Chapter 47

For a long minute, Mikel turned the key over in his hands, until he shook his head and stashed it back with its brothers, “I want to get more of the retainers on our side – but if we head away from Faraway to find them, then we'll lose time. Dad has persisted this long, but each day left is a gamble with his life as the stakes. If we take too long in preparation we might lose the chance to save him. Don’t plan long enough and we go in half-cocked, get ourselves killed, and then the old man is just as bad off. Maybe worse. If he had half a brain left at that point, he’d know we went into HelGate for him and no other reason.”

Helsket considered as he looked at the map again, examining the old roads stenciled across the map, with older town names associated with places he knew well, and others which had been long ruined when he’d been a boy.

“If you’re aiming to recruit all the retainers, as we discussed, it’ll be in vain. We don’t have the time. We don’t have the resources and most importantly they might not want to come.”

“I don’t need all of them,” Mikel said, “But enough. You and I could storm HelGate but I don't know what lies in wait for us. It could be things spawned from The Dark, or simply other adventurers looking for a way into HelGate and on the lookout for any leg up. The keys I have aren't the only ones around – they pop up in random spots every few years, as if in an invitation to try to run the hellish maze - but they are rare and when used properly do make the trek easier. Allegedly.”

“Allegedly," Helsket scoffed, "And that's the reason why there's a hoard of treasure beyond HelGate itself and through the paths. The accumulated wealth of a nation of dead hunters and adventurers, all succumbed to the allure of gold and wealth unimaginable.”

“And, the cure for all diseases. The Panacea.” Mikel drew out a leather-bound book with a piece of red cloth marking a page towards the end of the text. “Here.” He offered the book to Helsket, “This is the book I copied the note from. It goes into more depth about the Panacea.”

The book was ancient - by looks, far older than anything had the right to be.

Its leather cover was black, formerly brown, from long use and the spine showed wrinkles where it had been opened and closed innumerable times over its existence. Gold-flaked letters adorned the cover and spelled out strange words in an even stranger script - one unknown to Helsket.

He took the book and held it in his hands for a moment before Mikel interrupted his thought process.

“What? Looking for another electric shock, like you got from the key?”

Helsketh shook his head and grinned a half grin, “No. Nothing like that. I’ve just not seen something this ancient in a long while. It’s heavy and heavier still because of the history.”

“The page is marked - it’s the one we talked about on my first night in Farraway, the one I copied. I felt bad about the secrecy, but after you and the serving girl talked about how people liked to listen in public places like the tavern… I decided it would be better to be safer rather than sorry. There’s a detailed description of the Panacea in there - as well as written accounts of other, more ancient and possibly more powerful items, abilities and treasures.”

“Don’t apologize on my behalf,” Helsket said as he touched the edge of the cover with a rough fingertip and lifted it ever so gently before placing it to the side.

The leather creaked with ancient time seemingly bound in the leather, but held tight.

Helsket turned to the page and his eyes traced the page once, twice, and then a third time before he looked up at Mikel and shook his head.

***

“I don't understand. This... Panacea is supposed to cure all diseases? But even in this book, it's spoken of as a myth – a trick of the gods against mortals. Placing the idea of such a thing which never could exist as punishment for our sins against them. Don't you have more to go on?”

Mikel smiled and nodded, “I do. But I couldn't bring the book with me – it was in Dad's journal and he would have noticed had I taken it – however, I have the next best thing.”

The final item he pulled from the pack ended up being a small, leather-bound set of notes, tightly wrapped with a leather strap, turned a dozen times around, and tied to hold it in place. The leather of the cover and spine was wrinkled with use and sun spots shone on the cover. The pages were worn down in spots and showed obvious signs of extended wear.

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Mikel held it out as he took the other book of ancient artifacts back and set it on his lap.

“Here. First page. I copied it word for word. This was just after Dad was diagnosed, and before he sent you all away. It's not all the information we need but it's more than enough to go on.”

Helsket took the notes unwrapped the leather strap, no wider than a dove feather, and flipped to the first page.

The text on the page was written in a neat hand with no ink stains on the margins. The paper was treated, thin wood shake, and although supple, already showed decay and damage. The ink stood out against the white paper like black holes in existence. The writing on the page only took up about a third of the actual space but the contents were enough to arouse thoughts of strange possibilities in men’s hearts.

Helsket read what he found outloud.

“First of Lordsrain. Day is foggy, cold and overcast. All signs point to a cold, mild winter. The ground won't fully freeze and the crops will need more tending next year as weeds move in.

Ever since my diagnosis, I've felt strange, as if I'm slipping away bit by bit. I suppose it was happening before my knowing, but now I can recognize the effects of The Rot setting in. Best case scenario has me living for several more years... but at the cost of my sanity. Worst case, I die as the disease sets into my nerves, bones, and brain and kills me within weeks. I think I'd prefer the latter scenario.”

