Knights: Legends of Ollanhar

by Robert E. Keller

  "Are you sure this is wise?" asked Brakthas, his face tense.

  "No, I'm not sure," said Lannon. "It might be a big mistake. But I'm not letting this go. If I have to, I will go to Malva myself."

  "But what about your mission?" asked Galandra. "Shouldn't that come first, with so much at stake? Are you going to risk it all in search of justice? And what will you do if you find the savages? Will you kill them all? You may be a powerful swordsman, but you're not invincible, right?"

  Lannon nodded. "Just flesh and blood like you, Galandra. But I risk my life constantly as a Divine Knight. It's what I do. And this isn't merely about justice. The townsfolk could be in grave danger."

  "If the Blue Vultures took Malva," said Brakthas, "the townsfolk are probably already dead. What then is the town worth?"

  Lannon had no answer for that. "I'm going to Malva--with or without the rest of you. Aldreya, if you disagree, feel free to ride on without me. I'll catch up with the rest of you later, if possible."

  "We ride together," Aldreya said. "To Malva. We will not abandon our High Watchman. But first these people need a proper burial."

  ***

  It was late in the afternoon when they reached the outskirts of Malva. The first few houses they encountered stood dark and silent, windows broken and doors wide open. Blue symbols were painted on these homes. In one of the houses they found more dead bodies. The homes had been altered in strange ways, with dummies made of straw, sticks, and random objects erected in the yard. Targets had been painted on walls and doors and bore holes from throwing weapons.

  "So Malva has fallen," said Brakthas, his eyes wide. "Fodan and his warriors must have lost the fight. We can still turn back."

  No one answered. With grim faces, they rode on into town. Malva was larger than Red Barrel, with several muddy streets lined with houses and businesses. It looked like it had been through a war, with battered and burned buildings, and debris scattered everywhere. More dummies had been erected--including a large and elaborate one made out of wooden buckets, ropes, and stove pipes. Some were nailed to walls or lay atop roofs. It was as if the townsfolk had been replaced by large dolls. It sent chills down the spines of the Knights, to see all the colorful eyes gazing at them from cloth and straw faces.

  Here and there lay the dead, victims of the Blue Vultures, being mocked by the dolls. Bodies lay in the mud, on porches, or in flower beds--townsfolk who had failed to escape when the savages attacked.

  Yet the worst fate of all had been given to Fodan, the legendary grey-haired old Ranger, and his elite warriors. Their severed heads had been placed on stakes in the street for all to see, blue symbols painted on their foreheads.

  For a while the Knights sat in silence, gazing at the grisly sight. They were used to combat and bloodshed, but they found the brutality of this scene shocking. It was not just the slayings that disturbed them, but the way the whole town seemed to be mocked by the presence of the odd dummies. Malva had become a pit of terror and doom.

  At last Brakthas found his voice and said, "Told you we shouldn't have come here."

  "I think I agree," said Dallsa, her eyes wide.

  Lannon fought to contain his anger. "Forget our mission. We are not leaving until justice is done."

  "This is beyond disgusting," said Vorden. "Not even the Deep Shadow is this evil. What type of monsters are we dealing with?" Then Vorden did a rare thing--he donned his helm and became armored from head to toe, with only his yellow eyes visible beneath the helm. He clenched his hand into a fist. "Don't worry about arresting them, Lannon. These savages know only bloodshed. We need to prepare for a fight to the death."

  Daledus raised his huge battle axe. "The Divine Essence demands retribution. Let us rid the world of this barbarian plague."

  They dismounted and led their horses a safe distance away. Then they gathered at the center of town again on foot.

  "They're in that tavern," said Jerret, pointing eagerly with his broadsword to a large wood and stone building with horses hitched to posts out front. "They're probably watching us through the windows right now." The horses were draped with colorful blankets and odd, hanging trinkets like silver bells, tiny dolls, ribbons of snakeskin, and strings of dried mushrooms and vegetables.

  Lannon scanned the tavern and found a large number of warriors inside--more than forty of them, armed with crossbows, axes, and clubs. The Knights were facing a serious fight. "We're outnumbered," he said.

