In Search of Auria (26 page)

“Leave Auria alone!” he glared. The other
witches flocked around him. They shot their blue magic, but he was
too fast for them. He flapped his wings like a blur, punching and
kicking them away.

“Ha ha, I am too quick for you,” he mocked
as he floated in the middle of his adversaries. But, as he laughed
at them, a hand squeezed his nape from behind. It was Lorana. She
raised him with such a firm grip, he could not even fly to free
himself. She then raised her other hand and long ice needles
emerged from her palm.

“I only need one fairy, and it isn’t you,”
she said.

Beam struggled, but before Lorana could do
any harm, a column of light struck upon her. From above, Auria
flared a cylinder of fire from her hands. The snow beneath Lorana
melted and Beam freed himself from her grasp. Lorana screamed as
the light burned right through her. When Auria stopped and the
column of light disappeared, Lorana’s body was roasted. The crispy
corpse fell back, and immediately all the snow and all the coldness
that had come with her disappeared. The stones, bushes and grass
returned to their warm and vibrant states. The rays of the sun
dissipated the brume in the sky. When the witch faction saw their
leader wither like an overcooked piece of ham, they hastily fled to
the north.

“You are not getting away that easily,” Beam
yelled and went after them.

“No, Beam. Stop!” Auria shouted, but he
didn’t listen. She had no choice but to follow him. I would have
gone with them, too, but there was one last thing I needed to
resolve. I retrieved my shield and took my dagger out of the
soldier’s back. I ran around the ice wall to find Vallias gazing up
at the sky. I neared him and prepared my sword, “It’s time I
returned the favor, Vallias.”

“Life is such a delicate thing,” he said,
“One cut, one hit, and it can be taken away. An insignificant cough
could take you to your death bed in less than a month. Yes, it is
so delicate… and you had to ruin it!

“I was going to rule a kingdom,” he pointed
his sword at me, “I was going to expand our lands, I was going to
make the Vallias name known throughout the world. But, you had to
come and lay waste to my future!”

“The only future you have is that of my
blade through your throat. Now, come! I’ll teach you how death
feels like.”

I ran to him and swung my sword, fueled by
revenge and ferocity. I wasn’t letting him get the better of me
this time. I jabbed my blade forward and aimed to the sides. But,
as precise as my attacks were, he blocked and dodged every single
time. He thought he had an advantage for being quick, but my fury
was about to quell his ego. I thrust my sword with all my strength
to his chest, and for the first time he couldn’t block quickly
enough. My blade did not crack his armor, but it certainly pierced
his mind. He stumbled back and arched his eyebrows in
puzzlement.

“How could you hit me? I’m faster than you,”
he babbled. I eased my stance for a moment and shook my head.

“Unlike life, Vallias, death is relentless,”
I spoke ardently, “It takes your dreams, your passions, your
memories, and drives them into oblivion. I suffered this when you
killed me, and my soul was left distraught. But now, with this
second chance I have being given, I will not let death reach me. I
will live out my dreams, I will take joy in my passions, and I will
cherish every memory. No, Death won’t reach me. But, I will do all
that I can so that It can quickly claim you!”

“You fool! I’ll kill you again!” Vallias
darted forward and aimed for my head. I stretched my shield outward
and bounced the cinquedea right out of his hands. Instantly, I
aimed for the throat.

This was the same move I made before I died.
Would the same thing happen? Would I have to eat my words?

Not likely.

Vallias bent down under my blade as he
reached behind his back. But, before he reached for a dagger,
before he could even bring his hand back, I raised my knee right up
his face.

Vallias stumbled away with a moan, stuffing
his face on his palm. When he removed his hand, I saw he had a
bloody nose and his upper lip split open. He screamed out of pain
and madness, and in that rabidity, he went at me with only the
dagger. As he stretched his arm to strike me, I swiftly cut the
knife out of his grasp. He shouted and hugged his arm. He wailed in
agony when he looked at his hand. I cut it in half, slicing off his
ring finger and pinky.

“Damn you!” he yelled, “How dare you do this
to me?”

