Shepherd's Quest: The Broken Key #1 (33 page)

Kevik took the knife and once the spell had run its course handed it back. “It’s imbued with magic. There are two properties to the magic, one keeps it sharp and from succumbing to the elements which would ruin it, such as rust.”

“What’s the other?” Bart asked.

Kevik shrugged, “My spell didn’t get that far. Like I was telling Riyan earlier, the spell I am able to do only gives a few general items of information. I do know that it was forged several hundred years before it was put in that chest.”

“I thank you for what you could tell me,” he said. “Perhaps one day I’ll be able to figure out the rest.” He undid his belt that secured his other knife around his waist and began sliding the new scabbard onto it. As he was positioning it for an easy draw, he paused and glanced back to Kevik. “It isn’t malignant is it?” Shaking his head, Kevik said, “No. I felt nothing like that.”

“Good,” he replied. When he had the scabbard on where he wanted it, he buckled the belt back on around his waist. Now he had two knifes, one on either side of him. The new knife he positioned on his left side for an easy draw with his right hand.

“Now,” he said as his gaze took in Riyan and Kevik, “did you two find anything?”
Chapter Twenty

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When they returned to the large hall, Bart and Riyan went out and brought the horses in. If there was something going on around here at night, they didn’t want their only mode of transportation disappearing by morning.

In one of the front corners of the hall they laid out their bedrolls and made a fire.

None of them desired to be out among the ruins in the dark searching for another place to make camp. They closed the front doors and allowed the horses to wander at will within the hall.

Riyan sat eating a bowl of hot stew that Chad had thrown together in their cook pot over the fire. Taking a bite he glanced at the others sitting around the campfire. “In the morning we’ll finish searching the rest of this building.”

“We came across a couple places large enough to hide a secret room,” Bart said.

“Once we’ve completed our search, we should be able to narrow down the possibilities.”

“I’ll be glad when we find it,” Chad said. He glanced to one of the windows and the darkness outside. “Can’t wait until this place is just a memory.”

“I know what you mean,” agreed Riyan.

They turned in shortly after their meal. Chad pulled the last watch while Riyan got the unpleasant slot of just after midnight. You never seem to get a good night’s sleep when your rest is interrupted that way.

Kevik, happily enough, had the first watch. The first one was always the best. You usually weren’t that tired right away and once you did get to sleep, you remained that way until morning.

The night felt chilling to Kevik despite having ample wood to keep the fire going. He found himself wandering around the hall, at times stopping before the different windows and staring out into the dark. His watch passed without incident.

Riyan took over from Bart sometime after midnight. “Everything okay?” he asked groggily as he made it to his feet. Eyes half closed and rimmed in red, he definitely did not feel like getting up.

“So far,” he said. “Things have been quiet.” Then he let out with a yawn. “See you in the morning.”

“Good night,” Riyan said before he went over and put another couple thick branches on the fire. After the branches were in position and had begun to burn, he glanced over to where Bart was laid out on his blanket with head propped on his pack. He was already asleep.

Riyan grinned at his friend, then wrapped his arms around himself as he tried to rid the coldness from his bones. It was supposed to be midsummer, but the temperature here felt more like early fall. Not freezing by any means, just cold enough to sap the warmth from you.

When the heat from the fire finally purged the cold from his body, he started walking about the hall in order to stay awake. He could feel sleep’s soft soothing touch as it tried to convince him to return to his blanket.

He went and checked on the horses and found them standing peacefully nearby. Then he went to the window closest to the fire and looked out to the shadowed ruins outside. A shiver ran through him. With only the light from the stars and moon above, the ruins were a maze of shadows and darkness.

Clang!

For the briefest moment he thought he had heard the sound of two swords striking together, such as one would hear during a battle. Obviously it was his imagination again he assured himself.

Clang!

There it went again. He looked around the hall and saw that his companions were still sleeping. The horses too remained as they were, still and quiet. He tried to determine from which direction the sound was originating but couldn’t be sure. At one point he was almost ready to go over and wake the others, but then stopped. After all, what could he say? They would just think it was his imagination playing tricks on him.

