Warrior Priest of Dmon-Li - Brian Pratt [162]
Looking around, he realizes everyone in the room is having a hard time breathing. Oxygen! I used up most of the oxygen in the room in sustaining the flame. He gasps over to Jiron, “Open the window, we’ve got to get some fresh air in here.”
With the bolt still sticking out of his shoulder, he makes his way over to the window and throws it open wide. A breeze from outside begins circulating within the room bringing much needed oxygen to its occupants.
The men behind the invisible wall pick up the bench they used previously as a battering ram and begin smashing it against the invisible wall. Each time the bench hits, James feels a brief increase in the amount of power being used to sustain it.
“Even with your magic, you’ll never make it out of here,” Councilman Rillian warns.
“We’ll see,” James says to him. Turning to Jiron he asks, “How’s the shoulder?”
Jiron gives him a look that says, ‘That’s a dumb question’, and replies, “Hurts. But I’m not going to pull this thing out until we’re out of here.”
“Good idea,” says James. “I suppose the entire area is up in arms over this?”
Shaking his head, Jiron says, “Actually, other than the men in the hallway, it looks like no one else even knows what’s going on.”
“Really?” James asks as he turns his attention over to Councilman Rillian.
“My men can handle the likes of you,” he says confidently to James.
“I wonder,” he says as he moves over to the window.
“What do you plan to do?” asks Jiron.
From his position on the couch, he replies, “Maybe I’ll just let everyone know that we’re here.” Pausing a moment, he says, “What do you say to that, milord?”
“What do I care what a bunch of thugs do?” he states. “When they learn how you came in here and tried to force me to help you open the gates for the Empire, you’ll get what’s coming to you.”
“Oh, by the way,” Jiron says, “Miko said to tell you that ‘One Eye’ is in the city. Said you’d understand.”
“He’s here?” he asks incredulously. Turning on the councilman, he asks, “Is that why that army is sitting out there waiting? For Korgan to open the gates like he did back at the City of Light?”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replies nonchalantly.
“If he’s here, we’ve got to get to Lord Pytherian now,” James states matter-of-factly.
“And how are you to do that when you can’t even get out of this room?” asks Councilman Rillian smugly.
“Like this,” replies James. Moving to the window, he creates his orb and tosses it out, causing it to increase in size as it slowly descends to the ground.
As soon as the orb passes through the window, the soldiers below become aware of it. They back up as a murmur begins to grow as more and more of the waiting escorts come over to see what’s going on.
Once the orb is on the ground, he has it flare to intense brilliance before disappearing abruptly. Framed in the window, James looks out over the faces gazing up to him. “Please inform Lord Pytherian that James is here and would like to meet with him. And ask him to hurry!”
His words produce another round of muttering and then one of the faces breaks off and runs for the castle.
“What are you doing up there?” demands one of the faces.
“I’ll tell that to Lord Pytherian and Lord Pytherian only,” James announces to the crowd.
James continues looking out over the crowd and finally sees a group of people coming out of the castle’s gates. Striding in front of them is Lord Pytherian himself. The crowd of onlookers parts as they allow him to come before James.
When he’s at last close enough to hear him well, James says, “Greeting milord.”
“This is a strange way to come for a visit,” Lord Pytherian says.
“Unavoidable, milord,” James replies from the window. “If you would come up here with some of your own guards, I’ll tell you all about it.”
“Very well,” he says.