The Barrier: The Teorran of Time: Teen Fantasy Action Adventure Novel Read online

  “Hurry up.” He grumbled

  “Fine.” Ladtwig groaned.

  “Make haste, there is no time.” Inelius said

  “Where are we going?” Ladtwig asked.

  “Jagwynn knows the way, she is his spirit companion sent by the Sun Goddess.

  “How do you-“

  Jagwynn lunged forward causing the Minca to nearly fall off. Tukill reached down and grabbed their packs sitting by the open door as she ran out of the castle.

  CHAPTER THIRTY ONE

  Sacrifice

  The rancid sent of the Velsharoon witch’s foul breath stung her nose as she stood over her. Small torches lit around the room gave little light to the vast cavern. Jagged rock walls surrounded a well smoothed platform on which sat the sacrificial alter.

  "Welcome to my lair." the Velsharoon witch said, "I'm glad you could join me."

  "Did I have a choice?"

  "Now, now, don't be that way. It saddens me you think me to be so evil."

  "You are..." Serin said and spat in her face.

  The Velsharoon witch wiped her face, "Nasty girl, it's a good thing I'm going to suck all the magic out of you, you don't deserve it."

  "Oh and you do?"

  "Silence." the witch said, her voice raised and sharp, "I've had enough of this."

  "And what's 'this' you're talking about, your ego?" Serin said.

  "Ah, so you want to play that little game, do you. Well I can tell you it's not going to do you any good. As much as I love a good riddle I have more important things at hand."

  “Like stealing magic from innocent creatures.”

  The witch picked up a long skinny pick. She dipped it into a cauldron which was sitting over a small fire. The pick turned from a shiny silver to deep orange and then blood red. Steam wafted from the tip as she waved the pick. She spoke words Serin didn't understand.

  "That's right elemental, you're too weak for this kind of magic, and I'm the only person who can use this kind of magic."

  “If you call yourself a person.”

  Serin closed her eyes and thought of Shaz. He had this kind of magic, she had seen it before, but he was gone. She didn’t know happened to him and feared he’d been killed and now it was her turn. Her pulsating heart beating in her chest caused her stomach to churn with nerves. A small tear formed in the corner of her eye. She turned so the witch couldn't see her weakness.

  "Do what you must." she said, sagging into the cold rock of the stone slab.

  "Ah, now that's more like it."

  She took the pick and repeating the words Gavin Rhill had taught her. Placed the tip over Serin’s wrist and moved up her arm to her arm pit. The pain was so unbearable, Serin screamed. Her body tightened, her back arched off the cold stone. The witch moved the pick carefully, not to touch the skin. The dark magic it held sucked out Serin’s magic. She placed the tip into the bowl on the alter. A steady stream of purple liquid splashed into the bowl.

  The small reprieve left Serin gasping for air. Her chest heaved heavily as she tried to gain her breath back. Tears fell freely from her eyes. Her hair and clothes now soaked from sweat. The witch begun again and Serin’s body writhed in the pain. Pieces of her soul were being taken from her. Each time it left a dark gaping hole inside her chest. She wanted to die.

  *************************************

  The cavern was dark and damp with an eerie silence. Shaz sat with his back to the cold rock wall. He had no energy. His wrists were bound behind his back. His head hung over his bent knees. Darkness surrounded him. A hint of iron from the depths of the mountain left bitterness in his mouth. He had been in this cell for what seemed like days, hungry and cold. How did I get here? What happened? All I remember is soaring through the portal. After crashing to the ground, and couldn’t use my magic to open it back up. After trying a few times everything went dark and I woke up here, he thought.

  The tingle of magic he now was accustomed to disappeared and had been replaced with magic which stung like prickly thorns. The darkness overpowered his thoughts. His head ached more than ever before. Scattered and mixed up, he shook his head several times. He tried to clear it but the darkness kept coming. I can't do anything more. He had tried several times to break the cords he was bound with and decided they had been enchanted with Shadow magic.

