Taker Of Skulls (Book 5) (6 page)

“It sounds like you don’t have much respect for the fighting skills of your kinsmen,” said Sasha.

“I have no kinsmen,” said Kormak. “And I have every respect for the Aquileans. I just don’t think they know how to fight a war. Raid, yes. Kill a man with a blade, yes. Fight a war against civilised armies? No.”

“What happened to your kin?” Sasha asked. “Blood feud?”

Kormak shook his head. “An Old One killed them. Wiped out the entire village.”

“Did your folk anger him in some way?” she asked.

“No. He is one of those who just attack human villages when the mood strikes him. They kill like maddened wolverines because they like the taste of blood.”

“He left you alive though,” Sasha said. “Or did you run away?”

“I was eight years old,” Kormak said. “I tried to hit him with my father’s hammer. My father’s head lay severed where the Old One had dropped it.”

Sasha looked appalled. “I am sorry,” she said. “I never meant...”

“Why are you sorry?” Kormak asked. “You never did anything. It was Adath Decaureon, the Prince of Dragons.”

“Why did it let you live?” Boreas asked.

“He always leaves one survivor to tell the tale. Always a child. He always tells them that one day he will come back and kill them. Sometimes he does.”

“Did he tell you?” Sasha asked.

“Yes.” An appalled silence hung over the small group. Were they wondering what would happen if the Prince of Dragons caught up with him while they were there?

“There was a Guardian pursuing him,” Kormak said. “Malan. He took me back to Mount Aethelas. That’s how I came to join the Order of the Dawn.”

“And you’ve spend your life hunting Old Ones ever since?” Sasha asked.

“Or wizards or servants of the Shadow,” said Kormak. Karnea looked away. They walked in silence a long while after that.

Kormak looked over the side of bridge. Three hundred yards below the stream looked tiny. He kept walking over the great span. He was very conscious of the long drop beneath him.

“Bad place to get caught by an ambush,” Boreas said. “No way on or off except to jump. Attackers could easily hit from the top of those towers.”

“That’s why they were there,” Karnea said. “The dwarves were able to defend each entrance to the bridge and the middle as well. There were gates in each.”

It was not what the dwarves could have done that worried Kormak. It was what men could do now. That far tower perched at the edge of the bridge would be the perfect place for Otto and his boys to wait for them. Even if all they did was drop rocks, they could most likely cause casualties. “Let’s hope there is no one waiting for us,” he said.

“If you’re thinking about Otto and his lads, I would not worry,” said Sasha. “They would not climb those towers if their lives depended on it.”

“Why not?” Kormak asked.

“They are haunted.”

“By whom?”

“No one knows but lights are seen in them, and voices speaking in strange tongues are heard, and people vanish who go into them, never to be seen again.”

Karnea looked up. Her interest was piqued. “I would like to inspect one of those places. This might be the result of some old dwarf rune-magic.”

“We don’t have the time,” Kormak said. Sasha looked relieved. “We need to push on.”

When they passed under the arch in the last tower guarding the bridge’s far side, Kormak sensed something. He reached up to touch the Elder Sign on his chest, but he felt no tell-tale warmth. An odd expression passed over Karnea’s face, and she frowned, clearly puzzled by something. Kormak was glad when they got out of the shadow of the structure and into the cold mountain light again. There had been a definite sense of presence about the gatehouse.

Sasha smiled coolly at him. “If you think that place was bad, just wait till you see the City in the Deeps,” she said. “That place is really spooky.

In the distance a dire wolf howled, as if in mournful agreement. Kormak looked up at the ridgeline from which the call had come. He saw a grey shape up there. Something small was perched on its back. After a moment, it vanished. But somewhere in the distance another howl answered its call. Kormak did not like that at all. It sounded too much like a signal being passed along a line.

THE ROAD TWISTED round a corner and a long valley became visible beneath them, running all the way to the foot of one of the great peaks. The road ran down the slope and directly towards a massive gate, flanked on either side by two monstrously huge statues, like the dwarven road markers but on a completely different scale. Within the valley was a camp of scores of tents and dozens of other structures. Even from this distance Kormak could see hundreds of people moving around down there.

“Prospect Valley,” said Sasha. “There are a lot of rough people down there. Try not to pick too many fights.”

