The Skull Warrior

by Yajat Sharma

  “Splitting up is bad for us!” Lynx insisted. “And good for the Skull Warrior!”

  Archer added, “And anyway, in every movie I have seen, things always go wrong when they split up.” He shook his head. “No matter how much others advise him, the hero won’t listen.”

  The Scavenger replied snidely, “That’s why he is a hero. Anyway, I have decided. I have to go.”

  Lynx sighed, calming himself. “All right, then. It’s no use arguing. Just proceed fast while my group focuses on getting the Trident. For that, we need to approach Insanity in Opal City, so we’ll leave for Opal City.”

  The Scavenger nodded.

  Lynx, along with Urrax, Matt and Daniel departed for Opal City. Scavenger, James, Archer and No One came out of the cave.

  “Okay. Let’s go,” James said. “Where’s the portal?”

  The Scavenger gave James an amused look. “There is no portal that can take you to the burial site. It’s a sacred place and no magic works in the area around it.”

  Archer was shocked. “What? Do we travel on foot?”

  The Scavenger shook his head. “It’s too far off. Not possible on foot either. We need to use a chariot.”

  “Not again.” James and Archer groaned at the same time.

  “Why not?” the Scavenger asked.

  “One, it’s boring,” James said.

  “Two, it’s uncomfortable,” Archer added.

  “Three, it’s shaky,” James said.

  “And four, it’s boring,” Archer finished. “And that’s five, six, seven and eight too. And nine and ten. And -”

  “Okay, okay,” the Scavenger interrupted. “I have a solution. You can walk the whole journey. I will go by chariot.” He closed his eyes and muttered something. A chariot appeared, along with five white horses.

  Grumbling to themselves, James and Archer got into the chariot and sat down at the back. No One followed them, shaking his head. Their journey to Arcane’s burial site began.

  After a few hours into the forest, the horses pawed the ground nervously and neighed. Sensing danger, everyone took their positions.

  A crackling twig broke the silence. A second later, a clinking sound was heard.

  They were not alone. The Scavenger stopped the chariot.

  The Scavenger and No One quickly got out of the chariot and climbed a tree. James and Archer hid behind two separate trees.

  Half a minute later, a group of five guards appeared. The guards were decked in heavy armour. What was most surprising was the thing each held in their hands.

  An Oculus!

  It seemed that Lynx’s blueprints had been put to good use by the enemy, and so soon.

  “Whose chariot could it be?” one of the guards asked.

  “Maybe of the fugitives!” another said. “Let’s take this to Lord Grim.”

  “But who will endure the suffering and hard work to take the chariot that far?” another guard asked.

  James had to control his sniggering. The fools! They could just drive the chariot!

  “I suggest we destroy it,” the first guard continued. “We can try out these beauties.” He held up the Oculus.

  The others agreed.

  The guard aimed and fired. The cule exploded five feet to the left of the chariot.

  Before the guard could fire another cule, the Scavenger jumped down from a tree, right on the head of the guard. It was a visual treat for James, Archer and No One to watch Scavenger using his martial arts skills on the guards. Within seconds, all five guards were knocked unconscious.

  James walked out of the bushes and took the Oculuses from the guards.

  “Hey! Take this.” James offered an Oculus to the Scavenger.

  The Scavenger scowled. “No, thank you. I am not touching those infernal devices. I am better off without them. Now, come on, we need to reach the burial site fast.”

  They all boarded the chariot and continued their journey.

  After about an hour, the Scavenger stopped the chariot and asked everyone to get down. “It’s just a few meters walk,” he said concisely, already scanning the surroundings for enemy warriors, and thankfully finding none.

  A little while later, the trees began to clear away, revealing a beautiful sight.

  The burial site was a large tomb surrounded by lush green gardens. The waterfalls in the nearby hills gave the place a mesmerizing appearance.

  “Wow!” Archer exclaimed in awe. “It’s beautiful.”

  The Scavenger nodded and smiled. “Yes. It must be one of the most scenic places in the Dark World.”

  “Why are there no guards?” Archer asked.

