The shadow

Prologue

The wind was howling through the forest. The leaves weaving in the strong wind that kept on pulling until branches cracked and broke. From branches that hit the ground, erupted a piercing noise that made the animals tremble in fear and left them in despair.
The howling wind certainly  wasn’t a good sign. The only possible explanation for this peculiar weather was magic. A very dark kind of magic.
A dark shadow shifted through the forest that same night. A shadow that made not even the slightest sound, that left no evidence of its presence wherever it had been. No living being was aware of its presence.
The one in the circle, the one using the dark magic that caused this unearthly storm, had no idea who or what was coming for him. Nobody knew who was coming until it was too late, until they saw the eyes of the one in front of them, until there dead bodies hit the ground and their white eyes stared into the night. The Shadow, it was called. Since no one alive knew the person behind the black mask, underneath the dark cloth that made The Shadow invisible in the dark nights.
Another branch came down with a thundering sound, the ground shuddered under its weight. The Shadow had moved fast, fast enough to dodge the branch so he wouldn’t be hit to the earth.
The candles which were too far away to be seen, unable to extinguish, gave a glow that stretched out over a incredible distance and that aura was indescribable .
The glare made a person feel warm though at the same time the body went cold because of the lack of energy. The candles only burned because of the magical energy of their owner or, when present, by the spirit of multiple humans.
The Shadow hold still, his breath fast but deep so his mind could clear from the mist that formed in his head.
The mumbling old man on the ground had no idea that he was being surveyed, he had no idea of the terrible danger he found himself in. At the very moment that The Shadow wanted strike, something else happened, something entirely out of The Shadow’s control. One of the trees  near the sorcerer  began to come down. The sound it created made The Shadow quiver under his cloth. Although this was a warm night, it seemed much colder at that very moment. This not because the Shadow felt anxiety for the old man, but because for once nature seemed to agree with him. Just about always it was clear when it was the Shadows doing when another sorcerer  got killed at night, nonetheless on rare occasions such as this it was unable for the authorities to say it was his doing.
A little bit of regret filled the Shadow when he saw the sorcerer’s body got crushed by the gigantic tree. The reason for the remorse was because he thought it a shame that he couldn’t have the honor himself. That he couldn’t look the man in the eyes, see the fear rise from the depth of his soul, and hear the cries for help or mercy. None of those pleasures were meant for the Shadow this night, just the delight of knowing the man died of his own mistakes.

Chapter 1: and the boy ….

It was a lovely summer day in the middle of June. The sun was shining high in the bright blue sky, the birds were singing loudly as ever and the little stream next to his family’s house  made a comforting sound. His eyes were closed, his ears focused to pick up every sound he could possibly hear. He heard the sounds the nesting birds made, the sounds the fox produced while trying to ambush a rabbit and of course rabbit that was finding its way back home. ‘Valdis!’ the sound of his name made a chill come over him. All of a sudden the sounds he previously heard were gone and the only thing he could here was his little baby sister crying out his name. Again she called him. ‘Valdis, mum wants you to look at the traps dad put out in the forest!’. The little girl came around the corner of the farm and placed her arms around his neck.
The boy, just about eleven years  old, swung his little sister around and the girl screamed of joy. ‘Put me down, Valdis. Mum really wants..’ the girl started again before the was put down by Valdis. ‘Mum wants me to empty the traps, I know.’ The boy finished her sentence.  He put his arm around her and pushed her, softly, towards the farm. ‘You tell our mother that I will empty the traps and that I am to be back before sundown.’ He said to his sister. The girl looked up to him and nodded. ‘Okay I’ll do!’ she said cheerfully while she started running and disappeared around the corner again.
Valdis  shook his head and started to gather the things he would need for the job he was about to do. A few minutes later he went over it again in his mind. Did he gather all the things he needed? His eyes went over items in front of him. He had his net, his knife, the bag and the little saw.. just in case. Quickly he ran to the tiny shed, just in front of the forest and he crabbed his bow and the arrows from one of the wooden shelved. He hung the bow over his back en put the arrows in their shaft, picked up the bag from the ground and then went on his way, little did he know about what was to happen.

