The Emerald Throne

by Sarah Coley

  "Seriously Brennus, when did you get chance to do that? We didn't even slow down in that place."

  Eleanor sat down and took a mouth full of the Whiskey. She didn't usually drink and the taste got the back of her throat, although she did enjoy the warmth she felt in her stomach.

  "Some dizzy old woman had left it outside her house,” Brennus declared. "If your going to leave your drink outside your house, expect to have it pinched."

  Eleanor smiled at that. As a private investigator, she should be appalled at his actions, but his cheeky demeanor and good heart kept every bodies spirits up.

  "So, have you decided what your gonna do once we reach Brackon?" Brennus asked.

  " To be honest Brennus, I'm not really sure. I should go back home and back to my old life, but since I've been here, I've felt more alive than I ever did back at home."

  "Is it really true what the mage says then? Are you really from Albion?"

  "Yes, we came here through some portal that Astel created in our world. Things are a hell of a lot different here though.” Eleanor took another mouthful of Brennus' whiskey and coughed.

  "Shit. I didn't think it was real. I mean I humored you all to be polite, but I didn't believe you were being serious."

  "Thank you so much for believing in us Brennus,” Eleanor said dryly.

  "You're very welcome. Now why the Hell would you want to stay here, in the middle of this mess, when you could be there, sat in some cozy warm house, feeling safe. Don't you have any family?"

  "No, not anymore. My parents died when I was younger and I haven't got any siblings. I've always just kept to myself."

  "That must get really lonely."

  "Sometimes, but I kinda like being by myself most of the time. I can do what I want, when I want. I don't have the worry or commitments that others have. I can focus on my work.” Saying it out loud, Eleanor suddenly realized how selfish she sounded. Before she'd come to Rogardium, she'd relished in the comfort of her independence. Now, having met Brennus and Astel, having seen a different world, even though it was thwart with danger, she'd began to enjoy the friendships she'd made and the adventures she'd been part of. She didn't think she could ever go back to her old way of life.

  Feeling a little self conscious all of a sudden, she decided she needed to change the subject quickly.

  "Anyway, you said you lost your family when you were a child. Do you feel you can tell me about it?"

  Brennus looked at the floor and sighed. "I was about nine if memory serves me. I'd gone out into the woods that morning to hunt for rabbits. We had a farmstead near the Northern borders, and lived off the land. There was my Dad, my Mother, my sister Elena and I, and we kept to ourselves for the most part. We raised and sold cattle, and farmed the land for crops. My Father had taught me how to hunt and I would go out to find extra small game for super. Anyhow, there was a raid by Goblins in a nearby village of Westlode. It happened quite frequently in the North but usually to unsuspecting travelers.”

  “On their way back to the badlands where the Goblins live, they decided to cut across country to the border, venturing onto our land. I wasn't there when it happened but I heard the screams from where I was hunting. I rushed back as fast as I could but they were all dead.”

  “My Dad was laying face down in the mud just outside our house and my Mum and sister had been impaled on tree branches nearby. There was blood everywhere. They'd set the house on fire and just left."

  "Damn Brennus. You were only a child when it happened. It must have effected you deeply,” Eleanor remarked. "What did you do?"

  “What could I do? I was nine. I ran as fast as I could to the next farmstead to get help, and they told me what had happened at West lode. My home, my family had just been in the way. I didn't have any other family so I just lived off the land, joining bandits for profit when I needed the gold."

  "That was a horrible thing to happen to you Brennus at such a young age. I'm so sorry,” Eleanor put her hand on Brennus' shoulder.

  "Don't worry about it Eleanor. It was...."

  Brennus abruptly stopped talking and began to gradually rise to his feet. He held one hand up to Eleanor to signal to her to wait whilst drawing his sword with the other.

  "Brennus, what's going on?" Eleanor whispered. She was looking around frantically, but her eyes weren't yet accustomed to the dark nights in a world without the modern comfort of electricity like Brennus' were, and all she could see were the dark silhouettes of the tree branches in the distance swaying lightly in the breeze.

