by Sam Ferguson
He suppressed the thoughts by returning his focus to mercy. He had to keep mercy at the forefront of his mind. By offering it, even to a suspected murderer, he would hopefully be able to keep the beast within himself at bay.
“We surprise Alkantar, and then we question him,” Erik said at last.
“I could move to that thicket of ferns next to those boulders,” Lady Arkyn said as she pointed to a place two thirds the way across to the cave opening. “I should have a good enough vantage point from which to attack, so long as it isn’t a dragon.”
Erik nodded. “I will change into my dragon form now. Best to confront Alkantar face to face.”
He removed his sword belt and prepared for the transformation. He set his clothes near a tree and then closed his eyes and called up his power.
Nothing happened.
He opened his eyes and looked around. The hairs on the back of his neck began to rise as a chill ran down his spine. He hurried and tried to change once more, but again nothing happened. Something was blocking his power.
“It’s a trap!” Erik called out.
He barely had time to pull his pants on before something lunged out of the bushes, deadly claws stretched out toward him. Lady Arkyn put down the beast with a single arrow that burrowed deep into the thing’s left eye.
Erik summoned Silverfang. A flash of lightning struck down without thunder. The massive wolf appeared before a pair of animated skeletons that were advancing on Erik and Lady Arkyn. Silverfang wasted no time in ripping their bones apart, snapping limbs and cracking vertebrae before discarding the enemies into a pile of chewed and splintered bones.
Erik drew his sword and Lady Arkyn turned to face the opposite direction. They scanned the trees while Silverfang sniffed at the air.
“He knows we’re here,” Lady Arkyn said.
“Then let’s not keep him waiting,” Erik replied. Seeing that the area was clear around them, he quickly put his clothes back on and the three of them ran out from the trees and into the valley. The ground rumbled beneath their feet. Dark forms started to rise from the grasses around them. They sprang up like vapors from a geyser spewing blackness into the air. Then they took form, with arms and legs becoming the first discernable appendages.
“Wights!” Lady Arkyn shouted. “Don’t let them touch you with their claws or you will be paralyzed.
Silverfang rushed in, danced around two of the creatures and then lunged at a third from behind. The wolf savagely tore at the creature’s neck. It hissed and wailed as it fell to the ground.
Lady Arkyn went to work with her bow, firing an arrow into the skull of two nearby wights. They each fell to the ground only to rise up a moment later and yank the arrows free.
“We’re in trouble,” Lady Arkyn said.
Erik unleashed his power as he had before, summoning the white, searing flames to his blade. “Let’s see how they fare against this.”
He spun in fast and hard, catching the nearest wight in the chest. The monster’s flesh popped and sizzled against the heat as it fell backward to the ground. The wight did not get up. Erik glanced up to the monster that Silverfang had killed. Its head was hanging limp by a thread of connective tissue and black skin, but it also was not rising.
“Cut off the heads, and you kill them.”
Lady Arkyn drew a long scimitar and went to work. She ducked under a powerful swipe of nasty, green claws, and then came up to lop off the wight’s head with a single swing. The head and body fell to the ground, never to move again. She then spun around, narrowly avoiding the reaching grasp of another wight. She countered hard and fast, severing the wight’s arm at the elbow. The creature recoiled and hissed in pain, but the severed arm kept crawling toward her leg.
Erik stepped in with his fiery sword. He went for the injured wight, chopping the monster in half at the torso.
Lady Arkyn stabbed through the grotesque arm, pinning it to the ground until the rest of the body died. Four more wights fell by Erik’s blade, and then the valley went quiet. Silverfang ran a wide perimeter, scouting for any additional enemies. Lady Arkyn put an arrow to her bowstring after sheathing her scimitar and the pair walked toward the entrance. When they were still about twenty yards away from the cave’s opening, a man appeared there, dressed in furs and leather.
“Are you Alkantar?” Erik asked, his sword still ablaze.
