The Q'Herindam

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The Q'Herindam Page 25

by B Cameron Lee


  “Your Highness.”

  The Queen smiled at Cringle’s earnestness.

  “Vehrin’del, Cringle. Just plain Vehrin’del will do.”

  “Thank you Your…. Vehrin’del. Something has been bothering me. Ever since I entered the Darkwood I’ve felt something isn’t right here. The colours are different from the last time I came. Why is that?”

  Both Vehrin’del and Jahron’dal seemed to become a little more somber as Vehrin’del looked at Cringle directly before answering, her voice bearing a heartfelt sadness.

  “Ch’ron is being eaten away by an invasion of the poisonous worms you once saw and is slowly dying. They are rapidly multiplying. If we cannot halt them, Ch’ron will eventually fade out of existence and the Darkwood will become just trees and shrubs without a soul.”

  Her response touched at something in Cringle’s heart. He could not let anything bad happen to the Darkwood. He would not simply wait here for Arwhon and Shiri but would ride to meet them and help stop the Q’Herindam.

  Cringle left in a rush the next morning.

  12. Tooth and Claw.

  Arwhon and Shiri sat on camp chairs while Joeeti squatted in front of them. He’d been offered a chair but declined it, preferring the ground. In the sharp light of the early morning, shining through the open flap of the tent door, Arwhon surreptitiously studied the strange being before him. Joeeti was ugly by Man terms and somewhat misshapen, covered with dark fur where his jerkin and kilt left him uncovered. Twin leather belts criss-crossed his chest, used for carrying weapons into battle no doubt. His furry face was elongated with large canines adding to the almost wolf like appearance. That same elongation of the face made Joeeti’s speech difficult to understand, as pronunciation of some words of the Common Speech was different. Arwhon had to remind himself he was dealing with yet another of the seven races.

  “So tell me as much as you can remember of your history, Joeeti. I’m very interested.”

  “Why you interested in Luper? We slaves of the Masters.”

  “You might be slaves of the Q’Herindam but you shouldn’t be. I’d like to know of your history, if you can remember any.”

  The Luper looked up, considering Arwhon for a moment, weighing up the worth of the Man.

  “All Luper learn our history from our mothers when we are younglings. There was a time, so long ago is barely remembered. Almost legend now. We roamed forests in the land to north. Then the Masters came, killed most of Luper before enslaving the rest. We been slaves for long time. Now our way of life.”

  Arwhon drew breath. Again, another of the races, once living in their own area of the Lands. It was a mystery where the seven races originally came from although the legend of Durhain claimed they were created. There were still some of the original seven races he had no knowledge of. Had they died out or been killed off? Or were they only to be found in other lands? Arwhon addressed Joeeti again.

  “The Q’Herindam had no right to enslave you. It was wrong. They are an evil race who desire to wipe out Man. They have caused many problems of late and I, for one, am tired of it. Joeeti, your people should be living free in the forests, not toiling under the yoke of the Q’Herindam. I’m going to try and free your people from slavery.”

  Joeeti’s turned his shaggy head toward Arwhon at this declaration.

  “Why you help Luper? We not your people.”

  “No, you aren’t but you are one of the seven races originally placed on the earth and should not have to live under the tyranny of evil. I, we, will help your people to be free.”

  There was motion at the tent doorway and Arwhon and Shiri looked up as an orderly brought a tray with bread, cheese and a steaming pot of cafke. There were only two cups.

  “Orderly. Please bring another cup,” Arwhon requested.

  The man looked at Joeeti squatted on the ground and shook his head as he went to find another cup. Joeeti’s eyes glittered.

  “That Man not like me,” he snarled.

  Shiri spoke quietly, her words gentle in remonstration.

  “He does not know what to think. You came to this land, his land, at the command of your Masters, to pillage and ruin it. You look different from him which causes uncertainty and sometimes fear. It will take time for Luper to be accepted in the lands but if you do no harm, eventually you will be.”

