(10)

When the three of them reached the cellar, they halted at the smell that hit their noses as if it were a barrier itself. Down where the air was cool and usually filled with the pheromones of ale and wet wood; the cellar was instead polluted by the smell of sulphur and rotting flesh. Saurus was accustomed to the smell of rotting flesh, being surrounded by it all year round. That first mouthful of putrid air however caused Saurus to wince slightly despite this. Alaric stifled a gag while Hadwin only shrivelled his nose disapprovingly. The masters did not seem bothered by the smell in the slightest and Saurus guessed it was possible to grow completely accustom to such smells, that or perhaps the master’s sense of smell deteriorated with age.

There were four master’s that stood around the remains of Aggie, and despite the light that was only held up by a few candles, Saurus could make out the woman’s copper hair. Aggie had been opened from neck to groin and some of her insides lay off to one side neatly, as if placed for further inspection; Saurus spotted a burned patch of the floor beside the collection.

“We have placed some pieces of interest to one side, my Lord.” Said the Master that led them down, his breathy and longwinded voice echoed slightly around the dank cellar.

Alaric, holding his nose, approached Aggie hesitantly and squatted by her remains. He raised his free hand above Aggie’s face when a ball of light erupted from his palm. The ball of light hung there suspended in mid-air just over the body. The exposed flesh and organs glistened under the bright light and cast spectral shadows on the furthest walls.

“What are these in her throat Master?” Alaric asked still clutching his nose tightly.

Another Master leaned closer to peer into Aggie’s throat which had been sliced open clinically. He was an old Master, but not as old as the first and still held onto some brown in his hair and beard.

“Rather fascinating discovery,” he said resting his hands on his knees, “Instead of the tonsils one would usually find tucked behind the tongue, we found what appears to be a pair of glands,” he looked over his shoulder at Saurus and Hadwin, unexpectedly he was smiling. “The glands secreted a poison into her saliva which pushed us further into our inquiry.”

Another Master pushed himself forward, eager to inject his own input into the discovery.

“We opened the stomach of the…Specimen—”

“Abomination.” Interjected Hadwin.

“Yes, quite right,” continued the Master. “There we found stomach acid to be—well—extra acidic, hence the stone being darker over there.” The Master gestured to a spot on the floor that Saurus noticed walking in. Saurus and Hadwin turned back to observe Aggie again, Alaric was leaning in as much as he dared to get a closer look on Aggie’s glands.

“Careful, High Magus, she may still be decompressing.” The Master warned, “Her organs however don’t seem to be affected by the high acidity, and here on her neck we found—”

“Bite marks.” Said Saurus. The Master narrowed his brow and turned to face Aggie.

“Yes, as far as we can tell they are bite marks. Which would imply and correlate with the other…abomination we found in the forest. It seems whatever this spider queen is, she has the ability to change one's physical and perhaps mental structure once bitten.”

Saurus nodded and the four master’s stood huddled around each other, all looking to be deep in thought. When no one continued Saurus asked:

“Anything else?”

One Master woke up and cleared his throat.

“Yes, indeed. There was one more thing. We were surprised when we found something unusual in Aggie’s stomach. If not for her age I would have assumed she was pregnant at first, but well.”

The Master bent (which seemed like a great effort) and recovered a piece of what looked like charred wood from the ground. He gave the blackened wood a squeeze with his spotted hands and handed it to Saurus. Saurus took it and was amazed by how sturdy the object was, and light. It wasn’t wood, and even though it had been cleaned, it was still hard to distinguish what it was. It was blacker than black and shiny when the light hit it. Saurus tried to chip a piece of the object with his nail but it was no good. He handed it to Hadwin.

“Anything else? Any knowledge on how she died?” Saurus asked.

“The Masters looked at each other then the one with the brown left in his beard said: “Dark—”

“Magic.” Finished Saurus quickly, turning to leave.

When Saurus returned to the room, he intended to try and sleep, but no sooner had he found sleep ready to greet him, the door opened. It was Hadwin who entered, still holding the black piece of shiny ‘wood’ in his hand.

“Sorry my Lord, I didn’t mean to intrude.”

Saurus wavered him down and rubbed his eyes while Hadwin sat.

“Your son seems to think its carapace.” He said, but Saurus found his mind running off in three different directions. When Saurus didn’t respond Hadwin held up the piece of shiny black wood.

“Oh.” Was all he had to say. His head suddenly throbbed.

Hadwin paused, rotating the carapace around in his hand, stroking the smoothness with his thumbs.

“I think your son’s right my Lord.” He spoke.

Saurus met his eyes, they were reflecting the light like the carapace in his hands.

“It could be carapace, yes.” Admitted Saurus absently. Hadwin tossed the carapace aside in exhausted frustration.

“Not that,” he said. “About heading into Wetbrook without him.” Saurus was punched into alertness at the statement. He met Hadwin’s eyes again and saw an ounce of fear reside there.

“Now forgive me for giving you counsel without asking,” he began tentatively. “But heed my words Saurus. If not because I am a Captain, then by the history we share.”

Saurus remained silent and Hadwin waited until he was sure his Lord Commander had nothing to object too before continuing.

“If your son is right about the…man of many eyes fellow. Then sending him back to Leeside with only a small handful of knights is dangerous. Besides, you need every knight in your army if you’re to take Wetbrook, my Lord.” Hadwin lifted his chair to sit closer to Saurus and steadied his voice. “Send me my Lord, me and my two wolves can get there in half the time any knight can, and…well I’m more expendable.”

Saurus gave him a warning look to which Hadwin raised his hands in surrender.

“I’m only saying I’m a Captain, not a Magus. An old Captain at that too,” He chuckled, “I still know how to move and stay hidden though. I won’t put myself in danger and watch from afar if I have to. If danger has arrived in Leeside, I can keep you informed.”

“Hadwin I need you at my side in the battle,” Saurus said earnestly.

“You need power, my Lord,” Hadwin replied. “Power and knowledge, and I can’t compete with either when it comes to your son. If there’s one thing I know about spider’s my Lord, it’s that they like to lay traps and let their prey come to them. You’ll need a cunning mind for this fight. Your son should stay at your side.”

Saurus considered his friend's words and chewed them meticulously. Hadwin stood and poured himself a drink from the jug on the table. He offered Saurus one, but he refused. Just as he made his decision the door opened again, this time it was Alaric. Saurus stood to greet his son.

“I have decided you will be accompanying me at the siege High Magus. Hadwin here will return to Leeside in your stead.”

Alaric froze in the doorway while Hadwin lifted his cup to his mouth, he belched and slammed the mug down on the table with a thud.

“Very well my Lord.” Said Hadwin as if only just hearing about it for the first time.