CheapLit: Free ebook sample of "Sword of Aris (Stormslayer)" by richard tombs

List of Characters

Aris ab Siar - An errand boy for his father. One of his good friends is Derak the knight. He is constantly trying to stay out of troublesome situations created by the quests for rare items that his father doles out to him frequently.

Derak ij Alcor - One of the many sons of King Alcor, third in line to inherit the throne. Believing his succession to be in doubt, he became a knight to defend the cause of the people and help the common man.

King Alcor - The King of the small but burgeoning kingdom of Aldur, also ruled during the Minotaur Wars of decades ago.

Jonas Mendragon - A magic wizard once under the service of King Alcor, now toils under the will of the Legendary Malkor

Thrax - A minotaur from the southern regions, raised by Siar, he left at as a youth to find his own way, he currently strives to restore the Great Empire

Nicklaus Greeson, Nick- A young boy caught up in the turmoil of the quest for the Trident of Power, he seeks to free his father from the dungeon's of King Alcor's castle.

Krin Sevensson - A well-trained fighter of the city's guard, a member of the small group of the followers of Sicere.

Talon Gyrahde - An expert archer, who served in the Minotaur Wars and is a member of the King's Elite Castle Guard.

Rolf Karadge - An intelligent warrior in battle, he often tries to out-think his opponent and takes great mirth in doing so.

Siar ab Alland - A great wizard who has lived his whole life on the magic-users continent in a solitary tower and raised his son Aristotle as an errand boy. Collecter of rare magical items, he often sends his son to procure them.

Prologue

A man sat at a small, overburdened desk, full of charts and graphs and many parchments. An ink blotter of frequent use resided thankfully just out of reach of his wrinkled and busy hands. Scribbling away at the dry scrolls, his hard-lined face was streaked with worry, bereaved by the passage of time upon it. His long white stringy hair constantly getting in the way of his work, and when it did so, he would utter foul curses intermittently to the gods that be. A small noise, a distraction at first, flitted across his attention. It arose again, louder this time, actually breaking his intent concentration.

He glanced slowly upward, beholding an image that slowly seeped into his old feeble consciousness as something that didn't quite belong. There stood a young man, outfitted in the barest of leather armours, although quite intricately wrought. The aqua colored rune-coved sword glowed faintly at his side. The dapper fellow cleared his throat impatiently. "Ahem!" The old man cackled a small laugh in response, and then, continuing with his work, grunted as if a small joke had been told.

"It seems you took the wrong turn boy, the rest of the scrollography is at your disposal, but I am the headmaster, and am quite busy. Please carry on your business."

The crooked smile on the youth’s face turned to a small scowl . "You always knew how to greet a man, but now you’re excelling at it."

His visage wrinkled up, as if thought. “Who . . .”, he began to ask, and then slowly, resembling a lady bug’s slow walk atop the edge of a withered leaf, the wrinkled frown turned to a smile. The sword seemed to glow a little brighter, almost as if the writer’s recognition gave it strength. But no . . that was fifty years ago.

“You seem to be having a problem with your pen, perhaps I should come back at another time?”

Nicklaus glanced down at his quill, where drops of ink had begun to sink deeply into the parchment, and had stained his last stanza. “Eh? What’s that?” The quill had stopped moving a little time before, as he struggled to reconcile the image before him and the logical conclusion that would have to be made. He stood up as quickly as his old bones would allow, his radiant robes falling to cover his aged form quickly. A slow smile began creeping across his face. He trotted over to Aris and embraced him. His hands felt over the cloth on Aris’ back. “Hmph.” He grunted. “I’m surprised you don’t have a minotaur’s axe jutting form back there. That being the last time I saw you. . .” He trailed off questioningly.

Aris had no answer but a cryptic smile. “I know, old friend, but that’s why I interrupted your . . . thrilling studies. Our old enemy has returned, and I fear his minotaur army is not far behind.”

The young man looked up, his curly locks of hair strayed to the side of his face. He had seen nearly twenty summers, but the old man couldn't help thinking of him as a boy, even now. “I'm sorry father, I didn't mean to worry you. It's just that I saw this interesting book here and couldn't resist seeing what it had to say.”

How had he found that book? “Well, never mind that right now Aristotle, there is a reason I've been searching so diligently for you. I have a small errand for you to run.”

The young man grimaced at the mention of his name. “Father, you know I don't like being called that.”

“But Aristotle was a great learner, even if I haven't taught you all about him, you should be proud of the name.”

“I am proud, I just don't like it.”

The old man nodded. “Very well, I will attempt to call you as you wish, but you know my memory, and if I slip every now and then, I can't be blamed.”

Aris grinned. “Yes of course. Now what is it that you need me to do? Do I get to travel to the City? Are we going to get to go to Aldur again? Maybe I can go visit Derak?”

“You will get your taste of adventure soon enough. However, the task at hand is much simpler than that. Do you remember the small magical sphere I was using earlier this morning.”

“Oh yes, the little blue one that shot sparks and you started scowling at?”

“Ahem...Well yes, that would be the one. I seem to have misplaced it in my daily walk through the grove, I would like for you to go and find it for me.”

Aris' face didn't betray any emotion, but the old man was certain that his son wasn't too excited about the task that had been set before him.