“Your friend Otto is the one we have to worry about,” said Boreas.

“He’s not my friend, but he’ll no doubt have a few down there. They can be a pretty scummy crew.”

“I am sure they are not all bad,” said Karnea. Even she did not sound too optimistic about that.

“Not all of them will side with Otto,” said Sasha. “He won’t likely try anything too open in the daylight but things might get a bit sticky come nightfall.”

“Well, we’ve got a few hours yet,” said Karnea. “Maybe we can get underground before then.”

“That might be even rougher,” said Sasha. “They could follow us in and no one would interfere if they attacked us in the Underlands.”

“So, it’s our last night above ground for a while,” said Boreas. He studied the camp in the distance. “We might as well get a move on.

There were more people in the camp than it appeared from a distance. That much became obvious as they approached. There were scores of tents, ranging from large pavilions of silk, to small prospectors tents made from canvas. There were lean-tos built from sticks, set against the sides of boulders. There were makeshift shelters made from cloaks stretched across branches. There were even a few cabins of stone and chipped rock. The camp was set near a stream for water. There were a few keen traders obviously here to try and get the pick of the artefacts early. They were easy to spot, being flanked by burly bodyguards.

As they entered the outskirts of the camp, Kormak noticed some familiar looking people had pitched tents. The squat massive figure of Otto loomed from among his hulking henchmen. They glared over at Kormak and his companions as if they resented being forced to wait here to rob them. Kormak smiled at them as they passed.

“Hey Sasha,” someone shouted from a nearby tent. “Going underground again? Thought you said that, after last time, you were never coming back?”

“I’ve got a new crew,” Sasha said.

“Tough looking bunch. Except for your lady friend. She looks tasty.”

“That’s enough of that,” said Boreas.

“No offence, chummie,” said the prospector. “I didn’t realise she was with you. Still, if she’s free I might be able to trade you something just as tasty for a night’s company.”

Boreas looked as if he was considering violence. The prospector backed away.

“He seemed like a friendly chap,” said Karnea.

Sasha walked over to another campfire and squatted down beside it. “Hey, Heidi,” she said. “How are tricks?”

“Could be worse,” said the large, wart-faced woman. She was garbed in a suit of chainmail and had a meat cleaver within easy reach. Its sharp edge was driven into a wood stump. “Been a few goblins sighted the last few days. Those big bat things have been scudding across the face of the moon since it waxed. And you must have heard the dire wolves howling when you came up the road last night.”

Sasha nodded. “Goblins bothering the camp again?”

“More and more of the little bastards show their pointy little heads every night. I wouldn’t be surprised if they started doing more than sneak thieving. Bunch of folks haven’t come back up from the Deeps. Jonas Tegel says there’s whole tribes below now but you know what Jonas is like...”

“I do,” Sasha said. “Sounds like it could get nasty around here.”

“It’s getting late in the year,” Heidi said. “Folks will be heading back down into Varigston soon as the first snow looks likely. It’ll be the little bastards’ last chance to grab anything that’s not nailed down. So yeah, I’d say it’s a fair bet that we’ll have goblin trouble soon. You here to buy?”

“I’m taking my new crew underground.”

“Thought you said you wasn’t gonna do that no more, dearie! I mean after Duncan died and what happened to Simeon.”

“Money’s tight.”

“And there’s a chance of a big score?” Heidi asked. “You was always looking out for that motherlode.”

Sasha smiled a little sadly. “Duncan was. I was just along for the ride.”

Heidi ran an eye over them. Her eyes narrowed when she looked at Kormak and then at Boreas. “Bad boys, this pair.”

“You don’t know the half of it.”

“They’re going to need to be. Otto arrived in camp last night and was asking about you, and folks that meet the description of your new crew. He seems to think you owe him money... or blood, the way he’s talking.”

“We’re going under tomorrow, so he’ll have to be quick.”

“You know him. He may just follow you down, now he’s got the scent of blood.”

“The day I can’t lose Otto in the Underlands is the day I deserve to have him get my blood.”

“You just be careful of him, dearie. He’s got a mean streak has Otto, and for whatever reason you and your new friends have brought it out in him.”

“Mind if we pitch here?”

