Realms of Magic

Wind blew quietly through the trees, giving Kathranis a chance to relax for the first time in months. He led the small elven regiment in the Zulkir’s army, fighting vainly to contain the undead forces of Szass Tam. After the war with the phaerimm, the elves of Myth Drannor had scattered, some to the Sun-elf home of Evermeet, others formed mercenary bands or joined in the fight in Thay. Kathranis and his brother, Huron, had gathered a small group of battle worthy elves and set out, soon getting dragged to war.

Kathranis took a deep breath, trying his best to get a whiff of clean air from the breeze around him. He snorted when he found nothing but the same stale decay he always picked up on the trail. Szass Tam was on the march again.

He turned around and gestured to his brother who was crouching in a tree with his cloak drawn. He turned to Kathranis.

“You sense it too?” Huron signed

“Yes,” Kathranis signed back “We need to let Alliana know of this development and quickly. Our army is directly in Tam's path.”

“Our?” Huron signed.

“Yes brother, our. We have as much stake in this as they do. If Tam wins he could march next to Luskan, Neverwinter, or Silvanus forbid Evermeet”

His brother nodded and hopped down from the branch he was crouching on. Kathranis waited silently as the rest of the elves filtered in. All of the elves together made an elite fighting force of thirty. Each elf had a different survival story, some warriors, others mere teenagers by elven standards. The group had a former cook, blacksmith, painter, even a novice mage named Fordred.

Yes, Kath thought, we have one a hell of a group. With a silent nod, the elves sprinted through the trees. As they ran, each elf drew out his weapons, keeping pace with the elf beside him. Kathranis chose to draw his bow instead of the pair of curved short swords at his belt. The range would be helpful if they came upon an undead scouting patrol. Swerving around a tree Kathranis began to slow his run as the trees parted around him. The smell of decay worsened and his face slipped into a scowl.

Kath held a closed fist in the air, slowing the group to a halt just outside of a clearing that led to an outlook over the Zulkir’s army encampment. In the silence of the woods, he listened for a few moments.

Just above the sound of the breeze through the trees, Kathranis caught the sounds of swords clashing and men dying.  He crept alone to the edge of the outcrop and cursed.

They were too late.

The former camp was now filled to the brim with the living fighting the dead. Spells from both sides lashed out, the wizards behind them uncaring in what they hit. A group of zombies burst into flames near a company of archers who vanished in a flash of purple, leaving behind nothing but ash.

The rest of the elves crept forward and displayed different levels of shock. Kathranis drew an arrow from his quiver and whispered a spell into it. He drew back his bow and sent the arrow through the throat of an enemy Red Wizard. The wizard then burst into flames as Kath’s spell did its work.

“Help where it is needed, find Alliana. We need to pull as many of her troops out of this as we can.”

Several other elves drew their bows and began picking out targets in the writhing mass of fighters. The rest of the group formed into a tight block, drawing swords and shields. Fordred sketched a small rune in the air and called out a series of mystical phrases. The block of elves disappeared, only to reappear in the battle below. Kathranis dropped his bow and drew his swords as a group of zombies appeared where the elves once were. Knocking Fordred out of the way, Kathranis decapitated one of the zombies with a single stroke of his enchanted scimitars. The blades had been in his family for millennia. Despite being younger than Huron, the blades had chosen him for whatever mysterious reason when had entered the military academy at Myth Drannor. A century later, Kathranis was almost unmatched in his fighting abilities.

Spinning on the ball of his foot, Kathranis swept the legs out from a zombie while cutting the arm from another. As the first zombie fell, Kathranis planted his foot on its stomach for balance and propelled himself towards another of the undead creatures. As a follower of Sylvannus, he prided himself in destroying anything that violated the laws of nature, chief among those, the dark art of necromancy. His swords plunged deep into the zombie’s chest and he had to yank back heavily to pull them out.

Unbalanced, Kathranis reversed the grip on his scimitars and used his backward momentum to stab another undead soldier through the chest. As the corpse fell back, Kathranis let it drag him down. He then continued the motion by pulling his feet over his head, rolling backwards and effectively pulling his swords from the walking dead man. Kathranis stood up straight and watched grimly as the last zombies was burned to ashes by Fordred, who stood a few feet away. The enchantments in his swords made sure that the dead stayed that way, so none of the corpses moved.

“What in the Nine Hells was that?!?” Kathranis yelled at Fordred.

The mage elf panted from his magical exertions.

“The teleportation spell isn't perfect. If… if the space you're sending something to isn’t empty, it brings whatever’s there, back.”

Kathranis scowled.

“Well at least warn me next time!” he snapped.

Don’t get mad at him now, he’s trying his best I’m sure.

“Shut up! Where in the hells have you been anyway?”

His familiar yawned and lazily hopped down from the tree it had been napping in. Secil’s calm attitude was usually helpful in clearing Kathranis’s head, but sometimes the cat just got on his nerves.

