Dark Soul Silenced - Part One (18 page)

Sighing he turned and headed back to the rest of their company, relying on his compass to guide them in.  Daniel seemed to sense Josef’s feelings and hung back, allowing Josef to pick his own path.

Sarah drifted after those in front, leading her horse through tricky ground once again.  She felt numb inside, still fighting to accept that her wonderful daughter had been snatched away.  Gone were all the worries about Mary’s powers, replaced by concerns over what was happening to her.

Sarah could feel a wave of emotion boiling up inside, threatening to overwhelm her.  Sometime soon the damn was going to burst and she would curl up on the ground sobbing.  Soon, but not now.  And not until Mary was back in her arms if she had anything to do with it.  The wave could build as high as it wanted, could strike with as much power as it wanted, she would keep herself numb and marching on, one step at a time.

She’d caught Jon’s eye a few times and had seen her own pain and determination reflected on his face.  A part of her wanted to go to Jon, hold him tightly, feel his arms wrapped around her shutting out the world.  She couldn’t though — that wouldn’t help them get Mary back.  She thought he understood why she kept a distance.  The tight smiles they exchanged when their eyes met were nothing to do with happiness.  They were simply an attempt to reassure the other.

Yet again Sarah’s thoughts turned to what Mary might be going through.  She was so caught up in them that she jumped when a hand touched her arm.

“
Sarah,” Daniel said again.  “My apologies, I did not mean to startle you.  How are you holding up?”

For a moment her anger flared.  She wanted to snap at him for asking such a stupid question.  Her daughter had been snatched by something terrifyingly evil, how did he think she felt?  She managed to calm herself and realised the question was honestly asked

“I’ll manage,” she replied tensely.  “I worry about Mary though, about what is happening to her.”  She lowered her voice.  “Could he be trying to turn her into one of his kind?  Like he did to you?”

“
I really do not know why he snatched Mary, though I suspect it has something to do with her powers.  He may be planning to convert her, may have started already, but it is a long process.  It took at least six days before I started to succumb to the darkness.  I suspect that Mary’s powers will let her hold out even longer.”

“
Or make her more vulnerable?”

“
The thought has crossed my mind.  I do not think so though.  Her powers are very different to those that Rafael wields and the darkness they are rooted in.  I am sure we have four days at least, and probably five or six, to find Mary if that is what he intends.”

“
And if it is something else?  What if he plans to kill her, and do it soon?  Maybe tonight?”

“
I have worried over that too.  In the end what he intends makes no difference.  We are moving as quickly as we can.  While we may not reach Mary tonight I hope we can close the distance tomorrow.  And he is unlikely to be travelling aimlessly.  He has a destination in mind, and once he reaches it we will close on him quickly.”

“
You could move faster though, couldn’t you?  Daniel — please go after her.  Even if it places Jon and I in danger, even if the witch hunters end up killing us, it might be enough to save Mary.”

“
I am sorry Sarah.  I want to save Mary as much as you and Jon do, but when the vampires attacked last night they overwhelmed me.  I have been practising using my powers to create a stronger shield, and working on a method to strike out with more power, but we do not know how many foes we will face.  If I fail then not only will you have lost my powers for the main attack, the defenders will know you are coming.  I feel the only way to be sure of victory is to attack with our entire strength in one go.”

Sarah blinked fiercely as tears pricked her eyes.  She would not give in.  She
must
stay strong until Mary was safe.  She opened her mouth to argue with Daniel, but another voice spoke first.

“
He’s right Sarah,” Jon said.  Sarah had been turned to the left to speak with Daniel and hadn’t noticed Jon drawing up on her right.  “We need him
and
the guards to take those things down.”

Sarah gritted her teeth as the truth of Jon’s statement hit her.  Hope had briefly flared and was now quenched again.  She turned away from Jon, angrily trying to hold back the tears.  She
would not
give in to them.

“
Daniel,” Jon continued.  “Can you ask Ser Josef for a spare weapon?  When we face those creatures I want to be able to defend Sarah and myself at least, even if I can’t help defeat them.  That stops others having to protect us.”

“
Ask for two!” Sarah said fiercely, the anger inside now tempered into a core of steel.  “They had two spare horses, two men down, so there should be two blades.  I want one too.  And to hell with just defending, if one of those creatures stands between Mary and I then I will tear it apart!”

Daniel smiled a little at her words.

“I will persuade Ser Josef.  You are right, both of you, it is important that you can both defend yourselves.  As for attacking… let us practice a little tonight.  Fighting is always a combination of attack and defence.  One who only defends allows the attacker to set the pace, wear them down and pick the times to strike.  Those who only attack can easily be brought down as they leave themselves open to a counter.”

“
Just teach me how to carve a path through those bastards, that’s all I ask.”

“
Me too,” insisted Jon.

Now Daniel laughed, though it was short lived.  “You already have the most important part, the heart of a warrior.  The desire to fight.  As for the rest, I will teach you what I can.”

“You seem to know a lot about being a fighter,” Jon said.  “Do you remember why?”

Daniel’s expression darkened and he sighed. 

“No.  I would guess that some at least comes from my time in the Order, judging by how proficient Ser Josef and his guards are.  The knowledge is almost instinctual.  I know these things, know how to put them into words, yet I have no memory of where they came from.”

“
Do you think the memories will ever return?”

“
I have no idea.  Maybe some will, maybe not.”  A pained look crossed his face.  “And maybe I’d rather they didn’t.  Who knows what is hiding in my past, especially my time spent as a witch hunter.  Who knows what dark deeds I performed in the name of good.”

Sarah felt a pang inside even through her own misery.  She reached out and placed her hand on his arm.

