~Z~

For the last post in this 2012 A to Z Challenge, I thought I'd share a little scene from my WIP starring my MC, Ruark and his father, General Zanderi..

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The General rolled his shoulders as he said in disgust. “I should have killed you at birth. You have always been and continue to be nothing but a disappointment.”

Mad laughter threatened to burst from Ruark's throat. He had only ever wanted this man’s love, but his father was incapable of such an emotion.

He let a small smile lift the corners of his lips. “At one time those words might have hurt, but I am well past caring what you think of me, Father. At the same time, I do not wish to kill you. Please do not force me.”

“I will see you dead and the girl sacrificed to the dark flame,” his father said with a sneer.

“I thought you might say that,” Ruark sighed as he accepted the inevitability of this day. He would not kill his father if he could help it, but he would distract him long enough for his high queen to escape.

His mind sank into cold indifference as he gathered his power, forming a ball of fire in his palm. Using the fireball as a distraction, Ruark threw it at his father and pulled his sword from its scabbard. His father blocked the fire and drew his own weapon. The sound of swords clashing soon filled the clearing. Loose sand and gravel swirled through the air, gaining speed as his father manipulated the debris with his power. Sweat dripped into Ruark’s eyes. His muscles burned. He watched his father, knowing the debris acted as a distraction. Blood dripped from a cut on his arm from a rock he failed to deflect. They circled each other.

The General tilted his head slightly as if Ruark were a puzzle he wished to solve. “Do you really think you can win this? Your power does not come close to equaling mine.”

“You are correct, father. My power surpasses yours,” he said, his power orb pulsing to the rapid beat of his heart.

Ruark tightened his free hand into a fist, using his power to cut off his father’s breath as he swung his sword. The General sent stones flying at his head and met Ruark's swing with his own. Dodging the stones, he clenched his fist tighter. His father’s face became red with excursion as he labored to breathe. A crack from behind had him spinning to see a large tree branch flying toward him.

He dove out of the way, losing his hold on his father’s throat. Without pausing the General’s lips began to move and a sword of black fire appeared in his hand. The General swung both swords in rapid succession as he attacked Ruark and forcing him to retreat further. He stumbled over the tree branch and fell to one knee. The fire sword met his sword and severed the blade from the handle.

Ruark scrambled back. He concentrated on his orb. His hand grew warm. He concentrated harder. His orb pulsed faster, matching the pace of his racing heart. The General lunged at him, breaking his concentration. The warmth in his hand faded. He scrambled back and rounded a boulder as his father followed at a leisurely pace.

Ruark continued to move higher up the rocky, tree covered mountain toward the ledge overlooking the road where his father had been ambushed. He once again concentrated on his orb. His hand grew warm. The orb pulsed faster. His hand became hot. Ruark held his hand before him as the veins in his forehead bulged. A sword pulsing with the colors of his orb grew from his hand as he gritted his teeth at the blistering pain on his palm. He froze in mid-stride as he studied the glowing sword.

His father stepped from behind a tree, his own black glowing sword creating shadows on the rocky ground. Ruark renewed his attack on his father. He pulled on the bars from Finn’s cage with his power and they flew up over the ledge toward the General. The General knocked the iron bars from the air with a glance as he advanced toward Ruark, both swords swinging.

His father swung the steal sword low as he brought the black sword toward his chest. Ruark jumped, kicking his father’s hand as he brought his own sword of power up to block his father’s black sword. The General dropped the steal sword from numb fingers as the black sword burned a path down Ruark’s shoulder and arm as his block failed to deflect the blow completely.

Ruark stumbled, the pain of his father’s power like acid. He raised his head to glare at the General. The last of his delusions about gaining his father’s approval fell away. He raised his sword and attacked as he screamed out the loss of what hope he had clung to until this moment. Ruark increased his momentum causing his father to begin to retreat. Spotting a large rock behind the General, Ruark pulled it closer. The General tripped over the rock twisting his ankle and falling backwards. As the General landed on the ground, his black sword disappeared and Ruark jumped forward, and held his own pulsing sword at his father’s throat.

“Do not make me kill you,” Ruark said in a low voice.

Eyes burning in contempt, the General spit at him. “You always were a spineless coward.”

***

I hope that the combination of the poetry based on my WIP in the earlier posts and these little excerpts have you interested in reading my book when I get it published. If so, please follow by blog, twitter, facebook, and google+. Stay tuned for that future announcement!!!

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~Sabrina

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