“Could you let me down, now?” the half-orc asked. Aurelia shrugged.
“Ready to spar?”
“You bet.”
The elf ordered the vines to release him. Harruq landed with a plop, a drippy mess in stinking leather armor.
“Sparring time,” he said as he rose to his feet.
“I’m ready, water-boy” Aurelia said, taking up her staff and charging.
The streets were all the same to him so down them all he wandered. The image of Aurelia and Harruq danced in his mind, and conflicting feelings tore up and down his chest.
“She seems a kind enough elf,” Qurrah said, talking to himself since he had no one else. “Beautiful as well. Of course Harruq would be attracted to her. We have elven blood in our veins, do we not?”
The words felt hollow against the constant ache in his heart. Hard as he tried, he could not place it. Was it anger? No. Surprise? A little, perhaps. Jealousy? Certainly not. Worry? Fear? Doubt?
The only emotion he was certain of was confusion. So he walked, and would walk for the rest of the morning, wishing there was something he could do to banish the sick, hollow feeling in his stomach. There was nothing he knew to do, though, and that made it so much worse.
Their sparring ended, Harruq and Aurelia sat side-by-side against a tree, both glistening with sweat.
“Getting better,” the half-orc said. “You’re going to be beating the orcy out of me in a few weeks if you keep learning as fast as you are.”
“Don’t worry,” she said, patting his hand. “Your orcy is safe with me.”
Harruq laughed at the absurdity of what she said. Aurelia, meanwhile, absently drew lines in the dirt. He watched for a moment, suddenly nervous and quiet. The words of his brother echoed in his head.
“Aurry?” he asked. “You said most elves remember when men were created…do you know how orcs were made?”
The elf looked at him. She was trying to read him, Harruq could tell, but he endured it without protest.
“When Ashhur and Karak warred, there were elves that sought to end their war,” she said. “Against Celestia’s orders, they joined Karak, hoping with their aid the conflict would finally end. When our goddess imprisoned the two gods, she cursed those elves. She stripped them of their beauty, their intelligence, and their long life. They weren’t evil, Harruq, but Karak offered them strength and they accepted it. The dark god drove them to war against elves and men. Finally the orcs were banished to the Vile Wedge between the rivers.”
“Do any still worship Karak?”
“Most don’t,” Aurelia said. “They’ve turned to worshipping animals now. I’ve even heard of some worshipping Celestia once more, hoping she will forgive them and remove their curse. They are a sad race, Harruq, but believe me in saying there is no shame in your blood.”
The half-orc shifted uncomfortably, unable to meet Aurelia’s eyes. He watched her trace lines in the grass. Seeking a way to lighten the mood, he asked her how to spell his name.
“Harruq?” she asked. “Hrm. My best guess would be H-a-r-r-u-k.”
A soft blow of air from her lips turned the grass to dirt so that a large space lay available for her to write on. She wrote ‘Harruk’ in the dirt with her finger, spacing out each letter. Harruq stared at the words representing his name, feeling a tiny thrill.
“How about my last name, Tun?”
She wrote out T-u-n. The half-orc stared, absorbing every detail of his name.
“Can I see your name?” he asked. Aurelia nodded, tracing her hand across the dirt.
“A-u-r-e-l-i-a.”
The half-orc smiled at the name.
“It even looks all pretty,” he said, eliciting a laugh. “Do Qurrah now.”
Aurelia did not begin writing immediately, instead thinking over the pronunciation.
“Qurrah,” she said at last. “It is a little tricky, but I bet it is spelled like this.”
Letter by letter she wrote ‘Qurrah’ in the dirt. Harruq stared at it, whispering his brother’s name as his eyes traced the letters. As he did, a thought hit him. His eyes went back and forth from his own name and Qurrah’s.
“You spelled my name wrong,” Harruq said.
“What? How?”
The half-orc reached over, erased the k in his name and drew a clumsy, capitalized Q at the end. He leaned back and smiled. The name in the dirt now read ‘HarruQ’.
“Why did you change it?” she asked. “It’s a rather odd spelling.”
