Chilled exorcist - Александр Алексеевич Алексеенко

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monster from sucking you dry. I didn't let it do that, but the creature disappeared into the darkness again and pulled power from the other side. I screamed, it didn't hurt, I just felt my reaction speed going away and my body getting absorbent cotton. And this beast had just fed off Bourne, and now it was feeding on me! There was laughter in the darkness.

      "I won't leave a bite of you, you're delicious," the ancient ghoul said, drawing some of my life force again. I waved him away with the barely clenched object in my hand, causing only laughter.

      "But this is a moment I'll savor…" And he pulled his power again and jumped aside. I released my reserve of strength, as the novices had taught me, and grouped myself, preparing to straighten like a bowstring. But the creature, sensing the stored energy, laughed again and fled. "If it keeps acting like this – I'll pass out! Come on, just show yourself!" rushed through my thoughts, and I realized I was losing. As if reading my thoughts, the bloodsucker glowed again. Its chest lit up brightly behind my back to let me know it was too late to do anything. The beast leaped at me though. Perhaps its released reserve and hunger drove it to do so. The monster probably thought that since it was so tasty and nutritious, it was better not to waste the extra… Who knows who they are, these ancient ghouls? In the pouch I wore on my belt, I clutched a magmobomb. "If I am to perish, it is by taking the choler with me, as the Titan Yodkheim does when restraining Tlekorz the Apprentice before each night." Such is the motto of all hunters. Slowly, as if in a muddle, I turned around, trying to close in. But I could sense that the bloodsucker's perfectly calculated plan had left me with no role other than to run into the claws flying at me, when suddenly a swift, blue-green bolt of lightning shot up from somewhere in the darkness and struck the monster in the side, knocking it away from me. Everything went dark again.

      There was a screech, the crunch of claws grinding. Stepping aside, I hit the crystal cage and immediately picked it up. Ahead of me was a pitched battle. I suspended my crystal over my head and risked shining a brighter light. A huge owl bear lifted my opponent over my head and tore the bloodsucker in two.

      I stood there without moving. The mythical monster owl bear separated the monster's head from its body with one powerful blow, and tilted its head to the side and looked at me expectantly. His whole look said, "Are you going to fight?" I dimmed the fire and lowered the crystal candle. The forest beast scrutinized me, sniffed me, and took its prey and carried it to the entrance of the crypt. Borna had come to his senses and was huddled against a column, whispering something. He seemed to be repeating one word, "No."

      I knew what was coming next. Grabbing my crossbow and my bag, I ran into the forest without turning around. Behind me there was a wild roar, a clack, and then the short, shrill cry of a man. The smell told everything.

      Chapter 4: "The Count's Reception"

      I pondered as I viewed the inner vineyards through the window of my room in the tower of Castle Feanoth. Once upon a time, this inner valley, hidden from outside troubles, had been a source of food and valuable herbs for the region, allowing the warriors to push back the gray earth that had then approached the castle itself, spreading most heavily in the early days of the infestation.

      The uneven stones of the walls were smoothed as only dwarven craftsmen could. The walkers, artisans, and miners hired by the first lord of these lands have furnished the castle to their liking, and so it is common in the shire to settle mostly within the castle itself. Of course, there are small houses and wooden buildings in the inner lands, but most of them are still on the fertile plains. Of the more recent buildings inside the castle, there was a hippodrome, a trade and crafts quarter near the gates. But mostly the servants and inhabitants were housed according to the custom of these places inside the castle walls, underground chambers of the castle and towers. And in the highest spires of Feanot the sages and magicians found their shelter.

      The history of this amazing castle is full of intrigue and unexpected turns. The very first count was able with great difficulty to gain an audience with Grave Mosshovik, where the question of the right to own this land was raised. The Emperor listened to the nobleman and agreed that if he could build a fortress in a year, he would get possession of such a vast land.

      Promising to pay his tithes faithfully, the ancestor of the Dreir Feanoth family made a secret pact with the underground travelers of the Blue Mountains and several ancient mages of Zakat. The castle was erected by the wizards in the shortest possible time, with its exterior splendor and tall spires, and polished by the dwarves on the inside for another ten years. For such help, Theanoth promised great freedoms for the mages of his county, practically making them independent. And the dwarves were promised all the gold to be found in the bowels of the mountains.

      The tunnelers, hearing of this generosity, designed a deep network of tunnels beneath the castle in the likeness of the royal chambers of Onyx the Merry. It is said that Count Dreir Feanoth twisted and bit his elbows when he saw the carts loaded with gold leaving towards the Blue Mountains. And yet, the resulting castle was a good place to house all the people of the county. And perhaps it was worth even more than what its builders had gotten.

      Thus, Theanoth gained its uniqueness and became known as a castle reaching both the heights and depths of the mountains. Towering over the valley with its sharp Gothic spires, it completely isolated it from the outside world with its fortifications. It was as if he had placed a hand with its thumb jutted upward in the shape of a gate tower, saying, "I have fulfilled your commission, Grave Mohawk. This is now my domain."

      The fortifications were truly inspiring. All along the valley's perimeter, mountain spires echoed the towers. "If I were a painter, I might even want to paint them," I thought.

      But still, the fame of the largest defensive fortification in Terresia does not belong to it. It is rightfully held by the Fortress of Rukh, which was built among the thunderbirds' nests to completely isolate the southern coast from the north. The Sand Mountains have only one crossing, bridging which back during the First Age a small outpost gradually turned into a fortress. At the time, it was smaller than all the cities of Terresia.

      Gradually more and more fortifications were added to it. To this day that castle still provides breeding and nesting grounds for thunderbirds. There was the First Gate to the Native Lands, and then the Second Gate in the Pass of the Claw. There is also the Abode of Light, the Order's Oplot, and the Castle of Thane, which is more of an ancient ornament than a serious defensive fortification. Also of note here is the Cathedral of Titan Jodkheim, where the Firstborn of the Amber Isles escaped to in modern times.

      And even the second and third places on the list do not belong to Feanoth. Innesent, with a coastal port and a white belt of walls around it, erected on an island at the source of three rivers. It is virtually impregnable thanks to its white fortifications. Next in size will be Kostegrad, whose city walls, which defended the city once upon a time, have been left behind by beggars camped around an ancient stone heart. Only these cities would be followed by Feanoth, completing the four largest fortifications of Terresia. A castle built with dwarves and mages alike.

      And strangely enough, the capital of the Empire itself, Amberesvet the Great, as well as Red Port, Iron Grip and the large but wooden Burning Cauldron would only take the last place. Here the main emphasis was placed on the Lord's castle and the fortifications for it. Without that fortification, they would be no different from the cities of the Homelands north of Fortress Ruch, stretching all the way to the First Gate. And the Forbidden Cape, or otherwise known as Ghost Cape, where the people of the whisperers-in-the-night live, would be barely larger than the outposts in the mountains, where only the guardians rule.

      Why did I wonder about a contest in the size of the fortifications of all the castles of Terresia? Probably the upcoming tournament put me in that competitive mood. But I digress....

      Today, Castle Feanoth was more crowded than ever. People in the valley were hurriedly stopping work in the vineyards and rushing to the castle. It seems that the Count's tournament had attracted many brave men, both heroes – knights from all over the lands, and mercenaries – hunters for profit.

      Mercenaries crowded the corridors, guards and servants scurried here and there. Even here, away from the feasting hall and the exits

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