My Sparkling Misfortune (The Lakeland Knight) (3 page)

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As you can imagine, my journey to Silky Lake was not easy, but I will spare you the detailed account of all the hardships I went through; let's just say that it took me over two months to get there, and there were no white towers in that region--none at all. I had left their safety several times during my journey, and those days were agonizing, but the monster didn't show up; he must have not tracked me down yet. That had given me confidence for the final plunge--venturing into the area where I would be completely unprotected. Remember I told you that being a villain at times requires some heroism? Well, this would be one such occasion.

I reached the lake in the middle of a bright sunny day. The water, indeed, was stunningly beautiful... and that's all I will say. You didn't expect a sappy description from someone like me, did you?

I hid in the nearby bushes and waited. Nothing was happening for so long that I began to wonder whether the whole thing was a sham... Then I heard a loud crack in the air followed by a big splash. The first gormack arrived for a swim.

On my way there, I had decided that I would not try to catch the first one I see. I would just watch how it all happens to be better prepared. The spirit materialized in midair--that's what had caused the cracking sound--and fell in the lake. He swam underwater for a while, and all I could see was the dark purplish glow coming from his body; then he emerged... Huge, barrel-chested, half man, half beast with spikes on his head and along his back, mean piercing eyes and powerful jaws. I would say that he was magnificent if he hadn't eerily reminded me of my monster. Even though the resemblance was not striking, it was bad enough to make me want to hide better.

As he swam with obvious pleasure, his purple glow diminished. I checked my watch. He spent almost exactly four minutes in the lake, then climbed ashore and sat on a rock, probably recovering his strength. When his glow regained its intensity, the gormack stood up, stretched, and disappeared with the same cracking sound.

All right. So now I'd seen it. Things seemed to work exactly as the scribe had told me. The only question I had was, Are they all so big? Because, as much as I'd love to have a creature like the one I just saw in my service, I wasn't sure I could overpower it. I am a strong warrior, make no mistake about that; not many can stand against me in battle. But the way that gormack looked... I just had to be reasonable. After all, there were no second chances in this game.

Two loud cracks interrupted my thoughts. Two spirits at once?? I cautiously looked out. Yes, there were two of them, and they were fighting. Quite viciously, too, I might add. One glowed in blue, the other bright orange, like fire; both had thin swords of the same colors, glowing as well, and the swords clashed with incredible speed and force, raising tons of splashes--they fought in the lake, although close to the shore, on a shallow spot.

These two were considerably smaller than the first, which answered my question. They did not look like beasts, either; if it wasn't for the glow, each could pass for a human, a slender yet strongly shaped man.

They kept fighting. Each seemed intent on not letting the other out of the water, obviously trying to use its weakening effect and ignoring the fact that it was weakening them both. The orange one appeared stronger, he was attacking more and once managed to knock his enemy down. The blue one got back on his feet quickly enough, but I could see that he was losing ground.

I checked my watch. They'd been splashing for a little over three minutes. I had to think fast here. What if I grab one now? Will the other one let me catch him or turn against me? Logically, he shouldn't interfere, but if being captured by a human is considered such a bad thing, who knows, maybe the other gormack will forget whatever disagreement they had and choose to help out. On the other hand, gormacks are evil spirits. "Evil" and "help out" don't go together.

I figured I'd have to risk it.

Three and a half minutes...
Three forty five
...
Three fifty
. Now!

I leapt out of the bushes, ran in the water, and grabbed the orange one from the back. I wanted him, of course, since he'd proved to be stronger. After the half-second of the initial surprise, the gormack began to struggle; I held him with all my might. The blue one let out a triumphant laugh.

"That's what you get for messing with me!"

Whew. I was right. He wasn't helping.

The blue gormack hurried to get out of the lake.

"What are you doing, silly mortal?!" the orange one demanded. "Let me go!"

"I don't think so," I answered, fighting hard to keep hold of him. He was still very strong, just as the scribe had warned. I strained my every muscle to its limit, hardly able to breathe. I was sure glad I didn't go for the big purple guy!

"What do you want?!"

Oh, so he wouldn't threaten me? And wouldn't offer anything? He's already asking what
I
want? The fellow was getting desperate... which meant I could ask for a little more.

"Six years of your service."

The blue one laughed from the shore. "Happy captivity!" he shouted. "I hope you will think of me every miserable day!"

Crack!
He was gone.

My gormack was supposed to be growing weaker each second, but I couldn't feel it. He swung me like a rag, trying to break free, and my arms were getting numb, but, somehow, I still held on.

"Six years of service!" I repeated. "I will not release you until you pledge it!"

Did he really stagger, just a little, or was I imagining it?...

I wasn't.

"Very well. Be it as you wish."

He agreed!! My overstrained muscles begged for a break, but I couldn't let go of him yet; that would be a fatal mistake. I had to seal the deal.

"So do you promise to serve me faithfully for six years?"

"Within the laws of both worlds, that of spirits and of men, yes."

