“You see, Artr, your own people have seen the truth. They see that we need to return to the old ways.”
Artr tightens his grip on the Spear of Justice. He holds it inches from Greetha. The point doesn’t glow the way it did around Elgar. She’s not evil, just misguided. With a sigh, he lowers the spear.
“I swear I will return those the Demon has taken captive. Then, if you wish Merlin and I to leave this place, we will.”
“Son, no!”
“I am sorry, Mother. Now, I must go.” Artr stalks out of the village, perhaps for the last time.
Chapter 17: The Pursuit
Between the three of us, I have the hardest time with our pursuit of the Black Demon. Artr has the Scarlet Warrior’s armor and Merlin has magic to keep him from getting too tired. By contrast I’m an out-of-shape, elderly—for that time period—conjurer’s assistant. If it weren’t for Beaux, I’d have probably dropped over a long time ago.
“I could carry you on my back,” Artr suggests.
“Oh, how lovely,” I grumble. “Carry me around like a pelt.”
“It was just a thought.”
“Don’t start thinking now.”
Merlin pats my shoulder. “There’s no need to worry. Beaux is safe.”
“How do you know that?”
“I have some assistance,” Merlin says. He points up at the sky.
“A god is helping us?”
“Not a god. A bird. An owl to be exact. I can see with his eyes. For now Beaux and the others are safe.”
“Wonderful, an owl says they’re safe. What happens when the owl goes off to eat a mouse?”
“It won’t.” Merlin gestures ahead of us. “Come, let’s keep going.”
“Couldn’t you make Marlin faster? Or lighter?” Artr suggests.
“Shut up,” I snap and muster the strength to run ahead of him for a few paces.
***
We have to keep going all through the night and the next day. Merlin’s owl continues its vigil, though it should have gone to sleep long ago. From what the owl indicates, there’s no danger for Beaux or the others. The greatest danger for Beaux is that she’ll anger the Demon enough he’ll decide to kill her before we can arrive.
“That must be some face you’ve got to keep it beneath that headdress all this time. How do you eat with that on?”
“I do not require food. Or sleep. Or conversation.” The way he glares at her should tell her to shut her mouth, but Beaux has always had a problem with that.
“You must be very tough to take a bunch of women and children captive. You know what will happen when Merlin finds you.”
“I do not fear Merlin.”
“Is that why you’re running?”
“I will face him at a time of my choosing.”
“That’s convenient.”
“If you do not remain silent, I will slice open your throat.” He brandishes his claws for effect. Of course Beaux ignores this.
“Some brave warrior you are. You let half your men get slaughtered while you stood by and did nothing.” She raises her voice so the rest of the Demon’s minions can hear her. “He’ll probably let the lot of you die the same way if it suits his purposes.”
“They do not understand you, foolish girl,” the Demon growls.
“Girl? I’ll have you know I gave birth to a child.” She did many years ago, before she met me. The child died from a fever shortly after birth. Since then, Beaux has remained barren. Modern science would probably have an explanation; I assumed it was through sheer force of will she never got pregnant again to risk losing another child. Of course that might explain why she prefers to be around those sheep all the time.
“You try my patience. That will make it all the more glorious when I feed your heart to my master.”
“I’d like to see you try. If I still had my crook I’d teach you a thing or two.”
“Your puny weapon would not hurt me.”
“We’ll never know, will we?” Beaux stomps ahead a few paces. Though she’d never admit it, I’m sure she thinks of me and looks forward to us being reunited.
***
Night falls by the time they finally stop. The owl stops in a tree. It’s still there when we arrive. We huddle in the darkness to stare down at the Demon’s camp. Artr and Merlin can see in the dark while I can only squint and make out a few vague shapes in the light of the Demon’s army’s fires.
“They’re down there,” Merlin says. “They’re still alive.”
“So let’s go down and rescue them,” I say.
“Have patience.”
“What about the Demon?” Artr asks.
“He will need distracted,” Merlin says.
