Pulp Empire’s newest anthology is now available in print and ebook editions!

Heroes of Mars tells five new stories set on the savage world of Mars! Great new tales by Geoff Gander, Evan Dicken, Mark Brandon Allen, Travis Hiltz and J.M. Stewart, plus an essay by Teel James Glenn!

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Pulp Empire’s newest anthology is now available in print and ebook editions!

Heroes of Mars tells five new stories set on the savage world of Mars! Great new tales by Geoff Gander, Evan Dicken, Mark Brandon Allen, Travis Hiltz and J.M. Stewart, plus an essay by Teel James Glenn!

Print copies are now available for a mere $11.00 from Createspace!

E-book editions are also available for Kindle (through Amazon), Smashwords and Barnes & Noble (for Nook) at only $2.99!

An Amazon print edition will be available later in the week! Stay tuned to the site for details!

Amazon is now offering a solid discount on the cover price of our Heroes & Heretics anthology. We have no idea how long the sale price will last, but currently you can get the book for over four dollars off its regular price of $16!

Click the link below to pick [...]]]>

Amazon is now offering a solid discount on the cover price of our Heroes & Heretics anthology. We have no idea how long the sale price will last, but currently you can get the book for over four dollars off its regular price of $16!

Click the link below to pick up a copy!

More here.

And from now [...]]]>

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Now available through Createspace, Pulp Empire is proud to present Heroes & Heretics in print. This is our biggest anthology ever with 19 new stories that run the gamut from fantasy to sports to horror. If you enjoy any kind of pulp, you will find stories you enjoy in this book.

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Right now if you use product code “62QUSQGC” at our Createspace store you can get a whopping 25% off of the cover price of Pirates & Swashbucklers! Head over to our Createspace store and enter the code at checkout to get your discount!

This offer expires January 15th so make sure to [...]]]>

Right now if you use product code “62QUSQGC” at our Createspace store you can get a whopping 25% off of the cover price of Pirates & Swashbucklers! Head over to our Createspace store and enter the code at checkout to get your discount!

This offer expires January 15th so make sure to pick up your copy soon!

Our seventh Pulp Empire anthology Heroes & Heretics is on the way to print in just a few short weeks but in the mean time the book is now available for all e-reader devices! Pick up your copy by clicking on the preferred publisher link below!

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The anthology will feature 19 new stories by authors new and old! It will be our biggest collection yet as well [...]]]> With a planned release just after Christmas, the seventh volume of Pulp Empire stories nears publication! Now we are happy to debut the cover to our new collection!

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The anthology will feature 19 new stories by authors new and old! It will be our biggest collection yet as well as our last general pulp category publication before we move in to our themed anthologies for next year!

Voyage of the Hangman

Young Will Reaves leaned over the side rail, peering with the rest of the crew at the wreckage off the ship’s port bow.

“Must’ve been some kind of disaster,” muttered Shiv Turley, [...]]]> Unsure about Pirates & Swashbucklers? Check out this sample story by Jason Kahn.

Voyage of the Hangman

Young Will Reaves leaned over the side rail, peering with the rest of the crew at the wreckage off the ship’s port bow.

“Must’ve been some kind of disaster,” muttered Shiv Turley, standing beside him. Will didn’t answer; he just looked at the blackened pieces of wood and flotsam that bobbed with the waves, along with the bodies. There were scores of them, most face down, others bared to the hot afternoon sun, bloated and hideous.

There was one in a tattered robe, his arm flung across a broken spar. He didn’t move, but somehow, Will knew.

“That one’s alive.” He reached out, pointing.

The First Mate, Mr. Fengris, was beside Will in an instant. He looked at the form, limp and lifeless to all appearances.

“You’re sure about that, Mr. Reaves?” he asked.

Will nodded. “Yes sir.”

Mr. Fengris shouted orders and the Hangman’s Noose turned slightly to port, nosing through the debris to come closer to the drifting figure.

Captain Dunharrow, tall and imposing, came over as a long boathook was extended out over the water.

“Let’s get him aboard now, step lively lads,” he called out.

The hook snagged on the sodden form’s robe and the crew reeled him in like a fisherman’s catch, lowering him to the deck. He was an old man with grey hair and beard, and though he lay wet and still, he clutched something to his chest.

Mr. Fengris squinted at the motionless figure. “What shall we do with him, Captain, sir?”

There was a calculating gleam in Captain Dunharrow’s eyes. “That depends on what we find out about him when he wakes up.”

Mr. Fengris grinned knowingly. “You mean to ransom him, sir?”

Captain Dunharrow affected a wounded expression. “Ransom is such a harsh word, Mr. Fengris. Let’s say that for a modest finder’s fee, I’d be happy to reunite the poor man with his loving family.”

The crew chuckled appreciatively. If the old man had noble blood in him, the ransom would be even higher. While raiding merchant ships and ill-defended ports had served the Hangman’s Noose well, a hefty ransom for a member of a wealthy family could be just as profitable.

Captain Dunharrow frowned. “Of course, that’s assuming he wakes up.”

Shiv nudged Will. “You sure he’s alive, Willie?”

Will bent down to make sure the old man was breathing. He touched his shoulder, and abruptly the man’s eyes opened wide. The gathered crew gasped, and as the man’s eyes locked onto Will, a torrent of strange impressions invaded his mind. He saw a ship’s crew, wild eyed, fighting amongst themselves. He felt a desperate need to hide, and an overpowering fear. And above all was the awareness of some horrifying presence that had spread throughout the ship.

“Willie?” Shiv grabbed his arm and Will let go of the old man, staggering back.

“Sorry,” Will said, stunned. “I just…”

“It’s alright,” Shiv said. “Bit of a shock him opening his peepers like that.”

The old man’s eyes had closed again, and Mr. Fengris ordered him brought below to one of the private quarters where he could be tended to.

Will stared after him. “Yeah, bit of a shock.”

