“I think I have been going about this all wrong,” said the Draugr and charged. But this time, he avoided Farling’s shield and sword, ducked under Arastead’s quarterstaff and managed somehow to grab Peg by her tail, pulling her free of Arastead’s shoulders.
The Draugr picked up a hissing Peg and then squeezed her neck. Peg’s eyes widened in pain.
At the same time Arastead’s eyes widened in pain and he fell to the ground clutching his neck.
The Draugr chuckled, said: “I should have seen the connection sooner. Wizard, this cat is your familiar. You have already bonded. But the bond goes both ways. If you are hurt, your familiar feels the pain; and if your familiar is hurt, you feel its pain.”
The Draugr squeezed harder causing Peg to go quiet. Arastead’s breath came in faint gasps, then went quiet.
“You killed him!” cried Farling.
“Nonsense, child,” replied the Draugr as he dropped a senseless Peg to the ground. “The cat still lives, so the young wizard does as well. He just will not be bothering me for the next little while. Now for you two!”
Sihr, mistakenly, no longer stood behind the protection of Farling’s shield. The Draugr charged him as he bravely raised his staff in defense. The Draugr this time was able to brush the staff aside and slammed Sihr in the chest with the heel of his palm. Sihr was thrown against a wall where he crumpled to the ground, not moving.
“One left,” muttered the Draugr, then cried aloud in pain. Farling had rushed up from behind and stabbed the Draugr through the chest. The Draugr fiercely swung an elbow backwards and cracked Farling in his face, bursting his nose.
Farling took a few drunken steps backwards, blood streaming down his face.
“You missed my heart,” said the Draugr. “If you had cut my heart, I would have been destroyed. That, or cutting off my head. Those two are really the only ways to destroy me.”
The Draugr reached behind and drew Farling’s sword out. By this time, Farling had sunk to his knees, his shield resting on the ground. Farling put up no fight as the Draugr, with the hilt of the sword, rapped Farling hard on the top of his head. Farling toppled to the ground, unconscious.
The Draugr surveyed the scene, pleased with what he saw. Then: “That was harder than I expected, but fun, nonetheless. I will have to feed soon to rebuild, as much damage has been caused to this body. So, which one of the young heroes should I drain of their essence.” He looked from Sihr, to Arastead, to Pressan, to Farling. “No to the cleric, no to the wizard, no to the old man, and yes to the young warrior. His physical strength is just what I now need.”
The Draugr closed his eyes and inhaled deeply several times through his nose. When the Draugr opened his eyes, instead of their usual pale blue, his eyes were now pitch black. With one hand outstretched, he walked towards Farling’s prostrate body.
As the Draugr placed his open palm on Farling’s chest, Farling’s eyes flew open and he screamed in pain.
At the same time, a great smashing sound was heard, and Farling felt the Draugr let go.
***
Farling woke and noticed someone’s fingers were touching his temples. He opened his eyes and saw Princess Margret’s face upside down, her eyes closed in concentration. Farling closed his eyes again and relaxed, feeling the healing sensation course through his body. In a few moments, it stopped. During all this, he heard fighting again and again.
He opened his eyes, and this time Margret’s eyes were open as well.
She said: “Awake, Farling. Grum is doing his best to slow down the Draugr. When the moment is right, you must cut off the Draugr’s head with your sword.”
Farling weakly nodded. As he rose, first to one knee, then to his feet, he watched Grum continuously hit the Draugr with his war hammer. As Farling walked towards them, he felt his strength flowing through his limbs. He clutched at his sword.
“A moment,” said Nas as he touched Farling’s sword. “A protective spell. The Draugr is magic, and we do not want its magic infecting your sword when you destroy it.”
Farling could only nod, as he stared at the Draugr lying face first on the ground with Grum over him, wielding his war hammer to deadly effect. Farling watched as Grum slammed his war hammer between the Draugr’s shoulder blades, causing black blood to gush from the Draugr’s nose, mouth, and ears. The Draugr had been flattened to the ground, but still, somehow, managed to rise to his hands and knees.
