The Spook 9 - Slither's tale Read online

  Mandrake: Sometimes called mandragora, this is a root that resembles the human form and is sometimes used by a Kobalos mage to give focus to the power that dwells within his mind.

  Meljann: The third of three Kobalos High Mages who form the Triumvirate.

  Northern Kingdoms: This is the collective name sometimes given to the small kingdoms, such as Pwodente and Wayaland, which lie south of the Great Fissure. More usually it refers to all the kingdoms north of Shallotte and Serwentia.

  Noviciate: This is the first stage of the learning process undertaken by a haizda mage, which lasts approximately thirty years. The candidate studies under one of the older and most powerful mages. If the noviciate is completed satisfactorily, the mage must then go off alone to study and develop his craft.

  Oscher: A substance which can be used as emergency food for horses; made from oats, it has special chemical additives that can sustain a beast of burden for the duration of a long journey. Unfortunately it results in a severe shortening of the animal’s life.

  Olkie: This is the god of Kobalos blacksmiths. He has four arms, and teeth made of brass. It is believed that he crafted the Kangadon, the magical lance that cannot be deflected from its target.

  Oussa: The elite guard that serves and defends the Triumvirate; also used to guard parties of slaves taken from Valkarky to the kulads to be bought and sold.

  Triumvirate: The ruling body of Valkarky, composed of the three most powerful High Mages in the city. It was first formed after the King of Valkarky was slain by Eblis, the Shaiksa assassin. It is essentially a dictatorship that uses ruthless means to hold onto power. Others are always waiting in the wings to replace the three mages.

  Plunder Room: This is the vault where the Triumvirate store the items they have confiscated either by the power of magic, force of arms or legal process. It is the most secure place in Valkarky.

  Purra (pl. purrai): The term used to denote one of the female pure-bred stock of humans bred into slavery by the Kobalos. The term is also applicable to those females who dwell within a haizda.

  Salamander: A fire dragon tulpa.

  Shaiksa: This is the highest order of Kobalos assassins. If one is slain, the remainder of the Brotherhood are honour-bound to hunt down his killer.

  Shakamure: The magecraft of haizda mages which draws its power from the taking of human blood and the borrowing of souls.

  Shanna River: The Shanna marks the old border between the northern human kingdoms and the territory of the Kobalos. Now Kobalos are often to be found south of this line. The treaty that agreed this border has long been disregarded by both sides.

  Shatek (also known as a djinn): This is a warrior entity with three selves and a single controlling mind. It differs from the Haggenbrood in that it was created to be deployed in battle. A number of them have rebelled and are no longer subject to Kobalos authority. They dwell far from Valkarky bringing death and terror to the lands surrounding their lairs.

  Shudru: The Kobalos term for the harsh winter of the Northern Kingdoms.

  Skaiium: A time when a haizda mage faces a dangerous softening of his predatory nature.

  Skapien: A small secret group of Kobalos within Valkarky who are opposed to the trade in purrai.

  Skelt: This is a creature that lives near water and kills its victims by inserting its long snout into their bodies and draining their blood. The Kobalos believe it is the shape that their god, Talkus, will assume at his birth.

  Skleech pens: Pens within Valkarky where the Kobalos keep human female slaves, using them for food or to breed other new species and hybrid forms to do their bidding.

  Sklutch: This is a type of creature employed by the Kobalos as servants. Its speciality is cleaning the rapidly growing fungus from the walls and ceilings of the dwellings within Valkarky.

  Skoya: The material formed within the bodies of the whoskor of which Valkarky is constructed.

  Skulka: A poisonous water snake whose bite induces instant paralysis. It is much favoured by Kobalos assassins, who use it to render their victims helpless before slaying them. After death, its toxins are impossible to detect in the victim’s blood.

  Slarinda: These are the females of the Kobalos. They have been extinct for over three thousand years. They were murdered – slain by a cult of Kobalos males who hated women. Now Kobalos males are born of purrai, human females held prisoner in the skleech pens.

  Talkus: The god of the Kobalos who is not yet born. In form he will resemble the creature known as a skelt. Talkus means the God Who Is Yet to Be. He is sometimes also referred to as the Unborn.

