“The prisoners have escaped!” A soldier said.
The commanding voice said, “That’s impossible.”
“Valerius was a wizard. Who would’ve thought he was so powerful?”
Ulrik held his position above the door and waited. Killing lust flooded into his mind. He was all too aware that the demon was still buried deeply in his consciousness. He flexed a talon, feeling a terrible urge to bury it into flesh.
Guards entered the room. A sorcerer in the red and black robes of Molok’s acolytes followed them. One of the soldiers gave a shout of triumph as he spotted the wizard and the cat-girl.
Ulrik leapt.
The first swipe of his mighty claws decapitated the wizard. He tore off the arm of a guard with another blow and then rampaged through the body of jailers like an unleashed desert storm. Protective amulets were useless against his demonic strength. Men were too slow to parry his blows. In a matter of seconds he killed half a dozen and had to fight down the urge to bury his head into the chest of a corpse and begin to feed.
Ulrik loped along appalled and exhilarated by the sense of power his new physique gave him. Moving along on all fours felt somehow natural, and he realised that to the demonic thing that had been implanted in him, it was. He needed to be on guard against that or he could easily become submerged in the alien consciousness that threatened to bubble up from the bottom of his mind.
He pulled himself erect, towering over the reeling forms of Valerius and Rhea and looked down the long corridor towards more horrified guards. He took a few steps, staggering like a drunk man, and gave up the experiment, allowing himself to go back down onto all fours. Now was not the time for trying new things when they needed every ounce of speed to escape.
He bounded forward, piling into the surprised guards before they could react. Blood spattered the walls as his huge claws ripped through Molok’s men. No sooner had the torn gobbets hit the ground than he was moving on.
“You should have kept one alive,” said Valerius. The wizard looked pale. “I could have asked him the way out.”
Ulrik wanted to say something but his mouth could not make the words only hideous bubbling sounds. Instead, he bent down, dipped one claw in blood and wrote on the wall: they have not raised the alarm yet.
“Very clever,” said Valerius, “If more than a little disgusting. I’ve read ancient tomes scribed in human blood, but I’ve never heard of anyone using it to make notes.”
Ulrik roared his frustration.
“All right, all right, I appreciate your efforts. Next time, don’t kill all the guards. Leave one for me. I can interrogate him.”
“There are thousands of guards,” said Rhea.
“We only need one.”
Ulrik roared again. His cries echoed through the corridors. In the distance he heard men shouting. Their opened cell had been discovered by more soldiers. He sniffed the air. His nostrils had never been this keen before. He could smell hundreds of men all around. He might be able to kill them all but they would get the wizard and the girl. There was something warm about their scent, something that suggested food and something more. A vagrant current of air carried a stench from below them.
He scooped Valerius and Rhea up and ran towards it. The vaguest inkling of a plan formed in his mind. The way led downwards, the corridor became narrower and narrower. The smell grew more intense as they went down.
“What are you doing? Where are you going?” the wizard asked. Ulrik’s only response was a roar. He wished he had not made it, since his keen ears picked up the shouts of the guards who had heard it.
The corridor was dark and narrow. The air stank even more. Ulrik moved through sewage up to his knees. He was moving along a sloping trench of the stuff now.
“Excellent, you have discovered the sewers. What are you planning on doing now?” Valerius asked.
“He’s finding a way out for us,” Rhea said.
Ulrik took great pleasure in dropping the wizard into the sewage and putting her gently down. He moved forward and found bars blocking their access to the main sewers of the city. He grasped them in his claws and heaved. They would have resisted the efforts of a dozen men with crowbars, but gave way before his demonic muscles.
As soon as he broke the bars, Ulrik sensed something in the air. Valerius rose sputtering to the surface. Rhea wrinkled her nose.
“I have endured many torments in the past few days but that was the worst. By the way, you have set off an alarm spell. Those bars were warded to let Molok know if any intruders came this way.
What did the wizard expect? He was taking the only way open to them.
“You’ve let them know which way we went,” said Valerius.
Ulrik bounded through the gap in the bars into the ancient sewer system. Behind them, he could see ever-burning lanterns coming closer. It was only then that he realised that he was navigating his way through darkness so black that his human eyes could not have seen anything. There were some advantages to his present monstrous form. He only hoped that he was not stuck in it forever. If he was…
He fought down the urge to snap the wizard’s neck. There would be time enough for that later, if his spells failed. Or would there, part of him whispered? The wizard was clever. He might find a way to wriggle out of his promise. It would be better to kill him now. Ulrik forced himself to ignore the demonic voice. It seemed to be getting stronger.
The ground shivered. The ancient tunnel walls quaked and for a moment Ulrik feared they were going to be buried alive.
“What was that?” Rhea asked.
“I think Molok’s summoning is almost complete,” Valerius said. “We would be wise to be out of here before he reaches the grand finale.”
