Forgotten Hero

by Brian Murray

  The old sailor walked up a hill and gazed out to the east. He looked up at the moon and said a silent prayer to the Divine One. Then he heard a noise. Rendel squinted. The sound got louder.

  It took a moment for the old seadog to recognise the sounds – it was marching men. His heart leapt and he looked back up to the sky.

  “Thank you, Lady,” he whispered. When the axe-wielders arrived, Rendel spoke to the new captain and issued the orders.

  Within two hours, the axe-wielders were boarding the Gliding Falcon. Within four hours, the ship sailed out of Sandall.

  ***

  Zane and his friends were making their way to Up Town when Dax called a halt.

  “Something is wrong,” said the older warrior.

  “What is it?” asked Zane.

  “I do not know but there is something out there.”

  All the men looked around at the silent, still darkness.

  Tanas whispered next, “There is something out there moving at great speed with much stealth.”

  “What is it?” asked Thade.

  “If I knew that I would tell you,” hissed Tanas, not hiding his annoyance. “But it’s not human.”

  The men heard a gargling scream to the north and then another to the east.

  “Does this remind you of something?” whispered Thade.

  “Aye, but there is no howling,” commented Gammel, keeping his voice low.

  “Remember, Gan told us that with the next two relics, the Darklord could call upon other beasts from the realm of darkness.”

  “Well, we have a choice,” whispered Dax. “We can either go on and carry out our mission or go back to the tavern.”

  From the north, another scream tore through the still air.

  “I think we should go back and ask Gan what the hell these beasts could be,” answered Zane, scanning the darkness fearfully.

  “What about the others?” asked Thade.

  “Once we get back to the tavern, Tanas and I will go out and look for the others,” announced Dax.

  “Why you two?” asked Thade.

  “Tanas is the best in darkness and I am the next quietest.”

  Thade could not argue with the logic so remained silent. The group made their way carefully back to the tavern. Once there, Tanas and Dax left the others questioning Gan-Goran, while they moved off into the night to find their friends.

  ***

  Rayth and his group found their target, a Horde’s patrol. Cocking his crossbow, Rayth took aim, knowing the rest of the men would have their targets; his shot would be the signal. Just as he was about to squeeze the trigger a black shape came out of nowhere. His target disappeared with a shrilling scream. The sudden movement and scream caused Rayth to snatch at his crossbow and his bolt flew. His men also fired, thinking Rayth had given the signal.

  A couple of other screams ripped through the air, but the innkeeper did not know whether the crossbow bolts caused them. Rushing off back to the meeting point, he arrived first. Then came Felix, breathing heavily, then Conn and Zorain. Only Dank remained outside. Another rasping scream close by caused the men to jump. Dank slowly walked into the men’s hiding place. Staggering forward, the man pitched forward into Rayth’s arms. Rayth felt liquid on Dank’s back, held out his hand, and saw blood.

  “Dank, what happened?” Rayth whispered.

  Dank’s mouth fell open, letting out a rasping last breath.

  His friend died in Rayth’s arms. Rayth placed the man on the ground and removed his axe.

  “Whoever killed Dank has to be good as he was a strong man.”

  “Not whoever, but whatever,” came Dax’s voice from the darkness. The men turned with their weapons drawn and saw the figures of Dax and Tanas coming towards them out of the gloom.

  “What are you talking about?” asked Zorain.

  “We need to get back to the tavern. Once there, Gan should be able to explain. But heed my warning: I do not think this is a beast of this world. Now let’s move. Tanas?”

  “They are close by, but they’re moving too quickly, I cannot get an accurate location for them.”

  “We had better move on,” said Dax in a hoarse whisper.

  ***

  Thade and Gammel waited nervously in the tavern. For the first time in an age, the friends had been split up. Thade looked at Gammel, who just nodded to him.

  “Zane!” called Thade. Zane entered the kitchen and Thade whispered, “Shut the door behind us. We’re going to help our friends.”

  “You do not know what is out there. I have just spoken to Gan and it is something that should not be taken lightly.”

