by Andrew Wood
After the other members of the boarding party returned, they discussed in a small group about what action to take. Luca was looking for Darak, to tell him what they had found, and to join the discussion; he after all was supposed to be leading this rescue. Instead, he found his stepfather slumped in a corner. It was not yet mid morning and Darak was totally inebriated. What had caused this usually levelheaded man to behave in such a way? Luca knew it was something to do with him and Oliver, but this was something much more.
Luca sighed as he knelt down, and flinched back from the overpowering smell of drink. He had been told the stories of how Darak had once had a problem before with alcohol. After his mother had died, he had turned to the bottle. Only the appearance of Luca's real father and mother had changed that. Even that had taken a series of events that Darak had admitted he was not proud of, which culminated in him almost being killed by Luca's father.
His first thought was to leave him be, and let the man wallow in his own self pity. After standing to turn away, his conscience got the better of him, and he knelt back down. Oliver appeared and somehow knew what Luca wanted to do, handing him the canteen of water he had just drank from. Luca tipped the contents over his stepfather's head, causing the man to splutter and cough. Luca placed a hand on Darak's drenched head, and went to work. He closed his eyes as he sent the healing power of the water across the body of his patient. Alcohol after all was no different to any other poison, just not as lethal. Luca could sense the toxins flowing through Darak's blood and quickly dispersed them away. It was not a particularly long healing, nor a difficult one.
Darak's eyes flickered open, and was none too pleased when he realised what Luca had done. "I told you to rest," he snapped. Luca snapped back, "Well perhaps if you had not gotten stinking drunk I would be able to." Darak scoffed at the remark, "I never asked you to heal me. Now I am going to have to drink it all again...waste of good brandy really." Luca sighed; he hated arguing with anybody, and certainly not with the man that had bought him up as his own son. "Why are you doing this?" he asked, although he had good idea as to what the answer would be. He watched Darak's eyes flicker to the man stood behind him.
Luca placed a hand on his father's shoulder, "Please don't ask me the impossible. I am linked to Oliver in a way even I do not understand, so don't ask me to avoid him because I cannot." Once more Darak sniffed at the remark, and Luca could feel his patience wearing thin, and although he did not want an argument, thought one was about to start. To his surprise, it was Oliver who spoke up. "Why do you not like me Sir," he asked Darak. "I know I played a part in your daughter's disappearance, but that was beyond my control." Luca could tell by the look on Darak's face he did not want to even answer the question. To his credit though he did, though it was not a particularly pleasant one.
After struggling to his feet and pushing Luca's helping hand aside, Darak stepped up to Oliver. "Not only have you taken my daughter, you have caused my wife and other child much distress, and to cap it all you are trying to steal my son." With that said, Luca watched on in horror and disbelief, as he saw Darak punch Oliver to the floor.
After a few seconds to comprehend what had just happened, he quickly knelt down to his friend. Oliver, although bleeding from the mouth, and as shocked as he was, assured him he was fine. Luca stood and felt nothing but anger pulsing through every inch of his body. With nothing more than a wave of his hand, Darak was knocked to the deck. Luca went to step forward and carry out a revenge attack, when he felt a grip on his arm. He looked down to see Oliver holding him, "Do not do something you will regret later Luca Sir. Your father has every right to be angry with me for what I have done." Luca looked his friend in the eye, and he could sense the man's feelings and thoughts were sincere. "He does not have the right to strike you," Luca snapped back, a little more harshly than he intended it to sound.
By now, several crewmembers were on scene, and Taylor barged his way to the front. Darak was flat, face down on the deck, and realised he was being held there. Glancing up he could see Luca, enraged, and Oliver with a bloodied mouth, trying to placate him. He scurried over to his stepfather, just to check he was okay, "What have you done?" he said clearly disgusted. The man just grunted, and Taylor moved on to Luca and Oliver. "He just punched Oliver for no reason," Luca spat still enraged. Taylor was not sure he could stop Luca even if he wanted too, but knew from the stories about their father Luken, how much damage an angry magician could do. At least it appeared Oliver was having some calming influence on Luca, and Taylor thought it best to attempt to encourage that a little more.