  The three Norack Rangers stood together with weapons drawn, determined to avenge one of their own.

  "They need to pay dearly for this," said Saranna.

  Galandra nodded. "Fodan was a great man. I can't believe he's gone."

  "I'll kill every one of those devils myself!" snarled Brakthas.

  Prince Vannas readied the White Flamestone, but Aldreya motioned for him to put it away. "This isn't the time," she said. "Save that for more significant battles. Your fire endangers us all."

  "I can control it," said Vannas, looking annoyed. When Aldreya didn't respond, he put away the Flamestone and drew his sword. "If this battle goes badly for us, Aldreya, you will regret this."

  "Bear in mind," said Aldreya, "that we do not slaughter our foes. Those who surrender will be spared and taken prisoner."

  "Blue Vultures don't surrender," said Brakthas. "So no worries."

  "I'm visiting the tavern," said Lannon. He started forward, when he caught sight of three muscular warriors standing atop the tavern roof. They had blue hair styled in bizarre fashions and wore rugged leather armor gleaming with metallic studs. Each had blue cloth covering the lower half of his face. They were aiming crossbows at the Knights.

  Lannon cried out a warning, even as the barbarians fired their arrows.

  One bolt went for Lannon's heart--a perfect shot. Engulfed with the power of the Eye, his movements guided by instinct, he deflected it with his fist. Another bolt shot toward Aldreya but glanced off an invisible shield of sorcery. The remaining bolt flew at Daledus, and he blocked it with the wide head of his axe--causing the deflected arrow to stick in one of the wagons.

  Galandra dropped her spear and loaded her slingshot with a steel slug. She pulled it back so far it seemed that surely the bands would break, and then let it fly. The slug struck a barbarian's forehead, dead center, and he toppled off the roof into the mud and never moved again.

  Lothrin shot a barbarian in the throat, killing him instantly, and Saranna put an arrow in the remaining one's shoulder, causing him to howl in pain before exiting the rooftop through a trapdoor.

  An instant later a group of Blue Vultures--about thirty of them--flooded out of the inn, enraged savages on a mission to kill. They let loose with strange battle cries, a mass of muscles, leather, gleaming metal studs and spikes, blue hair, and blue feathers. They raised crossbows.

  Galandra stepped behind Vorden, using his armor to shield her. An instant later two arrows deflected off that armor.

  Brakthas ducked behind a barrel, his wide eyes peeking over the rim, as two arrows stuck in the wood.

  Saranna tried to dive behind a wagon but caught an arrow in the back. She writhed about for a moment, then lay still.

  Lannon deflected an arrow aimed at Bekka. She was still too weak to defend herself, and Lannon was determined to stay close to her.

  Aldreya burned to ash two arrows that were aimed at Prince Vannas. Like Lannon, her power was guided by instinct, giving her speed that went beyond that of an ordinary Knight. Nevertheless, one of the two arrows had nearly found the prince--disintegrating just a few feet away from him.

  An arrow grazed Dallsa's shoulder and tore away flesh. She cried out in pain, as blood soaked her tunic.

  Two arrows went for Jerret. He managed to deflect one with his burning broadsword, but the other lodged deep into his thigh. It was a dastardly wound, with blood pouring out instantly. He gazed down in shock at his leg, his pale face revealing that he knew he was bleeding to death. His fight was over, and so he let his broadswo
rd slip from his hand, grasping at the wound instead.

  Jace, who had somehow managed to avoid three arrows aimed at him, rushed to Jerret's aid, kneeling beside him to administer healing. Dallsa was in great pain, yet she ignored it and went to help Saranna.

  The Blue Vultures exchanged their crossbows for clubs and axes and then charged forward, their battle cries echoing through the air.

  Lannon was the first to meet them. He ducked an axe swing aimed at his neck and then caught the attacker in the head with his fist. The heavily muscled barbarian was flung from the force of the blow against a building wall, caving in some boards. He toppled over and lay motionless.

  One of the barbarians hacked at Vorden's armor with a heavy axe, but the iron axe head broke without leaving a mark on the gold-and-black breastplate that gleamed in the sunlight. In response, Vorden slammed his armored forearm against the barbarian's skull, dropping him like a sack of grain.

