Hello everyone! Thank you all for your feedback on the recent chapters. I'm glad you're enjoying them. If you want to be added to the mailing list, let me know at purplejubilee17@gmail.com
Thanks so much to my supporters on Patreon; Dan, David, Dom, Kameron, Mark C, Mark F, NightHawk, and Richard. I couldn't do it without you. Check out patreon.com/purplejubilee to learn more if you like.
Of course, thanks to Nifty for hosting. Please think about giving them a donation!
Thanks for reading! <3 PurpleJubilee
Elias of Eradal Chapter 8
The little tome that Elias had found underneath the blade appeared to be written by Amarack himself. Much of it was gibberish, but from what Elias could glean from the fragmented thoughts, the Darkblade had been created by Amarack's master and was the only thing capable of bringing about his undoing. Amarack seemed perpetually afraid that his master would discover him documenting this, but he did so in order to keep some leverage.
Infuriatingly, Amarack never said his master's name. This allowed Elias's fears about doing battle with dark gods to grow unchecked. He did not share his thoughts with Kole or Avi though. No need to frighten them unnecessarily.
As he held the weapon in his hand it certainly felt like a thing of evil. The hilt was wrapped in black leather with a pale milky-white gem set into its pommel. The cross-guard bore a runic symbol that Elias did not recognize despite his extensive knowledge. The sheath of the blade was made of shining black lacquered wood, carved with ornate and darkly beautiful designs. The Darkblade itself however, when Elias pulled it from its sheath was simple grey steel. Its edge was razor thin though and the moment Elias freed it, the weapon seemed to sing the eerie song that also hung over the swamps. It was cold to the touch, and Elias wished to handle it as little as possible.
According to Amarack's book, if the blade was unsheathed too close then his master would recognize its song and awaken to reclaim it. If his master ever betrayed him, Amarack's plan had been to sneak up and make the killing blow immediately after drawing the weapon. Even then, the dark wizard seemed unsure that it would work. His disjointed scribbles showed how terrified the sorcerer was of this evil being.
Returning the Darkblade to its sheath, Elias hoped that they were not close enough for its power to be felt. The three of them camped not far from Amarack's smoldering hut. It was dangerous to stay so close to such an obvious sign of their presence, but neither Kole nor Elias were able to continue much farther that night.
"We should reach the far edge of the swamp tomorrow. Then it's up into the mountains." Kole informed them as they made camp.
Avi was the only one glad to hear this. Though Elias held no love for the marshes he knew that the mountains would be no better. The closer they got to the heart of this evil, the more difficult their journey would be.
Despite their exhaustion, Kole and Elias sat awake by the fire after Avi had drifted off to sleep, huddled near Kole.
"Do you think he's right?" Kole wondered quietly. "About the duck. Is it still here, somewhere?" He gave a fruitless scan of their little campsite.
Shaking his head, Elias shrugged. "I have little knowledge of sorcery and contracting with spirits. The boy Dain said that she would cross over soon but..." He looked helplessly at Kole. "If Avi is lying he certainly makes it convincing."
Kole glanced down at the sleeping boy then shook his head. "No. He's not lying. Avi is a great thief but a terrible liar. That's what concerns me though. I have no doubt he believes it's here, whether it is or not."
With a sigh, Elias nodded. He had been thinking much the same thing. "Sorcery or not," He spoke again after a moment, "No spell can last forever. If the bird is still here, then it will fade eventually. And if not, maybe Avi will outgrow it in time."
Giving a slight frown, Kole eventually shrugged. "You may be right. There's nothing to be done about it now anyway." He paused for a long time, long enough that Elias thought their conversation had ended.
"You did well today." Kole broke the quiet in a low timbre. "Thank you. I'm... in your debt for helping to avenge my friend." The sentiment was obviously difficult to voice.