Riyan returned to the window and gazed out, all traces of sleep by this time having vanished. Nervousness had begun creeping in as visions of the goblin totem, and what it may be there to warn against, ran through his mind.

Clang!

There it went again! This time he was able to tell where it came from. It sounded like it was just outside the main doors. He knew this was not simply his imagination. Looking through the window again, he still saw nothing but darkness outside. No lights, nothing.

Just the moon and stars above.

Leaving the window, he moved over to where Bart was sleeping. He hated to disturb him but felt this was rather important. Placing his hand on Bart’s shoulder he gave it a slight shake. “Bart,” he whispered.

Bart’s eyes few open and he quickly sat up. He looked around and when there was no apparent threat, turned his eyes on Riyan. “What is it?”

“I…I heard something,” he told him.

“What?” he asked. “What did you hear?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” he explained. “It sounded like swords striking together in battle.”

Bart looked at him quizzically as he cocked his head to listen. “I don’t hear anything,” he said. “It must have been your imagination.” Riyan shook his head. “No, it wasn’t. I heard it three times. The last time it sounded like it came from the other side of the doors.” They both turned to look at the closed double doors leading out.

He could see in Riyan’s eyes that he believed what he was saying. “Was it a solitary sound, or more like a continual battle?”

“Each time it was but a single clang,” he answered.

“I wouldn’t worry about it too much,” Bart said as he laid his head back on his pack.

“Probably just the wind blowing something around that’s making the noise.”

“I don’t think so,” he argued.

“We’ve all been a bit jittery since coming here…” Bart began.

“I’m not jittery!” insisted Riyan. “I want you to come with me to see what’s on the other side of the door.”

“You’re serious aren’t you?” asked Bart.

“Yes, I am,” he replied.

Bart saw in his eyes that he wasn’t likely to get any sleep until they checked the other side of the door. “Alright,” he said as he got to his feet. “But if there’s nothing there, you’ll let me go back to sleep and not bother me again?”

“Yes,” Riyan said gratefully. “I promise.” So with Bart beside him, they walked to the doors.

Clang!

“There!” exclaimed Riyan. “Did you hear that?” Again the sound came from the other side of the door.

Bart nodded. “Yeah,” he said, “I did.” Now not so sure it was Riyan’s imagination, he strode toward the doors. The doors loomed before them and have now taken on an ominous aspect with the coming of night and the sound coming from the other side.

They both paused when they came to stand before them. Bart glanced to Riyan. “You ready?”

“Yeah,” replied Riyan. “Open it.”

Bart moved forward the last couple steps and gripped the handle of the door. Then with a final glance to Riyan he pulled it open.

Riyan was braced for anything but what they saw. Nothing. He watched as Bart stepped through the door and looked around before returning inside.

“There’s nothing out here,” he said.

“Are you sure?” Riyan asked.

“Come see for yourself if you don’t believe me.” Bart stepped aside to allow Riyan the chance to check.

Riyan stepped through the doorway and into the night. He spent almost a full minute just outside the door looking around. “But there has to be something here that was making the noise,” he said. Returning back inside, he glanced to Bart.

“I don’t know what it could have been,” Bart replied. “But there’s nothing out there, just the night.” He closed the door. “I’m going back to sleep.”

“Sorry,” Riyan said as he walked with Bart back to where his blanket was laid out on the floor.

“Don’t wake me unless there’s something actually happening,” he said.

“Alright,” replied Riyan. He went back by the fire and spent a few minutes warming himself after the time spent in the cold of outside. It didn’t take Bart long before he was once again asleep. Riyan felt bad about waking him, but there must be some explanation as to why he had heard what he did.

It took him some time before the fire warmed him sufficiently. He stared into the fire and watched the flames dancing along the wood. When he was finally warm enough, he put more wood on the fire and then started walking around the hall. The need to sleep began to come to him again, and as long as he stayed in motion, he wouldn’t succumb to it.

