The Beast of Begmire Read online

you wish, little warrior," he said. "It will do you no good. I will destroy your defenses and rip your head into a million pieces. Please defend yourself. It will make me feel even better to have completely destroyed you."

  Helm tried to stand, but the force of the Dark One's will was too much for him. Try as he did, he could only draw in a minimum of power, knowing it would not be enough to stop the force that was about to rip him to shreds.

  "No!" screamed a voice from a short distance towards the city gate. As the Dark One turned to face the voice, he realized he recognized the figure coming towards him. "Evina?"

  Ignoring Helm, the Dark One walked towards Evina and smiled. "You are weak. I can feel it. Your power is almost completely gone."

  As the two sorcerors closed distance together, the Dark One drew in every ounce of his power and stacked it on itself until he had more power than he had ever used before. "You will not live through this one," he said to Evina.

  Evina continued to move forward, not even drawing in on her own power.

  This surprised the Dark One, but he figured she was probably completely out of power and unable to draw anything. From the lack of power she was giving off, he was surprised that she was still able to walk.

  As he came close enough to release his power, he sent it forward and had it explode on her. For a full ten seconds, there was nothing but flames and light. Once it all cleared, she was still there, as if nothing had happened. "How can this be possible?" said the Dark One. He drew in his power again and sent the charge out at a different wavelength. It connected again and exploded.

  When it cleared, Evina was still there. However, her figure flickered for an instant and then disappeared. "An illusion?" he said, not believing his eyes. "A simple parlor trick?"

  From behind one of the trees further back Evina came out of hiding. This figure, however, had a lot of power coming from it. "Well, my old friend, it appears that you have been outsmarted by me again."

  The Dark One drew in his will, even though he was very low in power, drained from his attack on the illusion. "I still can destroy you, and I will."

  "Think again, Dark One," said Evina as she stood before him and made no attempt to draw in her own will.

  The Dark One realized something was going on, but couldn't figure out what it was until it was too late. When he figured it out, he felt the sharpness of the blade as it sliced through his neck, taking his head off of his shoulders. As he died, he realized that he had allowed his defenses to slip when he had gone against Evina; Helm was able to walk up to him from behind and chop off his head as if it was nothing to him.

  Helm stood over the dying body of the Dark One and looked it over. As he did, Evina walked over to him with the Guardian. She smiled. "I felt his presence. I had to come."

  He took her in his arms. "Without you, I would have died."

  She hugged him tight. "I could never allow that." With that, she collapsed in his arms, her strength completely gone from the illusion she was forced to maintain during the fight.

  Helm lifted Evina in his arms and carried her to his horse. Riding back, the Guardian followed close behind on foot until they reached the main gate of Begmire. Once within the gate, the Guardian reported to the baron about what had happened.

  Helm, on the other hand, took Evina back to her room and let her sleep. She slept for four days before she was able to meditate for two weeks to get her powers back. After that, the two of them left the city, the baron showing up with a full parade to honor them. While much of what they did became legend, those present on that day remembered the adventure forever.

  Helm and Evina, however, continued their travels, content that more adventures would befall them in due time. As was expected, more did. Such was the core of legends in the realm of Reagul.

  THE END

  About the Author

  Duane Gundrum is the author of over a dozen novels. He has been writing for several decades and can sometimes obsess for hours over the right choice of word or words. He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, served in the United States Army in counterintelligence, holds numerous graduate degrees and did doctorate work at Western Michigan University.

  Also Author of:

  The Teddy Bear Conspiracy

  Leader of the Losers

  The Ameriad: The Untold Founding of America by the Survivors of Troy

  Absent Without Leave

  Innocent Until Proven Guilty

  Deadly Deceptions (A Steve Darwood Army Counterintelligence Novel)

  Destiny

  Darkened Passages

  Between a Laugh and a Scream

  Thompson’s Bounty: A Ship Out of Time

  Neorevolutionary Messages: Russia’s August 1991 Coup

  All Roads Lead to Pine Bush

  The Shadow People

  Mapping the Silence of Dreams

  Buried Memories

  License to Quill

  The Beast of Begmire (A Tales of Reagul Story)

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  Say Hello!

  Duane talks about writing, the book business, teaching and politics on his blog Writing From the Trenches. He would love it if you stopped by to say hello. You can also listen to his Writing From the Trenches podcast, where he describes the process of writing for someone getting started. Alternatively, you can follow him on Twitter, connect with Facebook, or send him an email: [email protected].