The Alchemist's Children: Panacea

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  Forgeholm was in chaos. The goblins madly attacked the bots. The goblins outnumbered the bots, but most were armed with either slow firing single shot ranged weapons or melee weapons. As they filled their purpose, several bots exploded, but slowly the scaffolding began to crumble, sending goblins into the pit of dirty water and spine-like shards rusted junk. Screams of dying goblins from below caused more panic.

  "We better hurry before we can't use the bridges to climb up..." Ania pointed up a few levels at the motorized cart holding Niknak. It sat idle on a stone ledge, in the mouth of a tunnel near a few bridges and a goblin hut.

  "Stay close." Callen nodded and they ran, keeping tight to the shadows. Over the rickety bone catwalks, they planned each move as the gremlins seen the gremlins do. They climbed a set of stairs below the cart and came up underneath the farthest bridge from the frantic horde. Using it as a cover, they circled around a gristly hut towards Niknak.

  Spotting the sorcerer near the cart, they froze. Luckily, his back was to them and he was focused on the swarm of maintenance bots tearing apart his village. Callen swore under his breath.

  "I'll cut Niknak's ropes, you watch the sorcerer. If he turns towards us, shoot." Ania whispered as she drew her knife.

  Callen nodded. "The sorcerer is going to notice..."

  "Then if he does, make sure you kill him with one bullet," Ania said. "With all the chaos, I doubt the others will notice...and his aura looks like he needs a recharge..."

  "That should provide us some slack..." Callen grinned

  "Going now," Ania whispered. Quietly, she darted toward Niknak and hopped on the cart. The gagged and bound Niknak looked relieved as she began cutting the thick robes. Callen followed her, prepared to shoot.

  Coming from the nearby bridge, and catwalks, several goblins backed towards the sorcerer as they fired at the bots. Suddenly, they dropped to their knees, and the goblins began to glow the same color as the fire he shot from his hands. The sorcerer gritted his teeth and his hands burst into hellfire again. The skin of the goblins around him started glowing.

  "Not good..." Callen muttered.

  Streams of fire shot from the goblins towards the sorcerer. His muscles tightened, and his veins popped up as the flames grew with power. The twelve goblins burned to dust and the flames spread around him glowing like a bonfire and melting the floor he stood on. He waved his hand and bolts of fire shot out in every direction colliding with each of the bots. The horde cheered as the bots exploded.

  Callen swore. "I didn't know he could do that. He only shot out one bolt at a time before."

  The Sorcerer turned to look back at Niknak and smiled at Ania. He pointed. His lips said something slowly and every goblin's attention snapped to towards the children, silencing the hellish cries of celebration. Their eyes all glowed with the infernal fire.

  "Ah..." Callen looked at Ania.

  "Shoot him! He is controlling them with a spell!" Ania yelled. "You break his concentration; they all will be confused for a few moments!"

  "He's gotta be on empty..."

  "Just shoot!"

  Callen fired. The bullet collided with the chest of the closest goblin as he leaped in front of the sorcerer. The rest of the horde charged around the sorcerer towards them like a wave of fire ants waving their weapons. "Guess our luck ran out."

  "Guess so." She gulped.

  The horde stopped, circling them. All breathed heavily and stared at them with hungry eyes that burned with a fiery rage. Drool oozed over countless lips and their muscles tensed.

  "There has to be something..." Callen desperately looked around the room.

  "Think quickly..." She muttered trying to hurry, as if freeing Niknak would somehow help them.

  The sorcerer slid out of the crowd and began walking around the parameter of the circle of bloodthirsty goblins. "Ah, I guess my apprentice was right that you used a powerful spell to slip by us, an amazing feat for a pair of human children. Magic is uncommon among your kind..." He said. "The spell in the Domain was genius, and many died to it. Impressive power, and completely invisible."

  It took Callen a second to realize that he was talking about the arsine gas. "I aim to impress." Callen taunted sarcastically. The countdown to the facility destruct flashed a twenty-second countdown on his goggles.

  "Then you send metal minions at us." The sorcerer said. "I admit that I have underestimated your mastery of the sorcerer's arts. But, even a sorcerer beyond my magnitude would be exhausted after the spells you created."

