Mage Hunter Omnibus
By Ty Johnston
()
About this ebook
War has come to northern Ursia. The barbarian Dartague have stormed down from the mountains to seek vengeance for encroachments upon their lands and culture. In this mess, Sergeant Guthrie Hackett finds himself alone after his squad has been slaughtered. Once he finally manages to reconnect with his own countrymen, he discovers the entire northern army has been nearly wiped out. Teaming up with a band of ragtag militia, Guthrie plans to fight back against the barbaric enemies. Along the way, he finds himself leading a pair of knights from the Holy Order of the Gauntlet on a mission to slay the Dartague wyrd woman believed to be at the heart of the barbarian's attacks. Unfortunately for Guthrie, he has a secret which could get him killed by his fellow soldiers and knights if they were to learn the truth.
Originally a five-part series, Mage Hunter is here collected in a complete format for the first time. Mage Hunter is also part of the author's series of fantasy novels and stories known as The Ursian Chronicles, spanning thousands of years across the continent of Ursia and including hundreds of characters.
Ty Johnston
Originally from Kentucky, Ty Johnston is a former newspaper journalist. He lives in North Carolina with loving memories of his late wife.Blog: tyjohnston.blogspot.com
Read more from Ty Johnston
Mage Hunter: Episode 1: Blooded Snow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Sword of Bayne Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Five Tales from the Rusty Scabbard Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe God Sword Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings100 Web Sites for Fiction Writers Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Walking Gods Trilogy Omnibus Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Kobalos Trilogy Omnibus Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMore Than Kin Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Scribe: An Assassin's Tale (A Short Story) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBayne's Climb: Book I of The Sword of Bayne Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBeneath a Persian Sun (a John Dee tale) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Darkbow Collection - Six Epic Fantasy Novels (The Kobalos Trilogy, and The Horrors of Bond Trilogy) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAmerican Crossroads Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Horrors of Bond Trilogy Omnibus Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMage Hunter: Episode 3: Bared Blades Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMage Hunter: Episode 2: Sundered Shields Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGuns 'n Money: The Collection Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBlade and Flame (Prequel to The Kobalos Trilogy) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings20 Tales of Horror and Fantasy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAdventures of the Weird: 12 Short Stories of Fantasy, Horror and Beyond Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Storm Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Ancient Ursia Collection - Six Epic Fantasy Novels (The Sword of Bayne Trilogy, and The Walking Gods Trilogy) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Impulse to Punish (a John Dee tale) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsUnder the Mountain: Book III of The Sword of Bayne Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSTAB: six tales of horror Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Shieldbreaker Collection Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMage Hunter: Episode 5: Changeless Fate Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCarcass and Mallet (a John Dee tale) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Mage Hunter Omnibus
Related ebooks
Oblivion's Gate Trilogy: Oblivion's Gate Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRex Draconis: War of the Dragon Moon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe First Lesson Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Valiant King: An Epic Fantasy Adventure Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Archimage Wars: Seeress of Yaochi Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Kingsblood: The Chronicles of Covent: Book Two of the Shade Chronicles: The Chronicles of Covent, #2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Curse Breaker Revealed: Curse Breaker, #10 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Unwilling Apprentice (The Unwilling #2) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Archimage Wars: Demon of Annwn Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Mists of Faeron Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dead But Once: Saga of the Redeemed: Book III Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Archimage Wars: Necromancer of Irkalla Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Heart of Defiance: Relentless, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsReturn Fire: The Sand Wars, #5 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTheir Spirit Unbroken: Relentless, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCrusade: Book Three of The Paladin Trilogy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Farewell To Afghanistan Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Kings Of The Elves: Fantasy Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Endings and Beginnings Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBaptism Of The Sword Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Webbing Bow: The Second Crystal Kingdom Novel: Crystal Kingdom, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRojuun Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Giver of Iron Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Ditch In Egypt Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBeragia Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Tower Book 11 Circles of Light Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSea & Sky: Moonfire Trilogy, #2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Violet Flamberge: Claymore of Calthoria, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Webbing Cloak: The Third Crystal Kingdom Novel: Crystal Kingdom, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe King's Assassin Collection Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Fantasy For You
Fairy Tale Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Fellowship Of The Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sarah J. Maas: Series Reading Order - with Summaries & Checklist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nettle & Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Priory of the Orange Tree Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Phantom Tollbooth Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This Is How You Lose the Time War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tress of the Emerald Sea: Secret Projects, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Warrior of the Light: A Manual Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Piranesi Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Silmarillion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wizard's First Rule Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Neverwhere: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Empire: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The City of Dreaming Books Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Slewfoot: A Tale of Bewitchery Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bradbury Stories: 100 of His Most Celebrated Tales Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Black Sun Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Eyes of the Dragon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An Unkindness of Magicians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Pirate Lord: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Picture of Dorian Gray (The Original 1890 Uncensored Edition + The Expanded and Revised 1891 Edition) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stories of Ray Bradbury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Immortal Longings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Mage Hunter Omnibus
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Mage Hunter Omnibus - Ty Johnston
Blooded Snow
1,913 years After Ashal (A.A.)
