Fargon, part 4

"That's enough," said Fargon. "You three, go and find rooms in the hellhorde quarters. Anybody will give you directions. Grimwally, come with me."

Fargon threw open Autumna's cell door by mental power. He stood there, all grim and terrifying, then walked forward into the cell. Grimwally followed, grinning and slobbering, and jumping up and down with excitement. Autumna recoiled into the corner of the cell.

"Do I need to describe to you what will happen if you don't co-operate?" said Fargon. He spoke gently and reasonably, which was more disturbing than any amount of bluster.

"No," said Autumna. "I can imagine."

"Release yourself from your bag of protection. I will help."

The bag split and disappeared. Fargon rooted through her mind. She knew nothing useful about The Goddess. Fargon was struck by how good she was. She was brave, honest and kind. She loved Wizardslayer, which was stupid of her. It would take a long time to corrupt her, but Brunhilde would help. The two women would make a fine team. Brunhilde would be driven to excess by jealousy and, in the end, so would Autumna.

"You are mine, Autumna."

"No, I'm not," was thought, but not said. She wasn't that stupid.

Fargon turned and walked away. Grimwally gave a lewd wink and capered after him. The cell door slammed shut and locked itself. Autumna trembled with anguished memories of Fargon's vile mind and with shame at her own cowardice.

Brunhilde was in the Pool of Perception room, looking at the image of Fargon's new toy. After her shower, she had brushed her hair flat in deliberate contrast to Autumna's fluffed mass of hair. Fargon joined her. He took the edges of her cloak and drew them together, so that her cleavage did not reflect in the Pool.

"You are to have a helper."

"Autumna?"

"Yes. She'll need to be worked on, but I'm sure you can persuade her to adopt the attitudes I want."

"I'm sure I can, darling."

Fargon entered Brunhilde's mind and revelled in the jealousy, rage, violence and lust he found there. After rather too long, he pulled himself away and looked into the Pool. He dismissed the image of Autumna and found Wizardslayer and friends, who were approaching the Bridge of Sties over the River Pollen, which marked the boundary between the plains and the foothills of the Barren Mountains.

There had been a pig farm on the plains side of the bridge, but the farmer had fled long ago and his pigs had been eaten by the hellhorde, or the pigs had fled and the farmer had been eaten; historical records were contradictory. Now half the hellhorde were using the ruins of the pig pens for concealment while the other half hid behind boulders on the other side of the bridge. Wizardslayer's party reached the bridge.

"I can smell hellspawn," said Galadtobefey. "They are all around us."

"We have to use the bridge," said Wizardslayer. "Going any other way will take ages and they've got Princess Autumna."

"And Erolflin," said one of the goblins.

"And Boboskins and Petacuke," said one of the dwarfs.

"Come on then," said Wizardslayer. He walked out onto the bridge, closely followed by Galadtobefey, then the three dwarfs and two goblins.

They were halfway across when the hellspawn erupted from the pigsties and stood shouting abuse and making rude gestures. More appeared from behind the boulders on the far bank. Captain Vilepractice stood on the top of a boulder and shouted to the invaders, who halted and drew their weapons.

"Kill the elf and throw away all your weapons. You will be treated well. Your friends, Erolflin, Boboskins and Petacuke have joined the hellhorde, with all the benefits that brings. Kill the elf. Join us or die." On the hilly side of the river, hellspawn archers readied themselves to fire.

One of the goblins moved to stab Galadtobefey under the ribs, but Wizardslayer's magic sword swept down and cut off his hand. Wizardslayer looked startled.

"Sod," said the goblin. He put his surviving hand over his stump to stop the blood from spurting.

"You should not have believed him," said Galadtobefey. "Now you will have to fight one handed."

The goblin muttered darkly, then prized the knife out of his detached hand while he held out his stump for the other goblin to bandage. There was no time. The hellspawn on the plains side of the river dived for cover while those on the opposite bank fired a hail of arrows at the group on the bridge. Wizardslayer and Galadtobefey rushed forward as the dwarfs and goblins died.

The magic sword cut a path through the hellspawn. Those on the plains side rushed across the bridge and tripped over the dwarf and goblin corpses and each other. A struggling mass formed on the bridge, out of which several hellspawn fell into the river.

"Useless," said Fargon, from the safety of the Pool of Perception room. "They deserve to die."

Wizardslayer and Galadtobefey were free of the hellhorde, running fast and leaving them behind.

Are you going to send in the liquidators?" asked Brunhilde.

"Yes."

Fargon watched Wizardslayer and Galadtobefry steadily climbing into the mountains. Wizardslayer's only concession to the cold was to put on a leather waistcoat, which he left hanging open. Galadtobefey was not bothered by cold.

Fargon ordered out the liquidators, then went with Brunhilde for another enormous meal. Wizardslayer was too close for comfort, so Fargon was distracted. He looked at his own food more often than he watched Brunhilde eating, which Brunhilde took as a sign that she was losing ground to Autumna.

They returned to the Pool of Perception in time to see the confrontation between Wizardslayer and Galadtobefey and the liquidators. Ten black-armoured liquidators marched relentlessly down the mountain path towards their intended victims. They were ruthless, single-minded and immune to all but the most powerful magic. Swords or arrows could not penetrate their armour.

"They are liquidators," said Galadtobefey. "Use the Barishnikov on them."

Wizardslayer fired several rapid bursts at the liquidators, who exploded when bullets hit them. Soon there was only debris and blood to mark where they had been.

"That's it," said Fargon. "I'll have to deal with them myself."