by Thomas Adams
Brandt wished there was better light so he could see. And, as if his thought was heard by one of the gods, a bright shaft of moonlight broke through the trees and illuminated the small clearing. He checked on Fridya and saw her leading a horse into the dark forest on the same path the others had taken moment earlier. He was alone now with just Brotjnar, against whatever fell evil was coming down the hill towards the camp.
Chapter 30
The Haugar
Legend also suggested SwordBreaker had a companion sword or sister sword called ShieldBreaker. Little is known of ShieldBreaker, where it came from or who wielded it. Rumors abounded during the War of Twenty that Brandt I had found and employed several ancient mythical blades. One of these was ShieldBreaker. ShieldBreaker was gifted by Brandt to the famous shield maiden Brenna of Tanic. She was a student and then fellow warrior of Brandt’s during the War of Twenty. She, along with Brandt, was also one of the key founders of the Runa of Syndros.
Legend tells us ShieldBreaker was capable of cleaving through bodies and shields with little effort. It could crush plate armor as if it was tin and it was even used to break through iron castle gates. One ancient story mentions it being used by an Einar hero named Hördan. Hördan once used the mighty blade to cleave a massive war galley in half. The sword was used to great effect against the enemy during the War of the Gods. After the death of Brenna of Tanic, near the end of the War of Twenty, the sword was lost or hidden away. Its whereabouts is still unknown.
Grand Master Talgarth, Reave Hall
***
When Brandt turned back to face the clearing, after Fridya departed, the Illr-hrae was there. He didn’t know what it was exactly but it was big, very big and tall as a troll. It was covered in a great dark cloak. Under the cloak Brandt could see tattered mail and rusted armor. The creature’s hood was up and Brandt couldn’t see its face. There were twin glowing white orbs of light where its eyes should have been. The dull gleam of bone was visible where its armor, clothing and gauntlets did not fully cover it.
Brandt sniffed; there was an awful stink about the creature as well as a biting cold that radiated from it. The cold pierced right through him. He felt it in his bones and shivered in spite of the battle rage and blood pumping through his body. The smell of the thing almost made him vomit. It was a foul, bitter and yet sweet stench. It reminded Brandt of carrion too long basking in the heat of the summer sun. The smell of death and fear hung heavily about the small clearing.
He didn’t know what prompted it but he spoke to it, “What is your name fell spirit?”
“I am Haugar. My master sends me to greet you, Bright One,” it said in a dull rasping and strangely accented voice.
“Well, I greet you in return and curse you for the foul dead thing you are!”
It hissed in anger and moved forward with surprising speed. The darkness assaulted his senses as never before. He struggled against it and barely managed to get the war sword and axe up in a defensive position in time. He shouted at it, “Begone, back to the Void from whence you were spawned! The Sun burn you cursed one!” He lashed out with his archania at the black mist seeping into his mind. The magic burned away at the fury of the Illr-hrae’s assault and left his mind clear.
The first blows from the monster were extremely fast and powerful but Brandt was able to parry and deflect them. Each blow felt like it had the power of several men behind it. He moved back and to the side as best he could to stay away from the wight’s great sword. While it was quick and strong Brandt was faster. But, he had to keep moving, always moving. As the fight progressed he went on offense and managed to get a couple good thrusts and hacks in but they seemed to have no effect on the undead creature. The Haugar managed to nick Brandt’s forearm, the cut went clean through his armor.
After a series of blow and counter-blow the Haugar batted Brandt’s hand axe away with its gauntleted skeletal hand, surprising and throwing him off balance. Brandt ended up twisted and out of position, the wight swung the great sword one handed into his back. The force of the blow, even one-handed, knocked him off his feet and he tumbled across the clearing. He managed to roll and come back to his feet. The Haugar was already there. Brandt had no time to reset. His back was throbbing with pain where the great sword had struck him but he did not know if it penetrated his armor.
This was not going well Brandt realized. He was not going to defeat the Illr-hrae like this, it wasn’t a live being. He needed to come up with some another way to destroy it. He suddenly recalled that a Haugar was a type of Illr-hrae that did not use archania and its presence naturally radiated cold and fear. It could only be killed with fire or a magical weapon. There was no fire, so he would have to try and use Brotjnar to destroy or incapacitate it.
He dodged away and circled the Haugar again and traded a few blows that were all blocked. Brotjnar was getting frustrated and whispering all kinds of advice to Brandt. Brandt decided to listen more closely. Brotjnar was telling him to call the archania and break its sword. He wondered if the power of the magic and the sword could crush and break bone, and maybe even disable or slow down the Dark One. He had to try it, nothing else was working. There was nothing to lose.
And, after a few more seconds of blow, parry and counterblow Brandt saw his opportunity. He drew in all the energy he could summon and slammed the force outward and against the Dark One. It stumbled back and Brandt dropped his hand axe and swept Brotjnar down in a mighty overhead two-handed blow straight from the loping limbs form. As the sword crashed downward Brandt shouted the word of command and called on Brotjnar. The Haugar was able to get its sword up in time and then Brotjnar smashed into it. The Haugar’s ancient war sword cracked and shattered and Brotjnar swept down and into its shoulder. There was a sickening crack of bone. The Haugar stumbled back a few paces. Its left arm was dangling uselessly from its broken shoulder. The rags of its clothing and the scraps of its’ rusted and ancient armor was all that was holding the arm in place.