*****

That night, Will tossed and turned in his bunk in the main cabin. His dreams were filled with disturbing portents. He saw beings in the shape of seagulls board the ship, squeezing into Captain Dunharrow’s cabin and that of Mr. Fengris. The gulls died as the entities exited their bodies and entered the Captain and Mr. Fengris. The two figures jerked and swayed, their features horribly contorted. Then the transformation was complete, and Will watched as the two straightened, their lips curving in wicked smiles. And when Will saw their eyes he knew fear as someone else, something else, looked out.

He awoke in a cold sweat, the dream still vivid in his mind. He would have dismissed it as mere nightmare except for the vision he had received from the old man. The beings filled him with that same fear.

Will swung his legs over and dropped to the floor. He padded on bare feet to the end of the cabin, easing the door open and slipping out into the corridor that led to the private quarters. A single line of light split the darkness. The door to the room in which the old man lay was open a crack, and voices came from within.

Will overrode his fear and crept up to the door, kneeling and putting his eye to the crack. He saw the man lying with his back against the opposite wall. His eyes were unfocused and his head lolled to one side. A pouch lay in his hand, empty, and a trickle of blood ran down his grey beard. Squatting over him was Mr. Fengris.

“Did you think we would not find you, old fool?” Mr. Fengris said. He touched the blood on the old man’s mouth and licked a finger. The man remained motionless, stunned.

Mr. Fengris turned his head, addressing someone out of Will’s view. “Why can’t we rip his feeble mind apart and find out what we wish to know?”

“His mind is too well shielded,” Will heard Captain Dunharrow say. “Fortunately, you found those marvelous implements in your quarters. Humans respond so well to physical pain.” He chuckled darkly.

Mr. Fengris picked up an object, one of the small cutting tools the First Mate used to perform surgery on the wounded.

Light from the lantern flashed off the blade as Mr. Fengris brandished it in front of the man’s face. “Ready to play?”

The old man struggled, but Mr. Fengris sat on him, forcing him down. The First Mate grabbed the old man by the throat, bringing the sharp blade near. He leered at the helpless captive. “What will you lose first? An ear? Perhaps an eye?”

The blade moved closer and the old man looked wildly about the cabin, desperate for some means of escape. Will looked on in horror as the things that had taken over his Captain and First Mate were about to torture the unfortunate soul. Then the man’s gaze fell upon the crack in the door. Though Will was hidden in darkness, somehow the old man saw him. Their eyes met, the man’s widening with sudden hope. To Will, it seemed like some translucent form rose up out of the captive and rushed toward him. In the next instant, Will fell back, hit by some physical impact that he could not see. There was a moment of disorientation, and then Will had the strange feeling that he was not alone.

A voice sounded in his head. “You’d better get away from here, boy. Those two are about to get very annoyed.” It was the old man.

Bewildered, Will was about to question the presence in his head when the old man’s voice interrupted. “Don’t speak out loud, boy, they’ll hear you. Just think the words.”

Inside the cabin, Captain Dunharrow’s voice was an angry hiss. “Vort, what happened to him?”

“I do not know, Zuliel, there is no longer life in the body.”

Captain Dunharrow grunted. “The wizard has fled. But we have the Key now, nothing else matters.”

“What do we do with him?” Mr. Fengris asked.

“Keep him in your quarters, watch for his return,” Captain Dunharrow said. “If he does not, sacrifice him with the others. Either way, we proceed as planned.”

The old man was a wizard? And what sacrifice? Will didn’t like the sound of that. He would have liked to hear more, but he didn’t dare. Will silently crept back through the corridor into the sleeping cabin, easing into his own bunk. Under the thin blanket, Will started shaking, but not from the cold.

“Try and get a hold of yourself, lad,” the old man said.

“The name’s Will, not lad, and not boy,” Will retorted. “And would you mind telling me what in the seven hells is going on? What are you doing in my head, and what in the Thousand Isles has happened to Captain Dunharrow and Mr. Fengris?”

Will heard a sigh come from the old man as he collected himself. “Alright, Will, my name is Hanaam. I am of the Brotherhood of Mages, and unfortunately, your two shipmates have been possessed by two rather malicious demons.”

“What the blazes do they want?”

“To open a gate, so their master and his hordes can come into this world,” Hanaam said. “A few such as these two have slipped through and are seeking to prepare the way.”

Will digested that for a moment. “Alright, what do they want with the Captain, and Mr. Fengris?”

“They’re using this boat to take them to where the gate is,” Hanaam explained. “They also took something from me that will help them open the gate, something I was on my way to destroy.”

“That’d be the Key?”

“Yes.” Hanaam’s voice turned irritated. “I was hoping that I and my brothers could devise a way to deal with it. The Key is not of this world, and so cannot be destroyed by ordinary means.”

“And so now the demons have it,” Will said.

“Yes, though I don’t understand how they came aboard this ship.”

Will’s response was automatic. “They used a pair of birds,” he said. “I had a dream about it.”

Startlement emanated from the wizard. “Birds? The ancient texts never mentioned them being able to do that. Most odd, and how could you have…?” Hanaam paused and Will had the uncomfortable sensation of someone rummaging through his mind, turning over items, peering at them.

Hanaam uttered a surprised oath. “Did you know you have talent?”

“Talent for what?”

“Magical talent,” Hanaam said. “Didn’t your family notice when you were young? Didn’t anyone ever offer to train you?”

“My parents kicked me out when I was eight,” Will said. “This here crew’s the only family I’ve ever had. A lot of times I’d have a funny feeling that would turn out to be right, but nobody ever told me it was because I was a wizard or some such.”

“Well, the potential is certainly there,” Hanaam said. “And it explains about these feelings and dreams of yours. This may prove useful in defeating our demon foes.”

“Yeah? Well first things first, why don’t you get back to your own body now?”

“You heard them, they’re watching, it isn’t safe, and I’d rather not be tortured,” Hanaam said. “There will be plenty of time to return me to my body later. Right now, we have to concentrate on foiling Zuliel and Vort.”

Will frowned, he didn’t much like carrying a stow-away, but Hanaam was right, there were more serious matters to deal with. “How do we get the Captain and Mr. Fengris back?”

