by SJB Gilmour
‘What did you see?’ asked several people at once.
Sarah padded over to one of the cleaner half-barrels of water. ‘Abeos!’ she commanded the Magaeic word for “change.”
On the smooth surface of the water appeared a detailed map of a labyrinth Cromwell had dug under the maze.
‘If I was Mautallius,’ Penethelia assessed, ‘I’d have those tunnels packed with demons. The maze above is a trap. It’ll be difficult to penetrate certainly, but not impossible. Whoever designed it is counting on an attacking army doing just that. They’ll be vulnerable to attack from below.’
‘Not now,’ Jasper growled. His eyes glinted hungrily. ‘We’ll spring the trap alright, but if we’ve got a force underneath to rout the ambushers, the advantage will be ours.’
Mel agreed. The prospect of fighting below ground where it wasn’t as bright appealed to her greatly. Sunlight still hurt her eyes and sapped her energy. ‘I’ll lead my Nightcorps through those caves,’ she told everyone at the table. She nodded at Tor and Ronny. ‘You two follow and mop up.’
Ronny grinned. ‘At least now we have another map.’ He twisted in his chair and looked up at Tor. ‘No balls of string for us, eh Herdmaster?’
‘I’ll take my troops over the top,’ Sarah added. ‘We’ll go first.’ Next she turned to Jasper, Jerrit and James in turn. ‘Then you three move in afterwards.’ She turned to O’Brien. ‘You and the Silver Shrouds follow The Nightcorps underneath. Kill everything that moves. Then let the minotaurs and gnomes come after you.’
‘What about us?’ Maddy asked.
Sarah shrugged. ‘We’ll be dealing mostly with crabs and demons, but Mautallius has a lot of Guild sorcerers that he’s charmed. You’ll need to get to them. Only you guys are fast enough.’
‘And us?’ Princess Elizabetha queried.
Mel looked at the wraith seriously. ‘How many have you got?’
‘Several covens. Some two thousand individuals. Mostly we are succubi, but there are a few vampires.’
Mel nodded. ‘Help the quicklings. You’re no use against demons, but those Guild sorcerers are another matter.’
Elizabetha nodded, her dark eyes gleaming with wicked, hungry delight.
The image in the barrel changed. It was a scene as though Thrag had been spying on two people from shadows. One of the figures was immediately recognisable.
‘What was Thrag doing spying on Guntex?’ Ronny wondered aloud. ‘And who’s that with him?’
Sarah knew who it was. The other person, an athletic girl about her age with shiny blonde hair and a cruel, haughty expression, was someone she knew only too well.
‘Mandy Kelly,’ she murmured.
‘Who?’ Penethelia demanded.
‘A lycanthrope,’ Sarah replied. Then she explained to everyone who Mandy was and how she had become a lycanthrope. Then the image faded and the water was clear once more.
‘A lycanthrope, even one trained to be a nunjuxu and turned by a Golden Mane, shouldn’t be that much of a threat,’ Penethelia assessed.
Sarah wasn’t so sure. She’d all but forgotten about Mandy and now the thought of her getting involved just seemed to make things worse. She couldn’t afford to let the matter dominate her thoughts however. If Penethelia wasn’t too concerned about one lycanthrope, that was fine by her. She knew the other horrors Mautallius planned to unleash would be the main concern.
‘But the demons in those tunnels will be,’ she replied. ‘There are going to be a lot of casualties.’ She looked at Amelia. ‘You’ll be running the hospital?’
Amelia stood and introduced herself to those who didn’t know her. Then she nodded at Sarah. ‘Yes, Your Majesty. I’ve got the Bodabayo hospital cleared and ready. You’ll have to have triage units closer to the field—’
‘We’ll handle that,’ General Sally assured her.
‘And we’ll have elevators on standby to transport the wounded to you,’ Laurence promised.
Amelia nodded gratefully. ‘That just leaves our security. Our hospital is remote. The town’s been cleared of civilians thanks to Klaus the fire giant. He’s stirred up another eruption in his volcano, but we’re vulnerable.’
Sarah turned to Penethelia. ‘Your Majesty, I don’t want you or your regular troops on that island.’
‘What?’ Penethelia demanded.
‘I need you to guard this place and Amelia’s hospital. The Gilded Warrioresses are the only Amazons I want fighting on that island.’
