Kara was more curious than she was afraid. She had heard of the creatures before, but only in stories. Her father had told her tales of the strange and sinister creatures that dwelled within the Underworld realm. “My father says the forsaken are a tragic race. They were once a good and noble people, but are now slaves, even in death.”
“Ha! Noble people?” The dwarf found this suggestion amusing. “They made a deal with the King of darkness, and they paid the ultimate price!”
“And what is that?” asked the princess.
“They have forfeited their soul’s to the ruler of this wasteland of a realm,” said Fargrim.
“You mean the king of Underworld?”
“Yeah, that bastard! He promised them riches and prosperity in return for their loyalty. However, as you might have guessed, he broke his promise. So now, even in death, they are still slaves to his will. Their souls will never be freed. They only exist to do his bidding, for the rest of their time.”
The forsaken watched on in silence as the pair made their way slowly through the river. The creatures had been human once. However, their mortal bodies were now nothing more than rotting pieces of meat. The bones beneath the flesh of these un-dead beings were often visible through their decayed skin and in some areas, maggots and other vermin ate at whatever flesh remained.
The creatures continued to increase in number from high above the cliffs. Kara began to feel uneasy as she felt the gaze of the forsaken burn a hole right through her. “They just stand there and watch,” she said.
“I think they have been drawn here by the presence of an Alexandrian,” said Fargrim.
“You mean me?” asked Kara.
“Well…yeah.”
“I’m sorry,” said the princess, realising she had put the dwarf in terrible danger by coming along.
“Sorry? What for? I agreed to this mission! I knew the risks dear girl.” Fargrim even managed a smile despite their grim situation. “Don’t worry about a thing. I promised my master I’d deliver the princess of Alexandria and that I shall! Besides, I know these lands like the back of my hand.”
“Your master? said Kara.
“Never mind that. You’ll meet him soon enough. Now then, hang on tight. This ride might get a little bumpy from here on in.
Fargrim began to row the boat oars as fast as he could. He had been rowing at a gentle pace up until now for concealment purposes, but those plans no longer mattered. The small wooden boat glided as if on ice as it cut through the waves of the river. High above them, the forsaken were now on the move. Sensing their prey was escaping them; they gave chase along the high banks of the cliffs edge. On top of the cliff, several hundred of the creatures ran in pursuit. The dwarf took a quick glance up, realising that the forsaken would not let them go without a fight.
“There’s more of them coming!” said Kara, who had also picked up on the creatures pursuit of them. Some of the creatures began to climb down the edge of the cliff. They were surprisingly agile for dead folk. They climbed along the banks of the cliff with great speed, only advancing marginally slowly whilst climbing down than those who gave pursuit above the cliff on foot.
“We have to get out of here!” said Fargrim. He knew they were no longer safe on the river.
“But I thought you said we had to go south?” said Kara.
“Yeah, well as you can see, our travel plans have changed!” said the dwarf, who referred to the imminently closing of the undead. Fargrim noticed a large riverbank not far from them and headed to it as fast as he could. The boat crashed against the bank, sending the dwarf and Kara hard into the side of the boat. “Come on, let’s go!” shouted the Dwarf, jumping out of the boat. The princess followed, landing in shallow water as she jumped out. The water of the river was far colder than she could have ever imagined however she could not dwell on this for her enemies were closing in.
The princess prepared to run up the riverbank, which they had disembarked on, however, Fargrim had stopped dead in his tracks. “What are you doing? Come on let’s go!” shouted Kara.
“There’s too many of them,” said the dwarf who trembled as he held a small silver axe in his hand. Most dwarfs loved the joy of battle, however, Fargrim knew a slaughter when he seen one.
He is afraid, Kara realised. The princess looked around and she could see why.
Most of the forsaken gathered on the riverbank opposite to them. The remaining pursuers were still climbing down the cliff to join them. They stood silently as they watched the princess and the dwarf.
“What are they doing?” whispered Kara.
“I’m not sure,” said Fargrim in response. After a few moments of silent stare down, one of the creatures began to speak.
“Hand over the Alexandrian, dwarf!” it said coldly, its voice muffled and broken
“You bastards will have to go through me to get her!” shouted Fargrim who suddenly found his courage. If he was going to die, he would go down fighting. The forsaken drew their blades, which consisted of old and tattered rusty swords. Still, they were formidable opponents, considering the fact that the only way to defeat them would be to decapitate them or set their bodies on fire. Given their lack of numbers and, of course, a fire, the odds of the princess and the dwarf getting out of this alive were very slim to say the least.
The water! An idea suddenly began to form in Kara’s head. She leaned over to Fargrim and whispered to him so the creatures could not hear. “Get them into the river,” she said.
“What are you going to do?” he whispered back.
“Just do it!”
The dwarf began shouting and screaming, challenging the forsaken to come forth into battle. The creatures seemed completely bemused and stood their ground. Fargrim realised his plan wasn’t working so he reached into the water and picked up a large pebble. He then threw it as hard as he could at the creature that had spoken to them only a few moments earlier. The pebble struck the creature in the head, which enraged it. The undead began advancing forward towards the dwarf and several of the forsaken followed behind.