  "That's nice." Fifteen more seconds flashed. Callen decided to buy some time. "Guess I am a pretty impressive sorcerer...but you've crafted some pretty impressive spells...so you got to be running low too..."

  "I have my tribe, all willing to die if they are called..." The sorcerer laughed. "But, as a sorcerer, you understand that the source of our power must be appeased, and goblin blood can only satisfy my source for brief moments. A powerful rival would grant me much power. So, are you going to make this easy?"

  Callen nodded as if he understood. "I got a better idea, you just let us live, and I can connect you with my source. You already have been working towards his resurrection. Letting us live will be good for you, especially because you seek to gain favor with your new god, right?" Five seconds.

  "How do you know that?" The sorcerer hissed.

  "I'm the son of the demon Virette calls The Forger, remember? Or did Virette not tell you?" Callen pointed out. "You have already witnessed some of my magic. My power has no limit!" One second. "Now witness it again as I destroy the domain!" He lifted his hand and tightened his fist while grimacing with effort.

  The roar from the domain was loud and the goblins turned their heads in unison with the sorcerer. One of the tunnels glowed as a fireball roared out of it. The flames disputed as it rose to the ceiling of the cavern and lit some of the shaky goblin dwellings.

  Callen relaxed. "There...you have it..."

  "Impressive, magic, and you anticipated that I was going to ask for more proof." The sorcerer said with amazement.

  "I didn't anticipate. I can see the future!" Callen lied. "Well, what do you say? Let us live, and I will give you more than you can even dream of!" Suddenly, he felt like he exaggerated too much and bit off more than he could chew.

  The sorcerer scratched his chin. "An interesting proposal, but I see through your lie. You have no vision."

  "Well, sucks to be you then." Callen shrugged. He had no choice but to go with it. He knew the sprinklers should crack on any second now. "But, I will give you a chance to reconsider with a free prediction...I warn you not to underestimate my power...""

  "I'm listening." The sorcerer narrowed his eyes skeptically.

  "It will...umm..." He blurred the 'um' into the sound of a monk's meditation as he closed his eyes and pretended to have a vision. "It will rain, here...where rain has never come! A great storm is upon us and it will quench the fires caused by my mighty spell!"

  Ania bit her tongue to hide her laughter.

  "When?" There was impatience in the sorcerer's voice. "I'm waiting..."

  "Just give it a second," Callen said, trying to buy some time. The sprinklers didn't come on. He looked up. "Ah, crap." The sprinklers were too corroded to work.

  "Sad." The sorcerer shook his head. "If you delivered you might have convinced me. But, that chance is over." He waved his hands and a group of goblins dragged Ania from the cart. "Now, take the prophet to Virette. I will deal with these two and join her shortly." The goblins followed their orders and powered up the poison cart.

  Callen took a step towards Ania as a drop of water landed on his nose. "I'm warning you." He tried to appear confident.

  "Really? I doubt that. Your death will please the Dark Ones and fuel my power until T
he Many is reborn into our world." The sorcerer said. "But, unfortunately, I have to settle for less than your full sacrifice potential by skipping the full ritual in favor of time. So, I'll just make this quick." His hand began to glow with flames. "But, for her, I'll kill her in a proper ritual..."

  With the smoke puffing from the old lawnmower engine, the prison cart lurched forward, and the horde parted and returned, as the cart began its journey towards Gearshire. Callen shook his head and struggled to find a solution. The sorcerer was too close to the mob to shoot. As if the pipes were mocking him, a second drop of water landed on Callen's cheek.

  "Prepare to meet the Dark Ones, human!" The sorcerer's fire grew with intensity. He grinned and raised his hand. He muttered something in his harsh language. "Burn knowing that you brought us The Many. You can watch us rule the world from the clutches of the Dark Ones as they torture your soul eternally for their failure to see the Many ascend to power!"

  Callen wished he could steer his bullet around any bodyguard who jumped in the way. He wiped another drop of water from his cheek his left hand touched the scar left by his mother's bullet. "Ricochet." He whispered. "Get ready Ania..."

