The Summoned

    It was, as Asa would later reflect when panic and fear had finally left him, inevitable.  The same magic that had brought Asa across the planes flowed through two other sources - the two other Gatekeeping rods.  Asa had nothing to fear from the owner of the Summoner's plane rod - Thalla had, after all, had given permission to summon her.  The owner of the Gatekeeping Rod of the Dark Plane, however, brought to bear a great deal to fear.
    And that owner, Norax, was standing before Asa.
    Asa's mind nearly froze, and he found himself unable to move or speak.  Norax was across the clearing, standing and regarding the young summoner coldly, saying nothing.
    Clenching his teeth and gathering his will together, Asa slowly stood up, every part of his body visibly shaking as he tried to keep from breaking down right there.  When he spoke, it was with a tremble, and with no power behind it.  He could barely whisper the word....   "Norax."
    "Asa."  Norax's voice projected powerfully across the clearing but died as it hit the trees.  "You've run from me long enough.  The old man can't help you now.  You're going to come back to the Dark Plane with me.  But first, you're going to discard that rod."
    Asa almost did it.  His grip on the Gatekeeping rod, previously iron-tight, weakened as his will wavered.  Then the power within the artifact rose slowly into life, and Asa's determination hardened.  "I'm not going anywhere."  he said, his voice stabilizing as he felt the Rod waken.
    Norax stood still for a moment.  "You're a fool."  With that, he raised his own Gatekeeping Rod.
    Asa felt an intense pull at his mind and almost took an involuntary step forward - which would most likely have been the end of him.  Fighting the sudden onslaught, he raised his own rod up.  Its power, nearly visible, flowed out into him, and across the gap to combat Norax's summon.
    The two stood, frozen, at opposite ends of the clearing.  The air between them was tense with energy, and whirled itself about in manic patterns as the battle of wills continued.  A low warbling sound emanated, nearly silent at first, but increasing in volume.  The power clashing in the center of the clearing slowly became visible, first as a deep discoloration in the air, then as a rapidly spreading area of darkness.  The warbling crescendoed into a screech.
    Asa's terrified mind couldn't handle it all - he didn't see the discoloration, he didn't hear the screech.  All he felt was raw, untamed power pouring from the Gatekeeping Rods as they battled each other.  The outside world shrank away, and all that was left was the power.  And it was his.  He screamed as it tore through him - screamed, not in agony but in triumph.  He was all-powerful, and there was not anything that could stand in his way.  And then, suddenly, it all stopped, and he slumped to the ground.

    Paul ran into the clearing, followed rapidly by the remainder of the group.  Only Paul had seen what had been on the other side of the clearing - a tall figure encased in armor, that vanished before the wizard could get a second look.  Not that he had needed it, of course.  He had known that something was wrong the instant he had awakened.  He had hesitated, sleep still dulling his reflexes - he feared now that hesitation had been fatal.
    Elayna and Rachel were first at Asa's side.  The young healer was already concentrating deeply while the elder summoner cast about for the cause of the disruption.  Leo simply stood in the entrance of the clearance, staring at that which had caused most of the team's initial hesitation.
    A small shimmering rift spun slowly in the center of the clearing.  Standing like a luminescent diamond, it reminded Paul of only one thing that he had seen before.  A second Nexus was before them.

    Paul put it together rather quickly.  Norax had been here, and had tricked Asa into resisting the summons.  Not that Asa had much choice, of course - it was either resist of be forced into subjugation.  At such close range, however, the conflict between the two Gatekeeping Rods was too much, and it had created something
similar to what had been done the first time such a conflict arose.  A new nexus shined, its implications slowly dawning on the wizard.
    "We've got to go." Paul spoke up, keeping his eyes trained on the new nexus.
    Rachel looked up from Asa, and Elayna ignored the wizard completely.  "What?  We can't leave him here!"
    "I didn't say to do so."  He looked back to her, and then over to Leo.  "Can the two of you carry him?"
    Leo looked back from his searching of the clearing.  "What's wrong Paul?  What's happened here?"
    Paul didn't have time to explain, but he knew the rest of the team probably wouldn't go along with him unless he did.  "Norax was here.  It was his magic that woke me - he used his Gatekeeping Rod to get here, just like Asa did.  Norax tried to summon Asa again, and Asa used that rod to block it.  They were too close though - and the conflict caused that."  He gestured to the Nexus.
    "Norax did that on purpose?" Rachel stared at him in disbelief.  "But that's ludicrous!  How did he know he wouldn't end up getting himself killed?  There's a million things that can happen when you bring two rods of any significant power in conflict, and I can't think of any rods with more power than the Gatekeeping Rods.  It just doesn't make sense!"
    Paul nodded.  "I'm inclined to agree with you, it sounds rather foolish.  Either it's an act of desperation, or there actually is a plan.  Norax is bringing his forces into this plane through the main nexus to the south, but that nexus is centered a good distance in the air.  He can't bring siege machinery through, for instance.  Darren's castle could be overrun through sheer manpower, but LePaige has been preparing for this sort of battle a long time.  I think Norax somehow managed it so that he got a Nexus where he wanted it.  Perhaps his not being in the Dark Plane was key, I don't know.  At any rate, I believe that as soon as he gets back to his troops, he'll start moving in.  We have to go before that happens."
    "How did he find us?"  Leo asked.  "You said that you threw off his wizards."
    Paul shook his head, his exhaustion showing through.  "I thought I did.  Perhaps it's what Norax wanted me to think so I'd let my guard down.  I'm sorry to have failed you."
    "It's not your fault.  Norax has a lot more experience than any of us in practicing treachery, we couldn't have anticipated him.  I think the best course of action is, as you suggested, to get to LePaige's as swiftly as possible."  He turned to Elayna, who was still kneeling by the prone form of Asa.  "Can we move him?"
    "There's nothing physically wrong with him."  Elayna said, keeping her eyes on the young summoner.  "I don't know why he's unconscious, probably shock from the battle, or backlash from the Nexus opening.  I think that he'll come around, but I don't know."
    Leo nodded, assuming that the child's speech meant it was safe to move Asa.  Signaling to Rachel, they both lifted the summoner.  Elayna put the Gatekeeping Rod, clutched firmly in the man's hand, across his chest.
    Paul took a deep breath and concentrated, gathering strength from reserves deep inside which had already been much tapped.  "Okay, let's go."