There was a pause, Hanaam’s voice was grave. “We can’t Will; they’re gone. Their souls were devoured when the demons took them over. I’m sorry.”

Will put a hand over his face. Captain Dunharrow had been like a father to him, Mr. Fengris a curmudgeonly old uncle, and now they were gone thanks to a pair of soul-eating demons. Laying there in the darkness, he tried to swallow his grief.

“So why don’t I just wake up the boys and we’ll go lay into ‘em?” Will asked.

“For one, how many of the crew would believe you?” Hanaam asked. “And I doubt you could overpower them. They’re much stronger than normal humans, and they can control the minds of those around them.”

“So what are we supposed to do? Nothing?”

“For the time being, we must wait. Once we get to where the demons want to go, their guard will be down, that will be our best chance.”

“Where exactly do they want to go?”

“From the writings of the ancients,” Hanaam answered, “it is said that the demon gate in this realm can only be found every five hundred years in a place marked by each of the four elements.”

“What kind of nonsense is that? There isn’t any such place!”

“It is rather cryptic, but that’s all we have to go on,” Hanaam said.

“Well that’s just dandy,” Will said sourly.

“It gets worse,” Hanaam said. “Demons live on fear and despair. I suspect that during our voyage, they will feed on your crew.”

“Is that what happened on the other ship?” Will asked.

“Yes,” Hanaam said. “But the crew was too large for them to control. The men eventually went mad and destroyed the ship. I used my arts to hide as soon as I sensed the demons aboard, but as you can see, they followed me to your ship.”

Will swallowed. “And now they’re going to do the same thing here?”

“Yes,” Hanaam answered. “I can protect you from the worst of it, but things are going to get very bad here. You’d best catch what sleep you can.”

*****

The ship was already moving when Will, bleary eyed and foggy, assumed his morning duties on deck. The sky was grey and overcast, and from the wind and sun, Will judged they had turned and were running east. Their original course was southwest toward the commerce lanes between the Inner and Middle Rings of the Archipelago of the Thousand Isles, where fat merchant ships would be ripe for the taking. Shiv told him in a low voice that the Captain had ordered the change in course during the night without explanation to anyone.

Will began applying pitch to various parts of the deck. He cautiously looked around, noting the confused looks on the faces of the other crewmen. Will shot a quick glance at the Captain, who was pacing the deck.

“Step lively, lads,” he called out.

To all outward appearances, it was still Captain Dunharrow. He stood tall in his midnight blue great coat, a black admiral’s hat on his head with a long, yellow feather stuck at a rakish angle.

Shiv looked up from a mainsail line he was tightening. “Excuse me, Captain, Sir, me and the mates were just wondering about the change of course. Where are we headed?”

Captain Dunharrow stopped dead in his tracks. A cruel smile played across his features. “Well now, Mr. Turley,” the Captain said. “Why don’t you go below and have a chat with Mr. Fengris? He’ll fill you in on everything you need to know.”

“Aye, sir.” Shiv nodded as he hurried below. In a half hour, Shiv came back on deck. He was pale as a ghost, and he moved haltingly. Will studied the small, wiry man. He was trembling, and in his eyes Will saw the haunted look of someone trying to keep terror at bay.

“Shivsey,” Will whispered as he crouched on the deck. “You alright?”

Shiv swallowed hard, and his voice was a harsh rasp. “I’m not sure, Willie,” he murmured. “I went down to talk to Mr. Fengris, and we were chatting right enough. Then, I must’ve nodded off, because next thing I know, I’m dreaming. Horrible, evil dreams they were.” He closed his eyes tight, trying to rid his mind of the images. “And after I woke up, I can’t seem to get them out of my head.”

Will struggled for words. “They’re only dreams, Shiv, they can’t hurt you none.”

Shiv nodded sharply, concentrating on the lines, trying to shut out everything else. The rest of the day, crewmembers were called down to either Captain Dunharrow’s or Mr. Fengris’ cabin. The men all came back the same, tremulous, their fear almost palpable, caught in a waking nightmare. Then it was Will’s turn.

He walked down the narrow stairs into the passage leading to the private quarters. “I dare not interfere while you are in the demon’s presence, lest I be detected,” Hanaam said. “But afterward, I can help blunt the effects on your mind. Try and remember they are only images. And above all, do not let them know you know their true identities. They’d kill you in an instant.”

Will fought the growing sense of unease as he opened the door into Mr. Fengris’ cabin. The First Mate sat behind a small wooden desk that was bolted to the floor. He gestured for Will to sit opposite him. Will glimpsed a long object covered by a tarp against the left-hand wall. He guessed that was Hanaam’s body.

Mr. Fengris smiled at Will. “Mr. Reaves, thank you for sparing the time to have a little chat with me,” he said amiably. “The Captain and I are just trying to get a measure of the crew’s morale. What do you think the mood is with the men?”

Mr. Fengris looked as he always did. He was a short, bull-dog of a man in a long waistcoat of yellow and black, wearing a black tri-corner hat. Will, though, knew quite well what was inside. The question was innocent enough.

“The men are in good enough shape, Mr. Fengris,” Will answered. “A bit curious, is all.”

Mr. Fengris made a show of understanding. “Oh, and they have a right to be, Mr. Reaves, they surely do.”

The banter went on, with Will offering guarded answers to questions that were of little consequence. Then, pulled inexorably with a force he could not resist, Will looked into Mr. Fengris’ eyes. They filled his vision, twin holes that expanded to engulf him in darkness, smothering him in a cold embrace that numbed his mind and eased him into unconsciousness.

In the next moment, Will was standing at the Hangman’s helm with the Captain. They were navigating a difficult channel through a series of rocky shoals, and the Captain was asking Will what he felt was the safest path, as he had a hundred times. Will guided them through, but missed a granite spike that loomed just ahead. It punctured the hull, and the Hangman was soon taking on water. In seconds the ship was sinking, men drowning while Will stood there, paralyzed by the awful certainty that he had failed them. The drowned, disfigured bodies looked at him, pleading, accusing. He wept, and then felt himself drowning, his lungs spasming as they filled with water. The scene repeated over and over in a hundred different variations, but all with the same theme: Will failed, saw his comrades die, and then in turn died a horrible death.

