21. Kasten
There was barely enough room at the top of the chute for me to balance, my feet wedged against one side, my back against the other. Though the latrine hadn’t been used for years, the faint smell of urine still lingered in the air and the walls were slippery with algae. My muscles burned from the long climb, but I ignored them, forcing the pain and exhaustion to the back of my mind. A thin line of light escaped around the plasterboard blocking my path, the only other source of light, my small kryalcomy blue lamp.
I reached behind my right ear for my detector and turned the dial to sensitive. I waited, listening. It should detect anyone using kryalcomy. The first footsteps didn’t trigger the device. I waited for them to pass. Then the faint ringing sounded, getting louder and higher pitched as another set of footsteps passed. A soulless.
I considered going back to my soldiers and telling them the latrines were a clear path into Whitehill, but my skin itched. The more I learned about the enemy’s defenses, the better plan I could formulate, and the more likely we were to stop Kollenstar in their tracks. Besides, I didn’t expect to get out of this alive, so it made sense to take some risks.
When I was certain no other footsteps were coming, and only a single note rang on the detector, I drew my sword and freisk knife. Carefully, I angled myself, took a deep breath, and kicked down the plaster board blocking my way with both legs.
The soldier and the soulless were exactly where I had predicted. I’d seen soulless hundreds of times before and killed countless of them. Still, there was always the primal shock of seeing one that made my blood run instantly cold. Its skin was dark grey, its mouth slack and gaping, its arms and neck hanging loose, and its eyes sharp and hungry. Kryalcomy had sucked out every emotion that Kollenstar deemed unhelpful in a soldier, including its sense of self. They were dead even while they lived. It was a terrible fate.
The creature turned at the noise, its twisted, shriveled body moving with jerky, inhuman speed. It wasn’t fast enough, however. I slid to one side, slashing the yadum blade into one of its arms, and immediately the kryalcomy that kept it alive was drained. It crumpled. The Kollenstar soldier only had time to gape at how quickly I’d destroyed the soulless before my sword found his neck, finishing him with one smooth swipe.
I paused, listening, but no footsteps sounded down the narrow stone corridor. My detector remained silent. I lifted the two bodies and pushed them down the latrine shoot before balancing the plasterboard back over the hole. It would only fool the unobservant—there was a mess of plaster dust and specks of blood on the floor—but it would do for now.
I padded on swift silent feet down the empty corridor, the widely spaced oil lamps leaving plenty of shadows, and followed the map I had memorized. Whitehill had a single tall tower at its center which commanded a good view in all directions. That was also where the table and maps were kept and the commander held his meetings. I suspected these invaders would use it as their base too.
I dispatched two more soldiers, another soulless and an ordinary guard, my detector giving me plenty of warning and my freisk knife making short work of monsters that were considered notoriously difficult to kill.
I wondered how long I would have survived these battles without Callum. Not very long at all, probably.
I’d told the king about the advantages of equipping each Fenland soldier with a simple yadum knife before, but he had shrugged the idea away, saying they were too expensive and difficult to use for standard issue. The metal was soft, so you had to slash and avoid parrying it against a more standard metal.
So Callum equipped my regiment and they survived while others died. Although, when Callum made so many that most of the people of Kasomere had a ceremonial one, I suspected it was his own gesture of defiance against the king.
We didn’t have enough of Callum’s illegal devices for everyone in the regiment, but the least we could give them was simple yadum. The soulless were difficult to kill without it.
I made it to the room above the commander’s room and flicked the switch on my fansifold knife to activate it. Once it was glowing red, I burned a small hole through the floorboards. My detector rang with dozens of high-pitched tones, all moving below me. That wasn’t a good sign. Soulless couldn’t command, so it suggested the room below was packed with unchanged soldiers and their soulless guards.
I lay on my stomach and looked through the hole. Sure enough, soldiers were gathered around a map spread on a gigantic table. Others looked out the huge windows into the darkness. I counted ten soulless and fourteen soldiers. Despite my calm focus, my heart rate elevated. One wore a red cloak and was clearly in command. They spoke in Kollen, and I listened to the words, translating what I could in my head. Something about needing supply lines and reinforcements before they could go farther.
They were planning to secure Whitehill as their base and advance into Fenland.
I rubbed my chin. We had to get them out before more soldiers could arrive to fortify this place, or we’d never manage it—not without the king suffering loses across all his armies.
