“I found that most of the Southmarshes belong to tribesmen. Despite Imperial’s claim on these lands, they are wilder than Eram Sands of the Fourth Region.”

“Beyond Yr”

Chapter 1, Page 7

Kuravel

Perkins

How had he let himself be blinded? The tracks distracted him and he’d missed a moment when Siddy fooled them. The damned bandit shrugged, walking away from the Silent Hollow. He pulled a girl behind him, offering Perkins a wicked grin. That idiot planned something. Did he think that killing him or the girl would solve his problems? Perkins hoped that his ploy of stirring the nest of black ants—Cape Town—he’d cursed Butcher’s future. Perhaps, it would’ve been enough without kidnapping the mayor’s daughter. Perkins’s betrayal—no, not betrayal, his justice—would be enough. His new band was going to defeat Butcher and so Perkins would get what belonged to him.

He looked down, the scout dangled pinned to the side of the massive hole. There were many roots. What if Emm climbed out? They didn’t have a rope. They had no time. The sky beyond the canopies darkened to a dangerous point. The night is upon us. The boy’s lost.

And old tribal law spoke of sacrifice. I hope the forest will shelter your soul. What couldn’t be saved must be left behind. If Emm stayed inside the Silent Hollow, the low temperature would kill him, if he managed to get out, he’d find himself facing the night. If there was one person to survive the second night in the jungle, it’d be Emm. But not here. Not in the Silent Fall. Not with the amakor prowling around.

Perkins walked away, surprised by how much it cost him. This was an unexpected blow. He had no love for his bandit companions. Something about Emm was different. It could be Emm’s tribal origin or a sense that the forest loved the young scout. Perkins shook his head, clearing it from unwanted thoughts, and flexed his muscles. There was no point confronting Siddy now, it’d yield no benefits for either man. As soon as they reached the Tusk, the younger bandit must be put down. One of them would not live to see the next day. They both knew it.

“Shut up, little shit, or I’ll throw you into the hole. Aren’t you curious what’s on the bottom?” Siddy asked with derision. She was making loud noises now. At least she doesn’t trash like an eel on a hook. Perkins didn’t wish to kill her. His new band could make a hefty profit by returning her to Cape Town. It was troublesome though. If Cape Town’s mayor somehow brought down Butcher, wouldn’t Perkins risk his new allegiances by exposing them to Cape Town?

Siddy reached the edge of the next Silent Hollow. This one was the largest. Seventy feet in radius, depthless like all others. On another side of the hole, a massive structure shot into the sky. It looked like a tusk, made of gray stone, too smooth and vertical to be natural. What it was no one knew. The Tusk like the Silent Hollows belonged to forgotten history. Somewhere from the highest part of the Tusk water flowed out under unnatural pressure, creating a waterfall.

A silent waterfall.

Other waterfalls in this region roared angrily. This one was so quiet, almost peaceful. This was a sight to behold, a place torn out of legends. Perkins had visited it before, twice with Butcher and once with Black Jon. The Tusk stood on the very edge of the Silent Hollow, most of the structure’s lower portion hidden by the waterfall. There, behind the relentlessly falling sheets of water, was an entrance into the Tusk. No other access to the structure existed, except for a couple of holes situated in the higher parts of the tower. To get to the entrance, one needed to use thick roots protruding from the Silent Hollow’s wall.

How many folks hadn’t made it, falling into the endless blackness? Perkins didn’t know the answer, though he thought he could hear a faint echo of their screams. What if they still haven’t made it to the bottom? What if this place is truly bottomless? Gloom seized Perkins’s thoughts. He’d expected this moment to fill him with lightness, freedom. It didn’t.

Siddy warned the girl again. It worked as she realized that Perkins wouldn’t intervene. He thought about it. They were mere ten feet from him. Only low underbrush stood in his way. You’re a bandit, Perkins. Through and through. This act of kindness won’t absolve you of the horrors you committed. It won’t change anything. Perkins’s expression was once again a mask of coldness. He rejected emotions. Perkins was a cold-blooded killer, he better remember it.

“We move,” he said and Siddy looked at him sharply. Something in the younger bandit’s eyes stilled. Was it fear? It was indeed. But also familiarity, this was Perkins, Siddy knew.

“What about the things in the Tusk?”

Perkins shrugged, passing them. He didn’t fear an attack. Siddy eliminated Emm because the scout would’ve tipped the balance against him. Parkins had all the food and medication on his shoulder. Pushing Perkins into the hollow would mean death for Siddy. They both knew it.

A short hike over the rim of the huge hollow brought them to the tangle of massive roots. The air here was damp and thick, with musty scents. From this close, Perkins could see the entrance to the Tusk. It was open. Only now he realized something he hadn’t wanted to consider. A possibility that someone locked the Tusk from inside. It’d mean their death.

***

He’d been optimistic to believe they still had time. The jungle began its descend into the darkness with terrifying alacrity. Nights were like a different world. All of sudden, cacophonous noises cut off, leaving silence. Then, after an eerie moment, new sounds awoke. Deep rumblings, you felt more than heard. The most deadly kind of hunters walked the forest again. The amakor and other nightcrawlers were the forest’s deadliest predators.

