The Vale of Helios

Aedric leads his group into the mysterious and dangerous Vale of Helios in a desperate attempt to find a spell to dispel the demon controlling an ancient Dragon.

4.

The Vale of Helios

 

They had climbed ever so slowly, over the course of the whole day.   None of the seven spoke much, for they were still reeling over the loss of Gamel’s squire, Sintore, to a ‘flock’ of huge bird-like monsters the day before.

All of them were on edge, for whatever had been traveling with them that had Amala's form was out there somewhere, and they all sensed that she was following them.   None of them saw her, however, and they had found Amala’s prized enchanted long swords on the floor in the stable of the Watchtower where they had slept the night before.

Snoe wore her sister’s twin swords on her hips and Aedric was relieved that his wife now had magic to counter whatever they would soon face.

‘Wife’ - it seemed so odd for him to use the term.   He glanced over at her as she rode next to him and she turned and smiled her usual shy smile that he loved to see.   They had not even consummated the marriage yet - for they had been warned that to do so would affect their chances of success at Helios’ tower.   They didn’t know how one could affect the other, but they had obeyed.

Actually, both had been rather relieved to have the pressure off of them, as their whirlwind wedding had left them little time to let their relationship develop naturally.

Now as they neared their destination, Aedric found himself most concerned for Snoe’s safety.   He knew they would all most likely have to enter the arcane tower of Helios, but it was extremely dangerous.    The thought of her dying filled him with heart-wrenching dread.  

“We’re getting close.”  Mattleos said from behind him, and Aedric nodded to his cousin.   Those riding with him concerned him almost as much as thoughts of his wife.    Mattleos was his recently found cousin that had already become a close family member to him.  

Aaron was his Half-Elven foster brother, Gamel, was Snoe’s brother, Allea was the young Half-Drow daughter of Zeatt and Alvis who was a budding Sorceress, and finally the Goblin, Mutt, who had proven himself a courageous and intelligent member of the party.

Then, somewhere lurking nearby was some sort of creature that had assumed Amala’s form earlier, yet seemed to be their ally. 

 

His companions all rode with their heavy cloaks over them, but for some odd reason, as they came upon the pass that led into the Valley of Helios, the air seemed to warm considerably.

“Odd.”   Mutt said as he tossed back the hood of his cloak, “We’re high in the mountains in the early winter, yet it is warmer up here.   At least that is how it seems to me.”

“Yes”, a female voice that seemed to come from no-where said, “Helios’ magic insures that winter is never present in his Valley.”

“Who’s there?”  Aedric called after the voice as they spun around looking for the source.   No-one was there.

“It is our mysterious friend.”  Gamel said loudly, so all could hear, “Why does she not come forth as her true self and join us?”

There was no response and after a few moments of waiting, they continued on, through the narrow rocky pass.    All were more than a little apprehensive as they passed through the canyon.

No bird called, and the air was completely still as they went forth.    Ahead, in the late afternoon sun, at the end of the lengthy pass, could be seen brilliant green, as if it were the height of spring in the Valley ahead.

“I don’t like the looks of that.”   Aaron whispered to everyone.

“It’s magically enhanced --- the climate.”  Allea replied, also in a whisper, “You can almost feel the magic in the air.”

“Just remember to stay close to each other.”   Aedric told them all, “We don’t know what other types of creatures that Helios toyed with, and this Valley ahead could be brimming with them.”

 

***

 

 

 

The Valley was certainly odd; this they could see as soon as they rode clear of the pass walls.    It was a huge perfect square - or at least it seemed to be from their perspective- with rock walls that went up hundreds of feet all around it like a stony fence.

“I’d say it’s about 5 or 6 miles wide.”   Aaron estimated as they sat on their horses looking around, “How odd - a square valley.”

“I doubt it is natural.”   Gamel commented, “I don’t know how he could have done this, but obviously he crafted it.”

“It’s late in the afternoon, but I think we should scout around some before we set up a camp.”   Aedric suggested, and so they cautiously went into the Valley.

It was unseasonably warm and green - spring-like and pleasant, though it only made them more uneasy.    The valley was thickly forested with trees, but still open enough to allow passage on horseback.    As they rode around, they found large round patches of dirt, each a bit less than 2/3rds of a mile apart, in a straight line both north and east of the entrance.   

“It looks like they are set up in some sort of a grid pattern.”   Allea commented, sketching each patch onto a long piece of parchment that she carried.  

