The Mask Wearer Read online

  The sorcerer never had time to create his basilisk. The Knights of Light had been called to help the humans fight against evil and Karmakas. He had hidden his precious egg in the pendant that Yaune the Purifier managed to steal. During the battle, a spear went through Karmakas’s body. He hovered between life and death for several months and had to rest for many long years before recovering his strength and his powers. Then he began his search for Yaune the Purifier and for the pendant. Now his search was over. He was finally going to create a basilisk that could single-handedly destroy entire armies and cities.

  For several days Karmakas spent time alone in his castle, looking at and caressing the pendant. He had gotten it back physically, but he needed to repossess it mentally—to reinvest it with his power. When he felt ready, the sorcerer went to his bedroom. He opened the lid of a gold box and took out a black vial. Two diamond snake fangs decorated the vial’s cork. The sorcerer lifted the vial toward the sky and pronounced some magic words. Then he uncorked the vial and drank some of the liquid. Right away he lost consciousness and fell to the ground, hitting his head. The sorcerer felt his soul leave his body.

  Karmakas was now walking along a corridor with grimy walls. He reached a temple built entirely of human bones. The columns that supported the roof were made of skulls. Tibia and femur bones were set into the walls, creating a morbid and frightening mosaic. In the center of the temple, a snake-headed man sat on a golden throne. His skin was light red in color and his hands resembled strong eagle talons.

  “Your servant, ssss, is here, powerful Seth,” Karmakas said as he kneeled in front of Seth, the god of jealousy and treachery. “I bring you, ssss, some good news. Are you willing to listen?”

  The god blinked twice in agreement.

  “I’ve recaptured the pendant that, ssss, contains the rooster egg. In a day, I’ll possess a basilisk, ssss, to lead my army of gorgons. No human or any other creature of light, ssss, will be able to resist.”

  Seth seemed delighted. “Very well! The war has begun,” he said. “All the gods of evil are united and ready to seize the world. Our creatures of water are already winning many aquatic kingdoms. We rely on you, Karmakas, to extend the force of darkness over earth. You’re one of our most faithful servants and we hold you in much esteem. Be careful, however. Remember the long tradition of the mask wearers. The Lady in White has revived this force that has been extinct for generations. A young warrior of equilibrium has been chosen. He will visit you soon. He’s not very experienced and so possesses little power. Eliminate him quickly, as well as his accompanying army.”

  Karmakas got up, bowed to his master, and left the sinister temple. He took the corridor, returned to his body, and then woke up abruptly. Tired by his journey, the naga went to his laboratory in the depths of the castle. A lot of potions and flasks filled with poison were there, as well as a big black book. He grabbed the pendant, broke it between his strong fingers, and took out the rooster egg. Much smaller than the egg of a hen, it was pale green with gray spots; its shell was as hard as stone. Karmakas put it in a wooden box that he had made himself and sat a big toad on top of it. The toad covered the egg with its huge body. The magician closed the lid of the box, which was pierced with holes that allowed the toad to breathe.

  Karmakas then went up to the main room of the castle and requested that Medusa be brought to him. A few minutes later, the young gorgon came in.

  “You called for me, Father?” she asked.

  “Yes,” said Karmakas. “Listen to me carefully, ssss. I’ve another mission for you, ssss, of the highest importance. I know that, ssss, an army will arrive here soon, ssss, to take back the city. You’ll go, ssss, to meet and intercept it. Among the soldiers, there’ll be a human, ssss, who has the title of mask wearer. You must, ssss, gain his trust and, ssss, turn him into stone later. Once he’s petrified, ssss, I’ll send hordes of snakes to destroy his army. The gorgons, ssss, will take care of the survivors. Go forth and do not come back, ssss, until your mission is accomplished.”

  Medusa could not believe her ears. She had barely heard Amos’s message in the cavern and Karmakas already knew of it! How had he found out so quickly that an army was coming? The sorcerer was powerful; she knew she had better obey him if she wanted to stay alive. The fear that the naga—her father—inspired made her tremble. It took all her self-control to keep her composure.

