Selene took a very long drink and she looked at Jaken and said, “I would love to learn how to cook like you do. Can I still do all of my other chores first before I help you?”
Jaken laughed and said, “You mean that you want to keep on cleaning and stocking the shelves and washing dishes as well as cooking and preparing the meals?”
Selene smiled and said, “Could I?”
Jaken laughed. He couldn’t believe how fortunate he was to have Selene working for him. She was remarkable to say the least. He said, “All right. I will let you do your normal routine and then you can spend a couple of hours working with me. Once you learn more and more about cooking and preparing meals then I would like it if you trained someone else to do your other work. I would want that person to try and do the work as well as you do it and with as much enthusiasm if it is possible. I think that you will have a hard time finding someone like you though.” He then laughed and said, “How does that sound to you?”
Selene smiled and said, “”I will be more than happy to try and learn all that you can teach me. When do you want me to start?”
“You can start tomorrow after your regular duties if you want to. Just take it easy the rest of the day if you want to,” Jaken said.
Selene said, “Thank you and I will do as you say.”
Jaken then stood up and asked. “Do you want anything else?”
Selene shook her head and said, “No. I want to thank you again for how you have helped me.”
Jaken smiled and said, “I have to get back to my kitchen so I’ll talk to you later.” He then left looking around at all of the people coming in. It would be another busy day.
Selene watched Jaken leave and she thought how happy she was to be able to work for such a kind man. She knew how well he took care of everyone that worked for him. The waitresses all loved and respected him and they loved their jobs and did the best that they could do.
Selene then wondered if she should go back to the library and help Gunvil. Normally she wouldn’t go there for at least another three or four hours after she had finished her duties at the Wet Glass. She wasn’t used to having the day off and she didn’t really know what to do. She was used to working all day long at the Wet Glass and then at the library too. She was happy when she kept busy and she loved to work.
Selene tried just to relax and not worry about doing anything. She took another long drink of the icy cold water and then she set the mug down and looked up. Taran was walking towards her.
Taran sat down at the table across from Selene. She looked at Selene and noticed how happy that she appeared to be. She said, “How are you doing today Selene? Is anything new?”
Selene grinned and said, “Jaken is giving me a big raise and he also offered to teach me how to cook and prepare meals. I can’t believe it. I always wanted to learn how to cook as well as he does.”
Taran smiled and said, “That is good news. I just know that with your work ethic that you will do great. Just listen and do exactly as he tells you to and everything will be fine. Who is going to do everything else that you do?”
“He said that I will have to train someone but for now I will still do it all. I asked him if I could still do all of my other duties too and he laughed,” Selene said.
Taran laughed.
A pretty dog-woman waitress walked up and looked at Taran. She said, “Do you want your usual?”
Taran nodded and said, “Aye, but I want a couple extra pieces of urth bacon. I am hungry this morning.”
The waitress smiled and looked at Selene and said, “Do you want anything else?”
Selene said, “I will take a few pieces of bacon too if you don’t mind.”
The waitress smiled and left. She returned moments later and set the plates and mugs down on the table. She said, “If you want anything else just ask.” She then ran back to the kitchen.
Selene and Taran made small talk as they ate. When they were finished eating a pretty cat-woman waitress came up to the table with fresh mugs and set them down. She took the dirty dishes away and then she ran back to the kitchen.
Taran asked, “So how did you sleep last night? You didn’t dream about that man dressed in all black again did you?”
Selene said, “No and I am thankful for that. I hope that I never dream about him again. I did dream though.”
“What did you dream about?” Taran asked.
Selene said, “It was the weirdest dream that you can ever imagine but for some reason it didn’t scare me at all.”
Taran said, “Sounds interesting. Do you want to talk about it?”
“Aye, I would like to if you don’t mind. Maybe you can make sense of it,” Selene said.
“Go ahead and tell me if you want to,” Taran said.
Selene took a drink of water and then she said, “I found myself walking through the high grass of the prairie. I walked on and on and then the sky slowly became overcast and darkened. Lightning flashed in the sky and thunder peeled out terrific booms of loud explosions as the rain started to fall. I was wet but I kept on walking. As I walked the grass grew taller and taller and weird trees sprang up all along either side of me. They formed a thick wall on either side that I couldn’t pass through. I had to walk straight following the path between the trees. I was soaked through and through by the warm torrent of rain falling non-stop and I could barely see a foot in front of my face. I walked into an open glade surrounded by a wall of the strange trees and high blood red wickedly curved bushes with razor sharp pointed thorns. Then the rain picked up in intensity and turned into a rain of dark red warm blood. The blood rain kept falling in sheets of blood from the dark sky fouling everything that it touched. Then the ground in front of me exploded sending blood wet high grass and dirt flying upwards in a violent shower of unexpected fury.”
Taran was on the edge of her seat listening to the strange and terrifying dream.
