Pain. Searing, burning agony. Natalia’s flesh was on fire, a pain unlike anything she’d ever experienced. Was this the Underworld, where she would spend an eternity writhing in anguish? She tried moving her limbs, but they wouldn’t respond. Her heart pounded, and she felt her life draining away.
In desperation, she called out, but no sound emerged. She forced her eyes open to see Athgar staring down at her, dripping wet. She needed to tell him how much she loved him before death claimed her, but only a tormented scream escaped her lips.
Shaluhk’s hands glowed as she gently placed them on Natalia, the colour bleeding into her broken body, illuminating her many injuries.
“Will she live?” said Athgar.
“Although her wounds are grievous, I can heal the flesh, but there is something more.” She nodded at the claw marks on Natalia’s arm. The flesh was torn, and beneath the wound, something festered, turning the flesh putrid as it spread.
“What is it?”
“Necrotic rot,” replied Shaluhk. “I have never seen it before, but the memories of Khurlig know it well.”
“Can you cure it?”
She shook her head. “It is spreading too fast. If it reaches her heart, it will kill her.”
“There must be something we can do?”
“Ready your axe, for you must sever the limb before it spreads further.”
Horror filled Athgar’s face as he stared back. “Surely not?”
“A limb I can regenerate, but even the most powerful shamans cannot bring back the dead.” She looked at Natalia, whose eyes flicked around in fear. “I shall put her to sleep. It is best she is not awake for this.” Power built within Shaluhk, and then she touched Natalia’s forehead, and she went limp. “Your axe. Now!”
Athgar pulled forth his axe, his hands shaking as he held it overhead.
“You must cut here,” said Shaluhk. “Halfway between the elbow and the shoulder. Do you understand?”
He nodded, too shocked to give words to his fears.
Shaluhk pulled Natalia’s arm out straight. “Sever it in one blow and be quick about it before it is too late.”
The axe came down with all the strength Athgar could muster. He’d cleaved through countless enemy warriors in battle with nary a thought, but this was by far the worst thing he’d ever been forced to do. The blade struck, making a clean cut, blood spurting forth from the stump. Bile rose in his throat, and he turned away, expelling the contents of his stomach.
Behind him, magic poured out of Shaluhk, but he couldn’t bear to watch. He retched again and again until it felt like his stomach had turned inside out, then a hand grasped his shoulder.
“It is done,” said Shaluhk.
He looked past the Orc to see Natalia lying peacefully in slumber.
“Will she survive?”
“Yes. Her spirit is strong, but she lost much blood and will need to rest.”
“And her arm?”
“The spell of regeneration takes time to work. If you recall, when you and Kargen were badly burned back in Ord-Kurgad, it was nearly a ten-day before your flesh healed.”
“We should never have come here.”
“We all knew the risk, Nat-Alia included.”
“Will she be able to use her magic?”
“Yes, though her casting will be hampered until her arm is fully restored. Has she ever cast a spell one-handed?”
“I believe so. Why?”
“She can likely still do so, although I suspect the frozen arch will not be possible. Spells of that power require concentration, and a weakened limb would prove most distracting.”
“Then it looks like we’re stuck here for a while.”
Shaluhk nodded. “Now, let us make her comfortable. Her body needs to recover.”
Kargen returned from the top of the cliff, though he had little to tell them. The plateau above was similar to the river below, thick with trees and silence.
“Even the birds have abandoned the area,” he mused. “Could that thing have chased them away?”
“There is something far darker within that forest,” replied Shaluhk. “I can sense it.”
“Perhaps it is time to reconsider our plan.”
“No. Natalia would want us to carry on.”
“And we will,” replied Kargen, “once she fully recovers, but I worry there might be worse things ahead.”
“What did you make of that monstrosity?” asked Athgar.
Kargen mulled it over. “I believe it killed the tusker.”
“Did it, though? We saw no sign of necrotic rot on the carcass.”
“Perhaps we did,” said Shaluhk. “If you recall, the body was rotting.”
“All bodies rot, eventually.”
“True, but what if the tusker was a fresher kill than we thought, the rot making it appear older?”
“Is that sort of thing common?” asked Athgar. “How does such a creature survive without being killed by its own venom?”
“It is not venom,” said Shaluhk. “Necrotic rot is only found amongst the animated dead.”
“Are you suggesting that creature wasn’t alive?”
“That is the most logical explanation.”
“How would it come to be in the wilderness?”
“That,” said Kargen, “is an excellent question. I do not know much about the living dead, but I surmise they are not naturally born.”
