Junkland (The Hoarding Book 1)

by Patrick Johns

  “O’Jahrys Grent,” Alana crossed her arms and cocked her hip, “who was it that saved you from Nadia? And besides, you need me. You won’t find the armory without my help and you know it!”

  Jahrys was about to argue, but Alana placed a finger on his lips. “Don’t worry. I’ll be by your side, always.”

  Jahrys sighed, giving in.

  “Okay, let’s get moving!” he yelled, as he put his helmet back on.

  How did the boy get to be so brave? Perhaps I should learn from him, Piller thought, as he gazed at Jahrys before following him out.

  Jahrys and Alana marched out the door, with Piller and his brothers close behind them.

  Chapter 38

  Jahrys

  A HOARDER WAS on his back, a pool of blood surrounding him on the stone floor. A knife was protruding from his neck.

  “What happened here?” asked Krist, as they all walked past the body.

  “Alana and I ran into a bit of trouble,” answered Jahrys. He began to tell the story.

  After Jahrys and Alana had left Kevrin tied up, helpless, and had taken his gear, Jahrys and Alana had taken the passageway all the way to the Castle Keep, crawling through cramped corners and other twists and turns that seemed to be a maze for Jahrys but second nature to Alana. The passageway had spat them out behind an old bookcase in the Dungeon Keeper’s quarters, where all the records of criminals and of dungeon maintenance was kept.

  When Jahrys and Alana found their feet on the rough wooden floor, they had dropped in on two Hoarders who had been caught off guard.

  One Hoarder had been sitting down behind a desk, reading a book. “What the—” He had stumbled with his Captor, which had been stuck on his hip.

  Alana, without hesitation, had leaped across the room with her sword. She swung it upwards, slicing the Hoarder’s hand off before he could fire.

  “AHHH!” Blood had sprayed out as the hand flew in the air, along with the Captor. Alana had finished the Hoarder off by shoving her sword into his stomach.

  The other Hoarder, who had been sleeping on a couch on the opposite side of the room, had woken and raised his Captor, pointing it at Alana. Jahrys had rushed forward, colliding with the Hoarder. The Hoarder had shot his Captor, but the blast had missed Alana and exploded into a bookcase on the far wall.

  Jahrys and the Hoarder were struggling on the ground. Jahrys had kept trying to peel the Captor from the Hoarder’s grip, but he was too strong. They rolled across the floor, not noticing the staircase. The struggling ceased as they toppled over each other, falling down the stairs. Jahrys had landed hard on the cold, stone floor at the bottom.

  When he had regained himself, the Hoarder was already on top of him, raising his Captor high above his head.

  The Captor had come swooshing down.

  Jahrys grabbed the knife from the Hoarder’s belt, and dug it deep into the Hoarder’s neck. The Hoarder let out a scream as Jahrys twisted the knife deeper and deeper until the Hoarder dropped his Captor and fell to the floor.

  Jahrys had found the keys to the dungeon door hanging from the dead Hoarder’s belt.

  “Well done, I say!” Devan acknowledged, slapping Jahrys on the back after he had recalled the story.

  Jahrys walked over to the Hoarder and ripped out the knife that was still in his neck. He wiped it clean on the Hoarder’s suit and handed it to Krist. He then picked up the Captor lying on the floor. He detached the tube that connected to the back of the weapon.

  “Piller, you can take this one.” Jahrys handed it to him.

  Piller took it and looked down at it curiously. “How do you use one of these…?”

  “Captors,” Jahrys finished.

  “Ah, right. These Captors.”

  Jahrys looked around at the curious faces. He never thought he would be teaching Knights of the Poolesguard how to fight.

  Jahrys held up his own Captor, the one he had stolen from Kevrin. Devan, Martellus, Krist, Piller, and Alana all gathered around to get a better look. “It’s pretty simple to use. You just point and shoot. Look here…” Jahrys first pointed to the top trigger on the handle. “When you press this, it fires a blast, so be mindful of where you’re aiming it.” He then pointed at the bottom trigger. “When you press this, it absorbs whatever it is you’re pointing it at. This is how you recharge the Captor. But in order to use this function, you need to attach it to the Captor Pack with that tube.” Jahrys pointed to the tube that ran from his Captor Pack to the back of his Captor.