The Draugr’s breath came in great sobs, said: “I cannot, I will not be killed.”
“No,” said Farling, finding his voice, “but you can be destroyed.”
Farling’s sword hissed through the air. As the Draugr’s head jumped from his shoulders, the magic spells that held him together were sundered.
And with a sound like a great clap of thunder, the Draugr’s body exploded, knocking everyone off their feet.
CHAPTER 35
The Return
The courtyard of the thieves guild was like a battlefield after the battle had finished; broken and bloodied bodies were strewn everywhere. But instead of the victors picking over the dead and slaying the wounded, Sihr walked amongst the survivors, giving them food to eat and something to drink. He would change dirty bandages for clean, and would heal wounds and broken bones simply by laying his hands on the afflicted parts. Everyone needed to rest after the laying of hands, but the bones mended cleanly and the wounds from the Draugr's attack disappeared quickly.
In one corner, a small group had gathered about a small fire under the starry sky. Sihr walked over.
“Welcome, Sihr,” said Farling, sitting on his shield. His hastily cleaned face still had smears of blood and evidence of a broken nose, but his eyes were sharp and awake.
“Welcome, Farling,” said Sihr. He looked over the group and smiled. Nas, the old druid from Aarlund was in deep conversation with his ward, Princess Margret. She wore the Circlet of Freya, and the pearl that hung low almost between the princess’s eyes reflected the light from the fire. Grum, who laughed loudly and belched almost as loudly, sat with a large war hammer beside him. Gloves and a belt rested on the weapon. Grum was talking with Arastead, who was petting his cat who sat in his lap, purring.
Farling stood and shook Sihr’s hand. At the same time, both chuckled.
Farling started, said: “That was a close one.”
“Too close,” agreed Sihr.
“I never thought of you as a fighter.”
“I surprised myself as well. Anger welled up in me at the sight of the Draugr as it brought back memories from when I and Princess Margret cleansed Queen Astrid. Luckily, I was able to use some of the same magic I had used when cleansing the queen of the Draugr’s poison.”
“Brave, very brave. Next, you will be training with a sword.”
Sihr laughed at the thought. Then: “No, I will leave the sword fighting to those who know best.”
The rest of the group had gone quiet.
Farling looked at Grum, said: “Tell me again, Grum, how was it that you came by the war hammer.”
Grum started to speak but was interrupted by Margret. Grum motioned for her to speak.
“Apologies, brave Grum, for interrupting,” began Margret. “I was with Nas when I sensed that Sihr was in danger. I believe that since we have trained together, and healed the queen together, that there is a bond between us. So, when we left the castle for the thieves guild, as both Nas and I have the amulets that allow us entry, we ran into Grum near the home of Jakobus.”
Here, she motioned for Grum to continue.
“As the princess said,” began Grum, “on my way to Jakobus’s house, we met. I was very relieved to see them, and quickly described in hushed tones what the Draugr was doing and where he was. We were allowed entry into Jakobus’s home and found him still awake. We reasoned with him, and he agreed with us, and walked us to where he had the war hammer and gloves hidden in a special chest that prevented magical detection.”
“That easy?” asked Farling. “Jakobus su
ddenly changed his mind?”
Grum shook his head, said: “It was not my words that changed his mind, it was what the princess whispered in his ear.”
Everyone looked towards the princess, who shrugged. Then: “I merely said that we could not allow the Draugr to own the thieves guild.”
Everyone nodded.
Grum continued: “So, wearing both the magical belt and gloves, I was able to lift the war hammer, and the power was unlike anything I had ever felt before. It was as if I could level mountains with one mighty blow. And so, we rushed back here, to the thieves guild. Once here, I remembered how to get to the room where the Graydon armor lay, and as we rushed down the stairs, the Draugr was distracted, thankfully, over Farling’s body.”
Farling grimaced, said: “Believe me, that was not a planned distraction. The Draugr was beginning to steal my essence, I felt it. Your timing, Grum, as always, was impeccable.”
