Savage Messiah

CHAPTER LXXVIII

Wulfgar stood before the newly cut pass through the Tolenkas, stunned by its raw beauty. Captain Cathmore stood by his side, his tattered uniform barely covering his skeletal frame and the dark organs within.

Wulfgar was fresh from his victory at the Minion outpost, and his Black Ship had crossed the fields of Farplain to reach the majestic Tolenkas in a single day. The journey to the pass had been uneventful. If any sizable Minion force searched for him along the way, they hadn't shown their hand.

The glowing azure wall climbed high into the fog lying quietly upon the peaks of the mountains. Its surface was as smooth as glass, stretching from one side of the pass to the other. White-hot flashes of raw energy shot to and fro within its silent depths. Wulfgar felt as though the wall was begging to be opened. He yearned to see the wonders waiting on the other side come streaming through.

Wulfgar turned and looked down the mountainous slope. The Minion warriors who had watched over the pass had died the same way as those at the coastal outpost. There had been fewer of them to contend with, and they had perished valiantly but quickly.

His lone Black Ship sat heavily in the grassy field below. Lit torches had been shoved into the ground, their flames highlighting the dark lines of the vessel and lending the scene a surreal, ghostly quality. The corpses of warriors and demonslavers littered the nearby ground. The surviving demonslavers milled about, watching the azure wall from afar. Some scavenged the bodies of the dead Minions for dreggans and returning wheels.

Smiling, Wulfgar turned back toward the pass. As he did, he felt the touch of the Heretics on his mind. The mixed chorus of voices was as lovely and commanding as ever. He went to his knees.

"Wulfgar…"

"I am here," he answered silently.

"It is time to reach deep into your blood and call forth the special Forestallment that allows you to breach the azure pass. Do not be alarmed by what emerges from its depths. They do not possess the intellect of your dark captains or even your demonslavers, but your new servants will be the blunt instruments of your eventual victory. The Old Eutracian word for them is K'ton. Unlike the Minions of Day and Night, they know no hierarchy within their ranks. Bring them now, Wulfgar. Bring them and watch their swift evolution take place before your eyes. Then you must leave this place and travel to Tammerland. As you near the city, we will speak with you again."

"As you command," Wulfgar replied.

He stood and raised his arms. Bolts streamed from his outstretched fingers. Streaking up the slope, they snaked over the surface of the wall to form a vertical line, separating the pass into two equal halves. He moved his hands apart, and the line split and moved toward either side, opening a dark gap in the wall. Then he lowered his hands, and he and Cathmore backed away.

Snarling, grunting sounds came out of the darkness, becoming louder as something neared the entrance to the other side of the world. Finally one of the K'tons walked through to stand and face the Enseterat in the moonlight.

Wulfgar held his ground as he looked at the first of his new servants. Standing at least seven feet tall, the K'ton had skin of the darkest black. It stood on two massive, humanlike legs; simple, black warrior's sandals adorned its feet. The massive arms and torso rippled with bulging muscles. Its head was huge-even in relation to its great body. Its dark, straggly hair fell down past its shoulders.

The K'ton's bright red eyes were small, giving its gaze a furtive look. Its nose was wide and constantly testing the air. Its thin lips and pointed teeth were covered with drool. The only garment it wore was a black, fringed warrior's skirt. As more K'tons appeared, Wulfgar saw that their only weapons were either short swords or huge, bulbous clubs with silver blades extending from the club heads.

As they gathered to stand before Wulfgar, the K'tons' collective snarling and grunting grew ever louder. As the night wore on, they continued to march out to stand in the torchlight. Wulfgar suddenly wondered how he could load so many aboard a single Black Ship. But then the monsters started to change and he had his answer.

One by one, they became surrounded by azure. Twisting and turning, crying out in agony, they sank to their knees or fell to the ground. The sound of ripping and tearing filled the air. As he watched, Wulfgar recalled part of the Heretics' last message:

"Bring them," they had said. "Bring them, and watch their swift evolution."