He pointed out to his younger brother, that although Oliver had been the one wronged, he clearly did not want Luca to do anything foolish. Luca looked at his brother, "What is the matter with him Taylor? Why does he hate Oliver so much?" Taylor looked at the two of them, before answering. "He feels he has lost Hope. He feels he is losing you too Luca. He seems to think Oliver and you have some sort of...well...he thinks you are more than friends, if you know what I mean." Luca reluctantly let his stepfather go, and slumped to the deck beside Oliver.
Darak stood looking back at the two young men he had always thought of as his own sons. It was clear by the look on Taylor's face he was not impressed by his actions. He let his shoulders drop as he trudged slowly away. Taylor nudged Luca, "Be the better man," he said gesturing for his brother to make peace with his stepfather. Fortunately, Luca did not have the same stubborn streak that his real father had been known to have. Even Hope could be difficult if she wanted to be, but Luca was probably the least so of all the family. It was this attribute Taylor hoped he could use to set things straight.
Luca looked at his older brother, and then at the green eyes of Oliver looking at him. Did his father really think he and Oliver were more than friends? True he had not really shown any great interest in girls, aside from the kiss he had once had with one of the scullery maids daughters, during one midwinter festival evening. That kiss had not been particularly memorable, as he recalled the girl had been rather drunk at the time. True there was something more with Oliver, and it was also true, he felt comforted when Oliver touched him. That was just the compulsion link he had put on Oliver though, of that he was fairly sure.
The sailors parted as Darak trudged his way between them. Luca gave one more look at Taylor, "Fine, I'll try, but he needs to apologise to Oliver." Taylor smiled, "You can only try Luca." Luca then turned to Oliver, "Do you want me to heal that before I go?" he said pointing to the small trickle of blood around Oliver's face. The young Darekian shook his head, "No Luca Sir, I will fine. Go and make peace with your father." Luca smiled and took a deep breath to calm himself, before setting off after Darak.
Luca was surprised to find his stepfather sat upon the bed in his cabin. "What you did was inexcusable," Luca said sitting down beside him. He hoped that by doing so it would at least give the impression he did not want an argument. "I know...and I regretted it the moment I did it," Darak said sighing heavily and placing his head into his hands. Luca was not sure what to say; and if truth were told, he had expected Darak to be quite vocal on the matter. As it was, the man appeared very sullen and remorseful of his actions.
The two talked for quite some time. Luca realised this was something they had not done for a while. Just him and Darak; man to man. Oliver was not present so that appeared to help matters, but Luca told him that he would need to accept the fact that the Darekian was a part of Luca. Darak explained the hatred he had for all Darekians, and how hard he found it, to even be in the same room as Oliver. Seeing a Darekian so close to a family member was something he was struggling to come to terms with. He told Luca that he understood there was some connection, but the intimate moments were something he could not understand. Luca was a little taken aback, but got the general idea of what Darak was referring too. "These intimate moments you talk about...well...they have never happened," he said trying his best to explain. He told him how close he was to Oliver, and that there was something
with the link that even he was unsure about. He explained that his feelings for Oliver would be comparable to those of a brother, but still different in a way. It was hard to explain.
After over an hour of soul searching and chatting, Darak finally stood. Luca did likewise and looked at his stepfather. The two gave each other a smile, and wrapped arms around each other. "I'm so sorry," Darak said, in a muffled voice. "I think Oliver is starting to panic. I can sense his agitation...either that or Taylor is boring him senseless," he added making Darak laugh. The two exited the cabin, and Oliver made a beeline straight for Luca, as a small child might do when missing his mother. The blood around Oliver's mouth had gone, though Luca noticed it appeared a little swollen. Darak stepped in front of Luca and faced Oliver. "I am sorry...what I did was wrong...and...well..." Darak said stuttering his words. "I think that's an apology Oliver," Taylor added stepping up behind them. "I'd take it if I were you; they don't come along very often." Oliver looked for assistance, and as usual, that meant from Luca, who nodded just slightly. The young Darekian smiled and offered a hand forward, which after a short hesitation Darak took.
