Knight Quest

by Brad Clark

  “If we must live alone and secluded in this valley for eternity to keep the curse from spreading, then that is what we will do. Hopefully, though, killing the creature will indeed end this curse and return my people back to ourselves.”

  Conner’s fingers subconsciously went to his chest where crossbow bolts had struck him so many months ago, killing him. “Hargon, a good friend of ours, has the power to heal. Maybe he can reverse the curse!”

  “It would take a great healer to cure us.”

  “He healed me from the dead,” Conner replied.

  “Let’s just hope that killing the creature will end the curse.”

  They continued walking across the meadow. Soon, woods full of tall evergreen trees came into view. Hemli turned towards it. It was lush and green, unlike the forest where the Dwarves lived. The trees were widely spaced allowing them to easily pass through. The distant sound of a waterfall could be heard.

  “We are close,” Hemli said.

  The highest peaks of the mountains were still some distance away, but the terrain had become rocky, and they were forced to climb up and down small hills and rock outcroppings. As the sound of the waterfall grew louder, they came upon the edge of a deep ravine. Below them, the vegetation was so thick they could not see the ground. For a few minutes, they debated whether they should go down the ravine or continue along the crest and find a more suitable place to cross.

  In the end, they decided against going down and continued along the top. Their path became more rocky and dangerous as they came across sheer cliffs and rocks that hung tenuously out over the edge. Carefully and slowly they proceeded, ensuring that their footing was solid. There was some tension between them as everyone wanted to push the pace, but no one wanted to push so hard they would put themselves in a dangerous situation.

  The ravine made a sharp turn to the left, which exposed the waterfall. The loud rushing of water filled their ears. For a few moments, they all stood watching the mesmerizing flow of water. The waterfall was about twenty feet high and dumped over a rocky ledge into a deep pool of crystal clear water. Two streams came out of the pool. One led into the deep underbrush of the ravine that they had just followed. The other went straight away from them towards an open valley. There were large trees that blocked much of their view, but they could see open land beyond the trees.

  Hemli took a knee. His brow was sweating profusely, and his breathing had become labored.

  “Good time for a rest,” Glaerion declared.

  Hemli pointed to the waterfall. “The river above the falls comes from the highest peaks of the mountains. In the spring, after the winter snows melt, the river is twice the size and drowns out the plants along the branch that cuts through the ravine that we just followed. The other branch of the river goes into the small valley where we are headed. It is the land of the creature.”

  “Does this creature even have a name?” Conner asked.

  “In our tongue, we call it Delbo,” Hemli said.

  “Devil Beast,” Glaerion said.

  “Loosely translated, that is what it means.”

  “So,” Conner asked. “Does this Devil Beast live in the valley?”

  “Yes. The cave where he was imprisoned is nearby. After he escaped, he took up residence in the valley.”

  “Other than him using a spear and giant battle-ax, what more can you tell us about him? What do we expect when we come up against him?”

  “The creature, Devil Beast, or whatever you want to call him, stands like a man, has the body of a man, but there is nothing about him that is Human. I already told you he has the head of a bull with razor-sharp horns that he will use to spear his victims and then eat them alive. It has been several generations since he has left his lair. The last time was when he slaughtered our women and children. As long as we give our sacrifices, he leaves us alone.”

  “And the curse continues,” Conner said.

  “Do we have any choice but to give our sacrifices?” Hemli snapped back. “We fight back, he kills us. We cannot run away, else we will infect the rest of the world with the curse. We can only try and live as we can and hope that one day the curse can be broken. That day, I hope, has come.”

  “What did you do with Ryshak?” Glaerion asked. There was bitter anger in his voice, and he did his best to hold back his emotions.

  “I am sorry for your companion.”

  “He was our friend,” Conner cut in.

  “I am sorry for your friend,” Hemli corrected. “You said he was a warrior?”

  “One of the best,” Glaerion said.

  Hemli nodded. “He handled his situation as a true warrior. He was taken to the valley and set free. He was told that if he were to kill the creature, he would be freed.”

  “You knew he would not survive.”

  “None ever has.”

  “He was one of the very best Elven warriors.”

  “Then he would have fought valiantly, but in the end, the creatures would have killed him. I am sorry for your loss.” He looked Glaerion in the eyes. “I truly am.”

  “In wars, good men die,” Glaerion replied. “That is expected. His death, though, will not be forgotten, nor will your role in it be forgotten. I get why you did what you did, but that does not mean I will easily forgive you.”

  “Fair enough, I guess.” Hemli stood. “Once we pass across the streams, we will have gone farther than I have ever gone before. I do not know what to expect, other than the Devil Beast creature will be ready for us.”

  Nikki asked, “Does he have any soldiers, henchmen, or an army of slaves that we must also fight off?”

  Hemli shrugged his shoulders. “Only the sacrifices make it into his valley.”

  “I think we must expect anything,” Glaerion said. “Has a small armed party ever gone to try and kill the Devil Beast?”

  “The only time we have ever tried to kill him was when we sent in a hundred of our best soldiers. Other than that, it has always been just the sacrifice.”

