Legends of the Saloli: Vengeance and Mercy (10 page)

Blaze, please come back safe,
she thought, gazing in the direction he had run off.
I don’t know what I would do without you!

It was then that she saw them. At first she thought that they must be Icefire’s attack force returning victorious, but then she realized that there were too many. Far too many. At least one hundred saloli were quickly making their way towards Icefire’s camp. No, far more than that. It wasn’t until she recognized the one leading the charge that Sunbeam realized what was going on.

“We’re being attacked!” she yelled, just as Goliath entered the camp. He immediately lashed out to his right, his claws slicing open an Icefire saloli’s throat. Sunbeam couldn’t believe her eyes. That saloli had only been a trainee! Darkcover’s army flooded into the camp after their chief, each of them engaging the first enemy that caught their sight. “Get into a tree, now!” She urged the young saloli beside her, pushing him away from the fight. His paws were frozen to the ground in fear, though. Sunbeam continued to push him until she saw a Darkcover saloli coming in their direction, claws bared. Fire pulsed through her veins, and anger consumed her.

“Get away from him, you coward!” she screamed, and launched herself at the invader with a ferocity that surprised her. Caught off guard by the female’s audacity, the Darkcover saloli rushed at her all the same. Sunbeam raised herself onto her back legs, and threw her body back down, her head colliding with her enemy’s with a sickening crack. The Darkcover saloli staggered backwards, and fell down dead from head trauma. Sunbeam, fighting to stay conscious, swung around to her right and struck another enemy on the face with her claws, shredding his skin down to the muscle. The saloli, too shocked to comprehend his injury, lunged forward, intending to bite Sunbeam’s throat. Sunbeam, however, ducked beneath his jaws, and thrust her head up into his throat, knocking him onto his back. Before he could retaliate, she leapt onto his stomach and drove her claws into his chest, piercing his heart.

Sunbeam began to pull her claws out of her enemy’s corpse, but was swatted to the ground from behind. Her vision swam again, and she felt herself begin to go under. Looking back to see her attacker, her heart began to beat in panic at the sight of none other than Goliath standing over her, claws raised for a killing blow.

Then she saw no more.

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Blaze was the first to arrive back at Icefire’s camp, having outrun even Rust in his desperation to protect his tribe. He was too stunned to move for a moment by the scene of carnage before him, and then dove into the fight, tackling a brown Darkcover saloli that had pinned down an Icefire trainee. The invader tried to spin around and scratch Blaze, but Blaze lashed out, intending to cut his throat open, but his paw collided with the side of his face, bending his neck sideways with a loud pop. The saloli fell down dead. Blaze leapt over his first opponent, and was instantly set upon by another enemy, a female this time. She struck his cheek with her claws, drawing blood, and Blaze rammed into her, pinning her against a tree before lashing out and killing her with his claws. Given a moment’s respite after his second kill, Blaze cast his gaze around the camp. It was hopeless. Even with the second half of Icefire now in the fray, the odds were still three to one. There was no way they could win this!

Raaaaaawrk!

The shrill call came from the sky, and Talons dove down, plucking two Darkcover saloli off of the ground, one in each claw-tipped foot. The invaders shrieked in terror at seeing the mighty predator aiding their enemies, and many abandoned the attack and ran into the woods. Blaze smiled with grim satisfaction. The eagle’s debt to him had finally paid off. Looking back down, though, his momentary happiness turned to shock, and then horror as he saw Goliath looming over Sunbeam, his claws raised, preparing to slice her throat open.

“No!” he shouted, charging into the battle once more. A Darkcover saloli approached him from his right, but was immediately sent running away, minus one ear. Another moved to block Blaze’s path, but Blaze slammed into him, knocking him onto his back, and ran over him. Leaping into the air, he managed to collide with Goliath just as the giant lashed out to kill Sunbeam. The impact sent Goliath staggering backwards, and he turned to face his new opponent, eyes blazing with fury and bloodlust.

“You!” He howled, and launched himself at Blaze.

Blaze tried to dodge to the right, away from Goliath’s massive form, but the Darkcover chief swung around to follow him and struck Blaze with a paw almost as big as the red saloli’s head. Blaze flew backwards, and then skidded to a stop on the earth floor. He managed to get back to his feet, but Goliath was already in there, and brought his claws down Blaze’s side, cutting through the skin like butter. Blaze felt blood quickly mat his fiery fur, and then another impact to his head sent him spinning away and lying face down in the dirt once more. He tried to pick himself back up again, but Goliath grabbed his chest fur in his mouth, and ran forward, pinning Blaze against a nearby tree. Blaze felt his breath leave his lungs, and choked. Goliath swung his head to the right, throwing Blaze to the ground again. Blaze struggled to get his paws back underneath himself, but was too weak. His vision became cloudy, and he fought to remain conscious. Goliath raised his paw, and raked his claws down Blaze’s face.

“I can’t believe I was afraid of you!” he growled, and clawed Blaze’s face again, “You’re nothing!” Pain flared from Blaze’s wounded side. “You’re pathetic!” Pain. “You couldn’t stop me if I was asleep!” Pain. “I am king over this forest, but you will not live to see the day that I rule over Icefire as part of Darkcover!” Pain!

Blaze laid on the ground, a shivering mass of fur and blood. He could feel the strength leaving his body, but he did not know if it was death or a blackout that was threatening to take him. Goliath raised himself onto his back legs, preparing to make the killing blow.

“Goodbye, Outsider!” he shouted.

The strike never came, though. After almost a minute, Blaze worked up the strength to open his eyes again. Goliath was still standing over him, but was no longer looking at him. To Blaze’s right stood Mordred, Darkcover’s prophet, speaking to Goliath in a hushed tone. Nodding slowly, Goliath placed his paws back on the ground, and stepped back. All around them, the fight raged on.

