Sword of Ice by Mercedes Lackey

Author:Mercedes Lackey
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2010-09-08T06:00:00+00:00

Vanyel winked at Treyon, then stepped around a large oak and disappeared. Treyon looked for him walking through the forest, but in vain. A gentle touch on his cheek from Yfandes' warm nose brought his attention back to the plains and the bandits before him.

Suddenly, there he was, standing just outside the forest's boundary, the sunlight making his silver hair flash and glitter. All was quiet save the two magicians, so their conversation easily carried to Treyon and Yfandes.

"I am here." Vanyel said.

The Northern sorceress' ice-blue eyes narrowed for a moment, then she smiled again. "You are not a simple forest spirit. There is much power within you. But I am sure neither of us wishes for conflict, so I will be blunt. You have what I want, forest-walker. Give him to me and I will leave in peace. Deny me, and be destroyed."

Both Treyon and Yfandes watched silently, hanging on every word. Vanyel was impassive. "If I give my life in defense of another, so be it. What you want from this forest you shall not have, for he is under my protection."

"Then once you and this forest fall, he shall have no protection." With that Ke'noran swept her arms outward and a wall of mage-fire appeared, not anywhere near Vanyel, but for dozens of paces on either side of the two mages. Driven against the wind into the forest, the blue-green flames began to grow rapidly as they licked at the trees and underbrush.

Surprised by the unorthodox attack, Vanyel hesitated a bit before beginning his defense. Quickly he weather-magicked the nearby clouds to grow, making them suck up the water vapor in the atmosphere, swelling into gray thunderheads that covered the sky. With a flick of his hand, the water poured down, drowning the flames in the forest. Fully on guard now, Vanyel went on the offensive, calling all of the power at his command and sending it at the woman before him.

As soon as Treyon saw the flames appear at the forest's edge, his bandit's intuition knew that a trap had been laid and they had walked right into it.

A whinny of alarm turned his head toward Yfandes, just in time to see a dark, blurry shape, all claws and teeth, leap out of the surrounding woods at him.

:VANYEL!:

"Van!"

Until he heard the mind-cry and shriek of terror simultaneously, Vanyel had actually been enjoying the battle. Ke'noran was extremely strong, but it was the strength of blood-magic, easily gained and stored, but not so easily replenished once used. Eventually, if he and Yfandes had read her right, the Mage-Gift she had Siphoned from some unfortunate soul would eventually be exhausted, and he could make her forget all about using blood-magic forever. That had been the plan, but Ke'noran had seen fit to change the rules.

Boosting his shields enough to hold off Ke'noran's next assault, Vanyel turned at both cries, one of alarm, one of pure terror, and saw something explode out of the forest in a spray of leaves and branches.

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