Emotionally exhausted and mentally on the brink of collapse, Will opened his eyes to find himself once again seated before Mr. Fengris.

The First Mate wore the smile of a sated predator, his eyes glowing. “I thank you for your candidness, Mr. Reaves, you’re a credit to the crew. You may go now,” he said.

His eyes dull and unfocused, Will rose and left. Images continued to flow through his mind as he was unable to staunch the raw emotions that bled out of him, the fear, the pain. Then another presence was with him, banishing the horrible scenes and blunting the constant anguish, allowing Will’s reason to take hold. He saw what the demon had done, and with that realization Will regained control over himself. He walked steadier on deck, no longer on the brink of despair.

“Thanks.”

“You’re quite welcome,” Hanaam said.

“How much longer will this go on, do you think?”

“Until we reach our destination, wherever that is,” Hanaam answered grimly.

In the days ahead, as the Hangman’s Noose sailed ever eastward, life for the men assumed a familiar, nightmarish pattern. The crew went about their duties, each one trapped in his own hell, fear and despondency seeping out like blood from an open wound. Whenever the Captain or Mr. Fengris came near, the effect would intensify. Nighttime was worse, as sleep gave their subconscious full rein. Days stretched into weeks as Will watched his crewmates slowly begin to fray into madness. They walked around wild-eyed. Some retreated within themselves, becoming silent, terrified shells, while others lashed out at any perceived slight or insult.

Men started dying. Some went below for one of their daily “chats” with the Captain or Mr. Fengris and never returned, while others hung themselves out of utter hopelessness. By the time they reached the Outer Ring, eighteen of the original twenty-five crewmen were left alive.

NNNN

Three days after entering uncharted waters, their destination was finally revealed. It was a jagged outcropping, barely an islet, thrusting up out of the water like a great, rigid hand, each finger a sharp peak, and out of the recessed palm, a thick column of smoke rose high into the air. There was no discernable landing place, the rocky slope rose at a steep angle out of the water. To Will it looked as if the tip of a mountain was poking out of the sea.

“You’re not far off,” Hanaam said. “It’s volcanic.”

“We’re going onto an active volcano?” Will asked, stunned.

“‘Into,’ if I’m correct,” Hanaam replied. “Think about it, air, earth, fire and water. It makes sense.”

The Captain and Mr. Fengris were at the prow, faces intent as they stared straight ahead. They were clearly anxious to get to the rocky isle, and Will heard them muttering about how time was running short.

“Their window for opening the gate must be closing,” Hanaam said. “This particular isle must rise for a very short time before sinking back into the sea for another 500 years.”

“What a wonderful place to be trapped,” Will thought sourly.

“On the contrary, their haste will make them careless, it will be to our advantage.”

Will was about to respond when new orders were passed. The Hangman had drawn to within about two hundred yards of the volcanic isle. The two longboats were to be lowered and the entire ship’s crew was to row toward the isle. The anchor was lowered as the crew made ready to disembark.

For Will, this provided an opportunity he had been waiting for. He hurried down the narrow stairs below-deck and walked along the thin corridor until he reached the weapons locker. He looked about, seeing no one near. Will frowned at the large padlock. Given time, he could easily pick it, but time was a luxury he could ill afford.

“Can you do something about this?” he asked Hanaam.

“Hold out your hand and clear your mind,” the wizard said.

Will followed Hanaam’s instructions. He heard the wizard muttering words in a tongue he didn’t understand, and then there was a faint rushing sound in his head, and a tingling energy ran down his arm into the lock. It clicked open.

Will quickly removed several daggers, which he strapped to his thighs under his loose pants. He would have dearly loved to take a few cutlasses, but he could see no way of concealing them on his body.

“How’d you do that with the lock?” Will asked.

“I only provided the framework, the power came from you,” Hanaam said. “Now make haste.”

“All hands to the longboats!” He heard Captain Dunharrow’s voice from above.

There was no more time. Will closed the arms locker and hurried topside, hiding behind the other crewmen. The longboats were lowered and the men began to row through the choppy waters.

Will pulled at his oar, with Captain Dunharrow standing at the rear, whip in hand. Will glanced at the other longboat, where Mr. Fengris was likewise positioned. He noticed a long, shrouded object in the other boat.

“Is that you?” Will asked.

“I believe so,” Hanaam said. “They’re probably keeping me close in case I return to my body.”

The sun was beginning to set, and the isle cast long shadows that reached across the water toward the men in the boats. Off to one side, Will spied a smaller craft anchored nearer to the rocky shore.

“Another ship,” Hanaam said. “Good! That will mean at least one more demon.”

“You want to explain why that’s good?” Will asked.

“Everything I’ve read suggests that demons are constantly vying with each other for supremacy,” Hanaam said. “If I’m right, each demon would willingly kill the others to be the one standing at the gate when their lord comes through. The status gained would be worth almost anything.”

Will thought about that. If the demons were fighting among themselves that would certainly make things easier. He craned his neck around, casting a glance at their destination. There was a dark spot in the rock face at water level that grew steadily larger. Captain Dunharrow ordered torches lit as they neared, and in a few minutes they entered a narrow tunnel that ran deep inside the isle. The ceiling was low, and Captain Dunharrow had to take his admiral’s hat off and stoop as they glided through.

The sailors experienced a new fear as they imagined the tunnel collapsing on them. As if on cue, a rumbling was heard and the tunnel began to shake. Small chunks of rock fell and the water churned, tilting the boats wildly. It lasted for a few seconds before stillness reigned again. Whimpers were heard from many of the crewmen, who looked about in near terror.

Even Captain Dunharrow and Mr. Fengris seemed unnerved, but they quickly regained their composure.

“Keep rowing you simpering fools,” the Captain growled. “Or I’ll sink us all right here and now.”

Mr. Fengris likewise exhorted the men in his boat. Whips flicked into straining backs and they rowed on.

