Chapter 3

Valkron pulled up the reins of his peco. It came to a stop, and turned its large head to watch him dismount. He walked a little way from the bird and looked around as if he was looking for something other than forest.

'Where are you actually headed for, Valkron?' said Emeth. He was holding up his staff and illuminating the forest around them by means of flame from the crystal on top. 'We've been walking for three days and half a night.'

'I was actually heading for Geffen, but somehow this place doesn't seem familiar,' said the knight. 'And stop looking at me like that. I can feel it on the back of my neck.'

'You come all the way to Payon from Prontera and you're actually heading for Geffen?' said Emeth incredulously. 'I'm amazed. Couldn't you have just walked out from the West Gate and went straight? No one goes wrong. Incidentally, there aren't any eddgas there.'

'This is what I do after I complete a mission,' said Valkron. 'Is there anything wrong with it? After all this is the world I live in and protect with my life, so I might as well do anything I like in it.'

'It's not wrong, it's just odd. And please don't tell me we're lost.'

'You're odd for a wizard. And we're not lost.'

'Really?' Emeth was somewhat annoying when he spotted out people's attempts to make themselves look good. The bad part of it was that he didn't make such tries, so no one could counter him.

'Yes.' Valkron surveyed the forest in front of him. 'I'm just...directionally challenged.'

'Wonderful.' The wizard's voice didn't just sound sarcastic, it oozed with it. 'I'll just go and sit on that rock over there, shall I, while you deal with your directionally challenged mind.'

Valkron groaned inwardly as the light behind him shifted. He felt it was a bad idea to bring along the wizard. But just as Emeth had said, what other choice did he have? He'd seen mercenaries walking in parties. None of the ones he knew were alone, and he didn't want any hero-worshipping kids to tag along. These days the mercenary guilds were picking up an apparently endless number of them.

He focused on his surroundings again. They should be getting further away from Alberta and Payon, he was sure of that, and the forest should be consisting of light green temperate trees instead of dark green thick jungle. But somehow the forest wasn't changing, and they had been walking north for most of the time.

In addition to that, he hadn't seen a single monster, not even a Poring. That wasn't just odd, it was suspicious. Porings were everywhere, no matter what people tried to do to them. He looked around carefully. There was no sound in the forest either, not even of crickets.

'You know, that tree over there looks familiar,' called out Emeth from behind. 'The one that's almost right in front of you-- oh shi--'

There was a string of syllables in another language, and the firelight, which had been dimming, brightened again. Valkron recognised the spell - a basic fire skill.

He looked at the tree. Emeth was right - the tree did look familiar.

'All right, Emeth,' he said, turning around. 'I want no jokes from you, and no sarcasm. Something's going on around here and you know it.'

'That took you a long time,' said the wizard, before he hastily put up his hands to the sound of Valkron's sword sliding out of his scabbard. 'Okay, okay, yes, I knew. There's a crack in time around here, and that means there's a dimensional portal somewhere around bending time and reality to make it adjust to this world. It's probably because of warped energy that the environment's being distorted and the delicate balance of the magical field is being-- what? What did I say?'

'Speak in proper English,' said Valkron, who was holding his sword dangerously close to the wizard's neck.

'I am!'

'Not the one I'm used to.'

Emeth sighed. 'Something's trying to get into our world.'

'That's IT?'

'Um...yes. What were you expecting?' Emeth leaned away from the blade. 'That's the threat here, but it's not in Payon, actually. I'm not quite sure of its source, because the magic coming in is old and delusionary for us, so it leaks everywhere and produces a discontinuation of--'

'And you didn't tell the King?'

'No. A king wouldn't know what to do.'

Valkron suddenly understood what Emeth was trying not to tell him. 'You came to ME thinking that I could certainly help you out with this magical problem?'

'Yes, to be frank. Sorr--'

Valkron bent down until his head was at the same level as Emeth's. 'Who do you think I am? You definitely deserve a head wallop.' The tip of his sword aimed itself at Emeth, who tried to lean further away from it. He was already at about a 135-degree angle leaning backwards.

'Look, I just wanted to tell you this isn't the time to start arguing over this because--'

Suddenly Valkron's mind went up in flames. He dropped his sword and to his knees, clutching his head as wave after wave of hot, burning pain surged and crashed into each other inside his skull. Beside him Emeth had fallen sideways off his rock and was visibly writhing in pain. The forest around them twisted and warped itself into strange, swirling images while an insistent whining intensified around them. Pressure squeezed their surroundings and them until he felt as if every single organ in his body was being pressed out.

