The couple took no notice of Janus as he cautiously took a few more steps into the cave. He then halted and stood stark still, realizing what was occurring before his eyes. The woman was giving birth, right on the verge of bringing a new life into the world.
Just as Janus became curious as to the identity of the couple, he was drawn to the shadows in the area to the left of the woman.
His heart skipped a beat, as he saw something there darker than any blackness or shadow. A great Presence lurked there, though Janus could see no discernable figure within the deep pool of impenetrable shadows.
Janus could feel the sheer intensity pouring forth from that blackness, as it silently observed the woman, the man, and the impending birth. Janus sensed that the Presence absolutely loathed the woman. The Presence was like some enormous serpent, coiled and waiting, whose gaping maw was awaiting the birth to devour both mother and child.
Though the Presence was unmistakably baleful and raging, with a malefic radiance beyond anything that Janus had ever felt before in his life, Janus had no fears for the people in the cave. He knew that the Presence was not there in any kind of manifestation whereby It could do any immediate harm to the woman, the man, or to the newborn.
It was as if Janus was simply gaining a perception of the Presence, as It gazed Itself upon the proceedings from some faraway, unknown region, scrying from a dark place that Janus knew had nothing in common with the two worlds that he knew. He also knew that the looming Presence was far more powerful than he could possibly imagine.
Janus wondered why something as obviously immense as the Presence would have any concern with a couple of simple people and their baby in a cold, lonely cave.
With a sustained cry from the woman, and several gentle words from the kneeling man, a third voice sounded within the small cave.
The cry of a newborn baby accompanied the exuberant and joyous laughter of the man, followed closely by that of the woman, in those next few moments. While the woman sounded exhausted, Janus could hear the tremendous delight and relief in her voice.
The man and the woman spoke excitedly, in the unrecognizable language, as the man carefully attended to the immediate needs of the baby. The man gently wrapped the baby in cloth, handing the newborn over cautiously to the outstretched arms of the mother.
With the warm look of genuine love spread on the man’s face, Janus had no doubt that the man had to be the father. Nobody but a father could have given such a tender look to a newborn child. The woman looked so entirely gentle and serene as she accepted the baby from him. The look upon her face embodied the essence of a mother, with boundless joy accompanied by an infinite love as she beheld the face of her new child for the first time.
Like a sharp crack of thunder, Janus’ attention was jarred violently as he felt the sudden explosion of pure malignance from the Presence within the shadows. Janus realized with astonishment that it was the mere sight of the baby that had invoked the stark and incredible reaction.
The Presence vanished from the cave instantly, though the echoes of its last expressions shook Janus to the core. An awful understanding was impressed upon Janus’ mind. The Presence was murderous, wanting nothing less than the annihilation of the newborn. Janus knew that Its limitless anger at seeing the baby in the world was so great that It could not maintain Its observance, volcanic emotion shattering Its cohesion.
Janus had already comprehended the reality that the Presence was exceptionally powerful, whatever It was, and he found himself fearing greatly for the safety of the mother, the apparent father, and the infant.
However he came to the understanding, he knew that the Presence was the ultimate essence of a predatory hunter, determined to pursue the children of this woman to the ends of the world. Janus felt wholly dismayed, wondering how the woman, the man, and the child could ever hope to evade the black diablerie that was setting its mordant gaze upon them.
As his fear for the small family grew, the veil of the dream faded as he was called back into waking. He found himself lying upon the hard, forest floor, curled up in the fetal position that he had taken when he had first lain down.
At first, he felt a little nauseated, as if he had ingested something wholly unnatural within him. He gagged and heaved as he slowly got up into a sitting position, but the worst of it passed by quickly enough. In a few short moments, the initially strong sensations had settled into a mild discomfort and gentle cough.
The dream-experience had left its images vivid and freshly imprinted upon the eye of his mind. He breathed slowly, as his full orientation returned.
Slowly, he braced himself on his hands and pushed himself back up to his feet. Taking a look all around him, he discovered that there was nothing to be seen close by, yet he did not feel alone.
A sense of wariness brought to the fore, Janus started back for the stream near to the village. On the way back, he recalled the sequence of the dream over and over again within his mind.
Ever since he had arrived in the tribal village, and began to listen more carefully to the tales of his newer hosts, he had heard a lot of talk about dreams and the genuine significance of them. To the people of the village, dreams were not considered to be merely a whimsical or fanciful conjuration of the mind. Nor were they simply a practical process demanded by the subconscious mind, to sift and sort through the things of life’s experience. To the villagers, they were something else entirely, experiences to be taken very seriously, if not unquestioningly at some times.
If the dream that he had just experienced was indeed something more, like something that the tribal people spoke so openly of, then there was something important for him to understand within the essence of that vision.
The tribal people would suggest that there was much to discover and learn from the vivid and meticulous dream, whether on the surface or buried deeply.
Whatever the reality was, Janus knew that he would be pondering the incredible dream for quite some time to come.
