My worst fears were realized: it was the buggane, once again in the shape of the Cruncher. The daemon was squat and bulky, with virtually no neck, its front limbs ending in broad claws clearly shaped for burrowing. Its ma.s.sive body was covered in long black hair which shone in the candlelight as if slick with oil. At close quarters, the most striking thing about it was its face. It had the large, close-set staring eyes of a cruel predator, but when its gaze turned towards the candle, the lids narrowed into a squint. In this form the buggane had created and now inhabited a labyrinth of dark tunnels. I wondered if the light bothered it?
The creature had a slimy wet quivering snout, from which drops of moisture fell and splattered on the floor; it suddenly growled low in its throat and opened its mouth to reveal teeth that looked capable of biting off an arm, a leg or even a head. It had a double row of teeth: those at the front were sharp and triangular like the teeth of a wood-saw; those to the rear were broad, like human ones, but far larger molars shaped for grinding and chewing. No wonder they called it the Cruncher.
But why was it visiting me like this? Wasn"t it supposed to approach in its spirit form and whisper as it drew out my life essence? I slipped my left hand into my pocket and readied my silver chain. I wondered if the chain would hold it and, if so, for how long? My staff had been taken by my captors. I had nothing with me that could kill it.
The buggane pulled itself into the cell and moved towards me on all fours, panting like a dog. It was maybe twice the size of a fully grown man. How had it fitted into the tunnel? I saw now that its fur was shining with beads of water. Luckily it didn"t come too close but I could still smell its foul breath, making me retch. As I struggled to hold down the contents of my stomach, it began to circle me slowly, still on all fours, and as it did so, the panting gave way to a deliberate sniffing. Was it about to attack? I wondered. If so, what was it waiting for? Or was it like a witch, short-sniffing, trying to find things out about me?
I turned slowly on my knees so that I was always facing towards it as it circled menacingly. The candle was dancing in my trembling hand, and at one point, unintentionally, I jerked the flame towards the creature. It seemed to flinch, its eyes narrowing again or had I just imagined it?
Most denizens of the dark both feared and avoided daylight but were not usually troubled by the light of a fire or a candle. In its present form the buggane was certainly bothered by the candlelight. But how would it cope with fire? Would a torch be a real threat to it? I tried moving the candle towards its face. It retreated and gave a threatening growl, so low that it seemed to come from deep within its belly. Next it showed me its sharp teeth and I immediately moved the candle back again.
"I wouldn"t do that if I were you!" warned a deep voice from the tunnel entrance. "One bite and he"d have your arm off. Or maybe your head that would make a good mouthful."
It was the abhuman, Horn: he was staring at me and shaking his head.
I turned my gaze back to the buggane. Having completed a full circle, it was surely planning to attack now. I waited tensely, mouth dry with fear, left hand still gripping my silver chain. But to my surprise the creature crawled back towards the wall of earth. It halted beside Horn, who began to pat its forehead, then whispered something into its ear before moving aside. The daemon squeezed its bulk into the tunnel. For a while I could hear it scuffling and grunting as it made its way along. Then the sounds faded away altogether.
Horn was still gazing at me. "He wants you, boy. Knows what you are a seventh son of a seventh son. Likes the smell of your blood and would love to eat your flesh and crunch your bones. I"ve rarely seen him so eager!"
Then he turned and followed the buggane into the tunnel. I waited until the noise of his departure faded away into absolute silence. Only then did I rise to my feet and approach the tunnel entrance. I held up my candle and peered inside. It still seemed to come to a dead end. So where had the buggane and Horn gone? Had the creature filled the tunnel in behind them? It didn"t seem possible I was facing what looked like solid earth.
I was nervous but curious. I listened. There wasn"t the faintest sound. Was it waiting for me in the darkness ness somewhere ahead? Common sense told me that if it had wanted to harm me, it could easily have done so in the cell. So, holding the candle in my right hand, I scrambled into the tunnel and began to crawl forward. As soon as I reached what, from the cell, had appeared to be a dead end, I saw that the tunnel angled off at ninety degrees to my left. It ran parallel to the other cells: that was what the earthen wall was for so that the buggane could reach its victims in its physical form. No doubt each cell had a short tunnel connecting it to this one.
So was it a means of escape? Not for most people. They"d be terrified after such a visitation and wouldn"t dream of venturing inside. But could it be for me? I was a spook"s apprentice and had been in some scary situations before. My instinct as a trainee spook was to follow the tunnel. It was part of the job. Then I remembered my master"s warning about the labyrinth created by the buggane amongst the roots of trees. They moved and shifted and sometimes collapsed without warning. That thought filled me with panic. What if this tunnel collapsed now? And what if I got lost in the labyrinth or suddenly came face to face with the buggane or Horn?
