by Jon Kiln
Ganry took the strange red stone from Azmariddian with some trepidation. He had come to accept that there was such a thing as magic, but he was still not comfortable with it.
Ganry wasted no more time and prepared to leave. He stripped off his clothes, leaving just a a pair of leather breeches. It was necessary to wrap his weapons and clothing in an oilcloth, to protect them from the water. As he tied this to his back, he shivered involuntarily, stepping into the freezing cold water.
Slowly he waded in until the water was chest deep. Taking a long deep breath to fill his lungs with air, he dived below the surface. Azmariddian’s stone was in his hands as he swam and it shone with a pale glow, cutting through the darkness of the water. He swam to the bottom of the lake and spotted the entrance to the tunnel he had been instructed to seek. Quickly, he entered it.
The druid had told him that once in the tunnel it should be fairly straightforward. Ganry was to follow it through until he could see the brightness of the surface once again. Then he could swim upwards and enter the cavern on the other side. Swimming as quickly as he could, he felt the pressure in his chest beginning to build. His lungs felt fit to burst as he held his breath. Just when he thought he could go no more, the water brightened. Now going in an upwards motion, his head bobbed up at the other side. All he could do was gulp in air to his lungs, knowing he could not have lasted much longer.
Clambering out of the water, he sat on the edge of the lake, breathing steadily for a few moments, until he felt the pounding in his head subside. Unraveling the oil cloth, he dressed and soon the cold numbness began to leave his body. Arming himself with his sword and dagger, he was now ready to continue this lonely journey.
Once he was up and on his way, he followed the underground tunnel as Azmariddian had advised. There was still a fair distance to go, but it was straight forward as the tunnel wound through the cliff and towards the city. It was not unpleasant, but the air was thick and the darkness was ever pervading. He was grateful for the bright stone that Azmariddian had given him. There were very few alive today that knew the existence of these tunnels, and for that, Ganry was grateful. It would be a great advantage for them, to be able to move in and out of the city, and the palace, undiscovered.
***
Cronos awoke with a feeling of absolute horror. He was in his bed and his body was sweating profusely. It took him a moment to realize where he was. For now, he had gained control of his body and mind. He must find Azmariddian. Maybe he could help him to keep the demon out of his head.
Jumping out of his bed, he ran for the door, but it was locked.
Don’t be a fool, boy! A voice yelled in his head. I’m being gentle with you. Can’t have you dying on me. I need you alive, for now, at least. You will stay in your room until I require you.
“Stop it!” Cronos cried out, holding his head at the pain the voice caused. “Go away, whoever you are. I won’t let you back in.”
I don’t need your permission, I already have access any time I need it. Now rest, you fool, while I allow it.
“Leave me alone!” Cronos shouted, falling onto his bed, sobbing.
What was happening to him? Half the time he did not know where he was, locked in a black room with no walls, no floor, just seemingly floating. All the while his head hurt, as if it would explode.
“Father!” he shouted out.
He must find his father, he must get help. If this was his gift for his tenth birthday, he did not want it any more.
The door opened and Torno, the wolf man entered his room.
“Torno, get my father, quickly, before it returns. Hurry,” Cronos called out to his trusted friend, as he jumped from the bed and rushed towards the door.
“Be quiet, boy,” Torno growled at him, a viciousness in his voice that stunned Cronos. “Do you want to be beaten? I would gladly oblige. My mistress needs you alive for now, but I can beat you if I wish.”
“Torno, what has happened to you?” Cronos said, looking at the person he thought was his friend and protector.
“I am Barbatos, the Great Hunter. Called upon at my mistress’s bidding. You do well to kneel at my feet, human.”
“No, you are Torno, the great wolf man.” Cronos stood up to the man standing before him. “Listen to me, Torno, I know you are still in there. I can feel your presence. Fight this demon that possesses you, Torno. Do it. Do it now, before it’s too late. You are strong enough to rid your mind of this devil.”
