Renegades Of Wolfenvald, Book Two of The Adventures of Sarah Coppernick

by SJB Gilmour

  Several werewolves barked no, while others just shook their heads or wagged their tails.

  James muttered, ‘Mason really should be here for this.’

  Oliver looked at him in surprise. ‘Why?’

  James grinned. ‘He probably knows more dirty secrets of more powerful people than anyone else. How else do you reckon he was able to get into the Royal Burrow on such short notice? He’d come in pretty handy on Jilde. Goblins are worse than gnomes when it comes to bureaucracy.’

  ‘Never mind that,’ Benjamin told the grinning pair. ‘It’s time to go to Jilde. Mel’s hurt and we may not have much time.’

  ‘Just a moment,’ Angela said. She rose and crossed to an empty spot in the clearing. She kicked the area free of any goblin remains and quickly stripped off. Several of the werewolves as well as Benjamin, Robert and Roberta crouched in a formal circle around her. Overhead, the sky rumbled and the clouds released yet another torrent of rain.

  Angela began to chant a long, complicated spell until finally a glowing spark appeared in front of her. At first, the spark had no shape then it began to grow. Slowly it grew and grew as she chanted and chanted. Eventually, the glowing spark had grown into a man-shaped form roughly twice the size of a normal man and solidified into the bright, glowing form of Apollo, the Archer god.

  The god held His hand out to her, palm up. Sarah’s beautiful teacher held out her own palm and touched it to that of her god. The two did not speak. Instead, they merely stared at each other for a long time. The touch of her god made Angela glow brightly. Her stance, which had been tired, was now tall and proud. Her hair glowed and glistened in the rain and a shimmering golden aura emanated from her naked body. A glowing, golden tattoo of an arrow appeared over her left breast.

  Then, Apollo withdrew His palm and faded away. Angela turned, still quite naked in the rain, to face her friends and new allies. She looked down at the tattoo and smiled somewhat regretfully.

  ‘The Mark of Apollo,’ she murmured to herself. ‘Like mother like daughter.’ Then she shook off her reverie and smiled at the awed group.

  ‘Mel’s not dead,’ she told them all, ‘but we better hurry. Benjamin is right. Apollo is keeping her alive for now, but even He has limits.’ She dressed herself again. Then she waved at the sky. ‘Rest,’ she commanded the clouds in English and the rain halted.

  ‘What did you two talk about?’ James asked her curiously. Blanching slightly, he nodded at her chest. ‘And what’s that mark?’

  Angela blushed slightly.

  Her cousin stared at her incredulously. ‘You didn’t!’ he gasped.

  ‘Mel’s gone to Jilde, James,’ she explained. ‘That’s not His territory. He wasn’t going to risk getting into trouble unless there was something in it for Him.’

  Benjamin was staring at his assistant. His expression was unreadable.

  Angela shrugged. ‘I’m on borrowed time right now. Once this is all over… I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell Mel until she’s a bit older, cousin.’

  James nodded his agreement. Despite the incredible news Benjamin had just heard, his expression now was one of pain and annoyance. He pawed at his ears several times and whined painfully.

  Angela wiped her brow and then waved at the debris on the ground. As she waved, the area shimmered and suddenly became clear of all the mess. Clean, swept dirt was all that was left. Then she nodded at the clearing and an enormous burning nonagram appeared on the ground.

  ‘Now that’s more like it,’ Oliver said approvingly. ‘See,’ he went on. ‘I told you that you had the power.’

  Angela flashed him a tight grin. ‘Well?’ she asked them all. ‘Are we going or not?’

  ‘What about Susan and David?’ James asked her. ‘Right now, they could be in trouble too, you know.’

  ‘Don’t worry about them,’ she told him. ‘Apollo’s keeping an eye on them too, and He told me that Mother is with them. They couldn’t be safer.’ She waved at the pack of werewolves, James and Oliver to join her. ‘Come on,’ she told them brightly. ‘Fate won’t wait now.’

  Benjamin yelped and fell to the ground, twitching. Angela gaped at him in amazement. Then she gave an exasperated sigh.

  ‘Again?’ she demanded, raising her eyes to the sky. ‘If Rufus is playing more games, I’ll bloody kill him!’

