Shepherd's Quest: The Broken Key #1 Read online



  Shepherd’s Quest

  The Broken Key #1

  Brian S. Pratt

  Copyright 2007, 2009 Brian S. Pratt

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  The Fantasy Worlds of

  Brian S. Pratt

  The Morcyth Saga

  The Unsuspecting Mage

  Fires of Prophecy

  Warrior Priest of Dmon-Li

  Trail of the Gods

  The Star of Morcyth

  Shades of the Past

  The Mists of Sorrow*

  *(Conclusion of The Morcyth Saga)

  Travail of The Dark Mage

  Sequel to The Morcyth Saga

  1-Light in the Barren Lands

  2- Tides of Faith

  3-Fall 2014

  Improbable Adventures of

  Scar and Potbelly

  Ice Terraces of Crystal Crag

  The Broken Key

  #1- Shepherd’s Quest

  #2-Hunter of the Horde

  #3-Quest’s End

  Qyaendri Adventures

  Ring of the Or’tux

  Dungeon Crawler Adventures

  Underground

  Portals

  Islands*

  *Coming in the Future

  The Adventurer’s Guild

  #1-Jaikus and Reneeke Join the Guild

  #2-Caravan to Kittikin

  #3-coming Winter 2014

  For Joseph, my son.

  Chapter One

  _______________________

  Riyan looked out over the landscape, his position on the ridge afforded him a commanding view of the valley. The moonlight overhead painted the world in shadows, among which who knew what sorts of beasts may lie. Undaunted, he turned to his companion and directed his attention to the castle nestled in against the backdrop of the far side of the valley. “Look,” he said, “there across the valley.”

  His companion, a man like himself who had seen many a battle, nodded. “We’ll find her in there for sure.”

  The lady in question had been snatched from her home by person’s unknown. Her family contracted Riyan and Chadric to track down those responsible, rescue their daughter, and slay her captors. After several days of following their trail, it has led them here.

  “Let’s go,” Riyan said and then headed out. Chadric followed close behind.

  They worked their way down from the ridge and soon found themselves in the shadowy darkness of the valley floor. Heavily forested, this area gave off a less than comforting feel as they made their way closer to the castle.

  Howrrrrrrrr!

  Not very far off a wolf’s howl split the night. Riyan and Chadric came to an abrupt stop as they turned their attention toward the direction from which the sound had originated. The moon’s light did little to dispel the shadows as it was unable to effectively reach this far below the forest’s canopy.

  “What…?” began Chadric when Riyan held up his hand to silence him. Becoming silent once more, Chadric focused his attention on the shadowy boles of the trees before them.

  Then all of a sudden, one of the mountain wolves that infested these parts launched itself out of the shadows. Moving straight for Chadric, it snarled and its teeth became pale shadows in the darkness.

  Riyan pulled his sword from its scabbard just as his companion was bowled over by the beast. “Chadric!” he hollered.

  On the ground, the wolf had one of Chadric’s gauntleted forearms in its mouth and was shaking it furiously. “Ahhh!” he cried out. With his other fist, Chadric began hitting the beast alongside the head but the blows did little in persuading it to release his arm.

  Then Riyan came to his aid. Striking out at the back of the wolf with his sword, he cleaved the beast almost in two by his thunderous blow. Kicking out with his foot, he knocked the wolf from off his friend.

  “You okay?” he asked. Offering a hand, he helped his friend to his feet.

  Chadric nodded. Then he took a look at the gauntlet covering his forearm and saw where the wolf’s teeth had indented the metal. “Yeah,” he replied.

  “We better hurry and reach the castle,” Riyan said. “Wolves never hunt alone.” No sooner did he say that than another howl split the night not very far away. Wiping his sword off on the wolf’s hide, he gave Chadric a hand up and then they were back on their way to the castle.

  They passed among the trees much more quickly now, the howling of the wolves driving them onward. Despite the frequency and close proximity of the howls, no other wolf made an appearance.

  At last they reached the far side of the valley. Here the forest became less dense and it wasn’t long before the outer wall of the castle appeared through the trees. High on the upward slope of the valley where the mountains began, its dark edifice loomed hauntingly. The wall ringing the castle rose high from the valley’s floor, beyond which climbed a spire even higher into the sky. A single light broke the darkness as it escaped from a window high in its upper reaches.

  When they reached the edge of the forest across from the wall, they paused for a moment. “Something’s not right,” observed Chadric.

  “I know,” agreed Riyan. No guards were present upon the battlements and the gate stood open. “It can’t be this easy.”

  “Could be they didn’t expect anyone to have trailed them back here,” suggested Chadric.

