by Cliff McNish
Morpeth sat in front of her, but not the wrinkled old dwarf Rachel knew. He was a tall young man, with curly thick hair and radiant blue eyes.
Morpeth gasped at his reflection in the mirror, pinching his face as if it were a mask. He blinked rapidly and his new blue eyes blinked back.
‘You look very handsome now,’ said the table.
‘How did you do this?’ he marvelled. ‘You should not be able to change someone else. Only Dragwena has that power.’
‘I don’t know,’ she said.
‘Imagine you’re Rachel again. Change yourself back,’ Morpeth said firmly.
‘You told me only Dragwena can do that.’
‘That’s what I used to believe. Now I am certain you can do it.’
Rachel knew what was needed at once. She saw herself as a girl again, wearing the soft leather of the Sarren. It was somehow easier than before. She did not even need to concentrate. Rachel walked confidently across the room to the mirror. A girl with large green eyes, a sharp nose and a small beauty spot on her left cheek peered back.
‘I did it!’
Morpeth’s jaw dropped open. Then he gazed at his own handsome face in the mirror, pulling faces to see his new expressions.
But Rachel had not finished. Suddenly ideas were occurring to her which even Morpeth could not have conceived. She pictured another Rachel in the room, placing it behind him. It stood there, as rigid as a plastic doll. She made it step forward. It moved stiffly, like a robot. Rachel concentrated harder, gave it bones, ligaments and muscles that could move flexibly, like a real person. She made the second Rachel stretch out its arms and place small fingers around Morpeth’s ears.
He gasped, jumping away.
‘Which one is me?’ asked both girls at the same time.
Rachel smiled and the fake girl smiled too.
Morpeth stared at both of them. At first they seemed identical. As he looked more closely he noticed that one of the girls had a slightly bland appearance. He grinned confidently at Rachel. ‘You are the real one.’
Rachel could also see the differences. She made the bland expression disappear.
‘Which one is Rachel now?’ asked both girls.
Morpeth studied each child closely. He touched their cheeks. He felt their hair. He picked them up. They were the same weight – Rachel had even considered that. Eventually, he shrugged.
‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘I can’t tell which is real. You both look real.’
Rachel giggled and wished the second Rachel to vanish. It disappeared at once.
Morpeth sat down heavily on a chair, and they stared in silence at each other.
‘I – I don’t know what to say,’ he said. ‘The things you are doing should not be possible. I have no idea how you’ve done them.’
‘I can teach you,’ Rachel said. ‘It’s not hard.’
Morpeth rubbed his handsome new chin. ‘I am supposed to be teaching you,’ he grunted. ‘I see instead I have much to learn! I think—’
A noise from the bed distracted them both. It was Eric, talking in his sleep.
‘He must be dreaming,’ said Rachel.
‘Shush! Listen to what he’s saying.’
Eric twisted in the bed. ‘Fifteen,’ he said. ‘Left. Eight. Right. Four. Left. Six. Left. Two.’ He continued to say the strange numbers.
‘What’s he muttering?’ Rachel asked. ‘It sounds like a weird dream.’
‘It’s not a dream!’ Morpeth jumped up. ‘It is the way to this room through the corridors and doors. Dragwena is coming.’
‘What do you mean?’ Rachel cried. ‘You said Dragwena wouldn’t be able to find us?’
‘Don’t you see?’ he said. ‘The Witch has tricked us all. She was alone with your brother for several hours. She must have planted a finding spell within him!’
Rachel put her hand across Eric’s mouth. Still asleep, possessing extraordinary strength, he ripped the hand away.
‘Right. Four. Left. Six. Right. Two.’
Rachel burst into tears. ‘Can’t we stop him?’
‘There’s no time!’
Morpeth pressed a spot on the floor and a small exit appeared in one of the walls.
‘Quick,’ he said. ‘We must leave at once!’
‘But we can’t leave Eric here,’ Rachel insisted. ‘We have to take him with us.’
‘No!’ Morpeth leapt towards the exit. ‘He is under Dragwena’s control. We can’t help him now. Come with me.’
