Leah ran at the Prince of Oxen, but three othereshendaigrabbed her and pulled her back, just as the Earth Daemon swung its enormous mace and smashed a hole in the ground where she would have been.
The Prince fell to his knees, his whole body numb. Ramael let out a bellow of triumph and then turned and began to make his way up the boulevard, cutting down anyone and anything that stood in his path.
With a cry of anguish, the Prince crawled the final few feet to where Tomaz lay.
The big man’s breathing was labored, but he was attempting to speak. He motioned the Prince closer, and so the Prince leaned in.
“Kill me,” Tomaz whispered in the Prince’s ear.
The Prince recoiled in shock, but what little strength remained in the great hulking body was enough to easily hold the Prince’s arm and keep him close.
“I’m dying,” Tomaz said. He coughed and blood came to his lips.
“You can recover!” the Prince cried. “You can!”
“I don’t want to recover in a world where there are no Kindred,” Tomaz responded with a simple, earnest pride that made the Prince’s heart ache. “Look… look at that man!” His rumbling voice had been reduced to a mewling whisper.
The Prince looked, and he saw Ramael sauntering down the broad avenue, killing all who dared to cross his path. He was laughing now, and he swung his axes with the indolent arrogance of a spoiled child cutting the heads off of poppies.
“You can stop him,” Tomaz said, tears coming to his eyes with the effort of speaking. “Youcan stop him!”
With a grunt of effort, the big man forced the valerium sword, discarded and lying on the ground, back into the Prince’s hands, placing the point above his heart. “Do it!” he said harshly.
The Prince raised the sword over his head.
No!Find another way—there has to be another way!
Tomaz’s eyes begged him to do it. The Prince’s hands shook.
How can I… how can I… FIND ANOTHER WAY!
“Please,” Tomaz said.
The sword plunged down, and Tomaz died.
Strength flooded his limbs, strength and power like the Prince had never felt before. Tomaz by himself seemed to be as strong as ten men. His heart began to beat so quickly that he felt certain it could be seen through his chest. The wounds he had sustained in the prolonged battle ceased to exist; the hole in the side of his chest from the arrow felt no more serious than a fleabite. Where seconds ago he had felt too weak to stand, he now felt as though he would never need to rest again.
The memories came as well, but the Prince pushed them to the back of his mind, all of the memories except for the Blade Master training and his own rage at Tomaz’s death. He would need that now.
“RAMAEL!”
The Prince of Oxen stopped and turned slowly to the see the Prince of Ravens, unsheathed valerium sword in hand, standing over the now lifeless form of Tomaz. Ramael began to slowly walk back, ignoring the chaos of battle that surrounded him. Two men crossed his path, but black and red axes flashed, and they were no more.
The Prince’s hand was clutching the hilt of his sword in a cramped fist, his entire body throbbing with energy and life. The task of killing Ramael was impossible, but he had to try. For Tomaz, the only true friend he had ever had, he woulddietrying.
Ramael stopped. “You called, little brother?”
“There’s something we need to talk about,” the Prince growled. Ramael chuckled and raised his axes.
“Whatever could that be?”
With a snarl of rage, the Prince of Ravens charged. His speed and strength carried him across the intervening distance in the blink of an eye, and Ramael barely had time to bring his axes up to deflect the valerium blade.
They exchanged a series of blows, the Prince moving through the Blade Master forms so quickly he barely had time to think. His sword was a white blur in his hands. But, unfortunately, so were his brother’s battleaxes. Every thrust was parried, every riposte turned aside. The Prince felt sweat break out all over his body, but his speed never flagged.
Something flashed past his cheek, and he was forced to disengage. Another arrow shot toward him, and he had just enough time to dodge to the side. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his brother swing one of the axes, and with a desperate leap the Prince jumped to safety through an open doorway, just as more arrows hit the ground where he had been standing.
I need to get him away from the battle.