Aaron leaned over and glanced at her sketch, noticing how she was carefully mapping the topography of the valley.

“I’m trying to see if I can figure out a pattern.” She explained to him, “It looks like these large patches of dirt are spaced apart about the same distance.    I’ll bet they are where the tower appears.”

“It would seem logical.”  Aaron replied, “I guess we should follow a line of them and see how far they go; we’ve only a few hours left of sunlight.”

They followed the Half-Elf’s suggestion and followed the eastern line of dirt patches.   They did indeed seem to be spaced at a set distance from each other.   As the sun was preparing to set, they had passed five and were almost upon the sixth one when suddenly there was a twinkle of blue and white light ahead.

They stopped in wonder, for out of nowhere a large, round tower had materialized, in the exact location of the sixth patch of dirt.

 

For a moment they all just gazed in wonderment at the magic tower, but Mattleos finally said, “Well, here is our chance.”

“We don’t know yet how long it will stay in this location.”  Snoe warned, “If we are inside of it when it changes location, we’ll all be dead.”

“Yes, but we don’t really have time to calculate a pattern.”   He argued.

Aedric had just opened his mouth to give his opinion when suddenly the tower began glowing blue and white and suddenly vanished.

“Whew!”  Mutt sighed, “It was a good thing we hesitated.”

 

From the patch of ground where the tower had briefly stood, there was the blur of movement and they all turned to look just as a pair of dark forms leaped upon Aedric and Aaron.

They seemed to be panthers with a snake-like neck and a viper’s head.   Both of the creatures lunged upon the backs of the two Paladins, their impact knocking both men from their saddles.

Aaron got his armored forearm between the mouth of the viper and his exposed head.   The monster bit his arm savagely, but the fangs were unable to penetrate the steel plate armor.

Aedric’s foe raked him with its claws as it flexed its neck backwards, preparing to strike.   But just as it moved forward, he caught the monster’s neck in his hand.   It hissed and pulled desperately to free itself, but there came a flash of metal and suddenly Aedric held a limp snake head.    Snoe was already leaping from her horse, one of her sister’s swords dripping blood.

“Are you alright?” She asked her husband, and he nodded, focusing now on Aaron.   But his foster brother was being assisted by the others.   Gamel and Mutt had already chopped the other creature to pieces while Allea and Mattleos pulled the Half-Elf Paladin out from under the carcass.

“Aaron, did he bite you?”   Allea asked apprehensively.

“No, my armor held.   What sort of creatures are they?”   He asked as he slowly got to his feet.

But no sooner had he asked this then the two monsters abruptly vanished with a brilliant blue flash of light.  

“Gone!”   Mutt exclaimed, “Yesh help us if that happens every time the tower vanishes.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.”   Mattleos replied, “The tales that I heard were that the valley was full of creatures, yet until we encountered these horrible things, we’d not seen any living animal.   Perhaps Helios’ tower generates monsters when it appears or disappears, and this is where the accounts of strange beasts come from.”

“Well, those bird creatures yesterday were real too, and they were a far distance from the Valley.   So if they are generated, then some at least must escape.”     Gamel said, looking around the area where the tower had stood for a short time.

“What’s that?”   Aedric asked as he too glanced around.   On the ground just outside the patch of dirt where the tower had stood, was a clay tablet, laying in the grass.

“Was that there before the tower appeared?”  Snoe asked as they cautiously walked over to examine the tablet.

“I don’t know - I didn’t look in this direction until the tower appeared.   Did anyone see it laying here?”

All the others shook their heads; most commenting that they had not been looking in that direction prior to the appearance of the tower.

“Don’t touch it!”  Gamel warned as Snoe and Aedric squatted to examine it.    The tablet seemed to be grey clay mounted on top of a square piece of wood.   

Allea ran over to them and began chanting a spell, pointing at the tablet as she did.    She finished the spell and stared at the tablet for a moment then smiled, “That was a Detect Magic spell.   The tablet does not radiate magic at all.”

“How many spells do you know?”   Snoe asked her cousin, who just smiled and shrugged.  

The three of them leaned in and looked closely at the clay.   There were lines drawn into the clay that formed a grid pattern of 64 squares.    In the middle of each square was a small circle and on the lower left edge of the tablet, someone had drawn a small ‘X’ outside the area of the grid.    There were no other marks or any sort of writing other than this on the tablet, but Allea seemed fascinated and looked closely at it.

