CHAPTER 6

A boy lay on the ground in a whirlwind called Old Khamsoul, and he groaned.

Where am I? He thought. Who am I?

Then some memory came back but pain also came back, and it nearly made him forget what he had remembered. He was Crow, he had been on top of the rock in front of him, and there had been others with him. He wracked his brains to try to remember who was with him.

Tal, and Milla, His memories told him. And there had been a battle. Tal and Millas faces came into view then.

They had been attacked and he had nearly been thrown off the rock. Then he had come up behind whatever was attacking them and smashed something on it, and then he had fallen off the rock.

We had been battling Sharrakor, a dragon, Crows memories told him as more came flooding back, he was a Freefolk, and he had been helping Tal and the Icecarls to destroy Sharrakor and save the dark world from being invaded by the Spirit World creatures.

He tried to look around but his whole body was wracked with pain, so he had to do it slowly.

When he turned his neck around to look, he saw nothing but the whirlwind. There was no Sharrakor, like there should be.

Crow slowly and painfully made his way to his feet and leaned against the rock.

What should he do? There was no way he could get out of this whirlwind alive.

Then an idea hit Crow, he should go back to the Dark World, how long had he been unconscious in Aenir? Had the Underfolk been given freedom? Crow knew that he had to go back, and see if everything had been set right.

So Crow lay back down and slowly and croakily he spoke the way back to the Dark World.

As he did this he also focused on the colours and they came flowing out of his miraculously unharmed sunstone and he came back into his own world.

Crow slowly appeared on the ice near the Ruin Ship and at the bottom of the Mountain of Light.

He got up and stretched while looking around at what had happened while he was gone.

A lot had happened. And it didn't look like any of it was good.

The Castle was surrounded by a tornado of shadows and so was the Ruin Ship and what was worse, Crow heard victorious laughter and saw the beast that should be dead, Sharrakor flying up to the top of the Castle.

Crows blood ran cold as he wondered how Sharrakor, or himself survived the great fall covered in Caveroach Poison. They should both be lying dead at the bottom of the Old Khamsoul!

Crow decided he would go straight up that mountain and kill Sharrakor, but this time he would make sure he stayed dead. So he took out his knife and was about to run up the mountain when out of the corner of his eye he saw two people and a shadow.

Crow swung around and sure enough about fifty stretches away were two familiar people and a Snake Shadow.

Tal and Milla were standing only fifty stretches away and were talking to a shadow!

Crow thought that they had banished all the shadows! But then Crow saw the expression on their faces, it was anger and confusion.

So they hadn't let the shadows stay, somehow the shadows had come back into the Dark World with their unholy master Sharrakor.

But the shadow wasn't the only thing with Tal and Milla. Near them was a Merwin from what Milla had told him of the ice, its horn glowed eerily. But it was behind them so they would not notice until it was too late, but Crow could help, and he would help.

None of the group that was talking near the Merwin noticed it but it didn't leap at them, this was a smart Merwin, it only inched along the ice soundlessly. But Crow wouldn't let his friends get gored by a Merwin. Crow would save them.

Crow looked at his dagger, and moved the sunstone from its usual place in the pommel to another holder near the top of the blade.

Then Crow slowly crept down so he was behind the Merwin and slowly crept up to it as it inched towards Tal and Milla, and the strange shadow which seemed to not want to attack them like all others would, except for Adras and Odris. Their former Spiritshadows.

When the Merwin was only a few stretches away it got ready to pounce.

Crow did the same thing and leapt onto the back of its neck. The Merwin let loose a great roar and the group in front of it turned around.

Crow stabbed the knife into the Merwins head and turned it so it was still in but he could see the sunstone, then he released a red wave into the Merwin, so it would destroy everything inside it, but instead it exploded, covering everyone with Merwin blood.

"Hey Tal, hey Milla!" Crow exclaimed.

"Crow!" They, Tal and Milla, yelled at the same time.

They came running up but Milla stopped halfway and put out her arm, stopping Tal as well.

"Crow is dead, you cannot be Crow! We saw him fall more than enough to kill you, and he was covered in Caveroach Poison. You are not Crow; you are trying to trick us!" Milla accused.

"No, I am Crow, ask me a question only the real Crow would know!" Crow retaliated.

"OK, what are the original Freefolks names?" Tal asked, also wary now that he could be something evil.

"Crow, Jerek, Ferrek, Inkie, Gill and Bennem." Crow answered.

"Crow, how did you survive the fall?" Milla asked, now knowing it was the real Crow.

"Yeah, and the Caveroach Poison?" Tal asked.

"I don't know, I just woke back up!" Crow explained, "But tell me what has happened to you?"

Tal then dropped to a sitting position holding his ribs. "Long story, but I guess you deserve to hear it" Tal said.

Then Tal and Milla explained everything that had happened since Crow had fallen off the Old Khamsoul.

"Wow, you've had an adventure!" Crow exclaimed, wide eyed from hearing all of the things they had gone through.

"Now we fight again" Tal said quietly.

"What" Milla and Crow said, confused.

"We fight now, Sharrakor is back, and I don't think he's interested in the Veil" Tal said quietly again.

"What makes you think that?" Milla asked.

"Those!" Tal exclaimed.

Tal pointed at about twenty shadows gliding and scuttling towards them pointing towards Tal.

Then one spoke. "There he is, there is the one the master wants!"