Lorik The Defender (The Lorik Trilogy) Page 4

  “I’ll tell you on the way,” Lorik said.

  They jogged back to the camp. The bonfire was roaring by the time they arrived and Lorik had to quickly give his volunteers orders. They split into two forces, each one moving far out of the ring of light cast off by the bonfire. Lorik and Stone took positions directly in front of the fire, but they kept their weapons hidden. The archers with quivers of fire arrows stood behind the bonfire, a brazier of coals ready to ignite their arrows when the time came.

  Lorik was soon sweating from the heat of the bonfire. The night was cold, but Lorik was tense as he waited for the monsters to arrive. They had been moving slowly in the darkness, but as they approached the fire, they sped up.

  “Here they come,” Stone said.

  “Predictable,” Lorik said loudly. “Wait till they’re almost on top of us to fire those arrows.”

  The Leffers closed in, their black eyes glistening in the firelight.

  “Now!” Lorik shouted.

  Four fire arrows arced over the heads of the Leffers. There were a dozen of the huge monsters. Their scorpion tails dripped a deadly looking venom. The first closed on Lorik, who drew his sword. The tail whipped forward and Lorik brought the sword down in an overhead slash that met the monster’s deadly stinger head on. The blade dissected the stinger and cut into the tail, but then it wedged in the hard exoskeleton. The Leffer reared, jerking its tail back and lifting Lorik off the ground. He refused to let go of his sword and twisted frantically in the air.

  Stone had several spears lying on the ground beside him. He flicked up one of them with his foot, caught it in the air and hurled it all in one smooth motion. The spear flew like a wraith and buried itself in the monster’s human chest. The creature dropped to its knees and Lorik, landing deftly on his feet, jerked his weapon free. Then, he spun, dropping to his knee to avoid the strike of another monster’s tail, and severed the foreleg of the beast.

  Stone hurled another spear, just before the mounted volunteers hurled their own weapons from the darkness. The archers were shooting arrow after flaming arrow high into the night sky, illuminating the scene in a dim light that gave the entire attack a nightmarish quality.

  The Leffers fell to the attack, many impaled on more than one well thrown spear. The battle was over so suddenly that Lorik felt apprehensive. The volunteers were still on their horses, the mounts nervously pawing the ground. The bonfire roared behind Lorik, while flaming arrows dotted the ground in the distance, their flames like dancing stars on the dark landscape.

  “Is it over?” Stone asked.

  “I don’t know,” Lorik said.

  The Leffers were still twitching, their tails flailing reflexively, making it too dangerous to recover the spears that were used to kill them.

  “I want everyone with weapons ready!” Lorik shouted.

  Stone picked up the last remaining spear at his feet. Lorik waved the volunteers back into their original positions. The crowd of refugees was restless and Lorik wanted to quiet them, but knew it was impossible. The tension in the darkness was so palpable that he could almost taste it.

  Then came a rumble from the darkness. It was more than a growl, but so deep and loud it made the ground tremble.

  “What the hell?” Stone said.

  “More arrows!” Lorik shouted. “Spread them out!”

  It took a moment, but then the arrows shot up into the air. The flames flickered madly as the arrows shot through the sky. Lorik peered into the darkness, but even with the fire arrows, the area beyond the bonfire was murky and full of shadowy darkness. The rumble came again, but closer this time.

  “It’s big,” Lorik said to Stone. “I’m going out there. I want you to stay twenty paces behind me until we see what it is.”

  “Maybe going after it is a bad idea,” Stone said, his voice tight.

  “I think waiting here gives it an advantage.”

  “You want a torch?”

  “No,” Lorik said. “That will only make us visible and ruin our night vision.”

  “Alright,” Stone said. “I’ve got your back, but be careful.”

  Lorik jogged out into the darkness. He was a big man, but he moved gracefully, his feet hardly making a sound. They saw something move; it was big, but they couldn’t make out what it was. It seemed to move quickly. Lorik stopped moving, trying to see what they were facing. Stone crouched low, his spear held ready. It was the only thing that saved his life.

