“A servant of the Dragon Gods, of course,” said Sarzen. “You said he has an ax of light, yes?”
“Yes, I did,” said Juren. “Is that significant?”
Sarzen nodded. “Yes. There are legends that speak of a Warrior of Light who lived a thousand years ago and wielded an ax made of light, which he used to slay the Draymens and protect our ancestors. If this Slayer is the same, then it is yet another example of the Dragon Gods’ desire to save Yores.”
Helnia had thought that Sarzen was going to say that he thought the Slayer was their father, but she supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised. Ever since the Miracle at Sinmo, Sarzen had become convinced that all of the old legends and myths were true and that it was only a matter of time before they saw all of them. Helnia had been doubtful, but considering how similar the Slayer and the Warrior sounded to each other, she wondered if his theory was more based on the facts than hers.
“Well, perhaps he is,” said Juren. “The only problem is that he never has anything good to say about the Dragon Gods. At least, he did not say anything nice about them when I met him.”
“What do you mean?” said Sarzen. “What did he say?”
“He said that he was disgusted at how the Dragon Gods were not helping us,” said Juren with a shrug. “That’s about all he said, but I received the impression that he was not a very big fan of the Dragon Gods, to put it lightly.”
“Well, I’m sure he will be a great ally anyway, if we can find him,” said Sarzen. “He sounds like a potential ally in the fight against the Draymens. I must admit, though, that I don’t like his distrust of the Dragon Gods, but maybe, if we ever run into him, I will be able to convince him that they are not as bad as he thinks they are.”
“You can try,” said Juren, “though I do not know how successful you’ll be, because he seemed to really hate the Dragon Gods a lot.”
Helnia brushed back a strand of her hair as she thought about the Slayer. She wondered if he might know about their parents; perhaps he was working with them to defeat the Draymens. That was assuming that her parents were trying to stop the Draymens at all. The letter did not say they were, but it seemed like a logical assumption to Helnia, seeing as she didn’t know what else her parents could be doing right now.
“Anyway, it is starting to get late,” said Sarzen with a yawn. “I think that we should all get some rest. Rothel, will you be staying up tonight to stand guard?”
“Yes,” said Rothel, nodding. “I’ll take the first shift.”
“No, I will,” said Cehre, holding up a hand. “I want to protect my children and grandfather. Besides, I don’t think I will be able to get any sleep tonight; I’m too awake.”
“Very well, then,” said Sarzen. “Rothel can take the second shift. Anyway, good night. Let the Dragon Gods give us all great dreams and restful sleep.”
***
Chapter Seventeen
In the morning, Juren, Cehre, and the children left camp, following the directions that Sarzen had given them that would take them to Sinmo. He had also give Juren a letter with his signature on it, to show to the guards protecting the town so they would know that they were genuine survivors and not spies working for the Draymens.
Sarzen and the others also broke camp at the same time. The caravan immediately continued heading south, the temperature growing warmer and warmer by the hour. In fact, it became so warm that they had to take off their warmer clothes and put on looser and cooler clothes, though Sarzen kept his armor on just in case they were attacked, as did his fellow Warrior Priests.
As they traveled through the plains, Sarzen hoped that they might run into the Draymens Slayer before they reached the Cursed Lands. He’d been fascinated by the description of the Slayer that Juren had told him. To Sarzen, the appearance of the Slayer was proof that great things were happening in Yores, that their quest was destined for success. Even the fact that the Slayer was apparently not a fan of the Dragon Gods did nothing to dampen Sarzen’s enthusiasm; in fact, he was so enthusiastic that he began to hum an old hymn of the Dragon Gods under his breath.
But it wasn’t until they finally reached the border between Yores and the Cursed Lands that Sarzen finally understood just what awaited them on the next leg of their journey.
