by John Evans
"Oh, Gods!" gasped Iona, who then broke into a fit of giggles.
Per snorted in derision. Each relief depicted a sexual position and was painstakingly cut into life-like detail. There were hundreds of reliefs lining both sides of the hallway.
"Hey, big boy, how about this one?" cooed Iona.
Per looked at the one she indicated. The man was standing up and was holding onto the woman facing away from him by her arms. The woman was completely off the floor because her legs were bent and her feet were resting on the man's stomach. The man's cock was buried deep into her pussy.
"Um, Iona, you do know what would happen if we tried this and your foot slipped?" asked Per.
Iona thought over the position. "Oh, yeah. I'd end up with a whole lot more cock inside me than I could handle."
"Let's see what else there is," suggested Per with a smile. "Maybe there's one I want to try."
They went down the hallway, but stopped after a couple of feet. "Not in my lifetime!" gasped Iona as she looked at a relief of a woman with a horast, a six-legged furry beast with red faceted eyes. It had a long rat-like tail with three bladed barbs on the end of it and no mouth, just a long snout from which a foot long tongue comes out to lap up liquids. The woman had the snout pushed right up against her cunt.
"Let's finish searching this place," said Per. "It looks like there are rooms up ahead."
The hallway seemed to split off into four different directions. The intersection had a door frame and the reliefs ended there. They headed down the hall, but at the entrance, they were hit with a green light that sprang forth from the frame. The reliefs shifted towards the opening and the stone walls began to flake and chip, although the rock particles disappeared before hitting the floor.
The pair watched in amazement as two new reliefs quickly formed. Per was aghast to see a relief of himself with Nyrandurril fucking herself on his cock, while Melinar straddled his face. He looked over at Iona's relief to see her sitting on a man in an odd position. The man was balanced on his shoulders with his arms behind his back for support and his legs bent over. Iona was sitting on his upturned ass with his cock pulled upward to go into her vagina. She was holding onto his legs as she was poised to bounce up and down.
"Two, Per?" asked Iona.
"You're athletic, I see," responded Per.
"We had better get a move on."
The four directions off the hallway led to four different rooms. Two of the chambers were empty. The third one had a tunnel leading off it on the opposite wall, but the tunnel had collapsed, blocking the way. Per started into the fourth chamber, but stopped no sooner than he had entered.
"Iona, uh, I'm not sure you want to enter," he stammered.
"Why? What is it?"
"I can see the reliefs in here," he said, blocking her view. "They're of the specter we saw last night. It's as bad as you thought."
"It's alright, Per," said Iona, swallowing hard. "You've warned me. I need to see it."
He moved slightly to one side, allowing Iona to only see a small part of the room. She gasped when she caught sight of several reliefs of her grandfather with very young girls. Her eyes closed in pain at the obvious glee of her grandfather's face.
"Take a deep breath," advised Per, holding her tight.
Iona felt like she was going to be sick. "Max isn't as mad as I thought. He spoke the truth."
"Maybe or maybe only part of it," said Per. "You okay here for a bit? I'll be right back."
"Sure."
Per ran into the fourth chamber and just as quickly came back. He held out a signet ring to Iona. "His body is laid out in the chamber. It looks like Yayenski put his body there to keep him haunting this place."
"He can rot in there for all time," snarled Iona. "I want nothing to do with him."
"We have to take his body back to Delta," said Per. "That will put his soul to rest."
"His soul is damned!" yelled Iona hotly. "Why should I care about it?"
"Objects of desire," said Per softly.
"Huh?"
"Objects of desire," repeated Per. "Max said it. Max said he hunts heads and objects of desire. What will happen if his spirit meets up with a young girl?"
"You don't mean... Oh, Gods!" moaned Iona, clutching at her stomach.
"Iona! Please listen," pleaded Per, grabbing her by the arms. "The prophecy states the conqueror will obtain his goals. I think that means we have to take his body inside the city walls and bury it there. He obtained the goal of getting into the city then. His shade won't roam anymore."