  ‘I think he’s dead already, cousin,’ James reminded her teasingly. Then he glanced around at the other werewolves. They were either unconscious or about to collapse. Some managed to give sad yelps and yips. Mannix, the toughest of the werewolves present, held out only a short while longer. He managed to howl briefly before he too was rendered comatose.

  Angela rushed to Benjamin. The enormous silver and black wolf lay on the ground, barely able to breath. James and Oliver quickly rushed to the others.

  ‘Whatever it is,’ James decided, ‘it’s hit them all.’

  ‘But they’re supposed to be invulnerable!’ Oliver protested, shaking Fergus. ‘They’re… they’re…’ he swayed and his eyes suddenly glazed over. ‘Oh, bugger me,’ he moaned and clutched both hands to his temples in sudden pain. He lurched and wavered unsteadily.

  James and his cousin stared at him in amazement.

  ‘Now what?’ James demanded. He looked up at Angela. ‘I don’t think Rufus has anything to with this,’ he murmured.

  ‘Conundrum…’ Oliver managed to croak. ‘Some… Something’s wrong—’ Then he grunted in pain, as whatever was causing his headache suddenly worsened. He sank to his knees. His face was ghostly white and he began to shake uncontrollably.

  ‘What?’ James demanded. He knelt down beside the stricken sorcerer and shook him.

  ‘The Gate!’ Oliver gasped. Tears of blood leaked from his tightly clenched eyes. More blood ran freely from his mouth, nose, and ears. He gave one last strangled cry and collapsed in a bloody heap next to Sheila.

  James looked up at his cousin. ‘Uh oh,’ he muttered. Then he brightened as an idea came to him. ‘You got the girls to The Gate once before, didn’t you?’

  Mutely, Angela nodded.

  ‘Do you think you’d be able to get there again?’

  ‘I can’t just leave them here!’ she protested.

  James lurched to his feet and rushed to her. He reached up and took hold of her shoulders and shook her.

  ‘You don’t have a choice!’ he yelled. ‘Whatever hit the wolves also hit Cromwell! You have to stop it! Can you get there or not?’

  Angela wriggled free and stepped back. She chewed her lip for a moment then squared her shoulders with a determined frown.

  ‘I just promised myself to Apollo, cousin. Right now, there’s nothing I can’t do. You stay here. I doubt I’ll be long.’

  She concentrated for a moment and then created a portal in front of her and marched through it. A few seconds later, she was hurled back out of her own portal with such enormous force that she flew several metres to come to a crashing halt against the trunk of one of the jungle trees that James had only recently re-grown. Whether it was the impact of the force of whatever sent her back through the portal, nobody knew but one thing was quite clear — Angela Harding, the new fiancé of the great god Apollo, was as unconscious as Oliver Cromwell.

  Mautallius looked about the remains of the Ottispuschenshuffen’s shop. Furious that he had missed his chance to reach either Hazelwood or Coppernick, he cursed and swore, blasting every object he saw with lightning. Then he felt a stabbing pain in his temples as he felt an enchantment being broken. His possessed eyes widened with horror. He knew what had happened. He’d felt that pain before. Coppernick had broken his barrier to release the dragon! He unleashed another string of curses and kicked a goblin head out of the way. Then he opened another portal and returned, too late, to Conundrum to find all about him was chaos.

  He shook his head several times and rubbed his temples. He could hardly believe the power The Golden Mane had used to break his spell. Still, he had power too. As he walked about, pondering wha
t to do, Guntex arrived.

  ‘I just lost more than a hundred troops because of you, Mautallius!’ he raged.

  Mautallius shrugged. ‘Lose one or lose a thousand, we care not, just so long as you remain to protect us from harm when the time comes.’ He waved at the goblin indifferently.

  ‘I’m not so sure this deal of yours is worth it,’ Guntex threatened. ‘I ought to take my guardslins and leave.’

  Now Mautallius smiled coldly. ‘Go then. We shall see how long you last once the war begins. Regardless of which side wins, you will be an enemy. If we win, which we will, goblin, we shall sacrifice your life first of all. If The Golden Mane wins, she may let you live so long as she cannot find you. We hear she has a very good nose for sniffing out traitors.’

  Guntex glared at him. ‘Alright, I’ll stay, but I want Jax’s head on a spear!’

