“Let me be clear here, captain,” said Kerrick. “You will enter that opening and you will receive your answer. If you return to me, alive, I will instruct you. If you die back there, well, then you have your answer.”
Kolgan looked back at the opening and then at Kerrick. His look of terror had not lessened any.
“If you do not go through that opening, I will kill you right here, right now. You’ve seen my secret. I can’t allow you to walk out of here without passing the test that lies in there.”
Kolgan took a couple of deep breaths and then nodded at the dark wizard. He went to crouch down and move into the opening when Kerrick stopped him.
“You will not need your sword or dagger. You can leave those here.”
Kolgan stood back up and his breath was coming a lot faster now. But, he did as he was told and unfastened his belt that held his sword and dagger and hung them on a hook on the wall.
Then, crouching down again, he moved into the opening as he heard Kerrick’s voice behind him, “Good luck. You’re going to need it.”
Pendivall wasn’t sure if he wanted to follow Kolgan or not, but he knew he had to get the answer about what lay in the farthest reaches of that cave. He moved to the opening and went to follow the captain through, but found he was blocked. It was as if there was an impenetrable wall hindering him. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t push through.
Within a few seconds, they could hear Kolgan yelling.
“No, NO, NO!”
At that moment there was a scream of pain, as if a man were being torn to pieces. There was a deep, guttural roar of anger and for a moment, Pendivall thought Kolgan had crawled into a den of either a dragon or a large bear.
Pendivall looked at Kerrick, who had the smile of a maniac on his face, knowing his captain was probably being pulled apart and eaten by whatever was in the back chamber of the cave.
He wanted desperately to be able to get into that chamber, to see what new evil lay back there, but every time he tried the barrier, he found it still there and strong against him.
He looked back at Kerrick and became intrigued that the dark wizard didn’t seem to be in any hurry to leave the cave, knowing that his captain was most certainly dead. He just stood there, watching the opening, as if he was waiting for something.
About ten minutes later, they could detect the sound of something coming through the tunnel, coming from the back chamber. It sounded like it was crawling along every inch of the tunnel and its breathing could be heard. It was raspy and coarse.
Pendivall backed away from the tunnel, almost back to the entrance to the cave. His mind was screaming at him to get out, but he calmed himself. He needed to see what was coming out of the tunnel.
A minute later, Kolgan hauled himself out of the tunnel. He was torn and cut, leaving a trail of blood along the floor. His face was covered with cuts, some so deep they went right to the bone. Both of his arms were shredded and bleeding and his legs didn’t look much better. He pushed himself out of the tunnel to the center of the cave and collapsed at Kerrick’s feet.
Pendivall moved back to where he could see the man laying on the cave floor. He was still breathing, but it was quite obvious he wouldn’t be for much longer. His injuries were massive and life-ending.
“Well, look at that,” said Kerrick with a laugh. “He must like you. I would have thought he was hungry and would eat you.”
Kerrick knelt down and began healing Kolgan and Pendivall watched. He was fascinated about how Kerrick could send this man into that chamber and then caring enough to heal him.
When he had finished with Kolgan’s arms and legs, he rolled his captain over onto his back and looked at his face.
“I’ve finished with your arms and legs. You will survive. I won’t touch your face. You can bear your scars as reminders of who gave them to you and what he is capable of if you ever disappoint him.”
Kolgan nodded weakly and breathed through his torn mouth.
“I shall not fail you or him, master.”
Pendivall tried as hard as he could, but he couldn’t uncover anything in Kolgan’s memories to see what was in the back cavern. It was as if the memory had been wiped clear. Or Kolgan was so terrified at what he had seen he didn’t want to remember it.
Kerrick stood up and reached down to help Kolgan up.
“Let’s get you back to the camp where they can take care of your face. At that time we’ll discuss your training. You will not be making the journey to Black Mountain. Not in your condition.”
“I can go, master. I want to go.”
“I’m sure you do, but you need to heal and be ready for my return. When I get back, I will commence your training and it will not be easy. In fact, it will be the most challenging thing you’ve ever been through. And you are to never reveal what you saw in that back chamber.”
Kolgan nodded and promised he would keep it a secret.
The two of them walked out of the cave, leaving Pendivall standing there, staring at the opening to the back chamber. He walked over and tried it again, but found he was still barred from entering there.
He looked around the cave one last time. He walked over and noticed that the walking stick in the corner was the very same one Jarell had snapped in two when Kolgan was captured. However, it didn’t contain any crystal in the head.
The illumination sphere began to flicker and wane, so Pendivall made his way to the entrance of the cave and looked out over the valley below. He could see the dark wizard’s encampment stretched out below. The troops had been massed on the far side and were prepared to start their march toward Black Mountain.
He knew that the dragons had already flown south to intercept Claudious and try to kill him. He also knew that the army below was going to be meeting with the armies of Sigarick at Black Mountain in the following day or so and it was at that time his dearest friend in life would be killed.