He jumped through the exit and held out his hand.
‘I won’t go without Eric,’ Rachel shouted. ‘I’m not leaving him!’ As she tried to pick Eric up he kicked out savagely in his sleep. ‘C’mon,’ Rachel snarled. ‘You’re coming whether you want to or not!’ She dragged Eric across to the exit into Morpeth’s reluctant arms.
‘We can’t take him with us,’ Morpeth said desperately.
‘You must understand, Rachel. He’s Dragwena’s slave now! Leave, before it’s too late!’
‘Not without Eric!’
With no time to argue, Morpeth clutched Eric with one arm, reaching with the other for Rachel. ‘I’ve got him! Now follow! Hurry!’
Rachel took a step forward, but a blast of wind startled her. The main door leading to the room had been smashed open.
In the doorway stood Dragwena.
The Witch glanced at Morpeth’s escape exit, slamming it shut. Rachel heard him running away down the tunnel, calling ‘See you at Hoy Point! Hoy Point!’ as the sound of his footsteps disappeared.
Two Neutrana guards leapt into the room alongside the Witch.
‘You must open the exit,’ one said. ‘Let us kill Morpeth.’
‘No,’ Dragwena answered. ‘He can’t escape. We’ll deal with him later.’
Rachel wasted no time. She pictured herself as a sword, flying towards the Witch’s head, but before she could complete the thought Dragwena knocked her to the ground.
‘Tut, tut,’ Dragwena scoffed. ‘What nonsense has Morpeth been teaching you? My magic is stronger than anything he knows. Do you think you can challenge me, child? Did you believe I would ever allow you to escape?’
‘I won’t let you use me to harm anyone,’ shouted Rachel. ‘You’ll have to kill me first, Witch. My magic’s getting stronger. I can fight you now!’
With two fingers Dragwena wrenched Rachel from the floor, as if she weighed nothing.
‘Soon you will want to be with me forever,’ Dragwena said. ‘You will not want to fight. You will forget everyone else. I will suck them all from your mind.’
‘I hate you!’ Rachel struggled to free herself. ‘You brought us here, didn’t you? The black claws in the cellar were yours!’
The Witch smiled appreciatively. ‘I am indeed the claws and many other things unspoken on this world. None of this will matter soon. I will change you into my own creature.’ She stroked Rachel’s hair. ‘You will kill lots of children and, I promise, you will enjoy it.’
Tucking Rachel under her arm the Witch flew rapidly from the room and along the corridor. All the doors opened before her. Rachel tried to imagine herself by the shore of Lake Ker again. Each time she did so a wave of pain smashed her mind, scattering her thoughts. The Witch would not let her concentrate for a second.
Within moments they were out of the corridors and into Worraft, through the entrance and heading upwards. Freezing wind struck Rachel’s face and she realized she was outside. The stars shot past her head. She arched her back and looked up. Ahead, the luminous green window of the eye-tower raced towards them.
12
The Kiss Breath
After Dragwena shut the escape exit Morpeth ran for his life carrying Eric, still half-asleep, down the narrow tunnel. A few moments later he stopped to listen, holding his breath, expecting to be chased by Dragwena and an army of Neutrana. Hearing nothing, he collapsed on the floor, safe for a moment at least.
You fool, he raged at himself, thumping the wall. You were supposed to protect
her. Now Dragwena has Rachel and you will never get her back!
Eric, now wide awake, watched him fearfully.
‘What happened?’ he asked. ‘Where’s Rachel?’
Morpeth pressed his thumbs against Eric’s temple, but felt no trace of Dragwena’s magic left inside. The spell Dragwena planted, he now understood, must have been shallow, snapping as soon as Eric awakened. Morpeth groaned. Why hadn’t he thought to check the boy properly earlier? Eric was the perfect spy, a neat snare leading Dragwena to Rachel and the Sarren. All along, he thought, perhaps long before Rachel arrived, Dragwena must have recognized his treachery. The Witch had used Rachel and Eric to flush out the secret locations of the Sarren, trapping them together under the Palace – a place they could easily be slaughtered.
