Seven Sorcerers(110)
Lyrilan and myself circle about to approach Zyung from behind.
A hail of deathlights falls about us as the High Seraphim unleash their power.
A sea of flame deluged the city as the six titans fell upon Zyung.
The High Seraphim needed no command to begin defending the Celestial One. They cast bolts of solar conflagration toward Vireon’s rushing avengers.
Again Ianthe’s voice rang in Sungui’s mind, and in the minds of the five hundred.
Not yet, my children. Do not unleash your true power. Throw beams of gentle sunlight upon these defenders of Uurz. Allow them to weaken Zyung. We must neither prevent nor aid them. Wait for my signal. Be patient…
Among the thousand High Ones there remained half who were not among Ianthe’s coven. They hurled honest deathlights at the six sorcerers below, and there was nothing Sungui could do to prevent it. Yet Iardu’s followers were not so easily ashed as the soldiers who had died by the thousands at Shar Dni. As for the ranks of Lesser Seraphim, their power was directed at the besieged city. Their sunbolts sent towers and bridges toppling while the dreadnoughts poured rivers of flame across the battlements. The Men and Giants there sent up volleys of arrows, burning logs, catapult stones, and screams of hatred. Other than that, they could only burn and die.
Sungui poured harmless light upon the Feathered Serpent as its maw struck at Zyung. Ianthe and Gammir floated among the High Ones nearby, indistinguishable from all the rest in their silver vestments. The entire coven pretended to defend their master with impotent rays of light, while the five hundred who were not among Ianthe’s revolution poured raw power upon the Sorcerers of Uurz.
Each of the loyalists would have one last chance to join the coven. The wisest among them would choose treason instead of oblivion. The rest of them would not be missed.
Be patient…
We are six now.
Zyung ignores the torrent of starfire rushing from Khama’s jaws, though it burns away his silver raiment. He grabs the Feathered Serpent by the throat with both massive hands. I have seen men kill vipers in this way by strangling them to death. Khama’s black stinger strikes home again and again, puncturing the God-King’s marble flesh. The Serpent’s convulsions knock over the salted remains of Vireon, who crumbles to white powder among the tall grass.
Vaazhia’s leap brings her falling upon the God-King’s shoulders like a raging lioness. Her claws rip both sides of his face, carving rents in his stony cheeks, while the talons of her feet dig deep into his back. Sharadza’s spear of hard light impales Zyung’s gut, emerging bloody from his back. Alua casts streams of flame like whips about the God-King’s legs.
I weave a curtain of sorcery to block the deathlights that rain upon us. Lyrilan does the same as he positions himself behind Zyung.
Beyond the burning walls Giants hurl spears and burning logs at the sky-ships. Volleys of flaming arrows fly upward, but they will do no good. We already know that these ships do not easily burn.
Alua pulls her flame-whips forward and Zyung topples backward. Instead of falling he rises into the air. His voice erupts like a volcano, spilling across the snared Feathered Serpent. Khama’s bright coils turn to milky crystal, losing color and flexibility. Like Vireon before him, Khama is sent to salt. Zyung breaks the salt-Serpent in half, hurling both pieces to the ground, where they erupt in clouds of dust.
We are five.
We rise into the sky with Zyung, tearing at him like wolves rending an elk.
Vaazhia sinks her talons into Zyung’s eyes, which blast forth sunfire. The blast catches Sharadza, who reels and loses her spear, her skin dissolving. Bolts of deathlight from the High Seraphim pummel the Daughter of Vod. Her scream is one of mingled agony and grief. She becomes a burning, swirling mass of flame that refuses to fall.
Alua’s white fires glide up Zyung’s naked legs like pythons, devouring his flesh like brittle parchment. In moments it will reach his chest and heart.
Lyrilan and I await our opening.
It will come soon, but now Vaazhia’s berserk assault hides Zyung’s back from us. His grasping hands reach backward to seize her horned head as she sinks fangs into his throat. He wrenches the comely head away from her shoulders, a gout of crimson spewing across his torso.
The Conqueror’s voice rings out again, and Vaazhia’s tumbling body is a thing of salt that explodes when it hits the ground.
Two more sorcerers crushed by Zyung’s power.
Perhaps there were not enough of them to weaken him after all. Perhaps Ianthe’s plan was doomed to fail. Could the Almighty know of the Panther’s betrayal as he had known Sungui’s dual nature? Certainly he did not trust her. It could be that he allowed her to assemble this coven so that he might expose and destroy it during this very confrontation.