A Balance Broken (Dragonsoul Saga) (22 page)

“No thanks,” Maddi said to the silk-clad man. She inclined her head toward Tallen. “I only dance with him.”

A rush of heat filled Tallen’s ears. He took a gulp from his mug to hide it. The ale tasted as sweet as Maddi’s scent. He set the mug down on the table and twined his fingers through hers. “And I only dance with her.”

The young nobleman nodded with grace and returned sheepishly to his groaning friends.

Maddi squeezed his hand once then let go and leaned back into her own space. “Thanks for the help. Sometimes a girl just wants a mug and a pipe in peace, you know.”

He nodded, regretfully allowing her reclaim her arm. “I understand. I’m always here for you.”

“We’ll see.” She laughed and took a long drink. The musicians began a fast tune that Tallen did not recognize. Maddi smiled behind her cup then set it down next to his. “Come on! This is one of my favorites.” She stood up and reached out her hand to him, bouncing as she backed toward the dance floor. “Join me!” She eyed the cluster of noble boys. “Please,” she mouthed in silence.

Tallen stood and took her hand, and they spun about the dance floor. He noticed Maester Northtower offer Tilli his hand, and she took it with a shy grin. They joined the much younger humans twirling about. Then Maddi’s sky blue eyes drew Tallen’s gaze, twinkling as she laughed, spinning about him. He lost track of everything else, drifting in that moment. The other dancers and the room about them blurred. The music and her brilliant eyes melded together in his mind, drawing him ever toward her.

It ended far too fast. Everyone laughed, breaking into applause for the band. Maddi squeezed Tallen’s grip. She leaned forward for a moment, then hesitated, and lightly brushed his cheek with her lips.

Clearing her throat, she released his hands one at a time. “I need some rest tonight. Thanks for…for being nice.” She darted away through the back of the room and slipped up the staircase. Tallen watched her go, confused and elated, but mostly just sad to see her leave.

“Women,” Jaerd huffed, handing Tallen a small glass of bourbon.

“I’ll drink to that.” Boris hefted his mug and nudged the bleary-eyed Battlemage sitting next to him. “How about you, Joz?”

The mage grumbled and downed his ale.

The bourbon burned when Tallen sent it to the back of his throat, slamming the glass down next to his brother’s.

I hope we get to sleep in late before we have to board that boat tomorrow.

T
allen was uncertain whether it was the pounding in his head or the straining of his bladder that woke him. Jaerd snored away on the other bed in the small room they shared. Knowing that the pressure would get no better, Tallen swung his legs over the edge and stood up. The chamber pot rested underneath the window. As he stepped over toward it his foot caught on his belt, rattling the dagger Jaerd had given him.

Jaerd mumbled something, shifting under his covers. He sat up. “Oh, it’s just you.” He shook his head. “Must have been a weird dream I was having.”

After he finished, Tallen sat back down on his bed. Brawny barked out in the stable, his throaty voice carrying through the open window. Someone shouted at him from down the street. Tallen dug through his pack, searching for his pipe. He stuffed the bowl and reached into his power for the tiniest trickle of Fire. An orange ember began to glow. He smiled at the ease with which he could use his magic.
I’ll never need to buy matches again.

Jaerd shifted his covers. “Here, give me a puff of that, so I don’t have to fill my own.”

Tallen passed the pipe to his brother. As he leaned over the chamber pot, a harsh stench wafted up to his nose. “I’ll get rid of that.”

Standing up, Tallen grabbed the pot and carried it toward the open windows. He dumped the malodorous contents toward the street below.

“Flaming... piss!” a growling voice shouted from outside the window.

“What the…” Jaerd leapt to the window. “Thieves and enemies!” He grabbed his sword propped against the bed, pulled the scabbard away, and cast it aside. He shouted at the top of his lungs. “Enemies on the walls!”

Tallen stumbled away as Jaerd thrust his sword out the window and downward. A scream of pain responded. When he drew the sword back, darkness covered the first six inches of its lustrous steel. Jaerd pushed Tallen toward the door, handing him his dagger.