“I’ll do it,” Artr says without hesitation. “You and Marlin can rescue the prisoners then.”
“A very sound strategy,” Merlin says. “First you must locate the Demon. Once you do and you have his attention, Marlin and I will rescue the prisoners.”
“What about the rest of his soldiers?” I ask. “They could kill Beaux and the others.”
“I can deal with them,” Merlin says.
With a hoot, the owl in the trees takes off. It swoops down over the Demon’s camp. A couple of the ruffians make note of it; one even tries to hit it with a spear. The owl glides away to search through the camp.
Through its eyes, Merlin locates the Demon. Though he doesn’t require sleep, the Demon is in a tent. He has a prisoner in there with him: Beaux, of course. She’s tied up at his feet. “It’s a pity I won’t get the chance to bring you to my master, but I can’t abide any more of your yammering. The time has come to put an end to it.”
Beaux screams.
Chapter 18: Angel & Devil, Part 1
Artr and I get to our feet at the same time. Since he has on the magic armor, he gets to the Demon’s camp much quicker. He shoves aside any of the ruffians who try to challenge him. Once he’s reached the center of the camp, he shouts, “Show yourself, Demon! I’ve come for your head!”
I stop at the edge of the camp, having no wish to get my throat slit along with Artr. I have my doubts that even the Scarlet Warrior can take on twenty warriors plus the Black Demon. Merlin puts a hand on my shoulder. “Everything will be fine,” Merlin says. “The boy knows what he’s doing.”
“It doesn’t look like it.”
“Watch and see.”
The Demon’s minions have gathered around Artr, but none are brave enough to come forward. Then I see a large, dark shape emerge from a tent. It’s the Black Demon. He doesn’t have Beaux with him. Did he already cut her throat?
The Demon barks a command and his henchmen fall back. The Demon steps through their ranks. “You would challenge me, boy?” The Demon brandishes his claws. “I’ve killed many times your number, men much bigger than you.”
“Then you have nothing to fear by fighting me.”
“Very well, boy. If you wish to die then I will help you.”
The Demon makes as if to attack. Artr puts up a hand. “Not here. I wouldn’t want you to trip on this fire pit or these tents. We’ll go to the top of the ridge.”
“As you wish.” The Demon turns to his minions. “Stay and guard the prisoners. I will not be gone long.”
Merlin motions for the two of us to hide behind a tree as the Demon and Artr climb up towards the hill. “You see now?”
“See what?”
“The boy has lured the Demon away. Now we can rescue the others.”
“You forget there’s still twenty of them. Or are you going to wave your hand and make them disappear?”
“Nothing so drastic.”
I’m about to ask what he is going to do when I see the mist roll in. It’s no ordinary mist; it’s a fog the color of egg yolks. It smells worse than a couple of dozen rotten eggs too. I can hear the ruffians cough, but I can’t see them.
Merlin starts to walk into the fog. “Go and find Beaux. The mist won’t harm you.”
I want to argue, but it is Merli
n we’re talking about. So I walk into the fog. The mist might not kill me, but the smell of it is enough to make my eyes water. I have to continually wipe them as I stumble into the camp.
I trip over something. I look down and see a ruffian on the ground. I can’t tell if he’s dead or not; at this point I’m not much concerned either way.
I try to remember which tent the Demon had appeared from. But with the fog it’s impossible to tell. So I try a more aggressive approach. “Beaux? Where are you, woman?”
“I’m over here, you daft fool!” she shouts back.
“Keep shouting, love. I’ll find you.”
“You couldn’t find your arse if it were sewn to your face.”
She goes on like that until I locate the tent. I open the flap and there she is, unharmed. I take advantage of her being tied up to kiss her on the lips. “Now let’s get you out of here.”
***
Artr makes it to the top of the ridge first. He hefts the Spear of Justice. “There’s still time to surrender,” he says, full of heroic bluster.
“You talk much. Let’s see how you fight.”