Grum smiled, said: “It did feel good hitting the Draugr with my war hammer. But that demon refused to stay down. I do not know how many times I struck it, but I could not slay it. It was not until Farling relieved the Draugr of his head that the battle finally was over.”
Farling jerked his chin at Arastead, said: “And you, Arastead, displaying some small feats of magic.”
Arastead smiled bashfully, said: “The spells just seemed to come to me unbidden. I knew I had brought a bag of salt for some reason. But really, most of the credit must go to Peg here.” He petted his cat while she purred more loudly.
Nas stared at Peg, narrowing his eyes in thought. Then: “Arastead, you will need more training in the magical arts. But I can only do so much. Druids are not wizards.”
Arastead nodded, said: “Perhaps that is why the Norn wants me to train with Jakobus.”
Nas shook his head, said: “He is no wizard.”
“Still, I will see how that plays out,” said Arastead. “So now what?”
Farling asked: “How do you mean?”
“We defeated the Draugr, the evil presence that Princess Margret felt in Trondheim. But we still must destroy this Heart Tree of which the Norn spoke.”
Farling chuckled, said: “Soon, soon, my friend. Let us heal from this ordeal, then on to the next adventure.”
Grum interjected, said: “I may need to get new clothes. What? I want to look proper on the next adventure.”
“I did not realize that a new war hammer meant you need an entire new wardrobe,” said Arastead. “I guess your current clothes clash with your new toy.”
Everyone chuckled good humoredly.
Then, Einar and Pressan appeared as everyone greeted them warmly.
Grum said: “So, Pressan, I see you are better than when I last saw you crumpled on the ground.”
Pressan nodded, said: “It is good to be back on my feet. My thanks to Sihr and Princess Margret,” he added and bowed to them. They nodded their heads in return, smiling.
Einar and Pressan joined the group around the fire. Young thieves appeared with food and tea.
“Good to see the kitchen is up and running,” said Grum. “I like your priorities.”
“Tell me, Pressan,” started Farling between bites of food, “what did you do to the Draugr that caused him so much pain?”
“Silver powder,” said Pressan enjoying the warmth of the fire. “Demons hate silver, it is anathema to them.”
Farling nodded, said: “I think the silver powder did weaken the Draugr just enough to help us battle it and hold him until Grum appeared with his war hammer.”
“That is good news,” agreed Pressan. “I am glad to know my pain was not for nothing.”
Pressan continued: “Before you fought the Draugr, he told me things, dark tidings. The Draugr was able to get through the gateway somehow with the help of someone on this side, someone powerful, steeped in the black arts, the forbidden magic. The Draugr called him Alchemist. If he was able to help the Draugr escape, he must somehow be communicating with the elves on the other side of the gate. We must find this Alchemist and destroy him.”
“Alchemist,” said Einar, stressing the word. “The one who makes that excellent mead?”
“I can only imagine it is one and the same,” said Pressan.
“I knew that mead was too good to be true,” said Einar. “He should be easy enough to find. The Heart Tree will hopefully be just as easy.”
Arastead said, “I understand this Draugr stole the Book of Princore from Jakobus. Have you had any luck finding it yet?”
Einar pulled out a book from a sack and gave it to Arastead, who gave a huge sigh of relief. “Where was it found?” asked Arastead.
Einar said: “As soon as we discovered the Draugr was the Salgarian Ambassador, we sent our least hurt thieves over to where the Draugr was staying when he was in Trondheim. There, my thieves found members of the Salgarian delegation who were very confused.”
“Confused?” asked Farling.
“It turns out the Draugr had the ability to control minds,” said Einar. “The Salgarian delegation had no idea they had been hypnotized by the Draugr. They are sick with misery at being pawns in the Draugr’s game. So, while one of my thieves was talking to the Salgarian delegation, another thief made his way upstairs and discovered the Book of Princore. And some other treasures that I will not mention.”
“I am glad it was profitable for you,” said Farling.
“I never tire of profit,” agreed Einar with a wink.
