The Corin Chronicles Volume I: The Light and the Dark (44 page)

“It is a Hylix,” shouted Ramon, shuddering. “We stand no chance against a Hylix with this many Frultoys around. We must go now!”

Without further delay, Topenga charged for the nearest window and wriggled through. Mikael followed and stood outside, ready to help Ramon.

The prince began climbing through, his eyes never leaving the Hylix as it charged toward them. Despite the path the Frultoy had made for the great beast, several of them were trampled and crushed under its feet or swept aside by the giant, spike-covered club in its hand.

With assistance from his comrades, Ramon struggled to exit the building, but before his feet touched the ground, the front of the structure was completely shattered. Looking down at them was the huge frame of the Hylix, its single eye locked on them, its mouth open and tongue wagging.

Still on his back, Ramon slowly crawled backward, with his comrades close by. The Hylix charged forward. Ramon rolled backward into a somersault, landing on his feet. The spiked club came down in the spot where he had just been, the spikes piercing deep into the ground.

The three men bolted and ran for the hut they believed would lead them to the Caves of Sena, but the Hylix hovered dangerously close, continuously smashing its club toward them. Their sharp reflexes and acrobatic maneuvers were the only things keeping them alive.

By the time they returned to the main pathway, a number of Frultoys had started to howl. The noise clouded Ramon’s senses, and his faith started to dwindle. The rapid breathing of Topenga, just by his side, drove him on, as did the rapidly moving legs of Mikael. A glance backward revealed much of the lower half of the Hylix’s body, but the sight in the distance of the village horde charging made him swallow, nearly causing him to choke.

The vibrations behind him changed, and the Hylix emitted a louder cry. Closer and closer it seemed to gain on him, and without hesitating, he quickly somersaulted to his right, looking back as the heavy club of the beast struck the ground he had just stood upon. He quickly found his feet and continued to run toward the hut, which was only a short distance away.

The Hylix had fallen behind them somewhat, regaining its balance after the strike from the club. But when Ramon glanced back, he could see it was again rapidly closing the distance between them. And so was the horde of Frultoys.

Ramon saw Mikael and Topenga dart into the hut, and then took another quick look backward. He had only a few seconds lead on their pursuers. With the door held open for him, he quickly halted his run as he entered. Immediately, he eagerly began looking around the room for the exit.

“The door!” he shouted.

Mikael and Topenga quickly shut and barred the door. “The Hylix!” screamed Topenga. “It is right upon us!”

Ramon tried to stay focused, searching desperately around the hut. A small crack in a slightly hidden wall caught his eye. “That is it,” he shouted. “The passage must be beyond that wall.” He charged for the wall and rammed it with his shoulder. It trembled, and a number of bricks tumbled down, revealing a larger gap.

Dropping to his knees, Mikael peeked through the gap, noticing a large metal gate that had been swung open, and beyond that a path. He looked up at Ramon and Topenga. “The passage does lie there. I see it.”

Easing himself into position, Ramon looked through the same gap, but a thunderous force rocked each of them, sending them to the floor. Lying partially on his back, Ramon noticed that a large portion of the hut had been destroyed, with parts of the room missing. Wiping the dust from his eyes, he saw the large, triangular eye of the Hylix, staring through the destroyed bricks. The hole was still too small for the beast to fit through, but it continued to strike the building with its club, and Ramon knew it would be a matter of seconds before the entire structure came crashing down to the ground.

“Quick!” The prince looked at Mikael, desperately. “Help me destroy this wall.” Frantically, he looked over at Topenga, who had his sword drawn and was looking directly at the Hylix, awaiting anything else that might enter through the demolished wall.

The Hylix crashed against the hut, knocking even more bricks from the wall, but Ramon and Mikael would not be deterred. They threw their bodies against the false wall with everything they had and succeeded in creating an opening almost large enough for them to squeeze through. But the sound of grunting behind them made them turn. At least six Frultoys had broken through and were inside the building, swiping at Topenga. The Hylix had also nearly succeeded in creating a gap large enough to enter and finish them off.

“Stay here,” the prince shouted to Mikael. “Keep working on the wall. I have to help him.” Ramon did not wait for a response but immediately charged, screaming and shaking, with his sword held high.

One by one, the prince and the Colonoy sent the Frultoys to the ground, but more began to pour in through the shattered wall, and their sheer numbers started to overwhelm the two warriors. The stampede knocked Topenga to the ground, and a number of them hovered over him, ready to pounce, but the sheer force of Mikael’s axe joining the battle pushed the undead creatures back.

Quickly springing back on to his feet, Topenga took a moment to collect himself, but another huge crash made him look up. The roof had now been completely torn down by the Hylix, which stood looking down at them, with enough room to advance.

Edging backward, all three men placed their weapons by their sides, seeing the fury in the Hylix’s eye. The village horde also edged inside the hut slowly and steadily. Glancing back, Ramon saw that Mikael had actually succeeded in creating a large enough gap in the wall for them to fit through. He quickly resumed his focus on the approaching creatures and the Hylix above them, which continued to hit its club against the ground but made no movement toward them, almost as if toying with them.

“What do we do, my lord?” asked Mikael. His hands trembled, and he nearly dropped his axe.

Noticing this, Ramon glanced at his own hands and realized that fear had gripped them also, along with those of his Colonoy protector.

The silence continued to increase the tension, and the hut seemed to become narrower and narrower. But in that instant, the entire village seemed to erupt once more with the scream of the Hylix, which aggressively smashed its club directly at all three of them. Their sharp reflexes came to their aid once more, as they all rolled away from the attack.

“Quick,” shouted Ramon. “We must go now.” The roar from the Hylix came once more, and finally it stepped into the hut.