“Look at my brother’s name,” he said. Aurelia did, and then she saw what Harruq had also seen.
“Your name is your brother’s, only backwards.”
“Yup,” Harruq laughed. “Mum was always smart for an orc. Even knew how to read, if you believe that. Bet she did that on purpose.”
“Yes, but why?”
Harruq shrugged. “Thought she was being clever? Who knows, but I can spell my name now!”
“Good for you,” Aurelia laughed. “Now go on home, you bother me. And you smell.”
“Well fine then,” the half-orc said, feigning insult. “Me know when me no wanted.”
Such a purposeful use of poor grammar could not go unpunished. Harruq dodged the first two springs of water but the third one caught him square in the face. He was still dripping when he arrived home.
“You and her go swimming?” Qurrah asked him.
“Shaddup,” was all he said.
Qurrah laughed. The pit in his stomach suddenly didn’t seem so awful.
Aurelia!” Dieredon screamed to the wilderness. Birds whistled back, but no elven voice spoke back.
“Aurelia!” he shouted again, wincing at the pain in his chest. After arriving in town, he had found one of his stashed healing potions and downed it. His ribs had gone from several pieces to just a single break, and his shoulder was slowly regaining strength. It would still be days before he was back to full health, days he did not have to spare.
“I’m here,” Aurelia said after the third yell from Dieredon. The elf turned and smiled at her even though she winced and moved to examine his arm, which remained in a sling.
“They are nothing,” he told her. “Please, you must listen to me. Stay away from the half-orcs. They aren’t safe.”
“Nonsense,” she said. She guided a hand across his chest, feeling the break. Her hand then traveled to his shoulder, and a deep frown grew across her face.
“What did this to you?” she asked.
“The man in black, the one continuing to train the half-orcs. I approached him last night. He nearly killed me.”
“Harruq is no threat to me,” Aurelia insisted. “And I have met Qurrah. He showed me nothing but kindness.”
“Then it is a false kindness,” Dieredon said. He paused for a moment, grabbed his chest with his healthy arm, and then looked up at her again. Pain was evident in his eyes.
“That man has an army of undead. I barely managed to hide until daylight. Woodhaven is in danger, and so are you.”
Aurelia stepped back, frowning.
“Are you sure it was Harruq?”
“I saw the warrior with my own eyes. I ignored them and went after the master, just as you asked.” He gestured to his wounds. “You can see my reward. I could not kill him. There are very few I cannot kill, Aurelia, and I do not appreciate adding another to that list.”
“I will still see him,” Aurelia said. “I will be careful, but I will still see him. He needs me. I know it.”
Dieredon gave a one-shoulder shrug.
“Very well. I will trust you, Aurelia.”
He turned to go. Aurelia grabbed his hand and stopped him.
“Where will you go?”
The elf glanced back to her.
“War is coming. I must alert my kin. If this man and his army do attack Woodhaven, he will find the Quellan army descending upon him from the sky. Besides, I have been separated from Sonowin far too long. I miss her.”
Aurelia smiled for the first since she h
ad seen Dieredon.
“I am surprised you have gone so long without retrieving her,” Aurelia said. “She is a beautiful horse. I wish to see her when you return.”
“I promise,” Dieredon said. Aurelia released his hand.
“May Celestia watch over you,” she said as he left.
“And she over you,” Dieredon replied. Then he was gone, through the forest and back into town. There he bought a sturdy horse and began his long ride south to the Quellan forest.
It is a beautiful blade,” Harruq said, examining the elven weapon that had belonged to Ahrqur. They were killing the final hour before dark. Then they would hoist the wrapped body onto Harruq’s shoulder and sneak out of town. Qurrah sat meditating in a corner while Harruq yammered to himself. The blade was in one hand, the decorative scabbard in the other.
“He was a skilled swordsman,” Qurrah said. “He was also arrogant. I would expect such a blade from one like him.”
Harruq shrugged. “If I didn’t have my own two swords, I’d use it.”
The half-orc cut the blade through the air a few times and then sheathed it. He turned the weapon over in his hands, marveling at the swimming colors of dark green and black. He paused when he found a name written in gold near the hilt.
