“They… must… return… to… their… home, Lodren,” said Faylore, emphasising each word.
Lodren sighed, “You’re right,” he said. “It was just nice to not be afraid for once.”
“We are all afraid, Lodren. It is the truly brave ones that keep it to themselves. The brave ones such as you,” she said, comforting him. “Now let’s have that lunch you promised us.”
***
Returning to the skies, Lodren did his best to curb his enthusiasm, but failed… dismally. He roared and sang at the top of his voice, pausing occasionally as Faylore told him to shush, but the pauses lasted no longer than a few minutes before he resumed with his battle cries and war songs. It was with great relief that, many hours later, they spied Reiggan Fortress far off in the distance.
“We’ll be there within the hour,” Fireweigh informed them, raising his voice slightly for fear of it being drowned out by the raucous chanting of Lodren.
Grubb tugged at Faylore’s sleeve to get her attention, “When we land, can I punch him?” he pleaded. “Go on, just once, just a little tap. I won’t hurt ‘im… much, honest.”
Faylore sighed and rolled her eyes.
They landed in the deserted courtyard of Reiggan. It was a large area, or at least it had always seemed to be. Now, housing two fully-grown dragons, it appeared far less spacious than it once had.
“It seems that our friends had a pressing engagement,” noted Faylore.
“Does that mean they didn’t want to wait an’ buggered off without us?” asked Grubb, his brow furrowed.
“It means that they could not wait for us, not that they never wanted to,” said Faylore, correcting him.
“That’s alright, whichever way they went, it won’t take long for us to catch up with them now we have our dragon friends with us,” announced Lodren, his chest puffed up like a peacock.
Faylore peered at him, “But our friends are not coming with us are they, Lodren? Our friends are returning to their home.”
“Maybe they could take us just a little further. You wouldn’t mind, would you, Thelwynn?”
Lord Thelwynn looked down at the Nibby. Faylore was dreading his response, he seemed as intoxicated by their synergy as Lodren was, but he was also no fool. Dragons have exceptional hearing and, unintentionally of course, he had listened to the conversation between them earlier that day.
“I am afraid I must leave you, Lodren. Our journey together was one that I shall not soon forget, but I fear that we must part company. We shall meet again I’m sure, for now, I bid you a fond farewell.”
Thelwynn launched himself into the air, followed closely by Fireweigh and the pair disappeared into the clouds within seconds.
“Now them pair ‘ave buggered off ‘an all. Looks like it’s just the three of us again. Are we goin’ after Jared straightaway? I got to be honest, I could do with a bit of a kip first, but if you say we leave right away, Faylore, that’s fine by me.”
Faylore hardly heard him, she was too busy staring intently at Lodren.
“They’ve gone. Just like that. He never even took the saddle off, he just… left me behind,” said the Nibby, agog at what had happened.
“Don’t you worry, Lodren. If ye want to fuss over a pet, I’ll let ye take care ‘o Buster. Or ‘ad ye forgotten ‘e was with us?”
Lodren never answered, he simply stood there staring into the clouds, a faint hope that the dragons may return, stirring in his mind.
“Ye can brush ‘im and feed ‘im if ye like,” added Grubb.
“Yeah… if you like,” said Lodren, dreamily, “I’ll build a fire and cook it for you.”
Grubb recoiled in horror.
“I’m sure he didn’t mean that,” Faylore laughed. “Lodren. LODREN,” she shouted to get him to pay attention.
He turned to face her, still only half listening, “Yes?” he replied.
“Go and have a quick look around inside to make sure no-one was left behind, will you?”
Lodren nodded and strolled off, following Faylore’s instruction reluctantly.
“Are we leaving right away then?” asked Grubb.
“There seems no reason for us to remain. I know you are fatigued but you can sleep on your pony for a while, the route is quite flat for a distance,” she replied.
“And dry, remember?”
“We managed well enough. Pack a few more water skins if you feel we may need them. We must travel the route much faster than last time.”
Lodren returned and shook his head, “Nobody here,” he muttered.
