Chapter 18

Valkron was an experienced warrior, but when he woke up the next day he was immediately struck by aching in every part of his body. He lay where he was, wincing each time a jolt of pain ran through his muscles at every little move he made. Trying to relax was out of the question.

Luckily for him Samaroh noticed he was awake and moved over swiftly. Valkron felt coolness envelope him as white light spread over him. It took some time, but when the light faded he felt much better.

'Thank you, Samaroh,' he said, sitting up and massaging his forehead. 'I must have been hit last night by those creatures.'

The priest shrugged. 'In times of battle no one really pays attention to their surroundings.'

'That, I know.' Valkron got to his feet. The wound on his shoulder seemed to be healing well and did not sting as much as it had done the night before. He nodded to the priest and took a look around him.

The clearing looked pretty much the same. Although it was late in the morning everyone was still asleep save for Samaroh, himself, Nocturne, Amaru and Emeth. Nocturne was viciously whittling away at a piece of wood, clearly making an arrow. Amaru appeared to be looking for his matches while gripping a fresh cigarette between his lips, and Emeth was leaning against a tree and staring disconcertingly at empty air. Valkron went over to him and sat down next to the wizard.

A few minutes passed. A leaf dropped from the tree above them and alighted softly on Valkron's head before sliding off his hair onto the ground between his legs. He picked it up and twirled it slowly in his fingers, scanning its green soft lamina with his eyes.

'Your eyes are the same colour as that leaf,' said Emeth quietly.

Valkron did not move, but his eyes slid sideways to look at Emeth. The man looked dull, almost bored, but he could tell the wizard was thinking.

'Really?' he said, after a little while. 'Most people tell me the green's more like emerald.'

'Emerald is lifeless, Valkron.'

The knight chuckled, closing his eyes. 'So are you, Emeth. Not so, but pretty much like it.'

At this Emeth smiled a little and blinked. His eyes immediately lost their glazed look. He looked at Valkron.

'You were wise to get out of Geffen,' he said. 'They were trying to get at us.'

'I saw that for myself,' said Valkron darkly. 'Felt it myself too, come to think of it.'

'I wonder what happened to the ten guilds,' said the wizard.

Both of them fell silent, watching the birds fly past them. There was an occasional grunt from some sleeping person. After a while Amaru got up from the ground and walked over to Emeth.

'I think I lost my matches when we were fighting last night,' said the blacksmith, in his deep voice. 'Do you mind?'

Emeth looked apprehensive. He glanced nervously at Valkron, who was watching him with interest, and looked back up at the blacksmith. It was clear he was not too confident about his magic but he did not want to refuse.

He extended an arm slowly. Amaru was holding his cigarette low enough for him to reach it. The wizard half-turned his head away and seemed to lean as far away as possible from his fingers, the tips of which were right under the end of the cigarette, as if he was expecting an explosion to come from it. Valkron leaned away from him, and even Amaru looked as if he wanted to run.

Emeth grimaced in apprehension, and, as he did, snapped his fingers.

A small flame burst into life at the tips of his fingers. It lasted only for a second or two, but it was enough. The end of cigarette glowed red and a thin wisp of smoke emerged from it. Emeth dropped his arm with an expression of relief.

'Thanks,' said the blacksmith, and moved away to rejoin his cart and the sleeping form of Khan next to it.

'What were you expecting?' asked Valkron, as Emeth rearranged his cloak.

'I don't think you understand what happened last night, but I'll try to explain.' Emeth exhaled. 'You do remember that I told you whoever was controlling the portal offered me power beyond what anyone has ever imagined?'

'Yes.'

'It happened the last night. Again.' Emeth flicked off a beetle that was crawling up his knee.

'Wait, I thought when your eyes glowed it meant you were experiencing the fluctuations--'

'Yeah, you're right there. Large surges of magic cause my eyes to glow. But besides that,' here the wizard looked around nervously and lowered his voice, 'I become stronger.'

