Epic Fantasy Adventure: The Bard's Tale: A Mysterious Journey (Sword and Sorcery Epic Fantasy Adventure Book With Elves and Magic) (3 page)

For a reason apparent to all, the remaining guards avoided him, instead tending to their officer and their fallen comrades as Vygarast swiftly made his way into the city. A few in the crowd followed him, cheering his performance. After several blocks a gray-haired old man called out to Vygarast. His face was a mixture of concern and caution. He instinctively knew that the elder wanted to ask him something.

“Sir… Sir Bard,” the man stuttered and lowered his head in respect, “I’m Elder Vint, chief of one of the villages near the forest of Streyln. Sir Bard, I have been looking for a hero such as you for many days. I wouldn’t ask for such a tedious act if I could avoid it, but do you know anything about killing Ogres?”

Elder Vint was certainly quick on his feet for an old man. Hunching forward, sometimes even skipping a step while keeping up a fast pace. He looked like he was being chased by a pack of wild dogs.

Trotting now and then to keep up with the man’s fast walking, Vygarast was having second thoughts of following the man towards the woods. However, just the mention of Ogres, gigantic super strong beasts with fierce tempers, was enough of a hook for young Vygarast to help.

There is no way of him knowing that I’m out to hunt legends, right? I mean, I kept my face hidden all the way from Midvein to Crowfair, as well as kept my business secret.
Vygarast took a long breath and decided it was time to ask this old man some questions.

“Excuse me, Vint, can we make a short stop? The fight and casting exhausted me and I would like to have a word with you now that we’re some ways away from the city.”

The elder argued with himself for a short moment, probably weighing his options in his head. The man wanted a fighter and Vygarast, even with then prowess he showed, would not be able to kill an Ogre if he was tired. So, with a sharp nod, he led the way deeper into the woods, this time at a more manageable pace.

A couple spans to the west there was a small glade. Judging from the blackened ground in the middle surrounded by stones, this was a hunters’ spot. The elder certainly knew his way around. Vygarast’s had a big concern. For some time now, he had a vile taste in his mouth, like the air tasted bad. He had asked the elder about it, but he didn’t seem to notice.

As they stopped to rest Vygarast stated: “Thank you elder. Some times people tend to forget that magic comes equal parts from inside and from outside the body. No matter how powerful a Bard is, casting takes a lot from a man.” Vygarast knew that this was not totally true, but if he was getting lured into a trap, then lying to a freckled old man was the least of his worries.

“I understand young Bard. Rest for a while. But we do have to be in the village by sundown.” Vygarast noticed a tint of concern on the man’s voice.
It seems that forests are not safe anymore.

“Tell me elder. What do you know of the Ogre?” The old man snapped at the sound of that word, acting like he heard of the creature from the first time ever in his life.

“Not much. Mostly rumors, glimpses of shadows deep into the Streyln. But just recently, a bunch of our best hunters decided to hunt that. . .thing. No one believed that it was an Ogre, not with the hundreds of years that we hadn’t seen one of those things in our forests. Only after one of the hunters returned, with blood running from his amputated arm, did we know for sure. The last word he muttered was ‘Ogre’ before he died from blood loss. I couldn’t wait any longer for someone to believe me. I had to act, so I decided to get to Crowfair and ask for help. But Lord Digby laughed at me, believing me to be a frightened old man who was daft in the head.”

Yes, that is something that a Crowfairer would do, Vygarast thought.
“And tell me elder, is there a bounty on the beast’s head?”

A bold question, Vygarast knew, but he needed gold! Besides, everyone knows that beast slaying was not a free job. Lanarast was rich in his old age from all the bounties he had collected. “Yes, of course young Bard, we managed to collect 50 gold coins; it was a rough winter for our village, and we were unable to gather more.”

Damn. Not even a fraction of what I want. I should have asked about the money first.
But Vygarast knew that he followed the man because he needed to be bold and he wanted to be sure of himself before going to look for the Owl-Wizard. It was one thing hearing his own father talk about harpies, but for a whole village to believe in Ogres was huge. He had to investigate. “Okay. I’ll do my best to help you Elder Vint.”

Half an hour had passed while the two men talked to each other. The Elder’s village, Hollowpeak, was mostly a settlement used by passing hunters. Deep in the forest and close to the river of Turtle Run, Hollowpeak was a village of few permanent residents but with plenty of visitors coming and going from Crowfair. The fact that the army, or even other hunters, had not taken notice of the Ogre was something that worried Vygarast. It was too late now, since he had already committed to the task and followed the man to the other side of the forest. He could only to hope for the best.

