The Holtur Enigma (The Holtur Trilogy)

by Cameron Wayne Smith

  “What’s he doing?” Vivian questioned Sonja.

  “He’s visualising!” Kaine released the proud smile of a father, then placed a bowl of stew before Vivian. “He might seem quite frail compared to the rest of his family, but I assure you, my son is quite strong.”

  “He has come up with some incredible strategies for us slayers,” Sonja added. “Without him, many of us would have fallen testing the wrong battle techniques in the past.”

  “…Rip…” Kallum mumbled softly under his breath. He then tried to inhale deeply, his mouth was opening wide, gasping, but it seemed he was incapable of inhaling air.

  “Ah shit!” Kaine grumbled before calmly walking over to a bench. Sonja moved herself to stand behind her brother, supporting his back while he continued gasping.

  “What’s happening?” Vivian looked on in horror.

  “He’s just having an episode.” Kaine walked back from the bench with a glass vial in his hand. He grasped his son’s jaw, forcing his mouth open, then dropped a few splashes of liquid from the vial onto his son’s tongue.

  “Shhhh…” Sonja assured her brother. His gasps began to suck down deep breaths of air, slowly becoming less intense and returning to a regular rate.

  “Sonja… stay… don’t go outside… these moons…” Kallum was focusing hard on every word he spoke to his sister. “Guardian say… bad moons…”

  “Alright Kallum, I’ll stay,” Sonja spoke in a hushed voice. Kallum’s eyes slowly closed, and he drifted into a sleep like state. His sister softly laid him on the cobbled floor.

  “Is he ok?” Vivian questioned, not understanding exactly what an ‘episode’ was, or how they affected him afterwards.

  “He’s fine,” Kaine assured, “he’s had the problem his whole life. Your serpents must have excited him though, his problem intensifies with excitement. The Bristrunstium have been progressing the soothing elixir much faster than the speed at which the illness worsens, which is good. I just hope they can continue doing so. Just eat your meal, and you can talk with him again next sun.”

  “What did he mean by his guardian and bad moons?” Vivian remained confused. The way Kallum looked at Sonja when he spoke showed powerful meaning.

  “Who knows with Kallum,” Kaine said, “but it might be best you stay here until next sun. I have a spare bed that’s all yours if you want it.”

  “That’d be great, thank you.” Vivian smiled at the thought of sleep. He hadn’t had a good moon of rest since he had left Silverton, and the sun he had just been through was one hell of an ordeal.

  Chapter 4: Leeches

  The illumination offered from the moon lit up the darkness, much more brightly than usual. The cold too, was intense, but the feather down bed felt beyond incredible to Vivian’s aching body. He felt as though he had sunk as deep into the comfortable bed as he possibly could. The wooden door to his room creaked open, revealing his wife, wearing a pink, silk night dress.

  “Dandy is fast asleep.” Sally dipped her shoulder, allowing part of her dress to fall down. It revealed a beautiful perky orb, decorated with a delicious, little, pink nipple. “We’ve got the rest of the moons to ourselves.”

  “What to do?” Vivian sat up in the bed, staring at the woman approaching him. It felt like a long time since they had been alone, which was odd considering they lived together.

  “I have absolutely no idea Viv.” Sally slinked down her other shoulder, allowing the dress to fall to the ground. She softly drapped her fingers across his face, then fell onto the bed, looking back up at him.

  “Oh Sal, I’ve missed you.” Vivian propped himself onto his knees. He then slid his hand from her cheek, down her neck, and across her body.

  “I’ve missed you too,” Sally responded with an inviting smile.

  Vivian moved his lips towards hers, preparing to taste her sweet kiss, only for a loud crashing noise from outside to ruin the moment. “What was that?” He pulled away with a look of worry. “Dandy?”

  “It’s nothing.” Sally wrapped her arms around him, bringing her lips up to his neck.

  “Something is out there!” Vivian was torn between arousal and fear, he swore he could hear something. “Just give me a moment to che—”

  A long scream erupted from outside their room, the moon became brighter, and Vivian felt as though Sally had him pinned in position. “It’s nothing,” Sally spoke aggressively. She then bit into Vivian’s throat, ripping out flesh, with blood gushing from his body.