“What is it?” Snoe asked her cousin, but the girl shook her head.

“I don’t know yet…I’m thinking of something though.   Give me a few minutes.”

Snoe joined Aedric and the others glancing around the edge of the patch of dirt.

“There has been quite a bit of activity here.”  Mattleos told them as he glanced at the footprints in the grass around the dirt patch, “I’d say several camps have been made here over the past few years.”

Mutt was walking around the edge of the huge circular patch of dirt, looking for any clues.   After a few minutes of searching, he knelt down and a moment later came running back to the others, carrying a backpack.

“This might be something.”  He reached into the old leather backpack and rummaged for a few moments, then pulled out what looked like a wizard’s spellbook.

“Open it up, Mutt.”   Allea told him as she looked over his shoulder.   The Half-Drow girl glanced at the pages briefly then informed them, “It’s not a spellbook - it looks like notes made about the tower and these dirt patches.”

“Then we’d better look through it.”   Aedric suggested, “Why don’t you see what you can find while the rest of us set up camp for the night.”

“Not a great place to camp.”   Mutt murmured, but he handed the book to Allea.   She and Snoe looked through it while Mutt joined the others in making camp.

 

***

 

A short time later the men had a fire going and the cousins took the book near it to look at it closer.    Allea seemed to understand some of the strange symbols and terminology used.

Aedric and Mattleos decided to give the area where the tower had been a closer examination.   It didn’t take them long to find the remains of camps.   Most of what they looked at was just trash and discarded items.   But just before they came back to camp, Aedric smelled a faint whiff of something dead and when they investigated, they found the somewhat recent remains of a human.   

“He’s wearing the armor of a legionnaire of the Southern Empire.”   Mattleos said as they looked at the corpse.

“Look!”   Aedric pulled something from the man’s hand, “Isn’t this one of the anti-magic amulets that those who attacked Westmark were wearing?”

“It looks like it.”  Mattleos responded as he looked at the stone.

“If Torrin sent soldiers up here, we may have other problems.”  When he moved his arm, Aedric noticed that his armor seemed heavier, as if the magic enchantment that took much of the weight from the armor had been neutralized.   Just as it had when they had encountered the amulets for the first time.   

Aedric rummaged through the corpse’s belt pouch, but only found a small lead container, “I wonder if he used this to house the anti-magic amulet?”

He tried the amulet inside the lead container and it fit perfectly.   As soon as he closed the top, his armor felt lightweight again.

“I’m sure this is one of their anti-magic stones.”   He told his cousin, slipping the lead box into his belt pouch.

“Well, if this one is dead and was left unburied, either he came alone - which is unlikely, or else he was with a group that did not make it either.”   Mattleos threw the corpses’ cloak over the body.

“That seems logical.”   Aedric said, “But why would Torrin want to seek a magical tower?”

“Maybe it was an errand of the demon to prevent us from stopping him by destroying the only means that we have to do so.”

“Let’s hope this guy’s companions didn’t find a way to get into the tower.”

“Without magic it seems unlikely.”

“Yes, but this one had a lead case for his anti-magic stone.   Perhaps he was using magic here and wanted to keep the amulet from neutralizing his magic items or spells.”

“He’d be crazy to come here without magic.”

The voice of Mutt calling to them announcing that dinner would be ready soon, ended their discussion and the two cousins went back to their camp.

 

The sun was setting in the west while Aaron and Gamel worked on preparing a warm meal for everyone.   As Aedric, Mattleos and Mutt stood nearby chatting about the found amulet, tablet and book, the Goblin’s keen night eyes spotted something.

“Hey, look over there!   Do you see that?”   He pointed to a trio of large trees a short distance away.

“See what?”   Mattleos asked, squinting in the twilight.

“I don’t see anything either, Mutt.   What do you see?”   Aedric asked the Goblin.

“I don’t know… it looks like… bats, but something’s not right about them.”

“How?”   Aedric was already drawing his sword.

“I don’t know, they… they’re coming this way!”

Everyone heard Mutt’s shout and the group gathered quickly together around the fire, weapons drawn.

They did not have long to wait, for almost at once there came an odd sound like a chirping or squeaking of a small animal, but from all around them, in the air.

Allea screamed, clawing at her head, and then they saw the creature.    They looked like small black monkeys with huge red bulging eyes and sharp fangs, but with strong pairs of bat wings behind their forearms.  

