Chapter 10
The world itself felt like it had been suddenly changed forever as if a new god had taken the throne of existence for itself and now was hurriedly reshaping the world in its image. The journey had changed from a frustrating yet successful approach to something else entirely. Though the decision to kill Thark had been made quickly its execution was anything but rushed. Before the group could simply fire an arrow at Thark within the city the leader of the Maka Voan and his cohorts had disappeared from sight. Cada Varl feared that the group would be forced into a kind of cat and mouse predicament, searching for Thark through the city, but something far more effective (seemingly) took place.
In only a matter of several hours the group had found their way out of the city, taking refuge in nearby woodlands whose terrain offered little to the imagination. From there the group had quickly devised a plan with the cunning and cleverness of any hunter. Imbaka and Leannol had soon discovered that Thark had camped his troops outside of the city walls in low lying lands to the north, roughly half a mile or so from where the group now was. Firewood had been cleaved by the likes of Hazum Ka-te and Tanagy but no fire had yet been forged. Around the yet to be lit fire the group stood and listened to what Imbaka had to say.
She informed the group that there were no more than 800 enemies within the camp although there was a chance that more were still in the city and would arrive later. She pointed out that the only natural defense the camp had was a ridgeline in the east, a place the group could easily reach without being seen. Since the ridge wall would prevent a large-scale enemy attack, camp guards would be looking out to the more open landscapes of the other directions. The camp had been set out in typical werewolf fashion with what appeared to be the commander’s quarters placed in the center. The mindset of the Helluvans now was almost animalistic to the point that they were hungry beasts needing to kill their selected prey. Cada Varl could feel it in the air as the group asked a number of questions most of which Imbaka and Leannol had an answer to.
It was then time for Hazum Ka-te and Tanagy to leave, in order to find an effective route of retreat, which would not lead them back into the mountain ranges or even the tropics. It would be a lie not to say that Cada Varl felt useless in this situation. For all of his great strength and skill with a sword it had not so much as been suggested by anyone that he attempt to kill Thark. For their entire life Helluvans had been trained to be the most effective warriors that humans could be, to fight and survive in just about any situation and depending on an outsider, even an immortal one was simply not how they saw the world.
As the group waited for Hazum Ka-te and Tanagy to return Cada Varl watched as Gokkus took his pack and laid it at his side before crouching onto the ground. The man dressed in black took something from his pack that the Immortal did not recognize and in actuality appeared to be little more than a rectangular shaped wooden box. As best he could Cada Varl studied the box looking for signs to its true identity as Gokkus looked over it with a careful eye as if to ensure it possessed no flaw. The only other thing the Immortal could see was that the box possessed a set of simple hinges on its side, allowing the box to open vertically like the mutated jaws of some strange creature. The box also possessed an opening at one end that could easily be sealed by some kind of metal lid.
Gokkus opened the simple lid and using the light of the afternoon sun to increase his vision he peered down into the box. Though the Immortal did not know what he was looking for, clearly the man in black was satisfied with what he saw as he then placed the box onto the ground and reached back into his pack.
After several moments he took in hand a number of very small bags and a jar. Using the length of his arm he pressed these items against his stomach as he took the box in hand and while crouching turned away from the others as if whatever he was doing was to be kept secret. Cada Varl was curious but not enough to disrespect Gokkus by peering over his shoulder; instead he looked to the Helluvan women who had not simply been standing around.
Sitting in a line with Leannol in the middle the women were talking about the enemy camp. Soon a blank parchment and some kind of ink and quill were taken from Leannol’s bag and in a moment the Immortal realized what they were doing. The Helluvan women were drawing a picture of the enemy camp and even though Zova had not seen it she listened intently to what the other two had to say.
Cada Varl could hear Gokkus opening bags and placing their content inside of the box, but only looked towards him when the man dressed in black took in hand his water-skin. Strangely in place of drinking the water he carefully placed a certain amount of it inside of the box, where not so much as a single drop leaked out. To the Immortal it seemed strange that Gokkus appeared to be trying to hide what he was doing from the others, who took no notice of what he was doing. The Immortal thought ‘if it was that important than why didn’t the man dressed in black simply leave the area and perform his task in solitude?’ After all there was plenty of space in these woods that appeared to bear no other life than the group themselves. Whatever he was doing it was a complicated procedure, but one he had performed many times as he continuously added ingredients to the mix without taking his eyes away from the box.
