Call of Kerberos: Twilight of Kerberos, The - Jonathan Oliver Page 0,16

the light of the lamp as he smiled

"To be fair to Officer Stinton," said Officer Springer. "We do have a job to do."

"Yeah, and that job is to take Stinton's money and then go and get pissed." Office Mooney grinned, looking at the wealth that he had gathered that evening.

"Really, I'd love to be a further part of your games, but Nürn is not going to police itself."

As Officer Stinton left the barracks he could see someone running towards him. It was the fisherman, Silus, and he looked to be in some distress. Stinton made sure that his sword was secure and then went to meet the citizen.

"Ring the alarm bell now." Silus said as he struggled to regain his breath. "Summon every volunteer you can. We're under attack."

"Silus, calm down. Attack from whom?"

"From the sea. They're coming from the sea."

"Who are coming from the sea?"

But Officer Stinton's question went unanswered as Silus ran for home, and he was no closer to understanding whom their assailants were when they burst from the waves.

The alarm bell was ringing and, as Silus rushed Katya from their home, they could see a plume of smoke rising above the harbour.

The first body that they came across was Officer Springer's. He knelt on the cobbles as though in an act of penitence, his head on the ground turned at an angle that shouldn't have been possible. A shard of vertebrae protruded from the back of his neck. From the cracked stones of the road beneath him it looked like he'd fallen from a great height. It was almost as though he'd been thrown.

Silus knelt beside the fallen guard and prised the sword from his stiff fingers, passing the weapon to Katya before unsheathing his own blade.

"We may have to fight," Silus said. "There may be no other way to protect our child. We'll try and make it to the Ocean Lily and get to Vosburg. We'll make sure that you're safe there and then we'll get help."

Katya nodded and kept a tight grip on Silus's hand as they ran towards the harbour.

The clash of weapons and the cries of the injured - both human and inhuman - were clearer now. Flames had started to spread to more of the buildings and, as Katya pulled Silus to a halt, they saw the roof of The Necromancer's Barge cave in. Someone flailed out of the building, a human torch that screamed so shrilly it could have been either a man or a woman. The blazing figure got only a few feet from the tavern before it keeled over in the street and was still.

A hideous form emerged through the smoke shrouding the end of the street. Katya cried out as it put one huge, clawed foot on the skull of the burning corpse. The noise that echoed off the walls with a sharp, yet wet, report as it stamped down was not something they would ever forget.

"Stay close to me!" Silus shouted, raising his sword as the creature advanced.

His first blow skittered across the beast's scales, deflected by tough hide. As he moved in again, Katya swung her own blade at its ankles, but the creature stepped out of the arc of her attack and raked its claws across her face. Had she been a step closer Katya would have been blinded. Instead four wet, red lines opened up on her cheek.

On seeing his wife's injuries anger boiled up in Silus. With a yell he put all of his strength behind his next attack. He could see himself in the pitch-black orbs of the thing's eyes as he leaned in close, the tip of his blade catching in a gap between scales. For a second Silus thought that the flesh there was too tough to penetrate, but then there was a sound like lobster claws cracking and the creature howled in pain. But before he could withdraw his blade, Silus's head was caught in the creature's claws and he went over with it as it fell.

They landed heavily in the street, Silus sprawled across its body. Hot, sour breath blasted into his face as the creature increased its grip and began to speak.

The words were guttural, harsh and not in a language that he understood. Silus fought to pull away but the pressure on his skull increased. The pain that arced between his ears was worse than anything he had ever experienced and he let out a keening wail, not quite believing that such a sound could