The adversary the 13th p.., p.6
The Adversary: The 13th Paladin (Final Volume), page 6
‘Which will inevitably cause a Night of Blood,’ added Trogadon, tapping the remains of his tobacco into the fire.
‘As has been said, we will not be able to prevent it,’ said Jelninolan, confirming Uldini’s statement.
‘However, our opening position is far better this time,’ explained the Arch Wizard, now staring at Falk, who was nervously clenching his fists. ‘Ahren’s friend Likis has transformed Deepstone into a fortress – with a castle included. The Blue Cohorts, the Night Soldiers and several Ancients are already holding fort there – not to mention at least three Paladins.’
Muai snarled.
‘And their companion animals,’ chuckled Khara, translating for the big cat. ‘Many of them blame themselves for the death of the Thirteenth and are intent on not making the same mistake twice.’
This news surprised Ahren. Never before had he considered the fact that the old Paladins’ animals had endured the Night of Blood too – with all the dreadful consequences that had unfolded following the death of his predecessor.
Poor Muai, said Culhen. At first Ahren thought that he had misheard, but then the wolf got to his feet, went over to the cat and began cleaning behind her ears, which the feline acknowledged by means of a low growl.
‘Now Kamaluq wants to be spoiled as well,’ said Hakanu with a chuckle, before placing the struggling fox on the ground. In no time at all the three companion animals were a wet, squirming coil of fur, paws and tongues.
‘That one night resulted in so many scars,’ whispered Ahren with a shudder.
‘And scars can prevent one from moving with the necessary agility – both physically and mentally,’ murmured Khara, looking anxiously at Falk, who was gazing into the fire.
Jelninolan shook her head sadly. ‘We Ancients are also not entirely innocent of the Thirteenth’s death. We assured the Paladins that they were secure under the protection of our charms – that the Adversary would not be able to sense them.’
‘And we were wrong,’ added Uldini bitterly.
Falk pursed his lips but said nothing.
Ahren remembered what had happened next from the previous stories that he’d heard. There had been a final, fatalistic uprising by the remaining Paladins against the Adversary. In this they were assisted by the Ancients, who created the Pall Pillar, the Dark god finally being well and truly buried beneath their wizardly sorcery.
And that was followed by the great falling-out, he thought. The Paladins scattered to all corners of Jorath, while the Ancients licked their wounds in their towers, in exotic palaces or in the depths of the forests.
Our task is complex, said Culhen, ceasing his grooming of Muai and fixing his golden eyes on Ahren. First, we must prevent a massacre like the Night of Blood, or the unity of Paladins and gods will be shattered – probably for ever. No rational living being could survive such horrors a second time. It has taken eight hundred years, not to mention you, to gather the Paladins again. In the event of such a catastrophe, they would shatter like brittle glass.
Ahren nodded. He gazed first at Falk, whose wrinkled yet stoical features seemed to match the faint grey of his eyes. Then the young man turned his attention to Uldini, who was kneading his hands nervously, before his gaze settled on Jelninolan, who couldn’t hide the deep scepticism that she was feeling. The Forest Guardian then exchanged looks with Trogadon, the dwarf nodding knowingly at him as he skilfully refilled his pipe with fresh tobacco. Finally, Ahren looked at Khara, the Swordsmistress smiling confidently back at him.
We three, who are free of memories pertaining to the bloodbath of that distant night, are going to have to protect the others, said Ahren in silence, summarising this realisation both for himself and for his wolf. We are going to have to be the bulwark against which the Adversary’s rabble will smash to pieces.
Culhen’s doughty determination allied itself to his own, and Ahren suddenly believed that he could move mountains by dint sheer willpower alone.
And after that, announced the wolf with all the dignity of an Alpha, after that, we will free Jorath from the evil of the Dark god, so that no living being will ever feel fear again, and all will be able to forge plans for their future lives, unhindered.
Chapter 3
Ahren had hoped that the open discussion of their most urgent problems would have improved the mood among the group, but the opposite was the case. Almost all his companions had been brooding silently for days now, while Ahren hadn’t failed to notice Uldini and Jelninolan conjuring up and rejecting plans again and again without ever discussing them.