The border between Yores and the Cursed Lands was not a smooth transition between the plains of Yores and the land of the Cursed. As they drew closer to the border, the earth turned from green grass to a rockier dirt surface, with fewer and fewer tufts of grass to be seen anywhere. Water also became more of a scarcity, with puddles becoming smaller and smaller until soon Sarzen no longer saw any at all. They also came upon the remains of more corpses, humans killed by Draymens, which forced them to keep their guard up, because the Cursed Lands were said to have even more Draymens than Yores, since that was where the Draymens lived.
The Cursed Lands themselves became more visible the closer they drew to the border. Sarzen could see that they were much hillier than the plains of Yores; there was even what appeared to be a huge mountain somewhere in the distance, though it was too far away for Sarzen to make out in any great detail. The Cursed Lands appeared rockier and sandier than the plains of Yores, with a few large boulders scattered here and there for good measure.
There were no towns or villages this close to the border. Nor was there a wall or anything else to separate Yores from the Cursed Lands or keep the Draymens out. The reason for that was that the Dragon Gods themselves had originally been protection enough for Yores. The Dragon Gods’ mere presence had been enough to keep the Draymens too scared to cross the border, in addition to some of the Dragon Gods’ servants, who had been said to travel up and down the huge border between the two lands, killing any Draymens they came across or turning back any human travelers foolish enough to try to cross into the land of the Draymens.
But now, with the Dragon Gods and their servants gone, there was nothing to stop the Draymens from entering Yores or humans from entering the Cursed Lands. Indeed, no human would ever want to travel there under ordinary circumstances, because all of the Holy Books said that the Cursed Lands were completely inhospitable for humans, which was why the Dragon Gods had forbidden travel to that place.
Though Sarzen would never admit it, his fear and nervousness grew as they drew closer to the border. He believed that the Dragon Gods would protect them, but at the same time, he knew that they were almost in Draymens territory now. Even though neither he nor any of the others had seen any Draymens since leaving Sinmo, Sarzen knew better than to let his guard down when they were almost in the Draymens’ country. He also advised the others to keep their guards up, including Helnia and the other mages.
They finally reached the border between Yores and the Cursed Lands in early evening, just as the sun was starting to set on the horizon. They stopped in the middle of a small canyon on the border, because they thought it would provide them with cover for the night and would be easier to defend than sleeping out in the plains. As usual, they arranged their carts in a loose circle that provided them some protection from possible attacks and, after a quick but filling dinner, went to sleep, except for Sarzen, who volunteered to take the first watch.
Sitting on the hard wooden surface of the cart, Sarzen rested his sword and its sheath on his shoulder. The moon and stars in the sky above provided some light, enough that he could see that there were no Draymens nearby, but it seemed to him that the moon and stars were darker here than they were up north. He recalled the stories that High Priest Renuk used to tell him, about how the skies of the Cursed Lands were darker than the skies of Yores, dark skies which made even the sun seem dim and weak.
Since we’re on the border, it’s only logical that we would start to see the dark skies of the Cursed Lands, Sarzen thought. But I shouldn’t let myself get distracted. I must keep an eye out for any threats.
But the canyon was quiet tonight, except for the snores coming from the camp behind him. It seemed like nothing lived in here, no
t even a mouse, though given how dry and hot the place was even at night, that didn’t surprise him.
I bet the Dragon Gods are protecting us, Sarzen thought with a yawn. That’s how we were able to make it from Sinmo to the border in four days without any trouble. I almost wonder if it’s even necessary to have a watch anymore; after all, no one has attacked us at night ye—
A tiny scratching sound interrupted Sarzen’s thoughts. Instinctively, he drew his sword from its sheath and stood up, holding his sword in both hands as he looked around the area. Yet he did not see anything, which made him wonder if he had been hearing things.
Suddenly, Sarzen heard a flapping of wings and looked up to see a small bat swoop by overhead. It flew away up toward the sky and soon left the canyon, the sound of its wings flapping fading away into the distance as it flew farther and farther away.
Must have just been that bat, Sarzen thought, lowering his sword with a sigh. At least it wasn’t a Draymens; that would have been—
All of a sudden, the cart upon which Sarzen stood shook violently. Surprised, Sarzen lost his balance and fell over onto the ground, landing on his right shoulder and crying out in pain.
