Monstrous Races (25 page)

The greying sky sent down heavy raindrops again as the hostages were carried towards Lord Lansdown in an open cart pulled by two flatulent horses. Billy 'the Duck' Pearson sat proudly at the helm, his husky face austere and handsome and the reins pulled tight in his gloved hands. As he got closer he saw bodies lying thickly on the ground, the muddy limbs and sharp weapons lying useless and discarded and heads resting on grimy earth.

He went on slowly, seeing a vast cage ahead of him with something gnawing and gnashing inside of it, something huge and moss green that tramped and fought against the bars. Blood-red shapes protruded from its head, and through the distance he made out a sharp curved beak.

'Don't look at it,' he heard carried on the piercing wind, whilst Captain Briggs flailed around from behind the caged creature waving his arms towards him. Billy immediately closed his eyes and pulled the horses to a stop, his face scrunched up against
the biting rain. Rufus and Josie felt themselves come to an abrupt halt, and with their hands tied behind their backs both shuddered and shook, steadying themselves from falling over with their eyes firmly closed. The feeling of the reins changed in Billy's grasp, and he knew that they were wrapped around things cold and lifeless now. He let them drop and placed his hands over his eyes.

'Get out of the cart with your eyes closed,' called Captain Briggs, his voice assertive and familiar. 'Turn away from the cockatrice and bring them to us. Do not look at it, that's an order.'

'Yes Sir,' shouted Billy. He made his way to the back of the cart and hoisted them both out, slinging Rufus over his shoulder and putting him down first.

'How undignified,' managed Rufus, his eyes tightly squeezed shut as Josie was placed next to him. 'Don't look,' he whispered to her, 'keep your eyes closed, I'm right next to you.' They walked over the splayed figures, their eyes open very slightly and staring at the ground. Bod
ies jerked and twitched, and
one sat up and muttered something about sausages as Rufus was mid-stride; he screeched and hurtled over it, unable to stop the fall with his arms but landing in a soft round belly that gurgled appreciatively. He felt himself hoisted up and dragged along until they eventually reached Captain Briggs.

'An honour Sir,' said Billy. 'I believe you might be wanting these two.'

'Good work,' replied Captain Briggs slyly, the sock gently rocking at his side. 'Excellent work. There will be an appropriate reward for your hard efforts, make no mistake. So, who do we have here?' he asked, surveying the two dog-heads who stood side by side.

'This is Rufus, Elli's best friend in the whole wide world,' Billy answered with a smirk. 'And this is Josie, the bait I used to catch him.' Captain Briggs beamed and looked at them both carefully.

'Lord Lansdown,' he called out, 'we've got some excellent news Sir...'

Lady Lansdown and Gerald stood whispering behind them, sharing the same flask of hot sweet tea and nibbling appreciatively at currant buns. Both looked ahead at Lord Lansdown who
leapt
from the top of the high cage with grace and precision, landing seamlessly on the ground, a perfect dismount. 'Any ideas
?' she asked quietly, watching
Gerald roll the soft bun around in his gummy mouth.

'What, now?' he whispered. 'I suppose they won't miss us...'

'About him,' she said, nodding towards Lord Lansdown who unfurled himself with audible creaks and stood like a bemused praying mantis in front of them. Gerald chewed noisily and slurped at some tea.

'A couple,' he answered, looking around him at the slumbering army. 'What are we going to live on though my love?' he asked, watching her ramming the bun into her mouth and then gently flick the crumbs away from her sticky painted lips. 'I was thinking we could settle down, have a family, watch the nippers grow and all that,' he said wistfully with a far-away look in his eyes. He heard her cough and assumed she'd choked on a currant, her eyes welling with tears.

'I wouldn't worry too much about the money,' she said quietly, opening the tea flask and whipping out a small brandy bottle that she kept in her cleavage in case of emergencies. His eyes opened wider and he gazed at her longingly. 'He never did know about all of my dowry, it was for me after all.'

