. The youth that surrounded him, each jumping as the gate to the fortress shuddered, looked split on whether to hold their station or face the newcomer with their commanding officer. “What unit are you with? State your station, soldier!”
“Oh, dear…” Lumen muttered, worried about their prospects.
“Just a guest, here to see King Phillip. We have some information he’ll want to hear.”
“S-sir, I know his face. He was arrested in the capital and escaped from the dungeons.” Terrill winced; that was a fact he had forgotten, and it made his job that much harder.
More spears than he had hoped for turned upon him, fanning out and leaving a mere few at the gate inward, each of whom were shaking at the thought of having to defend the gate alone. Being identified as a fugitive, Terrill and Lumen were surrounded in seconds by the hair-trigger soldiers looking for someone to fight, as if they didn’t have enough going on outside the fort. Terrill didn’t relinquish his sword or give any indication of coming with them quietly, though he figured that if they had it their way, he wouldn’t be going anywhere at all.
“What road did you take in here? Speak, spy!”
“For the love of…I’m not a spy. I’m an ambassador who seeks an audience with King Phillip. It’s of paramount importance.”
“And I am Lumen Candoris-Regium, an, er, ambassador of Sayn?” Lumen didn’t seem clear on how to refer to himself, especially since he couldn’t fully show himself to be a member of the royal family in Adversa of all places. He did, however, take out his seal, the blinding light of the setting sun reflecting off of it.
None of them were convinced.
“We will not fall for tricks. Now, what way did you get in here? How many more?”
“Okay, enough of this. King’s in the central tower, right? Excuse us.” Terrill slammed down, and just like that the earth split apart, pushing the soldiers to the side and providing the duo a path straight towards the tower. Some fell over in fright, while others claimed he was indeed a spy. Terrill didn’t care, especially as another rock came whistling down in white hot flames, straight for where they stood. Terrill kicked at Lumen, sending him towards the central tower, guarded by the elite royal guard, while he raised his hand towards the meteor. It flew for him, and Terrill could feel its earthen veins, which he tapped into before breaking the meteor apart, the attack falling harmlessly to the ground as the soldiers stared at it, flabbergasted. “You’re welcome.”
Terrill moved on, running towards the center and dodging the craters and arrows that appeared to find their way over the gate, careful to not get hit along the way. That wasn’t easy in a warzone, and he found himself separated from Lumen. He would have lost him entirely if it wasn’t for their destination being the same, and the fact the boy was stopped at the iron wrought gate to the citadel, his voice rising above the din with pleading.
Another rock nearly fell on Terrill’s head as he came close, but he redirected it downward, sending a quake through the fortress that stunned some into silence. Those that weren’t continued their fight against the cannons and catapults. Some archers took to the ramparts, but Terrill ignored them until, on the volley of their arrows, they were sent straight down to the ground, as if gravity had yanked them before they could fly. Or they had hit something that scattered them. Terrill’s lips twitched, having his guess, but focusing on the matter at hand.
“I’m telling you, this is the royal crest of Sayn, and I am here to meet with King Phillip regarding some information that is necessary to know.”
“Information you haven’t told us what it is or how you’ve gotten here.” Lumen was down on the ground, about to be handcuffed. Terrill knew what he wanted to do was a bad idea, and as impulsive as Floyd in his worst moments, but still he acted.
“We’re here about the Wind Fortress and Invaria, so if you won’t let us through, we’ll bust on through!” Terrill’s stones flew out, sending the royal guard scattering while Lumen got up. With a final slam, Terrill brought his stones together and sent the newer boulder flying into the gate, wrenching it off of its hinges. Some soldiers made to stand, but Terrill turned his eye on them, daring them to interfere. He didn’t want to deal with them when they had a more important war to be fighting. They halted, and Terrill grabbed Lumen, dragging him into the tower.
“Are you sure you should have done that, Terrill? That will make it easier for Invaria to invade.”
“I have a feeling it’s not going to matter pretty soon. The Fiends won’t leave that to mere chance.” He had no concrete idea of what he was talking about, and Terrill preferred it that way, focusing on speed as he dashed deeper into the tower. Some soldiers came out of the rooms to the side, but Terrill didn’t suffer them to interfere, blowing on by before they could register he was there. Lumen was slower, nearly tripping over his feet a few times, but Terrill dragged him along, only stopping when they reached a large room like a wheel spoke. Many hallways stretched in many directions, and stairways led up and down with no indication of what was where.
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“Um, we have soldiers coming. Which way?”
