“But even as they got older, you were still young,” I pointed out.
“That’s right. And I still had as much drive to stay active as I ever had. I gathered a group, a community, in the forests of Lorsan and put my energy into making the Lords of Lorsan miserable, stealing from them and helping the people there resist their ruler’s oppressive tactics. It was exciting and worthwhile. I still operate in Lorsan and still lead that community when I choose to. But I was very close to Coenbrand and was always there when he needed me. We were hardly alike at all. Besides the fact that he was a human and I an elf, he was always serious, very disciplined, and quite driven. I am rarely serious and only disciplined when it suits me.
“In his last few years we went on a handful of minor quests. He was in his fifties, but had the same strength and vitality that he had in his twenties. Coenbrand in his fifties was a much more formidable fighter than he had been as a young man. His strength and speed always seemed to grow, and his skills never flagged. The quests that we undertook in those last years were always ones that he claimed were on the direct orders of Eridan. We destroyed a tribe of demon-worshippers on the Amber Peninsula. We stole back an artifact that belonged to Eridan’s church from one of the Five Lakes tribes. That sort of thing.
“Our last quest took us across the Eldwash River, over the desert, and into the great mountains of the West—mountains that stand thrice as tall as the mountains of Pozzelby. At the top of the tallest peak we found Beliphzagar, first generation offspring of the Elder dragon. The wyrm had devoured several of Eridan’s bulls and he was afraid of losing his whole herd. We fought the dragon from dawn until dusk. It was immensely strong, but we rode Coenbrand’s griffon, which easily outmaneuvered Beliphzagar. As night came on, we passed close to the dragon and I foolishly leapt onto the dragon’s back. I planted my sword in the base of its neck, but soon after was thrown off. I was a mile up, but in those days I possessed a cloak that allowed me to glide from great heights, so I was in no danger from the fall but was in tremendous danger from the dragon. Coenbrand saved my life by attacking the beast head on, keeping it from coming after me.
“When I landed, it was almost completely dark. I could see them fighting high above, dimly silhouetted against the darkening orange and violet sky. It looked like they were locked together and then there was a tremendous burst of light, like the noon sun, from where they were fighting. It was as if the sky had exploded. From my spot on the side of the mountain, I saw two things fall from the sky like meteors. The larger was Beliphzagar, engulfed in flame. The second was much smaller, but just as bright—it was Harbinger. It landed at the bottom of the mountain and I recovered it the next morning, strangely quiescent. Of Coenbrand and his mount I never found any sign. They were simply gone. I searched the mountains for a month—nothing. It was as if the heavens had opened up and claimed him.
“It took me six months to walk what it had taken us four days to fly—I don’t recommend walking across the Great Desert to anyone. I returned to the castle and placed Harbinger in the armory. I spent a fortnight here recovering. There was a funeral service for Coenbrand and his son became king. I abdicated my crown so Coenbrand’s descendants could rule without complication. Then I left the castle and never returned, until now.”
Theof fell silent. I let his words sink in and tried to weigh their importance. Theof had been present to the very end but could not confirm that Coenbrand had died. The image of the bishop was still prevalent in my mind, but I still did not know what it meant. Something to do with Eridan’s priests? There was a temple dedicated to Eridan in the castle, though we were cut off from the temple by Tabor Till’s men. What of the mad friar with the omen of the glowing sword? Was the answer there? If so, how would I get there? If Nightshade arrived in time, surely she could help with that. She was possibly the most powerful mage in this part of the world. But how much actual power did she have? Enough to defeat an army? There were too many questions to which I had no answers.
Myrick’s approach interrupted my thoughts.
“It is dawn. I expect the attack to begin at any time,” he said. “King Theof and I have been discussing strategy. He informed me that he has several hundred warriors close by.”
“You mentioned that,” I said to Theof. “But I forgot about it in the chaos of yesterday.”
“A lot was happening yesterday that seemed more important. I came ahead with Nightshade’s assistance. I don’t know if they will arrive today or tomorrow,” he said.
“Theof and I both agree that our current position will be difficult, if not impossible to hold for longer than a few hours. And this room, about ten adjacent rooms and a few hundred yards of connecting halls is all that stands between Tabor Till and the castle residents in the north hall. However, with King Theof here, we have a further option,” said Myrick. “With his knowledge I feel safe in evacuating everyone into the old castle.”
“While you slept, I marked a trail to a large hall that should hold your guests in relative safety. I didn’t see any signs that it has been recently occupied by anything more dangerous than rats,” Theof told me.
“With your permission, King Dexter, I would like to begin evacuating the residents and the nobles now,” Myrick said. “Once they are out, we will move the guards.”
“Isn’t it premature? We should be able to hold this position for a few hours at least.”
“We could, but we would take losses that we can hardly afford,” Theof said. “But I have some skill at trap setting. I have already begun to prepare some surprises for our enemy. There are a few more that I would like to leave, but we will need to move the men back so they don’t accidentally trigger one.”
“Very well, but let’s move quickly.”
