Chapter Thirty Eight – The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep by Kelly D. Tolman

Posted by admin on June 15, 2009

The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep is a fantasy novel describing the adventures of Colter Halfspear as he becomes a man and an initiate of magical powers.

My first impression of Darnuth Keep remains forever implanted into my memory.  The great towers, like icicles rise triumphant from the mountainside.  True to the name, the towers are constructed of ancient clear-white crystal that shoots into the sky like diamond.  A winding, narrow road that has remained undamaged cuts a path up the edge of Mount Hansfor.  After hours of labor in thinning air we turned a final sharp corner and saw it rising both ominous and beautiful over the valley and pass bellow.  The Hansfor River begins atop the mountain and runs swiftly down, cascading over steep falls before it fills the lake in the valley and races south and west towards the empire and the sea.

“Our destination,” said Pascalli thoughtfully as he scratched his beard.  “Perhaps not a destination,” he contradicted almost immediately.  “Perhaps a starting point.”  He seemed to be lost in his own world for a long moment, until Dina began moving her horse forward.  “You’re right, there’s no point standing outside.  After all I’m sure we’re expected.”  He winked and grinned viciously.

As though time did not exist in the valley or on that mountain, the gates stood tall and clean against the autumn sun.  At least three times the height of a man, the polished white crystal of the main gate seemed impregnable at first.

“How do we get in,” asked Dina.  I was glad she had asked the question, though it echoed my thought.

“By walking, child, of course,” replied the wizard.  “Unless you have learned to fly, which I doubt.”

I managed to fake a cough in order to stifle my laugh, but Dina gave me an angry glare anyway.  Pascalli lead us very close to the wall and over to a path, just wide enough for one horse to go at a time.  The path ran directly beneath the battlements with the sheer face of the wall on one side and a steep slope up the mountain on the other.  I observed that although an army might attempt to approach the fortress from behind, the steep edges sloped just enough that the best they could hope for would be to slide down to the path we now walked where they would be crushed by boulders or burned with oil from the parapets.
At the very back of the keep waits a door just large enough to admit a horse, if it is not a large horse and it is not carrying a great deal of bulk.  Pascalli produced a key and opened the door and we began the time consuming task of unloading our horses to get them through the door.  The door leads through a dark tunnel to another door, which opens into Darnuth Keep.

Many dozens of buildings without roofs lined the barren streets of the lowest level, bearing silent testament to the greatness of the city’s past.  Small doors opened directly into small rooms within the outer city wall.  I estimated that the wall spanned some thirty meters across at the top.  The ancient city guard must have had their barracks either in the low buildings near the wall or in the small rooms inside.  Not a single stair or ladder of any kind graced the sheer surface outside of the wall, the only way up or down came from the inside.  Many pools and fountains still danced in the setting sun as we entered, and I felt as if the ghosts of an age long past laughed at us through the water.

“At last, a bath,” said Dina.

“Yes,” agreed Pascalli.  “Though the water will likely be icy cold.”

“No fires then,” I suggested.

“Here in the lower city we probably haven’t been spotted yet, although to be perfectly honest I’m not sure what or who watches the surface these days.”  Pascalli once again seemed distracted, as if calculating a difficult sum in his head.

“I would very much like a warm meal and a warm bath,” said Dina.

“At what cost,” I said sharply, though she had not been speaking to me.

She turned abruptly to face me.  “I am not your charge,” she said.  Needles seemed to pierce me as she spoke.  “I do not need your counsel.”

“It seems, my dear boy, that the lady will not be denied her pleasantry,” said Pascalli.  His tone neither mocked nor condoned, but simply stated a fact.  “Go and fetch some water, Scratch, and dig up a pot for heating it.  I should like some proper dinner as well, see what you can do about that, lad, if you don’t mind.”

I opened my mouth to disagree when I saw Dina’s look of triumph, but shut it again quickly.  “Will you at least help with the fire,” I asked.

“Sorry Scratch,” he said.  His voice was suddenly quite serious.  “I’m off scouting for a bit.  There are plenty of dry timbers around that should burn well enough.  Seasoned wood burns the best.”  I grabbed my spear and started towards the nearest building.  “Find a place with half a roof if you can,” called Pascalli behind me.  “Don’t get into trouble.”

By then I absolutely fumed inside.  Dina proved to be a hindrance in every possible way.  She outright demanded I build a separate fire for her in a separate building where she could heat water and bath herself properly.  She did not move a single finger to help.  I realize now that once again Pascalli was giving me a simple test of self-control.  The danger of our situation was no less now than before, but I guarded the camp alone.

Rather than use two buildings, I waited until Dina seemed content and then built our cooking fire just in front of the abandoned house she had chosen.  I stacked our gear just outside the door and began preparing a stew of dried meat and herbs.  Dusk already began to drift over us as I began to light the fire, and the shadows seemed to bring with them a quiet that even stilled the tinkle of running water.  Dina hummed an unfamiliar but content tune from within the house.  My stew simmered very quietly.  I heard the soft scrap of something on a stone.

I crept as quickly as I dared, making no noise and grabbed my bow.  Finally, after what had seemed like ages of practice I could move almost silently when the need arose.  I peered through the depths of darkness for the enemy that surely stalked either my fire or Dina.  Dina would have no weapons, and even an unintelligent attacker would deem her the easier target.  I went inside the house.

I heard Dina finish her humming and fumbling around for a buffalo hide.  She saw me against the light of the fire and shouted.  “Scratch, get out of here!  I’m bathing.”  When I didn’t move she became really angry, and I think she reached to find something to throw at me.  Truthfully I couldn’t say what she did because at that moment I caught the movement in the shadows along the roof that I had been looking for.  I loosed an arrow, and a piercing shriek, very similar to Dina’s, tore into the night.  Something large and black fell into the building and growled in pain.  I sent a second arrow past Dina and into the enormous black cat.

“Supper is ready,” I said, and turned and walked out.
Copyright 2008 Kelly David Tolman

On to The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep Fantasy Novel Chapter Thirty Nine

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