The Wrath Of the Forgotten (17 page)

Two of Rayko’s illusionary lantern carriers moved into the building first, and two trailed behind the group as they entered. A subtle
hissing
resonated from somewhere unseen. Nori took several quick breaths and held out his tetsubo in front of him. He scanned the darkness, yet nothing moved.

Nori could fight real living enemies, but spirits were a different story. He couldn’t hide his shakiness, and luckily his companions didn’t remark on it. The entire building was one large open chamber. Bookshelves lined the walls, and large book cases stood in various rows in the middle of the floor. Numerous wooden work tables and wooden chairs sat in an open area.

Flara approached one of the shelves. “Oh my goodness! There are countless tomes and scrolls here to read! I can’t believe all of this valuable knowledge has remained here untouched. This is a travesty!”

Nori positioned himself right behind her. “Is this what we were sent here to find? Tomes?”

He swallowed hard and wiped his sweaty hands on his pants. The last thing he needed was to lose grip on his tetsubo if things really happened. Eerie tingling sensations danced on his skin. In the back of his mind, Nori remembered several crucial Qu-Tar lessons.

“We’re not alone,” Nori said. “Something is watching us.”

Rayko’s voice shook slightly as she spoke. “How can you tell? Did you see something?”

“No,” Nori replied. “I feel it in my gut. We were taught to have greater awareness. Trust me, we’re not alone.”

“Oh dear,” Flara said. She stepped away from the edge of the light. “Rayko, can you position your servants so they cast more light?”

“Oh yes, darling.” Rayko pointed to various points. “You there, move there and there. Keep an eye open.”

The illusionary men reached into their loin clothes and pulled out daggers. A minor headache started to affect Nori, but he refused to comment.

“So what are we looking for?” Apisa asked. She ran her thumbs against the insides of her fingers. Occasionally, she would rub her thumbs against her fingertips.

“Anything out of the ordinary,” Flara replied. “Something that wouldn’t necessarily belong in a library.”

Flara and Nori walked toward the front of the illuminated area while Apisa and Rayko walked toward the back. Adrenaline poured into Nori’s nerves, and his senses came alive. Only Nori and the girls made any noise. Still, a great tickle had started in his stomach, as if a legion of crows had appeared within him. The crows were desperate to escape.

The bookcases stood back to back and formed twelve rows. Nori’s throat closed up as he peered down each of the long rows. Each time he did, he expected to see someone waiting with blade in hand.

“There’s one thing that’s missing, and it really unsettling me,” Nori said. “Anyone want to take a guess at what it is?”

Rayko said, “Is it the lack of monk skeletons in here? Because that’s driving me insane.”

“That’s exactly right.” Nori wiped a finger against one of the table tops. He glanced at his fingertip. “Just as I thought. Its dusty, but not nearly as bad as the other building.”

“You know, you’re not making us feel any better,” Apisa said. “In fact, no offense, I want to punch you right now.”

Flara stopped and pointed to the very back of the library. “That door, I think I remember it from my dream.”

The door looked to be quite ornate and had a strange painted symbol on the front of it. As they got closer to it, a strange tingly buzz zapped into his lips and tongue.

The girls all gasped.

“Magic,” Flara said. “Can you two feel it? It’s still active after all these years.”

“What kind of spell could do that?” Rayko said. “That symbol on the door, what school of magic does it come from? It’s not from mine.”

“Nor it is mine,” Apisa said. “Do you recognize it, Flara?”

Flara approached the door and ran her fingers along some of the finer details of the symbol. As in the case with their tattoos, the larger symbol was composed of little symbols. Each of the symbols appeared unique.

“Give me a moment, I think I can translate the runes,” Flara said.

The tickle in Nori’s stomach intensified. A chill grabbed hold of his skin. Nori placed his back to the wall and stared into the darkness. Something in the gloom watched him, but it remained concealed. Apisa and Rayko bunched around Flara, and they whispered to one another.

“Oh dear,” Flara said. She squinted and leaned in a little closer to the runes. After glancing over the symbol again, she slowly turned around and gazed into the shadows. “Nori’s right. Something is out there in the dark. Show yourself, I know y-you’re there.”

Apisa and Rayko placed their shoulders adjacent to Flara’s while Nori stood right in front of her. Dark shapes swirled in the shadows. A pair of dark red eyes opened in the midst of nothing, and took form. A creature that exceeded Nori’s height placed itself on the very edge of the light. It had pale white skin, pointed ears, and a set of razor sharp teeth. The creature wore black metal armor and carried an equally dark sword in its hand.

More creatures appeared beside him, although they were slightly smaller.

Rayko drew her hand to her mouth. “What in the Hell are those things? They weren’t there before.”

Flara took small steps around Nori, but stopped right in front of him. “They’ve been here the entire time. In fact, they’ve been here for the last few hundred years. I’m right, aren’t I?”

The larger creature scowled. Its voice resembled a thousand needles being scrapped across a mirror’s surface. “Hundreds of years? Has it really been that long? Time has escaped us. You will release us.”

“Release you?” Apisa asked. “What’s keeping you here? Are you the ones who murdered all of these poor monks?”

“Poor monks?” The creature asked. “You really have no idea what they were doing here, do you? It matters not. You will free us or you will die!”

“Why? So you can murder more innocent people?” Nori asked. “Besides, we don’t even know how to free you even if we wanted to.”

