“No, you won’t.” Gabrian covered the space between them in a few quick steps and loomed close enough for Aurelius to smell the old man’s rancid breath.
“I won’t?” Aurelius said, leaning away.
“No, it’s time for us to leave. I know where Malgore is going.”
“Oh? And how did you come by this sudden epiphany?”
The old man smiled, revealing yellow, rotting teeth. “I asked an old friend of mine.”
“Ahh . . . aha.” Aurelius smiled to draw attention away from the tremor in his voice. “Well, good to know you have a few friends. Makes you seem more human.”
“Oh, I have more than a few friends, elder.” The old man turned away with a swish of his robes and began stalking toward the cockpit. “More than a few,” he repeated.
Aurelius stared after Gabrian, his smile fading by degrees as he tried to swallow his mounting dread.
Chapter 13
The sun began peeking above the snow-covered tree tops, splashing the clouds with hues of peach and rose, and half blinding Aurelius in the split second it took for his canopy to darken.
Frost glittered on outside of the transparalloy, gradually turning to rivulets of water as friction with the air melted it. Were it not for the fact that he was thousands of years outside his comfort zone, Aurelius could have truly enjoyed the moment.
“You’ve been pretty quiet, Wrinkles.”
“Yes.”
With that, Gabrian lapsed into silence once more.
Whatever, Aurelius thought. I should be happy for the peace and quiet. He worried his bottom lip and shot a glance at his copilot. The old man was sitting cross-legged in his chair, eyes closed, and palms raised as if he were offering praise to a deity. Aurelius looked away. I would be happy, if his silence weren’t so damned suspicious.
Gabrian began humming softly to himself and whispering in that strange language of his, and Aurelius sighed. So much for peace and quiet.
The minutes drifted by like hours but eventually the sun was fully in the sky, raining down beams of light that gleamed upon the silvery dashboard like liquid gold.
In the distance, a snowy plain began peeking over the treetops, and beyond that, a glittering expanse of water that was fed by rivers snaking out between the trees.
Aurelius wondered if he should ask Gabrian for further directions. No sooner had the thought entered his mind than a voice echoed beside it, Fly straight for Rainbow Lake.
Minutes later the trees fell away sharply beneath them and they were flying high above the snowy plains. To one side, the massive forest continued in a meandering line toward the lake. From the shape of the forest, Aurelius supposed the trees were hiding another river.
The lake grew ever larger before them. As it swelled into view, Aurelius found his jaw dropping. Mist was roiling off the water in glittering clouds, a canvas upon which the sun painted shifting rainbows. The lake itself was enormous, and the water was a deep, clear, luxurious blue like liquid sapphire. Despite the frigid surroundings, the lake appeared inviting, as though it were somehow set apart from the surrounding climate. Giving further evidence of this, the snow was peeled back from the edges of the lake, revealing clean white sand.
Aurelius used optical and digital magnification overlays to get a closer look. His view screen confirmed what he’d already seen. No snow came close to the edges of the lake. Focusing his sensors on the lake itself, Aurelius found the surface temperature to be nearly body temperature. That explains the mist. It’s steam. But how?
In the middle of winter, a giant body of water was radiating massive amounts of heat. Geothermal activity was his best guess. Further off, upon the horizon, shimmering like a mirage in the steamy air, was another strange sight: a giant mountain rising out of the water with vivid green slopes.
“What is that?” Aurelius asked, unable to bite his tongue any longer.
“That,” Gabrian said, finally stirring from his meditative posture, “is Gryphon Isle.”
“Gryphon?”
“Gryphon Isle is so named because it is where all Gryphons are born. It is the only place that stays warm year round, and therefore the only place suitable for the lengthy mating and hatching process.”
“I see. And ah, what exactly is a Gryphon?”
“Imagine Reven but larger, with a beak for a snout and feathers for fur.”
“Feathers?”
“Oh yes, and wings.”
“Great. Flying wolves.”
“Oh no. Much deadlier than that,” Gabrian said with tight smile.
Aurelius looked away and swallowed thickly. Deadlier?
