The Chosen (8 page)

Zorbin saw Xanth rise from the ground and, digging his long talon-like claws into the soil, he lunged forward into a dead run. Zorbin was watching Xanth’s approach which caused him to again get struck with Philip’s sharp blades, this time a quick thrust to his gut. The pain was immense, and pinpricks of light exploded in Zorbin’s eyes as he struggled to remain in the fight. Zorbin half doubled over in pain as a deep snarl cracked through the air. An image of Xanth upon Philip’s back flashed in Zorbin’s mind which, with the agony of his most recent injury, he could not help but think the image a welcome sight. He opened his eyes and stood erect once again to face his opponent. But just as Zorbin found his opponent, who was about to attack him again, he saw a black shape hurl itself through the air towards Philip.

Sinking his claws deep into the flesh upon Philip’s back, Xanth drove the man to the ground. The wolf was bigger and heavier than the knight and they came down in a bone-shattering crunch that sent both man and beast rolling across the ground. Xanth regained his feet first and again lunged at the man who had harmed his master. Philip rolled onto his back in time to see the giant wolf lunge at him again. Xanth came down, a fury of muscle, fur and claws upon Philip. Philip squirmed to break free of the giant beast, invoking his blessing as he struggled. With speed unlike any other living thing, Philip pummeled the animal that had him pinned to the ground with his fists to little avail. Now the wolf was snapping his jaws at Philip. Speed could not save him now, not when he was pinned to the earth with massive claws and immense weight.

Zorbin stood like a statue watching the event play out, unable to react to what he was seeing. He knew he should call Xanth off Philip but could not find his voice. He had never in his life seen Xanth act as violently as he was at this moment. He watched Philip wriggle beneath the great wolf, and watched still as the man tried to fight the beast, his friend, off with his fists. It appeared for a moment that Philip had given in. and stopping his assault on the animal, Xanth began to remove one of his huge paws from the man’s chest.

Rolling to the side Philip attempted to crawl out from under the beast, but the wolf would not let him gain his feet. Bloodied and angered, Philip struggled in a rage to be free, and clawing at the ground to pull himself from beneath the beast, his fingertips brushed something familiar. He stretched as far as his body would allow and took up one of his razor sharp blades. Rolling onto his back to again face Xanth, Philip drew back his arm, preparing to strike.

“Release me!” Philip yelled in anger at the beast.

Xanth spotted the weapon and baring his razor sharp teeth he growled a deep menacing growl. The growl was cut short, quite literally, by Philip’s blade. What was a growl turned into a yelp of pain as Philip drove his blade up into the unprotected belly of the animal on top of him.

Xanth took his paw from the man’s chest and stepped back a pace. The blade had pierced more than one of his organs. Xanth whined like a kicked dog as he shrank to the ground.

Zorbin the dwarf watched as Philip plunged his dagger into Xanth’s underside and something inside him snapped with Xanth’s cry of pain. Power flowed through his body and his ability to move was restored. Fear for his lupine companion guided his actions and his mind and he strode forward toward his opponent. His lips whispered a few words silently into the daytime air. Zorbin was engulfed with light momentarily followed by a deep concussive boom in which the dwarf exploded, doubling his size, quadrupling his strength. When the light faded something clicked inside his mind as if a door had been unlocked and opened.

Two things happened then simultaneously. First the power of Gorandor flowed through him, allowing him to sustain the blessing given to him by the god. Second he felt a presence in his head, a familiar presence and he knew by instinct whom the presence was. Seeking it out in his mind to make a connection, Zorbin located the consciousness of his friend Xanth who lay injured upon the ground only a few feet away. Linking himself to the beast mentally, images flooded through his mind of all the beast's memories and thoughts. Unable to stop the gushing river of images, Zorbin gave himself into the flow and allowed himself and his thoughts to be caught up in it. Now it was nearly as if the memories granted to him by Xanth were his own. When at last the two had melded together mentally, another flash of light exploded just paces away from Zorbin followed by yet another blast of sound. Xanth regained his feet. If he had been huge in comparison to other breeds of wolf before the transformation, he was a giant of a beast now. His newfound strength allowed him to ignore the pain of his injury and rise again to protect his master. As Xanth envisioned himself again pouncing upon Philip, this time a resounding “No” was heard within his head. The wolf turned his intelligent eyes upon his master who stood shaking his head. Xanth relaxed his muscles knowing well his master’s meaning.