  “You may be right.” But deep down inside, Riyan didn’t think so. “Come on,” he said. Moving quickly and quietly, he raced towards the open gate. Other than the normal sounds one would expect while in the forest, nothing else could be heard.

  Upon reaching the gate, they pressed themselves against the wall and peered through its gaping maw. The inner courtyard looked clear. A courtyard stretched forty yards from where they stood to the door leading into the castle. The tower they saw with the light was but one of three that extended upwards from the main body of the castle. Two shorter ones extended upward at either end while the one with the lighted window towered to twice their height out of the castle’s central keep.

  Riyan raised his hand which bore the Ring of Evil Detection. Calling upon its power, it took but a moment before a glow began surrounding a three foot statue that stood on a short column situated between them and the door leading into the castle. Exactly what the statue was couldn’t be readily determined in the moonlight from this distance. “I thought so,” stated Riyan. He glanced back to see if Chadric had seen the glow.

  “Now what?” Chadric asked, he too had seen the glow.

  “I’m all out of protection scrolls,” he replied. “The ring will afford me some protection against whatever it is.” He glanced back to the statue and drew his sword. “Stay here.” When he heard Chadric say, ‘Alright’, he moved into the courtyard.

  Working his way around the statue, he kept one eye on it and another on the rest of the courtyard. As he came closer, he could tell the statue was of some demonic beast. There were wings on its back and a single spiraling horn protruded from out of its forehead. The head had a cruel visage with what looked like two dagger-sharp fangs extending upward from out of its lower jaw.

  Then all of a sudden he felt a vibration in the ring, one he
always felt when evil was near. The eyes of the statue flashed a dark red and the head slowly turned towards him. As the statue came to life, he now understood why there were no guards on the walls or in the courtyard. This was the castle’s guardian.

  Coming out of its sitting position, the demonic creature stretched upright and raised its head. Then it gave out with an ear-piercing screech. Growing silent, the creature launched itself off the column and towards Riyan.

  With a war cry of his own, Riyan raised his shield to ward off the creature’s attack. Bringing his sword into position, he waited.

  Beating its wings, the creature flew through the air and struck out at Riyan with the claws of its feet. Riyan raised his shield and felt the creature strike it with jarring impact. Then he retaliated with his sword, striking out at the creature with a resounding blow.

  The blade of his sword rebounded off the creature, doing little more than chipping away a small piece of the marble it was constructed of. The jarring impact of the sword on the marble left Riyan’s arm tingling.

  With wings flapping, it rose into the air only to turn and strike once more.

  By this time, Chadric had reached his friend’s side and used his mace. He smashed the creature as its attack was thwarted again by Riyan’s shield. The mace did more damage, being a bashing weapon such as it was. But it still did not do enough to stop the creature.

  As the creature made ready for another attack, Chadric came up with an idea. He reached into his pouch and pulled out a small crystal vial. Then as the creature again moved to attack Riyan, he threw it. When the vial struck, it shattered upon the hard marble surface and the fluid it had contained began burning the creature.

  Shrieking, the creature fell to the ground and started thrashing about as dark smoke wafted from where the liquid had touched it. Chadric and Riyan move forward quickly and begin laying into it with sword and mace. They soon had it reduced to a pile of broken marble. When at last its movements stopped completely, Riyan stepped back and looked to his friend.

  “What was in that?” he asked.

  “Holy water,” Chadric replied. “Got it before we left Rynwall.”

  Riyan nodded his head and grinned at his friend. “That was fortunate,” he said.

  “Turned out that way,” agreed Chad.

  Leaving the shattered remains of the creature behind, they ran toward the door leading into the castle. Upon reaching the door, Riyan flung it wide and strode fearlessly into the castle. Dark and ominous, the interior was full of shadows as the moonlight made its way in through the many windows.

  The hall they now found themselves in had the appearance of having been left unattended for some time. Cloth covered many of the pieces of furniture, spider webs hung in the corners of the room, all in all the place gave the feeling that no one’s been here for some time. If that was the case, then why did the trail of the woman’s captors lead them here? And what can it mean that a light shone from the window at the top of the tower?

  Riyan glanced around the hall for a brief moment before crossing over to the stairway leading up. Taking the steps quickly, he and Chadric ascended up to the landing on the second floor. “We have to find the entrance to the tower,” Riyan said.

  Chadric moved down to the entrance of a hallway that headed in the general direction of the tower. “Could be down here,” he suggested. He saw that it extended further into the castle.

  Riyan nodded and then moved to join him at the hallway. Taking the lead, he left the landing and headed quickly down the hallway with Chadric right behind.