* * *
Aurelius flew in low to the ground to get a better look at the Rainbow Lake. Shrouded in steam as it was, the lake truly deserved its name. Rainbows were all but dancing from one shore to the other. As they drew near to the water’s edge, Aurelius noted that the snaking rivers were flowing toward a cliff and that the water level was actually several hundred meters below that of the plains. Aurelius imagined there would be some spectacular falls. An instant later, his suspicions were confirmed as they rocketed over the cliffs and saw those rivers cascading in fat white torrents to the water below.
Anxious to get a better look, Aurelius banked around.
“What are you doing?” Gabrian demanded.
“Not every day I see something this spectacular.”
“You’re wasting time.”
“Yeah well, it’s not my time anyway—thanks to you and your stupid relic.”
“Are you suggesting that I’m to blame for bringing you here?”
“Oh shut up and enjoy the view, Wrinkles.”
For a wonder the old man did as he was told. They came about and soared along the cliffs, skimming along just a few dozen meters above the water level. As it turned out the waterfalls they’d seen were nothing. There in the distance, pouring out of the gargantuan forest was a waterfall that put them all to shame. As Aurelius had suspected, the meandering line of trees they’d seen while flying toward Rainbow Lake concealed a giant river which eventually roared out over the sheer gray cliffs. It was like nothing he’d ever seen before. As they came to the base of the falls they passed through thick clouds of steam that obscured all but the faintest glimmers of their surroundings. Moisture condensed upon the cockpit canopy and ran in furious little streams across the transparalloy surface. Aurelius pulled back on the stick and applied vertical thrust with the bottom rudder pedal, trading speed for altitude and buying himself a spectacular view from the top of the falls. Even in broad daylight, the forest from which the river poured seemed dark and forbidding. The faintest glimmers of bioluminescent lichen and moss flickered from the brooding depths of the trees, and their massive branches reached far out over the falls with vertiginous weight. Absent were the hanging curtains of icicles he’d seen dangling from the branches inside the forests around Dagheim. Aurelius supposed that the lake kept the surrounding air warm enough to melt any ice.
As they hovered there, admiring the view and listening to the muffled roar of the waterfall, another sound reached their ears: the thudding approach of heavy footsteps. Aurelius turned to see Reven—thankfully clothed in his makeshift robes—sit down in the passenger seat behind him. Aurelius noted Reven’s utter lack of reaction to the view, as if he were inured to it. A quick glance revealed a similar lack of interest on Gabrian’s part.
“What’s wrong with you two? This is amazing!”
“Yes. Startling,” Gabrian replied. “I’m sure the history books will praise your aesthetic faculties as they denounce you for your imprudent time wasting.”
“Fine, point taken.” Aurelius configured his surveillance suite to take a few pictures before bringing the ship about and flying on toward the distant island in the middle of the lake.
“Why did no one wake me?” Reven asked.
“Never heard the saying, let sleeping dogs lie?” Aurelius asked, shooting a wry look over his shoulder.
Reven’s eyes
narrowed fractionally. “No.”
“Ah, well, it’s something we say where I come from.”
“I’m not a dog.”
“Well you’re half wolf, and dogs are related to wolves, so . . .”
“So?”
“You know what, just forget it, Hairball. While the history books are denouncing me for my appreciation of waterfalls they’ll be denouncing you for your wonderful sense of humor.” Gabrian let out a croaking laugh and Aurelius shot him a quick look. “Don’t get me started on you, Wrinkles.”
“Oh? What defect do you suppose they’ll find to write about me?”
“I’m sure a few dozen pages will be devoted to your well-irrigated face.”
The cackling laughter returned. “Appearances can be misleading.”
Aurelius frowned, suddenly unsettled. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
But Gabrian gave no reply. The next few minutes passed in an uncomfortable silence. Eventually, Aurelius became aware of Gabrian’s intense scrutiny. Except that the old man wasn’t scrutinizing him per se, he was watching Aurelius’s hands and feet, noting every little movement with conspicuous interest.
“Do you mind? You’re creeping me out again.”