  Brennus spoke quickly and quietly whilst keeping his eye on the woods. "Get the others up now. We're not alone!"

  Chapter 18

  Eleanor rushed back to the camp, using the dying embers of the fire as a visual guide. She hated having to leave Brennus to fend for himself, but she had no weapon with her and she had no idea how many enemies there where out there or what was waiting for them in the gloom.

  She reached Owen's small tent first and without thinking kicked the side of it frantically hoping to wake him quickly. She knew how hard it was to get Owen conscious from all the early morning get ups she'd had to do when they were on cases, and fearing he wouldn't move quickly enough to defend himself, she decided she needed something shocking to wake him quickly.

  "Owen!" Eleanor whispered with force. "Owen, get your arse up now.” She gave another hard kick to the tent whilst shaking the top.

  "What the hell Eleanor?" Owen groggily replied from inside his tent.

  "We're under attack. Get up and get your sword."

  "Shit, ok,” Owen poked his head out of the tent whilst carrying his sword. Eleanor presumed he slept with it next to him like she'd taken to doing for the past few weeks. In a land of strange uncertainty that Eleanor was now in, she needed to feel as safe as she could, even if it was something as small as sleeping with a blade close by.

  Eleanor carried on kicking the tent. She was so panicked by the situation, she was having issues getting her brain to engage with the rest of her body.

  "For god sake Eleanor!" Owen said forcefully. "I'm awake, with my sword in my hand. You can stop kicking me now!"

  "Sorry, just get to Brennus. He's over there on his own. I'll get Astel."

  "I'm already here,” Astel bellowed as she marched with purpose past where they both were stood, wielding her staff which was glowing a bright blue at the end. "Eleanor, get your sword. Quickly!"

  Eleanor darted to the other side of their campsite before leaping into her tent and grabbing her sword. Brennus had acquired their weapons from a blacksmiths two days after they left Rogard, although when Brennus said acquired, Eleanor was sure he'd meant stolen. Her sword hadn't been made with a woman in mind, and so Eleanor found it a little heavy to lift. Despite this, Brennus continuing tutorials had given her the confidence she needed to use it if she had to, as well as a growing stamina to match that of her foes.

  Eleanor ran as fast as she could to where she'd left Brennus. Brennus was laying unconscious on the floor with a large gash across his head, although he appeared to be breathing.

  Owen was kneeling down besides Brennus, rolling him onto his side like they'd both been taught in first aid courses. Astel was stood slightly away from them with her staff raised above her head, ready to strike. Eleanor ran up to Astel with her sword drawn and scanned the area.

  Although it was dark, Eleanor couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. The trees where creaking slightly in the light breeze whilst the leaves rustled elegantly, but she could see no figures in the darkness nor hear the sound of footsteps. Perhaps Brennus had been mistaken and simply tripped over something, although she knew with his skills that was highly unlikely.

  She stayed perfectly still for a few moments, using all her senses to pick up on any threat. It was in that moment that she realized what was wrong. There was no wildlife! Since they'd set up camp that evening, owls had been hooting in the distance and occasional twitters could be heard from nesting birds above, but now there
was nothing. It was like the forest had come to a complete standstill, all the life having abandoned it for greener pastures. Something was definitely wrong here. What ever it was that waiting for them, it had scared away every living thing in these woods.

  Just when Eleanor’s eyes had finally adjusted to the darkness ahead, something substantial and black whooshed across the clearing before disappearing again into vastness of the woods. It moved so quickly and so quietly, that Eleanor thought she'd imagined it. It wasn't until a blue electrical bolt from Astel’s staff hit a tree where the creature had just been that Eleanor realized she wasn't the only one who had seen it.

  "Dearg!" Astel shouted. "Owen, Eleanor, move behind me. Now!"