"It's a day and a half back to Delta," said Iona. "Even if we rode our horses to death, we'd never make it before nightfall."
"We could make ourselves a shack," suggested Per. "It should protect us. Strong walls and stout doors."
"Yes, but we'll be closer to the city with more people about when he goes roaming through the night."
"We need to confine him and protect ourselves," said Per.
"I've got an idea," said Iona, snapping her fingers. "Let's get his body and get out of here."
Per headed back towards the fourth chamber, but Iona took two steps and then stopped. He looked back to see anguish on her face and her body trembling.
"I can't go in there!" she gasped in horror. "I can't!"
"I'll get him," said Per. "Go out and get the horses ready. I'll meet you outside."
She left as he went into the chamber and wrapped her grandfather's body up in a blanket. He slung it over his shoulder and looked around to see if he had missed anything. He walked out of the chamber, but turned around for one last look. He was startled to see the reliefs dissolving off the walls. He then hurried outside.
Iona saddled the horses and was prepared to leave. Per secured the body onto the back of his horse and mounted up. While en route to Delta, she told him her idea.
They stopped while there were still a couple hours of daylight left. Per placed the body down on the ground and began to build a stone wall around it. Iona started in on a second wall outside the one he was building. Per lashed branches together and set them in his wall to form a gate. He did the same for Iona's wall. Once his wall was about three feet high, he left it and went to help her. He pickets the horses and mule well away from their construction. He did not want them spooked and knocking down the walls. He then joined Iona in the circle between the two walls.
"Think it will work?" asked Iona.
"We'll find out very soon," said Per, looking at the sinking sun.
Per pulled Dorgeth from its scabbard as the sun dipped down to the horizon. Iona readied her darts and placed her sword beside her for quick use. The sun sank down and the hair on the back of his neck prickled at the headless body began to move. The body sat up and the luminescent head appeared. Standing up, it pulled a black, smoky sword out from thin air. A shrill scream sounded as a nightmare materialized out of the ground. The body walked over to it and mounted.
The ghostly head laughed maniacally and, waving the smoky sword over its head, charged towards them. Per almost tripped over the outer wall as he involuntarily backed up. Iona grabbed his arm and helped him regain his balance before he tumbled over. The nightmare had not taken more than a single leap before skidding to a halt mere inches away from the inner wall. The specter howled in rage and beat the air with his sword. He spurred his hellish mount, but to no avail. He could not pass the wall. Iona's grandfather turned the nightmare and went to the center of the circle. He stood there completely still, just waiting.
"Get some rest," said Per. "He's waiting for us to nod off. We have to keep vigil all night long."
The night dragged on with each taking turns at watch every two hours or so. Per woke up once to find Iona asking questions of her grandfather. The specter did not answer her, but just sat there, unmoving and waiting. He took the last watch and woke Iona up just as the sky began to brighten.
The specter and its mount stood there as the sky became brighter and brighter. As the sun peeked over the treet
ops, the ghost and nightmare dissolved into a wisp of smoke, leaving only the headless body on the ground where Per had placed it. He waited until the sun had fully risen before going in to collect it.
* * * * *
It was past noon when they came into sight of Delta. As they approached, a group of horsemen came out of the gate; in the lead was the General.
"Did you find Yayenski?" he asked them as they greeted each other.
"No," replied Per. "We had other matters to deal with first. We should talk privately."
The General looked at them both intently before motioning his men to move off to one side. "Well?" he asked.
"I have the headless body of Iona's grandfather wrapped up in this blanket," said Per. "At sundown, it will become a mounted horror, which will go out in search of heads unless we can put it to rest. Max gave us a copy of the prophecy. We also found out the truth about him and Iona's father."