'In that case Berta my sweet,' he said, giving her a wink or suffering from a small stroke, she wasn't too certain, 'leave it to me.'

George watched as Max listened to the reports, his black labrador face giving nothing away and his brow furrowed. Elli kept herself bustling with tasks, and George saw that her stone glistened now, giving her skin an otherworldly quality like oil on old puddles. She repeatedly looked beyond him and into the city as the cacophony of cheers and excitement inside seemed to be ebbing away. He wondered if Max realised that he was inside the
gorgadon
suit but he'd already told him everything, what more was there to say?

'Elli,' called Lord Lansdown's creaking voice from outside the wall, drifting towards them with a growling resonance. 'Come out, come out wherever you are.' She could feel just how close the stone was and had a deep longing need to reunite them that tugged at her flesh and pulled at her bones.

She ran up ladders and over steps until she was level with Max and Alpha Sawyre, her face turned to the wall and her head raised to the sky with her eyes firmly shut.

'I'd be happy to,' she called out archly, 'but first you should show good will by removing the cockatrice. Then we can talk.' The sound was pure and low, reaching through the air with a metallic echo.

Lord Lansdown heard it with a smile from his vantage point on top of the shuddering cage, the cockatrice inside it writhing in fury. 'Good will?' he asked, snorting with derision. 'I can show you something much better than that.' His eyes glistened and his small white teeth were set in a satisfied grin. 'I can show you the tragic death of two of your friends. Josie and Rufus they say they're called.' Elli felt Alpha Sawyre's hand on her shoulder and saw Max flinch from the corner of her eye. 'They're still alive at the moment, but that won't be the case for much longer. Tell me, which
should I
kill first?' he asked, his voice crackling and sizzling as the stone danced over his skin.

Elli looked in front of her, her fear raw and real in the gloomy light, and saw two things. The first was George hovering by the bricks on the floor, his sketchbook in his hand; the second was an unimpressed ferret, nimbly held by a thatch-haired ogre.

She twisted her body around and called out, 'I'm coming out, and I have something you want. Your man-servant George belongs to us. You can have both of us for the exchange of Rufus and Josie, unharmed and alive. I have the stone.'

Lord Lansdown stroked his beard slowly and gratuitously. 'Very well,' he called, his voice thick and syrupy. 'Come out. And I suggest that you both wear a blindfold unless you wish to decorate the surroundings.' He looked across at the high walls and felt a surge of joy, his prize within his grasp.

Elli and George walked through the huge metal doors together, two small specks in a mass of polish and thorough workmanship. George walked at her side, his blindfold threatening to fall down and small glimpses of the world beneath them on view. They stood over tangled limbs and ugly weapons, tired cobbles and discarded trinkets. Beyond them the cockatrice shook and screamed, screeching at them to free it and daring them to look it in the eye.

George held onto Elli's arm, holding her when he needed to and supporting her when her balance floundered. He could feel the smooth vibration of the stone searing through her skin, skin that felt surprisingly cool to the touch. If he raised his head enough then he could just see the weasel, its brown fur glistening as she held it tightly by the scruff of the neck, its body held tightly into hers. It looked up and its shiny black eyes gave George a pitying look before resuming its attempts to scratch Elli and jump down.

'This way,' called Lord Lansdown, watching them stumble over broken things and tread carefully with shuffling steps.
Perhaps this is what it is like to have a sense of humour
he thought, as they walked on towards him in the grey light.

'Oh you there, husky,' called out Lady Lansdown, waving over at Billy the Duck who at first tried to ignore her.
'You there,' she continued, wav
ing around a handkerchief in his general direction. He looked again at his captives and shrugged before walking over towards her and away from them. As he left Gerald sidled up from behind a snoring mastiff dog-head and stood behind Rufus, his rheumy eyes darting around as frantically as they could for signs of danger. He pulled a sharp knife out from his belt and got in close, whispering something to him before raising it against the small of his back.

