by C. E. Swain
It was getting late when the relief watch arrived to replace the night guards at the waterfall, and the two night watchmen were grumbling loudly as they walked back to the monastery and their breakfast. When they were out of sight and over the hill, Menimeth and Kyler took careful aim, and dropped both of the new guards at the same time. Both men were dead, so they dragged them into the waterfall with them, and left them there, out of sight.
The tunnel was rough-cut and narrow, but opened into a small chamber just behind the waterfall. Menimeth waited until everyone was safely inside, before moving on into the tunnel on the other side of the small chamber, and all of the men followed him one at a time. The tunnel continued on in a straight line for several feet, and ended in a room that looked like it was part of the dungeon. Menimeth removed the torch from its holder on the sidewall, and the wall across the room from the tunnel, opened up into the main dungeon like the informant had said it would.
They needed to clear the dungeon of brigands without raising the alarm, or the plan might fail. The information that they had received from the informant was that only six men would be in the dungeon in the mornings. Menimeth took Kyler and went one direction, and Javen, Feran, and Litlorn went the other. Menimeth had Da'Thinagul in his hand, and it glowed faintly as the two men made their way through the dungeon. It put off just enough light to guide them through the darkness of the dungeon, and they soon came to a place where the outlaws could be heard. There was a light coming from a side passage ahead of them, and it grew brighter as they crept closer to the intersection.
A tall slim outlaw in dirty clothes walked around the corner at the same time that Menimeth reached it, and stopped short with a surprised look on his face. He tried to yell out to his companions to warn them of the intruders, but found that he could not speak to do so. Da'Thinagul had flashed up from Menimeth's side, and he had thrust it through the outlaw's throat, severing his vocal cords, and ending his life.
His companions came rushing around the corner to see what had happened, and found themselves fighting for their lives. The men were seasoned fighters, but did not last long against the superior skills of the dragon rider. Menimeth knew there were no more outlaws ahead, because the dust on the floor was a guide to where the brigands had been, and where they had not, and he turned to retrace his steps. There were no more footprints in the dust that continued on from where they had found the outlaws, and so he knew there was no need to continue in that direction.
The five friends met at the stairs leading up into the chapel, and the six brigands were all they had found in the dungeon, so their information was still accurate as far as Menimeth could tell. Menimeth expected to find no more than four men in the chapel, five if Mareston was with them still, when they reached to top of the stairs. Only two men faced them when they entered the chapel, and though they were not caught off guard, the fight was over quickly. Menimeth told Danorathin that they were in place, and to give the signal to attack, as he and the men that were with him moved to the doors and prepared to engage the outlaws.
A mighty roar sounded from the north, and men started yelling and running around in panic within the monastery. Menimeth and his companions burst from the chapel, and attacked the outlaws within the walls, sending them into an even worse panic. That was when the Captain and his men began pouring through the gaps, and the brigands turned to flee from the carnage that awaited them. Several of the bandits were down with arrows in them, and at least fifteen of them were dead or dying by the vicious attack mounted from the chapel.
It looked like it was all but over, when a large force of outlaws came running up the road to defend the monastery. Menimeth noticed how even while running, they did not break ranks, and prepared to attack their foes as a unit. Only trained solders used this form of disciplined assault, and he was sure now that the bandits were not bandits at all, but solders instead.
"I have a plan to break their spirits and their lines." He said to Captain Brannor, as they met in the courtyard of the chapel. "Have your men be prepared to attack the brigands before they reach the walls, you will know when the time is right."
The brigand force was getting closer, and they were no longer running, but preparing to retake the monastery. They were advancing in straight lines, and in an assault formation, with their captain yelling orders as they did. Litlorn counted fifty, plus another eight who fled the monastery, only to join the advancing men. Twenty-five outlaws were dead or wounded in the initial assault, and not one of Captain Brannor's men was even injured in the fight. The captain positioned his men by the gaps in the walls, to allow them to get to the enemy quickly, when the time came to attack the approaching outlaws.
When it happened, it happened fast. Danorathin came in low over the treetops with his rider, and crashed into the rear of the advancing forces. Litlorn bolted through the gap that he stood beside, and attacked the outlaws boldly as the dragon wreaked havoc in the rear of their ranks. The rest of the men that waited behind the walls followed the elf, but before they could even reached the brigands, they turned and fled to the east. Menimeth had dropped from Danorathin's back when the dragon landed, and in among the startled bandits. The men that were unlucky enough to turn and face him were quickly dispatched, and several brigands lay dead at the feet of the dragon rider within seconds. The dragon crushed four of the outlaws when he landed, and another six who jumped out of the way of his body, but not his claws.
Captain Brannor and his men began to give chase, but Menimeth called them back.
"Get your horses and chase them the right way. Do not let any escape, and bring me some back alive if you can." He said. "I will be
here waiting for you when you return."