Philip stood shaking in a mix of fright and excitement. The fight was over, of that he was sure. He didn’t stand a chance against both the wolf and the dwarf, especially now that they had been blessed. Philip did not know what to think of it. He had never heard of an animal being blessed by a god before, though it was the only explanation he could find for what he was seeing now. Attempting to regain his composure, Philip looked across the field to where his commander was supposed to be sparring with Garret. Instead he was surprised to see both of them upon the ground and Daniella working her blessing upon them. Looking himself over, Philip hoped Daniella was able to conserve some strength as Xanth had torn some deep gouges over a good portion of his body as well as broken some ribs, not to mention his sternum was crushed from the dwarf’s fist. Philip returned his gaze back to Zorbin who was now inspecting Xanth’s wound. They remained in their blessed form still, even though the battle was finished.

Zorbin watched Philip’s approach through images granted to him by Xanth’s eyes. The man approached out of concern, not aggression and so the dwarf made no move to oppose him.

“Are we finished here, Master Philip?” Zorbin asked in a deeper voice than was usual.

“Indeed we are, Zorbin. I am sorry for hurting Xanth but I panicked and saw no other way to free myself. Our sparring has concluded so you may return to your normal form,” Philip said, his voice filled with concern.

“I am afraid I do not know how to turn it off,” Zorbin stated simply.

“Hmm, let’s see if I can find a proper way to explain it to you. Try if you can to find the source of Gorandor’s power within your mind. When you locate it, focus on stopping it. Try to imagine yourself shutting it behind a door. That’s what I do. Then when I require my blessing again, I simply open the door,” Philip explained.

The excitement of battle ended, Zorbin’s pain from the dozens of injuries he had sustained returned. But as his pulse and breathing returned to normal he was finally able to focus and do exactly as Philip had told him. He located the source of the power without much trouble and imagining himself closing it behind a door he willed it to stay its flow, at least for the time being. As the mental door was secured in place, both he and Xanth shimmered briefly, then with a sharp snap like the coals in a fire crackling, they returned to their unblessed forms.

Looking across the field, Philip watched Daniella rise to her feet seemingly finished healing Sirus and Garret. As she crossed the field towards them he also saw both Garret and Sirus lift themselves into seated positions facing one another. Daniella arrived promptly with a big smile on her face.

“You guys sure put on a show today. There must have been a hundred children watching through the east gate.” Daniella stated her smile never leaving her face. “Any of you require healing?” She looked at the few remnants of Zorbin’s armor and the many puncture holes in his body.

“If it wouldn’t be too much to ask, I could use getting my sternum repaired,” Philip said with a smile of his own. “Zorbin there has several wounds that will need tending. Also, if you are familiar with animal anatomy, Xanth has a large gouge in his belly that will need tending as well.”

Daniella nodded and quickly knelt down beside Philip. Praying to her goddess her hands immediately burst forth in holy light and she reached up to place them upon his chest. Closing her eyes briefly she focused on her task and in moments she reopened her eyes. Still praying she stood and walked to where Zorbin sat stroking Xanth’s muzzle. Without so much as a second’s hesitation she again knelt to the ground and this time placed her hands upon the dwarf’s side. Her eyes closed once again, this time for much longer as she had to seek out several smaller, harder-to-locate wounds. Many minutes later she removed her hands from Zorbin’s torso and without repositioning or opening her eyes she reached over to touch Xanth’s body. This time her face scrunched up slightly, showing the strain of her concentration. Several more minutes passed and finally, her task complete, Daniella stopped her quiet prayer. As she did the holy glow around her hands dissipated. She opened her eyes and stood once again, her smile returning.

“I hope you are finished for the day as I fear I will be unable to do much more without some rest,” she said honestly.

“I believe we are finished here, m’lady. If you would care to take your leave of us for the day, feel free. We will need you well rested once again tomorrow here on the field,” Philip told the young woman.

“I will be here and ready, m’lord,” Daniella replied.