  “I’ll do my best to please you,” she answered.

  “Leave now; I’ve, ssss, other things to do,” Karmakas commanded.

  Then, lost in thought, the naga added softly to himself, “My basilisk, ssss, is waiting for me.”

  —16—

  THE BERRION ARMY

  For four days, the Knights of Equilibrium prepared to follow Amos’s recommendations. Shields were polished until they reflected everything in front of them like mirrors. They had to shine at all times. The blacksmiths of Berrion had done their work perfectly. The large shields of the infantry shone in the sun, and so did the round ones used by the archers.

  Thanks to a meticulous reading of the book Al-Qatrum, the Territories of Darkness, Amos established a war strategy. He requested that two mongooses be captured for every one of his knights. The animals would protect them against a possible snake attack. The Lady in White had appeared to him, warning him against an eventual downpour of vipers that the enemy could launch with their magic power. Men combed the land of Berrion and that of surrounding kingdoms, and seven hundred and seventy-seven mongooses were caught and distributed among the four hundred knights who formed the Berrion army. The knights were ordered not to feed the animals during their journey to Bratel-la-Grande. It was vital that the snake eaters be famished at the time of their confrontation with the reptiles.

  Amos chose a rooster with the most piercing crow among the roosters of Berrion. Because of the mask wearer’s power over birds, the rooster followed him everywhere.

  As for Junos, he directed his troops with jubilation. He relied completely on Amos’s intelligence, obeying the boy without question. The king of Berrion even hired a bard, who sang and played many instruments to encourage the brave soldiers.

  In this festive mood, Amos and the army left the city of Berrion to liberate Bratel-la-Grande from the dreaded gorgons. When the dwellers in each of the villages they passed saw the flag of the Knights of Equilibrium flapping in the wind, they welcomed them with thunderous applause. All had heard of their mission and wanted to salute these men who had become heroes and seemed indestructible.

  Urban and Frilla were not warriors, so their presence on the field would have served no purpose. They stayed in Berrion to await their son’s return. They trusted Amos and left him free to choose his own destiny.

  For five long days, the horses galloped from sunrise to sunset. At the end of the fifth day, the soldiers reached the border of the Knights of Light’s realm, and scouts were sent to Bratel-la-Grande. On each side of the road leading to the capital, hundreds of statues were aligned as a macabre guard of honor. It was easy to guess that all the men, women, children, and animals of the city had been turned to stone.

  When the scouts returned, trembling and chattering about what they had seen, the rest of the army started to lose its enthusiasm and confidence. The knights were faced with a fierce enemy capable of impressive feats. Amos and Junos conferred and decided that it was too late in the day for the army to go any farther. They set up camp and men were assigned to guard duty.

  In vain Junos tried to raise his men’s morale. Most of them had little combat experience and felt powerless in front of such danger. The bard no longer sang, and begged his master to let him go home. As the sun was setting on the horizon, Amos and Junos sat around a bonfire, discussing the best strategy to retake Bratel-la-Grande.

  A guard rushed over and interrupted them. “There is a very strange girl who wants to talk to you, Master Daragon,” he said. “Shall I bring her here or send her away?”

  Puzzled, Amos wanted to see this unexpected v
isitor. She was brought to him, escorted by four knights. She wore a cloak with a large hood that covered her eyes. Amos noticed with alarm that small golden snakes were wriggling in the opening of her hood. A few steps away from him, the mongooses began to fidget nervously in their cages. Even before the girl realized who he was, Amos turned abruptly toward Junos and said, “It’s a gorgon!”

  Right away the king shouted at the top of his voice, “Guards! Raise the mirror-shields! A gorgon has entered the camp!”

  Within seconds, the girl was surrounded by mirrors. She threw herself to the ground, her face cast downward.

  “Please,” she implored, shaking from head to toe, “don’t hurt me! My name is Medusa. I come alone and I am here as a friend! Please don’t hurt me! Tell Amos Daragon that I’ve come to help him and that I know his friend Beorf! Please … please … I assure you, I mean no harm.”