  ***

  Jolting up in bed, he drew heavy breaths, feeling slimy from a heavy sweat. Vivian placed his hands around his neck, making sure it was still intact. “Another bad dream,” he spoke out loud to assure himself. It started as such a beautiful dream too, but his dreams had been far from pleasant since coming to Holtur. At least the sun was dangling outside the window, letting him know that he had at least made it through both moons, before he had succumbed to the horrors within his own mind.

  He heard another scream—this one definitely real—that sounded like a woman who had just seen the dead. It erupted from outside the room, most likely outside the building. The door to the room he had spent the night in swung open, revealing Sonja, strong and ready for combat. “Leeches came over the moons.” Her serious face twisted, showing her forcefully holding back laughter. “Deal with that tent you’ve pitched, then meet me outside.”

  “Oh…” Vivian looked down the bed, feeling a sense of embarrassment. “Sorry.”

  “Just get out here quick.” Sonja then slammed the door, her footsteps hurrying outside.

  Throwing the sheets off himself, Vivian could feel each sun was growing progressively colder, and fast. He quickly got dressed, threw his brown trench coat over the top, then made his way outside to see what exactly this leech situation was. He thought it was quite odd, having a leech problem in such a cold location. He had only ever encountered them in warmer climates, even then, they weren’t that big of a deal.

  Walking out from the Bluwahlt residence, he felt the sting of the cold, even through his thick attire. A group of people were huddled together in the distance, which is where he had figured they were discussing the supposed leech problem. Approaching the group, he noticed they were standing around four human corpses. They were void of colour and appeared drained of all moisture.

  “Cowardly creatures, always attacking the weak and elderly…” Sonja grunted, a look of anger upon her face. “If one of these things came to me during the moons, it wouldn’t get away so easily.”

  Vivian couldn’t look at the corpses for too long, he didn’t want them joining in with his vivid nightmares. “These leeches, do they attack in groups, or are they really big?”

  “They’re large.” Sonja leant down next to one of the corpses, pointing to the bite marks around the neck. “See, one set of bite marks.”

  “Don’t leeches have circular jaws?” Vivian’s gut churned with each moment he gazed upon the bites.

  “These quite clearly aren’t normal leeches,” Sonja educated the northerner, “but if you look closer, there is a discoloured ring around the bite marks. They are definitely a leech of some sort, they drain the entire body of fluids, then go into hiding by first sun.”

  “But that scream, that was just recently?” Vivian quickly diverted his eyes from the bite marks.

  Sonja stood up and folded her arms. “How would you react, if you saw one of your loved ones like this at first sun?”

  “Hmmm…” Vivian thought about his family for a moment, hoping they were still safe from the serpents making their way towards Silverton. “I hope I never have to. So what now? Where would these leeches have gone? They couldn’t have travelled too far being so bloated.”

  “I do not know.” Sonja looked across the town. “We will, however, be going on a leech hunt. Hopefully we can catch the creatures before they go into hiding.”

  “What about my assistant?” Vivian was worried about what the bargetier could be doing to Donna this very momen
t. “Surely your slayers should be out hunting for the ba—”

  “Quiet!” Sonja aggressively hushed. “Don’t worry, there’ll be groups of slayers out looking for your assistant and… that thing… but I’m not leaving the walls of Holtur. There is plenty of searching to do here.”

  “Oh, right.” Vivian was surprised to see Sonja wanting to remain so secretive about the bargetier. It gave him confidence that the slayers would consider dealing with it a top priority. “Would you like me to help with the leech hunt?”

  “An extra pair of eyes couldn’t hurt,” Sonja said, looking Vivian up and down, “but are you sure? Despite what you may think of me, I don’t want to see you end up another dehydrated corpse.”

  “Actually I have another task for you.” Kaine approached from behind them. He was dressed much differently compared to when Vivian had first met him, he looked like a slayer. “Can you watch over Kallum this sun for me?”