After taking a last sip off his flask, Vygarast was ready at last to move on from the forest clearing. He was still uncertain of the elder’s intentions, but at least he had had time to replenish his strength. Magic could do wonders to his stamina, but it could also leave a man hollow if used carelessly. The old man obviously didn’t know that a Bard could use magic to prolong his stamina or run faster, but Vygarast had no intention of being careless and running head-first into a trap. His father’s life depended on him.

“Okay, let’s go. Is Hollowpeak still far?” He asked, turning to look for the old man behind him. When Vygarast finally spotted him, the elder was shaking like a fish out of the water. It was like he had seen a ghost.

“Is something wrong?” As Vygarast rushed back to help him, he saw what scared the man senseless. “What the. . . ?” He didn’t have time to speak.

He pushed the elder roughly one way and then jumped himself the other way, just in time to dodge a huge spider attacking him from above. Having lived most of his life at the foot of a mountain close to the forest, Vygarast had only seen a few giant snakes the size of this thing. Its hairy belly hit the forest floor and it waved its front legs in front of vicious mouth dripping with poison. It was getting ready to attack.

“Run! I will keep it here,” Vygarast bellowed to the old man who stood petrified a few feet away. “Run you stupid old man! I’ll catch up with you!” After the second round of shouts, Elder Vint shook his head and ran into the woods.

Now, focus on the spider Vygarast.
He drew his sword from the scabbard and held it with both his hands for more power. Sharp as his blade was, Vygarast knew he had to end this fight with a mighty blow if he wanted to survive. The spider’s fangs dripped green venom and as it prepared to attack.

Vygarat examined his surroundings, searching for the best footing.
If only master Lanarast was here. He could cast while I slaughtered it with ease.
But he knew he was alone in this. Vygarast took a deep breath, relaxed his muscles and followed his gut.

Hello? Is anyone out there?

“What the? Who was that?” Everything then happened almost simultaneously. The enormous spider jumped towards Vygarast who had lost his concentration when the voice had whispered inside his head. It was the chirpy sound of a female voice. Vygarast could not track to its source. Lost in the moment, he barely managed to jump to the side, barely avoiding the spider’s fangs. The spider responded quickly and did a quick jump turn, and started charging after Vygarast.

He didn’t have the time to think. He took his sword and thrust if forward, catching the spider between its many eyes. The hairy creature was fast, however, and managed to get away with his blade only sinking in a few inches deep. Quickly circling, getting behind Vygarast’s back, the spider attacked again. Spinning with the sword above his head, Vygarast brought his sword down in a might two handed cleave that tore through the spiders head and brain. With a horrifying shriek, the spider fell to the ground with its belly up and its legs twitching. Vygarast wasted no time and gave the beast a few more deadly stabs until the twitching finally stopped.

Gasping for breath while standing above the spider, Vygarast shakily cleaned his sword on his nearby tall grass. He was exhausted.

Excuse me, now that the battle is over, can you help me here?

“Damn it, who’s there?” Vygarast shouted, almost jumping out of his skin when the voice whispered inside his mind again. “Are you one of those creatures? What do you want?” Exhausted and unsure of himself, Vygarast peered all around the forest.

Hey… human, I’m over here. Turn around.

He turned his head, trying to locate the voice. “I can’t see you!” Abruptly, a small, flickering motion of light appeared on a glistening spider’s web between the trunks of two trees. Vygarast rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times before being sure. Something was indeed on that web and it certainly was not a fly.

Vygarast held his sword ready as he made his way to the silky web and the small glowing bundle that was trapped within. The voice was silent now, probably eager to be set free. His hands shook as he stretched them out to rip the webs strands apart. It took him a minute or two to completely remove the bundle from the powerful and sticky spider web.

A big web for a big spider,
thought
Vygarast as he examined the glowing ball.

I agree. I really hate spiders!
The voice replied to his thoughts, making Vygarast jump and look around with wild eyes.

“Okay, the fun is over. What kind of spell is that? And how can you cast without an instrument? I haven’t heard a song or anything.” He took a good, long look around, waiting for someone to appear and assure him that everything was a joke, however, only that small light appeared out the mass of spider web.