King Roger and Jerrit protested this. They didn’t like the idea that their troops would be fighting on the front line while the Amazons enjoyed the relative safety of protecting a hospital and a farm.
Sarah listened to them for about thirty seconds, then she stood up on all four paws and growled at them. ‘It’s about numbers. I’ve already taken three hundred and fifty Amazons from the ranks. That’s about a tenth of the entire outfit. You guys have a lot more troops. Simple as that.’
Penethelia wasn’t happy either. Sarah turned to her, not smiling. ‘You’ve already been shot once on my family’s behalf, Your Majesty.’
‘But Apollo gave me an order—’
‘He said for you to aid me!’ Sarah thundered. Her eyes blazed and her coat shimmered as though it was on fire. ‘If I tell you aiding me is protecting this home base and the rest of the wounded, that’s what you’ll do!’
Penethelia responded immediately, saluting smartly. ‘Aye, Ma’am!’
Everyone present at the table did their best not to look directly at Penethelia as Sarah effectively pointed out again that she, not Penethelia, was now completely in charge.
Sarah sat back down and allowed her coat and eyes to return to normal. She turned to Benjamin. ‘McConnell,’ she told him quite formally, ‘you stay out of those tunnels. In fact, I want you to stay here for the entire thing. This is now our base and you’re running it.’ She nodded at Aunt Roberta and Uncle Robert. ‘You too. You protected me long enough. It’s time I protected you. Also I want you to make sure that if demons do show up here, you don’t let McConnell anywhere near them.’
Aunt Roberta didn’t say anything. She simply wagged her tail a few times. She wasn’t happy to learn she wasn’t going to be involved in the fight, but she wasn’t about to complain either.
Benjamin did complain however. He whined bitterly.
‘I’ll stay with you,’ Jeff offered. He stood and nodded politely to Benjamin. ‘They call me The Smith of Ages. I’m the one who wrote what you call The Babylonian Heresies. Whatever happens in this fight, I’ve got a feeling it’ll also be the end of me. If that’s true, I may as well go out doing something useful.’
Benjamin looked at the old goblin curiously. ‘I don’t know what you think you’ll be able to do. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do.’
Mel stood up. ‘Right. Now you know what we’re going to do and you know what you have to do.’
‘That’s it?’ Roger asked, his grey face even more pale than normal. ‘You’re attacking now?’
Mel nodded. She could feel the movements of Earth’s moon, planets in the solar system and the stars beyond even more clearly now. ‘The convergence is close. Very close. It’s about an hour before dawn on Cromwell’s island, and that’s just next door to Conundrum. The perfect time for attack.’
Sarah wagged her tail in agreement. ‘I’ve just got to get my Gilded Warrioresses.’
‘And I’ll get my Nightcorps,’ Mel said. ‘We’ll call you once we get there.’
Sarah stopped wagging her tail and growled in a low tone that was deadly serious. ‘Then everyone attacks. All at once. We want as much fighting as possible. The more of Mautallius’ troops he commits to fighting The Armies of Nine, the fewer he can throw at us,’ she said meaning herself and Melanie. ‘And the faster we can get to the top of that tower.’
Roger gulped. ‘I’m not sure we can be ready in that time.’
Mel growled and began to glow hot again. Her eyes flashed with cold white ligh
t. ‘The closer he gets to finishing those rites, the stronger he gets, and the closer my parents and brother are to being killed. That’s not going to happen.’
‘I know some of you wanted more time, but we’re clearing that maze today,’ Sarah commanded everyone. ‘Once we’ve taken the outer island and main building on The Nonagon, Mel and I climb that tower. The fight won’t be over then, though. Mautallius will still be throwing everything he has at us.’ She glared around at the table. ‘You all know what to do, so get ready. We’ll be in touch as soon as we’ve removed whatever protection Mautallius has put around the island. Then you’ll be able to join us.’
Roger gulped and sat back, worried. Generals Kilnmacher and Quarry weren’t so fussed.
‘Our troops will be ready within the hour, Your Majesty,’ Kilnmacher assured Sarah, and rose to leave.
Sarah stepped down from the table and padded to an empty spot on the floor. A shimmering portal appeared before her. She nodded at Mel. ‘See you on the island,’ she said and leapt through the portal to Lentekhi.
