The lifetree, p.24
The Lifetree, page 24
Upon seeing that, the Fire Demon nodded in approval. He pushed himself to his feet, towering over us, and opened his mouth to speak.
That was when we attacked.
Will thrust his spear forward, striking the demon right between his shoulder blades. At the same time, I cast Winter Storm on the Fire Demon, aiming carefully to ensure I didn’t hit Will in the process.
The Fire Demon let out a scream of rage that shook the walls and made my ears ring. I even saw Scarlet clap a hand over one of her ears at the noise.
Will tumbled back, and then rolled to the side just in time. A gout of fire erupted from the wooden floor right where he had been standing. The Fire Demon glared at the old assassin but wasn’t able to pursue him, as Scarlet and I reached him at that moment.
Scarlet was a master with her sword. She swung and lunged at the Fire Demon, who deflected the steel of her blade with his bare hands. I moved to the side, holding my shield in front of me while swinging my blade.
I was immediately grateful for the slowing effect my spell offered, as the Fire Demon would have been impossible to fight otherwise. Even slowed, he moved faster than I did. Scarlet met every attack and parried it, even managing to ram her sword into him a few times. The wounds bled for a second, then cauterized themselves.
I swung my sword hard, chopping into the back of his thigh. Before I got the chance to even pull my sword back, a massive clawed hand slammed into my shield hard enough to knock me back five paces.
Stars swam in my vision and my head rang, but I managed to push myself to my feet. Scarlet swung her sword with both hands, teeth bared from the effort. She was five levels higher than the Fire Demon, but that bastard was fast. Arrows sprouted from his shoulders as Jonah, Arden, and Pol used their bows.
The demon shouted in anger as he swiped his clawed hand at Scarlet. She parried with her sword, but his other hand tagged her across her stomach, one of his long fingernails slipping between plates of armor. She gasped in pain but didn’t slow.
I pushed myself to my feet and brought my shield back up, then took a few steps toward the Fire Demon. He was so focused on Scarlet that I managed to swing my sword and land a blow on his side. That time, I was smart enough to duck the moment my blade touched him. His clawed hand passed through the air above my head.
Scarlet lunged, driving her sword into the demon’s thigh. The demon responded by backhanding her across the face, hard enough that blood sprayed through the air.
My sword simply wasn’t going to cut it with this guy. More arrows peppered the demon, but those were barely enough for him to even notice. I needed something that would hurt him.
I put my sword into my inventory so I could focus on holding my shield with both hands, then cast Ice Blast against him. The demon shouted in surprised anger as ice crystals formed on his skin. Even though it was a low-level spell, he was susceptible to cold damage.
Will appeared out of nowhere and rammed his spear into the demon’s back again. He was quick for being an older guy, and ducked out of the way before the demon could counter attack.
Heat waves began radiating off the Fire Demon, so intense that I felt I was standing right in front of a pizza oven. He clapped his hands together, and black veins on his neck bulged from effort. Scarlet’s eyebrows drew down in concern.
“Get back!” she shouted. Her mouth was filled with blood. “Everyone, get back!”
I had more fire resistance than everyone else, with the exception of Scarlet, so I stayed for a few seconds and cast Ice Blast against the demon again. He grunted in pain, his fiery eyes filled with pure hatred as he briefly glanced at me. The heat grew until I felt I was standing in front of the sun.
I stepped back, then turned and ran. Scarlet had the demon’s focus, but I just hoped her fire immunity would save her.
“Come on!” I shouted as I passed Jonah and the others.
I had seen what a Fire Demon could do, so I ran straight for the open doors. It burned my heart, leaving Scarlet there, but I knew she would be alright. The rest of us wouldn’t stand a—
The force of the explosion knocked me on my face, and the deafening roar made my ears ring. My hitpoints dropped by thirty two. I scrambled to my feet and ran back into the archway of the door, right as massive stones began falling.
“Hurry!” I shouted, as Sam shook his head and tried to stand.