“Tun’del,” Harruq read aloud, slowly and carefully. “He even has his name on his sword.”
“Did I not say he was arrogant?”
Harruq stared at the name on the scabbard, mesmerized by the beauty of the writing. He ran his fingers over it, enjoying the feeling of pure gold. When he covered the second half, he paused.
“Qurrah,” Harruq said. “Look at this.”
The bigger half-orc shifted the blade so that his brother could see. He kept his hand where it was. Qurrah read the name, and then glanced at his brother.
“That is our last name.”
Harruq nodded.
“Aurelia showed me. T, u, n, she said. And then this sword here has our name…kind of.”
Qurrah stared at the name, thinking.
“He was an elf,” he said. “I guess it is possible he was our father, although I feel it more likely a coincidence. Our mother was intelligent, at least for an orc, but was she smart enough to leave us clues within our own names?”
“Well, he’s dead now, so we’ll never know,” Harruq said, tossing the blade onto the floor. Qurrah, however, was far from dismayed. He grinned at his brother and then spoke in his hissing voice.
“Would you like to have a conversation with our dear old dad?” he asked.
12
The body of Ahrqur Tun’del lay atop several strange markings and shapes drawn in the dirt. He remained wrapped in the blankets and sheets the two half-orcs had used to smuggle him out of his house. The wrappings provided a bit of cover against the growing smell of death that already permeated their home.
“His spirit will be bound to mine,” Qurrah said, sitting on his knees before the body. His eyes were closed and his hands atop Ahrqur’s head. “Any question you or I ask he must answer truthfully. Do not be disturbed by the sound he first makes. Spirits brought back into our world rarely enjoy the journey.”
Harruq nodded, dressed in his black armor. They did not have much time before Velixar’s dark cloud arrived. They could not rush, but nor could they dawdle. Qurrah inhaled deeply and began casting his spell.
The words of magic were similar to those when he raised the eight corpses back in Cornrows. The bigger half-orc was aware of subtle differences, but had little clue to what they were. Words of power were beyond his understanding.
The body quivered, but it was not a physical quiver. Translucent silver crept about the wraps. Blue smoke floated into the air. The blue and silver grew thicker and thicker. Qurrah’s words grew louder, more powerful, and then Ahrqur’s spirit ripped into the air, a glowing blue-silver form of insanity. The spirit looked much as he did in life, except his clothes were different. They were silvery robes, beautiful and decadent. The spirit wailed. It took all of Harruq’s strength to resist the urge to plug his ears with his hands.
“Cease such nonsense,” Qurrah ordered. The spirit immediately hushed. A bit of coherence came to his eyes, and he glared down at the half-orc.
“Greetings, Ahrqur,” Qurrah said. “Remember us, the incompetent thieves?”
The spirit glared harder.
“Did his tongue die with him?” Harruq asked.
“I haven’t told him he can speak yet,” Qurrah responded. His eyes flicked back from Harruq to the spirit. “You may talk, spirit, but keep it quiet.”
“You take my life, and now you dare keep me from eternity?” the spirit said. “For what reason do you torment me? I have never harmed you, never said a cursing word, but now this?”
“Just a few questions and you may return to your slumber.”
Qurrah paused, a smile growing across his lips.
“Tell me, did you ever sleep with an orcish woman?”
The spirit recoiled as if struck.
“You dare ask me if I ever committed an act so disgraceful and…”
“Answer me!”
The cry from Qurrah rolled over him like a horde of stampeding horses.
“Yes,” Ahrqur said. The words dripped out of his mouth, quiet and disgusted. “Yes. Once.”
Harruq shook his head, hardly able to believe it.
“You did?” he asked. “How long ago?”
“Many years. Fifteen. Twenty.”
“Why did you sleep with her?” Qurrah asked.
“She filled me with drink and then tricked me,” the elven spirit said. “Never would I willingly have touched one of Celestia’s cursed.”
Qurrah shook his head. “Answer me truthfully, you wretched spirit. Was it willing or was it not?”