  “I think we have the advantage,” Conner said.

  Hemli shook his head. “You do not understand what you go up against.”

  “I agree with Conner,” Glaerion said, eyes sharp and focused, looking out past the waterfall, through the trees, and to the open meadow beyond. “If only Ryshak were here, I would be even more confident. But the three of us will be able to handle many times our number. I feel confident in our chances. We might just be small enough to not be noticed or taken seriously until we are close.”

  ***

  They crossed the river above the waterfall to avoid the thick vegetation around the stream that led towards the valley where they would find the creature. It was a fast-moving creek, and they had to be careful with their footing as the rocks along the riverbed were slippery. Hemli had the hardest time, as he struggled to maintain his balance. Glaerion ended up walking next to him, holding an arm to guide him. The water wasn’t deep, but it was cold, even with the warm temperature.

  Once safely across, each took a moment to take a drink and then they moved on. Glaerion led, Hemli followed just behind. Conner and Nikki took up the rear. As soon as they came out from the cover of trees, they drew their weapons.

  “What’s this?” Glaerion asked. He walked over to thick bushes that had grown up on either side of the opening that led to the meadow. With a hefty yank, he pulled the branches away to reveal a tall stone structure.

  At first, they thought it was just a random rocky outcropping, but Glaerion pointed out the squareness of the stone and the straight lines that showed that several large stone blocks had been stacked on top of one another.

  “What could this be?” Conner asked, looking at Hemli.

  Hemli walked over and touched the stone blocks. “They are worn from time,” he said. “At one time they were perfectly square. Stacked as if they were a marker.” He looked up into the air, his eyes following what his imagination saw. “No, it was an arch. It would have marked the entrance to the valley.”
>
  “An arch? How could you know?”

  “I am a Dwarf. Masonry and construction are in our blood. Even though all that’s left of the arch are these few blocks, I can see in my mind how it once looked.”

  “So, your ancestors built an arch here? For what purpose?”

  “The arch is the strongest structure that spans an opening. All the force above is equally spread across the two legs and not across the middle. It is not only functional but a symbol of strength. At one time, there was something more in this valley.”

  “Something built by Dwarves?” Conner asked.

  “It seems that way.”

  “How long ago?”

  “Stone does not wear down in years or decades. It would take centuries for nature to round these edges and knock down the arch. Whatever was here was built long, long ago.”

  The grasses of the basin of the valley were knee-high, except for Hemli, where they went up to his waist. Ahead of them was a thick hedge. It was only when they approached it did they realize that it was a well-manicured hedge. It stood twice their height and went on to the edges of the valley as a wall to keep them from passing further into the valley.

  “It seems our Devil Beast is a fine gardener, too,” Nikki observed.

  “How do we get through?” Conner asked, pushing his hands into the bushes. They were so thick, there was no chance that they could push their way through. He could not see through to the other side, so he had no idea how deep the hedge went.

  “The Dwarf could chop an opening,” Nikki said.

  Hemli gripped his battle-ax tightly, insulted that she would suggest it be used for something other than fighting. “There will be an opening. The creature will want us to come in.”

  “Maybe it comes out for his sacrifices,” Nikki said. “We could wait for it.”

  “No waiting,” Glaerion said. “We split up. Hemli and I will walk towards the sun until we reach the end of the hedge or an opening. Conner, you and Nikki walk the other direction. The first to find a way through will shout out.”

  Conner raised an eyebrow and made a motion with his hand.

  Glaerion picked up on what Conner was asking and shook his head. “We don’t know what this creature is, or what it is capable of. If there is any chance it could detect magic, we will lose our advantage. I do not want to reveal myself until absolutely necessary. There must be a way in, so we’ll find it the hard way.”

  The group split up. Conner and Nikki walked along the hedge, the sun at their back. Both had their swords out and ready to be used.

  After they had walked in silence for some time, Nikki asked, “Do you think this creature, this Devil Beast, is what the Dwarf says it is? An ancient creature from before time?”

  Conner shook his head. “There is no reason to not believe. I have seen so much in the past couple of years, I have to assume that anything is possible.”

  “I envy you,” she said. “In that you have had many adventures and have seen the world. I have seen little, other than my father’s palace.”

  Conner laughed. “I would trade all my adventures for a little time in a safe and comfortable palace. The world is falling down around us. It is not an adventure. It is a disaster.”

  “But it is what I was trained for,” Nikki said. “Fighting. Adventure. It is why I became a Sak’Hurai.” She was quiet for a few moments before continuing. “I finally feel fulfilled, doing what I want to do, what I was trained to do. But, I feel something that I never thought I would ever feel.”

  “What is that?”

  “Fear. I actually fear for what comes next. For the future. For failing.”

  “That is normal. Master Goshin taught me that fear is not something to be avoided, but to be embraced. Only cowards deny fear, for it is the brave that faces it head-on.”

  “Master Goshin was a wise man. Maybe wiser than my father. I wish I had known him.”

  “He was indeed a good man. I would not be who I am without him.”

