‘We use our hands and feet,’ boomed Arhdel in his ear. ‘Come, lad, are you a man or a tiny, furry mouse?’
Matt shook his head in despair but joined the two large hands which were already tearing at the mud and stones. It was a very slow process; his nails were soon cut to the quick and the silt ingrained itself into his smooth skin. Dirty water was oozing through the hole and in no time at all it seeped through most of his clothing, soaking his skin.
It seemed to take hours, but after much hard work the opening was just large enough for them to crawl through. Arhdel went first, pushing his bulky frame through the jagged hole, causing shards of decaying stone to break off and fall into the water.
‘I’m almost there,’ called Arhdel, still pushing his way through. ‘But it’s my damn armour,’ he roared, ‘it’s stuck on a chunk of granite.’
‘I’ll push from this side,’ Matt yelled, grabbing the soldier’s shoulders and giving them a shove. ‘You just need a little more power behind you, that’s all.’
Arhdel wriggled and squirmed whilst Matt pushed from behind, the granite unyielding until a final push made it give way and Arhdel fell straight into the stinking water below. The water wasn’t very deep, less than waist high, but he was soon gasping for air and cursing.
‘Are you okay?’ Matt shouted, scrambling to his feet and peering down at him.
‘Get in here!’ ordered Arhdel, having finally lost his patience. ‘I haven’t all day to wait for the likes of you.’
Matt grinned. It was the first time he’d seen the warrior lose his cool. Without a second thought he jumped into Arhdel’s awaiting arms and was grateful when he caught him with a splash.
The tunnel was much wider than Matt had expected and the water colder too. It was dark inside the tunnel, but Arhdel had come prepared. From inside his vest he pulled out a wand the colour of milky tea. He scraped it against the wall like you would a match and a bright glow illuminated their path.
‘What’s that you’ve got there?’ Matt asked.
‘It’s a candle that never dies,’ Arhdel replied, checking about for Nonhawk soldiers. ‘They’re quite rare nowadays and were given to soldiers many centuries ago to aid them in the darkness. It’s called a wickercal.’
‘Wicked,’ said Matt, with a broad smile.
‘No, it isn’t bad magic,’ said Arhdel, misinterpreting Matt’s meaning. ‘It’s a tool created only for good.’
‘That’s not what I meant,’ said Matt, realising his mistake. ‘In my world the word ‘wicked’ means fantastic.’
Arhdel shook his head in dismay. ‘No wonder your kind’s all messed up,’ he said, rolling his eyes in consternation.
They carried on through the brown, rippling water, stopping only when the tunnel turned into a crossroads.
‘What do we do now?’ Matt asked, shivering with cold and aware his lips were turning blue.
‘I’m not sure; the king only knew about the way in and nothing else. I guess we will have to use our instincts and hope we don’t get lost.’ Arhdel moved the wickercal to view each tunnel in turn.
‘Let’s go this way,’ he said, pointing his hand in the direction he thought looked the safest.
‘How do you know if it’s the right way?’ Matt asked.
‘I don’t,’ Arhdel replied, shrugging his shoulders, ‘but we’ll soon find out if I’m wrong.’
He turned left, wading further into the darkness and Matt felt his apprehension deepen, anxious in case he should be accidentally separated from his mentor.
‘What are we actually looking for?’ Matt asked when he caught up with the warrior.
‘We’re looking for an open grate or door which will lead us to the kitchens.’
Matt nodded and so they wandered purposely looking for some kind of an opening which would lead them inside the castle, but found nothing.
‘We’re going around in circles,’ Matt complained when he recognised a worn stone ledge they’d passed several times before.
‘Yes, I can see that,’ Arhdel snapped when he saw it too. ‘It’s not as if I’m blind.’ The warrior decided to take a moment’s rest and moved to lean against the ledge.
‘We’ll have to go back to the crossroads,’ said Matt, stating the obvious.
‘Oh, so you’re the expert now!’ said Arhdel, wiping a crust of dried dirt from his face.
‘Well no, of course not, I’m just saying it’s the only thing we can do,’ said Matt, feeling Arhdel was being rather unreasonable.
