The HaRT Knight Decaverse

Heir of Magic

Chapter 11

The Cloaked Rider

There was no moon in the sky to guide Alexander’s way as he flew through the city, silent as an owl hunting prey. It was an unsettling sensation, flying through the pitch-black night with what appeared to be an endless abyss below him. Somewhere in that abyss, Dante was currently making his way to the phoenix enclosure for the second part of the night’s plan; but the first and most important part was up to Alexander. He steered the wooden board up the royal tower in a tight spiral and came up at the back of the palace where there was less likelihood of someone standing guard.
Alexander slipped over the edge and kneeled low as he skid to a halt in the rose gardens. He remained frozen for a few seconds, searching the gardens and palace balconies for any sign that someone had seen him arrive. There wasn’t a soul in sight, and yet something felt wrong.
It’s just in your mind, he tried to convince himself. No one saw, and I don’t have time to wait until someone d—his mind went blank as he stepped off the board onto the stone and almost slipped on something wet and sticky.
A horripilation of dread overcame Alexander as he knelt down to feel at the ground with three fingers. The stone path of the garden was slick with blood, and yet, there were no bodies in sight. In fact, other than the bloody path, the only thing out of place was a large scorch mark on the west side of the palace. Alexander moved closer to the blackened wall and for a moment, his mind went into shock. In his travels with The Golden Spear he had seen many things that had shocked him, he had met many unpleasant individuals, some of whom would definitely qualify as psychopaths, but what he saw now was the work of something born from a different kind of evil.
At least twelve moondrake corpses littered the ground, the puddles of blood around them still growing. Body parts dripping blood hung from the trees like grotesque decorated Dysaniaday trees. Whatever had done this had propped up several bodies to create disturbing tableaus. On the walls, the thing had written three words over and over. Death! Blood! Fun!
“Alexander?” a moondrake propped up against the wall said in a weak voice and immediately descended into a coughing fit.
“Ai-Ai?” Alexander said as he recognized the raven-moondrake. “What happened here? How? — Shade.”
Alexander fell silent as he knelt next to Ai-Ai and saw the state of him. Blood frothed from his mouth and the pupil of his left eye was so large it dominated his entire eyeball. His right hand, arm, and side of his face were burnt black. Worst of all, something had torn a hole the size of a pumpkin out of his abdomen from which entrails spilled into his lap.
Ai-Ai struggled to breathe as he spoke slowly and in evident pain. “The King was convinced you or the old man would come here tonight to steal something. He didn’t trust Claus, so he gathered a small battalion of trustworthy soldiers to guard the palace.” He descended into a spasming caught before adding, “But, instead of you or the old man, it was a demon. It came out of the shadows and moved through us like quicksilver slipping through fingers, except everywhere it went, blood filled the air. It went through us as if it were all a game. After a while, he started to laugh as he killed us.”
“Are you saying one person did this?”
“There was only one, but it wasn’t a person,” Ai-Ai said and started to cry. “It made signs with its fingers and things would happen. He turned a hand full of sand into a cloud of poison gas, he turned several guards in the rose garden into nothing more than mists of blood, and I even saw him caused Xeb to explode into flames.”
Magic that uses signs, Alexander thought. That sounds like Heart Tongue Signs, which means it wasn’t a demon, it was a dhaesí.
He was just about to tell Ai-Ai as much, when the entire King’s Summit shook as something exploded in the courtyard around the corner. There was a flash of light and a rush of air as the veil that hid Moondrake from the rest of the world vanished.
“What was—?” Alexander stopped short as he turned back to Ai-Ai. The raven-moondrake was dead.
Alexander closed the poor man’s haunted eyes before he crept along the palace wall and slipped around the corner, into the courtyard where the rings and the statue of the phoenix woman were supposed to be. The statue of Bennu was gone, reduced to rubble. The rings, however, were still there, slipped around the cylinders of the obscuroveil which now lay in two pieces among the remains of the statue.
“No, that’s enough, for now,” a gruff voice barked and Alexander dived behind a short wall. “You want destruction and chaos, well calling him is the best way to ensure that.”