By the time Will had calmed himself enough to notice his surroundings again, the tunnel had widened, and soon they emerged into a large cavern. The boats scraped against smooth rock and the men disembarked. The cavern was already lit by torches affixed to the walls, and Will saw steps carved into the stone that led up from the water to a plateau. They climbed to the top and Will looked around, taking in the strange scene. There were several shallow pits in the cave floor, and beyond them was a thick stone bench with strange symbols carved all over it.

“That’s an altar, Will,” Hanaam said soberly.

Dark splotches of moisture were everywhere, a sign of the isle’s recent emergence from the sea, but there were dark stains in the stone around the altar that had nothing to do with water. Will got a very bad feeling looking at it, which only intensified when he looked at the cavern wall beyond. It was rough and coarse except for one section that was perfectly smooth and shaped like a diamond. There was an odd depression at the apex, as if something was meant to fit there. The wall cried out to Will of a wrongness, of something that did not belong in this world.

“Zuliel, Vort, you’re late.” A voice sent mocking echoes through the chamber.

A figure emerged from one of the pits to the left. It was a woman. Her blond hair was wild and she was dressed in a low-cut shirt and skirt above leather boots. Will looked at her eyes, noting the same inhuman malevolence that marked Captain Dunharrow and Mr. Fengris.

The Captain gave a contemptuous bow. “Chordra, how delightful. Did you come alone?”

The woman sneered. “Of course not, I brought a half-dozen humans along for the journey. They’re over there.” She gestured toward one of the pits.

At that moment, another tremor ran through the cavern. The ground shook as everyone held on to each other. Will struggled to keep his balance, noting that this one seemed to last a little longer. Then the earth quieted, leaving the men unharmed but even more on edge.

“Time is short, do you have the Conduit?” Captain Dunharrow asked the woman.

“Of course I do, do you have the Key?”

Captain Dunharrow and Chordra remained still as Mr. Fengris watched them both, eyes cold and measuring. Then the Captain slowly reached into his pocket as Chordra reached behind her back, each one producing an object. Captain Dunharrow held in his hand a gem that glowed with an unholy light. It made Will feel sick just being near it.

“That’s what you brought on board the Hangman?” Will asked.

“Yes, the Key,” Hanaam said.

“It doesn’t look much like a key,” Will said.

“True, but it’s not meant to open an ordinary lock, either,” the wizard replied.

Chordra, meanwhile, held a crystal dagger that emitted the same light as the gem, making Will’s skin crawl.

“What’s that for?” Will asked.

“Zuliel called it the Conduit, I’m not really sure. The ancients didn’t describe it in their writings.”

Captain Dunharrow turned to Mr. Fengris. “Why don’t you see to our guests?”

The First Mate herded the crew toward one of the pits. The men obeyed, moving like cattle, their minds so overrun by terror that resistance did not even occur to them. Will went along, looking about one last time before climbing down. He saw passages that adjoined the chamber at several points along the cavern wall. One was a mere twenty yards away. Inside the pit, there was ankle-deep water and shackles attached to rings driven into the stone. Mr. Fengris bound each man about the ankle and then climbed out.

The men all crouched down, their eyes devoid of hope. Will stood on his toes, able to see just over the edge. He saw Hanaam’s shrouded body laying nearby, and beyond it the forms of Captain Dunharrow, Mr. Fengris and the woman. They stood in a rough triangle, each one warily eying the other two.

“Let us begin,” Chordra said.

“Very well,” Captain Dunharrow said. “Stay where you are, I will place the Key. Vort, watch her.”

Chordra’s smile dripped with venom. “I wouldn’t dream of interfering, Zuliel,” she said. “And I’m sure the same is true of Vort.”

Captain Dunharrow glanced at Mr. Fengris, who was watching him with a calculating stare. The Captain’s eyes narrowed. He remained silent and took a few steps back behind the altar, careful to keep both Mr. Fengris and Chordra in view. He reached with the jewel in his hand and felt for the depression in the wall. The jewel’s lower half fit into the gap perfectly. Will heard a sound come from the gate, a low whisper that hissed and murmured throughout the cavern.

The Captain turned to Chordra. “Your turn,” he said coolly.

Her face lit up with a wicked smile as she walked over to one of the pits. She held out her hand, beckoning. “Viktor, come to me, dear one.”

A figure climbed shakily out of the pit. He was dressed in tattered clothes, and he lurched haltingly toward Chordra. The expression on his face was one of haunted desire and utter self loathing. Chordra led him until he stood before the altar, where she bade him kneel. Frozen in horrid fascination, Will watched as Mr. Fengris held Viktor in place while Chordra plunged the crystal dagger into his chest. Will gasped and looked away as the man gave a single, hideous scream before falling silent.

When he looked back toward the altar, Chordra was holding the crystalline dagger high, blood dripping thickly from it. The dagger pulsated with dark light, which shot out to the gem, and the two glowed in evil harmony. Will noticed that the diamond-shaped portal was no longer blank stone. Now shadows moved and flowed across its surface.

Will sank down in the pit, more than a little afraid.

“Of course!” Hanaam exclaimed. “The dagger is a conduit for the life energy it takes from its victims. It sends the energy to the Key, giving it the power to open the gate.”

“How do we stop it?”

“I would think the first thing to do is gain your freedom,” Hanaam said. “Then perhaps devise some way of killing them.”

“Is that all?”

“I’m sorry, I’ve never actually dealt with this kind of situation before,” Hanaam said.

“You don’t say?” Will said. Then, after a moment, “It’s alright, we’ll come up with something.” They had better.

Without even thinking, he knelt down and repeated the words Hanaam had said earlier. Will felt the familiar surge of power run down his arm. There was a faint click, and the shackle around his ankle unlocked.

He felt Hanaam’s surprise. “That was well done, Will.”

“Thanks.” Will had the beginnings of a plan. “I’m going to need some help, though.” Will looked around at his fellow crewmen, shaking, despondent, each one lost in the inner landscape of his own fear.

“If I get someone free, can we snap ‘em out of this?” Will asked.

“I believe so,” Hanaam answered.