The man folded his arms and looked past them to the field. “I see you have met my doormen,” he said grimly. “It has been a long time since someone has dared come to my home, looking for trouble.”
“I have come to ask you about Winter’s Beak,” Erik said bluntly.
“Bah,” Alkantar said with a dismissive wave. “A bleak and dreary town. Hardly worth talking about, let alone assaulting me over.”
“So you deny murdering anyone there?” Lady Arkyn pressed.
Alkantar arched a white brow and stepped out into the light. He blinked his black eyes a few times against the brightness of the sun, and then he raised his left hand and snapped his fingers.
Erik heard a sharp whimper and turned his head to see Silverfang plucked from the ground and hovering in the air, legs clawing at an invisible force that held it captive.
“I deny nothing,” Alkantar said. “I have killed many in my life time.”
Erik called upon his power to see beyond the words Alkantar spoke. He had trained hard at Valtuu Temple to use his magical gift to discern truth from error. Not only could he tell if someone was lying, he could also see when they omitted the truth. “I didn’t come for games, Alkantar,” Erik said. “Did you murder thirteen sahale in Winter’s Beak in the last few days?”
Alkantar shook his head. “No.”
Erik nodded and extinguished the flames on his sword. “Do you know of a satyr named Njar?”
Alkantar nodded his head. “I do. Is it he that sent you?”
Erik gestured to Silverfang. “If you didn’t murder the sahale in Winter’s Beak, then we are no threat to you. Release Silverfang.”
“Oh, I think not,” Alkantar said. “You have destroyed many of my servants, and they are not easy to create.”
Erik didn’t wait to see what Alkantar intended to do. He used the spell Lady Dimwater had taught him to send Silverfang back to his own plane. In an instant, the wolf disappeared.
Alkantar stiffened and emitted a low growl. “I see you are not without a few tricks of your own.”
“Njar sent us to talk with you. He thought that you might know who attacked the sahale in Winter’s Beak,” Erik said. “Will you speak with us?”
“Njar…” Alkantar shook his head slowly. “How is the old goat these days? It has been many decades since I have heard from him.”
“Winter’s Beak,” Erik pressed.
“What is in it for me?” Alkantar asked.
“Mercy,” Erik said.
“Mercy?” Alkantar repeated. “I have no need of mercy from a young whelp such as yourself. Perhaps you didn’t realize, but my magic is superior to yours. Who do you think enchanted this area so that you could not change into your dragon form?”
Erik bristled. “I am the Champion of Truth. I have vanquished—”
“Yes, yes, I understand. You are very important and strong,” Alkantar interrupted. “I, on the other hand, am stronger. Shall I demonstrate?”
A blast of air slammed into Erik so hard that he flew back ten yards and then landed hard on his back. An instant later, Lady Arkyn was floating in the air and grabbing at her throat, her legs kicking beneath her.
“Stop, this isn’t what I wanted,” Erik shouted.
“Oh?” Alkantar asked skeptically. “The trees in the forest are my ears. I heard your plans to flood my caves!” The shadowfiend then motioned to the valley. “You were eager enough to cut down my servants as well.”
Erik rose up to his feet. “The flood was just to get you to come out so we could control the situation. Your wights attacked us.”
“You control nothing!” Alka
ntar said. “Don’t you understand that I can see the darkness within your soul? I can see how the bloodlust grows in your heart. You wanted to fight, no, you wanted to destroy me!” He turned and stretched his left hand out toward Lady Arkyn. “Now you will pay for your trespasses!”
Erik’s form vanished.
So did Lady Arkyn’s.
Alkantar looked around, confused. “Where are you?” he shouted.
Erik’s sword slipped around Alkantar’s neck from behind just as Lady Arkyn appeared a few feet off to the side, her bow drawn and aimed at the shadowfiend’s chest. Even Silverfang was back.
“I tried to warn you,” Erik whispered as he tightened his grip on Alkantar and slid his blade across the shadowfiend’s neck just enough to make sure Alkantar understood that he was caught. “I am the Champion of Truth,” Erik continued. “Not only can I see through deception, but I have become fairly adept at creating diversions myself.”