"I thought Max had died," said the General sadly. "When his wife first released the prophecy, the city went mad. Before I could do anything, she and her child were killed. In that terrible moment, everyone realized that part of the prophecy had been fulfilled. Then came the denials, the changing of the wording, anything to avoid the inevitable." The General smiled a wry smile. "I still have a copy of the original prophecy, so I know what must be done."
The General sent two of his guards back into the city. It was about an hour later when a procession came out of the main gate. An open hearse with an ornate coffin led the way being followed by all types of clergy, nobles, and commoners. A carriage drove up from another direction and stopped where the General was. An older version of Iona stepped down from it.
"Mother," whispered Iona.
"I am here, milord," she said to the General. "Why have you brought me from my seclusion?"
"Lady Inga, may I present Per and your daughter, the Lady Iona. They are the reason you were brought here. They found the body of your father-in-law. It will be interred in the city walls. Your daughter knows the truth."
Inga's face blanched, but she remained steady on her feet. "I understand. I will do my duty as befitting a daughter-in-law."
"Didn't you hear me?" said the General crossly. "Your daughter knows."
"Knows?" asked Inga skeptically. "Knows what? Half-truths? rumors?"
"How about father's and grandfather's unnatural lust for girl children?" hissed Iona. "There was a room where we found his body. The room magically pictured each and every perverted act! I know, mother; just as I know what they had planned for me."
Inga's resolve broke and she collapsed to the ground. "I did not want you to find out," she said weakly, unable to look at Iona. "You revered your grandfather. I tried to keep the ugliness from you."
Iona knelt beside Inga. "Why, mother? All you did was to shut me off from you."
"There was no proof," said Inga. "If I told you and you did not believe me, then the gulf between us would have been impossible. When you were young, you played that your father was alive and acted like other fathers. He and your grandfather both had a compelling lust that they could not control."
"It's time to put his spirit to rest," said the General.
Per looked at the procession. The clergy had taken the body and placed it in the coffin. Everyone else was lined up, waiting for the General and the group he was with. Per leaned over and extended a hand to help Inga up.
"Thank you," said Inga to Per, "and thank you again for helping my daughter recover his body."
Per did not say anything. He, the General, Inga and Iona walked over to where the hearse was. A potbellied man with a florid complexion was dismounting from another carriage. He wore very expensive clothes and walked towards them with an air of arrogance. Per could tell by the expression on his face that he was not happy about something.
"My Lord General," began the man in a belittling tone. "You must stop this at once! It is a perversion that can not be allowed to happen!"
"What is the matter, Teamer?" asked the General in a tone that indicated that he already knew what the problem was.
"This burial!" snarled Teamer. "It is a travesty that we honor this mongrel who attacked our fair city, just as we must mind our p's and q's around his ilk."
The crowd had gone very silent around the two men. "Watch your mouth, Teamer," warned the General in a low tone.
"Or what? This city is nothing without the Merchant's Guild and I head the guild."
"I'll remember to put your employees on the walls first when the third siege comes," said the General.
"That's just it!" argued Teamer, pointing at the hearse. "There won't be one if we just discard this rubbish."
"What do you want?" asked Per angrily. "You want his spirit to roam free to harm and kill innocent people?"
"Don't speak when your betters are talking," said Teamer snidely. "Why don't you take that defective body of yours, your slut, and this stinking corpse back to whatever rock you crawled out from under?"
The crowd gasped collectively and Teamer's eyes bulged at the speed Per yanked Dorgeth out of its scabbard. The point of it was slightly indenting Teamer's fat belly. "I think I detected an insult or two in there," growled Per.
"Really? I..." Whatever Teamer was going to say was cut short when Per put a little more pressure behind the hilt of his sword.
Hands up in the air, Teamer looked around wildly. "General, you can't let him do this!" he screamed. "You must maintain law and order."
"Oh, I will," replied the General smugly. "After he guts you, I'll arrest him for murder. Of course, we'll have to do the funeral first and then the wake. Don't worry, though, I'll eventually get around to arresting him."