Will went to where Shiv was chained. He huddled with his arms around his knees and his eyes were wide, focused on something only visible to him. Will muttered the words and Shiv’s manacle clicked open. Shiv gave no reaction.

“Now what?” Will asked.

“You’re going to have to touch him,” Hanaam said. “Then follow my instructions.”

Will put his hand on Shiv’s shoulder. He tried to shrink away, but Will held him fast.

“Okay,” Will said.

There were no words this time. Hanaam guided Will in tapping the energy deep within himself and building it up at the point of contact between him and Shiv.

“Now,” Hanaam said sharply, and Will let the energy release into Shiv with a jolt, shocking his system.

For an instant, Shiv’s body jerked and spasmed. Then he blinked, looking around as if seeing his surroundings for the first time. Memory came flooding back. He gripped Will’s arm.

His voice was thick and hoarse. “Will,” he whispered. His eyes shown with relief, desperation, rage, all mixed together.

“Glad you’re back, Shivsey,” Will murmured, meeting his gaze. “What do you say we spring a little surprise on our hosts?” He gestured with his head up toward the top of the pit.

Shiv’s face went grim and his eyes were cold. “That’s not the Captain nor Mr. Fengris, is it?”

Will shook his head. “No.” Then, in answer to Shiv’s unspoken question, “And there’s no getting them back, either, I’m afraid.”

Shiv nodded grimly. “Then let’s get the bastards,” he said.

“Right,” Will said. “Now, I’ve got…”

He was interrupted when the cavern started rumbling again. Gravel and rock showered down into the pit as the men shook violently for long seconds until the tremor subsided.

Will and Shiv listened. The three demons were arguing, shouting at each other about a being named “Necroad,” and Will felt reassured that they were sufficiently distracted. He and Shiv carefully crawled out of the pit. They stayed low as they came to Hanaam’s wrapped body, hoisting it and making for the nearest tunnel. Will grabbed a torch from the wall, and soon they were moving through a network of passages. The walls and floor were damp with moisture, and Will found the air warm and cloying.

“That’s not surprising, given the volcanic nature of this isle,” Hanaam commented. “Do you have any idea where you’re going?”

“Not really,” Will said. “Just looking for a good place to set an ambush.”

“And I’m the bait?” Hanaam didn’t sound particularly pleased.

“Right,” Will answered.

After several twists and turns, they finally found a passage that ended in a cul-de-sac, with part of the corridor collapsed some twenty yards before it ended. The fallen rocks provided an excellent hiding place. Shiv and Will set Hanaam’s body with the torch on the floor at the dead end.

Will rolled up one of the legs of his trousers and pulled out a long hunting knife, handing it to Shiv.

He grinned, his eyes glinting in the torchlight. “Now that’s more like it.”

“Alright, now we wait,” Will said.

They hunkered down in the shadows behind the rocks, sweating in the hot darkness. Echoes reverberated through the tunnels. Screams repeated over and over until they faded, only to start again. Will wiped the sweat from his brow and took out a pair of daggers, struggling to stay calm. He didn’t know how long he could sit here waiting. Then there was silence. Minutes crawled by agonizingly until a soft scuff was heard, the sound of footfall. It came closer, and with it the glow of approaching torchlight. Will and Shiv gripped their weapons.

Soon, a form outlined in light walked right by their hidden position, Chordra. Her eyes on the prone form of Hanaam’s body, she took one more step past them when the two jolted into action. Will sprang out with his daggers held high while Shiv aimed low. Their surprise gave them one clean shot, and they had to make it count.

That was when the earth betrayed them. Another tremor struck, causing the tunnel to shake and contort violently. Caught in mid-strike, Will and Shiv were thrown off balance. Shiv pitched headlong into an outcropping in the wall, falling limp to the ground almost immediately. One of Will’s blades bit deep into Chordra’s shoulder, but it was not a mortal blow. She shrieked, dropping her torch. The two went down in a tangle of arms, legs and blood, knocked back and forth by the continued quaking of the isle. Will burned his arm on the fallen torch, yelping in pain while Chordra clawed at him wildly.

Then the quake stopped, and unfortunately for Will, Chordra was the first to recover. She was on her feet before Will got to his knees. Her foot lashed out, kicking Will in the stomach. He doubled over in pain, and Chordra calmly reached down and grabbed him by the throat. She lifted him easily into the air, his feet dangling a few inches above the ground.

Chordra’s eyes burned into Will’s and her smile dripped with malice. “Hello, pretty boy.” Her voice was like a serpent’s slither. “Pretty boy likes to play tricks. Would pretty boy like to play with me?”

Will wrenched desperately at the hand around his neck, but Chordra’s grip would not weaken. He choked and wheezed as the blood flow to his brain was interrupted. Darkness clouded his vision and his struggling faltered. Then the iron pain around his throat was gone and Will fell to the floor, gasping in the sweet, sweet air. He looked up to see Chordra, a surprised expression on her face as she looked down at the steel blade that protruded from her chest. It twisted sharply, and her body went limp with a shudder. The knife was pulled free and Chordra crumpled to the ground, revealing Shiv with the bloody blade in his hand.

He grinned weakly. “Sorry, Willie. I got a bit of a knock on the noggin.”

“That’s alright,” Will said hoarsely. He massaged his throat, kneading the bruised muscles. “Better late than never.”

The two knelt over the blood-soaked form. Will spied something tucked into her belt. It was the crystal dagger, the Conduit.

“She must not have trusted them to leave it,” Will said.

“Indeed,” Hanaam agreed. “It might prove useful.”

Will looked at the blood-smeared dagger. It emanated a creeping dread that made the bile rise in the back of his throat. Reluctantly, he reached out and touched the handle. A numbing cold spread through his fingers and up his arm. Gasping, he shoved it in his belt, careful not to let it come into contact with his flesh.

“That thing gives me the willies,” Shiv said.

Will grunted, ignoring the unintentional play on words. “Me too, Shivsey.”

Will was about to say more when something struck him on the back of the head. Stars erupted before him in the gloom. Something hit him again. This time, the darkness pulled him under.