With a few rabbits and some poultry over his two shoulders he was on his way home. A content smile washed over his face when he thought about what his father would say to him, when the man came home it was. Valdis knew for a fact that his father would be gone for another three moons but the little lad was sure his old man would be proud of him. For the boy took care of his family, like he was asked to.
At the last tree line the boy stopped for a minute, just to catch his breath again. The sun was going under, as he had anticipated. The glow of the undergoing sun let a glare come over the farm in front of him. Again he thought about how lucky he was, because he knew the other, less lucky, side of life. He knew about the orphan boys and girls who were roaming around the towns in the neighbourhood in search of food and shelter.
His breath stopped when he saw a shadow moving through the high, green grass that surrounded the farmhouse. Valdis grabbed his bow and pulled and arrow. His eyes were fixated on the stranger but when he was about to shoot the arrow, suddenly the shadow was in front of him. A blow came out of nowhere and knocked him down. With a smack his head bumped onto the earth below him and everything disappeared into the blackness. He did not feel how the stranger picked him up and put him over his shoulder, he never saw it coming.




His eyes opened slowly and for a split second he saw a shadow in front of him. He blinked but when Valdis stared at that specific spot again, the shadow had disappeared. The boy closed his eyes again, just waiting for a sound that could point out to him where the stranger was. Minutes passed by. For almost half an hour nothing but the mouse in the tiny room made a sound. With a sigh the boy opened his eyes again. Nothing... there was nothing in the tiny room except for him, the chair he found himself in and the mouse in the corner that was nibbling on the hay.
He tried to move his hands but now noticed that they were bound to the chair with thick rope. That also applied for his legs. With just a little panic in his eyes, the boy tried to get loose again. He shook the chair a little bit, then more furiously than before. He wanted to scream, he wanted it so bad, but when he opened his mouth a hand closed it again. ‘Not a sound.’ a deep manly voice whispered in his ears. A chill ran over his spine when he heard the voice. He heard that voice before, that accent, the voice had a raucous edge too. The hand was removed and the presence was gone again. He let his eyes go around the room nervously. Even before he could move, the hand landed on his shoulder and kept him in the chair, not that the ropes didn’t took care of that already. ‘And do not move.’ the voice whispered again.
The boy did not even attempt to look over his shoulder, for he knew that when he did, it would only make his situation worse. ‘Why.. Why..’ Valdis started with a trembling voice.
The man put his other hand in front of Valdis his mouth again. ‘That was a sound, my boy. But.. for this time, and only this once, I will be merciful.’ The man said.
There was a triumph in his voice when he said those words, like the man was proud of himself, proud about the fact that he could have mercy. Not that Valdis really cared, the boy was frightened. His body was trembling and he felt warm, almost boiling hot compared to the man’s cold skin. ‘And because of that I will tell you exactly why you are here, my young friend.’ The man stood with his back towards Valdis. From behind, the barely looked older than thirty but when he turned around, he for sure was not. His face was covered with scars and one eye, that used to be as brown as the other, was now white. The rest of the stranger’s body was concealed from Valdis his sight because he wore a long, dark cloak. ‘But first things first.’ he said and the man cleared his throat.
Again his back turned to Valdis but the boy was too scared to ask anything and he watched the stranger walk out the door. The footsteps died away. For a few minutes the boy waited carefully, just to be sure that the man could not hear him. When the boy was certain that the man was out of hearing distance, he started to move in his chair again. The thing was that he was a little too hasty and with a thundering sound the chair fell on the ground, with Valdis still in it. For another minute the boy kept quiet and then sighed relieved. He turned on his back and started to roll over, and over until he came to something that looked like a desk. Once he reached it he kicked against the wood. Once, twice, and then something fell off. It was an old knife, all rusty because of the years it laid there unused.  It took him quite a while before he freed himself from his bounds. Without a sound the boy rose up and listened. There were voices, just a few corridors away. Lucky for him, the voices where loud enough to drown the sounds he would make while finding his way out of this place.
On his toes he walked to the door and softly opened it. As softly as possible anyway for the doors made a cracking noise. His eyes were big of the tension in his body, he breathed quick and his felt his heart bouncing in his chest. He sneaked through the door and found himself in a grand hall. Though the hall was gigantic in his eyes, nothing was placed it in. Every sound that was produced in that hall would echo through the whole place.  One time, almost at the next door, he slipped.  It produced a horrible sound and trembling with fear the boy laid there for a while. When nothing came, he stood up again and sneaked through that door as well. On the other side, cold air welcomed him.
A fist came down on the oak table. The table was so long that at least twenty people could sit on both sides. This hall was different than the one Valdis needed to cross to find his way out. This one was decorated with fine things. There were gold and silver things in the hall. Some things made of sapphires or rubies. ‘How could you possibly let him escape?! It is just a little boy for crying out loud!’ the old man said. The eye, first white in the presence of the boy, was now glowing red. ‘He knows nothing, he can do nothing... He is nothing!’ he continued. ‘I want him back. I need him back, do you understand me, Huntsman?’ he said with dislike in his voice.
In front of the old man, there was a man almost twice his size. The Huntsman was a well build man. His shoulders broad and the rest of his body covered with muscles. It was almost unnatural. The hunter nodded and looked down on the old man. He didn’t need to say a word because he knew the old man would not appreciate it at all. He just said ‘I understand, my lord Roche.’  
On both sides of the Huntsman there were two enormous black dogs. Behind the man, there was another. The dogs came, when standing, to the Huntsman’s waist. Their eyes were red like the flames of hell and it was almost like they could see into your soul. It was strange, since their eyes seemed almost identical to the red eye of lord Roche. ‘Then what are you still doing here? Find him!’ Roche commanded and he turned away. The Huntsman nodded again and the dogs rose up. Before the Huntsman could leave, Roche said ‘O, and Huntsman. Get him to me alive.’