Listen you hasty, young human; my name is Azore Frostyhill, and I’m of the Fairy Daughters. I would be delighted if you stopped your nonsense and freed me from the rest of this web.

Vygarast delicately pulled the glob of web apart, revealing a small glowing fairy from within. She squealed and cursed as he tried his best to delicately remove her from the rest of the sticky mess. He took out his water skin and after a few more minutes of careful work, she was free. She smiled at him then and then waved her hands about in a mysterious gesture. She glowed as bright as the sun for a brief second and then she was flying in the air next to his head.

Now that she was so close to him, Vygarast could see her for what she really was, another legend; a woman, or a teenage girl, with long blonder hair that changed color towards the end. Her eyes were two tiny balls of fire, like the flare that remained for a few seconds after you blew out a candle. Her body was tiny and her wings like that of a beautiful butterfly.

She looked tired, so Vygarast said: “Here, you can rest on my shoulder.” With a quirky sound, the fairy landed on the edge of his right shoulder. The feeling of having her there was invigorating; it was like her very presence filled Vygarast with strength and power.

Now what? Aren’t you going to tell me your name?
The melodic voice chimed in his head.

“Oh, yes. I’m sorry. We half-elves don’t meet fairies all that commonly around here.” Vygarast grinned in an effort to appease the small creature. “I’m Vygarast son of Ornsell, from Midvein of the North Side of the Stryqip Bluff.” The fairy smiled.

Pretty big name for such a young human. Are you a lord, or royalty? I really love palace gardens.
Vygarast could almost sense her weary smile.

“Unfortunately, I’m not… Lady Frostyhill. I’m on a quest to save my father from a harpy’s curse. I was following an old man to his village to kill an ogre, when we met the spider. You know what happened after that.”

As soon as everything poured out of his mouth, Vygarast cupped his mouth with both his hands, every secret he meant to keep, out in the light. The tiny fairy giggled at his reaction.
You ignorant human; you really don’t know anything about our kind, do you?
With a brief flap of her beautiful wings, the fairy proceeded to explain.
No one can lie around fairies, not even Bards. We are nature’s judges and protectors, keeping our Mother safe from every vile creature, especially humans.

The tiny fairy floated before Vygarast’s head, looking him straight in the eyes. For a moment, she examined him.
You have unusually bright green eyes, even for a human.

“I’m a half-elf, which has something to do with it.”

A charming giggle erupted from the fairy, this time lighting the whole glade up.
My dear Vygarast, I wish I could stay. However, you have to take me to your King now, or one of your Lords. I bear news from the Queen of Fairies herself, and it is urgent
.

Vygarast returned to his camp from his short visit to the village. He had spent the last night talking with Azore, or Azy as she preferred to be called, who was a fairy ambassador sent here to negotiate the return of fairies to the kingdom. Azore Frostyhill was a Winter Fairy, belonging to one of the Four Factions of hierarchy back in the Fairy Kingdom.

She wouldn’t reveal too much to him, not with her diplomatic mission under way, but she and Vygarast became friends quite fast. Being forced to say the truth while close to her was troubling at first, but soon it was refreshing to not have to keep anything hidden from her. Even so, Azy was a quirky fairy, even under fairy standards. She was really talkative, not easy to fool (Vygarast was pretty sure that this was a common characteristic between the fairies) and a restless spirit overall. She was good company to have and Vygarast enjoyed every second.

It was not easy for Vygarast to accept that he was now friends with a creature from lore, but he was loving his new friend. He pulled aside a bush to enter his camp after searching for the old man for several hours. Azy was hiding on the higher branches of a tree and she floated down to greet him. It was very cool that she didn’t have to flap her wings in order to fly. He wasn’t sure how she did that.

So? What happened? Did you find the old man?
Now that she had rested for a whole night, she flew up and down cheerfully, showing her emotions in a pretty vivid way.

“Vint managed to return safely in his village. The only thing I was able to extract from him was that the hunters had tracked the Ogre’s location to the south side of the Streyln forest, close to. . .”

The wizard’s tower,
she interrupted
, this is wrong. A wizard would never let an Ogre so close to his tower, not without blasting it to bits. Something is wrong here, Vygarast. Maybe we should go visit the king.

“No. I’m sorry Lady Azy, but. . .”

I told you before, I’m not a Lady. I’m just a messenger.

“Yes, yes. Sorry. But you have to trust me on this. The king will not help us, not without some kind of personal interest involved. Elder Vint asked for aid, and was thrown out with empty hands. Also my father. . .”

