The Ransom Knight Read Online Free PDF Page B

residence in the castle and started calling himself Sir Traeger Highstone. I don’t know how, but he found the relic of dark magic and started using it.”
    “What is it?” said Mazael. 
    “A kalchweisyr,” said Atalia.
    “What the devil is that?” said Mazael. 
    “A sword,” said Atalia. “About the length of a longsword, but thinner. The Dark Elderborn wizards of old designed them to summon and control spirits. Traeger found it, used it, and it promptly drove him insane.”
    “Because he isn’t a wizard?” said Gerald. 
    Atalia shrugged. “Because he’s human, not Dark Elderborn. I don’t think the kalchweisyr was designed to work with human minds. And Traeger hardly possessed a mind of great subtlety to begin with.” She rubbed her jaw. “I think he took Castle Highstone and thought to set himself up as a robber knight. Instead he found the kalchweisyr, and now he thinks he’s going to summon an army of spirits and conquer the world.”
    “Can he?” said Mazael.
    “Probably not,” said Atalia. “The Dark Elderborn didn’t, and they were far stronger wizards than any human living today. I suspect instead that Traeger will keep summoning more and more powerful spirits until they finally overwhelm him, kill him, and then run amok through the Stormvales. Or he’ll summon up a particularly powerful spirit that will possess him, and it will use its powers to create a realm for itself in the mortal world. Many denizens of the spirit world, alas, are not exactly benevolent.” 
    “That explains how Sir Traeger ended up with the kalchweisyr,” said Mazael, “but it doesn’t explain how you became Sir Traeger’s herald.”
    Atalia smiled. “I lied to him. I came here to destroy whatever source of dark magic was in Castle Highstone. When I found that Traeger had it, I claimed that I had been inspired by his greatness, realized it was his destiny to conquer the world, and that I had come to serve him.”
    “He fell for that?” said Mazael. 
    “Sir Traeger was not exactly a genius,” said Atalia. “I hoped to find a way to get the kalchweisyr away from him, but the opportunity never presented itself. The weapon scared away all of his men, or he killed them in fits of rage, but he always kept the damned thing on him. Then Sir Edmund Redmane blundered into Traeger’s lands, and Traeger’s pet spirits took him hostage. I saw an opportunity…” 
    “You sent the ransom letter to Lord Malden,” said Mazael. He growled and struck his leg with a fist. “Damn it all, that’s why Trocend came. You signed your name to the letter. That’s why Trocend expected to find you here. He knew all along that this was more than a simple ransom.”
    “It worked, didn’t it?” said Atalia. “I hoped to lure Trocend here, and then he could deal with Traeger and destroy the kalchweisyr. Unfortunately, it seems the spirits were more than Trocend could handle.”
    “Did Traeger kill Trocend and the armsmen?” said Mazael.
    “I don’t know,” said Atalia. “Traeger has been getting worse lately. He’s…not thinking clearly. Maybe he thinks Trocend will join him. Or maybe he thinks to put one of his summoned spirits into Trocend’s body. That would…create a creature of considerable power.”
    “And malevolence and insanity, I assume,” said Mazael.
    “I fear you are correct,” said Atalia.
    “The solution to the problem is simple,” said Mazael.
    “And just what is that?” said Atalia.
    “We kill Traeger, destroy the kalchweisyr, and free the captives,” said Mazael.
    Atalia barked out laugh. “Just like that?” 
    “Just like that,” said Mazael. “Do you have a better idea?”
    “You are either bold or a madman,” said Atalia.
    “Why can’t I be both?” said Mazael. “Can you open the castle gate for us?”
    “I could,” said Atalia, “but Traeger has bound spirits to watch over it. They will manifest the minute we cross the gate.”
    “Is there another way into the