  I have failed, there's nothing left for me, I've let everyone down, Serin, the Minca, the council, the world. It's not fair, asking this of me in the first place, I'm a regular guy, a selfish one too, I give up, he thought. In the corner of his mind he heard something but couldn't quite place it. Shaz sat up straight and shook his long hair out of his face. He peered into the distance as if he could see through the darkness and searched his mind. The sound became as aloud as though it were right behind him. Screams of pain and terror came from another cavern.

  “Serin.”

  Shaz shuddered with fear. The first time real fear had actually crept into his mind. He leaned on the cold stone as tears ran from his eyes. Shadows floated through the darkness, as he sat listening to her screams of agony. He soon realized that they echoed around him. How can I hear her? Where is she? They were coming through the small hole in the rock behind him. The thought came out of the darkness as if someone had turned on the lights. He jumped to his feet.

  A minute light shown through the tiny hole, he moved closer, and closer till his nose touched the cold surface of the rock wall. Serin was lying on a smoothly carved altar in the center of the room. Her wrists and ankles bound at each corner with the cords. The Velsharoon witch, in her blood red robe stood bent over a book. A large bowl sat on the rock platform between Serin's feet. The bowl had purple liquid in it. Long thin cuts had been made into Serin's arms and legs.

  "Oh no, no, no, no!" he said, slamming his forehead into the wall. "Blast, that hurt."

  Her skin even more pale, her soft purple markings that now covered most of her body were a deeper shade of violet. Shaz noticed an opalescent string of glittering light coming from a large oval shape, which stood on another pillar opposite of the book. He saw the reflection of a man.

  "Gavin Rhill,"

  The witch was doing Gavin Rhill’s dirty work. The more he tried to get out of the darkness, the angrier he became. His heart beat faster and his muscles tightened. Sweat formed at his hairline. The anger seemed to push out the darkness. He closed his eyes and searched into his heart. Pure fury burst from his bosom. He had spent too much time thinking. It was time to just feel and right now he was pissed.

  "Bonds release." he commanded.

  The bonds obeyed and fell from his wrists. He searched his mind for a way out. Around the edges of the darkness was a fuzzy blur. The blackness shuddered as he touched it. It appeared that the darkness was only a shroud of magic. He pushed away the darkness and a small tunnel appeared. How am I going to defeat the witch without my sword? He asked himself.

  "You don't need the sword, use your shadow magic." came the voice of Drafang.

  He slipped effortlessly into the tunnel, crawling for several feet. The light grew until he came to the opening. The witch moved to Serin’s legs. She was patient and careful, sliding the pick from her inner thigh to her ankle. Collecting as much magic as the pick would hold. She put it in the bowl. Each time the pick deposited magic the mirror glowed a little bit brighter. Soon a gentle glow formed around the mirror hiding its appearance. As he rounded the corner of the tunnel, Shaz saw the witch move the pick to Serin's navel which made him gasp.

  That was enough. Shaz shot out of the tunnel and into the cavern with lightning speed. He leapt toward the witch, thrusting his hand toward the pick sending a burst of magic and knocking it from her crinkled hand. The witch jumped back and came out of a trance. Shaz hurled himself at the witch, knocking her to the ground. The anger now surged through his body giving him the desire to kill. He rolled off and came to a crouched position. The witch pulled herself up. Shaz reached out toward the altar and untied the ropes without touching them, then sen
t a burst of magic at the witch sending her sprawling backward into the rock wall. The witch yelped with pain.

  “So your magic does work here.” the witch said, her voice shaky but eerie, coming to her feet.

  Shaz leapt out of the way as she shot a burst of magic over his head, and blasted the rock wall behind him. Serin lay on the altar, not knowing fully what was going on. She was consumed by the pain in her body. She was so drained that she couldn’t lift her eyes. Even though the ropes were loosed, she couldn't move.

  Shaz ran to her, but didn't make it. The witch plunged a dagger at Shaz slicing his shoulder. He dove behind the pillar. As he bumped up against it, the mirror fell to the ground, and rolled across the floor, ending up propped against the wall. The witch lunged, but Shaz sent another wave of magic. The witch was lifted off her feet and flipped head over heels twice before slamming into the wall.

  "Shaz, over here." yelled Turkill, pulling the Honor Blade behind him.

  Blood dripped from his lip and landed on his stained tunic.

