Chapter 20: Treasure Hunters

The general reaction to Sara’s speedy return was surprise. Fraydon thought she was still asleep when she woke up to go hunt with Thendat. But Thendat was wide awake, and after assuring Fraydon that it wasn’t an illusion, they let Sara sleep while they found food.

Darren woke and stepped from his tent into the heat of the day. If it was warm and humid this early in the morning, it would be a horrible day for traveling. In the dense forest where they were, it wouldn’t be a problem if they stayed put for the day. He weighed the options, considering the pros and cons of each. If they stayed, Acerin would probably become destructive and complain that they didn’t appreciate him. But if they went, there was a good chance someone would get sick or become dehydrated. He sighed. Better that than burning down somebody’s forest retreat.

Camp was broken down and packed up. A quick explanation of what had happened last night from Darren, and they moved through the forest quickly. About five minutes into the hike, Sara turned to Darren with a concerned look on her face. “I know they didn’t see us leave, but won’t the guard stop us the next time they see us in the city?” He shrugged. “Why would they?” She looked at him in disbelief. “Maybe because we left a smoking hole in their jail wall?”

Darren smiled and shook his head. “After you fell asleep, I went back to visit those friends I mentioned earlier. While I was there, I took the liberty of giving the guard huge amounts of the more potent wines they sell in Pilosh, stretched him out on the floor directly in front of the cell, and stuck his key in the cell door. I also did a little redecorating with that wall, making it a bit more solid in appearance and structure. Since only that one guard knew what we were doing, and the wine was powerful, the other guards will assume that you were picked up for minor illegalities and that you ‘persuaded’ the guard to let you go a night earlier than normal.”

Sara didn’t know what to say. “So…nobody knows what happened, they just think they do?” Darren grinned. “Yep.” Sara frowned as she walked along. “I’m not sure I like the idea of people thinking I’m doing illegal things.”

Darren sighed. “Sara, there comes a point in life when you realize that no matter what you do, people are going to think ill of you. You can’t please everyone, so you have to choose who you upset carefully.”

Silence fell over the group as they continued through the forest. About noon, Thendat came back to where Darren was, sweating heavily. “Darren, there’s no way we can continue on like this. It’s far too hot, and someone’s not going to drink enough water.” Darren nodded. “I’ve already thought about this. There’s a monastery a mile or so away, to the northeast. If we hurry, we can be there before it gets even hotter, and we can make absolutely sure we’re going in the right direction.”

Fraydon came back too. “The right direction towards what?” Darren smiled. “Why, the Stone of Naugan, of course. The book was extremely helpful in the general direction, but the actual location was contained in riddles.” He wiped the sweat from his face. “It’ll be easier to study the book in a cooler location. Let’s go.”

They assumed their formation, tighter than usual, and continued through the forest. The sun, thought not able to reach through the dense trees, still made the heat inside almost unbearable. Every single member of the group was sweating in large amounts, most removing unnecessary items of clothing.

Upon seeing the monastery, Darren put his cloak back on. “It’ll prevent stomach cramps and chills,” he said. The others followed his example and walked towards the small building. It was smaller than the library and only one story, with large pillar-lined stone hallways and cool rooms. Darren knocked on the entry door and it eased open. He looked back at the group. “I guess the last visitor left the door a bit ajar.”

They walked into the monastery and looked around. They seemed to be in a waiting room, a place where they could wait until they were officially welcomed. Darren rang a small bell hanging from a shelf above them and waited. He rang it again and frowned. “They aren’t usually all praying at once.” He opened a small door off to the side and peered in. “This is strange.”

He walked to a set of double doors that seemed to be the way in. “I guess we’ll have to let ourselves in, then.” They followed him through the passageway into a closed courtyard, a three-foot circular hole in the roof letting in sunlight while keeping the room relatively cool. Darren looked around. “They must have left for someplace.”

Sara looked around the room. Plants stood in the corners, some growing into the walls after remaining inside for so long. There were three big entrances to the room, and they apparently prayed facing the only solid wall. There was quite a bit of open floor space. The sound of clicking reverberated through the halls, becoming more noticeable to her as it drew closer.

Darren heard it too, unsheathing his sword slowly, quietly, closing his eyes. We’re in the worst possible place to fight. They backed against the wall. Darren searched the room, and he whispered to the others, “Legerra, Acerin, you two take the left entrance. Fraydon, Thendat, Sara, take the one directly in front. Milar and I will cover the entrance to our right. If it’s human, don’t attack until it acts hostile. If it’s any sort of animal...”

Acerin’s aura pulsed into existence. “Then it dies.”

The clicking sound came closer, growing in volume. The group tensed, eyes glancing at other entrances as well as their own. Sara closed her eyes and extended her hearing. “It’s coming from the middle entrance!” Everyone looked towards that entrance. Darren whispered loudly, “Watch your own entrance! It may be a trap!”

Click. Click. Click. The noise grew to fill the room until it seemed like the clicking never stopped. Legerra paled. “There must be hundreds!” Darren shot him a look. “It may be illusion or just a bunch of rats. Whatever the case, we can take them.”

