David Gemmell - Dark Prince

'Never,' he replied, his voice so soft the word was barely a sigh.

For much of the night the creatures of the forest sat around the campfires. There was no laughter or song and they huddled together in grim silence as Gorgon sat upon the throne of skulls. Thena was asleep, her head resting on Parmenion's shoulder, but the Spartan stayed awake. The silence was unnatural; he sensed the creatures were waiting for something and he remained tense and watchful as the hours passed.

Towards dawn the creatures climbed to their feet, moving to left and right of the throne in two lines. Easing Thena to the ground, Parmenion rose. His limbs were stiff and he stretched the muscles of his back. Tension hung in the air as Gorgon rose from the throne and stared to the east.

A dozen weird beasts emerged from the trees, dragging a prisoner, roped and tied. There was blood upon the prisoner's body and the marks of many wounds. Parmenion cursed softly.

The prisoner was Brontes.

His captors — part-reptile, part-cat, their limbs covered in fur, their faces scaled — pulled Brontes between the waiting lines. Jagged knives and swords hissed into the air.

'Wait!' called Parmenion, striding out to stand above the bound minotaur. Brontes looked up at him, his expression unreadable. Swiftly Parmenion drew his dagger, slicing the razor-sharp blade through the thongs binding him. 'Stay down,' ordered the Spartan, then rose to face the Forest King.

'This is my friend — and my ally,' he said. 'He is under my protection.'

'Your protection? And who protects you, Human?'

'You do, sire — until you have reached a decision.'

'So,' hissed Gorgon, pacing forward to stand over the minotaur, 'you have a human friend now, Brontes. Do you remember the last one? You don't learn, do you?'

The minotaur said nothing but he lowered his head, avoiding Gorgon's gaze. Then a sound came from the Forest King that could have been laughter. 'He was a prisoner on Greta,' he told Parmenion. 'The King penned him in a labyrinth below his city, feeding him on the entrails of pigs and other vile meats. One day the King threw a hero into the labyrinth. But Brontes did not kill him, did you, brother? No, he befriended him and together they escaped.

Imagine Brontes' surprise when the hero returned home to brag of his battle with the deadly, man-eating minotaur.

Did he become King, Brontes? Yes, I believe that he did. And spent his days — as all kings do — hunting down the people of the Enchantment. Thus do they build their legends.'

'Kill me,' said Brontes, 'but pray do not bore me to death.'

'Ah, but how can I kill you, Brontes? You are under the protection of the Human. How fortunate for you.' Suddenly Gorgon's foot lashed out, cracking against Brontes' jaw and hurling him to the ground.

'How many enemies do you need, sire?' asked Parmenion.

'Do not try my patience, Human! This is my realm.'

'I do not question that, sire. But when the Enchantment is restored, it will be restored for all the children of the Titans. All… including my friend Brontes.'

'And if I kill him?'

'Then you will need to kill me. For I will surely strike you down.'

Gorgon shook his head, the snakes convulsively rising, then he knelt by Brontes. 'What are we to make of this, brother?' he asked. 'A Human is prepared to die for you. How far have we fallen that we should earn their pity?'

Glancing up at Parmenion he shook his head once more. 'You will have my answer come the dawn. Enjoy the moments before then.'

Parmenion moved to Brontes, helping the minotaur to his feet. His chest and back showed a score of shallow cuts and he was bleeding freely.

'What happened?' asked Parmenion as he led the minotaur back to where Thena slept.

'The Makedones surprised us. The centaurs are dead — as are my brothers. I managed to reach the forest, but there I was captured. All is lost, Parmenion.'

'What of the boy!'

'Your friend carried him clear — but I don't know if they escaped.'

'I am sorry for your brothers, my friend. I should have led us all into the forest and taken the chance.'

'Do not blame yourself, strategos . And I thank you for speaking for me. Sadly it will delay our deaths only a little while. Gorgon is playing with us, allowing hope to build. At dawn we will see his true evil.'

'He called you brother.'

'I do not wish to speak of it. I will sleep these last hours. It will annoy him dreadfully.' The minotaur sank back to the grass, lowering his huge head to the ground.

'I will tend your wounds,' Parmenion offered.

'No need. They will be healed by the time we face our doom.' Brontes closed his eyes.

Parmenion touched Thena's shoulder and she woke instantly. 'Alexander is lost somewhere. Can you find him?'

'I cannot soar here. The Dark Enchantment is too strong. What will you do?'

Parmenion shrugged. 'I will use my wits to the last and, if that fails, I'll stab the snake-headed bastard through the heart and order his men to surrender.'

'I believe that you would,' she said, smiling.

'Spartan training. Never admit defeat.'

'I too am Spartan,' she said. 'We are a very stupid people.' They both laughed and he put his arm around her.

'Go back to sleep,' he advised, his smile fading. 'I will wake you for the dawn.'

'If you do not object, I would like to sit with you. You can tell me of your life.'

'There is nothing in my life to interest a priestess.'

'Tell me of your first love, how you met. I would like to hear that.'

The horned child moved to the centre of the clearing and gazed through slitted eyes into the darkness of the forest.

'Come to me!' he called, his voice echoing into the trees. Slowly, one by one, the beasts came forth until they formed a huge circle around him. Attalus stayed close to the centaur, Camiron, who stamped his feet nervously, his brown eyes wide, almost panic-stricken.

'Stay calm,' advised Attalus.

'I am not frightened,' the centaur lied.

'Then stand still, damn you!'

'I want to leave. I will run to the open ground. I cannot breathe here. I need Chiron; I must find him.'

'Wait!' commanded Attalus. 'Do nothing rash. If you run they will drag you down. And, more importantly, me with you.'

More and more creatures filed slowly forward, silently kneeling before Alexander. The stench was appalling and Attains almost gagged. A scaled beast pushed past him, its rough skin grazing the swordsman's arm. But the beasts showed little interest in man or centaur; their eyes were fixed on the Golden Child.

Alexander walked back to Attalus. 'Lift me to the centaur's back,' he said. The swordsman did so and Camiron shifted uneasily. Alexander patted Camiron's shoulder and Attalus saw that his fingernails were now black and pointed. 'Such a puny body,' said the Chaos Spirit, staring at his hands. 'But it will grow. Come, let us find Parmenion. Head south, Camiron.'

'I do not wish to carry you. You are hurting me,' said the centaur.

'Your wishes do not concern me. But you may die here if you desire it.'

Camiron cried out as fresh agony lanced through his frame. 'That is true pain,' said the Chaos Spirit. 'Now move- and slowly. Attalus, you will walk beside me. My servants can smell your blood. It makes them hungry. Stay close to me.'

'Yes, my prince. But where are we going?'

'To war and slaughter. There cannot be two kings in the forest.'

The sun rose slowly over the trees, but no birds sang. The creatures of Gorgon had remained in two lines before the throne, unmoving, unspeaking, waiting for the dawn. Parmenion stood and stretched. Thena rose with him. Brontes groaned and stirred as the first rays of sunshine touched him. His wounds had healed in the night; now only dried blood remained on his massive torso.