He closed his ancient eyes, feeling like he wanted to cry, but he was an old wizard. He’d seen plenty of battles and had plenty of friends die. Crying was for the young who hadn’t witnessed the things he’d seen.
He could still feel the calming effect of the two ladies that were watching over him and breathed in their influence. He’d seen enough.
“Let’s get out of here ladies.”
~~~~
After Pendivall finished relating his story to the rest of the gathering, they looked over at Kolgan, who was still unconscious. He was laying face down on the ground, with his hands still bound firmly behind his back.
“So, either Kerrick or whatever evil that lives in the back of that cave was able to awaken his wizard skills,” said Jarell.
“It would appear so.”
“And you have no idea what resides in that back chamber of the cave.”
“I never had a chance to get back there. I was blocked by a force stronger than any I have ever felt and Kolgan’s mind was wiped. It could be a dragon that is so big it can’t get out of the cave anymore. It could be a bear. I don’t know.”
“It would appear then,” said Hilde, “that Kerrick is not the top of the food chain. He’s taking orders from someone else.”
“That would be my guess,” said Pendivall.
“One good thing came out of your little adventure,” said Jarell.
All eyes turned and looked at him.
“You now know the way to Magrum’s lair and when we get the chance, you can lead us there so we can destroy it.”
A murmur of agreement went through the assembled crowd.
“So,” said Jarell, “what do we do with him?”
Pendivall looked down at the figure of Kolgan, who was just beginning to regain his consciousness.
“As I said, his usefulness is now finished.”
He motioned for Jong to come forward.
“I’d rather you didn’t carry out any vengeance upon him in this gathering, captain.”
Jong looked at him and said, “I have no intention of meting ou
t any vengeance on him. I shall leave it to some friends of mine.”
He reached down and snapped a hood over Kolgan’s head and snatched him by the back of his robe and hauled him to his feet. The wizard’s mind cleared fast enough for him to turn his head, but he couldn’t see anything through the hood.
“You’re all mine now,” growled Jong.
Kolgan’s knees almost went out from under him as he could feel the rage radiating through Jong’s voice.
Jong turned him and started hauling him away from the campfire and away from the gathering.
“Do we really just let Jong kill him?” asked Hilde softly.
Jarell hung his head, not wanting to answer her question. Symon also avoided looking at her. The only one that would look her in the eyes was Pendivall.
“If it were Kerrick we had captured and he was turned over to you, would you be asking that same question?”
Hilde felt her heart rate spike as she thought about what she would do if she could get her hands on the man that had murdered her entire family in one morning.
Jarell spoke up while still looking down at the ground, “We can’t allow him to live, honey. Just as we intend to halt this war by killing Kerrick, we need to end Kolgan right here, right now, before he has a chance to get any stronger and cause anymore damage.”
Hilde lowered her head because she knew they were right. Killing this wizard and Kerrick was the only way this war was going to end. There was no other way to look at it.
One thing that surprised her was that no one had turned and followed Kolgan and Jong out of the bowl. Everyone there knew that ending Kolgan’s life was going to be the proper thing to do, but no one wanted to go witness it happen.
~~~~
Jong dragged Kolgan across the fields and when the wizard lost his footing, Jong just lugged him by his collar. Kolgan was kicking and screaming every inch of the way. He was facing the ground and couldn’t get his feet back under himself so he could walk with dignity.
Jong didn’t give a rat’s ass about Kolgan’s dignity.
After a couple of minutes, Jong stopped and dropped Kolgan face down in the dirt. Then he placed a boot squarely on the back of the wizard’s head and held him down.
Kolgan could hear some snorting and growling and could feel some hot breathing washing over him, but he couldn’t see anything because of the hood and the captain’s boot grinding his face into the dirt.
“Jorath was your brother, was he not?” he could hear Jong ask.
“Yes, he was my brother,” came the low, gravelly reply.
“Oh god! The dragons!”
“He was your cousin, was he not, Venia?”
“Yes, he certainly was.”
Then Keeleth and Sophia and the three new arrivals from Rosemoor spoke up and told of how Jorath had been their friend.
Jong pressed Kolgan’s face into the dirt one last time before withdrawing his foot from the wizard’s head. He reached down and grabbed Kolgan by the collar and lifted him to his knees.
“Well, my dragon friends,” said Jong, as he ripped the hood off his head, “meet Kolgan. He is one of the men personally responsible for Jorath’s death.”
Bending down, he growled into the wizard’s ear, “Meet my dragon friends, you son of a pig.”
Then he turned on his heels and walked back between two of the dragons and walked away. He never looked back.
The sound of Kolgan screaming like a little girl and being torn to pieces by the dragons, was enough to sooth Jong’s soul. He looked to the sky as he walked along, thinking about Hector.
“That one was for you, my friend.”
~~~~
Over the next couple of days, the troops began to make preparations to return to Wyndweir. A handful were to be left in Strafton and another detachment was to go south, to Keirdon and set up a watch there.
Getting the goods and services flowing back to Guilden was a priority and troops were being left to watch over things.
