by Paul Yoder
Reluctantly opening her eyes, she looked back at Nomad and whispered, “Same stink that the other knight had about him. Are you up for a fight? If there’s even a chance my friends are here in danger, I need to investigate.”
Nomad readily nodded in agreeance.
Reza turned and moved in past the outer walls with Nomad close behind her, the both now moving nimbly closer to the origin of the stench, closing in on the building that reeked most strongly of the embalmed deathly smell.
Sand on a cold, dry wind gusted over the steps descending into a gaping maw of an entrance that led down to a subterranean room. A pungent malodor billowed out from the square-stone entrance of the large, lidless cellar. They could easily locate its source now.
Reza looked to Nomad briefly, readying her flail as nomad gripped tight his curved sword. The two descended into the dark of the underground structure.
Resisting the urge to cover their mouths with cloth to fend off the overwhelming stench, they held their weapons up towards the enveloping darkness that was creeping in around them as they continued further down the stairway, which ended, delivering them into a large, but not very high, square room.
They could see multiple mounds on the sandstone floor. The scarce light made it difficult to see further into the room to make out exactly what the mounds were.
Looking to each other, Reza pointed to one of the mounds and led the way, closing the fifteen foot distance to better inspect what it was they were surrounded by.
Bending down with Nomad standing at ready behind her, Reza poked the lump with the shaft of her flail as her eyes struggled to take in the dim scene.
A moan, derelict of emotion or thought issued forth from what her eyes were finally deciphering to be a figure. Bone and sticky sinew shifted and slid apart as the body began to move and undulate, almost as if it were a grotesque puppet on strings, issuing another more forceful groan, sounding through mangled vocal cords emitting through multiple openings in the figures throat and mouth.
Standing back up, seeing enough to know that what they were standing before was no living thing, Reza loosed her flail’s chain to let the spiked spheres dangle by her side.
Seeing Reza’s intent, Nomad stepped back, giving Reza room as she arced her weapon high, slamming it down into what was left of the figure’s skull. The skull caved under the force of the blow and the body immediately went limp.
“Sarens have a natural talent—a sixth sense if you want to call it. Study a person or beast long enough and we can inherently know the heart or motives of an individual,” Reza whispered, pausing before continuing, still considering the implications of what she was about to say.
“That thing—had no heart, but its motive was only to consume the light of others. I fear there’s more of that down here—a lot more.”
A sluggish slide to their left, then a woeful moan on their right, snapped both out of any thoughts they were engaged in. Nomad brought his sword to bear to the target on the right while Reza stood to face the movement to their left.
Realizing now that it wasn’t just one or two things moving around in the darkness, but something closer to a dozen or more figures slowly standing and beginning to lurch towards them, Nomad whispered, “They hold the advantage in the dark. We should move to the stairs—”
Nomad cut his suggestion short as one of the figures lunged towards him, Reza snapping her flail around just in time to slam the rotted body on the shoulder, bringing it down to the ground.
Two figures made a move towards Reza, it was Nomad this time that stabbed over Reza’s shoulder to impale an attacker’s skull, while kicking the other in the chest, sending the walking corpse back a few steps, tripping, crumpling to the ground.
“I agree,” Reza huffed, her voice briefly showing a tinge of worry.
The two only got a glimpse to see that the path to the stairs was already blocked by three more shambling bodies before they had to deal with another approaching figure.
Nomad withdrew to dislodge his sword from the skull of the dispatched attacker he had dealt with moments earlier while Reza brought around her flail, bashing the approaching body to the side, it managing to keep its footing this time.
Sword flinging gore to the ground as it came out of the attacker’s head, Nomad now counted five figures walking towards them from the direction of the entrance with no idea of how many lurked in the shadows behind them. Then, a small figure came bounding down the steps.
