“That’s Lorda.”
“Yes, Lorda Mother.”
She scoffed. As she did so, she leaned forward and stole a quick glance at the sack gripped in Sinway’s fingers. She smirked and sat back. Casting her eyes to the center of the arena, she said, “More meat for the slaughter, I see. Such barbaric entertainment.”
Ebenezer leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and studied the men in the arena. Creed, one of Bone’s finest swordsmen of Castle Bloodhound was painted in black and red war paint, trimmed in white, which gave him a formidable look. He and the bloodhound fighter were similar in build. Both were much taller than average men, but the man beside Creed had the build and body of an Outland savage and looked freakishly inhuman with the paint streaking over his skin. The man’s hands were huge, arms long and bound up with bulging muscles that rippled with every move. His eyes were volcanic blue and bore holes into the underling, Kazzar, only to shift from time to time onto the sack that Master Sinway held. The man was ready to spring. Ebenezer was eager to see the man fight.
Manamus searched the arena and said under her breath, “There are a great many sorcerous underlings in our midst. Or rather, we are in the midst of them. I have to say, I never could have imagined this. We’ve been fools, playing games with our own kind and not being prepared for something like this.”
“I thought the royal games were supposed to prepare us for anything.”
“Eh.”
Long thick lengths of chain were brought out by the underling soldiers. At the point of a spear, both men were collared and chained to an eye hook in the arena wall. The underlings moved the weapon racks back to the other wall. They left a single dagger in the middle of the arena.
***
Altan Rey, also known as Kazzar the underling, appeared now as a man, not a gray-skinned fiend, and stepped into the center of the ring. He held up his hands. “It gives me and the House of Kord much pleasure to entertain Master Sinway.”
Venir charged Altan Rey. The length of chain grew taut. His head snapped back. Fingers stretched short of Altan Rey’s robes, Venir yelled, “I’ll kill you! Traitor!”
The audience hissed and chittered. Altan Rey coolly moved away. “We’ll let the devourer decide who kills who.” He motioned toward the dugout door with his hand. A half-naked underling dressed in lizard skins and with tiny finger bones tied up in his long hair waltzed out. The underling carried a long rod carved from wood. A lizard bigger than a man slunk out of the hole. Hard black and green scales covered its body. The underling rapped the stick on the side of its head. It hissed. A black tongue flicked out from a mouthful of hundreds of spear-like teeth.
Underling sentries removed Venir and Creed’s chains as Kazzar entered the dugout. “Try to keep it entertaining!” He closed the door behind him.
Venir scooped up the dagger and tossed it to Creed.
Ebenezer couldn’t control himself. “This is a sacred place, Master Sinway! We don’t fight lizards. We fight with steel. Honor the contest.”
The underlings surrounding them fell silent. Master Sinway turned his iron gaze on Ebenezer. “You dare speak to me as an equal. You will forever regret it.”
Ebenezer held the underling’s stare for a moment. His eyes began to burn. He twisted his head away. “Gah!” He rubbed his palms into his sockets.
His mother held his arm. “You are a fool. You’ll get us both killed. Who cares about honor at this point? It’s survival.”
Tears streamed down his face. He wiped them off. “Apologies, Master Sinway. I lost my place.” Ebenezer’s vision began to clear. Every underling around him cast murderous looks his way. He swallowed.
***
The black lizard slunk out of the dugout. Its thick claws clacked on blood-stained stone. The underling trainer gave it a rap on the skull. It opened its jaw wide enough to swallow a man whole.
Wary, Creed spoke to Venir. “Have you ever seen such a thing?”
Venir nodded. “Aim for the temple.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to hold it while you kill it. Be quick. You’ll only get one shot.”
“We should be able to handle a lizard, shouldn’t we?”
“It’s not just one lizard.”
The underling handler rapped the rod on the devourer’s back. A swarm of smaller lizards rushed out of the lizard’s mouth. They scurried over the floor and latched onto Venir and Creed’s feet. They crawled up their bodies, snapping and biting at their flesh. Creed screamed.
With a final rap from the underling handler, the mother lizard rushed Venir.
