“Flee?” Lord Korven said. “From what? What is that thing?”
“That which has driven my people from this once sunlit world to yours,”
said Futhark. “It is the Cold Rider.” form for more than a moment or two.
“He is the Usurper,” Futhark said, averting his gaze from the dark form on the ridge. “Many years ago, he first appeared in our world, no one knew from where, and wherever he rode, the green plants withered, the animals died for lack of forage, the numbing cold spread and the gray mist followed.
Hence the appellation he was given, the Cold Rider.
As to what manner of creature he may be, I cannot say. I know only that where he passed, our world was blighted until it became the dismal place you see about you now.”
“Is he dangerous to us?” asked Aedan.
“However
powerful a creature he may be, surely he
would not
attack an army.”
“The Cold Rider has never been known to
attack
directly,” replied Futhark. “It is enough merely to
see him. Those who have the
misfortune to lay eyes chCtptC-C TWO
upon that
evil apparition soon experience some
awful
tragedy, and many do not live to tell the tale.
“What manner of creature is this Cold Rider?”
He
is a harbinger of doom, a manifestation of evil Michael asked, curious
at Futhark’s reaction. In all
itself. We must make
haste to get away from here, the battles they had seen, with either humans or
my lord, before some evil fate befalls us.”
demihumans, the halfling had always displayed
“It all sounds like a lot of superstitious nonsense crafty
survival instincts, but he had never shown
to me,” Lord
Korven said scornfully. ‘Such things as any fear. Until now.
The dark form on the ridge had
weather and the
climate change purely of their own not moved since he-or it-had stopped to watch
accord, and not because some ghost decrees
it so.
them. Yet there appeared to be movement within the For all we know, that shape upon the ridge is noth form.
Watching from a distance, they could noting more than swamp gas or some strange trick of make out any facial features or other details, if i the light.”
indeed there was a face, but like a reflection cast
“With respect, my lord, there is much about the upon a pond that
rippled when a stone was tossed
Shadow World that you
have yet to learn, despite
into the water, the outline of the dark
figure on the
your travels here,” said Futhark. His
voice had a hol
ridge appeared to shift, as if unable to retain solid
low ring to it. He was clearly frightened. “Before the Cold Rider came, this was a world of sunlight and bountiful beauty.
Brightly colored birds sang in the trees; the meadows bloomed vividly with wildflowers in profusion; faeries flitted in the forest clearings like playful fireflies; and there was game aplenty.
Now look about you and tell me what you see.
“And there is much here that, thankfully, we have not yet seen or experienced. Wherever that ghastly apparition rides, the undead are sure to follow. Monsters such as your world has never seen are presaged by his appearance. Whether he commands them or they simply follow in his wake, no one can say, but it is not for nothing that my people have fled this world for yours and only return here for brief periods, and often at great risk.”
“Why come at all then, if this Cold Rider poses such a danger?” asked Lord Korven, still skeptical of the halfling’s claims.
“Why have you come?” Futhark countered.
“Sometimes necessity entails acceptance of great risk. Shadowwalking is something only we halflings can do, and in the case of my scouts and myself, we are being well paid for the risks we take.
This world is wide, and there is only one Cold Rider.
The odds against encountering him are great, but this time, they have turned against us. If we do not leave this place as soon as possible, there is no telling what may happen, but I fear we may not even live to regret it.”
Michael shook his head. “If you were to create a portal back into our own world now, it would bring us out well within the borders of the Spiderfell. We could easily get lost there, and I have no wish to make my weary troops do battle with the Spider’s
minions. We must go on, at least until we can emerge in Diemed.”
“As you wish, my lord,” Futhark agreed reluctantly “But I would strongly advise that we make all haste and do not camp for the night.
I know the troops are tired, but they can rest far better and more safely once we have reached Diemed than they shall here.”
Michael pursed his lips, considering the halfling’s suggestion. “I am loath to push the men more than necessary. They have already marched a long way after a failed campaign in which they lost many of their comrades.” He fell silent for a moment, and Aedan could tell that those losses weighed heavily upon the emperor. “But if you feel strongly about the matter, we shall press on.”
“I do, my lord,” the halfling guide replied. “The appearance of the Cold Rider bodes us ill, very ill, indeed, and I shall not rest easy until we are well quit of this place.”
Michael nodded. “So be it, then. We shall press on.
Inform the men. Tell them we shall march tonight and make camp in Diemed tomorrow, where they shall have two days to take their ease. I am anxious to reach home, but that is the very least that I can do for them. Haelyn knows, they all deserve a resi.”
“Look,” Sylvanna said, glancing back at the ridge.
“He’s gone.”
They turned back to the ridge.
