Spook's: The Dark Army (The Starblade Chronicles) (10 page)

About an hour after midday we reached the area known as the Fittzanda Fissure. I’d been expecting volcanoes, but there was only uneven, stony ground punctuated by crevices and ridges, with vents of scalding steam. The horses whinnied with fear, unwilling to cross them.

At times the ground shook, and deep rumbles could be heard beneath us, like the muttering of angry giants. The air was filled with dust and the stink of sulphur and I was only too glad to leave the place behind and move onto the Plain of Erestaba.

This was a flat, cold place with not a tree to be seen. The wind blew towards us from the north, making patterns in the long grass. I kept searching the horizon, hoping to spot our patrol, but also fearing to see a huge Kobalos army. I couldn’t believe that they weren’t already lying in wait for us. They must know that we’d crossed the river and be busy setting a trap? Surely Grimalkin, who knew how dark magic could be used to scry the future, would see the danger? When I mentioned it to her, she just shrugged.

The sun began to set and we continued until it grew dark. It was a cold night, but we couldn’t build fires – they’d be visible for miles around on such a flat plain. The further we got without being seen, the better; we certainly didn’t want them to guess our true destination.

The Shaiksa had special powers: you couldn’t kill one without other members of the brotherhood being summoned to avenge his death. The Shaiksa assassin I’d slain at the river would have sent out his dying thoughts to his brother assassins.

So they might have already worked out that a human army would be coming across the river into Kobalos lands. I just hoped they didn’t know that the kulad called Kartuna, rather than Valkarky, was our objective. I suddenly wondered if the Kobalos mages could scry like witches . . . Perhaps they already knew of our intention?

I looked around the camp: Grimalkin and I were on the northern edge. No lights were showing, and apart from patrols and guards set to watch for danger, the men were asleep in their tents. Grimalkin and I, wrapped in blankets, sat outside the entrance to our own tent and talked about what lay ahead.

I was still angry with her – I’d only put my grievances aside with great difficulty – but I needed to work with her and ensure that our attack was a success if I wanted to save Jenny.

I looked up into the sky. The moon was covered with a cloud, and in the patches of clear sky I could see just the faintest visible sprinkling of stars. However, to the north the sky glowed and rippled with coloured lights, and we could just make out each other’s faces.

‘Those strange lights in the sky – are they coming from Valkarky?’ I asked Grimalkin.

‘No – they come from further north than Valkarky. As far as I know they are a natural phenomenon,’ she replied. ‘The further we travel, the more spectacular they will become.’

I stared at them in wonder. It was good to know that they weren’t products of dark magic.

‘Is the kulad likely to be well-guarded?’ I asked.

‘I don’t expect to find more than fifty to a hundred warriors there,’ Grimalkin replied, her breath steaming in the cold air, ‘but it may not be easy to seize; our superior numbers will not help us. Most kulads are just simple towers with stone walls that can easily be breached by one of our three big guns. But mages also tend to fortify the land around their tower. Kartuna is encircled by a high stone wall. There could also be magical traps to slay or delay the unwary – or even creatures created by the mage to seek out warm human flesh and blood. And each hour of delay gives a larger Kobalos force time to intervene.’

‘What about the mage – how dangerous will he be?’ I asked.

‘Without doubt he poses the biggest threat,’ she answered. ‘When I was last in Valkarky, I managed to defeat and slay the third in rank of the ruling Triumvirate. It was far from easy. The birth of Talkus will have increased the power of the mages. Lenklewth is the second most powerful High Mage in the Triumvirate – who knows what magic he now has at his disposal? Let us hope he is back in Valkarky rather than at home in his kulad!’

‘If you succeed in getting what you need from the tower,’ I said, ‘the leaders of our army will be angry when I have to order a retreat to Polyznia.’

Grimalkin shook her head. ‘But we won’t tell them immediately. I need time to unlock the secrets of the kulad, and by then the first Kobalos forces will be approaching. Our only hope will be to retreat back across the river. The princes will be terrified when they see the huge numbers that face us. Even Prince Kaylar will not wish to linger then!’

‘What then, after the retreat?’ I asked. ‘Won’t the Kobalos follow us to Polyznia?’

‘I expect they will, and some of the cities will come under siege or be razed to the ground. But we will not stay. We need to rouse the larger kingdoms to the south. The Kobalos invasion will stir them into action. Do this with me and you will get your wish – we will then journey back to the County and gather forces from our own land.’

I was clearly included in Grimalkin’s plans well into the future. I would go home with Jenny, but when my strength returned I knew that I’d help her again: the Kobalos had to be stopped – if possible before they reached the County. When that might happen was difficult to estimate but it might take years. However, the threat was to the whole world of humans and the sooner the Kobalos were vanquished the better. I also felt indebted to Grimalkin. She’d helped me in the past, saving my life on more than one occasion. There was a strong bond between us despite our recent disagreements.

‘But will they listen?’ I asked. ‘Two years ago, even with an invading army drawing close, it was a long time before forces from the County entered the fray. We’d never convince our military to send troops to fight battles across the sea in the frozen north.’

In that recent war, only when the County had been invaded had our soldiers been mobilized properly. Threats across the sea were never taken seriously until it was almost too late. I feared the same would happen regarding the Kobalos.

‘Try to have a little more faith in me,’ Grimalkin said, glaring. ‘I do not speak of conventional forces. I will lead my sister witches back here. We will fight magic with magic.’

‘Then why didn’t you bring them with us this time?’ I asked. A raid using witches rather than ordinary soldiers might have been more effective. After all, the objective was to seize magical knowledge and witches had expertise in dark magic. They would probably have been more than a match for Lenklewth.