CHAPTER 3
Fogle, Kam, and Billip returned to the barn. They had been searching the city, trying to find out more information on Venir and where he was located. Everyone was present, which included Brak, Jubilee, Nikkel, Slim, Cass, and the old stableman. Nightmare, Chongo, and Quickster were in the stables. One of Chongo’s faces was pressed against the gate. He whined.
“Chongo wants to go after Venir,” Brak said. He reached down into the stable and scratched the dog’s ears. “He won’t stay here for long. We need to go after Venir.”
“You said he was inside Castle Kling.” Jubilee stood by Brak, barely a head taller than his waist. “Cast that spell. Let’s go.”
“We can’t just pop in there.” Fogle sat on a stool, leafing through the spellbook. “I need a better idea of where I’m going first, or at least, where Venir is. I’ve sent Inky. Be patient.” He stood up and walked away. Kam sat just inside one of the stables, out of the way of the others. She was nursing Erin. “Oh, pardon me,” Fogle said. “I was looking for privacy, but it seems you are in need of some.”
“Please, this is nothing you should be embarrassed about.” Kam offered a warm smile. Her voice was soothing. “Come, sit, I could use more of your company. Erin is difficult to feed sometimes. We don’t have the food she likes at our disposal. Hard times.” She pulled Erin away and covered back up. “Do you need assistance with any spells?”
Fogle’s eyes hung on her breasts a little longer than they should have. “Uh… what was that?”
Kam tightened the strings that held the top of her dress together. “I’m ashamed to admit that I’m enjoying toying with you, Fogle. I shouldn’t be at this perilous time. That kiss, it got into me more than it should have.”
“I’m glad I’m not alone in tergiversations.” He swallowed. “I think all of this adventure gets our blood running hot, and there is the unknown of when we’ll be able to have a good time again.”
“I should be focused on Venir, but whenever he’s gone, I’m distracted. It makes me angry.”
“You’ve chosen a very hard man to care about. But everything he does, he does for his family. He does for us all.”
“I just fear the time will come when he doesn’t come back again.” She set Erin down. The little girl teetered across the barn to Brak. Kam pulled her knees to her chest. “I honestly don’t know if I’d be more lonely or relieved without him.”
“This is war, Kam. Not all of the soldiers come back. There’s nothing wrong with thinking about your future, but if we don’t stop the underlings, there will be no future to be had. Venir understands that better than any of us, no matter how wise we perceive ourselves to be. My grandfather is like that as well. That armament jades them, I believe.”
Kam leaned her head against the stall. She took a deep breath, straining the leather cords at the top of her dress, and let it out.
Fogle rose from his seat. “I’m going to remove myself. It’s too difficult to concentrate in your proximity. Apologies, Kam.”
“I understand. I need time alone to search my thoughts as well.”
He moved to another stable and closed the gate behind him. His heart raced. What is going on with me? I’ve three women after me. He smirked. Perhaps my reputation precedes me.
He took a seat on a soggy bed of hay. It was a dingy spot, smelling of rotting straw and manure. Cobwebs and spiders as
big as his fist clung to the rafters. He shivered and stuck his nose in his spellbook. After reading a few pages, he closed the book. Muttering a quick incantation, he reconnected with Inky.
The bird took flight from its perch on a chimney flue. It soared high about the spires, drifting in gentle side-to-side angles. Despite Fogle’s unfamiliarity of the City of Bone, Hoff had given him an ample description of the Kling banner. He also knew that the castle was on the western wall. The bird landed on a top spire. Its eyes scoured the castle tops.
“Well, foil me,” Fogle said. The banners of the royal houses had been taken down. He should have known better. The underlings did the same thing in the City of Three. The ebony hawk’s eyes followed the soldiers marching through the courtyard. Many still bore the insignias of their house on their chests. “Not it. Move on,” he said. He was looking for the striking image of a golden lion resting behind a red shield crossed in black.
Inky jetted from one castle spire to another. The bird perched inside a window seal. A sand spider scuttled by.
Fogle jumped. Goose bumps rose on his arms. “I really hate those things.”