It was cold. His hands were freezing because of the icy wind that rushed through the dark forest. The sun had left the sky and the moon had taken his place. There was only on slight problem... the leaves of the trees were thick, thick enough to block out the light of the moon. Valdis could not see far, tripped over roots every few minutes and tried to get as much distance between him and that frightening place.
His clothes were torn and to be honest, there was not much left that covered him from that gelid wind. Suddenly he stopped. His heart pounded in his chest and he breathed heavily. The boy’s lack of energy caused him to stop for a moment. Just for a short while, then I’ll be off again, he thought to himself. But just when he was about to get off again, thunder split the sky and howling broke the silence.  He stood there, paralysed. His heart only started to beat faster and faster until it felt like it would explode in his chest. The sounds came closer and closer but the boy still stood there.
All of a sudden an itch spread through his body. He felt warm again and his heart started to beat normal again. His eyes however were not normal at all. Normally they were blue as the night sky but now they lit up blue as a river reflecting the sun. A big amount of energy seemed to stream through his veins and his eyes... what he saw shocked him. Three enormous beast, black as the darkest night, eyes like fire came running too him, too him they looked wild. They were unlike anything Valdis had seen before. Their size, their eyes... ‘A fháil air!’ someone shouted loudly. The language was unknown to Valdis though somehow he could feel the intension. His legs started to move again and he ran. He ran as fast as he possibly could but the chance was slim that he could outrun the beasts. He stopped again, turned around, and unaware of himself doing it, he shouted words. The sky lit up again and a unspeakable sound reached him. He clamped his hands over his ears and started to run again.
It seemed like he ran for ages. He couldn’t think, he didn’t feel, the only thing he knew now was that he had to get away, whatever the costs.


The Huntsman shouted again. This time out of terror, out of anger. He bend over the body of one of his precious dogs. The beasts let out a squeak and looked up at his master. Then it faded away and somehow disappeared. His two remaining dogs howled long and doleful to the night sky. The Huntsman straightened his back again and shouted another command to his two remaining dogs. ‘Wendell, Wacian... thabhairt dó a dom.’ The man said with anger in his deep, growling voice. The two dogs looked at each other and then they started to run again, even faster than before.
It was not long before they caught Valdis his scent again. The boy was hiding behind a bush so the beasts wouldn’t see him, at least for now. The unknown feeling still got him in its grip.
Again there was a howl, this one however was different than the ones before.  It was a warning, he knew, he just knew and somehow it frightened the boy. Again that howl, from the other dog this time, and out of nowhere the Huntsman appeared. His eyes, with the same red colour as his dogs, were searching for the boy. ‘Come out, come out wherever you are.’ The man said malicious.
Such a shame that Roche wanted the lad alive, he thought to himself. What a pity that he couldn’t sent his remaining friends on him, so they could avenge their dead companion. A growl left the man , for he was not really human, at least not anymore, he just seemed human... sometimes.