Terrill didn’t know, but he could feel the beating boots and it gave him a very different idea to find the king. Not caring if they were captured or caught up to, Terrill dropped, both hands pressed to the floor. He could feel every vibration through the earth, from every stone breaking at footsteps throughout the tower, to where a rather large conglomeration of steps in a singular room was placed down the eastern hall, furthest away from Invaria’s main attack. It was a gamble, and one he took nonetheless, before any soldiers could lay their hands upon him. “Keep up, Lumen.”
The royal didn’t find that easy, huffing and puffing at their sprint. The soldiers inside the tower all met in the hall, crashing into each other as they changed direction to run after Terrill. It wasn’t much further, however, and as the tide of Valorda’s military came bearing down upon him, he kicked open the door and found the sight of King Phillip and all his advisors in the room.
He grinned, and then was pushed to the ground alongside Lumen, their pursuers caught up to them at long last.
“What is the meaning of this?!” a man at the long table cried, his belly jiggling as his beard bristled. He had stood, sending some papers flying and a map fluttering to the ground. It was marked with red dots and circles that were probably irrelevant in the grand scheme. “Who is this man? How did he get inside the fort?”
“We’re not entirely sure, sir, but he broke down the front gate, despite there being no breach.”
“Mr. Jacobs, is that you I spy?” Phillip’s voice was a welcome one, indeed. Looking up, though his head was forced down, Terrill grinned at the large-nosed king. Phillip looked just as he did when they’d last met in the Valordan castle’s cells, if a bit grayer from stress, but he was positively beaming to see the ambassador there. “I had heard reports that you and your party had perished in Invaria after colluding with the Phantom Knight.”
“Yeah, those details were wrong, Your Majesty. Definitely not dead, and definitely not working with the Phantom Knight. Let’s just say…it’s been a rough road to peace, Your Majesty.”
“I’ll say. This is the second time you’ve been arrested in Valorda. Starting to make a habit out of it.” The man’s shoes were what he soon saw entering his vision, and Terrill was allowed to raise his head enough that he could look into Phillip’s eyes. He was weary, that much was obvious, but still radiated the warmth and intelligence that had led to the man trusting him.
“Do you know this intruder, Your Majesty?” called another man from the table, this one gruff and bedecked in armor. Terrill took him for the leader of the military.
“Yes, this is Terrill Jacobs, an attaché to Serotin’s ambassador, and one I handpicked for treating with Invaria, before negotiations fell through. Is this the friend you were looking for? Lumen? It’s been a while since we met, as well.” Showing there was no ill will, the king offered his hand to both of them, an act which forced the soldiers to remove themselves from the pair. They took his hands and allowed themselves to be lifted up.
Now that he was inside the room proper, Terrill could see a fireplace and many candles were lit, with small rooms to the side of this sequestered room where the king and his council could meet. Many of the councilmen were wary of Terrill, still, but could do nothing when the king dismissed the rather confused guard and brought the two further into the room. Terrill, himself, felt out of place with kings and other military affairs, but he had to remind himself of the reason he was there.
Phillip approached his table, pouring a glass of water and handing it to the two. Lumen drank it gratefully, but Terrill had more pressing concerns. “It looks bad out there for you guys.”
“We’re locked in a stalemate,” Phillip said, walking around to sit in his chair. A nearby page collected the map and papers from the ground, dropping them back on the table. “A Valordan ship we sent to Sheeris has sent no word, our armies clashed near Pravado, leading us northward, but Prince Ricardo evacuated Invaria. Rumor has had it he’s on a ship, but we’re busy being bombarded here by the Invarian Navy.”
“And the capital?”
“Protected, but if Fort Tierial falls…” Phillip sighed, slouching in his chair while some of the councilmen cleared their throats. The military advisor was the first to address Terrill.
“Your Majesty, it is best to not talk of our battle plans to an outsider. There is no telling what he may leak. Now, young man, how did you get in here? Is there a weakness my men must shore up?” Terrill scratched his cheek at the question, considering how best to answer. Lumen kept staring at him, deferring the conversation to Terrill entirely.
“You wouldn’t believe me even if I did tell you,” the Guardian started, “but your defenses won’t last long if they enter the picture. They’ll make sure of it.”
“They?” the fat-bellied man said. He had taken out a pair of reading glasses, squinting through them as the jiggled on his tiny nose. “Who is ‘they’? The Invarian Army? They may be strong, but no catapult or cannon has ever breached this fort in its entirety, and no matter how much land has been mysteriously lost, it will not happen today.”
