Tristan nodded sadly. "For the first time in my life, I know that," he said. "Then proceed as you must, Wulfgar. Just as I shall."
The Enseterat wasted no time. As the battle raged all about them, he raised his arms. Aghast, Wigg watched as Tristan did nothing to try to stop him.
The Orb of the Vigors materialized to the west. The huge, golden sphere seemed to take up the entire sky. It still shrieked in pain. Offshoots of the palest white radiated from its center, broke off, and fell toward the ground. Some of them landed on the fighting Minions and K'tons, killing them instantly.
The jagged tear in the orb's lower half continued to drip a golden, living energy. As that energy reached the ground, it created an ever-deepening crater in the earth and set grass fires that quickly spread. Choking smoke rose, and both Wulfgar's Black Ship and Tristan's litter shook violently as the first of the orb's shock waves struck them.
His heart pounding wildly, Wigg watched Wulfgar prepare to hasten the destruction of the orb. He had to remind himself that Tristan had told him not to interfere.
Twin bolts shot from Wulfgar's outstretched hands and headed straight for the gash in the orb. Tristan raised his hands with blinding speed and responded in kind.
The energy that streamed from Tristan's hands was the brightest Wigg had ever seen. More white than azure, it screamed toward Wulfgar's onrushing bolts. Wigg raised one arm before his face, fearing he might be struck blind by its awesome power. But he watched just the same, his need to know overshadowing his sense of personal safety.
With a massive explosion, Tristan's blinding energy slammed into Wulfgar's bolts, stopping them in midair. The two opposite manifestations of the craft flattened out against one another, each battling for supremacy.
Tristan's brow was covered with beads of sweat. Suddenly there was another explosion, and Wulfgar's bolts disappeared.
Stunned, Wulfgar looked at his one good hand and what was left of the other. Now both hands were hideously burned, as was the rest of his face. Screaming in agony, the Enseterat suddenly realized that he would not vanquish the Jin'Sai this day.
Amid all of the noise, death, and confusion, Wigg saw Wulfgar wave his damaged arms, wildly giving the order to retreat. The K'tons broke off the fight and returned to surround the Black Ship as she turned her great bulk in the air and sailed away. Wigg quickly went to Tristan's side.
"You mustn't let him escape!" Wigg shouted.
As the Black Ship shrank in the distance, Tristan turned to look at Wigg. Despite the recent strain, his face was calm.
"I know," he said. "Even though he is my brother, he must not be allowed to walk the earth."
He cast his gaze back to the Black Ship. Its dark form and the thousands of K'tons flying alongside would soon be lost from view. The Jin'Sai raised his hands.
At once, the Orb of the Vigors started to move again. As it rained down destruction, Tristan sent it in pursuit of the Black Ship.
Wigg's jaw dropped in awe. In more than three centuries, he had never seen anyone manipulate either of the orbs like this.
Tristan raised his hands higher. The orb obeyed his will and gained altitude. It was over the Black Ship in a matter of seconds.
The orb's golden energy poured down upon the Black Ship and the accompanying K'tons. When it struck the ship, the masts, sails, and decks began to melt away. Wulfgar, Cathmore, and the demonslaver crew were instantly vaporized. The hull of the great ship broke in two, each half a raging fireball plummeting toward the earth.
Unable to understand what was happening, most of the K'tons hesitated, and it cost them their lives. They screamed as they burst into flames and followed the Black Ship's broken hull as she went down. A smattering of K'tons escaped. Dazed and confused, they hovered tentatively in the air.
The burning hull hit the ground with a massive explosion; the earth trembled. Great shock waves shook the Jin'Sai's litter even at this distance. Then the Black Ship's ruins burst into nothingness.
Ox appeared in the air by the litter. Tristan pointed at the surviving K'tons.
"Kill them," he ordered.
Bloodied but joyful, Ox and the surviving warriors beamed at Tristan with delight, then flew off to tear into the K'tons.
Tristan turned to look at the orb. A pitiful thing to watch, it still wailed with pain.
"Come to me," Tristan said.
At Tristan's verbal command alone, the orb obeyed. As it neared, Wigg could feel its blazing heat, and their litter rocked violently again.
Tristan held out his arms. "How you have suffered because of us," he said quietly. "But now your suffering shall end." He pointed at the base of the orb.
A delicate, ethereal glow flowed from Tristan's hands to touch the gash in the orb. The orb's wound began to close. Wigg stood spellbound as Tristan healed the orb. When the great rent was finally closed, Tristan lowered his hands.
Almost at once the orb glowed more brightly, and its wailing stopped. Then Wigg saw something he would remember for as long as he lived.
The orb came a bit closer. Its majesty regained, it dipped and revolved one time, almost as if paying homage to the prince. Tristan lowered his head.
"You are free to go," he said.
The orb vanished, leaving nothing in its wake except the terrible destruction it had caused.
Wigg took a careful look around. Save for the sounds of the distant battle between the Minions and the K'tons, silence reigned once more. The ground below them was strewn with the dead, the green grass soaked red with blood.
He walked over to Tristan. They were both sweating and covered with soot. Wigg put one hand on Tristan's shoulder.
"It is finished," he said.
Tristan looked at the wizard, his expression grave.
"You're wrong," he said. "The rest of Wulfgar's forces are attacking Tammerland. There is still a war to fight."
Ox returned to the litter. Bloody and exhausted, he made his report.
"Battle finished, my lord," he said. "Rest of flying monsters dead."
With so many of the K'tons killed by the orb, Tristan had known that the results of the battle would be a foregone conclusion. But he hadn't expected it to come so quickly.
"So soon?" he asked Ox.
Ox beamed and pointed to the sky above them. "We get help," he said.
Tristan and Wigg looked up to see Traax's vast phalanxes hovering high above. He could just make out Traax victoriously waving his dreggan. They were indeed a welcome sight. Smiling, Tristan looked back at Ox.
"Tell Traax to have his forces follow us," he said. "We make for Tammerland with all possible speed. Our struggle isn't over."
Ox nodded. "I live to serve," he answered.
While the faithful warrior climbed into the sky, Tristan took a final look down at the carnage on the ground.
So many dead, he thought. And still so many yet to die.
As the sun set behind the Tolenkas, the litter and the Minion army headed south.
CHAPTER LXXXVII
Whirling around on the bloody deck, Tyranny held her sword high as another demonslaver came at her, thrusting his trident toward her abdomen.
She spun and parried at the last second, but the blade of her sword became entangled in the tines of the monster's weapon. With a victorious sneer the slaver twisted his trident. Tyranny's sword was torn from her grip, and rattled to the bloody deck of the Reprise. Losing her footing in all the fresh blood, she fell hard to the deck. Suddenly defenseless, she watched the points of the trident descend upon her.
Then she saw two familiar hands wrap around the slaver's neck from behind. She scrambled to her feet as the fingers squeezed the slaver's throat. The monster desperately tried to reach behind him, but it was no good. His eyes soon bulged and his tongue protruded from between his black teeth.
With a loud cracking of bones, Scars broke the thing's neck. The slaver died instantly. Scars picked him up over his head and tossed the corpse overboard.