3rd to 5th Days of Early Autumn 768 n.c
We stayed there at the altar for the rest of that day and night, breaking camp in the morning to head off towards the altar on the island in the middle of the lake to the south west of us. Our path would take us along the feet of the mountains, near the edges of the forest. We reached the mouth of a new river near night time on the first and second nights, each had water flowing out of a cave similar to the second daughter river. These made perfect camps for the night, allowing us protection from the wind and rain that seemed to come with nightfall each time. Every morning we bathed, quickly, in the cold river water. Other caves we passed along the way, the base of the mountains seemed to be dotted with them, some deep into the darkness and some merely shallow overhangs. We were careful as we passed each one, in case it were the home to something we didn't wish to disturb. The forest didn't change at all as we made our way farther south, still the same giant trees and strange tree-like ferns. Karalin was on the lookout for game as we travelled, managing to score a brace of rabbits one day and a deer the next. These made for some delicious dinners and we regretted being unable to spend time to cure some of the venison. We were able to smoke some strips to munch on as we travelled during the day however. The rest of the carcass we dragged out into the forest for the scavengers.
It was late on the third day when we first sighted the fort on the lake. It was an imposing structure, reminding me of the forts at Barrier Pass, but much much larger. Part of its wall was built into the mountain with the fort itself making up the entire distance from the edge of the mountain to the lake below it. The lake itself was very impressive, I had never seen so much water. Celestine's setting illuminated it such that we could not even see the far side. What we could see was the large island in the middle of the lake, with another huge fort sticking up from the middle of it. The fort in front of us was a giant structure, with huge walls interspersed with towers and a large keep in the middle sticking up even higher than the walls. We could see siege engines on parts of the walls and on the roof of the keep, catapults and ballista.
As we rode closer we could clearly see the soldiers on the battlements, walking their patrols. We approached the gatehouse slowly and noticed some wary movements through the embrasures. I could see points of arrows in the darkness pointed in our direction. We stopped about twenty feet away from the main gate and moments later the wicket gate opened. From the smaller portal emerged a soldier in polished armour that appeared to be akin to scales of a fish, small overlapping plates of steel. The wicket gate closed behind him and we could hear the thump of a bar being put into place. He had a sword in its scabbard on his hip and loose red-dyed linen trousers. On his head he wore a conical helmet, with a long piece bearing down the front to protect his nose and carried a writing board in his hands along with a quill.
"Name, Arithna and business?" He asked in a bored tone once he had observed us for a moment.
"Sharein Askilain, daughter of Aloise Corranna of Ildra, Apprentice Wizardess of Carn, we are here to seek passage to the island in the middle of the lake," I stated and watched him immediately react by straightening up and saluting, almost poking himself in the eye with the end of his quill.
"My Lady!" he addressed me before turning his head and yelling, "open the gate!"
One the bar was removed from the main gate, it slowly swung open to allow admittance to the bailey of the fort. Soldiers stood in a line on either side, all standing at attention and saluting as we rode through. The moment we passed through the portal a shiver ran down my spine and a very uncomfortable feeling settled over me, a sense of wrongness. Some stable boys soon ran up to collect our horses while the original soldier that met us sent a runner heading towards the keep.
"If it please your Ladyship, no boats will be headed across the lake with the Tennerwan, the uh… Night winds are about to start." The soldier informed me, "The Commander of Fort Plainsguard will ensure that the nobles quarters will be readied for you and would be pleased if you could join him for supper in the great hall. Passage will be found for you first thing in the morning, if it pleases you."
"That would definitely please me," I said, "our bags?"
"Will be taken up to the nobles quarters," he answered quickly.
I nodded and thanked him. He escorted us into the keep, which was definitely more functional than decorative. Brackets on the walls held weapons and shields, and barrels of arrows rested in corners. The first room was large, with arrow slits on either side, designed to allow continued defence should any force breach the keep. The ceiling had slits in it and I could see through these up to a room above. The rear of the keep held a winding enclosed staircase that curved upwards to the right and downwards to the left. It was to these stairs that we were led. The room above the entry room contained a large number of barrels on either side of the room and the slits opened up, such that they were much wider at the top of the floor than below. Up past another few levels we were led; past a large hall likely used for dining and two floors that held corridors and doors into individual rooms. Right to the second to last floor of the keep, down a long corridor with a door at the end that opened up into a large bed chamber.