Inky glided down to a lower turret. Fogle spotted the golden lion crest on a soldier’s shield.
Got it. Good. Now I just need to find out where Venir is.
The royal knight, Hoff, had been a wonderful source of information. He explained about the arenas, where the soldiers fought, trained, and held ceremonies. The castles, at least most of them, had domes made from stained glass. Inky took flight and circled until Fogle spotted what he was looking for. The bird landed on a dome of glass and peered inside. The colored glass was difficult to see through.
Strut around, Inky. I need a clear view.
The familiar moved from one glass pane to another. There were bird droppings all over. It gave Fogle some comfort. The bird wouldn’t be something that anyone would pay any particular attention to. He rubbed his hands together. “There!”
The bird stopped over a transparent section. The seats inside the stands were filled to capacity with underlings. Two men painted like savages moved about the arena, but the bird poop obscured part of the view. He caught a glimpse of Venir’s uncanny frame. That’s him!
Inky jostled. A tremor went through Fogle’s body. The bird’s view violently shifted. Get out of there, Inky! Fogle spotted a sand spider coming right at him. Inky was stuck in webbing. The one approaching spit goo. The ebony hawk’s vision blurred and went black. Blast it! I lost him!
CHAPTER 4
Venir set his feet. With small lizards crawling all over him, he met the mother devourer’s charge. The lizard slammed into him full force, driving him to the ground. Its long snout snapped an inch short of Venir’s nose. He wrestled over the floor with the scaly monster. Thrashing back and forth, they barrel-rolled over the floor. The beast was strong in scale and muscle. It twisted in Venir’s arms.
“Get over here and stab this thing!” Venir roared at Creed. The lizard’s tail coiled around his leg. Its teeth snipped a hunk of skin from his shoulder. “Curse you, scaled devil!” Venir socked it in the neck with his fist. It was like hitting a sack of rice.
Creed ripped a lizard from his face. The tiny claws burned as they raked across his skin. The little monsters chewed him up like he was in a bath of piranhas. He pulled them off one, two, and three at a time. “Madness!” he cried out. Aside from the underlings, he wasn’t accustomed to fighting strange creatures. The lizards were reckless and unrelenting. Bleeding all over, he surged toward Venir.
Venir locked his big arms and legs around the devourer. He squeezed with all his might. It wriggled, hissed, and snapped with wild intensity. “Stab this thing! I can’t hold it forever!”
Covered in a blanket of scales, Creed fought his way over to Venir. He took a knee and aimed. “I don’t see a temple. Where do I strike it?”
“Just above the earhole.” Venir jutted his chin in the general direction. “Now!”
Creed’s eyes widened. He jabbed the dagger into the devourer’s skull. It sank hilt deep, and he gave it a fierce twist. Scale and bone made a sickening scrunch sound. Blood oozed from its head. It writhed no more. The devourer’s babies dropped from Venir and Creed’s bodies. Lifeless.
Venir shoved the dead lizard from his chest, panting, and freed his leg from its tail. Creed kicked the lizards away. The underling handler darted in behind Creed and struck him in the back with its staff. Creed let out a wild cry. He whipped around, striking fast, and tore the underling’s throat out with the dagger. Gurgling in its own blood, it dropped dead. Holding his side, he staggered. Venir caught him. He held the man upright. “Will you live?”
Creed sucked air through his teeth. “We’ll see.”
Blood ran down their bodies from small wounds peppering their flesh. Sweat and blood caked their stained hair. Venir faced Altan Rey. “What are you waiting for, traitor? Send another meat sack in for the slaughter.”
The underlings jeered. The underling soldiers carried the lizard handler’s corpse away to the dugout, and the lizard was dragged into one of the trap floors. The smaller creatures were scooped up and swept away.
Altan Rey came out of the dugout. “Rest yourself, men, while I consult with the new leadership.”
Venir and Creed stood tall in the ring. Elypsa came down the stairs, graceful as a swan and deadly as a poisonous spider. She spoke in underling to Altan Rey. “The underling truly is a marvel, isn’t she?” Creed said to Venir.