Yes, you’re right. It’s just that.. well, fairies and wizards are like opposites. We are Nature’s gentle side, while wizards are rough and dangerous with their powers. You don’t want to have anything to do with a wizard, unless your life is in danger.

“I need to save my father… even if I die in the attempt” Vygarast said seriously. He lowered his hood to reveal his tattooed face to Azy. She gasped, as if seeing it for the first time; maybe she did see it for the first time. The little fairy was so shaken from her adventure last night that she had fallen asleep almost immediately.

What is that on your face? Did they hurt you back there?
She flew closer to his face, examining the inked shape. It was still small, just five years in the making, covering the better part of his face and just starting to expand to his shoulder blade.

“Oh, that? Well, this is a half-elf thing. Didn’t half-elves in the past have tattoos on their faces?”

Elves, as I knew them, would never mate with a human. Creatures that aren’t touched by time like us see the fleeting life of the humans as an abomination, a curse from our Mother. So, afraid of losing their immortality, elves would never even think about sleeping with humans.

“Well, things have changed nowadays. Half-elves are as common as humans. We don’t share immortality with our magical half, but we live longer than humans do and we have the same passions. Contrary to our elven brothers, we celebrate life and death, getting magical tattoos on our body. The longer the tattoo on the day of your death, the fuller you life was. It is something every half-elf does when they come of age. I’ve never given it much thought.”

The fairy touched the tattoo and then jumped off his shoulder quickly. Vygarast could sense her quizzical face. His voice stopped her in her tracks. He had more news to share. “Azy, your quest might turn up being more difficult than mine. Back in the village, I saw soldiers of the king ransacking the local shops. I also heard news of the King being on his dying bed. If that is true, the Four Dukes will not stand still until one of them gets his throne.”

I don’t understand. What has that got to do with my quest?

“It might be years before a new King rises between the Four Dukes, years that would tarnish diplomatic relations unless agreed upon by each Duke separately.”

The little fairy gasped in shock, startling Vygarast. Talking to his mind made every interaction between them ten times more intense. When she felt fear, he felt every ripple of her shaken mind, and when she ways happy, euphoria filled him as well. He needed to ask her to tone down her sentiments a bit, but that was not the problem here. Azy had to decide if she would follow Vygarast on his quest to save his father, or start her journey to every side of the kingdom to talk with the Four Dukes.

I know what you’re thinking Vygarast, but I can’t leave you alone.
Surprised, Vygarast started to protest only for Azy to stop him.
You know nothing of our world Vygarast and I know nothing of yours. I was thinking of asking you sooner or later, but now is as good a time as any. Would you like to partner up with me until we complete our quests?

The young Bard didn’t know what to say, or in the current situation, what to think. Bards were meant to travel around and search for new songs, or even write them if talented enough. Before now, Vygarast had never even thought of leaving his father behind, not when his mother and sisters were in the Mainland leaving with the other elves.

But meeting the Four Dukes, learning more about the old legends, and taking part in one of the grandest adventures of his life, surely was an offer he couldn’t pass up. On the other hand, Vygarast had responsibilities.

When he opened his mouth to ask for a little time to think about it, he was compelled instead to tell the truth: “Yes! Yes, I would gladly go with you!”

Truth cannot be hidden young human. Remember that at all times.

After picking up his things from the ground and making sure he covered the campfire with enough dirt to bury the coals, he started looking for the Ogre’s lair. According to the villagers, after passing the Rose Brook on the south, and getting through the dark part of the forest, there was a clearing near the end of the forest, just steps before meeting the steep wall of a mountain.

It was not a long trip, not for an experienced hunter, or someone familiar with the place, but for two strangers to this land it was a difficult path. Following directions was something that Vygarast had never wrapped his head around. He was constantly getting lost in the mines back home or in the forest near his house. So he took his time and did his best to tread carefully. He didn’t want to stumble into a dangerous situation unaware.

They walked, and walked, until the sound of gurgling water revived their hopes. “This must be the river. We are getting closer.”

For the greater part of their walk, Azy was flying up and down, exploring the surroundings and asking questions about humans. Abruptly, she decided to rest on Vygarast’s shoulder.
Be careful Vygarast. From here on out, danger lurks in every corner.

