EYE OF THE WIZARD
by
Daniel Arenson
Copyright © 2011 by Daniel Arenson
All rights reserved.
This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination, or, if real, used fictitiously.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by an electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of the author.
Chapter One
Three Promises
Nobody else saw the grobbler.
At first Scruff thought he imagined it. His family didn't seem to notice the creature. Father and Mother dozed in armchairs by the fireplace. His brother Neev was reading a dusty, leather-bound tome about chess. His sister Jamie, the youngest in the family, was playing with toy knights under the table. Had nobody felt the chill in the air, heard the grunting, glimpsed the twisted figure outside the window?
When he looked out the window again, Scruff saw nothing but an empty street, the wet cobblestones glistening beneath lanterns. The windowpanes were opened wide, and the night wafted into the house: its cool breezes, scents of crackling hearths, the distant sound of chanting monks. No grobblers. No lurking shadows. You just imagined it, Scruff, he told himself. You listen to too many fairytales.
Scruff was thirteen and already six feet tall—the tallest kid in town—but when he was smaller, his mother would tell him stories of grobblers. "If you don't behave," she'd say, "they'll get you. Grobblers eat misbehaving children."
But of course, those were just stories. Pagan gods cursing beautiful, vain women, twisting and wilting their left halves? The women wandering the world as grobblers, left halves rotting, right halves never aging, a reminder of their corrupted beauty? It was ridiculous. Even their name, grobblers, sounded silly, a name some rambling storyteller would invent after his tales of Arthur, Robin Hood, and William Tell were already told. Scruff shook his head. Just stories, just stupid stories told to—
A shadow moved outside, severing his thoughts.
Scruff straightened, goosebumps rising across him. There was something out there, something strange. Scruff could not see the creature itself, but its shadow made his heart race. At first he thought it the shadow of a young woman, but when it turned, Scruff saw a hunchback and a knobby, twisted arm. Half beauty, half beast. Hands sweaty, Scruff grabbed his brother's arm.
Twelve years old and wiry, Neev looked up with a grunt, eyes flashing. "What do you want, Scruff? I'm trying to read."
Scruff pointed outside. "Look! What's that?"
Neev sighed. "Really, Scruff, I don't like being bothered when reading, and...."
Neev's breath died, and he gaped out the window. The grobbler had stepped into view. Scruff saw it only in profile, and he gasped. He had never seen a woman so beautiful, with hair so golden, skin so silky, lips so plump and red. Then the grobbler turned to face him. Its left half was rotted and warty, scraggly hair swarming with maggots, red eye blazing.
The grobbler turned that red eye upon him, and Scruff grimaced. Its stare burned like a ray of hellfire. The grobbler's mouth opened—a mouth half perfect, half shriveled—and it hissed in a voice like flames.
"You will die, Scruff."
God. It knows my name.
Scruff's little sister Jamie, still holding her toy knights, looked up and screamed.
Everything started happening in a whirl of terror and light.
Father leaped to his feet, burly but quick as a falcon. He lunged toward the window, drawing his dagger. The blade gleamed. The grobbler reached into the house, swiping its claws at Father. Father ducked, dodging the claws, and thrust up his dagger. Scruff stared, frozen, as the dagger slammed into the grobbler's throat. Black blood spurted.
"Papa!" Jamie screamed.
"There's more!" Scruff said, voice trembling. Father had killed one grobbler, but Scruff saw many more outside, an army of these creatures. His legs shook. How did it know me? How could grobblers know my name?
"Away from the windows!" Father said. "Back against the wall." He slammed the wooden windowpanes shut, but Scruff could still hear townspeople screaming and crying outside. Jamie sobbed. The grobblers were moving from house to house, screeching and smashing windows, and Scruff smelled smoke. The town of Burrfield was burning.
Face pale and lips tightened, Mother handed Father his breastplate and helped him don it. Father grabbed his weapons from the wall—a battleaxe in one hand, a sword in the other, their blades filigreed.
"Papa," Jamie sobbed, "what's happening?" She was clinging to her brother Neev, tears streaming down her cheeks. Fire crackled outside, and Scruff heard people running down the streets, grobblers tearing them apart. He bit his lip so hard, he tasted blood, and his legs shook.