Chapter 1
Guthrie counted nine of the barbarian riders in the pass below. Too few to be a raiding party, but larger than a hunting expedition. Still, most of the group bore signs of recent conflict. A pair wore bandages about their heads while another had an arm wrapped in a sling. Here and there were other signs, dented armor, dried blood. What struck Guthrie as most odd was the inclusion of a female riding in the middle of the group. Obviously she was a wyrd woman, her back straight as she sat high in the saddle, her long hair the color of wheat cascading out behind her in the chilled wind as her horse stamped through snow and over rock. If her bearing had not been enough to hint at her vocation, then the many animal-shaped patches stitched into her heavy wool cloak was evidence enough.
Clan Bear,
Thezul whispered at his side.
Guthrie twisted his head around to glare at his comrade. Though high upon a perch behind a boulder, they were not so far above the riders that speaking should be done safely. Besides, it was obvious the clan of the Dartague riders. Each of the men wore heavy coats of thick bear hide about their shoulders and carried long swords with narrow hilts upon their belts.
Thezul shrugged his apology, then slid back and away.
Bringing his hands beneath him to push up, Guthrie spared one more glance to the Dartague below. Nine of them. One wyrd woman. All showing signs of injury except for the witch. This lot had seen trouble. Their proximity to the border and the fact they fit the description given by the survivors of the village of Herkaig meant they were assuredly part of the group Guthrie and his men sought. But he had expected twice their numbers. Not these nine.
He pushed away from the ledge of the boulder and allowed himself to slide down its backside, his studded leather armor scrapping against the ice crusted stone. Landing on his feet, he looked up to find Thezul had already retreated the twenty or so yards back to the clearing among the trees where they had left their steeds and the other four soldiers. Guthrie could see they were already talking amongst themselves, probably asking Thezul questions, but at least they were keeping their voices low.
Grimacing, Guthrie strode toward the group, his left glove gripping the dagger at his side, the other hand hanging in a fist on his right next to the iron-headed mace swinging from his belt.
You think it’s them, sergeant?
Briar asked from horseback as Guthrie approached.
Thezul and the others, all on foot, turned to look at their leader.
Guthrie glanced around the group, noting signs of sloveness but glad to see all of them wore their armor in working order and carried their swords and spears, the shields and crossbows tied to the horses. He nodded. I think so, but there should be more of them.
Just what I was saying,
Thezul said. Think they split up?
I don’t know,
Guthrie said, shaking his head beneath the hood of his cloak. This group is heading west, but I don’t know where the others could have gone. There’s no path north or east from here that I know of, and it’s not likely they would have headed south back into Ursia.
Briar leaned back in his saddle as if stretching, the man raising a hand to shield his eyes as he stared out across the wide valley to the snow-tipped peaks on the other side. Could they have been crazy enough to try and climb over?
The sergeant shook his head again. Probably not. It’s more likely they know of a route of which we are unaware, maybe a tunnel or some old animal trail.
Something bothered Guthrie, but he could not place a finger upon what it was. He stared out into the thick woods that spread beyond his men, rising gray crags standing out here and there among the snow-dappled greenery.
Turning toward Thezul, Guthrie started, Did you post a --
A shaft of wood sprouted from Thezul’s throat, gray feathers blossoming at the end of the arrow. Beneath his rounded helmet, Thezul’s eyes darted down to glare at the end of the shaft protruding from his neck. His gloved hands shot up, grasping the wood and cracking the arrow, but then his fingers went limp, his eyes rolled up in his head, and he slumped to the ground.
Archer!
Guthrie yelled, diving toward the nearest cover, which proved to be a long-dead tree that had fallen on its side.