The Demon breaks into a run. He has both sets of claws up to slice Artr to ribbons. For his part, the boy isn’t stupid. He ducks and rolls away. While still on his knees, he brings the spear around to smack the Demon on the back of the leg.
The Demon tumbles forward onto the ground. For his part, the Demon isn’t stupid enough to wait for Artr to run him through with the spear. He does his own roll to end up on his knees. “That was clever, boy, but it will not be enough to save you.”
Artr breaks into a run. He uses the augmented strength and speed of the armor to jump over the Demon. Or rather, he tries to; he doesn’t quite get enough height, so that the Demon rakes his claws across Artr’s left thigh.
The boy lands hard on the ground, blood streaming from the wound. He rolls onto his back. The Demon stands over him with claws ready to strike. Artr tries to stab the Demon in the gut with the spear, but the Demon swats it away. He tries to pick it up with one hand, but the spear begins to glow; the Demon hisses with pain and then drops the spear.
“One of the conjurer’s tricks,” the Demon growls. “They cannot save you. Now you will die.”
The Demon strikes.
Chapter 19: Angel & Devil, Part 2
With the Demon’s claws about to tear open his throat, young Artr does the only thing he can: he kicks the Demon. Not between the legs, which probably wouldn’t have done any good. No, he kicks the Demon in the left knee.
It’s just enough to throw the Demon’s aim off. The claws meant for Artr’s throat hit the dirt instead. The Demon crashes down to the ground beside Artr. The Scarlet Warrior punches him in the side of the head. The Demon rolls a couple feet away.
Artr scrambles to grab the spear. He’s able to grab it by the head, not caring if it cuts his hand. As the Demon regains his feet, Artr sits up. He jabs at the Demon with the Spear of Justice.
The Black Demon screams as the spear rams through his midsection. As Artr gets to his feet, he transfers more of his weight onto the spear to press it in farther. It finally comes out the other side of the Demon. The monster drops to his knees.
He takes one last swipe at Artr with his claws. The boy blocks the Demon with one arm and then delivers a solid punch with his other. The Demon collapses to the ground, where he bleeds to death like any normal man.
Artr yanks the Spear of Justice free with some effort. He stares down at the Demon in shock. It’s not the first time he’s killed a man, but this was no ordinary man. The realization of what Artr’s accomplished begins to dawn on him.
With the butt of the spear, he pushes off the Demon’s headdress. The face isn’t as ugly as Artr had imagined. There are no scars or boils or birthmarks. It’s the face of a normal man, not a monster. Artr shakes his head at the thought of an ordinary person unleashing such horror.
Behind him, someone applauds. “Very good, child. Merlin chose well.”
Artr turns around and it’s a good thing his loincloth isn’t too snug as the woman is gorgeous. She has dark copper skin with glossy black hair down to her waist. Her svelte, well-endowed body is clad in only a thin linen dress. Around her neck she wears a silver amulet with a symbol like a stick figure with its arms curving down. Her eyes are the most unnatural part of her, the irises so black they seem to pull in the light.
Since he’s only sixteen and never bedded a woman before, Artr finds himself tongue-tied. “W-who are y-you?” he stammers.
“I am Isis.”
She takes a step forward to put a hand on Artr’s shoulder. She gently massages his muscles there. “Such a strapping lad. You most certainly are the mightiest warrior in all the land, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know about that.”
“Don’t be so modest. No ordinary man could kill the Black Demon.”
“I-I guess so.”
“Now that you’ve killed him, this world is yours for the taking. None can stand against you, not even the gods themselves.” She leans forward to whisper into his ear, “Not even Merlin.”
“What? B-but Merlin is my friend.”
Isis’ laugh chills Artr to his marrow. “Friend? That schemer has no friends, only pawns he commands. Don’t let yourself be another of them.”
“I don’t understand.”
“He made you kill the Black Demon. Then he will tell you to kill me. What do you suppose he’ll do next?”
“I don’t know.”
“Merlin talks to you of darkness and light, but he confuses one with the other. I am the light, not him.”