"My Lady," the soldier offered after opening up the door and stepping aside to allow us entry, "your bags will be brought up shortly and somebody will come for you before supper. Please, I must remind your Ladyship that this is a military fort and for your own safety request that you stay inside your chambers and not to leave without an escort."
We nodded our assent and entered our chamber. The soldier closed the door behind us and we both started a little when the lock clicked a moment later.
"Well, I for one welcome a bed," Karalin joked as she jumped onto the mattress to lay down on her back, spread-eagled, "even if it feels like we are being locked up."
"It does seem a little odd," I mused as I sat on the edge of the bed, "but I suppose that he has a point, there would be innumerable ways your average noble could get themselves into trouble in a place like this."
Our bags were brought up very quickly and we soon busied ourselves with small, quick tasks as we waited to be summoned. Karalin waxed her bow strings and re-oiled her bow, while I continued my work on the rune scheme for the girdle of masculinity / femininity. I had just finished inscribing the last rune when there was a knock on the door and a click of the lock.
"My Lady!" came the voice of a young boy from outside, "if it pleases your Ladyship, I'm here to escort you to Commander Fosse for supper.
We jumped up and opened the door to reveal a young lad, maybe a thirteen year old, dressed in the same red linen trousers as the other soldiers, but also wearing a red linen tunic. He appeared nervous and unsure of what else to say, choosing to escort us silently down the stairs to the first level of separate rooms. We were shown into a very plain dining room, where a bearded man immediately stood and welcomed us.
"Welcome to Fort Plainsguard, My Lady," he said, bowing, "I have the honour of being Commander of this fort, Arik Fosse, low noble of the House of Fosse."
"Thank you commander," I answered, "I am Sharein Askilain, apprentice wizard of Carn, daughter of Aloise Corranna of Ildra and," I gestured to Karalin, "this is my companion, Karalin, Ranger of Carn."
"Please, sit," he said as he came around the table to pull out a chair for me.
"Thank.." I began to say, but as he pushed the chair in behind me his hand brushed my back and I felt an immediate increase in the feeling of wrongness. It startled me for a moment, this feeling that suddenly seemed to spread through my entire body and I flinched at the contact. Karalin, in the process of sitting herself, looked at me in concern and the commander seemed to pause behind me.
I coughed lightly to cover my own pause and, pushing down the feeling, managed to continue, "thank you."
The commander seated himself back into his chair and I took in his appearance as he spoke, he was an older man; at least forty five years. His beard was greying, as was his hair. He had a scar across the side of his face, likely a battle wound evidencing a long career as a soldier. He was dressed in the same red tunic and trousers, without any finery except the cord of a necklace or talisman under his tunic and a badge sewn onto his breast depicting a bloody axe on a field of white. His face was sallow and he appeared tired and worn. His eyes were bloodshot and slightly glassy. I worried that he may be sick, or possibly cursed.
"My soldiers informed me that you are seeking passage to Fort Arthguard, may I enquire as to the purpose?" He asked, continuing to clarify with a spark of hope, "it's not often that we have a visiting noble, perchance were you sent on a mission by the King?"
"I do not have that honour," I answered, "I am seeking to visit the black stone altar on that island."
He wilted at my admission, but slowly became a little curious, "I remember that altar, I spent a bit of time at Fort Arthguard before my commission here. It's a curious thing, some people reported seeing a person sitting on it at night time but at second glance they weren't there. The descriptions often differed however, sometimes men, sometimes women, sometimes young and sometimes old."
I nodded in understanding, "it's a place sacred to some of the gods, so those accounts make sense to me."
We were interrupted by the young lad, joined by another three, who were all carrying trays of food and drink.
"I apologise for the simple food," the commander said, "this is unfortunately, first and foremost, a military fort."
The boys laid out steel plates with a selection of boiled and roasted vegetables and two fillets of grilled fish.