Arastead added: “I suspect King Frederick will not adhere to the trade agreement with the Salgarians.”
“That document will most likely be up for negotiation, yes,” said Einar.
Sihr said: “I feel ashamed, this is my fault entirely. I warned Reinhardt that there was a corpse in the Paupers Temple that had died mysteriously. Now it turns out he had died by the Draugr's hands. And I told Reinhardt of the Draugr's attack and he did nothing.”
Pressan shook his head, said: “You were up against forces more powerful than you. There is no reason for you to be ashamed.”
Sihr smiled wanly. Then: “I guess so, I appreciate your words of kindness, Pressan.”
Einar continued, said: “My thieves then visited the Paupers Temple, curious as to the state of the people who had been killed by the Draugr. But there was nothing left of them as they had all turned to ash.”
“Interesting,” said Pressan. “It would appear that with the Draugr's destruction, all his magic disappeared, as also demonstrated by how his hold over the Salgarian delegation vanished.”
Farling lightly tapped Einar on the shoulder. Then: “I know I have been testy with you at times, Einar. It is just that I was trying to earn enough coin her in Trondheim to buy a farm for my mother and brother, which I eventually did. I guess I was always worried just enough that you might steal some of my earnings. I have to say that I never fully trusted you, but after all of this, I think I can safely say that I trust you now.”
Einar grinned, said: “I am glad you can trust me, Farling. I still say you, Grum, and Arastead would make wonderful thieves.”
Farling chuckled. Then: “And I am sorry for the loss of your brother, Orlough. I must admit, it seemed hard to believe at first, it just seemed too coincidental, you showing up at his funeral. But he was your brother, and someone killed him. He was the first kind person who helped me when I reached Trondheim. For that, I owe him a debt of gratitude that I may never be able to pay back.”
Einar was silent, then said: “Thank you for your kind words, Farling. I admit, my brother and I did grow apart, especially after his fall from grace. But he was my brother, and growing up, he did always look after me. And even when he was king’s secretary, he was loyal to his king, and never helped the thieves guild. And while that did make me angry at times, I understand loyalty. A thief will always understand loyalty.”
After a quiet moment, Margret asked: “Einar, did you ever find out who killed your brother?”
Einar grunted, said: “I forgot to tell everyon
e, I did find out. It was that thief Doshmin, from the Pitcairn thieves guild. When my accountant reviewed the Pitcairn’s thieves guild’s books, he discovered a line in there about removing the Dennland king’s secretary. And it was written in such a confusing manner, that my accountant did not realize at first that it was payment for killing my brother, Orlough. But I shall have no justice, as Doshmin has disappeared, and has been missing for a long time. And, again, all roads lead to Alchemist; it was he who payed Doshmin.”
Everyone was silent, lost in thought, then Nas cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention, said: “We had better prepare for the coming of the elves. We must inform King Frederick and King Cormac.”
“A war council must be convened,” agreed Pressan.
Margret added: “I will send a message by raven to my father.”
Nas continued: “I fear the elves may now feel threatened, and a cornered animal is always the most dangerous. We still do not know who animated the corpse of the goat when we spoke with the Norn. There is much evil afoot in this realm. We must be prepared, as the enemy is, most assuredly.”
“Till then, let us celebrate while we can,” said Einar. “Tomorrow is another day.”
“Agreed,” said Grum. “Hopefully I will not have to let out my waistband after all this food and dessert.”
CHAPTER 36
The Heart Tree
By now, it had been years since Alchemist had planted the Heart Tree over the body of a young druid. The Heart Tree’s black bark shone in the sun like polished obsidian, pure white wide leaves sparkled brightly like untouched snow.
The Heart Tree towered over the barren landscape, easily six times as tall as a person. The trunk was as wide as a body. But the most remarkable detail of the tree was that its roots did not delve down into the earth. Instead, its gnarly, knotted roots snaked over the ground and into the black pond. And the roots had curled around upon themselves, creating a wide and heavy base wide that supported the tree no matter the weather.
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