“You are correct,” replied Shaluhk. “Creatures of that ilk are created by acts of Necromancy. The spirit realm has creatures with similar powers, but they cannot enter the world of the living without a bridge into our world.”
“That tends to support the rumours of Vicavia delving into forbidden magic.”
“It does.”
“We’re too far south for Vicavia,” said Athgar. “She’s supposed to live off the eastern border of Ruzhina.”
“Perhaps her domain is larger than we realized?” offered Kargen. “It is possible we were given false information.”
“Or this creature escaped captivity,” said Shaluhk. “It has no natural predators to fear and could find plenty of food to sustain it.”
“Do the living dead still need food?”
“It expends strength to survive, so it makes sense it must replace that energy. It would likely not eat in the traditional sense but would absorb the life force of its victims. The dead tusker supports that since its flesh, though rotting, remained relatively intact. If you recall, we saw no signs of bite marks, only the raking of claws.”
“You’re right,” said Athgar. “Now tell me, do creatures like that reproduce?”
“Not as far as I know,” replied Shaluhk. “There is also no truth to stories about their victims becoming living dead, at least from Khurlig’s memories.”
“Still, it proves a Necromancer is out there or was at one time.”
“You raise a valid concern. A Necromancer either created or summoned this creature, but we have no evidence of how long it has been in existence. With plentiful sources of energy nearby, this creature could live for centuries.”
“I’m not sure if that’s reassuring or not.”
“We can discuss this later,” said Kargen. “It will soon be dark, and if we are to be here a ten-day, then we should build ourselves a campfire.”
“You two gather wood,” said Shaluhk. “I shall check on Nat-Alia before I contact Voruhn to inform her of what has transpired.”
They dragged the umak farther into the woods, hiding it lest the creature return, then built a campfire. Athgar cast his fire watch spell, but it did little to calm their nerves. It was an eerie sensation, being in the thick of a forest with no signs of life, running water the only sound besides their movement.
After a restless night, they set about building a shelter for Natalia. Collapsed trunks and rotting branches strewn about the forest floor provided them with all they needed. They built a frame of wood, tying it together with plant fibres that Shaluhk twisted into a thin rope. They collected greenery to create a roof, resulting in a small hut that could hold all four, if necessary, though it would be crowded.
They kept the fire outside, for Athgar cast his spell of warmth on everyone. Instead, it became the focal point of their camp, chasing away the shadows when darkness descended.
Natalia finally awoke that evening, her complexion even paler than usual. After a second day of rest and another regeneration spell, Natalia got up and gingerly moved around the camp. She was not ready to continue their journey but was on the mend.
Kargen explored the area, though he kept to the forest rather than expose himself to a threat from above. The cliff remained an obstacle, but over the next few days, he searched its base, looking for an easier way up. He discovered a place where the trees grew right against the cliff edge, offering more protection from airborne threats. With Shaluhk’s help, they fashioned additional lengths of rope, enough to pull Natalia up to the top once she was fully recovered. Then she only needed to move closer to the edge of the falls, where she could cast her frozen arch.
The days wore on, and after a week, signs of life returned to the area. The birds appeared first, no longer scared by the strange creature that had attacked them. Whatever it was had gone off seeking greener pastures.
Shaluhk’s magic did its job, and by the morning of the ninth day, she cast her final regeneration spell. Natalia flexed her fingers, looking in wonder at the newly restored limb.
“It feels stiff,” she remarked, “as if it’s been out in the cold.”
“The muscles are like those of a newborn, requiring attention to develop further. Try casting something.”
Natalia closed her eyes, digging deep to summon her inner power. Moments later, she snapped them open and pointed at a distant tree. A large spike of ice flew from her fingertips, missing the target by a few paces. “My power is still intact, but I’ve lost my accuracy.”
“That will return once the muscles are restored to their former strength. I suggest you practice casting as much as possible, as it will help your body adjust to the change.”
“I can’t thank you enough for saving me, Shaluhk. I thought I was dead.”
“I could not let my tribe-sister die here, in the middle of nowhere, but you should be thanking Athgar, not me. He pulled you from the river.”
“Without your healing, I would have perished.”
“And without him, you would have drowned. I could not pull you from the river, for I am not a good swimmer.”
“I shall keep that in mind.”
Athgar and Kargen wandered into camp carrying the body of a deer.
“What’s this, now?” said Natalia.
Athgar grinned. “It seems larger prey has returned to the region.” He paused as he looked at her arm. “How does it feel?”