The stone san
k into Lord Lansdown's flesh
, promising his mind all kinds of wealth and influence. He moved forward over the rattling bars and waited, seeing something dark moving and writhing in Elli's arms.
And George as well. We obviously can't help our relations
he mused, as the two of them walked on, over and around obstacles towards him.

'Stop there,' he called out, his tone commanding and strong. 'What do you bring with you?'

She paused and held the wriggling weasel even tighter. 'My stone,' she called out, her voice like iced water in a fast flowing stream. 'A trade we said. Where are Josie and
Rufus?' Lord Lansdown signalled to Captain Briggs who whispered something into Rufus' ear.

'I'm here Elli,' he called out, grimacing as Captain Briggs' hot breath hit him in the face and ferv
ently hoping that his breath would be
all that would. He looked across at Josie, her eyes wide and unblinking, and behind her the lean husky face looked on with a w
ry smile. 'We haven't been hurt,’ he hollered.

'Ready?' she called out, as Lord Lansdown and Captain Briggs exchanged glances. 'Send them to me and you can have the stone.' George held onto her arm tightly, his unseen hand gripping the weasel's tail in the way the thatch-haired ogre had shown him.

Lord Lansdown laughed abrasively. 'I really don't think you're in a position to be giving me orders. And you haven't answered my question. What is that moving thing you're carrying?' he shouted, spittle flying out in front of him as his stone danced and shone with gleaming light, reaching out its long fingers towards her.

'Are you ready to go Rufus?' she called to him as she felt the stone strain and pull towards its other.

'Yes,' called Rufus and Josie in unison, their breathing faster and their arms still taut behind their backs.

'Then here's my stone,' she called out, pulling the weasel from its hypnotic trance as it jumped onto the floor in front of her. 'Around his neck. And good luck,' she added as it darted over and through limbs, its small body disappearing as it
leapt
and sprang away.

Lord Lansdown squealed and slid down from the cage in one movement, clawing at the lock with eyes shut tight until it gave way beneath his desperate grasp; he was flung to the side of the cage gasping and squirming as the cockatrice bellowed in fury and jumped out onto the wet ground. Large serrated claws tapped against discarded shields as it focused its red-rimmed eyes on George and Elli.

The ropes that Rufus and Josie had been holding fell to the ground, and Billy the Duck observed them lying there just before he saw a Josie-sized fist coming towards him with alarming speed. He twisted and ducked, his mind racing as he grabbed at her arm and pulled her towards him. She clawed and fought him as Rufus ran into his side, causing him to fall but taking her with him. He held her arm and reached out for a weapon but Rufus kicked at his arm and tried to pull Josie away. His hand grasped a club-handle just as he sprang up onto his feet, his vision filling with cool red and a familiar numbness settling over his mind. This was the boxing ring, and he owned it.

'No!' screamed Lord Lansdown, watching the small fur shape of the weasel sprint away, his face pale and long in the beckoning light. He pushed at the cage door and
look
ed
on
as the cockatrice moved slowly and carefully towards Elli and George and away from the other stone.

'Here,' called George, flinging dripping red meat that he had stashed in his pockets. 'Follow this.' The weasel looked up as a shiny morsel flew over his head and landed on the forehead of a twitching human, who shuffled and groaned as it bounded towards him. His claws were on it in a heartbeat and he sprang forward, following the next piece and the next.

Billy swu
ng the club at Rufus who pushed Josie out of the way, ducking narrow
ly so that
it just miss
ed
the top of his head. Rufus followed with an upper cut and a jab, feeling his fist collide with a chiselled husky jaw. Billy gave him a lop-sided grin and then barrelled into him
, raising his huge clenched fist
. The shield was swung with expert precision and made a satisfying
clang
noise as it made contact with his head, leaving the dent of a proud husky face in its battle-worn metal. As he slumped to his knees and collapsed to the floor Josie dropped the shield and stood over him, before giving him a hearty kick between his legs.