  He continued. “It’s possible to use a Captor without the tube attached, but once the energy from the Captor is drained, you will not be able to fire it anymore. You can check how much energy is left in the Captor by this light.” Jahrys pointed to a glass tube that was glowing blue in the center of the Captor.

  “And what about both triggers?” Martellus asked. “What would happen if you press both at the same time?”

  “We aren’t quite sure yet, to be honest,” Jahrys admitted. “All we know is that when both are pressed, it shoots objects back out of the Captor Pack. It processes some kind of energy in there. We call the objects that come out junk blocks. Junk blocks are what form the junk walls in the Junkland.”

  “It’s sorcery,” Martellus exclaimed in wonder.

  They all nodded in agreement.

  “Anymore questions?” Jahrys asked.

  When there were no more questions, they headed upstairs.

  Jahrys walked over to the other dead Hoarder and grabbed his Captor, detaching it from the tube.

  “Who wants this one?” he asked, holding it out. “Devan?”

  “Me?” Devan pointed a finger at his chest. “I think I’ll stick with a sword for this battle, young Retriever.”

  “Martellus? You seem to be interested.” Jahrys held it out to the black-haired knight.

  Martellus held out his hands and grabbed it. “I wonder where this came from,” Martellus said curiously, as he examined it with wide eyes.

  “I don’t think I want to find out,” Piller replied.

  “We really must be moving,” Alana insisted. “They’ll be coming to the dungeon any moment!”

  “Alana’s right,” Jahrys said. “Let’s get moving.”

  Alana walked over to the bookcase and found the latch, opening the entrance to the dark tunnel. They all climbed in and started to crawl towards the armory, Alana leading the way.

  After what seemed like hours of crawling through the dark, dusty tunnels, they finally arrived at a dead end. Alana placed a finger up to her lips, signaling for Piller, Devan, Krist, Martellus, and Jahrys to be quiet. They didn’t know what was on the other side.

  Alana placed one hand gently on the switch to the door. She flicked it.

  Click.

  Alana carefully pushed it open with one hand. A wave of light seeped in, blinding them. When their eyes adjusted to the light, they took turns stepping down into a large room.

  Large cupboards lined the room, along with tables, chairs, and dressers. There was a giant chandelier hanging from the ceiling in the center. Swords and axes hung on the walls. Bows, arrows, and quivers were piled in the left corner. In the center of the room were racks of spears and dozens of swords.

  There were voices that echoed from behind a closed door to the right of the room.

  They stayed silent, walking around the room as they examined the weapons.

  Jahrys found a dozen sword belts piled on a table in the center of the room. He picked one up, counting how many pockets it held.

  “Look. Over here,” he whispered. He gestured everyone to look at what he had found.

  They all gathered around the table.

  “Yes. This should be more than enough,” Piller approved. “Let’s start filling these with long swords from the racks.” He glanced at his brothers. “Devan and Krist, start collecting the swords over there,” he pointed to the swords on a rack across the room. “Those look to be newly sharpened. I’ll have a look at the shields and armor inside the c
upboards.”

  The two knights nodded in confirmation.

  “Martellus, start collecting all those bows, arrows, and quivers in the corner,” Piller pointed his finger to the corner. “We’ll be needing all the projectile weapons we can get to win this fight.”

  Martellus nodded in agreement.

  “Alana and I will gather everything into the tunnel,” said Jahrys. He looked around the room. His gaze stopped at a red rug lying on the stone floor. He walked over to it and picked up one end. “I’ll lay this down inside the tunnel so it will muffle out the sound of the weapons scraping against the floor when we drag them back to the dungeon. We can lay down the shields on top of the rugs and fill them with weapons.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Piller agreed.