Arhdel glanced away and a small hole chiselled neatly in the stone caught his eye and, wondering what its purpose was, he pointed the wand closer. Shadows danced against the stone, making the opening look even more intriguing and Arhdel reached out and put his hand inside. He grappled around and felt something soft and furry touch his fingers and he gasped, quickly pulling his hand away.
‘What’s wrong with you?’ asked Matt, when he heard the warrior suck in his breath and then he saw a huge, black hairy spider with sixteen red eyes charge out of the hole, waving its front legs in the air in a menacing dance towards him. Matt jumped back, repulsed by such a creature, but Arhdel simply chuckled, looking slightly foolish. The spider eventually lowered its venomous quills and headed back to its nest, but those numerous eyes never left Arhdel’s sheepish stare.
Once the spider was gone, Arhdel placed his hand back inside the crevice, but this time he gripped hold of something solid and pulled. A creak echoed eerily down the tunnel and a secret doorway slid open, showing them an entrance into the castle.
‘Well, what do you think about that?’ grinned Arhdel, turning smug. Delight danced in his eyes and Matt saw a glimpse of the boy he had once been.
‘About time,’ Matt teased. ‘Finally we can get out of this stinking hole.’
Arhdel’s tone changed abruptly.
‘Now we must be on our guard. I don’t know where we are in the castle and this makes everything far more dangerous for us. We must tread carefully and always, always, do as I say.’
Matt nodded, moving quickly to Arhdel’s side. He respected the warrior and would never disobey him on purpose.
Matt touched his dagger.
‘I will do whatever you ask of me,’ he said, to prove his allegiance.
Arhdel patted his shoulder.
‘I know I can count on you.’
They went through the door and into an abandoned passageway. The corridor was dry, but the air was thick and musty. Cobwebs hung over their heads as though fishermen had cast their nets and repeatedly dropped them in their faces.
‘This stuff is disgusting,’ Matt muttered, wiping yet another shroud of web from his face.
‘It’s not for long,’ Arhdel told him, throwing his hands in the air and dragging away more spidery webs with an exaggerated swoop. ‘We’ll soon be out of here.’
Sure enough the corridor ended with a door blocking their path and Arhdel pondered what to do next.
Arhdel pressed his ear to the door and listened. He could hear loud banging on the other side, making it difficult for him to detect if anyone was about. He paused for a moment then put his finger to his lips and Matt nodded to show he understood. Pulling his sword from its sheath, Arhdel drew the blade in readiness. There was only one way to open the door so he signalled to Matt to press his body into the wall whilst he activated the door’s release mechanism.
The tension between them was electric. Arhdel held his sword tight, his knuckles almost white; he waved his other hand across a glass panel and the door swished open.
Arhdel pounced on an unsuspecting guard who was standing on duty. Stabbing him repeatedly in his back and neck, he attacked the soldier until he fell to his knees, dead. Without hesitation the warrior pushed his arms under the soldier’s armpits and dragged the body into the passageway and out of sight.
‘Let’s go,’ Arhdel said, once he checked it was all clear, ‘and whatever you do, stay close.’
They found themselves stepping onto a metal o
verhang, perched some twenty feet in the air. Arhdel peered over the rail and saw there was no one about so he moved quickly to get out of sight with Matt following close at his heels. Although afraid of heights, Matt stomached a sly glance down. He saw that directly underneath him sat a huge vat of bubbling fluid. Bubbles burst and plopped like volcanic lava, pushing enormous clouds of steam towards him; the temperature was excruciatingly hot and the dry air burnt his throat.
Arhdel tapped him on the shoulder and they ran along to the end of the bridge until they came to a staircase which led away from the scorching heat. Arhdel took three steps at a time, but Matt’s legs weren’t so strong and he struggled to keep up. Beads of perspiration were forming on Matt’s forehead and he grew thirsty.
Once at the top of the stairs Arhdel scanned the area for a way out. Matt spotted a small alcove, which hid a door, and Arhdel signalled for them to make a run for it. The noise and heat stopped the moment they closed the door behind them and they clasped each other’s hands in a sign of victory.