CROWN OF VENGEANCE
Preview of Book II
in the
Fires in Eden
series
LEE
“The two of you up there, come down, now!” Gunther yelled up to the loft, before turning back towards the others.
He waited with a worrisome expression on his face, until the two young women had come down the steps to join the others. “No luck is with us. None whatsoever. The Avanorans are coming straight towards this dwelling, in great strength. Far too many to even think about a fight. It is certain that they will find this place, and I am not so naïve to think that they will respect a man’s dwelling. We must go!”
“How far away are they?” Erin asked.
Erin, like the others, presented anything but a calm façade. Wide-eyed panic was written all over her face as she looked to Gunther.
Lee’s greatest anxieties were spawned by the deep worry etched across Gunther’s face. In the short time that he had known the woodsman, there were a few traits in the stalwart man that rose prominently to the surface.
Of his more noticeable characteristics, it was obvious that Gunther was not the sort of man to openly exhibit trepidation, unless there truly was a daunting reason. The entire patrol of the bestial warriors on the winged steeds had not rattled him in the slightest. He had seemed wholly unflappable in the aftermath of that conflict, except for the trauma at the loss of his Jaghun. Lee knew without a doubt that fear did not come lightly to the tall, brawny woodsman.
“They are close enough. Unless you prefer to die gloriously, and take a few of them with you, and hope that some gleeman sings of you one day, I would suggest that we all get moving now. As for myself, I am not seeking glory in a senseless fight, so I am leaving now. You may stay if you like, though,” Gunther replied tersely, clearly in no mood for any edgy banter with Erin, sharply preempting any rude responses that she might have entertained.
For her part, Erin made no caustic reply.
Gunther moved swiftly, ga
thering up a couple leather packs and opening a couple of the wooden chests on the ground. He rummaged through the chests quickly, withdrawing some items of clothing and other incidentals that he packed into the hide pouches.
Lee and the others were sternly exhorted to gather up their weapons, along with any other things that they wished to take with them. There was not much in that regard, as Lee and the others did not have so much as a single change of clothes.
Packs filled, Gunther strode over to the back of the room, heading towards the barred door. He brushed roughly by Ryan in the process, almost knocking the young man off his feet with the brusque impact.
Lee knew that the contact was not intentional, simply a result of Gunther’s mind being far away from the woodland abode. Gunther paused to glance back towards Ryan, as if in afterthought, and apparently recognized the confusion upon the younger man’s face.
“There is no time, we must go without delay,” he said more gently, as he lifted the wooden plank from the great door and swung it open.
What little light there was in the outer room was immediately sucked up inside the door, absorbed into the impenetrable blackness on the other side. Lee reflexively shivered as a robust draft of cold air rushed out of the darkness. Just beyond the door, the sides framing the blackness were revealed to be rough hewn stone
The cooler air emerging from the interior of the cave-like atmosphere had a clean moistness to it, imbued with a damp, musty scent. Only a tiny speck of dim light in the far distance signified anything that he could orient upon with his eyes.
The four awaited Gunther hesitantly, looking between the entrance and the woodsman.
“The door is open for you, to go through, now!” Gunther barked at them. “Walk slowly, and keep your eyes upon the light. The ground underfoot is even enough. You can feel your way along the sides if you wish, but keep your balance.”
Lee started through the doorway first, giving some confidence to the others as they followed behind him. The ground a few paces inside the doorway was at a downward slant. Fortunately, it was not terribly steep, and he noticed that it headed straight towards the distant light.
Putting his hands out, he discovered that the passage framed by the entrance remained narrow, as he felt along the rough-hewn rock to the sides. Methodically, he took his first steps forward, careful to maintain his footing. The surfacing beneath his feet, though far from even, did not have any larger projections or dips that threatened make him stumble or fall.
After about twenty paces in the narrow corridor, his hands could no longer touch both sides at once. He could also sense the enlargement of space in the widening passageway, yawning open above and around them. He adjusted over to the side, to move forward along the wall to the right.
Within the surrounding blackness, he could hear the sounds of the Jaghuns padding up from behind, shortly passing by Lee and the others. The presence of the creatures in the passageway was reassuring, though it did not entirely quench his sense of apprehension as they made their way through the darkness, towards the unknown.
Lee heard the shutting of the wooden door behind them, followed by a sliding sound and a loud “pop”, as if a wood plank was being shoved into place from the inside.
It came as no surprise to Lee that Gunther had taken both sides of the door into consideration when he had built his dwelling. Heavy, swift footsteps then echoed along the passage, as Gunther hurried down the corridor. Within a few moments, he drew up alongside Lee.
“The enemy will find my home, but there will be no easy path for them to take, to come against us down here. Remember, we are calling upon friends, in a time of need,” Gunther said to Lee, loud enough for the others to hear. He then spoke louder, addressing the quartet. “Now keep going towards that distant light.”
Gunther’s voice trailed off as he started forward, taking the lead. Lee and his three companions fixated their eyes upon the distant glow, still far ahead and below.