Valkron looked around them. Samaroh was reading and taking notes at the same time, the tip of his tongue sticking out as he concentrated. Amaru was peacefully smoking on the other side of the clearing and Nocturne was examining his greatbow. No one was close enough to hear what they were talking about.

He turned back and said, 'So?'

'I'm telling you, it's not the kind of magic wizards are used to, all right?' Emeth sighed. 'There's a kind of magic called infernal magic. It was used during the time of the Old World by necromancers, demonlords and whatever that walked the world once. Thankfully all those are gone, but there's a rumour that Rune-Midgard will get thrown into chaos again and all of it will come back.'

'Are you telling me that this is what's happening right now?' asked Valkron.

'Well, if no one stops it, yes.'

'And why are you getting it?'

Emeth rolled his eyes. 'Do I have to repeat what I've said for--'

'All right, I know, the portal offered you power, yes, yes, I know. But why you? Why not, say, Samaroh? He uses magic too.'

At this the wizard blinked at him. For a minute or two they stared at each other. Then the red-haired man looked down and muttered something.

'What?'

'There's a difference between me and Samaroh, you know.'

'Yes, I know. You're less irritating than him.'

'No, not that. Thank you, but not that.' Emeth looked like he was torn between hitting Valkron on the head with his staff and being grateful. 'I...priests are trained to, you know, have pure hearts and pure minds, and are generally, uh, "clean" of sins, you dig?'

'Yeah, I do.' Valkron frowned. 'But that doesn't necessarily mean it picks you just because you're a sinner--'

'No, that's not what I meant. Actually, I think the portal reveres sinners, so that doesn't--'

'Then the portal's chosen you because you're a sinner?'

'Will you stop interrupting me and listen?' snapped Emeth. Valkron jerked back at the loudness of his voice. Luckily for both of them there was a loud splitting snap just then and Nocturne yelped in pain, drowning out Emeth's voice.

Everyone looked at the hunter. He was holding his greatbow in one hand and staring at the other. The bowstring had snapped and was dangling forlornly from the other end of the bow. Nocturne's other had, meanwhile, was covered in blood.

Samaroh clicked his tongue in reproachfulness and got up from his place. 'Could you be a bit more careful? I thought hunters generally know when their bowstrings are worn out.'

'I was checking but I hadn't reached that part yet,' retorted the hunter, looking at his bloodied hand. 'Will you get over here a little faster? Blood's running down my arm.'

'Well, it's your fault for being so careless.'

As an argument started Valkron turned back to Emeth. 'All right,' he said slowly, 'I'm sorry. I'll hear you out this time. You can continue.'

The wizard gave him a look and said coldly, 'Then sit back down and don't alert the others as to what's going on between us.'

'I don't think anyone's going to listen in on our conversation,' said Valkron, gesturing over his shoulder at the arguing hunter and priest. Amaru was watching them dully, still pulling on his cigarette. 'But I'll do what you want, okay? Just don't yell. The rest still need to sleep.'

Emeth exhaled. 'Fine.' He settled down and re-crossed his legs. Valkron waited patiently as he arranged his cloak.

'As I was saying, the portal reveres sinners. It's just that sinners...don't make good tools. Sinners are rebels by nature, I guess.' The wizard made a feeble gesture. 'Like I used to be. What the portal wants is to use anyone, sinner or no, to help it gain power by killing and obtaining souls and lives. The only way the portal can break into someone's mind is to find any weaknesses, any...openings that it can pry open and expose to the world, before bargaining with the person.'

'Whatever for?' said Valkron, taken aback.

'In exchange for hiding those secrets no one ever wants to tell, the portal offers power to solve them. Like, say...okay, let's take an example. Let's say there's someone whose parents were murdered in the past, when they were small. They witnessed the murder. Then when the murderer is convicted the court can't prove that it really was the murderer and not just an accident or something...I'm sorry, I'm not very good with court proceedings--'

'You don't have to say sorry, everyone isn't good with them,' said Valkron evenly, as Samaroh ended the argument by yanking Nocturne's bandage tightly. 'I know what you're trying to say. Go on.'