  The beast in the darkness suddenly attacked, ignoring Lorik and targeting Stone instead. It rushed forward, its huge paws thumped on the ground and then it pounced, jumping high in the air as it lunged for Stone. The young fighter reacted instinctively. Raising the spearpoint toward the sound of rushing steps and planting the butt of the spear into the ground. The creature’s gapping maw was filled with rows of triangular teeth. It would have snapped down on Stone, but the spear was taller than the crouching warrior. The blade of the spear scraped against the rough, serrated teeth and then lodged in the creature’s gums. The spear’s wooden shaft snapped and knocked Stone flat on his back. The creature couldn’t close its mouth without driving the spear deeper into its own flesh.

  The roar that resulted from the creature’s pain was deafening. Stone was in shock. He lay on the ground exposed, but unsure what to do. The creature was almost directly over him; he could feel the huge beast’s massive body, its breath was a hot, rotten stench. It pawed at its mouth with huge, padded feet, using its sharp, curving, claws to knock the spear loose from between the jagged teeth.

  Every survival instinct in Stone was telling him to move, to flee. He knew he had to get away from the creature. He still had his knife, but the sheer size of the monster made the weapon seem puny and worthless. Still, Stone felt paralyzed. He couldn’t move, he could scarcely breathe. The creature looked down at him, its huge head was angular, almost like a goat, but it had a huge mouth full of teeth. Thick horns, as tall as a grown man, spiraled up from either side of the beast’s skull. Its body was thick with muscle and built more like a lion than a goat. It had thick legs and a huge chest. It was covered in a shaggy fur, and a short, knobby tail. Stone couldn’t make out the color of the fur, or what exactly the monster was in the darkness, but he knew there was no escape. Now that the spear was removed, there was nothing to stop it from devouring Stone.

  Then another shadow passed over Stone. Lorik had sprinted toward his friend, then jumped straight for the huge creature. He landed hard on the beast’s nose and then jumped again, grabbing one of the huge horns and letting his momentum swing him around. He landed on the beast’s back, one hand grabbing a fist full of the shaggy fur, the other drawing one of his twin swords. He raised the weapon high, just as the creature reared, trying to throw Lorik off its back. But Lorik had a firm grip and used his powerful legs to hold himself steady. Then he plunged the sword into the creature’s flesh. The monster was still on its hind legs when it staggered backwards, then lost its balance and fell.

  Lorik had let go of his sword and was attempting to switch hands, grabbing the furry hide with his right hand and preparing to draw his other sword with his left. Instead, when he felt the beast toppling backward, he drew his feet up and jumped away. He landed hard on his left side, then the ground shook as the beast fell backward and crashed onto the ground not far away. Lorik’s body ached, but he scrambled to his feet. He saw Stone’s shadowy form rising from the ground as well. Lorik hadn’t known if his friend was alive or dead, but he felt a sense of relief at seeing Stone get to his feet.

  Then the monster was rolling toward Lorik. It couldn’t reach back and remove the sword, so it was rolling on the ground, but that only drove the weapon deeper. It roared so loudly that Lorik cowered instinctively, raising his arms to protect his head. The creature’s mouth was snapping shut, like a mud dragon, the teeth coming together in a loud clack that made Lorik’s blood run cold.

  He drew his second sword and waited for an opening. The creature was writhing on the ground,
then suddenly it rolled onto its feet. Lorik knew it was looking for him and his first impulse was to run away. Instead, he swallowed his fear and dashed forward. His first attack had been a reaction to his friend’s danger. He’d not even given his own safety a thought, but this time was different. Fighting a creature so large was terrifying, even to Lorik. Still, he knew that his only hope lay in getting close and staying away from the beast’s hideous maw.

  The beast was just turning its head toward Lorik when he sprinted under the creature’s body. He raised his sword, which was razor sharp, and sliced easily through the beast’s soft underbelly. The creature tried to crush Lorik by dropping on top of him, but Lorik felt the huge body falling low and he slid feet first, just escaping the huge body. He was on the far side of the monster and rolled to his feet. A massive paw was rushing toward him and Lorik jumped forward, toward the beast’s heaving side. His momentum drove his second sword into the beast’s ribs, up to the hilt. The creature instinctively rolled and Lorik had to jump again, this time away from the creature. He landed on his feet and ran to keep from being crushed by the beast’s massive body.