Wulfgar suddenly understood: Having been released to the world, the K'tons were changing.

The skin of their backs split open down the center. Fully exposed spinal columns rose to rest upon the surfaces of their backs. Then their shoulders split open. Appendages extended from within the fresh wounds.

As the new limbs exited the K'tons' bodies, Wulfgar smiled. The freshly formed appendages were wings. Dark and leathery, they looked very strong. The K'tons quickly snapped their new, wet wings into place behind them.

At last, Wulfgar realized, the Minion advantage of flight is ours as well!

The winged K'tons now covered the slopes of the mountains for as far as he could see. The azure glow slowly faded away, and the breach in the wall closed. The K'tons waited in the torchlight, their weapons at the ready.

Wulfgar walked up to the first of them and pointed at the Black Ship lying on the field below.

"Walk to the ship," he ordered.

Its teeth curling back in a vicious grimace, the K'ton raised its head and gave a cry that was half scream, half snarl. Its red gaze held Wulfgar's for a moment. Wulfgar glared back. Then the K'ton turned and lumbered down the slope; thousands of others followed his lead. Their dark numbers were so vast that as they walked it seemed the entire hillside was moving. But as the first of the K'tons neared the recent battle scene, they slowed. Wulfgar tensed.

The K'tons at the edge of the field raised their heads. Their sensitive noses began testing the night air.

They've detected the blood of the fallen, Wulfgar realized.

The K'tons charged down into the killing field, roaring with delight as they grabbed up corpses.

Wulfgar smiled. He looked over at Cathmore; his captain smiled back at him.

"How marvelous," Wulfgar said softly. "Frankly, I was wondering how we were going to feed them all. Now I know."

Cathmore turned his glowing eyes back to the grisly scene. "Indeed," he answered.

When the feeding frenzy was finally over, Wulfgar and Cathmore walked down the slope to stand among the K'tons.

Not a shred of once-living tissue remained. Blood colored the ground. Minion body armor and weapons lay scattered over a wide area, as did the clothing and weapons of the fallen demonslavers who had vanquished them. The K'tons stood quietly, blood staining their hands and mouths. Even now they seemed unsatisfied.

Cathmore turned to look at his lord. "There wasn't enough for them to eat," he observed casually. "Such a pity."

Wulfgar nodded. "We'll just have to get to Tammerland faster. There will be lots of soft-bellied citizens for them to feast upon in the city."

Cathmore smiled.

"Even so, we must first deal with the orb," Wulfgar reminded his captain. "And it needs to be done on the plains, far away from the azure wall. Then we can join the rest of the Black Ships and take Tammerland."

Wulfgar walked over to the demonslavers. "Get aboard!" he yelled at them. "We leave at once!"

He turned to face the K'tons.

"Half of your number are to follow my ship by air," he ordered in a craft-enhanced shout. "The rest are to fly to Tammerland to join the other Black Ships. When you find them, follow the orders of Captain Merriwhether. Stragglers will be killed. We will join you there. In the capital there will be plenty of food for all!"

The K'tons in the front ranks snarled and beat their bloody fists upon their chests. Soon all of them followed suit in a massive display of power.

Wulfgar raised one hand. Calling upon the craft, he caused a blank parchment to appear. He pointed at it and writing appeared upon its surface. When he was done, the parchment rolled itself up.

Wulfgar took the scroll from the air and walked it over to one of the K'tons. The drooling monster simply looked at it for a moment. Then it took the scroll from its master.

"Give that to Captain Merriwhether," Wulfgar ordered the K'ton. "Fail to do so and you will pay with your life. Do you understand?"

Raising the parchment high, the K'ton gave a fierce battle cry.

Satisfied, Wulfgar levitated himself to the foredeck of the ship. Cathmore followed. The last of the demonslavers entered the open stern of the ship's hull, and the door slowly rose up. The ship lifted into the air.

As the Black Ship sailed away, the K'ton throngs snapped open their wings and lifted into the night.