Moon's Artifice (53 page)

‘You want to kill her ?’ Enchei asked. ‘Reckon those Dragons are getting close so we don’t have much time.’

‘You’re not a Dragon agent ?’ Synter croaked before Narin could make up his mind. ‘Then you’re just as dead. You’ll never get off the island, not with the artefact. You know once you’re out of this fog the Gods or Dragons will find you in a heartbeat. Give it to me and you can still get out of this alive. When the moon rises, we’ll be strong enough to see you right.’

Enchei gave a snort. ‘Reckon I know what brought this mist down ; that gives us a fighting chance.’

Synter straightened. ‘Kill me then, just, first – tell me why ? You’re not working for any of them, you’re not loyal to the Gods – what’s in this for you ?’

Enchei turned to Narin as the Investigator struggled to his feet. Before either could speak Synter exploded into movement, chopping forward at Enchei and catching his arm a glancing blow. The next missed, the third tore through his cloak. Though she kept coming close, Enchei remained a step ahead of each movement of that savage flurry. At last an opening came and he hooked her axe, hauling Synter off balance. He brought his baton up at her chin in the next moment.

She tried to twist out of the way but it cracked against her black face-mask and rocked her back. A downward stroke from his sword severed her wrist but the killing stroke came from Narin. He’d taken a long-knife from the dead goshe and drove it into her kidneys as Enchei’s cut fell. The goshe arched, a howl of pain breaking her lips before shuddering to a halt.

‘Why ?’ Narin snarled in her ear. ‘Because of a little girl called Emari – for the thousands you’ve poisoned and robbed of their minds. You don’t get to just do that.’

A huff of pained breath was Synter’s only reply. Narin realised he felt nothing now. The horror of killing he’d felt previously had gone, and now he was just cold and numb inside. He held her, pinned for a drawn-out moment, then jerked the blade from her back and let her fall.

‘They’re coming,’ Enchei said, glancing over his shoulder.

He levelled his left arm and Narin caught a flash of movement. Tiny darts thudded into Synter’s mask, one bursting her eye apart. With one final jerk she stilled.

Enchei went over to the other goshe and hefted the heat lance that he’d pried free. ‘We’ve got our prizes, time to move.’

Narin let himself be shoved away and the chill night folded in behind them.

Lawbringer Rhe followed the screams and stepped over the corpses. Dozens of goshe had thrown themselves at the Stone Dragons, but few had even got close enough to be cut apart by their brutal blades. In the wake of the Astaren’s advance, his ragged corps of Lawbringers, Investigators and Imperials had trailed without resistance. The fires of the leper colony raged unabated behind, an orange glow through the unholy curtain of fog.

Explosions echoed across the island, accompanied by dull flashes of light. How many goshe elite with those terrible crossbows there were, he couldn’t tell, but the reports of their fire-bolts came from all directions. The Stone Dragons had proceeded up towards the sanatorium strung in a line, but all order had been lost as teams of elites launched attacks from all directions. Each Astaren was an island now, a fortress of destruction amid the sea of fog that confounded them all.

He judged they were close to the sanatorium now. As Rhe began to imagine the horrific final slaughter to come, a faint outline of its walls appeared ahead. He looked to his right where Law Master Sheven walked and realised he could make out more figures beyond the man than earlier.

‘Is the fog easing ?’

‘This is no fog,’ Sheven growled in response. ‘It’s some demon’s spell to hide them from the Stone Dragons.’

‘But is it waning ?’ Rhe persisted.

The white-bearded Law Master stopped and looked around, grunting in acknowledgement. ‘It is,’ he said. ‘Are the demons driven off ?’

‘Something has happened.’

Rhe looked up and at last saw the distant pinpricks of the Gods above. Lord Shield’s constellation was almost directly overhead, the whole Order of Knight gradually reasserting their divine light once more. A gust of breeze swept down to wash over his face and continued the steady erosion of fog. When he returned his attention to the sanatorium walls he saw figures there, but they vanished from view almost immediately – retreating from the sight of a pair of shadow-scorched Stone Dragons.

‘It’s over,’ he realised dully, ‘they’re not defending it.’

‘And now ?’

Sheven got his answer from up ahead. As the fog melted away around them, one of the Stone Dragons levelled its heat lance at the walls. A great roar cut though the night, the air ripped apart and flames exploded over the surface of the stone wall. A few moments later its comrade joined it and the crack of stones bursting apart rang out over the island.

The wall blackened and groaned fearfully. Ear-splitting crashes echoed from deep inside and the wall visibly shuddered under the assault. Satisfied, the Stone Dragons broke off their assault and one marched up to the wall, punching its blade straight into the weakened stone. Once it’d hauled that out again it stepped back and kicked forward with one massive armoured boot – stamping forward into the stone to knock out a whole section of wall.