  The hallway itself was rather wide with several doors lining both sides. Moving past them, Riyan walked quickly towards the end of the hallway where he hoped to find the entrance to the tower. When he reached a little over halfway to the door at the end, his ring all of a sudden began vibrating to tell him evil was close. He no sooner paused and was about to tell Chadric to be on his guard than the doors lining the hallway opened. From out of the opened doors, skeletons bearing swords and shields rushed forward to attack.

  Immediately, Riyan and Chadric formed up back to back to face the onslaught. Easily a dozen skeletons boiled from the adjacent rooms. Striking out, Riyan’s sword removed the head from one only to see its body continue the attack. “We have to go for the arms!” he hollered to Chadric. His next swing severed the sword arm from the headless skeleton. Kicking out with his boot, he knocked the one armed headless stack of bones backwards. It broke apart when it struck the wall.

  “Yeah!” Chadric yelled as his mace smashed through the ribcage of another.

  Laying about them, they quickly destroyed the skeletons. Having only received a few minor cuts, they left the pile of bones behind and hurried to the door at the end of the hallway. So far, what they have faced hasn’t been all that challenging.

  Upon reaching the door, Riyan grabbed the handle and pushed it open. On the other side they found a room where the staircase leading up into the tower began. A roar filled the room as a fur covered creature leaped from the stairs. Taller than either of them, it must have stood over six and a half feet. Naked other than the covering of fur, it’s only weapons appeared to be a pair of nasty looking claws and the razor sharp teeth filling its mouth.

  Shouting his war cry, Riyan raced forward with sword drawn to meet the attack. He raised his shield as one of the creature’s massive paws struck out at him. The force of the blow upon his shield knocked him backwards several steps. As he saw Chadric moving past him to engage, he yelled, “It’s stronger than it looks.”

  Chadric nodded that he heard then attacked with his mace. Impacting the creature’s side, the hit elicited a roar of pain. Then another of the creature’s paws swung forward. Chadric raised his shield to block the blow and sailed backwards through the air when the blow connected. Slamming into the wall, he slid down and settled to the floor.

  “Yaaaaa!” screamed Riyan as he thrust his sword toward the creature. The sword’s point struck the creature’s side and sank in several inches.

  The creature tilted its head back and howled at the pain Riyan’s sword inflicted. Then the creature struck the sword with one of its paws and knocked it from Riyan’s grasp. As the sword flew across the room, the creature struck Riyan with its other paw and sent him sailing. He hit the wall with an ‘oof’ and settled to the floor.

  From across the room, Chadric was getting back to his feet. He saw the creature moving toward where Riyan was lying on the ground and hollered, “Hey you!” When the creature turned, he threw his mace and smashed the creature right between the eyes. The force of the blow was such that it caved in the creature’s skull, smashing the brain within. Falling backwards, it hit the floor and twitched for a few seconds before becoming still.

  Chadric rushed to his friend’s side and asked, “Are you okay?”

  Riyan opened his eyes and nodded. “I think so.” Glancing over to where the creature lay he said, “Hope there aren’t many more like that one.”

  Offering his friend a hand up, Chadric helped him to his feet. Then he went over to the dead creature and recovered his mace.

  “Hey, would you look at this?”

  Turning around, he saw Riyan standing before a closed chest sitting against the wall. “Wonder what’s in it?” he asked.

  Riyan shrugged then turned back to face the chest. “Only one way to find out,” he said. Grabbing hold of the lid, he lifted it up.

  Chadric crossed the room and stood beside him as he swung the lid all the way up. Inside, the gleam of coins and gems could be seen. “Must be a fortune!” he exclaimed excitedly.

  They both reached in and started removing the coins and gems. A few gold coins mixed in with a handful of silver, the majority of the coins the chest held were that of copper. They filled their pouches with the treasure and in so doing, discovered a secret compartment hidden in the bottom of the chest.

  Riyan took out his knife and pried it open. Within they found a plain, brass key. He held it up and said, “Th
is could be useful.”

  “Better take it with us,” agreed Chadric.

  Putting it within his belt pouch, Riyan then turned and headed towards the stairs leading up. The steps rose as they wound their way around the outer wall of the tower in a spiraling fashion until finally disappearing through the ceiling. With Chadric following closely, Riyan moved onto the stairs and quickly began moving to the next level.

  “Wait a second,” Chadric said as he pulled one of his torches out of his pack. Once he had it lit, he indicated for Riyan to continue.

  For a brief moment the stairs passed through a narrow section as it went from the first level to the second. Then it opened up again as it reached the second floor landing. Here they found boxes and crates stacked neatly in various spots across the second floor.

