Paladin's Rise - Lich Lord Wars Book 4

Chapter 6

"With Lich-El hiding in the rear and the Kadus Knight fleeing the battle, it looks like it will be up to me to end this battle."

"What is your plan Tornal?"

"Simple,  Lich-El isn’t the only one with a fieles. I will use my wind staff to break through their defenses where they are weakest, the south. We can then quickly take the keep. Be ready to attack."

Beneath a sky choked with ash and the stench of fear, Lord Teanas stood at the edge of the Undead rear lines, his fiery resolve evident in the embers that flickered around his clenched fists. The once lush landscape of Aguerius was now a charnel house, an insult to the memories of past generations. As he looked upon the legions of shambling revenants guarding Lich-El, the Elvish Prince's thoughts burned like the fires he commanded: How could anyone betray their own like this?

"Look what you've wrought, Lich-El!" Teanas roared, his voice like thunder in the gloom. Sparks danced between his fingers as he summoned two blazing whips of flame. With a flourish, he lashed out, incinerating the nearest undead abominations. The revenants not even see what hit them as they were reduced to ashes.

"Ah, the esteemed Lord Teanas graces us with his presence," Lich-El drawled, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He stepped forward, his pale visage twisted into a mocking grin. "And to think I was beginning to worry you'd never show."

"Your betrayal of your friends, family, and the Aguerius line is unforgivable," Teanas spat, the air around him crackling with heat. "It sickens me."

"Does it now?" Lich-El replied, feigning surprise. "That's rich, coming from someone who hasn't seen what I have, who doesn't understand the necessity of my actions." He paused for dramatic effect, reveling in Teanas's barely contained fury. "Besides," he continued, "it was Tornal who cursed dear Almas, not I. And by doing so, he inadvertently made that boy the key to our world's salvation."

"Salvation?" Teanas scoffed, his eyes blazing like twin suns. "You call this carnage salvation? This perversion of life?" He gestured to the devastated landscape around them, the fallen warriors who would never return home, and the grieving families left behind.

"Your self-righteous indignation is almost endearing," Lich-El taunted, his laughter as cold as the grave. "But it matters not. Soon, you'll understand that my actions are for the greater good."

"Twisted words from a twisted soul," Teanas muttered under his breath. His heart ached for the friend he had once known, now lost to the darkness. "If this is your vision of the future, I will stop at nothing to change it.

"Nothing can justify what you've done," Teanas said, his voice dripping with disdain. "It's not too late to end this madness. Command your forces to withdraw."

Lich-El shook his head, a wicked grin ghosting across his skeletal face. "I'm afraid I cannot do that, my dear Teanas. And while I bear you no ill will, I must warn you: if you continue on this path, I won't hesitate to defend myself."

"Is that so?" Teanas asked, sarcasm lacing his words as he summoned forth the heat inside him. A torrent of flames erupted around his body, outlining him in a deadly aura, daring Lich-El to challenge him.

"Very well," Lich-El sighed, raising his enormous war hammer. Its intricate carvings seemed to come alive, writhing and pulsating with power. As Lich-El slammed it into the ground, massive cracks snaked through the earth like the jagged scars left by an ancient battle.

"Always were one for theatrics," Teanas muttered to himself, leaping nimbly out of the way as the fissures shot towards him.

"Can't let you have all the fun, now can I?" Lich-El sneered, using his hammer to raise giant, sharp boulders from the ground. With powerful swings, he sent them hurtling towards Teanas, who weaved between them with the grace of a leaf caught in the wind.