“Yes.” Venir’s eyes attached to the sack.
Master Sinway clutched it like a newborn’s blanket. The sack seemed like a harmless thing, but there was still a sense of the power within. Perhaps, Venir thought, he’d learned to rely on it too much. Now he needed it more than ever. He gave the sack up willingly, but maybe it wasn’t his to possess in the first place. What might have been, might be gone now and forever.
Elypsa glanced over the men a time or two as she spoke with Altan Rey. Finally, she broke away and resumed her seat between Kuurn and Master Sinway. Ebenezer and Manamus sat on the other side of Master Sinway but not close. Their eyes were filled with intensity.
Altan Rey lifted his arms, revealing Melegal’s cleverly concealed dart launchers. He approached the warriors but stayed out of reach. “It seems that the underlings would like to see a battle of steel. I’m bringing the racks out. Take what you want. Choose wisely.”
“Unlike you, we will.” Creed spat on the ground. “You’ll regret this deception, Altan Rey.”
The mage offered a quick smile. “No, I won’t.” He walked off.
The underling soldiers carried over the weapon racks. They set one in front of Venir and the other in front of Creed. Creed chose a finely crafted pair of longswords. There weren’t many men alive that could fight with both. Twisting the blades through the air, he grimaced.
Venir hadn’t fought with anything but Brool in quite some time. Everything he touched was unfamiliar to his hand. He took a battle axe. The edges were notched up, but the blade was hard and keen. It was a toy in his hands compared to Brool. He grabbed a hatchet to match it. Looking at Creed, he shrugged.
The underlings took the weapon racks away and set them against the arena’s wall. The underling crowd started their rousing chittering. Altan Rey stood to the side of the dugout doorway and waved.
Men in ragged clothing ambled out. Sacks with eye and mouth holes covered their faces. Most of them were raw boned, and they could barely carry the swords they held. The underlings showed them outside one by one. Their eyes were white as moons as they gazed at Venir and Creed. One of the ragged soldiers tried to run back into the dugout. An underling solider drove a jagged dagger into his gut. The man doubled over with a loud moan before he died.
Altan clapped his hands. “To the death, gentlemen.” He closed himself inside. “To the death.”
CHAPTER 5
Underlings prowled the Under-Bish. Boon, aided by Blackie, dispatched them into the strange lands beyond the Mis
t. The tiny fiends were little more than rodents scurrying the halls of ziggurat that many giants called home. Driven by a lust for death, they crept into a nursery where a pair of twin baby giants lay in the cradle. The softly snoring infants were bigger than cows. The underling soldiers, curved blades in hand, slew the infants.
It was hours before the giants caught wind of the murder. Outraged, booming voices shook the hallways. The underlings scurried through the halls, searching for places to hide as the giants hunted them down. Cornered in a kitchen of massive proportions, the underlings were swallowed up in enormous hands.
A giant man squeezed an underling so hard its eyes popped out. Bones were crushed into fragments. The small knot of underlings died like rats, but the giants were furious. They dressed for war. Gathering by the dozens and armed to the teeth, they marched into the Mist, singing a haunting tune.
***
Georgio rubbed his blurry eyes. A weird howling caught his ears. Barton, the young, disfigured giant that was aiding them, stopped in his tracks, and Georgio bumped into his leg. “What is that noise?”
Barton spun around. “Giant song.”
“Awful song is more like it,” Lefty said. He was perched on the giant’s shoulder, holding onto his hair. “We need to get out of here, Barton.”
“We are close.” Barton trudged along again.
Georgio rushed after the long-legged giant. The mist was so thick that he could barely see ten feet in front of him. And even though Barton moved slowly, it was still much quicker than the stride of a normal man. Georgio had let Barton carry him for a while, but it was awkward, and Barton’s breath was awful. “Barton, you said that hours ago. Bish! It might as well have been months ago. This is taking forever!”
“It’s not as long as you think it seems. The Mist is tricky. Don’t believe it.”
“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” Lefty said.
The Darkslayer: Bish and Bone Series Collector's Edition (Books 1-10): Sword and Sorcery Masterpieces Page 110