  Ania gave him a confused look but looked ready for anything. She steadied her stance, in hopes of breaking the grip of the goblins that held her.

  "Checkmate." His computer finished its calculation and displayed the targeting data on his goggles.

  "Well put." The sorcerer opened his hand and the jewel that was jammed into his flesh glowed brighter with hellfire.

  He raised his gun, but he didn't fire at the sorcerer. Two goblins leaped in front of the sorcerer, but the bullet was aimed at the rock ground. The fire roared forth like a flamethrower from the sorcerer's hand. The bullet soared over the goblin bodyguards and hit the sorcerer's elbow. Callen ducked the flames and the sorcerer's arm kicked up and his fire spray swept across the ceiling.

  The intense heat cracked the pipes and the sprinklers popped. The water sprayed across the village. The horde, including the sorcerer looked up in confusion.

  "Bless the water, Ania!" Callen yelled as the water came raining down and he tossed her the cross. The cross-chattered to the ground, at Ania's knees, but the sound was overpowered by Callen's gunfire. Two bullets pierced through her captor's skulls, and their fowl blood splattered in the rain.

  "But..." She started as she grabbed the cross.

  "Do it!" Callen yelled. He angled for another shot on the sorcerer.

  Ania began muttering a prayer.

  "Kill them!" The sorcerer ordered as he tried to regain his focus. The horde was slow to react, granting the siblings a few seconds.

  A few of the goblins reoriented themselves rather quickly and one fired a crossbow bolt at Callen. He rolled to dodge it and took a shot at the sorcerer. He pulled one of the disoriented goblins in front of him. Callen fired three more shots, emptying his gun. Each time a goblin jumped in the way.

  The sorcerer's unwounded arm began to glow with flame as he drained power from another hapless goblin.

  Callen opened the cylinder, but there wasn't enough time. He fumbled with the bullet and didn't get any in. He needed cover, or a speed loader, preferably both. "Ania, they're demons, right?" He started to say nervously, but then he felt a ripple in the air, like some sort of static, as she whispered amen. Like an expanding bubble, the water bulged with power around them. The drops became a fine mist, clinging to everything and the water kept falling.

  Soaked in holy water, the goblin horde crumpled. A few crossbows went off, but the bolts flew harmlessly in random directions. Smoke erupted from their skin, and screams of agony filled the cavern.

  Callen shot Ania a half grin. "Nice." He said feeling very satisfied as the goblins writhed on the ground. Their skin began to blister and pop. "Knew yah had it in yah."

  "I told you I couldn't bless stuff!" She roared in anger. "Did you even listen to me?"

  "Meh..." Callen said with a shrug. "I knew you would pull through."

  "Don't do that again." She warned. "Ever again. Don't put me on the spot."

  "It worked didn't it?" Callen said, with a grin.

  She looked around as the goblins continued to melt. "Guess I did." She marveled at her handy work. "It really worked. The rituals in Dr. Webb's books and what Tende taught me didn't make sense. The ritual replaces the natural magic that was in the water already with holy ritual magic, then the light of God pulses in the clarity. I only had the cross and none of the other components. I felt what I had been doing before was magically purifying the water and killing the undines. So, I focused on prayer with the cross and asked the water spirits to sing with God's holy power...the sylphs helped too."

  "Ah...sure." He said. "Either way, it worked...and I bet you kept the arsine from igniting too..."

  "Well...it wasn't me...I just asked. But, now we gotta go get Niknak." Ania turned to run after the cart, but something caused her to stop. She stopped and looked back towards her brother. "Duck!"

  Before Callen could comprehend, a poorly aimed, weak fire bolt crackled over his head. He dropped and spun see the sorcerer pulling himself to his feet. Snarling, he leaned on his staff. A struggling hellfire shield protected his bubbling and partially melted skin. He clenched his teeth, focusing. The crystal growing from his hand blazed with light. His veins bulged and the flames grew stronger. The water hissed as it evaporated. He raised his glowing hand and aimed at Ania.