He rose from his sitting position and nodded. “Yes, father, I'd be glad to help, but how am I supposed to find it?”

His eyes twinkled at the question. “There are various means at your disposal.”

The young man nodded and began to head towards the door, an outstretched arm stopped him. “Wait.” He headed over to the wall and opened a panel that Aris had never realized was there before and pulled out a large sword. Aris gasped. It was beautiful. The hilt was black enamel, outlined with an emerald tinge, and a sapphire was embedded in the base. The blade shimmered in the weak light provided by the small magical bauble lamps his father used throughout the tower, and the metal glistened with a rainbow iridescence. “This sword,” his father continued, “is yours now. It was given to me by my father and now I'm giving it to you. You must guard it well, for it possesses a certain value in certain circles.”

“What do you mean 'a certain value'?”

“That is not important right now, you will discover it given time. However, it will be getting dark soon, and I do need my bauble.”

“Yes of course. Thank you, father.” He solemnly retrieved the sword from the sage’s

hands and was surprised at the lightness of it. Presented with a sword belt, Aris strapped it on, and soon feet incredibly confident with his new weapon in tow. He walked through the tower's doorway and out into the forest.

It was bright outside, but his father had been right, for the sun would soon dip slowly below the horizon, plunging the valley into utter darkness. Stars were normally not visible because of the severe magical storms that raged over Leera, and he sorely missed getting to see them. The forests of Leera were well known for their peaceful songs. The various shrubs and trees, being infused with the radiant magical energy of the storms above, vibrated and sang in a melodious fashion. The nusic soothed his thoughts as he walked.

Aris traveled slowly at first, following the well-worn path that eventually led the way into the main city of Aldur. Aris wasn't intent on traveling for a full day to get there however, and hopefully he would find the sphere soon and could get back to his reading. An interesting passage had caught his eye, describing the events that had happened so many years ago with one of the enemies of the great sorceress Sicere as she had entrapped an evil wizard.

Something darted just outside his field of vision. What was that? He spun around quickly. There was nothing but the breeze slowly flowing through the brush. He concentrated harder, still seeing nothing. Oh well. Spent too much time focusing on reading today I suppose.

He traveled onward, and after a couple of hours, he reached the other side of the valley. Well, I haven't spotted anything along the trail, I'll have to leave it to search more intensively. He began to search the wooded areas immediately next to the trail. However, upon seeing little of interest and a stray blue frog, he extended the search further outward to encompass the surrounding undergrowth.

He had traveled almost halfway the distance back to the gleaming tower, and was beginning to give up hope when he spotted a small and almost unrecognizable trail jutting off of the main one. That's odd. I've never seen that before.

Small stones and rocks were jumbled upon this much smaller trail, hinting of the existence of a road some time in the far distant past. It led up to the nearby hills and he decided to hurry and follow it as best as he could. Now why would father have gone this way? The sun's bottom was touching the lip of the valley, warning of the impending darkness to come. He hurried forward, being ever mindful of the looming lack of daylight. The possibility of becoming stranded in the valley in complete and utter darkness didn’t appeal to him in the slightest. A cave opened up in the cliffs before him, the small sphere lying in front of it. Oddly, the singing trees had quieted down and were silent.

“Well hello there! It's taken me all day to find you!” He slowly approached the small sphere. Wait a second. How could it have gotten here?

A growling voice snuck up from behind him, and after all day of the silence of the valley, he was nearly startled out of his skin. “I see you have fallen into my trap.” The gravelly voice announced.

He spun around to face the owner of the frightening utterance, only to be frightened by the sight as well. He beheld a creature that was all black and possessed of a great many number of scales. It reminded Aris of a small dragon, although this scaly beast had no wings and stood upright like a man. Its teeth dripped with an unknown ichor, and its nostrils flared open when its voice menaced.

“Who are you?” Aris demanded with as much composure as he had left to muster.

“Ha! You approach my home and assault me with your ugly visage and have the audacity to ask who I am?”

MY ugly visage? Aris thought.

“Before this day is done . . .”, the creature continued to rant. “You will bow to me and serve me as your god!”

Aris was ever conscious of his waning daylight and knew he would be no match for this creature in the dark. He also had no idea if there were any more of these things out there. He decided to act quickly, he grabbed the sphere and ran. He soon outdistanced the creature. Good thing I can run well, he thought. Turning a rough corner of rubble on the long abandoned thoroughfare, a horrible stench struck him like a wave.

“You thought you could escape me that easily!” Its’ voice grinded at Aris’ every last nerve. It took all of his concentration to keep the voice from ringing throughout his head. The creature's face was only mere inches from his own, and the putrid breath of the monster was enough to almost bring up Aris' lunch of mutton stew. Aris had to choke down a vile swallow and he quickly jumped back and unsheathed the sword. Then two unexpected things happened nearly simultaneously, but not as close as Aris would have planned for them to. The first was that the sun's light had finally receded to behind the mountains surrounding the valley, plunging Aris and the creature into complete darkness. This also had the added affect of dashing Aris' hopes completely. However, the second unexpected event occurred soon afterward, and was a welcome surprise. The sword Aris had drawn began to glow with a surreal light. The light began to grow and branch out quickly, at the same time reviving Aris' hopes and swallowing up the surrounding darkness in its azure light. The creature blanched, reacting to the light as if burned. Aris watched as the light enveloped the creature and slowly began to dissolve it away. The creature garbled an incomprehensible response and then faded into oblivion. Aris just stared at where it had been.