Perkins abandoned the rest of care and rushed toward the roots. He’d never seen the amakor but tribes and bandits agreed that the creature was lightning-fast. Without a second thought, he began descending. This stretch of ground had been prepared. A rope ladder and steps leading to a foot-wide stone ledge. From there Perkins needed to move alongside thick roots toward the space between the waterfall and side of the Tusk.

There weren’t many things Perkins feared. When a thunderous roar cracked in the air, Perkins thought the world was ending. His heart was beating so fast, his hands suddenly became slick. Behind him, the abyss looked at him invitingly, to his right Siddy was pushing the girl in front of him. Perkins almost smirked surprised finding the girl still in their company. I guess we all aren’t thinking straight in the face of the ultimate hunter.

When Perkins reached the entrance, he glanced into the darkness lingering ahead and hesitated. He planned to close the trapdoor right behind him, getting rid of Siddy. Even though the trapdoor was situated in a place where the amakor might not reach them, the low temperature would do the job, killing them overnight.

This thin moment of paralysis was all Siddy needed to get to the entrance. The girl must be surprisingly light so he basically carried her the last two steps. Still keeping a bag with coins on him. Impressive.

Once in the safety of the Tusk, dangerous tension hit them. Now, who was going to kill who? Perkins and Siddy well knew what was coming.

The amakor’s steps were loud and scratchy. Their breaths caught, afraid to stir the air. Twigs snapped, and a paw large as man’s torso bit into the side of the hollow where thick roots protruded above the stone ledge. It had three massive, armored front claws and one rear claw. It shredded man’s thigh thick roots as if they were mere twigs.

Bandits exchanged glances. The amakor knew. Louder than a snap of a whip, the other paw slashed the air, slashed the waterfall, and bit into the side of the Tusk. They felt the structure shiver gently. Then more commotion came from outside, a momentary absence of balance almost sent the beast into the Silent Hollow. It regained its foothold and withdrew.

Another roar cut the air, clawing at their ears as much as their courage. Siddy didn’t waste any more time. He reached the trapdoor mechanism and closed the entrance from the inside. One might expect complete darkness as one should. But once the door mechanism was engaged, the structure shivered again. A strong musty smell filled the dry chamber and bright fluorescent light appeared between the ceiling and walls, sketching the contours of the chamber. About twenty feet long and nine feet wide with at least two heads between Parkins and the ceiling. It looked exactly as he’d seen it the last time. A cold, well-polished stone. Empty save for the steep stairs at the end of the chamber.

It seemed difficult to make a step. The Tusk always delivered a blow to one’s imagination and confidence. What were these lights in the crevice? What produced them? And how they knew to turn them on and off? A polished stone was not a secret anymore as the empire brought many such wonders into the forest. But this building, this impossible towers, has stood here longer than Aeal Empire has existed.

They eventually moved out of the chamber. They were safe. The entrance was too small to let a beast of the amakor’s size inside.

“Do you think it will get the scout?” Siddy asked when they reached the second floor. The air here was drier, with strong scents … wait. These scents didn’t belong to this place. Perkins inhaled softly, taking in a lungful of floral smell he did not know. This chamber was lit similarly to the one below. Though this room was circular with a thick column in the middle, and stairs leading higher stuck to a wall. This was ground level and somehow Perkins didn’t feel like staying here, even though the two feet thick wall separated him from the amakor.

This scent though … I don’t recognize it and I know most of the fragrances on this side of Yr.

“Didn’t you hear me, healer?” Siddy asked, he dropped the bag with coins and the illusion of going alongside Perkins’s treacherous plan. “Do you think the amakor will have the scout?”

Perkins stared at the stairs leading up, something was building up inside him. Panic? He let the bag with food and medications fall, slowly reaching for the sword.

The girl retreated as far from them as she could. I made the mistake of dragging her here. I’ve grown soft, distracted. She should end in the hollow with Siddy and Emm. What did I think to offer Emm a chance to follow me? This new band wouldn’t accept him. They didn’t need scouts.

A gleam in Siddy’s eyes spoke of murder.

“Silent like always,” Siddy grinned. “When I cut off your head and take it back to Soto, Butcher will make me one of his officers!”

Perkins squeezed his hand on the pommel. He waited for Siddy to move. This level offered very limited space for a swordfight. He could use a knife but only if Siddy made an error and overextended. Perkins took a long soft breath, awaiting a strike. It’d come. Siddy was a type…

Siddy attacked.

Perkins parried drawing his sword quicker than a younger bandit anticipated. The girl decided it was a good moment to start screaming, but her voice failed her the yell ended with a loud gasp.

Perkins and Siddy struggled with each other. Perkins was faster, but Siddy turned out to be stronger. Their swords ground, edge against an edge, awakening jarring voices of metals.

“Say something, you damned healer!” Siddy said derisively, his face twisted in hatred.

“You make an awful lot of noise, you two.”

They froze. Someone stood in the chamber.