Fifthwind (56 page)

The
threat was real, if his physical body were to die while he were a
state of Drift, he would be lost to the Witherscape for eternity. A
fate that Fahd Phaetalis knew all too well.

Phaetalis
turned to the struggle between Kyla and Aurelia, and smiled. "Babbitt
was dedicated to The Core enough to gift me his body, and Vincent
will reunite me with my dear Aurelia after so many years. In a few
more moments we both will be indebted to him."

There
was little that Ben could do but watch. If he made any attempt to
reenter his body, he would be dead before he could act. However, if
he did nothing, then Vincent would win and Kyla would die. He cursed
himself for not seeing through the ploy.

By
now, Vincent had drawn so much energy to him, that he had lifted off
the ground and was floating above the stone altar with outstretched
hands. The swirling wind tossed back his hood and revealed the face
of a younger man, his shoulder-length brown hair flowing out behind
him. Either Vincent was revealing his true self or the power of the
Fifthwind was rejuvenating him.

Kyla
cried out in pain and horror, "Father... Please..."

The
now youthful Magi glared at Kyla. "I said, stop calling me that!
Your father died in the war before you were born and your mother was
a pathetic and gullible woman. Just looking at her sickened me.
Fortunately, she didn't last long enough to get in my way. William
had a way of handling people who didn't cooperate, and she succumbed
quite easily to his potions."

Kyla
screamed in rage. She pushed hard with all the will she could muster,
and reclaimed her flesh all the way to her wrist. She turned an angry
eye to Vincent and lifted her other hand, balling it into a fist and
drawing energy to her once more.

"Impressive,
my dear child," Vincent admitted, "but you're no match for me.
Throw your best, I'm beyond your meager skills!"

Kyla
gathered as much energy as she could and turned quickly and released
it in a concentrated wave, pinpointing a very specific target. Before
Vincent could react, the blast struck the body of Phaetalis, sending
him hurtling back into the snow.

Ben
instantly took advantage of the opening, reentered his body and drew
his sword. She had opted to save him in hopes that he could find a
way to protect her. He was not going to let her down.

Kyla
cried out in agony. After her attack, she was weakened and was
quickly succumbing to Aurelia's bid for revival. Kyla's entire left
side had turned to stone as the young woman gripped her hand and
pulled herself upright to feed on Kyla's flesh. Soon, their places
would be reversed and Kyla would be left forever silent in the cold
forest. For the first time in centuries the ancient girl cracked open
her mouth and spoke.

"
You
are so warm... you are so soft..."

Ben
moved toward Vincent; he had to break the Magi's concentration. He
had to interrupt the spell before it was too late. Before he could
move more than a step, however, he felt a rush come over him and his
vision instantly grayed. Too many times had he felt the sensation to
not recognize its meaning. It seemed that Phaetalis had plans of his
own.

Ben
sidestepped the intended blow and brought his own weapon around in a
counter attack, meeting his off-balanced attacker. His blow struck
home and cut deeply into the surprised Fahd's shoulder. Phaetalis
staggered to the side and gripped at his arm.

"My
skills are greater," he gasped, "How—"

"You
may be the greater Fahd," Ben sneered, "but
no one
can
match my skill with a blade."

Ben
pulled a knife from his belt and took a step toward Phaetalis who
regained his footing and brought his sword up to defend the attack.
Ben stopped short and hesitated as he stared into his opponent's
eyes, then in a single quick motion, he turned and hurled the blade
at Vincent.

Vincent's
eyes went wide with surprise. He flung his hands up and crossed them,
bringing a blue wall of force to bear against the unexpected attack.
The knife glanced off the protective bubble, with a shower of white
sparks, and flew past the sorcerer, landing harmlessly in the snow.
Vincent returned an arrogant stare at Ben.

"You
had your one shot, and failed!"

"Did
I?" Ben smiled.

An
ear splitting shriek broke through the air as Aurelia screamed. Kyla,
now free from Vincent's magical grip, and red-faced with effort,
pushed her will forward, driving the stone from her body and back
into Aurelia. Ben had distracted Vincent and bought Kyla the
opportunity she needed. She wrenched her hand free from the statue's
stony grasp, breaking the girls fingers off in the effort. In a storm
of emotion, she lifted her hands and drew upon the energy of the
Fifthwind.

