The Last Paladin: Ep 2: A Lost Princess and A Witch
Act 1: Pandaemonium City
Miriam stared out at the crimson waters of the river Lethe at the skyline of Pandaemonium City. The city scared Miriam, it felt ready to devour her whole. Across the water the skeleton of a massive dragon lay, the city council hall nestled in the dragon’s ribcage. An enormous sword lodged, impaled through the dragon’s skull. The sword bore the sunburst design of the archangels on its crossguard and pommel. No building in the city came close to being as tall as the sword.
The air swam with conversation. A dozen languages babbled away around Miriam. Animals called from the market. Wagons creaked. Money jangled. And a thousand other sounds mashed together as Miriam listened.
The city also stank. Miriam could smell a thousand spices, rotten eggs, drake manure, and wet pennies. She noticed familiar smells as well, the smells of hay and grain and livestock. But these smells disappeared in the mass of other swirling odors. It was a heady mixture. And Miriam felt light headed.
Miriam had never been to a big city. And the numbers of people overwhelmed her. She had grown up in a town of less than two hundred people. The nearby larger towns did not reach ten thousand people. Pandaemonium City felt different. Humans moved everywhere, bright colors and garish patterns. Miriam noticed many people with noticeable deformities. The city was toxic, so the stories went. And it twisted the forms of its residents.
Miriam felt like a very small mouse hiding in a den full of vipers.
Miriam wrapped her grey wool cloak tight around her, trying to disappear into the cloth. She looked over at her companions: Eve and Balthasar. Eve wore a similar grey wool cloak, but it hung open. Eve seemed unconcerned with keeping a low profile and was gazing open mouthed at the skyline.
“It’s been so long since I’ve been in a city.” Eve said. “I missed it.”
“Did you move when you were a child?” Miriam asked.
“No. Kind of. It’s hard to explain.” Eve answered.
“Save it for later,” Balthasar said. “For now we should plan our next move. We don’t want to stay in the city too long. It’s easy to hide in the crowds, but Pandaemonium City is corrupted by the Shadow. People who stay here too long start to see the corruption in their bodies.”
Miriam shook her head. “That takes years though, doesn’t it?”
“Better safe than sorry.” Balthasar said. He tugged at his heavy black cloak. Miriam didn’t know what kind of fabric it was. The cloak was enormous and seemed to envelop him in darkness. The cloak was a necessity for Balthasar, as he wore the armor and tabard of the archangels under the cloak. And that sort of fashion statement was dangerous. It would get them arrested or murdered in Pandaemonium City.
“You should go home.” Eve said, looking at Miriam. “I’m in this. I’m the paladin. I can’t go back on an agreement with an archangel. You don’t have an agreement you have to honor. I like you. I don’t want you to die fighting in a war you aren’t armed to fight.”
Miriam looked back out at the city. The possibility of dying scared her. She’d be lying if she said otherwise. “I risk dying anyway. We met because we were almost virgin sacrifices together. Staying home and keeping my head down didn’t protect me then. Why do you think it will protect me now? I choose to fight. It’s the fight that matters. The fight gives hope.”
Eve pinched the bridge of her nose and, after a moment’s silence, she nodded.
“You aren’t the paladin. You are a paladin.” Balthasar said. “There are four archangels. And each one can select a champion to empower the same way Michael empowered you. And moreover, we should try to find them.”
“How do we do that?” Miriam asked. “Is there some way to know ahead of time who an archangel will pick?”
Balthasar shook his head. “Not even a little. We will have to use my contacts in the resistance, and listen for any news. In the meantime, we should power up Eve.”
“Power me up, how?” Eve asked.
“The transformed paladin form is infused with the archangel’s power. That power can burn out a human body. It happens in minutes without any training or shielding.”
“Training?” Eve asked.
“Shielding?” Miriam asked.
“As you use the form, you’ll get used to it. Practice makes perfect and all that. But there are limits there. Your body is still mortal flesh. There are sacred shrines all across the land. A paladin can link themselves to these shrines. And the shrines can take part of the load of the transformation. As a bonus, the shrines also provide a power boost.”
“I feel a ‘but’ coming?” Eve said.
Balthasar nodded. “The Empire has had Diabolist Priests or Witches corrupt the shrines. Now they power up and protect the witches, not you.”
“So that’s it?” Miriam asked.
“No. Shrines can be purified, although that’s a tough process. And it’s one we can’t do with our current resources. But I know of an obscure shrine that is still uncorrupted. We can start there.”