  Mautallius grinned with evil relish. ‘Do your task well, goblin, and you shall have as many heads on as many spears as you like!’

  Melanie was dying. The wound in her thigh felt as though it was on fire and she could feel the silver coursing through her body, poisoning her. She could no longer focus her eyes. In her mouth, all she could taste was the blood she was coughing up and no matter how hard she panted, she could not get enough air.

  Several large white pillows on a clean, firm hospital bed in Jildere Primus Hospital propped her up to make her ragged breathing easier. Even so, Mel’s lungs were tearing and burning. Beside her were two goblin nurses. One was wiping her brow with a damp cloth while the other was chanting a healing spell. Like the pillows, neither was doing much good.

  Mel’s hearing began to fail her. Soon, she could hear and see nothing at all. All she felt was the searing pain. She took a few more ragged breaths, and then was unable to do even that. Her heart had been beating very loudly but now it had slowed down dangerously.

  She swallowed a mouthful of blood and bile and choked, forcing her to take another breath. Suddenly, the pain ceased. She took one last long, shuddering breath and blackness and numbness overtook her.

  Melanie looked around. ‘Great,’ she muttered to herself. ‘So now I’m dead.’ She began to swear, using every piece of profanity she knew in English. Then she switched to Trollish. All around her was blackness. ‘Looks like Neroland,’ she muttered when she had done swearing.

  ‘No my child,’ a voice said.

  Mel whirled around. Stunned, she saw the tall glowing form of Apollo. He wore simple leather sandals and a flowing white toga. Around His head, He wore a thin gold crown fashioned into a laurel of gold bay leaves. In His left hand, He carried a golden bow and a quiver of glowing arrows was slung over His left shoulder. On His muscled forearms, He wore leather archery braces inlaid with gold.

  ‘You are not dead yet, my daughter,’ Apollo told her with a comforting smile.

  Melanie was transfixed. She had never seen such a beautiful man in her life. His eyes were piercingly blue and His skin was a gorgeous golden tan. His teeth, the whitest and straightest she had ever seen, sparkled like diamonds. She felt very small and gauche in the great Archer God’s presence.

  Shaking, she sank to one knee. She had been drilled by her parents and Aunt Angela that this was the thing to do when she first met a god. Absently, she was surprised she remembered.

  Apollo grinned and motioned for her to stand once more by raising His right palm up.

  ‘There is no need for you to bow to me, child,’ He told her. Even His voice nearly made her swoon.

  Mel opened her mouth in awe. She had no idea what to say.

  ‘An evil blade has pierced your body,’ Apollo told her. ‘There is a foul poison in your veins. I have had to take you here for a time.’ He waved around Him and suddenly they were standing in a marble courtyard on top of a huge mountain. The air was cool and the sunshine was warm and calming. Birds sang and somewhere, someone was playing a lute.

  Mel looked around and suddenly realised that she recognised the place. Unlike the cold and blustery mountaintop upon which her aunt Angela had summoned Apollo, this mountaintop was calm, clean and pleasant. Gone were all the hash rocks and scrubby bushes. Instead, the area around her appeared as if it had been looked after very well by some heavenly gardener.

  ‘This is my Mount Olympos,’ Apollo went on. He shut His eyes for a moment. On the marble flagstones at Melanie’s feet, a shimmering image appeared. Mel looked down and saw herself, lying very still on the hospital bed. Two goblin healers, who were fussing over her, joined the goblin nurses. Suddenly all four goblins were pushed back by some invisible force. The air around Mel shimmered and glowed a golden hue. Mel watched in amazement as the colour returned to her cheeks and her body began to breathe once more. She looked up at Apollo in awe.

  The Greek god smiled sadly at her. ‘Such is the limit of my power in that world,’ He told her. ‘For a while, your body was not living. I could not help until your blood was still.’ The great god bowed His head briefly and sighed. Then He looked up again. ‘For now you and I are God and subject,’ he told her sadly, ‘All the power I can give you shall be yours, but know that your own power will grow too, to strength that could surpass even mine.’ His glorious eyes were sad and a look of profound regret came over His face. ‘I am sorry, my daughter, but I have had to change you a little. I could not retrieve you from this world and so I had little option. The silver still runs through you my daughter, but now it cannot harm you. Indeed, it is part of you forever. What has been done now can never been undone. My fellows will feel this little thing greatly, I fear.’