Off to the right, Rhe saw another Astaren emerge from the darkness like a vengeful avatar of the Gods – spitting flame at the gate, which caught in moments. Red blades of fire leapt up into the sky and Rhe felt a sudden chill. This was too arbitrary to be merely dealing with the fighters. They were going to kill every last one of the occupants – goshe and fever-stricken citizens alike.

‘No !’ he yelled and broke into a sprint. Before he really knew what was happening he had run up to the wall and stood between it and one of the enormous Stone Dragons. ‘Stop – withdraw !’

The carved face stared impassively down at him, but Rhe could sense the hatred in the Dragon’s stance. Though he was a Lawbringer and part of the House of the Sun now, his face marked him clearly as from a house within the House Eagle hegemony – House Dragon’s long-standing rival and enemy.

‘Step aside, Eagle,’ the Astaren rumbled – his deep voice unmuffled by the all-enclosing armour he wore.

‘I will not,’ Rhe declared, staring defiantly up. ‘There are innocents within and criminals I intend to arrest. I will not let you slaughter them.’

‘Criminals ?’ roared the other Stone Dragon, turning to face Rhe and pen him in against the wall. That close, Rhe could feel the heat from the stones as clear on the air as the mounting anger of the Empire’s most volatile warriors. ‘Your law does not apply – these goshe will answer to us for the forbidden arts they have used.’

‘No.’

The Stone Dragon took a step forward and levelled its heat lance at Rhe’s face. ‘You cannot stop us, you cannot compel us or order us, Eagle. Get out of my way or you will die.’

‘No,’ Rhe repeated, speaking clearly and slowly. ‘You will walk away – you have asserted your power already. The elite are yours as you choose – they are changed by magic and as such are your prize, but the rest of the goshe are mine along with the fever victims. Their minds have been changed, their will stolen from them. They are victims above anything else.’

He was careful to keep his hands away from the pistols sheathed on his stomach, but equally determined to show no fear.

‘The compassion of Eagles,’ one commented scornfully. ‘These people are changed or sickened by magic – they are beyond your help
and
your compassion.’

‘I am a Lawbringer of the House of the Sun,’ Rhe replied. ‘I have my oaths and my duty – this crime will be unravelled and the guilty punished, but the innocent shall be protected, whether that is from the goshe or from you. Whether this was a crime against the Gods or the Emperor’s law, my duty remains.’

The Stone Dragons exchanged a look as the third made its way over and a fourth appeared behind them.

‘Kill him,’ one stated flatly, ‘and any who stand in our way. All those changed are forfeit ; this sickness must be cured in fire.’

‘Look behind you,’ Rhe said.

The Stone Dragons did not, but Rhe got the impression their arriving comrade had communicated the sight anyway. The Lawbringers Rhe had led onto the island were formed up in their units once more, arranged in a long arc around the Stone Dragons no more than twenty yards behind.

He could see their resolve now. The fear and confusion of battle, the terror of demons and Astaren – all this had melted away from their hearts. What was left was only their duty and the man who epitomised it. They were with him and would serve the Emperor’s law with their dying breaths if need be.

But the symbol is enough. My duty is to ensure that does not happen, not seek battle.

‘Give the order,’ the first Stone Dragon said. ‘You think we cannot kill them all ? You think we would even lose one of our own ?’

Rhe felt his own contempt rise now, an emotion he had rarely felt in all his years. But now, in the face of such arrogance and callousness, he was filled with it.

‘I think you would kill us,’ he confirmed. ‘If that is your wish, you will do so. But it is what comes after that matters. How you reached this island I do not know, but anyone using these waters knows there is a House Eagle warship patrolling them.’

‘Now you claim your heritage again ?’

Rhe inclined his head. ‘I acknowledge the House of my birth, as will they. Do you think that warship will contain no Astaren of House Eagle ? In this time of tensions, you think such a lack would be permitted by the Lords of Eagle ? Do you imagine they are not aware of what is happening right now with whatever arcane methods they have at their disposal ? With the Gods looking down on this place and that warship bearing witness, do you think you could slaughter us with impunity ?’

He looked from one faceless Astaren to the other. ‘To murder the servants of the Emperor and men and women of every Great House serving under his banner – to murder the sick and the enfeebled. To murder a nobleman of House Brightlance and men of the royal family itself with impunity ? If it is war with the rest of the Empire you seek, go ahead.’

To make his point, Rhe pointed to Prince Kashte who stood slightly ahead of the rest alongside Law Master Sheven. The Imperial stood easily, leaning on his rifle with such casual disregard for the threat to his life, as only a distant cousin of the Emperor could manage.

‘Royal blood, noble blood and innocent blood. So what is your prize to be ? The elite and the secrets their altered bodies contain, or a war even your armies cannot hope to win ?’

The Stone Dragons were silent a long while, but eventually one jerked in a stiff attempt at a nod.

