Serving Lant Agriche

Chapter 16 - The Toy Goes Rogue

The snowy precipitation intensified after Dion and Wally had left the maid's cottage. The animals had taken shelter. Dion began to exert more energy to find prey for Wally. For himself, he could dig through the ice to eat tubers, but Wally's soul had become black enough where it only wanted to consume flesh.

Dion could only conjecture. Black magic tore away and consumed the soul. Therefore, servants of black magic craved the smell of flesh, which was the closest substitute to consuming human souls. A soul lived inside the body. Traces of its presence would stay in the vessel.

In a frosty glade, Dion broke for camp early. The air tasted sweeter and damp. Clouds were forming and he expected a snowstorm to arrive soon.

To make shelter, Dion found a small hill and made a perimeter line by walking around in a circle. He began to dig out snow with his hands and his dagger to form ice blocks, placing the blocks against each other as if he were a mason laying brick. He stuffed the gaping lines with extra snow and made a circular ceiling top before dragging Wally into the crevice with him. They huddled together, Dion's arm around Wally's chest, his back against the ice. There was barely enough room for the both of them to stay inside the igloo together.

Dion placed his balaclava over his mouth to reduce the rancid smell of Wally's breath and rested his chin on the hollow of his toy's shoulder. He breathed out slowly, channelling magic with each breadth. Warmth blossomed from his stomach to his toes and fingertips. His body temperature rose until he heated the building interior.

When he felt comfortable, he released his spell to save energy. He would have to trust his shelter to retain heat.

His diet lacked nutrition and his nose began to bleed.

As the snowstorm began and the wind resounded around their shelter in a tumultuous howl, Dion began to feel at peace beside Wally.

It felt novel to touch another living being.

Wally's heart was no longer beating, but Dion could still feel the rise and fall of Wally's chest.

A boy alone with his pet.

Dion soon fell asleep.

aaaa

Wally's growls woke Dion up.

Dion felt disoriented. The balaclava over his mouth had slipped down his chin. The snow had blocked the entrance to the igloo. Whatever oxygen was left was depleting quickly.

He sensed Wally's fury by the way his toy's body shuddered against his.

Dion tried to move back but there was no room. He heard Wally's teeth snap. The beast's body writhed beside him.

Slowly, Dion moved his arm to place his palm against the ice wall. He focused power within his abdomen before channelling his energy to his wrist. Like a shotput, an invisible force shattered the wall by Dion's hand.

Dion flew back and dug his heels on the snow ground, one hand stabling himself before he stood up.

Wally stepped one hoof out of the shelter. The whites of its eyes had turned completely black. It stopped walking and laid its paws on the ground, standing on all fours like a dog.

They stared at each other under a full moon, at a momentary impasse.

Wally began to trot before springing from its hind legs.

Dion moved his arm to swat Wally aside, but Wally crashed through his hold and latched onto his arm gauntlet. They rolled down the hill. Dion grabbed the toy's scraggly hair, avoiding teeth, before they landed at the bottom with Wally on top.

Wally wrenched itself from Dion and sunk its jaws into Dion's shoulder. Its teeth inched deeper and deeper until the tip of its canine tooth touched bone.

The beast went no further. Its throat garbled and Wally retreated, harking blood from its mouth. A dagger had pierced through its throat, the blade sticking out of the neck several inches from one end to the other.

Dion sat and placed a hand on his bleeding shoulder. His palm grew hot again as he burned his own flesh, killing infection and closing the wound. Healing was white magic and alien to Dion. In time, the flesh wound would heal.

Dion faced the beast whose head stood two hands taller than him. He raised his foot and kicked Wally in the gut. When the beast fell, he slipped his second dagger in his hand and struck it through Wally's hand, pining the beast to the ground. He tore off leather strips from his cape and made a makeshift muzzle for Wally's mouth. For good measure, he also took a small knife and carved out every claw from Wally's paws.

The beast screamed as it was tortured. Dion continued to work diligently.

When he had finished, he took back his daggers and stamped Wally unconscious with his boot. He stitched Wally's neck together and covered it to staunch the bleeding (he was not an expert in stitches).

Dion took off his belt and latched a small loop around Wally's collar.

 

He began to drag his toy behind him as he walked, half-choking the beast behind him.