The noble scars, p.22
The Noble Scars, page 22
Never could Zerin recall having greater confidence entering a battle. Certainly, these assailants stood no chance. It had been a whole day since Escura had killed anyone; most likely Zerin’s sword wouldn’t even get wet.
The woods had gone silent. The pursuit had come to a halt.
Had their challengers changed their minds? After all, the three of them had slaughtered an entire garrison of soldiers a day earlier in the castle.
“Wait,” Galvin said. “Do you smell that?”
“Aye, I do.”
“No!” Thia gasped. “That smell.”
“Come out and face your fate, you cowardly dogs,” barked the pirate.
And so, they did.
Slowly, from the confines of the bush, they emerged, standing shoulder to shoulder, their swords hanging at their sides.
“Zerin,” said the Giant, “what are they?”
“They look like the soldiers we faced at the castle.”
“They are the soldiers we faced at the castle,” Escura cried. “We’ve gutted these pigs already!”
The pirate was correct; they stood face-to-face with the very enemy they had killed just days before.
Their uniforms were drenched in blood, open wounds lay raw on their faces and limbs, yet they displayed no hindrance from them. The pupils of their eyes had become small black dots surrounded by red veins. Their gazes were insidious and unnatural. They had the rot of two-day death, and yet, they stood there plain as day, in a place they had no right to be—among the living.
“This is Maeldroth’s doing,” Escura said, his confidence dissolving.
Galvin adjusted his grip on his axe. Zerin reached into the sheath under his leather tunic and pulled out a dagger to compliment his sword. They had intended on attacking their enemy the moment they showed themselves, but instead, they held their ground, unsure what to expect from the ghouls.
Then, as if obeying a silent command, the soldiers moved to surround them.
“Escura, can you take the two to the right?” Zerin asked, but the pirate didn’t answer. “Escura, did you hear me?”
The pirate didn’t answer, nor could he move. He was frozen, recalling something from his youth in the dungeons of StrongStone. He was sure of it now; these beings were sent by the wizard. Only moments ago, he’d wanted to slay all five himself, and now he could barely lift his sword. It weighed as much as the rock he stood on. But this wasn’t fear. This was something deeper, something that thwarted his wits.
The undead soldiers attacked, two lunging toward the pirate and three at the giant. Galvin swung with every fiber of his might, but the ghouls blocked his hurling blade with surprising ease. Death had strengthened them. The other two had Escura upon his knees, struggling to defend himself against downward blows upon the broadsword he could barely hold.
Zerin ran to his aid, launching himself at the closest of the two, swinging as hard as he could. Steel clashed mightily, and to Zerin’s amazement, the ghoul flew backward from the force of his blow. How could he fell them so easily while Galvin and Escura struggled to hold their ground?
A second slash went across the chest of the next undead foe, dropping him to the ground. He turned to help Galvin, who was pinned at the back of the clearing, defending himself from an onslaught of three blades.
When Zerin approached, they backed off from their assault. He attacked the closest one, thrusting his dagger through its midsection. Entrails fell from the wound, yet there was no evidence of pain—no screaming, no sound of any kind as the being fell. Zerin fought on, shielding his friends, until only one ghoul remained. He approached, but it backed away, hesitant to face the sailor.
The creature scurried toward the edge of the clearing, and to Zerin’s dismay, within arm’s reach of Thia. He feared the worst, but when the ghoul faced the princess, it lowered its sword and turned from her sight. Zerin seized the moment of indecision and impaled the ghoul’s belly, driving his blade out of its back from the force of the blow. Again, there was no expression, no acknowledgement from its lifeless eyes. He kicked the ghoul in the chest to remove his sword. The carcass hit the ground with a thud.
Zerin kept his gaze upon the dead, trying to make sense of the ordeal. How could they return from death? How could they not feel his blade? How were they able to overpower the giant and the pirate but not him?
“Let’s go from this cursed place,” the pirate urged.
Zerin looked at him in disbelief. The pirate, the mighty Escura, the Madman of Rashene, was panting, dripping with sweat, helpless as a child. He turned to the giant, who was exhausted from a battle he hardly took part in.
“Galvin, can you explain this?”
“I cannot. My axe has never felt heavier. I seemed to have no effect against them, and yet, they were equally as helpless against you. And what of him?” The giant gestured toward the pirate. “What the Belth happened to you, Escura?”
“I… I don’t know. Let us leave this place, the very air ails me.”
They took a few steps from the clearing but stopped when they heard something stirring behind them. Their fears reignited as they turned and watched the undead rise to their feet, standing shoulder to shoulder, as they had before, defying the laws of nature.
Realizing he was the only one capable of defeating these abominations, Zerin planted himself in front of his companions, sword in one hand, dagger in the other.
Galvin stood as tall as he could, holding his axe in a firm grip, struggling to keep it aloft. The pirate at his side was faring no better.
“Escura, remove yourself.”
The pirate raised his sword in the air, his steel trembling, weighted as if it were made of lead. “I’d rather die,” he said.
The ghouls divided themselves, circling as they had done earlier, but Zerin cut them off. He traded blows with the lead assailant then spun in the air, leading with steel that severed throat cartilage, separating skull from spine. The body crashed to the ground, and the head rolled across the clearing, stopping at Thia’s feet.