  Both of Lorik’s weapons were now buried deep in the monster’s flesh. He looked back over his shoulder and saw the beast slowly rising to its feet. Blood had slicked the shaggy fur in several places and there was blood dripping from the monster’s belly, but the wound there was superficial, little more than a scratch.

  Lorik turned and watched as the beast lowered its head. The creature’s eyes were like deep pits of utter blackness. Blood and foam dripped from its mouth. It growled menacingly, but Lorik didn’t move. He stared right back at the creature, his mind racing as he tried to think of something to do.

  Then a sound came from behind Lorik. A horse was galloping toward them. Lorik was tempted to look over his shoulder, but he knew he couldn’t look away from the monster. The creature’s head rose a little as it looked over Lorik toward the sound of the charging horse. Then it sprang into action, dashing forward, its mouth lowered and open wide.

  Lorik ran to his left, sprinting as fast as he could to escape. The creature couldn’t turn its body fast enough and instead craned its neck, hoping to snatch Lorik up in its massive jaws. The teeth slammed shut just behind Lorik, who had managed to get out of the creature’s reach just in time.

  Stone had run back to the camp and taken a volunteer’s horse while Lorik battled the monster. He had ridden close to the Leffers and snatched a spear from the twitching body of one of the monstrous horse-like creatures. Then he turned his mount toward the beast which had Lorik trapped without a weapon. Stone saw the creature look up as he lowered his spear and kicked the horse to greater speed. He knew the best throw wouldn’t be enough to stop the creature, and he knew he couldn’t just pick Lorik up on the horse and ride away. The huge beast would run them down easily enough, and they would have no other hope of surviving. Instead, Stone gathered his feet beneath him on the saddle. Then, just as Lorik dashed away and the creature craned its head to try and catch him, leaving its neck exposed, Stone jumped from the moving horse. He held the spear out in front of him as he arced toward the huge creature. He used all his momentum and weight to drive the spear down. It punctured the creature’s neck, and his momentum drove the spear through the muscle and into the beast’s windpipe.

  Stone had expected to crash hard into the beast, but the creature’s neck was soft and it padded his fall. He was also sprayed with hot blood as the spear punctured the beast’s jugular vein. The creature’s first instinct was to whip its head back around, but the spear was driven too deep into its neck. The pain made it roll instead, away from Stone and toward Lorik.

  It writhed on its back as Stone and Lorik moved away in the darkness. They moved toward each other, the horse still galloping away to the south.

  “What is that thing?” Stone asked.

  “I have no idea,” Lorik said. “But I hope it’s dead.”

  Chapter 5

  Lorik and Stone returned to the camp and the volunteers doubled up on guard duty. Fortunately, no more attacks came that night. When the sun rose, Lorik returned to the huge beast he’d fought in the darkness. It was unlike anything he’d ever seen. The creature was on its back and had died at some point in the night. Blood seemed to have turned the area around the creature into a disgusting bog.

  “What are we are doing out here?” Stone asked. He refused to let Lorik do anything alone.

  “I’m looking for my swords. I don’t know what you’re doing.”

  “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go off on your own. We’d all be dead now if it weren’t for you.”

  “So you think I need a bodyguard?”

  “I think we need to be cautious.”

  “What we really need is to get the refugees moving.”

  “Vera can do that,” Stone said. “Besides, I wanted a look at our handiwork.”

  “It’s not much to look at, is it?” Lorik said as they walked around the huge beast.

  “I don’t remember the wizard saying anything about shaggy monsters,” Stone said.

  “That’s because he didn’t,” Lorik said. “He must not have known about them.”

  “That’s not a comforting thought,” Stone said. “I wish we had a way to scout ahead and behind.”

  “And a way to move these people along. We won’t be safe until we get back to the border.”

  They waded through the bloody bog. One sword was visible, the pommel barely sticking out of the furry beast’s side. Lorik took hold of his sword and tugged. He had to wrench the weapon up and down before finally putting one foot on the creature to pull his sword free.