After some time, he realized he was still standing there, gaping at the glowing sword. The stench of the creature's black, sizzling remains permeated the area. He quickly picked up the bauble and used the sword's light to lead him home. There wasn't any way that he was going to sheathe it and render himself completely blind, not after that crazy monster encounter. The musical tones of the forest had returned as quickly as they had gone, as though the creature’s presence had subdued them. Impossible of course.

He wearily approached the tower and entered with his palm to the door, someday he would have to ask his father why the door worked like that. He traveled up to the third floor and his father's study by use of the stone stairway wonderfully etched with ancient runes. He slowly pushed the door open and approached his father's study desk. The old man was busy inscribing ink on parchment under the magical light of a bauble much like the one that Aris had retrieved. Aris placed the small bauble on his father's desk.

Aris looked up from his scribbling, “I trust that there was no trouble in finding it son?”

“There was. . .” Aris considered telling his father about the creature, then thought better of it. I can take care of myself. Besides, he'd have me up half the night describing it to him. “. . . no trouble at all.”

“Good, then you may now finish your reading if you so wish.”

“With your blessing father, I think I'll just go to bed, all that straining my eyes searching you know.” And running from the mad hellspawn from a minotaur's home.

“Very well.”

Aris turned to go, and the sage allowed a small smile to creep across his face. The boy did well. Perhaps I should trust him with something. . . .

He quickly composed himself. “Ahem.” He coughed.

“Yes father?”

“Tomorrow, if you're up to it, I have a larger errand for you. However, this time you get to travel to Aldur.”

“Yes father.” Aris answered, not allowing the fear to creep into his face. Something LARGER?

“Very good. And remember, get a good night's rest.”

He had spent two weeks lost in those sad remains, finally resorting to cutting himself to use his dried blood to mark a path to the outside. He had survived the trying ordeal, but barely, and he had exited the maze as weak as a babe. His father’s quest for magical relics was damn near insatiable.

The mission he was on now should have been ten times easier, and he shouldn't be scared at all. Only he was. He had survived before with only his wits and his sword, but he hadn't been scared then. His nerves seemed on edge, and he wasn’t sure why. His senses tingled, and the thought of a perilous future hung over his thoughts like a dark thunderhead.

He stopped suddenly, thinking he had heard a noise, but then continued his slow march forward, and ran straight into a young boy!

He was jittery and shaking uncontrollably, whether by hunger or cold he couldn’t tell.

"Hey! Whoa there son!” He shouted, trying to calm down the obviously nervous child. The boy looked about thirteen years of age with grubby hair and a plain jerkin with commoner’s clothes underneath. Grime streaked his face and nose, bringing to mind images of the tribes of crazed wildmen he had seen on Telar. “What’s the hurry?” He asked, in a poor attempt at some good humor. The boy had none present. He just stared back in a look of shock and utter terror.

He tried to speak. His words came out in a stutter at first, then they arrived in a jumbled mess all at once. “HewasuglyandsaidIshouldlethimthebarnbutIdidn’tandIlockedthedoor

buthebrokeitanywayandkidnappedmyfatherandburnedthehouseandsoIranandthey’rechasing me..”

“Hey calm down! Don’t worry. If there are robbers in these woods, I'm sure I can handle them." Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, "I'll take care of you.” He unsheathed his golden-hilted sword, and placed his free hand protectively around the child. “What’s your name son?” The boy was still staring, but this time not in shock but in amazement, for the sword was glowing. "Yes. It's a magical sword, it will protect us. Only it shouldn’t be glowing." A worried frown crinkled his forehead.

“Uh...my name’s Nicklaus” The young man seemed almost calmed by the glow.

The glow seemed to unnerve the wanderer. “Call me Aris, not mister.” His eyes scanned the woods intently, almost as if expecting the trees to come alive and attack.

"Ok, Lord Aris."

"No. Definitely not Lord....."

A charge sounded and Aris looked up to see three misshapen brutes lumbering straight at him. “Orcs!” He yelled. The creatures grunting noises and stench arrived well before they did.

The one closest to him had a black eye patch over one eye with a small red rune stitched on it. They were all of very heavy-build; the one farthest away had a top-knot. Without thinking he parried the thrust of a huge battleaxe that had loomed in his face as he spun.

“Halt this attack!” Aris yelled at the nearest pig-faced attacker. The creature grinned madly as he blocked a quick jab from Aris' sword and then swung at the boy. Aris ran him through with the blade and shoved his still twitching body into the two remaining attackers. The brutes regained their balance quickly, as all hopes of ending the confrontation peacefully slowly eroded in Aris' mind.

“Only one thing to do.” Aris whispered. He grabbed his scabbard with his free hand swung with all his might. The strike hit the orc squarely in the back of its head, causing the attacker to fall to the ground unconscious. The remaining orc froze and stared at his two friends, their bodies crumpled on the ground. Blood was oozing out of one's chest, leaking onto the dry crunchy leaves. Aris backed away, protecting the boy, and held his sword high.

“Don't come any closer!", he yelled.