****
The gods smiled on us and gave us a solid hour and a half before the attack renewed. Theof had been very busy and it had taken almost that long to evacuate the castle residents out of the north hall into the old castle. It had not taken very long to move the few hundred people out, but we also had to bring water and food, which had taken us longer to organize. Layred Vu assigned thirty guards to escort the civilians to the location that Theof had chosen.
Everyone had wanted me to accompany the civilians, but I was tired of being protected and hidden away. I had Harbinger and that had to count for something. We were planning a fighting retreat to bring our enemy into Theof’s traps and I would retreat with my guardsmen. Besides, all of my friends intended on being where the fighting was. Even Francis and my mother felt that they needed to be by the fighting—and if they could fight, then I certainly could. The one person whom I insisted leave with the civilians was Brin. She pouted and her face turned red when I told her, but I didn’t let her sway me in this. While she had been as valuable as anyone up to this point, what could she do in battle? What could I do in battle, for that matter? Not that I intended to take foolish chances. I did not plan on charging Tabor Till or Garris Stone. I actually planned to avoid actual fighting if I could—I realized that my life was much more valuable now than it had been just over a fortnight ago—but I felt that my presence was somehow necessary, if only to raise morale.
The first indication that the attack had begun was a deep boom and the iron doors that separated us from our enemies shuddered in their frames. We had moved back leaving the headquarters empty as well as the other rooms that we had been protecting. There was now a long, empty hall, full of death, and then us at the main entrance to the north hall. The second deep boom I felt in my bones. I felt queasy, worried about how I would perform in the battle. It didn’t matter that I had already been through several battles—I still felt sick to my stomach, but knew I would be okay once the action started. I looked around me to see if anyone noticed my nervousness. I turned around and Brin was looking at me as if nothing was amiss.
“What are you doing here? I thought I told you to go with the others
where it is safer.”
“Yes, you did.”
“So why are you here?”
“I’ve been here the whole time. It’s cute when you try to tell me what to do. You’re usually wrong though. I can help. And this is where my friends are.”
“But you’ll be in danger!”
“I’ve been in danger since you’ve gotten here, thank you very much. But you’re my friend—my first one—and that means something to me even if doesn’t to you.”
I was speechless. I nodded and felt a vague impulse to hug Brin, but she was scowling at me from behind her thick glasses and her posture seemed so stiff right then that I didn’t dare.
“Here they come!” I heard someone shout.
The door finally gave way—not the door actually, but the stone frame cracked and broke under the punishment. As soon as the door opened a squad of Twelve Sect foot soldiers came through and ran right into two large explosions. Theof had rigged a pair of Francis’ potions—liquid fire—to ignite a second or two after the door was breached. The potions created a concussive blast and flames shot back in the direction of the recently defeated door, hopefully into many more enemy soldiers.
Theof was leading the defense of the hall. He did not wait for the smoke to clear.
“Crossbows, fire!” he yelled, and a squad of crossbow men posted at the large banquet double doors fired down the hallway. They stepped out of the way, and a second squad replaced them. “Fire!”
The flames died down. I watched, and the through the smoke, the enemy advanced—slower this time, with shields up and long spears that they used to probe the passage ahead. One of the spears caught the tripwire that Theof had strung and sprung the next trap. From above, a few thousand needles each tipped with deadly poison shot down from the ceiling of the passageway. The men had on helmets and armor but enough of the needles found their way into the gaps that most of the first few rows of the enemy column were affected. First, there was yelling and men slapping at their necks and bare arms, plucking away the tiny needles. They took a few more steps forward and then men began to stagger and veer off into walls or their comrades. Then they began to fall, gasping, twitching, and frothing at the mouth—it was horrible. I looked at Theof and wondered what the real man was like stripped of the legend if he could so quickly arrange such a horrible death for a score of men. I reminded myself that those men were coming to kill me and told myself that this was no worse than pouring boiling pitch and lead on attackers—the only difference was that I actually witnessed this.
The soldiers behind those who had fallen started to fall back, but there must have been an officer somewhere; there was some shouting, and then they regrouped and continued forward. Theof let them come. He ordered all of those not right at the door to fall back. When the enemy was only fifty feet away, the elf yanked a cord that he had mounted on the wall. It ran down the hall and caused six small vials that he had loosely embedded between the stones to fall and shatter. I caught only a glimpse of the hall filling with hissing, green gas as the door to the north hall was slammed shut and barred.
Then we were moving. We moved through the kitchens and beyond in a predetermined route, for Theof had left one or two more surprises for our enemies in the north hall and the kitchen. Even though I was not in the rear, I kept looking back over my shoulder expecting to see pursuit. There was none yet. Theof had assured us that it would be at least fifteen minutes before the hall was passable and that it was highly unlikely that anyone who had been caught within when the gas was released would survive. There had been at least one hundred men in the hall.
We moved quickly and soon we were in the old castle, where we hoped we would be safe, if just for a while.