Mattleos pulled the creature off the Half-Drow girl’s head before it could sink its fangs into her flesh, yet the creature snapped at the Sylvan Elf, who was forced to drop it to prevent getting his fingers bit. 

The little monster tried to scurry off, but Aedric’s sword cut it in half before it could.  

They were now swarmed by the creatures, which squawked and chirped as they flew around them like mosquitoes out of a nightmare.

Mutt was bitten on the arm by one of them, but he killed it with his short sword.

Aaron and Gamel and Aedric were mostly ignored by the little devils due to their covering of plate armor.   Instead they seemed to focus mostly on Allea, for she wore no armor.    But Snoe’s pale form also seemed to attract them and they snatched and pulled at her hair as she kept Amala’s swords in motion trying to keep them at bay.

Mattleos and Mutt, who wore light armor, had several zipping around their heads, looking for exposed skin.

Aedric pulled a larger creature off of Snoe’s shoulder as it attempted to bite her neck just above her chainmail.    The nasty little fiend bit his finger instead, but the yellow fangs did not penetrate his gauntlet.   He snapped its’ neck with his hand and tossed it into the fire, dodging one of its mates as it tried to latch onto his face.

“Mutt!”  Aedric called to the Goblin, “Do you still have any light beads left?”

The Goblin’s face brightened, understanding Aedric’s idea.   He shielded his face with one hand and quickly rummaged through his pocket.

“Light beads!”  Mutt warned, and his companions, who had seen the magic baubles used before, shielded their eyes.   

He cast three of the beads to the ground and immediately brilliant white light flooded the night.

The creatures chirped and howled with alarm and immediately fled out of the bright light.

“Good idea, Your Highness, but the effect won’t last longer than a minute or two.”   Mutt responded.

“Maybe torches will keep them back.”   He began moving toward the fire, looking for a makeshift torch.

Gamel was completely blind from the flash, and was stumbling in the direction of the heat of the campfire when he felt someone touch his wrist.   He cried out in alarm and tried to pull his wrist away, but a human-sized hand held it firmly, yet gently.

“Relax, Gamel.” The voice was beautiful and familiar.   It was the witch, Valmiai, and she whispered just beside his ear.   The sound was silken and he was unable to move as she spoke softly in his ear.   He could hear nothing right then but the sound of her voice, as if time had suddenly froze.

“Hold out your hand.” She commanded, and he opened the fist he had made.    Gamel felt something solid placed within his grasp.

“It was found in the same backpack as the book.   There are many wonderful things to find around the sites of the tower.   Many have camped around these sites, waiting for the reappearance of the tower.    Most of them were wizards and most died within the tower, leaving much of their camps behind.   You can find many useful items like this one by just looking around the old camping sites.”

“What is it?” He asked her, still frozen by her touch.

“It is a Castle Shieldwall.   Have you heard of it?”

“No.”

“It is a magic device used often - long ago-- by mages.    Activate it by magic word and you and those with you will find yourself in a magic castle.   None will be able to gain access or harm you and it will last for up to 10 hours.    There you will find food and comfortable places to rest.   It was from a device such as this that Helios developed the idea for his vanishing tower.  Activate this Castle Shieldwall with the Elven word ‘Cardhaun’.”

“But-“ He started to say, yet she placed a finger to his lips and gently whispered, “Trust me.”

Then she was gone and immediately everything seemed to plunge back into motion again.

Gamel dropped the device - which seemed to be a carved miniature of a square castle keep- onto the ground.

Two of the winged monkey creatures were already diving at his head.

“Cardhaun!” He shouted as he flung one of the little monsters off his neck.

There was a loud popping sound followed by a flash of red light, and then he was suddenly in the great room of a small, but comfortable keep.  

 Yet he wasn’t alone, for his friends had been transported there as well.   They stood staring in surprise.   Thankfully, the monkey-like creatures had not joined them.

“Are we inside Helios’ tower?”   Allea asked with a bit of fear in her voice.

He explained to them what had happened as best as he could. 

“So it was her that imitated Amala who gave you the magic item that brought us here?”   Mattleos asked.

“Yes.”

“Hopefully this isn’t her trap instead!”   The Sylvan Elf exclaimed.

“No, I don’t’ think so.   She is helping us.   Look around; we are safe and warm.”