I did not answer. Instead, I steadily walked
toward him. I gripped my sword firmly and breathed calmly, for I
knew I was about to finish it. Vallias turned to run, but in his
desperation, he tripped and fell. As he struggled to get up, I was
surprised when he threw himself to the ground again and crawled to
a small patch of grass. He picked up something from out of the
patch and quickly stood. He raised his hand and showed me what he
found; it was the round vial with the red potion. Lorana had it,
but it must’ve dropped out of her gown when Beam tackled her.

“I may not get to be immortal,” Vallias said
as blood ran down of his nose, “but I’ll have the power I deserve!”
He popped the cap with his teeth and gulped the red liquid.

“No!” I heard from beside the ice wall. It
was the sorcerer I had knocked out. “Don’t drink that one only. Not
the red one!” But, it was too late. Vallias drank it to the last
drop. The witch man took his staff and ran away.

Vallias threw the vial and laughed, but
immediately fell to his knees. He started to get rigid and
constricted. What a fool! This was not some type of medicine or
herbal tea; it was a magic potion blended by the Enchantress
herself. An extreme effect was bound to happen.

A red aura engulfed his body, and his skin
puffed and boiled. I heard his armor crack, and a strong fizz of
burning flesh. He screamed loudly as he bent to the ground. Then,
the dirt and grass around him blew away, and the aura finally toned
down and disappeared. What remained was not the man I had engaged
in battle, but something closer to a monster, an ogre, a fiend. His
body grew bigger and bulky, his skin turned crimson, and his armor
had fused into his flesh. He no longer had a horned helmet, but a
horned skull.

He then observed his hands and body, “What
has become of me?”

This is what the witch man meant. He knew
that drinking the red potion alone would have this monstrous
effect.

“I look horrible,” Vallias continued,
raising his fists, “but the power, I feel it. It feeds my spirit,
my will! Never have I felt this mighty and great. I admit, it is
not the shape or form I wanted. But, with this strength I can rule
over all!”

I dashed and slashed him under the ribs, but
my sword jounced off. I did cut him and he did bleed, but he felt
no pain. He just smiled. In return, he gave me a wallop with the
back of his hand that drove me to the ground. The hit dazed me, but
I could hear his laughter. He admired his newfound strength. I
quickly hopped to my feet and stabbed him on the abdomen, all the
way to the hilt. He roared and flinched, and yet he didn’t fall.
Before I could pull the sword out, he pushed me away.

“Don’t you understand?” Vallias barked, “You
can’t kill me now, Death will not claim me!”

He sluggishly pulled out the sword and raged
at me like a mad bull. I could do nothing but to block with my
shield. He used my own sword against me, and each pounding attack
felt like the push of a battering ram. I couldn’t take it anymore
and backed off.

“Running away, I see,” he said, bursting
into an ugly laugh.

I needed to find a way to hurt him. He had
become a powerful creature, but he had to have a weak point. I
observed him and noticed that his neck and knees had not fused with
his armor and were defenseless.

I immediately devised a plan, but it
involved losing my shield. It didn’t matter. Once I finished,
Vallias would be dead… I hoped.

I removed my arm from the straps behind the
shield and only held it by the handle. I took the dagger from my
belt and held it with the tip down. When I was ready, I charged.
 He raised the sword and plunged down. I blocked, skipping to
the left and stabbing the back of his knee. In result, he
knelt to the ground. I tossed my shield and leapt on his back.
He raised the sword again to stab behind, but I stretched the
dagger out and slashed the top of his wrist. The cut made him drop
the blade. I then grabbed the nearest horn and pushed it
forward to reveal his nape, and there I sank my dagger. I stabbed
repeatedly, cutting away the tissue, with blood sputtering all over
me.

I thought that would end it, but he was too
stubborn to go down. He seized my arm and hurled me away, landing
roughly on the ground. I knelt and looked at him. He was walking
wobbly, gurgling blood. I was sure he wouldn’t last long after
suffering my attack. But, when he stared at me with his ever-living
loath, I wasn't so sure anymore. He sprinted furiously and tackled
me, smashing me against the ice wall. The impact must've knocked me
unconscious for a second, for when I came to, Vallias had both
hands around my neck. He rose me up against the wall. My feet
dangled in the air as shards of ice punctured my skin. I tried to
free myself by punching his arms, but it only made his grip
tighter. He pushed me harder onto the ice and flattened my throat.
And then, darkness came to cloud my sight.

