“Whose plan was this, anyway?” Marrec muttered as he attempted to regain his feet, only to be bowled over by the troll. Its claws sought crevices in his armor but were only partially successful. A thread of pain pulsed on the side of Marrec’s face where one of the troll’s claws scored.
Again, Justlance shimmered back to his hand, giving the troll a moment’s pause. Armed again, his confidence ticked back up a notch. He used the spear’s shaft to quickly lever himself to his feet. The sour, rotten smell of the troll’s breath rolled over him, nearly a presence in and of itself, hardly less lethal than the monster.
Marrec groaned as he felt something touch him from behind through his armor. The blightlord, untended, had gotten another nasty hex off, and he was the target. Whatever it was, it seemed to be growing below his armor second by second. It itched as if a colony of ants were running across his back. He yelped in surprise, or if truth be told, alarm.
A crack of thunder rode the heels of a crazy line of electric light that zagged past Marrec and struck Gameliel a grazing shot. Ususi was on her feet again, but her aim was a little off. The blightlord snarled with pain but dramatically clutched his empty fist, as if squeezing something. In response, pain blistered across Marrec’s body. The pain issued from the spot he’d seconds before felt the itching. As if pain were sprouting roots across his body, the agony grew.
Marrec realized he had been infected with the blightlord’s touch. Some sort of hyper-quick rot or disease, he presumed. He fumbled in his belt pouch and brought out a small vial filled with fizzing blue-white liquid. Though his directly granted spells were nearly spent, he was not without one or two additional resources. Uncorking the vial with his teeth, he gulped down its contents. The divine balm spread through him like cool water, quenching the pain and driving the infection from his body. He gasped out thanks to Lurue.
The troll took advantage of Marrec’s distraction with another claw-tipped swing, forcing him back behind the point of his spear. He risked another glance at the blightlord. Gameliel spent another second clutching the air before realizing the action was futile. Marrec’s brief infection was cleansed.
Gameliel said, “You seem resistant to the lesser rots. Let’s see how you fare against the Corruption of…”
He broke off when he saw the pale green beam of light touch dead center upon his chest. The beam was projected by Ususi, still standing just outside the ring of the bowl.
“Is that…?” was Gameliel’s last utterance.
The blightlord burst asunder. The pool of slime began to boil then wisped away like morning fog. The black halberd he had been clutching in one hand continued to stand of its own accord for a moment then slowly dissipated, like a hole in mud closing over, leaving nothing but empty air.
Residual power snapped and discharged from Ususi’s pointing hand. In her other hand she held an unrolled page of vellum, penned sigils still fading from its surface. She had unleashed a spell penned by the hand of a mighty wizard. Marrec wondered if that hand was Ususi’s?
The wizard winced, shaking her hand free of residual power, and said, “You shouldn’t have disturbed the Mucklestones, blightlord,” then fell back against a stone.
Her effort must have been extremethe spell on the parchment may have been beyond her normal ability to cast. Smoke rose from her garments. The scroll, its potency spent, fluttered to the ground, now completely blank vellum. Ususi managed to retain her feet with the help of the supporting obelisk.
“Lurue’s blessing…” Marrec’s claim of victory was cut off by the troll’s vicious attack. Whatever power Gameliel had used to call the monster, it survived its master’s death.
He deflected one of the creature’s claw-tipped swings with Justlance, running a deep score along the troll’s arm with his spear tip. Even as Marrec watched, the rubbery flesh closed up where he’d torn it. Recollection trickled into his mind: The best way to put a troll down for good was with fire.
Marrec yelled, “Burn it!” and swung the shaft of his spear low along the ground, surprising the troll; it has been expecting another stab. It stumbled over the shaft and fell on its face, a victim of Marrec’s trip.
The unicorn warrior turned tail and retreated, even as the troll pushed itself upright with its preternaturally long arms. Still, he put a little space between himself and the beast, just enough, he hoped.
Seizing her opportunity despite her exhaustion, Ususi skipped another bead of flame down the bowl. The troll attempted to evade, but the pellet bounced once, twice, and at the summit of its third skip, exploded into a sphere of raging flame. The troll was enveloped. When the fire faded into sizzling wisps a heartbeat later, the monster survived only as a flaming remnant that sent up a pillar of black smoke.
The stench wrinkled Marrec’s nose. He grinned nonetheless, but the sound of the dizheri, as it bashed and battered against the flesh of blighted volodnis, was yet audible. Apparently the corrupted forest folk, like the troll, were unconcerned that their master was no more, but only a few remained standing. Gunggari and Elowen then appeared on perimeter of the Mucklestones, fighting their way into the bowl. A final few thrusts with Elowen’s sword, a wild swing with Gunggari’s warclub, and finally some unlooked for assistance by Marrec from behind ended the threat for good.
Nothing stirred in the bowl. Marrec’s blood cooled. He stowed Justlance.
CHAPTER 10
He pulled Briartan down from his cruel shackles. Marrec thought life had fled, but after feeling for a pulse, he detected a faint beat. He wondered if the time had come to use the last few healing spells he’d been saving up for a dire circumstance. Briartan was the only one around who could answer his questions. He glanced at Ashthe girl studied the supine form, but she made no move to use her healing gift. It was up to him then.
He mouthed the words of healing and touched the wounded druid’s forehead. The glowing blue threads of healing power rippled from Marrec’s arm and wound into Briartan’s body. Marrec could feel torn tissues knitting and depleted stores of energy rebounding, but he also immediately realized the truth. Briartan’s spirit was wounded to the core. The druid sought only release.
Marrec fought with Briartan’s desire. They battled to a temporary compromise. It was the best Marrec could accomplish. He had but one spell of healing remaining. He knew he must choose wisely when and how he would use it.
Briartan’s eyes fluttered open.
Elowen grabbed the fallen man’s hand. “You’re going to be all right, Briartan.”
Marrec quietly shook his hood, but Elowen didn’t see.
The wounded druid responded, “Elowen. I’m afraid I can’t stay much longer. I’ve glimpsed higher realms and the promise of infinite plains of green…”
Elowen squeezed the druid’s hand “The world needs you here, Briartan. The blightlord is defeated. Stay with us, won’t you?”
The druid found the elfs eyes as she leaned over his prostrate form. He said softly, “I will answer your questions, that you may have some aid of me, but more than that I cannot promise.”
Elowen stifled a gasp, looking for confirmation from Marrec and found it in the’cleric’s sad nod. The elfs eyes began to shimmer with retained tears. She squeezed Briartan’s hand all the tighter.
Marrec began to phrase his questions internally, but Ususi moved in, undeterred by Marrec’s need or Briartan’s fragile-state.
She said, “What did Gameliel want here? How did he overcome your defenses of the Mucklestones?”