  After Piller and Martellus placed their Captors on a table, they all went to work, taking as many weapons as they could. Krist and Devan gathered as many swords and axes as they could carry, placing the swords into sword belts and then handing them off to Jahrys, who place them onto the shields. Piller gathered as many pieces of armor his hands could hold and carried them over to the tunnel. Martellus worked quickly with the bows, arrows, and quivers.

  Alana made a neat pile on the rug inside the tunnel. She had found a long rope coiled up on a table that she had cut into pieces. She first tied pieces to the shields so they would be able to pull them as they crawled. She then wrapped the remaining pieces of rope around the rug and shields to hold it all together.

  They continued working while the voices resumed echoing behind the closed door.

  Martellus had decided to make his trip easier by picking up a few extra quivers on his way over to the tunnel. His hands were full but his vision was now blocked.

  “Watch out,” Piller whispered as loudly as he could without his voice carrying through the door.

  Martellus stumbled forward into a rack of swords. The quivers went flying into the air. The rack leaned over and hung for a split second—

  Clang.

  Everyone turned to look. Jahrys’s heart dropped. The rack had toppled over and all the swords fell to the floor. The sound bounced off all the walls.

  Jahrys turned to Martellus with a deafening look. What a fool. He’s going to get us all killed.

  “Did ya hear somethin’?” asked a muffled voice through the closed door.

  They all turned their gaze to the door.

  “Perhaps it be the ghost of King Leoné,” another replied, laughing to himself.

  “That ain’t funny. I heard somethin’ in the other room,” the first voice said.

  “All righ’ let’s check it out.”

  Shuffling feet and the scraping of chairs hung in the air.

  Jahrys acted fast. “Martellus, Piller, grab your Captors. Devan, Krist, finish helping Alana gather the weapons into the tunnel.” Jahrys tried to keep his voice as low as possible.

  They acted immediately. Devan and Krist ran over to help Alana with the weapons while Martellus and Piller picked up their Captors from the table.

  “Remember what I told you,” Jahrys said to the two knights as they approached his side, waiting for direction. Jahrys couldn’t believe he was commanding the Knights of the Poolesguard. “Keep a steady aim on that door at all times. Do not hesitate to fire when they barge through. They will not show you any mercy. Cover me.”

  They raised their Captors, aiming them at the approaching voices.

  Jahrys had an idea. He quickly pushed a table in front of the door and took a few steps back, pointing his Captor. He waited with his finger against the bottom trigger.

  The doorknob turned, and the door was pushed forward. But the table held it in place.

  “It’s locked,” he heard a Hoarder say through the door.

  “Stand back,” another Hoarder yelled.

  Jahrys waited. He held his breath. His heart was racing in his chest. He had to time this perfectly.

  There was a deep, low hum. The floor began to shake under Jahrys’s feet.

  VHRUUUUMMMM.

  A yellow light surrounded the door. There was a crack as the door began to snap off its hinges.

  Jahrys didn’t hesitate. He slammed his finger on the bottom trigger of his Captor. His Captor came to life. The blue light in the center lit up. His Captor Pack vibrated behind him. There was another deep, low hum that shook his entire body. But he kept his aim.

  VHRUUUUMMMM.

  A blue beam shot out from Jahrys’s own Captor. His beam encompassed the door. A green bubble now surrounded the door.

  The plan had worked.

  The door was held in place as it pushed back and forth between the two Captors.

  “What’s going on?” One of the Hoarders on the other side yelled in confusion.

  Suddenly, another deep, low hum echoed from the other side of the door.

  VHRUUUUMMMM.

  A third light now surrounded the door, making the bubble more yellow again.

  The door inched away from Jahrys—he was losing it.

  “Hurry! I can’t hold it much longer!” Jahrys yelled out to Krist, Devan, and Alana.

  He turned to the two knights next to him. “Get ready!”

  Martellus and Piller readied their aim.

  There was yet another deep, low hum.

  VHRUUUUMMMM.

  A fourth light now encompassed the door and Jahrys watched as it flew away from him.

  “FIRE!” he yelled to Martellus and Piller.

  The two knights fired their Captors through the space where the door had been. Jahrys joined them. The three of them started stepping back towards their exit, still firing.