  Just as Eleanor started to move towards where Astel stood, a figure of a man shot out of the tree line in front of them and lunged itself fifteen foot into the air, hitting Astel straight in the chest, knocking her to the floor. Astel’s staff shot out of her hand and rolled away, out of reach. What Eleanor saw next, shuck her to her core. Standing on top of Astel was what at first appeared to be a man, about six foot two in her estimations, wearing all black. He had shoulder length black wavy hair and his hands were whiter than marble, but what really shocked Eleanor was his face. As he turned to face her, his teeth were elongated and there were red veins pulsating from his glowing yellow eyes. Eleanor had read enough Bram Stocker to know what a vampire was when she saw one, but instead of running away from the creature, which would have been the logical thing to do, she raised her sword and ran towards him instead.

  For a moment, the vampire was stunned by her bravery, but he soon recovered and easily dodged Eleanor’s first blow, dashing away faster than he had come.

  Owen, having seen what was happening, had stood up from the unconscious Brennus and ran toward where Eleanor now stood. Eleanor shouted and held her hand out to Owen to stop, but he ran anyway. As Owen was about halfway there, the vampire shot into Owens path. Owen stopped for a second before lunging haphazardly at the Vampire with his sword. The vampire casually pushed Owen with such force to the chest that Owen flew twenty feet across the clearing, landing in a heap on the floor.

  The creature turned with a sadistic smile to Eleanor and she realized it was just her and the creature now. They stood for a moment, staring at each other. Eleanor contemplating her next move, and him enjoying the hunt.

  She came towards him and swung across from the left whilst never taking her eyes of him. Without even trying, he brushed her sword away, and before she had chance to react, sunk his teeth into Eleanor’s outstretched wrist. She screamed at the pain and knew she had to fight for her life.

  She began to bash her free fist futilely at the vampires head. He continued to suck for a second, latching on like a starved leech having first full meal in days, before he suddenly withdrew, screaming in pain and wreathing around in agony on the forest floor.

  Eleanor didn't know what she'd done, but she was just glad to be alive. She grabbed her still bleeding wrist and fell to the ground next to the pained demon. Pushing herself away with her feet.

  Astel appeared seemingly out of nowhere and shot her staff at the still screaming creature, encasing him in thick metal chains that glowed with red electricity. Knowing the danger was over, Eleanor sat up to find Owen crouching down beside her.

  "What the hell is that thing?" He asked Eleanor whilst pulling her to her feet.

  "I think it's a Dearg,” She replied.

  "A Dearg? I've seen it all now. Why did it scream when it bit you? What did you do?" Owen asked confused.

  "I don't know."

  "It was the amulet,” Astel half said whilst checking Brennus' head wound. Brennus was clearly still breathing, and as she waved her hand whilst whispering an incantation, Brennus' head began to heal itself, until all that was left was the now dried on blood where the wound had once been. "The amulet contains a pure essence of Merlin’s magic. Any creature of darkness that comes into contact with the amulet or the wearer will be harmed if not killed outright."

  Eleanor touched the amulet under her tunic. She'd not taken it off since they'd entered Rogardium. "Well that's handy to know." Eleanor said as Astel healed Eleanor’s hand with the same incantation she'd used on Brennus.

  Eleanor watched as the wound knitted itself together and closed before her eyes, leaving a small pink scar where it once was.

  "What do we do with it now?" Owen asked whilst approaching the wriggling creature. The vampire was still screaming from the pain, not seeming to notice the chains that now bound him.

  "Well, I guess he was sent by Balor to kill us. Dearg rarely head this far south unless there's a very good reason. I suppose we could kill him and eliminate the threat, but Balor will only send more, so I guess I should stop the pain he's feeling and then we can interrogate him." Astel sighed.

  She swirled her staff in a clockwise motion whilst speaking a different Gaelic incantation, before aiming and shooting the vampire with a blue glowing light. At once, the vampire stopped writhing in pain and laid still on the frosty earth not moving even for breath.

  "Personally, I'd have left him to suffer. He'd have done the same to us,” Owen announced. Eleanor felt she had to agree with Owen on this one. If it wasn't for the amulet, they'd all be dead right now.

