the baron said as he finished reading the message that had just been delivered. He chuckled and looked at his generals. “The Wielder Kadrak wants to give us the opportunity to surrender,” he announced. “All we have to do is accept him as our new king and join our troops with his army. What do you say?”Gavin joined with the other generals in laughing and suggesting what kind of counter offer they should send. A message was soon written and sent back to the Balthan Army. Gavin watched as the messenger quickly rode back to the invading army. His stomach was still in knots, and he hadn’t slept much the night before. However, he did feel better about their prospects in the bright light of the early morning.From the command area at the top of the rise, it was easy to see that their own troops far outnumbered those of the Balthan Army. While the opposing army’s troops were formed up in loose, slightly disorganized looking formations, his own troops were perfectly consistent in tight formations. It appeared the only hope of the invading army truly was the wielder Kadrak who was at their lead.It was unfortunate that the archers hidden at the mouth of the pass hadn’t been able to bring down the leader and instigator of the conflict. He wondered if they had been able to escape or if they had been killed. He assumed the latter. It was unfortunate because they had been some of the best archers in the army. He wondered how the wielder had avoided their arrows.He watched as the messenger delivered their reply. Perhaps they would soon find out just what the wielder was capable of. Gavin steeled himself. There was a palpable sense of anxiety and anticipation in the air. Everyone knew that the battle was about to commence. * * * * * Kadrak crumpled up the counter offer and let it fall to the ground. He had known that the Kalians wouldn’t accept his offer, but when it was all over, he wanted them to remember that he had given them a chance to avoid the destruction that he was about to rain down on them.He took off his cloak and tossed it to Gilrod. It wasn’t as cold outside of the pass, and as soon as he began working the ambience his body would be plenty warm. He led his stallion a short distance away from his troops and out into the open field. He was still far out of the range of the Kalian archers, but close enough for them to see who it was that would defeat them. He stared defiantly at the large army standing solidly in his way and raised his arms to the sky. He concentrated and with a smile began his attack.Numerous small balls of fire appeared in the clear sky above the Kalian troops and began falling towards the earth. He kept them falling until he had created over a hundred. He then dropped his arms and watched as the last of them crashed into the ranks of the army. He surveyed the effects of the barrage. It appeared he had struck several troops but most had merely hid behind their shields to avoid the fire. The troops were surprisingly still all standing firm in their tight formations.Kadrak stared back at the disciplined troops with a grin. It appeared that he would need to be a little more forceful. He raised his hands into the air once again and concentrated. Let them try to hide behind their shields again. He smirked as the air began to buzz and crackle. * * * * * Blaize sat upon his horse at the top of the rise. His troops were on the left flank of the army. It felt strange for him to be watching from the back instead of being down in the midst of the troops. He watched with satisfaction as his troops stood firm and refused to budge as balls of fire rained down on them from the clear sky.The wielder Kadrak truly had a power that he didn’t understand. It had been awe inspiring. He glanced to the other leaders near him to judge their reactions to the display of power. Some were wide eyed while others watched impassively as the rain of fire ended. He glanced back at his troops, happy to see that they had effectively used their shields to block the fireballs. If that was the best the wielder could muster, he wouldn’t be much of a factor in the battle.As if in answer to his thoughts, the wielder raised his hands towards the sky once again. Blaize looked on as the air began to crackle. Suddenly, bolts of lightning appeared out of thin air and began to slam down into the middle of the army. Bolt after bolt slammed into the ranks. He watched with a cringe as soldiers were seared in place or their bodies were launched into the air by the force of the explosions. Apparently the wielder had only been testing the army with the fireballs.Several of the troops began to panic and run, but the majority stayed firm and brave in the face of such an unexplainable attack. Blaize steadied his horse as a bolt of lightning struck not far below where all of the generals were watching from. He turned and found Commander General Gavin looking very pale. The young commander was obviously terrified, but to his credit, he kept his horse still and stood his ground.The barrage of lightning bolts continued for several minutes. The previously quiet morning was marred by the loud claps of thunder and the dull explosions that accompanied the lightning. There were also cries of surprise and anguish from the soldiers who happened to be in the bolts’ way. Blaize looked on helplessly at the destruction. He now understood why the Balthan cities had fallen so quickly.The bolts finally stopped and an eerie quiet once again settled over the field of battle. The bolts had caused many fatalities but not nearly enough to hamper the large army.