Within the laws, well, that was fine. The scribe had told me about that. No spirit could break those laws.

"To act in my best interests?"

"Yes."

"Not to lie to me?"

"Yes."

"And never seek retaliation for being captured?"

"Yes."

"Abyss take you if you break your word?"

"Naturally."

Naturally? Was he leaving some kind of a loophole?

"No tricks! Say, 'Yes, I promise, the abyss takes me if I break my word!'"

He said it.

At last, I could loosen the grip. Oh, my arms, shoulders, back... They'd be aching for days.

The spirit waded to the shore. I cautiously followed, still unable to fully believe it. I did it, didn't I? I had a gormack now. My own, for six full years.

He sat down on the sand. I figured I'd give him time to accept the unfortunate change in circumstances. I could use some rest as well, so I lowered myself on a large rock a couple of steps away and looked at my prize. As I have said earlier, he could easily pass for a man, especially now that he'd stopped glowing--a lean young fellow with well-defined features, dressed in a short tunic, breeches, and tall boots. His hair was still flaming orange, but his skin turned the color of regular human tan. I waited for the glow to return, but minutes passed, and it was not happening. Was something wrong?

"Your glow is gone," I said. "I hope you have not lost all your strength."

He looked up at me and, quite unexpectedly, grinned.

"That would be a disappointment, wouldn't it? Don't worry, it's just because I am settling in the physical world."

Well, at least he was not too upset about it.

"Has this happened to you for the first time?"

"I would think those to whom it had happened once will not come to the lake again."

"You have a point." I looked him over again and noticed that he had no weapon. "Where is your sword?"

"Always with me." With that, the shining orange blade showed up in his hand, and before I could blink it was pointed at me. "Why? You want to taste it?"

Uh-oh. So he
was
a little upset.

"Hey now. You promised to be loyal to me."

"True." He smiled and removed the sword. "But I never promised not to have fun."

A feisty one. It looked like I'd have to teach him some manners.

"You must do what I tell you, and I'm telling you to be respectful. Is that understood?"

He gave a quick bow.

"Yes, Mr. I-Don't-Know-What-To-Call-You."

Well, he had a point here, too. I had not yet introduced myself.

"'My lord' or 'master' will do very well," I said, "but if you wish to know my name, it is Lord Arkus of
Blackriver
Castle
. Now, what is yours? I assume you have a name, too?"

"Of course. I am Tulip."

"Tulip?? What kind of a name is that for an evil spirit?"

"I am no evil spirit."

I gave him a long, hard look.

"...Don't you joke like that. I appreciate a good bit of humor, but not of the kind that makes one's heart stop."

"But I am not joking. I am not an evil spirit, I am what you call a sparkling."

The world faded before my eyes.

"WHAT?? A sparkling?! Are you telling me I have caught a
sparkling?!
A goody-goody spirit that helps heroes, watches over little children, and messes up villains' plans?!"

"Well, that's a rather broad definition, but yes, generally speaking, that's what a sparkling does. What seems to be the problem?"

I wanted to scream. And I did.

"I WANTED A GORMACK!!!"

"Oops. Your mistake. You should have picked Ragnar then. The one I was fighting."

I grabbed him by the tunic collar.

"Why didn't you tell me who you are?!"

"I do not recall you asking."

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Even the most determined villains have moments when they feel like giving up and quitting. Do I need to say that I was having one after such a disaster?

Everything I had been through, everything I endured... all in vain.

I sat on the rock, with my back to the orange-haired misfortune, not wishing to move. Ever.

Some time passed, and he walked around to face me.

"I have regained my strength," he informed. "We can go now."

"Get out."

"Excuse me?"

"I said get out. Get lost. Leave me alone."

"For how long?"

"Forever!!"

"I am bound to you for six years. Have you got some kind of a memory problem?"

Some other time, he'd get a good whack for such language, but at that moment I didn't care.

"I don't want you. You can't serve me, anyway."

"Why is that?"

"Because I'm a villain, if you haven't yet figured it out."

"I have. So?"

As little as anything in the world mattered now, that piqued my interest.

"You mean you still want to?"

"I promised. I gave you my word."

"And you would have no qualms about switching sides and helping me?"

"Oh, I'm not switching sides, I will not help you in villainy. But I can still be of service, doing whatever harmless and good I can for you."

Ha! Big deal.

"Like what? Shining my boots? I can hire a regular fellow for that, without ridiculous hair. Good bye."

"Well, whether you like it or not, I can't leave just because you have changed your mind. I gave you my word, and our deal is sealed."

"I release you from it; consider yourself lucky. Now, get out of my sight before I change my mind again and make you shine my boots twenty four hours a day just for the fun of it."

And there it came. The growl.

Have you ever tried treating apathy and depression with mortal danger? From my experience, I greatly recommend it. I was up and running in no time. Somehow, even though my life seemed to be over, I still did not want to meet those fangs or claws.