Elias felt something akin to pity. As dry as Kole's usual demeanor was, this was another level. "I could not have done it without you..." Elias admitted slowly even though his ego hated the truth of the statement. "Do you feel better?" He had to ask. "Now that it's done?" He thought he already knew the answer to this.
"No." Kole confirmed softly. "Not really. Revenge is funny that way." His voice suggested that he found no humor in the statement at all. "It's all you want for so long. Then, once you get it, you're left with... nothing..." He stalled out and Elias watched his mouth twist in distaste.
Fumbling with his own uncertainties, Elias tried to provide some comfort. "Maybe not nothing... You and Avi are obviously close. And you must have... friends or family?" He finished uncertainly.
As he leaned back, Kole chuckled in good humor. "Very few that would care if I lived or died." The moment of vulnerability was gone; replaced again with a roguish half-smile and an unassailable air of confidence. "What about you, `Master Wizard'? Who's grieving for you?"
This time, Elias recognized Kole's flippant and sarcastic nature and quelled the spark of annoyance almost as soon as it arose. The question also gave him pause. Who would know if he was unsuccessful on this quest? If he died, his parents would hear of it eventually, but as with most of the nobility of Eradal they had many children. Elias's magical prodigy had come nearly as a matter of course. Selective breeding and regular childbearing were bound to bring about genius from time to time.
The existential conundrum troubled Elliot for a long moment before he chose not to lose himself in considering it. He would not die. He would not fail.
"I apologize." Changing the subject, Elias spoke again, this time very softly. "If I have not always been the most... pleasant traveling companion."
Kole snorted a laugh and gave Elias half of his usual cocky smile, locking eyes with him. "That might be an understatement you know."
Elias had to smile sheepishly as well but Kole did not look away. He held Elias's gaze steadily in the firelight. For some reason, Elias felt his heartbeat quicken as he was trapped in Kole's amber-golden stare. Kole seemed to be similarly affected however. Elias saw him swallow heavily as they gazed at each other.
"Maybe less unpleasant than one might think though." Kole remarked quietly as this strange tension mounted.
Try as he might, Elias could find no words to describe this sudden moment between them. Desires he did not recognize sprang to the front of his mind and he recalled the feeling of painting the runes onto Kole's lean muscular body as his chest rose and fell. His hand wanted that feeling again. Eventually though, Elias could stand it no longer. He looked down at the ground, breaking the eye contact lest he be overwhelmed by these foreign thoughts.
Kole cleared his throat awkwardly and shuffled his way into his bedroll. "We should... sleep." He said huskily.
Giving a nod, Elias felt his face redden in embarrassment and hoped that Kole didn't notice. What had come over him. "Goodnight." He wished before he could stop himself.
"You as well..." Kole returned, trying to sound reassuring.
Gradually the ground underneath them grew firmer as they travelled. They reached the edge of the swamp without incident. It felt like even the wildlife had retreated, though not because of some change in the atmosphere. It felt to Elias like the world was holding its breath.
They were on the edge now. He thought. If they succeeded, then maybe these swamp lands could become passable again. If not, then there would be much worse things to worry about. He regretted now not informing Master Sato, or someone at least, of his quest. Should they fail, the Five Kingdoms needed to be ready. Elias had been so confident in his success when he set out however that the thought had not even crossed his mind.
It was too late now obviously. All he could do was hope that, if the worst should happen, the powerful wizards of the Kingdoms would sense the evil before it was too late.
It was early in the evening when the first earthquake hit. They had just set up camp for the night. The sun set rapidly the farther they moved into the tall mountains and Kole advised against travelling without proper lighting.
At first Elias thought it was thunder when the low rumbling began. Then the mountains began to shake all around them. A gradual barely noticeable shiver ran through the ground but quickly grew in intensity as some of the more loosened dirt and gravel slid down the path they had just climbed.
Kole grabbed Avi with one hand then pulled Elias in as well. The three held onto each other while Kole wrapped one arm around a sturdy tree branch.
