Dagnarus rose to his feet. He wore the black armor of the Lord of the Void, armor that is the direct opposite of the blessed armor of a Dominion Lord. Dagnarus’s armor had been blessed, but not by the gods. His armor was of the Void. The black metal was malleable, flowed over Dagnarus’s flesh like a coating of viscous oil.
He did not wear the helm, that was bestial and terrible to look upon. He had no need to hide his face. Unlike the Vrykyl, who were ambulating dead, Dagnarus was a living man. He had been a comely young man when he gave himself to the Void. He retained that form through the power of the Void. His hair was thick and auburn. He wore it long, drawn back in a club at the nape of the neck in the fashion of elven warriors. He was handsome with a rakish air. He could be charming, when he chose.
Two hundred years ago, Dagnarus had been a royal prince of Vinnengael. His brother, Helmos, was king. The Sovereign Stone had been a gift of the gods to their father, King Tamaros. Although the gods warned Tamaros that his understanding of the Stone was yet imperfect, he chose to use it to try to establish peace between the races. He split the Stone into four parts with disastrous consequences. His young son, Dagnarus, looked into the center of the Stone and saw there the Void and within the Void, the opportunity to gain the power for which he had always lusted.
Each race had been granted a portion of the Stone, to use to create the powerful, magical paladins known as Dominion Lords. Longing to attain such power for himself, Dagnarus tried to become a Dominion Lord. In so doing, he gave himself to the Void and was made Lord of the Void. He obtained great power, but at a terrible cost. He also obtained the Dagger of the Vrykyl and was thus able to bring into existence those dread beings.
Dagnarus declared war upon his brother the king. Their two armies met and fought in the capital city of Vinnengael. At the height of the battle, Dagnarus sought his brother in the Temple of the Gods and demanded that Helmos give up the Sovereign Stone. Helmos refused. Dagnarus murdered him and claimed the Stone. In that moment, the powerful magicks that were swirling about the vortex of the Void created by Dagnarus could no longer be controlled. The magic exploded, shattering the Portals and destroying much of the once proud city of Vinnengael.
The Void carried Dagnarus to safety, preserving his life by means of all the lives he had acquired through the Dagger of the Vrykyl. Dagnarus was horribly injured, but he lived and he had his prize, the Sovereign Stone. Either by happenstance or by the wish of the gods, a new Portal—a remnant of those shattered in the magical blast—had opened near where Dagnarus lay injured. Although no one knew it at the time and few know it still, the Portal opened into a new part of the world not previously known to those living on Loerem.
Through this Portal wandered a creature known as a bahk. The bahk was young and the young of this species are not noted for their intelligence. Lost and hungry, the bahk wandered into this new world in search of food. The bahk are drawn to magic as bees to honey and this young bahk was drawn to the Sovereign Stone. The bahk was huge and strong; Dagnarus weak and injured. Dagnarus did his best to fight to retain his prize, but he was no match for the bahk. The creature seized the Stone and departed. Dagnarus despaired. In that moment, he came as close to death as he ever had or likely ever would.
He did not die, however. The Void would not let him. Drawing on the lives he had stolen through the Dagger, Dagnarus managed at last to drag his maimed and wounded body into the very Portal through which the bahk had entered. Here Valura, his former lover and now a Vrykyl herself, came in response to his call. Here Shakur and the rest of the Vrykyl came. He sent them back out into the world with one order—find the Sovereign Stone.
As they searched, Dagnarus remained safely hidden within the Portal until he had fully healed and recovered his strength. Then it was that Dagnarus began to plan the campaign that would at last restore him to power. But he never lost sight of his main goal, his true objective.
For two hundred years, he had sought the Sovereign Stone and now, on the eve of his great war to conquer Loerem, the Sovereign Stone had reappeared. Dagnarus’s joy was complete.
“The gods themselves are vanquished,” he had said on hearing of the Stone’s discovery. “Mortals do not stand a chance against me.”