At one point he reached down to pick up a rock that had somehow made its way into the hall from outside. He was sort of close to one side and he looked over to the windows on the far side across the hall. Figuring he could make it through one of the window frames, he arched his arm back and threw. The stone soared through the air and struck the wall next to the window with a loud Crack!

He glanced over to his sleeping comrades and was glad the noise failed to disturb their sleep. Then he walked across the hall and picked up the rock. “I’m going to make it this time,” he mumbled to himself.

Aiming for a window gaping in the far wall, he took a few deep breaths to settle himself. When he felt he was ready, he launched the rock towards the window. As it sailed through the air, he braced himself for the impact against the wall. But it flew true and before it reached the window he knew it would make it through the opening.

Smash!

As the rock entered the window space, a loud sound likened to the smashing of glass, split the night. The sound made Riyan jump for there wasn’t any glass in any of the windows throughout the ruins. The sound hadn’t come from the window the rock sailed through, it had come from the one behind him.

Turning around, he saw a pale ghostly form dressed in armor. It held a sword in his hand and appeared as if he was fighting someone or something that was trying to get in through the window.

Smash! Crash! Bang!

The sound of glass breaking filled the hall as other ghostly forms began to appear before the rest of the windows. In each case, it looked as if they were battling with something that wanted in. The only problem was, it didn’t look as if there was anything there at all.

“Bart! Chad!” he yelled. “Get up!”

The horses suddenly reared and bolted to the back of the hall and into one of the hallways.

As he yelled to the others, he raced across the hall to their camp. The horses had disappeared by the time he reached the fire.

Bart sat up and one glance around the hall brought him fully awake.

“We’re under attack!” Riyan yelled.

Bam!

The front doors slammed open and more ghost soldiers appeared at the entrance.

Swords rose and fell as they attacked whatever was trying to pass through from the outside.

“What’s going on?” Chad asked as the four comrades backed into the corner to defend themselves.

“I don’t know,” replied Riyan. “There was the sound of breaking glass, then this.” He and Chad both had their swords out and Bart held his new knife in hand. Though there appeared to be a furious fight going on between the ghosts and unseen adversaries, they didn’t seem to take any notice of the four comrades.

More of the ghost soldiers appeared, each bearing the coat of arms depicted on the front of the building, the dragon coiled around the sword. The ghosts at the windows looked to be holding their own but the ones by the door were falling to the blades of unseen enemies.

“Maybe we should get out of here,” Kevik said.

“That would be a good idea,” agreed Bart. “But how would you suggest we do it?

They’re fighting at every exit.”

“Not at the hallways at the rear of the hall,” he said. Indeed, the fighting was contained along the sides and at the entrance.

“Look!” Chad said as he pointed to the winding stairs leading up to the second floor.

There at the top was a group of five, ghostly men. They practically ran as they raced down the stairs to join the fray. The one in the lead had to be the lord of Algoth. His shield and armor were emblazoned with the dragon-sword coat of arms. As the lord came to the bottom of the stairs, he began shouting orders to his men.

“Come on,” said Bart. “They don’t seem to be paying us much attention so let’s try to get to the back.”

“I’m with you,” Riyan said.

As Bart began to wind his way through the fighting, the lord joined the fray. He moved to the fore of his men and began laying into the unseen attackers with great skill.

While those around him fell, the lord continued to fight. He was unwilling to give ground.

Around the four companions, the ghosts fought fiercely, but their numbers continued to dwindle. Despite the ferocity of the lord’s attack, he began to give ground.

“Watch out!” Kevik yelled from where he was bringing up the rear.

From the side, a magic user appeared on the second floor and began raining death on the unseen attackers. Bolts of flame flew from his outstretched hands and erupted in massive balls of fire by the front entrance. More bolts of energy such as what Kevik’s master used flew like a swarm of arrows towards the windows.