  Daledus' axe was yanked from his hands by an attacker, but he punched a charging savage in the nose--a blow that laid the warrior out cold in the mud. Roaring laughter, the battle crazed Dwarf then leapt on another barbarian and head butted him so viciously he cracked the man's skull.

  Aldreya sent deadly fire through the attackers' ranks, killing and severely wounding several of them. A few of them burned completely to ash. This display of sorcery--which might have prompted warriors with rational minds to retreat--only caused the Blue Vultures to attack with greater fury, however.

  A barbarian managed to get to Prince Vannas--only to perish when the prince's slender blade pierced his heart. With a cry of triumph, Vannas yanked the sword free and then cut off the barbarian's head.

  And then Lothrin was there, his Flayer lashing out with inhuman speed and deadly accuracy in defense of the prince.

  Giving his own weird battle cry, Brakthas leapt on a foe's back and drew his long dagger across the savage's throat for an easy kill. He shoved the body away, knocking over another savage.

  While Lannon was distracted, Bekka swung at a foe with her sword, but she was still too weak to put significant force into the attack. The barbarian deflected the blade and raised a heavy hammer for the kill. But then Galandra leapt to her rescue with a gleeful yell, shoving her short spear through the attacker's heart.

  Three barbarians swung spiked clubs at Lannon in an effort to overwhelm him. With the force of the Eye, he shoved them back and froze them for a moment, tearing the weapons from their hands. He raised his sword to do battle, but the savages turned and fled toward the tavern.

  After that, the others fled to the tavern as well, leaving only the dead and wounded. They slammed the tavern door shut behind them, and the street grew silent except for the cries and moans of the injured.

  "Cowards!" Jerret bellowed after them, from where he lay on the ground. He was lying in a pool of blood, perhaps moments away from death. "Of all things, a stupid leg wound," he groaned. "Why so much blood?"

  "Be quiet," Jace muttered. "Save your strength. Even a leg wound can be deadly, if you know how the human body works. And the arrow was designed to cause a bitter wound." The sorcerer was still kneeling beside Jerret, hands on his thigh, trying desperately to stop the bleeding.

  Moments later, the leader of the Blue Vultures appeared on a rooftop, crossbow in hand. He was a huge man wearing a spiked, leather vest that was open in the front. His bare chest was covered in blue tattoos, and on his head was an extravagant wig that feathered blue feathers instead of hair. He wore a silver, metallic mask with two small horns protruding from the forehead.

  He ran his fingers over his chest tattoos and cried out, "By my blood and my sacred mark, I will avenge my fallen brothers! Divine Knights of Dremlock, you will plead to your god to end your suffering before all is said and done! Our dolls will beautify your kingdom, as the earth feeds on your splintered bones! Our dolls will beautify your kingdom! We pick your bones clean of all flesh, like the sacred war bird of the Downriver Marsh, and make your women our own!"

  Galandra loaded her slingshot, while Lothrin and Brakthas readied arrows. But by then the leader had vanished from the rooftop.

  "Now we're at war," said Brakthas.

  ***

  The Knights looked on with grim faces as Dallsa and Jace tended to the wounded. Aldreya helped as well, though her healing sorcery was very weak in comparison to the other two. After carefully extracting the arrow from Jerret's thigh, they managed to stop the bleeding and seal the wound. After that, they left Jerret alone to focus on healing himself while they worked on Saranna.

  Saranna's injury was more difficult, as she didn't possess the Knightly ability to heal herself. The barbed arrow had pierced one of her lungs, doing significant damage, and had created a dangerous blood clot that was seeking her heart. Dallsa had great trouble trying to dissolve the clot and deal with other issues, while Jace helped keep Saranna stable. Meanwhile, the moaning and bellowing of the injured Blue Vultures nearby was distracting.

  Fortunately, the barbarians in the tavern did not attack as the two worked on Saranna, and at last they stabilized her wound. Unlike Jerret, however, she would need a lot more care to recover.

  "What now?" Lannon asked. He was reluctant to let the fight end here. He was still gripped by anger over what had happened to the townsfolk.

