In Harmony We Trust, Ryan Matthew Harker [rooftoppers .txt] 📗

seemed to revel in the young man’s anger. The red aura had followed the sorcerer and seemed to swell as it absorbed the negative emotions.
Absinthe turned pleading eyes towards the Archmagi who had tried to fade into the shadows. All of her pride vanished under the young woman’s gaze and Florencii hung her head in shame.
That was when the transformation began.
First the spasms hit.
Both Candlelite and Absinthe arched their backs, going rigid in perfect unison. An inarticulate growl began deep in Candlelite’s throat and Absinthe let loose a shrill scream that would have shattered crystal had any been around.
They hit their knees at the same time.
Saliva began to run freely from Absinthe’s mouth. Her teeth were clenched tight, almost to the point of breaking. Her scream evolved to a growl that grew to dwarf the one still being issued by Candlelite. Coarse brown hair began to sprout from her body just like little saplings pushing their way from the ground.
Candlelite, his whole body rigid and his back still arched, lurched forward onto his hands. His fingers curled and uncurled involuntarily, lengthening and thickening with the popping and cracking of his knuckles. When the first spasm hit he had closed his eyes, now they popped open to stare directly into Harmony’s and they had gone completely blood red.
With the sound of tearing cloth the two shape-shifter’s bodies began bulging and writhing as if their skins contained some kind of parasitic creatures struggling to escape. They began to pant from the tremendous strain their bodies were being put through and then the howling and growling began anew as their bodies contorted into the final stages of their transformation.
After a few more minutes of horror their anguish faded and the giant rolling cage no longer contained a young man and woman but a large grizzly bear and a monstrous werewolf.
“Bravo, absolutely spectacular!” Harmony declared, clapping his hands enthusiastically when it was obvious that the action was over.
Candlelite could not contain himself and lunged at the sorcerer through the bars of the cage, slashing the air just centimeters from Harmony’s face.
Harmony did not flinch and he started laughing contemptuously at the werewolf’s howl of frustration. “My dear boy,” he said emphasizing the noun. “I just don’t see the threat.” He turned and bowed to Absinthe. “Madam,” he said, then turned and glided back into his tent.


“Woo hoo!” Havershom shouted as the first crater formed on the arcane energy canon’s digital tracking display. “Tha’ll give’m somethin’ t’ think aboot!”
He and Quazetkic had messed around with the canon’s targeting system for about thirty minutes before they felt confident enough to fire their first shot and although they had missed the enemy completely they were still pleased to have gotten as close as they had. They made some adjustments to the guidance controls and fired again this time hitting a little closer.
“Almost there,” Havershom nudged Quazetkic in

the ribs and earned himself a short glare from the other lord.
Again the two lords made some minute adjustments to the guidance controls when they were suddenly blinded by an intense light from behind them. They covered their eyes and turned to face the source of the light.
“Wha'th’ell?” Havershom shouted.
Although it had appeared suddenly the light took its time disappearing. It slowly dissipated to reveal a shadowy mass at its center and the shadowy mass soon became many shapes which then became distinct figures. Once the light had vanished completely a large group of men and women stood in the clearing.
Quazetkic did a quick count of the new arrivals and came up with forty-one. He looked at Havershom, who stood stunned with his mouth hanging open, and said, “Keep the canon firing. I’ll deal with this.”
“But,” Havershom began to protest. Quazetkic turned and glared at him. “Never mind,” he said and turned back to adjust the canon’s targeting system.
Quazetkic approached the people while a robed woman with graying hair made her way towards him. He opened his mouth to greet the woman when the canon boomed.
“Woo hoo, direct hit!” Havershom hollered.
Quazetkic turned back towards the canon. “We got them?” he yelled over to Havershom.
“Shore did m’boyo,” Havershom replied.
“Great! Keep it up,” Quazetkic told him. He turned back to the lady who stood waiting patiently. “Good day madam. I am Quazetkic, lord of Longiglow. What may I do for you?”
The graying lady returned the lords bow and said, “I am the witch Jirseka and this is my teleport support team.” She indicated the group behind her. “We’ve been sent by his royal majesty to transport you and your men to the world capital so that you may aid in the war against the sorcerer Harmony.”
Quazetkic raised an eyebrow in surprise and asked, “The king, eh? And when are we to leave?”
Meanwhile Turinoc and Keriee had joined him, curious about the strangers and excited about Havershom’s cries of success. “What’s going on?” Turinoc rumbled.
“Jirseka, these are the lords Turinoc and Keriee,” Quazetkic began introductions. “Keriee, Turinoc, this is the witch Jirseka and her teleporters. She has been sent here by the king to transport us back to the capital.”
“Great!” Turinoc enthused while Keriee stroked his mustache. “When do we go?”
“I do not know,” Quazetkic confessed. “I had just posed that same question when you got here.”
“We’ll be ready to leave in approximately twenty minutes,” Jirseka told the lords.
“I can have my men ready in half that,” Turinoc said.
“So can I,” Keriee affirmed.
“Got ‘em agin!” Havershom whooped after another boom from the canon.
“Havershom,” Quazetkic yelled. “Take a minute and gather your men. We are leaving in twenty minutes!”
“Aye, aye Quazie!” Havershom jumped down from the canon’s control platform and ran over to confer with his soldiers.
Within ten minutes all of the almost two hundred thousand men and women under the command of the four lords were gathered and awaiting departure. Jirseka explained the king’s plan for a form of attack that would generate a sandwich effect and although these soldiers were going from inaction to full battle ready in a matter of minutes they were anxious and eager for the confrontation to start.
It had been decided that Havershom would stay on at the mountain camp with a small force of two hundred warriors to hold and continue the barrage upon Harmony with his canon. He gave Quazetkic a thumb up from his position at the canon’s controls to assure him that they were ready.
As the twenty minutes from the time of their arrival came to a close Jirseka drew her support group around her and motioned for the lords to have their soldiers gather tightly about them. The soldiers shuffled in as close as they could and feeling like sardines in a can the lords signaled their readiness.
The last few minutes ticked by and Jirseka said, “Ok, let’s do this.”
“I hope the king’s ready for us or we’re screwed!” Turinoc yelled and began to laugh uproariously. He gripped his great, great grandfather’s battle worn war axe tightly in both hands and lifted it over his head as a gentle blue light began to emanate from the teleporters.
Thinking much the same thing and praying for the safety of his soldiers, Quazetkic closed his eyes and prepared himself for the disorientation associated with instantaneous matter transportation.
The last thing he heard as the blue light enveloped them was Havershom as he shouted, “Good luck m’boyos!” And then there was the void.