I was looking for Alliana. She isn't nearby and I suspect she has fled the battle with most of the more powerful wizards in her command.

Secil licked a paw calmly and stared at Kathranis who mulled over the news. If the wizards were already gone, then the battle was virtually hopeless. It would be better to cut their losses and try to run. He turned to Fordred and said,

“Link me with what battle commanders you can find and then teleport out to Huron and pull them out. We’ll meet later.”

The mage cast a short series of sending spells before turning to Kathranis with a nod.

“Sweet water and light laughter General.” he said

  “Sweet water and light laughter Fordred, until blades cross again.” Kathranis said back. The elven parting didn't quite fit the situation, but they preformed the small ritual anyway. Some habits die hard, Kathranis thought.

As Kathranis waited for the commanders' voices to filter in, he gave instructions to the bowmen elves.

“Peel off in pairs,” he signed “we will withdraw to the woods and meet with Huron and his group later. Sephis, Aran, you two are first.”

The two elves each let fly one more arrow before jogging softly into the shadows of the forest. Kathranis grabbed his bow and waited a few moments before addressing the commanders that had been contacted by the sending spells. He scowled when he noticed how few were still alive. He had no doubts that the others had fought and died to try and stave off the undead horde; none of the fighting men were cowards like the Red Wizards.

“Alright, listen closely.” He thought. “Gather as many of the men near you and pull back as quickly as possible. It does not matter who they are supposed to be under, we need to save lives here. Tam knew we would be here and wants to crush us as fast as possible. Run until you reach a spot you know is safe.”

“You should know by now that nowhere is safe from me child.” A voice said out loud. Kathranis spun toward the voice, a dagger flying from his hand. The blade vanished from the air in front of the grinning lich. Kathranis scowled and cut off the connection with the commanders. Szass Tam smiled broadly, his gray hair blowing softly in the breeze.

“Shame, I was about to offer them an option for surrender. No matter, they will join my army one way or another.”

Kathranis gritted his teeth and began circling the lich. The necromancer’s smile merely grew his face bright with humor.

“So, you’re the famous General Shadowsong. You've been a pain in my side child. However, if you join me, those sins can be forgiven. In fact all of your elves could join my forces and I would guarantee protection for that little hole, oh what is it?…” the lich tapped his chin before snapping his fingers. “ah yes, Evermeet I believe.”

“Like hell I’d join you monster! Attack!”

Kathranis leapt forward as the elven bowmen behind him launched their arrows. Tam frowned and began spell casting.

“So be it.” he growled.

The arrows all clattered uselessly against a projectile shield surrounding the lich. Undeterred, the lich sent a fireball streaking towards the archers at Kath’s back. Kathranis winced as loud screams punctuated the hill, filling the air with horrifying screeches. He strode on, closing the last few feet to Tam. Kathranis crossed his swords in an x and sliced at the lich’s throat. From thin air an onyx black staff capped with a skull appeared in Tam’s hands, blocking the blades. Faster than Kathranis could follow, the staff pushed his swords back and swung towards his head.

Ducking, Kathranis tried to stab his swords upwards through the lich’s stomach, only to have the staff again knock them out of line. Kathranis cried out in pain when the staff cracked into his hand, causing him to drop a sword. He hopped back slightly and flexed his hand, which thankfully, was not broken. Kathranis growled and wadded back in, waiting patiently for the staff. As it came around to hit him again, Kathranis caught it in his open palm and used it to yank Tam forward. Cocking back his head, Kath slammed it into the bridge of the lich’s nose.

Kathranis stumbled backwards and tripped over his fallen sword. He grabbed the fallen blade and stood on to shaky legs as he tried to brush off his disorientation. He’s got a hard head, Kathranis thought. The lich was clutching at something on his face. Kathranis almost gagged when he realized that was his face. The lich boiled with rage as he dispelled his illusion.

Without the disguise, Szass Tam was little more than a skeleton. A few white, stingy hairs hung off of his bald head. His eyes were mere burning pinpricks in large dark sockets. The red robe that seemed to fit him just right at the beginning of the fight was now loose and hung off of the wizard like a drape. His skin was thin and shriveled, leaving the mind with no imagination on what lay underneath.

The necromancer pointed at Kathranis and shouted,

“So! You dare challenge me? When I’m done with you, your corpse won’t even be fit for use! I am Szass Tam! Conquer of worlds! I've leveled cities single handed and enslaved even the most powerful of demons.”

His red eyes smoldered as they bore into Kathranis.

“And you child, will be nothing more than another dust speck on my shoulder.”

He twirled his staff around and its tip lit with a deep purple glow. Tam only spoke one word to cast the spell.

“DIE!”

A twisting bolt of dark purple energy spiraled at Kathranis. It splashed against his chest and the world vanished in a pool of black.