"No need for an apology commander, we have subsided for the past few days on only what Karalin could shoot, I welcome this feast," I assured him.
He looked at us appraisingly and gave us a thin smile before he began his supper, we took that as our cue to also eat. The food was delicious, well spiced and seasoned like most of Allarthian food seemed to be, even the vegetables seemed to have had herbs added to them to enhance their flavour. The watered wine was semi-sweet and crisp.
"Please commander, if you would," I asked between mouthfuls, "tell me about the history and nature of your command?"
"We're here to guard Allarth from the plainsfolk tribes," he said to begin.
"What sort of people are they?" I asked, "I don't think that I know anything about them."
He snorted a little, "most people in Allarth seem to have forgotten about them now-days. They are savages, plain and simple. They used to raid Allarth every year, coming out of their plains to burn villages and kidnap children, rape women and slay the menfolk. This fort was completed here twenty years ago or so and they've been quiet since then." He paused for a moment, glancing over his shoulder towards the plains with narrowed eyes before leaning a bit closer, "They've been waiting for us to become complacent, building up their war-bands. I've been petitioning to send scouting parties to get us information, but the noble advisors in Milne won't even pass those requests onto the King. If he knew what they were up to, he'd authorise it immediately. Those feral subhuman savages are out there planning, building their strength, while we stay stuck here, forgotten." He seemed to be getting angrier and angrier as he went, culminating his final statement with a slammed fist onto the table, "we just need to get out there and remove them before they can do the same to us!"
The loud noise of his fist echoed in the room and he seemed to reign in his anger and added quietly, "but I feel like something will happen soon that the noble advisors won't be able to ignore."
I hummed quietly to myself, before saying, "well, for the sake of Allarth, I'm glad that you and your soldiers are here commander. It sounds like you have a very important duty that you are fulfilling."
"Thank you," he responded, "I just wish that the nobles in Milne would see it that way also. If you are off to Fort Arthguard tomorrow, I'll have a letter of introduction to it's commander Lessik Kizet prepared."
"Thank you commander, that would be appreciated."
Soon, supper was finished and we were escorted by the boy back up to our chambers. On the way up, we passed the other boys who were carrying a large bucket of solid-looking gruel.
"Savage duty again?" our boy needled his friends, who rolled their eyes and laughed.
One responded over his shoulder as he disappeared down the stairs, "I don't know why we even bother to feed them."
When we got back to our chambers and the door had been locked, I waited a moment before asking Karalin, "didn't the commander say that the plainsfolk have been quiet?"
"He did say that," she replied.
"And didn't he say that he wasn't allowed out to scout?" I added.
"He did say that too," she mused.
We left it at that, they must have gotten the prisoners from somewhere, perhaps they were disobeying orders and actually performing scouting missions after all? In any case, it wasn't any of my business.
I stood at the window and looked outside through the darkness, silently thanking Tenebrae for her gift that allowed me to see as if it were daylight. Our window overlooked the plains, a wide stretch of flat grassy land interspersed with small patches of taller grasses, bushes and isolated scraggly looking trees. A brief flash of dim light drew my attention closer to the gate and I watched one of the soldiers on the wall point towards it. Other soldiers ran down into the bailey and extinguished all of the lights there. I frowned, wondering what they were doing. Soon the Plains side gate was opened and a group of soldiers on horseback escorted in a group of men. These men were all tied up by their hands in a line, each was shirtless and wearing leather pants. Each one seemed to have been roughed up quite a bit, with a couple of them hobbling and almost falling as they were pushed and pulled along, sometimes prodded with spear tips.
I described what I was seeing to Karalin, who frowned but voiced, "it looks like the commander is sending out scouting missions anyway. Though, if he is taking prisoners in raids, I can't see how that wouldn't start up hostilities again."
The soldiers led their prisoners into the keep and the lights in the bailey were lit once more.
"It's definitely suspicious that they were making everything dark before bringing them in," I said, "obviously they don't want us to know."
Karalin nodded, "that is suspicious."
We put it out of mind, it still wasn't any business of ours and it wasn't like I knew who to report it to. Besides, it was Allarth, and despite my family history here, I didn't feel any responsibility for what they were doing.
