cmdrnemo

Chapter 11:

Domain of the dracoliches

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Tunnel of pale blue light formed around the flying concert. Lightning sparks lit trailing smoke. Dracoliches rose up to meet them. Shruiken roared again. Galbatorix reached out. Magic pulled lich apart. Crushed into fine glowing stream. With sudden understanding the emperor sang out. “I’ve got a soul empowered laser beam guitar!” Which he used with green energy. Slicing through bodies and stone alike. Destruction the wake of that beam. Each dracolich destroyed, shattered. Pulled as dust to towers. Funneled fuel channeled into music then magic.

Hey Zari? Genie’s thoughts whispered. Hands still on bass. Eyes darting between sheet and world around them.

I don’t know what to focus on. His mind returned. Beneath them glass quaked. Dragon began to fly free.

The sheet music.

He focused on elegant display. Self adjusted for easy viewing. Contents flowed without interaction. What about it?

There’s no mark for progress.

So?

When do you think the song ends?

Zariwyn Ilius paused momentarily. Taking opportunity to look about. His emperor killed dragons with effortless ease. Unending hordes remained. Shruiken flew within tunnel of light, breath of fire against former kin. The castle of glass absorbed death flying along. It’s so unreal. How long will it take to kill them all?

I don’t know. Years?

Suicide mission.

Not for danger.

For the commitment… We may never leave this place.

There’s at least two ways out Zari.

Genie, in the end, who do we go with?

Does it even matter?

Another heart stone locked into place. The pair exchanged a look. Time marched on. Zari sent his mind back. To crystalline globe, sylph encased within. Futile effort to read alien mind. Most minds react like a library behind locked doors. Pick the lock, pack some white paint, a little ink, a few matches. All the power required. This was a blizzard of glass. No books, no locks, it held only cold, wind, and sharp edges. From storm’s wall he called. Take us with you.

In his ear the reply. “Certainly.”

Stage turned. An eye came into view. Larger than castle and Shruiken combined. Bloody red, it stared from carved skull partially covered by scales glowing with runic magic. A mountainous dracolich rising out of hidden depths. Facing this sight musicians paused. The singer cried out. “Keep playing you fools!” Enormous head began to turn. Mages gave each other reassuring looks. Genie strummed her bass. Spell resumed in force. Energies absorbed by tearing liches asunder encased them all. Coils of soulstuff ripped through air. Lightning crackled.

Galbatorx looked back. Beneath the now swirling vortex core drawing in light. One last chevron to engage. To Mellie, within sphere. He assigned a replacement singer. Then strode sylphward. She appeared preoccupied, rapidly tapping, focus darting between displays.His left hand punched through glass. Right drew sword. Nowhere to run. Eyes narrowed. “Curse your sudden, if inevitable, betrayal.” Emperor grabbed slender neck. “I could say the same.” Sword impaled held woman. Who was thrown casually into sky.

“Don’t think you’ve fooled me.” The emperor proclaimed, marching backstage. “I know what that was.”

Genie and Zari snuck after him. Behind the back wall. There was a room. Large enough to fit a cylindrical vehicle. Incomplete, it sat glistening while Mellie worked. She rushed inside. The emperor threw his sword. It stopped, point down, above craft’s front window. The far side of the mages. Gestured command pulled sword through glass. Small craft shattered in its wake. Sylph leaped clear. Rolled summoning shards. Emperor blocked. Mellie tried to run. Impaled. She cries out. Sword through gut. Pinned to floor. Galbatorix stepped forward. Mellie twisted, pulling herself through blade. Tried to stand. Grabbed again. Lifted. She glared at him. Then glanced upward in fear. The path of converging lasers. More power than the mind can grasp. Channeled into dimensional gate.

“The last chevron?” The emperor asked.

“Chevron seven locked. Wormhole established.” She replied. Her voice weary, tone defeated.

With deafening roar a gaping hole appeared in the emperor’s chest. Mages turned towards source. Another Mellie stood holding her weapon. “You two wanted to leave. Shall we?” She inquired. Once again wearing shades, lowering weapon. Ear protection then shattered to dust. Like the body Galbatorix held seconds ago.

“Is he dead?” Genie couldn’t hold back.

“No, he’ll be fine. His dragon has magic. It can do a lot here. In the source of its power.”

“But, he broke your whatever that was.” Zari asked.

“Yes, but if you can make something once, you can always make another.” As Mellie spoke a second craft rose pushing the old aside.

While they climbed in Zari had one more question. “Why did he try to kill you anyway?”

“If you summon something against its will to do what you can’t there will be a point power shifts to the summoned things side. You have to expect it to betray you. To discourage further summons.”

The door shut. They faced into the gaping maw of mountainous dracolich and the faint glow of growing fire deep within its throat. Mellie’s puddle jumper lifted as jaw began to close. In the moments it took to rotate the craft. To accelerate into the wormhole. Flames washed over the castle. Harmless against barriers formed of dragon souls. Mellie held her breath as the light started to grow.