Brian Anderson - Shadow of the Gods

“It was,” replied Aaliyah. She turned to Gewey. “It would seem Angraalhas sent more forces. Vrykol are aboard ships bound for Skalhalis. They will arrive just as we get to Valshara. You must warn Kaylia.”

Gewey nodded sharply and bolted to his quarters. Sitting in front of the desk, he reached out for Kaylia, but her thoughts were presently turned to matters of the flow. “Nehrutu must be giving her another lesson,” he thought. He pressed his spirit in even harder. This time he reached her. He explained what Aaliyah had said, and at once, she broke contact.

Aaliyah enter a moment later. “Did you succeed?”

The shock of Kaylia pulling away so suddenly, made him dizzy. “Yes. I'm sure of it.”

Aaliyah walked over to the desk and stared down at the map. “We will come very close to the ships when we land, and we still may be seen from the shore if an army is mustering for war.”

“Then they will not live to tell of our passing,” said Gewey, a small fire building in his heart. The rage returned. It felt good. He smiled fiendishly, and looked sideways at Aaliyah. “I guess the war has truly begun.”

She placed her hand on his shoulder. “It would seem so.”

The rest of the day he spent with the crew, trying to calm himself and keep his mind as far from war as he could. By now, he had learned quite a bit about the workings of the ship and offered to lend a hand wherever he could. This was well received by the crew, who in short order were teaching him elven seafarer’s songs and telling old tales passed down aboard ships for thousands of years. Most were about sea monsters and adventure, but a few dealt with the Gods. Gewey tried to pretend not to be interested about those, but couldn't help wondering how much truth was hidden within the fiction. After seeing what secrets the desert held, he thought that perhaps the stories held more truth than anyone had guessed.

In spite of all his efforts, his mind kept wandering to the coming battle. The force that marched on Valshara would certainly not be enough to defeat fifty ships filled with soldiers. And he had no idea how many had already landed. There could be one-hundred thousand troops ready to sweep across the land for all he knew. If that was so, then the war would be over before it had begun.

By nightfall, he was dreading what dreams might come. He knew Kaylia would be making preparations, and would likely be unable to contact her. Aaliyah could tell he was troubled and stayed in her quarters with him.

“Should you need me, I am here,” she said, as they both slipped into bed.

“Thank you,” he replied. He rolled over and squeezed shut his eyes. “I'll be fine.”

“Do not fear the strength your feelings bring,” she said. “They are a part of you. That strength saved my life.”

He sat up and pushed his back to the wall. “I know. And when it happens, I don’t mind it. But afterwards…it’s as if I’ve lost part of who I am. I feel it changing me.”

“It is changing you,” she replied. “I told you that before. But it should not upset you. You are just becoming what you were always meant to be.”

“And what is that,” he asked, worriedly. “I feel it most when I’m angry. What if that’s what I become? An angry, vengeful God? Will the world be better off once the Dark Knight is gone, if I still remain?”

Aaliyah scowled. “You will not become evil, if that is what you are suggesting. Powerful, yes. Dangerous, inescapability. But dangerous to whom, is the question? I think not to those you love and protect.”

“I hope not.” Gewey slid back down, and wrapped himself in his blanket. ”Each time, I feel it more than the last. The name Darshan is becoming more and more natural to me. I’m just afraid I’ll lose that part of me that is Gewey.”

“You will not,” she said, her tone reassuring. “I swear it.”

His dreams were troubled and filled with visions of hopeless despair and suffering. Human and elf, bleeding and crying. The whole world trapped in an inferno of chaos and death. In the midst of it all, he stood, unable to stop it. The morning was the only thing that brought him a welcome relief.

They would arrive at sunset, so Gewey spent the morning gathering supplies and checking his gear, then rested in the cabin until the early afternoon. He wanted to be as strong as possible when they landed. He only left the cabin twice to take his meals. When he finally went on deck he brought his pack, the bow, and staff along with him, and stowed it near the landing craft.

Aaliyah was already there and ready to depart.

“I see you are excited to get underway,” she remarked.

He shrugged and leaned over the port railing, and looked out at the setting sun. The cloudless azure sky was beginning to reveal the night stars as daylight slowly faded. There would be no moon tonight. He was grateful.

As he waited to depart, the crew came one by one to bid him farewell. As night fell and the ship slowed to a halt, the navigator joined him.

“You will return once your task is done,” said Drasalisia. “I still have much to teach you.”

Gewey thought he almost saw her smile, but couldn't be certain. “I would like that.” He watched her for a second as she walked away. As soon as his gaze returned to the sea he felt something strike his head, and water poured down his back. He spun around to see the navigator enter the cabin.

Aaliyah approached, pack in hand. “Of all the wonders I have seen, that was the most amazing. Were you an elf, you would certainly be doomed to be her apprentice.”

Gewey laughed, touching the wet spot on the back of his head. “So it's time to go?”

Aaliyah nodded and led him to the boat. The crew lowered it into the water and they climb down. As they began to move away, Gewey looked back to see the crew gathered along the starboard railing, waving. He waved back, as did Aaliyah.

Gewey drew his sword and let the flow of the air rage through him. Soon he could make out the shoreline. The seas were calm and small waves lapped against the sand. The moment the boat touched shore they dragged it into some nearby brush and covered it with branches. He reached out to see if anyone was about. Approximately, three-hundred yards due east, where the beach turned to a thin forest, twenty men were moving north.

“I sense them, too,” whispered Aaliyah. “And twenty more a quarter mile south of their position.”

“If they stay bunched together we should be able to slip between them,” said Gewey. “Kaylia taught me to move in the shadows unseen.”

“A useful skill,” she replied. “Let us hope it serves us tonight.”

They crept forward until they were only a hundred yards from the patrol. He could see their armor reflecting in the light of the torches they carried. One turned toward them, revealing the broken scales insignia of Angraalacross his chest plate.

They paused, crouched behind a clump of reeds, as the patrol slowly moved away. Just as Gewey and Aaliyah entered the tree line, they sense an all-too-familiar foulness coming at them from the east.

“Vrykol,” Gewey hissed. “Only one though.”

“It's enough to raise the alarm,” said Aaliyah. “If that happens, use the earth. Fire will draw even more down upon us. We should try to avoid that if possible.”

Gewey allowed the flow of the earth to replace the air. It felt odd, yet invigorating. The earth was so much more visceral and raw. “If it hears us, I'll knock him over. Soon as I do, we'll rush it. Hopefully, it won't have time to call out.”

They moved south, then east. At first, it looked like the Vrykol wouldn't sniff them out. Then, just as they were parallel to it, it halted, and began walking swiftly toward them. Just as it came into view, Gewey could see it held a curved blade in one hand, and a small, bone horn in the other. Gewey was just about to fling a fallen log at the beast when it stopped and raised the horn to the hidden lips beneath its black hood. It rang out and the beast backed away.