No, I wasn"t ready to take such a risk yet. So I slowly backed my way out and was soon sitting on the floor of the cell again.
I blew out my candle and tried to sleep once more. This time it was more difficult. I was finally dropping off when I heard footsteps approaching along the corridor. Had they captured the Spook? But then a key turned in my lock, and two burly yeomen carrying torches came into my cell.
"On your feet, boy!" one of them commanded. "We"re taking you to the long room."
The other walked over to the tunnel entrance. "Well, what have we here?" he remarked, looking at the scattering of soil on the cell floor. "Looks like you"ve had a hungry visitor! Likes to take a good look at each victim first, but he"ll be back tomorrow night to start the real business, you can be sure of that!"
They marched me back along the pa.s.sage with the cells to our right. Again, no sounds came from them. Were they empty? I wondered what had happened to Adriana. Where was she being kept? Had the buggane already begun the process of devouring her? I shuddered at the thought. The poor girl didn"t deserve that. n.o.body should have to suffer such a fate. But then, instead of heading for the steps, we turned left, then left again into a much wider, stone-flagged pa.s.sageway, lit by torches set in wall brackets. It seemed to me that we were still south of the moat and within the buggane"s domain.
I could hear dogs barking in the distance, the sounds increasing in volume as we approached a door at the end of the pa.s.sageway, and then I was pushed into a large oblong chamber. There were dozens of torches on the walls, and I could clearly see what was going on there. About two dozen men sat on bales of straw near the right-hand wall; perhaps another five or six armed yeomen stood nearby. In the doorway stood their commander, Stanton, scowling at me, a bandage wrapped round his head clear sign of the damage Alice"s rock had done to him. At the far end, against an earthen wall, stood a large, ornately carved wooden chair, and seated on it was the gaunt figure of Lord Barrule, the shaman, who was presiding over events. Behind him, to his left, was the entrance to a dark tunnel, similar in size to the one in my cell.
Large steel cages lined the left-hand wall I counted fourteen. Inside each but the last was a dog. There were a variety of breeds but all were big and fierce. My eyes swept down the line. I knew what I would see but it was still a shock when I saw Claw, Blood and Bone there. I felt sick to my stomach.
In the middle of the room was a large empty s.p.a.ce, where the floor was covered in sawdust that was dotted with patches of fresh blood. They were clearly staging dog-fights there. I saw money changing hands men gambling on the outcome of each fight.
Lord Barrule got to his feet and raised his hands high. As he did so, the tumult of barking ceased and, but for a faint whimper here and there, all the dogs fell silent.
As I watched, horrified, two of the cages were opened and the dogs dragged into the centre of the chamber by their leather collars; they were forced to face each other, their noses almost touching. Although powerful, big dogs, they appeared cowed and terrified. Their handlers left them there and retreated back towards the doorway where we were standing. The shaman suddenly brought his hands down and clapped loudly three times. On the third clap, the dogs were instantly transformed from timidity to aggression and leaped forward savagely.
The fight was fast and furious: they tore at each other with their teeth, the first blood being drawn in just seconds. It was cruel and horrible and I couldn"t bear to look, so I cast my eyes down to the ground. Unfortunately my ears were still open to what was happening. Eventually one of the dogs let out a shrill cry and then fell silent. There was a burst of applause, a few cheers and the odd curse of disappointment from the losers. When I looked up, the winning dog was being led back to its cage; the losing animal was lying on its side with its throat torn out, fresh blood soaking into the sawdust.
I was forced to witness another three contests, each time terrified that one of Bill Arkwright"s dogs would be dragged out to fight. And what if they made two of them fight each other? I"d no doubt that the shaman had the power to make them kill their own kin.
But, to my relief, the fighting was at last over for the night and the gamblers got to their feet and started to leave. I was frog-marched back to my cell and left in the darkness once more. Why had I been taken to watch that cruelty? I wondered. Was it simply sadism a wish to make me suffer in antic.i.p.ation of what was going to happen to Claw, Blood and Bone? It wasn"t long before my question was answered ...
There was a shimmer in the darkness by the tunnel; a luminosity in the air. I stood up in alarm. Was it the buggane in its spirit form? But the shimmer quickly a.s.sumed an appearance of solidity, taking a shape I recognized: a tall, skeletal figure with a cruel expression, dressed in a dark robe. It was the shaman, Lord Barrule. Although somewhere else within Greeba Keep, he was projecting his spirit into my cell.