Selene continued, “A large deathly grey tombstone burst upwards through the soil and undergrowth. It stood at least ten feet tall and was about five feet wide. I jumped backwards from surprise and shock when the ground had exploded with a bang and the tombstone shot up. As I stood there the blood rain stopped falling but the thunder and lightning increased in intensity. A bolt of lightning screamed in the sky with a loud crack and streamed downwards and slammed into the face of the tombstone lighting it up and carving four strange words onto its clean rugged grey face. All at once the sky brightened and the thunder and lightning stopped. All of the trees and bushes vanished. All that remained was the strange marker of the dead. I stepped closer and looked at the four words that the sky had etched into the face of the monument. The carved letters lit up with a dark red hue making it easy for me to read them. I could plainly read the four words that were engraved into the grey stone. Then I heard a bird calling out in a beautiful song as it passed by up above me. I smiled at its beauty and then I woke up.”
Taran looked at Selene and said, “What an incredibly strange and terrifying dream. What were the four words on the tomb stone?”
Without thinking Selene said them. Her throat hurt and she almost feinted.
The light globes inside of the Wet Glass darkened and the air became frigid. Outside the sky became black and thunder rolled across the sky with loud cracks and the ground shook and gale force winds sprang up and swept through the crowded streets of Catan.
Non-humans and humans screamed out in fear and sought shelter inside of the nearest building.
Then all became quiet and still. The sky brightened again and the winds vanished. People looked out of doors and windows to see if it was safe to go back outside again.
Inside of the Wet Glass the light globes lit back up again just as they were before and then the air warmed up to where it was before. Everyone looked around and wondered what could have happened.
Chapter 11
Nightfall looked up at the sky. The heavens were a light green in color. The few clouds that floated above following the wind cu
rrents were a light grey in appearance. The sun at least looked the same, it was normal.
He looked down. He was naked except for a black loincloth. There was a dark red scar where the Sword of Light had entered his into chest. He thought of Zaranna. Even after what she had done to him he still had a hard time hating her.
Nightfall was lying down on the dark red sand. He wondered how long that he had been in the No Land. He didn’t think that he was in the magical dimension for very long but he had no way of knowing for sure because time didn’t seem to exist in the No Land. He never got hot, cold or thirsty or hungry. He never needed sleep and he never felt tired.
Nightfall sat up and looked around. All he saw was endless dark red sand for as far as the eye could see in any direction to be lost into the horizon. The sand was cool and dry to his touch.
He wondered if Selene had liked the nightmare that he had provided for her. He smiled at how easy it was to feed her mind that dream. He knew that sooner or later she would tell someone all about it and then she would unknowingly say those four words that she saw engraved on the large light grey tombstone. Once she said those powerful words he would be free from the No Land.
Nightfall couldn’t wait to get out of the No Land. There were some people that he wanted to kill. He loved to kill and see the fear in the victim’s eyes as he did it. He loved inflicting pain and hearing their pleas for mercy that he would never give.
He knew that someone had betrayed him and set him up and he had a pretty good idea who that was. Forerger would suffer at his hands for what he had done. He also had plans for that tree-man, the dog-man, the large man with the shaggy dark beard, the cat-man, the two old sorcerers, and the young barbarian and the young hot blonde that looked like Zaranna.
Zaranna would be the only one that he would spare unless she forced his hand. He knew that deep down he still loved her and he probably always would but he didn’t want anything to do with her now, at least while she had the Sword of Light in her possession.
He couldn’t wait to be in the real world again and feel the strength and magic flowing through his body again. He loved the feeling of power that he always had before.
He would track down and destroy all of those feeble warriors and the two mages no matter how long that it took. They would have to pay for what they did and pay they would.
Then Nightfall thought of Leena and he smiled. He knew that she had loved him with her whole heart. He wondered if she still waited for him. He enjoyed her company and loved her attention. He vowed that if anyone had given her any trouble while he was gone that they would die.
Nightfall was determined to be mean and unmerciful this time. He wouldn’t hesitate to immediately kill anyone that even looked at him in a disrespectful manner. He couldn’t wait to enjoy himself again.
Another person that he was going to kill would be that fat and perverted king of Tharn. He regretted not already having done it. He didn’t want to be king because he had too many other things that he wanted to do. He would put someone on the throne that would be a real king and judge the people fairly and take care of them. If sometime in the future after he had killed everyone on his list and he was bored he might want to be a king but not now.
As Nightfall was daydreaming about all of the people that he planned on killing and how he would do it, suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his chest. Then his arms and legs felt like they were on fire and his whole body became swollen and throbbed and pulsed and he felt like he was being crushed by a giant hand.
Nightfall screamed in anguish and in unbelievable pain and he fell down onto his back and looking up. He saw the light green sky through blurry vision and then everything became dark and he passed out.
A few hours later Nightfall woke up and opened his eyes. He looked up at the light blue sky and then he smiled in relief. Selene had said the four words and had ripped him out of the No Land. He was lying down in tall dark green grass. He was free but he didn’t know where he was.