Father stepped toward the door, a tall knight with a handlebar mustache. He paused and looked back at his family. His face was like chiseled stone, but his eyes were haunted windows, shattered. He whispered words Scruff could not believe.
"I must go."
Mother stepped toward Father, gasping, tears in her eyes. "Go? But...."
Father hugged her, still holding his weapons, and a grimace found that stony face of his. Scruff had never seen Father like this, never seen him so... scared. Scruff could barely believe it. He had never known Father could feel fear, not Sir Sam Thistle, the hero of the Crusades, the strongest man in town.
"He is back," Father whispered, voice low, tense, as if struggling not to tremble. "He is back and leading these grobblers. The warlock. You know who I mean. He'll keep conjuring them, Amabel, more and more of them; they will never stop. I must find him... kill him. Only killing him can stop this." The tremble finally found his voice. "I must go—now! I cannot stay with you here."
A warlock. Scruff shuddered. Summoner of demons. Weaver of black magic. He had heard of warlocks, but never seen one. Few people had. Why would one of these dark wizards be attacking Burrfield? Why did his parents seem to know him? And, dear God, how did the grobbler know his name?
Outside, the sound of shrieking grobblers rose, high pitched, inhuman, a sound like winter winds through canyons. The smell of fire filled Scruff's nostrils. Though he trembled and his heart raced, he stepped toward Father.
"I'm coming with you," he said. He hated that his voice sounded high, childlike. He swallowed and clenched his fists. I'm stronger and taller than most adults. I will fight.
Father shook his head, face haunted, eyes storming. "Stay here. Protect the family until I return. You can do this. It's the only way, Sam."
Sam. It was his real name—Sam Thistle the Fourth—but everyone just called him Scruff, his nickname since being born with thick, scruffy hair. Father called him Sam only on the most solemn occasions, and the name sent chills across Scruff. Biting his lip, he looked at his family. Little Jamie clutched Mother's skirt, pushed against the wall far from the window. Neev stood at Mother's other side, short and scrawny for his twelve years, his eyes dark. Protect them? Me?
"Take my sword," Father said and placed the hilt in Scruff's hand. His eyes moistened. "I... I cannot stand to leave you here. But it's the only way. The only way, Sam. You are ready for this. I know I can count on you."
Scruff nodded, clutching the sword, lips tightened. He had never held a sword outside the training yard, and the hilt felt cold. Father nodded, eyes glinting with sudden pride, then rushed out the door and into battle.
"Papa, don't go!" Jamie screamed, but the door shut behind Father, leaving them alone and trembling in the dark.
The r
oom suddenly seemed colder and smaller, closing in around Scruff. Fear filled him, and... anger. Father left them. He left them! How could he? The rage burned, making Scruff tremble. But no... Father had not abandoned them. He had gone to defend them. He had gone to kill him, this warlock... the only way to stop the grobblers, the only way to save the family. I could have gone with him! I could have fought by his side. Scruff tightened his lips. But he needs me here. He needs me to defend the family. The sword felt heavy, so heavy he could barely hold it.
"I'm scared," Jamie said, burying her face in Mother's skirt.
Neev snorted, fists clenched at his sides. "Scruff will protect us," he said, glaring at Scruff with burning eyes. "With his sword, Scruff is a mighty knight."
"Be quiet, Neev," Scruff said, his palm sweaty around the hilt. Neev was just scared, he knew, and trying to hide it under his usual show of disdain for everyone. But Scruff would have none of it—not now. "Go back to your chess book and stop being jealous."
Neev's eyes blazed in a mix of amusement and anger. "Why would I be jealous, O great Sir Scruff the Strong?"
"Because Dad gave his sword to me, not you."
Mother interrupted, face pale. "Kids! This is no time to argue." She had taken a log from the fireplace and held it like a weapon. Its one end smoldered, red and crackling. It reminded Scruff of the grobbler's red eye, its searing stare.