From all around came the sound of slowly moving water. Floating excrement filled the sewers. Ulrik moved carefully through the darkened tunnels. It was like being trapped in a huge maze -- the corridor seemed endless and he could not for the life of him find a way out. He wondered if they were going to wander around down here until they starved. The wriggling of Valerius beneath his arm reminded him that at least he had food. He pushed that thought back down into the darkness from which it had come. It looked like the demon’s influence was going to become greater the longer he remained in this form.
They seemed to have left their pursuers a long way behind. Ulrik could move very quickly in this form and could see in the dark. The men chasing them were slower and needed to be careful in case a monster sprang on them from the dark. It was an odd thought to Ulrik that he was that monster.
Then again, maybe not -- he had always been a predator to his fellow man, ever since he became a sky pirate. In some ways his new shape merely reflected that reality.
He sniffed the air. There were so many different conflicting scents that he was almost overwhelmed. He could smell the remnants of hundreds of different types of food and decaying garbage.
Ulsios skittered around in the darkness. There were other things. It came to him that their pursuers were not the only men down here. He recalled tales of Guilds that made a living by seeking things in the sewers. He also recalled tales of thieves who used them to move around beneath the city. Perhaps there was their way out. He sniffed once more and headed towards the closest human scent.
“What are you doing?” asked Valerius. He sounded worried. “Where are you going?”
“I think he’s still trying to find a way out for us,” said Rhea. She did not sound entirely convinced by her own words, and Ulrik guessed she was frightened by the very sight of him.
Ulrik growled to remind the wizard that he could not speak his language anymore and hoping to frighten him into silence. Valerius took the hint and kept quiet. Rhea moved silent as a shadow behind him. Ulrik was glad. He didn’t want any noise to give away their approach. There was something about that that seemed very natural to him. It was the reaction of a predator closing with its prey.
Visible in the distance was a dim light. Valerius tapped a finger against h
is carapace very lightly and Ulrik assumed that this was to let him know that he had spotted it too.
A ledge ran alongside the sewage channel. Ulrik lifted Valerius and Rhea up onto it and then sprang up himself. He placed a hand against the wizard’s chest to let him know that he should stay there and then moved forward to investigate the source of the light. He gestured for Rhea to stay too and she nodded to show her understanding.
Ulrik moved closer to the source of the light, stalking through the gloom with a stealth that was inhuman, that belonged to a creature adapted for hunting prey in the dark. He stopped just outside the circle of illumination created by a group of hovering glowglobes and studied the figures within it.
An old man and a young girl sifted through the sewage channel with a net attached to a pole. The old man wielded it while the young girl held a lantern and a sack into which the old man sometimes placed the objects he had found. Both figures were dressed in rags that enclosed their entire bodies, leaving only their eyes visible. There was nothing threatening about them. Ulrik pushed Valerius and Rhea into the light of the hovering lanterns. The glowglobes moved back from the newcomers as if frightened of them. Ulrik held back into the shadows himself, not wanting to scare the pair with his appearance.
“What have we here?” The old man asked.
“We seem to be lost,” said Valerius. “I would be very grateful if you could direct us to the nearest exit.”
The strangers stared at him as if he was a ghost that had just emerged from the darkness. “How did you get down here and what is that in the shadows behind you.”
“It’s a very long story and I don’t have time to explain,” said Valerius. “You won’t find me ungrateful if you aid me.”
“We don’t see many strangers down here,” said the old man. “Not many at all.”
“I find that surprising,” said Valerius. “Given the loveliness of your surroundings.”
The old man laughed and Ulrik guessed that some of the old hypnotic magic was still there although he could no longer hear it. It was as if his altered hearing granted him immunity to the spell inherent in the wizard’s voice.
“You still haven’t answered my question?” said the old man.
“I will be honest with you,” said Valerius. “We are being pursued by enemies. I thought to elude them here in the sewers but they seem quite determined to recapture us.”
“And who’s your friend? And why doesn’t he show himself?”
“Believe me, you really don’t want to see him. He’s not quite human.”
“You sometimes see things like that,” said the girl. “People say they escape from the wizard’s dungeons and lurk down here. They say they eat people. I know that sometimes folk we know disappear and are never seen again.”
“Hush, daughter,” said the old man. “There’s reasons enough for folk to disappear down here without saying there’s monsters. Anyone can have an accident.”
Valerius nodded and said, “Will you show us the way out? I’m afraid I have nothing to offer you except my gratitude but if you will leave me your names, I will see to it that you’re rewarded for your help.”
“He sounds wealthy,” said the girl.
“There’s more going on here than meets the eye, daughter,” said the old man. “I’d like to know what we’re getting ourselves into. Things have an odd feel, and I don’t like the way walls are shivering. Did you have anything to do with that, stranger?
This had gone on quite long enough, thought Ulrik, and stepped into the light. The old man screamed. The girl gasped. He realised then the full extent of the horror that he evoked in human beings. The couple’s reaction did not bode well for his future dealings with humanity unless the wizard could find some way of changing him back.
“It’s okay,” said Valerius. “He won’t harm you. Not unless I tell him to and I’m not going to do that unless...”