The sergeant was proven wrong, however. There was more than one archer. A half score arrows lanced into his party. Two of the flying javelins caught Briar in his back, causing the man to scream out before dropping from his horse. The other men fared better being on their feet and among their horses, only Jermus taking a direct hit, an arrow lancing his right eye and barreling on through to punch out the back of his skull.
His men scrambling and ducking beneath their riding animals, Guthrie unslung the heavy mace from his belt and lifted it, wishing he had not left his crossbow tied to his saddle.
Another wave of arrows launched into the surviving soldiers. None of the men were hit this time, but the horses did not fare so well. One animal was killed as an arrow thunked deep into its side, only the fletchings proof the arrow had entered flesh and muscle. Several other steeds were injured, shafts baring feathers swaying from their rumps as the animals screamed and jumped before turning and galloping the way they had come up the trail.
Guthrie cursed as his gaze darted here and there looking for an enemy. Only two of the horses were left, the rest having fled or died, and his remaining men were still in the open without bows of their own to give a return to their foes. Worse yet, the sergeant could not make out any signs of their attackers. It seemed obvious the arrows came from Dartague warriors, probably the others who had not been riding below, but Guthrie could see nothing of them. True, the trees were thick all around, but there should have been something to see, movement in the darkness, approaching enemy, something.
More arrows darted forward from the trees. More men died. An arrow punched the ground near Guthrie’s face, sending up a spray of snow.
That one had been too close. Guthrie had to do something or all of his men would die.
He rolled back from his hiding spot behind the dead tree and jumped to his feet, screaming all the while with his weapon raised over his head as his hood fell away.
As if to answer him, two more arrows launched in his direction, both missing by only inches as the sergeant dove to one side. Guthrie landed face first in snow, then pushed himself off the ground. He had to keep moving, to keep the assault directed at him while his remaining men scampered to cover.
A glance to one side revealed there was no need.
While he had been rolling and jumping and dodging, the last of the Ursian soldiers had died. Now they all lay unmoving in a circle around one another, blood and a carpet of arrows blooming among their studded leather mail and their dark plum cloaks.
Guthrie slumped to his knees, the cold wet pushing through his woolen breeches. His mace hung at his side, though he had yet to drop the weapon. He had let his men die. All of them. There had been no time to act, the attack coming so swiftly. What else could he have done? He should have noticed when his corporal had not set a watch along their trail. He should have had the men prepare their crossbows as soon as they had dismounted. He should have been prepared for treachery among the Dartague barbarians. After all, these were Dartague lands, and if anyone knew where to set an ambush, it would be those who had dared to attack the village, men familiar with these lands and more than willing to spill blood.
The cold seeping into his legs and his heart, Guthrie almost wished he could die right there, with his men. Almost. By all rights, he should have died. He could yet die. But he vowed to himself it would not be so. He had served his nation and His Holiness well for ten years. He would not be killed now, here, with only a week remaining until his discharge. And he would yet show these barbarians there was a price for raiding into Ursian lands, a price to be paid in blood.
He grimaced as he forced himself to stand, lifting the heavy mace up to his chest. He was not surprised the arrows had stopped. The Dartague were a vicious foe. They would plan to torture him, to flay him alive and to disembowel him. Perhaps to burn him. Then they would set his body upon a tall spike or a spear above the bodies of his men. His corpse would be a warning to other Ursians come seeking revenge.
Guthrie Hackett would have no part of it. He would live. He would escape. To do that, he must run.
He turned to dart into the woods.
A woman stood before him, mere yards away. He blinked at her, recognizing the stoney pale chin, the yellow locks flying around her features, the thick cloak patched with carved skins cut into the shape of bears, eagles, wolves and other beasts. He would have thought her beautiful at any other time, if his men were not dead behind him.
He raised his mace, its round head aimed at her. You!
She said nothing then, her blue eyes flashing at him as men moved up from behind her. There were more than a dozen of her fellows, big men wearing mail thrown together in piecemeal fashion from scavenged or stolen armor over the years, their shoulders covered in bear furs, each of them wielding a mighty sword.
One moved to step around the wyrd woman, but she thrust out a hand to grasp him by an elbow. He turned to look at her, her gaze softening the large warrior. He stepped back, away from the Ursian sergeant and the woman, his look less bent upon horror as it had been but a moment earlier.
She turned her gaze upon Guthrie. He found it a cold look but not one filled with menace.
What do you want of me?
he asked.
Never to return,
she said.