‘I tried to persuade them but they wouldn’t listen,’ Grimalkin told me. ‘In that respect they are like the County troops – a threat in a far distant land will not move them. But if I can seize some of the magical secrets in that kulad and demonstrate what we face, then they will change their minds.’

I sat there in silence, mulling over what she had said. All I could hear was the sighing of the wind and the breathing of the horses.

‘I hope Jenny’s safe,’ I muttered.

The witch assassin closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath and held it, her brow furrowed in concentration. Suddenly she breathed out and opened her eyes. ‘Yes, she is alive and safe at the moment,’ she said.

‘You’ve scryed that?’ I asked.

Grimalkin shook her head. ‘It is a spell called
sympathy
,’ she replied. ‘It links the child and me but it does not last long and is already beginning to fade. But in any case, we will join up with her and Prince Kaylar soon.’

‘It’s getting colder,’ I remarked, starting to shiver.

‘This is nothing compared to what we might eventually have to endure,’ Grimalkin said. ‘We face a dark army far greater than the Kobalos forces and larger than the terrible battle-entities they have created. This army, led by their new god Talkus, includes other gods who support them – deities such as Golgoth, the Lord of Winter, who wishes to blast the green from the Earth and create a road of ice along which their warriors may glide to victory. It may not be long before he moves against us.’ Her expression was grim, and I shivered again.

Soon after that we retreated into the tent. I wrapped myself in my blanket and fell asleep within moments of closing my eyes. I awoke only once in the night – to the sound of Grimalkin gnashing her teeth and talking in a language I’d never heard before. But even that didn’t keep me awake for long.

I soon found myself in a dream in which I was walking across the fells with my master, John Gregory. He was pointing out various places in the valley, telling me their names. I was happy and keen to learn – and it was with a deep sense of sadness, shock and loss that I awoke to the realization that he was dead and I’d never see him again.

We continued across the Plain of Erestaba at a steady pace. The day was bright and clear, with a chill wind blowing from the north. We sent scouts ahead, but they saw no sign of the enemy or of the patrol led by Prince Kaylar. Grimalkin long-sniffed for future danger; she could detect nothing directly ahead but she still seemed ill at ease.

The Pendle witches used spells of cloaking to hide both themselves and their possessions from others. The Kobalos mages could probably do the same, or use another form of defensive magic. Grimalkin feared that all might not be as safe as it seemed . . .

Mid-morning on the second day, as planned, we turned westwards and advanced quickly towards the kulad. I had expected to have encountered Prince Kaylar and his patrol by now but there was no sign of them. I hoped Jenny was all right.

Early in the afternoon we halted for just half an hour to eat – though the army remained in formation, ready to proceed at a moment’s notice.

I’d been briefed by Grimalkin for a short meeting with the princes. All I had to do was explain her plan as if it were my own. I was physically tired from the ride but I was still mentally alert.

We formed a small circle, each prince attended by two or three servants. I began by greeting each prince in turn before issuing ‘my’ orders. The more I did this, the easier it became to act as a leader. I was also becoming increasingly comfortable with the presence of Prince Stanislaw. He was very supportive and facilitated my dealings with the other princes.

‘I intend to ride ahead and attempt to capture the kulad using a small force of about a hundred mounted men and a score of archers,’ I explained. I had to raise my voice because the cold wind kept whipping my words away. ‘Grimalkin will ride with me. We should reach Kartuna at dusk.

‘The main body of our army should follow on behind,’ I continued. ‘Once there, you should encircle the kulad and prepare our big guns – though they should be deployed only if our first attack fails. We need to learn what we can – so I want the tower and its contents to remain intact.’

Grimalkin translated my words into Losta. After she’d spoken Prince Stanislaw also said a few words, and by then everyone was nodding as if they agreed with the plan.

‘Each of the other princes will supply the very best of their men to accompany us,’ Grimalkin explained for my benefit. ‘We will reach the kulad under cover of darkness.’

Soon we rode off. Anxious about his father, the son of Prince Kaylar chose to accompany us. The others each allocated us a group of their most trusted men.

As we headed towards the kulad, I wondered where the patrol was. And what about Jenny? I was becoming increasingly anxious about her.

PRINCE KAYLAR ORDERED
that everyone should remain mounted. I could sense his anxiety: he kept fiddling with his beard, twisting each spike around his fingers in turn. It was about three hours after dark, and we were close to the trees that surrounded the kulad, which towered high above them. There were stars overhead but the moon had yet to rise.

The prince had also ordered me to stay close by. I was now on horseback, but I had spent the first night of our journey unconscious, slung across his saddle. The following morning he had explained why I’d been drugged and taken away. He wasn’t happy about it, but had to obey the witch assassin and Prince Stanislaw. The plan was to force Tom to ride at the head of the army, and I knew it would work. He would not go back to the County and abandon me. Grimalkin had got her way again.

It was outrageous that I’d been treated in this way and I was determined to escape at the very first opportunity. But so far there had been no chance at all. I sensed that it was a point of honour with Prince Kaylar to keep me safe until he could return me to Tom’s care. He was a man of high principles and was clearly ashamed of what he had done.

His son, a boy of eighteen, was with the main army, and was eager to fight and prove his bravery, but the prince feared that he might be injured or killed. He also had twin daughters of about my age and a wife whom he loved very much. He was here to fight and ensure their safety and the security of his principality, but he feared that he might die in battle and never see them again.

During our journey we had seen no sign of Kobalos warriors. The vast plain had been empty. So we’d approached the kulad to test its defences. Now that we were so close I felt anxious. Were we just bait to draw our enemies forth and test their strength? That’s what it seemed to me. I shivered with fear at the thought of being taken prisoner.