We spent a little bit of time sorting through our packs before we went to bed.
I was woken when Luna was high in the sky, about the mid of night. The feeling of wrongness that I had experienced ever since entering Fort Plainsguard had intensified. It was oppressive now, a feeling that almost drove me to void my stomach and twisted my insides painfully. I could pinpoint it now and it was coming from directly below us.
I woke Karalin, who startled awake and immediately reached for the dagger she had put under her pillow.
"Wha?" she asked tiredly before she snapped suddenly awake, "why do I feel like something is… wrong?"
I quickly moved to get dressed and whispered to Karalin, "get ready, it's coming from down below us. There's something very, very bad down there. Something unnatural."
I cast knock on the door and heard the satisfying click of it unlocking. Karalin had readied her bow behind me, moving to look through the gap as I eased the door open. Thankfully there were no guards at our door.
I held up a hand to halt her and cast Invisibility on her and myself, then see invisibility on myself.
Karalin started a little when she saw me disappear, but stayed where she was.
I whispered, "I'll stay close to you. I can see you, but I can't cast that spell on you. If you attack anybody, the spell will cancel itself, so only as a last resort. Head down as quietly as you can."
Together we made our way down the steps, past a couple of floors with the feeling still coming from below, until we heard voices from below and the noise of people walking up towards us. Karalin flattened herself against the wall and held her dagger ready against her body, I did likewise next to her.
Two soldiers walked up the stairs, one after the other. Thankfully they weren't walking two-abreast, otherwise they definitely would have bumped against us. We held our breaths as they passed and kept holding them when they stopped two steps above us.
"Are you sure you don't feel it?" One of the soldiers asked the other, "I swear by Tarma, it's like the gods are angry with me or something, something is here and very wrong."
"A little, I think," the other replied, "let's head up to the roof and keep a look-out for savages, they might be planning something. But nothing happened the last few times you felt like this."
The two continued upwards, slightly faster than they were before. Karalin and I together let out our long-held breaths once they had disappeared from view.
"Keep going," I whispered and Karalin began the trek down once more.
We reached the ground floor and still the feeling was coming from below us, so we continued on our way.
The first floor of the basement was a large room full of barrels and crates and still the feeling came from below.
The stairs came to an end at a solid door and the feeling was coming from directly behind it.
"In here," I told Karalin, "try the door."
She opened the door, it's bolt was on our side and unbolted. I peeked past her through the open door and shuddered at an almost physical wave of the feeling rushed over me.
The door opened up onto a wide landing with stairs continuing down such that the floor below the landing was about twenty feet below the roof. The scene that greeted us was immediately disturbing, but worse… I could see exactly where the feeling was coming from.
Below us, at the edges of the room stood cages full of plainsfolk. Against the right hand side of the wall rested stacked bodies. Some soldiers stood in a ring in the middle of the room, all standing with spears pointed inwards. Inside this were two plainsfolk armed with daggers, fighting each other. At the far end of the room stood the source of the wrongness: Commander Arik Fosse.
He stood there with a rictus of insane glee on his face. He was shirtless and covered in blood. I could make out his gold talisman, even from the distance I was at. It was a closed fist, with a ruby set into the wrist and from that medallion issued forth a red miasmic glow. Despite his earlier pallor, he looked at least twenty years younger with a muscled body gleaming under the sheen of blood. In his hand he was holding something that dripped blood.
The soldiers let out a cheer, drawing our attention back to the circle, where one of the plainsfolk had slain the other. The red glow from Fosses talisman seemed to solidify somewhat and shoot out like a tentacle towards the dead plainsman as the commander began to laugh. A laugh that chilled me to the bones, a laugh of insane pleasure.
"I invoke Irin's glory!" The commander screamed, "By our Lord of Wrath I imbue the victor with the Beserker Rage!"
With a sinking feeling I realised that it all made sense.
Chaos Demon.
AUTHORS NOTES:
Hope you all enjoy this little cliff hanger and are (pardon the pun) hanging in for the next chapter!
Please review and let me know what you think!
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GerryWright: Don't worry, Shard WILL be reunited with Sharein, just not yet. We've got a little bit to go before then.