  “Ahh… sure, why?” Vivian thought the request to be quite random.

  “With his condition he needs someone close by at all times.” Kaine squinted with the early sun’s glare in his eyes. “You know, in case he has an episode? Just put a few drops of that elixir on his tongue if his breathing fails. I love the boy, I really do, but it would be nice to spend a sun not worrying about him. It would also be nice to spend a bit of time with my daughter here, even if it is on a slug hunt!”

  “Alright, I guess it’s the least I can do to say thanks for your hospitality.” Vivian nodded, he’d much rather look after someone—regardless how odd they were—than hunt down a hostile creature.

  “Don’t underestimate his knowledge either.” Sonja’s smile grew larger since discovering she would be spending the sun with her father. “If anyone in Holtur is going to help you with your serpent problem, it will be him.”

  “I hope he can help,” Vivian said, “it’s why I’m here after all.”

  “Go, find him as soon as possible.” Kaine too was grinning. “He should be fine for quite a while, but I would much rather someone close by at all times.”

  “Sure thing.” Vivian turned back towards the house.

  “Oh, and Vivian,” Sonja called out. “Remember what I said I’d do to you if you upset my brother?”

  “How could I forget?” Vivian gave a wave, then continued on. He didn’t want to leave Kallum alone for too long, just in case he was having one of those episodes.

  The warmth of the house was comforting after the cold Holtur air, and the blank stares of those drained corpses. Vivian made his way back to the dining room where he had enjoyed the meal with Sonja’s family. Sitting on the bench was Kallum, looking up at him, like he had been waiting for him.

  “I have an idea of how to help deal with your serpents.” Kallum wasted no time with pleasantries. “Let’s set off for the Bristrunstium, probably best I just show you.”

  “What about your, you know, breathing thing?” Vivian was as eager to learn how to fight the serpents, but also worried about the boy’s health.

  “No need to worry about that.” Kallum reached into his coat, revealing a small vial of that same liquid his father used on him previously. “I’ve always got some on me. Please don’t stress about my health, my father thinks I’m worse than I really am. I can usually medicate myself when it happens. Last time I was just in deep in thought, like I was more focused on your serpents than my body.”

  “Wow, well, thank you for your commitment.” Vivian was usually pretty good at working people out, but this family was unlike any he had ever met in Silverton.

  “Don’t thank me yet.” Kallum stood up, starting down the hallway towards the front door. “Those serpents are still breathing! Come on, let’s quit wasting the sun.”

  Vivian followed the eager boy out of the house. “So, do you work for the Bristrunstium?”

  “Sure do!” Kallum proudly answered. “I’ve been working with them since my sister started slaying. It is a bit odd though, families usually slay or study, not both!”

  “How long has that been then?” Vivian had already figured out Sonja’s age—about twenty-eight—from his recent discussions with her. Her brother though, seemed like he was in his mid-teens, tall for his age, but still young.

  “Hmm… I was sixteen back then, so about ten years now?” Kallum continued leading onwards.

  “Twenty-six years old!” Vivian exclaimed under his breath, he didn’t mean to, but it was such a shock.

  “Here we go, get it out of your system.” Kallum stopped.

  “No, sorry, there’s nothing to get out of my system.” with every word Vivian selected, he visualised how Sonja would react if she was standing beside them. “I just thought you would be a little younger is all.”

  “Of course, you thought my father was making you babysit me for the sun.” Kallum summoned a sarcastic grin on his face. “Truth is Vivian, I am older than I look, and a whole lot smarter too. Just so you know, if anyone is doing the babysitting in this arrangement, it is most certainly myself.”

  “Of course, and I appreciate it.” Vivian felt awkward receiving such words, especially from what appeared to be a minor. But he wasn’t in the mood for arguing, not with Sonja’s words still fresh in his mind. “Shall you continue showing me to the Bristrunstium?”

  “Yeah.” Kallum’s eyes softened, and his lips returned to a smile. He had became more cool all of a sudden. It was like he was used to arguing with people about his age and intelligence, but having Vivian accept it, put him at ease. “We aren’t far now.”