The door opened, and a woman dressed in dark leathers hurried in. I guessed from her lightweight clothing and slight figure that she was a scout. She did the sharp half-bow that was customary to their commander and spoke in a hurried tone.
Immediately, all eyes were on her as the room quieted. I heard the Kollen words for ‘enemy’ and ‘camp’ and ‘beyond the hills.’
My blood ran cold. She grabbed a stone painted blue from a pile and placed it on the giant map exactly where our camp was…no longer hidden.
This was too soon. We had hoped to avoid detection until morning at the earliest so we could assess the situation and move first. If our men were surprised now, late in the night and tired from the ride, we’d be overrun in moments. The soulless had far better vision in the dark.
I had to disrupt their leadership, and I had to do it now.
I made a wide hole with the fansifold knife, pushing hard and fast enough for the wood to become smoke and embers to flicker, then I dropped into the room full of enemies.
Sophie
Miss Claris strodeup to me and shoved the tonics into my arms. I took a step back from the force.
“Why haven’t you been taking them? Do you know the effort your father went through to procure such high-quality tonics? Or are you pregnant already?”
I could only blink at her.
Meena took the box from me and set it on the ground before angling herself between me and Miss Claris. Her voice was hard. “Is that how you speak to the lady of this house? I thought you were her maid.”
Meena’s retort shook me out of my stunned shock. I licked my lips and looked between the two women. It would be easy to hide behind Meena and let her deal with the situation, but it wasn’t just fear of disobeying Kasten’s previous orders for Miss Claris to not be in his house that made my heart pound. I didn’t want Miss Claris here. I didn’t want to see her ever again.
Did that make me a terrible person? She had devoted over twenty years to serving and guiding me. I owed her a lot.
But I didn’t need her anymore. I didn’t want her or this sickening, tightening feeling in my chest when I saw her. I didn’t want to worry about how thin my waist was or how tidy my hairstyle or how long I should stay out in the sun in case it darkened my skin. And most of all, I didn’t want to tell her about how Kasten had shown no interest in spending the night with me.
I reached out and touched Meena’s arm and motioned for her to move to one side. I focused on my former maid. When I stood straight, I was an inch taller than Miss Claris. How strange that I had never noticed that before.
“Miss Claris, you are completely out of turn.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “Forgive me, my lady. I didn’t watch my tone. But I was so surprised you had not…”
“Did you come with George?”
She opened and closed her mouth before nodding.
“He’s returning back to Adenburg straightaway. Since you’re not under my employ, I suggest you ensure you don’t miss his carriage. I am grateful for your concern and how you’ve looked after me for many years, but I am no longer your charge.”
Miss Claris’s fists tightened and red bloomed on her cheeks. “I have just ridden in that stuffy, hot carriage for eight hours to see you once I heard your husband was away.” She threw a distrusting look at Meena. “He’s not here to object to my presence, so there’s no need for you to act like this. I’ve been so worried about you. You didn’t even bother to reply to my letter. Will you really receive me in such a cold manner after everything I’ve done for you?” The corners of her eyes tightened with hurt.
My resolve started to crumble. She had come all this way to see me. She had been the one constant presence in my life since I was a little girl. My words were causing her pain, and guilt twisted my stomach. But I didn’t want her here. I couldn’t go back to my old way of life, especially after I had just found the strength to send George away.
I softened my expression and took Miss Claris’s bony hands in mine. “I thank you for your concern, Miss Claris. I know you have always looked out for me, but now I have others to do that. I am quite content here. Please don’t worry about my wellbeing any longer. It’s not your job anymore.”
Miss Claris pulled her hands free. “Your father…”
I held up my hand abruptly. “Good bye, Miss Claris. Pass on my well wishes to my sisters.”
I brushed past her into my bedroom and closed the door behind me, leaving Meena to ensure she left.
I pressed my back against the cool wood and breathed in and out. In and out. It felt surprisingly good to say goodbye.
Kasten
I clutched my bleeding side,my fingers becoming warm and sticky, and was grateful for the adrenaline keeping my pain at bay. Thankfully, I’d been caught by a normal soldier’s blade and not one of the cursed black blades welded by the soulless. Callum thought their swords used a forbidden type of kryalcomy that directed pain out of their bodies and into their blades, causing unimaginable pain. It would explain why the soulless never seemed to react to injuries.
I could only imagine how twisted their methods had to be to result in kryalcomy that channeled pain.