 *****

Will awoke to the sensation of being dragged by his collar through the tunnels.

“How long was I out?”

“It’s difficult to tell, several minutes I should think,” Hanaam replied.

“What happened?” Will asked, still groggy.

“You were taken unawares, your companion as well.”

Will was about to ask another question when he was dragged around a corner and into the sudden brightness of the cavern. He was dropped onto the floor with a sharp exhalation. Will had little time to recover before he was pulled to his knees, a knife held against his throat. A voice came from behind him.

“Now stay still and don’t be stupid, boy.” It was Mr. Fengris.

Will looked up, and there was Captain Dunharrow towering over him. They were in front of the altar, in a small space cleared of dead bodies. He gulped at those he recognized. Shiv was there, too, moaning softly, and Will thanked the gods he was not among the dead. Then Will looked at the portal, and the blood drained from his face. There was a wispy layer of shadow through which he could see a huge figure standing before a throne. Great, curving horns protruded from its forehead, and its eyes were like pits of fire. The murmuring in the cavern had grown in strength, and Will saw that it came from the lesser demons surrounding their lord.

“They must be keeping the gate open on their side,” Hanaam said.

“Wonderful,” Will replied.

Captain Dunharrow looked down at the captive. “Young Will Reaves, up to mischief, are we? And look what we have.” He stooped down and pulled the Conduit out of Will’s belt, holding it aloft. It seemed to quiver in gruesome anticipation. “How thoughtful of you to return this.”

“No doubt Chordra was loathe to part with it,” the Captain said to Mr. Fengris. They both laughed with morbid humor. “Did you find the wizard?”

“His body is still lifeless, but we dare not delay much longer,” Mr. Fengris replied.

“True enough,” Captain Dunharrow said. “We are almost out of time.” He looked back and Will followed his gaze. The water had risen, or rather the isle had sunk, so that the water was now lapping at the top of the stone steps, beginning to seep onto the plateau. The Captain returned his gaze to Will. “But no matter, the way is almost open.” Mr. Fengris jerked Will upright. Captain Dunharrow’s eyes shone with horrible joy as he raised the crystal dagger.

Will’s heart hammered in his chest. He had to think of something. Anything. He remembered what Hanaam had said about the demons not trusting each other.

Will did his best to sound casual. “It’s a shame you won’t be here when your master comes through.”

Captain Dunharrow’s arm stopped. “And why’s that, boy?”

“It’s just that your friend here was muttering to himself in the tunnels. He said that with Chordra gone, all he’s got to do is kill you and he’ll be left here all by his lonesome to greet your great and powerful lord.”

“Zuliel, do not listen to him,” Mr. Fengris hissed.

Captain Dunharrow’s mouth curved in a wicked grin and his arm drew all the way back. “How remarkable,” he said, and in his eyes, Will saw death.

The crystal dagger swooped toward Will, but at the last second it swerved and buried itself in Mr. Fengris’ neck.

The First Mate roared as the Conduit greedily drank his life energy and sent it to the Key. Stunned, Will watched as the hazy shadow cleared, leaving only a thin film covering the portal. Mr. Fengris slumped to the ground, blood spouting from his neck as Captain Dunharrow withdrew the bloody dagger.

He twisted Will’s arm in an iron grip and jerked him close. The Captain’s face contorted in evil glee. “I was just thinking the same thing. Now, you will be the last, and then Necroad and the Horde will enter this realm, and I will be exalted at his side.”

As if in answer, the great demon on the other side of the portal roared, sensing it was on the verge of achieving a goal long denied; it was a sound of hatred and rage, enough to despoil an entire world. Will’s heart constricted with dread as Captain Dunharrow raised his arm once more.

“Not without me,” a voice rasped from the ground. Will looked down, surprised and horrified to see Chordra by Captain Dunharrow’s feet. A trail of blood behind her, she had dragged herself out of a tunnel and across the cavern floor, unbeknownst to anyone. She raised her ashen face.

“Did you think to have all the glory for yourself?” She spat out the words. Too late, Captain Dunharrow saw the long dagger in her hand. She swung it from where she lay, stabbing through the back of the Captain’s thigh until the point came out the front.

The Captain’s scream rent the air as he clawed at the knife in his leg, which Chordra gripped in her clenched fist. Will staggered back as Captain Dunharrow released him.

“Will!” Hanaam cried in sudden inspiration. “The Conduit, take it and smash the Key!”

“Will that work?”

“I don’t know, I think so,” Hanaam said. “With the water rising, there’s not much time for anything else.”

That was when the next tremor hit. The cavern rocked crazily as Will tried to keep his balance. Captain Dunharrow toppled over, one hand clawing at Chordra’s knife and the other holding the Conduit, trying without success to reach back and stab her. Large pieces of rock fell from the ceiling, and Will saw the water at the edge of the plateau surge across the stone floor. Somehow, he staggered toward the Captain, flinging himself upon him. Locked in his struggle with Chordra, Captain Dunharrow could not defend himself as Will took his arm and hammered it against the stone floor. The Captain’s battered hand released the Conduit, and Will snatched it up.

Enraged, the Captain twisted and struck Chordra hard across the face. Her body rolled over and lay motionless. Captain Dunharrow grimaced and withdrew the dagger from his thigh, blood fountaining from the wound. He held on to the blade and attempted to rise, turning his burning eyes toward Will.

The floor continued to quake as Will held the crystal dagger. The familiar icy numbness began to spread up his arm, and he knew he could not hold it long. He saw Captain Dunharrow approach, reaching for him as he limped on a leg soaked in blood. Will looked toward the portal, he had one chance. Will half-ran toward the altar as the cavern shook. With all his desperate energy, he jumped onto the raised slab of stone and used it as a springboard to launch himself at the gate, holding the crystal dagger reversed with both hands high above his head.

