Dropping both his helmet and sound cone, Nurlan swatted at the leprechaun on his shoulder. Knocked to the ground, the small creature was dazed for a moment before disappearing from view.The General gripped his bloody ear. The bite marks were clearly visible."Oh!" Mairwen produced a cloth and hurried to dab at the blood. "Are you alright?""Blasted little devils!" Nurlan spat as he grimaced. He took the cloth from the princess and held it to stop the bleeding."Are leprechaun's bites poisonous?" the princess asked with an anxious expression.The thought had not occurred to him. After a flash of panic, the color returned to his face and he shook his head. "It does not seem so, but it sure is a blasted nuisance. They are worse than fleas!"Mairwen looked out at the army and her face fell. "It seems they are far more dangerous, too."————Timur was the first unlucky man to be attacked by the leprechauns. He felt the sting on his neck and, like Nurlan, reacted by slapping at the obnoxio
Xander sat on his ship lazily regarding the magical and human troops on the shore. Earlier a bunch of the humans had gone swimming, which was quite curious to the pirate."Maybe they just want one last thing to remember before they die?" His first mate had suggested."Perhaps," the Captain was unconvinced, but as the men eventually exited the water, he had given up trying to figure out the uncommon behavior.Now he stood leaning on the deck's railing trying to decide why he was there at all. It was the question he had been asking himself over and over. When he watched Baak die, Xander was almost positive that Cafer had aimed Ravenna to hit the gnome king. The pirate was already wary of the crafty advisor, and to see him so easily become king without having to lift a finger was both impressive and concerning.How easily would the magical gnome be able to take him out if things went south? This is what bothered the Captain the most. He did not like feeling helpless. With the Emperor bei
Having recovered from his near drowning, Devrim had no desire to put his head back below the water. He could still feel some of the water sloshing about in her ears no matter how hard he tried to empty them. It was frustrating, and he was unwilling to repeat the event.Fortunately, none of the dozen or so pirate ships seemed to have anyone bothering to look their way. Anyone keeping watch was looking at the shoreline. Even if some sailor had deigned to look their way, spotting the bobbing heads in the water would have been difficult among the shining waves.Their first goal was to make each boat unable to sail. The boat furthest from the shore and behind the rest of the fleet was their initial target. Riding over on the Selkies' backs, twenty men attached themselves to the side of the ship and began using their large screws to bore holes into the ship's hull. It would have been much easier to have the merfolk complete this task, but Darya had said she was there to engage pirates, not
Xander was brought from his daydream by the blast of a horn he could not see. He saw the ends of the magical and Imperial armies rush forward to meet with his allies, and the captain was more than a little happy to have no part of it."Who knows? They may yet wear each other out and leave me in control. I think Emperor Xander or even Supreme Ruler Xander has a nice ring to it. No little brat will try to pit me against her lover then," he muttered the last part to himself as his mind drifted to a certain heiress."Captain?" the first mate interrupted Xander's musings, which earned him a sharp look.The leader wondered how much his subordinate had heard, but decided not to ask. "This better be important. The show is just getting started." Xander's eyes narrowed as he tapped his fingers impatiently on the railing."I think one or two of our ships may be having trouble…" the first mate tried to sound casual, but there was a nervous tick in his eye that told the captain of his concern."On
"We have to get to the Merpearl!" the Emperor coaxed his troops."Sire! More Company!" Junayd called. His brow was furrowed as more boats came toward them with their crews rowing feverishly.Very soon, a fourth and fifth ship lashed onto the ends of the other three, making a long undulating battlefield. With extra pirates to fight, Devrim's soldiers were beginning to get overwhelmed. The Emperor, seeing his advantage slipping, was now leaving more pirates dropping to the deck instead of falling to the water. Junayd likewise was having to fight more fiercely against the increasingly bad odds.Two pirates, one with a wavy dagger and one with an ornate longsword, ganged up to finish off the Emperor. Having no shield or armor, the grey-eyed man had to use all his skill to keep the men back. The two men were far more used to brute force than the nuances of sword play, and when one opened up his body thinking he was safe to strike, Devrim cut into his side and sent him crumpling to the grou
On the magical battlefield, the giants came into view at a frightening speed. The ground rumbled beneath their inhumanly large stride.The elves were filled with uncertainty. Everything about the giants' faces made them grimace. Their mouths hung open as yellow crooked teeth filled their gaping maws. Their wide flat noses flared with each breath like they might breathe fire at any moment, and a single wide, black eye in each head stared out viciously at the elves and fairies.But the most terrifying part of their unwelcome appearance was their arms. They carried loads of boulders from the rockier terrain that lay east of the Beachy Plains."Steady yourselves! They have—" the elven king did not finish his thought.Like a flesh-and-bone catapults, the giants each took a boulder in one hand, reared back and launched the stones over the gnomes and into elven ranks. With eyes wide in disbelief, Zoltan saw the boulder heading straight for his son-in-law, Alvar.The king had promised Lanassa
"Hurry up!" Alaron called out to Brinn and Lukoss. "I can see those flying things flapping on the horizon," he added as he urged them on while riding on the back of the unicorn. The blond boy slowed to a stop and looked at the scaly creatures which were circling and diving."Those are wyverns. Did Aurora teach you nothing?" Brinn huffed as she caught up with him. She was trying not to use too much of her wind magic because she knew that it would be needed all too soon. She was a fast runner even without the wind, but over such a long distance, she was beginning to fall behind her unicorn's gait."If she told me, I did not listen," Alaron admitted."That's the story of your life," the elf retorted with a snort.Alaron did not respond. She noticed how much more subdued he had been since she rescued him and made him drink the healing water. She could not decide if the change was a good one. A small part of the elf missed the cocky prince."Where's Lukoss? Did he finally give up on us?" T
"A vision? When? Why didn't you tell me?" Brinn was stunned by his words.She knew the boy was eager to, even dead-set on getting to the Empress as soon as possible, but she had simply thought that he was wanting to make amends before it was too late. Either that or perhaps he would try to stop the human army by surrendering. A vision was not something that Alaron had ever mentioned.The blue-eyed young royal shrugged. "I had it while I was being that beacon of light, and I did not tell you because you did not ask."Brinn swallowed her anger. The elf was mistaken before; Alaron was as infuriating as ever."That light in the night sky was you? Amazing! Please tell us, what did you see?" Aurora asked, hoping it was something they could use.Alaron closed his eyes, "I saw how to end this war. It requires three magical objects.""Magical objects?" Reyan was drawn in by his words, causing him to hover uncomfortably close.Nodding, the blond boy continued with what he had seen. "With magica