They set off, making much better time than their friends had. Faylore, with her long legs, strode ahead; Buster carrying Grubb, had no problem keeping up with her; and Lodren, although a little forlorn, simply lowered his head and ploughed onward. He was, after all, of a nomadic breed that was used to rough terrain.
But, unbeknownst to them, they were being watched.
“I was correct, as usual. This is the only route open to them. All we need to do is follow them, Korbah. They will lead us straight to Karrak and when our opportunity arises, we shall kill them all.”
“Great idea, Ramah,” hissed Korbah. “Last time we tried that we ended up tied up in a dungeon.”
“Do I detect a little doubt in your tone, my friend?”
“I ain’t your friend! All my real friends are dead, ‘cause of followin’ you!”
“I see,” said Ramah. “Firstly, we were not in a dungeon and secondly, your friends followed me willingly. I am not your enemy, Korbah. Every ill deed that has been done to us and our kind can be laid firmly at the feet of the sorcerer Karrak and his brother. It is the Dunbar name that is responsible for our downfall, that is why we must take our revenge.”
“You’d better be right this time,” growled Korbah. “If you’re not, I’ll kill you meself.”
***
“I can’t believe it! It’s ridiculous, I mean, Alex wouldn’t have the guts to torture someone, it’s not like him at all.”
“Harley, I know you don’t want to accept it, but the overwhelming evidence cannot be argued with,” said Yello.
“What evidence? A vague description and the fact that they were wizards? Hardly damning, is it?”
“You seem to be overlooking the obvious, my young friend,” said Emnor. “He was using his wand. You four are the only wizards that I have met who use them.”
“So, in conclusion, it had to be them,” sighed Yello.
“Not necessarily,” Jared said suddenly. “They’re not the only ones who use them.”
“What!” exclaimed Yello. “How do you know?”
“See, I told you it couldn’t have been Alex and Xarran!” protested Harley.
“It was a few years ago,” continued Jared, “Hannock, you remember, don’t you? There were reports around the local villages of a young man terrorising the villagers and attacking anyone who refused to meet his demands. When we caught up with him, he tried to kill us, wounded me quite badly actually. If it hadn’t been for Grubb, who knows what might have happened. He was armed with a wand.”
“Was it like ours?” asked Harley.
“Oh no, nothing as elaborate as the ones you forged. It was just a carved wooden stick that he used to cast poison spells, made a real mess of the one chap as memory serves.”
“Do you remember when we first arrived? Those guards were up for a fight until they saw our wands,” noted Drake. “They’d seen something like them before. I suggest we question them, they may have the answers we need.”
“Before we do, shouldn’t we see if we can get anything out of him?” They were still in the deserted tavern and Yello pointed toward the back of the room where Barden lay outstretched on one of the tables.
“I’m afraid that would be pointless,” said Emnor. “Despite all that he once was, his mind has gone. The most we could expect would be insane ramblings. We don’t have time to waste attempting to unravel hysterical rantings that would eventually lead to nothing. No, his body li
ves, but the Barden Oldman we knew is no more.”
“No time like the present,” said Jared, “Hannock, care to tag along?”
Hannock clutched his pewter mug to his chest, “No, not at the moment,” he replied, his eyes half closed, “I’m going to catch up with an old friend of mine.” He took another swig of ale, “A very close and dear friend,” he added with a stupid grin.
Shaking his head, Jared made for the door, followed by everyone but Hannock. They worked out their strategy before facing the guards and, reaching the fort, Drake led the way. Venturing into the dungeon, they paused as Yello fumbled through a large bunch of iron keys he had removed from a hook in the room above. It took three attempts before he finally found the key that opened the first gaol cell. The door creaked open. The guard inside scurried back to the wall as he saw Drake enter. The young wizard smiled at him. Tapping his wand against his thigh so that the guard could see it, he stooped down to face him, “We have questions for you.”
The guard began to shake, his eyes transfixed by Drake’s wand, “I’ll t-t-tell you anything, anything you want to know, ju-just don’t use that thing on me. I don’t know much, honest, only what I saw. It’s G-Ginger you should be talking to, he knows a lot more than me.”