Mel nodded at her and then marched through her own portal to Exlam.
While the rest of the leaders and soldiers at the table began to disperse, James beckoned to Ronny and Maddy. The two hurried over to him curiously. He didn’t say anything. Instead he showed them the parchment he’d scribbled on during the meeting. Ronny grinned wickedly then trotted off. Maddy flashed him a very appreciative smile and kissed him lightly on the cheek before she too disappeared.
Chapter Twenty-two
Sarah and Mel arrived on the shores of the island which, for thousands of years had been hidden by Oliver Cromwell’s enchantments. Now it, and Cromwell’s own island just across the water, were both clearly visible, and both seemed deserted. It was early morning, and the sunlight was warm and the air oddly calm and peaceful. Both girls knew that would change very soon.
‘No welcoming committee?’ Sarah asked dryly.
‘They’re here,’ Mel replied curtly. ‘Mautallius has put up some kind of illusion about the place but it’s not as strong as Cromwell’s was. I can see straight through it.’
Indeed she could. Her ability to see the glow of silver through any object, real or enchanted, was proving to be very handy.
Sarah sniffed several times. Mel was right. She could detect all manner of horrid evil scents, not to mention the acrid smell of ammonia that came from the soldier crabs she knew were in the corridors of the maze in front of them.
‘What do you say we unveil this place,’ Mel suggested.
Sarah nodded. ‘Then we bring in the troops.’ She changed into her human form, armed in her golden Amazon armour. She unfastened the brace on her left wrist to reveal the silver outer piece of The Star of Planes. ‘Guess you’ll be needing this.’
Mel nodded and she too opened her brace to show the golden inner coin of The Star.
Both girls reached out to take the others’ piece. As they’d done the last time they’d held them, they sat in their palms for a moment, then sank into their hands as though their flesh was liquid.
Mel’s eyes widened as she flexed her fingers and clenched and unclenched her fist a few times.
Sarah did the same. ‘It’s not like last time,’ she remarked. ‘I can feel it, but now that I can, you know, do stuff with gold, it’s like it’s a part of me that’s always meant to be there.’ The piece of gold inside her hand had completely melted into her flesh and blood, and was now circulating throughout her system, though the enchantments were still there, right in the palm of her hand.
Mel nodded and concentrated on her palm for a moment. Her silver outer piece emerged from within herself, fully intact and gleaming white of newly polished silver. Then she let it sink back into herself again.
‘Why didn’t Demeter tell us how to do that before?’ Sarah asked.
Mel shrugged. ‘Maybe we were supposed to find out by ourselves? But I didn’t really, even then. Apollo had to help me work it out.’
Sarah grinned, relieved to see both she and her best friend had needed help from gods to learn the nature of gold and silver. ‘Hades and Wolfenvald taught me, but I haven’t done much of it yet. Not like you.’
Mel grinned tightly. ‘It’s pretty easy once you get the hang of it.’
Both girls grinned at each other for a few moments, then they remembered just why they were there.
‘You ready?’ Sarah asked her best friend. She resumed her Golden Mane werewolf shape and faced the direction of The Nonagon.
Mel nodded, clenching her jaw, her fangs locking together tightly.
Together the two girls stood on the sandy beach. Sarah drew in as much power as she could, which was an awful lot. Her eyes glowed like molten gold and her coat blazed in the sunlight.
Mel also drew in her own power. While Sarah glowed a hot yellow, she gleamed white, also very hot. The bright daylight was stabbing at her eyes, but she knew she wouldn’t be out in it for much longer.
‘On three,’ Sarah snarled.
They both counted down slowly, then as one, commanded the spells Mautallius had erected to ‘Annullarikus!’
There was a shimmering all over the island and tower for a moment, then the illusion washed away. With the clear view of the maze and its horrid crustacean inhabitants, also came the cries and growls of Mautallius’ demons, of which there appeared to be hundreds of thousands. They lined atop the walls of the maze and massed in the sandy circle of cleared land between the maze and the tower.
Mel took her yellow crystal ball and peered into it at the waiting leaders of each of The Armies of Nine. She held it down to about chest-high so Sarah could also look into the gleaming enchanted sphere.