“Get out! There are three more on a ladder.” He opened the door and shoved Tallen through. “It’s you they want!” Jaerd turned back toward the window before slamming the door shut with his foot. Tallen heard the bar drop behind it.

He banged on the door to Boris’ room. “Earl Boris! Magus Britt! Everyone wake up! They are climbing in the windows!”

Tallen sensed a tingle deep within his gut, and knew someone summoned the Fire Aspect. Boris came stomping out, his silvery longsword in hand. Magus Britt followed close behind. Tallen sensed more Fire, then a vague itching in his forehead – just the tiniest bit of Water.

A bolt of white-hot lightning shot out from Magus Britt’s fingertips and crackled about the two figures within their room. They jerked stiff then collapsed as the lighting receded, snapping one last time over their prone, smoking bodies.

Magus Britt shook his hand as if it stung. “I’ve burned their ladder, and the others on this side of the inn. They are probably coming in the other windows too.”

As if in answer, Sergeant Hall came crashing out the rearmost door. He held a broken bedpost in one hand and carried an unconscious Mistress Lilly over his other shoulder. Blood ran from his temple. He nodded to Boris. “They won’t be coming through that room.”

Tallen tugged Magus Britt’s cloak. “Jaerd barred himself in!”

He felt an odd thump in his chest. It could only be the Earth Aspect. Another door burst open, and Darve and Yrik tumbled out. The clash of steel rang loudly behind them. A young nobleman stumbled out of his own room, his neck opened into a second, gaping red mouth. Blood spurted from between his fingers. He tumbled to his knees, as two dark figures in leather armor charged out from behind him.

“Orcs!” Darve ran one through from behind with his rune-carved longsword.

Boris grabbed Tallen’s arm in a tight grip and shoved him towards Hall. “Get him to cover behind the bar. That’s where we will fall back.”

Hall nodded, his wrinkled brow obscured by seeping red. He pulled Tallen toward the stairs.

He did not struggle against the sergeant, if that were even possible. Instead, he shouted toward Boris, “Get Jaerd!”

Down in the main room he heard a thumping noise, each blow followed by a creaking sound.

“They’re coming in the main door.” Sergeant Hall set Lilly down behind the bar. “You stay here with her, and keep your head down.” He disappeared.

Tallen leaned over the inn’s proprietor, searching for a wound he might bind. Lilly moaned and struggled limply against his touch. Suddenly the scent of jasmine wafted to Tallen’s nose. That alone prevented him from screaming when the cool hand covered his mouth.

“It’s me,” Maddi whispered in his ear. “This inn is a death trap. We have to find a way out.” She paused. “To get some help.”

At first, Tallen thought to protest. But when he looked into her eyes, when he saw the resolve hiding fear. He gave in. “If I know anything about kitchens, there is always a rear entry for deliveries.”

“Then let’s go.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward back.

The rear door was secured with a bar. They paused for a second, listening, but no sounds of intruders passed through. Tallen crouched close behind Maddi, who held a knife in each hand. He gripped Jaerd’s dagger more tightly in his own.

The bar slid back easily, and Tallen pulled the door open to find himself face to face with a surprised orc. An acrid stench stung his nose as it exhaled a startled breath. He lashed out with a controlled blast of Air, throwing the snarling warrior across the alley to crumple against a stone wall. A second orc hurdled its fallen comrade and lunged towards him. Tallen scrambled to grab Air again, but not before Maddi leaped around him to stick a dirk in the orc’s neck with a swift, sudden strike.

“Thanks,” he gasped, trying to regain his breath.

The banging against the front door intensified, and a massive crash resounded through the inn. Shouts of rage and pain followed, mingled with the ring of steel on steel.

“Go! Before they send anyone else here.” Maddi pushed him into the alley, slipping along the inn’s rear wall. Tallen followed, copying her movements as closely as he could.

The plaza on the north side of the inn stood empty. A few figures carrying torches gathered in the distance by the docks.

“Those must be the dockside night watch.” Maddi ran toward them, dashing out into the open square.

“Maddi, wait!” Tallen raced after her, casting his eyes over his shoulder toward the inn’s entrance. A half dozen armed figures pushed their way through the front door, though he saw no signs of more entering through the second story windows.

