Sons of Evil: Book 1 Book of Dread (33 page)

The clamor in the Court
dropped considerably as Aerlos led the visitors through in a glum parade. Those
who knew the Queen could see that she had passed through a trial of sorts, and
what had just transpired and how it appeared to have effected their leader and
her guests would be debated and subject to rumor for weeks to come.

Once Aerlos was back on her
throne she let out a tired sigh. “I wish I could apologize for what just
happened, and for making you watch it. But it was important that you understand
what price had to be paid to open the book.”

“There was no other way?”
Darius asked, an undertone of challenge in his voice.

“Of course not,” Silas said. “If
Aerlos—”

“Silas,” the queen
interrupted. “The young man has a heart. I do not fault him for that, and I
know you do not either. Remember, Darius and I have just met.”

“And I intend no insult,”
Darius said, adding a short bow. “But…”

“I know it seemed hard and
cruel. And it was. Do not think that I acted lightly, or care not for the pain
I inflicted on both the goblin’s body and its mind. It will be healed of its
wounds, but it will never forgive. Such a thing I could not ask any of my
people to do in my place. That is why I wielded the whip myself.”

“But if we just needed its
blood…” He thought for a moment, then shook his head. “It was more than just
the blood, wasn’t it.”

Aerlos was able to smile at
that, if only fractionally, pleased that Darius had reached the correct
conclusion. “Yes. The hate, the rage, the evil intent. Blood from such a
darkened soul is what will open the book. Not all creatures can reach such a
state. You or I may grow angry, perhaps brooding over a need to avenge a dire
wrong done to us or someone close to us, but even then the book might not
respond to our blood.”

“But men are capable of such
hate,” Barlow said. “I have seen it, and it is likely that Landri plunged to
such depths, at least once, if he mastered the book.”

“Correct. And once the book
has been opened, it will respond to the blood of its new master again and
again.”

“Which is why the goblin’s
blood was collected,” Adrianna said. “So the book can be reopened if shut.”

Aerlos nodded that this was
so.

“Could Landri open the book
now?” Silas wondered.

“I do not believe he could,
unless he once again summoned the blackness required.”

“Then perhaps we have already
accomplished something.”

“What of the goblin?” Adrianna
asked. “Is it not now even more dangerous, being the book’s master?”

Aerlos nodded. “That is why it
was blindfolded and nothing of the book was mentioned in its presence. Even so,
it cannot ever be allowed to leave the dungeon.”

“A wise and necessary
precaution,” Silas said, cutting off the protest he saw on Darius’ face before
it could be verbalized. The younger man took a deep breath and let it out
slowly, but said nothing.

“If you are all ready,” Aerlos
said, “we should take a look inside.” She gestured toward a small table, upon
which Darius placed the book.

Aerlos’ desire to avoid
touching the book had not changed. She produced a small, metallic rod, and used
it to flip open the book’s cover. For a moment the book seemed to emit a faint
glow, as of some distant flame just dying down. The pages were thick, but
yellowed with age and to the eye appeared brittle. It was hard to believe the
slightest touch of fire wouldn’t consume the book in seconds. She turned over
the first leaf and asked, “What do you see?”

Darius shook his head. “Nothing
I can make sense of. I do not know the language.”

“Few in this world would. Anyone
else?”

Collectively they shook their
heads, but Adrianna asked, “Could it be made clear by a spell. Many foreign
tongues can.”

Aerlos waved at the page with
an open hand. “Try it.”

Adrianna closed her eyes and
tried to focus, finding she was nervous about casting magic in front of the
elven queen. She was sure Aerlos’ abilities were far beyond her own. She worked
the spell, then looked at the page once more, her shoulders dropping. “Nothing.”

“I do not think there is any
magic cast over the words of the page, just the book itself,” Aerlos said. “But
I imagine any that could open it would find the words legible to them, whether
they knew the language or not.”

“Can you read it?” asked
Barlow.

“Yes. It is an incantation to
call a small demon into this plane. A relatively harmless creature, useful as a
spy, perhaps. There are words that need to be said, and a sacrifice made. I
suspect the book will be filled with variations of the same.”

“Then you know the language,”
Barlow stated.

“Enough to read this. It is
the language of the underworld.”

While that was a shock to no
one, it made the enemies they might yet face seem all the more sinister.

Aerlos turned the pages, one at
a time, studying each only long enough to understand the purpose of the
incantation listed. At one point she said, “Here are the winged bat creatures
you mentioned. Dezku, they are called.”

They remained silent while she
worked through the book, the total page count just over one hundred. Near the
end she paused, squinting at a page. “This I cannot read.”

“What does that mean?” Darius
asked.

“I’m not sure,” she replied. She
flipped two more pages and reached the end of the book. “The last three pages
are beyond my skill to decipher.”

“Could one of them be what
called the demon riders into this plane?” Silas asked. “You did not mention a
spell concerning them.”

Aerlos shook her head. “There
wasn’t one on the other pages. It is possible…”

“You sound doubtful.”

“I do not want to assume too
much. It could be a grave error.”

“But wouldn’t it make sense
that one of these mysterious pages was what was used?” Darius said. “The leader
of those riders seemed far more formidable than the Dezku.”

“No doubt. But there are other
ways they could have been called. A portal could have been opened. There may be
another book. Or something else called them.”

“What kind of something else?”

“A greater demon.”

“Our problem seems to be
growing larger,” Barlow commented.

“Or at least we seem to be
finding new questions faster than answers,” Adrianna amended.

“You think those pages you
can’t read are used to call greater demons,” Darius stated.