The old man abruptly flashed his set of rotting teeth. “And why might that be?”
Aurelius sighed. “Never mind.” He resolved to ignore the old man. As they drew near to the island, Aurelius saw that it was covered in lush, tropical green vegetation which climbed all the way up the steep slopes of the mountain which dominated the island. The flora seemed very out of place with the snow-covered evergreen forests which lay barely a hundred miles behind them.
“Land over there.” Gabrian pointed with a long, crooked finger to a broad, sandy beach.
Aurelius did as he was told, triggering the braking thrusters softly until they came to a stop, hovering several hundred meters above the beach. He slowly reduced vertical thrust until their altitude dropped to a mere handful of meters and then he triggered the landing struts and set down with a soft thump upon the beach.
“Welcome to Gryphon Isle,” Aurelius said, assuming a bright and airy announcer’s tone. “Please don’t eat the eggs, or the Gryphons will eat you.”
“Quite so,” Gabrian said, unbuckling and rising from the copilot’s chair.
“I was joking,” Aurelius said, frowning.
“And I was not. Come, we must hurry before Malgore realizes we are here.”
As they were about to leave the ship, it occurred to Aurelius that he could use another weapon, just in case the Gryphons didn’t appreciate visitors. Aurelius was halfway to the cargo bay when he remembered Gral. They’d left him unsupervised and unattended for the whole night and half of the morning.
“Did anyone think to check on Gral?” Aurelius asked as they stopped before the inner cargo bay doors.
“No,” Gabrian said, “I thought you would have done that.”
“Likewise.”
A muffled roar rumbled beyond the doors and they felt more than heard a distant banging sound shuddering through the deck underfoot. Aurelius grimaced to think what the giant was doing to make that sound. “I think he’s angry.”
“Yes, perhaps I had better greet him first.”
“Be my guest, Wrinkles.” Aurelius triggered the doors with a wave of his hand; they swished open to reveal Gral standing with his over muscled back to them, banging noisily on the outer doors with the bent and twisted lid to a shipping crate. The contents of the crate lay scattered across the floor—expensive weapons lying strewn across the deck like deadly refuse. Aurelius’s heart leapt into his throat as he recognized an MX-9 rocket launcher lying beside a pair of loose rockets. With the inertial compensators out of action, they must have been rolling and bouncing all over the cargo bay. It was a miracle they hadn’t exploded.
Gabrian picked his way through the scattered weapons while Aurelius and Reven watched from the doorway. A quick look around the yawning space told Aurelius that none of the weapons had been used; absent were the telltale furrows and scorch marks which should have been everywhere had Gral discovered how to unlock the guns.
“Gral! Cease that infernal banging!” Gabrian boomed with a surprisingly resonant voice.
The banging stopped and the troll slowly turned from the doors, his broad, ugly face was fixed in a terrifying rage, his grayish skin flushed a dark mauve. He roared impressively and then threw the mangled crate cover to one side. “Where has master been? Why no one come to Gral? Gral hungry! And thirsty! And very ANGRY!” He bellowed the final word with such force that Aurelius’s ears were left ringing in protest.
“Now, now, Gral. We were busy.”
The monster crossed his massive arms. “Gral not care.”
“Fine. We’re sorry. We’ll go get you food now.”
“No. Gral get his own food. You let Gral out!”
Gabrian stopped a few dozen paces from the giant and began shaking his head sadly. “We can’t Gral. It’s too dangerous here.”
“Here Gral’s home! You no tell Gral it dangerous. Gral know forest dangerous. Gral survive many winters before you come. Gral survive many more after you leave.”
“We’re not in your forest anymore. This is an entirely different place. We’re on Gryphon Isle.”
“Gryphon?”
Aurelius was surprised to note the tremor in the troll’s voice. Anything that can scare a troll must be dangerous.
“Yes. Gryphon.”
“Gral still not care! Let Gral out. Eggs make tasty meal.”
“Unfortunately, that is exactly why you cannot leave the ship. We cannot risk you angering the Gryphons. But we will bring you food.”
