Son of Khyber_ Thorn of Breland - Keith Baker [81]
The raven wings drew Thorn’s attention, but the figure between them was nebulous and enigmatic. Her first impression was of a wraithlike being, cloaked in shadow, with long arms and hungry, grasping hands. No … it was her father, as he had been on the day that he left them for the last time. Or a whirling mass of dragonshards surrounding a great pillar. The sight was overwhelming and disorienting. She turned her eyes away, and not a moment too soon. Confused as she was, Thorn hadn’t even noticed the angel’s approach. Now, guided by the rattling of the chains, she realized he was almost upon her. She rolled to the side, and while she couldn’t see the angel’s hand, she felt a chill as it passed close to her skin.
Thorn’s companions moved. She heard the whir of Xu’sasar’s bone wheel and a ringing crash as it struck the wings of the chained angel. If Vorlintar felt any pain, he gave no sign of it. But that was just the prelude. Brom ran across the hall, smashing into the Keeper of Hopes with enough force to dent steel and shatter stone. Yet the angel was unmoved by the blow. He caught Brom by the neck and lifted the dwarf into the air. A horrible sound filled the air, a despairing wail torn from Brom’s throat as he flailed in the angel’s grasp.
Thorn moved behind Vorlintar. Steel was in her hand. One thrust could bury the blade in the angel’s spine. But how did she know he even had a spine? How could she hope to succeed when both Brom and Xu’sasar had failed so completely? Brom’s strangled cry was already dying, and she knew there was no way to save him. Her only hope was to flee, to try to save her own life.
No!
These weren’t her thoughts. There was always a way. There was always hope.
She wrestled with her doubts, struggling with the terrible malaise and fear—and then the despair broke.
Thorn struck with the speed of a viper, burying Steel in the back of the angel’s neck. His scream echoed throughout the cathedral, an unearthly howl of pain. There was no time to savor her triumph. Vorlintar lashed back with his wings. The sheer force flung Thorn back, and the impact of a chain against her forehead made the world go white. She rolled with the blow, twisting to land on her feet. A thought called Steel back to her. He flew from the wounded angel and into her hand. Streams of shadow and dark wisps of smoke poured from the injury.
Brom lay crumpled on the ground, and Xu’sasar was standing frozen, likely paralyzed by the same doubts Thorn had struggled with. Drego and Daine stepped into the fray. Drego raised his hands, and argent flames illuminated the room. “I know you, Vorlintar.” His voice was clear and strong. “Fifth among the Fallen, bound in this place for coveting that which you were born to inspire. My light will strip away your power and constrain you to the fate that awaits you.”
Drego thrust his hands forward, and bolts of silver light flowed across the room. Yet Vorlintar laughed, raising his hands and blocking the flames with shields of shadow.
“What mockery is this?” the angel said. “Your hopes are hidden from me, but I shall pry them from your soul.”
Drego’s magic couldn’t reach the Keeper of Hopes, but the onslaught was holding Vorlintar’s attention, and now Daine strode forward with his blade drawn and his dragonmark pulsing in the dim light. Thorn circled around the other side. Vorlintar was beating his wings, and the lashing chains made it difficult to close in. Still, she just had to wait for an opening.
“You are alone in this place, fallen one,” Daine said. “You cannot stand against us all. End your struggles and accept your fate.”
“Oh, I always have hope,” the angel said. “Just as long as I have innocents.”
The children rose to their feet.
It was just as Thorn had feared—a mob driven by the same feral fury as those they’d fought in the tunnel. They weren’t armed, but the sheer numbers would be deadly.
“Xu’sasar!” Daine snapped.
Whether it was the order or the change in