Trial by Combat

Ace

"What the H*ll?" Brigadier Bambera whispers, looking first at the wife of the Doctor....and then at Inquirer's hands.

The wedding band that I had seen her wearing is still there, but large sections of skin around it....are gone! Scrapped away as her hands had torn long gouges in breastplates, tearing the armor pieces bodily away from the breasts of the now quietly unconscious (but breathing) pile.

How long those wounded folk remain alive depends on whether or not they receive medical attention in time, but I can very well see that Inquirer could have well nigh killed them outright if she had a mind to!

"Well, she did say herself that she was special," I say casually as Inquirer excuses herself to cast a few healing spells on the fallen, "What, you have something against cyborgs?"

"I rather can see she is not like the Cybermen," the Brigadier puts in from the side, a touch dryly, "Dealt enough with them and other mechanical menaces in my time to be able to tell the difference. She is not a threat to us....unless of course you make it your business to be a threat to her, I gather, and what happens then....."

Bambera blinks, slowly letting all that filter in, and finally....

"Those....reports about Yeti in the Underground and Cybermen.....were true?" she asks the Brig quietly.

"Considering that I rather am not in the habit of writing false reports...." the Brig says back, a bit huffy.

Seems that Bambera just put her own foot in her mouth and she sputters out quickly that she thought that had been some kind of deliberate subterfuge for any would be spies who might somehow manage to pilfer sensitive files.

That seems to mollify the Brig enough....

That is about the time that Sigin, that "Dragon Mage", finishes singing out his countercharms (I find out that he had been diddling with Morgaine's Scrying spell in order to set up events to go as the others had planned). He quickly reveals to me (after I ask) that indeed he and the others of the Doctor's group had been in a "conference of the minds" more than a few times there. One such recent one had hatched an upcoming fight, as I'd been coming to expect. He also was able to convince (not an easy task, let me tell you) Ancelyn that while the Doctor may very well match his description of his Merlin, the Doctor was not Merlin. Basically reminded the chap that because there were other realities similar his own (but not the same), then it would stand to reason that there were other people similar to Merline, but not the same. Oh, he trotted out more esoteric facts and such, but in the end that's what sold Ancelyn. Needless to say, he's rather put off by that... But then brightens a little when he points out that this did not mean that Excaliber's call.

"Maybe Merlin will show his face later," Ancelyn mutters to himself happily.

He then turns to Bambera and, pointing to each member of his team (including me but excluding the Doctor), he gave a quick explanation that each came from a different reality....an "Alter-Earth" or such. Some that were much further....er...away from "true" in comparison to this world (in regards to history and environment....like there being magic in common use and such), but Alter-Earths all the same. I blink, then smile a bit at the look of respect Ancelyn gives the folks in question, when he mentions that many of the others of his group have social standing either equal (or greater than) his own. Through a grant by Regent Malachi (ruler of Ethiopia) both Betty and Ragan were Ladies in that Court! I find out later that this happened two years ago, their time. However, being that by my reckoning it's only been a few hours since last I saw them....well. Well, I kind of figured they've been rather busy since last I saw them! Already had known that Gilmuriel had been (and still was) a lord (and a son of a Duke). Also I had already known that E'eysha had been (and still was) an Amazonian princess. Hadn't known that the Doctor was also a prince by virtue of being adopted by the King of the Griffon Nations, this Trilling Blackfeather chap. Like to meet him sometime, actually..... Elrondir and B'Elanna had been "knighted" by the Emperor of the Elven Nation awhile ago; that I'd heard in passing. As for Sigin, he had the social equivalent standing of a knight in the Nation of Dragons due to him being a Dragon Mage.

It's rather enchanting, actually. No pun intended, given the circumstances of today. Am rather less enchanted to find out how Ancelyn and his fellow knights will treat us "peasants" later on because of our lack of social standing, but that is later.

Some of this causes Bambera to snap out of her daze a bit to where she looks ready to ask yet more questions, but Sigin impatiently waves her off.

"Morgaine is coming here in a few minutes," he says sharply, "Not only to rescue her son, who she can not just magically whisk away to safety due to my counter-magery, but also to avenge herself...on me. Either that or 'lose face' with her allies and troops."

One of the things he did besides royally taunt Morgaine was to "broadcast" the entire fracas live and uncensored to those chaps out in the fields.....

We move outside, away from anything that could get damaged by this battle. And thus we wait, for we know that Morgaine stands a lot to lose if she fails to meet....

.....

"YOU!" she screams, flashing into existence, "HOW DARE YOU....."