The other four pushed their attack toward Galvin and Escura, backing them up to the edge of the clearing where the unforgiving brush impeded a retreat. Zerin flew back to save his comrades.
Thia stood over the head of the ghoul, looking into its eyes, one hand cupped over her mouth. She nearly fainted when the eyes moved from side to side, as though the ghoul was trying to locate its body. Finally, the eyes faded as they accepted the peace of death.
“Zerin,” she called out, “take their heads!”
“Then their heads it is,” he said.
Zerin fervidly attacked the remaining guards, knowing they weren’t invulnerable, yet he couldn’t battle four at once; Escura and Galvin would have to hold their own for a moment.
The giant did his best, but Escura was again forced to his knees. While the pirate was occupied, one of the other ghouls crept up behind him, readying a fatal blow. The ghoul raised its sword but then suddenly stopped before slumping to the ground, a knife buried in its side. Thia had found a weapon and rescued the pirate from his own frailty. Zerin dashed in at that moment and took its head, and like its comrade before, its eyes turned from undead to dead.
Zerin turned on the others, separating two more from their skulls, leaving one engaged with the giant. When Zerin approached, the ghoul turned toward him. It battled with Zerin, exchanging blows, circling in the clearing until its back was turned to the others. With a bawling battle scream, the giant raised his axe and swung, severing its neck and catapulting the skull into the woods.
The three warriors collapsed to the ground, their lungs heaving. Thia came to Zerin’s side, using her sleeve to wipe the sweat from his brow.
Zerin turned to the pirate. “What happened to you?”
“I… I don’t know. I couldn’t find the strength to fight.”
“Aye,” responded the giant. “I could barely withstand them myself, yet Thia felled one.”
Zerin looked over the unsightly mess, from one headless body to the next.
“Aye, and the reek that accompanies them, we’ve smelled it before.”
“It’s the stench of Belth,” Thia said, “the dark forces at Maeldroth’s command. When he opens the doorway between the two worlds, the stench seeps out.”
“If the wizard can bring back the dead, then his powers are greater than we thought. But why were Escura and myself so helpless against them while you and Thia defeated them so easily?” the giant asked.
“I don’t know,” Thia said.
“You’re lucky to have survived, Escura,” Zerin said. “It would seem you owe Thia a debt of gratitude for saving your life.”
But the pirate said nothing, his eyebrows furrowed, either too embarrassed, or too proud to oblige a woman’s heroics.
“So far, pirate, you’ve done little to convince me it was wise to let you join us,” Zerin said, rising to his feet to gather himself. “Let’s be gone from this place and this god-awful stench.”
Escura acted as if he hadn’t heard a word, staring at the ground as if in a trance.
Zerin walked off with Galvin, but Thia remained where she was, unable to move, the hairs on her neck prickling, goosebumps rising across her flesh. She slowly turned to face a presence she sensed behind her. When she came about, she saw something she couldn’t comprehend. Her mouth opened to scream, but no sound came out. Two transparent eyes floated in the air, dancing inches from her face. Finally, she screamed, startling the others who rushed to her side, the apparition disappearing at the same time.
“Did you see that?” the giant asked, his axe raised high, trembling in his grip. “I saw it, too. I saw two eyes.”
Zerin reached out to her. “Are you all right?”
“Y-yes, I think so.” She slowly stepped away from Zerin, trying to compose herself in front of the men.
“It was Maeldroth, wasn’t it?” Galvin asked.
“Aye, it was,” Zerin answered. “He’s been watching the whole time; he knows exactly where we are.”
“We should go… we should get out of here,” the giant said.
They continued on their journey through the foothills, all of them shaken by encounter except for Escura. He seemed indifferent to the recent trial. He was quiet, removed, and strangely unfazed by the wizard’s presence.
Chapter 30
Candle flames gently wavered in the warm breeze that wafted across the balcony into the throne room. The serene conditions, however, were wasted upon the throne’s occupant. The sound of his own soldiers stamping through the hallways reminded him of the puppet he was becoming in his own kingdom. He wanted to send every able body into the countryside to capture the rebels and return his bride, but the wizard insisted he’d manage it himself. Instead, his soldiers did nothing, their very presence driving him mad, a constant reminder that he was a king who was taking orders instead of giving them. But just as his scorn for Maeldroth was mounting, the small man appeared.
“Where in Belth’s name have you been hiding? It’s been days since I’ve seen you.”
“Why do you ask questions for which you already know the answer?”
“You’ve been in your lair all this time?”
“If you knew where I was, why didn’t you come see me?”
“You know damn well I won’t go down there.”
“As I thought.” The wizard smiled. “May I then ask why the presence of my being is so dire?”
“Did your scheme work? Are Zerin and the others dead? Where is Thia?”
“Strange that you are asking me for answers, Your Majesty. I happen to be seeking some myself.”
“I don’t give a damn what you want. What happened?”
“Your enemies live, Your Majesty. They defeated the soldiers.”
“Another failure!” the king yelled, rising from his chair. “Curse you, wizard, of what use are you to me?”