'Oh, all right...so the person grows up harbouring negative emotions. Anger, hurt, frustration, you get what I mean. The portal uses these emotions as weaknesses, by offering them the power to avenge their parents. Do you see now?'

Valkron did. He could understand now why Sagna had been such a vulnerable target. The younger knight had been jealous of him, and the portal had attempted using him to get rid of his former mentor.

'Why are we talking about the portal here, though?' he asked. 'I thought it would be up to the creator to do the job.'

'The creator just creates the portal,' said Emeth, shrugging. 'Basically once the portal has its roots into whatever it's feeding off its creator doesn't matter anymore.'

'And that would mean if we don't find and kill the idiot who started everything the portal will be eventually independent?'

'Could say,' said Emeth, nodding thoughtfully. Samaroh had returned to his place and Nocturne was now gingerly rummaging around in his pouch by now.

Valkron sighed in exasperation. 'I think we're already dead.'

'Wait, wait, hold it,' said the wizard. 'Killing both creator and portal stops any similar event reoccurring in the future. Maybe it won't be so hard to defeat them, anyway.'

'You know, when people say things like that I start mistrusting them immediately,' remarked Valkron, giving Emeth a look.

'We'll come to that later, I guess. Right now what really matters is to ensure that none of us turn against each other. The portal can easily mince us if we do.'

There was a silence. Valkron reflected on this new piece of information during it, while Emeth chewed on his leaf. Then he said, very slowly, 'How many of us here suffer from similar experiences and harbour such emotions?'

There was another silence. Then Emeth said, 'You know, I wish you hadn't asked.'

Valkron felt alarm rising within him. Although the members of his party had gone through so much they still hardly knew each other. Without knowing them he would not be able to protect them when the time came, let alone they protect themselves.

'Don't worry, Valkron,' came Emeth's voice through his thoughts. 'It's most likely that none of these happy-go-lucky people suffer like that.'

Valkron turned to answer him, but the wizard had already got up and sauntered off to look at something on a tree. He turned away, Emeth's words echoing in his mind. He felt deeply troubled, because the echoes were resonating with something he had tried to forget - something that had left him scarred for thirty years. Something that prevented him from being what he truly was.

You're wrong, Emeth, said the little calm voice in his head. You're a happy-go-lucky person yourself and you're already denying the truth. What's on the outside don't matter, compared to what's on the inside.

Valkron sighed and got up. He dusted his cloak and looked away towards the smooth white spire of Geffen Tower, reflecting sunlight in the midst of the thick smoke rising past it.

'Everybody will deny ever being affected by whatever happened in their lives,' he said to himself softly. 'No one will tell the truth. Unfortunately, that includes me, and the only thing I'm denying is myself.'

Late afternoon saw the entire Raulus party and Aldev awake and preparing to leave the clearing. Valkron fed his peco and listened to the conversations around him. Iruna saddled her own peco next to him, but neither of them exchanged any words. Valkron felt that there was nothing to say, and maybe Iruna had nothing to say to him either.

They set off for Geffen with their weapons drawn. Nocturne had left his greatbow unstrung; instead he carried his hunter's crossbow. Valkron and Iruna rode with their swords drawn. Even Aldev had armed himself with a pair of heavy knuckles. The only one who had not drawn a weapon or was holding one was Amaru, who sauntered casually at the rear of the procession with his hands in his pockets and his cigarette between his lips.

The Raulus party soon neared the top of the nearest staircase that descended into the city. Then suddenly and erratically everyone halted in their tracks. Valkron was the only one who did not stop, and he soon realised that he was unaccompanied.

He turned his peco around to face the other eight. They were looking apprehensive. Even Emeth did not look too confident.

'What, you're all just going to stand there?' remarked the knight dryly.

'Why are we returning to Geffen?' said Eni in a nervous voice, weighing her axe in her hands. 'What is there to do in the city? Everyone's dead, aren't they?'

