Jeff Inlo - Nightmare's Shad

Sy dismissed the bleak scene and kept moving toward their goal. Before long, they came to a descending slope that dropped into a ravine. Sy didn't like it, but that's where the trail led. The path was now too narrow for Ryson to circle.

"Ryson, climb up to the top. I don't want us walking into an ambush. If we stay down here and something hits us from above, we've had it."

"Good idea," the delver agreed and bounded back up the rocky walls of the ravine. He dashed forward and scouted the area ahead in mere moments. When he returned, he remained topside but called out below. "It's clear. I'll follow you from up here and make sure it stays that way."

Sy just nodded and turned his attention back to the trail. After about fifty paces, the trail turned and marked a path into a sizeable cave entrance in the cliff wall. This did not encourage the captain.

"What do you think?" Sy asked of Holli.

Holli gazed into the opening. Her elf eyes could make out a faint glow in the far reaches of the cave. Even more, she sensed a collection of powerful magic.

"It is in there."

"Blast." Sy responded with a flat, discouraged tone. "We can't all go in there. That would be beyond careless. It would be suicide."

Holli looked upon the captain. She knew the answer, but apparently so did he.

"Looks like I have to stay here and guard the opening," he stated as he examined the edges of the rock. "Ryson has the sword and you have the magic. You both have to go on."

He did not like the idea of staying behind, but he had not choice. The opening in the ravine wall was their only path of escape and it could not be left unguarded.

"How deep do you think they are in there? If I yelled a warning from here, could you hear it?"

"Without a doubt."

"I guess that's it then." Sy then called out to the delver. "Ryson!Anything up there?"

"Nothing at all."

"Give it a good look, as far as you can see."

"It's clear."

"Good, because you're going to have to come down here now."

The delver glided down the rocks as if they were a simple staircase. When he reached the floor and found the cave entrance, he understood what they faced.

Leaving Sy at the entrance, Ryson took the lead. Just like Holli, he could see the light in the distance and he made that his objective. Moving much quicker than before, he bounded through the narrow tunnels of the cave. When the light ahead became substantially brighter, he paused to consult Holli.

"It's just up ahead and around that bend. What do you suggest?"

"I sincerely doubt that stealth will be of any value beyond this point. It is your speed we must rely on now. I can feel the magic growing in intensity. I believe the vessel is near. If it is in your hands to destroy it, do so now, without hesitation."

"Alright, cover my back. I'm going in."

Just as Ryson took tighter hold of his sword, once more the overwhelming sense to leave that realm hit him with unquestionable certainty. He knew they should not be there. It was clearly a mistake. The consequences of their actions were not yet known, and thus could not be communicated to him through the sword, but he understood that misfortune would certainly follow in some form.

Unfortunately, at that exact same instant, the sword decreed the device had to be destroyed without delay. He knew the vessel had grown in power, had successfully hunted many creatures in the realm, and continued to crave the magic twisted by unspeakable acts and held within grotesque monsters. Without question, he knew the danger of this device, what horrors rested within it. He also knew with absolute certainty that the sword was capable of destroying the object, and he was now close enough to succeed toward that end. His path was clear and necessary, and just as there would be consequences for remaining in the dark realm, there would be dire results if Ryson did not act.

The divisive forces that pulled him in distinctly opposite directions were so powerful, he almost fell over. Had it not been for his delver grace and speed, he probably would have tumbled to the ground.

Instead, he forced a decision and rushed forward. He broke around the corner in a blinding flash. Just ahead of him in a direct line waited the spirit of Lief Woodson, standing beside the mutated shell of monster skins that now held an immense reservoir of corrupted magical energy.

The elf ghost simply stared at the flash of movement that was the delver. The spirit said nothing. Further, he made no move against the attack. He simply stood motionless, a pale expressionless apparition, until he smiled.

Holli Brances could not hope to keep up with the delver, but she still possessed the speed of an elf guard. She bounded around the bend and watched the scene unfurl before her. The delver was only a blur of motion, but she could see the sword in the delver's hand. It was pulled back and ready to strike.

Holli caught a glimpse of Lief's smile, saw expectation and desire in his expression. At that moment, she knew. Lief wanted the vessel destroyed. He expected this moment and delighted in its coming.

"Ryson! NO!" but her cry came too late.

The deformed collection of monster hides did not cringe from the attack, made no attempt to avoid the blow. If anything, it leaned into the strike, welcoming the blade and the end of its twisted, agonizing existence.

The Sword of Decree cleaved the vessel in two. Once the two separate sections of skin peeled away, they broke from the energy they once contained and slid eerily like snakes until they wrapped themselves around Lief's spiritual shadow. The magical energy that was held within the device remained intact-floating in the air like a condensed bubble of sheer power-but only for a moment.

The ghostly form of Lief Woodson threw his arms around the energy, pulled it into his core. He absorbed every ounce of power. His shadowy figure seemed to burn like an exploding star, but then diminished back to its previous state. He grinned with even greater amusement at the delver.

"Thank you, Ryson Acumen, for doing what I could not, for making me whole once more. Ironic, considering it was you who ultimately split me apart. Regardless, the energy is now mine and I intend to use it."

The conflicting messages from the sword ceased abruptly. No longer was Ryson fed the understanding of two mutually exclusive missions. As the turmoil released its grip on his mind, another understanding began to filter through from the Sword of Decree, but it was never given the chance to come clear.

The grinning apparition waved his hand and the weapon was pulled from the delver's grasp. The spirit would not take hold of the sword, but flung it behind him far from Ryson's reach.

"You no longer deserve the honor to carry such a weapon," the spirit announced as if rendering a verdict.

Looking into Lief's face, Ryson felt only more confusion.

"Why are you doing this?"

"I no longer have to answer to you, Ryson Acumen. And without that sword, you no longer have the answers before you. Time for you to figure it all out on your own."

Holli, however, felt no confusion. She sensed danger and relied on her instincts. She pulled at the delver's shoulder.

"We have to get out of here now. Now!"

Ryson didn't want to leave Lief-the vessel had been destroyed, but something was now very wrong. The spirit of his friend was not at peace, not ready or apparently even willing to leave this twisted place. Ryson couldn't simply abandon the elf ghost, not like this.

And yet, the delver could not dismiss a lingering warning, a distant echo dragging through his thoughts. A wisp of the sword's last image remained in his mind, but he could not pull it out into clear thought. He considered making a dash to the sword, to obtain a clearer understanding of the consequences they now faced. Holli held him tight, but he could slip free if necessary.