Michael Foster - She Who Has No Name

‘There is nothing I can do for him,’ Cang said, bearing his jagged teeth. ‘Close his eyes and leave him be. At least his wish was granted, if only for a few minutes.’

Samuel looked back to Eric and saw that there was no life left in him. There was nothing else he could do, as he had less magic than ever before and less ability to control it. Reluctantly, he shut Eric’s eyes and gently lay him on the floor.

‘A senseless death,’ Cang hissed. ‘What is Lomar doing?’

‘What are you doing?’ Samuel said, eyeing Cang with rage. ‘Why have you done all of this? You have killed everyone with your ridiculous plans!’

‘No,’ Cang replied calmly. ‘It is you who have doomed us all, Samuel, setting the demon free. The world shall pay for your actions with the loss of countless lives.’

‘I’ve saved my son.’

‘Your son is a demon!’ Cang declared. ‘He would have killed the both of you the moment he could. But now we will never know. He is free and we are lost. It seems Lomar hasseenfit to raise him as his own. Who knows what god-forsaken idea has gotten into his head?’

‘We are doomed,’ Balten said from his place beside the dais. For the first time, he looked defeated, hunching over and clasping his face in his hands. ‘After all we’ve done, it’s all been for nothing.’

‘Damn you, Cang!’ Samuel said, standing to face the scrawny old magician, incensed with anger.

‘Oh, shut up, boy!’ Cang responded. ‘Sit down and await your fate. We are all dead anyway.’

Samuel took an angry step forward, but Cang would have none of it and sent him flying backwards across the chamber with barely an effort. He landed heavily on his back once more, grazing it upon the stones, but he was up again and charging himself with whatever magic he could summon.

‘Please don’t start!’ Cang called across the echoing chamber.

‘Samuel!’ Balten called. ‘Calm yourself!’

‘Stop this! Please!’ the Koian woman also chimed.

But Samuel could not;he was overcome with rage and whispering voices were screaming for his attention. We will help you. We will give you what you desire. Let us in , they called to him in the Ancient Lick.

‘Yes!’ Samuel replied to them, for he was livid with fury. ‘Come to me! Help me defeat them! I will give you anything if you just help me to kill him!’

‘What are you saying?’ Cang called across, but Samuel did not reply. Magic began filling him from some otherworldly source-dark powerful magic that breached the ether as if from nowhere. He hadtasted just smatterings of it before, but now it came spilling into him, pure in form. The vileness of it made him bend over and he emptied his stomach upon the floor, but it was a bitter-sweet feeling to have such furious power once again. As he straightenedand wiped the vomit from his chin, he was grinning with madness.

‘What are you doing?’ Cang called out. ‘What power is that? Stop what you are doing at once, you mad fool! This is senseless!’

All the while, the Koian woman stood with her handsoverher mouth, unsure of what to do.

‘Stop him, Balten,’ Cang instructed.

Balten took a step forward and Samuel raised his hand. He only thought to stop the tall magician, and that is what happened. A dark whip of magic struck out and hit Balten. It pierced his defences and the man fell to the floor,his body wracked byspasms.

‘Black magic!’ Cang roared out with dismay. ‘What kind of fool gives himself to demons over something as foolish as this? You will lose your soul and have nothing to show for it. What do you have to accomplish?’

‘I have no soul of my own to lose,’ he replied. ‘Everything I am belongs to Lin, or so you tell me’.

He came striding towards Cang and called for more dark magic. Wild beams burst from his palms, but Cang waswell preparedand turned the bolts aside with a spray of fire and vapour.

‘There has always been something terrible inside me,’ Samuel spoke aloud. ‘I have always tried to keep it at bay but,as you say, what do I have to lose? At least I will savour your death before my own.’

Cang snarled and let out scathing magic of his own. It crashed into Samuel and screeched on his dark shields. They swapped spells and tussled to and fro within the chamber as they battled against each other. The Koian woman turned and fled, for she had no defence against such magics, while Balten lay motionless on the floor.

The voices called in his head and Samuel kept saying‘yes’to whatever they asked of him, if only it allowed him to kill Cang. Still, it was not so simple a task and Cang was vastly powerful. Their spells filled the air with smoke and dust, yet both of them were forced to choose their spells carefully, lest the temple should be brought downon topof themall.

They faced each other with spells designed to burn flesh, but the magnitude of Cang’s power was astounding. Even Samuel’s dark wrath was not enough and,as the minutes dragged by and the devious leader of the Circle of Eyes remained unfaltering, Samuel’s confidence waned. The voices seemed to give up their whispering as the inevitable outcome of the battle became clear. Finally, Samuel fell to his knees, exhausted, and his dark powers left him.

‘You sorry fool,’ Cang said, standing over him. The bony magician shook his head as he prepared a final spell. ‘You should be thankful you can die before they take you, but I’m sure Lin would find a way to get you back before too long. He could not be left without his father, or how would he return in the future?’

But something leapt onto Cang’s back and he began cursing, twirling away as he struggled against whatever had hold of him. Samuel stood groggily to his feet and saw it was the Koian woman who had leapt upon the man. She hung onto his back and pushed her nails into his eyes. She sucked at Cang’s power and it came streaming out into her in tempestuous volumes.

‘Get off me, witch!’ Cang roared, but she stuck fast, and the furious magician howled in fury as she drained his very life. ‘Without me you will never learn your name!’

‘I promised I would kill you, demon, and I will!’ she yelled back into his ear. ‘Now die!’

Bolts of lightning erupted from his fingers and struck the girl on his back as he twisted and shook in effort to shake her free. Magic poured out of him and sizzled upon her skin, but she would not relent. Howling, Cang finally threw himself onto his back and lay still, smoking, with the Koian woman beneath him. Samuel hobbled over as quickly as he could and dragged the stiff magician from her.

He almost cried aloud with grief when he saw her, for she was scarred and burned all over. Cang’s magic had cut into her deeply, and parts of herbodyhad been baked alive.

‘Quickly!’ Samuel told her and he dropped beside her and cradled her head upon his lap. ‘Take me! Take my life and save yourself!’

She slowly shook her head as best she could. ‘No. You must live. You are stronger than me and one of us must live to save our son. He may be a demon as they say, but that can change…people can change.’

‘They can,’ Samuel admitted. ‘But you can’t die. I have only just found you.’ He looked towards the form of Balten, where he still lay on the floor. ‘Take him then.’

But she shook her head. ‘No. You are right. I can’t take the lives of others any more. You will need him if you are to escape. I’m sorry, Samuel. I don’t want to die. I just wish we could be together. That’s all I’ve ever wanted-just to be with you. I’ve always loved you, and I had you, Samuel-I had you for just a little time.’ Tears streamed down her cheeks,tears of pain and tears of sorrow mixed as one.

He laughed as he cried and held onto her, considering the pure ludicrousness of his life. He had truly been cursed, for nothing he loved, and nothing that loved him, could ever survive. ‘You’ve never called me by my name before,’ he told her, with tears dripping from his cheeks.