They traveled onwards for another thirty minutes. The deep part of the forest was void of sunlight, making Vygarast lower his hood. The tattoo on his face sparkled as tiny rays of sunlight fell upon it. He wasn’t exactly sure what came first, the realization that something had caught his left foot, or the pain of a bite higher up on his leg, but Vygarast found himself lying on the wet bank of the rumbling river.

A silent growl, one that couldn’t start describing his pain, came from Vygarast’s deepest thoughts. It was a growl of fear, realizing he was about to die. The shrieking voice of a teenage girl in his mind quickly made him come to his senses.

Vygarast! Vygarast, stand on your feet! A Hydra has attacked you!

Between the burning sensation of his wounds, the running water dousing his head, and Azy’s powerful mental urgings, Vygarast found the strength he needed to jerk violently backwards and then quickly stand on his feet. Blood coursed from his leg as he took a look at the monstrosity before him. The creature before him was like a nightmare come to life, a double-headed snake monster with the feet of a giant lizard.

Without time to pull either of his instruments from his bag, which now lay nearby, Vygarast instinctively grabbed the hilt of his sword and pulled it quickly, going immediately into a defensive stance.

Azy landed on his shoulder and put her small hands on his face. A warm sensation rushed through every vein of his body, leading down to his bleeding leg and aching ankle. In what seemed like seconds, Vygarast’s pain faded into a barely-aware numbness. “What did you do?” he wanted to ask but was interrupted by the echoing hiss of the two-headed snake.

Vygarast thought of diving into the river, as he was a powerful swimmer, but his father had taught him that snakes and water was not a good combination. He rolled away from the river bank and towards a dry space further into the dark part of the forest. Until now, he hadn’t examined the size of the crawling beast. Vygarast realized that like the spider before, the snake was huge as well, easily four hundred pounds and seven feet tall. The beast charged him suddenly and Vygarast was barely able to do a backwards sidestep just out of reach of the snakes massive fangs. He recovered quickly though, planting his back foot then coming down with a massive two handed over hand chop that sent the nearest head to him rolling away on the ground.

That is not enough. You have to cut both its heads at the same time or else the other will grow back again.
Azy didn’t have to explain it to him, but the reminder was helpful. Vygarast had heard stories of hydras before and knew of their regenerative powers. The hydra retreated as a big bulk of pink skin started growing to suddenly reveal a new head.

“Damn it. This is not good.” Vygarast said to Azy.

But this was his chance. While the hydra wasn’t attacking he made a quick sprint to his fallen bag and pulled out his lute from the sack on the ground. His fingers quickly got into place just in time to stop the snake in its tracks. A melody sweet and melancholic filled the air with intense vibrations. Soon, the music behind the song that Vygarast was playing, The Tomb of the Warrior, was lost in the drumming sound that echoed around him.

The ground under the snake started receding, the earth itself getting swept into a fearful melody of war. One of the songs written for combat, Vygarast was not so familiar with it. Even so, he knew that it was enough to kill. The ground beneath the hydra suddenly turned to mud and the creature sank into it until nothing was showing but the two writing heads. With a bitter twang of the lute and a mighty roar to end the song, the ground turned solid once again. Vygarast quickly retrieved his sword and carefully approached the hydra. He was careful to judge just how far the heads could attack, moving in slowly with his hands holding his sword abovc his head, ready for a killing strike. He taunted the beast with his sword, causing the heads to strike. He did this one last time, and as their where extended he moved in quickly with a powerful strike. The first head fell to the ground. When the remaining head came in to strike, he rolled under it and then chopped the last head off at the base with a mighty blow. Green blood spouted everywhere as Vygarast quickly cut every last piece of the hydra off that was above the ground. He stood there for many minutes, the gore running from his clothes and face, but he did not move until he was absolutely sure the monster would not regenerate. He has a battle rage in his veins the likes he had never felt before. He felt alive! He felt stronger.

Vygarast was in the middle of cleaning his sword in the grass when Azy landed on his shoulder again. This time, her touch was urgent… anxious.

We have to run Vygarast, if A Hydra is here, that means that also. . .

Her whispering suddenly stopped, as if a tall wall separated them. The small fairy tried to speak, but she couldn’t.

“That means what Azy? What is going on?”

Vygarast would remember that sensation for the rest of his life; first sensing the corruption of his magic and then seeing the man jump out of the shadows from behind a tree trunk, a man walking on the other side of the river.

His voice was hoarse, deep, and steady. “Your friend probably meant to warn you of me, my young Bard. I greet you, half-elf of the forest mountains.”