By the Sword (33 page)

Indescribable peace flooded through her and she knew that God was with her, even in the shadow of death.

“
Peace, Talya.
I am the God that healeth thee.”

She could feel His love encircling her, and she began to laugh tears of joy.

She opened her eyes, but darkness had flooded in. Talya thought that she was drifting back to sleep until a flash of red caught her eye.

Then she saw him. Jalarn. He was being dragged by something. A demon.

“Jalarn!” Talya cried.

Hideous, gnashing teeth and wails came from below and filled the air.

Talya trembled as despair flooded through her veins. Jalarn was going to hell.

“Jesus, help him!” cried Talya.

There were so many agonized voices. It made Talya want to rip her ears out. Some were there because of her.

Her exhaustion returned, forcing her to leave the brutal cries of torment, and she drifted back to a deep sleep.

*****

A sickening odor assaulted Chrissa’s nostrils as she rushed back into battle.
Her nausea from before returned, which was very bad timing.
Flapping wings and a low snarl made her look up. The most horrific face that she had ever seen glared down at her. Saliva dripped out of his mouth onto her. She grimaced at the offensive fluid on her armor. Then, she heard Ittonifer’s menacing laughter.

She backed away, but Ittonifer steered the dragon closer to her. He had become obsessed with killing her.

Ittonifer’s hateful eyes were even colder than the hungry giant reptile’s. Her father was possessed, another casualty of the devil’s deception.

A shiver ran down her spine just as the dragon snapped at her. She stabbed at it with her sword. It shook its head and scratched at its wound, but then came at her again.

She leaped backward and barely avoided its sharp teeth.

“I’m not afraid of you!” she shouted.

Overwhelmed by fatigue and nausea, Chrissa tripped over a dead body and landed on the ground.

She looked up, expecting to see the large winged animal lunging at her, but instead it was arching its back. It let out a deafening scream.

Chrissa covered her ears as she moved away from it.

Ittonifer leaped off of the dragon as it writhed on the ground. A sword stuck out of its spine.

Tanel emerged from behind the beast and fired an arrow into its skull. The reptilian monster lay still at last.

*****

A gust of wind stirred Talya’s unkempt hair, tickling her cheek. As her eyes fluttered open, she was startled to discover she was lying in a strange white tent.

Talya sat up and immediately remembered the nightmare about Jalarn. She was shaking and covered with sweat. Her father must have brought her back to the camp after rescuing her.

She tore off her blankets and then jumped out of the bed.

“Show me what to do, Lord. Show me where Jalarn is so that I can help him.”

She glanced at herself in the small mirror. She was amazed to see that the bruises and cuts on her face were gone. She touched the skin just above her once blackened eye. God had healed her.

“Thank You, Lord.”

As she removed the bandages that had been wrapped around most of her body, her eyes widened. Not even scars remained where
she had been slashed by Ittonifer
. Her pulse raced when she looked at her smooth upper arm, where the slave branding had once been.

She had to get to the battle quickly now that she was well. Talya opened the sack that sat at the end of her bed and was surprised to see her armor and a change of clothes. She decided not to waste time wondering how they had gotten there, breathing another prayer of thanks. She quickly washed herself and then changed into the clean tunic and pants before putting on her armor.

When she emerged from the tent, she saw the surgeon resting by the fire.

Great. Now I’m going to have to waste more time explaining to Seline that I am fit to fight now.

But as she approached him, a chill rushed down her back. Seline’s eyes and mouth gaped open in corpse-like fashion. An arrow stuck out of his chest. He was dead. An enemy had come into the camp. She cringed as her father came to mind. He was going to miss the doc a lot.

Talya backed away and quickly scanned her surroundings. They were probably still there.

Talya needed to get a weapon fast. Hopefully, someone had left a dagger or something around
their
sleeping quarters.

She rushed into one of the tents and searched. Nothing.

When she turned to leave, a strong arm wrapped itself around her waist. The cold, sharp blade of a dagger came to her throat.

Chapter Twenty-Two

The sun had already begun to set and the battle showed no sign of ending anytime soon, yet several voices declaring God’s promises filled the air. It was an amazing sight to see – hundreds of people putting their faith in God all at once.

A heavy-set Malinorian with an oversized mace thundered toward Tanel. Tanel leaped backward, avoiding a blow, and slashed his sword over the man’s arm where there was no armor. The man yelled and charged at him again.

Tanel ducked out of the mace’s path and then stabbed the man’s leg.

“As it is written, no weapon formed against me shall prosper,” said Tanel.

The warrior glared at him.

“Do you honestly think those empty words are going to save you, little knight?”

Refusing to answer, Tanel backed away. He continued to move backward, inching closer to the opening in the earth. The Malinorian bared his teeth like an angry dog and took a run at him.

Tanel dove out of the way as the man stumbled into the abyss, falling into the deep hole with a furious cry.

*****

Talya’s captor snickered as two other Malinorian knights emerged from behind another tent.

“What are you waiting for?” said the taller of the two. “Kill the wench.”

“We have a war to get back to,” said the other.

“Not yet,” said the one that restrained her. “Why don’t we have some fun with her first?”

The other two exchanged uncouth grins before nodding.