  “Why would there be any guards? My dear genius boy, it’s a burial site, not a palace.” The Scavenger smiled and walked towards the tomb.

  The tomb was a massive structure made of brownstone. Pictures of Lord Arcane were carved into it. They crossed through the wooden gate and entered a hall with big chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. There was a small wooden throne placed in the centre of the hall.

  “Now what?” James asked.

  “One by one, we sit on it, and the throne decides if you are worthy to enter. Don’t worry. We are all worthy souls,” the Scavenger said, sitting down on the throne. For twenty seconds, nothing happened. Then there was a bright flash and the Scavenger disappeared.

  No One, Archer and James sat one by one until they all disappeared in a flash.

  They appeared in a dimly lit cave in the centre of which a well was situated. “This is the Well of Truth. You need to jump into it. You will see your greatest fear. Don’t get scared. Just try to smile and greet your fear.” The Scavenger readied himself to take the plunge.

  “But why?” Archer asked. “I mean, why do you need to do all this for reaching a grave? I guess the access to the grave could have been made pretty straightforward so that more people can pay their respects. Are we on the wrong path?”

  “No, you are on the right path. Lord Arcane wished that only the worthy should be able to reach his grave, and that’s why the magicians designed it the way it is. Come on, just get into it.” The Scavenger jumped into the Well of Truth. The others followed.

  James was the last to jump. He saw his greatest fear – a school exam result with a big zero. James tried to smile and greet the fear, but in vain.

  They appeared in a room. The coffin of Lord Arcane was placed inside. The Scavenger appeared nervous. “Time to find out whether what Hellfire said was true or not.”

  The Scavenger knelt beside the coffin and then held the lid tight to push it open. James let out his breath in a loud whoosh and realized that he was holding his breath. All of them were tense. What if they didn’t find Lord Arcane’s bones? What if Hellfire was telling the truth?

  With a big grunt, the Scavenger shook the lid off.

  James looked into the coffin and his heart almost stopped.

  Everyone looked up at the Scavenger.

  The Scavenger had tears in his eyes. It was the first time that the children had seen the Scavenger cry.

  12

  Lynx, along with Daniel, Matt and Urrax, emerged in lush green meadows. Lynx summoned a chariot, and they all boarded it. The chariot moved through a narrow path with rows of plants serving as fences on either side

  Several strange creatures in the meadows caught their attention. Daniel was continuously staring at a cow-shaped creature that had two horns as big as the creature itself. The horns stretched to the cow’s tail, then protruded backwards.

  “That’s a Chyrisare,” Lynx said. “It can easily move its horns to attack. I fought with it once. One good piece of advice – avoid it at all costs.”

  Lynx continued to describe various other creatures to the children. “Look, that one is a Toxintree. Get near two metres within it and it will throw acid at you. And that aggressive bull-cum-crocodile is the Dusktaur. Check here, and there’s a Gravemorph – tiny but deadly. At the far left, you can see a Baneteeth. It’s similar to a tiger in looks but with very s
harp teeth.”

  Lynx was so engrossed in doling out these facts and the children were so engrossed in listening that they failed to see two armed men standing in the path straight ahead. Standing with their hands folded across their chest, they were looking at the approaching chariot with venom-filled eyes.

  The chariot continued to move at its own pace and was about to collide with the men. But when it was metres away from the men, both of them raised their hands and shouted illegible words, most probably a spell. The chariot rose in the air and flipped.

  Daniel, Matt, Lynx and Urrax went flying out of the chariot, hitting the ground with a painful thud.

  Before they could get up, the armed men fired at the chariot. There was a big blast as the chariot disintegrated into pieces from the force of the energy.

  Daniel was the first to regain his focus. Matt, Lynx and Urrax stood up quickly.

  One of the armed men threw a barrage of knives directed towards Daniel. Daniel closed his eyes and raised his hands to cover his face. There was a clattering sound. Daniel opened his eyes and saw that a protective shield had formed around him. Knives clattered into it and broke into pieces. Daniel looked at his hands in disbelief.