A massive cracking sound echoed through the mountains and Avi jumped violently, his eyes wide with fright. Somewhere in the distance they heard a grating rumbling as dirt and rocks gave way and tumbled down one of the mountain sides. Only one large boulder came bouncing down remotely close to them, crashing through the trees with a sound like a stampede.
The three watched it race past from a safe distance and waited for further danger. As suddenly as it had started however, the rumbling and the shaking faded away. Loose stones skittered down past them but nothing that posed a threat. Nonetheless, they stood still together for several minutes, not even speaking to one another.
Finally, Kole broke the silence. "These mountains are known for tremors sometimes, but not often so violent as that I think."
Unhitching himself from his companions, Elias nodded. "I fear that maybe the monster is stirring. It could be causing the quakes."
"Wot's big enuff to do that?" Avi demanded incredulously with a touch of fear.
"I don't know." Elias admitted, "But we'll soon find out."
Kole looked skeptically up at the mountains. "That is if that rockslide didn't block our path."
Following Kole's gaze, Elias grimaced. He had not considered that. Glancing down at the scribbled directions in Amarack's book he hoped that whatever god or deity had set him on his quest would not let him be foiled by an earthquake.
As the three continued up the mountains, several more tremors rocked the ground beneath them. They were once threatened by a rockslide that Elias was able to avert with some tactful earth magic. The group spoke very little. Even Avi had fallen almost totally silent. Although the mountains were not as oppressive as the swamps, the ever-growing tension hung thick in the air and every sound bounced off the sheer rock faces.
Birds that looked uncomfortably like buzzards wheeled overhead, causing Elias to wonder if the animals knew something that the rest of them did not. The air turned colder as they ascended though it was no surprise. Autumn was approaching and the caps of the Koval mountains were so high that they rarely thawed even in the height of summer.
During the night, Avi began to huddle close to Kole and their modest fires in order to keep warm. Elias found himself feeling inexplicably covetous of the bond his companions shared. Even as a child Elias had never had real friends. Occasionally he spent time with other apprentices, but it was more akin to professional relationships than actual friendships. He told himself that his relationship to Kole and Avi was no more than that as well. Even though he had to admit even in his own thoughts that he was glad they were along, he insisted that it was only because they had proven helpful and brought some comfort to traveling in hostile territory.
It took several days, but they eventually reached a point marked in Amarack's book as being quite close to the cave entrance. A solid wall of rock rose up in front of them, with dense and virtually impassable undergrowth to one side, and empty space to the other with a dizzying drop below.
Elias frowned as he looked down at the scribbled map, then around them in confusion.
"There should be a path." He muttered, pacing the area and searching for signs. Had they taken a wrong turn somewhere?
Kole took up the search as well, batting at some of the bushes to see if they were hiding a secret way. He then approached the edge of the cliff and knelt down.
"Hey, El..." He called Elias over. Holding up a handful of freshly disturbed earth scraped from the very edge of the drop he shook his head. "Here's your path I think."
Elias looked from the cliff's edge then up the sheer mountainside, his heart sinking. "One of those rockslides..."
Standing up again, Kole looked over his shoulder at the shrubs. "If we had some rope maybe we could... Avi what are you doing!? Get back here!" His voice took on a sudden panic.
Elias noticed with a start that Avi had began inching himself out on a ledge that ran along the side of the mountain's face; likely all that remained of their path. The ledge was no more than a foot wide at most and Avi had to face the rock wall with both arms extended for balance.
"We gotta go this way, don't we?" Avi asked innocently. "'mon then!"
Elias winced as a small shower of rock crumbled away under Avi's foot, but the small boy corrected easily and continued moving slowly forward. As he watched helplessly, Elias thought that maybe it made sense. Avi was probably quite experienced keeping his balance in precarious positions. That plus his small size made him the nimble enough to traverse the ledge with hardly a worry. This was all well and good for Avi, but the size of the ledge would have made it difficult for anyone much larger to make it safely across. For someone Kole's size it would likely be impossible.
