Ancient Prophecy (14 page)

Dimitri climbed out of the cart and entered the castle. Slowly he walked up to Sarac’s study and entered, thinking how Sarac would ridicule him for such an outlandish story.

“I see that you have returned in lavish style, Dimitri,” greeted Sarac. “Have the ogres nothing better to do than to ferry you around? Where is Wasar?”

“We were checking for Junctions as you ordered,” began Dimitri, “when we encountered some problems. Wasar insisted on checking out each Junction to determine what type of life forms dwelled in them. The last Junction he inspected was inhabited by a powerful force that attacked us.” Dimitri began quivering as he recalled the attack.

His curiosity aroused, Sarac ordered Dimitri to continue.

Dimitri retrieved a chair without asking and sat down, steadying his hands on the desk so that Sarac would not see them shake. “Whatever attacked uses magic beyond my comprehension,” he continued. “Wasar burst into flames and his skin began to melt.”

“So, somebody hit Wasar with a fireball and you came running home,” quipped Sarac. “Is that what you are trying to tell me?”

“No!” shouted Dimitri and then sheepishly lowered his voice. “It was not a fireball. His skin melted and ate through rocks like acid and yet he did not die. His skin poured off his bones and Wasar became possessed. His bones turned to attack me and a great black mist encircled his head and then the voice came, but it was not Wasar’s voice. Wasar was still screaming and then snarling, but the other voice made me feel like I was trapped under the ice in a frozen river. The voice said that he was Alutar and he would rule us all, dead or alive. The black cloud continues to swell, enveloping huge areas of land, a cloud that brings death or worse.”

Dimitri’s whole body was now shaking and he could not control it even to hide his fear from Sarac. Sarac turned his head away from Dimitri in disgust and gazed out the window. Sarac waved his hand in dismissal and Dimitri stumbled out of the study. Sarac shouted for Lattimer and his aide appeared quickly.

“We have trouble, Lattimer,” declared Sarac. “One of your heroes has fled before an enemy, an enemy who sounds powerful. His name is Alutar and that is a name I have read somewhere before, but I cannot place it.”

Lattimer stood lost in thought, searching his memory for references to Alutar and shaking his head. Sarac nodded sympathetically and began to speak when Lattimer started.

“Nagor’s Dark Legends!” Lattimer exclaimed. “It was a volume that Kirsta picked up while searching for the Origin Scroll. She had hoped that the legends would give some type of hint as to the location of the scroll, because it was mentioned in one of the stories. You looked at it briefly and discarded it as useless.”

Sarac smiled, “But you did not, did you?”

“You know I read everything I can,” chuckled Lattimer. “Alutar was a great demon that battled the Mage and was defeated. It was said that the Mage and the Demon were equals, but the Mage won in the end and banished Alutar to some far land. They were both said to be immortal, but Alutar was never heard from again and the Mage disappeared eventually, but much later. Those were just stories though.”

“I wonder,” mused Sarac. “There is much truth in the old stories and something of great power thinks that it has been released. If our enemy is indeed Alutar, we will need to be prepared, though I can not rationalize something of such great power not being able to find a Junction.”

Lattimer looked quizzically at Sarac and Sarac retold Dimitri’s tale. “It sounded like this Alutar felt he had been freed from a prison and yet it was nothing but a simple Junction,” Sarac summarized. “Get a small army together and send them to investigate. Chose a competent magician to lead and about a hundred ogres to send towards the position Dimitri and Wasar were assigned to search. Return here when you are done.”

Sarac watched through the window as Lattimer chose a Black Devil to lead the ogres. Lattimer did not take long to set up the band to investigate and returned to Sarac’s study. “They are leaving immediately,” reported Lattimer.

“We need to take this seriously, Lattimer,” instructed Sarac. “If Alutar cannot find Junctions, our best defense may be hiding the Junction to our own Universe. I want you to make a list of every ogre that has been through the Junction to our Universe and do not allow any others to gain the information. If this demon is immortal and we cannot conquer him, we will escape and regroup on the other side of the Junction while the ogres battle him.”

“As you wish,” agreed Lattimer. “Hagik is a good man and will return victorious, but I will make up the list as you have ordered.”