“Ah, clever boy,” Alkantar commented. “You used illusions to trick my senses. Impressive, but when you let met loose, I will kill you, make no mistake.”
“Answer my questions, and we need not fight.”
“Very well,” Alkantar said, sounding more than a little deflated at being outsmarted. “What is it you wish to know?”
Lady Arkyn moved in quickly and tied Alkantar’s wrists and ankles. They sat him down on a rock at the mouth of the cave. Silverfang moved in close, snarling in Alkantar’s ear while Erik moved to stand in front of the shadowfiend.
“You say you didn’t murder the sahale in Winter’s Beak, then who did?”
“Ah, so because I am a shadowfiend, I must certainly know every other shadowfiend, and their business, is that it?”
“Njar said you would know,” Lady Arkyn said flatly.
Alkantar nodded. “I know who it was, but you are foolish to try and stop him. He is one that has defied fate. His strength is more than you can imagine. If you go up against him, you will fail.”
“Who is it?” Erik pressed.
“I have a question for you,” Alkantar said suddenly. “Do you know why he hunts the sahale?”
Erik paused and glanced to Lady Arkyn.
“Oh, this is delicious,” Alkantar laughed. “You have no idea, do you? Njar hasn’t told you yet, has he?”
“Told us what?” Lady Arkyn asked.
“That it is not the shadowfiend you should be worrying about,” Alkantar said. “You should be scared of the dark sahale.”
“The dark sahale?” Erik echoed. “What are you talking about?”
Alkantar scoffed and shook his head. “You think shadowfiends are dangerous? Wait until you see the dark sahale. He is going to be the undoing of this world. His power will swell, and his attacks will leave countless dead.”
“You lie,” Erik said.
“You know better than that,” Alkantar said sourly. “You are the Champion of Truth, and you know that I am not lying.”
Lady Arkyn turned to Erik. “Is he telling the truth?” she asked.
Erik nodded. “At the very least he believes he is telling the truth,” Erik replied.
“If you do not believe me, then let me show you,” Alkantar said. “I can show you the threat that is lurking in the darkness.”
“I don’t trust him,” Lady Arkyn said. “It’s a trick.”
Alkantar shrugged and looked off to the valley. “For all I know, you are the dark sahale, boy,” he said before turning his head back to Erik. “Tell me, how many have you killed? Why should you be the judge of me when you have taken more lives than I?”
“I do not take lives for pleasure or gain,” Erik said quickly.
“Ah, but does a wolf not feed upon the deer?” Alkantar said. “I am no longer a man, I am more. I must, from time to time, feed myself. Are you and I so different?”
“I’ve heard enough,” Lady Arkyn said. “He doesn’t know anything useful.”
She drew her bowstring back as far as she could and aimed at the shadowfiend’s head. His black eyes glowered at her.
“Oh, but I do,” he said. “For I know how the other one stopped the sahale in Winter’s Beak from transforming into their dragon forms. I can show you where that spell came from, for I learned it from the same place as he did.”
Erik held out his hand. “Wait,” he told her. “We need to know more about this.” He stepped in closer and hoisted the shadowfiend up to his feet. “I will not untie you until after you have told us all you know.”
“As I said, I can show you. Come, down into my chamber.”
“No, Erik, it’s a trick,” Lady Arkyn said.
Erik shook his head. “I sense no deception. He is not lying about the spell. He knows something, and what he shows us may help us find answers.”
“She stays here,” Alkantar said. “You can bring your wolf, but your archer stays here.”
“I go where he goes,” Lady Arkyn said flatly.
Erik shook his head once more. “No, stay here. It will be all right. I won’t be long.”
Lady Arkyn shot Erik a look that was more than contemptuous, but he held firm. He loosened the cords around Alkantar’s ankles just enough so the shadowfiend could walk, and then he followed him deeper into the tunnel.