But then Sarzen heard movement nearby and looked up to see a metal blade—reflecting the dim light of the moon and stars above—coming directly toward his face.
Instinctively, Sarzen raised his sword and deflected the metal blade before it could stab him in the face. He rolled to the side and back to his feet, but bit his teeth to keep from screaming from the pain in his right shoulder. It was so bad that he was forced to hold his sword in his left hand as he looked at the being who had tried to kill him.
It was a Draymens, one wearing a black cloak and black bandages wrapped around its face. It looked humanoid, save for the small wings rising from its back, and its bestial golden eyes that made Sarzen sick just looking at them. The Draymens carried a strange-looking curved sword, more like a large knife than a sword, its blade rusted and jagged along the edge.
“Everyone!” Sarzen shouted as loudly as he could. “Draymens attack!”
Sarzen heard movement from behind the ring of carts, but he stopped paying attention to it when the Draymens ran toward him. It swung its blade at his face, forcing Sarzen to raise his sword and deflect it again. He tried swiping at the Draymens, but it nimbly jumped backwards, avoiding the attack while making a strange scratching sound that might have been laughter.
In any case, Sarzen didn’t go after it because he didn’t think he could keep up with it. He was right-handed by nature, so being forced to use his left hand was awkward and made him feel less confident about taking on the Draymens. He hoped to end this battle quickly by hitting his enemy in the right place.
The Draymens, however, seemed to understand the advantage it had over Sarzen, because it quickly leaped forward on the offensive again. Thus, Sarzen was forced to play defense, blocking every one of the Draymens’ furious strikes, but never finding an opportunity to strike back. His shoulder hurt as he moved, but Sarzen had to ignore it in order to focus on his survival, because he knew that one false move would mean his death.
Because the Draymens was on the offensive, Sarzen was forced back away from the carts where his friends were. But he had no time to worry about that, nor did he have time to worry about the sounds of battle he now heard coming from the carts, likely an indication that this Draymens was not alone and its allies were attacking Sarzen’s friends. He was focused almost entirely on blocking the Draymens’ blows, which were coming faster and faster and becoming harder and harder to block.
Dragon Gods, give me strength! Sarzen thought, though his thoughts were not as clear as he’d like because he was so focused on staying alive.
The Draymens’ next attack came seemingly out of nowhere. Without really thinking about it, Sarzen moved out of the way and slammed his sword against the Draymens’ hand. The Draymens immediately dropped its sword, its eyes briefly widening in surprise before Sarzen stabbed his sword into its throat.
Blood gushed from the Draymens’ throat as Sarzen’s sword tore through it. The Draymens nonetheless pulled backwards, but that was the last action it did before it collapsed onto the ground, the blood from its throat staining its black cloak.
Sarzen would have taken this moment to rest, but then he heard a scream, a scream that sounded exactly like Helnia’s, coming from the circle of carts.
“Sister!” said Sarzen.
He turned to climb back into the circle, but then he heard claws scrapping against the ground and looked over his shoulder to see another Draymens coming at him. This one looked similar to the one he just killed, except it had bird-like claws for feet and carried two of those weird curved swords in both hands.
Sarzen whirled around just in time to block the Draymens’ double blades, but the Draymens hit so hard that he was almost knocked down to his knees. He pushed back against the Draymens, however, and slashed at it, but it just jumped backwards out of his reach.
“Come here, you damn beast,” said Sarzen as he walked toward the Draymens, his anger burning through his mind as he followed it. “Fight like a man, why don’t—”
Another sound of claws against stone caused Sarzen to look to the left. A third Draymens, identical in appearance to the other two, was running toward him. Sarzen raised his sword to block its attacks, but the Draymens was quicker, slashing at his hand and making him drop his sword.
Sarzen grunted in pain, holding his now-bleeding hand to his chest as he staggered away from the two Draymens. The Draymens, both making sinister clicking noises now, began to advance on him. And without a sword of his own, Sarzen was at their mercy, which was why he was backing up; he thought that if he could get back into the circle of carts, he might be able to get another sword from the supplies.