Valkron rolled his eyes. 'And I thought I was the only pessimist here. Look, the dead ain't gonna walk up to you if you're just going to wait for me. Even if there aren't any survivors, which I plan on disproving, we still have to bury those who fell in the battle last night. It isn't about honour or glory or whatever, it's,' he sighed, 'something you do that shows you're still human.'

The party appeared to consider this before Emeth stepped up, followed by Samaroh. Khan and Iruna did the same a second later.

'Only you people? Fine by me.' Valkron turned his peco to face the staircase into Geffen 'Keep in mind I'm not interested in protecting those who decide to stay out here once I'm out there, all right?'

As he rode forth he started counting under his breath. When he reached seven, he heard Eni huff and say, 'Damn you, Valkron,' before the rest moved forward as well. He grinned to himself.

They passed through the gate they had broken down the previous night. A scene of carnage met their eyes. It was similar to the monastery massacre, except that there was a lot more blood and a lot less complete corpses around.

Aldev took one look and ran out of the gate, his hand over his mouth. Valkron wrinkled his nose at the cocktail of stenches of rotting flesh and clotted blood. Emeth was covering his nose with his hand and looking around.

'By the gods,' he said. 'Whatever happened here?'

There did not seem to be a living soul in sight. Only birds twittered in the forest around Geffen while vultures circled low over the city. Blood was splattered here and there so thickly Valkron could have scraped it off in one thick layer if he had cared to try. Since his peco was touchy about the mess he dismounted and stepped forward, careful not to step on the coagulated pools of red everywhere.

'I can't see anything,' voiced Iruna from her mount, 'but I can imagine it just by the smell.'

Valkron looked at the priest, who had knelt down next to a decapitated corpse. 'Samaroh, go and see if there are any survivors. Try to quicken your pace, I'm planning to leave this place by nightfall.'

Samaroh nodded in reply and got up. As he carefully picked his way through the muck the knight looked at Emeth, who looked back at him. 'Should we burn the bodies or bury them?'

Emeth shrugged. 'Burning the bodies is a bit disrespectful, but then again none of us would want to drag each and every body - or maybe every body part - out of this into the forests.'

'So I guess we'll burn the bodies.' Valkron squinted at the scene before him again. 'If we don't this place is going to be an open graveyard. Okay, get everyone together. Where's Aldev?'

'Outside the gate.'

'Hm. Get him to stop throwing up and instead help us out build a massive funeral pyre. None of us will have to touch anything,' he added, seeing Emeth's expression.

'You mean I'm going to have to use my magic to do the work,' said the wizard. 'All right, all right, I'll get down to it.'

Valkron was watching Emeth run back the way they came to the gate when he heard a shout. He turned to see Khan beckoning him over and went to see what the matter was.

'What's up, Khan?' he said, once he'd reached where the assassin was kneeling.

Khan looked at something. Valkron followed his gaze and realised that a crusader was lying in a pool of blood. Everything had been pretty much red and black until he could hardly distinguish anything from the ground.

It was Adiemus. And he was still alive.

Valkron knelt down as well and reached out. He propped up Adiemus' head and shook him very gently. The man was bleeding slowly and Valkron could not tell how much time he had left to live, but he hazarded a guess at 'little'.

The crusader opened his eyes, breathing laboriously. The knight bent over him and looked straight into his face, which was not a sight for the faint-hearted. Dried blood crusted most of his face and he had a broken nose. Blood trickled slowly from the corner of his mouth as he looked blearily into Valkron's eyes.

'Valkron...'

His lips barely moved as he whispered the knight's name. Valkron leaned closer despite the strong smell of iron coming off the bloodied crusader.

'We have a priest here,' he said softly. 'He'll be along in a moment.'

Adiemus shook his head slightly and whispered, 'It's not...required. We were...doomed from the moment...we stepped into Geffen.' He took a shuddering breath. Valkron could feel his effort to stay alive.

'You don't deserve this, Adiemus,' said the knight.

'No. No one...here did.' The crusader gestured weakly around him. 'But then...maybe it was...our fate to die here. We cannot...change fate.' He reached out and took Valkron by the shoulder. 'Our world...is dying. It is time...we humans...stepped down.'