“While my senses and reason still belong to me, I intend to make full use of them. The last few days I've been busy. I sent Calcifer to the Library in Stennin to discover what he could about The Rot and any new advances in medical technology that had come to light – conventional or magical. It is darkly humorous that which got me into this mess, might get me out. A stroke of black luck would not be unwelcome at this time.”

“I've done my own studying and with the help of Sylix, we've uncovered a book of secrets locked in the Hoard, which was previously unknown to me. The presence of the book makes me think there are other hidden things here, which we might make use of in the coming days – the only problem is finding the damn, hidden things. The Seeking and Hunting Skill Sylix used took a week’s worth of Essentia and nearly killed her. If I hadn't caught her she would have broken her skull open on the plinth of a bust of my great grandfather. She's still in the infirmary, recovering, although it's been nearly a fortnight since we worked that magic.”

Helsket paused and looked up at Mikel, narrowing his eyes, “I remember that. Sylix wouldn't tell me a damn thing about how she ended up in the hospital for so long. She looked like death and reeked of Essentia backlash. Even weak, she refused me – she was always stalwart.”

Mikel nodded, remembering the tall, thin, and strangely beautiful woman who’d been one of only a handful of female retainers his father had in his service. He remembered even more vividly, the looks his mother gave the raven-haired mage, and how his dad had looked at Sylix, even when she’d been on her deathbed in the hospital.

“It goes on for another few paragraphs," Mikel said, "Unfortunately, it's the last time in his journal that he was truly cogent. He goes downhill fast. The rest of the book I found was simply the ravings of a lunatic. But, that memory must have been strong for him to have put it down here before things got too bad.”

Helsket nodded, remembering “That would be a hard thing to forget. I imagine he still has that lodged in his mind. Sylix, seeing her work was like watching an artist. Skill weaving her trade and Essentia her paint and canvas.” His eyes grew misty for a moment as memories of old deeds seemed to well up in him - a long moment passed before Mikel shifted and Helsket cleared his throat, mumbled words as he found his spot on the page and continued reading.

After a moment more and several more paragraphs, he looked back to Mikel, shook his head, and continued reading out loud.

“That cost though, was a small price to pay for what we found – an ancient catalog of legendary weapons, armor, and items of which my family has searched for, and in many cases over the years, found and stored within our estate. Reading through some of the descriptions, it's a wonder we haven't blown up in a nuclear-magical holocaust. Some of these things are as dangerous as a fire drake.”

Helsket continued.

“Within the book, amongst almost imaginary items, I found an entry for an item called The Panacea – although brief, the description is sufficient to give me hope that my family did indeed find this thing and stored it, hopefully here. It can cure all diseases, and reduce all ailments to mere trifling matters. The Rot is mentioned by its old name and gives me hope that soon, we'll find this Panacea and I'll be rid of this foul disease before it's too late. That would give me more time to raise Mikel and to care for my wife – Gods only know I've been an absentee father and awful husband for far too long. I hope I get the chance to make amends.”

Helsket's eyes roamed the pages once more before he re-wrapped the book and handed it back to Mikel, who instead of placing it back into his bag, held it against his chest and stared at the ground.

“At least he was thinking of you and your mom. I can't imagine him not. Not in those dark days at least.”

“It's good to be able to read this and see he did actually care about us - or did at one point. It's hard to even be near him now. You can feel the hate and the corruption growing within him, minute by minute.”

Mikel paused and shifted his grip on the book, the leather creaking before locking eyes with Helsket and nodding, affirming to himself the path he’d chosen.

“Dad goes on to talk about his plans to release you all after he fails to find the Panacea. I copied those pages as well, in the hopes it would convince some of the more stubborn retainers that Dad had the best intentions in his heart when he cut you loose, before... before his mind and body betrayed him.”

“It's good you did that. There are several of us who took the devesting terribly. Sylix chief among them. She swore enmity towards your family for a lifetime and a day, as she left the estate and spat a curse for good measure on her way out... Although now, it appears the curse was lost in something far worse.”

“That may be so, but it doesn't change the fact we have to go to HelGate to retrieve the Panacea one my ancestors took into the Hel Realms.”

“And... Why would anyone take something so valuable into a realm full of monsters waiting to eat your face?”

“To cure it – you've heard the stories about how the Hel Realms are just corrupted versions of our realm... some even theorize The Rot has something to do with the corruption and might even be responsible for corrupting those realms - and slowly and in turn, our realm.”

“That's about the most insane thing I've ever heard.”

“Wait until you hear the next part.”