Without another word the young woman walked away in the direction of the vast stone courtyards of the castle. Philip watched her go for a moment and then turned, offering a hand to Zorbin. Zorbin accepted the offer gratefully and with Philip’s assistance rose to his feet. Xanth was in no mood to be left behind and he too stood to walk beside his master. They crossed the field to where their comrades remained sitting in the blood-stained grass.

“How did your match go?” Sirus asked Philip as they approached.

“It was a bit unmatched in the beginning, and terribly unmatched at the end,” Philip replied with a sarcastic grin.

“How did it end then?” Sirus continued his questioning.

“In defeat, as most battles do.” Philip again danced around a specific answer.

“So you defeated Zorbin. That is fine. How did he perform and how serious were his injuries?” Sirus persisted.

“Most of his injuries were minor. However, two would have needed immediate attention on an actual field of battle. But you might find it surprising to know that he was not the one defeated.”

“Indeed I am surprised. He bested you in battle?” Sirus asked sounding astonished.

“Let me explain. The fight started much as you and I assumed it would. I was able to maneuver around his attacks fairly easily, until he got creative, that is. After tormenting him a while he decided to crush my sternum with his fist which, might I add, is quite unpleasant but not unbearable. Then I decided to stop my charade and end the fight. After I landed a few more crucial blows, I was caught by surprise by his ally here.” Philip gestured towards the giant wolf just paces away. “The tables turned dramatically. Xanth pinned me to the ground and then I made the biggest mistake of the battle, or perhaps the best decision. I lashed out and injured Xanth, which in turn caused Zorbin to receive his blessing from Gorandor. But wait, that is not all. Not only is Zorbin blessed but so is Xanth. It’s unbelievable! I have never heard of Gorandor blessing an animal before. I wish you had seen it. I was caught completely off guard as well as poorly protected against such a force,” Philip recounted rapidly, clearly showing how much the event had excited him.

“Truly Xanth is blessed as well? That is amazing. Well, as I was unconscious at the time, I must enquire what gift have you been blessed with, Zorbin?” Sirus asked, his own excitement hard to contain.

“First I think it is much like yours. I am granted size and strength. But there is something more and I think I now have a grasp on how it works. I think in some way Gorandor has linked my mind with Xanth’s. From time to time I see flickers of images from his point of view. It just started today. I do not know its limitations but I hope to test them. Also, I do not believe Xanth has been blessed so to speak. I think that because we are somehow linked, when I assume my blessed form he receives the blessing as well. At least at this point that is how I understand it,” Zorbin explained as best as he was able.

“Truly this is astounding. No matter how it works, your blessing is two-fold. I have never heard of such a thing in any of the histories. We must strive to learn your full capabilities and limitations as soon as we are able. Perhaps with some experience you will be able to communicate with Xanth more precisely,” Sirus said before pausing briefly to imagine the possibilities. “So, can you guess at how big you got or how strong in your blessed form?”

“It is hard to tell, Sirus, to be honest. I know I was much, much stronger. In size I would say near double which, compared to a tall human, wouldn’t be extremely large. But for a stout dwarf, nine feet is gargantuan!” Zorbin replied.

“We shall definitely set aside plenty of time to learn your limits. However, it will have to wait a few days. We already have plans for tomorrow,” Sirus concluded.

“Well I have to ask, Philip stated. You know of our battle, but how did yours go?”

Sirus turned back to Garret seated just feet away from him and they shared a smile before Sirus answered.

“I would say we were fairly evenly matched. What I had in experience, Garret made up for with ambition. It was a draw if I could call it anything. Had it been an actual battlefield with overworked healers all the way behind the rear lines, I doubt either of us would have survived. Our sparring ended with me spilling Garret’s guts upon the ground and him nearly cleaving me in two from top to bottom.” Sirus stated the facts finishing with a grin. “He is indeed a quick learner and continually adapted to my fighting style, no matter how I altered my tactics.”

Garret could not help but blush at the compliment. He knew he was intelligent and he enjoyed this sort of training. But mainly he was happy to not have disappointed those who were doing the teaching. However, Garret could not help but feel a twinge of jealousy at the fact that Zorbin had received a blessing before he had.