Swords of the Imperium (Dark Fantasy Novel) (The Polaris Chronicles Book 2) (9 page)

“What I told you is common knowledge!”

“You shouldn’t be embarrassed about your profession. I think it’s cool that you can coax food from the poisoned soils and stuff.”

Taki waved his hands. “I need to get going. Nice to have met you and all…”

Enilna sidled up to him. “Hey, can you help me?”

Taki blinked.

“Thanks!” she said without waiting to hear his answer. She grasped his wrists and whisked him into a gap between a pair of tin-roofed sheds.

“What’s goi—” Taki said.

Enilna clapped a hand over his mouth and pressed both of their bodies into a sliver of shadow.
“Shush! Elsa’s coming,”
she whispered.

Taki heard the approaching footfalls of boots in the dust. He had many reasons to simply push Enilna away and report the intrusion. Though she seemed to have proper documents, they could always be forgeries.
Hell, she could have killed the real Enilna Shpejtspate for all I know, and I’m next
.

The logical, proper thing to do would be to shout for the guard and especially for another member of Alfa. But logic was nothing compared to the sensation of her pressed against him. His earlobes felt pleasantly warm, and his heart thudded in his chest. Occasionally, Enilna would press even harder when she heard Elsa stop.

Eventually, the footfalls faded after a tense, pleasant eternity.
I think she forced herself on me a little,
Taki thought as her hand came off his lips. Her fingers smelled earthy and sour but not unpleasant.

“Sorry,”
Enilna whispered. She looked genuinely apologetic. “I’m really sorry! I mean, not for hiding. I was supposed to be on base waiting to rendezvous with everyone, but I really wanted to explore some nearby ruins and thought I’d have time. Oberleutnant Aslatiel wouldn’t care, but Commissar Irulan is a hardass. Okay, I must be off! Thanks for your help.” She stepped away, gave a perfunctory bow, and scampered off.

Taki ran his fingers through his hair and blinked incredulously. “What the hell just happened to me?” His bladder twitched painfully, and he cursed his luck.

Hours later, he returned to the mess hall with a sore back and aching arms. Unloading had gone slower than anticipated, and everyone had been pressed into labor to complete the job before sundown. Crates of muskets and sheaves of pikes were surprisingly heavy, especially when there were a hundred to handle. Taki nodded to Aslatiel, who had already started to eat a meal of black bread with pickled cabbage topped with shavings of mutton. Beside Aslatiel was the blond woman, Irulan. Noticeably, they seemed to be playfully feeding each other, and the sight made Taki blush.

Lotte and the rest of his company were absent, save for Hadassah. She sat at the other end of the table, talking excitedly with Lucatiel. Taki furrowed his brow when he noted the bruises and split lips adorning the pair. He shot a warning glance at Hadassah, pulled out a seat across from Aslatiel, and wordlessly sat down to eat. The day had been grueling, and he was not entirely recovered from the journey. The soft glow of the sconces overhead invited dozing, but he resisted the temptation.

“There you are,” Aslatiel said.

Taki blinked and realized that someone was standing behind him.

“Oberleutnant,
I’m reporting for duty,” Enilna said. She stood nervously at attention. It was obvious she hadn’t bathed.

“Join us and eat,” Aslatiel said, and gestured to the food.

Enilna nodded and took the seat next to Taki. She reached for a slab of bread, but Irulan’s fingers caught her ears and twisted.

“Not so fast,” Irulan said. “So, did you have fun playing around in the mud, climbing the fence, and molesting an officer?”

Enilna let out a pained chuckle. “Ah, nothing gets by you. I was merely discussing important supply logistics with our unit farmer.”

“What are you even talking about? Natalis, you should’ve shot her.”

Taki raised an eyebrow.

“Sorry, sorry. Can you let go now?” Enilna winced as Irulan twisted harder.

“Not until I’m done lecturing you. First, when you’re given orders to stay in one place, that doesn’t mean go and screw around in crumbling hovels. Second—” The clattering of a metal tray stopped Irulan midsentence.

