The Price of Freedom

11: POWER

Aefion fired at point blank range in all directions with the Fyr'Akharyn. Streams of crimon darts sprayed and cut into tough, sinewy limbs. Numerous fanged jaws clamped down on his body and he could feel the bite of poison as it entered his bloodstream. If he didn't act now, they'd be ascending within the hour. Shutting his eyes, he closed his fist around the shiny, copper amulet around his neck. After a moment, the amulet began to glow with a dull, red sheen. Then he felt the slight tug as his spirit left his physical body in a flash of gold-white light.  

He opened his eyes to see he was once again standing on the windswept plain beneath an orange sky. The vast plain spread away into the distance as far as the eye could see. He knew the spiritscape held the power of his and Cassandra's salvation.  

Raising his arms, he stretched them out to either side and focussed his mind. His bloodfire would draw the spirit energy he required. Slowly, a tiny red light appeared on the horizon, and made its way towards him. As it came closer, he could see that it was like a streak of crimon light. When it reached him, it enveloped him in its glow, before vanishing. Another streak of light sped its way across the plain towards him, followed by another, and another. Soon thousands of red wisps streaked across the sky, like a hailstorm of fire. Wading through the shifting seas of grass, Aefion reached out with both hands and felt the strands of power as they came arcing overhead. He pulled in more and more, gathering the energy to his will. He could feel the power as it filled him, feel it straining his senses. His arms and body were soon full of sparkling, crimson energy, mingling with the bloodfire. The two types of energy mixed together created a dangerous concoction. Knowing that to take too much would overwhelm him, he took a deep breath, and prepared to return to the mortal plane.  

Cassandra panicked. She lashed out with the axe, hacking into a monkey's neck. A sense of elation filled her, easing her panic slightly. But it was short lived as more of the creatures jumped on her, their claws and teeth digging into her body. She fought back a scream as pain coursed through her. Was this how it would end? Had she escaped Tenegrin's prison only to be killed by a host of spider-things?  

A flicker of scarlet energy faded into existence around Aefion and Cassandra. It shimmered like a translucent bubble with sunlight shimmering off it. Expanding outwards, it burned the Spider Monkeys where it touched them. Bursts of orange sparks lit up the dim forest, illuminating the pines in hellish flashes. The carapace kept expanding, and the black-furred monsters retreated from its searing glow, shrieking in rage. They scampered back and forth, looking for a means to reach their prey, even probing experimentally but there was no way through the crimon bubble.  

Cassandra gasped as the red light enveloped her. The poison was purged from her veins and her wounds closed, leaving nothing but clean, smooth skin. She blinked and sat up. Looking to her side, she watched Aefion dragging himself laboriously into a sitting position. His eyes were closed. He was concentrating very hard, she realised. Striding forwards, she raised the axe above her head.  

'Hungry? Looks like you're going without dinner tonight, you little bastards.' The blade sliced through the bubble as if it wasn't there, narrowly missing one of the spider monkeys. Their multiple eyes flashing with anger, the creatures moved back.  

At last the bubble stopped growing. It was surrounded by a fence of hairy, black fiends, all raging and waving their arms in confusion. Cassandra leaned on her axe, careful to keep within the carapace's safety. She looked back at Aefion. He was sitting cross-legged and his face was peaceful. Turning back to the creatures, she knelt and took a good look at one of them.  

It squatted on its eight, shaggy limbs, the multiple joints bending in pulsating rhythm. Seeing her staring, the beast opened its maw and issued a shrill screech that sounded like a cross between a horse and a dying pig.  

Then it leapt straight at her.  

Instinctively, she stepped backwards, her eyes widening in horror but the monkey seared itself on the crimson bubble and fled away, shrieking.  

'Cassandra,' Aefion cried, his hand reaching out towards her. She detected a hint of anxiety in his voice. 'The energy will not hold for long. Give me your hand.'  

Dropping the axe, she walked over to him and clutched his hand. It was warm to the touch and she sat down next to him, her eyes on the spider monkeys.  

'What are you going to do?'  

He didn't reply. His eyes flicked open to reveal shining red orbs, and his hair fluttered about his face as if blown by a gust of wind. The colour of the bubble rose to a crescendo until it was painfully bright and more bursts of sparks exploded around its edge.  

Gripping Cassandra's hand tightly, he expelled the spirit energy.  

A massive, fiery corona expanded outwards, turning everything in its path to ashes and shaking the pine trees with its thunder.  

When the last traces of energy had disappeared, leaving only a steadily falling curtain of ashes, dust and pine needles, Aefion slumped to the ground. The red light faded from his eyes and his grip on Cassandra's hand loosened. The sky above had darkened and she could see the glimmer of stars.  

'Luvios Tel Annoros,' she murmured, kneeling and closing her eyes. A small shimmering of yellow light danced around the clearing before disappearing. Extending a minor warding spell would give them protection through the night. Giving a contented sigh, she settled down against Aefion's body.  

Here they would rest and continue at dawn.  

The first golden rays of sunlight broke defiantly through the dense pines and illuminated the sleeping elf and his companion. It was a rare moment in Darkroth, when the sun's warmth reached beyond the forest's edge. A slight zephyr stirred the strands of Aefion's hair and he opened his eyes. The events of the previous night came back in a flash and he breathed in, deeply. He knew if it hadn't been for Cassandra's aid, perhaps they would've ascended. The power had drained him, and he realised that her warmth and passion had, in addition to giving him the ability to protect them both, also given him enough rest to heal his spirit for the coming day.  

Turning his gaze from the slivers of sky, he was met with a welcoming sight. He was leaning against the trunk of a tree, with a beautiful, young woman snuggling up against him. Her hair was dishevelled, her breathing peaceful and steady. For a moment he looked at her, wonder in his gaze. But he knew this couldn't last. She was a Galladorian. He didn't understand why he felt this way.  

He sighed, and stroked her hair affectionately. She was very striking, for a Galladorian girl. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he shifted his body. Cassandra began to wake, blinking at him. For a moment they looked at each other, their faces close, breathing in each other's auras.  

And then they were kissing, hands exploring; groping; pulling at clothes. Cassandra's lips tasted like strawberries. He felt aroused by her touch; her breasts against his chest; her hands tearing savagely at his ripped jerkin. Her body was warm, no doubt from the constant warmth of his own body provided by the bloodfire.  

The pine trees looked on under the lightening sky, silent witnesses to this bout of ecstasy.  

The sun was mid-journey. The two semi-naked figures slept serenely, partially covered by the elf's black fur and scarlet cloak, occasional flickers of yellow light highlighting the ward protecting them.  

Aefion was the first to wake. Carefully, so not to disturb Cassandra, he slipped away from her. Pulling on his clothes, he disappeared into the forest.  

When he returned, buttoning up his breeches, he looked up to see Cassandra smiling at him. She stood dressed and ready, her axe shaft resting over one shoulder.  

'Are you quite finished?' She eyed his breeches. Her spirits seemed lifted, and Aefion was sure he knew what it was.  

He felt his cheeks reddening. Rolling back his shoulders, he stretched and yawned.  

'Are you?' He laughed, good-naturedly, buckling his cloak around Cassandra's shoulders. 'It will keep you a little warmer. Let's go.'

As they emerged from the forest and began a sprint across the plains, Aefion gritted his teeth and his eyes flashed red. It was time for Tenegrin to suffer.