Cada Varl looked back and forth from Gokkus to the Helluvan women, remaining silent as they went about accomplishing their tasks. Finally the man in black seemed finished with whatever he was doing and began holding the box as if suddenly it had become very unstable. He half turned in the direction of the Helluvan women where without being motioned Zova stood up and approached him. With a touch that was as gentle as it was careful she took the box from him and held it in a precise position with one hand on either end of it. Cada Varl watched for a moment taking notice of how Zova kept the box at the exact same level as she slowly moved away from the man dressed in black.
As Gokkus began putting things back into the pack it became clear to Cada Varl that he hadn’t been hiding what he was doing, but rather how he was doing it. Still feeling useless the Immortal offered these words to Zova, “Would you like me to hold that Zova, it will allow your hands to do other things?”
Zova glanced towards the Immortal gently shaking her head but Gokkus was the one to respond. The man dressed in black turned his body so that he remained crouching as he looked in the Immortal’s eyes. “Do not worry Cada Varl….” he said, “You have a duty to perform, but not yet.” Cada Varl gave a nod of respect though it was unclear what such a duty was.
Gokkus motioned for Cada Varl to crouch at his side as he reached into his pack once again. This time in place of taking out bags and jars, he took out pieces of both wood and steel, each a different shape, size and width to one another before placing them in some kind of assembly on the ground before him. To the Immortal they looked like nothing more than random pieces that did not serve any purpose, like a jigsaw puzzle that had just been taken out of the box. But to Gokkus they were something different entirely and it did not take long for him to make something out of the random pieces. As the man dressed in black slid, bolted and connected the pieces together the Immortal thought that whatever he was making had something to do with his ‘duty’ but this was not the case.
It was only when the thing was 90 percent assembled that the Immortal realized what it was. A crossbow that was so large it seemed more suited to the defending of castle walls than anything portable. Unlike other hand held weapons of its kind this crossbow ended with a large semi circle that Gokkus soon explained rested over and under the shoulder to allow for better stability. Gokkus had assembled almost the entire thing by himself and only needed or rather asked Cada Varl to bend the bow of the weapon as he carefully threaded a thick black string upon it, tying it up and over on both ends. If this was the duty of the Immortal than it seemed an unnecessary one, because Gokkus easily could have bent the bow himself. Nevertheless Cada Varl did what was asked of him and soon the weapon was ready. It was a complicated thing to say the least with some kind of strange pulley sys
tem that the Immortal did not quite understand, regardless of how well the man dressed in black had explained it to him. It seemed that Gokkus had simply gotten Cada Varl to observe him as he performed this task, like he almost could sense that Cada Varl was feeling useless and went out of his way to make him feel a part of the group. Though the Immortal was ultimately against the decision to attempt an assassination of Thark he had always felt to be a welcomed if not vital part of the team.
With the crossbow assembled Gokkus would sporadically check to ensure that its sighting was not off. The Immortal looked elsewhere between Zova who continued to hold the strange box on the exact same level to Imbaka and Leannol who continued adding detail to the map they were creating.
It was the birth of dusk by the time Tanagy and Hazum Ka-te had gotten back; they were greeted by the bowing of heads before Imbaka asked, “Is there a viable path of retreat?”
Hazum Ka-te nodded but looked to the Abider to explain more. “These woods only go on for a few more miles, after them there are swamplands, that are simply impassible to a large group on the march, but they shouldn’t cause us too much trouble.”
“We do not know what lies beyond the swamps, but the path will serve our purpose,” Hazum Ka-te said almost interrupting his younger companion. A look of slight frustration flashed in the eyes of the Abider as he looked to the older man, but such an expression vanished as he looked back and said, “I have left markings that only Helluvans will recognize, my memory of the path is strong….”
Imbaka nodded before she looked up to the darkening sky and said, “ Night will soon fall, hopefully it brings as much darkness as needed.” The group collectively then looked up at the sky but no one said anything to encourage or contradict the statement.
Frustratingly Mother Nature did not oblige the group in their hope, summoning not only the full moon but seemingly every single star the sky had to offer. The moon and the stars covered the forest and therefore the landscapes beyond it in an unwelcome light. Leannol and Imbaka had become satisfied with their creation and immediately Cada Varl noticed that its detail and descriptions could clearly be seen. They had used some kind of ink that did not quite glow but still could be seen clearly in the near darkness.
“It almost glows?” Cada Varl said as he looked down upon the map. Leannol looked up to the Immortal and explained, “Ballaus ink, made specifically to be seen in the dark of night, did you not smell its powerful odor?”
Cada Varl lifted his head slightly, as he said, “No.”