"In a bit of snit are we?" Sigin says, pitching his voice so that those of her men (as well as allies of Ancelyn). All fighting has stopped, as Sigin had stipulated and tricked Morgaine into agreeing, where this battle would decide matters instead.

Remembered Betty saying something in passing about this situation being out of that TV episode called "Battlefield". Kind of lends to my mind how bloody those results can be, actually. Something that I know that the Doctor (as well as the Professor) would like to avoid having happen if they can swing it.....

Thus this. And being that Sigin, as it turns out, is not only the most learned and experienced with magery (though the Doctor and the others are quick learners), as well as the fact that he's the most experienced with magical battle..... Well, you get the picture, eh?

Still enraged beyond reason, she hastily agrees to a duel of combat where it ends when either one side yields......or dies (or receives wounds that would otherwise be fatal). Sigin, of course, represents "my" side, and Morgaine is the other side. The results of combat would be binding and the war....ended.

....

You know, there are times....real times when I have to agree with Ragan in my life mimics this TV show of hers! A TV show made for children (albeit with a large adult following)! I mean, you just can't believe that such things normally happen in "real" life, right? Right?!

That's the last thought I have as I roll my eyes at it all before combat begins.....

And I.....hope....I have to never sit through something like that again! It's like sitting right next to a firework's display caught fire! With high explosives thrown in!!

Mind you, I LIKE explosives, but this is.....different. Just trust me on that and leave it at that.

The Brigadier

That duel was as blood an affair that I'd care to ever witness again. Both sides look ready to drop, and still they go on and on!

Finally, some kind of.....whatever....slips past Morgaine's shield (a flashing affair of light) and strikes her a telling blow. Lifts her right off her feet and throws her to the ground! She groans and tries to rise, only to collapse and glare up at Sigin. The Dragon Mage has come up to her and now stands over her, hands aglow with magic!

Magic. To say the word is ridiculous. But to see it.... It might be that "psionic" gobbledygook that the Doctor has in the past mentioned and thus is misnamed by the combatants. Then again, putting the metaphysical nature of it aside and looking at it from another angle, can one call "psionics" just "magic" without the delusions of grandeur?

Don't envy Bambera for her task of having to write up a report for this one! Goodness knows I had to come up with some very inventive ways of coaching my reports back when I was in active duty and working with the Doctor!

Back before he appears to have learned a few things right around the time he'd gone haring off on that debacle with the mystic and that blue crystal! Whatever exactly that happened (which I have yet to hear in full), it appears that it lead up to either Betty or Ragan (I get the distinct impression from what I've been told so far) telling the Doctor about that giant Robot menace. Which in turn lead the Doctor telling me so that the incident got nipped in the bud before it became a danger....

Weird business, this.

Ah, but now to the task at hand!

"Do you yield!" Sigin rasps out, more of a command than a question.

She looks up hatefully at her foe and then chuckles mirthlessly and coldly.

"I appear to have no other choice...." she begins, only to then take on a look of shock and anger...as if something that rather doesn't agree with her has....

Another flash of light, with the smell of brimstone in it, and a blue menacing figure appears. A demon worthy of the name, I fear.

Will find later that it is called "The Destroyer" and it's supposedly powerful enough to lay waste to a world. Seeing the chap in the flesh, right then and there lends credence to that claim in my mind!

But before he can gloat about having slipped his bonds from his Mistress and gained his freedom (and what he'll do now in celebration), a single shot rings out.

Later, I shall learn that the bullet that Elrondir fired from his rather old fashioned revolver (which was much too large for him to safely use) was loaded with something called "Dragonbane" or some such. It was a special alloy that, amongst other things, was mostly composed of silver.

.....

Silver. Tell me I'm not in some kind of cheap production?

.....

Well, the demon has a certain weakness, and thus is destroyed. However, if not for the quick actions of that dragon!.....

Ah, but I forgot to tell you. You see, I just found out what Sigin meant by calling himself a Dragon Mage. No, he does not deal in his magery with dragons. Rather, he is a dragon....that is a mage.

A western dragon who, like a few of his friends in his Dragon Circle had studied with his eastern cousins and learned their ways. Like a small minority back were he haled from, a good sort (vice the evil dragons of legend)....

Er....right.

Well, the dragon shifted back to his true form and with a slashing strike of a claw was able to hurl the mortally wounded demon up high enough into the air that the blast it gave off only knocked a few folks down instead of kill people!

1. I turn back, still shocked at what I saw, only to see that Elrondir...is an elf! That is, I see that the recoil of the pistol had caused it to smash him across the face, cold-cocking him! His human seeming failed him upon his losing consciousness....

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