“I do not know that,” Aerlos
said. “But I fear it could be so. There were several Blood Books ages ago,
though most were never used, to my knowledge. Like many things in the world,
some were better than others, if you take my meaning. This book I’ve not seen
before, but it is one I’ve heard rumor of, and one I fear if it is used
unwisely.”

“Meaning?” Silas said, asking
for more.

“It was written by a priest of
sorts named Belzlak. A dark priest he had become, if there is such a thing,
bent by evil in his desire for more knowledge and power. The dark forces that
tormented him were broken, but the book he claimed to have written is now
before us. I recognize his hand.”

“Did he
ever say what those last three spells were for?” Barlow asked.

“Not to my knowledge.”

Barlow sighed, “Then we’re no
closer to an answer.”

“That would be true,” Aerlos
said, “except Belzlak still lives. He might be willing to share what he knows.”

“He is an elf then, blessed
with long life,” Adrianna said.

Aerlos shook her head. “A man,
cursed with it. If you make the journey, you will understand.”

“Is he dangerous?” Silas
asked.

“I would say not. Reaching him
is likely a more perilous proposition than the man himself.”

“Where is he?”

“Far to the east, beyond the
lands of the trolls. After his power was broken he came here in his wanderings,
but I could not allow him to stay in our wood, nor was he welcome in the lands
of men. I banished him to his present home, a tower from which he cannot
depart. If you decide to seek him out, I know where to find him.”

“What other options do we
have?” Silas asked the group.

“It seems the book is further
from Landri’s grasp than ever,” Adrianna said, “but he or someone like him
could claim it if we don’t protect or destroy it.” With this last comment she
looked at Aerlos hopefully.
“I know of no way to destroy the book, I’m afraid.”

“Would this Belzlak?” Darius
asked

“Possibly,” Aerlos replied. “But
I cannot be certain.”

“Any chance we could leave it
here?” Barlow inquired. “This forest seems well-protected.”

“I would not desire such a
thing be left here. Objects like this tend to draw evil to them. It may be safe
here for a generation or two, as men count them, but I would not take it by
choice.”

“You sound as if you would do
so, if we ask it,” Silas said.

She nodded. “You have carried
it as a burden long enough. You have paid a heavy price already. I would not
ask you to go further unless you decide you must.”

Darius rubbed his forehead,
trying to think. “We’ve managed to keep Landri from further using this book as
a weapon. But whatever he’s already called with it—like those Dezku—is running
loose in Corterra. If those last three pages do call these greater demons, or
some other terror, and he used them…”

“I want to know who our enemy
is,” Silas finished. “Who we need to face to end this.”

Darius nodded. “If we leave
the book here and go home…I really can’t go home anyway. And things won’t be
any better. I’ve got to go on.”

“I’m with you,” Silas said.

“As am I,” said Barlow, though
he sighed inwardly, thinking how much his tired old bones could use a rest.

Adrianna said, “Me, too. I’m
not going to let the boys have all the fun.”

“You all have my admiration,
and my thanks,” said Aerlos, “though neither will do you much good in the
eastern country. What I can offer is supplies and winter clothes, as well as a
guide or two to lead you, assuming you do not object to adding new members to
your party.”

“We should discuss it,” Silas
answered, “but I’ve no doubt a guide would be a great benefit to us.”

“I have two elves in mind, but
I’ll need to speak with them first. That will give you time to talk amongst
yourselves. For now, there is one other thing I wish to know.” She held up the
vial of goblin blood, and asked Darius to close and latch the book once more.

He did so, mumbling, “I sure
hope this works.”

Aerlos opened the vial and
carefully tipped it until a single drop of blood fell onto the clasp. As it had
done before, the latch fell open.

The audible sigh from everyone
in the room was an indication that they had all been holding their breath.

“I’m not surprised,” said
Aerlos, “but I am relieved. Things can never be fully certain where the dark
arts are concerned. Who will now take this vial?”

It was clear no one wanted it,
though they all knew it was necessary that they take it along. “I’ll take it,”
Adrianna finally said, “Should be someone other than Darius at least, since he
has the book, and being the magician in the group, I guess I should be used to
dealing with such things.” She took the vial and made it quickly disappear
somewhere under her cloak.

“A question,” Barlow said. “You
mentioned clothes, which would be most welcome, as we’ve heard rumor of the
weather here. Do you expect the cold to arrive soon?”

“I have many skills,” Aerlos
said with a smile, “but detecting such things is not amongst them. However, the
road ahead of you remains long, and a return journey must be considered as
well. If you are lucky, you may beat the worst of the weather, but it is better
to be safe.”

“Assuming there will be no
real shelter on this trip…” Here he paused, looking at Aerlos with a raised
eyebrow, hoping she would state that his assumption was incorrect. Unfortunately
she only shook her head, indicating they would be exposed to the elements for
the most part. With a sigh he went on. “I’m concerned your people have adapted
to the cold much better than humans. I fear what our guides could bear, we
could not.”

“You concern is a valid one,
as your assumptions are true. But the clothes of which I speak will aid you
greatly, and there are certain spells which can help one deal with poor weather
conditions. I do not want to say there is no risk, because there is. Certainly
if you were caught out in the winter elements in your current condition I would
not expect you to survive long. Even my people could only do so for a time. The
only other option would be for you to winter here, and set off in the spring.”

“That would be a long delay,”
Darius said. “The war won’t stop, and neither will the plans of our enemy. I
like to be warm as much as the next guy, but I can’t see losing that much
time.”