Dragon Apocalypse (The Berserker and the Pedant Book 2) (23 page)

“Nice kitty,”
 
Pellonia said.
 
The beholder chewed the cod and considered, then turned and floated off.

Pellonia walked over to Gurken. Seeing that his hand was sticking out of the ice, she removed her bracelet and placed it on his wrist.
 
There was a flash and the ice surrounding him fractured and shattered, exploding outwards.
 
Gurken growled.

“Where is that beast?
 
I’ll kill ‘em!” he said, looking around.
 
Pellonia held out her hand and pointed toward Gurken’s wrist.
 
He removed the bracelet and gave it back to her.

“Accepting yourself for who you are didn’t work, eh?”

“Apparently not,” Gurken growled.

Pellonia walked over to Maximina and knelt beside her, while Gurken went to recover his axe.

Maximina sniffed, wiped her nose with the back of her hand, and looked up, tears in her eyes.
 
“I… I killed Apocalypse.
 
It… it was my fault.”

Pellonia shook her head.
 
“It wasn’t your fault, Maximina.
 
Mistakes happen in combat.
 
Things happen quickly.”

Maximina looked down at Apocalypse and stroked his head.
 
She stopped suddenly, as if an idea had come to mind.
 
Pellonia continued as if she hadn’t noticed.

“We’ve got to keep going, Maximina.
 
Arthur’s here and we’ve got to stop him before he gets the portal open.”

“You two keep going; I’ll catch up.
 
I think I can save Apocalypse.
 
I have to try.
 
I owe him that much.”

Pellonia nodded.
 
“I understand.
 
But first, can you put the frozen Pellonias in that magic sack of yours? Wouldn’t want them thawing out and attacking us from behind.” Pellonia pointed to the three blocks of ice.
 
Maximina nodded.

“Let’s go, Gurken,” Pellonia said.

Pellonia walked to the hallway and helped Clem up.

“You know,” Clem said as he stood up, sounding very much like Arthur. “Your story about the bears was really more of an analogy than a metaphor.”

Pellonia smiled sadly.
 
“I’ve missed you, Arthur,” she said.

“Me no Arthur. Me Clem!” said Clem.

Pellonia, Gurken, and Clem stood at the entrance to the tunnel that Rufus, the mysterious man in the silken robe, and the beholder had gone down.
 
The flap on top of Pellonia’s pouch popped open and Antic stuck his head out.
 
His pincers flexed as he purred.

“I know you like it in there, where you’re safe,” Pellonia said.
 
“It’ll be just a bit longer.”
 
An acrid scent filled the air.
 
She pushed his head back down and closed the flap, tying it down. Antic purred loud enough that the pouch vibrated with the sound of his contentment.
 
Pellonia smiled and patted the pouch.

Gurken, a berserker unable to rage and who bore a mystical axe that did not work, Pellonia, a young elf with no more than her wits and her bracelet, and Clem, an enchanted amalgamation of bits of former Arthurs, a Moog, and a Leon, walked into the tunnel ready to face Arthur, the most powerful wizard in the realm, his apprentice Rufus, the mysterious man in the silken robes, and Melody, the elven warrior with thousands of years of experience — oh, and a beholder — one shouldn’t ever forget to include a beholder, they’re rather sensitive about such things.
 
The fate of the entire world rested in the outcome of the confrontation to come.
 
What could possibly go wrong?

C
HAPTER
T
WENTY
-O
NE

The Berserker and the Phage

PELLONIA OPENED A hatch and looked around.
 
She was outside.
 
She climbed out of the tunnel, emerging on top of the Phage ship.
 
From this height, she could see the entire valley before her, from the small village from which they came, to the fortress of the frost giants and on to the floating city of Arendal.
 

The light had a barely perceivable red hue as the sun descended.
 
Night was approaching.
 
Gurken and Clem walked up behind her and Gurken growled.

Not ten feet away were Arthur, Rufus, the mysterious man in the silken robes, Melody, and Ohm.
 
Oh, yes — also the beholder.
 
Arthur, Rufus, and the mysterious man in the silken robes stood behind Melody, who was busily working on the Orb of Skzd.
 
The Sphere of Annihilation hovered close by, encapsulated by a shimmering barrier.
 
Ohm was chained down several feet away, glumly entertaining the beholder with his lute.

Rufus saw them and tapped Arthur on the shoulder. “Sire, the Ice Capaders approach.
 
What’s left of them, anyway.”

“I can see that, Doofus. Quiet!
 
Your miserable failure will be dealt with!
 
Harshly,” Arthur said, narrowing his eyes.
 
Turning to Pellonia, he smiled and continued.
 

“You made it?
 
Impressive.”
 
His eyebrows furled as he glared at them.
 
“And you’ve killed our queen.
 
No matter, we won’t have any need of her momentarily.
 
You’re just in time to witness the emergence of the Phage into this world.
 
This world shall become a paradise.
 
For them, not you.
 
You’ll hate it, I’m afraid.”

“Arthur,” Pellonia implored him.
 
“You’ve got to fight it!
 
Fight the Phage!
 
Don’t let it control you.”

Arthur held his head and shouted, “No, mustn’t… lose… control.”
 
He clutched his head and bent over in apparent agony as he held his hands to his head.
 
Pellonia looked at Gurken.
 
Gurken rolled his eyes as Arthur’s shouts of pain turned to laughter and he stood back up, chuckling.
 
“Really, Pellonia.
 
If it were that easy, he’d have taken control long ago.
 
He’s been taken for so long, he can’t even hear you. He’s not even conscious anymore.
 
This body is mine.”

Maximina, back in the cave where they’d defeated the Phage queen, reached into her pocket and pulled out the seeds from the resurrection plant she’d taken from the elven ship.
 
She smiled, pulled the magic shovel out of the bag, and whistled a merry tune as she dug a hole.
 

She stopped whistling and reverently placed Apocalypse in the hole, covering him with a layer of dirt.
 
She stuck the seed inside, covered it up, and patted the shovel on top of the mound.
 
Then, she waited.

“Who would have thought a magical shovel would come in handy?” she said.
 
A sprout pushed through the ground.

“Apocalypse,” said Ohm.
 
“Where’s Apocalypse?
 
I heard he might be alive?”

“He was,” Pellonia said.
 
“He died fighting the Phage queen.”
 
Ohm’s face fell.

“How tragic,” Arthur said.
 
“And sad.”
 
He looked at Melody and motioned for her to speed things along.

Pellonia held one hand over her mouth and murmured to Gurken, “How long do you think Maximina is going to take?”

Maximina watched as the plant grew from sprout to seedling, pushing dirt out of the way, a spiral unfurling.
 
It grew from a seedling to a young plant; leaves grew and the trunk widened.
 
Roots snaked out, searching out sustenance.

Maximina shoved the frozen Pellonias into her magic sack while she waited.

Arthur and Pellonia stared into each other’s eyes across the ten foot distance between them, searching for the other’s motivation.