When he reached the door it fell in at a blow of his sword and he was in a small chamber. Jagreen Lern had disappeared. Dismounting, Elric went to a small door in the farthest corner of the room and again demolished it A narrow stair led upwards, obviously into a tower.
Now he could take his vengeance, he thought, as he reached yet another door at the top of the stair and-drew back his sword to smite it. The blow fell, but the door held.
«Curse the thing, it is protected by charms! » he swore.
He was just about to aim another blow, when he heard Moonglum's urgent calling from below.
«Elric! Elric - they've defeated the creatures. They are returning to the palace.»
He would have to leave Jagreen Lern for the meantime. He sprang down the steps, into the chamber and out on to the stair. In the hall he saw the flowing shapes of the unholy trinity. Half-way up the stair, Moonglum was quaking.
«Stormbringer, » said Elric, »it is time to summon your brothers.»
The sword twisted in his hand, as if in assent
Elric began to chant the mind-torturing, throat-torturing rune that Sepiriz had taught him.
Stormbringer moaned a counterpoint chorus to the dirge as the battle-worn dukes assumed different shapes and began to rise menacingly towards Elric.
Then, in the air all about him, he saw shapes appear, shadowy shapes half on his own plane, half on the plane of Chaos. He saw them stir and suddenly it seemed as if the air was filled with a million swords, each a twin to Stormbringer!
Acting on instinct, Elric released his grip on his blade and flung it towards the rest. It hung in the air before them and they seemed to acknowledge it «Lead them, Stormbringer Lead them against the dukes-or your master perishes and you'll not drink another human soul again! »
The sea of swords rustled and a dreadful moaning emanated from them. The dukes flung themselves upwards towards the albino and he recoiled before the evil hatred that poured from the twisting shapes.
Glancing down he saw Moonglum slumped in his saddle and did not know if he had perished or fainted.
Then the swords rushed upon the reaching dukes and Elric's head swam with the sight of a million blades plunging into the stuff of their beings.
The unholy noise of the battle filled his ears, the dreadful sight of the toiling conflict clouded his vision. Without Stormbringer's vitality he felt weak and limp. He felt his knees shake and crumple and he could do nothing to aid the black sword's brothers as they clashed with the Dukes of Hell.
He collapsed, aware that if he witnessed such horror much longer he would become totally insane. Thankfully, he felt his mind go blank and then, at last, he was unconscious, unable to know which would win.
Five
His body itched. His arms and bade ached. His wrists pounded with agony. Elric opened his eyes.
Immediately opposite him, spreadeagled in chains against the wall he saw Moonglum. Dull flame nickered in the centre of the place and he felt pain cm his naked knee, looked down and saw Jagreen Lern.
The Theocrat spat at him.
«So, » Elric said horrowly. «I failed. You triumph after all.»
Jagreen Lern did not look triumphant Rage still burned in his eyes.
«Oh, how shall I punish you, » he said.
«Punish me? Then-?» Elric's heartbeat increased.
«Your final spell succeeded, » the Theocrat said dully, turning away to contemplate the brazier. «Both your allies and mine vanished and all my attempts to contact the dukes have proved fruitless. You achieved your threat-or your minions did-you sent them back to Chaos forever! »
«My sword-what of that?»
The Theocrat smiled bitterly. «That's my only pleasure. Your sword vanished with its brothers. You are weak and helpless now, Elric. You are mine to maim and torture until the end of my life.»
Elric was dumbfounded by the news. Part of him rejoiced that the dukes had been beaten. Part of him lamented the loss of his sword. As Jagreen Lern had emphasised, without the blade he was less than half a man, for his albinoism weakened him. Already his eye-sight was dimmer and he felt no response in his limbs.
Jagreen Lern looked up at him.
«Enjoy the comparatively painless days left you, Elric, but I leave you to anticipate what I have in store for you. I must away and instruct my men in the final preparations for the war-fleet soon to sail against the South. I won't waste time with crude torture now, for all the while I shall be scheming the most exquisite tortures conceivable. You shall take long years to die. I swear! »
He left the cell and as the door slammed he heard Jagreen Lern instructing the guard.
«Keep the brazier at full blast. Let them sweat like damned souls in hell. Feed them enough to keep them alive once every three days. They will soon be crying for water. Give them only sufficient to sustain their lives. They deserve far worse than this and they'll get their desserts when my mind has had time to work on the problem.»
A day later, the real agony began. Their bodies gave out the last of their sweat Their tongues were swollen in their heads and all the time as they groaned in their torment, they were aware that this terrible torture would be nothing compared to what they might expect Elric's weakened body would not respond to his desperate struggling and at length his mind dulled, the agony became constant and familiar, and time was non-existent
Finally, through a pain-thick daze, he recognised a voice. The hate-filled voice of Jagreen Lern.
Others were in the chamber. He felt their hands seize him and his body was suddenly light as he was borne, moaning from the cell.
Though he heard disjointed phrases he could make no sense of Jagreen Lern's words.
He was taken to a dark place that rolled about, hurting his scorched chest
Later, he heard Moonglum's voice and strained to hear the words.
«Elric! What's happening? We're aboard a ship at sea, I'd swear»
But Elric mumbled disinterestedly. Gradually his deficient body was weakening, faster than would a normal man's. He thought of Zarozinia, whom he would never see again. He knew he would not live to know whether Law or Chaos finally won, or even if the Southlands would stand against the theocrat.
And these problems were fading in his mind again.
Then the food started to come and the water and it revived turn somewhat At some stage, he opened his eyes and stared upwards into the thinly smiling face of Jagreen Lern.
«Thank the gods, » said the Theocrat «I feared we'd lost you. You're a delicate case to be sure, my friend. You must stay alive longer than this. To begin my entertainment, I have arranged for you to sail on my own flagship. We are now crossing the Dragon Sea, our fleet well-protected by charms against the monsters roaming these parts.» He frowned. «Thanks to you, we haven't the same call for the charms which would have borne us safely through the Chaos-torn waters. They are almost normal for the moment. But that will soon be changed.»
Elric's old spirit returned for a moment and he glared at his enemy, too weak to voice the loathing he felt.
Jagreen Lern laughed softly and stirred Eric's gaunt white head with the the of his boot «I think I can brew a drug which will give you a little more vitality.»
The food was foul-tasting and had to be forced between Eric's mumbling lips, but after a while he was able to sit up and observe the huddled body of Moonglum. Evidently the little man had totally succumbed to his torture. To his surprise, Elric discovered he was unfettered and he crawled the agonising distance between himself and the Eastlander, shaking Moonglum's shoulder. He groaned but did not respond.