The clicking stopped suddenly, leaving an eerie silence. Darren motioned for the others to stay put and stepped away from the wall a few feet, looking into the entrances, trying to see what had happened. Suddenly, the sound of bare feet slapping stone filled the halls, followed by the clicks growing closer. A robed, belted monk threw himself into the room, rolling up to the wall where the others stood, looking up at them. “Travelers! Please say you’re good people!” Sara nodded. The man sighed in huge relief, but stood up with a look of panic on his face. “My name’s Brother Larauc. They attacked from nowhere, and I think I’m the only priest left.”

Darren held up his hand. “What exactly are they?” Larauc looked at the entrances in terror. “The black wolves! They’re coming…”

The clicking kept coming closer…and a shadow moved in one of the entrances. Suddenly every entrance seemed to have eyes moving all around. Thendat pulled his bowstring all the way back. “Darren, we’re moving first.” Darren nodded, and Thendat let fly an arrow that exploded in his entrance, wolves howling in pain and anger. Another arrow to the same entrance and they attacked.

A wave of claws and fangs swept towards the group. Long range and magic attacks severely weakened their numbers, easing the burden on the swordsmen. After a few minutes, though, Legerra started noticing something. “Darren! I think they’re getting up again!” Darren grimaced and glanced at the priest quickly. “Can you do anything about that?” The priest shook his head. “We were trying to get down to the basement, hoping that there would be something among the relics…but they were slaughtered and I barely made it out.”

Darren bowed his head in quick grief of the many dead. His head snapped up and his eyes burned with an inner flame. “We’re going down. Which way?” Larauc pointed to the entrance Legerra and Acerin were taking care of. “Just keep following it!”

Darren yelled to Acerin, “Give me a raw blast, slowly!” Acerin shrugged and gathered a huge amount of power into a contained area and sent it towards his entrance. The others closed ranks, keeping the priest in the middle as they made their way to the entrance.

Darren dashed forward towards the entrance, weaving through the attacks, until he reached the doorway. He reached up and connected with pure contained energy, eyes widening. He wasn’t kidding. He’s got a direct tap to the source, all right…Adding his own twist to the magic; he sent it flying down the hall. Fire crawled on every surface, blazing a trail down the hallway. A straight blast of energy flew directly down the middle, obliterating everything in its path.

Darren waved them forward as he ran, unsheathing his sword. “There’s no time for thinking! Run!” Down the hall they went, Acerin and Sara trailing and keeping the wolves from catching up. Darren’s sword burst into white flame as they kept running and he looked down at it in amazement. I haven’t seen that since…could it be? Every now and then a wolf would come at him from the darkness, but a quick slash from the now-shining sword dispatched it for good. The real danger came from behind.

They reached the stairs leading down and took them in leaps, knowing the wolves would clear them easily. Darren motioned them forward and stopped at the bottom of the stairs, sword upright in both hands. “The priest knows what to look for! Milar, you’re in charge otherwise!” They kept going while he waited for the wolves to catch up, and it didn’t take long.

The first one didn’t see him standing there, and attempted to jump the stairs, flying over Darren’s head, and rather conveniently, his raised sword. It was slit from head to hind legs, bursting into flame and shriveling to dust. The others still jumped, but quick slashes took care of them as well. Darren glanced over his shoulder at the others, turning back for another wolf. {Sara, I can do this for quite a while, but I’d prefer not to.} She didn’t look back. {I understand.}
~
The rest rushed through a few doors and various rooms with articles of interest on display, but Larauc was clearly headed for something else. They came at last to a long room, statues on both sides facing the other wall. Larauc ran through and the others tried to follow, but they were restrained by a will greater than their own. Sara passed through, but the others couldn’t go past the first set of statues. Milar sighed. “Be careful, Sara. Legerra, Thendat, go back and help Darren. Acerin, Fraydon and I will wait here.”

Sara looked at Larauc. “Why couldn’t they pass through?” Larauc frowned. “This is a holy place. They have spilt much blood, and they cannot enter.” “Oh…” The door on the other side of the hall lead into another room, and Larauc closed the door behind him. “Can’t take any chances.”

The pair opened one more set of doors and their running was done. They were in a room no bigger than a small house, steps leading up to a bare altar. While Sara was taking it all in, Larauc closed the door. “Now, will you make this easy, or hard?” Sara grimaced and turned around, mentally kicking herself. “I never take the easy way.”

Larauc’s monk costume burst at the seams, and a thing born of darkness emerged. It couldn’t have been a were-wolf, but it was neither human nor wolf. It seemed some unholy mix of the worst of both. It stood on two feet, black fur covering its entire body, jaws dripping saliva. “That’s too bad. You see, we need to sacrifice someone who hasn’t spilt innocent blood to totally change this monastery, and it just so happens you fit the bill nicely.”

Sara’s instinctive reaction was to back away, but she didn’t move. Taking out a smaller dagger in her right hand, she made a slight incision on her left forearm. “I’ve spilt innocent blood. Nothing you do will matter now.” The wolf-man growled, “Even if the sacrifice does not work, I will still drink of your blood this day.”

