02 July, 1995

Garamonde Discovered


As copied from a collection of old manuscripts dated around this time.

“Oh, my God, …” Sabin shivered at the sight before him.  Raistlin glanced at Garamonde’s face.  Raistlin could almost imagine him smiling.

Cyan was the first to react.  He grabbed some bandages from his bag and rushed to Martican’s side.  As Cyan started to help him, Martican told what he knew.

Cy...Cyan...see...eek...out...the...seck...second...in...comm...”  Martican’s eyes were already drifting.  “...man...deral...feral...death...will...help...Gara...me...”  Martican’s strange words faded away into nothing.

“Is he dead, Cyan?”  Sabin was worried.

“He will be if we don’t get him out of here… and I mean now.”

“Leave him.”  Garamonde’s voice was clear and commanding.

“But he’ll die if – “

“Leave him.”

Cyan looked up at Garamonde.  “My liege, I cannot abandon a life in need.”

“You will do as I say, or you will fight me.”  Garamonde’s eyes stared Cyan down.

Raistlin backed away.

Sabin looked at Garamonde, then at Cyan, and back to Garamonde.  And then he looked at Martican.

Cyan never stopped looking at Garamonde.  “King Exodus gave his life for this man.  I will not let him die.”  Cyan’s face was determined.

“Then draw your sword.”  Garamonde put his hand on the hilt of his sword and slowly drew it.

Cyan stared.  Sabin called out to them, “Don’t fight.  Let’s calm ourselves and cont – “

Garamonde’s sword sliced through the air at Sabin.  When it was over, Garamonde stood unmoving in a defensive posture and Sabin’s left ear hung from his head by but a bit of skin.

Sabin cried out louder than he had ever thought possible.

Cyan set down Martican’s bandages and stood.  He drew his sword.  “I thought you were honorable.”

Garamonde answered back.  “Martican must not live.”

“You are a coward.”

Garamonde’s expression never once changed.  “You, my compatriot, are the coward.  Do you just refuse to strike me?”

Cyan looked into Garamonde’s eyes.  “You’ve shown me techniques with the sword of such a degree as to that I’ve never seen before.  To fight you would be suicide.”

To that, Garamonde smiled.  Garamonde actually smiled.  And Garamonde had dimples, too.  But they weren’t natural.  It’s just that Cyan decided to do a small surgical procedure since the smile was there anyway.

Garamonde’s sword kept Cyan from doing further damage.  Cyan smiled at Garamonde’s red face.

Garamonde used his sword to push Cyan’s sword to the side and then kicked him.  Cyan lost his breath for a split second, but quickly recovered, bringing his sword above him to parry an overhead shot by Garamonde.  Garamonde’s next shot came so quickly that Cyan had no time to block.  Garamonde’s sword hit the armor on Cyan’s left ankle.  The sheer force of the blow brought Cyan to the ground.  Garamonde backed up a step to breathe while Cyan got up from the ground.

Garamonde pulled a dagger from his side and threw it to his right.  The dagger hit Sabin with sufficient force to knock him unconscious for at least a short while.

Cyan was still breathing hard.  The surprise he had used before had netted him a big plus: Garamonde’s face was very bloody.  And the time Garamonde had spent on throwing the dagger also got Cyan a big initiative bonus.  Cyan had just enough time to hit him with a quadra-slam.  “Hissami taught me this one, dishonorable liege.”  Cyan used his entire body in the first blow.  It stunned Garamonde for a couple of seconds.  In that couple of seconds, Cyan hit him again and again and again – and regained his defensive posture before Garamonde had even realized what had happened.

Garamonde stood before Cyan.  He was a gruesome sight.  There was blood all over his face, and Cyan’s quadra-slam had left an inch deep cut in Garamonde’s leftmost bicep, and three dents in his armor.  “Now, you will die.”  Garamonde pushed forward with his sword, anticipating Cyan’s block.  Garamonde used his left hand to grab Cyan’s stronger hand and Garamonde pried Cyan’s hand off his sword.  Garamonde’s other hand swung the sword again, and as Cyan blocked, Garamonde twisted his attack, and Cyan lost his sword.  Garamonde threw the sword to his left.  “You’ve lost.”

Cyan stopped fighting.  He stood straight up, at attention.  “I realize that I have lost, but I refuse to yield.  Either kill me now or allow me my sword.”

Garamonde looked at the defenseless Cyan.  “I’m afraid that I must kill you now.”  Garamonde smiled a bloody smile as he pulled back his sword and swung at Cyan.

Suddenly, a beam of intense light hit Garamonde’s sword from across the room.  The light slowed his swing, and Cyan was smart enough to dodge the attack.  Very quickly, Garamonde’s sword got to be too hot to handle.  Garamonde dropped it, and while Cyan was running for his sword, a flame of fire flew toward Garamonde’s head.  Cyan grabbed his sword and turned just in time to see Garamonde escaping into a tunnel below.  Cyan looked to the source of the fire.

Raistlin stood there, having just finished his spell.  He smiled at Cyan.  “You held out just long enough for me to use that spell.”

No comments:

Post a Comment