Chapter 30
Theron
“Myrina! Focus your magic on Orithyia. I need her too busy protecting herself to curse anyone else,” Theron commanded, miniaturizing his spear and pinning it to his tunic before grabbing a sword from one of the dead paladins within the temple.
“Paladins, protect the king!” Myrina ordered. “Priestesses, initiates, acolytes, focus your magic on me!” She turned her gaze to Theron. “Come back to me, my little lion.”
He stopped on the top step of the temple of Passion and smiled sadly at her. He could make no promises but to his wife.
“I love you, Aunty.”
“Theron! Something’s wrong,” Hyllus said, grabbing Theron’s shoulder. “Orithyia she…she doesn’t look like a high priestess.”
As paladins of all three goddesses got into formation and armed themselves with swords from the temple’s armoury, Theron stared at the avatar’s jewel-like eyes with bewilderment.
“What do you mean?”
“She’s wrapped up in divine magic so bright it’s searing my senses, but there’s more. I think she has wild magic too. She could be an avatar like us!”
“Could be?”
He didn’t have time for suppositions and unknowns when he was about to lead a battle charge. If Orithyia was an avatar, the same as them, then what was her wild magic? She hadn’t used it yet, as far as he knew. The cursed clerics had been under the influence of divine magic.
“I don’t exactly make a habit of looking at high priestesses.”
No, he didn’t suppose someone with divine eyes would risk such a thing. Theron could only pray that whatever Orithyia’s wild magic, if she possessed it, was unsuitable for battle.
“Can you kill her from here?” Theron asked.
He was loath to place his strongest ally in the rear, but if he could unravel Orithyia’s thread, then Theron would gladly lead the charge with only paladins at his side.
“Yes, but it would take far too long to get past her magical defences.”
Damn it.
“Then join me in the charge. We’ll use her black heart as a sheath for our swords.”
“Alright,” Hyllus nodded.
Theron looked around at his ragtag army of bruised and bleeding paladins. None of them had shields. There would be no well-protected forward push. It would be a pure melee. So be it.
“Show no mercy, for you will receive none until Orithyia is dead! Forward!” Theron called, leading the rush.
The cursed clerics retreated from his advance, making it easy to cut them down. But the moment his small army crossed over the last step of the temple of Passion and into the plaza proper, they turned around and attacked all at once.
Theron threw up his shield, knocking back a group of frenzied clerics.
More climbed over the fallen, crushing them underneath even as they tried to get to their feet.
The onslaught was relentless. They didn’t fight like soldiers—they fought as if possessed, no finesse or concern for their own lives.
Batea joined the scrum, directing Drakon to knock a huge swath of cursed clerics clear across the plaza. The majority redirected their focus to Batea and Drakon.
“Go! I can handle this!” Batea screamed.
Drakon lifted off the ground, grabbing mouthfuls of clerics in his jaws and tossing them aside like broken toys. Blood rained down beneath Drakon’s black clouds.
Hyllus was gamely cutting a swath through cursed clerics at Theron’s side, but by the time they’d reached the midway mark between temples, many of the allied paladins had been brought down or were fighting for their lives surrounded by groups of a dozen or more foes.
Theron and Hyllus fought side by side, falling into a grisly rhythm.
Theron parried a blow, and Hyllus snuck up and gutted the reeling foe while Theron swept his sword out to cut down any who thought to flank them.
An arrow struck Hyllus through the arm. Theron shielded the avatar while wrenching out the projectile and closing the wound, earning himself a blow to the back of his knee.
Hyllus darted in, shoving a glowing spear into the assailant’s eye as Theron healed the damage and got to his feet once more.
Step by bloody step, they advanced.
Orithyia, that cursed wraith, was close at hand.
An acolyte grabbed Aurora by the back of her neck and held her up.
His fated had blood pouring down her nose and ears and out of deep wounds on her arm.
She was pale, struggling to get her feet under her as her knees buckled.
She’d been drained of magic. In her hand, she held her artefact.
When she caught his gaze, she hooked a finger around a necklace, pulling it upwards to reveal the shield artefact.
Good girl. She was protected as best she could be for now. He could focus on defeating Orithyia.
“Aurora is protected by an impenetrable shield. Focus on Orithyia. We may only have a heartbeat before she tries to curse us. We can only hope our divine magic will shield us,” Theron said, bashing a paladin with his shield and infusing both himself and Hyllus with a burst of stamina.