“You!” Lotte stood wide-eyed nearby with the tray and spilt breadcrumbs at her feet.

Enilna’s face lit up in recognition. “Big Sis!” She wormed her way out of Irulan’s grasp, bounded over the table, and wrapped her arms around Lotte with crushing strength.

Lotte closed her eyes and smiled. She stroked Enilna’s hair. “So you finally made it to Sevastopol.”

“I did! I never thought I’d see you again. I thought you might have died. I thought—”

“You didn’t lose my gift, right?”

“No. I could never do that,” Enilna said and buried her face in Lotte’s chest. “It reminds me of you.”

Lotte’s mouth twisted. “I want it back.”

Enilna gasped and seemed about to burst into tears.

“Just kidding,” Lotte said. “I had to get you back for shooting me in Kosovo.”

Enilna blushed. She stepped back and crossed her arms in indignation.

“Wait,” Taki blurted, “is
she
the one who killed Duke Hekmatyar?”

“The one and only!” Enilna grinned. “You got a problem with that?”

“No,” Taki said. “Not at all. Actually, I think that’s really amazing. It must’ve taken a lot of courage.”

Enilna blushed deeper at that.

Nice to get her back as well,
Taki thought.

“Actually, I have a problem,” Hadassah said. “Because that asshole duke kicked it, we were all sentenced to peel potatoes while we waited to get hanged. I had to listen to these jokers”—she gestured at Draco and Karma—“whinge about how they couldn’t find any privacy to wank it. Can you make me unhear that?”

“Ahem,” Aslatiel said, clapping his hands twice. “It’s time to return to matters of war. Everyone eat their fill because tomorrow, we start work in earnest.”

“They opened the perimeter wall here,” Aslatiel said. He dabbed at the crumbling, soot-blackened edges of blasted masonry with his fingertips. The hole was as wide as three men standing shoulder to shoulder, and just as tall. “Probably with a horse-drawn cannon firing explosive shells.”

“Only a legion would have those,” Lotte said. “Further proof that the Mandate is being supplied by someone from outside these parts.” She stepped in through the hole, crouched in the dirt, and picked up a scorched brass case. “Rimmed Nagant—brass cases and good powder. Used milligrad to take out the tower watch and punch through the mantlets. Then they had free run of the place.”

“Our foe is more dangerous than I thought,” Aslatiel said. He crunched through the blackened grass and peered into the collapsed remains of one of the classrooms. Above him, Irulan and Hadassah stood watch on the remaining walls. They swept the grassy tundra with the muzzles of their rifles. No threat would sneak up on the squads under their watch.

“I can imagine how events unfolded,” Aslatiel continued. “They rounded up all of the surviving teachers who didn’t escape, along with the students tall enough to meet their eyes, and butchered them all against the walls.” He pointed to where the concrete was riddled with pockmarks and the characteristic muddy color of old, dried blood.

“God,” Taki said. He squatted for a moment to hide the sudden weakness in his knees. Visions of an older massacre started to flash in his mind. Convulsing bodies lined up in a trench to be mummified with quicklime. He shook his head to drive the memories back. This wasn’t the time. Now, he had to be strong. “Why couldn’t they just take more prisoners? Wasn’t that their goal?”

“Because adults and teenagers can fight back,” Aslatiel said. “They want helpless victims, not liabilities.”

“Strange, though,” Taki said. “They wanted to torch the place, so why did they pile up all these books and burn them separately?” He motioned at the charred remains of leather-bound texts in the courtyard.

“Because,” Aslatiel said, “they wanted to make a statement.” He reached into the ash pile and gingerly opened one of the scorched books. It fractured and fell to pieces in his hands. “To these bastards, learning is a sin, so it must be purged with fire.”

“I don’t care much about books, though,” Lotte said, shaking her head. “I want the girls and where the Mandate of Heaven is hiding.”

Elsa emerged into the courtyard through the hole and pointed to the smashed gates nearby. “They loaded the girls onto skid wagons and dusted the tracks. There are ruts nearby on the other side but no trail we can use. These are mountain men we’re dealing with, so if they don’t want to be found, we’re out of luck. I sent Mikhail out there to search. If there’s anything to find, he’ll find it.”