“What matters is who you are now.  All of us have things in our past we regret.  You are who you are now.  Even if your memories suddenly return you will not change greatly.  You’ve been through too much, seen and done too many things, for you to be the same person.”

Daniel pondered her words for a time before seeming to relax.  He ran ahead slightly then turned and bowed low in Sarah’s direction.  Despite everything she found herself smiling at his actions.  He stood again as she drew level.

“I must thank you for your wisdom.  Truly, you see things more clearly than I.”

Sarah glanced to the other side and saw that Jon was smiling too.  For a few moments at least the weight was lifted off their shoulders.  Thoughts of Mary soon returned but Sarah felt better able to bear their weight.  For a time at least the worries would not drive her into despair.

“Now, let me see about those swords,” Daniel said, before breaking into a jog to catch up with Ser Josef.

The sun was sinking low above the forest to the west as Josef checked on Mary’s location a final time with Daniel’s help, and escorted by Samuel and Nathan.  As he’d feared, the girl was still some distance ahead.  Definitely too far to reach before nightfall, and after the previous nights attack Josef had no intention of travelling after dark.

“We can’t catch them tonight,” he said with a sigh.  “They must still be at least a couple of hours travel ahead.  We need to make camp somewhere we can easily defend and rest, ready for tomorrow’s journey.”

Samuel just nodded his head, clearly having expected as much.  Nathan scowled but said nothing.  Josef turned to Daniel.

“Ser Daniel, do you agree?”

“
Yes Ser Josef.  I suspected as much from when we first set out.  Rafael can match the swiftest of your horses on flat land, even carrying Mary.  Through the forest, where the horses are more hindrance than help much of the time, I had no doubt he would build a commanding lead.  However I still believe he is heading to a specific destination, not wandering aimlessly.  Once he reaches it we will be able to catch him.”

“
We need to find somewhere to camp then.  I haven’t seen anywhere I’d feel comfortable.  In the darkness the trees around us will be no defence, not against the night walkers.”

“
Go back to the others and give me ten minutes.  I will scout the area, see what cover there is.”

Josef was reluctant for a moment, then forced his doubts down.  If Daniel truly wanted to leave then Josef certainly couldn’t stop him.

“Very well.  Anything would be better than being exposed with no cover other than the trees.”

With a nod Daniel turned and was gone, running off into the undergrowth.  He didn’t move particularly fast, but he managed to maintain his pace — always finding a way to dodge any obstacle or more often finding routes that were clear.  It seemed an instinctual ability, one that required no conscious thought.

When the trees had nearly hidden him from sight he seemed to suddenly accelerate, moving far faster than any man should be able to.  Josef thought back to Daniel’s claim that he could keep pace with their fastest horses.  Then what Daniel had told him about Rafael’s ability to move quickly popped back into his head.  The similarity between Daniel’s speed and stamina and that of the night walker planted fresh seeds of doubt in Josef’s mind.  Could he believe Daniel’s explanation?  Had the darkness truly been burnt out of Daniel, or had it simply been pushed deep?  So deep that even the Purity Orb couldn’t detect it?  Daniel seemed to know much about the night walker's leader too, despite claiming to have lost his memories.

As they walked back to the main group Josef started to become certain that Daniel was hiding something, that there was more to tell.  But what was it?

Daniel arrived back at the main group within a minute of Josef.  He jogged up with a smile on his face.

“
Ser Josef, good news.  I found a cave a short distance to the north.  It has a narrow entrance but is large enough inside to fit the horses and ourselves.  It should be easy to defend should the need arise.”

Josef pushed his doubts down. He would judge the shelter for himself, but the only other option was camping out under the trees.  The party were exhausted after the previous night’s terrors and the long day’s march.  If the cave lived up to Daniel’s description it would mean those not on watch could relax and sleep deeply.

“Lead on, Ser Daniel,” Josef said with a flourish of his arm.

The cave more than lived up to Daniel’s description.  The entrance was narrow enough that Josef could touch both sides if he stretched, and low enough that a mounted man would have to duck.  It opened into an elongated chamber thirty paces long and twenty wide, at its widest.

The horses weren’t keen on the narrow entrance, snorting and stamping, but allowed themselves to be led in.  Lanterns had already been setup so the cave wasn’t dark, and the horses settled once they were through into the main space.

Josef set most of the men to gathering firewood.  They would need enough to last the night.  Once darkness fell Josef wanted no one to leave the cave.

After a brief discussion they decided to set the fire in the narrow entrance.  With no natural chimney or gaps in the roof the cave would quickly fill with smoke if the fire was inside.  The fire would also act as a barrier to anything that tried to attack during the hours of darkness.

Soon the fire was burning and dinner was being prepared.  While they waited Daniel walked to a clear area with the girl’s parents and started to instruct them in swordplay.  When Daniel had first asked for the two spare swords Josef had rejected the idea, but Daniel had built his case carefully and Josef found his objections weakening, then disappearing completely.  Daniel was right.  If the girl's parents could defend themselves then it would be one less thing for the guards to worry about.

The two were quick learners and Daniel quickly took them from holding and moving the swords to mock combat.  As the clang of blades rang out Josef was uncomfortable.  Sparring with real weapons was never a good idea — even for those with exceptional skill.  It only took one mistake for someone to be badly hurt, or killed.  One misstep, or one person stepping forwards when the other expected them to move back, would spell disaster.

Daniel sparred with each in turn and Josef quickly went from worry to awe.  Daniel’s movements were exceptionally precise.  Time after time bringing his sword to rest a hairs breadth from whoever he sparred against at that moment.  His speed was amazing too, though he didn’t use it when attacking.  When defending he was able to avoid or block any blow, no matter how fast or powerful.