Free Wine of the Gods 08: Dark Lady by Pam Uphoff Page A

below.
    " Right. Smith, take her down and through the sally port."
    Liz hesitated, and was waved back. "You can't come."
    She didn't hear the small door below open, but heard it close. The people on the field heard it too, and looked, looked away.
    The mayor forced his trembling horse back beside the prince. Who suddenly turned his head. He said something to the baron, who pushed forward, and spoke to the civilian dandy at length. The dandy made several graceful motions with his hands, or at any rate his flapping sleeves. The baron reined back and looked at the prince as Phantom took two steps forward.
    The prince's raised voice was audible even on the top of the wall. "I have decided to decline your offer. I give you a few minutes to reconsider your use of Magic. Rarely does the Royal House call upon the uncanny, but if you wish to make this a war of magic, I shall have to summon the Dark Lady."
    He crossed his arms and waited.
    The Arbolian laughed. "You Arrivals have no magic." He glanced behind and made a motion. One of the small creatures scrambled forward, raising his hands.
    The p rince raised his own hands dramatically. His voice projected and rolled across the field with echoes reverberating. "Dark Lady! I summon your protection!"
     
    Sparks fell from the sky and formed a circle spiraling down to fall to the ground and die in puffs of smoke. The smoke swirled together in the middle and Lady December stepped out. Her hair was hidden beneath her black scarf, her dark jacket buttoned to her neck.
    " Who summons the Dark Lady?"
    " I do. As a Prince of the Realm, under magical attack, I beg your protection."
    The Dark Lady turned, and surveyed the opposition. The small monster threw a spark at her. It cooled to red, dropped to the ground as she paced toward the little god. At arm's length she looked down at him and shook her head. "Unfortunate creature, so badly used. I am sorry that I cannot save you, at just this moment. Perhaps later." She made a scooping gesture, and the creature turned to bronze and fell over.
    The Arbolian gestured and the other six ran forward. Or seven, Liz thought a bit hysterically, depending on how many times you counted the two headed one.
    The huge one leading the charge clutched his chest and collapsed. The others came on, throwing sparks ahead that died as they neared the Lady, and the Lady repeated her scooping motions and bronze statues fell to the ground. She ran lightly, pursuing the last two as they fled. The Arbolian gestured, but whatever he did had no effect, as the Lady caught the other little one and turned him into a statue, and allowed the other giant to escape. She turned and walked back to them, pausing only to turn the collapsed giant into a statue.
    She stopped in front of the p rince, and bowed regally. "I will keep watch, and repel any further magical attacks, Prince."
    The Prince bowed as deeply as is possible on horseback. "Thank you, M'lady."
    She made a sweeping gesture, as if throwing a cloak over her shoulder, and disappeared.
    The Prince straightened. "You have our answer. We will not surrender."
    "One week!" the Arbolian yelled.
    They turned and rode back to the gate, which opened for them, and then closed.
    Lady December , perfectly visible, was on the prince's heels as he trotted up the stairs. He was laughing incredulously. "I never thought magic could be so utterly satisfying."
    She pulled the black scarf off her head and shook out her fluffy light brown hair and took off her jacket to show an ordinary white blouse beneath it. "So I don't look like the Dark Lady, to them, if they notice me up here. That was fun, however, there's only one of me and about a thousand of them, and it looks like there are more still coming."
    Captain Stone, who was looking a bit pale, squinted down at the statues. "How close do you have to be, to do that?"
    " Almost close enough to touch. I can do sparks, like they did, but frankly I can shoot arrows faster and further. One thing