Guthrie could not trust those words. He and his men had invaded Dartague territory. The Dartague did not tolerate such and did not leave survivors of those who would dare.
You do not believe me,
the woman said. I can see it in your eyes.
Even if your word is true,
Guthrie said, the Dartague do not take orders from a woman, even a wyrd woman.
A smile crossed the woman’s thin, pale lips. You know little of our kind.
I know enough,
Guthrie said with gritted teeth, shaking his weapon before him to show he meant his words. I’ve been stationed along the border of Dartague for years. I’ve seen the results of your raids, your thievery and butchery.
The witch’s head tilted slightly to one side, her gaze one of curiosity. I thought your face was familiar.
The sergeant’s features went pale. How?
We watch the border towns, the villages, the keeps. Even the tents your men erect while moving about. We can see much from here in the mountains.
Guthrie’s gaze drifted to look the barbarian men in their faces, one by one. All were quite, stoic. They were ready to strike, but the wyrd woman kept them at bay.
You recognized me from below,
she said.
He nodded. You move deceptively fast. It took my men and myself hours to climb to this spot on horseback.
The woman’s grin widened. I was never on the trail. You saw what I wanted you to see.
Ah.
The woman had used her magic to delude him and his men while her warriors had been climbing. Or had the Dartague already been in wait, knowing their prey would make use of the most natural of hiding spots?
The smile vanished from the woman. Now go.
She pointed the direction the horses had gone. If you hurry, you might be able to catch one of your animals.
Was there trickery here? Guthrie thought not, but he did not know. The Dartague were not above attacking from ambush, as evidenced by the bodies of his squad, but they were generally not ones for great subterfuge nor betrayal. Would an arrow in his back be payment for turning and fleeing? And could he live with himself if he did such? He looked down to the dead. Could he live with himself knowing he was the only survivor while those under his command had perished?
Yes. Yes, he could. There would be rough nights for perhaps years, but it was better to be alive than to act foolishly for little cause and perish.
Guthrie lowered his weapon but did not drop it nor return it to the loop on his belt. If he could leave here without further bloodshed, then he would do so. Otherwise, the outcome would not be in his favor. Dying here served no purpose. His death would not avenge his comrades nor serve His Holiness in protecting the borders.
But he was still confused.
Why do you do this?
he asked of the woman.
She chuckled. For you to spread the word. The Dartague will no longer stand for the incursion of you Ursians upon our mountains and our forests. Tell your people this. Tell them that if they continue to send soldiers into our lands, our raids will only worsen. Your fields will run red with the blood of your children.
The grip tightened on Guthrie’s mace. You would actually harm a child?
An Ursian child? Yes,
the witch said, her voice solid. It would bring me no pleasure, but it would mean one less enemy for future generations of my own kin. You may look down your nose at us, calling us barbarians and the like, but your own kind have done more than their share of butchery.
You raid our towns!
Guthrie shouted. You kill our people and steal our crops!
The woman’s voice grew in pitch and volume. Only after you Ursians intruded upon our lands and our ways, spreading the worship of your god ... this Ashal! We have no need of your petty southern god! We have our own ways, and we mean to keep them. If that means the life of every Ursian must be spilled upon the earth, then so be it! Leave us be and your people will survive. Otherwise, let what comes fall upon your own heads!
She turned away then, her rough cloak swinging out and around her as she marched through the warriors. Guthrie’s gaze followed her back for a moment, but then he noticed the shifting of the men. They were moving between him and her, and edging closer. If she were truly going to let the Ursian live, Guthrie believed he needed to leave soon, especially after the heat of their last words.
No time like the present, he told himself. Let’s see if they mean to keep their word.
He turned his back upon his foes, upon those who had slain his countrymen. Without a look to the dead, he walked away. With each step he expected an arrow in the back, or to hear the battle cry of the Dartague as the warriors rushed him.
But there was only quiet.
And the snow began to fall in lazy drifts, the flurries wetting his eyelids as he tromped and tromped.
Upon reaching a rise in the land, Guthrie spotted one of the Ursian steeds standing below in a shallow glen. He stopped atop the hill, pausing long enough to catch his breath and to look back one last time.
The Dartague were gone, as were the corpses of his men. He had not heard the bodies carried away. The only remaining sign of violence was the blooded snow.