I breathed through gritted teeth as I circled the remaining two soldiers, careful not to trip on the fallen bodies. Three had escaped the room, I assumed to raise the alarm and get help, but I would worry about them later. When they returned with reinforcements, that would likely be the end for me. But first, I wanted to kill the remaining two men: the commander and his guard companion. That might be just enough to give my soldiers the edge they’d need to survive. It would take time for the enemy to restructure, and they would be more prone to mistakes.
Both Kollenstar soldiers had lowered their visors, the metal sweeping out to the sides of their helmets in multiple sharp points that gave them a reptilian look. Only their pale blue eyes remained visible.
The commander lunged, but it was a feint designed to leave me open for his companion. I knocked the commander’s sword into the other’s path, but his companion sidestepped. The two of them were perfectly coordinated, clearly practiced in fighting as a pair. The ache on my side grew from the blow, and I felt the warmth of blood trickling all the way down my thigh. Stupid fool I was for letting myself get injured too soon.
The two attacked together, the only warning was the footwork of the commander being a fraction ahead of the other. I focused on him and forced him back, drawing on the strength of my reserve device to keep me fast and strong. I prayed there would be enough stored strength in there to last the night.
I caught a vicious blow aimed for my head and was forced to stop the attacker’s blade with my yadum knife, still drawn from killing the soulless. The weaker metal shattered instantly, and his blade continued, forcing me to deflect it with my gauntlet. The thick leather was sliced through like cheese and dangled from my wrist; a new pain bloomed in my forearm. I needed to end this quickly before I weakened from too many injuries, and they were too good at swordsmanship to face them together.
I unhooked my grappling hook from its harness on my inner arm, careful to hide the movement while I squashed down my emotions leaving no room for fear. With a yell, I ran at the companion, catching him off guard and trapping our blades between our bodies. I didn’t slow, but used my enhanced strength from the reserve device to push us into the giant window behind him. Glass shattered around us, time slowing in thousands of spinning, sparkling shards. My stomach lurched as the floor ran out beneath our feet. I pushed the man’s chest, propelling myself back toward the wall and flinging the grappling hook so it caught the stone window frame. The metal rope coiled inside the device on my arm made a whizzing sound as I fell, and I pushed the button to force it to lock but failed to brace myself adequately. My shoulder was yanked from its socket as the rope halted my fall. Pain exploded. I screamed.
I forced myself to look down. The Kollenstar soldier was plummeting into the darkness below me, his hands grasping out at nothing.
Flashing blackness surrounded my vision. A second wave of pain racked my shoulder, and for a moment, I almost lost consciousness. Every second I dangled from my dislocated shoulder made the agony worse. I fought for a single coherent thought.
I gradually controlled my breathing and transferred some of the weight to my good hand. I hung suspended for a moment, focusing on taking one breath. Then another. Then I flicked the switch on the grappling hook device, causing it to retract and pull me back up to the room.
A pace above me, the Kollenstar commander’s head appeared through the smashed window. Surprise registered on his features a second before my sword swiped at his ankles, the force of the blow sending new lances of agony from my dislocated shoulder which was still taking the majority of my weight. The commander stumbled and fell, tipping toward me. I tried to sway to one side, but failed to get out of his way. He grabbed my waist, and I screamed as our combined weights tore the ligaments in my shoulder. For a moment, all I could see or think was red. Then stars flashed to life across my vision, and blood made a salty tang on my tongue. I only had the chance for one brief breath before we slammed into the wall of the tower. A bellow of pain tore free of my throat. Then we were swinging out again into dark nothingness. I flailed and kicked at the commander, each movement bringing endless waves of agony—I needed him to let go, needed this pressure on my torn ligaments to end. I barely registered when we slammed back into the wall. I kicked once more. This time, my knee crashed into the commander’s face. He reeled back and fell, my second yadum dagger in his hand where it had torn free from my belt. It was only then I noticed his dagger in my thigh. The agony from my shoulder was so immense, I hadn’t even felt him stab me.
This had to be it. Surely.
I cursed and let the grappling hook pull me back into the room. Fortunately, the mechanism needed very little effort from me. I crawled over the broken glass and collapsed onto the marble floor, panting to catch my breath and isolate the pain into the back of my mind. I looked up and saw the ceiling catching fire. The wind from the broken window must have fanned the embers in the floorboards left from my fansifold knife. Now flames licked around the hole I’d made, the ripple of glowing embers mesmerizing.