  Suddenly, the shield disappeared. A second later, the shockwave hit the two men and rendered them unconscious.

  Daniel turned to a smiling Lynx. “Did you see that? Wasn’t that amazing?”

  Lynx was still smiling. “The shield was perfect. I didn’t know I could do that well.”

  Daniel frowned. “You mean that wasn’t me?”

  “That was me, dumbo,” Lynx said flatly.

  Daniel groaned.

  “Well, sorry to burst your bubble.” Lynx stood up and started walking towards the two men, who were lying unconscious. There was a sign of skull and crossbones on both of their backs. The pattern on their robes shimmered and looked like the infinity sign.

  A look of disgust appeared on Lynx’s face. “The Sorcerers of the Circle. One of the most powerful but irritating kind of sorcerers in the Dark World, because most powerful spells fail against them. Only a powerful shockwave could overpower them. It was good that my magic was worked, or else we were done for.”

  Lynx looked around, examining the surroundings for more such warriors, but he found none. “Let’s leave.”

  Lynx closed his eyes and concentrated. Another chariot appeared.

  As they sped away further into the valley, Daniel and Matt went to Lynx and badgered him with questions.

  “Why were the Sorcerers here?” Daniel was the first to ask.

  “They knew we were coming,” Lynx said. “They were waiting for us.”

  “But how did they know we were coming?” Matt asked.

  Lynx shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe they were waiting for someone else, and luck just had us in the wrong spot at the wrong time.”

  “Do you believe that?” Matt asked.

  “No,” Lynx answered promptly. “What else can I say? I don’t know why they were there.”

  Matt scoffed. “Really? You know as well as I do that you are avoiding mentioning the thing you are suspecting. But that’s fine. I understand we need to be quiet.”

  “What?” Daniel demanded. “What are you suspec -”

  Daniel didn’t get to complete his sentence.

  For the second time in the day, their chariot flipped through the air.

  All of them tumbled out from the chariot. Daniel’s head banged on something and he was knocked out at once.

  When Daniel blinked his eyes open, he saw that he was tied to a chair. Daniel could sense that he was inside the chariot, but it was not moving. Lynx and the others were beside him, all of them bound. The steely glint in Lynx’s eyes suggested that he was thinking of some way to get out of this situation.

  Daniel saw an armoured man in front. His face would have been handsome but for the scar running across his right cheek, which ruined his entire appearance.

  Flanking the man on both sides were two bulky warriors that were dressed in yellow and looked ridiculous. But the murderous look in their eyes suggested that humour was the last thing on their minds.

  “Well, well, well,” the armoured man said, laughing. “Look what we have got here. A bunch of criminals that -”

  “Let us go!” Lynx yelled, struggling against the ropes in vain.

  “I don’t think so,” the warrior said. His smile morphed into a snarl. “You will pay for what you did.”

  “What did we do?” Lynx asked.

  The man said, “Remember Voldmir? Where your good-for-nothing friends freed you from execution. Well, you injured plenty that day. And one of them was my brother. The doctors say he will be unconscious for at least a month.”

  “I am sorry, Mr Unknown,” Lynx said, sincerely. “But that kind of risk comes with the job, you know?”

  “No, I don’t know! Enough!” the man said. “Don’t call me Mr Unknown. I am Cad.”

  Lynx spoke again. “Well, Cad -”

  Suddenly, mid-sentence, Lynx stood lightning-fast, lifting the tied up chair along with him. Cad and the armoured guards had no time to react as Lynx spun himself in the air. The chair whipped across the air and hit Cad, sending him crashing away.

  The two guards ran towards Lynx.

  Lynx ducked under the knife of the first guard and whipped his chair against the thigh of the second guard. The chair legs broke apart from the impact. Lynx dodged another attack of the first guard and propelled himself forward, tumbling to the ground. The last few parts of the chair broke, and Lynx freed himself from the broken chair.

  He delivered a quick palm strike straight to the other guard’s stomach. The force sent the guard striking against the railing of the chariot. Lynx hooked his leg around the other guard and brought him down too with a single strike. Lynx ran towards Matt to free him when…

  “Don’t move.”