The remaining strong-arm grabbed the unconscious one and flung him on his back like an old sack of potatoes. Then he slowly trundled off into the forest.

Aris stood there and considered the one orc as it lay at his feet. Nicklaus, who seemed to have calmed considerably, searched the brutes clothing and found nothing. “I was hoping to find out who he was working for . . ”

Aris bent down and noticed a small interwoven chain around the beast’s neck. “What about this?” He asked as he followed the chain to find an amulet under the brute's tunic. “It's an amulet! This script is ancient, but I believe it says ‘Thrax’. I wonder what that means.”

“I know what it means.” Nicklaus said, “But I think we need to get out of here or wake him up and ask him some questions!”

“He's not going to be answering any questions.” Aris shook the creature's body and it fell limply back to the forest floor. Aris’ hand caught on the amulet, yanking it free from the stout muscled neck. The sharp toothed mouth opened slowly, as if something was trying to exit his body. The links of the runic chain slipped quickly past, and as soon as the last had left his skin, the creature’s corpse dissolved into a pile of sand! Nicklaus’ eyes grew wide.

“Enchanted golems. . .” Aris murmured. “I haven’t seen those in a very long time. We need to get to Aldur, quickly.”

The boy nodded his assent glumly. Aris pocketed the amulet and began slowly trudging through the many-brambled trail. Nicklaus hurried to keep up, not waiting around for any more surprises to arrive.

“Can you tell me what happened?”

Nicklaus’ face grimaced, then his expression grew firm. “Yes. My dad has this farm about two leagues west of here and he was out milking the cows when they got him. I almost think they planned it. They showed up early to catch him off guard and I was up in the hay loft in the barn when I saw them coming. I suspected they worked for Thrax, but now I know it! The greedy mongrel kidnapped my father and is holding him for ransom. I don’t understand how he knew we were rich. My father went to a lot of trouble to keep his fortunes a secret. He raises pigs and sells cows’ milk especially for the King, and since he’s the best, he gets paid handsomely.”

“So who’s this Thrax fellow?”

“A thief, a common robber, he leads a band of highwaymen and just enlisted the help of a local wizard. I’m guessing that’s what that disappearance was all about.”

“That wasn’t the work of a local wizard. That was the work of a master. Are you sure that this Thrax is behind all this?”

“I’m pretty sure, even though I’ve never seen creatures like those with him. That’s why I’m headed to Aldur. My father's storehouse is there. I was going to pick up the ransom.”

Aris looked puzzled. “Now that’s strange, why would they attack you if you hadn’t paid the ransom yet? They wouldn’t know if you were going to be willing to pay it or not. There’s something strange going on here, and I’m afraid it's bigger than a local wizard signing up with a small time brigand!”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Well, because that’s why I was sent here.”

Chapter 3

Sleight of hand

The sharp rays of the sun peaked over the tall golden spire of the castle’s battlements. Pennants flapped wildly, as if fighting the wind for dominance of the skies. The bright shafts illuminated the breadth of the city and its well-fortified walls. Sentries strode back and forth in well-armed and armored guard towers. The light from the sun shone upon the entire alluvial plain, even spreading to the dusty road beyond. The city of Aldur looked like a city of paradise to the two weary travelers who approached the front gate.

Aris’ expression grew grim. “I think we’re in trouble. We look like we’ve been living like wild men and they normally don’t let vagrants into the city, so let me do the talking.”

A short squat guard approached from the closed side of the huge city gate, set into a fortified wall at least twenty feet high. “State your business.” He yelled curtly.

Aris attempted to put his best face on. “Greetings fine sir. I am Prince Aris of Leera and I travel with Nicklaus, son of Magyar, personal servant to the king. We seek sustenance and lodging in your fair and wonderful city and only desire for you to open this one barrier which lies between us and our grand homecoming.”

“Ugh!” the guard yelled in disgust and began to walk away.

Nicklaus ran up to the gate “Wait! Listen! I’m a lowly pig farmer and this is some idiot with a gleaming sword, let us in, man!”

The guard paused and drew close to the gate, grabbing Nicklaus arm. He grumbled a curse under his breath and raised his arm.

“Open the gate!” He yelled loudly, looking towards the top of the nearby parapet. “Well, get a move on!” He urged.

Aris dumbly followed the boy into the city. Aris waited until they were well out of earshot of the grumpy fellow. “Hey, how did you just do that? Did you cast some kind of magic spell of coercion while I wasn’t looking?”

“No, I slipped him a gold piece through the gate. Guards respond better to positive motivation than. . . well, whatever it was you were trying to do.” Aris raised an eyebrow at the comeback.

The gates of the city now being opened to them, the rugged pair lumbered their way through the outer city, past merchants and their streetside stalls of bread and fresh produce. They traveled past the poorer outskirts and moved through to the inner city wall, which protected the more well-to-do residents and their houses.

They soon found themselves before the Dwarf’s Hovel, a small but suitable inn. Its entry sign swung and squeaked as a small breeze caught its splintered wooden edge. The image of a battle-craze dwarf with a small battle-hammer was blazoned on the sign, with the paint chipping away, showing the age of its years. Neither of the motley pair had eaten all day, so they quickly succumbed to the cravings of their stomachs at the mead hall as soon as they had seen to their rooms. They sat glumly, finding the mead porridge not nearly as inviting as it should have been, even on an empty stomach.

