by C. Mahood
The next morning, he was awoken from his oblivion by a sharp slap on the face administered by his old enemy Samuel. Before his eyes focused he knew this already, the smell of sweat and rotting leather from the old armour Samuel insisted on wearing under his glistening royal cloak, he always wore this through superstition or sheer filth, never removed, even as he slept. As Dertrid’s eyes focused he saw the boots, stained with blood, his blood. As he looked around he could see the whole city watching him with sad eyes. The people had loved his father as a king, but since Queen Dalton had taken over, this city had become like a prison camp.
Samuel released Dertrid and let him fall to the ground, where he was picked up by two guards. Samuel was giving his speech to the crowd and they were booing his every word. Dertrid’s senses were still failing and could not understand the hum that was Samuels drone of a voice.
‘I will free you all’ Dertrid shouted interrupting Samuel’s speech.
‘I will return and rid this place of evil. Remember that my children of Sáann!’
At that, Dertrid was thrown into a large pit of putrid filth. He knew that this pit, It was the pit of the Sáann beast, the most vicious of all beasts to have ever lived in Northland.
Dertrid picked up the small sword that had been thrown down for him to protect himself with and waited for the large wooden doors to open, releasing the beast. He remembered sneaking down many evenings to spy on this abomination, every time his father would find him and stop him, Dertrid remembered the sounds it made though, the sound of bones crunching between its jaws, the sound of blood splatting and dripping from the fresh kill, like fresh tomatoes under a blunt knife. It had no weakness, Dertrid knew this, many years it has been fought and fed, never beaten, especially with eh toothpick Dertrid was given as a weapon!
When the doors opened, the beast was lying motionless on the ground, It’s head lay a few feet from the bleeding stump that was its armoured neck and a few men were standing beside it. They called to Dertrid, "Come this way Dertrid! Just follow this tunnel and it will bring you outside! You will be safe there! The rebellion has already started in the city centre! Now is your chance".
Dertrid ran towards the tunnel there was a sound of steel sliding on steel and rusted hinges singing. The thug of boots landing and armour clanging as it fell. Dertrid did not stop running he knew that sound, he looked back, it was as he had feared and known, he saw Samuel running behind him with a small squad of royal guard, the most ruthless and merciless soldiers sword to the thrown with unwavering loyalty and no moral ethics of their own, soulless killing machines trained and sworn to do anything the crown ordered, anything.
Dertrid’s saviours ran towards Samuel in a vain attempt to protect their hero but they were ripped apart by Samuel who was burning with blind rage and was running with the speed of the wind. Dertrid did not stop running and as he leapt into the tunnel he threw the dagger at Samuel. It plunged straight into Samuel’s chest. Stopping him dead in the air. Dertrid had always been a great shot and now finally it had paid off. As Dertrid looked back he saw Samuel pulling the blade from his chest and falling to the ground in shock from the unexpected pain. Dertrid crawled as fast as he could toward the end of the tunnel which led to the outside world. He ran up the long dirt and stone- filled pathway towards the forest winding through debris from the market, crates from the harvest and all sorts of rubble in his path, he sprinted through small towns and hamlets covering himself in a dust mat he stole that covered freshly picked potatoes, the dried dirt stained and ran on his face as it mixed with the sweat. He ran and ran until either his body gave up or he could find a place to rest. All the while the image of a city crumbling filled his thoughts, the face of Samuel overlooking the destruction burned into Dertrid’s skull, Hatred and anger kept him running, the dream of revenge kept him alive.
Chapter 2
The Forest Pass
Dertrid stopped beside an old Cobo tree to catch his breath again. His heart was pounding as if someone was repeatedly hitting him on the chest with an oversized war hammer. There was sweat running down his face and dripping off his nose as if it were a water pump in the city centre. His back and the rest of his body was warm, sweaty and sticky. The Cobo tree he was leaning on was a small stunted tree with large thorns which shot out at those who were evil in heart. Dertrid, therefore, was safe leaning against it. A rustling sound from behind made him jump. As he spun around he drew his dagger again and called, "Who's there?" Dertrid moved closer to where the sound was coming from and hacked at the bush in front of him. Leaves and twigs flew in all directions. The greenery of the bush covered the ground where He was standing.. "I said who's there! "he called again in a more threatening tone. A soft voice came from behind him. He recognised it but he wasn’t sure from where. It sounded calming and delicate. It reminded him of his mothers voice, as she told him stories before he went to sleep as a child. Dertrid was awoken from his daydream by the same voice in his head saying,
‘Look behind you’.
