Page 30 of Storm of Shadows
Natharius lifts his enormous sword, and the goblins have the sense to run. But they don’t flee fast enough, and his reach is too great.
His blade comes crashing down. It pierces the ground, tearing apart the earth. The resulting quake is powerful enough to throw me off my feet and causes my stone wall to shatter. Rock rains on me. I shield my head. The large pebbles smack into my arms, but at least it isn’t my head.
The few goblins left are also thrown off balance. They also try to shield themselves from the quaking wall, but they’re nearer to it than I am and some are far less fortunate. Larger boulders tumble down and crush them.
The barrage ceases. I raise my head.
Natharius yanks out his obsidian sword, and the earth is left scarred by a deep chasm. The ground rumbles again as his blade leaves the earth, but not as viciously as when he struck it.
Three goblins evaded being felled by his sword. They scramble upward and race for the trees, but Natharius doesn’t allow them to escape. Dark magic swirls in his left hand, and he unleashes black flames on the goblins. They fall.
The ones near me also try to flee, sprinting through the rubble. Maybe I should let them go, since their surrender is clear. But had our places been reversed, they would have shot me down and eaten me. And I am determined to be as vicious as a Void Prince of the Abyss.
So, I burn them all.
“Ignir’alas!”
Flames surge from my fingers, rising upward and spreading into fiery wings. Then they descend on the fleeing goblins and scorch everything in their wake, including the bushes and the trees. All is charred by my flames. Smoke rises into the treetops, carrying ash with it.
I look back at Natharius and catch him watching, a curious glint in his eyes. When he notices my gaze, he breaks his stare. Shadows wash over him as he returns to his moon elven form. I can’t help from smirking. He was lying last night when he calledignir’alasa trivial spell. He’s too proud and stubborn to admit how powerful it is, especially since it was invented by one of my ancestors.
I turn to Zephyr and examine him carefully, my fingers tracing his wings as I inspect them for any injuries. “Are you hurt?”
He shakes his head, and I help him crawl onto my shoulder. Then I head over to where the Void Prince stands, peering down into the chasm he carved through the earth.
“What is it?” I ask.
He points to the ruins beneath. Goblin blood is smeared across the stone, and the green substance appears luminous in the low light. There are severed limbs and heads, and some of their remains are so pulverized they look like squashed insects.
The old Reyna would have been so disgusted she vomited all over Natharius’s shiny leather boots. But I have seen far worse sights since then, and all that disturbs me is my own indifference.
It takes me a moment to realize Natharius is pointing at one goblin in particular. This one is trying to push himself upright, but his limbs are too broken. He’s the only one that survived, but half-dead would be a better descriptor.
“So what?” I say. “One goblin survived. What’s so fascinating?”
“Have you ever wondered how soul-gems are created?”
“Not really.”
He tilts his head, regarding me carefully. “Not really?”
“I mean not at all,” I blurt.
“You were willing to use one in order to summon and bind me here, but you have no wish to know how they are created? What will you do if I am banished to the Abyss and you find yourself without another soul-gem to summon me back?”
“If I didn’t know better, it sounds like you would want to be summoned back to serve me. Besides, why would you be banished?”
“If I am struck by a mortal wound, I will be returned to the Abyss,” Natharius replies with a grin. Though his fangs are now gone, his expression is no less menacing. I suppose he’s counting on my refusal to learn dark magic and is enjoying taunting me with it. I’ve not given much thought until now about what I’ll do if Natharius is forced back to the Abyss. I could try to find another soul-gem, though I’m not sure it’ll be easy to find someone selling them since dark magic is shunned through all of Imyria. Then again, I think there were a few more soul-gems inside the Vaults beneath the Arcanium. If it comes to that, I can teleport myself back to Nolderan and use another to summon him. Since I have the Grandmage’s staff, I should be able to bypass the ward surrounding the island.
I shrug. “I have plenty more soul-gems. Don’t worry, you wouldn’t miss me for long.”
Natharius doesn’t rise to my taunt. Shadows surge from his hands and across to the dying goblin. A specter-like form of the goblin ascends into the air, and dark chains wrap around him. I suppose the ghostly being I’m seeing is the goblin’s soul.
The shadowy chains tighten around the goblin, shrinking until his soul is condensed into a shard. The stone is mostly ink black, but a few strands of violet and gold run through it. The goblin’s soul must be predominantly dark magic.
Natharius gives the chains a sharp pull. They come racing back at him with the soul-gem in tow.
He snatches the glittering shard from the shadows and holds the soul-gem high, admiring its jagged edges. Before I can demand for him to hand it over, he opens his mouth and eats it. He swallows it whole, like a snake devouring its prey. Shadows swirl from his nostrils as he exhales. “How refreshing. Though I doubt it will taste as sweet as your soul.” His crimson eyes flicker across to Zephyr. “Or your faerie dragon’s.”