Savior of gilgin, p.24
Savior of Gilgin, page 24
Slowly, her consciousness expanded, the pyramid standing out like a cancer in the landscape. The Manhir rushing through the city far below her blazed brightly, the magic in their bodies visible in her mind; one of them crawled across the cliff underneath the castle. That had to be Henge. She stopped herself from reaching out too far, and pulled her awareness back to the pyramid behind her. The black crystal set atop it stood out like a gangrenous wound, pulsing angry red, the rest of the pyramid glowing with the same unnatural light.
Dark Magic’s angry lure still lurked beneath her, promising power and destruction, but with the crystal in her lap, it had no purchase on her. She saw it for what it was, a part of nature twisted and perverted into something unrecognizable, a mockery of the true powers of nature; something that needed to be healed.
Remembering how she’d stopped the golem using the Crystal of Creation, she drew forth a pure, translucent strand of magic and tied it around the pyramid’s crystal. With each wrapping, Dark Magic’s cries of pain and destruction diminished. As she saw the results, her confidence grew, and with that the amount of magic flowing out of the Crystal of Creation. The surge in magic let her wrap the whole pyramid underneath her, smothering the flow of Dark Magic, then cutting it off altogether. She opened her eyes again. The morning sunlight seemed brighter somehow, and the cold emanating from the pyramid had disappeared. Somewhere in the fields outside the walls, a lark tweeted, oblivious to the struggles in the city.
“Did it work?” Kristofer asked.
“I think so.” She glanced over her shoulder, past Kristofer. The black crystal was still there. Contained, yes, but not destroyed. Her heart sank. Given enough time, someone might be able to undo her wrapping, and bring back the Dark Magic. “Maybe not enough.”
She got up, walked over to the black crystal, and placed her hand on top of it. No more magic streamed into her, but she could feel it hidden away underneath the layers of magic. As long as it remained whole, the Ochloroc would search for, and undoubtedly find, a way to bring it back. It had to end today. She closed her eyes again, and reached with her mind into the Crystal of Creation. Henge’s words from when they’d restored the Crystal came back to her: destruction is a part of nature. Just like creation is. Even the Dark Crystal had, long ago, been carved from the Crystal of Creation. This crystal should be able to destroy just as much as it could create.
She drew out a strand on magic, shaped it like a lance, and pushed it at the black crystal. Sparks showered around her as the magic pierced the crystal. Somewhere in the city, an Ochloroc cried out in rage. Tension built in the black crystal, and it resisted her attack. Leaning on the strand of magic, she pushed harder, until with a loud snap the black crystal shattered.
Elina tumbled forward as the resistance of the crystal suddenly disappeared, and Kristofer caught her. She let go of the magic from the Crystal of Creation and drew in a deep breath. For a moment she savored the feeling of Kristofer’s arms around her, and she rested her head sideways against his shoulder. Then her thoughts returned to the black crystal, and she looked up.
The crystal was gone. A gaping hole sat where it had been, not even a shard of it remaining. Running a hand along the pillar that had held it, she searched for any traces of Dark Magic; there were none. It was just a regular stone pillar. The same went for the rest of the pyramid underneath her feet; it was simply a pile of rocks sitting on the edge of a city. She let Kristofer pull her to her feet, and together they climbed back down.
Rockbreaker waited at the bottom of the stairs, a smile on his face. “You’ve done it!”
Elina smiled back and nodded. “It’s over.”
“Then let’s see if we can do something about this pyramid.” Rockbreaker reached out with a hand and gingerly touched the surface. Nothing happened. “We can work with this.” He waved over a group of Manhir standing behind him, and together they rushed up the pyramid.