It almost seems to me as if the Adversary has already won – even though all the Paladins have been tracked down and are now united, muttered Culhen in frustration before shaking himself violently, almost throwing Ahren from his saddle in the process.
They spent the whole time searching for the missing Champions of the gods, and now all the worries that they had suppressed are rising to the surface, explained Ahren. Think of how often Uldini and Falk have lectured us on the importance of taking one step at a time on our long journey. Now that we have almost arrived at our destination, they are finding it hard not to worry about the chasm at the end of the route that we will somehow have to traverse.
Let’s have a rest, suggested Culhen. A full tummy will do us all good.
Ahren chuckled. Especially, you.
I am only thinking of our friends, countered the wolf snippily.
‘Let us pause for a while and have something to eat,’ Ahren called out to the others.
‘The idea of a small fire and a little stew doesn’t sound half bad,’ said Trogadon, winking knowingly at the Forest Guardian. ‘Especially, considering that Evergreen’s warm embrace will soon be behind us.’ The blacksmith pointed south to where the Knight Marshes began, hardly a hundred paces further on, its coldness almost tangible in the wan moonlight. They had travelled as far east in Eathinian as was possible, and now they would have to continue their journey outside the charmed forest.
‘Good idea,’ said Uldini. ‘Let us postpone the inevitable for a little longer.’
Ahren ignored the ambiguity of the Arch Wizard’s words as with practised hands he built a small fire, using the fallen branches of a nearby tree. ‘Which of you would like a portion of —?’ only to jump backwards with a curse as a flame suddenly flared up.
‘Damn it, Uldini – where are you all hiding?’ It was Quin-Wa’s furious voice intoning from the burning wood. On hearing her mistress, Muai raised her head and purred delightedly. ‘The Adversary is constantly badgering the Ring with His treacherous little curses, and the Ancients have their hands full trying to counter his magic from the Wizardly Domes.’
‘It is clear to you, is it not, that HE, WHO FORCES can hear us?’ asked Uldini angrily. ‘And that he will be able to locate us through your magic?’
Quin-Wa’s snort was magnified by the crackling of the fire. ‘I am no beginner,’ she retorted. ‘It’s taken me four days to prepare this spell – and to adapt it with regard to the danger you have mentioned. As soon as the first branch has turned to ashes, you must extinguish the flames. But your every word is secure until then.’
Silently. Ahren picked up a waterskin and uncorked it. Khara, Hakanu, Falk and Trogadon did the same, the little group forming a circle of nervous guards, their eyes fixed on the fire before them. Ahren noticed that the wood was being consumed with unnatural speed thanks to the heat.
‘You had better hurry,’ he said to the still hesitant Uldini.
‘We are still in Eathinian,’ the Arch Wizard finally replied. ‘Our route will take us through the Knight Marshes and the eastern part of Hjalgar before we reach Deepstone at the Ring.’
‘Delightful,’ said Quin-Wa cuttingly. ‘Perhaps you would like to make a little detour via King’s Island while you’re at it. They say that the Silver Cliff is always worth a visit at this time of year, too.’
‘We had to split up,’ retorted Uldini. ‘I sent a message on the matter already.’
‘Had the Paladins merely maintained a distance of five furlongs from each other, that would undoubtedly have sufficed,’ snarled Quin-Wa.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ahren could see how Uldini was clenching his fists. ‘I couldn’t take the risk. Or would you like to be responsible for a cunning ambush on the part of the Adversary destroying the laborious efforts of centuries so close to our goal?’
The loud crack of a burning branch caused Ahren to flinch. Trogadon already had his waterskin at the ready as he prepared to empty its contents onto the fire, but the Paladin stopped him.
‘Not yet,’ he whispered, pointing down at the scorched branches that had not yet fully disintegrated. ‘We still have a few heartbeats.’
‘How is everyone?’ asked Falk urgently.
‘Fine.’
It was all too easy for Ahren to imagine Quin-Wa irritably rolling her eyes as she responded to the question.
‘There is no reason for you not to believe me. After all, I am spending my time surrounded by pregnant or breastfeeding soul companions and Paladins. I can hardly hear myself think with all the idle chatter assaulting my ears.’