He was a few feet beyond me, in the street, where stones began to fall to the surface of the street. Half of his visible skin was badly burned.
He never made it, though.
A hole had been blown through the front of the temple, right above the large double doors. Heavy stones rained down from the explosion, some of them crashing into buildings across the street. One of them struck Sam in the back of the head, splattering blood in every direction.
My arms and legs still seemed to work, so I turned and ran back into the temple. I passed by a burned body on my way there—too badly burned to tell who it was, but it had to be either Pol or Arden.
Scarlet still fought the Fire Demon, her blurring blade met by the demon’s lightning-fast claws. I couldn’t even follow their movements, it was just a blur. Of course, I had taken a pretty good knock to the head, so that probably contributed.
Scarlet bled from half a dozen visible wounds, and had a deep gash down her neck. I already felt guilty from running away, even though she had told me to. I needed to help her end this fight.
I downed a light mana potion and ran toward them, pulling my sword from my inventory on the way. I couldn’t do much, but any help I could offer Scarlet would be worth it. Arden was suddenly there with me, bow in hand. He was in bad shape, his face covered with blood, but his jaw was set and he pulled out a fresh arrow.
I moved up to the demon’s right side while Arden moved to its left. Jonah stood next to him, and they fired arrow after arrow, rapid-fire, right into the demon’s side. I lunged forward with my sword, hoping the cold damage it did would be enough to help. My blade barely penetrated the demon’s thick skin, but I opened four wounds in his side in no time.
But it wasn’t enough. We all looked like shit, even Scarlet, and the demon was still moving strong. Plus, the slowing effect from my Winter Storm spell was going to wear off any minute, and then we’d really be fucked. He needed to be killed.
So I did something stupid. I moved forward and cast Ice Blast right into the side of the Fire Demon’s head. And I mean I was only a foot away from him.
I immediately dropped back and ducked, but still caught a backhand from the demon. It felt like being hit by a baseball bat. My cheekbone crunched like rotten wood and I staggered backward, but the damage had been done.
I glanced over at the Fire Demon and saw half of his face covered in ice crystals. My spell hadn’t been strong, but properly directed and focused on his head, it had done a lot of damage. The demon screeched in agony and his flame-filled eyes glowed like the sun.
Will suddenly appeared from nowhere and rammed his spear into the back of the demon’s neck. He twisted the blade and tore it free, causing the demon’s eyes to widen in surprise. Scarlet managed to get past the demon’s defenses and ram her sword into its stomach. I brought my sword across and hacked deeply into the demon’s ribs.
We were going to do it. We were going to kill a Fire Demon.
It was then that he exploded.
There was no other word for it. One moment we all attacked him, and the next a deafening roar knocked us all to the floor, even Scarlet. The smell of burned flesh and hair filled the area. Even the demon was down after that.
I tried to sit up and winced as pain lanced through my body. Beneath my armor, half of my skin was charred black. My left arm was so broken I was amazed it was still attached, and my legs weren’t in any better shape.
I turned my head to the side and saw the Fire Demon right next to me, close enough to touch. Waves of heat radiated from his skin, and he was covered in deep pock marks. He coughed and struggled to his feet. I reached out with my right hand and cast Ice Blast, point-blank into his face. He screamed, a static-like sound that seemed to pierce my very brain.
Next to me, Scarlet pushed herself to her hands and knees, glaring at the demon. She wiped blood from her mouth and clambered to her feet, then reached down and grabbed her sword.
We were all in bad shape, but I knew if we were to stand any chance, Scarlet had to be healed. I used the last of my mana to cast my healing spell on her. It wasn’t much, but some of the wounds on her face and body closed a fraction.
Behind me, I could hear Jonah and Will moaning in pain. Good. That meant they were alive.
I was out of mana and had three hitpoints left. Scarlet didn’t look like she was in much better shape. If we didn’t do something quick, this Fire Demon was going to kick our—
The sound of hooves clopping on the wooden floor made me wonder if I was dead and dreaming. I twisted my head to look, gasping from pain as some of my charred skin flaked off.