  “You listen to me, I am going out to help my friends. You can stay here, but we’re going.”

  Zane cursed and reached for his swords. He looked at Thade and smiled his crooked smile. “Well, let’s go and help our friends.”

  Thade smiled at the young king and sneaked out of the tavern before anyone realised they were missing.

  It did not take long for them to find the others.

  Felix ran towards them, screaming silently.

  “What’s happening?” screamed Thade as the younger man skidded to a stop and glanced fearfully over his shoulder.

  “We are under attack by a beast,” panted Felix. “A mighty beast from the Realm of Darkness.”

  “Which way, boy? Which way?” screamed Gammel.

  Felix pointed a finger that shook uncontrollably.

  The three men rushed off in the indicated direction. Seeing his king and new friends run to assist the others, Felix regained some courage and chased after them.

  Ahead of the others, Gammel pulled his broadsword clear and screamed his battle cry. Thade pulled clear his two gladiator swords and attacked. Zane paused for a moment to look at the huge creatures. Conn was on the ground, injured, and towering over him was a beast defending itself against the battling men.

  The beast had the scaled, elongated head of a wolf, orange, cat-like eyes, and the body of a huge, powerful man. The creature had a strange exoskeleton covering its back, torso, arms, and legs – living armour that was as tough as steel. Black as pitch, the creature blended perfectly into the darkness and the creature’s speed was awesome as it cut and swung its deadly weapon. Its weapon was a long quarterstaff with double-bladed axe heads at each end that it twisted, lashed out, and stabbed at the smaller men.

  Zane charged in, cutting and swinging his swords, just avoiding the beast’s weapon. If it were not for the attack from the Talon Hunters, Zane would not have believed it possible to face such creatures. The men battled the two creatures but they were tiring fast. One of Dax’s axes hit the creature on the arm but caused no damage. Time and time again, the men struck out but their weapons did no damage. Zane stepped back to appraise the situation. Pulling Felix by the scruff of the neck, he shouted a command to the younger man.

  “Fetch oil and fire. Go now!”

  Felix rushed off to get some torches.

  Gammel swung his huge sword with all his might and connected with one of the beasts. Crunch! The beast’s outer skeleton cracked. Dax and Rayth saw the damage inflicted by the former blacksmith and started chopping at the same beast’s back with their axes. Thick green fluid seeped from the crack as the men continued to attack relentlessly. Screaming a warning at the top of his voice, Tanas jumped high and plunged both of his swords into the beast’s splintered back. Using the force and weight of his body, his swords sank deep into the creature’s body. The creature hissed loudly and jerked its back, throwing Tanas free, but the blind warrior’s swords remained buried in the beast.

  The Shadow stalked forward sluggishly, looming over the fallen Tanas and raising its double-ended axe. Thade duplicated Tanas’s action move by jumping high onto the creature’s back, plunging his swords home. Forcing his arms outwards, his blades caused maximum damage to the beast. Green slime sprayed up over Thade as the creature spun around, dislodging the smaller man. Both the beast and Thade fell. Then, right before the men
’s eyes, the creature evaporated into a plume of thick black smoke, leaving four short swords clattering on the ground where the beast once lay dying.

  The men stopped for a while moment in disbelief, forgetting about the other creature. The Shadow arched a huge swing towards Zane. Pushing the king clear, Dax crossed his axes above his head and braced himself for the blow with his knees slightly bent.

  Clang!

  The sound rang out, echoing up and down the alleyway. To everyone’s surprise, Dax still stood, holding the beast’s weapon at bay.

  The beast hissed loudly.

  Dax roared in defiance. Pushing upward, Dax forced the beast backwards. Shouting a victory cry, he charged the beast, stepping over Zane. Using an underarm swing, Dax crashed one of his axes into the Shadow’s groin. The axe lodged home. Rayth bent down on one knee, and with all his might chopped at the beast’s ankle. The Shadow bent over. Using both hands, Dax smashed his remaining axe through the Shadow’s thick cranium, lodging in place. The Shadow drew its head up quickly, throwing Dax clear. The old warrior’s flight suddenly stopped when he thudded into a wall. He slumped into a heap.