He turned his eyes back toward Maddi, who was already closing on the docks. He sucked air in short, painful bursts as he strained for his longest stride. His heart pounded in fear, but inside his head, he was strangely calm. The colors of the Aspects floated near his perception.

If only Magus Britt had taught me something more useful than growing apple trees and moving seeds of grain!

Maddi skidded to a halt in front of him, her eyes fixed on several small boats tied up along the Snowbourne. The dozen dark figures stopped their random movement, coalesced together, and began to trot toward her. Tallen heard the sound of steel sliding along leather. The light of a torch caught a pair of eyes.

Red! Orcs!

“Maddi!” She looked back at him. “This way!” He waved her toward another side road, leading to a closer turn of the river. Maddi ran toward him, and the orc squad charged.

Tallen caught her wrist at full speed, taking care to avoid the knife. He looked to their right upon reaching the pier. The docks ended with nowhere to go but the river. They turned left, pounding up the wharf toward the set of small boats they had seen before. The orcs followed them around the corner, shouting with anger and the thrill of the chase.

Maddi spun and cast a dagger into the face of the lead orc, dropping him like a sack of flour. The others surged forward, snarling in rage. Maddi grabbed Tallen’s hand and pulled him toward the nearest boat, tied to a cleat at the edge of the pier.

“We can escape on the river!” She hauled him closer.

An inexplicable sense of dread sunk into Tallen’s mind. The silvery white presence of the Psoul Aspect throbbed. He turned his head toward the inn, now far up the street. The orcs chasing them slowed and quieted. They shifted their direction toward the figure approaching Tallen and Maddi.

The beast loomed over the three orcs flanking it. Each clung onto a chain attached to a collar around the creature’s neck. Its wide shoulders hunched over, and the long, thick arms ended in meaty fists that almost dragged on the ground. A hide covering, thick and colored much like its own, covered its chest and loins. The thick jaw and protruding lower fangs reminded Tallen of the orcs who leashed it, as did the faintly glowing pink eyes. But those eyes held nothing of the orcs’ cruel intelligence, only ignorant malice.

The monster roared, sending ripples across the moonlit Snowbourne.

“By the Talismans…” Maddi’s dirk hung loose in her fingers. “Troll!”

The main group of orcs joined with the beast and its handlers. Together they moved cautiously forward, certain their prey stood trapped with its back to the water.

Maddi backed towards the boat, her eyes locked on the lumbering troll. Her foot caught on the rope, and she tripped backward. Tallen heard the sick thump of her head smacking against the gunwale.

“Maddi!” Tallen scrambled down to her, cradling her body. She moaned, eyes fluttering, and her hand gripped the front of his shirt, while the other still clung desperately to her dirk. He stood up, lifting her surprisingly light body in his arms.

Opening his mind and spirit, Tallen embraced the colors fluttering around inside his head. He remembered watching Magus Britt inside the inn just a few minutes ago. The red-hot inferno of Fire roiled to the forefront. Tallen let it come to him, let the Fire flow into his body. He focused on the rushing troll and orcs, their approach slowed down to the moments between heartbeats by his accelerated awareness. He took a second part of his mind and dipped it into the cool familiarity of Water. He pulled it forth, bringing it into contact with the Fire.

The lightning did not erupt from his fingers, as he had witnessed with Magus Britt. Instead, it ripped up from the ground beneath the orcs, leaping from them to the troll, silent in the split second of time. Blinding light crackled around the creatures and a single burning column shot into the night sky, punching a hole through the darkness. Tallen released all of his gathered power into the electrical stream, cutting it off with a stroke of finality.

The concussion smashed him to the ground, Maddi’s body landing on top of him. He scrambled, thoughts wheeling out of control, and a strong smell of cauterized meat in his nostrils. He struggled to haul her body into the boat then tumbled onboard himself. The dagger Jaerd had given him lay where he had dropped it on the wharf. With his last conscious thought, Tallen grabbed it and cut the rope tying the boat to the dock. The knife clattered to the stone pier from his limp hand, as the boat gently bumped its way into the current.