Whilst they had been talking, the ship had moved away from the damaged vessel, after one of the crewmembers was certain he had spotted people moving about on one of the islands just a little further off. The anchor was once more dropped, and the Captain shouted the order to lower the landing boats. Two of the smaller boats were dropped down into the water, and Darak decided to show his new side. "Perhaps Oliver would like to join me on the boarding Party?" Taylor was not sure whether he or Luca was most shocked by the statement. Oliver looked almost horrified. "Perhaps one step at a time," Luca said patting his stepfather on the back. "No Luca Sir, I would like to go with your father," Oliver surprised himself as much as everyone else.
After climbing down the netting on the side of the ship, Darak helped Oliver down onto the smaller craft. The young Darekian looked up at Luca, who was watching him from the railings above. He gave the man a smile, and a look to say thank you for what he was doing, and everything would be all right. Luca watched as the boat was pushed away and the oars cut the water's surface, moving it towards the island. The crewman who had spotted the people ashore had been correct, as they could now see dozens waving to them.
Darak was one of the first off the boat as it was pulled up the sand by those ashore. He was surprised to see so many men, some wearing the colours of Corlan. He quickly realised these were the surviving men from the ship they had seen burned. This was the same ship sent north by King Caldar to investigate the Darekian presence here about. "I am Lord Darak of Forwich," he said introducing himself to who he assumed was the officer in charge. The soldier bowed his head, "Are we glad to see you my Lord."
Darak listened to the explanation of how their ship had been attacked by a barrage of fireballs sent from the Isle of Kelan. The vessel had limped away from the danger, and the fires eventually put out. The cost in life was great, as they had lost nearly half of those sailors and soldiers on board to the flames. "Those struck by the fireballs, did not have a chance," the man said remembering the horrific attack. After gathering up what few belongings and supplies they had managed to salvage from their ship, Darak headed back with the first of the stranded Corlanians.
It took several trips back and forth with the smaller boats, to get everybody from the shore to the ship. Luca had been told of the fire attack on the damaged vessel, and that it must have been of a magical source. Although not overly concerned, he was however surprised. Fenlor, the Previous Darekian leader who had caused the previous war, had been solely involved with blood magic. This Dalia appeared to be not only capable of that, but if she could muster fireballs, then she must have elemental skills also. The Isle of Kelan was only a short distance away, though the news given by the rescued men was not good.
Darak, Luca and Taylor heard the words they did not want to hear. The officer from amongst the rescued men was certain they had spotted the Darekian vessel leaving not long after they had been attacked. The direction they were heading pointed to the likelihood that the woman known as Dalia was returning to Darekia. As the man could not tell them who was or was not aboard that ship, Darak needed to see for himself whether Hope remained on the Isle of Kelan.
After another half hour of sailing, the ship was once more anchored from the mainland off the Isle of Kelan. Once home to the great wizard known as Sandred, they could not see any signs of life. Again, a boarding party was formed, but this time it consisted of Darak and just three men, two of whom rowed the smaller craft to the wooden dock area. They walked around the island, past the ruins of the once grand castle; now no more than rubble. One thing was certain however, and that was it was obviously apparent somebody had been searching the ruins. There were areas that had been cleared of any stones and others where the piles were higher.
A little further along the coast Darak and the others arrived at the small village. The scene that greeted them was not a pleasant one, and one Darak hoped he would never have to see again. Swarms of flies hovered over decaying flesh, and Darak had to turn away when he noticed that flesh was from the bodies of human beings. His first thought was that one of these poor souls might belong to Hope, and no matter how much he tried to convince himself to the contrary, the possibility was there.
