Elric's steed backed away a few paces.
A blot of living fire seemed to appear in Arioch's hand and it shot towards the albino. He felt cold pain in his chest and he staggered in the saddle.
«Your body is unimportant, Elric. But think of a similar blow to your soul! » Arioch screamed, the facade of patience dropping from him.
Elric flung back his head and laughed. Arioch had betrayed himself. If he had remained calm he would have had a greater advantage, but now he showed himself perturbed, whatever he had said to the contrary.
«Arioch - you aided me in the past. You will regret that! »
«There's still time to undo my folly, upstart mortal! » Another bolt came streaking towards him but Elric passed Stormbringer before it and observed, in relief, that it deflected the unholy weapon.
But, against such might, they were surely doomed, unless they could invoke some supernatural aid. But Elric dared not risk summoning his runesword's brothers. Not yet. He must think of some other means.
As he retreated towards the searing bolts, Moonglum behind him whispering almost impotent charms, he thought of the vulture-lions he had sent back to Chaos. Perhaps he could recall them-for a different purpose.
The spell was fresh in his mind, requiring a slightly changed mental state and scarcely changed wording.
Calmly, working mechanically to deflect the bolts of the dukes whose features had changed hideously to retain their previous beauty but take on an increasingly malevolent appearance, he uttered the spell.
From out of the rolling darks of the plaza, the beaked beasts appeared, prowling.
Elric yelled at the dukes. «Mortal weapons cannot harm you! But these are beasts of your own plane-sample their ferocity.» He ordered the vulture-lions upon the dukes.
Obviously put out by this. Arioch and his fellows backed towards the steps again, calling their own commands to the giant animals, but the things advanced, gathering speed.
Elric saw Arioch shout, rave and then his body seemed to split asunder and rise in a new, less recognisable shape as the beasts attacked. All was suddenly ragged colour, sound and disordered matter.
Behind the embattled demons, Elric saw Jagreen Lern running back into his palace. Hoping that the creatures he had summoned would hold the dukes, Elric rode his horse around the boiling mass and galloped up the steps.
Through the doors the two men rode, catching a glimpse of the terrified theocrat running before them.
«Your allies were not so strong as you believed, Jagreen Lern! » Elric yelled as he bore down upon his enemy. «Why, you foolish latecomer, did you think your knowledge notched that of a Melnibonean! »
Jagreen Lern began to climb a winding staircase, labouring up the steps, too afraid even to look back.
Elric laughed again and pulled his horse to a stop, watching the running man:
«Dukes! Dukes! » sobbed Jagreen Lern as he climbed. «Do not desert me now! »
Moonglum whispered. «Surely those creatures will not defeat the aristocracy of hell?»
Elric shook his head. «I do not expect them to, but if I finish Jagreen Lern, at least it could put an end to his conquests and demon-summoning.» He spurred the Nihrain steed up the steps after the theocrat who heard him coming and flung himself into a room. Elric heard a bar fall and bolts squeal.
When he reached the door it fell in at a blow of his sword and he was in a small chamber. Jagreen Lern had disappeared. Dismounting, Elric went to a small door in the farthest corner of the room and again demolished it A narrow stair led upwards, obviously into a tower.
Now he could take his vengeance, he thought, as he reached yet another door at the top of the stair and-drew back his sword to smite it. The blow fell, but the door held.
«Curse the thing, it is protected by charms! » he swore.
He was just about to aim another blow, when he heard Moonglum's urgent calling from below.
«Elric! Elric - they've defeated the creatures. They are returning to the palace.»
He would have to leave Jagreen Lern for the meantime. He sprang down the steps, into the chamber and out on to the stair. In the hall he saw the flowing shapes of the unholy trinity. Half-way up the stair, Moonglum was quaking.
«Stormbringer, » said Elric, »it is time to summon your brothers.»
The sword twisted in his hand, as if in assent
Elric began to chant the mind-torturing, throat-torturing rune that Sepiriz had taught him.
Stormbringer moaned a counterpoint chorus to the dirge as the battle-worn dukes assumed different shapes and began to rise menacingly towards Elric.
Then, in the air all about him, he saw shapes appear, shadowy shapes half on his own plane, half on the plane of Chaos. He saw them stir and suddenly it seemed as if the air was filled with a million swords, each a twin to Stormbringer!
Acting on instinct, Elric released his grip on his blade and flung it towards the rest. It hung in the air before them and they seemed to acknowledge it «Lead them, Stormbringer Lead them against the dukes-or your master perishes and you'll not drink another human soul again! »
The sea of swords rustled and a dreadful moaning emanated from them. The dukes flung themselves upwards towards the albino and he recoiled before the evil hatred that poured from the twisting shapes.
Glancing down he saw Moonglum slumped in his saddle and did not know if he had perished or fainted.
Then the swords rushed upon the reaching dukes and Elric's head swam with the sight of a million blades plunging into the stuff of their beings.
The unholy noise of the battle filled his ears, the dreadful sight of the toiling conflict clouded his vision. Without Stormbringer's vitality he felt weak and limp. He felt his knees shake and crumple and he could do nothing to aid the black sword's brothers as they clashed with the Dukes of Hell.
He collapsed, aware that if he witnessed such horror much longer he would become totally insane. Thankfully, he felt his mind go blank and then, at last, he was unconscious, unable to know which would win.
Five
His body itched. His arms and bade ached. His wrists pounded with agony. Elric opened his eyes.
Immediately opposite him, spreadeagled in chains against the wall he saw Moonglum. Dull flame nickered in the centre of the place and he felt pain cm his naked knee, looked down and saw Jagreen Lern.
The Theocrat spat at him.
«So, » Elric said horrowly. «I failed. You triumph after all.»
Jagreen Lern did not look triumphant Rage still burned in his eyes.
«Oh, how shall I punish you, » he said.
«Punish me? Then-?» Elric's heartbeat increased.
«Your final spell succeeded, » the Theocrat said dully, turning away to contemplate the brazier. «Both your allies and mine vanished and all my attempts to contact the dukes have proved fruitless. You achieved your threat-or your minions did-you sent them back to Chaos forever! »
«My sword-what of that?»
The Theocrat smiled bitterly. «That's my only pleasure. Your sword vanished with its brothers. You are weak and helpless now, Elric. You are mine to maim and torture until the end of my life.»
Elric was dumbfounded by the news. Part of him rejoiced that the dukes had been beaten. Part of him lamented the loss of his sword. As Jagreen Lern had emphasised, without the blade he was less than half a man, for his albinoism weakened him. Already his eye-sight was dimmer and he felt no response in his limbs.
Jagreen Lern looked up at him.