The Skull Warrior

by Yajat Sharma

The Scavenger waited for the traps to spring. And they did with precision, the boards coming down and striking the warriors at the front. Most of them suffered barely more than cuts, but some fell to the ground. The Scavenger also saw – much to his glee – that the Knight had fallen too.

  The army, however, kept on marching ahead.

  As more people charged ahead, another trap was sprung. A wooden pole came from the right side, landing on the people’s heads, knocking them unconscious. Another pole fell from the left side, injuring a few more.

  The next trap was a bottomless pit filled with sticky glue. The ground gave way beneath the feet of the warriors, and they fell into the pit. As the bodies of the enemy warriors piled up in the pit, the pit filled and the army walked over.

  However, the spikes driven into the ground were waiting. The enemy soldiers shrieked and yelled as they walked over them. Many fell and didn’t get up.

  As the warriors moved forward, they walked over a tripwire. Buckets filled with grease were lined on a rope, which was stretched across from one end to the other. The tripwire made the rope tilt, and the grease fell onto the men. The enemy soldiers erupted in chaos as the grease blinded them.

  As the Knight’s army moved ahead, they did not notice a rope at ankle height, stretched tautly. They tripped and fell face first. The Scavenger had put up metal pieces at precisely the right place. As the people fell, they fell on top of the metal pieces and banged their heads.

  The traps were useful but were not proving to be sufficient to stop the enemy’s march.

  As the Knight’s army came closer, the Scavenger turned to Crimson. “Ready the cannons.”

  The wooden cannons were designed to fire coconuts. Crimson’s army fired the cannons. Coconuts shot out, hitting enemy heads. Several warriors fell to the ground, unconscious or injured.

  The Scavenger yelled, “ARROWS!”

  Waves of arrows rained down on the enemy from the rooftops. The enemy army scattered in all directions.

  The coconuts and arrows proved useful. In the final assault, the Scavenger’s army ran forward and subdued the warriors that were running around aimlessly. Within a few minutes, all the Knight’s warriors were on the ground, completely overpowered.

  The Scavenger’s heart soared. With effective battle strategies, they had defeated the massive army of the Knight without much casualties on their side.

  The Scavenger, along with Crimson, moved forward, scanning the ground for the Knight. They found him lying unconscious on the ground and dragged him towards the village.

  Huro approached the Scavenger and the children with a happy smile. “We are very, very thankful for your help. I am forever indebted.”

  The Scavenger said, “No mention, Huro. You and your men have earned it. Imprison the enemy warriors and celebrate your victory with a feast.”

  “We will have the celebrations today itself. You will be the main guest.”

  “I am sorry, but we won’t be able to attend,” the Scavenger said. “We have urgent things at hand. The whole of the Dark World is in danger.”

  Huro nodded. He and Crimson shook the Scavenger’s hand, nodded to the children and then led their men away.

  The Scavenger knelt beside the Knight with No One and the children and shook the Knight awake.

  The Knight came to groggily. “What... why... how... who...?”

  “We want information,” the Scavenger said to him. “Tell us where is Hellfire.”

  The Knight focused on his face, and his eyes filled with rage. He leapt up and was about to kick at the Scavenger when No One, from behind, held his arms and twisted them.

  The Knight’s face contorted into one filled with anger and pain. “I’ll never tell. Let me go!” he snarled.

  Suddenly, with a yell, he stomped his feet and pushed backwards.

  The attack surprised No One, who fell backwards, letting go of the Knight’s arms.

  As quick as lightning, the Knight took out a white pill from his pocket and started to put it in his mouth.

  “No, you don’t!” The Scavenger grabbed his wrist and prevented him from taking the pill. No One came from behind and seized his arms.

  “Now tell us!” The Scavenger almost yelled into his face.

  The Knight stared at him defiantly.

  The Scavenger looked at the Knight. “As you wish.” With a blow to the Knight’s head, the Scavenger rendered him unconscious.

  “Oh! Why did you do that? How will we get information about Hellfire now?” Matt asked.

  “Don’t worry. The Knight was anyway not cooperating. Let’s take him to Lynx.”