A great pain shot through the boy’s head as the man struck him across the face.
“I have hunted the wolf within this body,” the demon’s voice echoed in Cronos’s ears. “I am a leader of legions. Do not test me, human boy. The wolf man will be gone altogether, soon enough. His spirit will wander aimlessly in the void. It is only a matter of time.”
With that, Barbatos left the room, slamming the door behind him. Cronos heard it lock.
Something must have happened on the night of his ceremony. He vaguely recalled how one moment he was encompassed with a warmness on the path in the spirit world, but then something changed. The benevolent spirit was replaced by a malevolent one. That must be it. It went wrong. He had to escape, find his father and his Palaran allies. They would help him, they had helped before. If only he could get to them.
15
Progress was slow for Linz and his party. The roads were patrolled by Mirnean soldiers, who were stopping everyone they came across. He had witnessed foreigners fleeing from Mirnee being arrested and taken off in carts. Linz remembered the decree that had been announced just before they left, ordering all outsiders to leave the country, or face arrest. With this in mind, it might be best not to use the main roads. Instead, they took the rarely used paths and tracks, intertwined through the woods and copses. These were a prominent features of the landscape in this part of Mirnee.
As they drew closer to the palace, the storm abated a little, but it did seem that all of Mirnee was caught in a dramatic climatic change. Where there should be sun and heat, there was now howling winds, heavy rain and dark clouds.
Despite taking the less direct route, they managed to make good time, almost reaching the outskirts of the city. In the distance a small farmstead looked an inviting place to rest a while, and maybe stock up on provisions.
“I’ll take my men and investigate the smallholding first, Grecia,” Linz ventured. “If all’s clear, I’ll signal for you to join us. I don’t want to alarm the farmer with a large group of strangers showing up at his doorway, especially in such difficult times.”
Grecia nodded her agreement and ordered her party to stay undercover in the woods.
Linz was followed by his men as they moved down the hill towards the farmstead. They still approached with caution, and as they they drew near they could hear angry raised voices.
“I said more rare than medium!” a grating male voice echoed out of the open doorway. “Can your woman not cook? Do me another.”
Linz’s scouting party moved stealthily closer, until they were crouched under a window of the farmhouse. Carefully, they peered into the kitchen, only to witness a group of five Mirnean soldiers seated at the kitchen table, and downing their meals voraciously. A frightened looking woman cooked at a sizzling stove, and a man poured mead into mugs. The face of the farmer was also nervous, and it was obvious from his demeanor that the soldiers were not invited guests.
Linz was torn between attacking the soldiers, or walking away. They really needed to be meeting up with Ganry and Hendon and could ill afford to be caught up in a local issue like this. No matter how much he sympathized with these people, he was reluctant to help them. He was still pondering the best way forward, when something happened that made his decision for him.
A small child, carrying a bucket filled with water, turned the corner and walked straight into Linz and his companions. The boy was clearly terrified at being confronted by four heavily armed men, crouching outside his house. He dropped his bucket and ran past them before Linz
could react. The child ran into the farmhouse, yelling at the top of his lungs.
“Shut your brat up!” one of the soldiers called out as the boy entered the kitchen, blabbering about strangers in the herb plot.
“Go see what’s out there,” the sergeant of the group commanded, between mouthfuls of dripping meat fat.
Of the five soldiers, two of them tore themselves away from the table to carry out their orders.
It was too late for Linz and his men to run, they would not get far. The decision to face the Mirneans was the only option. Linz, and the three men with him, stood up, moving away from the window, just as the soldiers came out of the doorway.
“Halt, you there!” one shouted. “State your business here, and let me see your papers.”
“We are travelers, merely passing through,” Linz said in broken Mirnean. He had only little knowledge of the language. “We did not mean to be caught up in your business. Forgive us, and we will be on our way.”
“These men are not Mirnean,” the sergeant said as he came through the door to investigate what his own men had discovered.