Her question was a reminder of what he was, having not smelled the odor before he became an immortal, prevented any memory to remind him of such a smell.
With the map complete there still seemed much to do. Zova carefully handed the strange box to Tanagy as both she and Gokkus stood by the side of Leannol as she went over the map with them. Hazum Ka-te was now crouching over the unlit fire bending leaves and other such things over it before he sent spark to it using a knife and some kind of flint. As the fire was born it resembled more the highly heated top of a homemade pie than a regular fire. The whole thing glowed as it was made up of embers in place of free flame. It did not need to be explained to anyone, this fire was being used for its warmth not its light and would be difficult to be seen unless several feet away from it.
As Zova, Gokkus and Leannol looked over the map the rest of the group was silent with Imbaka and Hazum Ka-te sitting next to the fire while Tanagy held the box with as much care as Zova did. Cada Varl stood watching it all as he put the pieces together for himself as to what was actually going to happen. Once Gokkus and Zova had no more questions to be asked of the red haired warrior Gokkus took the map from her, placing it under his black garments around his waist. Now Imbaka stood back up and walked over to Gokkus and Zova as the man dressed in black went over to the pack that the Immortal carried taking out several rolls of material that was the same colour as his garments.
Zova stood with both her arms and legs spread as Imbaka and Gokkus began wrapping the black material around her in a coordinated fashion. The Immortal watched as the light that reflected off of her armor vanished and she was encased completely in the black material, leaving only a slit across her face for her eyes to see out of. Her long wild hair was carefully and completely tucked in under the black, if it had not been for the shape of her body she now would look almost exactly like Gokkus.
Just after Zova had been dressed a very strange sound came from the box; it was not quite a clicking sound, not quite a hissing sound but something in between. All eyes were drawn to it as Tanagy looked towards Gokkus. The man dressed in black walked over to the Abider and took the box from him, placing his finger upon a slight indentation on its side. After a moment he looked to the group and said, “It is ready.”
“May I ask what it is?” Cada Varl said having wanted to know its context since the very beginning.
Gokkus did not hesitate in his reply, “ Molin, a kind of artificial ice that takes a very long time to melt and is much easier to form.”
Now seemingly only for the Immortal’s benefit Gokkus explained all. “We are making a crossbow bolt out of Molin; using the crossbow Zova will fire it into Thark’s heart. The bolt will shatter upon impact leaving no trace but its tip, which will be lodged inside the body of the target. Even if the werewolves pull out his heart to find the cause of his death, it will appear no different than the very tip of a Gotianik. There will be no trace of us for them to find, in and out quickly….” Cada Varl was impressed by the notion and peered towards the box as if hoping that he could somehow now see through it at the Molin bolt.
“She will only have one shot?” Cada Varl asked as if he needed clarification.
“One shot is all she will need,” Hazum Ka-te answered without looking up from the embers of the strange fire. Typical of Helluvans they never bragged about their own abilities with Zova showing no sign of arrogance towards her own skill.
As Zova picked up the giant crossbow from the ground Gokkus yet again went inside his own pack taking in a hand a bottle so small it was difficult to be seen. He somehow removed its tiny lid and placed a dab of its clear liquid onto the forehead of Zova before doing the same to his own forehead.
“Sheki,” Gokkus said almost as if he could telepathically read the mind of the Immortal.
“A complicated mixture that suppresses human scent and makes us resistant to carrying any smell.”
“Resistant?” said Cada Varl, “It does not mask your scent completely?”
It was an honest question with which it received an honest answer from Zova
“Not completely no, but we know what we are doing Cada Varl.”
The Immortal fell silent, he knew that no matter what they did there was still great risk involved a fact that his Helluvan companions not only knew but also had accepted.
Now the entire group stood up in a kind of crooked line facing the man and now woman dressed in black. Zova and Gokkus went down the line grasping forearms and bowing heads but remaining silent. When they reached Cada Varl they did the same who bowed back. There was nothing said until Zova and Gokkus had vanished from sight moving silently through the forest and to the world outside.
“Cada Varl,” Imbaka said with a strange softness in her voice.
“Yes Imbaka?” He asked.
“Please stand watch and as soon as you see them coming back this way let us know.”
The Immortal nodded before he took several steps and did what was asked of him while the others sat quietly around the fire.
The heaviness of the silence that fell was most justified, as good of a plan they possessed the odds were still undoubtedly stacked against them. Not once did the Immortal not believe the skill and abilities of his companions but it was a task that even he would find difficult to accomplish, all he could do was stand and wait for any sign of their return.