"Please follow them and help them if they need it, but stay out of sight otherwise my friend. And keep me informed of their progress." Menimeth told his dragon.
"Yes sir, Meni." The dragon replied, as he rose into the air.
Javen rode with Captain Brannor, but the rest of the companions stayed with their, leader, as they called him, at the chapel. Chanry came to the monastery when they moved the camp inside the walls, and followed his master everywhere he went.
Captain Brannor led the solders from the monastery, as they followed the fleeing outlaws east. Javen rode beside him, and learned everything he could from the captain as they rode. When one or more of the brigands tried to break away from the main group, they were captured, killed, or herded back into the larger band of fleeing outlaws again.
The first two days the outlaws moved as a group. They believed their numbers would keep them from being attacked by the pursuers, and they began to slow down. On the third morning after the chase had begun, Captain Brannor sent five men with bows to each of the brigand's flanks, because they had been keeping their sentries close to the camp at night, and the camp was slower to rise each morning.
Captain Brannor stepped out into the open at dawn, and with a similar move to the one Menimeth had used on the ribbon at the fair, but much slower, killed two of the night watchmen at the edge of the camp. The rest of his men opened up on the camp from three sides, and the outlaws were fleeing once again. There were sixty-three outlaws in the brigand camp when the attack began that morning, and eight of the brigands were dead or dying, while three more were wounded badly enough that they would not make it through the night.
One brigand had an arrow in his side, and one in each leg, but with luck, he may survive. The only other outlaw that was still in the brigand camp was hanging from the branch of the tree he had been climbing when the attack began. He was just a few feet from the ground, and he had an arrow protruding from his left butt cheek, but he was otherwise unharmed. He was cursing when they got him down from the limb in which he hung, and the outlaw yelled when the arrow was pulled out, while those of Captain Brannor's men that were still in the camp, laughed loudly.
Captain Brannor caught up with the men he had sent to follow the remaining bandits less than three hours later, with their t
wo captives in tow. Several of the bandits in the group ahead were injured, and barely keeping up with the others. They were slowing the outlaws down, and over the next nine days, five more of the more badly wounded men, were taken prisoner when the outlaws abandoned them to their pursuers.
The bandit that was badly wounded, died within two days of the attack at their camp, and was left lying where he died after he was stripped of everything he had that was useable.
On the tenth day of the chase, Captain Brannor spotted another group of bandits coming west, and headed straight at them. He called his men together, and told them they would need to attack the outlaws, before the brigands could get organized and defend themselves. The solders from Argnon formed into two lines, and as the two groups of brigands came together, charged into their ranks, and attacked them without mercy.
Out of the trees came a military force in great numbers, and within minutes, all but two of the one hundred plus outlaws were dead. That would give Captain Brannor ten bandits to return to Menimeth for interrogation.
Captain Brannor looked at the seasoned cavalrymen that had entered the fight from the trees, and believed they were a grand sight as they formed up and waited for their orders. Their leader was dressed just like his men, but had an air of authority that only a seasoned officer of many campaigns would emanate. The leader turned his horse, and riding up to Captain Brannor, saluted.
"I am Commander Rayden of the lost cavalry." He said. "We are from Griblund, far to the south."
"I am known as Captain Brannor." He said. "And I am from Argnon, capital of the western realm of the Great Kingdom. What has brought you so far from your home, to be lost?"
"The evil mage king has overrun our land, and we are all that is left of the army of Griblund. I seek your king, to offer our aid in return for his." Commander Rayden said, in a very formal manner.
"That is what brought you here and into this fight?" Javen asked, surprised.
"We discovered a woman who was a victim of the brigands, and a town that was losing people to them." Commander Rayden explained. "We located the nest of highwaymen that were responsible, so we killed or captured all but those that fled before us."
"If you need to speak to our king, come with us, we are taking these murders back to him." Captain Brannor said, as he pointed to the outlaws they had captured. "He is only two weeks to the west."
"Thank you, we will come with you." Rayden said. "But I have some men back at the town where all of this started, and they are waiting for us to return. I need to send one of my men back to tell them to protect the town, until further notice."
"I can see only one problem with that." Captain Brannor replied. "One man is a target out here, you should send at least two, if you wish them to reach the great road alive."
"That is sound advice." Commander Rayden said. "And you can never be too careful."
In the end, Commander Rayden sent four men back to the great road with their orders, and he and the rest of the men, followed Captain Brannor to the west.
*****
Menimeth watched Captain Brannor ride out in pursuit of the outlaws, as the men who were moving the camp from its original location by the stream, were setting up the new one inside the monastery. Chanry was with him, and they looked like father and son, as they stood watching the men ride west. He had to find the box that Falendor wanted in exchange for the request he had made at the banquet, but it could not be so easy as Falendor would have him believe it to be. No one has been able to find or retrieve the box, in the more than five hundred years since it was placed there, and there had to be a reason why.