But the gods, it seemed, still had a fight or two left in them and as for mortals, if they went down, they would go down swinging.
“You take a great risk coming here, my lord—” began Shakur.
“Nonsense,” said Dagnarus impatiently, prowling about the chamber. “The armor cloaks me in shadow. I am the darkness, I move with the darkness. If someone should walk through that door right now, he would not see me unless I choose otherwise.”
“I mean, my lord,” said Shakur, “the risk of leaving your army at this critical juncture. You have before expressed doubts about the bestial taan warriors and their unpredictability. Who knows what they might do in your absence?”
“I am their god, Shakur. The taan fear me as their god. They would all fling themselves off the top of Mt. Sa’Gra if I commanded it. Besides, I am not going to be away from them for long. I had to find out. Have you heard from Svetlana?”
“No, my lord,” Shakur replied. “I have not. You know well that I have not. For how could I hear if you have not heard?”
Created by Dagnarus, Lord of the Void, the Vrykyl are bound to serve Dagnarus. They have no will of their own, other than that which their lord permits them to have, and their thoughts are always linked to the thoughts of their dread liege lord. The Vrykyl maintain contact with each other through the blood knife and thus Shakur in Dunkar heard through the whispers of the blood knife the same words that his lord Dagnarus heard in the emptiness of his soul.
Dagnarus clenched his fist. “Tell me what you know,” he said tersely.
“My lord, you know all I know—”
“Tell me!”
Shakur knew better than to argue.
“Svetlana told me that the Sovereign Stone was in the possession of a Dominion Lord, one of the blessed of the gods. This news worried me, my lord, as you are aware, for I told you of my fears regarding the power of these knights.”
“Yes, yes,” Dagnarus said, trying to brush this aside.
Shakur would not let it be brushed aside, however. He was not going to be blamed.
“If you recall, my lord, I suggested that I go to Svetlana to aid in the retrieval of the Stone. You said no, that I was needed here.”
“And so you were, Shakur,” Dagnarus said. “In these critical times, when rumors are spreading about war in the west, the absence of the High Magus would have looked most peculiar, started people wondering. You had to be here to calm Moross, to allay his fears.”
Shakur bowed in acknowledgment. “I suggested other Vrykyl—”
“They are spread across the continent,” Dagnarus interrupted tersely. “Some busy subverting the orks, others working with the dwarves. The Lady Valura is in elven lands. They all seek the other portions of the Stone. As for this Dominion Lord who discovered the human portion, he was old and decrepit and half-mad. A stranger in a strange land, he should have fallen easy victim to Svetlana.”
“Svetlana wounded the Dominion Lord with the blood knife, but he wounded her grievously during the battle and he managed to escape.” Shakur shook his head. “Svetlana’s thoughts turned to hatred and revenge. She went berserk. She lost sight of the true objective. Her only thought was to pursue the knight who had so humiliated her.”
“At that point you should have gone after her,” Dagnarus stated. “My armies are close now. You can be spared.”
“How could I, my lord?” Shakur demanded. He had known all along he would be blamed. “I had no way to find her! She was silent. I could do nothing but wait to feel her blood knife kill again. I calculated that she would need a soul to replenish her power and then I could reestablish contact with her. Days passed and I felt nothing.”
“I, too, have lost all contact,” said Dagnarus. “What has happened to her? What
has happened to the Stone? I must know, Shakur!
The human portion of the Stone has been found and, not only that, it has been found on the eve of battle. Why else would this happen if the Stone were not meant to come to me? I want you to go in search of her, Shakur. I want you to find her and the Stone.”
“You know very well that such a search would be a waste of time, my lord,” said Shakur. “You know very well what has happened to her. The Dominion Lord destroyed her. The Stone has once more eluded you.”
“No!”
Shakur felt the word lance through him. He felt the very earth quiver with the conviction of the Lord of the Void. Those who slumbered within the walls of the Temple felt it as well, tossed restlessly and uneasily in their sleep.