Then there was a sensation similar to a stretched rubber sheet being released, and everything snapped back into place. Pain, pressure, image and sound disappeared.

The knight took his hands away from his head after he was sure that his brain wasn't oozing out of cracks on his skull and tried to catch his breath. Beside him Emeth had curled up and was not in a position to talk or even move.

'Looks like we'll have to do this after all,' said Valkron weakly.

The only thing they were thankful for was that by morning they found out that they were in a brighter, cleaner forest. It signified that they had indeed journeyed north. However, Valkron had to admit that they were certainly lost.

'Either we're below Geffen, near Morroc, or below Prontera,' he said, without taking his eyes off the map in his hands. 'It could be any of the three. We couldn't have wandered off so far to make it to Umbala or Comodo,' he added, catching sight of Emeth's expression.

'Well, wherever we are that portal thing's going to affect plenty of people. Not just us.' Emeth stretched, wincing a little as the after-effects from the previous night made themselves felt. He noticed Valkron was staring at him. 'Yes?'

'You seem to know a lot about it,' said the knight, rather pointedly.

Emeth sighed. 'It's just a matter of something trying to get in from another world. I said that already. Whatever it is, it's performing some complex spell that's forcing entry into our world, you understand?'

'How do you know it's a spell and not some kind of, say, a natural process?'

'Because no natural process can control time. It's easy to deduce it when you've thought about it long enough. The spell forces time and space apart to make a sort of portal. It's not a very accomplished one, though,' added Emeth. 'For one, there's a lot of old, raw magic from our world being used, and it's really more like a passage than a doorway.'

'What, it's harder to make a hole than to build a corridor?'

The wizard sighed again. 'I understand you haven't had a magical education, but it's easy. It's the first thing a novice aspiring to be a magician learns. Passages are a lot easier to upkeep because magic is evenly distributed, but having a doorway is like concentrating your willpower into one spot. A doorway is liable to collapse any time because the practitioner may find it a lot harder to focus on one spot. Only accomplished wizards can do it, and they'll do it on pain of death anyway. Too risky.'

'And why did you come to me?'

'I didn't actually come to you. That's an exaggeration.' Emeth sniffed. 'I was just looking for a bit of respite from all the study when I met you, to be honest. Only when we were in Payon did I actually remember who you were.'

Valkron looked around at the forest, with its birds singing happily away, hidden somewhere in the thick foliage. 'Tell me,' he said, 'what happens when something succeeds opening a portal here.'

'Um...nothing, unless the something you're referring to is dangerous,' said Emeth.

'And that's the whole concept?'

'No. But if I did tell you the whole concept you'd probably be asleep before it's even halfway through.'

'Ah.' The knight looked around again. 'And yet if it was harmless would it still be a threat to us?'

'Oh, you're referring to the threat.' Valkron could see that Emeth was being honest this time, but that didn't increase their friendship level. 'Well, no. It's being dangerous because the old magic is being awakened and may probably rip up our world once the summoning is done.'

'By the way you say "old magic" I'm not allowed to even ask after it, am I?'

'I'm not allowed to tell people who don't have a magical education.'

Valkron nodded, more to himself than to anyone else. 'There's only one thing I've got to say to this threat,' he said, folding up the map.

'What is it?'

'It's coming into my world? It's threatening my home? Bugger that.'

They did not manage to reach any portal for the next few days, in which they spent a lot of time arguing over the matter and navigating their way through the forest. Eventually they got tired of it, but it didn't mean the topic was over.

Emeth held up his staff. 'Hmm.'

'What is it now?' said Valkron, who was walking alongside his peco.

'My staff's picking up an increased wavelength in the magical field.' As he spoke, the crystal on the top flashed red.

'Portal?'

'No, not here. If it was we'd be dead.'

The wizard swung his staff from side to side. Valkron noticed how the crytal's brightness dimmed on one side and brightened up on the other. Then Emeth said, 'The wavelength's from Geffen, but it seems something dangerous is around here as well. If the wavelength was just Geffen's the crystal would be pure white, but the red...doesn't look good.'

'And what do we do?' said Valkron patiently.

'I don't know. Keep walking, I guess.'

Thery had barely gone a few feet when a horse galloped out from the forest and charged straight towards them. It was no ordinary horse. The thing was pale grey all over, with a long wispy mane and tail. Its bulging, mad eyes glared at them, steam issuing from its nostrils.

