Born of Darkness (William King) - William King Page 0,50

wake. It chopped right through the man’s body, splitting him in two. The guards ran.

Kormak tossed the sunflare and covered his eyes. The mad laughter continued to ring out as the weapon blazed. When the brilliant light died, Kormak saw the Old One was almost on top of him. At first the crystal eye-sockets of its visor were pools of ultimate blackness then the green glow returned. The Old One had not been blinded. The huge axe slashed towards Kormak. There was no way he could parry that monstrous weight of metal.

***

Vorkhul revelled in his utter triumph. The magical crystals of his helmet’s eye-pieces had neutralised the sunflare, darkening instantly when it burst. Now they had returned to normal translucency. Ahead of him the human stood, mouth hanging open, shock inscribed on his face.

Vorkhul swung his blade, backed by all the amplified strength of the armour. There was no way he could avoid killing the man. The axe was not a subtle weapon. He hoped to make his blow as painful as possible. He aimed for the body, wanting to preserve the man’s brain. The bellowing of the hounds was near now.

***

Kormak sprang away. The wind of the axe’s passage rippled his hair. Vorkhul killed the blade’s momentum and brought it swinging back. Kormak dropped beneath it and tried to scramble clear.

The axe rose and then descended in a blurring arc. Kormak rolled to the left. The blade buried itself in the stonework. Green sparks fountained upward.

Kormak scrambled to his feet and lashed out with his sword. It bit into the armour, but all he did was leave a nick. Vorkhul began to lift the axe.

There was no way to win this fight by standing toe to toe with the enemy. He was too battered and too tired. He needed to fall back and come up with a new plan. Perhaps if he could lure Vorkhul into the room full of elder signs, he would have a better chance.

***

The human ran as if the hounds of hell were after him. Vorkhul pulled the axe from the stonework, cursing the fact that his pursuer had somehow eluded him again. His annoyance was momentary. He was glad the creature was alive and fled before him. He would have some sport before he put it out of its misery. He would make it beg for mercy.

Vorkhul lengthened his stride and set off in pursuit. This was how things should be. He was the hunter. The human was prey. The Shadow be praised.

***

Kormak ran through the room full of sarcophagi and raced into the space that held the elder signs then turned at bay. Behind him the gigantic metal form of his pursuer lumbered along. It halted at the entrance as if sensing the trap. It set down the axe, then picked up a metal coffin as easily as a man might heft an empty beer crate. It hurled the huge weight. It missed Kormak completely and crashed into the wall. The sarcophagus shattered on impact. Bits of broken stonework and twisted metal caromed around the room.

The Old One picked up another coffin and hurled it at a different angle. It smashed into the other wall. Glancing to his right Kormak saw that all the hanging elder signs were either broken or fallen or both. The Old One picked up its axe and, laughing like an insane thing, strode into the room.

The Old One’s stride slowed as it crossed the threshold but when it launched its first blow, its strength was undiminished. Kormak ducked away from the sweep of the blade, wondering if perhaps the creature was a fraction slower than it had been. It made no difference. It was still too strong for him. He backed away and then sprang through the outer doorway, slamming it closed.

The axe smashed through the wood, splintering it with one blow. Kormak saw scores of troops pouring into the Museum. At their head was Rodric. Fang dragged him along. In the midst of a company of his Household Guard was King-Emperor Aemon. His brother stood beside him. Frater Jonas was at his shoulder. Warriors of the Order of the Dawn dug into their satchels, producing flasks of alchemical fire and sunflares.

“Sunflares won’t work,” he shouted. “Use banefire if you’ve got it!”

He ducked to one side as the door exploded outwards and the massive armoured form of the Old One appeared. It paused for a moment to contemplate the small army it faced.

“Begone from my palace, thing of