Hagik did not have to go as far as Dimitri and Wasar had. Three days out of camp he spotted the black cloud spreading ominously across the Western sky. He sent six ogres forward at a run to gather information while the rest of the party continued at a steady rate. The following morning they were at the edge of the black cloud and Hagik stared in disbelief. Nothing lived under the black cloud. Trees were naked, their bark peeling off and piling up on the forest floor around dead roots, the grass was black and riverbeds were dry. The air had a biting sting as he inhaled and soon his throat was raw.

Out of the black mist, his six forward scouts returned. The ogres at the front of the procession started growling and Hagik forced his way through the ranks. The six scouts came slowly marching towards him and the ogres, their skin hanging in scraps around their bones. Their faces were devoid of features -- no ears, no eyes, no nose, and just a gaping expanse of teeth in a cavern where a mouth used to exist. Hagik immediately cast a ward around himself and the two closest ogres, ordering them to remain close to him.

The mutated ogres marched into the ranks and started killing Hagik’s ogres. Several of the mutants tried to reach Hagik, but his ward kept them at bay, while all around him the other ogres were dying. Hagik watched impassively as his ogres were cut down. Three of the mutants were destroyed by ogres literally ripping apart their bones before Hagik heard the voice.

“Foolish magician,” the icy voice boomed, “do you think your puny wards can protect you? Lower your wards and swear allegiance to me and I will allow you to serve me, refuse and you shall die and then serve me.”

Through the black mist, Hagik could make out the form a large, hideous creature armored with black scales. His eyes shone a fiery red and penetrated the dark mist as he swung long, thick limbs, which culminated in huge claws. Hagik imagined he could feel the ground tremble as the creature strode towards him, towering over the tall ogres. Hagik hurled a fireball at the monster and the beast howled with laughter. His fiery eyes pivoted to gaze directly at Hagik and the Black Devil and his two ogre guards went flying through the air.

Hagik shook his head and commanded the remaining ogre soldiers to attack the demon. Hagik grabbed the closest ogre and commanded that he carry him away from the battle with his greatest speed. The ogre easily picked up the magician with one hand and started running back towards Sarac’s castle. Hagik peered back at the battlefield and saw his ogres burning and screaming and still the cloud moved eastward.

When they reached the first ogre village, Hagik ordered a cart brought and a fresh ogre to transport him home at the greatest speed. When he reached Sarac’s castle he immediately reported to the leader of the Black Devils.

“Are you saying that he broke through your wards by looking at you?” asked Sarac.

“Yes,” answered Hagik. “His eyes burn like fire and I could feel them tearing my ward apart. The scouts whom I sent were not dead when they attacked, but neither were they alive.”

“That is the same description that Dimitri gave of Wasar,” remarked Lattimer.

“Yes,” agreed Sarac. “You have done well, Hagik. Lattimer, it is time we took some sensible precautions. I do not wish to battle something that we do not yet understand. Did you complete the list of ogres that have been through the Junction?”

“The list is ready and it is long,” admitted Lattimer. “Over a thousand ogres are aware of the location of the Junction or at least the path one would have to take to pass through it.”

“Okay,” commanded Sarac, “gather those thousand and nine thousand more and move them through the Junction. Once they have passed through the Junction, they may not return for any reason. Prepare the other ninety thousand for battle against the demon.”

“We may lose a significant number of ogres that way,” reminded Lattimer. “Would that not hinder our attack on Targa?”

“Perhaps,” offered Sarac, “but only if they lose. If Alutar can destroy wards with only a look, we will not have much chance to experiment on which type of spells might defeat him without losing a great number of my Black Devils. I am not prepared to lose them when we are so close to conquering Targa and the entire continent.”

“So you propose to overwhelm the demon with a massive number of ogres,” suggested Hagik.

“Precisely,” stated Sarac. “However, any survivors can join up with us later.”

“Then why is it so important that the ogres that are aware of the Junction be removed?” asked Lattimer.

“If this demon can command the dead,” speculated Sarac, “he may be able to order them to show him the location of the Junction. It would be a small step from there to Targa and I will not have that foul beast trampling on my home Universe.”

“As you wish,” stated Lattimer. “I will ready our forces immediately. Come, Hagik, you can lead the privileged ogres to safety. You have performed your battle dues already.”