“Mikhail…” Taki rolled the name around his tongue. “The albino fellow…”

“Yes, the albino,” someone said softly behind him.

Taki turned and immediately felt embarrassed. Fahnenjunker Mikhail Zhukov bore the most stereotypically Imperial of names and yet looked nothing like any easterner Taki had ever seen. Mikhail’s features closely resembled those of tribesmen from the southern deserts, save for a complete lack of pigmentation. The man also never raised his voice above a whisper, forcing everyone else to quiet themselves and lean in if they wished to listen to him.

“Oberleutnant,” Mikhail said, ignoring Taki. “The winds have obscured most of the tracks. Still, they couldn’t have gone far, not overburdened and covering their trail.” He drew a dagger and started to scratch a rough map in the dirt. “There are many ancient ruins out here, all abandoned. Any could house an army without the locals knowing. Five of the ruins nearby will allow quick strikes into Lhasa.”

“Aye, thanks, Mikhail,” Aslatiel said. “That narrows our search down considerably. There are eleven of us in total now, including the kadet. We should go out in two-person teams to reconniter each of the ruins.”

“Wait, Imperial,” Lotte said. “None of my people know the area well. The enemy does, however, and is expecting us. We’ll be snuffed out two by two.”

Aslatiel frowned. “But what else can we do within reason?”

Taki tapped him on the arm. “How about the smugglers from Nathu La? The rector mentioned them, remember? They might know where their rebel customers are. We may even catch them meeting with the enemy if we’re lucky.”

Aslatiel looked at Lotte and then at Taki. “Well, Natalis, it sounds as good as any other idea. Are you agreeable to this, Captain?”

“I am,” Lotte said. “Natalis, work with the Imperials who know the area and devise a raid. I want it by midwatch tomorrow.”

“Yes, Captain!” Taki puffed with pride and tried not to show it. This was the first time Lotte had asked him to plan a battle since his promotion. It would be a test of not only his reputation but also hers in the eyes of their new allies.
And if I succeed, then…well, I have no idea how to climb the Imperial ladder, do I?

“I’ll help, too,” Enilna said. “You know, get you all tea and carry stuff. Whatever you want, Taki!”

“Er, thanks,” Taki said.
When did you get so familiar with me?
I’m an officer, you know.

A trio of horses rounded the bend near where Taki crouched. He had hidden behind a boulder alongside the trail at the bottom of Nathu La for hours. He unconsciously gripped his flare launcher tight as the hoofbeats thudded closer. Mikhail’s hand came to rest on his shoulder.

“Just the scouts,” Mikhail said. “Let them pass.”

Taki swallowed on a dry throat and nodded. Undue tension would cause mistakes, and mistakes would spook the smuggling caravan and cause his plan to fail. The hoofbeats slowed and then stopped. Taki fought the urge to peek around the boulder.

Keeping his voice low so it wouldn’t carry, he asked, “What’s going on?”

“Silence. They can tell something’s amiss,” Mikhail said. He drew his pistol and pushed the slide back a finger’s width to check for a chambered cartridge. Brass glinted reassuringly, and he slowly eased the round back into battery.

Taki nodded and clasped a hand near his chest to still himself. If the scouts discovered them or Elsa on the other side of the road, the trap was finished. Lotte’s reputation would suffer, and they would not be regarded as equals. He would be disgraced and unworthy of his promotion.
Strange,
he thought. Compared to regicide, the prospect of failing his new task stung more.

A mare drew up on the opposite side and stopped. She neighed in protest while her rider tightened the reins. Taki took a deep breath as it started to step toward the boulder. The new armor he wore irritated his neck, further adding to his discomfort; it was rigid in the wrong places and flexible where he would have preferred a harder touch. He wasn’t so sure he could fight in it, which was a growing problem right now.

Voices from farther away stopped the rider’s advance. Though Taki could not understand the words, he knew what impatience sounded like. The horse trotted away, leaving dust in its wake.