I lay there, every part of my body protesting, and watched the flames spread above me. Smoke tickled the back of my throat. The pain was unbearable. I’d done what I needed to and disrupted their leadership. I’d killed more than my fair share. Now, my destroyed arm and multiple stab wounds made me next to useless for the battle ahead.
It would be so easy to lie here and let the darkness that already edged my vision take me until the flames claimed me forever, to allow the thickening smoke to lull me into a restful sleep.
But what of my soldiers—about to be part of a gruesome battle? What of Kasomere—only a few day’s march away? What of Sophie?
And what if I was still needed to tip the balance?
I closed my eyes and pictured my wife’s face, smiling in the garden, the one place she seemed truly happy. So, so beautiful. She was the faint glimmer of joy in my pitiful life. If there was any chance I might see her again, I had to fight for it. And if I had the choice, I wanted to protect her and guard that fragile happiness. So many dangers remained that could swallow her whole.
‘Promise me you will fight death.’
I gritted my teeth and pulled myself into a sitting position. Then, counting to three, I forced my arm back into its socket. I felt the clunk and tried to rotate it, but the ligaments were too damaged. I bit back a scream and focused on not blacking out.
The temperature was rising as the fire spread across the ceiling, quickly becoming a raging inferno. Embers drifted down in the smoke like rain, scorching my uniform and lancing my skin.
I needed to get out of here. Fast.
I stumbled to my feet and staggered for the door, hoping I’d have a few minutes before any more soldiers came. Maybe they’d see the fire and choose to evacuate the tower instead.
I reached the door and slammed the thick cedar wood behind me, shutting out the flames. I made it down four steps before I had to sit, the fortress walls spinning around me. I needed something for the pain. I reached into my belt pouch and brought out the tonic Sophie had given me. Despite everything, seeing it brought a warmth to my heart. Tears pricked my eyes. What on earth was wrong with me?
I used my one good hand to unbutton my coat and bunch up the chain mail, then applied the liquid to the sword wound across my ribs, the whole area a sticky mess of half congealed blood. I used my smallest knife to rip strips from my shirt to make a bandage, using my feet to keep the fabric taut—already, I could feel the wound going numb. Next, I treated the wound on my forearm, using my mouth to apply the potion, my other hand useless. It stopped bleeding so quickly, I left it unbandaged. Whatever Sophie had put in this potion, it worked fast and effectively.
I cursed as I eyed the dagger still embedded in my thigh. I couldn’t leave it, but it was hard to face the prospect of more pain when I had already endured so much. I got the makeshift bandages ready and focused on Sophie’s face once more. I yanked the blade out.
I must have fallen unconscious for a minute or two because I woke with cold stone pressing against my cheek. I had fallen farther down the stairs, and there was blood everywhere. I cursed again and quickly bandaged the wound in my thigh that was still pumping blood. I used my teeth and good hand to tie the knot, then collapsed back as the world spun around me. Everything was getting worse, and I wanted the pain to stop. How could survival be worth this agony? Even moving my leg took tremendous effort. I was as good as dead.
I thought of Kasomere. I thought of Sophie.
‘Promise me you will fight death.’
I scowled and soaked the bandage through with a large proportion of the potion Sophie had given me. Finally, I made a sling with the remains of my shirt and cradled my ruined arm to my chest.
I collapsed back against the stairs, drained the water from my flask to help counteract the blood loss, and waited for my vision to clear. Just a few minutes to rest, then I would continue. Just a few minutes.
I woke with a start, the air thick with smoke. I coughed and groaned as my back protested my movements. I had slipped even farther down the stairs. But when I sat up, I was surprised by the reduction of pain from my injuries. Sophie’s potion must have numbed them like she said. My shoulder still burned, but the immobilization from the sling made a big difference.
How long had I been out? I cursed my weak body and staggered up. The smoke was too thick to breathe, I needed to move. I forced my tired legs to straighten and clung to the banister as I circled down the right spiral staircase. No high-pitched noises sounded on the detector, but I could hear shouts in the distance.
I reached a slit window and looked out to the west. Tiny specks of torchlight moved in the darkness. Were those Kollenstar soldiers going to attack our camp? At least, they’d be easier to fight out there than behind walls in here. But even if we did win the battle at the camp, the remainder of the Kollenstar troops would still be here in this fortress, and our numbers would be even lower by then.
The outcome was still overwhelmingly against us. There had to be more I could do.
I reached the bottom of the stairs and found the door barred from the other side. They must be trying to shut the fire out from the rest of the fortress. I dug out my fansifold knife and once more burned my way through the wood.