'By any chance do you own a Zephyrus?' said Emeth.

'No, why?'

'I read somewhere that it's the best spear to counter a Nightmare.'

Valkron shoved Emeth aside and followed him. The mad horse charged past them barely a second later.

'I've always handled two-handed swords in my life. Never liked spears.'

The Nightmare turned and reared right above the knight, hooves waving madly in the air. Then it brought its legs down. Valkron swung his sword upwards and held it horizontally, just as the hooves hit the flat of the blade. Sparks scattered everywhere.

'Do something, will you?' he shouted, as the horse's hooves screeched up and down the metal. He was straining against the horse's weight. 'Don't just stand there!'

Emeth aimed his staff. There was a quick succession of magic hitting the horse, and it fell back, snorting angrily. Just as Valkron backed off, they heard rustling in the bushes behind them. They half-turned to see a group of Kobolds grinning madly at them.

'Okay, Valkron, you take on the Nightmare while I deal with these fuzzy blue idiots,' said Emeth. He swept his staff in one swift arc around him, and fire leapt from his staff to strike all the Kobolds. They howled, while the smell of burnt hair rose into the air.

'You-- Wait, you're what?'

The Nightmare charged again, but this time Valkron hit it across the nose. It squealed in pain.

'I'm taking orders from a wizard now,' he mumbled, gripping his sword in both hands. 'Great.' He watched the Nightmare come at him again, and leapt forward. Anyone watching him would have seen him become a blur as he dodged the horse's attempts to bite and kick him, and attacked everywhere.

Emeth aimed his staff at the advancing Kobolds and sent fire at them again. One died - he saw it fall - but its comrades stepped closer. Then one threw its axe at him. He ducked and it spun over his head.

'Right.' He uttered a few words, and ice crashed into all of them from above. The Kobolds stopped in various poses of charging. Emeth grinned mirthlessly and commanded lightning from the skies.

As the lightning fell on them, it so happened that the axe, on a return course to its owner, hit Emeth on the back of the head. He was lucky it was the handle, but it still didn't mean it wouldn't cause pain.

He staggered, wincing. The Kobold, unfrozen now that he had struck them with lightning, yowled and advanced. The one closest to him swung its flail and caught him in the stomach.

Valkron sent the Nightmare skidding backwards with his flaming sword and turned to see how Emeth was doing. He was horrified to see the wizard fall to his knees, doubling over.

'Emeth, there's no time to stop!' He felt the sensation of something over him and threw himself to one side. The Nightmare's hooves pounded on the grass just where he had been a moment ago. He took a deep breath and plunged the sword into the horse's neck.

'EMETH!' he bellowed as he held on to the sword. The horse thrashed about, whinnying and braying horribly. The sound was enough to make his ears ache.

Emeth staggered to his feet and pointed his staff at the ground. Spikes suddenly heaved out of the soil under the Kobolds. They squeaked with surprise as they fell back, before the wall of rock blocked them entirely from view. He turned around and aimed his staff at the Nightmare. Lightning flashed.

'OI! You're not going to--'

Lightning...struck.

The Nightmare reared, sending Valkron's sword flying out of its neck. Valkron, still firmly attached to it, was thrown aside and landed sprawled on the ground. In front of him the ground was illuminated with white light as the lightning hit the horse.

The knight had been winded by the fall, but he rolled over on his back. A pair of hooves descended from above him. He stared at them, dazed, vaguely aware of Emeth shouting his name, before he came to his senses and rolled. The hooves thudded on the ground behind him.

Valkron sprang to his feet just in time to witness a Kobold hit Emeth on the back of his neck with its hammer. The wizard stumbled forward and turned, just as the Kobold took aim again. But what the knight had not expected was to see Emeth dodge the blow and unsheathe a dagger from somewhere inside his cloak. All it mattered was speed and the little knife.

Emeth sent the dagger home. Valkron winced as something heavy hit him on the back. He turned and plunged the sword into the horse's chest. There was another braying squeal, before the Nightmare dissolved away into smoke. At the same time the Kobolds threw themselves onto the weakened wizard.

It was Valkron who attacked them viciously, throwing them off Emeth with such force that some of them hit tree trunks. They picked themselves up and ran off, squealing.

The knight looked down at his companion. Emeth had a nasty cut under one eye which was starting to swell, and there was blood running down the side of his head. Valkron knew he didn't look any better.

'Let's call it a day, eh?' said Emeth breathlessly, and then fell forward.