Vincent
staggered forward and frantically tried to gather energy to counter
her effort. He watched as Kyla grew bright with power. She continued
to pull from the rift until her skin began to glow and her hair stood
on end. She had never before drawn so much power and she trembled
from the strain. Her face contorted as tears flowed from brilliant
blue eyes, and she began to convulse uncontrollably.

Behind
Ben, Phaetalis laughed, "She's already gone too far, she will not
be able to contain it. The rift will collapse and my Aurelia will
have a new friend to keep her company. You will join me in
understanding what it is to lose the one you love."

Kyla's
eyes were burning blue and her muscles tensed. She threw back her
head and screamed into the silent void as she was surrounded by the
light and lifted into the air. She turned to Ben in the swirling
chaos and screamed, "Guide me!"

"No!"
Vincent lurched forward and screeched, "the rift must not be
sealed!" The maddened sorcerer thrust a hand forward and unleashed
a sudden ball of fiery-white magic at her. "The Fifthwind is mine!
Direct it at me!"

Kyla
swiveled her gaze to the approaching attack and her eyes glowed a
terrifying red. Her hair stood on end and the tips began to smolder.
Then, she screamed and the approaching ball of energy exploded in
mid-flight and scattered cinders across the clearing.

Ben
watched as she turned a stiff hand toward her father. A crackle of
energy engulfed her fist and waves of heat radiated from her unseen
palm. Then, like hurling a stone, she flung open her hand and a crash
of thunder echoed through the forest. A ball of blackness encased in
lightning shot from her hand and sped toward Vincent.

Vincent
put all his strength into the pulsating barrier before him and
absorbed the brunt of the blow, but was knocked back into the snow.
He was severely weakened, and watched as she again turned away to
continue gathering energy.

Ben
realized his worst fear. Kyla intended to sacrifice herself to ensure
that Vincent and The Core would never achieve their goal. No one
would control the Fifthwind. The soul of the world would be broken
once more. The laughter of Fahd Phaetalis echoed in his ears as Ben
moved toward Kyla.

The
air shimmered and he found himself staring at the grinning face of
Phaetalis who stood defiantly between him and Kyla. The ancient Fahd
drew his sword and sneered, "Not that it will make any difference
in the end. But you'll have to get through me first!"

Ben
took a step forward and vanished. In a single quick movement, he drew
his sword and reappeared at Phaetalis' side, already in mid-swing.

Phaetalis
blocked the blow and instantly Shifted behind Ben with a
counterstrike of his own and Ben dropped to one knee just in time to
avoid losing his head. He spun around and struck out low, but his
blade passed harmlessly through the air. Phaetalis had Shifted again.

Before
Ben could get his bearings, a pair of hands gripped him from behind.
Phaetalis locked a choking grasp around Ben's neck and pushed him
forward to his knees, bearing down on him with all his weight and
crushing his throat with brutal strength. Ben's fingers released his
sword as he reflexively reached up and clawed at his attacker's arm.
The pressure behind his eyes was buildingand he was losing
consciousness fast. As his vision went black, he reached out with his
mind.

In
the dark, he heard the faint trickle of water and knew he had somehow
managed to arrive at his intended destination. He rolled forward with
all the strength he had left, and threw Phaetalis over his left
shoulder. He quickly got to his feet and turned to run for the only
light he could see. Once outside, he closed and locked the heavy door
to the Fahd Shrine in Arlemon. It was the one place that even a Fahd
could not escape until allowed by the will of the cave. He knew it
would only buy him a few critical minutes, so closed his eyes, and
reached forward with his mind to a distant forest north of Kishell
Springs.

On
the next beating of his heart, he looked again upon Kyla. She was
fading, becoming as wispy as the energy that encompassed her. She was
being pulled from the world and drawn into the rift.