  The orderly returned with a cup and handed it over before retreating. Arwhon poured a cafke for Shiri and himself then one for Joeeti, offering it along with bread and cheese. The Luper accepted both gratefully, tearing into the food before slurping some of the cafke down. He appeared surprised at the taste of the drink and sipped it the next time, nodding approvingly.

  “Why your eyes like our Masters?” Joeeti asked Arwhon. “Are you Q’Herindam?”

  Arwhon looked toward Shiri with an unspoken question, she nodded slightly in response and answered Joeeti’s question herself.

  “Joeeti, I am M’Herindar, from the Darkwood, across the Rift from the Forbidden Lands which is what we call the land where you live. Once Q’Herindam and M’Herindar were one people, the Hirondae but some of them wanted to kill Man. They were banished. It was they who became the Q’Herindam, your Masters. Killers all. Arwhon is Man but he was badly injured once and healed by the magic of the Darkwood. It was during the healing his eyes were changed.”

  The Luper had finished eating and was savouring his cafke.

  “If we free, could we have this drink?”

  This time it was Arwhon who answered.

  “When your people are free, you can have many things but it requires will and effort to set them free. First though, the Luper have to stop the destruction they are bent on. All fighting in the land of Man must cease immediately. The Men in the army do not understand you are merely slaves. They see you as the enemy and want to rid Myseline of your kind. If you can convince your Commander to stop fighting, I will pledge to help free all Luper from the Q’Herindam.”

  Joeeti listened and when Arwhon had finished, all he said was.

  “I think on this.”

  Arwhon and Shiri left the tent and went in search of the General. They found him talking with the cavalrymen who had taken on scouting duties. The news was disturbing. Luper were not fighting at the moment but had gathered in a large camp. Cattle from nearby farms had been slaughtered and were being roasted over large fires but other than that, the Luper were keeping to themselves. However, the scouts had ranged far and wherever the Luper had ravaged earlier there was wholesale destruction. Farms burnt and people who didn’t or couldn’t get away killed where they stood. Not much had been taken, apart from the animals used for food.

  In the face of the news the scouts carried, Arwhon found it difficult to get his message across to the General and some of the cavalrymen present. It wasn’t the Lupers’ fault, they were merely slaves under the compulsion of the Q’Herindam. However, slaves of the Q’Herindam or not, the reality of the current situation, the very bottom line, was that within a few days time the Myseline army might be facing a huge battle against overwhelming Luper odds. Arwhon waited until the General dismissed the scouts then drew him to one side.

  “I’m going to send Joeeti back this evening. It might pay to have the army ready for some sort of response. I’ll sleep in my mail tonight, ready for an attack if one comes.”

  “The whole army will sleep in battledress tonight Arwhon, myself included and the sentries will be doubled, watching for treachery by the Luper.”

  “I doubt treachery General but not all the Luper packs may agree to a peaceful outcome. Only time will tell how many.”

  Arwhon returned to the tent and told Joeeti he was now free to go. He escorted the Luper to the perimeter of the camp where he could see the enemy far off on the other side of the valley. They clasped hands and Arwhon watched as Joeeti jogged off back to his own people, diminishing in size with distance as the Luper crossed the wide valley floor.

  The attack came not long after midnight. The first warning
was an alarm call from the outer ring of sentries as they ran back to camp in front of the attacking Luper. A defensive wall of polearms bristled immediately as the hundred or so men detailed to be on the ready sprang to their feet. The cavalry would be useless in the dark so it was down to hand to hand fighting as the fierce Luper horde closed on the untried Myseline force. Arwhon hurried out of his tent, his sword already in place, buckling on his helm as he ran to the front lines, not waiting for Shiri. When he arrived behind the ranks of soldiers, Arwhon realised he couldn’t use Firemagic on the Luper involved in the actual hostilities, as there was no way to control the destructive force of magic he would need to unleash. If he did use Firemagic, the Myseline soldiers in hand to hand combat with the Luper would be annihilated too.