*And so the tale of the Huntsman begins

Another nightmare got him that night. A man called Beanon turned on his side in the bad. In his dreams, all there was, was fire. The fire surrounded him, prevented him from getting away, back home. His wife’s and daughter’s screams echoed because suddenly he was in a cave. Locked away from light and from the warmth of his family. He tried to break free. He lifted one of the rocks but then he found himself in a totally different place. Now he was in a grand hall. Everything was beautiful, he couldn’t even imagine such a place as this actually excised. When he attempted to move, metal chains bound him to the wall and an iron hook was rammed through his chest.
With a loud scream he woke. Confused he looked at the woman beside him and he noticed that her arms were around him. ‘Did you have that nightmare again?’ she asked him calmly. He nodded and sighed while he tried to calm down again. ‘It was a dream my sweet, just a dream.’ he heard his wife whisper in is ear. He looked up at her and said ‘I know my love. Let’s get back to sleep.’
For the second time that night he fell asleep. This time he landed somewhere different. Unlike last time he now felt the warmth of someone, or something, else. A chill spread through his body and when he turned around he saw three gigantic animals, standing in front of him. The three looked at him and though he was not small, the beast came as high as his shoulders. He held his breath for a second but then it occurred to him that this was all just a dream. ‘This is not real’ he said softly to himself. Then a voice echoed through the room. ‘Oh, is it now?’ the voice said and then laughter spread through the room.
Suddenly everything went black and when he opened his eyes he saw them. With his eyes open wide, his heart pounding in his chest, his mouth hung open slightly, he saw his wife en daughter. Their clothes drained in their own blood. His heart seemed to break because he had lost everything he ever loved.
Then, from nowhere, a man appeared before him. ‘So now I have you attention.’ The stranger said to him. ‘Hello Beanon, I’m Roche and I will tell you exactly why you are here.’ And Roche winked.
His eyes looked past Roche for in the door where the three gigantic dogs from his dream.*

The sound that came from the man made the boy even more nervous than he already was. With his eyes wide open he watched the beasts sniff in order to find his scent. Because for some reason, the dogs could not find him. Without failing the dogs could track him, but they couldn’t find the spot where he was hiding. Trembling like a leaf Valdis hid behind that small bush and all the while he heard the man mumbling, the dogs sniffing and saw the thunder lighting up the sky.
For a minute, just that one minute, he imagined to be home. Home, where it was safe. Where his little sister tried to sneak up to him again, where his mother was cooking in the kitchen. He could even smell what she was making. His stomach growled and that was what gave him away.
He paralysed with fear when out of nowhere one of those beasts appeared. For a split second the two looked at each other. Valdis could see the hate burning in the eyes of the beast because it was Valdis his fault that its friend had died.
He couldn’t scream, only a shriek came out of his mouth. He felt the Huntsman coming towards him. He knew the other beast was behind him. He could feel the hot breath in his neck, he could smell the stank coming of it. The bush was pulled out of the ground and thrown away. Now in front of him was the Huntsman. His red, wrathful eyes piercing through his own which caused a massive headache. He grabbed his head with his hands and now started to scream loudly.
The pain felt almost unbearable.  It was like a thousand or more needles stinging in his head, trying to get out. It was like the hunter was miles away, but he could hear him laughing.
Now from even further away, there was another noise. Again something unfamiliar to Valdis. Abruptly the pain in his head faded away and now he clearly saw a dark shape in the sky. Every time the sky lit up because of the thunder, it was as if the shape came closer. In fact, it did came closer.

