ZIHAEN, The Shadow of the Revenaunt, Book 2

CHAPTER 3 - BO BRINGS AID

Bo looked around the battlefield and wondered what he should do. All around him, the flames roared, and for the first time he cursed his habit of wearing flowing, and highly inflammable, robes. He passed three soldiers bringing a wounded comrade to safety. The men were in a bad way, he saw. Bleeding, sooty and with staring eyes, they carried their terribly burned mate.

'Don't go to your tent,' he said urgently. 'That's too dangerous. Take him to the forest's edge.' His words didn't reach the men and they disappeared inside.

Bo shook his head and hurried on. Behind him came a bang and the crackling of fire. Screams rent the air, but he didn't pause to look back. From the corner of his eye, he had seen the flutter of wings. He drew his long robe up to his knees and broke into a run. For a second he glanced over his right shoulder – and promptly stumbled over a dead soldier. Down he went, headlong into the charred grass. Overhead, a bird screeched triumphantly. This was it, no escape possible. Already he felt the heat of the fire, the terrible sensation of being burned alive... Temple portals. His mind built the image of a mana tap. It was such a simple thing. You flipped it open; the mana flowed into it and... Open, cursed thing, open up! A searing pain tore through his body and everything went black.

When he came to, he was lying face down on a smooth floor. There was no pain, no heat. He groaned. A fiery blur leaned over him and a familiar voice said something unintelligible. Bo tried to speak, but his mouth wouldn't form the words. Helpful hands dragged him into a sitting position. Someone poured liquid down his throat. Automatically he swallowed and his eyesight returned.

'Help!' The shout wasn't louder than a whisper.

'All is well, you are safe.' The voice came from far away, but now he could understand the words.

'Help!' Bo said again. 'Phoenixes!' Slowly his brain and his muscles started to function again. He blinked a few times and ran his fingers through his long hair. I'll never get rid of the stink, he thought stupidly. Then his awareness returned in full and he looked about wildly. This was not the camp. 'Where am I? How did I get here?'

'We were asking ourselves the same thing, my boy,' Father Traun said. 'Your arrival sounded very different from a normal transport.'

'I... I ported myself.' Fantus's temple in Leudra-City. The thought stunned him. He pushed himself up with his staff and stood swaying on his feet. 'Father Traun, the Guard needs help.' Quickly he ​​told of the attack on the army camp, and all the dead and wounded.

The senior priest of Fantus thought for a moment. 'Can you walk?' Bo nodded and staggered forward.

The old man looked at him and said, 'I don't think so.' He motioned to one of his acolytes. 'Have the litter brought, will you?'

The lad ran away and soon a large wooden sedan chair with red curtains appeared at the portal's entrance, accompanied by an escort of priests on horseback.

Father Traun helped Bo get in and sat down beside him. Then the eight bearers lifted their burden effortlessly from the ground and pushed their way through the crowds on the street.

'Where are we going?' Bo said.

'To the palace. The prince is the only one who can act fast enough.'

Castle Leudra lay on a hill in the eastern part of the city. In its original form it dated from the first century after the Fall of Abarran, when the principality of Leudra was still an independent state. Later generations extended the square keep to a large pentagonal building with massive walls and heavy towers, and added elegant pedestal galleries with a hedge of by now ancient beech trees.

At the gate, Guards passed them through and the bearers carried the chair rapidly uphill to the main entrance. Here two priests of the escort helped Bo down. The young mage straightened his back, and immediately the pain shot through his body. The priests saw his face and without a word, they went to either side of him. With their help, and leaning on his staff, Bo stumbled behind Father Traun into the palace. Here a court official met them and led them down a long corridor to a marble room with statues along the walls. High windows on both sides let in a sea of ​​sunlight and offered a view of beautiful gardens.

The prince rose from his seat. Bo stopped abruptly when he saw him. His supporters assumed it was the pain and waited patiently. Actually, he was amazed at the similarity between Leudra's ruler and Ghyll. No wonder everyone immediately knew who our friend was, thought Bo. They could have been brothers, instead of cousins.

Wyllander Leudra-Lidraud was tall and elegant. He gave the impression of being more at home at Court than on the battlefield. Yet the sword at his side rested in a businesslike sheath that clearly had known better days. His robe was sober and the only adornment he wore was the Order of the Clover on his shoulder. Unlike Ghyll, he had hair the color of tarnished bronze and wore a short beard.

He greeted the priest politely, but with a slight undertone of surprise in his voice. 'Father Traun, we see you too little. Who is your companion?'

'This is the fire adept Bernabo Lusindral, Highness. His message is urgent, so I took the liberty to come to you without appointment.'

The prince gestured to a servant. 'Chairs for the Father Superior and the Mage Adept.' He himself returned to the high seat. 'Tell me, Adept. What news do you bring?'

'Highness, I come straight from General Davall. Camp Dirdahn suffered an attack by firebirds. It is in immediate need of assistance.'

'What do you say? Impossible!' The prince shot up and his face suffused with anger. 'Davall has more than two thousand men under his command. Nobody attacks so large an army and certainly not on Leudra's own territory. Are you trying to make a fool of me, Adept?'

Bo clenched his jaw and his eyes blazed. To be called a liar! He took a deep breath. 'Highness, I speak the solemn truth. These are the same creatures that destroyed Castle Tinnurad two months ago.' He glanced around and bent over. 'They're Dar'khamorth creatures! The regent appointed Baron Halwyrd as King's Lieutenant, to find out about these attacks, Highness, and I belong to his retinue.'

'Halwyrd?' the prince said slowly, while the red in his face subsided. 'Ghyll Halwyrd?' A sudden, small smile played around his mouth, but then his face tensed. 'And how did you get here, Adept? As far as I know there is no portal connection between Camp Dirdahn and Leudra City.'

'I wish I knew, Highness. One minute I was in the camp, in the firm belief I was about to be killed. The next moment I lay on the floor in Fantus's portal.'

'That's not unheard of, Highness,' Father Traun said. 'In situations of great need, a mage can pass impossible boundaries.'

'Is the battle still going?'

'Half an hour ago it was, Highness. Every moment we delay may be fatal,' Bo said sharply.

The prince's brows knitted. 'The Adept may be good at his profession, but his tact is lacking.'

'Please remember he knows the urgency of the situation, Highness,' Father Traun said.

The prince stilled. 'That's true.' He clapped his hands and a servant came. 'Call my secretary. Five minutes.' The servant didn't even flinch at this command and hurried away.

Bo leaned back in his chair and tried to relax his protesting muscles while he waited. He realized Leudra's military options were limited. All the regular troops the prince possessed were part of Davall's 6th Corps. Still, in case of emergency, the local temples could muster enough temple soldiers amongst them for a small army. Bo desperately hoped they would be in time. In his mind, he saw Ghyll, Olle and the others as charred bodies in a burnt out camp and... Roughly, he pushed the images away and tried to concentrate on the prince and his commands. While Leudra dictated his orders, a squire brought the princely armor.

'You are coming with us?' Bo asked with surprise.

The prince looked at him. 'Of course. Leudra will not fail his troops. Besides, I am thinking Baron Halwyrd expects it of me.'

Bo swallowed. He knows who Ghyll is! With difficulty, he kept his face neutral. 'Your troops will appreciate it greatly, Highness,' he said.

The prince laughed. 'You have a rudiment of tact after all, mage?'