“And that’s what I’m talking about!” Terrill cared little for decorum, crossing the room to slam his hands upon the advisors’ table. Lumen wasn’t as alarmed, but jumped when the whole room shook from some outside force, dust trickling down. “Your Majesty, I came here from the Wind Fortress, and I can say for certain that this war needs to end now. Make peace with Invaria or something, anything, but the more people die the more that it will work for them, the Fiends.”
“Fiends? What is this, boy? Some fairy tale! Even mentioning that old legend…” yet another advisor spoke, but Terrill didn’t care to see what he looked like. Phillip crossed his fingers before starting to tap them, ruminating on Terrill’s words.
“I know, it’s difficult to believe me, Your Majesty, but I guarantee you that if this battle isn’t over by the time the sun sets, you’ll be dealing with more than a missing piece of land.”
Phillip remained contemplative, his eyes staring into space but not hearing a thing. Some of his advisors laughed off the mention, while others still remained absorbed in their works at the table. None sought to interrupt the king, until he gave a heavy sigh. Terrill’s hopes fell. “I’d like to just end the battle, but Invaria won’t stop. They have decided to take Valorda because of the attacks this knight made on their populace and to achieve control over the Wind Fortress. And if we stop, we will look to have been condoning the deaths of countless countrymen and admitting our collusion with the Phantom Knight.”
“I get it. It’s a complex issue, but the land disappearing from under your feet, that’s because of the Fiends, and the very shadow they’ve looked to create from this exact circumstance. There will be nothing left the more you fight.” Terrill felt like he sounded crazy, and many of the advisors weren’t even giving him the time of day. The only one who did, to his surprise, was the military advisor, stroking his chin as he hung on Terrill’s words. After a moment of silent deliberation, said man stood and walked over, leaning down to Phillip’s ear. Terrill was close enough to hear it.
“He’s not lying, Your Majesty. More than once my men have made it clear how difficult it is to aim through a fog as black as night. I thought them crazy, but there may be merit.”
“Hmmm…” Terrill knew Phillip was weighing his options, but his advisors were like frightened rabbits at the mere thought he could be listening. There was another shudder and Terrill felt a sudden, tiny draft in the room. His eyes narrowed before the large advisor once again addressed him directly.
“Tell me, Mr. Jacobs, you’ve been accused of the events that have led our country to war, along with Ambassador Margrove. Why should we trust your words?”
“You don’t have to. But I didn’t harm a single Valordan soldier on the way in here and I don’t want anyone else to die.” Lumen nodded next to him, before tilting his head, looking at the wall just behind the king. There was curiosity there, but Terrill was focused on convincing these men to see reason in ending the war. “Everything about this war has been manipulated to ensure total destruction of both nations. Your weapon shipments, your ambassadors attacked, the knight’s assaults, and even the failure of the Wind Fortress. All of it has built to this moment.”
“You’re telling us some giant conspiracy has pitted our two nations against each other? To what end would that even serve? Have you an answer for that?”
“N-no, not entirely,” Terrill said, cursing his lack of information that would make sense to other people. The king looked to listen more, but Terrill was running out of options when another tremor shook the building. “All I can say is this, good, er, good sirs: the Fiends want you to destroy each other to give rise to the shadow you see growing around you, and they will not stop until either you’ve killed each other off or ended this. So please, take the second option.”
“Terrill…” Lumen hissed under his breath, causing the boy to look at where he was pointing. There was a crack in the wall, and through it, Terrill could feel the draft. His eyes widened, and Phillip was already speaking, rendering a decision that no longer mattered.
“I’d like to end it right now, but as I said, Invaria will not cease. Unless we can produce the Wind Fortress or evidence of conspiracy to both sides, then I’m afraid we’ll need to deliberate further for the best course with this intelligence,” the king said, his fingers ceasing their tapping and his green eyes finding Terrill. The Guardian didn’t look back at him, but down to his sword, realizing it was still there and his hand was tensing for the fight. “At the very least, you’ve helped us confirm that part of the reason for this war is a farce, and that can help us plan a messenger through the battlefield to Prince Ricard-”
“Lumen, get them down!” Terrill’s order was followed to the letter, the boy dashing under the table and lifting it over. Papers scattered, and Lumen dove for each advisor to take them down. Soldiers at the corner of the room ran for him, but Terrill acted first, and just in time. “If you want proof of conspiracy, it’s coming right for you, in one fell swoop!”