Alexander peeked over the wall. The man who was arguing with himself had a simian face and feet and snowy-white hair covered his arms. A dhaesí. Alexander had been right about his assumptions of the identity of Ai-Ai’s demon. His skin was the dark charcoal color of the shadow dhaesí, and his slender tail poked out from beneath boiled black leather armor. He looked like a shadow as he moved through the corps-strewn courtyard towards the edge of the rooftop.
“I said no. We have work to do, and we need to hurry. We need to find it,” the dhaesí said.
“Yes!” the dhaesí answered himself in a different voice. “With a weapon like that we can overthrow the bald bastard. We will use Cain’s own plan against him and rule in his place. Then, instead of a city in chaos, havoc will rain across all of Primoris.”
The dhaesí laughed hysterically, and yet, looked as if he were in tremendous pain. He went down to his haunches and grabbed his head in both hands.
There was no time, however, for Alexander to worry about this odd behavior. He knows Cain. He must be the Black General. And it sounds like he came here for a weapon. Alexander thought and shot a glance over his shoulder at the two rings. Could it be they’re looking for Enlil’s Armor but don’t know it’s split into pieces?
The thought of his uncle getting his hands on such a weapon caused Alexander’s skin to crawl. He had to get his hands on those rings as fast as possible, and so, keeping one eye on the insane dhaesí, he crept closer to the obscuroveil. The two pieces of slick black stone vibrated and caused sparks to jump through the air. As Alexander took hold of one of the rings, it sent a jolt up his arm that caused his fingers to go numb. He clenched his teeth and pulled both rings free and the obscuroveil went silent and still.
Just as Alexander slipped a ring on each of his middle fingers, the dhaesí behind him yelled, “It is time! Come, destroyer!”
Alexander spun around just in time to see the Black General raise a small silver bell above his head. As it brought it down, it did not tinkle, but instead made an evil sound that echoed across the sky. The temperature atop the King’s Summit abruptly dropped below freezing. When the horrible sound of the bell died away, despair remained behind in the air. Oily black clouds gathered rapidly over Moondrake and a low, hollow sucking sound came from out somewhere in the clouds.
The dhaesí threw his arms to his sides and laughed as he yelled, “Havoc!”
The black clouds stirred and Alexander felt sick to his stomach. A pale, slimy white head with two red eyes broke through the surface. The dragon roared so loud it drove Alexander on his knees. All across the city, glass shattered into rainstorms of razor shards. It swooped over the city, breathing its poisonous green flames, transforming the buildings of Moondrake into gigantic torches. The spikes on the creature’s tail dripped with a substance that melted the stones it landed on.
“Yes! Let there be destruction!” The dhaesí laughed and took a step off the edge of the building, vanishing from sight.
As Alexander made his way to the edge to see if the dhaesí had survived, a hundred bells began to ring all across the city. The ringing of the bells reverberated off the towers which pulsed with light as they vibrated. With the aid of the glowing towers, Alexander could see the dhaesí casually saunter down the street toward Saniel Park.
The lights also helped to illuminate the figure who sat astride the pale dragon which was hanging from the tallest building of the gauntlet course with its one wing, like a giant bat. The dragon’s rider wore a torn and ragged pale green cloak that covered his face, and Alexander was glad for that; he was certain the thing would be a horror to behold. It gave off an aura, unlike anything he had ever seen or felt. It was beyond vast, perhaps even infinite, but was distorted and fuzzy, as if he were looking at it through a dirty piece of glass—and yet, even though the source of the aura was on the other side of the city, he could feel its ice-cold, oily touch.
The cloaked rider held out his right hand, and ghostly, poison-green flames formed in the hand’s palm. The rider flicked its wrist, and the flames shot forward into a nearby. The next second it was as if a small green sun had formed on the edge of Moondrake, reducing an entire city block to rubble.