Again it opened its mouth to scream. He produced a horrific sound and way down there he saw those trifling dogs run into the forest. The Huntsman however stayed put. A beam of light came forth from his mouth and a few trees went up in flames. Why can’t the demon just take care of its own business? Damarcus thought, pretty irritated.  
The Huntsman already knew what, or who, was coming from the darkness. He turned around, just in time to see his two dogs run away into the forest. ‘Come back you cowards!’ he shouted after them.
Damarcus got a smile on his face. ‘At least your beasts seem to know what is wise.’ a cold, dark and hoarse voice said.
The voice was deep and somehow the air moved. The dragons wings produced wave after wave of air because he had no intention of staying long. His eyes lit up because another blast of fire came from his mouth. ‘You have no idea about who’s plans you are messing with, do you?’ the Huntsman snarled to the enormous dragon. Laughter came from the pitch black monster.
‘Of course I do, my dear Huntsman. Why do you think I’m here in the first place?’

With one slap of its wing the dragon knocked the Huntsman out. It almost seemed to easy, seemed to good to be true. Valdis was still lying on the ground. He could barely keep his eyes open. The last thing he saw was the dragon, coming at him. He felt a claw around him but then everything went black and he found himself in a nightmare. Though it was not his own nightmare, but someone else’s. He saw a big man, standing with three big dogs watching at him and he heard a voice, a voice that made him shudder.
The dragon felt that and looked down. ‘Don’t worry lad. I’ll make sure Roche doesn’t get to you.’ And with a few strokes of his massive wings, the dragon disappeared into the night, with Valdis in his claw.

Chapter 2: Say hello too...

It was still dark when the big dragon landed near his hiding place. A sigh of delight escaped him. ‘Home at last.’ Damarcus said, to no one in particular because the boy was still unconscious. He went in and looked around, as he always did. For the dragon his current hiding place was the most beautiful he ever had. There was the ruin of a grand castle. The roof half torn down through time. The glass, once in the amazing high window frames,  was spread over the ground in bits and pieces. The stone floor was cracked so trees could grow. Trees that now were so high has the ceiling once was. The place even had a few tombstones and those stones made that area look more like a church than a castle.
Carefully the dragon put the boy down onto the soft grass and he shook his head. ‘Just so you know, I’m not going to be your nanny.’ The dragon said to the boy. He looked up to the sky and he saw the stars shining bright. Yes, it was a bright and gorgeous night, the dragon thought to himself. He looked down at the boy again before he started to speak for the second time. ‘Just because I promised your old man that I would protect you, does not mean that you can go fooling around. You have to know you cannot act like a child anymore.’
The boy, now in a deep sleep, turned around on the grass. Slowly the dragon made himself comfortable on the soft grass and he flipped open one of his wings to put over the boy, just in case rain would come that night.
The dragon looked down at the boy again, there was something similar to a smile on his face. ‘You will do great things lad. Things you couldn’t imagine in your wildest dreams, that I can assure you.’ He said to the boy. Not that the boy seemed to hear anything of what the old dragon said to him that night. He didn’t had too.
Damarcus stretched out a bit and laid his head in the grass. If only the boy wouldn’t be afraid of him, that would help a lot. He closed his eyes and drifted away slowly. The sun would come in a few hours and then the boy would start his training. He needed to prepare the boy for what was coming for him. A last sigh escaped the dragon before he fell asleep and thought of other things than tomorrow. He thought of yesterday and the day before. About the centuries that had passed and about all the things he had seen. He would need all the wisdom he possessed in order to train the boy. If only he was less a task than his father had been.

In the mean time, a couple of miles away, something entirely different happened.

‘YOU LOST HIM?! AGAIN!’ Roche shouted furiously. His eyes almost seemed like fire and even the two dogs hid away in a corner. Roche trembled all over his body and he stared at the Huntsman with a weird look in his eyes. No reaction came and that only made it worse. A fist came down on the table while the other hand grabbed a stick.
It was not an ordinary stick. It was not just a branch stripped from bark but it had those weird looking carvings on it. Runes they were called. Wizards and withes believed they possessed magic. With the right Runes a powerful witch or wizard could rule the lands. Could make strong potions, do complicated and powerful spells and most of all... control the dead AND the living. At least, so it was told.


The Huntsman cleared his throat in order to make up a good excuse for his mistake. ‘The lad, master, he was more powerful than you anticipated. He killed one of my dogs and..’ the man started, but he was interrupted. ‘He killed one of your dogs? And how Beanon, could you let that happen? They were under you protection!’ the old man said. He put a hand to his head and with the other he made a signal that said that the Huntsman needed to continue. ‘But come on, speak up. What more gibberish can possibly come from your mouth.’ He said, now almost like he was bored.
The Huntsman doubted, but with one look at his master he said ‘The dragon was there, my lord.’