Dertrid noticed that the voice was not coming from within his thoughts but was indeed coming from the bush. Before he could grab the owner of the voice he heard the sounds of soldiers running up the steep pass from the city toward the forest entrance. Dertrid began to run but his body was aching and he could feel his strength ebbing . He stopped and faced the approaching troops, trying not to show any fear. As one of the soldiers walked toward Dertrid the same voice as last time came from behind him saying, "Duck !"Dertrid had no other choice, so he did as she said and fell to the ground, just avoiding the arrow that came soaring past his head. The arrow struck the guard between the eyes, sending him flying backwards in a ball of blood that stained the uniforms of the troops around him. Dertrid leapt back up and launched a frenzied attack on the dazed troops who were trying to help the fallen guard. Dertrid ended the lives of several troops but he was overpowered by the remaining five who pulled him to the ground and began beating him. Suddenly the blows stopped and Dertrid looked up at them. They seemed to be staring into a tangled mass of branches which obscured a dark figure. One of the guards walked over to it and gingerly began poking it with his sword. The same voice came again to Dertrid as he lay on the ground. "Don’t move", it whispered to him. "Why? Who are you?" he replied . "Just do as I say if you wish to survive", the voice told him. Dertrid had no other option but to do as the voice said so he lay on the ground and rolled over to the edge of the clearing. Three of the guards walked over to where the fourth was standing. They dragged out a body and lay it in the middle of the clearing beside their other dead comrades. They poked it a few times with their weapons and then stabbed it a few times to make sure it was dead. While all this was going on Dertrid spotted a dark figure slowly creeping towards the guard at the back, without a sound. The dark figure drew a small bent knife and slit the throat of the unfortunate soldier. When the other three turned around the figure leaped up into the treetops. There was silence for a time until a shower of arrows rained down on them causing all the guards to fall down dead on top of Dertrid. As Dertrid pushed the corpses away he saw a small rope ladder suspended in front of him. The voice once again said, "Climb it". Dertrid obeyed the voice but when he was halfway up, his body finally gave way and he fell to the ground from exhaustion.
Chapter 3
The new comrades
Dertrid awoke to the sound of sweet singing. Once again the voice reminded him of his mother singing to him when he was a child. The song was the same as well;
Ode to the joy of life,
The blacksmith just carved a knife,
The children all play,
Until the day,
The child gives the knife to his wife.
The song was an old song usually sung in the slums of Sáann but his mother had sung it like a nursery rhyme to him. "Good morning Dertrid", called the voice. "Who are you?" Dertrid called back to her quite perplexed. The voice called again, "Come and see for yourself." Dertrid jumped down from the tall tree house that
he had slept in and walked over to the fire that was still bumming. He saw a tall thin female with long blond hair that stretched to under her waist. She
Was wearing a long white robe and a large amount of jewellery was hanging from her neck. Her scent was as sweet as fresh herbs picked from the royal garden that morning. It drew him closer to her as if she had put a rope around his neck and was dragging him towards her. He sat down beside her and stared into her deep blue eyes, which seemed to hypnotise him with their sparkling beauty.
Her facial features were the most beautiful he had ever seen. Any man could have mistaken her for one of the angels from the afterlife that the priests babble on about. Dertrid could not have asked for anything better to have happened to him. He had been rescued by the most beautiful woman he had ever seen . "Here, look at this". She handed him a piece of paper that looked like a wanted leaflet. As Dertrid looked closer and started to read it he saw that it showed a picture of him and a large WANTED printed over his face. "I don’t believe it! Where did you get this?" he asked her. "A stranger left it behind ," she remarked, after handing Dertrid his breakfast. "Well, where is he? What did you do with him?" Dertrid asked while taking a large mouthful of some kind of meat he had never tasted before. "Well..." she muttered glancing down at the strange meat. Dertrid spat out the mouthful and started coughing frantically “ You are a Criminal?" he exclaimed. "No ,silly, I told him I would look after you. Then he walked off in the direction of Keener" Dertrid stood up and grabbed his clothes. The girl threw Dertrid a sword. "Here, take this. I’m sure you will need it. By the way my name’s Elessa"
"Elessa, that’s a beautiful name,” remarked Dertrid as he started
Walking toward the opening in the forest. He turned round to see Elessa putting out the fire and gathering her things together. "Wait for me, Dertrid", she called , running to catch up with him.
"I’m coming too, Where are we going?" she asked him when she had caught up with him. "We are going to find my father’s friend Gladwin an old Druid who fought with my father during the great division wars", he replied ,still walking. "Oh.... why?" she asked. " I can’t go back to Sáann now that there is a price on my head. Gladwin is the only one I can turn to now", Dertrid said. “Look!” exclaimed Elessa in horror, stopping in front of the opening in the trees. “Keener is on fire!” "Quick!" Dertrid yelled as he ran down the long pass towards the town . All that could be heard throughout the valley was the cries for help from women and the screams and yells from children.
The smoke was filling the valley and the flames from the blaze were at least 20 feet high.
