Deathsworn Arc: 02 - The Verkreath Horror

  THE DEATHSWORN ARC: 2

  The Verkreath Horror

  By Martyn Stanley

  Version 1.2 (Minor Spelling and Grammar Corrections)

  © Martyn Stanley March 2013

  None of this material may be reproduced in any way, in part or in full, without the express written permission of Martyn Stanley (martyn_stanley@yahoo.com)

  With thanks to everyone at thehttp://www.sw-e.com writing forum, for inspiring me to write, for providing a place to practice, and for not being being too critical over the years..

  Special thanks to Richard Dawkins, who in a small part, through his written work, inspired the writing of this series.

  Extra special thanks to my wife Rachael, for putting up with me.

  A note on the pronunciation of ‘§’

  § is a sound used in elvish and gravian tongues. Whenever one of the human or dwarven characters say this sound, they are trying to emulate it, but probably not getting it perfect. It is an alien sound, it rolls quickly off the tongue and changes depending on the context in which it’s used. For simplicity think of the sound as a fast, ‘shzchl’ which sort of rolls into one sound and rolls off the tongue. If you feel it should sound different on a particular word, then it probably does - please use your own interpretation.

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  The Story so far:-

  In ‘The Last Dragon Slayer’, Korhan son of Brian, Harald son of Korvak, Saul Karza, emissary of the empress and Votrex Vaughn,Gorthok of Durgheim Holt set out to seek and slay a Dragon rumoured to be terrorising the far northern village of Brunwelt. Along the way, they sought and found the legendary, last dragon slayer, Silus Mendelson, rescued the dark elf Brael Truthseeker of House Krazic and ended up enlisting the aid of the powerful but quirky lady elf, Vashni Ulthi§ira. Through the course of their travels, Vashni adopted Korhan as her Ri§ine, a sort of subordinate student and began trying to teach him the arts of mental discipline and to wield a blade with more accuracy and precision. The final member of their group to join was Callen, the blacksmith from Duramer, Tam Briarly’s son. It turns out that the dragon Thrax was doing worse than terrorising Brunwelt but had in fact created a dragon worshipping cult, who placated him with offerings of livestock and regular human flesh. The so called servants of the flame would not be happy at the prospect of their god being destroyed, so the band avoided entering Brunwelt to head directly to confront Thrax. The battle with Thrax did not go well, Silus killed outright, Harald’s back broken leaving him paralysed, and the rest of the party injured. At first it seemed impossible to even damage the beast, blades and arrows bouncing off, and the party spending more time fleeing and hiding than attacking...

  After the beast was eventually slain, the survivors dragged Harald from the cave and recovered what was left of Silus’s remains. Despite Vashni’s best efforts, Harald was left paralysed, and the party was left with a difficult decision to make. Harald did not want to live, reduced to a talking, breathing, incontinent lump of meat, Korhan reluctantly agreed to end his life, but before he could, Vashni stepped in and offered to end his life in a less violent way. After giving Harald and Silus a proper burial, the warriors rested, before Saul revealed the need to recover the mysterious ‘heart stones’ for Empress Jade.

  In ‘The Verkreath Horror’ the survivors of the battle against Thrax, attempt to catch up with Callen, and end up running into the ‘Servant of the Flame’ which forces them to take an unorthodox escape route out of plague-stricken Strak. On the way, Brael manages to finally remove his curse, however the companions find themselves facing a new terror, an enemy more vile and despicable than even the ‘Servant of the Flame’.

  In ‘The Temple of the Mad God’ the companions finally manage to return to Cormaroth. Vashni continues to be pursued by Tavion and Tubol and the adventurers make some surprising discoveries about Empress Jade and the Heart stones. Votrex, haunted by Thrax’s words about his father’s Holt persuades the group to join him on another quest to enter the formerly ‘locked’ Durgheim Holt and seek the ‘Temple of the Mad God’. What they find there, will change their destinies forever...