It took Zakeriah most of the half hour to strap himself into his armor before he was able to join his army and he rode into the city commons just inside the main gates and took his place at the head of his warriors with only minutes to spare. He scowled at the queen as she sat astride her own war horse and after she returned it with a smirk he turned to face the waiting soldiers.
Raising his hand in what was a greeting and a gesture for silence Zakeriah addressed the assembled army, “My loyal subjects, my friends, in a matter if minutes we will face the greatest opponent ever to threaten the safety and security of our beloved planet, a man so vile that he was hunted down and forced to flee to another world. Well this man, Harmony,” he spat the sorcerer’s name from his mouth as if it had a bad taste. “This man has returned. He has returned stronger than ever and now sits camped outside these very gates. Harmony wishes to enslave us all, our women, our children, our parents and for those of us who would oppose him he would visit certain death! Are we going to just sit here and allow him to do this?”
The soldiers before him began to murmur angrily.
“What’s that?” Zakeriah asked as he cupped a hand to his ear.
“No,” the crowd answered.
“I can’t hear you!” the king yelled. “What did you say?”
“No!” the soldiers shouted deafeningly.
“I did not think so!” Putting his helmet on his head he turned his horse and called to the sentries who stood to either side of the gates. “Open the gates!”
Queen Mega’N reined her horse next to the king’s and leaned to whisper to him, “Short and to the point my love.”
Zakeriah kept his eyes turned to the massive portal in front of him so that she could not see the anguish her presence caused him and said, “Please Mega’N, reconsider your place here.”
“I will not, love,” she said gently. “If you are to fight this reckless battle then my place is with you.”
“So be it,” Zakeriah said although clearly angered by his queen’s answer. As the gate eased to a halt his sword blazed to life with blinding blue flame as he drew it and he gave it a flick to Nefarious to drop the shields. “Forward!” he ordered as the gates dropped and spurred his horse through them.
The king’s army thundered as it followed his blazing sword forward. Nearly four hundred thousand of the five hundred thousand troops stationed in the city spilled onto the desolate plain and aimed for the heart of Harmony’s encampment. A full third of those four hundred thousand were mounted and spread out to create a driving wedge which would cleave through the Dark Lords unsuspecting warriors, allowing room for the footmen who followed to strike deep into the midst of the enemy army.
With a stirring war cry the horsemen impacted the outer perimeter of Harmony’s camp. The only thing louder than the crackle of the plasma swords were the screams of the misfortunate that got in front of them. Within moments thousands of Harmony’s soldiers lay irrigating the blasted ground with their blood and in no time the air hung heavy with the smell of scorched atmosphere and burnt flesh.
It was a four second slaughter before Harmony’s men managed to arm themselves. Swords and rifles came to bear and the counterattack began. Desperate to stop the horsemen who were opening a path through the middle of their camp snipers took up positions and began to open fire. Due to magic induced resistance most of their bullets were deflected harmlessly by the kingdom’s armor but for every dozen that failed one would drop a man from his saddle and there were thousands of snipers.
Zakeriah spotted the giant, black silk tent and assumed that it belonged to Harmony. With Mega’N at his side he steered his charging horse soldiers towards it and though riders fell they still powered their way through the center of the army while the footmen trailed behind ferociously engaging the enemy in hand to hand combat.
About that moment brilliant light flashed at the outer perimeter of Harmony’s army opposite to the