  Callen hadn't reloaded his gun, so he thought fast. The fire was too intense for mist of water from the sprinklers. The sorcerer needed to be submerged. His back was to the edge that dropped into the water filled pit underneath the village. Callen threw his gun smashing the sorcerer in the face. The weapon spun off into the pit behind the goblin. The brief surprise was just enough distraction. He tackled the sorcerer, grabbing his arm and pulled it away from Ania. As the sorcerer resisted, the flames rolled across Callen's right side.

  His flesh burned. He grunted and pushed the sorcerer towards the edge as hard as he could. The flames licked his flesh, but he knew his nerves would be dead in seconds anyway. With everything he could muster, he pushed through him and they fell backward, through the bone railing, into the pit below.

  They smashed through, the crumbling grotesque structures, splinters of bone and rusted metal slashed Callen's flesh. He screamed as a metal barb pierced his leg when they splashed into the water below. The splash putout the burning parts of Callen's shirt and gave a second of relief.

  "Hold on Callen!" Ania yelled, grabbing an axe from a dead goblin. She began a slow descend on the rickety goblin ruins towards them.

  Before Callen could free his leg, the sorcerer was on him. With his flaming claws, he went for Callen's head. His thumbs poised to pierce through his goggles and into his eye sockets. He grabbed the sorcerer's wrists, and his flesh cracked and fell off as it began to turn to ash. Pain clogged all thought, and instinct took over.

  Focusing on the glowing crystal, he tore his leg free from the barb and used his weight to smash it into the closest piece of metal debris. Viciously, he smashed it until it shattered. On the final hit, the spike cracked through the crystal, and out the other side of the sorcerer's hand. He screamed and a pulse of energy ripped out of it.

  The shock was intense, but the jolt kept Callen conscious a little longer. As he pushed himself to his knees, he drew his knife and went in for a strike. However, he was too slow and the sorcerer grabbed his hand, as he tore his other hand from the spike. Callen went for his knife, but as the sorcerer stood, he brought his knee into Callen's chin sending him backward into the water. The knife plunged into the water.

  He felt something pierce is stomach. He screamed and dark water filled his mouth. He coughed and his hands went for the sharp bone that now held him down. He struggled to free himself as the goblin stood over him, no lo
nger wreathed in flame.

  He raised his hood, and yellow blood from his hand soaked into the dirty cloth. The water began burning off the last of his flesh and began working on the muscle. He picked a rusty pipe and his lip curled in an angry sneer. "You die!" He muttered as he stepped on Callen's chest, pushing him further down the jagged bone. He raised the pipe and muttered something demonic.

  Callen closed his eyes as Ania screamed and the sprinklers stopped.

  The crack of two gunshots echoed in the cavern over the screams of the last of the dying goblins. Callen opened his eyes to see the sorcerer fall dead.

  Callen would have expected to see Tuco or Sarge make a dramatic entrance like in an action movie, but they were dead. Next to one of the elevator shafts stood his grandfather with his large smoking rifle and cave diving gear. He cracked open the heavy rifle, removed two empty shells and replaced them. Ignoring the dead goblins, he repositioned his rope and climbed towards Callen.

  The realization of safety gave way to the severity of injuries. The pain from all his injuries was more than even he could bare, but the world didn't go black. Somehow he mustered the strength to push himself off the spike. Slumped on his knees, he lifted his unburned hand to his face and felt his charred flesh. He almost gagged and Ania gasped as she arrived at his side.

  "He's dying!" She yelled to their grandfather as she wrapped her arms around her brother. She stared at his wounds and saw the dark metal moving within them. "Wait, something's happening."

  He felt a cold rush over his wounds.

  "Your skin underneath is metal...liquid metal."

  His burnt flesh fell off and the holes in his leg and stomach knitted closed as the moving metal restored his damaged tissue. He closed his eyes and lost himself in the cooling sensation. The beautiful melody twinkled in his mind's eye, starting from a seductive hum.

  As he knelt beside Callen, Corth pulled out his emergency kit from his coat but stopped. "What the fook..." He grumbled as he watched the metal fade into fresh, unscarred skin. "Lad, yeh there?"

  "Callen?" Ania said giving him a gentle shake. "Don't pass out..."

  He opened his eyes as the last of his wounds closed. "Yeah..." The cool melody and the heavenly voice drifted. He wanted it back. He wanted her to come back. He wanted to see her again.