  Therskold: A threshold upon which a word of interdiction or harming has been laid. This is a potent area of haizda strength and it is dangerous – even for a human mage – to cross such a portal.

  Trade: Although the unit of currency is the valcron, many Kobalos, particularly haizda mages, rely on what they call ‘trade’. This implies an exchange of goods or services, but it is much more than that. It is a question of honour, and each party must keep its word even if to do so means death.

  Tulpa: A creature created within the mind of a mage and occasionally given form in the outer world.

  Ulska: A deadly but rare Kobalos poison that burns its victim from within. It is also excreted from glands at the base of the claws of the Haggenbrood. It results in kirrhos, which is known as the ‘tawny death’.

  Unktus: A minor Kobalos deity worshipped only by the lowest menials of the city. He is depicted with very small horns curving backwards from the crown of his head.

  Valkarky: The chief city of the Kobalos, which lies just within the Arctic Circle. Valkarky means the City of the Petrified Tree.

  Valcron: A small coin, often referred to as a valc, accepted throughout the Southern Peninsula. Made of an alloy which is one tenth silver, a valcron is the wage paid daily to a Kobalos foot soldier.

  Whalakai: Known as a vision of what is, this is an instant of perception that comes to either a High Mage or a haizda mage. It is an epiphany, a moment of revelation, when the totality of a situation, with all the complexities that have led to it, are known to him in a flash of insight. The Kobalos believe this is a vision given to the mage by Talkus, their God Who Is Yet to Be, its purpose being to facilitate the path to his birth.

  Whoskor: The collective name for the creatures subservient to the Kobalos who are engaged in the never-ending task of extending the city of Valkarky. They have sixteen legs, eight of which also function as arms, and are used to shape the skoya, the soft stone which they exude from their mouths.

  Widdershins: A movement that is anti-clockwise or against the sun. Seen as counter to the natural order of things, it is sometimes employed by a Kobalos mage to assert his will upon the cosmos. Filled with hubris, it holds within it great risk.

  About the Author

  Joseph Delaney is a retired English teacher living in Lancashire. He has three children and nine grandchildren, and often speaks at conference, library and bookshop events. His home is in the middle of Boggart territory and his village has a boggart called the Hall Knocker, which was laid to rest under the step of a house near the church.

  Most of the places in the Spook’s books are based on real places in Lancashire, and the inspiration behind the stories often comes from local ghost stories and legends.

  You can visit the Wardstone Chronicles website at www.spooksbooks.com where you can find Joseph’s blog and more information on the books.

  THE WARDSTONE CHRONICLES

  BOOK ONE:

  THE SPOOK’S APPRENTICE

  BOOK TWO:

  THE SPOOK’S CURSE

  BOOK THREE:

  THE SPOOK’S SECRET

  BOOK FOUR:

  THE SPOOK’S BATTLE

  BOOK FIVE:

  THE SPOOK’S MISTAKE

  BOOK SIX:

  THE SPOOK’S SACRIFICE

  BOOK SEVEN:

  THE SPOOK’S NIGHTMARE

  BOOK EIGHT:

  THE SPOOK’S DESTINY
>
  BOOK NINE:

  SPOOK’S: I AM GRIMALKIN

  BOOK TEN:

  THE SPOOK’S BLOOD

  BOOK ELEVEN:

  SPOOK’S: SLITHER’S TALE

  ALSO AVAILABLE

  THE SPOOK’S STORIES:

  WITCHES

  THE SPOOK’S BESTIARY

  SPOOK’S: SLITHER’S TALE

  AN RHCP DIGITAL EBOOK 978 1 448 10143 6

  Published in Great Britain by RHCP Digital,

  an imprint of Random House Children’s Publishers UK

  A Random House Group Company

  This ebook edition published 2012

  Text copyright © Joseph Delaney, 2012

  Cover illustration copyright © Talexi Taini, 2012

  Interior illustrations copyright © David Wyatt, 2012

  First Published in Great Britain

  Bodley Head 2012

  The right of Joseph Delaney to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

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