"Avi, come back a moment." Elias called, inspiration striking. Quickly, he dashed back over to the short bushes opposite the cliff, motioning for Kole to follow. "Can you cut as many of these as possible into pieces as long as you can?"
Kole frowned then abruptly nodded, understanding crossing his face. He began to chop at the bushes and separate them into long thin branches.
With a simple spell, similar to what he had seen Amarack do with the thorns, Elias began to weave the branches together and around one another to form a thick length of cable. Idly, he wondered how much easier this task would be if he was practiced in natural magic like Dain. He probably could have just willed the branches together and fused them into a solid piece instead of wrapping and cording them.
Nonetheless, his method appeared to be effective. Foot after foot of primitive makeshift rope twined together and gathered on the ground. Avi stood watching, clearly not understanding but not wanting to disrupt the process.
It took time, but eventually Elias had formed a long thick cable that he hoped would serve their purposes. He held it up to Kole who took it and tugged on both ends, testing the strength.
"You think it will hold?" Kole asked, eying the interwoven branches skeptically.
"Do you have a better idea?" Elias countered, trying to sound lighthearted.
Kole frowned and shrugged. "Guess not."
Fastening one end of the rope to a tree closest to the edge of the cliff, Elias then looped the rest of the coil around Avi's shoulder who was beginning to get the idea.
"You want me te carry it over." He guessed correctly at Elias's plan.
"That's right." Elias affirmed. "Hopefully the ledge goes all the way around and there's enough rope there to reach over. Tie it to the sturdiest thing you can find."
"Awlright!" Avi declared, excited to have a task.
"Wait..." Kole looked torn. He looked at the narrow ledge. "I should do it. I can make it work."
Elias raised an eyebrow at the big man. "You know you can't fit along there. I'd barely fit and you're twice my size."
"I can do it!" Avi insisted. "It's not even that bad, I been up `igh loads o' times."
Kole's firm expression had Elias thinking that he was going to hold his ground on the issue, but finally with a sigh, he relented. "Just... be careful." He turned to Elias. "Is there some spell you can use to keep him from falling?"
Elias bit his lip thinking then eventually nodded. "I can put an air current up against his back. It won't keep him from falling but it will make it easier to stay balanced. At least as long as he's in sight. After that I won't risk it since it could push him the wrong way."
"It's gonna be easy!" Avi assured confidently, striding toward the ledge. Elias found Avi's courage in moments like this to be impressive. It was clearly genuine too, not just an act put on to boost their opinion of him. Obviously, Avi had no fear of the deadly fall that waited just one false step away.
"Alright..." Kole winced. "If it gets too narrow then come back." He ordered.
Avi smirked and waved off Kole's concern. Once again, he began to creep his way out on the ledge. Very gently, Elias pushed a soft cushion of air against him to keep him stabilized against the rock face.
"Feels funny." Avi commented as he continued his slow progress. About ten feet out he stopped and leaned backward slightly, waving his arms in an exaggerated motion. "I fink I'm gonna fall!" He called back with a teasing grin at Kole.
"Stop playing!" Kole snapped, not amused. Avi giggled and kept moving.
Elias was careful not to put too much pressure on Avi so as to squeeze him against the rock or hinder his movement, but he also kept another much strong spell on the tip of his tongue in case the worst should happen. If Avi fell, he could at least hang on to the rope he carried, but that would only help up until the point he smashed into the side of the cliff. Elias hoped that, if it came to that, he could use a more powerful current of air to slow Avi's descent enough that he would be able to keep ahold of the lifeline on impact. There were far too many variables for Elias's liking, however.
Eventually, Avi scooted around the side of the cliff face out of sight. Elias had to release his spell since there was no way for him to tell what the ledge was like on the other side. Kole paced the edge of the cliff nervously and Elias held a long breath. Time ticked by slowly. All the while, Elias kept his magic at the ready. He would not be caught unprepared this time. Even magic had its limits though he knew. If Avi fell and was not able to keep hold of the rope, Elias would only be able to slow his fall, not avert it entirely. Levitation magic on a human was very energy inefficient and he could keep it active for only a few seconds.