Without hesitation, Topenga charged through the wall, knocking a few more bricks to the ground. Mikael was not far behind him, and neither was the Prince. But he did notice the horde charging after him. Emerging on the other side of the passage, he suddenly felt the iron grip of numerous hands on his backpack. His loud grunt alerted Topenga, who rushed in his direction.

“They have hold of my bag,” the Prince shouted.

“Let it go, my lord,” Topenga growled.

“But the fire substance,” Ramon said. “That is all we have.”

“You said it yourself, my lord,” cut in Mikael. “This was always a one-way journey.”

Ramon looked deeply into the eyes of his two comrades, trying to contemplate his next move. But then a number of bricks suddenly fell on him, an event followed by the growl of the Hylix. Looking up, he saw that the giant beast had already started to smash its way toward them.

“Help me with it,” he shouted, glancing backward toward his backpack.

Topenga charged forward and ripped the bag off him. The hands of the Frultoys, more hands than they could count, reached through the wall after them both. Topenga swung his sword, severing a few hands from their wrists. A number of wails went up, and then the bag was completely off Ramon’s shoulders, only to disappear through the wall. At that moment, a larger chunk of the wall fell, and they could now see almost half of the Hylix’s body.

“We must go now, my lord,” Topenga said, breathing heavily.

With a nod, Ramon ran toward the open passageway, through the thick gates, with his comrades following. No sooner had he entered than he fell through a hole, possibly sewers of some sort. The same black ooze that filled the village covered his skin. He desperately tried to gather his bearings, but it remained dark, with only a faint glow of natural light farther down below.

The screams of his partners reassured him that he was not alone, and soon his comrades were all he could hear. Gone were the howls and screams of the Hylix and the horde. He seemed to be falling faster and faster, but the end never came. The touch of water to his face startled him. It was light at first, but quickly turned into a small stream, charging down the hole with him, removing every trace of the tainted black liquid that covered his body.

The speed at which he fell continued to increase, to the point that his heart beat faster than he knew it could. He placed his hands over his chest, waiting for death, but in an instant, he fell to the ground in silence. There was no sign of water, not even a drop, apart from that which remained on his body. Two loud thuds followed, and his friends suddenly lay next to him, coughing and sneezing.

Prince Ramon rose to his feet, ignoring the urge to cough and gag. His comrades slowly found their feet also.

“What is this place, my lord?” asked Mikael.

The prince finally let out a cough and started to speak, before interrupting himself with yet another cough. “I think we have found it.” He stopped and looked at both Topenga and Mikael, who were also staring at the wide entrance in front of them. Surrounded by walls of rock, he peered deeper and saw the glowing specks in the stone that gave off a natural light, illuminating what would otherwise be a pitch-black cavern. “I believe we have found the Caves of Sena.”

5.11

A
W
ARRIOR’S
C
OURAGE

P
eering around the cave, Ramon shuddered at the sight of ten sculptures, five faces on either side of the entrance. He assumed they had once been the faces of ten men, and he felt a chill right through to his bones at how disfigured they seemed. He saw an immediate resemblance to the Frultoys he had just encountered, with disjointed mouths and crooked tongues that hung down to their chins. Yet he doubted such creatures capable of sculpting their images into the rocks. Leaning forward, he placed his hand on the surface. It was rigid, but cool to the touch. Vines covered the higher sections of the entrance.

Glancing back, he realized that Mikael and Topenga had lain back on the ground. The Colonoy gently massaged his forehead with a damp cloth. Mikael stretched his right leg as far as he could and began wrapping a cloth around a gash just below his left knee, one of many wounds suffered at the hands of the Frultoys.

Ramon joined them, resting his head on a smooth piece of stone. “I wonder if the gods do favor us,” he said quietly. Topenga glanced at him but did not speak. “So much pain and suffering,” the prince continued. “Those creatures we saw do not deserve a life like that. How could our gods favor us, while they leave them to live as if dead?” Massaging his naked upper body with a damp cloth, Ramon felt himself drifting off to sleep.

He woke some time later to the sight of Topenga sharpening his sword with a piece of stone. Fully opening his eyes and rising to his feet, he saw Mikael getting to his feet and noticed that his friend walked freely, with no sign of a limp following his injuries.

“You are awake, my lord,” said Topenga. He walked up beside him.

“How long have I been resting?” Ramon asked. He strapped the bow around his shoulder and checked for his sword, which remained around his waist.

“Nearly eight hours, I would guess,” Topenga replied. “Both Mikael and I took turns sleeping while the other kept guard.”

Both the prince and the Colonoy gazed at the cave entrance. The glow of the natural light within it seemed brighter than previously, Ramon thought. Edging closer, he felt the presence of Mikael walking up beside him. Following a raise of his right hand, he cautiously entered.

An uncomfortable silence immediately fell upon them. The inside of the cave bore similarities to the outside. The many sculptures, however, were not just of creatures that used to be men. Ramon recognized carvings of Eclipse, the God of Fire, among a host of beasts that fought during the Battle of Corin. The sculptures of the Akarai, with their sharp fangs, looked almost alive. At that moment, the prince started to doubt himself, worried at the possible dangers they faced.

The path continued in a straight line, until they arrived at a solid wall. A thin gap in the middle of the wall ran from top to bottom. Ramon studied the wall, feeling along the stone with his hands. Unlike the rocks at the cave entrance, it was extremely smooth, almost like glass. Forcefully hitting his hands against it, he realized that it was also quite solid.

Topenga approached the gap in the middle and looked through, shifting around to get the best view he possibly could. “I see something,” he said suddenly.