"The buggane certainly wants you, boy," the apparition said. "It likes what it sniffed, but it doesn"t have to be that way. Did you enjoy what you saw tonight?"
I shook my head.
"It could have been much worse. I could have pitted your own dogs against each other. The mother against her whelps perhaps. It could still be done ..."
I didn"t reply. I had rarely seen such malevolence and cruelty in a face. This man was capable of anything.
"I"d spare your dogs if you were willing to put your own life on the line. You"ve seen my gambling friends I"d like to offer them some special entertainment tomorrow night: a spook"s apprentice in combat with a witch. Who would prove victorious? The outcome is uncertain enough to make it interesting, even though the odds are firmly on the witch. But you"d be free to use the tools of your trade. I"ve left you your silver chain and I"ll return your staff. Defeat the witch and I"ll let you go. You can even take your dogs with you. But lose and I"ll make them fight to the death!"
"You want me to fight Adriana?" I asked. I couldn"t believe what he was asking me to do.
"No, you young idiot! Not that foolish girl. I"ve got other plans for her! You"ll face a much more dangerous opponent one who"s from your own neck of the woods. I mean Lizzie, the bone witch!"
Chapter 11.
"Bony Lizzie"s here?" I asked in alarm.
"She"s my prisoner, boy. And soon she"ll be dead that"s if you have the skill and guts to put an end to her! What do you say?"
I didn"t reply. Was it a trick or a real chance of freedom?
"Of course, if you lose, you"ll forfeit your own life. I"ve made the witch the same promise. And I"ll let her take her pet away with her too; lose, and it dies with her. Come on, make up your mind. Don"t keep me waiting!"
"Her pet?"
"The other witch. The one she controls. No doubt she came with her from over the water. Together they cut the throats of those poor fishermen. For that they both deserve to die. My own money will be on you. I like to bet on long shots ..."
What choice did I have? I gave the merest of nods to signal my acceptance of his offer. Immediately the image of the shaman began to fade as he withdrew his spirit back into his body.
The next day they fed me well. The first meal was a hot plate of lamb with roast potatoes and carrots.
"Eat up, boy! My master wants you fighting fit!" jeered the mocking guard who handed me the meal. "And you"ll need every last ounce of strength to face what he"s got planned!"
He and his companion left, laughing as if at some private joke, and were back just over six hours later with a delicious venison stew. I ate sparingly despite the fact that I had eaten little the previous day and was very hungry. I needed to prepare myself to face the dark though I also knew I would need all my speed and strength to overcome Lizzie: it would be a difficult test. I could use my staff and chain against her, but no doubt she"d be armed too; a bone witch like Lizzie was skilled in the use of blades. And if she won, she"d take my bones ...
And who was this other witch, the "pet" whom she"d brought over from the County with her? She was a completely unknown ent.i.ty probably a young witch Lizzie had taken under her wing to train. Maybe it was one of the witches who"d released her from the pit in the Spook"s garden. She would be dangerous too one more servant of the dark to worry about.
I had plenty of time to think. Mostly I worried about Alice. What had become of her? I took the blood jar out of my pocket and held it in the palm of my right hand for a while. How long would it be before the Fiend realized that she was no longer protected? I couldn"t bear it if anything happened to Alice.
Then there was my master. Had he managed to escape? I wondered. If so, I knew he"d be planning to rescue me. It seemed hopeless most probably he"d be imprisoned himself. Could I escape from Greeba Keep before that happened? Would the shaman really let me go if I defeated Lizzie? Was he likely to keep his word?
There was poor Adriana too. What did the shaman mean by saying he had "other plans for her "? How could I just abandon her?
My fruitless speculations were brought to a halt by the arrival of the guards, this time to take me to face Lizzie. When we entered the long room, I noticed that there were a lot more men sitting on the straw bales. Many were standing too, and money was changing hands, but they all fell silent when I was brought in, staring at me in silent appraisal.
The dogs were in their cages against the left wall of the room, and to my relief Claw, Blood and Bone were still amongst them. Would the shaman really let me take them with me if I won? I"d no choice but to fight anyway. If I did nothing, Lizzie would soon put an end to me.
It was then that my eyes settled on the furthest cage, the one nearest the entrance to the buggane"s tunnel. Yesterday it had been empty; now there was something inside it but not a dog. At first glance it looked like a bundle of dirty rags. But then I made out a figure curled into a ball, hands gripping ankles, head resting on knees.