"Move!" snarled Per at Teamer. "You're leading us into the city."
The procession followed them with great amusement, watching as Per prodded Teamer along by jabbing him in the ass with the tip of his sword. They walked through the main gate and turned right to go to the main steps. At the steps that led up to the walkway above the gate, the procession stopped. The General went up the steps, followed by six of his guardsmen carrying the casket. Inga, Iona, Teamer, in turn, followed them, and Per brought up the rear. Several clerics came up after them. On the walkway, Per was surprised to see three large rectangular stones set in the walk. Each stone had four iron rings, one set in each corner of a stone. One stone had been moved to reveal a cavity beneath it.
The guardsmen slid ropes under the coffin and lowered it into the cavity as the clerics intoned prayers for the dead. The heavy stone was placed back in place with a thud. A blacksmith then moved forward to remove the rings. Per stood next to Teamer, who was fuming during the entire proceedings.
"It is done," said the General at the end as he dismissed his guards.
"You fool!" cursed Teamer. "You've brought us one step closer to destruction! You may have fulfilled this part of the prophecy, but you won't succeed on the others. I won't let all my work go for naught."
"Prophecy?" questioned the General. "I don't recall this being part of the prophecy."
"Don't play cute with me," said Teamer. "I'm talking about the real prophecy, not the one I had made up for this population of sheep."
"Don't discount the citizens," advised the General. "They are the ones who make this city, not you or I."
"They are like sheep," reiterated Teamer. "All ready to be shorn. That is what makes this city great - the profits!"
"Spoken like a true merchant," said the General in disgust. "What about duty? Honor? Those things people do for love without a thought to the cost or reward?"
"Spoken like a true idealist with no basis in reality," countered Teamer. "Just remember that without the merchants there wouldn't be any money to pay for your art, weapons, defenses, or those other intangibles you cherish. I will not let anything destroy all that I have worked for."
With that said, Teamer turned and stomped down the stairs. Per let out the breath he had not realized he had been holding. Everyone visibly relaxed after
Teamer left.
"You've got quite an enemy there," said Per to the General. "Can he stop the prophecy?"
"His hatred has festered for years," said the General as he turned towards the stairs. "Can he stop the prophecy? It depends on what you believe. I believe that the prophecy is self-fulfilling. It will occur no matter what Teamer or anyone else does. Let us go to the keep for dinner. I will have rooms prepared for each of you."
"I would like to stay until sunset," said Per. "Just to make sure he is at rest."
The General stopped after going down two steps. He nodded, turned, and walked back up. "Not a true believer yet, are you?" he joked. "No matter. We can wait to see if he manifests or not."
They stood silently around the stone as the sun sank lower in the sky. It dipped below the treeline and a last ray gleamed through the trees before it disappeared completely.
"I guess he's finally at rest," said the General as the sky changed from blue to mauve.
He turned away, but stopped short as a cold wind blew in from all directions. The three of them all pulled out their weapons as a filmy, translucent figure floated up through the stone block. Per immediately recognized it to be Iona's grandfather. The figure seemed to be held in place by white bands of light coming up from the stone.
"Be at peace," said the ghostly figure in a hollow voice. "I am no longer the horror that roamed at night. I rest now. My penance for my crimes is to guard these walls. Warn the people. Those who have evil intent against the city shall not pass over these walls. The gates are the responsibility of the living."
"Daughter-in-law, your silence is at an end. Your husband has forgiven you for killing him. There is no passion or desire on this side of the veil. We both have seen what evil creatures we were. You knew he was planning to abduct his daughter that night. You did what was needed to be done."
Iona's ghostly grandfather then sank from sight back through the stone. Weapons were sheathed and the group quietly headed towards the keep. Just before they crossed the drawbridge, Iona stopped and turned to face her mother. "Mother, I'm sorry, but I need to know. Why? What was he planning?"