The table nearby had two scruffy looking scoundrels engrossed with themselves

in heavy conversation. “And he did it right under the nobles' noses! Can you believe it? All I know is, if I was a noble and I had my loot stashed in a storehouse in this town I’d be pretty hacked at the King!”

Nicklaus’ curiosity was peaked. “I’m sorry, did you just say storehouses?”

The older man, his head lolling as if he was half-drunk and realizing he now had a bigger audience, turned and spoke. “You’re durn rightee I did, boy! The great and mighty King o’ ours robbed all the nobles' storehouses today and said it was fer the good o’ the country and everybody’d be paid back and my Knights at the treasury are just there to keep the looters away and all that rot. Keep looters away my ass! He’s doin' that to ensure them nobles don’t raid the treasury to get their money back. Strange thing is, I don’t think it's really the King, I think its somebody else, posin' as the king!”

Aris stood up, “Come on Nick, we really need to get some sleep. We can find out more about this tomorrow. You know, talk to some sober people.” They headed away from the bar.

The drunk, now unaware that anyone had left, his eyes having left him with visions of blurry barstools he thought were his audience, continued on unperturbed.

“You know what!...hiccup...I think he’ll be after our women next! Sure, take our houses...burp...and take our...gold...gargle...and I wish he would take my woman. Get her outta my hair, the sorry bay. Take her and don’t bring her back!” The drunk soon fell asleep while still mumbling under his breath. “Just ... long ... doesn’t ... take my drink.” Smash! His head fell to the table.

Aris quickly found his bed and dropped right off into pleasant slumber. He awoke to find Nicklaus gone, and hurried to find him, fearing that the boy would find trouble. His fears soon materialized when he neared the palace gates in the center of the grand city and caught up with Nick. He was wielding an old rusted sword, and was well on his way through the city streets to confront the King.

“Listen, Nicklaus, I’m sorry about your father’s gold reserves, but this isn’t going to help. I’ll tell you what, I’ll get you an audience with the King if it’ll make you feel better, but when he gets things into his head to make a decision, he doesn’t change his mind.”

Nicklaus stopped and slowly looked toward Aris. “You know the King?” Aris’ answer was interrupted by a group of people causing a commotion further down at the end of the street.

“Come on. Let's see what’s going on.” Aris said and they hurried forward. They arrived at the city’s palace gates that lead into the center of the innermost parts of the city and the King’s palace. A core group of fifteen of the elite palace guards were trying to keep about five nobles in check.

One of the nobles in particular was getting all of the guards' attention. Brandishing a sword, he was intent on gaining an audience with the king. “Now if you gentlemen will allow me passage to see the King, I will kindly not have to dispatch you out of my way.”

The guard in charge, denoted by a red sash over his uniform stepped solemnly forward. “Listen, if we must go through this again, somebody’s going to get hurt. As we told you, the King is very busy and can’t see anyone at this moment.”

Aris calmly walked into the middle of the group. “Now, now . . . Everyone calm down. There’s too much tension here, you people need to relax. It’s all right, everything is fine. I’ll just go get my good friend the King, and he’ll settle all this.”

The lead guard placed his sword tip in the center of Aris’ armor on his chest. “And just who do you think you are?” a look of surprise spread across Aris face.

“Listen here, what do you think you’re doing? I happen to know the King very well. So if you would kindly go get him we can solve this!” The guard replied by motioning his guards forward. They surrounded Aris and Nicklaus, and the nobles wisely retreated to just out of the guards’ sword range.

The chief guard looked at Aris. “I think you’ll pipe down and keep quiet or I’ll find you a nice room for you and your friend in the palace dungeon, and the only audience you’ll get with the King will be when he passes sentence!”

“Boy, he’s got a nasty temper.” Aris said smartly.

“That’s it! Throw them in the dungeon.” The guards seized their weapons and began to herd them toward the palace gates. Nicklaus looked at Aris, “‘I happen to know the King’ you said ‘he’s my good friend and he’ll settle all this’ you said. So far he hasn’t helped us any.”

“I said I knew the King, I didn’t say that I knew any of his guards, there’s a difference. By the way, you wouldn’t happen to have any more of those gold coins handy, would you?” Nick harrumphed.

The guards handled them roughly and ushered them quickly into a moldy cell. Aris was sure it hadn’t been used in some time, possibly being for only storage until recently. The presence of several cobwebs attested to his theory. He began to test the metal bars of his cell, shaking them and trying to loosen one really old rusty one that had caught his attention. Nicklaus, who was lying down on the bed of straw in the corner of the mossy, grungy cell, spoke up. “It’s no good Aris. It’s just one bar. We'd have to get them all off to even get to the next round of bars.”

They were in a small dungeon cell adjacent to the moat of the king’s palace. There was one set of bars, one of which Aris was desperately trying to free, and a foot outside of that, another set of bars which required a different key to unlock. The floor of the cell was splotched with moss and grime, with some of the moats water seeping in from time to time. Trying to pry any bricks free from the outside would only succeed in flooding the cell, and them with it.

“I got it” Aris shouted!