Jadu, Nomad thought, but a shove a moment later by cold, spongy hands, brought Nomad, and his sword, around to slice clean through the arms of the approaching corpse. Kneeing it down to the ground with no chance to prop itself up again, he brought his sword up through another groping figure’s outstretched arms, and down through the thing’s shoulder, dismembering it at the joint.
The whole room now sounded like a cacophony of damned wretches, and all Nomad could hear above the cries of the dead was Reza’s relentless smashing flail hard at work to fend off the aggressors that now completely surrounded them both.
A deafening, orange-green explosion detonated between them and the entrance, laying not only Nomad and Reza prone, but also all the bodies that had amassed around them as well.
Holding his head with his free hand, attempting to stop the room from spinning and dipping, Nomad sat up and tried to look around to figure out what had just happened.
Knowing there was no time to linger, Nomad grabbed what he hoped to be Reza’s arm and stood up, swaying horribly to the left once, twice, and a third time before finally being able to somewhat stable himself enough to get a good look at the direction he blurrily could tell light was coming from.
Stubbornly dragging Reza, he stepped, then jogged awkwardly towards the light at the entrance of the room, barely making it to the steps before smashing back to the ground, his head beginning to swirl terribly again.
Sitting back up, Nomad sat resting on the stairs, watching as Reza started to stir. He was in no condition to help her up, and all the two were able to do was lay there while their bodies worked through the waves of disorientation.
Even with the ringing in his ears, Nomad could hear the calls of the dead start up again, and he saw figures in the dark slowly rise up, approaching them.
As if a particular string of gravity pulled him to the left, he fell to the side, slamming hard onto the sandstone floor, immediately attempting to right himself, but failing to do anything other than flail against the ground.
Flame combusted and spattered, starting on the right side of the room, spreading to the center, and then to the left, enveloping the stalking figures that shambled towards him.
One small figure remained outside of the fire. It turned and walked up to him, lifting him upright, then Reza, and sat between the two, starting up a conversation in a excited tone.
“Got here not a moment too soon it looks like. What were those things? I’ve heard tales of the animated dead called arisen. I do believe that is what we just witnessed—Fascinating!”
Nomad, watching the deep-crimson fire now turning to a soft orange while listening to Jadu drone on about the arisen discovery as though the thought hadn’t occurred to him that himself and Reza were almost unconscious, only added to the surreal moment Nomad was having lying there, sickeningly dizzy in the dark room of an ancient ruins with burning arisen corpses all about them.
6
Expanding The Senses
Coming to, Nomad blurrily saw a fire in front of him. He stared into it for a moment, realizing that the ringing in his ears had greatly reduced. Taking in a sharp breath, he sat up and looked around.
“Ah, good! I have company again!” Jadu said from the other side of the fire pit.
They were outside in the center of a demolished building, some of the walls still reaching eight foot high around them. With no roof, he could see the cloudless night sky, the stars in their usual place.
“Reza—” Nomad started, but Jad
u quickly followed up.
“She’s resting. That explosion hit closer to her than you. It did a number on her. Her eardrums had burst from the concussion of the blast. I inspected and treated her. The perforation wasn’t that bad, and her ears should recover in a week or so, though she’ll be hard of hearing till then.”
Seeing that Nomad was looking around again at their surroundings, Jadu added, “We should be safe tonight. I checked the underground chamber after the fire died down. Nothing but scorched carcasses down there—shame! I’d love to have studied one. I looked through the whole perimeter as well. No more arisen in the boundaries of the ruins.”
Seeming a bit relieved, Nomad laid back down and closed his eyes, trying to not think about the pounding headache he had.
“What was that explosion, Jadu?” he said in an exasperated tone.
“Ah, yes. Interesting concoction that one is. A failed formula for a topical treatment for the tannerinth frog venom. Let’s just say that patient didn’t have much of a chance to get mad at me for not curing him. Well, to be fair, tannerinth frog venom is extremely deadly and he was good as dead anyways, but too bad about the explosion, though probably a better way to go than wasting away. One slip of the jar and he was no longer with us. Luckily I had left the room to get a cotton swab or I would have been whisked away as well!