  The streets of Holtur reminded Vivian of an artistic impression of old civilisations he had seen. All the buildings seemed to be made from grey stone, with pointed thatched roofs. Most of the people were thickly clad with all sorts of wild animal fur. He assumed that during the warmer suns, the place and people would look quite different. Surely the slowly melting snow that lay over the footpath, flowing into drainage channels, trickling out of the town, would all be gone with a single wave of heat. The towering mountains surrounding Holtur in the distance, were constantly capped with snow. The wind that slid down them, whistled through the forest of pine, constantly sending gusts of cold fresh air through the streets.

  The buildings they walked past all looked relatively similar, until making their way to the end of a long street. Before them stood an extraordinary building that Vivian immediately assumed, must be the Bristrunstium. The courtyard was full of scholars, slayers, and everyone in between. They were toying with experimental weaponry. Some looked mechanical, others looked almost like reconstructed monster limbs. The entrance to the building was a huge arched doorway, big enough to haul any kind of beast, wyvern, or creature through. It smelt like nothing Vivian had smelt before. Not a delightful food smell, but not foul or disturbing odor either.

  Kallum took in a deep breath through his nose, then exhaled with a big grin across his narrow face. “You smell that?”

  “Yeah…” Vivian nodded, trying to enjoy it as much as the local. “What is it?”

  “That my friend, is the smell of curiosity!” Kallum then turned back to the Bristrunstium. He hurried towards the arched doorways while glancing around at the unique gadgets being used through the courtyard.

  “So this is the heart of the land’s monster studies,” Vivian softly spoke, feeling an eerie darkness as the arched doorway pulled him in. “Why base yourselves here, in such a cold part of the world?”

  “Holtur is beautiful.” Kallum smirked. “Don’t act like you don’t admire the place. I saw you admiring the scenery as we walked through town.”

  “It has its charm.” Vivian couldn’t help but smile back.

  “A lot of monsters feel the same way,” Kallum spoke with purpose. “Here at Holtur we deal with more monsters than anywhere else.”

  “Grabion, wyverns, leeches, and bar—,” Vivian spoke freely, then remembered he was not supposed to mention the bargetier, “—bears?”

  “We don’t need to worry about bears all that much
.” Kallum didn’t pay attention to Vivian’s stutter. “They usually stay out around the pines and mountains. Leeches have their moments, but it would be nice if someone bags one this sun. Grabion aren’t a real threat either, but yes, wyverns can cause quite a bit of damage if they aren’t dealt with.”

  “I know, they took out everyone I was travelling with.” Vivian sighed, feeling slightly embarrassed with his inability to handle creatures like the people of Holtur.

  “You saw one up close?” Kallum’s eyes lit up, showing that his obsession with monsters was far more powerful than his empathy for fellow man. “How close did you get? How big was it? What kind was it?”

  “Stop it!” Vivian snapped back with anger, his voice echoing off the walls. “Sorry, Kallum, I saw a lot of people die that sun, I lost my assistant too.”

  Kallum nodded. “I won’t ask you any more then. Come on, we’re nearing what I want to show you.”

  After following Kallum through a winding hall that lead to countless rooms, he finally stopped before an iron door. He pulled down a lever beside the door, releasing a seal, sending a blast of warm air over them. After the door had fully opened, the two stepped through, and Kallum quickly closed the door behind them, sealing it with another lever on the inside.

  “What is this?” Vivian had never seen this done before, a warm, humid, brightly lit room within a frozen building. Looking around the room made it hard to fathom he was indoors. They were surrounded by tropical rainforest plants, ferns, cycads, and various other vegetation, that should not be able to grow this far south. “How?”

  “It’s an artificial environment.” Kallum’s eyes were scanning through the room while he spoke. “We use it as a terrarium of sorts. It allows us to study organic matter that cannot exist in our cold climate.”

  “Like plants, yeah?” Vivian was impressed, but at the same time, he didn’t want some tropical creature jumping on his face.

  “Actually, more than just that!” Kallum looked down at the northerner’s leg.