The spirit gave no answer. The half-orc stood, his hands clenched into fists. He hooked them through the air as he repeated his question.
“Was it willing or not?” he demanded.
“Yes,” Ahrqur whispered, grimacing as if filled with horrid pain. “When she approached me I offered no resistance. Now will you let me return to peace?”
“Not yet. Harruq, would you like to tell him?”
Ahrqur glanced at Harruq, who was grinning wide.
“You can see we have orcish blood in us, right?” Harruq asked.
“Aye, you stink of it,” the spirit said.
“Well, we also have elven blood in us. Our mum said she bedded an elf before she was thrown out of town. So guess what? I’m thinking we’re the children you sired with that orc lady so many years ago.”
The glow of the spirit faded. It looked back and forth, shaking and moaning.
“You cannot be bastard children of mine,” Ahrqur said, his voice weak and distant. “Celestia cannot hate me so.”
“Celestia has nothing to do with this,” Qurrah said. “It is truth.”
Almost all the spirit’s glow was gone. Only hatred and disgust lingered in his eyes.
“May I be released now, wretched spawn of mine?” Ahrqur asked.
“Yes. Go rest in your shame. I have no use for you.”
The spirit gave Qurrah one last glare then dissipated into the fading light. Silence filled the room.
“Well, what did you think?” asked Harruq.
“I think,” Qurrah said, “that was enjoyable.”
The two paused, each thinking the same thing. Finally, Harruq voiced his thoughts.
“You think Velixar knew it when he sent us to kill him?”
Qurrah stretched, letting out a small sigh as his back popped.
“Yes, I do,” he said. “Although I don’t know why. A test of some sort perhaps?”
“Getting tired of tests,” Harruq said.
“Keep such thoughts buried and dead.” Qurrah pointed to the door. The cloud of darkness waited. “Bring the body.”
Excellent.”
Velixar beamed at his two disciples. At his feet lay the still wrapped body of Ahrqur. “Tun’del was
a skilled swordmaster. You both have proven yourselves as strong as I believed. Unwrap the body. It is time we begin.”
Much preparation later, Qurrah and Velixar stood on opposite sides of a naked Ahrqur. The elf lay on his back. Thin scars and symbols decorated his body, including a slanted Y across his forehead. Thirteen stones surrounded the corpse, each dabbed with a bit of Qurrah’s blood. Velixar held a piece of Ahrqur’s flesh in his right hand.
“Are you ready?” Velixar asked his disciple.
“Yes, master,” Qurrah said.
The elder necromancer crushed the flesh in his grip, signaling the start of his casting. Dark, whispering words flowed from his lips, ominous in the starlight. As the minutes passed, the blood on the stones began to glow. Qurrah took up his own chant, a single phrase he was to repeat so that the spirit of Ahrqur could not flee once Velixar summoned it.
“Drak thun, drak thaye, kaer vrek thal luen,” he chanted. A part of him shivered, the words so similar to black words Master had spoken before the hyena-men had come. He repeated his designated phrase, feeling the magic flowing from him to encircle the body.
“Kala mar, yund cthular!” Velixar shrieked in a voice stronger than his frail form should have possessed. The call echoed throughout the night, sending wolves yipping away and night owls crashing in a squawking frenzy. The symbols on the body flared to a brilliant crimson.
A sense of exaltation soared through both necromancers as Ahrqur opened his eyes and snarled.
“Rise, slave,” Velixar commanded. “Your soul is trapped in your body and answers only my command.”
The naked elf rose, his eyes burning with red rage. The symbols on his body faded until they were but faint scars.
“Give him his clothes,” Velixar ordered his student. Qurrah fetched a pair of black pants, a red shirt, and a black cloak, all of which Velixar had prepared before the brothers had brought the bloodless body to him.
“Dress,” the necromancer ordered. Ahrqur growled some inane argument, but a glare from Velixar sent him cowering.
“You must obey my every command, wretch, before you may return to the peaceful death you left. Fight me and you shall find your stay here spanning time greater than your understanding.”
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