“Anyways, yes. Terribly sorry about blowing you two over with that explosion. Extremely volatile that one is, mostly bark. All explosion with little flame. I would have chucked it further from you two but those arisen were all over the both of you, I wanted to make sure I hit them with it. I only had one, so I needed to make sure it worked, you see. I’ll have to make sure I synthesize some more before we pack up camp. Might come in handy out in the hostile dunes it seems.”
Jadu, seeing that Nomad had been rubbing his temples while he talked, added, “The headache from the blast is quite expected. Trauma so close to the brain usually results in feedback in the nerves. Here, drink some water and take this pill.
Nomad, seeing the large, white pill in front of him asked, “What is it made of?”
“It’s just a composite of multiple herbs and minerals, bonded with some natural oils and fats. It’s my own sedative to calm the nerves and also helps with headaches.”
With the topical explosive balm fresh on his mind, Nomad bypassed the pill and took the waterskin. “Water will be just fine, thank you.”
Taking a few swigs, the pain still quite intense, he patted Jadu on the shoulder and asked, “I could use something from my pouch on the camel though. Would you mind retrieving a small wooden cherry box for me?”
Jadu, happy to help, jumped up and started yammering on about how he hadn’t seen cherry wood locally for quite some time while he dug through the camel’s pouch that carried Nomad’s gear, finding the box and returning to hand it to Nomad, asking what the box contained.
“It is a—well I do not know how to say it in your tongue. Where I am from it is called a ko hako. Here, let me show you.”
Sliding the inner core of the box out, Nomad pulled out a small, sage-colored wad and said, holding the wad up for Jadu to get a look at the stuff.
“This is ko. You light the tip of it and let it slowly burn. Different ko treats different ailments. Some are physical, like this one. It does just what you said that pill does, relaxes the nerves and eases the mind. Some,” he said while pulling out another red wad, “open the mind’s eye—releases the spirit. Each is different, and each is either constructed by the user or inherited from ancestors. Recipes are always kept in the family though. Methods are never shared, only the finished ko can be shared with others. To learn or steal another family’s ko secret method brings a curse upon your family, and it is considered shameful to ask specifics about it.”
Jadu, very enthralled by Nomad’s culture, said, “Interesting! If I understand it correctly, we have similar substances in this and neighboring lands as well. We call it incense. This ko, could I try some? Is it something you inhale directly, or do you light it in the area to obtain these effects they’re supposed to provide?”
“You can do either. Here. You can try this one,” Nomad said, picking out a little wooden plate with a lump of lavender-colored material on it. “This is a mood balancer—aligning your mind, body, and spirit. This is a very old method passed down from fourteen generations of my family, the Kasaru clan. It has helped our people maintain a pleasant harmony with life and others for a long time now. I think you’ll enjoy it.”
Taking a burning twig from the campfire, Nomad first lit Jadu’s ko, and then his own. Burning fast at first, then slowing to a incremental moving ember, the lumps of ko began to burn downwards, releasing multicolored smoke that rose to Nomad and Jadu’s noses, Nomad inhaling deeply the sage-colored smoke with Jadu following suit.
Jadu’s senses were immediately aware of multiple herbs and flora scents mixed with earthy hints of woods, oils, and components that were much harder to distinguish—bone perhaps, hide, fats—he wasn’t sure. Whatever he had just inhaled, completely opened up his olfactory, absorbing every minutia of scent that entered.
Taking another draw of the smoke again imbedded every particle of smell into his receptors, penetrating straight through to his mind, opening up a vast ocean of understanding he had happened upon here and there throughout his life, all coalescing into one great body of peace and attunement.