  “Where’s the other one?” Stone asked.

  Lorik smiled. Then he hacked into the creature’s side. Blood and water came pouring out, along with a wretched smell.

  “What are you doing?” Stone said, jumping back to avoid the foul excretion.

  “The other sword is in the beast’s back,” Lorik said. “I’ll have to cut my way in.”

  “I’d cut my losses,” Stone said.

  “That’s a famous sword. It’s part of a matching set. I’ll not just leave it behind.”

  “Fine, but I’m standing over there,” he pointed away from the beast.

  “I thought we weren’t supposed to do things alone.”

  “Sorry, I’m drawing a line at digging my way into a monster’s carcass.”

  Lorik laughed and then kept cutting. He had to angle his cuts, eventually cutting out a wedge of flesh. The muscle was thick, tough, and bloody. He was soon covered in sticky, black blood. The bones were almost as hard as iron, but he managed to work between them. Half an hour later, he emerged from the carcass with his other sword.

  “Done!” he said happily.

  “Don’t get too close,” Stone said. “I can smell you from here.”

  They walked back toward the camp. The refugees were already moving north and Lorik’s volunteers were spread out behind them, leading their horses. Stone and Lorik passed by the bodies of the Leffers. The spears had been removed and the bodies were already bloating. The sickly sweet smell of rotting flesh filled the air. They walked for over an hour before coming to a small stream that flowed through the grassy plain. Lorik stripped out of his clothes, which Stone proceeded to scrub against the rocks of the riverbed.

  The water was cold, but Lorik climbed in anyway. The stream was barely big enough to cover Lorik. He had to lay down in the middle of the riverbed to submerge himself. He held his breath and scrubbed his hair and beard. Then he sat up and scrubbed his body clean. He was shivering by the time he got out of the water, but there was nothing he could do but put on his cold, wet clothes and run to warm up.

  They jogged for the next hour. Stone was too tired to keep going, even though Lorik could have run all day. They slowed to walk; the refugees were just ahead of them. They soon stopped to rest and have a quick meal. Then they pushed on. Lorik insisted they travel until dark. There was no pla
ce to make camp, so they huddled together on the open plain. Ortis was a kingdom of flat plains that turned to rolling, grassy hills the farther north one traveled. Their supper was dry rations. Some of the refugees had supplies, others had nothing at all. Lorik and Vera shared the meager supplies they had gathered. The volunteers spread out once again and this time Lorik slept through the first watch.

  One of his volunteers shook him gently a few hours before dawn.

  “Sorry to wake you,” the man said.

  “No,” Lorik said, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and standing up. “You did the right thing. I’m fine.”

  “I can finish the night, sir.”

  “No, I only need a few hours’ sleep,” Lorik explained. “I’ll be fine. You rest.”

  “Yes, sir, thank you.”

  The man promptly wrapped his cloak around himself and went to sleep right where he’d been standing. Lorik grinned; it was obvious the man was exhausted, yet he had offered to let Lorik rest. He was proud of his small group of volunteers. They were less than three dozen, yet they did everything he asked of them without complaining. They had risked their lives more than once to save total strangers, but they had a sense of the importance of what they were doing. The king and his soldiers were gone, now only small bands like Lorik’s volunteers offered the people of Ortis protection.

  The next morning, Stone and Lorik once again took up their position at the rear of the group, but Queen Issalyn joined them with her cadre of shieldmaidens.

  “You saved us once again,” Issalyn said.

  “That’s what we’re here for,” Lorik said.

  “The men on the city walls were not nearly as efficient or as brave as you have been,” Issalyn said. “We would have been scattered and probably slaughtered if not for you.”

  “It is our duty to protect the people of Ortis.”

  “A duty you took upon yourselves,” Issalyn said. “That kind of honor has been rare in Ortis of late.”

  “I don’t know about all that,” Lorik said. “We have a good group of volunteers. Stone is a skilled warrior. And so far, we’ve been lucky. There haven’t been enough of the monsters to overcome us yet.”