“We are not Mirneans, yes, you are very observant, sir, but we are friends of Mirnee,” Linz tried to pacify the huge sergeant, who looked at them askance.
“I say we kill them, sarge,” one of the soldiers said. “They be foreigners and should not be here, so close to the Mistress.”
Linz instantly understood what the soldier had said about killing them, but it was the word “mistress” that set off alarm bells in his head. Were these men possessed too?
“Just what we need boys, a bit of sport after a hearty meal,” the sergeant smiled wickedly, displaying a mouth full of broken and rotting teeth. “Let’s kill them. Kill them now.”
The other soldiers needed no further encouragement. They drew their swords and lunged at Linz and his men.
***
Grecia observed from the woodlands as the Palarans moved towards the farmhouse. She had sensed something was not quite right when they had entered the courtyard of the farmstead. It had only been a vague feeling, and she could not pinpoint the exact problem. All she knew was her keen senses were alert.
She pondered her thoughts as she patiently awaited for Linz’s sign. These few days was meant to be a time of celebration for Cronos, starting his second decade of life. He had written to her explaining that he was to be bestowed with a new magical skill, but from Linz’s account of the ceremony, something had gone wrong. Grecia could not help but feel that the situation had echoes of events from a few years ago, when the witches had risen the dead and marched on Palara. She could not shake the feeling that somehow, Thalia, the witch queen, was involved in this.
A sudden movement from below shook her from her thoughts. As she looked down, she could see Linz and his men under attack. Mirnean soldiers had appeared from inside the farmhouse. She turned to her companions and nodded, and as one they all changed form, almost instantly turning into huge wolves. Craning back their necks, they howled long and deep, before charging down to the fighting humans below.
***
Linz and his Lakemen quickly took defensive postures as the rogue soldiers attacked them. The Lakeland chief parried a blow from the large sergeant. The clash of the two blades was so powerful it almost caused him to drop his weapon, as the reverberations spread throughout his body. He quickly backed off and ducked, as the sharp blade of his opponent was aimed at his head.
A quick glance to his men showed that they were struggling too. These were experienced warriors, that was why he had chosen them to accompany him. They were as good, if not better, than most men in combat. Yet, they struggled to contain the ferocious assault of these Mirnean soldiers.
Linz parried another blow, but staggered back from the force. He tripped over a log on the ground. With a triumphant yell, the sergeant swung his sword, readying to strike the fatal blow. Young Linz raised his sword to block, but in his heart he knew it would be pointless. This soldier had bested him, and now he was coming in for the kill. As he readied himself for the final blow, a sudden blur of grey fur streaked before his eyes. Looking up, the soldier was gone.
The large blue-grey wolf, Grecia, had seen the danger. She charged full speed down the hill. Her keen eyes taking in all the details. For a quick moment, she did not think she would make it in time, as the soldier swung his sword against Linz, certain of his victory. She leapt at the large human soldier, while still a good distance away. If she did not act instantly, then it would be too late for Chief Linz. She flew through the air, landing between Linz and his attacker. Upon impact, she snapped at the unprotected throat of the sergeant. He might be large, but his flesh was still soft and no match for long canines. With a whip of her strong jaws, she ripped out his throat.
Linz quickly jumped to his feet, readying to fight on as he was unsure where his attacker had got to. Once he had gained his balance, he lowered his guard. The man staggered backwards, a look of total disbelief written on his face. He even had time to reach his hands up to his neck and feel the gaping wound. Bubbling deep red blood flowed through his fingers. His knees gave way and he dropped to the floor, staying like that for just a second, before falling forward onto his face. A dark stain pooled out from underneath him.
As he lay there, the body convulsed and writhed upon the ground. Linz watched wide eyed as a green ethereal mist detached from the fallen corpse. The stench of sulfur was strong in the air. Linz watched on incredulously, as the strange and unnatural mist rose higher and higher, until it dissipated into the sky.