He let the threat hang in the air. The old man looked at him nervously.
“You’re a wizard,” he said. “I can tell that now.”
“That’s very perceptive of you,” said Valerius. “Now I believe that you were just about to show me the way out of here.”
“If you need a sacrifice for your demon take me, not my daughter.”
“The only sacrifice I require of you is that of your time.”
The old man looked nervous. Ulrik let out a low growl.
“My companion is getting impatient… or perhaps hungry,” said Valerius. “I suggest you show us the way out while you still can.”
“Of course,” said the old man. “Just spare my daughter.”
He turned and led the way through the sewers, constantly looking back over his shoulder. The girl followed him, sometimes touching his back reassuringly. Their lanterns followed in their wake, a group of faithful will o’ the wisps. Valerius let out a long sigh. Rhea kept a careful watch on them, ready to spring if they tried to escape. The earth shuddered again, the tremor stronger this time. Ulrik was worried. He had never heard of an earthquake in Hydra. It seemed like Molok was about to unleash some terrible primeval force.
“It looks like we’re going to get out of here,” Valerius said, as they made their way through the underground labyrinth.
And then what, Ulrik wondered? He fought hard against the fear that the tunnels were about to collapse and bury them in this terrible place forever.
The old man led them into an area so run down and so large that it looked like a cave. A forest of pillars supported the ceiling. Ancient murals, now little more than blotches of mould on paint covered the walls. From up ahead came the smell of purer water. Ulrik realised that they must be close to the caldera lake. A few moments later they emerged onto an old stone jetty. The night sky glowed strangely above them.
The old man said, “Just go up the jetty stairs. From there it’s an easy enough walk up into the city, although what you and your demon are going to do there, I don’t know.”
“What is your name, old man,” Valerius asked. “If I win free of my enemies I would see you rewarded.”
“If you’ll forgive me, under the circumstances I would rather not give my name to a wizard who can summon a thing like that.”
“Well, then, there is nothing more for me to do than thank you for your aid and bid you farewell.”
“We can go?” the old man asked. He backed towards the sewer entrance.
“You can but I would not go back into the tunnels now. They may collapse at any moment.” It was only then hearing the nervousness in his voice that Ulrik realised that Valerius had been even more afraid than he was. His respect for the wizard’s courage increased.
“We don’t have any other place to go,” said the girl.
“If you value your lives, don’t go back in there,” said Valerius. “You will be buried alive. Molok works terrible sorcery this night. You have helped us and I would do you a favour in return. Take my advice and leave now.”
“I think we will do that,” said the old man, taking the stairs that led away from the jetty.
“Of course,” said Valerius to his retreating back. “I should warn you that there are men looking for us, and if you mention the fact that you helped us, it might not go so well for you.”
“I will say nothing. I do not wish your vengeance visited on me.” He beckoned for the girl to follow him.
“It’s not me you have to worry about. The men looking for us would be unhappy to think you aided us. Best avoid the sewers for the next few days.”
“I will be sure to take your advice.”
Not quite able to believe their luck, the couple scuttled back out, leaving the three of them alone once more.
“I can’t believe we’ve made it this far,” said the wizard. “Well only another thousand or so leagues to go and we’re back in Typhon.”
Ulrik wished he shared Valerius’s optimism.
Rhea plunged in and began to clean herself furiously. By the light of the ring, Ulrik could see exactly what
a sorry sight, Valerius was. His clothes were caked in filth and his hair matted. He was unrecognisable as the dandy Ulrik had first met in Typhon what seemed an age ago. Ulrik picked him up, despite his struggles and lowered him into the water.
“An admirable idea,” he spluttered as he emerged. “I am sure a similar bath would do you nothing but good.”
Ulrik leaned over and caught sight of his monstrous reflection in the water. Caught and distorted by the ripples it looked even worse than he had feared. There was nothing left of the man he had once been. He wondered if there was any way he could ever be returned to his original shape or whether he should simply kill Valerius now and head back into the sewers. The most horrific part of it was that it was only the thought that the impulse to do so might have come from the demon that kept him from snapping the wizard’s neck. While there was still hope, he would not do so, he vowed to himself.
Valerius stood shivering in the moonlight. “I shall die of a chill,” he muttered. “Unless I get some warm clothing.”
That should be easily enough arranged, thought Ulrik. All he had to do was go and take some from a passing skysailor. Of course, he would be a visible monster in a city of heavily armed men. It was not the most promising of situations. Still the wizard was right about one thing. They had managed to get further than he had hoped back when they were prisoners in the tower. Of course, he had lost what little was left of his humanity while doing so.
He put a claw on Valerius shoulder and then scratched out a message on the stone.
What now?
“We find some clothing and we steal a ship.”
Ulrik tried to nod but found he could only do so by bowing his whole body forward. They left the quay, and headed up into the warehouses surrounding the caldera.
The sky above them glowed with a supernatural light. The ground shivered around them. Ripples disturbed the surface of the caldera lake as if some mighty monster was about to emerge.