“A little stiff, but I’ll get used to it.”
“Good,” added Kargen. “Then we can soon continue on our way.”
“Today?”
“No,” replied the Orc. “We have a deer to cut up and prepare for travel. Tomorrow, perhaps?” He looked at his bondmate.
“Tomorrow will be fine,” replied Shaluhk.
“Good. Athgar and I will prepare this, and then we shall have a feast to celebrate the occasion.”
They set off the next day, making it a full ten-day since Natalia’s injury, just as Shaluhk predicted. Rather than split up, they hid the umak, then proceeded up the cliff, using the new path Kargen had discovered.
Natalia stood at the lip of the cliff, looking upriver, seeking a place to act as an anchor point for her spell. She soon found a large, flat rock, around five paces wide. Her attention then turned to the river below them, picking out a section of the riverbank clear of trees.
Athgar came up beside her. “Are you certain you’re up to this?”
“I’d better be,” she replied, “or we’ll be stuck up the river without an umak.” She chuckled, the first sign of mirth she’d displayed since her injury. “It’s funny. Being here, in the middle of nowhere, just the four of us.”
“In what way?”
“It sounds like a joke. Three mages and a hunter walk into the wilderness. I suppose I’m still waiting to see what the punchline is.”
“We don’t need to continue. We can return to Runewald, and no one will complain.”
“No,” she said. “We must see this through—I have to see this through. The family has been my private nightmare for far too long. I want Oswyn to grow up without having to constantly look over her shoulder. She can’t do that when the Volstrum is out there, searching for her.”
“What can I do to help?”
“Stand behind me and hold on to my waist, like you do when we’re at sea.”
“You’re that unsteady?”
“I find it hard to explain. It’s as if my body is no longer accustomed to the weight of my arm, and it’s throwing me off balance. Don’t worry. I won’t fall, but even a wobble might send my magic careening off target.”
“And if you do miss?”
She laughed. “This doesn’t require a fine degree of accuracy. As long as the arch opens up somewhere near the river down there, it’s fine.”
“You cast,” said Kargen. “Shaluhk and I will go through and retrieve the umak.” The two Orcs moved over to the flat rock in anticipation. “You may begin whenever you wish.”
Natalia concentrated on her target, bringing forth the magic from within. A sense of power flushed through her as if water rushed through her veins, then two pillars of ice formed in front of the Orcs. She kept up the effort until the top of the arch finished forming.
With the first arch complete, she turned towards the bottom of the falls, tracing the river downstream until she spotted the selected point for the other arch. More power poured forth, and then the ground below frosted five paces to the right of her intended target. Part of her rebelled at the thought she’d missed her intended focal point, but she was thankful it ended up in the general vicinity. Instead of recasting, she poured more energy into the spell and was rewarded by the arch of ice taking form. She felt the connection between the two end points take hold, knowing it would no longer require her full concentration to maintain it.
Kargen and Shaluhk entered the frozen arch on the cliff face, reappearing below at the side of the river. They’d loaded the supplies into the umak, so they only needed to drag the boat back with them.
Athgar watched with avid interest. It was one thing to step through the arch and quite another to witness it in operation. It defied all reason, for half the umak was down below while the other half was at the top of the cliff, exiting the portal.
“We are finished,” called out Kargen.
Natalia released her hold on her spell, the two archways shattering into chunks of ice.
“How do you feel?” asked Athgar.
“A little tired,” she replied. “My arm is sore from the strain of casting, but at least it worked.”
“You’ll be back to normal in no time.”
“Let us get the umak into the river,” said Shaluhk. “The sooner we’re away from this place, the better.”
They dragged the umak upriver and then placed it in the water. Kargen held it steady as they all climbed in, then pushed them out, pulling himself in at the last moment. The current grabbed the boat, dragging it back towards the waterfall, and then they all dug in with the paddles.
The sounds of nature were more pronounced here, and Natalia even spotted some fish. Insects buzzed, birds chirped, and the occasional sound of scurrying feet revealed plentiful wildlife.
Natalia still had one weak arm, but the rest paddled almost continuously, trying to put as much distance between them and the waterfall as possible. As night approached, they stopped at a small clearing and soon had a fire going to ward off the darkness.
Natalia sat before the fire, listening to the sounds of nature. “It’s nice here,” she said. “There’s a sense of peace I haven’t felt since we left Carlingen.”
“We should still remain alert,” warned Kargen. “There is no telling what dangers lurk in these parts.”