'Why are you saying this, Adiemus?' said Valkron urgently. 'It isn't you to give up so easily.'

A half-smile appeared on the crusader's face, but it lasted only for a minute. 'It isn't...you either. Look...to the skies. Maybe...you, with all your life, can...save us all. I trust you, Valkron...I do...'

His voice trailed off before he took another shuddering breath and grew limp. His hand loosened its grip on Valkron's shoulder and fell to his side. Valkron watched as Adiemus closed his eyes forever.

After a while Khan tried to see Valkron's face. The knight had lowered his head until his white hair was completely obscuring his face from view.

'Valkron?' said the assassin tentatively.

The knight raised his head, his face bearing a closed expression. 'Tell the others to gather firewood and hurry up with the job. We've got to return to Prontera to inform the Chivalry. Besides,' he held his hand up to his face, 'I can see my breath again.'

Before nightfall the party had moved out of Geffen, leaving a thick pillar of smoke rising into the air behind them. Even when they were quite some distance from the city they could still hear the great funeral pyre crackling away as it burned flesh and bone into ashes.

Valkron had ordered a separate place for carcasses. Not many were littered around the city in comparison to the bodies that lay everywhere, but moving them from their places was a task close to impossible due to the stink. Finally Emeth had wordlessly used telekinesis to move them. No one complained, however - even if they could not understand why people were wont to return to a place of carnage to bury or burn bodies they, like Valkron, had preferred showing the dead some respect by separating them from the animals' carcasses.

'When they were under control they behaved like beasts,' Valkron had said, when Eni had objected to the separating. 'But in death they died as humans. I will not deny them their right. If they died like warriors, then let them be burned as warriors who fought valiantly for their world.'

'I thought you never believed in all this death-or-glory stuff,' Samaroh had pointed out.

'I don't.' Here Valkron had turned around and given the priest a look that made him back off. 'But in times like this other people do. It's not just about me. That's what makes me a knight, Samaroh.'

Now they moved on in silence. This time they did not stop for a rest; instead they journeyed straight east to Prontera without delay. Nocturne scouted in front of them; behind them Khan kept an eye out for interfering monsters.

They arrived in Prontera by dawn to find the entire city in an uproar. Civilians were moving out frantically, bringing whatever they could carry with them, while knights and crusaders herded them, shouting out instructions. Valkron did not stop, however. He simply rode through the throng towards the Prontera Chivalry.

A knight stepped in front of Valkron and drew his sword. 'Hold it, mercenary!' he commanded. 'What rights have you to come here? The residents of Prontera require aid, go and provide it!'

Valkron leaned past his peco's head. 'Well, if it isn't Anvar. Move it.'

'As a knight of Prontera I--'

'As a knight commander of the Mercenary Knights' Battalion I have every right to do as I please,' said Valkron in a clear, loud voice. 'Move aside, Lieutenant Anvar, and I may put in a good word to your superior about you.'

The knight who was still holding his sword up took a second look at Valkron and promptly dropped his sword. 'By Odin's name...I - I apologise with greatest sincerity, commander!' He hastily bowed his head and then ripped off a salute. Valkron snorted.

'I don't have the time to deal with this tripe, lieutenant,' he said, raising his voice over the sounds in the city. 'Move it! I bring urgent news to Prontera!'

Anvar quickly stepped aside. Valkron dug his spurs into his peco's side. Immediately the bird reared with a squawk and charged forward towards the doors of the Chivalry. The knight himself drew his sword and, as the bird reached the doors, swung his sword in front of him. The doors crashed open and he rode in. The rest of the party followed, Aldev a tad reluctant.

The Chivalry was teeming with knights and crusaders. Orders were being shouted across the great entrance hall while grinding sounds indicated that the Chivalry blacksmiths were doing last-minute work before they packed up. Swords were held up and examined and spears stood out above everyone. Rickety desks arranged haphazardly in the hall were fronted by shouting, harried armoured warriors. Amidst the rush Valkron rode in, a picture of calmness.