  Brennus suddenly coughed and rolled onto his back before raising one hand in the air and declaring, " I'm with the whelp on that one."

  Chapter 19

  Sometime later, they all sat warming themselves next to the relight camp fire, contemplating what to do with their new guest. Astel had moved the creature over to the fire with magic as he was still chained, and so Eleanor was facing her attacker head on, looking at him in the eyes with great contempt. She was pleased to see the light of the fire was causing him a great deal of discomfort.

  "Do you really need to keep the fire that high?" He complained whilst squinting, "It's beginning to hurt my eyes."

  "Owen, fetch some more wood will you, I think the Dearg wants the fire brighter,” Brennus replied with malice.

  Owen was sat on the right of Eleanor, looking at the creature with the same contempt she had, whilst Brennus was lounging the left, nursing his headache.

  "For a human, you have a vile mouth. I wonder whether your blood would taste any better,” the vampire grinned evilly.

  "Well that's something you'll never know isn't it,” Brennus declared. "Eleanor, be a dear and let the good shit have another bite. I'd quite like to see him wreathing in pain again."

  "Primitive humans. Always more concerned with their own self importance and violence,” the vampire replied whilst tutting away.

  "Tell us who you are creature of Balor and why you're here, and I may contemplate giving you a quick death,” Astel asked in a matter of factually tone.

  Eleanor had never seen this side of her before. She was always such a peaceful woman that saw the good in everything. This creature had clearly hit a nerve.

  "Or, I could just not tell you anything mage and live a lot longer,” he replied.

  "I know you were sent by Balor, probably to assassinate us. Which means we're a threat to his plans. Either you tell us willingly, or I draw the truth from you bit by bit. What happened to Prince Elian?"

  Eleanor could see the rage and hysteria building in Astel’s eyes.

  "The Prince? The Prince is dead. He was killed by Goblins weeks ago. Your last hope is gone mage."

  Astel marched toward the vampire with her staff drawn and an uneasy calm in her voice. "You lie, Dearg. That's all you creatures do! I will find the truth from you whatever your answers.”

  Eleanor knew she had to step in before Astel did something she regretted and we got nothing from the despicable being.

  She walked over to where the Vampire now sat, and pushed the end of her knife into the end of her finger. Small amounts of blood dropped onto the point of the blade coating it in her blood. She held the knife to the vampires throat and pushed whilst being careful not to break the skin.r />
  “I wonder if this will hurt if I Cut you just a bit,” Eleanor mused, “will it burn again do you think?” Eleanor bend her head so her mouth was next to the creatures ear, never removing the knife of lessening the pressure. “Either, you tell the dear mage what she wants to know, or I'll try my little experiment ,” the vampire moved his head to the side and looked up at her squarely in the face.

  "So if you carry the amulet, then your the last hope for Rogard. I must say, I'm incredibly underwhelmed."

  Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Tell me. Did you enjoy the thought of killing us all?" she asked rhetorically whilst pushing the knife a fraction. One small move and it would Pierce his skin." Did it satisfy some primal urge and give your soul relief? Let me tell you something. You take a life and you feel good. Invincible, but that feeling doesn't last does it? All your left with is self loathing and despair. You talk tough, when really you're tearing yourself a part from the inside. Each kill destroys a small part of you but you carry on doing it because you need to fill the void in your soul that you made in the first place, but it doesn't help does it? You can make the cycle stop. You can do the right thing and heal the dark wound another way. Better yourself. Do the right thing and lessen this self loathing you've created. Help us find the Prince,” Eleanor finished.

  She'd seen it so many times with serial killer cases she’d studied and even as a soldier returning from war. Every time she’d taken a life, a small part of her had died. A part that she could never claw back. She'd killed just two people whilst serving her queen and country. How many had he killed, and how deep must that darkness go? She just hope she'd hit a nerve and by the look of confusion passing across his face, she guessed she had.

  The vampire looked Eleanor straight in the eyes. "I take it your speaking from experience?”