  "What happened to you?" Shaz asked.

  "Never mind." he scowled wincing through one eye, the other swollen shut, "take this," He slid the sword to the front so Shaz could see it, "Now go."

  Shaz sensed the buzzing of energy surging toward them and threw Turkill out of the way as he somersaulted from the oncoming blast.

  "Get her out of here, she needs water!" Shaz yelled to Turkill.

  "I'll get her, you get that nasty-"

  The witches stinging magic interrupted Turkill. It caught Turkill square in the chest, thrusting him backward and smacked him into the sharp broken stone wall. Turkill felt his aching head. His fingers were covered in blood.

  "Blast." he cursed, staggering to his feet once more and hid behind the large mirror in front of the altar.

  The witch was wearing an amulet identical to the one she tried to steal from Shaz, that he now wore as a belt buckle. That’s how the portal opened here, Shaz thought. So that’s what she was up to in the city, But why here, why this portal?

  “Why this portal?” Shaz asked.

  “You see, my special gift is, I receive flashes of one’s life, just by touching them. In Ebassia, I saw the rift and the mirror and knew I had to find it. I followed the clues you gave me.” The sting of responsibility shot through his chest. He deflected a sizzling hot energy bolt. “That’s how I knew who Serin was. I know who all your Dodjen friends are, and as soon as I take Serin’s and your magic, I’ll move on to them. Nothing can stop me.”

  “You won’t get away with this." Shaz said, circling around the spilled blood oil, the gold dish sat half empty on the ground.

  The witch laughed a hearty cackle.

  “I already have.”

  "Come on, we've got to get you out of here." Turkill whispered to Serin.

  "You boast of your magic, yet you are nothing compared to me." she said.

  The witch’s eyes flash toward the mirror.

  "You mean Gavin Rhill’s magic? You need that amulet, I don’t." Shaz said.

  "Ha, you think that the training you received from that washed up, pathetic grandfather of yours is enough to defeat me?" she said.

  "You know what the funny thing about this is?"

  "What?" she asked.

  "You can’t win without this.” Shaz spun his blade and struck the chalice.

  "No!"

  The gold bowl shattered into pieces. Shaz twisted the blade over his head and blocked the witch’s next blast of magic. It rebounded around the room.

  Serin was barely able to see. Turkill tried with all his might to move her but she was too big for him. He tried shaking her violently then he remembered the water bag in his satchel outside the door. He slipped down and ran around the outside edge of the room back toward the tunnel.

  Shaz never felt so invigorated, he’d fought so long to keep his anger under control but now he didn't care. He glanced over and saw Serin’s lifeless body and thought if she was going to die so was the witch. The witch grabbed the medallion and held it out. Dark purple shadow magic shot out from the medallion. Shaz leapt out of the way. The bolt of magic split open a tall stone column, shattering it into pieces. A sharp fragment lodged itself deep into Shaz’s flesh. He cried out and fell to the floor.

  He casted a shield before the rest of the column toppled onto him. He gripped the fragment and yanked it out. The blood gushed from the wound and he put his hand on his side. He imagined the heat of fire in his hand. The sizzle of burning flesh seared shut and stopped the bleeding, but not without red hot pain shooting through his torso.

  The pain was stifling and, even with all his efforts, it didn't give him the edge he needed. Sweat soaked through his tunic. He wondered if the stone fragment had some kind of element that increased its strength. Then it occurred to him, Of course it has another element, shadow magic. If the man in the mirror is Gavin Rhill, he must have used shadow magic to enchant this place.

  Turkill stood at the tunnel with a water bag. He pointed at Serin. Shaz struggled to his feet and moved toward the mirror against the wall. The witch hobbled toward Shaz.

  "Well you are persistent, I’ll give you that, but you won't last much longer" she said.

  Turkill waited another moment and darted across the room. The man in the mirror saw the Minca warrior and shouted. The witch turned on Turkill. A burst of air knocked out several of the small candle flames. Shaz shoved his arm against the cave wall and propelled himself toward Turkill.

