Free The Undying God by Nathan Wilson Page A

He looked into her eyes and Nishka nodded, assuring him she
would not intervene.
    Satisfied, Arxu stood up straight and
moved beyond the shrubs. He walked toward the bonfire like a moth
attracted to flame—just before it is snuffed in the blink of an
eye. Hrioshango walked beside him with incredible calmness in the
face of death. The igliuhs stopped and spun toward the intruders.
Their hands reached for weapons. One of them wore a wild dog skin
around his waist with the grisly head still attached. A helmet made
of sundried skull contoured around his head.
    He reached for an iron sword dangling
from a weapon rack, glimmering with rust. Arxu suspected that it
was the warlord of the clan. Some of the igliuhs were larger than
most men he had ever seen. Their yellowed teeth glistened
voraciously as their lips peeled back in feral snarls.
    The degenerate humanoids tensed,
leering and clenching their fingers. Perhaps they imagined rending
the intruders limb from limb. It was impossible to discern the
atrocities going through their minds. A savage frenzy possessed the
igliuhs.
    Arxu’s hand darted for two slender
objects at his waist, drawing two gem rods from a quiver. He began
to speak words in a tongue that Nishka couldn’t understand. A deep
ambience pervaded the atmosphere and energy swelled around him. A
sizzling bolt of lightning burst forth. The bolt lanced across
several igliuhs and a stray fork snapped across the campfire,
sending a shower of embers. Enraged igliuhs scattered at the
violent display.
    Nishka feared the emotionless
Nightwalker would inadvertently set the forest on fire. Frenzied
igliuhs massed at the opposite end of the camp, rushing for a
charge to overtake the intruders.
    Arxu reached into his satchel
presumably for spell components. One of the igliuhs pointed its
sword at the Nightwalker and shouted something. The igliuhs erupted
forth.
    Arxu didn’t even blink as he retrieved
a red garnet from his inventory. He slipped the stone under his
tongue and faced his opponents. Tongues of fire departed from his
lips, billowing in great plumes across the igliuhs. His flaming
breath drove back the igliuhs that were not maddened enough to
continue their bloodthirsty assault.
    He quickly launched into the next phase
of his defensive strategy. The ring on Arxu’s left hand pulsed with
blue light. He outstretched his hand toward a boulder across the
encampment and curled it into a fist. The rock levitated above the
ground, corresponding to his motions as though he grasped it in his
hand. He swung his arm to his left and the boulder slammed into a
cluster of igliuhs. The large rock continued to roll across the
camp, forging a path of devastation.
    Nishka watched with amazement as
Hrioshango drew a long sword from a dagger sheath that could not
physically contain the object. The bizarre creature swung his blade
at an oncoming assailant and cut its legs. The difference in height
seemed to have little bearing on the dexterous chaos magician. He
agilely dodged attacks and retaliated with fluid movement. The
igliuhs’ attacks were so focused on force that he scarcely needed
to parry, only evade their strikes.
    Arxu skillfully eluded their blows with
cunning dodges and twists, whipping his staff across and thrusting
its tip toward any foe that came too close.
    Suddenly, a foot slammed into Arxu’s
gut and propelled him off the ground. The igliuh warlord kicked
Arxu and he fell toward the bonfire. He rolled across the ground
and stopped short of the flames, though he could feel the intense
heat singing his cloak. He sprang to his feet and faced the
warlord. It was much larger than the other igliuhs, at least seven
feet tall.
    Arxu feinted high with the staff and
kicked embers at the warlord, trying to blind the creature. He was
not expecting the igliuh to dodge as fast it did. In fact, he was
hardly prepared for the monster’s immediate retaliation.
    Across the campsite, Hrioshango fended
off two igliuhs simultaneously.