“So where is this shrine?” Miriam asked.
“On the border of the Eastern Wasteland.” Balthasar answered.
“That’s a month’s travel away.” Eve said. “And that’s assuming we have transportation, land drakes or something. Isn’t there anything closer?”
Balthasar grinned. “This is closer. I know a secret path to the shrine. I know a secret path to any shrine.”
“That feels overly convenient.” Eve said.
“Hey,” Balthasar said. “I’m the legendary Balthasar the Paladin, now Balthasar the Fallen. I’ve been through a lot. And I’ve learned a lot in surviving. I know things.”
“We don’t have another option. Do we?” Miriam said. “You only know what your archangel tells you.”
“And he’s dumb as a piece of toast.” Eve answered.
Balthasar laughed. Miriam gasped and brought a hand to her mouth.
“Alright. Is it agreed?” Balthasar asked. “Are we heading to the shrine?”
The girls nodded.
Dusk was stretching shadows across the city. Balthasar led them out of the inn where they’d been staying. People didn’t go out at dusk, not even in the city. They pushed against the flow as the crowds made their way back to the safety of the home and hearth. As the shadows crept up the buildings, the color drained from the lower levels of the city. The city ran with a hundred shades of grey. The sky burned a hazy orange overhead.
Miriam shivered in fear. She knew that a city was safer than the wilds or wastelands around the small towns. But she didn’t feel safer. She felt nauseous. She felt the time running out as the light drained away. She watched Eve. She left her hood down, exposing her red hair. And she didn’t pull her cloak tight around her as Miriam was doing. Eve didn’t look worried. Maybe she felt safer, knowing that she could transform into her paladin form. Miriam wished she had some way of protecting herself. She felt exposed and vulnerable. She shook her head. She had chosen this path. She had told both Balthasar and Eve that multiple times. She didn’t want to prove herself a liar.
“We’re going to be out at night.” Miriam looked around as darkness crept up the walls of the city.
Eve nodded. “She’s right. This is stupid. People don’t go out at night. Nobody goes out at night.”
“I go out at night,” Balthasar said. He carried a lantern, but Miriam had the distinct sense that it was for their benefit, not his.
The sun was down and the light was a dim ember when they reached a desecrated church. The church had not seen use in some time. The building had settled, slumping to the right. The white stone of the building was caked in a black layer of soot and coal dust. Fallen stones lay on the steps where they had fallen from the upper reaches of the church.
“Here we are.” Balthasar said, pointing at the church.
“It doesn’t look like much.” Eve said.
“It isn’t much. That’s the point. The empire uses the Malkuth Shrine because it’s big and flashy. This one isn’t big or flashy. So we aren’t likely to face opposition.”
“Nobody’s going to be guarding this one, then?” Miriam said.
“Exactly. There’s nothing to guard. Nothing the empire can use, anyway.”
He pushed open the double door leading into the ruined church. The door groaned as metal hinges rubbed against hemlock doors.
“Alright. Let’s not make targets of ourselves by dawdling.” Balthasar said and he slipped into the church.
“We’re going into a corrupted church at dusk. What could go wrong?” Eve said.
“We should hurry,” Miriam answered.
They caught up with Balthasar at the altar in a shrine on the western wall of the church. The shrine itself lay nestled into the wall. The church walls had been painted white. The shrine was festooned with human bones. Skulls stared out at Miriam from the walls. Femurs lined the altar. Ribs lay packed into the archway above the shrine. Massive carpets of blood red mold had crawled across the walls. Some sort of gold fungus had also spread across the walls like infectious splendor. The air was hazy, and Miriam covered her mouth with her cloak.
“This is the Saint Julian shrine. There are bigger shrines in Pandaemonium, like Malkuth for instance. But those ones are used by the empire. So better to go with a little one.”
“I’m not sure I understand what we’re doing at all?” Miriam said. “Why do we need a shrine? You said the corrupted ones empower witches?”
“They do.” Balthasar answered. “But we aren’t going to use it for power. We are going to use it for transport.”
And then, Balthasar’s right hand grew black with sharp claws. He swung his claws across the altar, and Miriam braced for the items on the altar to fly everywhere. But they didn’t. Instead Balthasar’s swipe tore a twinkling blackness into the air before the altar. The darkness expanded to the shape of an arched doorway as Miriam watched.
“What is this?” she asked, not moving.
“It’s a path into the Darkways.” Balthasar answered.