  Conner suddenly stopped. Before them was an opening through the hedge. It was easily missed as it was only wide enough for a single person to walk through. He turned and shouted for Glaerion and Hemli. After a quick wave, they began trotting back towards Conner and Nikki.

  Conner drew his swords as he looked through the opening.

  “So, you feel fear?” Nikki asked.

  Conner laughed. “Sometimes. But, when I do, I just choose to ignore it.”

  Glaerion arrived in moments. Hemli followed a few steps behind, huffing and puffing.

  “It seems I have seen better days,” Hemli said, bending over and resting on his knees.

  With them all together, Conner stepped first through the opening in the hedge.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Once they cleared the opening, they came upon a path that was wide enough so that two of them could easily walk side-by-side. The hedgerows were groomed to be perfectly straight. The path was made up of short grass that appeared to be freshly groomed. About fifty paces ahead of them the path appeared to end. Cautiously, they walked forward.

  As they neared the end of the path, they realized that the path didn’t end but went both left and right. With the perfect grooming of the hedgerows, it was difficult to see the openings until they were right on top of them. To the left, the path continued straight for quite some distance. To the right, the path appeared to end after about ten paces.

  Conner walked to the end of the path and then pointed to the right. “It continues right, and then I can see it goes left almost right away.”

  “Left, or right?” Nikki asked.

  “Or both?” Hemli suggested.

  Conner walked back to them. “We can’t split it up, can we? It might be faster to get through this maze, but if we came upon this Devil Beast, we might need all of us fighting together.”

  “I think I agree,” Glaerion said.

  “At South Karmon,” Conner said. “just outside the castle, there is, I mean, there was a large garden with a maze in the middle. It looked just like this one, except not as tall. You could actually jump up and see over the tops of the hedge. It was not very big and not very complicated, and if you didn’t know where you were going, you could get trapped for hours just trying to find your way to the end.”

  “What are you saying?” Nikki asked.

  “If this is a maze, then we could wander it for days without finding the end.”

  “We just need to mark our turns,” Glaerion said. “That way, if we find a dead end and we backtrack, we’ll know which way to go the next time. It may take some time, but eventually, we should make our way through.”

  “There has to be a faster way,” Conner said with frustration. He knew why Glaerion was averse to using magic so that he wouldn’t expose himself too early, but they were running out of other options.

  Glaerion could feel the impatience coming from Conner and said, “How about if I just blast a hole through the maze and then we can march through to the end?”

  “That would work, too,” Conner said dryly.

  “Conner, if I wasted all my energy casting spells now, I would have little left over for when we actually come upon the creature. Plus, we will expose that I am here and I can cast spells. We will lose the advantage of surprise.”

  “What’s wrong with just starting in one direction and marking out turns?” Nikki asked.

  “Sounds like a good plan to me, too,” Hemli chimed in.

  Conner gave up arguing and said, “Okay. Left, or right? And how do we mark our turns?”

  They all looked on the ground for any loose objects.

  “There are lots of rocks back by the stream,” Hemli suggested.

  “Right,” Glaerion said. “I’m the fastest. Wait here.”

  It didn’t take very long for Glaerion to run at full speed back to the stream and collect a bunch of small rocks they could use to mark their way.

  Once he returned, Conner pointed to the right.

  “Good as any,” G
laerion said. He placed a rock under the hedge so that it wasn’t quite in plain sight, but it could be easily found by them.

  Conner led the way. They had no real plan to traverse the maze, so when they came upon different paths, they simply chose one. Glaerion would mark their choice, and they continued onward.

  They kept their conversations to a minimum, and when they did talk, they did so in a voice just above a whisper. After a while, they ran out of even small things to say. They trudged on in mostly silence.

  ***

  The sun had moved a good way across the sky when Glaerion suddenly came to a stop. They were at a four-way junction. He turned and looked behind him. After a moment, he retraced his steps.

  Hemli had dropped to the ground in the shade of the hedge. He wiped sweat from his brow and grumbled about being thirsty. Nikki walked over and handed him a waterskin, which he eagerly accepted. Conner joined them and took some water himself.

  All eyes were on Glaerion as he walked back along their path. After several dozen paces, when he reached the closest junction of two paths, he looked under the hedge. He straightened up and rubbed sweat off his forehead.

  “What is it?” Nikki asked.

  Conner replied for him, “Give him a minute. He’s thinking.”

  “About what?”

  “That we might be lost?”

  “No,” Glaerion shouted back to them. “I know exactly where we are. We’ve been here before and not too long ago.”

  Conner walked over to the hedge and looked under branches.

  “There’s not a rock,” Conner said. “We have not been here.”

  “I know we’ve been here.” Glaerion pointed down the path to his right. “We came from that direction and turned left to head in that direction.” He pointed straight ahead to where Hemli and Nikki were resting in the shadows of the hedge.

  Conner bent down and looked under the hedge once again. “Not here.”

  Glaerion opened his mouth to reply, but his ears caught something. He cocked his head to listen more carefully. Suddenly, he shouted out “Quick! Follow me!”