The High-Wizard's Hunt - By Ashley Delay Page 0,97

slowed in its progression and diminished in height.

Osric felt a wave of uncertainty wash over him, and he wavered slightly for a moment but continued to hold the spell. He felt the strength of his spell drop, and it caught him off guard. Still holding onto the thought that carried this new spell out in a wall of fire, Osric looked to his left and saw Machai and the others standing with their hands at their sides. Fear adorned their scowls where they stood. Osric reached out with his mind to feel their intention and find out why they were no longer utilizing their gifts.

Helplessness filled each mind he touched, and as Osric looked around, he noticed that every face wore the same sense of doom. The ominous hum of the Kallegians echoed and reverberated in a strange and violent tone as it suddenly varied in pitch. The visage of each villager changed to pain, and Osric dropped his wand.

He scanned the crowd with the Wand-Maker gift and noticed orange waves crashing into each person, enveloping them and pressing against their bodies with ever increasing speed.

Osric turned again to peer at the Kallegians with his gift. He watched the lines of men who had not yet encountered the wall of flames as the reverberating tone of magic flowed from their mouths. He could not begin to make sense of what was happening. Stranger still was the fact that he was completely unaffected by the magic. He lifted his hands quickly through the air and saw the copper ring, given to him by the boar he killed in his last hunt, absorbing all of the magic that attempted to crash against his body.

Osric looked into the sky, feeling completely inadequate. He was the only hope of the inhabitants of Stanton, but even if he waded into the Kallegians with his wand and blade, he could not cut down their entire force by himself. Osric needed help, and he knew it. He closed his eyes, thinking to call for Greyback, when he heard an echo in his head.

We are coming; all of us are coming!

Osric shook himself, briefly stunned by the invasion into his mind by unexpected magic, and screamed, “Greyback, now!”

His sword cleared his scabbard and Osric charged into the heart of the enemy’s line. To his surprise, the Kallegians no longer fought as timidly as they had in the streets by themselves. He found himself confronted by swords fully drawn and ready to attack, and he had to take a step back as an attack from two chanting men nearly caught him off guard. The faces of the Kallegians seemed to be even more shocked that Osric did not suffer the ill effects of their chanting. Yet, he was still in trouble as a group of men encircled him.

Osric took out his wand, inspiring startled expressions from his enemies. If they had never engaged with an enemy that fought with sword and wand, it would only be to his benefit. As quickly as the confusion had hit their faces, it vanished as they charged in on him. Two men lunged in with swords, barely missing Osric’s arm as he raised a shield charm just in time.

The onslaught of attacks came with alarming speed and consistency. When Osric pushed a man down with his wand, another would take his place, and they quickly adapted to the rhythm of the attack. Osric was left fighting fresh men without a break in deflecting the attacks. Though only moments had passed, he quickly began to feel the strain of fighting eight men at once. Even with the amount of power at his command, he knew he would not last long enough to defeat the entire army and save the inhabitants if help did not arrive soon.

A crash sounded in the distance, and a boulder was dropped behind the Kallegians to one side of Osric. He jumped out of the way as it rolled toward the circle of men, landing awkwardly on top of one of his would be assassins. The eagles? And not a moment too soon!

Osric looked up at the sky and confirmed his assertion. He was shocked as a burst of amber flames shot out in an arc across the front lines of the Kallegians. The dragons are joining, too? Osric wondered, noticing Greyback land in front of him on the ground, bellowing a tremendous roar.

Dragons filled the air in a fearsome display. The few Kallegians who had found and saddled horses