  “What was in the pill?” Matt asked.

  The Scavenger looked at Matt gravely. “It’s venom. The Knight is so scared of Hellfire that he tried to kill himself for almost disclosing his location. We need to meet Lynx urgently.”

  The Scavenger created a portal and they all jumped into it.

  10

  The portal opened inside Lynx’s cave. Lynx greeted them and pointed towards the Knight. “Good Lord. You got the Knight.”

  “Yes,” the Scavenger said. “He’s not telling us the location of Hellfire. We thought you could help us.”

  “Well, I can help,” Lynx said, walking over to the Scavenger. “Place him on the table and wait.” He wandered away to a shelf full of little bottles.

  They quickly placed the Knight on the long table and Lynx approached them with a small tube filled with a colourless liquid. “Sodium thiopental,” he pronounced. “In other words, a truth potion.”

  “Rubbish,” James said dismissively. “There is no such thing as a truth potion.”

  “While you could be right, Mr Know-it-all,” Lynx admitted, “your vast reserve of knowledge has also made you somewhat reclusive, and you refuse to acknowledge things which you have no idea about or have never heard of.”

  James scratched his head. “Say what?”

  Lynx finished, “Let me explain. There is no truth potion, but there are liquids, like the one I’m holding, which are very close to serving the same purpose as a truth potion.”

  “How does it work?” James asked eagerly.

  “It slows the speed at which your body sends messages to the brain. You would not be able to concentrate on any activity. So when someone asks you something, your impulsive habit of lying is subdued and you blurt out the truth. By the way, this is from Earth. A friend of mine gave it to me.”

  “Blah blah blah,” the Scavenger interrupted. “Can we just try the serum on the Knight instead of wasting time?”

  Lynx raised a finger. “NO! First, correct yourself. It’s not a serum. It’s sodium thiopental. Calling it a serum reduces its dignity!”

  “How can a non-living thing have dignity?” Archer asked.

  “NEVER MIND!” the Scavenger yelled. “Just give the damn SODIUM THIOPENTAL to the Knight!”

  Lynx covered his ears. “All right, all right!” He vigorously shook the Knight and woke him up.

  The Knight sat up, spluttering. He looked at Lynx with a scared expression. “Who are you? What do you want from me?” he asked.

  “Tell us where Hellfire is,” Lynx asked.

  “Never in my life,” the Knight replied.

  “Let me complete,” Lynx said. “Tell us where Hellfire is...” Lynx raised the test tube full of sodium thiopental. “Or face this.”

  The Knight looked at the serum. “What’s that? You’re going to beat me with a test tube?”

  Lynx shook his head. “Knowledge is wasted on fools. Look here, this is sodium thiopental.”

  The Knight looked at him blankly.

  Lynx sighed and almost spat out the words. “Truth potion.”

  The Knight’s face turned pale, but then he scowled. “Do your worst.”

  Lynx shrugged. “As you wish.”

  The Scavenger opened the Knight’s mouth with his fingers, and Lynx emptied the contents of the serum down the Knight’s throat.

  The effect was immediate. The K
night’s eyelids weighed down and he looked drowsy.

  “Now, I will ask you again,” Lynx said. “Where in the hell is Hellfire?”

  “The Portal of Sawning,” The Knight replied at once, and immediately put a hand to his mouth sluggishly and silenced himself. Lynx swiftly moved to place both of his hands on the Knight’s head and read what he was mentally thinking.

  “Thank you.” After a few seconds, Lynx bowed with a flourish. “He is no more of any use to us.”

  Almost instantly, the Scavenger knocked out the Knight with a blow to his head.

  “Why didn’t you do your head magic earlier, instead of using the truth potion?” James asked Lynx.

  “Did what? Come again,” Lynx asked James.

  James said, “I mean, you could have placed your hands on the Knight’s head and got to know all his thinking. What’s the use of truth potion then?”

  Lynx replied, “Good question! You see, I could have done this before, but the Knight would have misled us by thinking something unrelated. The truth potion limited his thinking capabilities. Then, I asked him a question to drive his thinking towards particular thoughts.”