“Right!” Hyllus said, slashing the last of the paladins blocking their way.
They charged up the steps, weapons raised to strike her down.
And were met with a wave of divine magic.
“Hyllus, Theron is the great evil you were commanded to slay. He intends to sell Epicasta to the highest bidder. And Theron, Hyllus has designs on your wife. He intends to kill you and take her as a prized oracle for Epicasta’s benefit,” Orithyia called out, smiling.
Theron smashed the avatar’s face with his shield. How dare that traitor think to take his fated from him?! He would grind that filthy, flee-bitten dog to dust.
With Hyllus still reeling, Theron unleashed his wild magic, sinking into the traitor and tearing open old wounds. It seemed spearing the avatar through the leg upon first meeting him had been luck all along. Hyllus’ screams were music to his ears.
“Theron! No! Fight it! She’s lying!” Aurora screamed.
Theron paid her no heed. Aurora was as innocent of the ways of wicked men as she was beautiful.
Hyllus had slithered into her life with his boyish smile, plucking on her heartstrings to earn her trust, all the while plotting against her—against them.
He would slay the bastard and save her from harm.
Theron pulled on the magic of Aureum to bolster his own and enlarged his spear artefact. Victory was assured.
Hyllus rallied, but only just, laying down a barrage of divine arrows so that he could limp away. Eyes glittering like sapphires, he turned his bow into a shield. Coward.
Theron raised his spear, ready to strike, when an unseen force gripped his leg and split it open.
He screamed in agony, falling to his knees, forced to abandon his attack as he healed his injury.
Just as he rallied, his arm broke, then his rib, then the bones in his foot.
Buried under a wave of agony, Theron coughed up blood and caught sight of the bastard’s jewel-like stare.
He was using his divine eyes to fray Theron’s thread.
Very well.
Let them see who could outlast whom.
Only one of them could make himself immune to pain.
Theron silenced the sensation of pain in his body.
Dangerous perhaps, but it wouldn’t be for long.
Just long enough to drive his spear through those thrice-damned eyes.
He drew on Aureum’s magic, filling himself as much as he could, his healing magic mending his bones as fast as Hyllus could break them.
Theron lurched to his feet and advanced on unsteady steps.
Hyllus was already paling behind his flimsy divine shield, blood pouring out of his injuries.
Raising his spear once more, triumph flooded through Theron.
First this pest, then Orithyia. Then he would finally have his little fairy safe in his arms.
A blast of wind knocked Theron back down the steps of the temple as he was poised to kill Hyllus. Epicasta raced to Hyllus, shaking him by the shoulders.
“Stop! Hyllus, stop! What are you doing?! He’s our ally!” she shrieked.
“Casy! He means to sell you like your mother did! Move aside! Let me protect you!”
“This is madness! Stop! Please, Hyllus!” Epicasta cried.
The avatar was wavering. More the fool he. Theron used the distraction to rush forward.
“Epicasta, run!” Aurora screamed.
Epicasta looked up just in time to see Theron barrelling towards her. But the fool princess refused to do as she’d been bid. She jumped in the way of Theron and imprisoned him in a veritable gale.
If he had to shatter the glass princess to get rid of the avatar, he would. He’d told Aurora to sacrifice whoever she needed to get back to him. Theron would do no less.
With his healing magic, he sought out the glass princess’ old injuries, splitting open her thigh.
She screamed, her wild magic dissipating.
Theron charged out of his vanished prison.
He aimed his spear at Hyllus, who had foolishly lunged for Epicasta.
With a precisely timed throw, the spear hurtled through the space between them, aimed directly at Hyllus.
But in that split second, Epicasta leapt in the way, taking his spear through her heart.
She fell to black steps, bleeding out instantly.
The glass princess was no more.
“CASY!” Hyllus turned his eyes from his dead wife to Theron, a new and unspeakable rage burning within them.
He turned his shield into a bow and aimed at Theron.
Theron raised his shield, but too late. A barrage of arrows sank into his flesh.
A fight of attrition. His advance was slowed by the avatar’s relentless barrage.
Magic poured through him to keep him standing and advancing.
Soon, he would run out, while the avatar seemed to have gained a second wind from his rage.
And yet he was so enraged, he’d not stepped back into the Tapestry to break Theron’s bones.
In spite of the strain, Theron smiled. He would win this battle.
All he needed was to get within striking distance.