Meanwhile, all across the city, moondrakes roused by the bells, lights, and explosions rose into the sky. Just as they began to flee, thousands of tentacles made from the oily black clouds rained down on the city. Disfigured warriors on muscawyrm swarmed Moondrake, slaughtering everyone who tried to flee.
“What have you done!”
Alexander spun around to face the king of Moondrake. Ogie’iso took in the corps-strewn courtyard with haunted eyes that glistened a ghostly green as the fires devouring his city reflected in them.
“You did this. You destroyed my city, doomed my people, and for what? Two little rings.”
“Wait, no. This wasn’t me. It—”
Alexander didn’t get to finish his objection. The king picked up the spear of one of his fallen guards and spread his blue-green wings and literally flew at Alexander with a barrage of wild attacks.
The suddenness of the attack caught Alexander off guard, but years of living on battlefields had ingrained instincts and reflexes that could not be achieved by training alone. He drew both his swords in a flash and knocked the spear aside with one sword and nearly took the king’s head off with the other.
Ogie’iso used his wings to shoot back and just out of reach of the slightly curved blade. Once the danger passed, the king used aeroturgy to launch himself forward with a powerful thrust of his spear.
Alexander, however, had known it would come. He blocked the attack and pushed the spear upwards before sliding the blade of his sword along the shaft.
A pocket of air between Ogie’iso and Alexander chose that second to explode outward, blasting the two men apart. At first, they both suspected the other of the feat of aeroturgy, but then the true culprit landed in a mid-sized boat.
Claus stood on the prow, looking disappointed. “What are the two of you doing? Now is not the time to fight among ourselves,” he said.
“Claus,” was all Alexander could think of saying.
“Grand Admiral, good, you’re here. It would seem Alexander has lied to us from the start. He does not wish to overthrow his uncle, he is working with him,” Ogie’iso said.
“What?” Alexander looked at the king as if he were insane. “No. that’s not true. Claus, it’s not. I swear.”
“I know,” Claus said.
Alexander and Ogie’iso shared a look of confusion. Together, they both said, “You do?”
And to Alexander’s surprise and relief, Dante appeared behind the Grand Admiral and said, “He does.”
“Earlier tonight, I found Dante in the phoenix enclosure with this.” Claus threw a small, thin metal box to Alexander. He caught it using aeroturgy and slipped his one sword back in its scabbard to free a hand. He then took the box and opened it to reveal the seven glass cylinders filled with an opalescent liquid and resting on a red lining. The phoenix tears that had been Dante’s mission. “He told me everything.”
“And once I did, Claus, instead of capturing me, offered to help us escape,” Dante added. “Once we reached his boat, the bells started ringing and Cain’s Cloaked General appeared.”
“If this is true, Grand Admiral, then it is treason,” Ogie’iso snarled. “However, as your king, I shall grant you mercy if you kill these men, here and now.”
Claus gave the king a pitying look, then shook his head. “No, Ogie’iso, I won’t. I will not kill the only hope there is to stop Cain.”
“I am your king!” Ogie’iso exploded.
“No, you’re not. Not anymore,” Claus said and fell to his knees in front of Alexander. “I, Grand Admiral Claus of Moondrake, swear myself to you, Prince Alexander Angelus, first of your name and rightful heir to the throne of Tír na Angelus. I will give you my spear to throw down your enemies. I will give my life to shield yours and dedicate myself to your mission. I swear on my life that I will be faithful, never cause harm, and will conduct myself in good faith and without deceit. I am your servant for as long as I might live.”
Alexander was so taken aback he almost forgot about the mayhem in the city behind him. He looked to Dante for guidance, but the wizard only smiled and nodded. The encouraging gesture did, however, help Alexander to find his tongue. For the first time in his life, he accepted the fealty of another. “Rise, Grand Admiral Claus, leader of my armies. I accept your offer of fealty and promise to, in turn, always protect your honor and blood.”
“Thank you, My Prince,” Claus said as he stood up.
“You traitorous scum,” Ogie’iso yelled, and once again, flew at them in anger.
Claus just gave a perfunctory wave of his hand and a solid wall of air struck the King of Moondrake so hard that he flew in the opposite direction and bounced a few times before coming to a stop several feet away.