Scruff tightened his lips. Mother was right. The grobbler screeching grew louder by the moment, and Scruff could also hear clanking armor, thudding boots, the cries of soldiers. A battle raged across Burrfield. Scruff wished he could be outside, fighting with Father, slashing at grobblers, cutting them down. Anything would be better than waiting... waiting in the dark, sword in hand... endless, torturous waiting for something to attack.
Suddenly, with a shower of splinters, a grobbler smashed open the windowpanes. Scruff started and Mother screamed. The grobbler climbed through the window, drooling and hissing. Its fair half faced Scruff—an angelic beauty with soft hair and pouty red lips. When it landed on the floor, it revealed its left half, the withered, wormy half of a hunchbacked crone.
"Scruff!" Jamie screamed, but Scruff could not move. The fear froze him, and he couldn't tear his eyes away from the creature, a creature so fair and foul. How could such beauty, such horror exist? The dichotomy dazed him, numbed him. The grobbler reached toward him, one hand delicate and pale, the other clawed and bloody. "Hello, Scruff," it hissed, voice demonic. Everything else seemed to disappear; the whole world became this creature before him, this thing of ancient vanity and pagan curses.
"Kill it, Scruff!" Neev shouted, but his voice seemed muffled, distant, as from another world. "What are you waiting for?"
Scruff realized he wasn't breathing. He shook his head wildly to clear it, forced a deep breath, and pulled his feet forward. The floor felt like quicksand. The grobbler cackled and came charging forward, brandishing claws, but it seemed so slow to Scruff. The whole world turned sluggish, like living in a bowl of jelly where every movement slowed to a crawl.
"Scruff, kill it!" Jamie shouted, her voice impossibly distant, a mere echo.
Scruff's heartbeat rang in his ears. He swung his sword, Father's sword, the family's ancient weapon. The blade arched through the darkness, glistening, reflecting the leering grin and burning eyes of the grobbler. Please, God, let this blade land true.
But his fingers were sweaty, trembling. He felt his grip slide. No! Horror stabbed him, ice cold. He tried to clutch the hilt, but the sword flew from his grip like a slippery fish.
God, NO.
When the sword fell, it seemed as slow as a feather. Scruff tried to catch the hilt... his fingers grazed it... but just missed it.
Jamie and Neev screamed.
The sword hit the floor.
The ringing of steel against stone tiles clanged in his head, a horrible sound, a cackle. Scruff howled. How could I have dropped it? Tears burned in his eyes.
The grobbler crashed into him, shrieking. Pain exploded, renting the sluggish mists engulfing his mind. Everything started happening at lightning speed again.
The grobbler rammed him into the wall, cracking the wood, clawing at him. Scruff could barely see through the pain. He punched blindly. He felt his fists hit the grobbler, crushing its face. It screeched and fell away, maw bloody, and Mother clubbed its head with her burning log. The grobbler fell, hair aflame.
"There's more!" Jamie screamed.
Wincing, Scruff saw three more grobblers smash into the house. One came through the window, and two more broke down the door. Neev and Jamie were screaming and tossing plates at them. Mother was swinging the log, snarling, her face red; Scruff had never seen her like this. Where's the sword? How could I have dropped it? Scruff could not see the blade.
As he looked around wildly, he saw the grobblers surround Mother. They clutched the log she swung, wrenched it free, and knocked her down. They began to claw and bite her. Scruff felt like somebody stabbed him with an icicle.
"Leave her alone!" he shouted and leaped onto the grobblers, but they shoved him back, smiles dripping blood and drool. One slashed his shoulder, and Scruff screamed, blood soaking his shirt.
Smoke filled his mouth and nostrils, making him cough. The grobblers were burning the house, tossing logs from the fireplace onto the rug and tapestries. Scruff's eyes watered and he could not breathe. The smoke filled the room, black, heavy, choking him.
"Everybody out!" he shouted, hoarse. He could just make out Jamie ahead; the smoke hid everything else. Scruff lifted his sister and ran outside, shouting. "Neev, Mom, follow me!"
He stood in the night, smoke flowing around him, screams and shouts echoing down the street. Had they heard him? Were they alive? Guilt ached in his belly. He had dropped his sword, had failed to defend his family. I'm a coward. His tears fell and his body shook.