“Mutt was bitten by one of those creatures.”   Snoe informed them and they descended upon the poor Goblin.   He looked rather ashen, but seemed to have no other symptoms.

“Am I going to foam at the mouth and go insane?”   He asked them as he showed them the bite upon his arm.

“No, we can heal you.”   Aedric replied, laying hands upon the Goblin.

“What about the horses?!”  Snoe suddenly exclaimed, “Those awful creatures will kill them!”

Mattleos went over to a doorway and glanced out, “It’s similar to the Watchtower where we slept last night, but it has a stairwell instead of a ladder. “

He hurried down the stairs, and the others followed him.   To Snoe’s great relief, the bottom level was a stable filled with fresh hay and their steeds stood there happily eating.

“This is a very handy spell.”   Allea commented with a gleam in her eye, “I would love to know how to cast it.”

“I don’t know if that is possible.”  Gamel told his cousin, “But I will tell you what - after we finish here in Helios Valley, I will give the device to you and maybe then you can find out how it works.”

“I don’t know, Gamel, that might make your girlfriend mad.”  She kidded, and the jesting seemed to make the young Drow knight very uncomfortable, so no-one said anything more about it.

 

“I say that we take advantage of the safety of this place and get some rest.”   Aedric told them as they returned to the first chamber.

 

There were pieces of furniture in each of the four rooms on that level, and above them was yet another level with two more furnished bedrooms and a large feasting hall type of room with tables and chairs set up.

As the magic keep seemed to exist in someplace outside of the real world, they saw no need to post guards and so they each chose a room for themselves.

Snoe informed her husband that they would ‘of course’ share a room, but they had to remember what Khord had told them - they must abstain from any intimacy until after the quest.

Aedric nodded, having honestly been too tired to even think of any romantic thoughts.

They found food waiting for them in the feasting room - though none had been there when they first had toured the Keep- so they sat and ate, discussing the book and clay tablet that they had found.

“I want to go through it tonight and see if I can learn anything.”   Allea told them as they finished their meals.

“You need to be rested up for tomorrow.”  Mutt argued.

“I won’t be able to sleep for thinking about it.    So I will read for a while.”

“Just make sure you get some rest.”   Snoe suggested, and the Half-Drow girl agreed.

Half an hour later they were all situated in their rooms.   

 

Aedric still felt very awkward sharing a bed with the albino girl, but both were so exhausted that they just laid there for a while in the bed talking in whispers like excited children.

“I really think Allea will figure something out.”  She told Aedric, “She is incredibly smart.”

“I hope so; if she doesn’t, it will be a guessing game on how to get into that tower and how long it will stay in one place.”

“I wonder what is going on with my parents.    I hope they are alright.   And Amala as well!”

“They’re in Yesh’s hands, my dear, don’t worry.”

She nodded and snuggled in close to him, resting her head on his shoulder as he put his arm around her.   Even in his weary state, it was electrifying to embrace her.    But tonight it was just a satisfying feeling of unity with a loved one, and he could sense she shared the feeling.    In a few moments they were sound asleep.

 

***

Gamel laid staring up at the magic keep’s roof wondering about his parents and sister Amala.   Everything seemed so impossible right then.    If they couldn’t figure out how to enter Helios’ tower - or if they were all killed in the attempt- then not only would his whole family die, but perhaps tens of thousands of others as well.

Yet he could not help but think of his parents and sister.   He wondered how they were faring.

Suddenly he felt someone reclining against his chest, but the sudden appearance did not startle him.   He felt her warm breath on his chin as she leaned on her hands and smiled at him in the dark, inches away from his face.

“Stop worrying, Gamel; they are as safe as you are.”  

“Hello, Valmiai.” He greeted her calmly, knowing her name now, though not her real purpose.

She smiled radiantly and his Drow eyes could easily make out her extreme beauty in the dark.   She had taken the form most familiar to him; her long copper hair cascaded down to her waist as her blue/green eyes stared at him.   She wore a gown far too intimate to wear around him, but perhaps that was part of her power over him.

“Gamel, your fear of me is not masked by your calm exterior.”

“Can you blame me?   You appear and disappear at will, test and tease me, take the form of my sister and leave her to a fate unknown to me.    Are you a succubus, Valmiai?”   He matched her gaze for a moment.

Her eyes shined with amusement, “Do you think it would be possible for a demon to tempt a Paladin?   Wouldn’t you sense evil within me?”