“You do?” Nick asked, “You know how to escape! You know how to get us out of here!” The muscles in his cheeks widened his mouth into a toothy grin.

“No. I got this bar free.” He said and held it up for Nicklaus’ inspection. Nick’s face grew ashen. “Now don’t look so glum Nick, we’ve only been in here a half an hour and now I have a weapon when they come back to talk to us.” He said as he hefted the big bar in his hand.

Nicklaus tried not to look so glum. “Why are you here to begin with?”

“Oh don’t worry,” Aris smiled, “They won’t execute us for badmouthing a soldier.”

“No, that’s not what I meant. Why are you here to begin with?”

“Well, that’s quite a long story, but seeing as how we seem to have plenty of time on our hands, I might as well tell you. My father sent me on what I thought at first to be a fool’s errand. I am supposed to keep a madman from gaining a foothold in this region. He is a magician of great power, and that he must be defeated soon, or else his power will be too great.” He paused, waiting for Nick to beg him to continue. “You see, he holds a relic of great power, and each day it grows stronger and stronger. As long as he controls it he gains that power. The relic is known where I come from as the Trident of Power. Whoever wields the Trident can control the fierce elements of the sea and incredible energies of its storms. The crashing thunder, the jagged lightning, the power of the hurricane, the severe rainstorm, monsoons and tornadoes. . .all of these will soon be his to command.”

“It is called Stormslayer! It was forged by extremely clever dwarves who live on a secluded island, encased in the midst of the ocean, approachable only by air. If you tried to travel to Devil’s Heart by ship, you would be dashed upon the rocks! The only way there is by somehow traveling over its mountainous coast. On the center of the island lies a volcano, inside the caves of which these dwarves dwell. They created this relic of power to temper the fierce storms which constantly plague the island. It is rumored that this trident also posses the fierce powers of fire as well as water but these new powers have been added only recently. For years, the peaceful dwarf leader, Hrothgill led them. However, the peace was not to stay for long.

Hrothgill’s son, Thorgill, soon upon reaching the age of manhood, seized the throne from his father and a fierce civil war erupted. He had stolen the Trident of Power and endowed it with new magic, the magic of the volcano! King Hrothgill eventually regained the throne, for he and he only knew the secret of the Trident, and how to defeat it. Peace reigned once again on Devil’s Heart, but at what cost? Half of the dwarves had died in the conflict, and the king’s son, Thorgill as well. It is not known how he defeated his own son, but only that he did, and soon after Stormslayer was nowhere to be found. King Hrothgill called upon my father to search the many seas and lands and retrieve it at all costs. I have been assigned to seek it out. I have discovered that the scoundrel is in this area and possesses Stormslayer, and if I guess right, it could be this Thrax that tried to send his goons after you.” His story finished, he looked at Nicklaus with a grim look. “It is not an easy task, but something that must be done.”

The young man’s fallen expression dissipated. “That is an amazing story!” A small gleam grew in Nick’s eye.

“You know . . . you might need a hand in all of this. Somebody who is . . . small. Somebody who can get into tight places, help you out of trouble, that sort of thing.”

“It would be dangerous.” Aris said. “You could be hurt severely or even killed.”

“I could have already been killed, and you saved me from that.”

Aris spoke again. “But what about your father, he’s still being held for ransom by Thrax.”

“If this thing is as important as you say it is, the whole world is at stake. Thrax is a scoundrel, and he doesn’t care about any ransom, he just wants power. And I don’t think he’s worried about me. There has to be another reason why he kidnapped my father. If it wasn’t for the money, then what’s the true reason?”

“I don’t know Nicky. I honestly don’t know.”

Nick grew thoughtful and pondered silently. The rest of the evening was uneventful and Aris dozed off onto his pile of straw.

A small noise drifted to his mind, reminding him of when he played horseshoes as a child. Aris slowly came to, seeing the cell in the dim light of Terrerre's two moons. It was dark and damp with the light of moons shining through the cell window. Aris concentrated on trying to go back to sleep in the midst of an old man’s snoring wafting in from a neighboring cell.

Clink. The noise returned, slightly louder than before.

“Aris!” Nicklaus whispered. “Did you hear that?”

“If you mean the snoring, I’ve heard it for the past two hours.”

“No, listen. It’s getting louder, I think it’s somebody making a noise.” Aris rose off of his uncomfortable position on the straw pile and walked toward the front of the cell. An old ragged man in the cell across was all that he could see. The old man, oblivious to his surroundings, was clearly lost in dreamland.

Suddenly, a robed figure burst into view in front of Aris’ cell. He reached through the bars and grabbed Aris’ arm. “Gotcha!” Aris leapt backward.

“What in a goblin's eye...?” His voice faded as recognition grew across his face.

“Derak!” The man in question performed a courtly bow.

“Of course, who else would ride all this way from his palatial home in the dead of night to save your sorry hide?”

Nicklaus rushed forward. “Hello. My name is Nick.”

Derak took off his dark robe to reveal a man dressed in intricately carved plate mail, and a sword that was exquisitely decorated in jewels and magic runes. “Prince Derak, at your service. A royal knight of my father's court.”

“A prince and a knight, isn’t that impossible?”