Neev burst out from the burning house, ash covering his face, his hair singed.
"Mom's dead," he whispered, eyes haunted. He suddenly seemed so young, a skinny child, frightened, all his disdain and smugness gone.
The grobblers emerged from the burning house, screeching. Blood covered their claws and fangs.
"Run!" Scruff shouted. He ran through the burning town, holding Jamie in his arms. Mom. Dead. It can't be. Scruff trembled as he ran, tears on his cheeks. Neev ran beside him, his face pale and ashy. Around them, soldiers were battling dozens of grobblers, and the smell of blood, sweat, and fire filled the air. One of the creatures grabbed Neev's foot, tripping him. He fell, bloodying his nose, then managed to kick himself free and keep running.
"Where will we go?" Neev shouted over the roar of fire, grobbler screeching, and clanking armor. His eyes were red and moist.
Scruff pointed to Friar Hill which rose ahead between burning houses. Sometimes wandering priests would preach atop the hill, giving it its name. Today Scruff saw a hooded, robed figure standing there, wreathed in flame, arms moving as if conducting the slaughter.
"Father said a warlock is leading these grobblers," Scruff said, running toward the hill. "That looks like our warlock. Father will be there."
They ran around the town stables where horses screamed, over old Gorse Bridge, and past the Porcupine's Quills Tavern which rose in flame. Bodies of townsfolk littered the roads and floated down Gorse Stream. As he ran, anguish filled Scruff, bringing tears to his eyes. Mother is dead. I couldn't save her. His breath ached in his lungs, and he felt like dying.
Jamie sobbed in his arms. "I want Mamma," she whispered, trembling.
Her tears pained Scruff more than his wounds. I won't let them get you too, Jamie, he swore, his boots thudding across bloody cobblestones. He suddenly loved his siblings so much—even Neev—that his heart seemed to clench.
Finally they reached Friar Hill, raced up the grassy slope, and froze. The warlock stood ahead, clad in black robes, face hidden in the shadows of his hood. The children crouched behind a fallen log, cloaked in shadows. The warlock did not see
them; he was busy waving his arms as if conducting. As his hands moved, the grobblers below swept from street to street. The warlock controlled them like a puppeteer. Hatred filled Scruff, burning, spinning his head. There is the man who destroyed the town, who murdered Mother.
As the children watched from the shadows, Father came running up the far side of the hill, axe in hand, armor glinting in the firelight. Scruff bit his fist, eyes blurry. Father! He'll take care of this. He crouched low, hidden, watching. His siblings trembled beside him.
"It's you," Father said to the warlock, eyes hard. He stepped toward the cloaked figure. "I knew it would be you."
The warlock turned toward Father, his black robes swishing, darker than the night. "Well well, it has been a while, has it not?"
"Not long enough," Father said. "Leave this town."
The warlock's voice was dry and deathly like old bones. "Do not interfere with my plans again. Stay back, or I'll kill you before you've taken a step."
Father charged, axe raised.
The warlock grunted, as if surprised that Father should truly attack. Scruff guessed that few people ever dared attack him. The warlock began to utter a spell, raising gaunt hands gloved in leather.
Father reached him. The axe swung.
Black sparks fluttered around the warlock's fingers.
The axe slammed into the warlock's side, and Scruff heard a horrible crunching sound, an inhuman sound, like the sound of splintering wood. Scruff held his breath. Was the warlock dead?
No—he still stood, the axe embedded in him. How can he still live? Growling, the warlock grabbed Father, and black lightning flowed from those gaunt, gloved hands, slamming into Father. The bolts crackled, smoking, raising Scruff's hair. Father cried and fell.
"Dad!" Scruff screamed, leaped out of the shadows, and ran forward. His heart felt like it had frozen and shattered. Neev and Jamie ran with him, also screaming. Scruff curled his fingers into fists, prepared to pummel the warlock, but was too late. Cursing and clutching his wound, the warlock uttered a spell and vanished like a ghost. The axe hit the ground, clanging. In the town below, the grobblers howled in fear and began to flee, their courage gone with their master.
Eye of the Wizard: A Fantasy Adventure Page 1