  ‘My God!’ Melanie said finally. ‘What do You mean? What’s happening?’

  Apollo smiled. ‘If I answer one question, I must answer a thousand and now is not the time for a thousand questions,’ He advised her sagely. He reached out and placed a strong hand on her very thin shoulder. ‘Know this,’ He told her. ‘The world of the goblin beasts is a primitive one, but there you must stay until you have completed that which is but a part of your destiny and The Time of Learning is complete.’

  ‘What?’ Melanie was aghast.

  ‘The White Pirate is not the one destined to teach you, child. He has talent surely, but your path lies on a different road to his. Seek out the Smith of Ages. It was he, not the White Pirate, who fashioned the Star of Planes. That trickster Loki stole the device and gave it to the Pirate to wreak yet more havoc on the universe. The Smith of Ages will teach you all you need.’

  Mel did not understand. ‘But—?’ She began to protest.

  Again, Apollo smiled his devastating smile. ‘When you awake, you will be taken to the goblin beasts’ ruler. In a race of foul creatures, he is not so foul as his subjects. Long has he been of one purpose and that is to rid the universe of the evil token stolen by Loki. The goblin beasts’ ruler will direct you to your new teacher. Go, child. Doubtless you will know when The Time of Learning has ended, I will come to advise you of the next passage in your journey. Then, if there is still a need, I shall reveal the last truth of what has just occurred here.’

  Melanie was overcome by blackness again as the Greek god returned her soul to her body. She woke and sat up, blinking in the harsh light of the hospital ward.

  ‘Amazing!’ one of the goblin healers exclaimed. ‘Tell me, young human, how have you managed to come back from the dead? One minute you’re knocking on Hades’ door, the next, some enchanted force keeps us away from your corpse and now you’re sitting up?’

  The goblin was talking very fast indeed. He was obviously one of those people who could never shut up or sit still.

  ‘Well, come on!’ demanded the fussy goblin doctor. ‘Out with it!’

  ‘Yes! Out with it!’ the other goblin healer urged her.

  Mel groaned and shut her eyes for a long moment. Then she bravely lifted the bed-sheet and looked down at herself. She was clothed in the same clothes she had worn the night before at dinner with Oliver and the succubi. Instead of being dirty and bloody, however, her clothes were now clea
n and smelled quite fresh. The hole in her jeans leg where the spear had stuck through was gone. Her mind felt strangely numb. She knew that something incredible had just happened, though the enormity of it had not yet hit her. Distracted, she reached down and squeezed her thigh. There was not the slightest amount of pain or bruising. The wound was completely healed. She smiled to herself then looked back at the fussing goblin medical staff who were all by now quite beside themselves.

  ‘Oh shut up,’ she told them grumpily. She swung her legs out of the bed, stood up, and stretched. ‘Don’t you think you should tell Jax I’m awake?’ she asked them, raising one eyebrow. ‘And where are the Ottispuschenshuffens?’

  She then patted her back pocket. The tome was gone. Her heart began to race for a dreadful moment when she thought she had lost it. Then she noticed the small bedside table and drawer. She wrenched the drawer open and was very relieved to find that the tome that she and Sarah had gone to so much trouble to find, was safe and sound. She grabbed it and stuffed it back into her hip pocket.

  Of course, this sent the healers and nurses into a flurry of excited protests. One of the nurses rushed at her to take her temperature, while both healers tried to guide her back into bed while all four of them jabbered away in Goblin — or, as most civilised goblins prefer to call it, Jildish.

  Mel shrugged her shoulders this way and that and waved the goblins off her. She stood up to her full height, several centimetres taller than these non-military goblins. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and stared at them, tapping her foot impatiently.

  ‘Well? Where’s Jax?’

  A dry chuckle came from the ward door. ‘And they told me you weren’t going to make it,’ Jax said laconically. He grinned, showing very bright, sharp teeth. He shook his head at the healers and nurses. ‘You goblins couldn’t diagnose a runny nose.’ He waved at them dismissively. ‘Go back to abducting gnomes or humans or cattle or something.’