“Oh no! There’s another heir who shall succeed the throne before I, so in my spare time, I am a knight. You know, saving damsels in distress, defending the virtuous codes of honor, justice, chivalry and of course, saving Aris every time he gets into trouble.” He held up a jailer's key. “And now, the exit.” He unlocked the cell.

“Wait!” Aris said. “They have my sword, and you can’t expect us to just walk out of here unnoticed.” Derak pointed to a bag that he had been carrying setting in the dungeon hallway. Lying next to the bag was Aris' sword.

“Already taken care of! I’ve brought disguises for both of you.” His grin was enormous.

“How did you find us here?”

“Are you kidding? When someone as bothersome as you gets thrown in the King of Aldur’s palace dungeon, we that live abroad hear of these things. Besides, you're father sent me the message this afternoon.”

Aris walked toward the bag and opened it. He looked up in surprise. “Wait a minute. These are ...” Derak stood calmly with a wicked smile on his face. “Goblin’s clothes!”

“Yeah! You’d what?”

“Shsss!” Derak rode towards them. “Would you guys keep it down! I’ve talked him into opening the gate for us. He buys our story, so you guys keep it down. We should be safe and sound as soon as we ride clear of here.”

“Goblin baby!” Aris muttered.

“Orcling!” Nicklaus returned.

Derak silenced them with a glare. The gate opened and they rode forward, the guard looking over them as they passed.

“Almost home free,” Aris whispered.

“Wait!” the guard shouted. They stopped short about five feet from clearing the gate.

Derak shouted, “Good sir, what seems to be the trouble?”

The guard sneered and stepped forward with a penetrating stare. “I think I know this creature.”

Aris attempted to look prim and proper while Derak responded. “Oh! I really don’t think so, this slave is . . . ah . . . new to the city.”

“Perhaps you would like to go with me to the Dragon’s Tooth tavern tonight? I need some more muscle for my card game . . ” he said, addressing Aris. Aris was prepared to answer with a smart remark but was cut off by Derak. “My slave is busy this evening but if you like, he’s free tomorrow night.”

The glare from Aris could have melted butter. The guard, misunderstanding the look for refusal grew terse. “I’ll teach you some manners.” The guard began to head over toward Aris.

Derak said loudly, “I’ve got an idea, let’s get out of here!” He spurred his horse forward and Aris and Nick followed suit.

They began to race towards the open gate. Aris' spell of illusion glimmered brightly, then winked out. The guard, recognizing he’d been had, yelled. “Escape! Prisoners trying to escape!” A guard appeared above the group in the castle’s wall tower. He brought up his crossbow and took aim at the fleeing crew on their horses, preparing to fire.

****

Talon swore loudly, his head having smacked the roof of the small guard tower for rising too quickly. He had worked thirty years as a guard in service to the mighty King Alcor. He had fought loyally and bravely in Alcors’ army during the Minotaur Wars no more than twenty years ago. He had spent most of his spare time since the war in training camp slowly and methodically improving his archery skills. He had realized then that he wanted to be an archer. He was reknown far and wide for his skill with the bow, and with the crossbow. In this half of Terrere, he had no equal with any type of ranged weaponry. He had spent years honing his skill to such a point that no target within range was safe. It was rumored that he once shot a minotaur battle commander in the throat from thirty yards away, encased in full armored gear, for this was it’s only vulnerable spot. The rumor was untrue of course, but Talon was not the kind to betray his pride and squelch it. Rumours of a threat are far more effective than the threat itself, or so his father had always told him. During the war, he had killed many minotaurs from thirty feet away but never a full commander regaled in all of his battle gear. Only the mightiest of bladesmen could fell such a beast, and often these commanders were known to decimate half a squad of expertly trained swordsmen before going down in battle.

Talon knew it was his duty to serve the king as best as he could. So even after the war, instead of retiring, he had stayed on as one of the king’s own palace guards. He had used the past couple of seasons to perfect his archery skills. He now felt confident enough to serve his king knowing that he would never miss a mark he was ordered to shoot. Talon had been assigned tower duty today. He had pridefully relished the assignment. It was a rare one these days, for the wars were long since over. No one had attacked King Alcor’s castle itself in centuries and the view of the city was spectacular. Pulling guard duty here, one could see the sunrise and enjoy all its beauty, and observe the city’s goings on through the rest of the day. Talon’s reverie was shattered by a fellow guard’s voice rising from below.

“Escape! Prisoners trying to escape!!”

What! We haven’t had prisoners in years! His eyes glanced downward to the courtyard below. He saw three figures on horseback galloping almost out of the palace gate. He readied his crossbow to shoot. Only one of the targets was not obscured by the closing gate, so he aimed at that one. He aimed straight for the figures back, just below the heart, knowing that he could kill them with a good shot. He fired the crossbow bolt, and it sang through the air towards its target.

****

Derak and Nicklaus were ahead of Aris and about out of the gate, Aris urging his horse to go faster. Just before he reached freedom, his horse stumbled, throwing Aris forward just enough to unseat him for a second and then it continued sprinting forward. His amulet around his neck began to grow warm as if left into a fire. He reacted quickly, reaching down and grabbing it to keep it from burning his skin. In that split second, Aris saw something flash by his ear at an incredible speed. What in the blazing fields of Tarsus was that!