The bodies of the fallen were laid to rest in the meadow where the battle had taken place. The troops that had fallen for Wyndweir were interred on the north side of the road and Kerrick’s troops were buried on the south side.
Many of the Wyndweirian troops were inquiring why they were bothering to bury the enemy’s troops, but Pendivall and Jarell put a stop to their disagreements. They told them there should be no animosity toward those that had died while under the influence of Kerrick.
When the grave sites were finished, there were close to one hundred and thirty graves, with over two-thirds of them being from Kerrick’s army.
The royal soldiers had their own way of marking their dead. They dug rocks out of the earth and built a mausoleum they used to house their dead in. Of the one hundred royals that came into the valley with Belgard, nearly sixty had been killed.
There were also the dozen royals that had fought with Kerrick’s army, but the Wyndweirian royals wouldn’t allow them to occupy the same crypt as their departed brothers. When questioned about that, Cragg spoke up and said the royals that fought for Kerrick knew exactly what they were doing. They didn’t fall under any spell from the dark wizard. They had chosen to fight for him, though none of them had survived long enough to tell them why they did it.
They were buried in unmarked graves, never to be mentioned again.
The troops being left in Strafton were greeted as heroes when they returned. The village folk were extremely happy about their homes being saved. A couple of stone masons from the village got busy and created a granite marker to be placed at the battlefield, marking the event. From that time forward, anyone traveling to or from Strafton would stop at the marker and pay their respects to the fallen.
Cragg was put in charge of the detachment that went to Keirdon. It consisted of six royals and six bowmaidens and a dozen swordsmen.
When all the assignments had been made, the rest of the army left the fields, heading east, toward Deanburg. When they arrived there, they encountered the soldiers that had been released and sent home, helping the people of the village begin the rebuilding process.
A couple of those soldiers left the village with the army, deciding that, if their brothers could fight for Wyndweir and help defeat the dark wizard, they could, too.
By mid-afternoon, the army had made it over the summit of the mountain and were back in Wyndweir and a couple of hours after nightfall, they walked into the encampment at Rosemoor.
Things would go quiet for the next five months.
Chapter 20 ~ We’re Going To Need Some Help
“Tilly, come out there!”
“No, I want to stay. He might need me.”
Grace sat on the open window sill, looking at her sister and shook her head. The little robin sat, perched on one of the posts at the foot of the bed, looking at the two people laying there. The handsome man, a young wizard, laid next to the beautiful woman, also a young wizard, with his arms around her. He didn’t look at the bird or even acknowledge she was even there.
“Tilly, he not say anything for over six months.”
“But, when he talks, I be right here.”
Grace knew she was fighting a losing battle, so she left the window and went to the garden.
“She not leave.”
“Did you think she would?”
“I hoping, Keelee.”
“At least he eat food we bring and drink water animals bring,” said Keelee.
“He still look bad. His hair long and messy. Hair on face long.”
“What can we do? He not listen us.”
Grace looked at her older sister and said, “Go find Mirroth. He know what do.”
“Mirroth way down lake. Many days get there.”
“I know sister. But, someone need watch Tilly. You fly stronger there.”
Keelee looked toward the cabin and to the west. The sun would be setting in the next hour or so. Then she looked back at her younger sister.
“I start morning,”
Gra
ce twittered her thank you.
Then Keelee said, “And I not stronger flier. You are. You fly to Cliffrock in storm over mountain.”
“Mirroth much far away than Cliffrock.”
~~~~
Garlan stood in the mist and looked around. He couldn’t see any farther than his hand at the end of his arm. He could hear water lapping at a shoreline, but he couldn’t see it. The mist moved with his hand as he waved it in front of himself.
He cast a small whirlwind and saw the mist beginning to move and made it bigger. Within seconds the mist had been blown away and he could see he was standing on the shores of a small lake. He recognized the lake as one just an hour or so away from Whitestone.
He turned and saw a path that led into the trees and started walking. Not too far into the trees he came to a meadow and knew he was getting closer to Whitestone. He used to come to this meadow whenever he could and had just lain in the middle of it and enjoyed the smells and sounds of nature around him.
A couple of bees came by and stopped and looked at him.
“Another one has come,” declared one to the other.
“Another one, what?” asked Garlan.
“Another wizard. You are the second by here today.”
“A beautiful, white-haired woman?”
“The most beautiful woman we have ever seen.”
“I hear that a lot,” said Garlan.
“You don’t think so?” asked one of the bees.
“I do. I love her so much and she is now my wife. Do you know where she went?”
“She went to the castle,” said one of the bees.
“Then I shall be going to the castle, too. I thank you for your help,” he said as he bowed slightly to them.
The two bees buzzed away and Garlan headed across the meadow, toward the path that he knew would take him home.
When he arrived at the road leading to Whitestone, he was surprised to find a wall where there never was one before. It was white, made of some sort of stone and it was higher than he could see. He wondered if even Mirroth would be able to fly over it.
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