Gilgin
Finn leaned back in the camp chair in the shadow of Thane Ivar’s tent, glad to be out of the afternoon heat for a moment. The Ochloroc had fled Stirgard in a rout the moment Elina had destroyed the crystal atop the black pyramid. The human defenders had surrendered soon after, when they’d found their thane dead and their allies gone, ending the battle for Stirgard. Since then, Finn had been busy with the usual after-battle tasks of looking after the wounded and feeding his other men, ending any pockets of resistance in the city, and securing the area.
It had taken him several hours of rushing back and forth, but now that everything was sorted, he’d returned together with Henge to the thane’s command tent for a rest and an afternoon snack. There he’d found Elina with Kristofer at her side, Thane Ivar, and Rockbreaker, wrapped in bandages. Across the field in Stirgard, a group of Manhir worked on dismantling the black pyramid. They’d already removed a significant chunk of the top, and black basalt blocks kept tumbling down its sides, from which Manhir and humans dragged them out of the city.
“You would make a good ruler for Stirgard,” Thane Ivar said. “We’d form a strong alliance, and could become the dominant force in this region.”
“Thank you,” Finn replied, “but I have no interest in becoming anyone’s ruler or dominating anything. I’ve had enough of politics to last me a lifetime.”
“Shame,” the thane said. “It really has potential.”
“I think the people of Stirgard have the right to rule themselves,” Rockbreaker rumbled.
“They need someone to take control,” Thane Ivar said.
“I agree,” Rockbreaker said. “But we came here to get rid of the Ochloroc, not to conquer them. We’ll help them get things sorted, and then we’ll leave.”
“I was just philosophizing on who to leave in charge,” Thane Ivar said defensively. “We need someone trustworthy.”
“Well, it’s not going to be me,” said Finn.
“What are your plans, then?” Elina asked.
“I don’t know yet. Maybe I’ll visit some family. Why do you ask?”
“Do you have time to help me with one last thing?”
“Sure. What do you need?”
Elina hesitated before answering. “Gudmund.”
Finn scowled, the name dispelling his contentment. “He’ll probably still be in Gilgin.”
“I know,” Elina said. “I want to talk to him. See if we can make amends. Can you come with me? I can use the support.”
“Of course I’ll help. We’ll find a way to sneak in and talk to Gudmund.”
“I might be able to help you get into Gilgin,” Thane Ivar cut in. “That is, if you’ll do one last job for me.”
“What do you need?” Finn asked.
“We’re still at war with them,” Thane Ivar answered. “With Jorun out of the way, we have a good shot at making peace. I need to send envoys to Gilgin to negotiate. As my official envoys, you would be able to enter the city, and even the Inquisitional Palace, unhindered. It sounds like a win-win situation.”
“That sounds like a plan,” Finn said.
FINN PACED THROUGH the apartment the Inquisition had given him in the Inquisitional Palace. Seven paces to the bedroom door, four to the window overlooking the courtyard at the back of the palace, and five back to the wall. He’d been confined in this part of the palace for two-and-a-half days now, ever since they’d arrived in Gilgin.
He slammed his hand down on the windowsill and marched out of the apartment.
The two guards lounging at the end of the hall sat up as they saw him. Finn ignored them and turned the other way. They wouldn’t touch him, but they did follow his every step, and had, on multiple occasions, denied him access to any place other than his rooms. He could leave the palace and the city if he wanted to, but as long as he didn’t, he was stuck in this single corridor in the palace. He knocked on the door twenty-one paces down the hall.
“Enter,” Elina said through the door. She was just as confined as he was.
Inside the apartment, which mirrored his, he dropped down into one of the chairs by the window. “I feel like I’m going crazy, being confined like this.”
“That’s what they want,” Elina said. “They think it’ll give them an edge in the upcoming negotiations.”
“I know, I know. They’re showing us they have power over us. It’s still frustrating, though.”
“There’s nothing we can do about it.”
“I’d sneak out if I had anywhere I could go that would help.”
“They’d go crazy if they found out you were gone,” Elina said.
An idea surfaced in his head. “They would, wouldn’t they? Tell me, can you still work your magic, even without the Crystal of Creation nearby?”