Kara began to speak in an ancient tongue, the words of which the dwarf had never heard. Kara spoke the words in a chant-like fashion and Fargrim couldn’t help but get the feeling that he should step out of the river now. The forsaken were undeterred by the princesses’ words and continued on through the river towards them. Kara’s tone increased in intensity and she went into an almost trance-like state. Even Fargrim, who was stood beside her, seemed surprised.
The sound of water approaching at great speed could be heard in the distance. The forsaken began to look down the river, which they were attempting to negotiate to try and understand where the sound was coming from. They didn’t have to look for long however as a huge tidal wave appeared from the east. It approached at such ferocity and speed that the creatures had no time to retreat. Try as they might, they were helpless as the wave hit the area and the undead were swept away in an instant.
As you may have guessed, the tidal wave was all Kara’s making. She had great control of the water element; far more advanced than other Alexandrian’s due to her bloodline. However, she had also learned a great deal about the art of magic from the warlock named Rokk, a sworn aid of her father. He had taught the princess how to harness her control of the elements with the power of magic, enabling her to manipulate the element to greater effect.
Kara had conjured up a wave of such size and strength that even the forsaken could not match up to it, at least not here at the river’s bank. The creatures that remained thought it wise not to attempt to cross the river. They began to retreat back to the lands of the dead that lay just beyond the top of the cliff behind them. This was not a full retreat mind you, for the forsaken, never stop pursuing their prey. This was simply a regroup until it was more practical for them to strike. Fargrim was well aware of this and knew that he and the princess had better be far away from this place when the creatures decided to return.
“Let us be on our way then m’lad
y,” urged Fargrim. The princess nodded and they both made their way up a small pathway just beyond the riverbank, which led upwards through a small gap in the side of the cliff. The dwarf began to think that he might have made a mistake by bringing the princess on this journey into the heart of Underworld. The entire realm was a breeding ground for evil and despite the caution they had taken during their travels the evil was being drawn out by the presence of the Alexandrian princess. He kept his thoughts to himself, however. He did not wish to alarm the girl. Keep calm Fargrim old boy, he said to himself. Get her to the Dark Archer. That is your task. He will know what to do. As the pair continued onwards into the darkness, somewhere within the dwarfs heart, he knew that this would not be the last time their lives would be threatened before this journey came to an end…
#
A pair of crows swept low from the sky and landed on the branch of a tree. They joined a flock of others on the branch. The crows liked to eat the bodies of the dead and death was indeed in the air. A large crowd dressed in black gathered around an open grave in a cemetery below where the crows sat watching. The sun glared down upon a group of bearers as they lowered down a coffin into the ground. A priest read out a final prayer for the soul that was passing on to the other side. The body inside the coffin was that of Rachel, the twin agent who had been killed recently on the mission to capture Lucius in Argentina. The mission ended in failure on all counts. After the mission had concluded, Rachel’s body had been returned to her home city of Miami, Florida. The aftermath of the mission had resulted in this for the World Order, not only had the target eluded them, it also had resulted in the death of one of their own.
However, perhaps the most worrying thing for the organisation was Chad’s sudden erratic freak out. Rumours were rife regarding Chad’s strange behaviour during the mission, and many questioned whether or not he was truly fit for duty. Professor Milton and Sergeant Cooper had their doubts also, however for now, all of them paid their respects to their fallen comrade.
Chad stood at the front of the group. He held a comforting arm around Jade, now the sole remaining twin. She, Chad and Rachel had been more like a threesome during their time at the training camp, sharing a bond like brother and sister. Stacey watched on from a little further back in the crowd, stood next to her father. She shed a tear as the coffin was lowered beneath the earth. She hadn’t known the twin all that well, however, the thought of a girl dying so young saddened her.
“She did her duty,” her father had told her. That hadn’t made her feel any better. Nobody should have to die so young, she thought. Stacey worried that Chad would be taken from her before his time too. She felt bad for him also. He had been close to the two twins and Rachel’s death had clearly hit him hard. Stacey wanted nothing more at that moment than to go and comfort her boyfriend, however. the secrecy of their relationship would have been compromised and so she did not go to him.
The priest took a handful of dirt and dropped it onto the coffin. Then he created the holy cross with his hand in a blessing. Those present then each took their turn dropping a piece of dirt onto the coffin, queuing up in an orderly fashion, heads bowed whilst they waited. One by one, they all said their final farewells and the crowd slowly began to disburse. James patted Chad on the shoulder as he left in an offer of comfort. Then Chad and Jade embraced in a hug, the latter then left, not being able to look at the bearers for a moment longer. The funeral staff was already waiting with their shovels in hand to bury her sister.
Rachel is not even fresh in the ground and they are ready to throw the dirt on top of her! The thought angered Chad. He now stood alone at the graveside. His mind began to wonder. He should have done more he knew. She was one of his best friend’s. How could I let this happen?
“It’s not your fault you know,” spoke a voice from over his shoulder. Stacey walked alongside him. Chad took a quick glance behind him to see if the coast was clear, which it was. The pair now held hands. “I know what you’re thinking Chad. It wasn’t your fault, ok?” she said, trying to fill him with words of comfort.
