A Clash of Spellcasters

"Something's up!" Tregra's ears twitched. He immediately held out an arm to stop the companions behind him.

As expected of the Amani's elite troops, they obeyed orders without question. The dozen or so members of the group fell silent in an instant.

Amid a chorus of footsteps, a streak of red lightning suddenly shot out of the bushes not far away.

No! It wasn't lightning. It was a Strider!

An elf gripping a thick branch in one hand held the reins, controlling his mount with ease. His gray-white hair, tied back, streamed in the air, glowing brilliantly and flowing gracefully in the setting sun.

Tregra narrowed his eyes, grabbed the stone hatchet at his waist, and slowly took aim at the speeding young elf.

But a thin, powerful arm pressed down on his.

Tregra turned in confusion and glared viciously at Kergash, his anger plain to see.

"I suggest you don't make trouble. It took my master a great deal of effort to find the Betrayer's approximate location. If these elves are alerted, all our efforts could go to waste." Alisa rested her elegant fingers against her lower lip, her playful tongue tracing them. Her seductive look had the Amani elite swallowing hard.

"Hmph. Maybe that brat is your target." Zul'jin had ordered Tregra to cooperate with Kergash. Though Tregra was displeased, he didn't have the nerve to defy the warlord of Zul'Aman. He muttered under his breath, then put away his hatchet.

But no one expected his words to prove prophetic.

As he sped along, Lanlos seemed to sense something was wrong. He abruptly yanked the reins, and the Strider beneath him reared up before trembling to a halt. The cripple behind him, however, remained steady in the saddle.

He looked back toward the hill. A patch of bushes was swaying.

A question mark appeared in Lanlos's mind. Was there wind just now?

"Walala wuka!"

"Wakala!"

Along a stretch of coast on Golden Beach, Murlocs scurried back and forth. Sometimes they carried dead branches out of the forest, sometimes they gathered armfuls of dry grass from the meadows, and sometimes they picked up shells and conches from the beach and sea. They were busily building their village.

That's right, a village. These Murlocs wanted to claim a place for themselves on Golden Beach.

Hidden behind a reef, Sores spat out the crushed bruiseweed he'd been chewing, rolled it into a ball, then lifted his shirt to reveal a hideous wound.

His charred skin and flesh were twisted together. Though the wound had scabbed over, he could almost still smell the roasted meat.

Nicole and Lanlos had both judged Sores correctly. He was a capable Ranger, but his opponent, that Murloc Shaman, had been beyond anything he'd expected.

Not in terms of strength, but in how well he'd concealed himself.

Sores had never expected that the slightly larger Murloc would be a Shaman!

Damn spellcasters. Couldn't you at least carry a staff?!

He spread the crushed bruiseweed evenly over the wound. A sharp pang of pain twisted his face, but soon a cool sensation rose from the injury, and he let out a long breath of relief.

The Murloc Shaman was clever. He wore no ornaments to identify himself and had hidden among the other Murlocs. Only when Sores launched his usual intimidation attack to drive them away did the bastard throw a Lightning Bolt.

Thankfully, it had only struck his chest. And thankfully, he'd been wearing the standard-issue leather armor he'd brought back from the army. Otherwise, he'd really have been in trouble.

After hastily bandaging the wound with linen, Sores spat toward the Murlocs building their camp and started to rise, ready to report back. But when he turned his head, he froze in place.

On the nearby shore, a clump of bushes stubbornly grew in the middle of the beach, standing out like a sore thumb. More importantly, Sores was certain that less than a minute ago, there'd been nothing there but sand!

Stunned, the elf Ranger suddenly remembered something. He immediately looked lower and, through a gap in the leaves, clearly spotted a lock of brown hair fluttering inside.

Ilana? Damn it! I warned her ages ago: the most important thing about camouflage is the surroundings. The surroundings!

As Sores fumed, Ilana's clumsy disguise had also caught the Murlocs' attention. They began gathering around the bush stubbornly growing on the beach.

At this rate, she was doomed. Run! Run!

Sores gripped the edge of the reef so tightly he wished he could tear it to pieces. But no matter how frantic he was, Ilana couldn't possibly see him.

As the enemies grew denser, Ilana wasn't stupid. She gritted her teeth and, before Sores's despairing eyes, tore away her disguise. Her elegant longsword left a dazzling silver flash in the air. Amid a continuous ripping sound, scarlet blood sprayed through the golden and silver light.