“I should be able to do a bit. I’ve been practicing ever since we got here. Why?”
He grinned at Elina. “I want to have some fun with them.”
BACK IN HIS APARTMENT, Finn lounged by the window, watching time go by, listening to the familiar hubbub of the city below him. Off-duty soldiers wasted their time in the courtyard underneath the window, whistling after passersby. Somewhere a cart-driver yelled at a kid for crossing the street just in front of him. A market vendor’s cry, claiming an impossible-to-refuse deal, rose above the background din. Gilgin was still the same, even if the people in charge had changed.
A knock came on his door. “Finn?” Elina asked. He ignored her, and a moment later she repeated the question, “Finn, do you have a moment?” She tried the door, but it stuck in place; before doing so, she’d sealed it shut using magic. “Finn!”
“Is everything all right, miss?” one of the guards, Havard, asked.
“I —” Elina began. “I don’t know. I’m looking for Finn, but he isn’t answering, and the door seems to be jammed shut somehow. I hope he’s all right.”
A chair scraped across the hallway floor, and a moment later the door rattled again. Something thumped into the door, probably the guard's shoulder. “Karl, come here!” The guard sounded worried. Another chair scraped across the floor, faster than the first one had. Something crashed into the door again, louder than before, but it didn’t budge.
“Shit!” Karl swore. They threw themselves at the door again with the same result. “The High Priest is gonna have our hides for this.”
“He doesn’t know yet,” Havard said. “I’ll get Perti and Magnus. They won’t talk. We’ll have this door down in no time. You stay here and watch her.” A pair of boots thundered down the hall.
“You’d better go back to your room, miss,” Karl said.
“I’m not going anywhere without Finn,” Elina answered. Finn laughed under his breath as he poured himself a mug of ale and sat back. It was playing out as expected.
Havard didn’t take long to return; Finn hadn’t even finished his drink yet. Outside Finn’s door, the guard hurriedly explained what was going on, and a moment later the door rattled again as the four guards charged at it. “Shit! That hurt!” one of them shouted.
As if in answer, a commanding voice echoed down the hallway, “What is going on here?”
Outside the door, four pairs of boots thudded on the ground as the soldiers sprang to attention. After a moment of silence, it was Havard who spoke up. “Well, sir, it’s like this. Master Trollarvik isn’t answering from inside his room, and his door is stuck somehow.”
“And now you can’t break it down.”
“No sir.”
“What was your plan? To just keep throwing yourself against the door until it either broke or you passed out?”
“Yes sir,” Harvard said. “I mean, no sir. We were just trying to get to him as fast as possible.”
“Have you considered getting a war hammer?”
“We’ll get one right away, sir.” Havard said. Someone ran down the hallway.
“What are you up to?” the commanding voice asked.
“Me?” Elina asked. “I have nothing to do with this. I just wanted to have a chat with Finn and found his door shut tight.”
The rest of the time passed in silence. Finn could imagine the captain, or whatever rank the man had, glaring at his soldiers while they nervously shuffled back and forth.
Soon someone came running back. “Here,” Havard said, out of breath. Several heartbeats later, a war hammer slammed into the door, followed by a second one.
Finn and Elina had discussed this. They had no idea how well the door would hold against a determined assault. Also, they’d figured it might be a good idea to not let the Inquisition find out either. He hopped off the chair and stretched as the hammers kept pounding on the door. “All right, all right, I’m coming! No need to keep knocking.” Finn wandered over to the door, and, after two more hammer strikes, pulled it open. “What is it?” he asked five confused-looking soldiers.
“I, uhm —” Havard began. “That is, Miss Elina here, she uhm —”
“Ah, Elina. Didn’t see you there. Come in.” Finn stepped aside to let her pass. “Why are you guys carrying around those hammers inside?” He didn’t wait for them to answer. “Anyway, have a good day.” He stepped back inside his room and started closing the door.
