Simon was pleased that the men's spirits were high but he wondered if they were taking the situation a little too lightly.
He peered at Aiden through the snow and saw a pinched look underneath the bravado. The man wasn't as calm as he wanted others to think, obviously.
“Yeah, good to see you both. Aeris is out there,” he pointed beyond the wall, “checking out the situation. He'll report back in a bit.”
Simon leaned over the wall and stared down at the moat below.
The deep ditch was hard to make out through the blizzard, but he could see vague shapes moving along the bottom. The moat was a dozen feet deep at least and the drawbridge was raised to cover the front gate. Beneath it, Simon stared intently at fuzzy white blobs that seemed to be creeping up the walls of the moat with slug-like speed. Wights? He leaned further. Wights.
They could move incredibly fast on level ground, but on the slippery wall they moved with glacial slowness. But the climbing monsters crept upward with a deliberate intent that was frightening.
He watched as one reached the bottom of the drawbridge and started to climb up the wooden structure. As it got closer, Simon saw at least a half dozen arrows sticking out of its pallid, emaciated body but the creature ignored its wounds and crawled steadily toward the top of the gate.
Aiden followed Simon's gaze and whipped an arrow out of the quiver hanging on his hip. He aimed his bow and shot in one smooth, economical motion.
The arrow slammed into the wight's face, right between its dead, red eyes and it was flung off of the drawbridge to tumble back into the moat. It made no sound at all.
“Nice shot,” Malcolm said and clouted his partner on the shoulder.
Aiden laughed shortly and then his face took on a serious expression.
“This has been fun and all, but what happens when we run out of arrows?”
He pointed beyond Malcolm to the other side of the gate and Simon could just see a handful of figures standing on the opposite parapet.
“There's just us two and those four over there who are trained in combat. We sent another three to the back gate along with our four magical friends, but that's all we have to defend the town.”
Malcolm's smile faded as Aiden spoke and he nodded reluctantly.
“He'd got a point,” he said soberly. “Aiden and I have enchanted blades, which hopefully will work against the undead. The others do as well, but they simply aren't as well trained yet.”
He sighed and his foggy breath blew away in the incessant wind.
“We've been working with them, but everyone has other duties as well, so their skills aren't where we'd like them to be.”
“They will stand though,” Aiden said firmly. “Those damned beasts will have to go through all of us before they can get into the town.”
“Aye,” Malcolm said with a scowl. “That they will.”
The pair suddenly fitted arrows to their bows, turned as one and let the missiles fly.
Simon looked down and saw two more pale bodies falling back into the ditch below.
“Nice,” he said with a smile. “If you had enough arrows and could keep doing that, all we'd have to do is wait out this blasted storm.”
“Wishful thinking,” Aiden said with a shrug. “Speaking of which, any idea how long this blizzard is going to last?”
Simon wiped his eyes. Tears were leaking down his face from the bitter wind and icy snow and kept blurring his vision.
“According to my air elemental friend, another couple of days. Too long, I'm afraid.”
“Lovely,” Malcolm grumbled. “To be honest, we can't hold out that long, Simon. Even if we had the arrows, eventually exhaustion would set in and we'd lose our focus. Personally, I'd rather face those monsters in a stand-up fight before that happens.”
Before Simon could find something reassuring to say, Aeris popped up in between him and Aiden.
“Whoa!” Aiden exclaimed and stumbled backward. Malcolm steadied him and laughed at his partner's reaction.
“Skittish?” he teased and Aiden glared at him.
Simon chuckled and then looked at the elemental.
“What's the word?” he asked anxiously.
“Well, good and bad news, I think,” Aeris said looking from one face to another. “I counted at least thirty of the monsters out there. They're bunched up at the bottom of the trench and climbing over each other as they try to reach the gate. Disgusting,” he added with a grimace.
“Is that the good news or the bad news?” Aiden asked with a frown.
“That is the bad news. The good news is that they are spending as much time tearing at each other as they are in trying to climb over the wall. Wights, and undead in general, hate everything, including each other. I think the fact that they can't reach you is frustrating them. If such creatures can become frustrated, that is.”
“So,” Simon said, thinking quickly, “they're all bunched up below the drawbridge?”
“They are.”
The wizard smiled.
“Perfect. I was afraid that they'd be scattered all around the perimeter and I'd have to hunt them down one by one.”
He looked at Malcolm and Aiden grimly.
“Not an idea I relish in the middle of a blizzard.”
“You don't mean that you're going out there?” Aiden asked in disbelief.
“Only way,” Simon told him. “I can't see the bottom of the moat from up here. I'll have to get down to ground level to get a decent shot at them.”
“Master!”
All of them turned in time to see Kronk hop up from the ladder on to the parapet.
“Ah, there you are,” Simon said. “How are things at the back gate?”
“Fine, master. Virginia and the rest of her group are continuing to batter the wights off of the wall as they reach the top of the gate.”
“Is that effective?” Malcolm asked him skeptically. “I mean, our arrows aren't having much effect.”