  Arwhon pointed upward and unleashed a ball of fire which hung in the sky above the front line of the Myseline army, providing enough light for all to see by. To Arwhon, it looked as if only a portion of the Luper Horde had come to fight. In the bright light provided by the hanging fireball, Arwhon approached the front line, sword drawn and demanded an opening be made for him. It was not the sort of thing a soldier did, creating an opening in a line being held against a savage enemy but Arwhon was known. Who didn’t know the man who had given Myseline its rightful King back? Soldiers parted. In the thick of the fighting, Arwhon strode forward into the gap. Any weapon which came near him immediately exploded into fragments as it hit the wards he had wound around himself and soon Arwhon was through the hand to hand fighting and past the front ranks of Lupers. Now, standing surrounded by howling, battle-crazed Luper, he unleashed his Firemagic. White hot flames poured from the tip of his sword, immediately incinerating any fighters caught in its beam.

  The carnage was terrible to witness, wild howls and screams rising from the Luper force, as large numbers perished in the searing ferocity of the flames. Some Myseline soldiers turned away, too sickened to observe the carnage, as fire incinerated the attacking foe. The fighting faltered and suddenly the remaining Luper disengaged and retreated, rushing away en masse, carrying their wounded with them. A hoarse cheer rose from the ranks of the army who had borne the brunt of that initial attack, before they immediately set about seeing to their wounded. There were a few dead among them but not as many as there would have been if Arwhon had not employed magic against the attacking Luper force.

  As Arwhon walked back toward the ragged line of defenders, they fell back and Arwhon caught fear in their eyes as well as respect. He would always be different from them. The eyes he now looked through set him apart from his fellow man and although his Firemagic frightened many, during the night Arwhon and Shiri used that magic to set about healing those who were wounded, the most seriously injured first. In a few hours not an injured man remained, all were hearty and robust again. The fear in the eyes of the army now turned to love as they realised Arwhon and Shiri’s True nature.

  In the morning, Arwhon and Shiri mounted up and rode across the valley to the Luper camp. Arwhon called Krissi down to run alongside of them. Her presence could help, as all the races of Man had legends regarding gryffons.

  The Luper had formed up into two separate camps and spotting Joeeti in one, Arwhon rode over to talk with him.

  “Joeeti, what happened to our agreement?” Arwhon asked from his position up on Duran’s back.

  The Luper paid no attention to Arwhon as he stood gazing at Krissi with an awed expression on his face. Krissi felt the awe and drew herself up, unfurling her wings to pose in front of the Lupers. A reverent murmur ran through the crowd. Joeeti turned to Arwhon.

  “This a creature from legends of a time when we free. All thought it only a story. Now it comes with you into camp. It is a sign. Our agreement stands, none from this camp were in the last fighting. Talk to the Leader of that group over there.” Joeeti told him, pointing toward the other, larger force of Luper camped some distance away. Arwhon thanked Joeeti and followed by Shiri and Krissi, rode over to where the other group of Luper were assembled.

  As they approached, some of the Luper, recognising Arwhon from the night before, fell back fearfully. Spotting Krissi following behind Shiri those Luper started talking anxiously among themselves. Soon Arwhon and Shiri reached the centre of the camp and sat their horses, waiting. Krissi came forward to sit quietly beside Duran. An axe was thrown, rotating through the air toward them but disintegrated on contact with Arwhon’s wards. The two of them sat their horses patiently, gazing about them with apparent indifference until a large bulky Luper, wearing a blue jerkin, shouldered his way through the surrounding throng and stood before Arwhon. He gazed at Krissi with wonder for a moment then his scarred face twisted in a grimace as he spoke.

  “You are worse than the Masters. You destroy us using the magic of Fire. You are cowardly. I despise you although you travel with a creature from our legends.”

  Arwhon dismounted, leaving Duran standing, the big grey ever watchful of his Master as Arwhon halted before the leader of the Luper who was much taller and bigger than those around him.

  “I am Arwhon. Now a Fire Mage. I do not like to kill but the Luper came into the land of Man to destroy all before them. I took a prisoner and offered to end the fighting and free the Luper from the Q’Herindam but some of you ignored that offer and attacked us. I had to act to save the Men of the army. You should not have attacked us.”