He opened his eyes to see the sky, a few backlit clouds floating past Phosen, the only moon visible in the night sky at the time, the stars all scattered like twinkling gems strung up in the firmament. Stars at some points were so dense that it formed a very dim heavenly glow, almost seeming like a pearlescent span, an incomprehensible, undeniable display of life in the great beyond. The vastness of the universe and the beauty of it all stretched out before him, overwhelming him.
He could feel a warm tear roll down his cheek. Looking down to the small wooden tray that held the ashes of the long-spent ko, he slowly looked over to Nomad who wore an understanding smile and smiled back, gripping his forearm as he whispered, “Thank you.”
Nomad nodded, headache not even a memory at that point, and laid back to soak in the warmth of the campfire, the night air still as death.
7
The Ancient Chambers
“What happened?” Reza groaned, slowly sitting up looking around to find Nomad and Jadu enjoying a light breakfast.
“Ah, good. My dear Reza is awake,” Jadu chirped, adding after a moment, “How are those lesions coming along?”
Reza held her head and moaned, “My head—why does everything sound muted?”
Jadu pulled the same white pill he had offered Nomad the night before out of his pack, handing it and a tin cup halfway filled with herbal tea to Reza.
“The pill will help with the headache, and I can help with the hearing after breakfast. There’s a liquid medicine I have that helps heal tissue faster that’ll help with the burst eardrums. Here, enjoy the tea first though. Take a moment to acclimate.”
Taking the cup and eyeing the pill and Jadu suspiciously for a moment, she breathed sharply and put a hand to her forehead, trying to stop the pain. Snatching the pill and slapping it in her mouth, taking a swig of the tea to help the pill go down, she pinched the bridge of her nose and sat back with eyes firmly shut, a clear grimace on her face.
Nomad slid a wooden plate with some spiced hashed potatoes over on a stone slab next to Reza.
“You should eat a bit too when you’re ready. You were out all afternoon and night. Good thing Jadu found us down there when he did, without his explosive concoctions, the dead would have overwhelmed us.”
“Are there any left?” She groaned.
“He said he checked the grounds and found no evidence of more dead, and we had no troubles last night either. Just get as much rest as you need—we’ll stay watch. We can camp here for another day till the headache subsides.”
Not wanting to stay put s
imply due to her condition, but also not having a plan of where they should look for her group next, Reza let out a defeated sign and put a cloth over her head, blocking out the blinding morning sun.
Finishing up breakfast, Jadu and Nomad started to unpack some camping supplies and equipment from the camel, Nomad setting up the sunshade over Reza while Reza took bites of her potatoes every few minutes, finishing off her tea. Jadu went to work at arranging his belongings, rummaging through container after container until he found the liquid he had been looking for.
Nomad watched Jadu administer a few drops of his medicine in each of Reza’s ears, explaining to her that she’d be hard of hearing for a few days while the medicine did its work.
Looking up over the ruins and dunes, he went to retrieve his pack and told the two he was going to take a look around for a while and to call if they needed him.
He first walked the perimeter of the ruins and determined that he suspected the place to be more than a settlement—maybe a fort or military town since it wasn’t large enough to be a city or keep. There was a number of hollowed-out watchtowers and structure along the outer wall. In the places that the wall still stood intact (which was only two twenty-foot-long sections) the wall stood ten feet high.
Weaving his way back in through the crumbling structures, he found three buildings that still stood—all others were crumbled and shells, the sandstone succumbing to years of the harsh desert winds.
The three standing structures were in poor condition, and there was nothing in their rooms anyways, so he proceeded to make his way back to the underground room Reza and he had encountered the arisen dead.
Standing before the mouth of the tunnel, Nomad took off his pack and got out a small hand torch, doused it in some oil, then struck it alit with his flint and steel kit. Putting everything but the torch back in his pack, he started back down the stairs of the still, dark tunnel.
The stench that was there before had thankfully, for the most part, improved. There was still the slightest smell of lingering putridity, but the overwhelming scent now was burnt hide, meat, and bone, which he could handle with little issue.