Everything slowed down as Will flew over the intervening space. He heard the sound of his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. He heard Captain Dunharrow snarling behind him. Hanaam seemed to be praying. And before him was the gate. Within, Necroad’s eyes focused on Will, and he felt his blood freeze at the limitless hatred directed at him. Then there was a moment of utter quiet as the tremor ceased and inhabitants on both sides of the portal held their breath. With all his strength, Will smashed the pommel of the Conduit into the Key.

There was a cracking sound followed by an explosion that sent Will flying backwards through the cavern. For an instant he had the satisfaction of seeing the portal turn into dull rock once more, then his head hit the stony floor and consciousness fled.

*****

 A pair of hands jostled and poked at him repeatedly. Will opened his eyes to see Shiv bent over him, concern on his face.

“Willie,” he said. “C’mon, we’ve got to get out of here.”

Will sat up, his whole body felt bruised from head to toe. “How long have I been out?” he asked.

“Only a minute or so,” Shiv said. “I saw what happened, that was bravely done.”

Will stood up and looked around, the water was reaching across the cavern floor, sloshing into the pits. He looked toward the tunnel they had followed into the cavern. The water had risen, leaving only a few feet of open space, barely enough room for the longboats with men crouching inside. They had to leave now.

There was a groan from the direction of the now-sealed gate. Will turned, needing to confirm what he had briefly glimpsed, that the portal was, in fact, closed. He saw the smooth granite, the smashed jewel at its apex. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“Nice thinking Hanaam,” he said.

“That did work out rather well,” the wizard replied.

There was another groan from a form lying a few feet in front of the gate, Captain Dunharrow. The force of the explosion had toppled the stone altar, pinning the Captain’s lower body. He was struggling, but could not move the heavy object.

“Right, let’s get the men,” Will said. “Follow me.”

Will and Shiv went to the pit and scrambled down. The state of the crewmen was pitiful. Most had deteriorated to the point of gibbering lunacy, rocking back and forth. All the while water streamed down the sides, slowly filling the pit.

“Willie, they’re not going to make it like this,” Shiv said.

“Hanaam?” Will prompted.

“Put your hands on the chain that connects all the shackles,” Hanaam directed.

Will did so while Shiv looked on questioningly. Will needed less help this time as he tapped into his energy, building it up until he felt it crackle and hum across his body. Then he released it into the chain. There was an audible popas the energy ran through the metal and into each man. Shiv’s eyes went wide as the captives all went rigid for a few seconds. Then it was over, and each man shook himself, seeing his true surroundings for the first time. Will blinked. He felt lightheaded and extremely fatigued.

“That takes a lot of energy,” Hanaam said. “You should really rest for a while.”

Will took a deep breath. “I’m a bit busy right now,” he said.

Shiv was staring at him. “How did you do that?”

“I’ll explain later, get these shackles off and get the men up into the boats,” he said.

Shiv nodded and got to work. He had little difficulty prying the manacles open with the daggers Will had given him. Soon, men were streaming up out of the pits, swarming up the sides despite the water that came pouring down. At last everyone was out, and Will spared a brief moment to look in the pit that Chordra’s captives had occupied. There were none left.

He hurried back to the crew, issuing orders as they slogged through the calf-deep water. The boats had drifted from where they were moored. Will sent four men swimming to bring them around so the rest could board.

A voice came from the back of the cavern. It was the Captain, still pinned beneath the stone slab. He screamed in anger and frustration, his words slipping into languages no one understood. A grim hardness came into the men’s eyes, and they turned their backs on him as they boarded the longboats. Will was the last aboard.

“Cast off, now!” he ordered. Oars dipped into the water, and the boats were soon moving toward the tunnel. A thought struck Will like a hammer. “Hanaam!”

The wizard’s voice was calm, though Will could not mistake the undertone of sadness. “There was no chance to go back for my body,” he said. “The gate is closed, that is what matters.”

Then they entered the tunnel. All the men had to crouch down in their seats as the rocky ceiling scraped against their backs. Any longer and the tunnel would have been completely submerged. For a long time the only sound was their harsh breath and the splashing of the oars, echoing in the enclosed space. But at last the crew emerged from the dark bowels of the sinking isle into the open water and the late afternoon sun.

The men stretched and unwound their kinked muscles, letting the sun warm their cold, soaked bodies as they succumbed briefly to exhaustion and pent up emotion. Will stood, he did a quick count, there were twelve men left of their original twenty-five. Good souls had been lost, their bodies sacrificed for a mad demon’s conquest. He mourned them.

At length, Shiv said, “What’s our next move, do you reckon?”

Hanaam had an opinion about that. “Will, you have talent. It is imperative that you develop it. My brothers would be willing to take you on as an apprentice, and I strongly urge you to consider it.”

“Are you daft?” Will answered. “I’m no wizard, nor do I want to be one. There’s only one life for me, and if you’re going to be sharing space in my head, you should know better than to try and sway me from it.”

Hanaam sighed, knowing he had little choice in the matter.

“Well,” Will said aloud, “we’re mighty short on food and supplies, but we’ve got enough coin to re-stock once we hit the Outer Ring. Then we can pick up some more crew and still make it back to the shipping lanes by the end of the season. What do you lads think of some nice, fat merchants to plunder, aye?”

The men all murmured their approval, eager to put their collective nightmare behind them for the prospect of gold and plunder and the open sea.

Still, some dissented. “And just who put you in charge, Willie?” one called.

Will looked down, on the floor of the boat lay Captain Dunharrow’s admiral’s hat. Without hesitation, Will picked it up and put it on his head. The yellow feather waved jauntily in the warm breeze. Despite the horror and death they had just been through, never had a moment felt so right in Will’s life.

“That’s Captain Reaves to you, sailor,” he said.

Shiv had a dagger in his hand before anyone could blink. “That’s right, and I’m his First Mate,” he said. “Any of you feel funny about it, and I’ll have one of these sticking in your ribs before you can spit.”

Will grinned and looked ahead. The Hangman’s hull gleamed golden in the lowering sun, a beacon of hope after a long darkness.

“Let’s back to oars, now,” he ordered. “I want us aboard and ready to sail within the hour. Step lively, lads!”

In the back of his mind, Hanaam sighed again as Will pointed the way home.