  Thade charged the injured Shadow, but the beast slapped him away, sending him sprawling down the alley. Rayth chopped again low and the Shadow hissed in what seemed like pain. For his efforts, Rayth had snapped through the Shadow’s leg and it stumbled and fell onto its back.

  Retrieving his swords and jumping high, Tanas landed astride the Shadow’s chest, forcing his swords through the beast’s armoured torso. Forcing his arms over his chest, Tanas’s swords punched out the sides of the dying Shadow. Tanas fell to the floor as the creature, like the first, disintegrated into a rising plume of foul, reeking black smoke. Rising slowly, Tanas walked over to Dax.

  “You all right, old man?”

  “Just taking a rest, I had done all the work and thought I would give you the kill.”

  “That’s mighty nice of you,” said Tanas, reaching down to help Dax up.

  Rayth helped Zane onto his feet and walked towards Thade to help him. Thade sat up and smiled at the big innkeeper. Rayth’s mouth opened.

  In a flash, a black shape dropped from the roof of a building and grabbed Thade. Hissing at Rayth, the beast leapt back up to the roof and glared triumphantly down at the scurrying men. Hissing once more, the Shadow loped towards the palace across the building tops.

  “DAX!” was the last word heard from Thade.

  ***

  Seeing the Shadow grab Thade, Dax jumped to his feet and had his axes in his hands in a heartbeat. Dax roared in anguish as the Shadow jumped from rooftop to rooftop, heading towards the palace. Falling to his knees, the old warrior screamed, “THADE!!!”

  Dax rose from his knees as a single tear rolled down his face. Putting his axes back in their sheaths, he picked up Thade’s swords.

  Rayth walked up to him. “My friend, he’s still alive, and we will get him back.”

  Without a word, Dax turned away and walked back to the Flying Vessel.

  The bruised group made their way to the tavern as Felix came running towards them carrying a tin of lantern oil and a torch.

  “Don’t worry about that now, boy,” said Rayth.

  “Are they gone?”

  “Aye, back to the darkness,” answered Zorain.

  Felix dropped the torch and helped Zorain carry the unconscious Conn.

  ***

  Back at the tavern, the women fussed about the men. There were ointments, lotions, and bandages flying around the common room, as the men’s wounds were looked after. Gan-Goran tended to the men, starting with Conn and moving on to the less badly wounded. But to the women, all the men were hurt and deserved their attention. Ireen sat in the corner with Dax, crying on the man’s shoulder as he tried to comfort her.

  Dax turned to Gan-Goran, his eyes blazing with anger. “Gan, what will they do with Thade?”

  “At this moment, the boy will be fine. From the scriptures I have read, they need a Child of the Light as a sacrifice to complete the Ritual of Resurrection. They will need to complete the ritual on a night when the moon is full. The rite starts at dusk and needs to be completed just before dawn. If completed, the Dark One will walk this world once again.”

  “What about the crystal?”

  “They will need the crystal, but that is for the gateway between the worlds. They can complete the ritual to resurrect the Dark One without the crystal.”

  “When is it a full moon?” asked Dax.

  “In two nights.”

  “We will get him back then.”

  “How?” asked Zorain in his distinctive, high-pitched voice. “The palace is guarded by the Dark Brethren and those men butchered our Royal Lancers. What can we few do against them?”

  “I did not ask for your help, nor do I need your help,” said Dax. “I will go alone if needs be.”

  “And you will die,” persisted Zorain.

  “Then I die.”

  “This is outrageous. You will risk all for the sake of one man. Jeopardise the safety of our city for that boy.”

  Dax stormed to his feet and Zorain rose as quickly. The two men stared into each other’s eyes. Dax’s violet eyes were aglow with rage. “I will go to the palace and bring my boy out. And you, you can stay out of my way.”

  Zorain stepped forward, but Gammel rose and stood in front of the Captain of the City Watch.