The Haugar shrieked in frustration, turned and staggered off into the forest. A faint black smoke and foul stench followed its retreat. The moonlight suddenly dimmed and the band’s camp was plunged back into darkness. Brandt stood shaking with exhaustion and relief. The monster’s sword lay shattered at his feet. He was alive and the Dark One was gone. Brandt knew it would be back though. It was not destroyed.
***
All of their horses had gotten away when the Haugar attacked. The evil creature was too much for the poor beasts. So, Brandt collected as much food, water, and winter robes and cloaks as he could carry and set off after the others. After twenty minutes of struggling through the thick dark forest he realized he would never find his friends like this. Very little moon or star light penetrated the canopy overhead. So, rather than getting hopelessly lost and off track he stopped and dumped the gear to the ground.
He sat down, pulled some of the sleeping furs around himself and listened. The night was still eerily quiet, no doubt due to the malicious presence of the Haugar. Nothing living could tolerate it and every creature had fled or hidden as best they were able. He was exhausted and fought off the sleep. He checked his wounds. He bandaged his forearm. His back was only bruised. The armor had saved him.
He put away the first aid supplies and tried to figure out what to do. Was it safe to sleep now? He shouldn’t risk it. After several minutes he heard the stomping of hooved feet. It could only be a horse, or a large deer or elk. He stood and gathered all the gear and shouldered the assorted bundles and weapons and headed for the sound of the animal. He hoped it was one of their escaped horses.
It was and he quickly corralled it with his arms. It nickered happily as he grabbed the lead rope. The horse’s broken lead was tangled in some vines and that stopped it from getting further away. Brandt was very happy and after freeing the horse and tying all the gear onto its back they moved down the hill to a small glen. A tiny spring welled up from the base of the rock wall in the side of the glen. He watered the horse and t
hem himself and settled in for what remained of the night.
When it was light he would head back to the camp and try to pick up hi friends’ trail. He would also get Bosse’s body as well. He would not leave the man in the forest to be picked clean by wolves and carrion birds. He knew he would quickly overtake the others now that he had the horse. Most of the band was wounded. They would be slow and not able to go too far. He dozed and woke periodically but all was still and quiet.
***
Brandt was up early the next day. He was exhausted and sore. He rummaged through the food he’d brought and found some dried meat and nuts. After eating and washing it down with water he filled the water skins and repacked all the gear on the horse. He led the horse back up the hill towards the camp. He took his time and was very careful. He didn’t want to run into any Narasists lurking around. He quickly arrived though.
He went through the gear strewed around the abandoned camp and made a pile of what he would take. He concentrated on food, medical supplies and warm clothes and sleeping gear. But, he would not be able to take everything. Then he saddled the horse and carefully tied Bosse’s body over the saddle. He slung the other gear on top of his friend’s body and tied it all off. Once he was certain the load was secure he set off.
He found the group’s trail easily and followed it. It was not hard since there were blood drops and drag marks. He did what he could with his limited knowledge to obscure their trail. He followed the trail all morning until he caught up with the group in a small valley with a creek flowing through it. Erika was on guard duty and waved to him as he came towards the camp. He waved back and trudged into the hastily erected camp. He surveyed the group. They looked pretty beaten up. Bax was down and out. He was covered in furs from the waist down. Fridya was checking three bandages that were soaked with blood.
Alfaar had a bandage around a leg. He was resting by the fire and feeding branches into it. A pot of gruel was bubbling. At least there would be some some hot food. Brandt thought the tasteless gruel never looked so good. He said hello to everyone. They responded in subdued tones. It must have been a rough night. Fridya had a few small bandages on her arms. She looked to be the one in charge.
He said, “What do you need me to do?”
She looked up and him and smiled tiredly, “Go relieve Erika. She has been up all night. I will bring you some hot food when it is ready. Horace went out to find more horses and see if you we still alive.”
She looked him over and then surprised him with quick hug, “I am glad you are well. I was worried for you but it looks like you came off with hardly a scratch.”
He nodded and said grimy, “Yeah, I worried for a bit there myself. I will tell everyone later.”
She shrugged and said, “Sure, go, I will check out those bandages too when I bring your food.”
“Thank you. I gathered some more gear and food. It is on the horse. I will unload it and picket the horse then go relieve Erika. I have Bosse too. We should have the departing song and ceremony for him later.”
“That is good, we will,” Fridya went back to help Alfaar by the fire.
After he finished with the horse and the equipment he walked back to the boulder that Erika was perched on. It was a good spot, just under the eaves of the trees by the clearing in the valley.
He said, “I am your relief. Go get some hot food and rest.”
She frowned and jumped down. She looked tired. She had a bandage across her shoulder and one on her left arm. She checked him over and said, “You got away easy it seems.”