“B-but the D-demon?”
“I sent him to bring Merlin back to me to stand trial for his crimes. Instead, the coward fled so he could recruit you to stop me.”
“No. Your Demon killed my father. He made my brother a monster.”
“Did he? None of this would have happened if he had not come to your village with that toady of his.”
“You’re lying.” Artr finally tightens his grasp on the spear. He’s going to ram it through Isis, but she’s no longer there.
Her laughter comes from a few yards away. “You fool. You can’t kill a god!”
The ground around Artr begins to shake. He has to use the Spear of Justice to steady himself as the ground heaves. Isis hovers in the air, her eyes burning red. “Now you will pay for your impudence.”
There’s a flash of light between Isis and Artr. “Isis!” Merlin roars. “Leave the boy alone.”
The ground stops shaking. Isis’ eyes return to their normal black. She laughs again. “Tired of letting others fight for you?”
“No one else will die because of our war,” Merlin says. “Let us finish it.”
“Very well. Let us finish it.”
“Not here. We will go to the Hunting Grounds. No harm will come to anyone there.”
Isis glares at Artr. “I will dispose of your master and then I will return for you.” She disappears without even a flash of light.
“Who was that?” Artr asks.
“She is the woman of darkness,” Merlin says.
“And you’re going to fight her?”
“There’s no choice. I can either go there or she’ll fight me here. It will be far safer on the Hunting Grounds.” Merlin puts a hand on Artr’s shoulder. “You’ve fought well, Artr. If I do not survive, use your wisdom and strength to guide your people. Make sure they stay in the light.”
“I will.”
Beaux and I are outside the camp with the rest of the villagers. Merlin appears before me in a flash. “It’s time for me to go and face Isis.”
“By yourself? Let me go with you—”
“This isn’t your fight, Marlin. You’re needed here. Help Artr. He’s still young.”
“I will, my master.”
He smiles at Beaux. “Make sure Marlin doesn’t run into any trouble.”
“I’m the only one he needs to worry about,” Beaux says, but she smiles
.
“Farewell, my friends.”
Then he’s gone.
Chapter 20: The Temptation of Merlin
The Hunting Grounds are reserved only for Isis and her minions. As you might guess, they don’t hunt rabbit, deer, or even boars there. Most of the time they hunt that most elusive target: men. Other times, Isis conjures some horrific beast for the Black Demon to practice on.
Merlin had witnessed enough of these hunts to realize his master was a psychotic monster. He had vowed not to return to the Hunting Grounds again. Yet now he stands on the central plain, surrounded by the scrubby forests and mountains of Isis’ playground.
The woman herself stands in front of him with a haughty grin. “Welcome back,” she says.
“I won’t be here long.”
“No, of course not. It won’t take long to destroy you.” Her grin widens. “But why bother with such destruction? Why not rejoin me? Then we can finish what we began.”
“Enslaving the world? I have no interest in that.”
“Come now, Merlin, what do you think this will accomplish? It was a worthy attempt, but we both know you can’t kill a god.”
“You’re not a god. You’re only a vain woman who sold her soul to satisfy her lust for beauty and power.”
“After all this time you still pine for Nephthys? How pathetic.”
“She was a beautiful girl, much more so than her mother. That’s why you had to kill her. You couldn’t stand the thought she might eclipse you.”
Isis’ eyes narrow. “That hook-nosed little wretch could never have eclipsed me. But she did bewitch you, didn’t she?” Isis’s smirk returns. “I can bring her back, just the way you remember. You can be reunited.”
“Whatever you conjure might look like Nephthys, but it will not be her. It will only be another of your soulless abominations.”
“Perhaps. But I’m certain if we combine our power, we can bring her back.”
People nowadays especially like to think of my master as this otherworldly person, some kind of demigod. It’s true he does have the power of a demigod, but his heart is just like any man’s. He thinks of Nephthys, the beautiful young daughter of Isis.
Tales of the Scarlet Knight Collection: The Call Page 86