I was too confident, he realized. I believed I could conceal my thoughts from the Witch. Rachel knew I was wrong!
He forced himself to calm down, knowing he needed help quickly if there was to be any hope of recapturing her. Picking Eric up he headed swiftly down to the deep caves where Trimak was hiding. As he got closer he heard anguished sounds – the screams of men and the ring of metal.
A fight was taking place.
Morpeth padded towards the sounds and drew his own short narrow sword. He had never used it before in a real battle. He had not bothered to sharpen it for years. Beyond a final door he could hear voices clearly now. A deep voice, Trimak’s, barked desperate orders.
‘We must go inside,’ Morpeth told Eric. ‘I may not be able to protect you if I have to fight in hand-to-hand combat. Stay behind me, close. If I’m injured you must find other Sarren to look after you as best they can. Do you understand?’
Eric nodded his head, intensely frightened.
Morpeth thought bitterly: thanks to my stupidity there is no safe place for you now, boy.
He pulled Eric against his back and put his shoulder against the door.
He gripped the haft of his sword tightly.
And leapt into the battle.
Rachel was held in the black arm-claw of the Witch, flying towards the eye-tower. A sharp wind tugged at her hair as she flew upward, the other Palace buildings disappearing below. Dragwena’s face glowed in ecstasy. She held Rachel with one bent arm; the other arm pointed in front like a gun-barrel, slicing through the night air.
Rachel knew time was running out. She tried using her magic to slide from the Witch’s grasp. But every time she began forming a spell snake-hairs burst from the Witch’s head, smothering her face, breaking her concentration.
‘Do you think your child-magic can affect a true Witch?’ said Dragwena. ‘I command all the magic on this world. Nothing you do could ever harm me.’
Rachel kicked out, thrashing helplessly in the grip of the Witch’s claw.
Dragwena soared upward, the green window of the eye-tower looming. They flew straight into the glass. Rachel expected to be cut to pieces. But the glass did not shatter. It simply liquefied for a second as they entered.
Once they were inside Dragwena threw Rachel down on the floor. She bled slightly where the Witch’s nails had dug into her back. She ignored the pain, glancing towards the window, ready to leap out, but the thick green glass had reformed.
There was a timid knock on the door.
‘Enter,’ growled Dragwena.
Three Neutrana soldiers hesitantly set foot in the room and bowed.
‘What news of Morpeth?’ asked Dragwena.
‘There is no news of the scum yet,’ said one of the men. ‘He can’t hide for long. Our men are fighting the remaining Sarren. We have ten times their number. Guards are placed on all the cave exits. We are hunting them down, one by one.’
Dragwena rubbed her hands, her expression gleeful.
‘Kill them all,’ she said. ‘I want every single rebel found and destroyed. Burn their bodies. Round up their families, along with anyone suspected of helping them. There will be no more Sarren.’ She spat at the Neutrana soldier. ‘I will teach your people a lesson they will never forget!’
He nodded uneasily and turned to leave.
‘Wait!’ snapped Dragwena. ‘Tell your men there will be a special reward if Morpeth’s head is brought to me before the end of the day. I want the traitor found. If I read the child before me correctly, he will be taller than anyone you have seen before, handsome, with – ah! – bright blue eyes. Ensure they are torn out while he’s still alive.’
The Witch relaxed slightly, put her arms by her side, and indicated Rachel. ‘Listen closely,’ she hissed. ‘The girl and I are not to be distracted for the next hour. Inform your guards and my servants. Under no circumstances must we be disturbed.’
As soon as the Neutrana soldiers left the Witch leapt across the room and slapped Rachel hard across the face.
‘Now, child,’ she said. ‘There have been enough games played with Morpeth and his friends. They will all soon be dead, if they are not already. I have delayed long enough. It’s time to turn you into something more useful.’
Rachel dragged herself away across the chamber.
Dragwena followed her in a leisurely way. ‘I think we should improve your appearance,’ she said. ‘Where should we start? Those small teeth of yours, perhaps.’
All four jaws of the Witch lunged at Rachel.
