The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 5 - A Warm Reunion (Part 2)

Meanwhile, Amadeus and Rei were approaching the perimeter of the camp which was in the middle of a clearing. Just yesterday, there was no clearing here. The stone, trees and soil consumed in the forming of Waldo's mansion late last night had formed a clearing in the middle of the valley. This was the only spot in the entire valley where the sun shone freely through, painting the ground gold.

A mansion stood commandingly in the center of the clearing; while there were glowing magical wards were set up all over the ground surrounding it. The entire camp site looked rather out of place. The entire clearing was bordered by the morning mist which swirled along the valley's floor under the shade of the trees.

Amadeus took one look at the imposing mansion in the distance, and instantly knew that one of two possible scenarios had occurred. Firstly, either White Harrow had sent an entire platoon of battle-wizards to the Lost Valley; or secondly, this mansion must belong to Waldo Drake. Since Rei had told him that only five people occupied the mansion, Amadeus deduced that the latter must be true. Only someone as pompous as Waldo would build such a huge mansion which could be seen for miles around. After what had happened during their last encounter, he was not keen on the reception he would surely receive from Waldo.

"Stop," whispered Rei as he held Amadeus firmly by the shoulder, preventing him from stepping out from the trees into the clearing. "Once you step out of the morning mist, you will be nothing but target practice. The Nobles will spot you easily."

Amadeus looked around cautiously for signs of the Nobles. He half-expected to see Waldo Drake pouncing at him with a smug grin on his face. However, not a soul seemed to be in sight, and the entire clearing was void of movement. Rei was right of course, it was better to be safe than sorry. They would have to figure out their next move while hidden from detection.

"Now, we need to find a way to get past these funny symbols on the ground," Rei whispered from the shadows. "Do you know what they are?" he asked Amadeus while pointing at the symbols which lay glowing on the ground near their feet. The symbols emitted a strange bluish glow and seemed to hum in unison.

Amadeus nodded, familiar with the same wards which were casted around the commoner camp of White Harrow. These wards were designed to do all sorts of things from detecting people, to harming intruders and keeping prisoners in. He also remembered Enoch's lesson about the wards, knowing that the wards were like invisible walls, ten feet thick and fifty feet tall, impossible to jump over. Not being well versed in magical symbols, the only way to find out what they did was to walk through the wards, and he was not about to do that.

"We need to go under them, but it would take hours to dig under them. We cannot go over them, as they would be at least fifty feet tall. Hmm... this is going to be difficult." Amadeus said as he rubbed his chin, trying to think of a way to get past the boundary. Amadeus was stumped. It seemed impossible to find any other way through the wards. Only the Nobles of White Harrow could walk freely in and out of the boundary. What had he gotten himself into? This rescue mission was not only suicidal but also impossible.

Shutting his eyes tight, Amadeus tried to push his negative thoughts aside. Clearing his head, he started to focus on coming up with a plan, calculating all the possibilities. What are my resources? I have a seasoned Exile warrior with me. Perhaps I could use this to my advantage. Turning to Rei, he asked, "How many of them can you take on at once?"

Amadeus never found out the answer. It may as well have been zero. The next two words he heard from Rei were filled with panic. "Watch out!" Rei shouted as he shoved Amadeus down to the ground.

As he was falling towards the ground, Amadeus saw a flash of light slam into Rei's chest which instantly sent him flying backwards and landed few steps away from where Amadeus had fallen. From the corner of his eye, Amadeus saw that Rei appeared to be semi-paralyzed but still conscious. His eyes were open, and his hands were gripped tightly on the icicles on his belt.

With his last ounce of strength, Rei shouted a battle cry, "Ichi No Ta'me!" He drew two icicles out of his belt with both hands and flung them with all his might at his unseen attackers. The icicles sped through the air with great speed, and all Amadeus could see were blur streaks of white as they whistled past him. Two screams rang in the air as the icicles made contact with his foes. With that last desperate act, the paralysis of the spell overtook Rei's entire body and he collapsed on the floor. He neither got up, nor did he move; it was as though he had been frozen in time.

So much for having a seasoned Exile warrior, thought Amadeus as he clambered to his feet. Cursing his rotten luck, he surveyed the area, looking for an avenue to escape. He had initially thought of fleeing should things have taken a turn for the worst. He was a good runner, and would have a good chance to escape Waldo and his crew. I shouldn't have to sacrifice myself along with Rei. Amadeus reasoned. He's the one who's determined to go on this crazy suicide mission to save his daughter. This is Rei's mission, not mine. Let him give up his life, not mine.

As Amadeus stumbled away from the camp, his conscience weighed heavily upon him. Rei's sacrificial gesture to save him from the Noble's attack had made it all the more difficult to leave Rei for dead. Things were different now. It's one thing to leave a crazy Exile behind, but it's another to leave a crazy Exile who just saved my life. Rei had clearly taken the hit for him. If he had not pushed Amadeus out of the way, Amadeus would now be frozen on the ground instead of him. Argh, Amadeus grumbled within. Now I owe him my life.

A familiar voice was heard in the distance. "Well look boys, we're in luck today; our prey has come right to our doorstep. Looks like we will be feasting earlier than initially thought."

"D-D-D-Drake, G-Gene and L-L-Lockheed are down! They were hit by some kind of... What is this...? It's an icicle!" said another voice which was trembling from shock.

"Leave them be, they were stupid enough not to dodge. We will tend to them at the mansion later. The Drake does not have time to attend to them right now." replied the first voice calmly, clearly unmoved by the injuries inflicted upon his comrades.

Amadeus looked around and could not see anyone through the thick morning mist. Then, he managed to catch sight of three familiar silhouettes in the distance. They were walking at a leisurely pace and slowly getting closer and closer to him. From their shapes and voices, Amadeus could roughly make out his foes. The first voice had to be Waldo Drake. The second silhouette was round with a wide girth - that would be Willie. The third person who had not spoken yet had red glowing eyes. His calm saunter looked as though he was gliding – this could only be Turney. Things were not looking good. With luck, he could probably outsmart Waldo Drake; but now he was face to face with not one, but three Nobles!

Suddenly, a spark flared up and a spell flew past Amadeus ear and hit a tree next to him. The tree's trunk cracked and it tumbled onto the ground, crashing with a loud thud. The exposed ends of the tree where the spell hit were smoldered but not aflame, as though it had been struck by lightning.

"You need target practice Willie; that was a lousy shot. You should be ashamed of yourself. THIS is how you shoot!"

Amadeus dove back onto the ground as he felt immense heat surge past his head - one of Waldo's trademark fireballs. The fireball and had collided the ground, causing the area to burst into flames. Amadeus barely had time to clamor to his feet as his enemies argued briefly.

"This is indeed a warm reunion!" sniggered one of the voices. The Nobles seemed to be amused at Amadeus' plight.

"You're not very good either Waldo, let me do it."

"I'm not Waldo, I'm the DRAKE!"

"Yeah, whatever you say 'Drake'. Now, let me do it."

Amadeus gazed upon the figure who had spoken; preparing to dodge whatever spell was cast at him. The air grew thick with tension as a bead of perspiration made its way down Amadeus' face. Amadeus had every ounce of concentration focused upon the figure in the distance, expecting a spell to race towards him. If he had guessed correctly, the figure who had spoken had to be Turney, possibly the most skilled and cunning out of all of Waldo's lackeys. The only reason Turney was obedient to Waldo was because he was terrified of Waldo's father, Malevolent Drake.

A few seconds of calm passed. Nothing happened. Amadeus was starting to feel nervous. What was Turney up to?