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.Quinn's body began to transform.Muscular arms, straight back, and smooth skin withered and bent, becoming a hunched, pock-marked monstrosity.Buboes and pus-filled lumps appeared.His armor and cape morphed into oddly cut wizard's robes.The magical visage of Quinn fell away, leaving behind only a twisted and decrepit overlord.When the transformation was complete, the wind died."That's very strange," said Xeries, his voice and appearance having returned to their true forms."I did not release that spell."He looked up at the carved stone woman standing beside him.She seemed to be looking right back at him, her eyes fixed on a single spot.A strange chill ran down his spine.Shaking it off, he let out a timid snicker."Don't be foolish Xeries," he said to himself."It's only a statue."Turning back to the battle at hand, he let out another laugh, this one louder.The arch magus sounded like wind chimes as he reveled in his soon-to-be victory.+++++The twin red wyverns on his chest had all but disappeared under a thick coat of blood and gore.King Korox stood beside Lord Purdun.It seemed the two men were eternally fighting for the freedom of their kingdom.Perhaps that was their fare, to fight and die for what they believed in.Pulling his blade from another downed opponent, theWarrior King surveyed the battlefield.His men were pinned, and the Matron had found a way to turn the black beasts' attention away from her own assassins.The tide of this battle had shifted so many times that he was starting to lose count.He was tired, and so too were the men who fought at his behest.That's when he spotted Quinn.The man he had trusted with the life of his daughter had failed him, had betrayed him.Now, it seemed, his one-time bodyguard was going to climb atop the memorial statue of the queen and mock Korox in his final moments.Spheres of orange and white light shot up into the air over the statue.Korox rubbed his eyes, not sure if what he just saw had actually happened.He looked again.Quinn was hunched over, his body twisted and bent.That wasn't Quinn at all.It was Xeries.Spinning around, Korox put his fingers to his lips and let out a short, shrill whistle.Then a second.The sound of a horse whinnying rose over the clashing melee, and the king's own black war steed, wounded as it was, appeared at the edge of the fighting.Its heavy hooves stomped down a pair of black beasts as it galloped obediently toward its master.Grabbing the reins, Korox threw himself onto the saddle.The aches and pains, the weariness and fatigue all disappeared as his focus turned to just one thing."Heyaw!" he shouted, bounding away from the battle toward the statue of his lovely wife and the wretched beast who stood on it, befouling her glory.Behind him the fate of Erlkazar was being determined.His men, his subjects—his friends—fought off the largest threat the kingdom had ever seen.But at that moment, none of that mattered, nothing else existed.Korox could see only ahead of him—could see only the man who had taken his daughter and tormented his realm.His sword held high in the air, he urged his loyal steed onward.He was no longer a king.He was no longer a man.He was a devil with malice in his heart and pure hatred in his veins.If this was to be the last thing he would do as the King of Erlkazar, then he would gladly trade in his life to do it.Closing the distance in a matter of moments, Korox could see the look of recognition on Xeries's face.He smiled as he watched that look turn from understanding to terror.The twisted arch magus raised his arms to cast a spell.A beam of orange energy shot from Xeries's hands, howling as it soared toward Korox.Then, just as suddenly as it had been conjured, the beam dissipated, splashing harmlessly against the chest of the king's black steed."But-but that-that was-was the-the finger-finger of-of death—"His echoed words were cut short as the Warrior King leaped from his saddle.Korox hurled himself forward, both hands on the hilt of his enchanted blade.Like a bird of prey he descended upon Xeries, screeching as he dropped from the heavens to take vengeance on the master of the Obsidian Ridge.His feet hit first, knocking the arch magus to his back and crushing bones as the withered man absorbed the force of Korox's impact.Then the king's blade came down, slicing through flesh, pus, and the withered black heart at the center of this ruined wizard.Korox dropped to one knee, placing all of his weight down on top of the frail arch magus, holding Xeries to the stone plinth."But-but my-my spell-spell." gurgled Xeries.Korox's lip curled up as his hatred bubbled over like a pot left too long on a fire."I see you've met my wife," he said, shrugging his chin up at the statue."She looks after me, even in death."The Warrior King twisted his blade, and Xeries convulsed in pain, hissing through blackened teeth.Xeries tried to focus his eyes on the king through all of his pain, but it was clear he was having a hard time.He reached up, opening his mouth to say something, perhaps cast a spell.But it was no use.His whole body trembling around Korox's blade, the tormentor of Erlkazar let out one final breath—a sound like wind chimes crashing to the ground—then he slumped back, dead at the feet of the king and queen.+++++Inside Xeries's private chamber, the dying gasps of nearly three dozen women echoed off the walls.Their faces bent upward in smiles of relief.Together, each of them released their hold on life, falling finally into a well-deserved rest.Had there been anyone in the chamber to listen, they would have heard all of those final breaths used to utter the words, "Thank you."At long last, the chamber was silent.+++++Chapter Thirty-sevenThe black beasts stopped dead in their tracks—even those in the middle of chewing a soldier to pieces.They closed their fanged mouths.They retracted their scything claws.They stopped moving, and all of them, every single one, sat down on their haunches and hung their heads, right in the middle of the battlefield.They were like obedient dogs, all of which had seemingly been told to lie down.Silence settled over the blood-strewn grounds surrounding Klarsamryn.The ring of metal and cries of dying men slowly faded It was calm in the heart of Llorbauth for a brief moment.Then a shout went up across the line of soldiers.Hope had returned."Cut them down!" shouted King Korox from behind the battle.He hobbled back toward the fighting, returning from the edge of the courtyard and the now-lifeless body of Arch Magus Xeries.Every soldier within earshot hacked down upon their stationary foes.Not a one of Xeries's beasts moved, not a muscle, as King Korox, Lord Purdun, Captain Kaden, and all their men fell upon the enemy.The beasts that had terrorized Erlkazar only moments before died by the dozens.They did not whimper.They did not cower.They simply waited their turn to be slaughtered.Their blood ran in rivers across the parched earth.The Matron could hardly believe her eyes.One moment the end was near for the ruler of Erlkazar.The next he had taken the field.His troops had not suffered as many casualties as she had predicted, and they now outnumbered her assassins more than twenty to one."Assassins of Waukeen!" shouted King Korox, as his men surrounded them."Your treachery here today will not go unpunished.Throw down your weapons, and you will be tried justly.If you resist, you will be killed."The Matron's face burned with anger and frustration."Do not listen to him! The throne is ours! Take the king! Take Llorbauth by force!"+++++Quinn stared up at the three huge floating gemstones.A line had been chiseled into the ground, connecting the base of each to the others.The space in between the rubies described a triangle, large enough to fit nearly fifty men, if they were standing shoulder to shoulder [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]