Morpeth dashed through the doorway. The cave was full of armed Neutrana, trained soldiers of the Witch. A few lay dead on the cave floor, but the number of dead or wounded Sarren were much greater – they had not expected a fight and most had no weapons. The Neutrana, knowing no mercy, were tearing them to pieces. Trimak stood in a defensive line with the small group of Sarren who did possess swords. Morpeth saw dozens of fresh Neutrana troops entering the cave from both ends.
‘Over here!’ he barked. ‘There is an escape route!’
‘What?’ said Trimak, squinting in the dim cave light while trying to fight. ‘Who are you?’
‘Morpeth! Trust your instinct!’
Trimak looked at the man – not Morpeth, though it spoke with his harsh voice.
‘It is me,’ Morpeth shouted. ‘Rachel changed my appearance!’
Trimak uncertainly ordered the Sarren to follow the stranger.
The few Sarren who were not already cut off followed the command at once, dashing across the cave. A great roar of alarm came from the Neutrana and they surged towards Morpeth. Four heavily armed Sarren fought furiously to keep them back.
‘You go!’ one cried to Trimak. ‘We’ll hold them off for as long as we can.’
‘No, Grimwold,’ Trimak shouted. ‘We must all leave! Now is not the time to sacrifice your life.’
‘If this is not a good time, then what is?’ Grimwold bellowed. A Neutrana blade cut deeply into his cheek. He ignored it, screaming at the Witch’s soldiers. ‘Come on then, try your best! I’ll fight you all!’
‘Follow your orders!’ Trimak commanded.
The last Sarren slipped through the doorway opened by Morpeth. Once they had escaped Grimwold lifted his free arm, making a slashing movement above his head.
Instantly his own men leapt towards the door.
Trimak drew it shut. Inside the narrow tunnel were eight Sarren left with Morpeth, Eric and Trimak. All the other Sarren were dead or had escaped elsewhere. The survivors sat in exhaustion, breathing heavily, some noticing their injuries for the first time now the battle had ceased. From the cave the Neutrana hurled their bodies at the door.
‘It will not take them long to break through,’ murmured one of the Sarren.
Trimak turned to Morpeth. ‘If you are really Morpeth,’ he said, ‘you will be able to seal the door.’
Morpeth opened his right palm towards the entrance, slowly melting the stonework until hardened rock smothered the doorway.
Even Grimwold, who was not easily impressed, looked in surprise at the sandy-haired man. ‘The Morpeth I know is an ugly old devil,’ he said. ‘You must tell us who made you so handsome. I’d like to pay them a visit!’
; ‘Where’s Rachel?’ asked Trimak.
‘Dragwena found us,’ said Morpeth. ‘I couldn’t stop her.’
‘Then we must recapture the girl!’ barked Grimwold. ‘Does this tunnel lead anywhere?’
‘It leads to many places,’ said Morpeth. ‘Most of the exits will be guarded. However, there is one route only I and Dragwena know about. It leads directly to the eye-tower. If we act quickly I think a small group could reach it.’
‘The Witch’s guards will be swarming about the eye-tower,’ Trimak protested. ‘Particularly at a time like this.’
‘I doubt there will be many,’ said Morpeth. ‘The last thing Dragwena will suspect is an attack now. Especially an attack against her. Most of the Neutrana soldiers are still in the caves. There are probably few in the Palace itself.’
‘What are we waiting for?’ said Grimwold. ‘I have wanted to kill that hag for so long.’
‘Our aim must be to free Rachel,’ Morpeth said. ‘Dragwena would relish a direct fight. Somehow we must distract her.’
‘Perhaps the Witch will be leading the battle in the caves,’ suggested one of the Sarren.
Morpeth said quietly, ‘No. Dragwena knows that battle is already won. She will work on Rachel immediately. The dream-sleep will already have half-prepared the child. Rachel did not have nearly enough time with me to develop her defences. It won’t take the Witch long to break her.’
The Sarren picked up their weapons and solemnly made their way up the winding tunnel.
*
Inside the eye-tower Dragwena smiled at Rachel.
Then she took a narrow pointed blade from her dress and jabbed Rachel’s palm.