Talya’s mind raced. She had easily defeated three of Ittonifer’s brutes at a time during the battle in Cardamon. This should be no different, especially after just being healed of several brutal wounds.

I just need a weapon.

Talya assumed that the man holding the dagger at her throat was a knife thrower. They usually kept at least two sheathed knives on their person. She glanced down at his thigh. He had another knife, after all.

She quickly reached for his other weapon and then drove it through his stomach. His pained grunt immediately pricked her conscience. He dropped his dagger and collapsed, clearly caught off guard. His colleagues stood in stunned silence for a moment before running toward her with their swords drawn.

Talya jumped to the side and blocked a swipe from the tallest one’s sword. She gritted her teeth as she attempted to strike at the other one’s back, but he whirled around and blocked her.

I don’t have time to waste on this! My country needs me.

Talya sprinted across the camp, trying to think of where there might be extra swords. It was unlikely. Every solider, knight, and commander had his own custom-made sword. No one would have brought along extras.

Talya was gifted with a sword, but she was no knife fighter. It occurred to her then that she had no idea what kind of a knight she was going to be now that she felt guilty about killing.

The barbarians were right on her heels, roaring at the top of their lungs like animals. She was going to have to finish them off, most likely.

“Lord, I could use some help right about now. Jalarn needs me. My people need me.”

A bow and a quiver full of arrows near a woodpile caught her attention. She leaped for it. Grabbing the bow, she nocked an arrow and pulled at the string. She shot it at the tallest knight’s chest. It didn’t quite hit her intended target. It pierced his lung instead of his heart. He stopped with a gasp for air and sank to his knees. That would do.

His friend was really close. Talya aimed at his heart, but instead shot him clear through the shoulder. He ignored the pain and kept coming, clearly bent on running her through.

Tanel would laugh at me if he could see this.

Again, she drew back the bowstring. The arrow hit Talya’s enemy near his heart. He fell with a grunt and then lay still.

Three firedrakes were tied to a post near General Edandir’s tent. Talya assessed them, trying to decide which one would be the fastest. She chose a long, lean beast and saddled him up. It would take her roughly an hour to get there, judging by the wind.

As she hopped on the dragon’s saddle and kicked its sides into flight, her stomach churned at the fact that she had just killed three lost men. Even though she did so in self-defense, it gnawed at her. The mission that God had sent her on had changed her forever.

*****

At Tanel’s side, Timlin and Pori fought another wave of Malinorians. The twins recited one of Tanel’s favorite psalms in unison.

“
Yea
,
though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

After what seemed like hours, the three of them stood among their fallen foes. It seemed like they had been fighting for days.

Pori patted Tanel on the back.

“Not bad, archer,” he grinned.

“Well, twenty more of our enemies are dead,” said Timlin.

Only four thousand more to go.

Endil joined them.

“Come on, lads. We can’t stop to rest now,” said Endil.

Pori nodded and pointed to their left.

“I see that a lady needs our help.”

Tanel followed his gaze.

Talya!

Tanel’s mouth dropped open as a mixture of relief and horror hit him. His friend was fighting against Ittonifer.

How in the world did she get here?

The four of them raced toward her and Ittonifer. Suddenly, Endil gripped Tanel’s arm and yanked him backward. A Malinorian knight had nearly lopped off his head.

Endil slew the man with one swing of his broad sword.

“I’d be more careful next time,” the large man said.

Tanel let out whoosh of breath. That one had been way too close.

They started toward Talya again, but another onslaught of Malinorians obstructed their path.

*****

Talya allowed Ittonifer to approach her. Now that her body was healed, it would be a fair fight.

Ittonifer shook his head.

Talya grinned, despite the seriousness of the moment.

“It appears that I should have sent more men to kill you. Nevertheless, I now have the pleasure of ensuring your demise. I won’t fail this time.”

“What happened to Jalarn?” demanded Talya.

He only answered Talya with a hollow laugh and a forceful kick to her stomach. It sent her stumbling backward, but she regained her footing.

He ran at her and their swords clanged together. She spun around him and managed a gash along his side. With an angry growl, he quickly swept his sword down on her shoulder. The thick armor there had saved her from a deep wound, but the impact sent a jolt through her body.

I had better be more careful. I might lose an arm next time.

Ittonifer came at her again with a powerful swing. Demoniac hate radiated from his dark gaze. She barely blocked the blow with her sword, telling herself not to look into his eyes anymore.

She attempted a low slash at his thigh, but he blocked it.

“It looks like you are about to lose some of your friends. Two against twelve is quite unlikely to turn into victory.”

Talya resisted the urge to look back, but her pulse quickened. She had to help them. And she still had to find out where Jalarn was. Somehow, she had to defeat the hateful monster that stood before her before she could accomplish that.

“You know it’s a lost cause, Talya. You should have joined me when you had the chance.”

Talya leaped toward him with her sword straight ahead of her, but he dodged her.

His agility was maddening.

Talya took a deep breath.

“The Lord is my strength and my shield,” she said.

“Shut up!” Ittonifer shouted.

She blocked another one of Ittonifer’s strong swings and then jabbed her sword into his thigh. The blade sliced through his lightweight armor this time.