It was a moment that none of the party behind Valkron could forget. As the knight rode through the hall towards a burly knight overseeing the proceedings at the other end, the noise died away. Everyone paused and turned their heads as he went past. Blacksmiths halted in their work to stare at Valkron. Every sound was suddenly inferior to the thudding of the peco's taloned claws and the jingling of Valkron's mail. Every colour faded into the background while he became the focus of attention. It was as if the Raulus party were seeing him in a entirely different way.

Valkron rode up to the knight, unperturbed by the sudden silence. When he was about five feet away he brought his steed to a stop. He swiftly dismounted and strode up to the burly knight.

'Mercenary Knight Commander Valkron,' he said, removing his visor and tucking it under his arm before saluting with the precision of a machine. 'I bring news of the ten-guild raid in Geffen.'

'You have my permission to speak,' said the knight in front of him, nodding.

'I report that the raid has ended with no confirmed victory. No survivors, sir.' At this whispering filled the hall. 'Geffen is lost.'

As several knights behind Valkron looked around at each other in shock, Valkron's superior narrowed his eyes. 'What of the other cities?'

'I have no news of the others, sir. However, I also wish to inform the Chivalry of the massacre that took place in the monastery.' Valkron had to raise his voice over the increased whispering. 'Juno and Al de Baran are safe - for now.'

The burly knight considered this while the others began to discuss this new piece of information. Valkron stood at attention and stared straight ahead, waiting for an answer.

Finally the knight said, 'Very well. We move everyone out of Prontera to Juno. If we are lucky whatever unseen forces that are throwing out world into chaos will not be able to reach Prontera--'

'Sir, I do not wish to interrupt,' said Valkron briskly, still staring straight ahead, 'but the weather is changing. The children and the old will not be able to stand the dark winter coming for us. Prontera is a well-stocked fortress on its own.'

'I make the orders around here, Valkron, not you,' said the knight. 'Whatever I feel is best for the city will be done. Now go and help out at the southern gates. I will--'

'The portal will not allow humans to live until it has been destroyed,' said Valkron, and this time his party members picked up a very slight hint of despair in his voice.

There was silence. Then a few titters echoed through the hall, before some knights burst out laughing, while others sneered. The burly knight himself had raised a sceptic eyebrow.

'Portal? There is no such thing as a portal in Rune-Midgard. We are simply being plagued by enraged monsters once again. Leave this place, Valkron, or stand to lose your title. I will not have this nonsense under the roof of the Chivalry.'

'He speaks the truth,' said Emeth loudly, silencing the crowd. 'If you do not believe him you will have failed in your ultimate goal to protect the people of Rune-Midgard.'

The crowd waited with baited breath. Even Valkron was barely breathing. He was sure that in the entire history of the world there had been no such record of a King's mercenary wizard reprimanding a general of a Prontera Chivalry battalion. Until now, possibly.

The knight looked down at him. 'A friend of yours, Valkron? Or merely an accomplice to force us to remain here and eventually be slaughtered by rampaging monsters?' He strode towards Valkron, who had braced himself, until they were standing face to face.

'We have not received reports on such a portal from the others, and even if there were such a thing it poses no threat to us,' he said, his voice echoing through the hall. 'There is no proof that such a...a fantasy exists in this time and age. No, we do need to rely on the words of a wizard either - as much as they know they have no idea how to handle the situation of protecting the people. We, as knights of the Chivalry, must stand by our duty to send our people to the safest place possible. Whatever temptation or evil that compels you to hinder our progress, Valkron, we will not be stopped from what we believe is the best for our world. Now, move it! I want Prontera empty by tonight!'

The crowd around Valkron resumed its bustle. The general strode past Valkron but stopped next to the silent knight.

'Others may think highly of you, commander,' he said, so quietly that only Valkron heard it, 'but the knights and crusaders of Prontera know you for who you truly are. Nothing will change that.'

He strode off, leaving Valkron to stare despondently at the great flag displaying Prontera's shield hanging from the rafters.