One of the men with him offered to go further in amongst the simple wooden houses and look for anything, which could give some indication to Hope's fate. There were no villagers except those that lay as festering corpses on the ground. Whatever had caused the death of these people had done so with extreme savage aggression. Many of the bodies had been torn limb from limb, and most bore the signs of teeth marks. Darak left the village in sombre mood. He had to believe Hope was still alive, although even if she was, the chances of finding her in Darekia were non-existent.
There had been no sign of Hope's body, although many of the dead were all but unrecognisable. On a positive note there had been no clothes matching those Hope had been wearing when abducted, still giving Darak a glimmer of hope that maybe his daughter was indeed still out there somewhere. He needed to keep upbeat, and show a face of belief to Taylor and Luca. The latter, he knew would likely blame himself. No, he thought, Hope was alive. They would have to return home empty handed for now, and pursue other channels. If she was in Darekia, then perhaps the King could push the authorities there to search for her. Just to be sure, Taylor and Luca did not hear about the mess in the village, he made the three men with him swear to silence. He did not want tales going around the boat of dead bodies being scattered about the place, and Luca hearing them and ultimately jumping to conclusions.
Chapter 19.
By late afternoon the Murati were taking up positions on a small tor overlooking the lands to the south. Scout reports had been nothing but bad news. The invaders had pushed outwards from the town of Ari, expanding their beachhead considerably. That was not the worst of it however. The reports of enemy numbers were not particularly good reading. Being only five hundred in number themselves, it was now becoming apparent they were vastly outnumbered. This had led Commander Halin to have no option but to take up a defensive position, and shelf any plans he may have had of attack. It was not only the number of enemy soldiers that was of concern, but the scout reports had told of far more disturbing things. Creatures, never seen before were among their number.
The commander hopelessly outnumbered and against beasts, of which he had no idea how to combat, ordered Jamal to take Fabian to the rear of the camp. At least two of the Royal Guard were to remain with them at all time, and horses were allocated for them to make a hasty retreat. Despite Jamal wishing to fight the invaders that had killed his colleagues in Ari, he obeyed without question. He had been told that the idea this would be experience for Fabian, would end up as a massacre. "Return to Prince Issac", he had been ordered. "Tell him to seal the gates, and call everybody to take up arms, we will need them."
The only problem, with taking up def
ensive positions was that the commander was unable to use his most valuable asset in the way he wished. The Murati cavalry were highly skilled and armed with both spears and swords, and were a match for any. He did however have a small contingent of archers; a result of the alliance with Corlan. Armed with bows that stood nearly the height of a man, only a select few were able to use the weapon. Taken as young recruits they were trained and tutored in the skills required. These select few could send a three foot long arrow soaring over four hundred yards. Each arrow was tipped with a sharp, barbed point; similar to those used by the Corlanians in their fight against the Orlacs. These would now have to be Commander Halin's best hope at keeping the enemy at bay.
The small tor, on which they were positioned, at least gave them a small advantage. Not only did it give them a panoramic view of the surrounding area, but also the advantage of higher ground. The commander lined his infantry to the front. Their shields would form the thin line that would protect the others. He did plan to keep half of his cavalry on horseback, ready to be used as a means of outflanking the enemy should the opportunity arise. If that did not happen, he could also use them to chase down any enemy that strayed from the main body of men.
The Zulani moved swiftly, forming lines of soldiers to counter this new threat, which had camped up on a small incline. This had been the first sign of any major resistance from these people. With bright shining shields, the infantry formed a line just at the base of the hill. Behind them were rows upon rows of archers. These did not have the long bows of the Murati, but much shorter versions that curved at each end. Slowly moving up behind them were the huge man-like beasts known as Gigantons. Standing twice the height of a normal man, and with thick leather like skin, they were a sight to make even the most battle hardened soldiers uneasy.