Misty charged into the temple at full speed, aiming right for the Fire Demon. Just as the demon pushed himself to his feet and fixed his eyes on me, Misty crashed into him like a freight train.
The amount of momentum a thousand-pound horse carries is nothing short of impressive. Misty sent the seven-foot-tall demon tumbling to the burned floorboards like a children’s toy.
My horse screamed in pain as her skin burned from contact with the demon, but she didn’t slow for one second. After knocking the massive demon to the floor, she turned her rear end to him. Startled, the demon quickly pushed himself to his knees, only to catch one of Misty’s rear hooves right in his face, crumpling his jaw like a soda can.
“Take that, you motherfucker!” Misty said as she turned back around. She lashed out with one of her front hooves, striking the demon in the chest. Each time she hit him, burned skin and flesh peeled off. “That’s for hurting my humans!” Misty screamed, as her hoof ripped off the demon’s stub of a nose.
Caught completely off-guard, the demon got his ass thoroughly kicked by my horse before he could even think to fight back. He pushed himself to his feet and stumbled back a step, ready to kill everyone in the room, but Scarlet was already there.
Her sword went straight through his back, piercing his heart. She twisted the blade and tore it to the side with a shout of effort, opening up a hole in his ribs. Black blood sprayed from the wound and the demon collapsed onto the ground, twitching and gasping. Smoke rose from his gaping wounds.
“And don’t even think of getting back up!” Misty shouted. She took a step forward and stomped her front hoof on the demon’s head over and over until it cracked open like a rotten melon. Red smoke poured from the demon’s broken head, and my hitpoints suddenly topped off.
My fucking horse had just killed the Fire Demon. My horse.
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
“I leveled up!” Misty shouted. She danced a few steps, then hurried over to me. “Nikolas, are you alright?”
I sat up, wincing at the memory of all my burned skin cracking and bleeding. Man, that had been terrible. “Yeah, I’m okay now,” I said. I pushed myself to my feet, instinctively wincing. My mind expected everything to hurt after all that. I shoved all my notifications aside and hurried over to Scarlet.
“Never underestimate a Fire Demon,” Scarlet muttered under her breath. She gave me a tired smile as I walked up to her. “Thank you, Nikolas. I don’t think I would have made it without you healing me. And you, Misty,” she added after a moment.
“He healed you?” my horse asked.
Scarlet nodded. “Right before you charged in here.”
“Well, in that case, you should kiss him,” Misty insisted.
Scarlet laughed, and I chuckled as well. A bit of humor felt good after such a bad fight.
“You think I’m joking?” Misty asked. “By the gods, Scarlet, the man helped save your life. The least you can do is kiss him. I mean, with the way he stares at you all day, I’m surprised you haven’t already.”
Scarlet laughed again. “Oh, fine. I think that’s fair.”
I turned my head slightly to the side, expecting a kiss on the cheek. Scarlet walked up to me and took my face in her hands, kissing me squarely on the lips. No tongue or anything, but she pressed her lips on mine for several seconds before pulling away and looking into my eyes.
“Thank you, Nick,” she said with a smile.
“You betcha,” I said.
“Nick, did you just say ‘you betcha?’ We really need to work on this, Nick,” Misty said.
“We need to check the others first,” Scarlet said. She glanced at me again, giving me a brief smile, and then we both walked around the sanctuary.
Jonah and Will walked up to us, both of them adorned now in completely burned clothes. Their faces were a mixture of excitement and sorrow.
“Arden and Pol are dead,” Jonah said.
“I saw Sam die outside,” I added. “They died freeing this city from a Fire Demon.”
“May their memories never fade,” Scarlet said. “You’ll have to talk to the mayor and erect a monument, so we always remember them. They deserve as much.”
“Ah, shit,” I said.
“What?” Scarlet asked.
“The mayor,” I said. “He’s corrupt as can be and follows the Fire Demon. I need to deal with him.”
“Can it wait?” Jonah asked.