Another worry started to grow on Elias's mind, and he could see Kole thinking about it as well. If the rope was not long enough to span the gap then Avi would have to come all the way back, risking it all for no purpose.
Suddenly the rope went taut and both Kole and Elias jumped at the abrupt movement.
"It's fixed on!" The small voice echoed across from the unseen.
Kole heaved a sigh of relief and Elias offered him a reassuring smile. Avi had done his job. The rope was secure.
"I'll go first." Kole volunteered. "If it can hold me up, you won't have a problem."
Taking a firm hold of the corded vine-like rope, Kole placed his heels on the ledge Avi had nimbly navigated. Using the tightened rope as a makeshift handrail, he inched himself out over the chasm. Elias watched tensely. Even though he felt like the rope was strong enough, that did not mean he was comfortable watching Kole moving out into open space with nothing but a few inches of rock and a homemade rope to support him. Even if the rope held, it could only take one wrong step or a slip to send him plummeting. And with Kole it would be even more difficult to intervene with magic in any way.
Elias realized as Kole rounded the bend and disappeared from view that he did care more than he wanted to admit. His concern was undeniable, and he could barely stand still. It was not a feeling he liked very much, and what it meant posed questions that he was not ready to explore. Even so, when Kole's voice called out safely from the other side, Elias was glad that neither of them could see the relief plain on his face.
His own crossing proved to be a rather simple affair. Unnerving in the extreme, however. The rope creaked and groaned dangerously, and his footing was never as secure as Avi had made it look. He leaned heavily on the corded branches, praying that he had done his work well enough.
It was with shaky legs that Elias finally stepped onto the solid ground of the path on the other side. Kole pulled him away from the edge with one hand, herding him in close. Maybe it was Elias's imagination, but he felt that Kole held onto him longer than was necessary for the sake of safety. Elias found though that he didn't mind. When Kole released him, Elias tried to meet his gaze to confirm his theory but Kole was already turning toward the path that continued up the mountain.
"Well done..." Elias gave Avi a sincere affirmative nod and the small boy beamed from ear to ear.
After their harrowing crossing it seemed like the rest of their journey should be easy. However, the feeling of disquiet grew within all three of them. None of them mentioned it, but it was apparent they all felt it. It was nearly evening when Elias turned back to be sure Avi had not fallen to far behind when he suddenly saw it.
Several yards behind, almost entirely invisible from the direction they had come, was a crack in the mountain wall. Looking down from the upward side of the path it was plain to see and was wide enough even for Kole to squeeze through, but none of them had even noticed on the way up.
When Elias pointed this out to Kole he was similarly confused. "I would have sworn it was bare rock only a moment ago." He moved forward to inspect the crevice. Sure enough, when he moved his hand through it, it passed through open space, confirming that the hole in the rock was not just some magic trick.
Elias stepped closer as well and now could feel the very slight breeze that blew into the cave. Looking down at Amarack's notes he scanned them carefully as best he could. The insane sorcerer had warned that the entrance was hidden, but Elias had expected something bigger and more foreboding than a slit in the mountainside.
"I think... This has to be it..." He moved in close to peer into the darkness. As he did so, a sense of fear washed over him; Similar to what he had felt approaching Amarack's hut but more sinister if such a thing were possible. This left him with no doubt. He stepped back and shivered. "This is the place." He informed his companions confidently.
Avi wrinkled his nose looking at the cave. "Tibbs don't wanna go in." He told them, shaking his head.
"She can stay outside if she likes." Kole responded firmly but gently. "But you're staying with me this time."
Avi frowned but didn't argue. Elias held up the palm of his hand and conjured a small bright flame. Sucking in a breath of fresh air to bolster his courage, knowing that this was what they were here for, he led the way into the darkness.