Lord Barrule got to his feet and came across the sawdust floor towards me. "Are you ready, boy?" he asked. "I have to tell you that most of the sensible money is on the witch. We all saw what she was capable of when we captured her. Five of my men died; another two lost their minds. So we"ve tried to give you a fighting chance. We"ve done the same to her as we"ve done to her pet. Come and see ..."
He led the way to the furthest cage, the guards pulling me after him. He halted there and pointed down at the bundle of rags on the filthy straw. I saw the pointy shoes even before she raised her head.
It was Alice, and at the sight of her my throat constricted with emotion. She looked up at me, her eyes filled with tears, and her expression was one of pain and hopelessness. They had st.i.tched her mouth shut with thin brown twine. Her lips were tightly bound together so that she couldn"t speak.
"I"ve had the same done to her mistress. The witch can"t utter spells now, boy! But no doubt Lizzie will still manage something ..."
At that moment, had my staff already been in my hands, I would have thrust its silver-alloy blade into his heart without a moment"s hesitation. I was furious at what had been done to Alice. But then despair took over: if I won and the shaman kept his word, I"d be free to take the dogs with me; but Lizzie would die and so would Alice. Either way, I"d lose.
Still, at least I knew that she hadn"t been seized by the Fiend and dragged off to the dark. Things looked grim, but as my dad used to say, while there"s life there"s hope.
"Right! Let"s make a start!" Lord Barrule said, and as he returned to his seat, the guards dragged me to the very centre of the long chamber. A dozen yeomen came in, each gripping a long spear, and formed a wide circle about me; then each went down on one knee, facing me, so that the gamblers behind would still have a clear view. Their spears were pointing inwards, and it was clear that their purpose was to mark the boundary of the arena and prevent any escape or retreat from the contest.
Lord Barrule stood up and raised his hand, and I heard a commotion from the doorway; the same one from which I"d entered. Bony Lizzie was brought into the room, kicking and struggling it took four men to control her.
Two of the yeomen guards moved aside to allow them into the circle, and she was forced to face me. It was the Lizzie I remembered almost the spitting image of Alice, but older, in her late thirties perhaps, and with shifty eyes and a sneering expression. Her lips were st.i.tched together just like Alice"s. The moment she saw me, the witch stopped struggling and a strange, sly look came into her eyes; one of calculation and cunning.
Someone behind me pushed my staff into my left hand. Instantly I transferred it to my right, feeling in the left pocket of my cloak to check my silver chain. That would offer me the best chance of victory. One disadvantage was that I still ached from the beating I"d received when I was captured. The food I"d eaten had made me stronger physically but I was far from my best.
One of the yeomen handed Lizzie two long knives, each murderously sharp. Our eyes met again and I released the retractable blade on my staff with a click and held it diagonally across me. Lizzie might not realize that I had the chain. For now, I would keep it in reserve.
Lord Barrule clapped his hands three times, and silence fell over the gathering. I could hear Lizzie breathing hard through her nose, almost snorting. I suddenly remembered something about her: in the past she"d always seemed to have her mouth slightly open no doubt she naturally breathed through it. Or maybe she had a cold? Either way it would be to my advantage if she were struggling for air.
"Let the contest begin!" cried Lord Barrule. "A fight to the death!"
Wasting no time, Lizzie lunged at me with the blade in her left hand, but I parried it with my staff and began to retreat widdershins, against the clock, moving warily in a slow circle. Her face began to change, eyes bulging. Now, instead of hair, a nest of black snakes writhed from her scalp, forked tongues flickering, their fangs spitting a cloud of venom towards me. A wave of fear washed over me, and I staggered and took a step backwards, a chill gripping my heart.
She was using dread against me the enchantment used by malevolent witches to make themselves terrifying, freezing their helpless opponents to the spot. Such was Lizzie"s power that she could cast it without the incantation. What would she be capable of if her mouth were not st.i.tched?
I took a deep breath and resisted. I"d faced worse than this last summer in Greece when I"d tried to enter the Ord, the terrifying citadel of the Ordeen. If I could withstand that terrible pulse of fear it had caused the instant death of brave warriors I could overcome whatever Lizzie could throw at me.
I stepped forward and swung my staff at her head. She leaned back, almost overbalancing, and retreated. Now the snakes had disappeared, to be replaced by hair again; her face almost human. The spell was fading. And then a voice spoke right inside my head ...
Fool! We should work together!
Was it the buggane? But it was a harsh, sibilant voice not the insidious whisper that I"d been told about. Then I heard it again: Neither of us can win here. He intends to slay us both!
It had to be Lizzie. But how was she doing it? What spell could grant her that power?