“Tomorrow,” I said. “I think we could all use a rest after this.”
Together, the four of us plus my horse walked out of the ruined temple. Half of the front was simply gone, and shattered stones littered the area. Most of the floorboards had been scorched black, and several smoldered and burned. A large building across the street had been mostly destroyed from the fireball.
People wandered into the area, trying to get a glimpse at what had happened. Some of them gasped when we exited the temple. One woman saw Sam’s smashed corpse and screamed. A full dozen city guards rushed into the area, weapons drawn, demanding to know what had happened.
“Good people of Easthaven,” I called out. “The Fire Demon is dead. You are free.” I turned toward the guards. “Anyone that still wishes to follow this cult has a choice: leave immediately, or I remove your head from your shoulders. You have five seconds to decide.” I pulled my sword from my inventory and held it in my hand. In the darkness of night, orange and blue magic waves flashed along the length of the blade.
The guards looked at each other, then hurriedly sheathed their swords. They tore their robes off and cast them to the ground, muttering things about wanting to do what was right.
“Good,” I said.
“Nicely done,” Scarlet said quietly.
“Couldn’t have done it without you,” I replied.
I put my sword back into my inventory, then reached out and took her hand in mine. She squeezed it briefly.
A few people in the crowd clapped, and several shouted words of thanks. One woman, an older woman walking with a cane, cried tears of joy.
“Come on,” I said. “Let’s go have a drink in their memory.”
The four of us walked back to Perrin’s inn. The crowd of people followed us, their joy increasing with every step. By the time we reached the common room, people were loudly singing our praise. Misty basked in the praise but wisely kept her mouth shut so people didn’t freak out about a talking horse. She branched off and walked into the stable herself. When we entered the common room, a crowd walked in behind us.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Perrin asked as we walked up to the bar. He looked a question at me and Scarlet, then over at Jonah.
“The Fire Demon is dead,” Jonah said. “Arden, Sam, and Pol are dead with him. They gave their lives in the fight.”
Perrin nodded soberly. “Celebration and remembrance.” He reached up and rubbed the bridge of his nose with a thumb and forefinger. “I’d say drinks are free, but business has been too slow lately. I can’t afford that.”
I reached into my coin purse and dug out four gold coins, then slapped them on the bar. “We’ll drink until this runs out,” I said.
Perrin’s eyes widened at the sight of the money. People pushed into the bar, crowding around us. Hands reached out, touching us, grabbing my shoulder. An elderly man clapped Jonah on the back. People were very careful about how they touched Scarlet. Having “Level 55” posted above her head made people understandably wary.
Perrin set four mugs of ale on the bar in front of us, then went to pour more. We grabbed the mugs and held them, waiting. It took a few minutes, but eventually Perrin had a mug in everyone’s hand.
I raised mine. “To Sam, Arden, and Pol. They gave their lives to help free this city.”
“Sam! Arden! Pol!” the crowd shouted, and we all drank.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had good beer,” Scarlet said, taking another sip.
“What do you drink up there?” I asked.
“Mostly water,” she said with a chuckle. “Sometimes tea. The wine I save for special occasions.”
“Good lord, that’s horrible,” I said, shaking my head. “Enjoy the beer, in that case.”
Scarlet took a long pull from the mug and grinned, then stifled a burp behind her hand. “Oh gods, I’m sorry.”
I smirked. “Yeah, you’d better be. How dare you do something completely normal after drinking a carbonated beverage.”
Scarlet laughed and slapped me on the arm playfully. My heart did a somersault when she touched me. I could tell from the way she looked at me that she was at least passingly interested in me, so I decided to up the ante a bit.
When Scarlet set her mug down I reached out and took her hand in mine. She looked at me for a moment, slightly surprised, but then smiled. I gave her hand a little squeeze and brought it up to my lips, kissing the back of her hand.
“What’s that for?” she asked, still smiling.
“I just like you,” I replied. “And I like being around you.”
Scarlet laughed. “Even when I threaten to cut your arms and legs off and throw you into a volcano?”