"Disgusting Murlocs! Hand over Sores, or you'll regret it!" After easily injuring several Murlocs who wore no armor at all, Ilana shouted furiously at the crowd. But if you listened closely, you could hear her voice trembling.

Murlocs were timid, but they weren't stupid. Sores hadn't managed to scare them off, and Ilana had even less chance.

Still, Ilana's sudden appearance and attack on their companions made the Murlocs hesitate in fear. For a moment, they stood rooted to the spot, and silence fell over both sides.

"Watch out!" Sensing danger, Sores's eyes flew wide. He immediately rushed out of his hiding place to protect the girl, but it was too late.

Screech!

A flash of azure light suddenly shot out from among the Murlocs, tracing a blinding arc through the air before reaching Ilana in an instant.

"No!"

Boom!

The deafening explosion cut off Sores's heartbroken howl. The elf Ranger stared blankly at the sparks and lightning crackling ahead, then slowly turned his head like a machine. He looked at the person and bird who had just burst out of the bushes, his face full of bewilderment.

Lanlos let out a long breath. He had to admit, he'd been incredibly lucky. Fireball and Lightning Bolt were both small, fast spells. Trying to steer one to intercept the other was no easier than shooting a bullet with another bullet.

But he'd done it!

He yanked the reins hard, and the Strider took a heavy step forward, sending golden sand scattering. The spellcaster's mystery and power made the Murlocs growl and retreat. Even the Shaman who'd just launched the attack was intimidated, choosing to hide among the crowd and watch.

"Sores!" Up ahead, Ilana had escaped danger but hadn't yet had a chance to thank Lanlos. The familiar face before her filled her with joy.

She had only just begun to move when a cane conveniently blocked her path.

"Girl, could you take a look at our situation first?" Lanlos quietly checked the girl's impulsive rush. His gaze remained fixed on the Shaman in the crowd, who was still trying to hide.

Learning that Sores was safe had clearly helped Ilana calm down. But when she noticed the Murlocs around them making increasingly impatient cries, she grew tense again.

"Climb up slowly. We need to get out of here." Lanlos never broke eye contact with the Murloc Shaman. His steely gaze, coupled with his successful interception of the Lightning Bolt, had undoubtedly made the Shaman rate his strength highly.

And that gave Lanlos an opportunity.

"But..." Ilana glanced toward the spot where Sores had disguised himself again, hesitant to speak.

But in the instant she hesitated, a Murloc nearly as big as the Shaman suddenly charged out of the crowd, shrieking as he hurled the long spear in his hands with all his might.

No, that wasn't a spear! Was it... a fish bone?

Seeing a white streak speeding toward him, Lanlos immediately grabbed Ilana by the arm. "Move!"

With one of them leading the charge, the Murlocs who'd been quiet moments ago erupted. They grabbed whatever was at their feet and threw it at the two elves, shouting as they raced forward on their skinny legs.

Ilana wasn't about to stand there and wait to die. She used Lanlos's pull to swing herself onto the saddle in front of him. The added weight made the Strider give an unhappy squawk, but a wave of searing heat suddenly rose from its back, forcing it to obey Lanlos's command.

Don't be fooled by how harmless those projectiles looked. There was still a Shaman hiding among the crowd.

"Watch your back!"

As he turned around, a flash of azure flickered at the edge of Ilana's vision. A Lightning Bolt tore through the golden sunset, hurtling straight toward Lanlos's back.

Bang!

The crisp sound of something shattering rang across the beach again, but this time Lanlos didn't leave it to luck.

Charred wooden splinters flew everywhere. As smoke rose, the cane in Lanlos's hand was reduced to half its length. It was a spell, but wood's poor conductivity had mitigated most of the damage. Though the swing of his cane had looked ridiculous, the blast had only left his palm slightly numb, and he'd escaped unharmed.

"See you later!" Lanlos waved the half-branch and was about to urge the Strider on. But as sparks began to flicker on it, the mount seemed to anticipate what was coming. It let out a loud cry and bolted forward for its life.

Though they all ran on two legs, the Strider had already carried Lanlos and Ilana out of sight in the blink of an eye.

As for Sores, if he couldn't escape a commotion this big, he might as well be dead...