Their horses safely out of the gate by now, the gate slamming shut mere seconds behind them skimming Aris’ horse backside, they continued racing at breakneck speed through the city’s streets to the main exit gate.

Aris shouted, “Are you okay? Did you see that flash!?”

Nicklaus shouted back, his face in open shock. “Aahh... crossbow bolt! Nearly killed you. It’s as if you saw it and moved. Amazing!”

Aris, busy focusing on dodging merchants and following Derak’s horse up ahead, did not notice any blood or fatal wounds on Nicklaus. Then again, he couldn’t see much of him either. From this angle, all he could see was Nick’s rucksack, and a crossbow bolt jutting out of it.

“Oh!” Aris exclaimed. They reached the city’s main gate and nearly ran over two haggling beggars on the way out.

The main gate’s guard house was occupied by two guards eating their breakfast. Noticing the commotion, one of them stood and watched as the three horsemen, two if which resembled small goblins, attempted to escape the city’s gate into the nearby woods. The other guard, not having left the table, spoke up.

“Trouble?”

“For as little as Alcor’s paying us, not enough for us to bother with it.”

The other guard stood up and watched the motley group as their profiles grew smaller. “Good!” He stood silently brooding, then sat back down to his breakfast.

“What is it?”

“I hate goblins!”

Chapter 5

Visions

They had spent the night at a campfire a good seven leagues from Aldur. Derak had inspected the sack, sewing a small portion of it up to keep it from tearing open. Nicklaus was resting on a pile of bedding. Aris and Derak were cooking quayle on the campfire spit they had constructed.

Nicklaus head lolled upwards, his slumber temporarily abated. “So, where are we headed?”

Aris looked at Derak and nodded. Derak answered “We are going to my castle about two days' journey from here. You must have been really tired. We should be ready to ride in the morning. I have a couple of resources at my disposal, I’m going to see if I can find out what’s going on with the King in Aldur.”

After the first day of trudging along, and stopping to walk the horses to rest, a small gurgling sound filtered through the trees. They had traveled most of the way to Derak's castle without any major incidents. The road they were following through the forest had become slightly rockier and the trees were beginning to thin out. The noise slowly grew louder, rustling through the forest. Aris’ amulet began to glow, almost white-hot to the touch. Why is it doing this again? The heat slowly ebbed and it cooled to his touch, the light faded. He felt a small hum throughout the bones of his body. He grew acutely aware that there was water nearby.

“Do you hear that?” Nicklaus asked.

“Hear what?” Aris answered. “Do you mean that small rustling noise? It sounds like water.”

Derak, seemingly uninterested in the conversation, threw in a casual response. “There’s no water around here.”

The noise was growing increasingly louder as they progressed along the road.

Aris spoke again. “It sounds like a waterfall.”

Derak’s interest was also piqued. “There’s no waterfall on the road to my castle.” He stated quizzically.

“Oh, really.” Nicklaus pointed up ahead, “Then what the hell is that?”

The road ended in a pool below a twenty foot waterfall with several multicolored ponds and flowers growing on the rocks surrounding the waterfall. Nick rode right up to the edge and dismounted, letting his horse drink.

Aris questioned Derak. “Are we on the right road?”

“Of course,” Derak announced, “I’ve traveled this road hundreds of times, there’s never been a waterfall here before, we should be almost there!”

Nick studied the area surrounding the waterfall and the road leading up to the nearly two hundred foot pool. “The road doesn’t stop. It continues on right under the water straight through that waterfall.”

Aris ventured an idea, “I think this is some sort of mirage.”

“No, that’s no good. Mirages are in the desert.” Nick said. “Unless it’s a magical mirage, an illusion of some sort.”

Derak spoke up. “Who would want to put an illusion on the road to my castle?”

“I don’t know!” Aris stated. “But I have an idea.”

He reached for his amulet dangling in front of his armor. He had long since changed out of the small and uncomfortable goblin’s clothes.

“This amulet has some sort of mystical power. My father entrusted it to me when he charged me with my mission. He said that it would help me in times of trouble or unforeseen circumstances. This resembles an unforeseen circumstance.”

Nick interjected, “Couldn’t we just go around it? It might take a couple more hours, but we should be able to get right back on the road after that.”

“It looks like I’m going to have to go swimming.” He stated as he began removing his armor. “Any suggestions as to how I can disenchant this?”

“Well I don’t know. I don’t see any sort of entrance to anything anywhere.” Derak answered.

Nicklaus also spoke up. “Maybe you should try behind the waterfall, perhaps you’ll find something there.”

Aris nodded. “ I think you’re right. I’ll head for the waterfall.”

He carefully approached the edge of the water. It looked safe. After all, he thought, the horses are drinking from it, it can’t be too bad. He walked forward a couple of feet. It was about ankle deep and muddy. Oddly enough, he could still see the road. His feet were submerged below it but he felt no discomfort. The water appeared to be only a few inches above the road all the way to the waterfall. He traveled forward a few more feet. Now the water was up to his knees, with most of his legs obscured by the road. His legs simply seemed to merge into the dirt road! Amazing!. Well, he thought. I might as well test this illusion for all that it’s worth. He dove headfirst into it and began to swim towards the waterfall. He decided to sneak a peak under the road, to see what would happen. He swam to where he was sure that he was a good distance beneath the road and opened his eyes.