Nearby,
Vincent was slowly getting to his feet. He was weak and on wobbly
legs, but he was still a threat and would soon regain enough strength
to be a problem. There was not much time.

"Kyla!"
Ben screamed above the roar of swirling winds, "Let go!" He knew
she could not hear him and was losing her grip on the power she held.

Standing
before her, he closed his eyes and stepped forward into the Fahd
Realm, leaving behind the torrent of wind and chaos. In the calm of
the Witherscape, he stood before Kyla and reached out and grasped her
hand. She opened her eyes and smiled. Her pain seemed to be gone,
though Ben knew that her physical body was being ravaged by the power
she wielded.

Kyla
whispered to him, "I can't hold this much longer... but I can't see
the rift. You need to guide me. Where is the gateway?"

Ben
looked at the huge opening into another world, at the beauty that lay
beyond, the beauty that was meant to join with his world and bring
the healing that Kyla had so desperately wanted. He knew that the
release of the tremendous energy Kyla held would destroy everything
in its path and seal the doorway, possibly forever. He held her hand
and lifted it toward the rift.

"What
does it look like?" Kyla asked with a faint smile.

"It's
beautiful, Kyla." Ben almost choked on his words, "It's just as
you knew it would be."

Kyla
squeezed his hand, "You can see the colors?"

"Yes...
it's wonderful."

Kyla
shook her head and lowered her hand. "I'm not going to make it
either way. The world deserves a chance to heal. I'll not be the one
responsible for breaking its soul again."

Ben
was caught speechless.

"I
can't hold on anymore," Kyla said with tears in her eyes. "But, I
still need you to guide me."

Vincent
had gotten to his feet and was once more weaving an attack. His anger
was feeding his effort, and the veins on his neck throbbed outward
with his strain. He was shrouded in light and and the hateful surge
of his absolute madness lifted him into the air. If the immense power
of the forthcoming spell did not kill him outright, it would be a
devastating blow to Kyla.

Sensing
her father's building power, Kyla smiled. "It's alright, Ben.
There's no more time. You know what to do."

Ben
stammered, "But this is what he wants!"

Kyla
offered a small but reassuring smile. "Not what I've got. Trust me,
he'll never be able to handle it."

"But
you'll die!"

"Ben!
This was never about me... you
know
that!"

Ben
turned her to the side and pointed her hands toward Vincent. There
was no time for indecision. He released his grip and stepped away.
Not far away, Vincent tore his robe open to revealed his bare chest
and spread his arms wide to welcome what Kyla would give him. His
eyes were wide with insanity as he chanted the ancient words of the
weaving.

"At
last!" the mad-man wailed. "The power of the Fifthwind will be
mine alone!"

"Now!"
Ben cried, knowing it would mean her death.

Kyla
cried out and released the full might of the Fifthwind in a massive
ball of energy that struck Vincent squarely in the chest and threw
him back several yards against a large boulder. He briefly struggled,
pinned to the rock as it began to crumble under the strain. The smile
faded from his face and he opened his mouth to scream, but no sound
came forth as his body cracked under the pressure and the boulder
exploded into thousands of pieces.

The
blast continued through the clearing, breaking nearly every stone in
the circle and beyond to the walls of the canyon where trees were
toppled and torn from their roots. The snow on the ridges melted and
the very walls of the canyon creaked and released dust and rock as
the ground shook in a furious wave of violence.

The
Murg that had circled the clearing, covered their ears and cowered in
terror. They tried their best to strip themselves of the imposed
weapons and armor that adorned their bodies. Their eyes were wide
with fear and they wilted back from their aggressive stance.

Kyla
fell into Ben's arms. He could barely feel her as she quickly faded.
She would soon be lost forever in the space between worlds. Her skin
was growing cold and pallid. Like everything else, she was lost in
the colorless void of the Witherscape. She had expended her very life
in the blast and would soon be gone.

He
was losing her and there was no possible way to prevent it. But he
had witnessed the impossible before; he had seen, first hand,
Phaetalis pull Cobalius through the Witherscape. He had done the same
when retrieving his mentor's sword from Babbitt's tower. He now
understood the fourth legendary skill of the Fahd.