“Can you hear me, Outsider?” Mordred asked. Not knowing what else to do, Blaze managed to give a weak nod. “Good. Stand up.” Using all of his willpower, Blaze managed to put his paws beneath him and raise his body up, though his wounds screamed for mercy. “We’ve decided to give you a little test. If you pass, we will go home and leave Icefire in peace. If you fail, it will cost you the life of someone you hold very dear.”

“W-what are you talking about?” Blaze sputtered, a bit of blood running down his lip.

“Go home to your mother,” Mordred commanded. “If you can make it there within five minutes, I will spare her life and leave as promised. I take it you already know the other outcome?”

Blaze’s view of Mordred was suddenly blocked as his chief ran to stand in front of him, Faith was behind him. “Blaze, whatever he’s said to you, don’t listen to him!” Rust commanded.

Mordred laughed, a cruel sound that his throat was obviously unused to. “You mean you really haven’t told them?” he asked in a taunting voice, “You haven’t told them what it is you really are?”

An uneasy look came into Rust’s eyes, “Blaze, what is he talking about?”

“You haven’t told them that you are not a saloli at all? They aren’t aware that you are, in fact, a
human
?”

A shout came from Icefire’s chief. “You’re lying!” he shouted.

“Am I?” Mordred smiled. “Why don’t you ask your prophet, Faith?”

Rust turned to look at Faith, who had a shameful look on her face, “Faith, is it true? What have you done?”

A tear trickled out of Faith’s eye, and she said, “I had hoped that it wouldn’t be revealed to you in this way, Rust, but yes. Blaze is a human.” Another shocked gasp rang out.

“But- but why?” Rust asked.

“Because Valde Abbas told me that we needed him. I turned him into a saloli and brought him here. I’m sorry Rust, but I had to do it.”

Mordred spat in disgust, “Valde Abbas is a fool! Those who take his words as truth are fools, as well as puppets. I will show you how loyal Icefire’s hero truly is.” He turned back to Blaze, “Go! Go and save your mother! Your time begins now.”

Panic flooded into Blaze’s mind, making him fully alert again. Despite the pain that racked his body, Blaze began a slow jog out of Icefire’s camp. He didn’t know what would happen between him and Icefire now, and at the moment he didn’t care. All his brain could comprehend was that his mother was in danger. He couldn’t allow her to be hurt. This wasn’t her war!

Blaze began to see his house, still small in the distance. Unable to keep up the jog, he slowed to a limping walk. Pain flared in his right paw, and he realized that a thorn had gotten stuck in the pad. Incapable of walking with it, he managed to pull it out with his teeth. Doing so took over a minute.

“I’d hurry if I were you,” Mordred’s voice echoed through the trees. “She only has three minutes left.”

Blaze began walking again, leaving a trail of fresh blood behind him. His house gradually drew nearer, and, finally, he stood on the grassy front lawn. Both to his horror and relief, he saw his mother sitting on the porch swing, staring out into the forest.

“Mom!” he yelled, knowing that she wouldn’t understand him, limping up to the house as quickly as he could.

His mother heard what Blaze had said, but only as a saloli’s bark. Looking down, she saw him making his way to her. Her eyes narrowed in confusion for a moment, and then widened in astonishment. More than two months ago, Blaze had transformed from a saloli to a boy and back right before her eyes. She recognized, now, that it was her son walking up to her.

She immediately stood up and ran towards him, intending to pick him up and hold him like a mother would a newborn child. She never got the chance.

FLASH!

BOOOOOOM!

Dirt and grass flew in all directions, propelled by the force that only a bolt of lightning could create, and Blaze felt a wave of heat envelope him. When the dust settled, to his dismay, he saw his mother lying on her back, staring up at the sky. Pain filled his heart, far more than his body felt.

“No!” he shouted, and ran to her. While running, Blaze felt his body shift and grow, and by the time he was beside her, he knelt next to her as Jeremy Lander, human once more. He grabbed her shoulders and shook her, but received no response. “Mom?” He called to her, “Mom, please don’t do this! You weren’t supposed to be a part of this! Mom, please, wake up!” He grabbed her wrist and frantically searched for a pulse. There was none.

It felt as if his heart would burst from the pain. Reaching out, he gently used his fingers to close his mother’s eyes. Now it looked as if she were sleeping. Unable to contain the emotion any longer, Jeremy leaned his head back and screamed his sorrow to the heavens.

Why? Why? Why?
The question ran through his head.
This wasn’t her war! She had nothing to do with it! Why did she have to die?
He leaned down, resting his head on her chest, and began to cry. He did not know for how long he cried, but when he finally stopped, he became aware of laughter behind him.

Turning around, he passively noticed that he had returned, once again, to saloli form. Behind him, just behind the cover of the trees, stood Mordred, cackling as if he had done something incredibly amusing.

“I’m so glad that you decided to show me where your mother lived, boy.” He said, a wicked smile played across his face, “For a moment, I thought you would call my bluff, and not believe me. If you hadn’t fallen for it, I never would have found out where your mother was.” He snickered, “I hope you realize that her death is your fault. You led her to me! You killed her! You killed your own mother!”

Suddenly, Blaze was filled with an uncontrollable rage. Leaving his mother’s side, he ran as fast as he could at Mordred, intending to rip him limb from limb.

“I don’t think so.” Mordred said.

FLASH!

BOOOOOOOM!

Blaze felt himself be thrown back, just as his mother had been, and struck his head. The last thing he could remember after that was seeing Mordred turn and walk away, an ecstatic smile on his face.

It’s my fault.

Chapter
Nineteen