Terrill clenched a fist and brought the stone floor of the room rising up. At that exact moment, the hole in the wall expanded, cracked and broke into pieces, a cyclone ripping up the room. It was stopped only by his shield that protected Phillip, but rose vertically, destroying the roof and allowing the sounds of battle to break through. Terrill dashed through the debris, pushing Phillip behind him and to the floor as his wall broke. His sword flew through the air and clashed against the pocket of wind that was breaking into the room. His eyes trailed up, meeting with Winifred’s.
“Fancy meeting you here, Hero. I thought it was about time we kept our promise, but I have a king to take out first.”
“Like I’d let that happen, Winifred!” His knee sailed up, striking the woman’s stomach and sending her flying out of the tower, into the courtyard. Soldiers turned, but not enough to end the fight, while the Fiend flipped over on wind. Terrill prepared to strike back, staring across the broken debris to his foe, when the king said something that pulled both Guardian and Fiend to a stop.
“Is that… Are you…Lady Lyten?” Terrill turned, aghast at the sudden implication. From Winifred a blast of air rose, showing off the shadow that she walked through.
“Don’t. Use. That. Name.”
“Lyten? Isn’t that that fallen noble house of Valorda?” an advisor asked, ignorant to the rage upon Winifred’s face. In just two words, she had gone from the mocking woman in control to the same one that had tried to kill him in Invaria. Looking closer, Terrill was certain she was producing the shadow from her own body.
“Yes. It fell almost a decade ago after the house failed to marry with House North. That poor family. Lost everything. Daughter, son-in-law to be. All during…the war…” They seemed to be realizing the cost of war, each advisor staring at the Fiend who radiated hatred with every step, her snarl marring her face. Only the king remained unfettered in the face of such rage.
“They said you had disappeared. You and Eric North, but you…you haven’t aged a day. How are you…why are you here, Lady Winifred Lyten?”
It was, perhaps, the height of the Fiends’ cruelty that Terrill had ever witnessed, even without his ascertainment of the truth that lay in the middle of Phillip’s claims. Never had he seen Winifred so tortured, or so furious, that her own self looked consumed with Atrum’s shadow, not even needing to control her. All because of a single question about who she resembled, or perhaps who she was. Terrill didn’t know, but he knew she had been tasked with killing King Phillip.
No, she had been tasked with becoming a part of the Shadow, herself.
That was the greatest cruelty of all, but Winifred didn’t see it. As if rocked back to the past, she stalked forward, and with a sneer of cold hatred, flicked a spear of wind in the king’s direction. “I told you not to say that name, Your Majesty.”
It flew out, the compressed wind twisting and undulating as it became jagged. Terrill, of course, refused to let it meet its mark, and with a single slash of his sword, tore it in two. He twirled his blade around, kicking aside stones to stand between the Fiend and her target. “She’s here for you, to cover this whole battlefield in shadow until there’s nothing left. But I won’t let her.”
“No, you’ll just continue to play the hero. Still didn’t learn your lesson from Invaria, or Sheeris.”
“Then teach it to me again, Winifred. Or maybe I’ll teach you.” Winifred let out a barking laugh, her knuckles cracking as she prepared to pounce. The table in the room, snapped in two, was shoved aside as Lumen stood in the debris, but though he saw him in his periphery, Terrill had eyes only for the woman that had taunted him. Watching her now, he could see as she was being unraveled by one piece of her history.
“What is it you think you can do? Defeat me? Free the precious Lifebloods that ruined our lives?” Winifred’s wind burst out, black as night. The fading sun highlighted her frame, causing her appearance to burn. “This is reality, Terrill. Not the fantasy you’ve been operating under. You can kill as many Fiends as you want, but it won’t stop this war before it’s too late. You can see that, I’m sure.”
“But like you said, there’s still time to make miracles happen.” Terrill breathed out, his second hand placing itself on his sword’s grip. The tension was about to burst, each waiting for the other to make a move, the rest of the battle rendered irrelevant to them. “I haven’t figured out what Fiends are, or who you are, but I know I can still bring a miracle to this battle. I’ll start by saving you, Winifred. Or should I call you Lady Lyten, too?”
Winifred’s teeth gleamed as she growled like a beast, ready to pounce from all fours. She was seething. “Save me? This is reality, Terrill Jacobs! Wanting to save people, thinking you can, when the future for you, me, and this entire world holds nothing but despair! That’s childish vanity! There’s no way this ends happily! There are no miracles!”
“Yeah? Prove me wrong.”
“With pleasure!”
Terrill raised his blade. Winifred flew forward. Lumen cried out for him, and the king and his advisors fell back.
And as their attacks collided, their clash marked the beginning of the end for the battle at Fort Tierial.