Lances and Daggers

13. The Cult of Belphegor

The Hall of the Mountain King loomed in front of me, and although I had seen it only a few days ago, it bewitched me anew with its mysterious aura. I was like a child whose parents amused twice with the same trick, shrewdly leaving an appropriate interval in between. The wagon passed through the outside gate and then entered the courtyard. I got off with a quick jump, forfeiting a staring contest with the stone gargoyles.

"There's no need to wait for us, Gabriel," Reinfried said. "It's dangerous to stay."

"Fine, I'll head back to the inn."

While the wagon was turning around, Reinfried and I scanned the corners of the courtyard. We hadn't been greeted by any castle guards, and no one was guarding the entrance to the underground jail. The place was deserted.

"It's too silent." I noticed that even the morning birds weren't chirping.

"We don't know what might have happened last night," Reinfried said. "Let's check the inside."

We went up the stairs and pushed the giant door ajar. Old wood creaked, and rusty metal clanged. The noise echoed in an otherwise silent world. Eyes peeked at us from the door crack and disappeared into the darkness. Then, suddenly, spears were aimed at our faces.

Reinfried and I sidestepped and fell to the ground. We avoided the deadly thrusts at the last moment, but the attack itself bode ill for us. What happened last night? Did the enemy take control of the castle? We stood up and drew our swords. We waited for someone to push the door open and strike out at us, but a friendly voice came from inside: "Sir Reinfried? Sir, it's you, right?"

"What do you mean? Of course, it's me."

"You're alive and well. Thank the Heart of Mana! We thought you had turned into one of them."

The giant door opened wide, and a castle guard stepped out of the darkness. He was pale and exhausted. Wearing full armor and holding a spear, he seemed to have had a long, tough shift.

"We're holed up in the castle, sir," he said. "Last night was a disaster."

"What happened?" Reinfried asked.

"We heard cries for help a few hours before dawn. They were your men, sir, the ones who were sent to search the mountains for the strange lights. They sought refuge in the castle, but when we took them in, they started killing us."

"They were reanimated by the mages and sent to attack the castle," I said.

The guard nodded. "That's what we think too."

"And after that attack?" Reinfried said.

"Not much happened, sir. The forest was swarming with the undead, but their voices died out after dawn."

"Is Lord Faust safe?"

"Yes, we had only three casualties, and they were castle guards."

"Lead us to him."

"Yes, sir."

The guard entered the castle and gestured respectfully for Reinfried and me to follow. The doors closed behind us, and two other castle guards eyed us with suspicion and alarm. The atmosphere in the castle was tense, and the eeriness of the candlelit corridor kindled fear. We found Lord Faust in the throne room. I tried to be decorous but didn't have enough time to bow; he began to talk as soon as he saw us.

"The men you sent up the mountains were killed."

"I'm aware, Lord Faust," Reinfried said.

"They gathered no clues. They returned as reanimated corpses and killed three of the castle guards. Your men killed mine."