Gral thrust out his lower jaw in a sudden pout, revealing prominent incisors. “And water!”
Aurelius cleared his throat. “Gral, there’s water in here, let me show you.” He walked over to one side of the cargo bay where there lay a pressure hose connected to a faucet. Aurelius unscrewed the hose and cast about for a container. He spied the sensor dish for a missile guidance system which had broken off as the guidance system had tumbled around the cargo bay. He filled the dish and carried it over to the troll. Gral suddenly uncrossed his arms and snatched the dish from Aurelius, nearly yanking him off his feet in the process. The troll downed the giant bowl of water in a few seconds and then wiped his mouth on his hairless forearm. He threw the dish back and Aurelius barely managed to catch it before it broke his nose.
“More,” the troll growled.
Aurelius thought about showing Gral how to get his own water, but then it occurred to him that maybe Gral’s giant, clumsy hands were better kept to himself. So he quietly repeated the process until the troll’s thirst was sated. After that, Aurelius went around the cargo bay gathering up weapons and stacking them inside an empty crate while Gabrian continued to argue with the troll about the necessity of staying with the ship. At some point the conversation switched from whether the troll could go outside, and why not, to what types of food Gabrian could promise in exchange for staying put. The old man was evasive on that topic, which seemed to get the troll’s ire up once more.
Aurelius tried to ignore them as he went about collecting the weapons from the broken crate. He was peripherally aware of Reven dogging his steps, but he did his best to ignore the hairy wolf man. Most of the scattered weapons were damaged and malfunctioning beyond repair, but a few of the hardier pieces were still in perfect condition. Most notably was a plasma pistol which was only a model or two back from the one he’d lost. Aurelius tucked it into his holster. It would do. He considered slinging a rifle across his back as well, but settled for a belt of stun grenades instead.
Aurelius turned to interrupt Gabrian’s argument with Gral. “Ready?”
“Let’s go,” Gabrian said, turning away in an angry swirl of robes. “You be a good troll, Gral, or we’ll feed you to the Gryphons when we return.”
“You bring Gral food or Gral eat you!”
“He s
ounds grumpy,” Aurelius commented as they hurried from the cargo bay.
“He’s just hungry.”
“Are you planning to bring him food?”
Gabrian smiled thinly. “Perhaps.”
* * *
Before leaving the ship, Aurelius went to the galley and retrieved a case full of emergency rations which he stuffed into a backpack along with some canteens full of water. He passed the pack to Reven who promptly slung it across his shoulders. The wolf man probably wouldn't even feel the added weight. Aurelius also took a moment to fetch his flight helmet from the cockpit. He had a feeling he might need the extra sensors to warn him when something was sneaking up on them.
“So, Wrinkles, where to?” Aurelius asked once they were standing on the beach beside the ship. He cast about for a moment to properly take in his new surroundings. Deep blue water as clear as crystal sparkled beneath the sun, waves lapped softly against the strange, lavender-white sand, and the air was heavy with moisture and heat, making Aurelius break into an instant sweat beneath his flight suit. He tapped a command into his forearm gauntlet and immediately felt a cool gush of air from his suit’s thermal cooling system.
Gabrian had his eyes closed and was whispering unintelligibly again. Abruptly, he turned and pointed up to the rising green slopes which lay inland from the beach. Aurelius squinted against the sun for half a second before his helmet polarized to give him a clear view of the summit. The mountain was much higher than it had looked from a distance. Sensors in his helmet fed data to a HUD and revealed the summit to be almost a mile high. If they had to climb all the way to the top, it was going to take them all day. A quick look at the dense jungles crowding the slopes had him amending that estimate. It could easily take weeks.
“Well, we better get started before your face gets any wrinklier.”
With that, they set out. The jungle wasn’t as thick as it had seemed from a distance, but the going was still difficult. They let Reven go first to blaze a trail. He beat and battered the undergrowth into submission with his hairy fists, letting out a constant stream of frustrated snarls that Aurelius hoped would be enough to warn away any predators.
Mrythdom: Game of Time Page 12