  The young gorgon seemed sincere, but as a measure of precaution, Amos requested that she be blindfolded and that her hands be bound behind her back. Two of the knights who had escorted the visitor obeyed the order with caution. She was then taken close to the bonfire to be in full light. About twenty soldiers, their shields turned toward her, encircled Medusa. Now the gorgon could not flee without seeing her own reflection.

  Surprised to have heard the girl pronounce Beorf’s name, Amos approached her.

  “I am Amos Daragon,” he said. “You wanted to speak to me. Well, I’m listening.”

  “Yes,” she answered. “I know Beorf. I turned him to stone myself. Don’t judge me now; let me first tell you my story and you’ll understand the circumstances that led to this unfortunate event.”

  Confounded by the news, Amos fell speechless. He felt guilty for having gone to the woods of Tarkasis without his friend. It was his fault that Beorf had been petrified. He had let him face a terrible danger alone, and now he was paying dearly for it. For an instant, Amos wanted to order the knights to kill the young gorgon. But he changed his mind.

  “Go on,” he told her as he sat on the ground. “I’m listening.”

  “The sorcerer you’re about to fight is named Karmakas. He belongs to the race of humanimals, like your friend Beorf. He has the ability to morph into a snake, and thanks to his powerful magic, he can control all creatures related to reptiles. That is why the hairs of gorgons are his slaves. I must tell you that Karmakas sent me here to charm you before changing you into a statue. It’s the same trap that your friend fell into.

  “Beorf was captured by Karmakas and refused to tell him where the skull pendant was hidden. So I was told to free him to gain his trust. Afterward Beorf and I took refuge in a cavern that his parents used as a pantry, and we got to know each other. Beorf quickly fell in love with me. I was prudent because I knew that Karmakas was listening to our conversations to discover where the pendant was hidden and that he was waiting for the right moment to strike. When Beorf finally trusted me, he revealed the whereabouts of the pendant. That’s when Karmakas came out of the shadows. He threatened to kill me unless Beorf brought him the pendant. Beorf obeyed, and when he came back, I turned him to stone.

  “Only later did I realize how much I missed him. I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I’ve gone back to the cavern every day since then, to see his frozen body. Now I know what friendship is … maybe even love. This kind of feeling does not usually exist among gorgons. So this has been a great revelation for me. I am truly sorry, and I came here to make amends for what I did. I’m willing to betray Karmakas and to tell you secrets that you’ll be able to use against his powers.”

  Amos was touched by Medusa’s account. He sighed and kept silent a moment. “This won’t bring back my friend,” he said finally.

  “You know, he talked a lot about you,” the young gorgon answered. “I know that you don’t get discouraged easily, and I know how to bring Beorf back to life. Win this battle, take back the city, and I’ll give you your friend just as he was before.”

  “How can I trust you after what you just told me?” Amos asked. “Who says that this isn’t a trick to help Karmakas?”

  “Let me finish, then you’ll decide if I’m loyal to you. I know the sorcerer’s plans. He’ll attack you as soon as you take the road to Bratel-la-Grande. He’ll sense your presence and send hordes of venomous vipers against you. I know these animals well and it takes only one bite from them to send their victims into a deep coma. Their venom moves slowly to the heart and blocks all the arteries. Death is certain for whoever is bitten. I know also that Karmakas has a basilisk. I can’t tell you what a basilisk is. I only heard him mention it a few days ago.”

  Amos frowned. “I was right, then. The pendant contained a rooster’s egg. I know the power of this animal—the basilisk.”

