Framework of the Frontier, Sain Artwell [read me a book .TXT] 📗

another flicker of silvery energy over Isha’s skin.

“I cannot. Leviathans’ minds are shielded and bound by the Queen of All Depths. I cannot fight him… I… All I can do is struggle and run.” Rulu’s voice and body both shivered as she stared at her hunter, eyes were wide and legs paralyzed.

“Do not make me do war against Nibir, Ranger.” Ishai backhanded William, but his efforts were lazy.

William avoided them with ease. “Rulu, force fields! Ember, you up? Ember?! Get up and wake the town, everyone’s drafted RIGHT NOW.”

No answer from above.

He tripped on a loose brick, missed a step, and failed a dodge. Ishai’s attempt to swat met a flash of pale light — Rulu’s shield. William seized the moment of confusion in his foe to draw a knife and stab it up in his chest. The blade sunk through the shimmering veil covering Ishai’s body, all the way to the hilt.

A cold black spray splattered William’s arm and face.

“Don’t kill him,” Rulu pleaded. “William, no!”

William stepped out of the way of a pathetic attempt at a grab. “It’s us or him. Don’t worry, I’ll make it quick.”

“William, stop, please do not fight him…”

He redid the blessing, hefted the hammer in both hands, squeezed everything his arms and the divine strength had to give, and connected the pointy end into the side of Ishai’s head. It sank in and the force spun his head around a full three sixty, leaving a crack in the field that had shielded him. William took a step back, heaving as he watched the dead man standing.

Rulu’s voice quivered as she scrambled on her feet. “William, you must flee. We cannot hope to win and I was a fool to dream otherwise. The form he wears is but a disguise.”

Silver fractures spread from Ishai’s wounds until his body was a spider web of cracks. Where pieces of his arm flaked off, slimy dark amaranth mass bubbled outward, filling the lobby with enormous sail shaped paddles and a tree-like branching flood of boneless limbs covered in serrated hook shaped teeth. Their movements shook the building, causing dust to fall from the ceiling. Several of them whipped at William, too many of them. William raised his armored arms and braced for impact.

A hollow sound rattled his skull. The back wall punched the air out of William, but the blessing dulled all pain. Despite his strength, William quickly realized he was fighting a losing struggle against the avalanche of dark writhing flesh, which pinned him down.

Ishai plucked the dagger from his chest and the mace from his temple. As the cracks on his humanoid form fused, the crazed mass of tendrils and fins retracted back into his arm. “I shall ignore this transgression, given that it caused no damage.”

“Will! Oh no…” Freshly woken Ember shot arrows from upstairs. Each sank in Ishai’s head.

The leviathan did not acknowledge them. All but one finger of his arm returned to humanoid form. Those two dozen tendrils remaining wrestled Will into submission and promptly restrained Rulu by neck and limbs, biting into her flesh with the hooks. She let out a piercing howl.

Ishai’s face turned to William. “You will not follow us, Ranger of Nastall, for if you step past the sand and enter the domain of R’lyeh intending to kidnap the princess, I shall consider it an act of hostility, and respond in kind.”

“Hostility?” William felt his divine energy running low, but couldn’t let the blessings go. He reached for the falchion behind his back and drew the blade. “Fucker, I’ll show you hostility. You tried to kill me and you’re not taking her!”

“I have yet to make an attempt on your life.” The limb pressed against William’s neck rotated, tapping the flat side of one of the countless foot-long curved knives of black bone on his nose.

He hadn’t been serious.

William swallowed. His blessings flickered out. In that instant the strength of the limbs pinning him grew insurmountable and he knew in his gut that the leviathan was impossible to win against. Ember lobbed arrows at Ishai and a crowd of half-dressed adventurers rushed to surround the building, but what could they do? Could they win? They had won against the chimera with Orien’s party, but this leviathan was an unknown and his might seemingly bottomless.

In the leviathan’s cruel grasp, Rulu still suffered, meeting William’s gaze with a teary look of wordless good-bye. Helplessness and despair stabbed him with a burning frustration.

“Ember, everyone, hold your weapons. Do not attack,” William shouted, tasting bitter shame beneath the blood.

She’ll die suffering. You can’t let her down. Think of something.

Ishai released William and plucked the arrows from his head. “It is good to see the Empire of Nibir still honor its pacts with R’lyeh. Farewell, Ranger of Nastall.”

This psychopath fucker. Keeps on talking about law and honor, and goes to crazy lengths to not harm us. A crazy half-baked ‘aha’ of panicked urgency snapped into William’s mind as Ishai dragged Rulu out of the door and through the adventurers.

“Wait!”

Ishai paused, turning his head around without pretending he had a spine.

William continued, “You can’t take her, not yet. I… I didn’t realize she was a princess and made her my deputy Ranger. She is a citizen of Nibir and… Ember, can you bring the papers?” He gave the wide-eyed faun an urgent stare.

Get the hint please get the hint…

Her ears flapped up in realization. “Uh-oh, y-yes. Here, I have them right here.” Ember ripped a page off of her journal and handed it to William, who hurried outside to present it to the leviathan.

Miraculously, Ishai remained perfectly still aside from the tendrils restraining Rulu.

It was impossible to know what went on behind his unblinking eyes. So, William continued, hoping more words made better lies, “Here and here, you see. I’ve sent a copy