James can tell the integrity of the shield won’t last much longer under the flame’s attack. He says, “I’m going to give you a crystal. Once you have it, step away from me and say ‘Shield’. It will form a protective shield similar to mine around you.” He opens one of the pouches and hands him a crystal with a deep crimson glow. Before he gives it to him, he adds, “It will only last about ten minutes, less if you are targeted magically.”
Jiron takes the crystal and nods. Stepping back, he says, “Shield!” and a shimmering shield springs up around him.
Reaching into another pouch James removes several other crystals, each glowing a deep crimson. Holding two in each hand, he concentrates and then let’s the magic from each of the crystals flow through him in one massive surge.
Whoom!
The shield surrounding them explodes outwards in a gigantic explosion. Soldiers, tents, and everything else in the vicinity gets lifted up and thrown backward several yards. Those who were closest to the blast lie unmoving upon the ground.
The warrior priest is knocked backward by the unexpected blow, the mage fares even worse. The fiery mass coating the outer side of the shield is blasted outward. The caustic mass flies in every direction, striking men, tents, wagons, etc, including the mage. When it hits, it begins burning and eating away at the flesh. The mage cries out as his flesh is consumed by the fiery mass and is soon lying on the ground, the remnants of his body smoking.
Fires break out all over this section of the camp wherever the fiery mass comes to land. Even the palisade is burning, some of the hellish fire having been thrown that far.
James tosses the now shattered, empty crystals to the ground as another shield springs up around him. Going on the offensive, he lets loose the power…
Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!
…and the ground between him and the warrior priest erupts, throwing dirt and dust into the air.
Once the warrior priest’s vision is obscured, James pulls out two crystals and says, “Activate. Countdown twenty.” Turning to Jiron he says, “Let’s get the hell out of here!”
He tosses them to the ground behind them as they turn to race back toward the palisade. Soldiers are already moving to extinguish the fires burning there before they have a chance to catch. They take no more than two steps when he again feels the tingling sensation spike. “Dodge!” he yells.
Bolting to the right, James feels the sizzle as another fireball shoots past right where they had been a moment earlier. “Keep going,” he says to Jiron. “Whatever you do, don’t look back!”
Just as the tingling sensation spikes again, the countdown reaches zero.
Schtk! Boom!
A blinding white light blossoms behind them and the force of the blast knocks them forward to the ground. Heat and sound accompanies the wall of force and it feels as if their being broiled alive but then it passes by.
“Damn!” Jiron says as he gets back to his feet. “What did you do?”
“Explain later,” replies James. He glances over to the palisade and sees there are still about a thousand men between here and there. Behind him, all traces of magic have disappeared. Hopefully he got the warrior priest with that but he finds that rather unlikely. If Abula-Mazki can survive a mountain falling down on him, this one will probably survive as well.
The pouches at his waist are nearly empty. He actually hasn’t used much of his own power as yet. Like he told Jiron back when they first met, if he has time to prepare, he doesn’t get tired. And he’s had all winter to prepare.
They make a break for the gate in the palisade, bolts rain down upon them but each is protected in their own protective shield. Jiron only has another eight minutes or so and then he’ll be at their mercy. Before they reach the leading edge of soldiers, James removes one of the two remaining crystals and throws it ahead of him toward the approaching troops.
“Down!” he yells to Jiron.
Jiron sees him fall to the ground and drops as well.
The crystal flies through the air and hits the ground just in front of the troops. Suddenly, a dozen soldiers drop to the ground as the crystal leeches a hundredfold. A fraction of a second later, six red beams like lasers shoot out from the crystal, at an upward angle reminiscent of search lights. They slice through whatever it touches and then the beams rotate forty-five degrees. A cry erupts all over the field of battle as men are cut in two, literally sliced apart by the beams. Then after the beams come to rest, they blink out.
Boom!
The crystal explodes in a deafening roar, leaving a four foot crater where it had lain.
“Come on!” cries James as he gets to his feet. The number of soldiers between them and the gate has been reduced by almost two thirds, the rest are fleeing for their lives after witnessing the devastating attack.
“James, the gate is closed,” hollers Jiron.
Looking toward the palisade, he sees the gate standing closed. “See if you can open it,” he says as the tingling sensation again comes to him. Glancing back, he sees the warrior priest coming fast, whatever damage the massive explosion earlier had done to him is no longer apparent.
Turning to face the warrior priest, he lets loose the magic…
Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!
…but it doesn’t even faze the man. As the ground erupts around him he continues moving quickly toward him, seemingly unaffected by the blasts. When he spies James there before him and the sea of dead behind, a hellish grin comes to him. Raising his hands over his head, he speaks words which are painful to hear.
Each word seems to go through him like a knife. Standing there before the warrior priest, James instinctively covers his ears as the words continue to set his mind and nerves afire.
Then from around him, among the dead a black mist begins to arise, the sight of which brings a horror which nigh on paralyses him. As the warrior priest continues speaking the words, the mist coalesces in many different areas among the dead.
Through strength of will alone, he manages to get his feet once more moving toward the palisade. Ahead of him he sees that Jiron is still some distance from it as he, too is overcome by what is transpiring around him.
Step by step, he progresses toward the gate in the palisade. Not very far from him is one of the points where the black mist is coalescing. It starts to take on a distinct shape of a bipedal humanoid roughly three foot in height. When the warrior priest utters the last word, the form solidifies and a pair of red eyes stare out from the black, demonic head.
To James’ horror, the head turns in his direction and the mouth twists into a malignant grin. The lips pull back to reveal a row of jagged pointed teeth. A quick glance reveals numerous of these creatures are upon the battlefield, each point where the black mist coalesced now contains one. Then suddenly they’re in motion.
James lashes out with the power at the one closest to him and has the satisfaction of seeing it lifted off its feet and thrown backward a dozen yards. The lethargy he experienced while the warrior priest was casting his spell ends and he’s able to once again race toward the gate where Jiron is attempting to lift the bar keeping it closed.
A cry that sends a shiver down his spine pierces the night from behind and he glances over his shoulder to see another of the hell spawn running awkwardly to catch him. Again he lashes out with the power and the creature is thrown backward.
Turning his attention to the gate in the palisade, he sees Jiron with his back to it, knives flying as he battles two of the creatures. The shimmering of the shield surrounding him has disappeared, the power within the crystal having been depleted. Behind Jiron, he sees the bar keeping the gate secured has been removed.