As they got closer to the burning town they saw three of the Queen’s men running towards them. Dertrid drew his sword and ran toward them with the blade sparkling in the sunshine as he
ran. When he reached the first man he dived under his blade and sliced the soldiers leg off. He then ran to the second and brought his sword down to meet the soldier's blade. They both fell to the
ground but as they did so Dertrid landed on top of the soldier and thrust his blade into his neck. Dertrid grabbed a rock from the road and bludgeoned the soldier over the head with it, The third soldier fell to the ground with an arrow plunged into his eye. Dertrid stood up and walked over to where his weapon was and picked it up. Elessa and Dertrid walked into the bumming city only to see bodies everywhere. The very street seemed to be covered with blood.
Dertrid hid behind an overturned cart and pulled Elessa down with him.
Two soldiers emerged from a nearby house carrying a screaming woman. They tied her up and gagged her and were on the point of killing her when a mysterious figure emerged from out of the mist. .He swung his blade twice and killed both of the men. He untied the woman and she ran off into the shadows.
He then turned towards Dertrid and Elessa Dertrid stood up and walked toward the figure but as he emerged from behind the cart an arrow impaled its self in his back. He fell to the ground with a thud and
darkness enveloped him. Elessa ran to Dertrid and dragged him behind the cart again.
When she looked up, the stranger was fighting three more of the Queen’s men. Those three were slaughtered as well. The mystery fighter stood still in the middle of the town centre and
put his hands in the air. He dropped his weapon and shouted to the burning ruins at the top of his voice, "Come forward any more candidates for the eternal sleep! What are you waiting for? Are you showing me mercy? Why didn’t you show mercy to my family? "
Out of the corner of her eye Elessa saw a soldier in one of the top windows aiming a crossbow at the figure in the centre of the town.
She drew her bow, fed an arrow and fired. The soldier in the window caught the arrow in the neck and fell to the ground. Elessa began to drag Dertrid out of the town to safety.
She had managed to struggle a short distance when the strange figure appeared. He picked Dertrid up on his back and ran with him to the safety of nearby bushes. He dropped Dertrid at the foot of another Cobo tree where he knew he would be safe and started to walk back into the town. Elessa stood in front of him and thanked him for his bravery. She told him that there was no-one left in the town
Alive and that he should rest and drink some of the nectar from the Cobo flowers to regain his strength. The figure fell to the ground and started beating his fists on the earth. “MY people, my people,” he cried over and over again. Elessa walked back over to Dertrid and sat down beside him.
After about 10 minutes of mourning a strange light surrounded the three and a voice came from the pendant that Dertrid wore around his neck. The voice chanted an old Elven spell. Elessa could not understand the words as Old Elfish was no longer spoken by her kind. Dertrid’s eyes opened and he sat up. "What happened?" he said , pulling the arrow out of his back.
The voice came again.
"You three are the chosen ones. You must destroy the evil and return goodness to this once powerful and respected land. You Dertrid, my son and you too Elessa and Keldon must do this for your people."
Keldon and Elessa looked at each other and at Dertrid.
"How do you know us?” they whispered to the voice in the pendant.
The voice replied,
"I have been watching you three all of my life and death until the moment that you joined together at a time of suffering for all of you. You must now find Gladwin. He will tell you what you must do to destroy the queen and her troops and for Dertrid to return to the throne of Sáann".
The three appointed ones stood up and Dertrid said,
"Where will We find Gladwin?" but it was too late.
The light in the pendant had already faded and the three were back outside the burning town of Keener. Dertrid walked over to Keldon and thanked him for his help then the three headed south toward the great city of Partisan.
Chapter 4
A new adventure
The trio continued on their way, crossing several rivers, climbing numerous steep hills and wading through stinking marshland. When they emerged at the other side of a dark forest Keldon ran to the top of a small hill and called the others to come and take a look at what he had found. When the other two made it to the top of the hill they looked down into another valley and saw a large city
Bustling with people, noise and happiness. "FOOD", Keldon yelled, as he ran down the hill toward the city. "He is right you know, we should get some food,” Dertrid said to Elessa who was giggling at Keldon running down the path. .Before she had a chance to reply Dertrid grabbed her hand and started running down to the path after Keldon. When they reached the city they saw a crowed of villagers and Queen’s men all standing in a circle cheering, shouting and throwing rotten fruit and vegetables. Dertrid and Keldon both slid their hands towards their swords waiting for a fight.
When they got closer to the circle they could see two men fighting, one of which was wearing a royal army uniform. They watched them batter each other for a while before one of the Queen’s men threw a sword into the ring. The villa
ger kicked the soldier and picked up the sword. He walked back to the soldier and hacked at him until he was not breathing any more. When the villager was celebrating, a different soldier ran at him and drove a spear through the villager pinning him to the old stone wall. At that, a riot started. All the Queen’s men took off their disguises and grouped together . They started killing all round them while the women and children screamed and ran for cover. Dertrid and Keldon drew their swords and with the help of a few rebellious villagers led an attack on the soldiers.