  As it turned out, the tower itself wasn’t very wide and the light from Chadric’s torch was able to reveal it in its entirety. With nothing here other than boxes and crates, they continued following the stair as it wound its way along the outside wall up to the third floor.

  Just as it had between the first and second floor, the stair entered a narrow area when it passed from the second floor to the third. When Riyan entered the narrow area between floors, his ring once more began to vibrate. He paused a moment as he informed Chadric that something was ahead, then took the torch from him as he resumed his forward progress.

  Now with the torch held before him, Riyan stepped cautiously as he neared where the stairs opened up onto the third floor. First the torch, then his head cleared the opening as he slowly crept his way forward. The light from the torch cast shadows in the room as he completely emerged from the opening.

  The room as it turned out looked to be someone’s bedroom. A bed, dresser, and table all gave this room a rather homey appearance. Another chest similar in nature to the one they found below sat at the foot of the bed. Riyan moved forward into the room toward it as Chadric began to emerge from the opening leading from the second floor.

  “Be careful,” he warned when he saw what Riyan was moving toward.

  Riyan came to a stop before the chest and placed his hand upon the latch. Gripping it tightly, he pulled the lid open. Inside, he found another pile of coins. Nestled in among the coins were two bottles that were normally used in conjunction with potions. He moved his torch closer and saw that both bottles contained liquid.

  He reached in and took one of the potion bottles out. “Hey, look what I found!” Always excited when finding potions, Riyan tuned back to Chadric. “Wonder what they do?”

  Chadric moved closer to the chest and reached inside to pull out the other one. Looking closely at it, he saw a feather inscribed upon a wax seal. “Maybe this is a flying potion?” he guessed.

  “Possibly,” stated Riyan. “Mine has the sign of the healer.”

  “A healing potion,” nodded Chadric happily. “Can always use one of those.”

  “You got that right,” replied Riyan.

  They then removed their packs and set them on the floor. Once the potions were secured within their packs along with the coins from the chest, they slung them again across their backs.

  “There can’t be too many more floors remaining to this tower,” observed Chadric.

  “I know,” replied Riyan. “Need to be extra careful from this point on. My ring indicated evil was present but there’s nothing here.”

  “If what it sensed is on the next floor,” said Chad, “it must be powerful indeed.”

  Riyan just nodded his head.

  The two friends then went to the stair and began climbing up to the fourth floor. Before they reached the narrow area between floors, they saw light coming from above. “Better put that out,” Chadric told Riyan as he indicated the torch.

  “Good thinking,” he replied. Then putting the burning end against a step, he rolled it until the flame went out. Leaving it smoking on the step, Riyan looked up at the light coming from the fourth floor. Removing his sword from its scabbard, he resumed moving into the narrow area between the third and fourth floor. His ring began vibrating once more.

  When he came to the end of the narrow area, he slowed down and continued until he was just able to gaze into the fourth floor.

  “Come in gentlemen,” said a voice.

  On the far side of the room sat a man hunched over a desk with his back to them. Over the desk were two shelves lined with books. Sitting at the right end of the lower shelf was a gilded cage containing a small creature. Upon closer examination, it was revealed that the creature within the cage was almost an exact duplicate to that of the statue creature they destroyed down in the courtyard below.

  Riyan exited the narrow passage and entered the room. “We’ve come for the girl,” he said.

  “I know,” the man replied. Turning around, the man looked to where Riyan stood with sword drawn. “But she’s mine.” He then glanced towards Chadric as he emerged from the narrow passage behind Riyan. Grinning he said “And now so are you.”

  “I think we’ll be a bit more difficult to deal with than a girl,” countered Riyan.

  The man scooted his chair back and stood up. Turning to face the pair, they saw that he was dressed in a robe of some sort. Could possibly be a magic user of some kind.

  Moving his hands in arcane gestures, the man began speaking words neither of them could understand.

  Realizing he was casting a spell, Chadric threw his mace in an attempt to disrupt the magic user’s concentration. Unfortunately the man finished his spell in time and bolts of reddish energy lanced from his fingertips, striking both Riyan and Chadric. The man then easily dodged aside to avoid the mace.

  When the bolts struck them, it felt like fire. Indeed, where one bolt had struck Riyan’s ring mail armor, the rings in that area were slightly melted. Giving out with a cry, Riyan charged the man as another round of fiery bolts left his fingers. This time, the bolts were directed solely at Riyan. His shield bore the brunt of the attack though two made it through and knocked him back a step.

  Then the magic user began chanting another series of magical words and a shadow formed before him. Roughly man-shaped, it began moving towards them.

  “Get the magic user!” yelled Riyan as his sword lashed out at the oncoming shadow. His sword seemed to have minimal effect as it passed right through.

