Nights of Villjamur - Mark Charan Newton [159]
Their methods would be brutal in this case, but were merited to try to discern whatever evil Dartun was devising.
Of the forty-three prisoners, seven men were tortured in front of the women. They were stripped naked, and bound spread-eagled across a stone plinth, awaiting the Pear of Anguish to be inserted. An ancient tool, this was a metal pear-shaped device inserted into the anus, and, with the touch of a tiny lever, it unfolded like the most cruel of petals in bloom.
Papus watched this, utterly unmoved. The men were crying and screaming, and they froze then jerked as the metal pears were inserted.
Perhaps it was because the members of the Order of the Equinox had become accustomed to a comfortable lifestyle that the confessions came quickly and efficiently.
One by one, they told her all, the confessions spilling forth in their eagerness to oblige. It was the degree of Dartun’s knowledge that shocked Papus initially. How a cultist could know so much about the occult world was unheard of, even by her own advanced standards. The information revealed about him was alarming: he was immortal, had lived for hundreds of years, had uncovered the key to longevity. She now had to discover this for herself by searching his headquarters more thoroughly.
At one point she asked, “Does he have anything to do with the so-called draugr sighted on this island?”
Yes, he created them. Yes, he could raise the dead. To breed an army, they explained, enough of a safety net to deter those who might stop him. Also, to protect himself from whatever lay in the other realms beyond.
That brought them back to the subject of the Realm Gates.
She marched back and forth in agitation in front of the remaining prisoners, the facts underlying everything were coming to a head: the things Verain had warned her of were true. She felt extremely naive in her ignorance.
“This is indeed a serious business,” Chancellor Urtica whispered to Papus later, as they stood in a corridor of Balmacara. “You tell me all these things about dead creatures walking, and then you warn that he will allow such dangers to spill over into our Empire. I’m not quite sure I completely follow what you mean, but I understand there is a risk. Therefore, do what you feel necessary to stop him.”
Papus nodded, but kept silent. They paused while a patrol of city guards marched past them. She glanced awkwardly at Urtica, who now leaned against the wall opposite while the guards said the Sele of Jamur. Shortly after, a stream of servants walked by with food dishes for some of the councilors.
“Fucksake.” Papus then drew a gold-colored aldartal from her cloak. Urtica looked on surprised as she then triggered the dial on the device.
Servants paused in midstride still holding their trays, guards froze in midstep. Even the flames on lanterns were stilled. A time-delay relic, and she and Urtica were now in their own separate time system. She said, “We’ve not got long.”
He looked around at the people in suspension, then raised an eyebrow. “Impressive.”
“If you want Dartun caught,” Papus said, “I’ll need military transport—longships, sleds, that sort of thing.”
“Yes, yes, of course. Whatever you want, just ask.”
“We’ll be leaving the city immediately.”
“Right, wait here a moment,” he said, entering one of the clerk’s rooms nearby. He returned with a document bearing his personal seal. “This should be all you need.”
“Thank you, chancellor, I’ll not stop until I find him.” As she took the document and slid it into a deep pocket, the stilled figures in the corridor came to life, blurred at first like in some kind of smeared painting, and then they continued performing their errands and routines in real time.
CHAPTER 37
IT WAS THE FLUTTER OF WINGS THAT WOKE HER, A FAINT SOUND AT THE periphery of her