Read Online Wardstone 7 - The Spook's Nightmare by Joseph Delaney - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Joseph Delaney
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‘As my apprentice already knows, they usuallyconfine themselves to two shapes – a black bull and a huge hairy man.’
‘What’s the main threat when it’s in the form of a bull?’ I asked.
‘It bellows loudly and the sound draws upon the dark energy at its disposal. It often fills its victims with such dread that they’re unable to move. Then it charges, goring and trampling anything in its path.’
The Spook fell silent and seemed deep in thought. After a while I prompted him: ‘What about the hairy man? They call it the Cruncher here.’
‘That’s an apt name for it, lad. The buggane takes on that shape to dig its tunnels. Its sharp claws and teeth can chomp through tree trunks or roots that it finds in its path. I’ve just been searching my memory for any snippets of information … That’s why the burning of my library is such a tremendous loss. There are things that only exist in my head now, and when I die, they’re gone for ever …’
‘Then you need to write ’em down again, Mr Gregory. Soon as possible,’ Alice told him.
‘Aye, you’re right, girl,’ the Spook acknowledged. ‘Just as soon as I get the chance, I’ll do exactly that.’ He sighed, then continued staring into space as he pulled the details from his memory. ‘The buggane does its most deadly work in its invisible, spirit form—’
‘It’s worse than just dying!’ Simon interrupted, his voice full of emotion as he thought of the fate that awaited Adriana. ‘The buggane sucks the victim’s soul right out of its body!’
The Spook shook his head. ‘No, that’s not so – even though it’s what most people believe. The soul survives and moves on. What the buggane sucks out is the animus , or life force, which is quite a different thing. It feeds on the energy that gives a body and mind strength; it consumes its vitality so that it dies. It’s just that the mind dies first, and that’s why the person seems to be just an empty vessel.
‘There are mages known as shamans who practise the same sort of magic, which we call animism . A buggane may gain strength from an alliance with a shaman: in return for human sacrifices it will destroyan enemy or share its store of animas with the mage.
‘And that’s what I fear most – that we may not just be dealing with a buggane alone. There may be a dark shaman involved. Let’s face it, in supposedly dealing with the dark – testing and killing falsely accused witches – the dark itself is being used: not only the buggane, but also an abhuman. So tell me, Simon, when did all this start?’
‘Well over twenty-five years ago, before I was born, a witch landed on our western shore in company with that abhuman. Turned out it was her son. She was fed to the buggane and he was imprisoned and used to hunt down other witches. Potential witches have always been tested using spiked barrels, but the guilty were formerly burned at the stake. They’ve always picked on foreigners – immigrants who’ve come ashore and tried to make this their home. Adriana is one of the first to be accused from among our own people …’
At that point Simon’s voice failed him and he choked back a sob. The Spook waited patiently for him to regainhis composure before questioning him further.
‘I know this is hard, Simon, but anything you can tell me will give us a chance of dealing successfully with what we face. You say “they”, but who’s behind it all? Who’s in charge of what goes on?’
‘The head of the Ruling Council is Lord Barrule of Greeba Keep, the one who condemned Adriana. It was his decision to let the abhuman live and use him to search for witches. He also said that nothing could be done about the buggane; however, feeding it witches, rather than burning them, would keep it quiet, and our own folk safer.’
‘Then he could well be the dark shaman,’ said the Spook. ‘It couldn’t be worse – he’s a man of power and influence. But if we can destroy the
‘As my apprentice already knows, they usuallyconfine themselves to two shapes – a black bull and a huge hairy man.’
‘What’s the main threat when it’s in the form of a bull?’ I asked.
‘It bellows loudly and the sound draws upon the dark energy at its disposal. It often fills its victims with such dread that they’re unable to move. Then it charges, goring and trampling anything in its path.’
The Spook fell silent and seemed deep in thought. After a while I prompted him: ‘What about the hairy man? They call it the Cruncher here.’
‘That’s an apt name for it, lad. The buggane takes on that shape to dig its tunnels. Its sharp claws and teeth can chomp through tree trunks or roots that it finds in its path. I’ve just been searching my memory for any snippets of information … That’s why the burning of my library is such a tremendous loss. There are things that only exist in my head now, and when I die, they’re gone for ever …’
‘Then you need to write ’em down again, Mr Gregory. Soon as possible,’ Alice told him.
‘Aye, you’re right, girl,’ the Spook acknowledged. ‘Just as soon as I get the chance, I’ll do exactly that.’ He sighed, then continued staring into space as he pulled the details from his memory. ‘The buggane does its most deadly work in its invisible, spirit form—’
‘It’s worse than just dying!’ Simon interrupted, his voice full of emotion as he thought of the fate that awaited Adriana. ‘The buggane sucks the victim’s soul right out of its body!’
The Spook shook his head. ‘No, that’s not so – even though it’s what most people believe. The soul survives and moves on. What the buggane sucks out is the animus , or life force, which is quite a different thing. It feeds on the energy that gives a body and mind strength; it consumes its vitality so that it dies. It’s just that the mind dies first, and that’s why the person seems to be just an empty vessel.
‘There are mages known as shamans who practise the same sort of magic, which we call animism . A buggane may gain strength from an alliance with a shaman: in return for human sacrifices it will destroyan enemy or share its store of animas with the mage.
‘And that’s what I fear most – that we may not just be dealing with a buggane alone. There may be a dark shaman involved. Let’s face it, in supposedly dealing with the dark – testing and killing falsely accused witches – the dark itself is being used: not only the buggane, but also an abhuman. So tell me, Simon, when did all this start?’
‘Well over twenty-five years ago, before I was born, a witch landed on our western shore in company with that abhuman. Turned out it was her son. She was fed to the buggane and he was imprisoned and used to hunt down other witches. Potential witches have always been tested using spiked barrels, but the guilty were formerly burned at the stake. They’ve always picked on foreigners – immigrants who’ve come ashore and tried to make this their home. Adriana is one of the first to be accused from among our own people …’
At that point Simon’s voice failed him and he choked back a sob. The Spook waited patiently for him to regainhis composure before questioning him further.
‘I know this is hard, Simon, but anything you can tell me will give us a chance of dealing successfully with what we face. You say “they”, but who’s behind it all? Who’s in charge of what goes on?’
‘The head of the Ruling Council is Lord Barrule of Greeba Keep, the one who condemned Adriana. It was his decision to let the abhuman live and use him to search for witches. He also said that nothing could be done about the buggane; however, feeding it witches, rather than burning them, would keep it quiet, and our own folk safer.’
‘Then he could well be the dark shaman,’ said the Spook. ‘It couldn’t be worse – he’s a man of power and influence. But if we can destroy the
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