  “Into the passageway!” Jahrys yelled over the Captor blasts.

  The Hoarders pushed the table into the room, while taking cover behind it.

  Jahrys knocked over a table and hid behind it with Piller and Martellus. He looked back towards the passageway and saw that Alana, Krist, and Devan had made it through safely.

  “Jahrys, run! We’ll cover you!” Piller shouted over the chaos.

  Jahrys didn’t hesitate. He kept his head low and sprinted towards the passageway. Captor blasts zipped past his head and exploded into the back walls. The heat was excruciating.

  He dove into the passageway after Krist, Devan, and Alana. He helped them push the pile of rugs and shields forward in order to make room for Piller and Martellus.

  “Come on!” Jahrys yelled out to the two knights still in the armory.

  A yell of pain echoed into the passageway.

  Jahrys turned back. He looked down to see Martellus bleeding from his shoulder.

  “Jahrys!” Alana yelled behind him. “We have to go!”

  “Keep going! I’ll catch up with you!”

  Jahrys jumped out of the passageway. He stayed low and crouched behind the table that Piller and Martellus were taking cover behind.

  Martellus was clutching his wound as Piller fired Captor blasts across the room.

  Suddenly, there was a hissing sound that came from Piller’s Captor. He pressed down on the trigger again and the hiss continued. “I’m out!”

  Krist jumped down from the passageway and joined them behind the table.

  “Krist, help Piller lift Martellus,” Jahrys ordered. “I’ll distract them. Take Martellus’s Captor.”

  Krist nodded, grabbing the Captor.

  Krist and Piller picked up Martellus and dragged him towards safety.

  Jahrys covered them. When there was a clearing between the enemy’s blasts, he would jump up and shoot across the room. He hit one Hoarder in the head. But there were still too many of them—at least five. He couldn’t fight them alone.

  His heart was pounding in his chest. He had to give Piller and Krist cover while they helped Martellus. He leaned around the table and fired from the side.

  “Jahrys! Get out of there!” Piller yelled from the passageway.

  Jahrys knew if he stood up, he would be dead. He needed a distraction. He gazed around the room, looking
for anything. His eyes locked on to the chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

  Jahrys aimed his Captor up and fired three shots. All three missed. He fired another. The blast caught the chandelier and Jahrys watched as it broke free from the ceiling and fell to the floor. Jahrys didn’t stay to watch the result. He ran for the passageway.

  An ear-splitting crash filled the room. Shards of glass exploded in every direction. Jahrys yelled in pain as he felt a large shard of glass pierce his suit through his right calf—he stumbled to the floor.

  He felt an arm wrap around his body, holding him up. He looked up. Piller was there helping him towards the passageway before the Hoarders could begin firing again. When they were both inside, Piller turned around, and using Martellus’s Captor, blasted the entrance of the passageway so the Hoarders couldn’t follow them.

  Piller and Jahrys caught up with the others. They disappeared into the darkness, dragging the weapons behind them.

  When they arrived back at the dungeon, they assessed their wounds. Martellus had a gash on his right shoulder, while Jahrys had a large shard of glass stuck in his calf. Gala the Healer, who had been taken prisoner at the same time as the Knights of the Poolesguard, plucked the glass from Jahrys’s leg and found some water to clean the cuts. She then took care of Martellus’s wound as best she could—she had little experience with blast wounds.

  Alana, Devan, Krist, and Piller all helped gather the weapons into the dungeon. The men, women, and children who were old enough, lined up to pick up swords, axes, bows, quivers filled with arrows, shields, and armor.

  After they were done, Benjamin regrouped with them.

  “What happened?” Benjamin asked Piller.

  “We were attacked in the armory. Martellus took a wound to the shoulder, but he’ll survive. And Jahrys took a large shard of glass in the leg. Nothing life threatening. Any problems down here?”

  “No. We didn’t run into any trouble.” Benjamin turned to Alana. “Are you okay?”

  “Never better, Sir Benjamin.”

  “Your sword.” Benjamin handed the sword back to Alana.

  “Thank you.” Alana placed the sword back into her scabbard.