But then Sarzen tripped over a rock and fell on his back. He cracked his head against the stone floor of the canyon and his head spun, but he shook his head and looked up just in time to see the two Draymens surround him. There was no way he could escape them now; he just looked up as they raised their swords above their heads, ready to start tearing into him.
Before either Draymens could finish him, he heard boots running against the ground and then a shining, bright ax slashed straight through the neck of the nearest Draymens, sending its head flying into the darkness as its body collapsed.
The remaining Draymens let out a shriek of surprise before the ax took its head off, too; in fact, the ax moved so fast that Sarzen almost didn’t follow it. The now-headless Draymens fell onto the ground nearby, blood leaking out of its neck, while Sarzen just stared at it in shock.
Then he heard a voice above him say, “Are you hurt, young man?” and looked up to see who had saved him.
The man standing above Sarzen appeared to be in his middle-age, though his exact age was hard to determine in the darkness of the night. He wore a flowing silver cloak that looked just like the shining rays of the moon, while he held a large, glowing ax in his right hand. His green eyes reflected the light from his ax, making it look like he had Raugus energy flowing through his body.
Sarzen could not help but gape in surprise at his savior. “The Draymens Slayer? Is that you?”
The man did not smile or chuckle. He simply said, “I see you’ve heard of me. And based on the fact that you have not tried to run away, you’re clearly not afraid of me, either.”
Sarzen blinked several times before he found the words to speak again. “Why would I be afraid of you? You hate the Draymens just as much as us.”
“Because, unlike you, I don’t care much for the Dragon Gods,” said the Slayer. “But that’s irrelevant at the moment. Can you still stand?”
Sarzen sat up, rubbing the back of his head. He winced and looked at his bloodied hand and felt his aching right shoulder. “No. My shoulder feels broken and my hand is bloody.”
“We will have to get you healed up,” said the Slayer. “But first, I must help your friends kill the rest of these d
amned—”
The Slayer was interrupted by something large and hairy bursting out from the cart circle. It moved too fast for Sarzen to see it in detail, but he instantly knew it was a Draymens because he caught a glimpse of it. It was coming straight toward him and the Slayer, but Sarzen would not be able to dodge it in time.
As it turned out, he didn’t need to, because the Slayer grabbed him by the collar and hauled him out of the way of the large Draymens just as it barreled past them. The large Draymens stank of sweat and mud as it ran past, but it did not stop or turn around to face them. It just kept running into the darkness, but as it fled, Sarzen noticed that it had someone with long, dark hair tossed over its shoulder, but the Draymens was gone before he could get a good look at who it was.
Panting, Sarzen looked up at the Slayer. “What the hell was that?”
The Slayer opened his mouth to respond, but then someone shouted, “Sarzen!” and he looked over his shoulder to see Rothel and the other members of the party rush out from the circle toward them. They all looked like they had just been in a huge fight, though aside from a few scratches and bruises, none of them seemed to suffer any serious injuries.
“Rothel?” said Sarzen. He slowly rose to his feet with some assistance from the Slayer. “What happened?”
“Draymens,” said Rothel as he and the others came to a stop before Sarzen and the Slayer, which was when Sarzen noticed the cut across Rothel’s left cheek. Rothel looked at the Slayer. “Who is this?”
“I’ll explain later,” said Sarzen. “What did the Draymens do?”
“They came from nowhere,” said Rothel. “They appeared in the middle of the camp and started attacking. Luckily no one got killed, but many of us got hurt and some of our supplies got destroyed.”
“Is that?” said Sarzen. “But I thought I saw one of the Draymens running away with someone on its shoulder. Who was it?”
Rothel bit his lower lip, like he had some very bad news that he did not want to share with Sarzen but which he knew he had to anyway. “It was Helnia. She was kidnapped by the Draymens.”
The Cursed Lands Page 14
