One week ago…
"Jasmine! I'LL KILL YOU!!" Lief yelled and charged at her assailant before he could hurt Jasmine further. Though in his heart he knew she was going to die.
The Apprentice stood and laughed at ridiculousness Lief's unarmed resistance. It was however, time for the Apprentice to leave. Both of his hands grabbed Lief's sword and sawed it out of Jasmine's chest with an eruption of blood and clothing.
"Leave her alone!" Lief yelled and brought his left shoulder down, smashing into the Apprentice. The blow sent him flying back. At the last second the Apprentice pushed his almost horizontal legs against Lief's body. This turned him into a rotating human bullet, bearing away from Lief and Barda. He flew five…ten feet before back-flipping to the ground. All the time his hood never slipped and he kept hold of both swords.
'What is this guy,'Barda thought briefly before turning back to examine Jasmine's condition. She was already dead, the gods hadn't even granted her enough time to say her final words…
'It's time to go.' The Apprentice thought whilst he drove his crimson blade into the ground. Muttering some words under his breath the Apprentice activated the final spell in his arsenal. Eight dark mirrors appeared, forming a perfect octagon around the Apprentice, shielding him from view. The blackness in each mirror seemed to get sucked in, like water in a whirlpool, until each mirror was crystal clear. The mirrors shattered, revealing an empty space where the Apprentice once stood…
Three days ago…
Lief's fist collided with a nearby wall, busting his knuckles. But the pain his right hand felt was nothing compared to the sickness in Lief's heart. They had journeyed, him and Barda, to the City of the Rats to get baby Katherine back before journeying back to Del. But they had arrived too late. Instead of finding Katherine, the found Lief's sword, half melted into the stone. The crown Lief had retrieved from the Guardian hung drunkenly from the scorched hilt, mocking him. Lief snapped; his brain physically snapped. He sent Barda away with a message to all the people of Del.
"Tell them that I am gone, killed by the Shadowlord, just like Jasmine. After that, do what you want."
Lief could have either gone all out insane, or he could try to beat the Shadowlord at his own game. Insanity would have been such a sweet relief, but it was a forbidden fruit for Lief. Just like the Belt, the Shadowlord had to be overcome with sorcery. So Lief gathered to pieces of the broken Belt and placed the crown of the Guardian on his head…
Last night…
His call had been answered. He had summoned all of the original dragons and all twelve of the statues he had animated with his Metamorphosis. Books and far flung memories from his time in Metamorphosis allowed Lief to arrive at certain conclusions.
Each statue held a tiny fraction of his soul along with a twelfth of his power. But they weren't puzzle pieces that could just be fitted back together. His soul had recovered and so had the pieces inside the statues.
He couldn't recover his power without absorbing the pieces of his soul. They had fused together, and so a new method had to be adopted.
Though the tribes of the Belt, like the Toran's, were being killed off, the dragons had yet to be affected. This made them the strongest source of Deltora's magic and faith.
Lief adapted the circle of power he had previously used to teleport the three of them to Tora. Now all Deltora held its breath, because if Lief's deductions were inaccurate (or, gods forbid, wrong) then all was lost…
Morning…
The pieces of the Belt, still holding their gems, lay in a perfect circle around Lief's feet, coinciding with their respective dragon. With a crown on his brow and his hand on his father's sword, Lief begun the ritual.
"By to morning sun this spell shall be wrought; and the angel of Deltora shall be born. Twelve statues, give me your powers; your souls. RETURN TO ME!" Lief activated the circle of power.
Green fire arched out of each statue and into Lief. More and more power, until Lief's body began to change. Wings grew back, feathered white. But more the just magic was coming back. Small golden orbs flew out of each statue and into Lief; but were rejected. As they tried to gain access, Lief began to wilt.
"Now! The Emerald Dragon roared and poured his fire into Lief. Each dragon did the same until the rainbow fire returned.
Then the great Gems activated and what was a storm of fire became a rotating pillar, with Lief in its centre. Feathers were singed away and steel began to run. In this hellish cocoon of fire; the Weapon was formed…