David Coe - The Dark-Eyes War

Everywhere Tirnya looked, soldiers, their swords looking pitifully small, tried to fight off the animals of the Mettai. Men screamed in agony. Archers fired their arrows at the eagles, though they had little effect on birds so large.

The Mettai threw another spell into the air, and this time several of the eagles went rigid and then fell to the ground. Dozens of soldiers were crushed.

"Tirnya!"

Enly's voice.

She turned just in time. One of the snakes was slinking toward her, its mouth open to reveal long, gleaming fangs. She pulled her sword free, and then her dagger as well, and she lowered herself into a fighter's crouch.

As the creature struck at her she dove to the side, rolled, and came up with weapons held ready. Already the snake was rearing back to strike again. She dove a second time, angling away to distance herself from the creature. Not that it helped much. Gods, these serpents were fast!

She lashed out at the creature with her sword, but it snapped its head back out of the way before striking at her again. Once more Tirnya dove away, and as she came up she saw that the snake had anticipated her dive and roll and was already readying itself for another strike. She tried to wrench her body out of the way, but knew that she'd fail this time. The serpent was too quick for her, for anyone.

But just as the snake began to strike, it suddenly twisted to the side, its tail thrashing violently. An arrow had embedded itself in the side of the snake's powerful neck.

Tirnya looked to see where the arrow had come from, and saw an archer standing beside Enly.

"Finish him!" Enly shouted to her.

Of course. She leaped forward, raising her sword, and she hammered at the beast as hard as she could, catching it just below where the arrow had struck. Dark blood spouted from the wound, and the beast flailed about even more desperately. She struck at it again, and the creature gave one last mighty heave and was still.

Tirnya stared at the creature. She was breathless. Her pulse pounded. Blood dripped from her sword. Finally, she wiped the sword clean on the grass and turned to face Enly again.

He was staring back at her, looking pale. But he nodded to her and even managed a thin smile. By then, though, Tirnya was already looking past him, her eyes widening, her mouth opening to shout a warning. Not that it would do any good. The snake she had killed might have been fast, but the eagle hurtling downward toward her father, its talons outstretched, its enormous beak open wide, was like a dark blur in the bright sky.

Their defenses against the great beasts conjured by the Mettai seemed to he holding. Grinsa remained vigilant for any sign that the Eandi sorcerers were going to try another of their spells, but he also watched as E'Menua, O'Tal, and the others kept the snakes and wolves and eagles at bay. Already the plain was littered with the bodies of those animals that had been killed, yet still more of the beasts advanced on them.

When the Fal'Borna saw that some of the animals had turned against the Eandi army, they cheered and began to sing a war song Grinsa had never heard before. Still he watched the sky, but he could also see that the Mettai were now more concerned with their own creatures than with the Qirsi army.

"This is the time to attack!" E'Menua shouted, looking first at Grinsa and then at the other two a'laqs. "We can finish them now!"

He was probably right, but Grinsa wasn't sure he wanted to see thousands slaughtered on the plain. He kept silent.

"Well?" E'Menua said, his voice rising further.

"Yes, all right!" O'Tal called back, even as he scanned the charred grasses for more of the snakes.

"I want shapers and fire wielders together!" E'Menua called, swiveling in his saddle to look behind him. "Shapers will ride with me; those with fire go with O'Tal." The a'laq looked over at Grinsa. "Stay with O'Tal. Use the fire against any spells that they send our way."

"All right," Grinsa said, still watching the Eandi.

One of the eagles that had been attacking the men of Stelpana wheeled away from the Eandi army, gliding over the battle plain. Several arrows jutted from its belly and chest, and when it flapped its wings it appeared to labor mightily. As it approached, one of the other eagles turned to intercept it.

Grinsa glanced at the a'laqs, but they were speaking to one another.

The second eagle circled once over the wounded bird, and then, with a sharp cry, it abruptly pulled in its wings and swooped toward it, raking its talons across the first bird's back. The wounded eagle let out a sharp scream, and when the second bird dove at it again, it flipped over in midair and met the assault with its own outstretched claws. The two eagles grabbed hold of one another, each tearing at the other with its beak, both of them flailing with their great wings, desperate to stay aloft.

By now their struggles had carried them closer to the Fal'Borna army, so that they were almost directly overhead.

"The wolves!"

Grinsa tore his eyes away from the birds in time to see that another line of blood wolves had almost reached the Qirsi army.

"A'Laq!" he called, not caring just then which of the three men heard him.

E'Menua reacted first. "Shapers!" he bellowed.

The pulse of shaping magic slammed into the wolves just as they reached the Fal'Borna, knocking their broken bodies backward and to the ground.

Another scream from the eagles drew their gazes toward the sky. The wounded bird seemed to be clinging to its foe. There was blood on its neck and breast, and one of its wings hung limply from its body, while the other beat fitfully and weakly against the breast of the second bird.

They continued to grapple with each other for another moment. Then the second bird released the first, letting it drop to the earth. Most of the Fal'Borna riders on the ground below had already started scrambling to get out from beneath the giant eagles, but not all of them made it. Several men and horses were crushed by the dying creature; others were sent sprawling by the impact.

And by the time the Qirsi and their leaders had recovered enough to take stock of what was happening, the snakes were almost upon them. A wave of serpents reached the riders all at once, some of them striking at men who had fallen to the ground, others going for the legs of horses.

One of them sank its fangs into the haunch of E'Menua's mount. The animal bucked ferociously, sending the a'laq flying. He landed hard on his side, rolled once, and was still.

Without bothering to reach for the power of any of the Qirsi around him, Grinsa crushed the snake's head with shaping magic. But E'Menua had landed near another of the serpents, and before Grinsa could do anything, this second beast struck at the a'laq, drawing blood from his side.

Grinsa killed this snake as well, though he knew that it was too late. Feeling sick to his stomach, he leaped down off his mount, killed a third snake that was slithering toward him, and then sprinted toward the a'laq.

A wolf lunged for him and he set the beast on fire with a thought, barely even breaking stride. Snakes and eagles and blood wolves were all around him, as if this were some terror visited upon him in his sleep. But he left it for the other Fal'Borna to fight them off.

He dropped to his knees beside the a'laq, laid his hands upon the wound from the serpent, and began to pour his healing magic into the man. The wound itself was nothing. But the venom nearly overwhelmed him. It was as cold as death and as bitter as tansy. Already it had spread through E'Menua's body, seeping into the man's heart.

"Don't," E'Menua said weakly. His eyes fluttered open and with a great effort he turned his head to look at Grinsa. He made a feeble attempt to push the Forelander's hands away. "Save your strength," he said. "I'm dead already. Fight the dark-eyes. Guard the others."