  “In this, Zorain, you are wrong. Dax will not go alone, as I will go with him.” Gammel looked at Tanas and Zane. “We started this as a team and we will finish it so.”

  Tanas rose and declared to Megan’s distress, “I will go. And that makes three.”

  “Zane?” asked Gammel.

  All eyes fell on the young king. He had a choice: the safety of his city or the safety of his friend. Looking up at Dax, he made up his mind and smiled his crooked smile.

  ***

  They rested during the next day and night, too exhausted to go out and cause any more mischief. Tanas walked up to Gan-Goran, who was in the kitchen cooking, and said, “I thought you said they needed the crystal as part of the resurrection rite?”

  “Well, I was wrong,” replied the magic-master, tasting his bubbling stew.

  “Wrong again, Gan.”

  “Aye, I have been wrong a few times; it comes with old age, my friend.”

  Tanas said no more and left the kitchen with troubled thoughts.

  ***

  In the palace, Chaos opened his eyes and smiled with satisfaction. “Two of them died, the warrior is still as strong as he should be,” he told Davron.

  “Who died?”

  “The Darklord raised three Shadows and he defeated two of them.”

  “That is no mean feat,” said Davron, amazed, having been told about the Dark One.

  “I know, and now I am ready for him.”

  “Are you allowed to go after him?”

  “Not yet, but soon. Soon my time will come.”

  Chapter 25

  At dawn, the alert alarm rang as the scouts galloped their horses through the gates of the outer wall of Teldor. They brought the news that the Rhaurn army was but a few miles away. The news travelled around the city like wildfire; their army had returned and they would be free. The army’s pending arrival was like a clean, fresh sea breeze blowing over the inhabitants of Teldor, clearing away much, but not all of the fear that hung in the air.

  By midday, the cavalry of the Rhaurn army was camped outside the walls of Teldor.

  ***

  General Brooks rode forward to the outer gate of Teldor, flanked by two Royal Lancers. Looking up at the defenders on the wall, he knew there would be a fight to the death. He halted his horse just short of bow range and cleared his throat.

  “I am General Brooks of the Rhaurn army, and Warlord to the King. I hereby give you two hours to open the gates and surrender our city. If you comply, I will not harm a single man. If you fight, you will be killed without mercy.”

  Malice had ridden fr
om the palace to the outer wall upon receiving the news about the Rhaurn army. He stood above the gate in the wall and responded to the request. His voice boomed out across the rolling hills like rumbling thunder. “My name is Malice, Warlord for Naats Flureic, under the black banner. This city is under our command and control. How can you fight in the name of a king who is dead?"

  “Our king is dead, yes, but his son lives, King Zane lives.”

  This did not surprise Malice and he smiled wryly at the general.

  “Well, if you want your city, you will have to come and take it. We will kill any man who bears arms against us. Your Royal Lancers who remained in the city are all dead. You cannot defeat us, so be gone.”

  Malice did not wait for a reply. Instead, he turned his back on General Brooks and stepped down from the wall.

  ***

  At the Temple of the Path, the high priestess prepared herself and her senior priests for the rite later that evening. They had received word from the warrior named Malice that the Darklord wished them to conduct the ceremony in his presence. Receiving this honour made the priestess very happy and proud, as she would be present at the rebirth of the Dark One. She had spent the previous day and night reading through sacred scriptures and reciting the ancient script.

  Her priests had been going through the lists of followers, selecting the few who would join them at the palace. Two of the names that came out were those of a junior priest, Krondo the baker, and his wife Marva.

  ***

  Krondo let out a cry of delight after receiving a visit from a priest of his temple. He and his wife had been specially selected to accompany the high priestess to the Ritual of Resurrection. He strutted into the shop and told his wife the good news.

  “We shall be there,” he announced happily. The congregation had been told that the rite would be carried out and a few of the followers would be chosen to join them. None knew the story of the Dark One, only that He would be resurrected. They had been told that He was the ‘God who created the Path’. Krondo and Marva were some of the last to join the temple and were surprised that they would now accompany the senior priests.