“Actually, I know what they want.” Flara’s brows scrunched together. “These creatures are called Umbarqui. In simple terms, they are like shadow kami. They want their Shadow Lantern, and I assume it’s behind this sealed door.”

The other creatures in the room stepped toward the light, but they didn’t enter it.

Flara gestured back to the door. “Only a human can open it, and they have to do so with their own free will. The seal prevents the Umbarqui from entering. We can’t allow them to escape.”

The head Umbarqui stepped into the light, and its skin sizzled. “Do you think you’re safe in the light? You’re all going to die. Before you do, one of you will open that door!”

“Oh we are going to open it,” Flara replied. She swallowed hard. “Nori, listen carefully. As soon as I open the door, I need for you to smash the black lantern. Do it quickly or we really are going to die.”

She moved around Nori and placed her hand on the door. The shadow creatures all moved into the light with haste. Their skin sizzled and burned, but they continued to run. As Nori turned around, he felt his stomach vibrate with incredible intensity.

A loud popping noise echoed out, and the door swung open. He dashed in and quickly glanced across the room. Resting on the back table sat a large glowing black lantern. With all of his speed, Nori dashed across the room and raised his tetsubo.

Someone screamed. Nori winced as he brought down the war club on top of the lantern with all of his strength. As it collided with the lantern, the lantern cracked and shattered. A powerful wave of magical energy blasted out and slammed into Nori. Everything went black.

NORI TREMBLED AS
he stood in the center of the town square. A peculiar fountain rose up from the square, and it portrayed a woman holding up a massive axe above her head. Water poured from her belt buckle. The back of Nori’s mind buzzed, but a foul lightness had swarmed all over him. The stone buildings surrounding the square had broken walls and doors. In some places, fires still burned on the tops of thatched roofs. Red stains covered the stone of the streets. Icy fingers trailed up the center of his back.

A small part of him wanted to hide in one of the destroyed buildings. Nori approached one of the broken doorways and gazed inside.

“H-hello? Is anyone inside?” Nori asked.

The building had seemed so familiar, and yet Nori couldn’t place what purpose it had served. Clearly, judging from the items on the shelves, this was a store of some kind. Nori winced as he moved up to the shelves and examined one of the items.

A simple stuffed doll made to look like a stocky warrior stared back at him. Nori drew in breath, but the air felt heavy, as if coated with metal. Just below the surface, Nori knew he could burst into tears at any moment. He continued to survey the room with a keen eye.

A strange symbol on the wall caught his eye. A painting had the image of a lone mountain rising up from nothingness. A dark grey stone heart floated at the base of the mountain.

“By all that is holy,” Nori said softly. “Please… No!”

His mother wore that same symbol proudly every day when she went off to work.

Nori exited the house and reexamined the square with a renewed understanding. The mysterious fountain that had caused him hesitation now became strikingly clear.

“Is anyone here?” Nori yelled. “Is anyone alive?”

The unseen presence of many eyes fell upon him. Every way that Nori looked, he saw the ghostly impressions of people who had once walked these wondrous streets. They echoed with the vitality they once exuded. These visages only lasted for a moment, and then Nori returned to being all alone.

Soft echoes of his own childlike laughter resonated in his ears. How many days did Nori and his friends run through this very intersection? His awareness felt dulled, and his movements slowed. He grimaced as he ran his palm against the stone fountain.

Nori moved down the avenues with haste. Every now and then, Nori stopped and gazed at the landmarks that made up the better part of his life. Neighbors’ homes lay destroyed, and the level of carnage sent worrisome vibrations through him.

He came upon a large two story home in the middle of town. The top floor had a gaping hole in the side of it, and the front door had been bashed in. Rather than go inside, Nori stood out in the street. Given the state of the city, his mother would have been where the combat was the thickest.

His heart thumped in his ears. Nori’s blood felt fiery as it coursed through him. What could have done this to Onista? Surely this was a false vision, for no force in Korrine could utterly devastate his home or his people in such a way.

A loud voice made him jump. “NORI!!!”

He whirled around. For just a moment, he saw something horrific.

A pair of Oni had his mother by her limbs. They looked every bit as horrific as the legends had proclaimed them to be. Monstrous in size, these giants possessed either blue or red skin. Horns jutted from their skulls, and they had massive fangs protruding from their lower jaws. They cackled as they pulled his mother apart.

NORI SAT UP
straight and screamed out, “Mother!”

Rayko cringed beside him, and she held both hands to her face. Her blue eyes were opened as wide as they could go. Flara peered up at him from behind a desk. Apisa ran into the room and turned her attention on him.

“What happened?” Apisa asked. “Did you see something?” Her fingers were in the form of claws.

Rayko took several deep breaths. “No, no… we’re fine. Nori was just having a nightmare, it seems.”

Nori’s head felt fuzzy, as if it were wrapped in a tight bundle of silk. After several short, yet rapid breaths, he glanced around at the others. Nori sat on the floor of some kind of office. A large wooden desk sat at the back of the room. Scrolls and books rested on its surface. Tall bookshelves lined the walls, and peculiar items rested on the shelves. Black broken shards lay on a table beside the desk. A skeleton leaned against one of the corners of the room.

“Where are we?” Nori rubbed his head. “What are we doing here?”

Flara returned to reading an open scroll before her. Rayko took hold of Nori’s face with both hands, and she examined him. When he tried to pull away, she repositioned him forcibly.