Heidi looked at them carefully then looked over at Otto’s bunch, weighing things up. Clearly she was not too keen on getting into trouble with Otto herself. After a few minutes she said, “That might not be too healthy for me, but what the hell... you’ve done me a few good turns and I always had a soft spot for little Tam. Pitch away. If there’s any bother, we’ll see how it goes.”

They made camp. Boreas set things up with an old mercenary’s ease of habit. Kormak walked over to Karnea and said quietly, “Probably best if you don’t set up wards. We don’t want to spook these people. We need them on our side. You might want to avoid charging the flame-binding rune as well.”

Karnea smiled at him. “As you say, Guardian.” Kormak winced hoping no one had heard that. Karnea broke out the cooking gear and began rummaging through the supplies for food. In the distance a dire wolf howled. The sound was long drawn-out and chilling. For a moment, everyone in the camp stopped what they were doing and looked around to make sure nothing was sneaking up on them.

The howl was answered first from the north and then from the south. Judging by the way it echoed Kormak thought there might be several packs of the monstrous wolves out there. They were coming closer.

“Sounds like they are hungry,” said Sasha.

“Maybe they smelled Karnea’s stew,” said Boreas. He looked hungry himself.

“It’s no joke,” Sasha said. “If those packs come out of the hills we’ll know all about it.”

“Then let’s pray to the Holy Sun that they don’t,” said Boreas.

Out of the corner of his eye, Kormak saw a large group of men approaching. “Looks like we’ve got other problems,” he said.

Otto lumbered along in the lead, followed by his crew. They all had spears and swords now. Knives were still at their belt. Otto had his hammer in his hand. He strode up to the fire, loomed over it and said, “I was wondering when you would show up. It seems like we missed you on the road last night.”

Boreas picked himself up off the ground. “What do you want?”

“Just visiting,” said Otto. “We wanted to make sure that you were all right. We would not want anything bad to happen to you. That stew smells good,” he said, sniffing the air.

“Would you like some?” Karnea asked innocently. “I don’t think there’s enough for all of you boys but we’ve got some to spare.”

Otto looked at her to see whether she was serious. Karnea smiled at him. He looked as if he was considering it but then shook his head. “You owe us money.”

“Like I said, I am willing to pay you something for your trouble,” said Karnea.

“You owe us more than a few pennies.”

“How much do you think is reasonable?” Karnea gave no sign of being intimidated. She sounded merely curious.

Otto looked as if he was doing sums in his head. Judging by his frown, it was not the sort of mental exercise he was good at. “Ten gold solars,” he said.

“You seem to have some problems with arithmetic,” Kormak said.

“Maybe. But I have no problems with smashing the heads of welchers.” At that moment, a chorus of howls erupted nearby. Mixed in were high-pitched tittering yells. Both were followed by screams and the sounds of violence.

Out of the gloom, Kormak could see great grey shapes of dire wolves loping.

“Wolves in camp,” shouted Sasha, hefting her pick.

DOZENS OF GIANT wolves raced in, yellow fangs glistening in the firelight, saliva dribbling from their lips. Their eyes reflected the light like demonic moons. Their jaws looked big enough to take off a man’s head at a bite. Their fur was patchy. Blotches of pale skin showed in places. They bore about as much resemblance to the sleek denizens of the Elfwood as a maltreated slum-bred cur did to a Sunlander Lord’s prized hunting hounds.

Mounted on the wolves’ backs were goblins. Their skins were greenish and scaly. They had bodies the same size as a child’s but their elongated arms and legs made them seem taller and reminded Kormak of a spider. Their eyes were much larger than a man’s in proportion to their heads, and bulged out like those of a frog. There was a ferocity in their gaze that outmatched even that of the wolves they rode. Their mouths were filled with rows of sharp, vicious teeth. Their ears were huge and bat-like and turned independently, twitching in the direction of any sound. Some goblins were riding two to a wolf, one guiding the beast, the other using its missile weapons.

The invaders raced through the camp, tossing darts at prospectors, stabbing with spears. Behind the wolves, hordes more of the small creatures scuttled in the shadows, long blades and short spears clutched in their long bony fingers, capering and shrieking as they watched their cavalry do its work.