  Chapters

  Map

  The Story so far:-

  The Flight of the Companions

  The Town of Strak

  Lodging in Strak

  The Warren

  The Challenge of Ramon Hern

  Beren'Gedt Holt

  The Unlocking

  Death’s Door

  Transmogrification

  Return to the Warren

  Return to Beren'Gedt Holt

  Truth Will Out

  Escape from Beren’Gedt Holt

  The Beren’Gedt Holt Smithy

  The Long Climb & The Caverns

  The Calm After the Storm

  -to be continued

  The Flight of the Companions

  The wind was howling around the short gully that ran up to Thrax’s lair. The sky above was grey and foreboding. Battle-worn and weary, Saul Karza the wizard, Vashni the elf, Brael Truthseeker the gravian and Votrex Vaughn, the dwarf were sitting around waiting for Korhan to return with their horses. The battle with the dragon had taken a heavy toll; it had taken the lives of two of their companions and a good chunk of their self-esteem and confidence in their abilities.

  Votrex was also going over and over the dragon’s words about his sealed off home, Durgheim Holt...

  “Hju§u §avati everor nomenci§... What does it mean?

  Vashni sniggered at Votrex, “Tis nonsense... It means nothing... I wouldn’t trust anything that Thrax said...

  “Hmmmph! I don’t know... I have to try to regain access to Durgheim Holt, and Thrax’s suggestion for a word of unlocking is the only option I’ve got.

  Korhan appeared on his horse then, leading the rest of their steeds by the reins. He’d climbed the shale and slipped down the other side to recover their horses. Meanwhile Vashni, Votrex and Saul had laid Harald and what was left of Silus’s remains out and piled rocks on top.

  Vashni rose and walked to the two graves, then started whispering to them quietly, her hypnotic voice resonating through the rocks and changing them subtly. Korhan dropped from his horse and approached, “What did you do?

  “I have simply commanded these rocks to bind together; they will form a solid rock, protecting the remains of Harald and Silus from wild animals... And a simple identifier will inscribe itself on the surface, marking the graves, and declaring them to have fought bravely but fallen in battle against a noble dragon... It will take a long time to complete though - and I think I hear the servant of the flame approach.

  Brael overheard and scrambled into his saddle, “Then we should ride! Come!

  Saul, Votrex, Vashni and Korhan fought their way wearily into their saddles and they were on the move again. Rather than returning to Duramer they set off through the boulder field at the foot of the sky cleavers and rode for Versith Pass, the narrow valley which lead into the barbarian northlands. The path would put a small peak in between themselves and the cursed village of Brunwelt, home of ‘the servant of the flame’. Once they were on the pass, they could divert south to Strak, the town built around a former dwarven stronghold which Callen had agreed to meet them at, with the wayward fire queen ‘Ellen’.

  Korhan dawdled purposefully near the graves, allowing the others to take the lead. He wouldn’t shed a tear for Harald, it was not the Si
lavrian way, but instead held an outstretched palm to the grave and whispered under his breath, “Goodbye brother... Save me a seat in Kirkfell...” He finished by forming the hand into a fist, placing it over his heart and performing a shallow bow. His respect given he urged his horse after the others, eventually taking his place behind Vashni as was fast becoming their custom. He’d thought about offering his respects to Silus too, but he’d hardly known the man, didn’t know his customs or culture and... There’d been something about him... For whatever reason he’d never warmed to Slius. He’d thought he would never warm to Brael, but the dark elf had fought valiantly against Thrax, and fighting side by side with someone against a common foe formed a bond. A macabre bond, but a bond nonetheless.

  Soon Thrax’s lair was far behind them. As they rode, light rain started to fall, causing the group to reach into their saddle bags for their cloaks. They pulled their cloaks around them without stopping, for fear of the Servant of the Flame catching up with them. The cult was a strange thing to be fleeing from, it was not a flight of fear... Most of them would be townspeople or farmers. It was the very fact that these were ordinary people, the very same ordinary people whom they were trying to save... That had been overcome by a strange madness, initiated by Thrax of course. It would never feel honourable to slay the very people you were trying to save, even if they had lost their senses, and you had been forced to act in self defence.

