The Unsuspecting Mage - Brian S. Pratt [42]
“The boys claimed that just after the window shattered, they heard a monstrous roar from the other side. The man shrieked in terror before being abruptly silenced. The boys ran as if demons were after them, which was probably not far from the truth. When they returned to town, they went straightaway to the Town Hall and told their story to the mayor, who immediately dispatched a party of armed townsfolk along with a priest to investigate.
“When they arrived, no trace of the man could be found. They did find the pentagram on the floor however, with four of the candles having burned down to nothing. The fifth candle laid on its side, shards from the broken window lay around it. It is believed that when the window shattered, the glass flew and knocked over the candle, which broke the holding spell, allowing the demon, that’s what the priest said was most likely being summoned, to break free and take the man. The priest stated that there didn’t seem to be any traces of evil remaining in the house. But just to be sure, he cleansed the house from top to bottom before they departed.”
Glancing at James to gauge his reaction, Corbin continues. “The people hereabouts avoid this house, they think it’s haunted. Whether by the spirit of the man or by the demon he summoned, no one is sure. Every once in a while, some hunter comes across this place and tells of feelings of foreboding, or of hearing strange noises. If Hern is in there, I would hate to guess what that would mean.”
“I agree, but we need to see if we can find him. That missing boy may be in there as well. We can’t just leave them,” James says with surprising determination. “Should they still be alive, they are going to need our help. If we’re careful, maybe we could get in and out real fast. See if we can find them.”
“Quickly then,” Corbin agrees uneasily. As James leads the way into the house, he follows close behind.
The front room is dark and shadowed with narrow streams of light making their way through the windows. A fine layer of dust covers everything. Grass and small plants have sprouted through the myriad cracks marring the floor. Spider webs fill the corners and drape between bits of old furniture.
As they press ahead, a sense of foreboding settles over James. He tries to shakes it off, but it only grows as they follow the compass toward a hallway leading deeper into the house.
The left side of the hallway has partially collapsed, the debris making for treacherous going. In one place they have to stoop quite a bit in order to make it past where a section of the ceiling had caved in. As they make their way through the rubble, a small amount of light filters through the broken and cracked areas above creating an eerie atmosphere.
Not far past the caved-in ceiling, they come to an opening on their right. It’s a flight of stairs leading to the second floor. Though rubble chokes the stairwell, James figures that they could make it through should the need arise. Looking up into the darkness, he definitely hopes the need does not arise!
Moving past the stairwell they reach another doorway, the last one accessible before the hallway becomes impassable due to the collapsing of the second floor. Peering cautiously around the corner, James looks into a room, one that has somewhat been spared the ravages of time that the rest of the house has suffered. Light filtering in through the room’s broken windows falls upon a five pointed star inscribed on the floor. That must have been where the demon was summoned. Doing a quick scan about the rest of the room, he fails to find anything unusual so steps through the doorway and enters the room. Corbin follows close behind.
Walking to the pentagram, James indicates the broken glass near one of its point. “This must be where the shattered window broke the spell of holding.” Scanning the area for bloodstains, he fails to find