Men lay bloody on the ground, wounded from the elements the Zarothar wielded. Their cries had gone unheard. The long thin sword Alec wielded, stained in the blood of his enemies, proved its worth in the victory. Sheathing it, he moved toward the final destination, his men following closely behind.
A large plume of smoke rose through the trees. Alarmed, Alec commanded his men to move faster. It remained a race against time. Reaching the crest of a hill, the group of men gazed upon a large structure set ablaze. A thick haze of black smoke hung about the trees, smothering the forest.
"My lord! They are still in there!" one man shouted.
Alec commanded his men at once. "Breach the building! I need Nimer and his companions out alive!"
With a strong wave of many hands, the men used the snow on the ground to create a vast wave of water crashing it down on the burning building. It took many tries and waves to douse the flames. Steam rose from the sizzling wood as the flames diminished. Over the time of their efforts, the flames disappeared. The smoke cleared revealing a collapsed building that had caved in due to the fire. Alec stood strong walking behind his men, highly alert for any signs of other cult members.
One man glanced back at him. "My Lord, do you sense anything else?"
Alec remained silent, his eyes sliding closed. He listened to his surroundings. The faint sound of footsteps brought him on edge and he drew his sword once more. Sporadic tangles of violet lightning threaded through the air smothering his sword. Unlike Nimer, Alec conducted the attack with his blade, throwing it aside and dispelling it in seconds. His pale eyes opened and he glared into the purple eyes of his attacker; Zinlar and two of his men.
"Why am I not surprised scum like you still breathes," Alec commented cooly.
"I should be asking you the same thing, golden git," Zinlar grinned. Dark magic played in the palm of his hand, his fingers twitching with anticipation. "How marvelous that a god such as yourself graces us with his presence. Something on your mind, oh great lord?"
Alec remained poised. "I don't have time for your mind games, Zinlar."
"Oh, there's time for games," the elf grinned. "I forgot to mention. I know you care for Nimer, but I find his life withered away on the wooden floors of the cabin. You are wasting your time here. The other two are bound to have burned to ash by now."
Alec pondered if the statement proved true behind a placid expression. "You think that you have won, Zinlar, but I find that highly unlikely." Faster than any human, Alec took flight gliding across the ground. With a brilliant swing of his sword, he cut right through the man only to have what he thought to be Zinlar grin and snicker as he vanished. The lowly laughter rang through his mind and Alec whirled around to find his companion who had stayed behind fallen in the snow, a large festering wound in his chest. Zinlar stood over him, his long tongue licking the edge of his blade.
"It is hard to tell what is real and what is not, don't you think, oh great one?" the bandit snickered. "Seize him!" he ordered his own men.
The two cult members rushed at Alec, one with magic in hand and the other with a dagger. Alec fought off their approach, easily swinging his sword and slicing the neck of one cult member and swinging his blade around at the other, forcibly detaching his hand at the wrist. He fell to his knees and let out a bloody cry, sanguineous fluid spewing from his wound. Alec raised his foot kicking the man square in the head and he fell over out cold in the snow. When Alec turned back to face the elf, Zinlar was gone.
Sheathing his sword, Alec rushed his fallen compatriot and knelt down by his side. The man's face and eyes had glazed over, appearing like stone. Alec calmly shut the man's eyes and stood walking down the hill toward the building to assist his men. He would not pursue Zinlar and would search for him at a later time. For now he had to tend to the wounded.
Alec entered the building through a gaping hole in the fallen wall. The heavy scent of burnt wood stung his nose and eyes and ash still hung in the air. Walking down the hallway, Alec stopped in the doorway when he heard the sound of a girl sobbing.
Being comforted by two of his men, Ray sobbed between coughing into Jex's chest. The side of her leg appeared burned during the fire and was in need of medical attention. She screamed at the men when any of them put their hands on her, her fingers curling into the fabric of the farm boy's shirt tighter. Alec watched a moment before entering the room approaching the bed and stared down at her with icy eyes before kneeling down getting level with Ray. His tone remained even and cool.
"You must be Ray. Nimer told me about you in the letter he sent," he began. "Where I do not blame you I would like to inform you we are here to help you."
Ray's sobbing decreased and she slowly lifted her head, staring at the man with puffy eyes and a face coated in black smears from the smoke. "For all I know…" her voice cracked. "Jex and Nimer are dead.." She choked before tears sprang to her eyes again and she sobbed harder.
Alec didn't respond and glanced to Jex's face and the swollen scaring from the shard. "He is not dead but sleeping. He will be alright. I ask that you trust us, Ray. If I was here to hurt you, I find that you would not be alive."
Ray searched for Alec's eyes. "Who...who are you?"
Alec slowly stood, "I am Alec Caine. I am the Zarothar, the god of the sun, balance, and unity."
Ray's sobbing subsided and she gazed at the face of the god. "A god…" she gasped and slowly sat up. "You...you must know Nimer then...he sent for you...to save us." She reached up, rubbing her eyes with her bound hands.
Alec nodded. "I know Nimer quite well...I have a feeling he was bringing you to Gurdon. Do you know where he is?"
Ray shook her head. "Last I saw of him he was taken to another room. They were trying to get information out of him."
"Understood. Allow my men to unbind you. We will be taking you to Gurdon for healing. Also," he said, reaching into a small pouch on his belt and retrieving a vial. "I suggest you drink this. It will relieve you of pain."
Ray was unbound and she took the vial in her hands and removed the small corck at the top with a small pop. The liquid smelled bitter yet Earthy. She hesitated before drinking the whole thing. Despite the smell, it tasted sweet.
Moments later, the sound of footsteps rushed to the doorway. "My Lord," one of Alec's men stood in the door frame, a frantic, worried expression on his face. "It's Nimer…"
Alec glanced down at Ray and commanded his men, "Take them to the horses. We are leaving momentarily," then left the room. It took much effort to get to the front room of the building, sifting through the various debris. Upon reaching Nimer, the god's expression turned to shock.
Nimer lay in a puddle of blood, his skin pale as snow and covered in lacerations and burns. Blood leaked from his parted lips and his eyes were glassy, each shallow breath getting quieter and quieter. Two men were already assessing him, applying pressure to his wound and helping potions go down to tend to the pain.
Alec walked over with haste and knelt down next to him. "Nimer, did Zinlar get what he wanted?" Alec took Nimer's hand. It felt like ice under his touch.
Nimer's eyes slowly open part way, nodding before coughing up a mouth full of blood.
Alec appeared stern. "And here I thought you were trained better. With Ravathor awakening, the kingdom will perish before you can even get there."
"Y-you...should let...me...die…then..." Nimer whispered hoarsely, choking shortly afterwards.
"Pathetic. You and I both know I cannot do that," Alec stated and forcefully let go of his hand and stood. "Heal him faster and get him out to the horses. He will not die today," Alec commanded and walked away shaking his head.
Nimer watched him leave wishing in that single moment he could perish.