“It is taking its toll,” the earthen told him. “Every time they use their power to smash an undead from its perch, it takes damage. I checked below the gate, carefully,” he said quickly with a glance at Simon, “and there are several wights lying there in pieces. They are still moving, but cannot attack without arms and legs.”
“Yuck! That's gross!” Aiden exclaimed.
“Behold, the brave warrior,” Malcolm said, with a loud laugh.
“Hey mister, a stand up fight is one thing. But tearing things apart piece by piece? That's just disgusting.”
Kronk gave a little shrug.
“But effective. Someone will have to go down there when the battle is over and set flames to the pieces though, or they may remain a threat.”
“Lovely,” Aiden muttered and swallowed convulsively.
“You know, there's something I don't understand,” Malcolm said after he'd stopped chuckling.
“Only one thing?” Aiden asked tartly.
“Don't be mean. No, what I don't get is why? Why are these things doing this? I mean, they're just mindless walking corpses essentially, yes?”
“Basically,” Aeris answered.
He looked at Simon who shook his head.
“Don't look at me. I'll bow to your expertise on this subject.”
“Really? My, my, what a special day. Anyway, yes, wights are related to the undead who attacked Nottinghill in the past. You weren't here at the time, I believe?”
“Nope,” the big man said. “We came in the following year.”
“Right. Well then, the major difference between the corpses that attacked the town back then and the wights that are attacking now is speed and strength. Oh and they are slightly more intelligent than the others.”
Aiden turned, pulled out an arrow and shot another wight off of the wall.
“Not much more, though,” Aeris added dryly.
“I can see that. But that's my point. I was told about the attack and apparently, a lich?” He looked to Simon who nodded. “Right, a lich w
as commanding the undead in the attack. So my question is, who or what is controlling these wights? What, they all just got together at the undead hotel and decided to attack en masse?”
Everyone fell silent and the only sound was the wind blowing mournfully across the top of the wall.
“That's an unsettling thought, isn't it?” Simon finally said, breaking the silence. “But let's worry about that later. Right now, I have to get down there.”
He slipped the staff off of his back and began to chant the incantation for the Gate spell.
“Do you want someone to watch your back?” Aiden spoke up. “We won't be much help to you from up here if something goes wrong out there.”
“No, that's fine. I can't see to the other side of the moat, so I'm going to Gate to the top of the little hill near the forest where I always come out when I ride here.”
He waved vaguely in what he hoped was the proper direction.
“I'll make my way down to the moat and walk along the edge until I can see the wights. After that, a good dose of fire should take care of the problem, at least for now.”
Kronk grabbed the bottom of his coat firmly while Aeris hurried to float over and catch a hold of his sleeve.
“You guys should wait here,” Simon told them as he took a firmer grip on his staff. His gloves were slipping on its frosted surface.
“Well that's not happening,” Aeris told him stubbornly.
“You may need our help, master,” Kronk said, backing him up and looking at the wizard with wide eyes.
“Oh for...”
Simon rolled his eyes and the two guardsmen laughed.
“Nicely played, boys,” Malcolm said to the elementals. “Okay then. Good luck, sir wizard. Watch your back out there.”
“I will. Just keep those damned things out of the town for a little while longer.”
“You can count on that,” Aiden said firmly and pulled out another arrow.
“Invectis!”
The snow on the hilltop was knee-deep and Simon stumbled and almost fell over as he appeared.
“Crap,” he muttered. “Stupid robe.”
He planted his staff firmly, took one long step forward and made sure his footing was firm before moving his other leg. It was slow going but at least he didn't land flat on his face.
The town was totally invisible from the hilltop. Snow was blowing horizontally across the open space between Simon and Nottinghill and his visibility was reduced to only a few feet in all directions.
“You see? I told you that you'd need us,” Aeris said loudly, with a smug expression on his face.
“Why? I'm doing all right so far.”
“Really? Okay then, which way is Nottinghill?”
Simon glared at him and then pointed straight ahead.
Aeris snickered and the wizard looked down at Kronk, who was tugging on his coat.
“The town is that way, master,” the earthen said, pointing quite a bit further to the right than Simon was.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course, master. I can feel it through the ground.”
Simon wiped off his face and flung wet snow away irritably. He was vaguely pleased that his hair was staying tied back.
One less thing to get into my eyes, he thought.
“Okay, you guys win. Kronk, lead the way, would you?”
The little guy bowed slightly and trundled off. The snow was almost level with his head and Simon followed in the wake of the hump he was leaving on top of the snow cover.
“Aeris, since you're feeling so lively, could you go ahead to the edge of the moat? I don't want any surprises.”
“Good idea,” the air elemental told him and shot through the storm and out of sight.
Simon muttered under his breath as he plodded along. He could chant the incantations for two spells now and they would hang around him, invisibly like distant storm clouds, waiting to be invoked. So he energized the two fire-based spells that he had locked in his permanent memory; Fireball and Fire Blast. Hopefully they would do the trick.