  Aldreya sighed. "With Jerret and Saranna in dire need of healing, our mission is jeopardized. Unfortunately, I feel we must move on and deal with this issue later. We can't risk losing them."

  As much as it pained him to agree, Lannon nodded. "They might not let us go, however. We may be forced to fight anyway."

  Aldreya shrugged. "We shall see."

  "No point in letting it go now," said Brakthas. "We've already angered their leader. They're going to seek revenge. I say we charge the tavern and finish this. You Knights are some stout fighters. We can take them."

  "Let's finish this!" said Daledus, who had retrieved his axe.

  "This isn't the time," said Jace. "The fight went badly for us, and that's just the way it is. We need to get out while we can."

  "If we don't deal with them now," said Galandra, "they will ambush us later. They're very sneaky. We should kill them all, here and now."

  "I have no fight in me," said Bekka, who looked utterly exhausted. "If you charge the tavern, count me out."

  Lannon sighed. "I wanted to see justice done, but it seems we only made the situation worse. Justice will have to wait."

  "We could finish this," said Prince Vannas, "with white fire. I could destroy the tavern before they could escape. Problem solved."

  "Do it!" Brakthas said eagerly. He gazed at the prince in amazement. "I can't even imagine power like that, but if you've got it, by all means use it. Otherwise these devils will haunt us all the way to the sea."

  "Burn them quickly!" said Galandra.

  Prince Vannas brought forth the White Flamestone, but Aldreya again motioned him to put it away. "Why?" he asked, looking frustrated. "Jerret and Saranna are severely injured--because you wouldn't let me use it. Now our enemies are plotting against us, and still you refuse. It doesn't make sense."

  Jace frowned. "Prince Vannas has a point, Aldreya. The barbarians have not surrendered, and therefore we have every right to destroy them. I think he should burn the tavern to ash and be done with them."

  "What do you think, Lannon?" asked the prince. "You have just as much say in this as Aldreya, as far as I'm concerned."

  In spite of Lannon's burning desire for justice, he wasn't sure that blasting the tavern with white fire was the right thing to do. "I don't know. Right now they're not attacking, but we're kind of at war with them."

  "We don't need the Flamestone," said Lothrin. "Lannon, we can take them. Dallsa and Jace can stay here and look after the injured."

  "Why can't I use it, Aldreya?" asked Vannas. "I want an answer."

  "We must be careful," said Aldreya. "Burning the tavern with those men in there would be a burden to you, Prince Vannas. Too much p
ower and death, too soon. There will be time for that later, when we confront Bellis. My instincts tell me there is a danger in using the Flamestone too often."

  "Exactly right," said Lothrin, to the prince. "Listen to Aldreya."

  Vannas glowered at the Ranger. "So you've been whispering in her ear, filling her with doubts. I should have known."

  "I did nothing of the sort," said Lothrin.

  "This discussion is over," said Aldreya. "We will move on."

  "This is foolish," said Brakthas. "You don't know what you're dealing with here. We will pay dearly for letting these savages live."

  "I'll take that risk," said Aldreya. "We face many risks on this journey, but we must remember that the greater fight is with Bellis. We must save our strength and focus for that conflict. The White Flamestone will inevitably be used on this mission--but only when absolutely necessary."

  "I don't like this new attitude," said Vannas.

  "I have the right to my opinion," said Aldreya. "And sometimes I change my mind. Get used to it."

  The prince glared at her. "You would never have spoken to me that way in Borenthia, before you were appointed Green Knight of Ollanhar. You would have addressed me with proper respect."

  "We're no longer in Borenthia," said Aldreya, coldly.

  Brakthas and Galandra gazed at each other, looking doubtful.

  "I'm thinking this wasn't a good idea," said Brakthas, with a heavy sigh. "We had it great in Red Barrel."

  Galandra could only shake her head.

  "You can break your contracts," said Aldreya, "and walk away with what you have. It might be the wise thing to do. On the other hand, you could be missing out on a fair amount of treasure. The choice is yours."

  The two Rangers stood in silence for a time.

  Then Brakthas said, "I'm sticking with it--and not just for the treasure. This is the greatest challenge I'll ever have in life. No way I'm missing out."