A foot shoved into the gap, jamming the door open. The guard captain grabbed the door and pulled it open again. “I demand an explanation! What is going on here?”
Finn looked him up and down. “You can demand all you want. We don’t owe you any explanation. Now if you’ll excuse us, I want to have a word with my fellow envoy.” He emphasized the last word.
The captain turned red around his ears. “Don’t you think you can make fools of us!”
“I’m not thinking anything. Do close the door on your way out.” Finn turned away and walked to his table.
As the door slammed shut behind him, Elina sniggered. “You should have seen his face.”
“I can imagine it.”
“Do you think it’ll work?”
“I’m pretty sure it will,” Finn said. “Give it an hour and everyone in the Palace will know something happened, and with each telling, the story will become more fantastical. Whoever’s in charge won’t be able to resist.”
IN THE END, IT TOOK longer than an hour before someone came to see them, but someone knocked on Finn’s door as the sun was a hand-and-a-half away from the horizon. An Inquisitional priest in a pompous ceremonial robe stood outside his room. “Your audience request has been granted. Follow me.” The man turned and walked away.
Finn and Elina strode after the man as he led them through the familiar corridors of the Inquisitional Palace, heading downstairs and into the Hall of the Vein. No matter how many times Finn had seen it, the bright red crystals spiraling up the round wall to a dome right at the top of the Inquisitional Palace remained awe-inspiring. Inquisitional flags stood arrayed along the wall, dwarfed by the natural spectacle around them. The niches all across the wall where once the Manhir had stood in hibernation for over a thousand years now stood empty.
A group of Inquisitional priests in the center of the room watched them enter, while the High Priest was nowhere to be seen. Finn wondered who they’d elected to succeed Jorun. He’d asked a few of the people he’d talked to, but no one had answered. The priest who’d brought them led them to stand opposite the priests. “Wait here,” the man said before joining his peers.
They didn’t have to wait long. Soon, the sound of a staff thumping on the floor as someone marched towards the hall echoed towards them. Finn turned to watch the door. Whoever it was, the new High Priest certainly did like theatrics.
Two servants marched in, followed by the High Priest. Finn gaped in surprise. “Gudmund?” he blurted.
“What are you doing here?” Elina demanded.
“Surprised I’m still alive?” Gudmund asked, his voice cold.
“No, just surprised to see you leading the Inquisition,” Finn said.
“After Jorun’s brutal assassination, they needed someone with experience running Gilgin and leading the army.” Gudmund took up his position in front of the gathered priests. “Someone close to Jorun who knew his plans. I volunteered, and everyone quickly realized I was the man most suited for the job. What brings you here?”
“You,” Elina said. “I came to see you. To make amends.”
“How do you want to do so?” Gudmund asked.
“The war is over and the Ochloroc are gone,” Elina said. “I hoped we could leave the past behind us and move forward.”
Gudmund’s voice dropped to a whisper. “What do you want me to forget first? That you betrayed me for that usurper?” He pointed at Finn. “Or that you planned to have me executed?”
“Please, Gudmund,” Elina pleaded. “I just want to go back to the way things were. Remember how close we were?”
“That was before you stabbed me in the back.”
“It was you who betrayed us, remember?” Finn said. “We showed you mercy by letting you live.”
“What? You dare threaten me in my own hall?”
“I’m not threatening you,” Finn said. “Just keeping the facts straight.”
Gudmund bristled at Finn. “Everything you say always seems so harmless on the surface! And yet, somehow people in charge always end up dead and replaced by you!” The priests around Gudmund took a step back at the outburst.
“Now you’re just repeating Ochloroc lies,” Finn stated.
“What are you doing here, anyway?” Gudmund asked, contempt dripping from his voice.
“I’m here to support my friend. And while I’m here, Thane Ivar asked me to be his envoy to make peace with Gilgin.”