They found themselves in a large, expansive room, which was being used as some kind of laboratory and was filled with row upon row of long oblong caskets made from a type of toughened glass. Matt thought about Snow White and the glass coffin until he saw they were each connected to a set of strange-looking cables and he could see magic flowing through them, a colour that was as blue as the morning sky.
‘I’ve never seen anything like it,’ Matt hissed, looking from one tub to the next. ‘What the hell are these things?’
Arhdel shook his head and they both moved closer.
Matt noticed the tubs were filled with a gooey liquid. It looked thick and sticky, and the colour had a similar tint to what he had seen in the vat. Matt felt a stir of curiosity and tipped the box with the palm of his hand. The fluid inside rushed from one end of the casket to the other, but apart from that nothing interesting happened. Matt’s fascination grew and he chose to ignore Arhdel’s plea for them to leave. Instead, he messed about with a dial that was set at the side of each casket, spinning it like a safe combination.
‘Stop touching,’ scolded Arhdel, still searching for a way out.
‘It’s not like it’s doing anything,’ said Matt, shrugging his shoulders and letting out a sigh.
‘And what will you do if it does?’ Arhdel retorted, pulling at a door which he found to be locked.
Matt spun the dial as far as it would go and his fingertips were still on the control when something shot out of the gloop and grabbed his arm. Matt screamed in terror, unable to digest what was happening because he was being held by a large, blue hand covered in thick slime. The limb was unbelievably strong and it held him tight, squeezing his upper muscle until he thought it was about to explode.
In a flash Arhdel was by his side pulling at the hand with all his might but the bony fingers only dug deeper into Matt’s flesh, making him squeal in pain.
‘Get it off me!’ he yelled, causing panic to make his voice sound high-pitched.
‘I’m trying!’ Arhdel yelled back, clutching the fingers and trying to force them free, ‘but they won’t let go.’
Matt reached out his trembling fingers towards the dial and turned it to zero; immediately the hand dropped back into the liquid.
‘What was that disgusting thing?’ Matt demanded. His breathing was rapid and he wiped the slime off his arm and onto the floor in disgust.
‘That was a hand of a goblin,’ said Arhdel, still alarmed. ‘What bothers me more is that if there is a hand in this casket then what the hell is in the others?’
‘Do you think there are goblins in every one of them?’ Matt gasped, wiping the last of the slime away.
‘Yes, I do,’ Arhdel said, with dread filling his voice, ‘and if I’m right, we’re in serious trouble.’
He walked over to another casket, and after checking the dial was on zero, he plunged his hand inside and pulled out the limb of a leg. The leg was one of an adult goblin; the foot displayed only four toes.
‘But there’s hundreds of caskets in here,’ Matt wailed, watching his companion drop the limb back in the goo and then wipe his hand on the side of the glass.
‘Could be even more than that,’ said Arhdel, with worry lines creasing his forehead. ‘It looks to me like Forusian has his own factory of body parts in here. There are enough goblins in these glass coffins to create a small army. I’m afraid we may have stumbled on something which could get us killed quicker than I first thought.’
‘But how is he getting the parts to stick together?’ asked Matt, trying to think logically. ‘He can’t just sew them together, can he?’
‘I don’t know, but magic cannot bring back the dead so he obviously has a plan or he wouldn’t be doing this,’ said Arhdel, still looking worried.
‘We must destroy them, right now,’ said Matt. ‘We can’t leave here knowing he’s got parts of an army in here.’
‘You’re right,’ said Arhdel, rushing to the cables, ‘we’ve got to try and stop him.’
Stretching his arms out to the main supply he pulled at the connectors, desperate to detach them from the wall.
‘Stop!’ yelled Matt, panicking. ‘You need to find the main source of power.’
‘That’s easier said than done,’ shouted Arhdel, still tugging at the leads. ‘There must be something like a generator somewhere as it couldn’t possibly be run by magic alone.’
‘How do you know?’ asked Matt, scanning the area for some kind of switch.
‘Because,’ Arhdel gasped, ‘no single sorcerer would ever hold such an amount of power.’
