• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

With the others trying to catch up, James lays along his horse’s neck in an attempt to decrease wind resistance and increase speed. He closes the distance with the outskirts of town rapidly and finally shoots down the street between the outlying buildings.

Ahead of him is an intersection and when he reaches it, crossbow bolts fly from the street to the right. He becomes aware of his danger too late and one bolt takes him in the leg while four others strike his horse.

The horse stumbles and throws him from the saddle. He flies through the air and slams into the ground ten feet away. Instantly, he erects his shield around him just as another volley of bolts flies at him. They strike the shield and are deflected away.

His nerve endings tingle when he begins detecting the workings of magic. Looking around quickly, he sees the mage emerge from the side street and come toward him. In his hand is the Star. His troops set up a blockade to prevent the others from coming to his aid as bolt after bolt is fired.

Jiron and the others are forced to retreat from the deadly volley. They quickly backtrack to the edge of town and then their group splits, Jiron and Qyrll going to the right and Miko and Fifer going left.

James gets to his feet, his right leg from which the bolt is still protruding barely able to support him. Thankfully it’s only embedded in the muscle and didn’t hit the bone, although the pain it’s inflicting is almost unbearable.

The tingling sensation suddenly spikes as the Star pulses and a wave of force strikes him. His shield is little protection from an attack of this magnitude and he’s thrown backward where he strikes the side of a building. His lungs freeze from the impact and it takes him a couple seconds to get his breath back.

The mage’s soldiers are keeping guard against the appearance of James’ comrades, the crossbowmen and soldiers lining the streets.

Crumph!

A massive explosion rips apart the street upon which the mage is standing, several of the soldiers adjacent to him are thrown into the air. The others stagger from the concussion of the blast.

When the dust clears, the mage is standing unscathed.

Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!

Three more explosions erupt beneath the soldiers this time, James targets them to better enable his friends to come to his aid.

A sudden spike in the tingling and an explosion similar to those he used on the soldiers erupts beneath him. His shield protects him from the brunt of the impact but he’s still thrown to the side. Landing on his injured leg, he drives the bolt deeper into his thigh, eliciting a cry of pain.

Using the side of the building for support, he works his way back to his feet as he turns to see the mage approaching. Behind the mage, Qyrll suddenly appears on horseback with Jiron right behind. They begin wading into the men disoriented from the explosions, Qyrll’s swords from the vantage of the horse’s back are deadly as they fell man after man. Jiron, though only having his knives and tied to his saddle, is just as deadly.

At the sound of combat behind him, the mage turns and sees his men beginning to be cut down. From the other side, Miko and Fifer join the battle as they begin taking out the remaining crossbowmen before they have a chance to unleash their bolts.

James sees the mage turn toward his friends and raises the Star.

Crumph!

He unleashes the magic and the building beside which the mage is standing suddenly explodes outward. A shimmering field immediately encircles the mage as the building sags and then finally collapses on top of him.

The mage taken out of the battle, James turns his attention to the remaining soldiers. Despite the increase in pain, he bends over and picks up stones and begins throwing them, taking out soldier after soldier.

He’s takes out his third when the rubble covering the mage suddenly explodes upward and the mage comes to his feet, again unscathed. A large section of stone wall comes flying toward him from the blast and he dodges out of the way to avoid being crushed. The stone