Once their leader had fallen, the other Mirneans seemed to lose the will to fight as if they no longer had to. They quickly turned on their heels and ran as fast as they could, towards the city.
“Leave them!” Linz shouted as two of his men set off in pursuit. “We need to move before more arrive.”
Grecia and her companions changed back into human form, and watched as the soldiers escaped. Grecia now understood the seriousness of the situation, and they needed to act quickly.
“We must find Ganry at great speed. Time is crucial if we are to stop these demons,” she said to Linz.
“How can we fight against such men?” Linz exclaimed, still in some shock from his close encounter with death. “If it hadn’t been for you and your pack, we would all be dead.”
“Do not despair, Linz,” Grecia tried to reassure the Lakeman. “If you stick them with a sword, then they will bleed and die, just like everyone else. Their bodies are possessed by powerful demons, and they are indeed strong in battle, but not invincible. They were not all fully possessed, only the leader. But now I understand what it is we face. I fear we must act swiftly before more are taken. An army of these creatures could easily conquer our world. We must find Ganry and find him soon!”
16
Ganry made his way through the secret palace tunnels. It was amazing that he had been unaware there was a network of hidden passageways behind the palace walls, even though he had known the palace well as a boy. Every chamber could be watched through spy holes that were cunningly hidden in the walls. As a child, Ganry could have had such fun spying on the various occupants. Such thoughts made him smile as he tread carefully in the dusty space. The passageways were narrow and only large enough for one person. In some places it was a tight squeeze for someone with shoulders as wide as his.
His first call would be Cronos’s chamber. He needed to find the Emperor’s son and see how he fared. He knew exactly where the bedroom was located, as he had slept in it as a boy. Soon, he was peering through the hole situated within a small candle alcove. It gave a clear view of the bed. He could not believe his luck when he spotted the boy sleeping. He decided to wait for Cronos to awaken before making his move. Right now he had no idea how much control the boy or the demon had. Patiently, he sat and rested, waiting in the darkness.
Ganry was uncertain of the length of time that had passed; it had seemed like hours that he watched over the sleeping boy. He was just c
onsidering moving on, to check on the Emperor, when Cronos sat up quickly, his head moving from side to side as if he was confused by his surroundings. Ganry said nothing. Although he wanted to call out, he resisted. First he had to be certain of who was in control of Cronos’s mind. He observed as the boy unsteadily climbed out of the bed, and moved towards the door. Unable to see beyond the bed, Ganry could hear the door handle being turned. After a few more seconds Cronos came back into view and sat on the bed. It seemed he was locked in his bedroom.
It appeared to Ganry that Cronos was acting much more like himself. Perhaps it was worth the risk of letting him know that he was not alone. He moved his head closer to the wall and quietly called out his name.
“Who’s there? Go away!” the boy shouted clearly, putting his hands to his head and covering his ears. “I know you’re trying to get back in my head. I won’t allow it. Go away!”
Ganry could see the boy was distressed, but he could not afford to let this opportunity pass him by. He had to make contact with him.
“Cronos, listen to me,” Ganry continued. “I’m hidden in a passage in the wall. You have to believe me. This is real. I am not just a voice in your head. I am Ganry de Rosenthorn, in the flesh, and I need to get you out of here.”
Cronos put his hands down, and he walked over to the wall where the voice seemed to come from.
“Ganry, is it truly you?” he laughed. “Mercy be, I do believe it is.”
“It’s me, Cronos. There is a secret door over by the far corner, where the dresser is. Just give me a moment and I’ll get you out of here.”
Ganry made his way towards the hidden door, and was fumbling in the dark for the latch that would open it, when suddenly he heard Cronos’s chamber door burst open.
Ganry could not see into the room from here, but he could hear the jangling of armor and swords. Guards were in Cronos’s room, of that he was certain. He held his position hoping they were just delivering food.