  Votrex led Silus’s redundant horse, and Brael led Harald’s.

  The pragmatic Brael had taken Harald’s cloak from his horse’s saddlebag and wrapped it about him. He was riding alongside Saul, he leaned over, using his hand to shield the rain from his eyes, “What’s our move now wizard?

  “We should head to Strak, find Callen and Ellen, and see what else we can learn about the dragon cult. The Empress will want to know, it may still be a threat despite Thrax’s death. From there we need to avoid Brunwelt, I suggest our best course would be to head south from Strak, cut behind Medib peak and follow the edge of the great divide, at least as far as Kelen.

  Brael screwed his face up, his cracked, grizzled features showing his concern, “Hmmm, that is a long route wizard... Can our provisions last that long?

  “We will re-stock our provisions in Strak, and try to leave prepared for the journey. We must get the heart stones back to the empress, and I cannot risk travelling near Brunwelt, given the circumstances.

  “Hmmm, as you wish wizard... I have to say though, I find the heart stones to be... Disconcerting... You were not sent to Brunwelt to save the people, you were sent to collect these stones.

  “I suspect you are right gravian, I have no idea what these stones do... But the Empress has always been very clear about their importance to her... But surely we’ve done a good deed despite this? The people of Brunwelt and Duramer need not fear the dragon any more?

  “Hah! Some people might argue we have not done a good deed... Ellen, for all her stupidity appeared to be quite happy to be chewed up and eaten by a dragon... How would you feel if someone slew your god?

  There was a knowing twinkle in Brael’s glowing red eyes as he said this, barely visible under the ill-fitting hood of his cloak.

  Votrex was riding alone, his armour, or what was left of it packed neatly in his saddle-bags. Some of it would have to be beaten back into shape, some repaired and some replaced. The water was starting to soak through his cloak now. He felt miserable and he ached all over. Fighting Thrax he’d felt helpless, trying to injure the beast seemed as difficult as moving a mountain. They were lucky, unlucky that Harald and Silus were killed, but lucky that any of them got out alive at all. It seemed unfathomable, that with the magic of a wizard, the strength of a dwarf, the skill of an elf and a gravian, the experience of a dragon slayer and the valor of not one but two barbarian warriors, they should take such a brutal beating... Votrex was clear, from the moment they’d returned to the Empress, he would avoid dragons at all cost and focus on one thing, Durgheim Holt. He had to gain entry somehow.

  Eventually the companions reached Versith Pass. It was a rough, but broad main road, rutted from cartwheels and churned up by hooves. The road was rocky in some places and muddy in others. Either side of the road, the Sky Cleavers towered up into the heavens. They’d managed to get away without the servant of the flame catching up with them, mainly because of Vashni’s sharp hearing and her decision to urge them onwards the very moment she’d detected their approach.

  As the band approached the track Saul pointed right, to the south, “This way, if we don’t stop we should reach Strak by nightfall.

  Brael grimaced, “Let us hope the madness of Brunwelt and Duramer has not spread so far as Strak...

  Towards the back of the riding line Korhan, still saddened by Harald’s death leaned towards Vashni, “Mir§a Vashni, have you no tasks for me?

  “No Ri§ine... My mind is full of sorrow, and my body is weary... We shall reach Strak, spend some time recuperating - then continue your development once we are both fitter for the task.

  “As you wish... Hmmmph, your head is full of sorrow?! You hardly knew Harald, or Silus, why do you feel sorrow?

  “Harald was a good man... I knew that much... And Silus, though I never liked him much, was brave and... Hmmph! Tis always sad when a good man leaves this earth, Silus... Maybe he would have been more ‘likeable’, if he’d not been so bitter and broken from his first encounter with a dragon, all those years ago?

  “Aye, you may be right Mir§a Vashni, you may be right at that...

  “Now ride, Ri§ine, settle your mind... Give yourself time to recover and to grieve...

