IGMS Issue 8 Read Online Free PDF Page B

of old brine. One of the eels rolled to the surface and gulped in air.
    Something red lay at the bottom of the barrel. Was it a rock? She peered closer.
    "It's his eye," said the
volhov
. "An eye so that I may see. A shem in his stomach to break his bindings and govern his will."
    "What are these eels?"
    The
volhov
did not answer. She wondered. Did they carry his life? Were they his familiars or talisman? Were they his masters?
    He pushed the table to the side to make space on the floor. He ordered his soldiers to bring the wooden bath. He turned to the golem and commanded it to fetch the barrels from the wagon.
    The golem turned and exited the hut.
    "Very soon, I will take his heart to keep his life safe in my hands."
    A few minutes later two soldiers brought in an empty wooden box the size and shape of a coffin into the room. The inside was the light color of maple. Outside, it had been shellacked in red. There was no lid.
    Braslava knew this was not a box to be put in the earth.
    They placed the box in the center of the floor.
    The golem returned, carrying a barrel a normal man would be forced to roll.
    The
volhov
walked over to the golem and removed the bung. He pointed to the box. "Dump it inside."
    The golem did. It brought in three more barrels, all filled with what smelled like seawater brine, and emptied their contents into the box as well.
    Braslava wondered where Anja was. She'd had more than enough time to reach Mislav's. More than enough time to slaughter the ram.
    The
volhov
motioned one of his men over to help him. Together they lifted the barrel of eels and dumped them into the box.
    "Come, golem," said the
volhov
. "Stand in the waters."
    The golem turned its gaze to look at Braslava with its one eye.
    "Golem," commanded the
volhov
.
    The golem held her gaze a few moments more then stepped into the box.
    One of the eels gently wrapped itself about his leg.
    Where was Anja?
    "Lie down," said the
volhov
. "Lie down and cover yourself in brine."
    Braslava did not know the magic of this wizard. But she knew this bath of stinking water was a grave, a death from which her golem would not return.
    "No," she whispered.
    The golem sat, like a man in a bath. The glistening back of an eel broke the surface of the water and moved past the golem's waist. Then the golem laid itself back and, with barely a disturbance, slipped beneath the brine.
    She looked down upon it under the water. The eels swam over the golem, caressing its body with their fat lengths, nuzzling its crevices with their broad and bearded heads.
    A commotion rose outside. "Where is the
volhov
?" It was Mislav.
    The
volhov
looked up, a smile of triumph on his face. He crossed the hut to the door and exited. Braslava followed him.
    Mislav stood in the yard, his baby, wailing and red-faced, in his arms. Nina was held back by two soldiers.
    Anja lagged behind, but there was no bottle, no jug, not even a covered bowl of sacrifical blood.
    Braslava's heart fell.
    "We are honored," said Mislav.
    Something suddenly locked in place in her mind. It was Mislav who had alerted the Ban. Mislav who had called this wizard.
    She would not believe Mislav was involved with this great evil. And yet, there he was, one knee to the ground.
    Anja walked through the yard, skirting Mislav and the
volhov
. She walked up to the door, panting.
    "What happened?" asked Braslava.
    "Inside," she said.
    When they stood in the house, Anja turned to the soldier there. "Your captain says he has your payment. If you don't get it quick, he'll give it to another."
    The soldier turned and walked out the door.
    Braslava turned to Anja. "What --"
    Anja cut her off. "Quickly," she said. She withdrew a small pot from her tunic and a small bundle of fresh mint. She put them on the chair.
    Braslava's heart soared. She should have never doubted Anja. They had to get the golem out of the water. "You take the feet," said Braslava. "I'll take the shoulders."
    "The golem's too heavy," said Anja. "We'll