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on, the demons swirling in a great protective arc around the portal, holding
back the advance, while their luckier comrades fled through it. A concussion
swept over him, and looking skyward he was stunned to realize that Jartan and
Gorgon still wrestled for control. Mark suddenly knew that only a minute or
two had passed since the first appearance of the god, and that the battle was
still in doubt.
"Allic!"
Mark turned to see Storm, her countenance grim, coming in low with Leti and a
dozen sorcerers.
Between them was a great sling in which nestled a round object, covered by
silken blankets.
"Against the portal!" Storm cried, and ripped back the protective cover.
Though he had never seen it, Mark knew that he was gazing upon the legendary
Heart Crystal. Nearly eight feet in diameter, it flickered and glowed as it
rested upon its carved stone base.
Allic grinned wickedly. "Clear the portal, break off the attack!" he roared,
his command instantly picked up and relayed throughout the attacking
sorcerers. Hundreds of forms dove in every direction, with
Ikawa and the offworlders cutting back toward where Mark stood.
"Focus on the Heart," Allic shouted. "Everyone stand clear."
Turning, Mark snapped his energy into the Heart, augmenting it with Storm's
crystal. Allic, Leti, and
Storm stood together, hands extended to the great crystal, barely touching it.
The inside of the great gem seemed to swirl in a mad kaleidoscope of color.
Mark suddenly felt as if his own power was out of control, as if he was
driving a car and the accelerator had jammed. The Crystal seemed to suck the
Essence out of him in one great torrent.
The ground trembled beneath his feet. A cone of fire, as hot as the core of a
sun, snapped out, slamming into the portal.
The booming explosion turned the ice a hundred yards around to steam. A
massive fireball rushed heavenward, spreading in a cloud of flame.
--And suddenly it appeared as if the explosion was rushing back in upon
itself.
Demons tumbled through the air, swept into the heart of the firestorm as the
portal imploded. Horrified, Mark saw more than one sorcerer dragged to his
doom among the hundreds of foes.
The explosion snapped inward, and then simply disappeared. A ghostly breeze
smelling of charred flesh, steam, and sulphur washed across the field, and as
it passed, Mark stood awestruck by the carnage.
Hundreds of writhing demons cluttered the ground, shrieking and tearing at
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their wounds, where the portal had once been.
"Look!"
Mark glanced where Kochanski was pointing. A thin snap of light glowed on the
surface of the besieged planet above them, spreading outward, and Mark was
startled to hear Allic's laughter.
"The shot from the Heart passed through the portal and detonated the one up
there. They must be frying, too!"
Mark knew he would have felt sickened by the carnage if these had been human
foes. Against these incarnations of evil, though, he could only feel a grim
sense of satisfaction.
There was another snap of light, and a hot blast rolled against the
glacier-clad hills--but this time it came from above. Looking straight up,
Mark saw Gorgon reeling backwards, clutching his shoulder, a torrent of fire
pouring from the wound. Jartan, grim-faced, shot another bolt into the demon
lord.
The image of Gorgon suddenly stretched outward, filling half the sky, and like
a vapor of fog slashed by sunlight he disappeared. Jartan swung about as if
searching, and in a blinding flash soared heavenward towards Yuvin. In an
instant he was lost to normal sight.
Mark looked back to where the focus of the battle had been around the portal.
All that was left was steaming wreckage, yet hundreds of demons had survived,
cut off now from all hope of retreat back to
Yuvin. In terror they fled, desperate to escape the wrath of Jartan and his
followers.
Focusing a blast from the Heart against an enemy cluster, a score or more were
felled; yet more streamed off in every direction, pursued now by Jartan's
triumphant sorcerers.
Mark looked about to rally his command. "Stand down," Allic said, coming to
Mark's side. "We've had enough for one day--let the reinforcements mop up
what's left."
Still eager for vengeance, Mark started to bridle.
"We've done more than enough already," Leti said, putting her hand on Mark's
shoulder.
Suddenly he realized how exhausted he really was. Though the battle had been
brief, the terror of what had seemed to be inevitable defeat had worked its
effect, and he realized that he was giddy with relief and exhaustion.
Glancing around, he saw Ikawa and the rest of the offworlders come swinging in
from the far side of the ruined portal. Slowing, the group dropped down and
alighted. Fear gripped him, and he did a quick scan, counting heads. Ikawa,
seeing his concern, nodded that everyone was all right, then rushed to his
side.
The two held each other's gaze for a moment, and then Ikawa grabbed Mark and
embraced him.
"I didn't want to leave you, but I knew you had to face him alone."
Unable to respond, Mark only nodded.
"A hell of a fight," Ikawa announced, walking over to Leti. "I thought we were
finished."
"So did I," Allic said coolly, forcing a smile. But his hand trembled slightly
as he pulled a flask out and drained its contents.
"Just what the hell happened?" Walker asked, coming up to join the group. "One
second I'm getting set to scratch that damned tooth and finish myself, and the
next thing all hell breaks loose."
"We were simply bait, it seems," Allic announced, gazing over at Storm. Mark
could see a look of reproach in his eyes.
"I'm sorry, brother, neither you nor Leti could be told. Gorgon might have
been able to probe your thoughts," Storm said quietly. "We've had a portal
hidden inside that glacier for some time." She pointed to the shattered
mountain.
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"Once I came through, it was my job to open it up, shield it, and guide Jartan
and his forces through.
Jartan was hoping to catch Gorgon and all his demons here on this moon, and
hold him inside a massive pentagram hidden beneath the ice, right beneath our
feet. But the bastard wouldn't alight where we wanted him to. If he had,
Jartan would have had the field up, and we could have pinned and destroyed
him. We waited as long as we could, but when your shield went down, we had to
save you."
"Thanks for the late rescue," Allic said, trying to sound philosophical though
his annoyance was obvious.
The offworlders looked at each other, realizing that if the rescue had come
mere seconds later, most would have committed suicide rather than run the risk
of capture.
"Jartan's returning," Kochanski announced quietly, as he sat astride the chair
looking upward.
There was a swirling rush of wind, a coalescing of light, and Mark looked up
to see the god hovering above them.
"Get him?" Allic asked.
"The bastard escaped through a secondary portal and pulled it down behind
him." There was a chilling note of exasperation in Jartan's voice. "Everyone
all right here?"
"Shaken but alive," Allic replied coolly.
A thin smile creased the god's face. "Couldn't be helped. Anyhow, it put a
little excitement into your lives."
"That type of excitement I can do without," Allic said in a low voice.
A rumble of laughter came from Jartan.
"You did well, my children--and you offworlders, too. We'll talk later; I
think I need to vent some rage, and Gorgon's trapped demons are as good a
target as any."
The god formed into a swirling torrent of flame, and snapped across the sky,
disappearing from view.
Incredulous, the offworlders looked at each other, none daring to admit the
fear they had just felt, nor their frustration at realizing they had simply
been bait to pull the enemy in.
"Anyhow, we won," Saito announced philosophically. Leaving the group he went
over to kick the headless corpse of Kultha, rolling the body over for a closer
look.
"Better than the blow from a headsman's sword."
"Yeah, wili you look at that?" Walker said excitedly, coming up to stand by [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]