Yellow candles floating in the air gave them light as they descended into the bowels of Pracheloor Cave. The air grew musty and dank. The ground became soft and damp. Silverfang hung a few paces behind them the whole way, head low and muscles tense, ready to pounce at the earliest hint of danger. Alkantar remained silent as he led the way. Erik constantly called upon his power of discernment. He searched not only for harmful intentions from Alkantar, but also checked the surroundings for hidden traps or hiding enemies. Only when they came to a large chamber with a rectangular desk did he allow himself to relax.
Alkantar sat at the desk and spoke the words that summoned a large book shelf. There were tomes in many different languages. Erik recognized orcish, dwarvish, elvish, and others. As he scanned the titles, he saw one that looked very familiar.
He reached out and pulled the book out to inspect the runes on its spine.
“That was written by elders in the Cult of Zammin,” Alkantar said.
Erik nodded his head. “I have seen another book of theirs,” he replied.
“They are the ones who taught me the spell,” Alkantar said. “When I was younger, I was a neophyte in their order, many, many decades ago.”
“You know what this book says?” Erik asked.
Alkantar nodded. “It is written in a language devised by the Cult of Zammin. All of their earlier members were instructed in the language.”
“Then teach me,” Erik said.
Alkantar shook his head. “There is no spoken language,” he said. “It is a system of runes. Some of them are representations of letters, but others are pictographs. It would take you a long time to learn it.”
Erik assumed that he could use his other book, which was partially translated, to help him understand this one, but he would need some sort of cypher to speed things along. “Can you write down a cypher?”
Alkantar shook his head. “No, if you want to learn how to read that book, then you must go to the Cult of Zammin, who reside far to the north, across the sea and beyond the northern orcish tribes at the base of the mountains that surround our lands and cut us off from the rest of Terramyr.
“The Impassable Spine,” Erik said with a nod.
“Many have tried to cross the treacherous peaks, but only dragons and mighty wizards have ever succeeded.” Alkantar shifted his weight and cleared his throat. “That book is not what I promised to discuss with you.” Alkantar motioned with his chin toward a large, red leather book. “Pull that one, and you shall see that which you seek.”
Erik set the book from the Cult of Zammin down on the desk and reached for the red book. He pulled it out and searched for a title. “What is this book?” Erik asked.
“It is the book of forgotten prophecies,” Alkantar said. “
It was written by the Order of the All-seeing Eye.”
Erik nearly threw the book onto the ground. The Order of the All-seeing Eye was a most troublesome group of warlocks. They had sought to help Tu’luh the Red curse all of the Middle Kingdom with Nagar’s Blight, a powerful spell that contaminated and could control the hearts of dragons. If perfected, that same spell would be powerful enough to work upon all living creatures in the Middle Kingdom, turning everyone into mindless drones and slaves.
“That order is destroyed,” Erik said sourly.
“Yes, so I have heard,” Alkantar said. “Tukai died after trying to capture you, and the others died shortly thereafter, mostly by your hand, if I am not mistaken.”
Erik nodded. “Why should I believe anything in this book?” Erik asked as he turned and thumped it down on the desk in front of Alkantar.
Alkantar laughed and sneered evilly. “Tukai’s prophecy came true, did it not?” he asked. “Was Trenton Lokton killed by the hand of his own son?”
Erik felt a rage boil up within him that he wasn’t sure he could control. “Be careful what you say next,” Erik warned.
“I have no love for those warlocks,” Alkantar said. “However, their prophecies are valuable. They offer quite a bit of insight into the future. Not one of them has failed to come to fruition.”
“The warlocks twisted their prophecies, and used them to gain power and influence,” Erik replied.
“Oh, and the pious priests at Valtuu Temple never abused their power?”
Erik stood stoic and quiet.
“You know I tell the truth,” Alkantar said. “Think of the first Prelate you met at Valtuu Temple. Did he or did he not, try to coerce you into taking the Exalted Test of Arophim early? If I am not mistaken, he sent his own warriors out to capture you after you had fled the temple.”