  James nodded in understanding. “Wow! That is cool,” he said with excitement.

  “Now.” Lynx clicked his fingers. “As I just explained, I read his thought strains as they flashed in his mind. The Portal of Sawning is in the village of Sawning. There is a huge statue of the Death Lord with a Crown on the head. The portal is in the form of stones at the top of the Crown. Pressing the stones would teleport you to the Palace of Darkness, which is the location of Hellfire. Duh. I know a bit about Sawning. People of Sawning are die-hard supporters of the Death Lord and the Skull Warrior. I will make a portal for you to reach there.”

  The portal dumped them on the outskirts of Sawning. A giant statue of the Death Lord, with a Crown on its head, was visible at a distance.

  The Scavenger and the children walked towards the statue.

  As they came closer, the Scavenger took a running leap towards the statue. He landed on its arm and climbed his way up as fast he could. The others followed quickly.

  Once everyone was on the head of the Death Lord’s statue, the Scavenger started pressing the stones on the Crown. There was a hissing sound, and a grey portal appeared. Just as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared, sucking the group into it.

  They emerged in a big hall. Archer was feeling a sense of vertigo. Overhead torches lit up the hall that had glass cabinets with strange-looking things inside. Archer rubbed his eyes and looked hard at the things.

  They were skulls.

  The skulls were in all shapes and sizes – from very big to tiny.

  “What are these?” he asked out loud.

  “Skulls,” the Scavenger replied.

  “I can see that,” Archer said indignantly. “I mean, why are these skulls here?”

  “People are fond of collecting various things,” the Scavenger said while walking ahead. “I have seen people collecting stamps and bottle caps on Earth. Well, here in the Dark World, things are deadlier. Powerful warriors collect creatures’ heads to show them off. Well, it seems Hellfire is a Collector of Skulls.”

  Matt made a barfing sound. “That is so sick.”

  The Scavenger nodded. “I agree, but at the same time, I can’t help but admire how Hellfire has removed the skin so smoothly. Look, he has even expertly hidden the wounds of weapons on the skulls.”

  Everyone glared at the Scavenger, who shrugged. “Anyway, let’s go further.”

  They went past the skulls to a narrow door at the end of the hall. Suddenly the lights winked out. It was pitch dark.

  There was a grating sound upfront, and then a shining figure rose.

  It was Hellfire.

  Hellfire’s name could not have been more accurate. The figure was dressed in black and was entirely bathed in flames. Hellfire looked like the devil incarnate.

  Welcome. Hellfire’s voice reverberated with an echo. The Scavenger drew his sword and pointed it at Hellfire. “We are not here for playing games. Give us the Bolt. Now.”

  Oh, how bold, Hellfire said. A pity for you that it won’t happen. I must admire you for reaching till here. But that doesn’t change anything. Forget the Bolt and prepare to die.” Hellfire laughed manically and jumped at the Scavenger, pulling out two curved swords bathed in flames that hadn’t been there before.

  The Scavenger blocked the attack but cried out in pain as Hellfire’s flames touched him. With a speedy attack, the Scavenger floored Hellfire to the ground, then somersaulted back, landing on his feet.

  No One attacked the Hellfire from the right side, slicing with two swords. Hellfire was caught by surprise, but managed to dodge.

  With a kick, Hellfire sent No One flying and plunged his sword at the Scavenger, who raised his Lighting Sword to block the attack.

  There was an explosion that sent both Hellfire and the Scavenger flying. Smoke erupted all around and lightning crackled.

  Hellfire laughed. You believe in Arcane. Well, let me tell you. Arcane was a liar. He’s evil.

  Everyone frowned, confused. Here was the guardian of Arcane himself calling his master evil.

  “That’s not true!” James yelled. “Arcane helped us win against the Death Lord. He can’t be evil!”

  That’s what he wants you to believe. Of course, you won’t believe me. Go to Arcane’s burial site. You will see. There are no bones in his coffin.

  “None of your stories will ever deter me,” the Scavenger shouted and charged at Hellfire.