“My lord,” said Shakur, speaking hesitantly, “would it not be better to concentrate your efforts on pursuing the war, rather than squander our efforts and resources in this pursuit of the Sovereign Stone? We have lost one Vrykyl already and what have we gained? What do you hope to gain? You don’t need the Stone to be the most powerful force in Loerem. You don’t need the ability to create Dominion Lords when you have the Dagger of the Vrykyl. This pursuit has brought trouble upon us already. I think you should abandon it, my lord. Your armies will win the world for you. You don’t need the Stone.”
“Yes, I do, Shakur,” said Dagnarus. He fell silent and was silent for so long that Shakur thought his lord had departed and was startled when he once more spoke. “I am about to tell you something that I never told you before, Shakur. I have never told anyone.”
Shakur knew Dagnarus lied. He had told Valura. He told Valura everything. But Shakur said nothing, made no comment.
“I tell you this now, Shakur,” Dagnarus was continuing, “because you are my lieutenant and it is time that you know of my true plans, my ultimate goal.
“When we returned from the land of the taan and I emerged for the first time from the Portal, walked again on the soil of my own homeland, I made a journey, a solitary journey. Do you recall, Shakur?”
“I do, my lord. I was opposed to your going by yourself. I considered it too dangerous.”
“Yet, what could harm me?” Dagnarus said dryly. “No, this was a journey I needed to make on my own. Where do you suppose I went?”
“I have no idea, my lord.”
“I went to the heap of ruins they are now calling Old Vinnengael.”
Shakur could think of nothing to say. He was astonished and yet he was not. He had often been told that the criminal is ever drawn back to the scene of the crime.
“I went to that place in search of the Sovereign Stone. Not such a foolish quest as you might suppose. A bahk had taken the Stone from me. I had received reports that numerous bahk were to be found in the area of Old Vinnengael, drawn there by the wayward magicks that yet pervade that accursed place. And it is accursed, Shakur. I am not a coward. I have proven my courage in battle countless times. I wore the armor of the Void and carried the magic of the Void as my weapon. Yet, I tell you, there were times during my journey when I knew fear, when I thought that perhaps I had overreached myself.
“This is not the time to recount my adventures, however. I could not find any trace of the Sovereign Stone. I knew then that it was not there. I could have departed, but I hoped to find some clue as to the Stone’s whereabouts. I fought my way through the ruins and the magic to the very center of what is now left of the Temple of the Magi.
“No other had been there before me. I know that, because no other could have survived the going. I stood amidst the rubble and wondered why I had come. There was nothing here for me. I was about to leave, when my foot struck against something. I looked down to see a skull. The flesh was gone from the body, yet I knew him by the robes he wore. It was my whipping boy. Gareth.
“As I stood staring at the body, the events of that terrible night came back to me with such force that it seemed to me I lived them all over again. And then, as the memories began to fade, a voice spoke to me. ‘My prince,’ said the voice, and I recognized it. It was Gareth who spoke.”
“A waking dream, my lord,” said Shakur, who didn’t like where this tale was heading. “He was in your mind. You imagined you heard him.”
“So I thought myself,” said Dagnarus. “So I hoped—with all my heart. I do not mind admitting to you, Shakur, that when I heard his voice speaking to me from the grave, my blood ran chill. I have never been one to look behind me. What’s done is done. The strong man faces forward, never looks back. Yet, sometimes, unbidden, I do look back and when I do, I see the reproach in Gareth’s eyes. I see his blood upon the wall and the light of life fading. Of all I knew, he alone was true to me and faithful. He deserved better of me.”
“He was a traitor, my lord, a coward and a weasel,” said Shakur bluntly. “Whatever punishment you meted out, he richly deserved.”
“Did he? Well, perhaps you are right.” Dagnarus’s introspective mood had ended. “However that may be, the voice was not my imagination, Shakur. Gareth’s spirit appeared to me there in the ruins of the Temple of the Magi.”
“And what did his spirit have to say to you, my lord?”