The wizard stared steadily. “Trust me, sire, the mission was hardly a failure.”
“How do you know?”
“I was there of course, in spirit.”
“You were there?” Bardek sprung forward. “And what of the princess? Has she been harmed? Is she still a maiden?”
“She appears unscathed.”
“Good,” Bardek said, “but how did they survive the attack? You told me when the risen confront their killers, they possess ten times their strength, channeling their killers ill intent.”
“Indeed, Your Majesty. My ghouls were quite formidable against the giant and the pirate, but not so against Zerin.”
“Are you telling me Zerin bears no malice, no guilt at all? Everyone has misdeeds they hide from. He’s killed dozens of my soldiers alone.”
“That may be true, Your Majesty, but Zerin does so with righteous intent. He kills only when necessary, unlike the other two who have done so indiscriminately. Also, I’ve spoken to you before of the forces that oppose mine. I believe that both Zerin and Thia unwittingly manipulate them. You are right to be concerned about the princess, but not for the reasons you think.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The princess is hardly their captive, sire. In fact, she defended them. She seems quite content in their company, especially Zerin’s.”
Bardek clenched the armrests of his chair, squeezing them until his knuckles cracked. He picked up a priceless vase that sat to the right of the throne, a gift from a frightened ally that was decorated with scenes of their country’s inception outlined in gold. He hurled it across the marble floor, smashing it to dust.
The wizard smiled. “There’s something about the princess that I hadn’t noticed before,” he said. “She has an aura about her, one that I find distasteful. Have you ever known her to practice magic?”
“She’s a princess! Not a bloody sorceress.”
“What can you tell me of her parents?”
“Her father lives in Fergasmythe; her mother died of the fever years ago. Ironic, because she was a healer.”
“What?”
“Her mother was a healer. Why does that matter?”
“And what of the princess, has she inherited her mother’s abilities?”
“Yes, she’s a healer as well, but she uses no magic that I know of, just herbs and remedies.”
“That doesn’t matter,” the wizard barked, “it’s the compulsion to heal that generates the enchantment. Her intentions conflict with my own. I seek to sicken and torment; she seeks to heal and comfort.”
The wizard turned away sharply, pacing for several moments until he came to a stop. He slowly turned toward Bardek with an inquisitive grin on his face. “You know, Your Majesty, it seems that I never really applauded you for securing the hand of such a beautiful and virtuous woman. Do you not fear that she will change her mind?”
“I have no fear of that. She pledged herself willingly. Yes, I threatened her people, but I barely raised a hand to them.”
“And that was sufficient for a pure and righteous woman to come to an aging tyrant such as yourself?”
“Watch your tongue, wizard! I am still king.”
“Answer the question, damn you!”
“It was foretold to her.”
“By whom?”
“The Lady of the Hood. She told Thia’s mother she would give birth to a daughter who would one day become queen of Noble.”
“Why have you not spoken of this before?” the wizard demanded, baring his rotting teeth.
“Not everything that goes on in my kingdom is your concern.”
Maeldroth marched up to Bardek, removing his hood as he did. His ugliness was more revolting than the king remembered.
“Have I not been clear that I seek any and all news regarding the Lady of the Hood?” he asked through gritted teeth. “Why do you think I came to this forsaken kingdom of yours—to be at your side? I’ve pursued this woman across half the known world, torturing every hapless soul I’ve come across, only to find out that you withheld information from me because you wanted people to think this princess willingly accepted your hand… You imbecile!”
“What in the blazes is so damn important about the Lady of the Hood?”
“She’s a prophetess, a very accurate and powerful prophetess whose visions are never amiss. The spirits of Belth have enlightened me that she fled to the land of Noble years ago with an object of immeasurable worth.”
“What’s the object?”
“The spirits don’t know, but it has the power to either aid or thwart the Usurper.”
“How in blazes has this woman managed to elude you?”
“She possesses the ability to confuse people’s minds, erasing their memory of her appearance. She fled from the ruins of Maktear years ago. By now, she’ll be an old woman.”
“We’ll scour the countryside. We’ll kill every hag in the kingdom, if you like.”
“No, I’ll find her myself, without your interference!” the wizard said firmly. He turned to walk away, then stopped and turned back. “Is there anything else you haven’t told me?”
“About what?”
“Anything about the Lady of the Hood or any other experience you’ve had before I arrived in Noble, regarding magic that was either dark or light.”
The king sat quietly, scowling.
“Tell me, damn you! Tell me everything.”
Bardek looked cautiously at the wizard for a moment before looking away again, hesitating before he began.
“You had better sit down.”
Chapter 31
“Ifirst met Janith when I was a young man,” Bardek started. “He came to my house to console me when my parents were murdered. He saw I was alone, destitute, so he took me in. I lived in the castle as his ward. I learned everything about running this empire; I knew more than he did. He dispelled justice in his own way while I negotiated trade with the nobles, established policies for open markets, built infrastructure, taking care of the details that bored him. He would only intervene in policy when he felt the arrangements favored the wealthy over the commoners, but no one dared challenge him openly; he was too strong, and his army far too loyal to confront.”
