Robert Keller - The Hand of Tharnin

The blue light paused. "What's wrong, Lannon?"

"I don't know. I feel very strange."

"It's probably just the aura of the Deep Shadow," said Vorden. "It's immensely strong here. You should get used to it after a bit."

Feeling dizzy, Lannon started off again as Vorden led the way. Shadows seemed to move through the fog here and there-some with sinister shapes. The mist felt cold and clingy against Lannon's flesh, and chills crept over him constantly.

They walked for what seemed like an hour through a foggy tunnel, and then suddenly the walls of the tunnel vanished and the fog fell back a bit. Lannon could make out the shapes of huge, twisted trees growing right up out of the stone-the Dark Mothers. The foul stench of the Bloodlands hung in the air. Looking up, Lannon saw a ceiling of glowing fog about thirty feet above him.

"Where are we?" asked Lannon.

"We're on the edge of the realm of Tharnin," said Vorden. His face looked sinister-half covered in shadow in the glow of the fog. But he smiled reassuringly. "Nothing to worry about here, though. It's a safe place."

A bit farther on they came to the base of a huge pillar that rose up into the mist. A stone stairway wound upward around it. "This is a Summoning Platform," said Vorden. "This is where I will make contact with the beast and send it back to its lair. Then, together, we will free me from the curse of this gauntlet. But we must hurry! I don't know how long my mind will remain free of possession. Once the demon has rested and gained strength, I will be lost again."

It was a long climb up the pillar stairway, which led them into the ceiling of glowing fog above. The fog was so thick Lannon couldn't see the edge of the stairway and he stayed as close to the pillar as possible for fear of falling. Shadowy figures lurched out at Lannon, startling him, before vanishing just as quickly. Lannon walked on shaky legs, thinking each step could be his last. Vorden, however, strode confidently up the steps, whistling some tune Lannon had never heard before. Lannon wasn't sure if he was even in the real world anymore, or if he'd entered some strange dream realm. The stone pillar looked webbed with veins and was warm to the touch-as if it were alive. Massive tree branches reached forth from the fog, some extending so close to the pillar that Lannon had to duck under them. Life seemed to be everywhere here, but it was barely recognizable-barren and shadowy creations always partially concealed by the mist.

At one point Lannon stumbled over a loose stone and started to fall, but Vorden whirled around and seized him with the Hand of Tharnin.

"Be careful, Lannon. It's a long drop."

Lannon flinched away from the gauntlet. "It's hard to see anything. Why all the fog, anyway?"

Vorden shrugged. "It's just the way of things here. As I said, we are on the edge of Tharnin, and it is a very foggy realm…filled with hidden secrets. The fog should slack off a bit as we climb higher. And why should the one who possesses the Eye of Divinity move so blindly?"

Lannon didn't answer. He had no intention of using his power to scan the fog, but instead kept it close to him to shield his body from harm. He didn't want to know what terrible secrets the mist concealed. This world was so different from his own it seemed to shock his system. It was as if he'd entered some spirit realm where living energy existed but life as Lannon knew it did not belong.

They continued upward until they reached the top of the pillar, which was a stone platform with three towering statues of Knights standing in a triangular formation. Each Knight held a different weapon, the business end of which rested on the floor-sword, axe, and hammer. Between the three statues was a circle of runes on the floor. The mist was more distant here and seemed to have an almost bluish hue to it, emitting a bright light upon the platform.

The sight of the Knightly statues left Lannon feeling a bit relieved. This, at least, was something he recognized and understood. The statues looked evil, and like the pillar itself, they were webbed with veins as if made of living rock-but they were a sign of human life and of a world Lannon could relate to.

Vorden stepped into the circle and raised his gauntlet. The blue stones became white hot, and the metal of the gauntlet glowed red. Lannon shrank back from the sudden heat and shielded himself with the Eye of Divinity. For a moment, Vorden stood there with his glowing gauntlet, as the three statues around him began to burn with a blue fire. Then the device seemed to cool again, along with the statues, and Vorden lowered his arm.

He turned and smiled. "Well, that takes care of that."

Something about Vorden's smile chilled Lannon. "So…so you sent whatever beast you'd summoned back to its lair? It's finished, then?"

Vorden laughed. "Look behind you, Lannon."

Even as Vorden spoke, Lannon became aware of a terrible stench-like a mixture of wet earth, decayed flesh, and pure evil. A blast of foul breath hit him from behind. Lannon whirled around-to see a nightmare.

The beast was a winged worm, a Great Dragon of Tharnin, hovering in the fog next to the platform. It was at least sixty-feet long from its horned head to its spiked tail-looking like a giant serpent with rows of small wings that beat so swiftly they were barely visible. It hovered like a dragonfly, and Lannon knew in an instant that it was capable of immense speed in spite of its bulk. Its scales seemed like living entities, shifting about as if each one were aware of its surroundings. Hanging from the scales were tube-shaped extensions that, with a black, curved spike on the end of each, resembled stinging weapons of some sort. The Dragon's head was the most hideous (yet captivating) thing Lannon had ever looked upon-two large, bulbous purple eyes with a hypnotic depth of color shades and textures and a long, wrinkled snout full of oversized teeth. Aside from all that, the creature seemed half-blended with shadows that squirmed over its body-shadows that, along with the moving scales-made the Dragon's entire bulk writhe in a repulsive fashion.

Lannon simply stood and gazed into the endless depths of those purple eyes, waiting to be destroyed. The Eye of Divinity retreated back inside him, his power useless against the colossal might of the beast before him.

But then the Eye suddenly exploded to life, and Lannon again felt sick to his stomach. Something as hideous as the Dragon seemed to be clawing its way to the surface within him-something utterly terrifying. Glancing down, Lannon saw that a shadow seemed to be covering his body-a shadow that had a crimson hue like blood. He thought the Eye was having some strange reaction to the overwhelming presence of the Deep Shadow, but he had no idea what it was. He remembered Jace's vision-of Lannon covered in blood-and wondered if this was what he'd seen.

Suddenly, Lannon was overcome by rage. He turned his back on the Dragon, not caring if it devoured him. He was flooded with a righteous anger that dissolved his terror. "You betrayed me, Vorden!

"Of course I did," said Vorden, laughing. "And it was so easy to do. Don't think ill of me, Lannon. I brought you here for your own good."

Lannon could only shake his head. "How is this for my own good? You're full of lies and you don't even know it!"

"I will be returning to my fortress," said Vorden. He pointed beyond Lannon at the Dragon. "And my little friend here will follow me. Soon it will emerge from the gates of Dorok's Hand and begin its assault on Dremlock and the Divine Essence. Nothing will stop it. There is no force in existence that can destroy a Great Dragon of Tharnin. They have existed since the dawn of time. To be honest, this gauntlet was not created to control all of the great beasts, for that would be impossible. It was created specifically to control this Dragon, after decades of careful research and sorcery experiments. It was created to destroy Dremlock Kingdom!"