Adventure (part 26)
The next morning they started early.
Sulik led them into the swamp, making sure they walked mostly on dry land. Shallow waters surrounded them on both sides, most of the time. Creatures, partly seen or totally hidden, slithered between the tall blades of grass or moved in the murky waters.
The further they walked into the swamp, the more the surrounding vegetation looked greyish and gave off a decaying smell.
The air around them became foggy with a dense wetness that could be felt as it clung to their face and arms.
They walked for a long time, Sulik checking their options from time to time and showing admirable efficiency in keeping them dry.
Suddenly, Sulik halted, raising his hand to stop the others. Keilen readied his bow.
On both sides of them and in front of Sulik, a little to his right, things were rising up out of the boggy waters. Humanoid in the general shape and covered with what looked like wet, rotten cloaks- whatever these were when alive, were unidentifiable now. As they slowly rose from the water, the foggy air felt colder.
“Touch my hand!” Malachai commanded as he started chanting. Sulik hesitated for just a moment but complied. They all did and felt a surge of energy rush into them.
Keilen then released two arrows, one after the other, at the creature to their left. Both hit and one passed through it, dispatching cloth as it flew on into the murky water beyond.
Siri had put the chest down at first sign of danger and now she sliced at the creature to their right, also hitting.
A creeping cold feeling started spreading in Keilen’s insides. He felt as if his energy was being sapped and fatigue was setting in. Shaking his head, the cold feeling disappeared, though he still felt weaker. He raised his bow for another attack but missed.
More blows of blades and claws caused damage to both ends. As one of Keilen’s arrows and Malachai’s spells caused two to dissipate, another two rose from the swamp.
‘Who knows how many will join in?’ Keilen thought to himself. They were still holding up, but that would not last forever.
The attacks continued until a chanting was heard from somewhere in the fog ahead of them. The creatures that still remained started rising into the air, but it didn’t seem to be of their own doing. A red, hazy light appeared in the misty fog, slowly condensing into a lantern shape. It hung on a long staff held by a man that was still partly shrouded by the fog. They could make out his free hand, raised, fingers moving as the chanting continued. The creatures tried to free themselves from an unseen grasp but only folded upon themselves. The lantern’s light burned a brighter red and a flash appeared in each creature’s center, growing until it consumed them and disintegrated them where they hovered.
The swamp quieted down once again, the only sounds were their heavy breathing and watery slushes from around.
The man came closer, out of the dense fog. His dark skin was wrinkled, yet it was impossible to put an age to him. Long, black dreadlocks appeared from underneath his hat, on which a single eagle’s feather was stuck.
He had green, sunken eyes that matched the color of the vest he was wearing under a long, dark overcoat.
Something moved on his hat and they noticed a thin, greenish snake slithering on its brim.
For a long moment all stood quietly, assessing each other. Then Simon stepped forward. “Elija! It has been a very long time since we last met! We have come seeking your help.”
Elija looked closely at the gnome in front of him. Keilen started thinking he might not be recognising him when he broke into a smile, shining white teeth showing, in stark contrast to his face. “Simon! I haven’t seen you in years! What brings you way out here to the Bayoo Rougue?”
“We have something that I believe will need your expertise…” Simon answered, his right eyebrow raising.
“Hmmm…” Elija looked at the strange group. “Follow me.”
They walked through the swamp. The thick fog did not hinder Elija at all. Not once did he stop to check his footing as he led them on a dry path the whole way.
They came to a small shore, where the fog dispersed and before them they could see a huge, ancient oak tree. Keilen had never seen an oak tree that big, but he had learned that magic could influence things to become something out of the ordinary. At the large, twisted roots of the tree was a cabin, as though the roots were holding on to it. A yellowish light shone out from its windows.
As they stood there, before an old, weathered looking wooden bridge, they noticed crocodile heads peeking from the water and disappearing silently. None seemed to take any interest in them.
Elija walked across the bridge, followed by Simon and Sulik. Malachai looked at it for a little longer, judging its ability to hold his weight. After the third step, his posture showed more confidence and he completed the crossing with no incidents. Siri followed and Keilen after her. ‘Magic. Everything here seems to be held together by magic.’ He thought.
The bridge connected with the cabin’s porch, which hung above the swampy waters.
As they all passed, the front door opened and Elija gestured them inside.
The first thing that greeted Keilen was the strong, spicy smell of herbs and incense. A large cauldron hung over a fireplace that took up most of the wall to their right, wisps of steam rising from it. Over the fireplace hung a menacing crocodile skull.
In the middle stood a very large table that looked like it was hewn from a single tree trunk. There was some cleared surface closer to them. The rest of the tabletop was laden with glass bottles and jars of different shapes and sizes and most of them were filled with liquids of varying colors and transparencies. Other stands and tools, of what use Keilen had no idea, were also scattered on the table.
Elija invited them all to come and stand around.
As each of them took their place, his eyes settled on Sulik. A white tooth grin adorned his lips. “Ah! You have grown! I have been watching you from afar all these years. Now, you have finally found me!”
“And what have we got here?!” His gaze moved to Malachai and he shut one eye in concentration. “A man of faith! I haven’t seen followers of Endovar in years!”
Simon looked up at him. “Tales about you say you came to the swamp in the company of others with the purpose of exploring it.” Simon stopped, looking around the cabin and back at Elija. “But something changed you. I remember you as a scholar of Denethar, studying the secrets of magic and nature. What happened to you?”
Elija smiled sadly as he shook his head slowly from side to side. “I came in the company of three other men to determine why people who entered the swamp and some who lived on its edges- disappeared.” He started.
“Well, the swamp sure schooled me, yes sir! On our expedition’s second day, we realized that directions here aren’t as everyone thinks they are. They’re different. They trick you, changing all the time!” Elija raised his hands and moved them in a dance- like motion to emphasise the changing directions.
“We heard voices whispering, without meeting anyone.” He stopped and adjusted his hat, patting the greenish snake with the tip of his forefinger.
“One day, we found the ruins of the village of Mirable. As we came closer, a cloud of lightning bolts emerged from the mists around us. My three companions were shredded to pieces as we tried to escape. I was not very successful myself. I was badly injured. I heard whispering voices all around me and realized this must be my end.” He looked down at the bottles on the table and then back up at the group.
“The last thing I remember is hearing a voice which told me that if I want to live, all I need to do is just let go of all I think I know and believe, and make a deal with Jonah. Jonah will guide me from that moment on.”
“I said ‘yes’, because there was so much more to research and learn.” Elija absentmindedly moved a few glass containers, as if to tidy up. “The cloud disappeared and the mists cleared. I woke up to find my staff had a lantern attached to its top with a glowing red light.”
He went over to steer the cauldron and came back. “Ever since, I have been living here, wandering the Bayoo Rougue, making sure that trouble does not leak to the outside.”
He then looked at Sulik again, “once I failed…” and his features seemed to say he was sorry, as if to ask for forgiveness.