‘Very well, you have your innocents, Brightlance. Bring us the elites – alive or dead, we do not care.’

‘Of course you don’t,’ Rhe replied, turning his back on them to skirt the wall and rejoin his men. ‘Your kind never do.’

It didn’t take Enchei long to find the boat again, though how he managed it Narin had no idea. The fog hid everything and they couldn’t even see Kesh below, only the vague outline of the smuggler’s boat as it moved below. Enchei jerked the rope twice to be sure it was her, receiving three tugs on it in response. Satisfied, he checked around one final time then began to pull up the rope to tie it around Narin’s waist but the Investigator stayed his friend’s hand.

‘I’ll climb, just give me a moment.’

Enchei’s reaction was impossible to make out, but the man’s hesitation told enough. Narin’s hand trembled on his friend’s arm – because of the exertion or his encounter with his captor, Narin wasn’t sure himself, but it remained noticeable.

‘Best we don’t hang about here.’

Narin gritted his teeth. ‘Just … half a minute, okay ? Let me get my breath back.’

‘As you wish,’ Enchei said with a curt nod.

He looked down at the plundered heat lance he carried, careful to keep his hands off the grips though Narin could see nothing that looked like a trigger.

‘What are you going to do with that ? Sell it ?’

The question brought a snort of laughter from Enchei. ‘Sell it ? Oh sure, just what I need is to spread a little chaos – let some madman get his hands on it to start settling feuds.’

‘What then ?’

‘Don’t know, if I’m honest, habit mostly. To an Astaren the weapons of the enemy are more precious than their weight in gems. Since it was just lying there I thought I’d help myself, you never know when you might have need of something like this. That cloth I gave you’ll shield it from curious spirits or irate owners until I can hide it somewhere safe.’

Enchei pulled the rope up with quick controlled movements and tied the weapon onto it, lowering it down for Kesh to retrieve. Before long, a tug on the rope told them it was clear and Enchei offered the rope to Narin.

‘Ready now, or want me to go first ?’

Narin peered over the cliff. ‘I’ll go.’

Ignoring the ache of fatigue in his arms, Narin began to lower himself down, walking backwards down the cliff with the rope cradling the small of his back. He took it slowly, playing the rope out through his gloves in small controlled bursts and before long he found himself at the rocky outcrop where they’d tied up. Kesh straddled the edge of the boat with one foot on the rock and the other inside, using the strength of her legs to keep it close since it was only secured at one end. She gave him a relieved smile as she helped him over and into the belly of the boat.

‘All safe ?’

Narin didn’t answer at first as he slumped down and panted for breath. The quiver on his back jutted over his shoulder at an uncomfortable angle, but it was a while before he could find the strength to shift himself to a more comfortable position.

‘Don’t know,’ he said at last. ‘Enchei’s coming down now, but I got separated from Irato.’

‘What ? When ?’

Narin shook his head and started to paw at the quiver on his back, eventually pulling it off and stashing it under cover by the base of the mast. The contents were still securely wrapped in the cloth Enchei had given him that, by the feel of it, had chains of metal links stitched inside it.

‘In the sanatorium – we split up to sow some confusion, but this damn fog made it impossible to do anything but run.’

The scuff of boots on rock made them both turn. With what Narin now thought of as typical speed and recklessness, Enchei descended the cliff and dropped lightly onto the rock beside Kesh. In quick succession he removed his helm, cloak and sword, bundling them away beside Narin’s quiver.

‘Any sign ?’

‘Of Irato ? No, but he’ll be here. Probably skirting whatever’s going on between the Stone Dragons and the remaining goshe. Give him some time, he’ll be here.’

‘And then what ?’ Kesh asked. ‘That artefact – if this all went as you planned, that artefact is actually connected to the minds of all the goshe ?’

‘Aye, looks that way.’

‘So half the Empire’s going to want it. Even if there’s no God residing in their minds, there are thousands of goshe across the ten Great House hegemonies – all just waiting for commands from whoever’s got that artefact.’

Enchei grinned. ‘Didn’t figure you for a power-player in the making.’

‘I’m not !’ she hissed. ‘I’m the one who doesn’t want every bloody Astaren in the Empire tracking us down.’

‘Don’t you worry about that – look, the fog’s easing.’

‘What’s that got to do with anything ?’ Narin asked.

‘Means I’ve been right more than once tonight. It’s unnatural, any fool could see that, but Irato’s demons ain’t powerful enough to manage that – not in a way that confounds Astaren.’

‘Lord Shield ?’ Narin asked grimly.

Enchei raised a finger to correct him. ‘Is just one of the beings we’ve had contact with in the last few days, so don’t assume too much. Shield’s kept a weather eye on you, sure enough. I’d never have found you otherwise and as soon as we leave the island, the fog starts to lift. Can’t be a coincidence, that.’

‘And do you have a plan when our benefactor comes calling ?’