  They rode on in silence as the group turned onto the main road and headed south towards Strak.

  Saul dropped back to fall in line with Korhan, “Korhan... I am finding the quiet of this road disconcerting... This is the main road to Silavria and the north... It should be a busy trade route, why have we not seen anyone on the road?

  “I know not wizard... But you are right, the road should be busy, perhaps the influence of the ‘servant of the flame’ ?

  They were in the saddle for two hours. Eventually they did see some traffic, the battle-weary warriors came upon a tired looking, lone man riding a horse. He had a large bundle of belongings strapped to the back of his saddle. When they approached he raised his head, and upon seeing them halted his horse and kept his distance. Saul raised a hand, “Traveller, what has become of Strak?

  The man looked like a merchant or noble, but whose attire, though once fine was now tattered and shabby looking. He pulled the the hood on his cloak a little higher to look at the companions. The rain was still falling, and his face was as miserable as the weather, eyes sunken and tired looking, cheeks gaunt and weather worn, “You are headed to Strak? Turn around, head in the opposite direction, you do not want to visit Strak right now.

  “Why? Is it the work of the ‘servant of the flame’ ?

  “I know of what you speak, but Strak is a more dangerous place than even Brunwelt at the moment. Strak should be given as wide a berth as possible, because it has become riddled with plague. I fear the Berger will quarantine the town soon, as he should have done weeks ago... If you go to Strak, you may not be allowed to leave, and staying in Strak for any length of time is in my opinion, as sure a death sentence as the hangman’s noose, or running into the dragon worshippers. Now, I must be on my way, if I am to reach Felgard by nightfall.

  Saul watched the man snap his reins and urge his horse forwards. As he disappeared up the path he turned to Votrex and the others, “What are we to do? Sending Callen and Ellen to Strak may have been as sure a death sentence as leaving her to be consumed by Thrax!

  Votrex shrugged wearily, “Well, the girl... Part of me thinks she deserves her fate for her stupidity... But part of me thinks, Thrax was somehow in her mind, manipulating her thoughts in some way... Was she being subtly controlled? And Callen... He does not deserve to die.

  Vashni cut in at this point, “The dwarf speak
s the truth, Ellen’s mind had been poisoned by Thrax, of that I am sure. I am sure if I had not given you some mental protection, Thrax would have entered some of our party’s minds and possibly even turned us against each other.

  Korhan nodded, “I felt him, trying to enter my mind, pressing, probing, looking for a way in. I wonder why Silus did not experience this when he encountered his first Draconis Nobilus?

  Saul stroked his beard thoughtfully, “Who knows? Maybe he did? Maybe the mages in their party wove spells of protection around the warriors... Or maybe Firus was not as adept in mental warfare as Thrax? I suppose we shall never know.

  Votrex snapped his reins, “Enough! We cannot abandon Callen in Strak, even if not for Callen and Ellen, we would still have to visit Strak. Our supplies are low, Felgard is in the wrong direction and we cannot risk passing through Brunwelt or Duramer.

  Saul sighed and urged his horse into a trot. “Though there may be no direct evidence that we are responsible for the death of their god... Something... Hmm, I fear something would arouse suspicions. Could we really expect the dragon cult to believe the murder of their god, and a band of warriors comprising of an elf, a dark elf and a dwarf passing through, to really be a coincidence?

  There were murmurs of agreement and the horses were urged into a trot along the muddy road. The riders pulled their cloaks tightly about themselves, trying to shelter from the wind and rain. The sky grew greyer, and the wind picked up. Soon the light drizzle was turning into driving, horizontal rain and darkness was approaching. Eventually, they rounded another corner in the road and began descending a gentle slope, through a valley between two mounds.

  The lights of Strak were visible in the distance, glowing welcomingly through the haze and the mist. Despite the knowledge that they were headed towards a plague ridden town, it was hard not to feel relief at the prospect of being out of the rain. In truth, plague ridden or not, the town of Strak held the promise of a mug of ale and a warm dry bed, which were attractive propositions for each member of the party.