  Hellfire’s flames burned brighter than ever as the Scavenger approached and attacked. The Scavenger was fighting like someone possessed, whirling around, stabbing and pulling back. However, the Scavenger soon found himself backing away as he parried Hellfire’s powerful strokes.

  Urrax was bewildered. He was looking at everyone like a spectator. Daniel shook him, “Are you crazy? Move and attack. Do something, or you will be a sitting duck.”

  With this, Daniel took out a bow and started to throw arrows towards Hellfire. The other children followed Daniel’s lead. Though their aim wasn’t that accurate, they were successful in distracting Hellfire so that the Scavenger and No One could attack. An arrow managed to strike Hellfire’s leg and he shrieked in pain.

  Hellfire swatted the Scavenger and No One away and leapt into the air. He landed right in front of the children, sending them flying. Daniel managed to remain standing.

  Hellfire launched a reverse kick attack on Daniel, who somehow managed to duck. Urrax, still standing uselessly behind Daniel, could do nothing as the powerful kick hit Urrax on his face; he yelled in pain and collapsed.

  Hellfire suddenly plunged a sword towards Daniel’s head. Daniel didn’t know what activated it, but suddenly, his Elemental Power came into play. Maybe it was the sense of approaching death that made the Earth power act.

  A powerful green shield formed in front of the approaching sword. Hellfire’s sword struck it and both the sword and the shield broke. Daniel went flying, exhausted from the summoning.

  Archer, Matt and James jumped into the fray and whacked away at Hellfire from different directions. As Hellfire swatted them off with quick blows, No One leapt from the side and threw his sword into Hellfire’s leg. Hellfire, with a roar, sagged to the ground. The Scavenger suddenly appeared from the air and, as he fell towards Hellfire on the ground, he plunged his Lightning Sword into Hellfire’s chest.

  There were lightning and thunder all around. The impact was so huge that the ceiling and the walls of the hall developed cracks. The flames around Hellfire seemed to disappear. His eyes widened and his mouth remained open. As the light started fading, Hellfire crumpled to the ground and disappeared.

  In his place appeared the Bolt. Sparks crackled around it.

  The Scavenger knelt and picked up the Bolt and raised his hand while chanting some words. The Bolt disappeared. Archer figured that the Scavenger must have sent it to the Magic Compartment.
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  The cracks in the walls and the ceiling were widening. Suddenly, there was a thundering sound and the left side wall collapsed. The other walls were on the brink of collapse.

  The Scavenger wasted no time and summoned a portal. Urrax was still unconscious. The Scavenger carried Urrax in his arms, and everyone leapt into the portal.

  They appeared right inside Lynx’s cave.

  The place was in tatters. The shelves were on the floor with the books and scrolls scattered on the ground. The tables and chairs were upturned and thrown all across the cave. Someone had ransacked the place.

  There was no sign of Aronicle. Lynx was missing too.

  Everyone was shocked.

  James blew out a breath. “What. The. Hell.”

  “There’s something written on the wall!” Archer shouted as he ran to get a closer look. He started reading and felt his blood going cold.

  “What is it?” the Scavenger asked as he placed an unconscious Urrax on a sofa.

  Archer read: ‘To the Scavenger. Come to the execution place of Voldmir tomorrow afternoon, alone, or your friend will be executed.’”

  Archer turned and looked at the Scavenger, surprised to see that the Scavenger’s face had turned pale.

  “Where and what is Voldmir?” Archer asked.

  The Scavenger sat down on the ground. “Voldmir is known for its cruel executions. Its ruler is Grim, who is an ardent supporter of the Skull Warrior. I am sure that Grim will execute Lynx unless I go there alone. But going to Voldmir is a suicide mission in itself.”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem for you,” James said. “You have broken into countless kingdoms. Why should this time be any different?”

  The Scavenger replied in a resigned tone, “Till date, no one could come out of the palace of Voldmir alive. There are numerous guards inside and just as many traps. There have been an innumerable amount of executions at Voldmir. The castle is impregnable. Walls as thick as buildings surround it. If we had ten thousand warriors in our army, I would think we’d have a chance, but with just five children and two warriors, I think we have lost the battle even before it began.”