052 - The Great Hunt

The Griffon shrieked and struggled, helplessly held aloft by the young hunter. They crashed together into the sands below. Isabella was the first to react, already raising her bow before the dust from their impact cleared. Those below hadn't seen the clash between Gunner and the brother and sister in the hidden ledge, only witnessing a sudden emergence of the Griffon flying out from the cliffs and down onto the sandy basin.

In a flash Isabella had her large bow fully drawn, an evil looking hook tipped arrow notched and loosed in a fluid movement, a second almost instantly upon the string.

"Skrieee!"

She launched a second arrow, and a third, each vanishing into the dust and eliciting a woeful shriek. The knights at her side all had their weapons drawn.

Before the dust cleared the Griffon seemed to rise up, as if pouncing out over the heads of the hunters and knights, over the waters and away.

It was impossible for the assembled hunters and heroes to not see clearly; the beast flew arse first out from the dust, a man holding it aloft by the scruff of its neck.

They landed on the far side of the sandy basin where the waters emptied into a stream and continued flowing downhill through the Sable gorge.

Another leap, the Griffon and the man were another hundred feet away from the basin, rushing without pause.

"Good Gods!" Carl Lang exclaimed. "Who the devil was that!"

Gunner appeared atop the ledge roaring "Get back here!"

Isabella and her knights snapped into action; she rushed across the basin, catching a glimpse of the Griffon vanishing around a twist in the gorge and shooting another arrow after it.

Gunner glanced back at the disinterested brother and sister at their campfire and scowled, jumping from the ledge, veins popping from his forehead and his face flushed red with rage.

"Who was that?" Carl called out after the two heroes. "Pete? What's going on?"

***

Magnus groaned and held his head in his hands. For a full afternoon the Sable gorge was full of the shouts and sounds of heroes and hunters running and searching.

Dolt . . of all the names . . when Pete had asked him that was the first thing that popped into his head.

Be sneaky, Kujata said. Stay hidden, choose your moment carefully . . right. Sneaky. Thats me to a T.

The Griffon lay unconscious beside Magnus, every time it started to move he got up and bashed it in the head, careful to not move the formation stones.

The plan, the simple plan. Join the hunt, be the first to find the Griffon, and steal it away before anyone else. Do it at night, Kujata said, wait until no one is around and make sure to take it as uninjured as possible.

Nothing. Not one thing had worked out the way he'd hoped. Not keeping low key, not keeping himself hidden, not taking the Griffon in secret.

But . . if I hadn't snatched it when I could the beast would already be dead, killed by that black armoured brute or those weird white robed brother and sister. Were they Alchemists? Ah hells . . what did it matter . . what did any of this matter.

The Griffons here. Right. That's all that matters. The second Magnus had managed to flee out of sight of the hunters and heroes down the Sable gorge he'd thrown out the eight green formation stones and sat within. After practicing hundreds of times under Kujata’s watchful gaze Magnus was now able at the very least to instantly infuse the basic formation. Kujata said it would be enough, so long as no one saw him do it directly.

Power. That was the plan. Kujata stressed it again and again; you want vengeance? You want to get your own back on the Alchemists? Yes! Power . . revenge . . yeah . .

Magnus sighed. He felt tired, drained. Power, revenge. Was this what he really wanted? Pa Lund and Willis rose again in his mind's eye, the dead giants . .

For a month on the road Magnus had been possessed by the simple desire to live. Live! Find a way to survive! The burning words Pa Lund roared at him . . and he had, more or less. His core with a thousand cracks needed to be fed by devouring living creatures, the black lines had healed over entirely and remained under control. He was strong! Stronger than any giant! Stronger than any warrior!

Kujata said that within him was a power beyond anything on this world, beyond anything mortal. She'd shown him the vision of the thousand eyed winged bull floating above the world and told him this is my strength, the strength to crush countless peoples, the power to boil oceans and overturn mountains. This is you Magnus!

He'd trembled at the thought, a fire burning within his veins. Power! Strength!

Then . . .

The fire faded. In its place a deep melancholy. Every day, through all the training and lessons Magnus went through the forms, committing every single one of Kujata words to memory, taking every one of her lesson to heart. The five coloured threads, the formation, the stances . .

And for what? The one thing Magnus had come to realize in the months he'd been with Kujata training in the shrine was that he did not have that talent. He did not have that ambition. When he wanted to be giant in Kloster it was because he wanted to fight alongside Harkness, defend the town and smash the black skins. What now? Rescue Rolf? Take revenge on Festus?

His blood boiled at the thought, Magnus clenched his jaw and bit down. Kill! Tear them apart! Destroy!

But . .

The more he learnt of the Alchemists the more ridiculous the notion was to him. What can I do? Kujata seemed to have an endless certainty in him, something Magnus couldn't see in himself. Kujata said go eat the Griffon and the Bull and any other creature he could find and devour them, not a shred of doubt in her words that he wouldn't be able to. And I have! I went and I got the Griffon! Right? Ah hells . .

From down the gorge came a rush a feet, several hunters running back up along the stream. They passed only a few feet from Magnus, not even glancing in his or the Griffons direction.

Magnus breathed out heavily, his shoulders slumping. Stick to the plan. Right. First things first. Want revenge? Want to live free? Before you can do anything you need strength, and the way to get strength is to eat. Easy.

Kujata laid it out real simple for him, eat the strong to gain power, that was step one. Everything else comes after.