Falk breathed a sigh of relief.
‘Faster,’ Ahren murmured to Uldini, pointing down at a burning branch that was glowing a reddish-white as it began to disintegrate. It was as if an alien force were trying to suck all the life out of its flame. Ahren understood all too well, whose power it was that was tugging at the tongues of fire.
‘We are certainly going to need another six weeks before we get to Highstone,’ said Uldini firmly. ‘Unless you are about to tell me that the Ancients in the Wizardly Domes will be unable to withstand the enemy sorcery for that long.’
‘Six weeks!’ Quin-Wa’s voice echoed with a mixture of frustration and resignation. ‘That will be tight, but I will make sure that the Ancients somehow hold out. Please beware of—.’
Whatever it was that the Eternal Empress had intended to say, it was swallowed up by the hissing sounds of a fire being extinguished as the branch that Ahren had indicated to turned into ash while Ahren and his friends used their waterskins to put out the flames of the fire. The darkness of the night seemed deeper than before, indeed almost tangible, Ahren sensing that invisible claws were reaching out for him.
Jelninolan whispered some words which still carried a trace of the power that had so recently possessed her, and the impenetrable blackness gave way to a cheerfully glittering starlit sky. ‘What Quin-Wa did there was risky,’ said the priestess solemnly. ‘She must be greatly concerned about the Ancients.’
Uldini caused Flamestar to light up and illuminate their encampment as he chewed thoughtfully on his lower lip. ‘Each of our decisions can bring us closer to victory – or to defeat,’ he groaned in frustration.
‘Just to reassure you – I think it was right that our group split up,’ said Jelninolan gently. ‘The fact that the Dark god is concentrating on our defenders at the Ring is a good sign. It seems that He is planning on holding out behind His high walls until His magic exhausts the Ancients and decimates the soldiers at the Ring – at which point He will break forth with His army.’
Khara cocked her head thoughtfully. ‘Might He fear an ambush?’ she asked. ‘If He really is unable to locate the travelling Paladins on their various routes, perhaps He suspects that you are only waiting for Him to leave the Obsidian Fortress so that you can trap Him as soon as He finds himself in a vulnerable position.’
‘Possibly,’ said Falk, smiling wanly. ‘The thought that the Adversary is just as afraid of us as we are of Him appeals to me. And that He, like us, is trying to second-guess our plan.’
Ahren sighed. ‘This stumbling around in the dark isn’t getting us anywhere. The greatest service we can do for the women and men at the Ring is to get there as quickly as we can – and in one piece.’
The night was drawing to a close and Ahren was standing at the edge of Evergreen, looking pensively out onto the frost-covered Knight Marshes. The contoured landscape glistened in the moonlight – it was as though the broad fields, distant castles and modest farmsteads were under the influence of a mighty spell.
‘So, this is where you’ve been hiding,’ whispered Khara from behind him. Ahren turned his head. His beloved had approached from the encampment, a woollen blanket draped over her shoulders and wrapped closely around her. ‘Evergreen is finding it difficult to resist the coldness of the Knight Marshes,’ she quipped as she stopped beside the Forest Guardian and leaned into him. When Ahren didn’t respond, she squeezed his hand. ‘What is troubling you?’
Ahren nodded towards the Knight Marshes. ‘I asked Culhen to have a look around. All that talk about ambushes has made me nervous – but he was unable to sense any Dark Ones in our immediate surroundings.’
‘But that’s good, isn’t it?’
Ahren frowned. ‘But he found hardly any signs of life either. Whole villages seem to be deserted.’ He looked towards a lonely watchtower on the border to Evergreen, which seemed to rise in the distance like a warning finger. ‘Even the fortifications seem to be bereft of occupants.’
Khara gently turned his head with the fingertips of her free hand. ‘Because you have created an alliance worthy of its name,’ she reminded him. ‘Why should the Knight Marshes station valuable soldiers on the towers that are guarding the borders to her allies?’
‘And the empty villages?’ Ahren hated the doubt that he could hear in his own voice. He felt the weight of the world on his shoulders, and he feared that one false move on his part could bring about disaster.