The outlaws had been here for several days, and it was obvious that they were searching for something Menimeth thought. He suspected that they looked for the box he was sent to find, but how could they have known that he would be coming. The ambush was set up almost before he departed from Argnon, and the outlaws seemed to know how many were in his group. There had to be a traitor in Argnon, however, so far the plans of whoever was behind the ambush had been thwarted.
The chapel that stood in the center of the monastery was still in good condition after all this time, but the rest of the monastery lay in ruins. Menimeth walked to the large doors of the chapel, followed closely by Chanry, while Litlorn, Kyler, and Feran, waited for them inside with the torches. The walls were covered with elaborate paintings that depicted various scenes from the ancient empire, and stone carvings of dragon riders were everywhere. The men from Alenvale stood in the center of the chapel, and were captured by the beauty of its ornate interior.
Menimeth entered the chapel, and the companions walked to the door that led to the dungeon below.
"We will all stay together as we search the dungeon." Menimeth told his friends, "That way if we get lost, we will all be lost together."
"Where do you want to start?" Litlorn asked. "It is a large maze down there?"
"We are looking for a statue of Darious, the ancient priest of Glansford, nothing more. So the beginning will have to do." Menimeth replied.
"Does anyone know what he looked like?" Kyler asked, as he looked around the group.
"Yes, I once made a trip to the city of Glansford with my father when I was younger." Litlorn replied. "And we visited him while we were there."
"Then let us begin the hunt." Menimeth said, smiling at the others. "And Litlorn can lead the way."
When they had reached the bottom of the stairs that led down into the dungeon, they found themselves in a small room, and three hallways led from it in different directions. There was a statue in all four corners of the small room, and Litlorn looked at them. Each was different, but they were all of the same person.
"These are all statues of Darious." He said.
"I did not think it would be that easy." Menimeth said, as he examined each statue, one at a time.
"I see nothing in the stone that is odd. None of these are the one we seek, I think." Litlorn said.
"Then we will start with the hallway to the right, and continue the search." Menimeth said. "Since that is where the brigands were looking."
During the next two days, the searchers found twenty-seven more statues of Darious, but none of them proved to be the one they were looking for. All of the statues that they found were of Darious, and each one showed him in a different way. They were all about the same size and height as the four statues in the first room that they entered from the stairs, and all of them were on the same, block stone base.
That day, Danorathin reported that an attack on the brigand camp had killed several of the remaining outlaws, and that two of the brigands were captured, but one of them most likely would not survive to be brought back to him.
For the next three days, the searchers walked the dungeons of Darious, and returned to camp each night. Fifty-nine more statues of Darious had been found, but like the others, they were not the one they looked for.
"This is an impossible task." Feran said on the forth day. "There are so many statues, how are we to know which one is the one with the box?"
"It will be different from the rest, if only by a small amount." Menimeth told him. "We knew it would not be easy, but we must find the box if the men from the fair are to go home."
"You are right, Meni." Feran said. "But it just seems so hopeless."
"We will find it Feran, you will see." Litlorn said, and slapped Feran on the back with his usual smile.
The days went by as the men searched for the one statue, in the dungeon that turned out to be even bigger than anyone suspected. Some doors led to various rooms, but some led to other halls and even more doors. By the eighth day of searching, more than three hundred statues of Darious were located and examined. The task turned out to be much harder than even Menimeth suspected, and the friends were getting frustrated.
"They have killed all but ten of the bandits, and the ten, they bring back with them." Danorathin told his master.
"Then you are on your way back my friend?" Menimeth asked his drag
on.
"Yes, but the captain is not alone, and do not worry, they have not seen me."
"I was not worried my friend, you are very clever, as well we very smart."
"Yes, you are right of course, as always." The dragon said, and Menimeth laughed out loud, causing his companions to turn and look at him.
"Who comes with them?" He asked his friend.
"Solders that helped kill the outlaws. There are ninety-eight of them.
"Then come back here, and we will wait for them to arrive together."
The next morning, the searchers began the hunt once again, but the days had taken their toll on them, and even Litlorn was having doubts. It had been ten days, and they had still not taken the hallway left of the stairs, that led down into the dungeon. They had not reached the end of the hallway to the right yet, and they hoped they would find the box before they were forced to return to the stairs, and begin with the next hallway.
Chanry did not go with them that day, but stayed in the chapel to look at the paintings and the statues instead. He was tired of all that walking, and there was nothing exciting down there for him to see anymore. A statue of Darious stood at the back of the chapel, and Chanry looked at it along with the lions that stood on both sides of it. It was smaller than the ones in the dungeon by half, but stood on a, much bigger stone base.