  Shaz pulled his empty hand to his side, his elbow bent and his hand grabbed at the air around him. The air pulled against the witch like a cord bound to her back and the harder Shaz squeezed the harder it pulled against her. Turkill leaned back and slid under the witch’s blade on his knees a second before her dagger would have sliced through his neck. The fury of the wind yanked her backward, throwing her to the ground.

  Red hot pain wreaked havoc on Turkill’s bare skin as they rubbed against the surface of the stone floor. His momentum carried him back to his feet. Shaz thrust the witch into the wall, slamming her against the rock. She fell lifeless to the floor. Shaz ran to help Turkill who had been trying to get Serin to drink water, but she was too weak and nearly unconscious. Shaz lifted the water bag and poured the water on her face and down her body. Steam rose from her skin as the water evaporated.

  "Blast, we need more water."

  He felt the familiar tingle of magic in the stone, but it wasn't the same as shadow magic. What kind of magic is this, he asked himself.

  Serin stirred and opened her eyes.

  "Shaz." she whispered and feebly pointed behind him.

  Shaz spun around, threw his sword up and rebounded another surge of energy.

  "You will not win, I have shadow magic." The witch said through her broken teeth.

  "No, it's you who won't win. It's not your magic, it's Gavin Rhill who has possessed you."

  "Serin, you must get up, I can't carry you" Turkill said.

  "I-I-"

  Her whole body felt like it was on fire. She had no feeling in her arms or legs. Turkill grabbed one arm and one leg and pulled. It took several tries to wriggle her body to the edge, but he finally maneuvered her to the ground. Once on the ground, Turkill grabbed her wrists and heaved her across the floor. The witch sent a steady stream of magic toward Shaz. His neck muscles pulsed as he held off the witch’s magic.

  His brows pulled in as he focused his strength. His side ached deeply and he felt a twinge in his back. Shaz released his hold and let his sword swing downward. Shaz parried forward, brought his sword upward in a swooping motion. The witch leapt away. Shaz was surprised at how limber she was and how much she was enduring. He figured it had to be the shadow magic.

  Sweat dripped onto the floor. Turkill gritted his teeth and grunted with each heave. He had only gotten half way across the floor when he saw the mirror. Chills ran up his spine as the empty eyes of the man inside it stared at him. Turkill set Serin down and ran with a limp to the mir
ror. He grabbed a fragment of stone and slammed it into the glass shattering the retched image. The glass went in every direction, crashing and tinkling to the ground. A loud pop echoed through the cavern as the portal vanished. Turkill pulled and heaved a few more steps when he felt a tap on the shoulder.

  Images of something evil crossed his mind, but instead the big bright eyes of his little brother beamed back at him. Dried blood crested Ladtwig's eyebrow and his oversized clothes were torn and shredded. Ladtwig took one of Serin's arms and Turkill grinned back. The two heaved and pulled her toward the tunnel.

  "Gavin Rhill will destroy you, even if I don't." the witch said.

  Her crazed look sent chills through his body.

  "Maybe, but it won't be easy." said Shaz.

  Shaz wondered if now that the mirror was broken, she would know how to use the pendant. The witch held out the pendant using Shaz's name in a spell. Shaz's head about exploded as the shadow magic forced its way into his mind. Shaz dropped his sword and fell to his knees in agony. The pain was so intense he didn't know if he was dead or dying. The pounding grew stronger as a voice made its way through the haze of fear and pain. Within a few seconds, a man’s voice became clear.

  "Give up Shaz, you have no choice, I own you now." Gavin Rhill said.

  "No, you don't, no one owns me. I am my own person."

  "It's no use fighting, you can't over power the shadow."

  Shaz felt as though an ice pick had propelled itself into his skull. It was so hard to think of anything but pain. Shaz lost his strength and melted onto the ground. He fought to search his mind for a way out.

  ‘You are the only one that can harness its power, that's why I have chosen you to overcome and control the shadow that is in your heart. It is you and you only that can achieve this heavy burden.’ Shaz recognized this voice from a dream and understood now that in order to harness the shadow magic, he needed to let it become him. Not for greed or power over others, but because he had love for them. He thought of Serin who loved all people even before she met them. She always gave them the benefit of the doubt. That’s it, mercy, that’s the key. He thought.