Snow was constantly dripping from the windward side of his face and the bottom of his coat was starting to get heavy with ice. He shook his hood and a cascade of wet snow plopped to the ground. He was panting after a few minutes, reminded yet again of his body's frailty.
The mound ahead that was Kronk stopped and the little guy pushed the snow away from his body so that Simon could see him.
“What is it?” he gasped as he caught up to the earthen.
“Master, you are suffering from this cold and snow,” Kronk said mournfully. “Why are you not using your Shield spell? It will keep the snow off of you and it will protect you in case of any surprises.”
Simon stared at him numbly, shivering as a bit of snow slipped from his hood to the inside of his coat.
“Oh for God's sake,” he said, exasperated with himself. “Thanks, Kronk. That's a very good idea. I think my brain is frozen.”
The little guy simply smiled and turned to begin leading the way again.
Simon chanted the Shield spell, feeling it dissolve the other two spells he had waiting to be invoked.
Wish I knew why it worked like that, he thought. He could ready two spells for casting, but chant a third incantation and poof, the first two were gone. Weird.
“Invectis,” he stuttered through lips stiff with cold.
The snow on the ground around him immediately exploded in all directions and the wizard gaped at the frozen ground covered in icy brown grass that appeared in an instant.
The shield extended six feet out from his body in a circle and he was suddenly standing in a crater swept clean of snow.
“Whoa,” he said in surprise. “That was unexpected.”
The wind and snow were being diverted around him and the sudden calm was such a relief that Simon felt his knees go weak and had to lean heavily on his staff for a moment.
“Well, it's about time you thought of that,” a voice called out from in front of him.
Simon looked up to see Aeris floating just beyond the shield, hands on his hips. The wizard made a gesture and a small round opening appeared in the barrier, just large enough for the air elemental to enter. It closed as he passed through.
Practice does make perfect, Simon thought with a bit of pride.
“So how's it look up ahead?” he asked as he caught his breath.
“About what you'd expect,” Aeris replied. He hovered next to Simon and waited for him to recover his strength.
“The wights are still piled in the ditch below the gates, fighting each other as they scramble up the wall.”
“Will I be able to see them from the edge of the moat or do I have to go down there?”
The elemental's expression became quite serious.
“That would be a very bad idea, my dear wizard. I might have been a bit conservative in my estimation of their numbers. Or else more have turned up. There are definitely a lot more than thirty wights down there now.”
Simon gave himself a shake and an avalanche of snow fell off of his coat. He leaned his staff against his chest and clapped his hands to get clear the ice from his gloves.
“More? How many more?”
Aeris looked a bit uncomfortable and the wizard was reminded that the air elemental hated to be wrong, about anything.
“Maybe twice that number,” he answered reluctantly.
“What? Twice as many? So you're saying that there are at least sixty of those monsters trying to get into Nottinghill?”
“Um, yes. That's about it.”
Simon shook his head tiredly.
“That's great. That is just great, Aeris. You really know how to cheer me up, don't you?”
“What is wrong, master?” Kronk called out from ahead of them.
Simon opened the shield to let the little guy in and watched as he trundled up, so snow-covered that he looked like a tiny snowman.
Despite the gravity of their situation, he had to laugh.
�
��Kronk, I don't think I've ever said this to you before but, covered in snow like that? You look cute.”
“Cute, master?”
The earthen looked down at himself and at the ice and snow that layered his body and then back up at Simon.
“Thank you, master. I have never been called 'cute' before.”
Aeris snorted and seemed about to make a smart remark when Simon looked at him sternly.
“Maybe worry less about me complimenting Kronk and more about how you miscounted sixty frigging wights,” he snapped.
The air elemental stared at him, mouth open and Simon immediately regretted his words.
“Sorry. I'm always cranky when my toes are frozen. Just...scout ahead again and recount the damned things. I really need to know what I'm up against. We'll be right behind you.”
Aeris nodded silently and the wizard opened the shield for him. He shot out of the barrier and disappeared into the storm.
“He miscounted the enemy, master?” Kronk asked as he jumped up and down to clear the snow from his body.
“Apparently. Instead of the initial thirty, he says there may be as many as sixty of the cursed things now.”
“Sixty?” Kronk replied in disbelief. “Where did sixty undead come from, master? And there are at least two dozen at the rear gate.”
“Good God,” Simon said, appalled. “What is going on? You know, maybe Malcolm was on to something. This can't be random. These things are targeting settlements. My home, Nottinghill, maybe other places that we don't even know about. The gods of Chaos may be behind this.”
“Perhaps, master,” Kronk said skeptically. “Or perhaps this is just the old world reasserting itself now that magic has returned.”
Simon began to walk with the earthen a few paces ahead leading the way. As he moved forward, the snow was pushed aside by his shield and he smiled with relief at his new ease of movement.
“Okay, but were cities attacked by this many wights back in the old days?”
“It is hard to say, master. I was never present during an attack. I heard of these things second-hand, by listening to wizards discuss it amongst themselves. I don't remember numbers ever being brought up.”
They continued to move forward for a few minutes until Kronk stopped and pointed ahead.
The Dragons of Decay Page 7