“How do you know? I haven’t even asked you anything yet,” whispered Drake, menacingly. He was enjoying this far too much.
“Y-Yeah, I know, but he’s the captain, h-he’s bound to know more than me about everything.”
Drake held up his wand. He pointed it toward the ceiling and began slowly moving it from side to side, the guard’s eyes following it intently. “So, you’ve seen one of these before?” he asked.
The guard nodded nervously, “One of the young lads, he had one. B-but h-his was more like a gold colour,” he replied, shakily.
Drake’s brow furrowed, “Are you sure?”
The guard nodded frantically. “Yeah, I saw it clearly when he was pointing it at the beast, or I-I thought it was a beast ‘til it got up and ran off. It was an old man. Filthy he was, but when he was on the floor I would’ve sworn it was some kind of hairless dog.”
“This, Ginger. Why would he know any more than you?”
“He was talking to the two young lads when they first came into town. He tried to get them to hand over some coin like he did with you. Next thing, he’s told us to sod off and dropped his sword on the floor. That’s all I know, honest. Please sir, can I go now? I was just following orders, I’m not a bad bloke.”
“You extort money from travellers and villagers alike, and you’re ‘not a bad bloke’! If it were up to me, you’d be left to rot in here for the rest of your life,” bellowed Drake.
Jared stepped forward and placed his hand gently on Drake’s arm. Without realising, he had raised it and now held his wand inches from the guard’s face. The guard was shaking violently, tears streaming down his cheeks. “I’m not going to stop you, Drake, but if you do this you must live with it for the rest of your life. His face will haunt your dreams forever.”
Drake lowered his wand and stormed out of the cell. Locking the door behind them, they followed him upstairs.
“I thought you were going to kill him!” exclaimed Harley, “What was that all about?”
Drake glanced at them, finding it difficult to make eye contact, “You heard what he said about the wand?” he paused, expecting an enquiry, but his friends remained silent, “He said it was a golden colour. We all thought it was Alex who had gone mad, but it isn’t. Alex’s wand is almost entirely platinum, it’s Xarran’s wand that is mostly gold, I should know, I tested them all, remember?”
Emnor sank slowly onto a chair, “So it’s worse than we feared. Not only have we confirmed that it is two of our own who are guilty of these heinous atrocities, we have discovered that the one we least suspected is the ringleader in this mystery.”
“He could only have one motive,” announced Yello. All eyes were now on him, “He intends to join forces with Karrak.”
“Cobblers!” exclaimed Drake, “Why would he do that? There’s no logic to it.”
“Unfortunately, Drake, there is a definite logic to it,” began Emnor. “He believes we have no hope of defeating Karrak and thinks that joining with our enemy may ensure his safety.”
“What about Alex? He would never go along with a plan like that,” insisted Drake.
“Who knows what goes through the minds of others when they are placed in mortal peril?” asked Emnor, “I think we should have a little chat with this other fellow downstairs.”
“I’ll talk to him,” said Drake, but the rage in his eyes prompted Jared’s response.
“That won’t be necessary, Drake. I’ll take care of this one,” he said, heading toward the stairs.
“There he goes again, the hero. You can’t stand the thought of someone else making a piece of the puzzle fit, can you?” sneered Drake.
“Hold your tongue,” snapped Yello.
Jared held up his hand, “It’s alright, Yello. I’ll handle this,” He pulled up a chair and spun it around in front of Drake. Straddling it, he looked up at the young man, “Do you believe that this is some sort of game, Drake? Do you think that it matters how the puzzle is pieced together? Do you think that any one of us bears a lesser importance than the others? We are a unit, Drake. Do not forget that. Now, if you want an explanation as to why I won’t allow you to do this, then I shall give it to you. The man we must question is the captain of the so-called guard here. I doubt very much that he will be prepared to offer any information without a little… persuasion. A very strong incentive may be our only way of extracting anything useful from him.”