“Some very interesting things, Shakur, so you may dispense with the sarcasm. I asked why he continued to remain in the world, why he had not gone off to some well-deserved rest.
“‘My spirit is so bound up with yours, my prince, that it is not free to depart until either your spirit is free of the Void or utterly consumed by it.’
“‘You know what has happened in the world since?’ I asked him.
“‘I do, my prince.’
“‘Do you know where I may find the human portion of the Sovereign Stone?’
“‘I do not, my prince. The Stone has passed beyond my ability to see. In truth, I believe that the gods hide it from me. I have, however, discovered something else that might be of use to you.’
“‘You were a loyal friend, Gareth, and you continue to be. What is it you have discovered?’
“‘All believe that the Portal to the Gods was shattered, as were the other Portals. They are wrong. The Portal to the Gods remains intact.’
“His spirit gestured, Shakur, to where the Portal had once stood. The doorway had collapsed. I could see nothing but ruin. Seeking to test his words, I walked in that direction. I had taken only a few steps, when I felt the wrath of the gods like a hot wind from a raging fire.
“‘What is that to me?’ I asked. ‘I care not what the gods do or think.’
“‘It might be everything to you,’ Gareth replied. ‘I have learned that if someone enters that Portal bearing in his hand all four portions of the Sovereign Stone, the Stone will come together again. Four will be one.’
“‘And one will rule four!’ I said.
“‘I know nothing of that,’ Gareth said and his voice was bitter. ‘The gods speak to me no more. I am not permitted into their blessed presence, so heinous were my crimes. Yet, this I do know. You are the only person now in Loerem who has the power to bring all four pieces of the Stone together.’
“‘Well, then,’ I said, ‘what else could this mean but that I am meant to rule over all of the others?’”
Shakur said nothing, but Dagnarus could hear even his silences.
“I am not a fool, Shakur. I was skeptical myself. ‘Tell me this, Master Whipping Boy,’ I said, ‘if the gods speak to you no more, how did you discover all this?’
“He did not want to answer me. He sought to evade my question. Using the power of the Void, I pressed him hard and at last his spirit, under constraint of the Void, had no choice but to respond.
“‘Your brother told me,’ he said at last. ‘Helmos. He told me this as he lay dying.’
“‘You lie,’ I returned in anger. ‘Helmos was dead when I left him. You were dead. And if you were not then, you would have been after the blast.’
“‘Not so,’ Gareth replied. ‘The blast expanded outward from the Portal. The Portal itself was unharmed. Over time
, the unstable structures have disintegrated and collapsed. Then, it stood in peace and serenity. I felt my death upon me, yet I could not depart without begging forgiveness of your brother—’”
“The traitor,” Shakur intoned. “It is as I have always said, my lord. I wonder that you still trust him.”
“I never trust anyone, Shakur, as you should know by now. To my mind, this proves the veracity of his tale. Gareth dragged himself over to the dying Helmos. Helmos forgave him and then whispered these words. ‘The Sovereign Stone must be made whole again. The four pieces must be brought here to the Portal. Whoever does so will gain the gods’ greatest blessing.’”
“Do you want the gods’ blessing, my lord?” Shakur asked.
“If it means ruling over all of Loerem, I think I could stomach it,” said Dagnarus. “Thus you see, Shakur, why the discovery of the human portion of the Stone is so significant, coming at this time. I have now only to lay my hands on it and the other three and there will be no one who can stop me.”
“Indeed, so it would seem, my lord,” Shakur replied. “Still, you put a lot of trust in one whose last act was to betray you…”
“Gareth?” Dagnarus gave a shrug. “He was always weak. As it turns out, Helmos’s forgiveness availed the whipping boy nothing, for his spirit is doomed to remain imprisoned in the Temple where lies his body. He serves me still. He has no choice. The Void constrains him. If I need him, he is bound to come do my bidding. So long as he returns to his body at night, his spirit is free to roam the world at my command.”
“Then why do you not send him in search of the Sovereign Stone, my lord?” Shakur asked, nettled.
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