Moving slowly through the deep gloom, the rest of the descent seemed to take an eternity to complete. The light before them was a welcoming beacon, reassuring and calling to the party as they carefully navigated the engulfing darkness of the downward pathway.
Gradually, the speck of light grew to become a definable circle, which in turn became an oval-shaped portal, one that was easily big enough for the group to walk through. The light gradually illuminated the ground and sides around them, though it revealed little other than rock.
Off all the strange things that Lee had seen in his life within two worlds, what awaited the group at the end of the passageway was perhaps the strangest yet. He had expected something unusual, but found that he was completely unprepared for the sight that greeted his eyes.
The light was not generated from any sun or artificial means.
The luminescent glow came from many broad, amorphous patches, spread high up the sides of a huge rock cavern that the passageway opened upon and revealing what looked to be a rather bizarre forest that stretched out far and wide in the vast cavern. Even at first glance, in the midst of an entranced awe, Lee saw that there was a definite order to the strange forest. It was as if the growths had been cultivated according to a well-organized arrangement, evincing a specific purpose for the forest. Lee’s initial impression was that the forest was similar to an agricultural farm.
The forest was a mixture of soaring vertical growths, some varieties resembling giant mushrooms. The growths continued on down in size to much shorter stalks, the smallest of which were barely taller than Lee.
The footing underneath was very strange, as algae-like growths and a spongy loam covered the ground. Lee could see that it was the substance of the thick layers that served as the foundation for the greater forest. The path that they were walking on was like a channel cutting through the deep organic material. The amount of loam that the towering stalks were rooted in throughout the cavern was incredible to consider.
Lee drew to a complete halt just a few steps into the cavern, gazing all around. The bright, glowing patches on the walls, bathing the great expanse with bluish light, added considerably to the mystical beauty of the extraordinary place. He looked about in a state of wonder, nearly breathless as his eyes adjusted further to the glowing light. The overall effect of the place was simply magical, unlike anything he had ever seen.
“I don’t think I believe this,” Lynn remarked slowly, her eyes drinking in the astonishing sights surrounding them.
“Unbelievable,” Ryan added, craning his neck back to look up at the underbelly of one of the tall mushroom caps. Had the cap been upon the ground, all four of the exiles could have stood comfortably within its circumference.
Lee hardly bothered to notice the Jaghuns grouping swiftly around them. Just ahead, Gunther had come to a stop himself, though it was not out of awe for the sights around them. His eyes darted among the growths, as if searching for some sort of sign, or presence.
Gunther slowly stepped back to where Lee was.
“What is it?” Lee asked in hushed tone.
“The Unguhur might wonder why I bring companions who can speak their language well … as they know that I possess only a small number of their words. Best not to give rise to suspicions where we are needing friends,” Gunther said, keeping his attention riveted upon their surroundings. “I will have to meet everything about the four of you in time, including your amulets from the Wanderer.”
“Should we take ours off?” Lynn asked him, voicing the first question that came to Lee’s mind.
“They will know you are of another world, no matter what you do. The instant that they see you will tell them enough. I may suggest that you simply keep your own words few at the beginning, if speaking any at all. But keep your amulets on you. At least it will help you understand what they say. We have little other choice,” Gunther replied evenly. He then paused, as if thinking further on the matter. “It may also be wise not to reveal that you can speak with them, and understand them. They may speak more
openly, if they do not know you can understand their words.”
The four exiles nodded. Lee was relieved to know that they could retain the pendants. Once he had come to understand the nature of his amulet, he had regarded it as indispensable. In a world where he knew not one of the languages spoken upon its surface, the amulet was a lifeline.
The group remained silent, as Gunther continued to look out into the wondrous forest around them.
“As a friend I come, Gunther, of the upper world,” Gunther called out loudly into the stillness about them. His voice carried far and vibrantly, echoing within the enormous space of the cavern.
His shouted words brought Lee, Lynn, Ryan, and Erin closer in towards him. Lee was now fully out of his enraptured state, thoughts of the forest retreating as he looked to see who, or what, Gunther was speaking to. He found himself gripped by a nervous anticipation.
Movement drew his eyes, as a grayish shape could be seen moving amongst the growths, emerging from a deeper part of the fungus-forest and striding towards them. The figure was not alone, as several other large shapes came out from the forest growths all around the party just a few moments later.
The great size of the approaching beings became increasingly apparent with each long stride that they took. Were it not for the relaxed nature of the Jaghuns, and the placid, entirely unruffled demeanor of Gunther, Lee would likely have sought to take flight, and run as fast as he could back towards the passage.
The hulking creatures approaching them were humanoid, each one standing well over eight feet in height. They had large, triangular ears that were pressed close against the sides of their wide heads.
The shape of their faces had a distinctive concavity, lending them all a naturally melancholic expression. Large, forward-set eyes rested deep within their wide sockets, beneath pronounced brow-ridges, while their prominent lower jaws jutted forward.
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