*The man was still chained to the wall while the man, who was obviously a few years younger than Beanon, took place in a chair. ‘Why..’ Beanon started. He shouldn’t have done that because now his lips moved but his voice... there was nothing. His eyes now big and filled with panic looked down on the sitting man. The man had his hand around a staff, almost as tall as himself and covered with strange markings. The markings lit up again en a squeal came out of Beanon his mouth. ‘Excuse me, but did I gave you permission to talk? I don’t think so.’ Roche said, like he was talking to his new puppy dog.
‘But you are here, because I need you. It is simple as that, you have nothing to live for, I need a servant. Problems solved.’ Roche said with delight in his voice. He now looked at the man properly and he nodded. ‘Yes, yes you will definitely do.’ He said to himself.
Beanon look at the man with terror in his eyes. His eyes grew even bigger when he saw the three beasts appear in the doorway. ‘Now listen very carefully..’ he heard the stranger vaguely say. Beanon didn’t really pay any attention to what was said. From the corner of his eye he saw a curious glare come from the man. The glare was green and when he looked at it, all Beanon’s emotions went numb.
‘And that’s how it’s done!’ he heard a voice say enthusiastic. He heard chains break, though he felt nothing. He noticed how his feet landed on the stone floor. All of a sudden, everything seemed a lot smaller than before, even the dogs. The beast came to him and sniffed at their new master. Carefully they took place next to him.
And so the Huntsman was created, out of black magic, out of Roche’s need for a servant.*

The sun rose in the east that very morning. Valdis grunted and he rubbed his eyes. He almost got a heart attack when he saw what was lying next to him. He could touch the beast, of only he reached out and... the boy tried but the minute his hand touched the dragon’s skin, the emerald eyes flew open and focused on him. Valdis paralysed right there and looked at the dragon, maybe he thought that as long as he wouldn’t move, the dragon wouldn’t see him. ‘It’s not like I’m a dinosaur you know. I can still see you, smell you... poke you.’ Damarcus said and with his claw the dragon poked the boy, with extreme care of course because if the boy got hurt it would take another two or three days to start training.
‘You poked me?’ Valdis said perplexed. ‘Why did you poke my? Shouldn’t you burn me and eat me? Or just eat me? I don’t get it!’ he said confused and he jumped up from the ground. He shouldn’t had done that because a headache came right up. ‘Go sit down, before you hurt yourself.’ Damarcus said amused. ‘I will explain everything.’



Meanwhile in Roche’s fort

The whole night the two men had fought. Not literarily of course because Roche would probably die if the Huntsman hit him hard enough. If only... if only, Damarcus would have said.  
Just a few hours before dawn. Roche had decided that he didn’t want to spend any more time on that “moron”. So the man went to his room, mumbling a lot of angry words, and then he slammed the door shut.
Once in his room, the old man situated himself on the bed and he looked at the ceiling. Actually it was a very ugly ceiling, he thought to himself. He shut his eyes in order to calm down a little.

*The young fellow opened his eyes. ‘Get up you lazy bastard.’ a man’s voice said to him. That’s not very nice, the young man thought, and he decided not to get up. ‘Is something wrong with your ears boy? I said get up! Or i’ll..’ the man started with a threatening voice. He wasn’t able to finish his sentence because a fist hit him hard in the middle of his face. A cracking noise came from under the fist and the older man grabbed his face. Blood flowed from his nose , in his hand, and then dripped onto the floor. ‘Now you’ve done it! I warned you!’  
The young man just watched and then he laughed at the older man. The sight of the older man, staring at his blood as if it wasn’t his own, was laughable. The man looked at him and then got that mad look on his face, like he was about to get wild. The man stormed at him like a crazy person, which just caused more and more laughter. ‘Please, calm yourself. There is no reason to act foolishly.’ The young man said as he took a step out of the old man’s way. He saw the man hit the wall and shook his head. ‘Truly, you are the most dull man I have ever met.’
The old man got up again and looked intense at his son. ‘Roche, you are not allowed to talk to your father that way. You are a stupid, mindless boy. You are a shame too this family and...’ the old man started. With one movement, Roche made sure that that man would not bother him again. With one motion, the neck of the man broke and he fell down. His eyes, still staring at his son with disbelieve, looked dead. Roche looked the person that used to be, supposed to be, his father. Slowly he walked to the body that lay dead on the ground. With his food he kicked the body, as if to assure he was in fact dead. ‘I did warn you, didn’t I? Well, I guess you’ll have no need for advise where you are now.’ He said with a thin smile on his face.