Brandt gave her a vicious smile and replied, “Yeah, you could say that. That thing was a real monster Erika. Took all I had to get it to back off.”
She tilted her head and looked at him, “I am sure. Will it be back?”
“Aye, unfortunately, mayhap next time I will be better prepared. I got an idea on how to defeat it.”
“That’s a relief.”
Later that day they sat around the fire and ate a rabbit stew. Horace had shot the rabbits when he was out earlier, scouting. He had also found another of their horses while returning to camp with his game. Brandt finished recounting the fight with the Dark One to everyone. He described the black creature but no one could explain what it was. He said it called itself Haugar. They all knew it was Illr-hrae.
They moved on to a discussion of their current situation. Everyone agreed it was not good. Bax was in considerable pain. He was getting worse. When they fled they left most of their supplies, winter gear and food behind. They had three horses now but only one saddle and some assorted tack. They could use one of the animals as a pack animal to haul all the gear. That would make it easier on everyone else.
Fridya said that since Bax was seriously wounded he should be on the other horse. The third could carry Bosse’s body. That would at least get them mobile. No one disagreed. Erika said there was a small village north of them. It was half a day’s hard walk. Alfaar added it would be slow going but they should start early. They needed a healer, supplies and the security of a village with walls and more warriors. He didn’t need to say Bax needed skilled healing, more than anyone in the group could provide.
Brandt said they also needed new winter gear, food and more horses. They had no choice but to head for the village. They all knew the danger they would bring down on those poor people but they were left with no other options. The band agreed to strike out for the village immediately.
***
As they struggled through the rough wilderness, Bax’s condition steadily worsened and they had to take frequent breaks to check him and redo his dressings. It was apparent his loss of blood would kill him if he did not get treated by a healer soon. And, it appeared infection was setting in. It took the remainder of the day to reach the village.
Near sunset they reached the village of Itra. It was a small clan hill village with an eight foot tall earthen and rock wall around the perimeter of the town. The crown of the earthen wall was topped with a six foot tall wooden palisade with a walkway along the inside. It was a sturdy defensible hill village much like a hundred others throughout Vesfalruk.
The forest was cleared back four hundred arms in every direction from the village. Recently harvested wheat, hay and barley fields covered the cleared area. Every arm of clear space was utilized for farming.
The trail they were on led to a large stone gate house. There was also a small wooden postern gate in the southern wall. Both gates were manned by a kriger wearing knee-length chainmail shirts and armed with shield, spear and sword. Up on the roof of the stone gatehouse were a couple of boys a few years shy of the War Age, both held bows.
The weary band trudged up to the main gate. Erika hailed the kriger and asked for a healer. When the guard saw the wounded he called up to one of the boys and told him to guide them straight to the healers. Once they arrived at a small hut they quickly got Bax situated inside in a small but clean bed. The building was a wood and stone building that served as one of the village’s sick huts. Such structures were common in the rural hill towns.
Two elderly female healers quickly arrived and began working on Bax. Once he was checked over, sutured up and fresh poultices applied they cleaned and inspected everyone else’s wounds as well. Alfaar was told to stay put. Apparently his leg wound was infected and the healers wanted to work on it more.
The rest of the group was quickly patched up and fresh bandages applied. They were dismissed by the healers and the smaller group headed to the clan hall in the center of the village. Erika said they must go there first and introduce themselves to the chieftain and seek permission to lodge in the village.
As they walked towards the clan hall Brandt looked around. This was the first time he’d ever been in a small rural Vesfal village that he could recall and he was curious. There were about forty or fifty assorted buildings, sheds, shops and barns in the village. Many were single story wood and stone houses with two or three rooms each. Some houses were larger but most were only one sto
ry tall.
Four or five large communal barns served for the village’s grain and hay storage, livestock pens and stables. And, there was a blacksmith, bakery, brewery, a tannery and a few other assorted business concerns going. It was a bustling little affair and everyone was busy preparing for the coming winter.
In the middle of the village they came upon what must be the clan hall. It was the largest structure in the village and was easily fifty arms long and twenty wide. It was mostly stone but the second story and roof were wooden. There was also serious effort put into carved decorations around the entry and façade. Wood carvings depicted forest animals and swirling patterns that also contained runes and other images that told some of the clan’s history. Wide hewn stone stairs led to the hall’s entrance. The doors to the hall were open and they walked up the steps and entered.
Inside the vast hall it was gloomy but a central fire pit was going and women were preparing roasted meats on spits over the fire. A few torches and lanterns also lit the vast interior but could not completely drive the shadows away. Tables, benches and chairs crowded the hall to accommodate as many villagers as possible.
Near the head table they met the clan’s second in charge, the chieftain’s flikkeller. Flikkeller Dragar introduced himself. He appeared to be a taciturn old warrior with many scars and apparently plenty of battle experience. Erika stepped forward as the group’s spokesperson and informed Dragar of their mission and their recent encounter with the Dark One and the Narasists. She introduced the group to Dragar but left out Brandt’s title and focused on their mission to scout Fortress Brod. Dragar was intrigued.
