Jonas, her sword held low, fire still burning in her eyes. “Are you okay?” she asked in disbelief.
“I think so,” Jonas responded, the rush of battle adrenaline leaving his body shaking. He held up his hands which continued to twitch nervously.
“It will pass. It is common after a fight,” Allindrian reassured him.
Fil moved up to them both, his short sword in hand. His face, though haggard from fear and exertion, bore a determined look. Jonas was thankful to see his friend was not hurt. “What happened, Allindrian? Were we spelled?” Fil asked.
“We were. That one there,” pointing her sword at the dead warrior on ground, “was a cleric of darkness. If it were not for Jonas we would all be dead. He warned me of the attack just in time.” Fil looked at Jonas knowingly. Allindrian continued, “I think, young Jonas, that you have some explaining to do. That mark on your chest is a God Mark.” Jonas looked down and for the first time remembered that his tunic had been burnt off. “You should be dead,” Allindrian stated bluntly.
Cyn had gathered his men and approached the group. He was splattered in blood and had a nasty cut just underneath his eye. It was obvious that he had overheard Allindrian and addressed her comment. “Let’s postpone this discussion until we have seen to the dead and wounded. Let’s remove this filth from our site immediately,” Cyn commanded, approaching the dead warrior.
“No, don’t touch him,” Allindrian ordered, stepping in front of him. “His armor and weapons are cursed.” She used the tip of her sword to move aside the red cape around his neck, exposing the bloody stump and a chain with a pendant. She lifted the blood stained necklace with the tip of her sword. It hissed and smoked as she brought it clear. On a pendant at the end of the chain was a symbol of a spider. Her sword glowed white and the necklace began to glow as well. “Just as I thought. This one was a follower of Naz-reen. Look here at her symbol.” Cyn made the four pointed mark on his chest at the mention of the dark goddess’s name. She tossed the smoking necklace aside and it burst into flames, melting into an unrecognizable piece of black metal. “The armor and weapons are dangerous as well, only a powerful priest or cavalier can dispel the curse.”
“You mentioned her before. Who is this Naz-reen?” asked Jonas.
“Naz-reen is an embodiment of darkness, killing, and strife. You humans think of her as a god, we elves think of her, as well as all of the Foresworn, as a sinister being of great power. She is also known as Bor-zan. She loves intrigue and to slowly build her webs of deceit, hence her spider symbol,” replied Allindrian.
“We should not be speaking of her,” Cyn said, worrying as he looked out into the night.
Two mercenaries appeared out of the darkness supporting Landon, who was limping badly on one leg. His face was haggard and pale but he smiled with relief as he saw them all. “Thank the gods you all made it. What happened?” he asked.
Allindrian went to Landon to look at his wound. “Is your injury serious,” she asked. She looked with concern at the deep laceration on his right leg.
“I’m fine. Just a nasty cut from one of those dreadful creatures. What in Ulren’s name were those beasts?”
“Boargs,” Fil and Jonas said simultaneously.
Landon nodded his head in affirmation. “That’s what I thought. I’ve heard descriptions of them, but I have never seen one. Thanks to Romul here I might have the opportunity to see another, Ulren hoping I don’t. He speared the beast through the chest as he was about to finish me.”
“Well done, Romul,” praised Cyn. “Take him to Lornan. He needs stitches before he loses more blood.”
“Would you like me to see to your wound?” Allindrian asked.
“No, there are men who need it more than I. Use your magic on them if you please,” Landon said.
“Very well, Cyn, my magical light will go out in a few moments. We need to get the fires blazing so we can see and take care of our dead,” stated Allindrian, wiping her blade clean and sheathing it in one smooth motion. “We don’t have time to bury the boargs but we need to bury this evilness. We don’t want some unsuspecting traveler to come across this cursed armor.”
“Very well, let’s get to work and then we can try to