Well, so much for that, then. Sara jumped backwards to the other side of the altar, keeping distance until she could think of something. There was very little to serve as a weapon, and she wasn’t sure how effective her magic would be.

Her throwing daggers had no effect, and she didn’t want to get closer. Ice magic hurt him, but his wounds healed far too quickly. It was only when she was healing herself that he backed away. Makes sense…he’s evil. Is it even possible to cast healing on enemies?

It certainly hurt him now. The wolf-man stumbled backwards, clutching at his chest. She tried again, with the same effect. But no damage was being done besides inflicting pain. Unless he died of a sudden heart attack, she was going to have to find something else. The wolf-man roared loudly, startling her from her concentration on magic. Taking advantage of the situation, he jumped forward and pushed her back, pinning her down.

Once he had her tired, he bound her to the altar with magic-resistant ropes. “We planned ahead, just in case we got someone like you,” he said. Sara’s mind reached out, barely making a connection before the wolf-man realized what she was doing and held the dagger to her neck. She didn’t dare swallow for fear the razor-sharp knife would cut her throat.

The wolf-man lifted the dagger and returned to his chanting. Sara felt a chill as evil magic filled the room and darkened the torchlight. He raised the dagger as his chanting reached its climax. The doors burst open and a bright light shone in. He turned and almost dropped the dagger, shielding his eyes and howling in pain. The light disappeared and revealed…nothing.

The wolf-man looked around suspiciously, walking down the steps and closing the door again, not noticing a fine gold chain with a broken clasp floating up the steps and settling around Sara’s neck. A voice came into her mind, whispering only to her “Wherever you go, I am with you.” She closed her eyes and concentrated.

Larauc returned, still in his twisted form. “No more interruptions.” He reached out, grabbed her hair, and slit her throat, watching the blood run down both sides of the altar.

High up in the tower of the monastery, a bell tolled twice, and Larauc faced away from the altar, laughing hysterically. “At last! We will conqueror!” A shadow darkened the light from the roof and he raised his hands and head, still laughing as Sara fell from above and thrust her short swords, blazing with holy light, through his throat.

The illusion on the altar disappeared, and before his vision darkened completely he saw the ropes cut, the altar without a body, and the tips of both her blades dripping with his blood. Larauc collapsed and Sara braced her foot against his body, pulling her swords out. She flung open the doors to see the group running past the statues, the spell broken. So it wasn’t holy magic keeping them away. It was dark magic, waiting until it found the one with the most ‘sacrificial potential.’

“Sara! You’re alright!” Fraydon ran up, looking her over for wounds. “Yes, I’m fine. We need to get out of here, though. This place isn’t holy at all.” Sara ran past them and headed for the group still fighting the wolves. Milar stared after her. “When did she stop looking for sympathy?” Fraydon smiled at him. “When you’re all alone, fighting by yourself, you grow up real fast.” Milar shrugged and led them to the stairs.

Darren, Legerra, and Thendat stood waiting while the rest approached them. They were covered in blood, weary, and sick of wolves. When they were all together, Darren led the six others down the hallway, empty of wolves. Those still alive had no real power left after their leader’s death and reverted to normal wolves, avoiding humans.

They re-entered the covered courtyard, sitting down on the benches. Legerra sighed deeply and was echoed by Thendat. “Good practice, but a bit boring.” A few chuckled. Sara stood up and looked around, disturbed. Darren looked up at her questioningly. “Something wrong?” Sara smiled weakly. “I don’t know. The monastery seems…darker. More aggressive and threatening, in a way.”

Darren nodded. “I had noticed that, but didn’t know why either. What do you suppose we could do about it?” Legerra raised his hand. “We could go back and see if any of the relics are holy or just fakes.” Sara shook her head. “Everything down there has been perverted.” She stood. “There’s only one way to cleanse the monastery.”

Darren sighed. “I wish we could, Sara, but we’re all tired and don’t have the energy.” Sara smiled gently. “I do.” She walked out to the center of the courtyard and raised her hand, white light forming. Darren shook his head and stood up. “Sara, you don’t have enough either. Why-” He watched in amazement as she reached down and pulled out the necklace, holding it up and watching the light grow stronger.

He nodded slowly. Now it all makes sense. My sword, her victory…He noticed the broken clasp. Even broken, it still retains all that power...incredible.

She turned to face him, light framing her features, painting her as a surreal object among a bland background. Calling on all her strength, Sara closed her fist around the necklace, the holy light streaming through her fingers. Finally, she could contain it no longer and let it explode in a wave, rolling through the entire monastery, cleaning every stone from the evil that had tainted it. Legerra flew off the bench and landed a few feet away, hard on his rear.

The light dimmed and disappeared, the orb in the clasp changed to a light blue instead of the dark red it used to be. Sara sat down on a bench heavily. Legerra got up from the floor, rubbing his soreness away. “…so the monastery’s been fixed, Sara’s found the only good relic left, the wolves are gone, and we’re all hurt, tired, and…hungry! Let’s eat.”
- posted by Nick @ 5/05/2004 10:53:00 AM