  Lynx turned slowly and raised his hands. Cad was holding an Oculus in his hand, its barrel pointing towards Lynx’s head. Lynx couldn’t help but snarl. Lynx’s own creation was being used against him.

  “You have done enough damage. Your time is up.” Cad’s face was still red from the earlier attack with the chair.

  Daniel was sitting tied to the chair close to Cad and he suddenly saw Lynx winking at him. It was a very subtle sign, but Daniel didn’t miss it.

  Daniel mustered all his energy and lifted the chair; he somehow took two steps forward, hitting Cad. Daniel’s head struck against Cad’s waist, and a grunt of pain left Daniel’s mouth.

  As he fell, Cad pressed the trigger and a single Cule shot out. Luckily, the aim was off and didn’t hurt anyone. Lynx at once delivered a hard blow to Cad and got him disoriented. Lynx dragged Cad to the railing of the chariot and bound him with ropes.

  “Ironic, isn’t it?” Lynx said, as he finished tying Cad to the chariot. “A minute later, I was the one tied up. Ha! Tit for tat! Ha, Ha!”

  “Will you stop gloating and free us?” Matt interrupted. “My arms are so numb they feel like needles.”

  Lynx hurried over and freed them one by one by cutting the ropes. He also started tying up the two unconscious guards.

  Just as they finished taking control of the situation, Matt pointed towards an opening on the wooden floor in the chariot. “Hey! What’s this?”

  Lynx opened the lid and looked inside. “I can see some stairs. They are probably going to the basement of the chariot. We need to check. I’m going first. Follow me.”

  Lynx leaned inside and tapped the first step with his sword. Nothing happened. He climbed down onto the first step. Then he tapped the second step and placed his feet on it. The others followed. Clearing the third step, Lynx reached the fourth one. He stood on the fourth step, and as soon as he tapped the fifth step, the sword dropped from his hand and got sucked into the fifth step.

  “How did that happen?” a surprised Matt asked.

  “It’s a kind of magic portal called a wormhole,” Lynx replied. “It seems that it l
eads to a specific place, which must have been decided by Grim. Just avoid the fifth step by jumping over it.”

  They avoided the fifth and moved further, checking every step for more traps. There were none. The stairs ended at a door that led them into a small room in the basement of the chariot. There was a table in the centre and many chairs around it. The room was empty.

  Lynx was intensely thinking something.

  “Is something going on in your mind?” Matt asked.

  “Yes. The fifth step can be a boon. Let’s make good use of it. I think it’s high time we ask Cad why the Sorcerers of the Circle intercepted us. If he tells us, it would be great, or else the fifth step can be a sinkhole for him.” Lynx revealed his plan in a measured tone.

  “Let’s do it,” Daniel said excitedly.

  “But before that…” Lynx quickly went upwards and in half a minute, had both the unconscious guards poised over the fifth step. Lynx released the guards and they disappeared into the wormhole.

  Then he went up and dragged Cad onto the stairs, near the fifth step. Lynx slapped Cad until he woke up.

  “What... Where?” Cad sprung into consciousness and spluttered.

  “I don’t know how you came here. I am not interested to know that either,” Lynx said. “But if you don’t answer our questions, a wormhole is waiting for you.” He pointed his finger at the fifth step.

  Cad’s eyes widened. “What do you want?”

  “Did you know we were coming?” Lynx asked.

  Cad remained silent.

  “Look, we can make this easy,” Lynx said. “I can simply throw you into the wormhole and be done with it. I don’t have much patience. Did you know we were coming?”

  Cad gritted his teeth. “Yes.”

  “Who told you?”

  Cad was silent.

  Lynx waited for five seconds and shouted, “Who told you?”

  “I... I, uh, I... forgot,” Cad stammered out.

  Lynx slammed his foot angrily. “No games! Who told you?”

  “I am telling you, I forgot.”

  Lynx punched Cad in the face. “That’s it!” He swung Cad over the fifth step and lowered him.