I could no longer draw breath and my body
struggled with movement. Death was tugging on my heart once more.
But, before I slipped again, I saw a shimmering light before me.
Was it the light at the end of the tunnel, or the glare of the sun
directly on my face? No. It was neither. This light came from an
angel. Seeing it coming, I squealed out a gruff laugh.

"What do you laugh about, dead man?" Vallias
asked me, releasing his grip just a bit to let me breathe and
answer. With the raspy voice my throat lent me, I simply said,
"Burn, you ugly bastard!"

With the hype moment, Vallias didn't hear
Auria's wings flapping behind him. She extended her delicate hands
and placed them on the sides of his head.

"Feel the sear," she whispered.

A yellow surge coiled from her shoulders to
her hands, creating a fulgent flash. The flare blinded me, but I
could no longer feel Vallias' grip around my neck. I fell to the
ground and heard an agonizing scream. Slowly the colors returned to
my sight and I saw what was happening. Vallias was tossing and
turning, slapping his head to put out the fire that engulfed it.
Auria remained beside the ice wall, but I reeled to where my sword
was. I picked it up and faced my adversary once more.

The flames had consumed the skin, and flowed
out of the eye sockets. I stood before him as he hopelessly slapped
himself.

"Vallias!" I called to him. He turned and
gave me a roar only a true monster could provide. And although it
was a frightening scream, it also seemed like a cry for help. I
offered my aid as a slash across his neck. His burning head rolled
off and his body fell to the grass. At long last, Angelus Vallias
of Horne, and the thing he had become, were finally no more.

I exhaled a slow breath. It was over. I
turned around and looked at her, Auria, smiling with her big,
sparkly eyes. I tried to walk to her, but I could not hold my
weight anymore. I dropped to my knees and hunched over. Auria ran
and held me, hugged me.

"Erik, are you fine?"

"I am now," I said softly.

I dropped my sword and hugged her waist. I
looked up to see tears running down her cheeks. At last, I was with
her. I was finally with her. But, none of this would have happened
if I hadn’t been such a fool. I filled her heart with sorrow the
day we argued, and I simply walked away. If I hadn't done that, if
I hadn't left her alone, none of this would’ve happened.

"I am sorry about everything. I didn’t want
this to happen to you. Will you forgive me?"

"How could I hold this against you? You
are here, you saved me. Why are you apologizing?"

"I don't know... I’m just tired."

"Oh, you dummy." She held my cheeks and put
her face to mine, our nose and foreheads touching. I felt her
warmth, her breath, her love for me. I had been dead before, but
now I was in heaven.

"Well, sorry to interrupt your lovesy
wobsy," Beam yelled floating far above us, "but what the heck do we
do now? We are in the middle of nowhere, far, far from home! How
are we getting ba… Huh, what is that?" He flew to the
ground, to where the witches had gathered in the first
place, and came back with something.

"What is this?" he showed me. It was the
square vial with the blue potion.

"It's the witch's concoction," I answered.
"Supposedly, it revitalizes and heals."

"Then, take it," urged Auria, "You are hurt.
Heal your wounds."

I thought about it. If the red potion made
Vallias into a powerful monster, this potion would make me healthy
and young for years to come. I gave them a wry laugh and nodded,
sitting on the ground with my feet crossed. Beam handed me the
vial, but I stopped before I opened it.

"What are you waiting? Drink it," said Beam.
But as much as my body was hurting, this potion was not meant for
me.

"My wounds are nothing,” I said, “We must
save it for the one who truly needs it."

Before facing Vallias and the witches, I had
secured the balorian carriage, leaving Beam to tend to its horses.
He ended up joining the fight, but fortunately, the carriage was
still there afterwards. I disguised myself as a balorian with one
of their armors, and wrapped a cloth around my head to cover the
glowing lines on my forehead. To return safely to Miaflore, I would
maneuver the carriage all the way back, while Auria and Beam hid
inside. They suggested we fly, them carrying me, but I refused. I
didn't want to be clutched like a dangling sack of potatoes two
hundred feet in the air. If it came to an emergency that we needed
to get away fast, there and then we would do it.