I didn’t smile for long. I soon remembered that she had so nearly caused the deaths of many innocent men, women, and children. What was the future threat to the County from such creatures? Commanded by the Kobalos, they would cut swathes of death through any enemy that confronted them.

Suddenly I knew what book I could contribute to the Spook’s rebuilt library. Combining the information from Nicholas Browne’s glossary, Grimalkin’s notes, and whatever we learned in the future, I would write a Bestiary of the Kobalos. It would be something worthwhile to bequeath to those who followed in my footsteps.

I looked across at Jenny. She was staring into space, having lost concentration.

“That’s enough writing for today,” I told her. “Go back to the garden and practice lowering the bait dish into the pit!”

This was a tricky task that required a lot of skill. The dish contained blood, which was used to lure a ripper into a pit so that it could be bound there. This would keep her busy.

She obeyed, but she didn’t look happy. She’d probably have preferred to carry on daydreaming.

Once she’d left, I continued with my own studies.

22

Times Are Changing

SHAKING my head, I read the final lines of Grimalkin’s report on the Kobalos for the third time:

I believe that this third creature, the vartek (plural form: varteki), is the most formidable of the three samples I investigated. There could also be something far worse within the jars that I did not study.

In view of our approaching conflict with the Kobalos, this does not bode well.

What the witch assassin had learned was terrifying. These savage entities would no doubt be used by the Kobalos against us. How could we defend ourselves against creatures that had been crafted to kill?

Previously I had looked upon the threat from the Kobalos as distant, both in terms of geography and time. I had managed to convince myself that they dwelled far from the County; it would be many years before they could fight their way to the eastern shore of the Northern Sea. Even then, they’d have to cross that stormy expanse of water to reach us.

My opinion had now changed completely. That haizda mage had reached us already; moreover, it had the means to give life to creatures that could cause havoc in the County. There might be others of his kind, as yet undetected, already living here and growing fearsome creatures.

I needed to clear my head, so I left Grimalkin’s report in the library and went out to see how Jenny was doing.

As I’d instructed, she was practicing lowering a bait dish into the pit. I watched her as she frowned in concentration.

The metal dish was attached to a chain by three small hooks, each located in one of three holes on its outer edge. Usually, especially when dealing with a ripper boggart, the dish was filled with blood. For practice sessions, we used milk. The first task was to lower the dish to the floor of the pit without spilling a drop.