“I should’ve protected her. I should have stopped him,” said Chad, shaking his head.
“You did everything that you could,” replied Stacey. She had also heard the rumours about Chad’s odd behaviour during the mission, which resulted in him kneeling before Lucius, although she hadn’t been able to see him in person until now.
Chad turned and faced Stacey. She knows. “You know the truth, I can see it in your eyes.”
Stacey did not speak.
You know I attacked my own friends,” he said, ashamed.
“I don’t know exactly what happened out there Chad, but I know you! You would have done everything in your power to protect her. To protect all of them!”
“You don’t know me. I don’t even know me!”
“What do you mean?” the girl asked.
“I’m dangerous Stacey. I even scare myself!”
“No, you’re not! I know you! Deep down you’re a good person Chad!”
Chad lowered his head. “You don’t understand…”
“Then talk to me. Tell me. What is it that scares you?” she asked. She desperately wanted to help him. Ever since she had known him, Chad had always been the definition of confidence. He had inspired her so many times. However, he now looked like a shell of the man she had fallen in love with. Chad didn’t respond. She squeezed his hand tighter. “You know you can trust me. Please…let me help you.”
I’ve kept the truth from her long enough. She needs to know, he thought. He took a deep breath and began to talk. “There’s a part of me I don’t understand. I have nightmares of pain and suffering night after night. That same part of me that kneeled before our enemy and willingly handed over a powerful weapon. There’s something inside of me Stacey, something that is not really me.”
The girl could not hide her concern. This was the first time she had ever seen Chad afraid. He had always protected her, kept her safe. Now it is my turn to look after him. “We can get through this Chad, together!”
“Didn’t you hear me?” he said, raising his voice. “I’m dangerous Stacey. I endangered the whole mission!” Chad looked at Rachel’s coffin. The bearers had already begun tossing dirt on top of it. “People get hurt because of me. Look what happened to Rachel. Who next? James…” Chad turned back to Stacey. “…You?”
“Chad…”
He cut her off abruptly. “I’m a threat to the World Order, Your father was right about me.”
“What are you staying?” asked Stacey.
“It’s best if I was gone. I have to get out.”
“Get out? To where?”
“I don’t know. Anywhere…”
“If you start running now, you’ll be running for the rest of your life. Chad, you have to figure this out,” she said, tears filled her eyes.
Chad put his arm around Stacey and the pair kissed for a few moments. After the kiss, Chad then uttered one final word to her. “Goodbye.” Chad walked away from the grave, and away from his girlfriend. Stacey called out to him several times, but he dare not turn back. He wasn’t sure if he had the strength to do what he knew he must if he looked at the woman he loved again. Chad kept onward on his path, an empty path to nothingness.
Professor Milton and James strolled along the Miami Beach coastline, pondering on the events of the past few days. The heat in the State was humid to say the least, and both men had taken off their ties and opened up the top buttons of their shirts. They still wore their suits from the funeral, which were not best suited to the searing heat. The yellow of the sun reflected off the whiteness of their shirts, which were sweaty against their skin. The two talked at length about what had happened during the ill-fated visit to Argentina. They discussed Chad’s discovery of the strange golden axe and about James’ ability to manipulate the water inside the temple. The professor was intrigued with everything James had to say, especially when he talked about what happened to Chad.
�
��He completely lost control sir,” said James, in reference to Chad’s freak-out. “It was as if it wasn’t him, almost like he was another person.”
“He was being manipulated by Lucius?” asked the professor.
“Possibly, I don’t know.” The truth was that James had no idea what happened. All he knew was that he had never seen that look in Chad’s eyes before and they had known each other a long time.
“Then you must keep an eye on him,” said Professor Milton. The professor knew that if Chad were ever to go rogue or turn for whatever reason, then James would be their only hope to stop him. The professor had prayed for that day to never come and thankfully it hadn’t. However, he now realised that Chad posed a potential threat and he could no longer ignore that fact.
Professor Milton and James went on to discuss the strange drawings on the temple walls. “I have never seen anything like it, but I could read the language it was written in. So could Chad for that matter!” said James. “What did it say?” asked the old man, the bushy brows above his eyes narrowed as he spoke. He was very fascinated by this discovery. As a man of science and of great creativity, part of the old man wished that he had seen the drawings himself.
“It spoke of two legendary beasts, and of two worlds.”
“And?” asked the professor, who wanted a more lengthy description from the agent.
“It spoke of a world called Alexandria, a world of eternal light. Also there was Underworld, a place of everlasting darkness. The two creatures stood beside either world, like protectors. Also there was something else.”
The old man didn’t say a word, electing instead to listen.
“Fire was edged behind the dark world, and water behind the light.”
“Two different elements? Very interesting,” said Professor Milton, rubbing a hand against the clean-shaven smoothness of his freshly shaved chin.
James couldn’t help but think that the professor had figured something out in that brilliant mind of his. “Professor, what is it?”
Clash Of Worlds Page 34