‘It’s the war,’ Khara replied simply. ‘According to Uldini, once the harvest was complete, everyone capable of bearing a weapon was ordered to the Ring. The rest of the adult population are hiding out with the children in the large towns and most spacious castles. The riders of the Green Sea are the only ones entrusted with protecting travellers in the hinterlands of the realms bordering the Ring from any Dark Ones not louring in the Obsidian Fortress.’
Ahren nodded. ‘Of course. Both sides are gathering for the one final shuddering clash.’
Khara shifted her weight impatiently from one foot to the other. ‘It does not come down to who begins the attack in a battle – but rather, which attack ends the confrontation.’
Ahren gazed out into the bleak wintery night of the Knight Marshes, which lay before them as if bereft of all life. ‘You know as well as I do that sometimes it only takes the first blow to ensure victory.’ He hugged Khara close to him. ‘And I fear that if we are not quick enough, then it will not be us who strike it.’
Their ride out of Evergreen proved as dismal as Ahren had feared it would be. Jelninolan played a quiet, endlessly repeating melody, which she had promised would shield them from any dangers caused by malignant sorcerous senses that were trying to track them down. And so, they rode south, past deserted farms that lay empty and silent under the morning frost – like corpses on a vast battlefield. The occasional soaring castles that they encountered were, on the other hand, packed with old people, children, and those unfortunate wounded who had returned to their homeland in the hope of offering whatever help they were still capable of giving.
‘We had better stick to ourselves,’ advised Uldini as Ahren began to lead the travel party towards one of the grey strongholds. ‘Jelninolan’s spell is protecting us from the prying eyes of the Adversary, and I do not want to run the risk of rumours reaching Him regarding our present location – whether it be through one of His spies or by virtue of local gossips only too eager to tell the world that they have had the privilege of meeting three Paladins.’
‘Aren’t you being a little extreme?’ suggested Trogadon, who was stretching his back as he sat on his little pony.
Ahren could tell from the patient animal that it would love to have been able to do the same.
‘Indeed, a less far-sighted individual might consider our entire travel itinerary exaggerated,’ countered the Arch Wizard forcefully. ‘One security precaution more is hardly going to change things much.’
They took their break, therefore, in one of the abandoned farmhouses, eating their cold midday meal in gloomy silence.
I’m already missing Eathinian, complained Culhen, who was chewing on a bone that he had discovered in one of the otherwise bare storerooms.
Things will look up for you soon, said Ahren reassuringly, tousling the fur between the wolf’s ears. I am certain that Likis will have reserved an entire herd of cattle for you in Deepstone.
Culhen licked his drooling chops. Oh, yes – that sounds like him alright! Hopefully, we’ll be there soon.
Ahren enjoyed the moments of banter with Culhen. They distracted him from his worries, and not for the first time he wondered if the wolf was deliberately trying to divert his attention to other, more trivial matters.
His other companions, too, seemed to concentrate on innocuous topics of conversation – it was as if no-one had the courage to articulate that which was lying ahead of them before finally reaching Deepstone and with that the Ring.
Day after day they rode further south, and with every league that they journeyed, the momentousness of the war became more evident. The entire Knight Marshes seemed to be holding its breath, waiting with nervous anticipation for the battle against the Adversary to begin. Travelling merchants were few and far between, the little group making sure to steer well clear of any that they noticed, while the only other signs of life consisted of scattered bands of highway robbers, who chose to stay well away from the clearly well-armed travel party. A quick exchange of glances was enough to ensure a rapid retreat into the undergrowth on the part of the ne’er-do-wells.
‘How I would so much like to teach them a lesson,’ grunted Ahren as once again a handful of scrawny figures with cudgels and primitive bows sought refuge behind a hill, having noticed that Ahren and his companions were no easy pickings.
‘You would only be treating a symptom, but not the disease itself,’ scolded Falk. ‘The Ring is swallowing up enormous amounts of provisions and drawing all the knights of the realm. Once the war has been won, both will be returning from the front, and the highwaymen and -women will vanish, just like the starvation and the defencelessness of the populace.’