Chapter 2
The horse did not survive. Guthrie had had little trouble catching the beast, but he soon discovered the animal had lost its packs loaded with food and blankets. After the ruckus with the Dartague, all that had remained on the horse was its saddle and tack and harness. If the sergeant had not needed the beast, he might have slain it to put it out of its misery, but as things had stood there had been a week’s ride ahead of him.
The going was tough. The snow had been drifting lazily for weeks before Guthrie and his men had encountered the barbarians, but now the winter closed its mighty fist along the border between Dartague and Ursia, the northern mountains belching forth daily snows to cover the land. The white landscape could cause a man to lose his bearings and go blind if not careful. Fortunately for him, Guthrie Hackett was a careful man. He cut strips from his tunic to create wraps for his eyes, only a thin slit allowing through the blinding light of the sun that emanated off the snows all around. Food was more difficult to come by, though water was aplenty, a mouthful of snow enough to slake one’s thirst. The horse managed to find some scrub here and there to munch upon, enough to keep the beast going for some little while but not enough to hold its strength. The sergeant fared little better, cursing his luck more than once for not having a bow available for hunting, but he created a makeshift spear from his dagger and a sturdy branch found along his path. That spear brought food in the manner of rabbits and other smaller creatures that ventured forth into the weather. At least the snow made tracking no difficult matter.
Guthrie was no woodsman, but he had spent enough time hunting in and near the wilds to know his way back to the village. His horse managed to survive for four days, then the Ursian set out on foot. Five more days of plowing through snow and across ice brought him down from the mountain paths and into the flatlands of northern Ursia, his homeland. Here he could see to the horizon. What he saw was a sea of white, some hints of trees here and there.
Another day and he spotted a large break on the horizon. Herkaig, the village the Dartague had attacked. He had been drawn here not because of the region’s recent history, but because it had been the closest settlement to him. Even the fort where he was stationed was another dozen miles beyond.
Ahead there was no sign of smoke from any chimneys, but he hoped there was still someone alive, or at least some food and perhaps a horse or mule. Stamping through the white, his heavy boots leaving deep tracks in his wake, he waded forward. The going was rougher in some ways, the snow deeper on the plains than it had been in the mountain passes, bringing new levels of pain to his weak legs. He was tired and hungry, but an end was in sight.
Tromping into the edges of the village, Guthrie found battered doors hanging open among the stone and lime cottages. His shoulders slumped at the sight. His head shifted from side to side, hoping to hear anything of the living, but the only sound that came to him was the howl of the winter’s wind upon the flats.
When he had left here weeks earlier, the place had been a wreck, dead bodies everywhere and blood splashed upon the buildings. But there had been survivors, people trying to put their lives back together. It had been the local sheriff who had called upon Guthrie’s captain at the stronghold, seeking aid against the Dartague raiders. Guthrie had been dispatched with the others, a squad far too small in number for the appointed task of rounding up or slaying the guilty Dartague. The captain himself had been too busy entertaining a local knight to take part, and other men could not be spared from their daily tasks of guarding the main northern road that ran from east to west, the largest road in this part of Ursia.
Glancing within the darkness of an empty hovel, the sergeant cursed his luck. Sent to do an impossible job, he was the only survivor, and there was no assurance he would yet survive. He needed proper food and warmth. The day was still fairly early, but he would sleep here tonight within one of the stronger structures.
Moving on to the next building, a larger one, he hoped yet to find food. His guess was the inhabitants had fled the winter storm after their numbers had been decimated, likely fleeing to the stronghold. Guthrie only hoped he could survive long enough to join them. His own reserves were beginning to grow weak.
At the next house he paused before the opening where a door had once hung but was now missing. A look inside revealed little at first, the gloom more than his eyes could reach through for the moment, but a shifting of the clouds above stretched the sun’s cold rays into the doorway. A pair of wool-clad legs stuck out from the shadows.
Guthrie paused. Then he lowered a hand to the handle of his mace at his belt. There had been plenty of dead when he had left behind Herkaig, but there had also been an effort to remove the corpses and prepare them for burial. Whomever this dead person was at the sergeant’s feet, it was likely they had died since Guthrie had left the village with his men. He leaned forward, nearly squatting, and stared into the shadows. His suspicions were proven correct when his eyes cleared of the gloom and he could make out the stone-like blue features of a dead man stretched out in front of him. The poor fellow had frozen to death before the open slice to his stomach had killed him. But why had he been left behind when the others had fled?