“Yet what you do seems rather random and self-serving.”

“Perhaps, but if that is so, it is also for your good.”

“Why?   What do you want with me?”

She inched forward until she was nose to nose with him, “Don’t you know?   Can you not feel it yet?”

“Feel what?”

She closed her eyes and sighed, “You will feel it soon, very strongly.”

“More riddles?”

“It is prophesied.   Long have I waited for you, Gamel.    Four Eons of time.”

“Well, you’ve found me, so why don’t you fill me in with the reason why you’ve waited?”   He replied, skeptical of her words.   Her warm body was stirring up desire, but the gravity of his mission was greatly helping him keep that desire in check.

“Not yet, it is neither the time nor place for that.    You should just know that I have waited for a long, long time to find you.   I am here to help you and your group.”

“Then why take Amala’s place and her form?”

“It was so I could comfortably join you, but it was foolish to attempt.”

“Amala is safe, you say?”   He pressed for more information.

Valmiai laughed softly and her voice was almost musical, “She is safe, but far from comfortable.”

“What did you do to her?” He asked, alarmed, but she gently touched his lips.

“She is getting in touch with her suppressed femininity, that is all.   It will greatly benefit her, though she doesn’t realize it yet.    Trust me; I would not harm any member in your family.   I’ve watched over them for years.    It was I who pulled the demon of rage out of your father, years ago.”

“You?”   He tried to sit up, but her body on top of his kept him stationary.

“Yes, I was ‘the Banshee’ that he encountered.”   Her form suddenly changed to a pale blonde Elf with deep green eyes.  

“That was years ago.”

“Yes, but even then I was preparing to meet you.”

“Before I was born?”

“Yes, but do not ask me how it is possible.  It shall be explained to you when it is time.”

“So why are you here tonight?”

“Because this is where I am supposed to be.”

“Lying on top of me in an improper way?”

Her form shifted back to a fiery redhead, “Yes, for you are mine, Gamel.”

“Yours?”

“My lover.”

“I would think I would have some say in this matter.”

“Not really, for you would pine for me if I were to leave you alone.”

“So you are here to seduce me?”

“No”, She smiled seductively, “Just to prepare you for what will come to pass one day.   We shall join together and I shall bear your children.”

“You seem to want a slave.”

“No, Gamel, nothing like that.    You will understand one day, but now you are going to have to accept me.”

“And if I don’t?”

She smiled knowingly, “You will - already you feel the bonding.”

“Valmiai, I am a Paladin of Yesh "  He began to say, but her fingertips touched his lips and he stopped speaking in mid-sentence.

“That doesn’t matter, Gamel.    You are my mate, and I am yours.   Be at peace tonight, for your vows are safe.”   She leaned up and kissed him.   It was a long, warm kiss and though he knew he shouldn’t, he found himself returning it with an equal desire.

Finally she broke it and stroked his cheek, “Go to sleep, Melda Verno, for I shall stay with you until dawn.”

He felt an overwhelming sleepiness come over him and as he drifted off into sleep, he mulled over the Faesidhe words she had used:  Melda Verno " ‘beloved husband’.

 

Reviews

[Elina]

Yet another great chapter...but what else should I expect from you? I am so enjoying this book, as I have all your others.

"...for whatever had been traveling with them that had assumed the form of Amala was out there..." Perhaps, instead, "...traveling with them -- assuming the form of Amala -- was..." or something along those lines. ?
"...affect their chances at success at Helios’ tower." I think it would sound better as "...chances of success..."
"Mattleos was his recently found cousin that he found himself growing closer to each day." You may want to re-word so that you do not have "found" twice, here.
"...and the wind was completely still..." Maybe "...and the air was completely still..." to prevent any confusion. ?
"As they rode around, they found, large round patches..." You have an extra comma after "found."
"Aedric’s foe raked him with his claws as it flexed his neck backwards, preparing to strike. But just as it moved forward, he caught the monster’s neck in his hand." You may want to clarify some of the it's and he's, to avoid confusion for the reader.
"...it was her that imitated Amala that gave you..." Maybe change the second "that" to "and." ?
"...what Khord had told them that they must abstain from..." You can leave out "that."
"Gamel lie staring up at..." You'll want to change "lie" to "lay," I believe.

[Eddie Davis]

Thanks, Elina, for your wise changes, I am very grateful to have you read it and help me improve on it.