  "Callen, your eyes..." Ania said, keeping Callen in this world. "They're no longer brown...their pools of swirling metal..."

  "Lad..." Corth said. "I have so many questions, I don't even know where to begin..."

  "We'll explain on the way," Callen said as he pushed himself to his feet.

  "You feel okay to move?" Ania asked.

  "Aside from being hungry, like really hungry, I feel amazing." He looked at his grandfather as he knelt down next to the sorcerer. "Guess you got your mark."

  Corth nodded. "Possibly. I'm not so sure...there could be another..." He inspected the shattered crystal on the redcap's hand. "This is...different..." He shook his head and sighed.

  "What's different?" Callen asked as he stood.

  "Crystals...sometimes can be used to enhance magic...but, that's not something goblins do...it's too advanced...I got a bad feeling lads." Corth cursed. "Figuring this out is gonna take time..."

  "Yeah, and we're running out of that...we gotta go." Callen looked up towards the tunnel that Niknak was carted down. "We better get climbing..."

  "Aren't you forgetting something?" Ania asked. "You know...a new shirt...some weapons..." She grabbed him a shirt off one of the bodies of the dead goblins laying in the water. She pointed at the sorcerer's body. "And what kind of gamer are you? You're forgetting to loot the bodies..."

  Callen pulled the shirt over his head and kneeled next to the melted sorcerer. He pulled Niknak's knife belt free from the gooey skeleton and turned back to his sister and grandpa. "Alright. If we're gonna rescue Niknak, I'm sure he'll want these." He replaced his knife with the blue swirled knife on his own belt and gave Ania the rest, including Niknak’s shotgun.

  "You got the KoS on your shirt." Ania chuckled as she checked the weapon.

  "What?" He looked down and shook his head. The shirt read 'The Kitty of Suffering' and had a cartoon graphic of a stylized evil kitty.

  "It's appropriate." She giggled.

  "Yeah, hilarious..." Callen said. "Now, let’s hurry...hopefully we can get to Niknak before he gets back to Virette." He made some adjustments on his wrist computer. "I'll use Niknak's computer system to lead us...his image feed will provide a map and his location..."

  "Wait lads, slow down!" Corth ordered. "I don't know what the fook yeh two be talking about but, we are going nowhere but back to the surface."

  "We can't, Grandpa," Ania said. "We need to rescue Niknak...and..."

  "Wait, Niknak?" Corth asked. "I thought that's what Callen said...he was yer pop's homunculus! How the fook did yeh find him? What is going on?"

  "We found the kids that were being kidnaped," Callen said. "They were taken by a cyborg changelings that were grown in the lab Dad worked at because they were searching for a religious figure. Apparently, I'm that religious figure. To make a long story short, well, I made a deal with them, and we gotta get there so they will free the kidnaped children, including Sadie and Tende. They just broke out in civil war...and we gotta get Niknak before they get some computer virus from him and get the kids to safety."

  "Felix filled me in on what he could..." Corth shook his head in amazement. "But that didn't even scratch the surface..."

  Callen nodded. "We're wasting time." He grabbed onto the rock wall. "They're moving and we're standing here talking...So, Grandpa, are you going to help us or drag us back?"

  "Wait Lad, I'm still not comfortable with..." Corth sighed and manipulated something on his computer rig. "No knights are close enough to give support."

  "Grandpa, they're in civil war...and the priestess has to be stopped." Ania's voice was forceful and confident. "There are a lot more than you can take out alone...you need us...and Callen knows the way..."

  Corth facial expression wrinkled with his discontent although the thick beard covered most of it. He let out a long sigh. "I guess I can't expect yeh two to go home by yourselves...now can I?" He scratched his cheek and surveyed the mess around them. "Felix, make sure you have a strong connection to Callen's rig." He hung his rifle over his shoulders and looked at Callen as he started to climb. He pulled a thin cord from his belt and a collapsible grappling hook. With one throw, he secured the rope. He clipped a handled mechanical climbing device to the rope. "Lad, I'm sure you'll find this a bit quicker than climbing by hand..."