A sound to one side brought the sergeant’s head around. But there was nothing to see. Only the village path that ran straight through two lines of the stone buildings. Beyond either end of the street was the open expanse of the flatlands. Guthrie couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to live here in the middle of nowhere, especially this far from a main road, but he supposed farmers had their reasons.
Another sound. This one louder. It had been like a cracking twig beneath one’s feet. It had come from behind and to the left.
Guthrie spun about, hefting his weapon. Still, nothing. Across the way was another cold home, this one with most of its doors and shutters remaining though battered and hacked. Had the noise come from within there? He was not sure he wanted to know. If there was anyone else here, they were likely either to be in a bad way or to not be overly friendly, or perhaps both. Guthrie had not enough strength to care properly for someone ill or wounded, and no doubt he was too weak to combat an enemy.
But if an enemy, who could it be? He had seen no tracks through the snow other than the ones he himself had left behind. True, the snow fell often enough it could have covered another’s trail mere hours earlier, but who would be slinking around this dead village without a horse and without a fire?
Someone who was up to no good, that was who. Someone who had been waiting, perhaps waiting for Guthrie himself. Or some scavenger, a beast braving the weather for a meal. Could the Dartague have changed their mind about allowing him to live? Not likely. The northern tribes weren’t known for their fickleness.
Fear growing in his tight stomach, the sergeant recognized there was nothing to do but to push through a door of the building across the way from him. If there was a foe inside waiting, then so be it. He would not be hunted, and the anticipation was nearly as bad on his nerves as would be actual combat.
Guthrie strode forward, his mace held high. He kicked out at the door, snapping it back on its hinges. Trickling dust and snow were all that greeted him.
He stood his ground for a moment, allowing his eyes to adjust to the shadows of the place. He waited, but nothing untoward happened. Pushing ahead, he ducked as he entered the home. Weak sunlight through the cracks in the shutters revealed a small place that had probably been quite homely once upon a time. A simple table of pine with two chairs, a cold stove in the back wall with another chair next to it. Scattered here and there various garments and belongings that had been tossed about during the raid. A door at the back hung open to show further darkness beyond. Realizing the opening in the back probably led to a bedroom, Guthrie promised himself to keep it in mind when he decided to rest.
But first, seeing as there was no enemy, he would search for food. His stomach grumbling, his last meal having been eaten nearly a day earlier, he lowered his weapon and trudged further into the house. Whatever sound he had heard had likely been nothing more than a piece of wood drying in the brittle cold, or perhaps one of the houses settling.
Near the fireplace he found several black iron pots. Removing their lids he found them empty. Likely spilled during the fighting, if there had even been food within them. Glancing around, Guthrie sought a cupboard or a hanging ham or anything. But there was no immediate evidence of food. Had the Dartague taken it all with them? Possible.
A shadow moved across the open entrance.
Guthrie’s mace came up again as his gaze darted toward the door he had left open upon entering.
Nothing further stirred. Through the door he could spy puffy drops of snow flittering down from above to sleep upon the ground.
Who is there?
he called out.
No answer.
I am more than willing to defend myself,
he shouted. I am armed and a trained soldier of His Holiness Beneficence the Second!
Again, no answer.
At first.
Then a dour cackling whispered upon the wind. Weak to the ears, as if a spirit calling from beyond the grave.
Guthrie did not like that sound. It spoke of the unusual, the supernatural. It spoke of magic. In his world, magic was evil. There was no such thing as a good wizard or witch except a dead one. Magic was feared so much within the nation of Ursia, the punishment for spell casters was death. Magical creatures were not tolerated, but put to the blade. Foreigners practicing magic were barred from entering the lands, and the Ursians were not above slaying mages who lived near their borders. This was another reason the Ursians were rarely on friendly terms with the Dartague, the barbarian northerners allowing wyrd women and skalds within their midst to practice enchantments and sorcery.
Whether the source of the dark laughter outside the hovel’s door was human or not, Guthrie feared eldritch powers were at work. No normal person sounded like that, as if they were a risen corpse tittering at the foolishness of those still living.
His grip tightened on his weapon as he took a step forward.
That distant, maniacal laughter came again, almost hollow as if it came across a long distance or from deep within a well.
Guthrie halted once more. His free hand slid his dagger free of its leather binding.
There were no new sounds, only the familiar ring of the haunting wind upon the plain.
Enough of