Obsidian Ridge - Jess Lebow [109]
Then finally, "For Erlkazar!" shouted one man.
"For Erlkazar!" screamed two more.
"For Erlkazar!" came the cacophony.
And the battle resumed in full force, this time with a united front.
Men, half-ores, and half-elves who had come to the palace to wrest it from the hands of the king, were now fighting in the name of their country. They worked the tools of their trade, employed their expertise as killers, in an effort to repulse these invaders. The men and women of the Magistrates-a group formed with the express purpose of defending Erlkazar from the forces of the underworld-fought by their side. These were desperate times, desperate people, now protecting a desperate land.
Leading them all, assassin, mage, and solider alike, King Korox punched, kicked, slashed and fought. His crown had long ago fallen from his head. His armor had lost its shine. The edge of his blade had gone dull, slamming down onto the invaders who would dare take his home.
His breath was labored, his muscles sore, his burden heavy. But it seemed that the fight might be turning in their favor. The tide of black beasts was at a standstill. All they needed was one final push, just one thing to fall in their direction, to change the momentum and balance of this war. They could defeat these invaders, send them from this land and regain what rightfully belonged to them.
That's when the king spotted Quinn at the edge of the battlefield.
The king's assassin approached Xeries's army from the back of their line. He struck down the invaders with each step he took, moving with a purpose toward Korox. His long sword came down with one hand, his bladed gauntlet with the other, and he cleared a path like a farmer harvesting a field of ripe wheat.
This is what they needed, thought the king. Quinn would turn the tides in their favor. Victory was at hand. All they needed was to reach out and grab it.
With a few more strides, the king's closest ally, his bodyguard and personal assassin reached his side. Korox reached out his hand and grabbed his friend by the shoulder.
"You have returned!"
"Yes, my lord," replied Quinn.
"Is it done?"
Quinn nodded. "Xeries has your daughter I turned her over as instructed."
Korox pulled back, confused. "He has Mariko? Then why are you here?"
"Xeries was just too powerful." Quinn shrugged. "I turned over your daughter and begged for my life."
Korox felt the world grow cold. "That monster has my daughter." His desire and fight drained from his body as if it were blood spilling from a massive wound. His knees went weak, and he dropped to the ground. "He has my daughter."
"Xeries was merciful and gave me back my life," continued Quinn. "He let me go in exchange for Princess Mariko. He said I was a good servant, and that her sacrifice would please him."
Korox looked up at Quinn. The bodyguard had a smile on his face, as if he were enjoying the pain that the king now felt. "Mariko is gone."
Quinn nodded. "She is out of our teach. Xeries has won." Then he turned and headed away from the battlefield, bypassing the beasts and assassin, heading for the dead trees lining the easternmost buildings of the palace.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Quinn had never been much for waiting. He was more of a man of action. Sitting here trapped while Xeries was out there masquerading was maddeningly difficult. Every few moments he would get up and pace the floor. He would examine the cracks in the walls. He would scan the faces of the decrepit women-the past wives of Xeries.
Each of the women had been placed in a fabric-lined coffin. Those in turn had each been set inside small, carved-out recesses in the black stone wall. And each of those had been equipped with a heavy door, all of which were open at the moment, giving Quinn a spectacular view of something he wished he'd never seen.
Not one of them moved. Not an inch. They were like life-sized dolls, displaying their tortured existence for the amusement of any who happened to gaze upon them.