“I’ll make him talk, don’t worry,” growled Drake.
“Will you?” asked Jared, “What if he doesn’t, what then? He knows that we have already questioned one of his men, he’ll have heard. He knows that no harm came to him, why would he answer any of our questions? I know what guard captains are like, I have one as a best friend. They are stubborn and proud. Although the one downstairs is not in the same league as Hannock, he will not break easily.”
“He will when he sees this,” said Drake, holding up his wand.
“No, he won’t,” sighed Jared. “There is a good chance that he must be tortured. Could you do that to another man, Drake? Could you wound and inflict pain upon a soul that cannot defend itself? You’re not cut out for that, we saw it just now. You could have killed that man downstairs, but you didn’t. Leave this to me, Drake. This is a puzzle that you should leave in its box.”
Pushing past Jared, Drake stormed through the doorway and headed for the tavern.
Jared turned to face Emnor and raised his eyebrows.
“He’ll be alright,” said the old wizard, “once he’s calmed down.”
“Perhaps it might have been an idea to at least let him try,” suggested Harley.
“That would have been the worst idea, Harley. Things like this change a man. There is no going back once it is done. One day he may have to venture down such a dark path,” said Jared. “But I intend to keep you all in the light for as long as is possible.”
“Come on then, let’s get on with this,” said Yello. Reaching the top of the staircase he raised his voice. “Ginger, you’d better have some answers for us,” he bellowed, winking at Harley.
They descended the staircase.
***
Drake threw the tavern door wide open, “Give me a drink!” he yelled at the innkeeper. “Anything that will numb my brain quickly,” he added. He slumped onto the bench opposite a very tipsy, Charles Hannock. “Why do I even bother?” he shouted, “Nobody listens to a bloody word I say and, if I offer to help, Prince Perfect jumps in to steal the glory. No wonder Alex and Xarran buggered off!”
The bleary-eyed Hannock leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table to steady himself, “You shouldn’t say things like that about Jared. He’s my best friend, you know. He’s lovely when you get to know him, he’s a lovely fellow, lovel
y, lovely, lovely…”
Drake grimaced at Hannock’s statement, “How many of those have you had?” he asked, pointing at the flagon still clutched tightly in Hannock’s fist.
“Oh… a couple… maybe a few, I haven’t been counting,” replied Hannock, grinning inanely.
“Too many, if you ask me,” muttered the innkeeper.
“Well nobody did ask you, Fatty. So, shut yer face and just bring me another one,” giggled Hannock.
Drake shook his head in disbelief, “You’re absolutely slaughtered!” he exclaimed.
“Good choice of word,” said Hannock, waggling his finger. “And if you don’t listen to Jared, that’s what you’ll be… slaughtered, literally,” he sniggered. “What was I saying? Oh yes… slaughtered. I know Jared can be a bit of a pompous prig at times, but his heart is in the right place. Did I tell you he’s lovely?”
“Yes, you did, you drunken prat!” snapped Drake.
Hannock frowned, “Bit harsh, isn’t it? Anyway, all I’m trying to say is that Jared, as annoying as he can be, wants to keep you safe, wants to protect you, that’s all. What you do in life defines who you are, defines what you are. Look at me for instance. I’m a soldier, it’s all I ever wanted to be, so when Jared gives me an order, I obey. You should do the same, Drake.”
“Why? I’m not one of his soldiers he can order about. I’m a magician, I can defend myself. I don’t need his protection, anyone who messes with me will get blown to pieces!”
Hannock hiccoughed, “He’s not trying to protect you from others, you stupid man. He’s trying to protect you from yourself.”
“You really are sozzled, aren’t you? That makes no sense at all.”
Hannock’s eyes were now almost closed as he waved his hand in front of Drake’s face, “What if he allows you to do exactly what you want? Allows you to attack and kill anyone who disagrees with something you say? Worse still, what if you start to enjoy it? You could be the next Karrak in no time, then you would be the target of us and our allies.”
The Cessation of Karrak: Ascension III (The Karrak Trilogy Part Three Book 3) Page 6