Nightfall sat up and immediately noticed that he was dressed again. He was wearing the same clothes that he was wearing when Zaranna had shoved the magical blade into his chest.
He looked down and saw the thin black shirt that he was wearing was stained with a large area of dried blood around a ragged hole caused by that foul blade. He knew that there would be another hole and stain on the back of his shirt where the blade had punched through before she had withdrawn it.
Then he looked for his sword and saw it and his dagger lying in front of him in the tall grass.
He picked them both up and then he stood up and looked around. He put his cherished weapons away and tried to determine where he was.
Whichever way that he looked all he saw was high dark green grass. Here and there were tall trees and small copses of trees placed randomly all over the plain. Not too far away he saw a small pond. He realized that he was in the grass lands.
He looked at the sky again and figured that it was sometime in the afternoon. It was a warm but comfortable day. He had no idea exactly where in the grass lands that he was but he was happy now because he was out of the No Land.
Nightfall felt alive again. He could feel the powerful magic surging through his body and it was intoxicating. He felt the strength of his body and the raw power of his muscles made even stronger by the magic. He knew that no one would be able to withstand his wrath, no one!
Then he had a sensation that he hadn’t felt for quite some time. He was hungry and he was thirsty. He looked ahead at the pond and started walking. He could at least quench his thirst while he thought of what he should do next.
Nightfall reached the pond scaring a few small furry creatures away. He knelt down and reached out. He then cupped his hands and dipped them into the cold clear water. He raised them to his lips and drank hungrily savoring the scent and sweet taste of the water. He did that again and again until his thirst was satisfied. He didn’t know how long it had been since he had drunk anything. He smiled thinking that such a simple act like drinking water had given him such pleasure.
The No Land had done one good thing for him. It had made him want to experience life like he hadn’t done in ages. It was time to really live again and he pitied anyone that would get in his way or try to stop him.
Nightfall wanted to go back to Tharn. He wanted to kill Forerger and Toraxis the king of Tharn. He also wanted to see Leena and drink his favorite sweet red wine that he always got when he sat at his table in the Red Cup. He pitied anyone who would happen to be sitting at his table.
He smiled again thinking of all of the fun that he was going to have. He would do whatever he wanted to and whenever he wanted to do it and no one could stop him.
He wished that he knew exactly where he was so that he could start walking. He wanted to go to Tharn but he didn’t know what way to go. He also wished that he had a horse or a unicorn but for now he would just have to walk.
He looked past the pond and what he saw made him grin evilly. About forty or fifty men were riding across the grass lands and heading straight for him. They probably knew about the pond and were seeking to drink and replenish their water supply. They might not have noticed him yet. They were probably outlaws. He hated outlaws.
Nightfall stood and watched them come. He didn’t think about hiding or running away. He thought about killing all of them just for fun. He watched them get closer and closer. He smiled and he could feel the magic flowing inside of him building up and feeding his muscles with super human power.
The outlaws saw him and slowed down. They were wary seeing a lone man on the grass lands. The man just stood there watching them advance and he didn’t run away or try to hide. They became suspicious and looked all around suspecting some kind of a trap.
The outlaw band stopped as they neared the pond. They were directly across from Nightfall who still hadn’t moved.
The leader of the outlaw band looked straight at Nightfall and saw that the man dressed in all black was smiling. The man must be
mad or retarded not to be afraid.
Nightfall looked at the scum before him and thought how much fun it would be to kill them all. He couldn’t help but smile knowing that they all had no idea that death was upon them. Nightfall also noticed the horse that the leader was sitting on. It was a beautiful stallion that was colored the deepest shiny black and it looked strong and fast. It was very apparent that the man took very good care of his animal. It reminded him somewhat of Night.
Night was Nightfall’s unicorn. Night was an unusually large and muscular unicorn that Cobran the High Lord of the Gods of Darkness had given him as a present over a thousand years ago. It was a supernatural beast with a violent temper. Its hide was colored a deep and dark black. Its eyes were red like demon fire. It was war trained and could run at a gate so fast that it became a blur to the naked eye. It was much larger and stronger than a normal unicorn was. Nightfall wondered what had ever happened to it while he was stranded in the No Land.
The leader of the outlaws said, “Are you alone and what are you doing on the grass lands with no horse and all by yourself?”
Nightfall said, “I like your horse. I will spare your life if you give him to me freely.”
The outlaw leader almost exploded with furry when he heard what the man dressed in all black had said. The man was retarded and didn’t know what danger he was in. He said, “Are you mad? Who do you think that you are to talk to me like that?” His men tried hard not to laugh.
Nightfall said, “I will spare your life but all of your men are as good as dead. I give you one last chance to save your own life and only one more time will I ask. Give me your horse and I will let you live.”
The Sword of Vengeance (The Chronicles of Bruk the Barbarian Book 4) Page 8