When Mace emerged, the dawn light was seeping over the forest and the air was rich and fresh, the sky bright and cloudless, the last stars fading against the brightness of the sun. He moved into the doorway, tall and impressive, longbow in hand. He was wearing a dark brown leather jerkin over a shirt of white wool, leaf-green leggings and knee-length doehide moccasins. He saw us and moved forward, his face expressionless.
‘Come to bid me good luck?’ he enquired.
‘We’r,e coming with you,’ I said.
‘All the way?’ he asked, a cynical smile accompanying the words.
‘All the way,’ agreed Corlan. ‘To the gates of Hell and beyond.’Mace said nothing but his eyes raked the group, pausing on Raul Raubert, then sweeping on to Piercollo, Ilka and myself. ‘A motley group of heroes,’ said Mace, but the smile now was genuine. ‘Well, let us be on our way.’We set off across the village towards the south, and found Megan waiting at the edge of the trees. Mace halted before her. ‘I could do with a blessing,’ he said softly.
‘For what it is worth you have it,’ she said, stepping forward and resting her hands on his shoulders. ‘I will be with you – not in the flesh, but close by in the spirit. I cannot fight Golgoleth, but I can guide you and warn you of enemies close by. Now be warned – the Vampyres are fast and strong. They cannot be slain by iron or steel. The enchanted blades will destroy them. Or fire. Nothing else.’ Turning to Piercollo, she smiled. ‘Your great strength will avail you nothing, Tuscanian. You must carry a weapon.’I will find something,’ he said.
Megan swung to face the rest of us. ‘You are about to confront enemies of supernatural powers. They are cunning, powerful and infinitely evil. All goodness is gone from the Vampyres. They live only to feed and they strike faster than you would believe possible. But they can do more. They can enter your hearts and make you fear them, and with that fear comes a slowing of the reflexes, a dulling of the mind. Do not engage in conversation with any of them. Faced with a Vampyre, you must kill it quickly. This may seem obvious to you now, but hold the thought in your minds.
With the Vampyre Kings it is even more necessary. They are also sorcerers of great power; they can only be slain by decapitation.’That’s an inspiring little speech,’ said Mace.
‘I am sorry,’ Megan told him, ‘but it is better to know what you face.’Mace sighed, but said nothing more. Raul Raubert stepped forward.
‘I think we should begin this . . . quest . . . with a prayer,’ he said. ‘Let us kneel.’I knew Mace had little faith in any god, yet he was the first to drop to one knee. The others followed until only I remained standing. Raul looked up at me. I felt foolish standing there, and joined them. ‘Lord of All Things,’ said Raul, his voice deep and solemn, ‘be with your servants this day. Make our hearts pure as we face evil. Make our limbs strong as we fight your enemies. And deliver us from the power of the Dark. Amen.’As we rose, Brackban and several of the officers approached us, Astiana with them. She moved alongside Mace. ‘May God be with you,’ she said.
‘There is a first time for everything,’ he replied, forcing a smile.
Brackban reached out and took Mace’s hand. ‘Good luck to you, Morningstar,’ he whispered.
‘Don’t look so solemn,’ Mace told him. ‘We’ll be back.’Wulf came running across the clearing, longbow in hand.
‘Where do you think you are going, little man?’ Mace asked him.
‘To Ziraccu,’ answered the hunchback, scowling. ‘And don’t ask me why, because I don’t know.’The possibility of stupidity should not be ruled out,’ quoted Mace.
Wulf grunted an obscenity which made us smile and then Mace led us off towards the south-east.
The day was bright, but the clouds were gathering to the north, dark and gloomy. In the distance we could hear the far-off rumble of thunder. I walked alongside Ilka, holding to her hand. I had tried to dissuade her from accompanying us, but she had been adamant.