I refused to listen and whirled in fast, avoided a stab from her left hand then cracked her on the right wrist to send the blade spinning from her hand.
There were loud whoops of excitement from the spectators along with a few groans. I wondered what Lizzie was doing. How could we work together? Was she mad? How could we hope to escape from this room together?
Help me! Do it for my daughter, Alice, or we"ll all die here!
Her use of Alice"s name angered me, and I thrust my left hand into my pocket and coiled the silver chain about my wrist. As I did so, Lizzie attacked, moving in quickly and catching me off balance. I leaned away but I wasn"t fast enough. I felt a sharp pain as her blade slit my forehead below the hairline. I staggered backwards, just managing to block the next blow with my staff, and felt warm blood running down into my left eye. How bad was the cut? I wondered. How deep?
I used the back of my hand to wipe it from my eye, but it only made it worse. I could hardly see out of it now. You needed both eyes to judge distance correctly so I knew I"d have to use my silver chain quickly now, or it would be too late. Once again I thrust my left hand into my pocket and coiled the chain about my wrist.
It was easier to cast a chain about a witch when she was moving right, left or away from you. But Lizzie was attacking again, running straight for me: this was the most difficult shot of all. I had no choice but to attempt it, so I cracked the chain, sending it spiralling towards her.
It dropped over her head, then down over her body, bringing her to her knees. The remaining knife fell from her grasp as the chain tightened. It wasn"t a perfect shot because it had dropped over her from shoulder to knee, leaving her head free. Usually a spook needed to bind a witch"s mouth so that she couldn"t chant dark magic spells, but this time it didn"t matter because her mouth was already st.i.tched shut. A wave of relief washed over me. Under the circ.u.mstances the shot wasn"t so bad after all. I"d won. Throwing the chain was a skill I had honed to a fine art. All those long hours of practice with the post in the Spook"s garden had paid off again.
And then there was a brief moment of doubt. Had it been a little too easy? I thought to myself. Was this defeat serving Lizzie"s purpose in some way?
"Kill her!" shouted the Lord Barrule, rising to his feet.
I lifted my staff and pointed the blade at Lizzie"s heart ... But then I hesitated ... I couldn"t do it. I"d killed other creatures of the dark before, but never in cold blood like this. Usually, whether bound or not, they"d still presented a threat to me and I"d had to do it quickly. But Bony Lizzie was secure. There was no way she could hope to free herself. Not only that she was Alice"s mother. There was no love lost between them but it made it hard. So I lowered my staff ...
Well done, boy! I heard Lizzie hiss. Now see what I"ve got planned!
I looked up at Lord Barrule, who was shaking his head. "Can"t bring yourself to do it?" he called out, his voice echoing around the chamber. "I"m surprised. What sort of master trained you? What kind of a spook"s apprentice are you? That was our bargain: kill the witch to gain what I promised. Now you"ll have to do something else to earn your freedom. You"ll fight the witch"s pet!"
My heart sank right down into my boots. He was going to make me fight Alice and there was no way out of it. Two yeomen went over to the far cage. I stared in horror as they pulled her out. The sight of her twisted my insides, wrenching my emotions. Her eyes were wild and full of pain, and what had been done to her mouth was cruel beyond belief. The twine that bound her lips together was cutting into the soft flesh, making them red and swollen.
They dragged her into the circle of spears to face me. Lizzie"s blades were pushed into her hands. There was a murmur of conversation from the gamblers and the c.h.i.n.k of money as the bets were placed once more. I struggled to think of some way out of our predicament but nothing came. It seemed hopeless. Whatever happened, one of us would die.
Our eyes met. Alice"s were glistening with tears. Blood was still running down my forehead and I brushed it away with the back of my hand. How could I fight Alice?
The shaman clapped his hands three times to signal the beginning of the contest. Nothing could have prepared me for what happened next. Alice raised her blades, then rushed towards me as if to take me by surprise. I couldn"t believe it. Would she really hurt me after all we"d been through together?
Horrified, I stepped back, instinctively holding my staff across my body, preparing to meet her attack.
Chapter 12.
Ishould have known better than to think Alice would attack me.
I wasn"t called on to use my staff because she simply brushed past me to reach Lizzie, who was still bound by my silver chain. She knelt down beside her and, before I could react, used a blade to slit through the twine that st.i.tched her mother"s lips together.
Had Lizzie been waiting for this to happen all along? If she"d tried to free her own lips with her knife during our struggle, I"d have immediately attacked her with my staff. Had she planned to wait for Alice to do it?