The girls jolted, and then stared at each other. Miriam knew what the Darkways were from legend.
“Vampires live in the Darkways.” Miriam said.
“How are you able to open a door into the Darkways?” Eve asked. “That isn’t part of the Paladin power set.”
“I’m not a paladin anymore. Remember? I’ve learned other tricks. Come on. Let’s not stay here in front of an open dark gate.”
“We’re going into the Darkways?” Miriam asked.
“The Darkways connect all sacred shrines. We can get to any shrine using the Darkways.”
“The Darkways are evil. How do they connect to sacred shrines?” Miriam asked.
Balthasar shook his head. “I’ve got no idea. But they do. We can discuss cosmology later. For now, we need to move.”
The girls followed Balthasar through the tear in space. They found themselves in a hallway with the same decor as the church and the shrine behind them. Bones stretched into the distance. Skulls lay packed together. Light flickered on the mottle ivory of the skulls. The crimson mold had been replaced with oil slick black iridescent mold and slime. Stalagmites and Stalactites grew from the floors and ceilings. It looked like the structures lay half devoured by some massive cave system.
Miriam smelled stale water as she acclimated to the darkness. In the distance, she could hear things moving in the distance. Predators growled and rumbled. Things screamed in fear and pain. Water dripped. And a gentle breeze blew a tuneless note as it whistled past.
“Welcome to the Darkways.” Balthasar gestured as they walked. “We won’t be here long. Distance doesn’t work the same way in here as out in the normal world. But keep a keen eye. We definitely aren’t alone.”
Miriam shivered and looked around. She could see light from Balthasar’s lantern reflecting off eyes in the darkness. They walked for some time in the darkness. None of them speaking. Miriam staying close to Balthasar and the light of his lantern. Miriam found the Darkways unnerving. Most people she knew were afraid of the dark. She was afraid of the dark. People died in the dark. And here she was in a place that was always dark, and dark everywhere. She couldn’t imagine a worse place. Everywhere was danger, and she couldn’t see it.
“Are we being hunted?” Miriam asked.
“Not yet. Not at all if we’re lucky. If they’re smart, my presence will scare them off. If they knew who Eve was, they’d definitely stay back. But they don’t.”
“I could transform.” Eve said.
“Don’t transform unless it’s necessary. It’s draining. You may need it later. And it will draw a lot of attention. Little fish I can handle in here. Big fish, not so much.”
Balthasar’s comments didn’t make Miriam feel better. She had been afraid on the streets of Pandaemonium City. Now she was terrified. She had chosen to do this, she reminded herself. Fear clutched her heart like a cold hand, and she struggled to keep control of her breathing. She didn’t want to let the things in the dark know how frightened she was. She didn’t want Eve to know how frightened she was. They continued walking. And Miriam counted each breath she took, hoping her breathing sounded normal.
Something big moved in the periphery of Miriam’s vision, a patch of darkness on darkness. Four legs and a tail, but she couldn’t tell what else.
“What was that?” She asked.
Balthasar grimaced. “Now, we’re being hunted. Night hunters, a small pack. Between Eve and myself, we can take them. But that would make a scene. It would draw attention. We should run. I can help us make a clean getaway.”
More things moved in the darkness. Big things. Monstrous things. Miriam felt very small and very fragile. Eve had been right. She wasn’t equipped to fight this fight. Why had she insisted on staying?
“Get close, girls.” Balthasar gestured to the girls.
Miriam huddled in as Eve strolled over. Balthasar flourished his cloak. The cloth billowed out impossibly long and wide. The blackness of the cloak enveloped them and Miriam found herself somehow- wrong. The world was all shades of grey. And everything was somehow flat. No. She was flat. She slid across the floor of the Darkways, pulled by something she couldn’t see. Her first instinct was to panic, but she stifled that.
The Night Hunters prowled above them as Miriam skated along the ground. Miriam couldn’t see them clearly as they hurtled through the Darkways. She tried to get a sense of what had happened. And then it clicked. Balthasar had hunted the priests and knights who had captured Miriam and Eve. He had done so by transforming into a living shadow somehow. He hadn’t explained it, hadn’t even addressed it. But Miriam realized that this must be what was happening. How was Balthasar doing this? What wasn’t he telling Miriam and Eve? She shook her head. Later. She trusted Balthasar. He had saved her life. He had saved her without any reward or even a promise of a reward. Whatever this was, she would trust Balthasar.
They hurtled onward across floor and wall and ceiling.
Comments
Post a Comment