Blood and spit running from his mouth, Ogie’iso said, “You dare to—”
The king’s last words were drowned out by the beat of the insect wings of the muscawyrm that landed right on top of him. The giant insect-like creature grabbed hold of Ogie’iso with its two front pincers and swallowed his head whole.
The rider on the muscawyrm sent an arrow at Dante, but both Alexander and Claus caught the projectile with aeroturgy and snapped it in two. Claus flicked his fingers at the rider and sent four small air arrows at the rider. With a fountain of blood, the rider’s head exploded and his limp body fell to the ground. This enraged the muscawyrm as it turned to Alexander, ready to attack. The creature lifted its slimy round head and opened its mouth to show a tunnel of slime and teeth.
Alexander blocked with one sword, drew the other and tried to stab the creature in the neck, but his sword just slid off the thick carapace.
Dante leaped from the boat, produced several pieces of paper in each hand and flung them at the muscawyrm like confetti. The pentacles drawn in the wizard’s blood on the pieces of paper smoldered and burst into flames as Dante opened the dimensional gates. From out the gates that still hung in the air, shot glowing red chains that wrapped themselves around the muscawyrm like pythons. The second the insectile creature tried to pull away, the chains reacted and locked into place while simultaneously retracting back into the dimensions from which they came. The creature struggled against its bonds which were pulling it in several directions at the same time, but it didn’t have a chance. There was a sickening crack and blue-gray ichor spattered everywhere as the chains tore the creature apart.
“Everyone all right?” Dante asked as he snapped the dimensional gates shut.
“Uninjured, yes. All right, no,” Claus said in disgust as he wiped some ichor from his face. “But I can take a bath once we get out of here. Come on, everyone back in the boat.”
“Wait, what? We can’t just leave. We need to try to help.” He pointed at the cloaked rider on the pale dragon. “We need to stop that thing.”
“Alex, we can’t,” Dante said. “That thing is the greatest of Cain’s Generals. Even if all three of us were to work together, we still wouldn’t stand a chance against it.”
“He’s right, My Prince. That thing is responsible for the Inti Massacre where it wiped out an entire city of mages,” Claus said. “I’m sorry to say it, but we lost the second it showed up here.”
“But if we can get you to safety, there will still be a hope that we can stop things like this happening again,” Dante finished.
Alexander hesitated for a moment. He stared at the cloaked rider as it sent an entire district of the city falling from the sky. He did not like running away, but Dante and Claus were right. As he was now, he would be no match for that thing. He sighed, and without a word, got onto the boat.
“Hold on!” Claus yelled as the ship lurched off the ground.
The ship launched off the tower like a boulder flung by a trebuchet. Claus weaved the ship through the buildings with relative ease, and within no time, they rushed over the border of Moondrake and into open sky.
I am sorry, Alexander thought as he gave the burning city one last glance over his shoulder and suddenly felt nauseated. The face of the pale dragon’s rider was still hidden by his cloak, but somehow, he knew that thing was looking right at them. His heart felt as if it had frozen solid and his head spun. All his instincts yelled at him, the same way the instincts of prey warn them when a predator was near. Sound died out and his hands began to shake.
“Get down!” Dante yelled as he tackled Alexander to the deck of the boat.
The ghostly green flame rushed overhead and a second later, there was a flash of light followed by a loud bang and the world began to fall apart.
Dante held on to Alexander’s hand as the two of them spun out of control while plummeting into the dark abyss. Neither Claus nor his boat was anywhere to be seen.
“Alexander!” Dante yelled to be heard over the roar of the surrounding wind. there was a jerk and the wizard’s grip slipped slightly. “Alexander, find the Wandering City! Wait for me in The Spider’s Den! I’ll find you there!”
The next second, the rotational velocity of their fall flung the two of them apart.
“Dante!” Alexander screamed in anguish. I have to do something. I have to save Dante somehow.
Before Alexander could think of what to do, the world jerked, and everything went black.