  As the magic user began another chant, Chadric drew his knife and rushed him. He made it to within a couple feet before the man finished his spell and a green glob formed before him. Unable to stop, Chadric ran right into the acidic green glob. Pain flared as the green substance began eating his flesh away. “Riyan!” he cried out as his momentum carried him forward into the magic user.

  Then the magic user began crying out in pain too as Chadric gripped him in a death grip. The green substance that covered Chadric was now beginning to eat away at the magic user.

  With his concentration now broken from the pain of the green goo, the shadow that was moving on Riyan disappeared. Riyan ran forward to where Chadric gripped the magic user only to find both men were beyond his help.

  Most of the exposed skin of Chadric’s body had melted away to expose the bones underneath. The screams of the magic user continued to ring out as the green goo ate his flesh away.

  Riyan knelt down by the side of his lifelong friend. He could see that his friend was still alive and in great pain. Chadric’s eyes looked up at him beseechingly and he knew what he was asking.

  With tears in his eyes, he took his sword and plunged it into the chest of his best friend to end his suffering. The magic user’s suffering, he allowed to continue until the end came.

  When he pulled his sword free from Chadric’s body, he found the blade pitted by its brief contact with the goo covering Chadric. No longer serviceable, he cast it aside. He collapsed on the floor for some time, grief over his friend’s death heavy upon him. But then he remembered why they had come. The woman.

  “Bye Chad,” he said then moved to the stairs and hurried up to the top
. The stairs ended at a locked door with a small window set into it. Going to the window, he put his mouth near it and said, “Hello?”

  “Go away!” a woman’s voice yelled at him from the other side.

  “Lady,” replied Riyan, “I’ve come to rescue you. Your father sent me.”

  Then he saw the face of a most beautiful woman appear in the window. “My father?” she asked.

  “That’s right,” he said. He tried to open the door only to find it to be locked. Remembering the key he had found in the chest on the ground floor, he took it out of his pouch and placed it in the keyhole. Turning it, he nodded satisfactorily when the lock turned. Then he opened the door wide and stepped within the room.

  Barely dressed in anything, and looking all the more sexy because of it, the woman rushed forward and clasped her arms around him. “Thank you gallant knight,” she said. Then reaching her lips up to his, she gave him a most passionate kiss. Her breasts were rubbing into his chest and…

  “Wait a second right now,” Chad demanded.

  “What?” asked Riyan.

  “Here you have me dead on the floor below,” he stated with dissatisfaction, “my skin eaten away by acid, and you’re about to get it on with the woman?”

  “So?” his friend said with a grin. “It’s just a story.”

  “I know it’s just a story,” Chad remarked. “But I always seem to be the one to die.”

  The two friends were sitting upon a hillock under a bright sunny summer day. Down the hill a ways grazed the flock of sheep that Riyan was supposed to be keeping an eye on.

  “You’re one to talk,” replied Riyan. “Don’t you remember the time before last when you were telling the tale?” When he saw his friend get a grin on his face, he knew that he did. “You had me lying on a torture rack with an arm and a leg missing, hot lead being poured into my eye socket and where were you? Off having a little fling with the daughter of the man who was torturing me!”

  “Okay, okay,” he said. Then they both broke into laughter.

  This was one of their favorite pastimes. On the days Chad could get away from his father’s mill, he was usually to be found out here with Riyan as he minded the flock. They would spend hours telling each other stories of adventures they wished they could have. Being stuck in a small town such as Quillim all their lives has allowed them little chance for such experiences.

  For Riyan whose family was poor shepherds that barely made a living from their sheep, and Chad who detested being a miller’s son, life in this border town was dull and uneventful. The only time adventure came their way was when one of Riyan’s sheep managed to wander away and they had to go track it down, which was more often than not.

  Baaaaaaa!

  “Not again,” Chad moaned as Riyan got up and began scanning the area.

  “Looks like Black Face got stuck in the thicket again,” Riyan told his friend.

  “Isn’t that the third time this week?” asked Chad.

  Nodding, Riyan began making his way down the hill as he replied, “Something like that. Give me a hand.”

  Shaking his head, Chad pushed himself off the ground and went to help his friend. “Can’t wait until shearing time,” he said.

  “You got that right,” agreed Riyan. “It’s his wool, it keeps getting snared by the thorns.” Sure enough, they found Black Face trapped within the thicket. Sometimes he wished that he could just leave him there for a day or two to teach him a lesson, but his mother would skin him alive if he did. So working very carefully, he and Chad spent the next half hour working the thorns from out of Black Face’s coat.

  Chapter Two

  _______________________