It took two days to marshal the chosen ten thousand and march them towards the Junction. Another two days were required to form the army that would battle Alutar. Lattimer decided on a relatively simple battle plan. The Black Devils would plant Tree Mines in Alutar’s path and the ninety thousand ogres would be deployed to surround the demon. Lattimer, Alon, and Frej would be the only Black Devils to remain in the Universe. Their job was primarily to observe and confirm the death of Alutar. Lattimer would shoot a flaming projectile into the sky to initiate the attack.

The three Black Devils waited in one of the towers of Sarac’s castle. The black cloud blotted the Western sky and when the Sun passed its zenith, a darkness blacker than night descended over the land. Lattimer heard the explosion from one of the Tree Mines and waited. By now, twenty thousand ogres should have moved into position west of the demon. Twenty thousand more were positioned North and South with thirty thousand standing before the castle.

Two more Tree Mines exploded and Lattimer let loose with the signal. His flaming projectile arched high into the sky and disappeared into the black cloud. Twice more he launched the signal before yelling down to the ogres to attack. Thirty thousand screaming ogres went charging into the black mist. Lattimer could just barely see the north and south contingents also charging into the gloom.

Alon laughed. “Let’s see how long the great demon can stand up to ninety thousand ogres.”

Lattimer smiled and gazed down at the three ogres and carts that he had ordered to remain behind. He hoped Alon was correct, but Lattimer did not survive by making foolish assumptions. Lattimer watched as flames erupted in the dark forest. Thousands of screams mixed with explosions and the sound of hurried air being sucked into the forest to fuel a great fire.

Lattimer watched in fascination as the cloud continued eastward and he saw the trees die before his very eyes. Nothing was touching the trees or being tossed at the trees to make them die. Suddenly, Lattimer realized that the black cloud itself was a weapon. The cloud had the ability to kill and it was heading for him.

“Alon, Frej, get down to the carts and get yourself out of here!” he shouted. “The black cloud is deadly and anything under it dies. Warn Sarac about the cloud and tell him that I’ll be along shortly.”

At that moment the first retreating ogres came running out of the forest. Lattimer cursed and turned to the two retreating Black Devils. “Just a moment,” he ordered, “help me set up a ward barrier before you leave. I want a solid wall across the clearing so the ogres cannot retreat. They will fight or they will die.”

Alon and Frej reluctantly returned and the three Black Devils worked together to create a great barrier ward. They finished just as the first retreating ogres slammed into it. Lattimer snickered as the ogres screamed and clawed at the invisible barrier. Lattimer again dismissed his two helpers and sent them on their way to Sarac as he watched the trapped ogres turn and place their backs to the barrier. More ogres fled the forest and soon there was a great mass of ogres trapped by the barrier.

Lattimer let his eyes rove over the forest and gasped as he saw what the ogres were running from. Hundreds of mutant ogres were slowly stalking forward to attack their wholesome brothers. Lattimer continued scanning the forest and saw that thousands of mutants were also surging out of the forest to the North and South. With cool detachment, Lattimer watched his ogre army being destroyed, but that calm facade weakened and disappeared when Lattimer watched in horror as his dead defenders rose from the battlefield and became mutant attackers. Lattimer knew that not only was the battle lost, but he had just given Alutar ninety thousand ogres to add to his army.

Lattimer was preparing to evacuate when he caught site of Alutar in his peripheral vision. He spun back to the window and gazed at the demon. Alutar tilted his head and watched as the last of the defending ogres were slaughtered and his mutants pressed up against the invisible barrier. Alutar raised his hand and pointed at the growing mob stalled by the barrier. The barrier and hundreds of mutant ogres exploded in a great flash of light, bodies and body pieces spewing from the earth in a giant red fountain.

Lattimer stood shocked as Alutar turned his attention to the castle. Alutar’s eyes glowed brightly and Lattimer watched portions of the castle explode. Lattimer bolted for the stairs and was half way down when the top of the tower burst like a ripe melon, sending showers of rock all over the courtyard. Lattimer scrambled down the rest of the stairs and ran to the waiting cart and ogre. Lattimer hopped into the cart and ordered the ogre to start moving. The Black Devil looked up at the ogre and saw fear etched in its face. The order to move did not have to be repeated, as the ogre took off faster than Lattimer would have believed him capable.