‘Now!’ Sarah commanded them. The nine leaders didn’t wait to be told twice. Siouxanne launched out of sight, while Jax and Jerrit turned and marched away. Maddy disappeared instantly. Ronny scurried off towards his troops while James put his fingers in his mouth and gave a loud wolf-whistle. Silver Shroud O’Brien loped off and General Apex of Mel’s Nightcorps clanged one gauntleted claw to his breastplate, grinning hideously. Captain Jenny tilted her head back and gave a piercing Amazon war cry, then she too ran out of sight. Cassandra and Tor nodded grimly and walked out of view of the ball. The only ones left were Benjamin McConnell, Aunt Roberta and Uncle Robert.
‘Good luck,’ Benjamin whined briefly. Then all three turned and loped away.
Then everything seemed to happen at once. As one, the demons and crabs all noticed Sarah and Mel and immediately began rushing towards them with wicked murderous hunger. Overhead, the sky seemed to explode as gleaming dragons of every colour began appearing out of thin air. The great reptiles dived down at the rushing monsters, engulfing them with wave after wave of fire.
Guided by swooping dragons upon which rode goblins in heavy leather flying gear and equipped with brass telescopes, the Ottispuscheshuffen Brothers’ elevators began appearing just above crabs and demons in the maze corridors. The solid metal machines then dropped down the next few metres, crushing everything — demon or crab — beneath them. The shiny and very foul-tempered machines opened their doors to unleash squad after squad of The Imperial Guardslins of Jildere.
Around the edges of the maze, pack after pack of werewolves appeared and immediately launched into the battle. At one wide section of the beach, a huge portal appeared and Kevin the rock giant arrived. The great monster shambled towards the maze and began hammering it with his fists. Within moments he had opened a huge hole into the labyrinth underneath. He stepped aside to let Mel lead her Nightcorps, and O’Brien lead the Silver Shrouds, into the underground tunnels. Once they were inside, Cassandra and Tor led in the minotaurs, who were followed by Ronny and his gnomes.
The noise of the battle grew steadily with the sounds of metal against metal and flesh, the thunderous impacts of the elevators and the howls, screams and cries of the combatants on both sides. Next James appeared out of Kevin’s portal and waved at his mish-mash of mercenaries to follow
him.
The tales of the battle would be told and re-told for thousands of years. Up above, The Profiteers, All The Men of Jilde, The Lightning Ones and The Gilded Warrioresses followed the blazing Golden Mane and most of The Renegades of Wolfenvald into a battle the likes of which had never been seen before on Earth.
Below ground, The Nightsmith ran full speed through the tunnels, hacking and blasting every kind of wretched demon and monster imaginable. Most in her way simply perished immediately. Those which survived to fall wounded onto the floor, only lasted moments longer as The Nightcorps and O’Brien’s Silver Shrouds, who made up the rest of The Renegades of Wolfenvald, fell upon them with fanatical savagery. Once they had cleared a tunnel of the demons lurking within it, The Horned Herd and The Halfling Hunters filed in to hold it clear so no more foul beasts could emerge and attack from the rear. Whenever possible, they broke through the tunnel ceilings to the maze above them to give their aid to those fighting above.
But, it was not an easy battle. Many of the hideous demons were neither crushed by falling elevators or rent by fanatical goblins, rabid werewolves or howling mercenaries. Even the regular werewolves could do little against them. In such fights, many of the Silver and Golden Shrouds had to join forces to surround the demons, while necromancers from the werewolf and goblin ranks exorcised them. This left them vulnerable to attack from soldier crabs and Guild sorcerers. As formidable as The Armies of Nine were, the lines of wounded at Amelia’s triage unit on the beach grew steadily.
Leading the charge over and through the maze, Sarah in her blazing Golden Mane werewolf form, cut a great opening through the mass of demons in her way. Crabs snapped at her with claws which only broke off or burned away on contact. Demons lashed out with all manner of hideous appendages, from tentacles to pincers, spiked tails to gaping maws. None fared any better. Those not incinerated on the spot were torn to shreds in her furious jaws. That opening was immediately filled by her un-killable Golden Shroud Amazons who were followed by the rest of the allies.
The sheer ferocity and deadly effectiveness of Sarah’s attack spurred Isaacs’ Irregulars, dubbed The Profiteers by The Babylonian Heresies, and Jerrit’s All The Men of Jilde, to attack the kinds of foes they’d normally never have dared face.