A few minutes later, still with that smile on his face, the young boy started to move the body. In the mean time he murmured a song; ‘Death will come to rot your soul, death will come to...’ *


He woke up. His head hurt, as did his arm. Perhaps,  he thought, it was that thing with his heart again. He took a deep breath and got up, stretching his legs in the process. His bones protested, he could hear them cracking. From his face you could tell that he was in pain. The markings on his staff lit up and in a few seconds he looked a little bit better than he had done before. So, now he  had made up his mind about what to do, he was planning his next move. There was one grand thing he had to reckon with; the great black dragon. He had to get rid of the beast, he had too, or otherwise he would never succeed... could never succeed, for the beast would always stand in his way, would always be one step ahead of him. ‘And so you must die.’ Roche muttered.

now, where the sun shines and the dragons tells;

‘And that is how I found you and why I took you here. Any questions?’ Damarcus said with a wearied sound in his voice.
He had told the boy the whole story. About how he had met the boy’s father, the things that had passed and why he had to make the promise to Valdis’ father to protect him against whoever chased him.
Valdis just sat there, staring at noting in particular.

Everything was a little bit too much for the boy. He could not get a grip on the story the dragon told him. “But still, why would my father ask you to protect me if he knew that I would not be ready. Why did he expect anything unpleasant? It is not like he is a cold blooded murderer or anything.” Valdis said, a little lost in his own thoughts. The dragon grunted and shook his head. “I have not told you that part because I sincerely hoped you would not ask.” Damarcus said, his eyes looking at the grass beneath his powerful body.
“Listen boy.” He started, unsure about what to say, how to bring this situation to the child. “There are people, I am sure you have heard, who are able to… do certain thing others cannot.” The dragon said, thinking about every word. “The man that was following you before I found you, he was created by such a person. The person that made him that way is called Roche, Darcel Roche.”
“Ever since he was a boy there was something about him, a glance, a power. When he grew up, his true nature got to the surface. He wanted violence, he loved to pain and the screaming, the smell of blood in the air. He enjoyed it as much as you would enjoy good food, he craved for it.”
“His father was blind for his sons mischief. After another couple of years, Roche’s father was not able to control his son, to keep him in line. Young Roche occasionally made a bloody mess of the basement every now and then, his powers kept on growing… controlling him. It was not himself that made him the way he became, it was because of his power. Some people cannot control what they have, unable to do anything about it, the power controls him and not the other way around.” Damarcus stopped there for a minute, observing the boy, trying to figure out how he felt about all this. Valdis stared blankly ahead as if he could see the story right there in front of him.
“He killed his father when his powers were at their height. He did not murder him, he destroyed him. After that he still kept on living in his elderly home, continuing his plans. He called in more of the lesser wizards in these parts of the land and eventually spread his influence trough the continent.
Naturally there were some that did not agree to his way of action, mostly the dragons and other ‘creatures of magic’ definitely did not agree at all. Some fled, some stayed and where captured, like the dogs of our dear Huntsman. A few minor witches and sorcerers joined our cause, with them was your grandfather. They became a small and selected group, all together they were called the Shadows. Their identity was kept a secret for generations. Their powers keeping them from aging. They were the ones that followed and eliminated the lesser wizards commanded by Roche. But eventually their powers left them, they became mortal yet again. And so their powers went to their sons and grandsons. So you father became like his father, continuing the hunt, as will you when you are ready.”
A silence descended on the both of them, both in their own world or memory. “Why did not he tell me?” Valdis said with a small voice. Ofcourse he could not get an answer, for the answer was one only his father could give. “I do not know my boy. I just know that I have to get you ready for whatever the future brings for you.” Damarcus said softly, like a whisper.