Whilst he was talking one of the cables came loose. The bolt of electricity was so powerful that it shot straight through his body, throwing him several feet. He lay winded, his beard and eyebrows singed, and a strong smell of burning flesh filled the air. A loud blast from a siren bellowed overhead.
‘Now you’ve done it!’ Matt shouted, helping Arhdel to his feet. ‘You’ve set off an alarm.’
Before he could reply an interconnecting door was flung open and a mob of angry guards fell through, each flailing a sword with murderous intentions.
Arhdel caught Matt’s eye.
‘You’re right,’ he said, laying his sword down on the ground and raising his hands in surrender. ‘I think I’ve just blown it.’
Chapter 14
The velvety night sky was home to a darkened moon and the stars, covered with a thick layer of cloud, gave no light to the shadows that were scurrying like rats beneath them.
In Forusian’s castle the Nonhawk guards were a force to be reckoned with. Fierce and cruel, they had delighted in capturing the two unexpected intruders and on closer inspection one of the Nonhawk soldiers had recognised Arhdel from his previous capture. The soldiers were unsure of Matt, having never seen a mortal before, and they handled him with mild caution until they realised he could do them no harm. The two captives were forced down into the dungeons where they were beaten and then moved to one of Forusian’s murder holes to await his decision on whether they should live or die. The guards taunted their captives for several hours and their eagerness to execute the pair became increasingly obvious as time ticked by. They craved revenge for Amadeus and Nekton’s escape and wanted these two prisoners to pay the ultimate price.
King Forusian, however, sat in his chamber, filled with rage. Only a short time ago his captain of the guard had knelt before him, relinquishing the news of the two captives having been found trying to destroy his life’s work. He slammed his fists hard onto the table, the force allowing his nails to dig into his flesh and draw blood. His mind was in turmoil; things weren’t going quite as planned and he was enraged.
His mind raced along with the tide that was not far from his window. He had already taken the decision to move Crystal into hiding, realising that if the warrior Amadeus managed to get back to the elf kingdom he would undoubtedly return to leading Gamada straight to her. But now there was Arhdel to contend with. He was not quite read
y to go to war with the elves, but events were moving much faster than he had anticipated; his hand was being pushed a little further than he wished, but he was still confident that he had the upper hand.
He slipped from his chamber, making his way without the protection of an armed guard to one of his murder holes. Many of the thick, stone steps were worn away from years of use and sconces were already lit with bright light to guide him on his way.
His murder holes were set away from his dungeons. Indeed, the dungeons were for his everyday captives, thieves and vagabonds; his murder holes were for his special prisoners, prisoners he wished to torture and maim without the help of his guards.
Reaching a solid doorway, Forusian pulled back the heavy bolt barring his access. The door groaned when he pulled it towards him, revealing his two hidden treasures. He entered, feeling like a child who had stumbled upon his Christmas presents early.
Forusian cast his evil gaze upon his prisoners. Matt was chained to the upper ceiling in a wrought-iron cage and he saw blood congealing on his mouth and nose from his earlier beating. He was suspended in the air by a row of thick iron links and the cage rocked with each movement he made, causing it to swing like the pendulum of a clock. Arhdel was placed directly beneath the boy. His face, swollen and bloodied, stared vacantly ahead. He stood half naked, stripped to the waist, and each of his hands had been placed in shackles that were connected to a length of wood which ran horizontal to the walls. Forusian sniggered. He would definitely be enjoying some fun with these two tonight.
The cell was damp and icy cold. Stagnant water slid down the dark, grey walls where terrifying weapons covered in dried blood hung like trophies along the parapet. Forusian glanced over at the sickening array and his gaze stopped at the spider, a weapon designed specifically to mutilate women. The long ripping claws, which Forusian liked to heat before using, hung like vicious talons against the wall. A slither of disappointment slid down his back; he felt it unfortunate that they could not be used on Arhdel.
He observed the ocular speculum, a contraption used on the eyes. Its disturbing effect was to separate the eyelids from the eyes by engagement of the ocular side of the eyelids, and a spring lever attached to the side of the gadget forced the conjunctival fornix to split. His lips curled into a malicious grin; here was a weapon that might just come in useful.
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