  Arwhon paused and looked around at the furry faces surrounding him. There was intelligence there but also a lean and hungry look.

  “I am not a coward. To prove it I will fight one on one with any Luper you choose and I will use no magic. If I win, the fighting stops. If your Champion wins, you do as you think best.”

  The blue clad Luper’s eyes appraised Arwhon, taking note of the pretty, unmarked mail, his helm and slim looking sword. This man had probably never fought much without magic, although he seemed confident enough. The Luper replied.

  “I am Tooth, the leader of all Luper here. I accept your challenge Arwhon, you will fight my brother to prove you are not a coward. He is a better fighter than me but not the leader. You will fight to the death. Claw!”

  The cry rang out and within a few moments an even taller Luper pushed through the crowd and stood before them. He was massive and the family resemblance was apparent in his ugliness. This huge Luper carried an axe with a long handle grasped in one hairy paw while the other held a small round shield, iron bound. His tongue lolled out the side of his mouth, saliva dripping from it.

  Most of the Luper present had difficulty taking their eyes off Krissi, who was revelling in the attention but gradually a large circle formed around the two combatants. Arwhon sent a request to Krissi to move back out of the way but Krissi leapt up and took to the sky. There were cries from the crowd as she disappeared upwards, wingbeats loud in the ensuing silence.

  Without warning or preamble, Claw lunged forward, axe swinging as Arwhon stepped to one side to avoid the blow and drew his sword. It would be difficult not to use the magic which imbued every part of him now. Its use was almost reflexive.

  They circled, testing and feinting while getting a feel for each other’s capabilities. Suddenly Claw flailed in, axe swinging again. Despite his size, the giant Luper was fast and the axe whistled past Arwhon’s head as he turned slightly to avoid it and then had to hurriedly spin away from the shield which Claw had tipped on its side and aimed at his head. It was a different style of fighting but Arwhon had trained with Chalc, a Swordmaster who was once his Servant so Arwhon was ready for the next charge and dodging the axe again, swung at the shield aimed for his head. His sword bit deep and a section of the iron bound rim from the edge of the shield went spinning away into the crowd of onlookers. There was a collective gasp from the crowd, a sword cutting through iron!

  Unheard of.

  Claw stepped back and took a close look at the edge of his shield. There was now a flat line across the curve, the cut clean and neat. He once again concentrated his gaze on Arwhon. This time the giant Luper a
dvanced more slowly, his long handled axe weaving a circle of death before him. Arwhon also moved forward then stood in position, sword held high, waiting until Claw was almost on him before leaping to the side and cleaving the Luper’s shield into two. The crowd groaned as Claw threw the now useless half shield away and kept after Arwhon.

  The Luper was fast and although Arwhon could have easily killed him, he preferred a different outcome. Neither combatant could find an opening as they circled, feinting attacks, until Arwhon suddenly swung with all his might, his sword finding Claw’s axe mid swing, cleaving away the blade of it. Claw swayed on his colossal legs, his face puzzled and mute as he gazed at an axe haft with a lump of steel at its tip, as if it were an object beyond his understanding. Arwhon moved like a shadow and his next blow severed the axe handle. Claw was now unarmed. The big man grew more cautious, circling rapidly around the ring until someone thrust a stabbing spear into his hand. He immediately charged with the spear held out in front of him but Arwhon merely cut it into three pieces as he backed away leaving Claw weaponless again.

  The contest was taking too long and Arwhon wanted a result soon so he stopped moving around and sheathed his sword. Claw, feeling he now had the advantage over a much smaller opponent, rushed at Arwhon who responded with a mighty leap into the air and a perfectly placed kick to Claw’s temple. To the collective intake of breath by the encircling Lupers, the behemoth crumpled to his knees and slowly toppled forward, his senseless face thumping into the ground.

  Out cold.

  There was silence all around the circle as the onlookers tried to cope with the defeat of their champion. Tooth came forward to stand before Arwhon.

  “Now you kill him. The fight was to the death,” he growled.

 

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