  “Good, because Karmakas will not hesitate to use it against you. And that’s not all. Inside the city walls, an army of gorgons is eager to wage battle. Karmakas’s two hundred warriors are bored and squabble all the time to amuse themselves. They’ve pilfered the knights’ weapons storehouse and have all kinds of swords, bows, spears, and clubs at their disposal. You and your men seem to know the secret to killing gorgons. I realized that as soon as I heard one of your men give the order to raise the mirrors. But I must tell you that this is also the only way to bring the city inhabitants back to life. The stone statues will be immediately freed of the curse when the gorgons who petrified them die as they see their own reflections. You know, I’m sorry that—”

  Amos interrupted her. “If I understand properly, the only way to free Beorf from the curse is for you to look at your reflection in a mirror?”

  Gravely, Medusa nodded. “I know how to free Beorf,” she said. “Trust me. Let me help you by redeeming myself. I promise I’ll give you your friend back. Consider me an ally. My help will be invaluable. I have a few good ideas to ensnare Karmakas. With my knowledge and your cleverness, we can defeat him.”

  —17—

  THE BATTLE

  Led by their lord Junos, the Knights of Equilibrium reached Bratel-la-Grande just before sunrise. The night had been long and sleepless for the men of Berrion. Heavy clouds hung in the sky. The pale light of dawn tarnished the landscape around the capital. The sinister atmosphere filled the knights with anxiety. Even Junos looked gloomy and he had lost any trace of his good humor.

  From the top of the highest tower in the castle, Karmakas rejoiced when he saw the Berrion army take position in the fields. The sorcerer stroked the head of his basilisk tenderly. The creature had hatched the day before. Now, Karmakas put it down in a gold cage at his feet.

  “Be patient, little one, ssss, my little treasure,” he said with affection. “It will soon, ssss, be your turn to act.”

  The sorcerer raised his arm. He concentrated and repeated a magic formula in an ancient dialect. In the fields, the knights saw a black cloud rise above the city.

  “Stay on your horses and get ready to flee quickly,” Junos shouted to his men. “If Amos is right, we’ll easily win this first encounter.”

  Karmakas continued his incantation. A strong wind rose over Bratel-la-Grande and pushed the dark cloud toward the army. Suddenly, midway between the walls of the city and the spot where the Berrion men were, the cloud exploded in a deafening thunder. Hundreds of asps and cobras fell from the sky like a rain of swarming and slimy pieces of rope. The horses reared up and several knights were about to run off.

  “Keep your position! Keep your position!” Junos shouted as he galloped in front of his men.

  The army remained in place as the snakes crawled toward them upon touching the ground. They moved through the high grass in the fields like an ocean wave coming quickly to shore.

  “Prepare the cages!” Junos ordered.

  Every knight reached for the cage doors containing the starving mongooses. The snakes were arriving rapidly and were now only a few yards away from the horses. From the top of his perch, Karmakas looked at the sight with glee. He sniggered and rubbed his hands, sure that his snakes woul
d quickly destroy these conceited humans.

  “Free the mongooses!” Junos shouted when the time was right.

  The doors of four hundred cages, containing one or two mongooses each, opened in unison. Seven hundred and seventy-seven small mammals that had been starved for days pounced onto the reptiles. The knights bolted away at full gallop. Being more agile than the snakes, the mongooses were jumping through the air, avoiding the fangs of their enemies and inflicting them with deadly wounds at each attack. As quick as lightning, their paws immobilized the cobras on the ground, while their strong teeth crushed the cobras’ heads. The mongooses caught the asps by their tail and twirled them in the air. Dizzy, the small snakes lost their reflexes, which allowed the mongooses to pin them to the ground and inflict a deadly bite. Although superior in number, the reptiles were completely overwhelmed. There was no escape, no place to hide.

  The battle lasted hardly ten minutes. About twenty mongooses lost their lives. Around the surviving ones, thousands of snakes lay lifeless in the grass. The mongooses began to feast under Karmakas’s eyes.

  The sorcerer seethed with rage. He stamped his feet, howling insults in his naga language and shaking his head in disbelief. How had the Berrion army known that he was going to send a cloud of snakes to rain over them? He had used this magic trick often, and few had ever managed to survive! As he looked at the unscathed men of Berrion, who were returning to their position in the fields, he smiled a tight smile.