Chapter Fifteen
Of the Four Kings, King Jeremiah was the most mysterious. Very little is known of his early life. He is not a native Pozzelbian, that much is known. It is also known that he traveled widely as a young man. Somewhere during his travels he spent over a decade of his life studying a system of rigorous mental and spiritual discipline and unarmed fighting. How he became involved with the other three kings is also unknown, though it is believed that he first met and befriended King Korric, who was almost Jeremiah’s opposite. About the time that Jeremiah relocated to Unity, he married Nightshade. Very little is known about their relationship. It is not believed that they had any offspring.
Excerpted from J. R. Grimble’s Pozzelby: A History
Inside of Grimwulf’s quarters, Callis was meeting with Tabor Till and Garris Stone. Besides the three leaders who stood around a small table, there were two other people present in the room. One was Grimwulf, who had become stubborn after the goblin attack, forcing Callis to place the duke into an enchanted sleep. The advisor had hoped that the duke could be manipulated by non-magical means, but that appeared to not be the case any longer. Callis could control Grimwulf magically, but it would require a great deal of energy and Grimwulf’s behavior would likely appear unnatural to anyone who interacted with him for more than a few minutes. He would search for another way after this meeting. The second person in the room was Doctor Ahem. The doctor had been found near the main gate of the castle, minutes from death, stabbed through the heart. Callis had placed the doctor in a magical stasis, freezing him on the brink of death until the matter could be addressed. He had been inclined to let Ahem expire for his failure to kill Dexter, but the wizard had been valuable before and might be again if some way was found to save his wretched life.
“How goes the battle?” Callis asked.
“We took the north hall, though we lost two hundred more men doing so. They trapped it and have retreated into the old castle. We’re searching for them now,” said Tabor Till.
“Find them. This has already gone on for too long. They can only have two, maybe two hundred and fifty guardsmen left. Dexter must die and the castle must be taken soon.”
“Callis, the castle is effectively ours. As you said, their numbers are small and we hold all of the utilized portions of Pozzelby Castle,” Till said.
“It does not matter. What I need will not be in the new castle and the last thing that we want is for a guerilla force to be wandering the bowels of the mountain. The goblin attack was not random; they came from the old castle and someone convinced them to do it. They were but goblins, that’s true, but who knows what else they may find in there.”
Tabor Till almost smiled. “If they find something worse, then our work may be taken care of for us.”
“Our presence here, this action will attract attention. News of this has reached Dunlevy and the word will spread like an August fire. Eventually, some noble or ambitious officer is going to come and investigate. Dexter must be eliminated and order restored here before that happens.”
Garris Stone spoke for the first time, his voice grated like a knife drawn against rock. Both of the other men shuddered a little at the sound of it. Even Callis was somewhat intimidated by the tall warrior the black armor whose face was always hidden behind his helmet.
“They will be found soon. I have dispatched the huntsmen. There is nowhere that they will be able to hide.”
Callis did not dare speak to Stone in the manner that he spoke to Till. He simply replied, “Thank you, General Stone.”
Callis turned and paced with his hands tightly clasped behind his back.
“We must have the sword and the castle is the key. It is there or the secret to its whereabouts is there.”
“Harbinger is there,” said Stone. “And it is recently awakened. My own sword can sense it—someone has already found Coenbrand’s sword.”
Callis’ innards turned to ice. He did not doubt the truth of Stone’s words. The general looked quite unperturbed, as if he had no fear at all of Garegon’s wrath. Of course, it was very difficult to read Garris Stone as his face was always hidden. Callis could only imagine what horror was behind that visor. Neither did Tabor Till seem unduly w
orried. Great general he may be, but he apparently had no inkling of the importance of the sword.
“We have to redouble our efforts,” he told the other two. “General Stone can you tell where Harbinger is?”
“No. Only that it is close and has only awakened in the time since we have been here. Don’t worry, little priest, I will have the sword. My huntsmen have already entered the old castle and are closing in on their prey. Undoubtedly, Harbinger will be there as well.”
“When they find them, have word sent out to the rest of our troops. We’ll move in and overwhelm them,” said Callis. “The sword will be ours.”
****
Lieutenant Porknoy knew his plan would take him only so far—he hoped that no one else realized it. Really, it was hardly a plan. His men had taken the uniforms and banners from the soldiers that they had captured, as well as enough horses that their force should resemble the one that had left with Colonel Tholla. Hopefully, it would get them inside of the castle walls unchallenged. The ruse would probably not last long. That was the problem—Porknoy didn’t know what he would do once inside. His men would certainly be outnumbered. He had no idea what the conditions at the castle would be. The last thing he wanted was to serve the Earmunders up to slaughter.
They were nearing Lake Marie. A few more miles and they would be visible to anyone watching from the castle. He had to decide what he was going to do quickly. He would have his men advance one more mile and then halt.
Porknoy was riding slowly preoccupied with his problems. Even so, he was surprised that he did not see the old man sitting on the side of the road until he was nearly past him. The old man looked harmless, but out of place. He stared at Porknoy. As Porknoy gazed back, the old man inclined his head and smiled. People generally got out of the way of large, armed forces, so why was he just there, sitting on a rock?