The Hunter's Gambit

by Nicholas McIntire

  “Colonel Ander!” one of the men shouted as they moved him across the top of the wall, “Colonel, it’s the Lord Captain!”

  As they moved, Aleksei could hear the gates grind open.

  “Ander!” he barked fiercely, knowing there was no time to berate the Legionnaires for not taking him directly to the gatehouse. “Ander, don’t open the gate!”

  Ander was in front of him a moment later. “Lord Captain? What are you talking about?”

  It was too late.

  He could hear the massive grinding of the gates. He broke away from the two Legionnaires and lunged to the edge of the wall. The other three men followed, terrified he was going to tumble over the edge.

  As a result, they were there when it happened.

  Aleksei stared out into the sea of soldiers that poured into the city. For a moment they still wore the Belgi crimson and blue. And then the air above them shimmered, as though a great amount of heat had suddenly been released.

  The orderly ranks of men in Belgi colors vanished. In their place surged a ragged mob of soldiers Aleksei recognized all too well.

  The armies of the Zra-Uul had reached Kalinor.

  “That’s impossible!” Ander cried.

  “Order an immediate retreat to the Palace.” Aleksei commanded.

  “Get everyone back to the Palace as fast as you can. It’s the only way we’ll make it.”

  Ander dashed off in the direction of the guard station, towards one of the great alarm bells.

  Aleksei turned to see Krasik’s men already swarming up onto the wall. The Kalinori guards were putting up a good fight, but there were simply too many rebel soldiers. The smooth, polished fighting of the Legionnaires was rapidly overrun by the sheer weight of bodies pressing against them.

  One of the Legionnaires in front of Aleksei went down, leaving only one man to stand between himself and the sea of death raging towards him.

  And then an enormous man was towering over him, a bloodied axe glittering in the torchlight. Aleksei knew he couldn’t draw his weapon in time. The axe began its terrible descent towards him. He could smell the stink of blood and viscera on the weapon’s rusted edge.

  Time stopped.

  Aleksei breathed in and out, wishing to the gods his head would clear. But it was too much to hope. His sight grew foggy with tears of pain as another coughing fit threatened to overtake him.

  In a move of pure desperation, Aleksei reached up and clutched the man’s meaty wrist, shoving with all his might against the weight of the swing.

  Cruel black tendrils exploded from across his back with the suddenness of breaking glass. Thin strips of leather rained down as though falling through cool honey. The man actually managed to scream. Black became red as the Mantle feasted on the soldier’s brutal life force.

  And then Aleksei was standing over a dead man, his eyes glittering with rage.

  Another soldier began to run towards him, but Aleksei raised his hand and directed his anger. The Mantle burst away from his wrist and struck like a viper, ripping away the man’s life and feeding it into Aleksei’s veins.

  Aleksei paused and drew his first pure, clear breath in weeks. He felt as healthy as ever before. The air was cool against his face.

  He was restored.

  And then time pulled him back into its rapid flow. Aleksei wrenched his sword from its sheath and began fighting his way through the river of men that poured around him.

  Blades bit into him from each side, but before they could inflict serious damage, Aleksei managed to dart to one side or another and cut their wielders down. He fought on, yet could see no end to the mass of soldiers sweeping towards him.

  Aleksei quickly understood that if things continued this way he wouldn’t last long.

  The rebel to his immediate right screamed and collapsed. Aleksei blinked in confusion until he noticed the tendril of smoke rising from the man’s nostril. A moment later two men to his left went down. And then Aleksei realized that he could see the force killing these men.

  It was the Archanium.

  The wall around him erupted into a web of thunder and light. Aleksei threw himself to the ground as arcs of silver lightning laced their way through the men of Krasik’s army. A moment later he found himself alone on the wall.

  Aleksei came to his feet and looked around in bewilderment.

  And then he saw the falcon diving towards him. A heartbeat before the bird crashed into him, it shifted. Aleksei stepped forward and caught the Magus as he fell onto the wall. Jonas kissed him hard for a long moment before breaking away.

  “Go. He’s coming.”

  Aleksei frowned as he followed his Magus down the crowded steps of the wall, ignoring the charred bodies that fell before him, “What are you talking about? Who’s coming?”

  But Jonas had come to a halt, staring straight ahead at the bottom of the steps.

  Aleksei followed his gaze. His breath caught in his throat.

  A figure was waiting for him. His features were indistinguishable, but the ebony nimbus wreathing his form identified him well enough.

  Bael.

  “Run.”

  Aleksei stared at Jonas, but the Magus didn’t dare look back at him.

  “Aleksei, run!”

  The Knight looked over Jonas' shoulder where Bael stood. The Demon smiled at him.

  “Yes, why don’t you run, Aleksei?” Bael snarled.

  Aleksei reached forward and gripped Jonas' shoulder. It was a touch that said he was sorry.

  A touch that said good-bye.

  And then Aleksei ran. He ignored Bael. He ignored everything around him. His feet pounded the stairs as he rushed towards the Demon. He could see Bael focusing the Archanium. He knew where the Magus' spell would land.

  The bolt of black fire splashed across the white stone, narrowly missing Aleksei’s boot as he ran forward and up. Time slowed as his boots pounded against the side of the wall. He ran over Bael’s head, sliding to a halt as he cleared the Magus, dropping down behind him, sword extended.

  Bael cried out as Aleksei’s blade raked down his back. But the cut hadn’t possessed the necessary power behind it, and failed to slice through the bone.

  Aleksei’s boots struck the pavement a heartbeat later and he rolled out of the way just as Bael leveled a hammer of thunder against the stone.

  And then Jonas was on the Demon, raking bolts of fire and thunder through the air as he struck the man’s face with desperate balled-up fists. Bael managed to deflect the spells, but was unable to defend against Jonas' darting hands.

  Bael stumbled back against the wall and ducked as Jonas leveled another punch at his face. The prince grunted in pain as his knuckles struck the wall. And then Bael was gone.

  Jonas spun, searching the Archanium for his enemy’s presence.

  He felt Bael a moment before the man materialized. Jonas had only enough time to dive forward and tackle Aleksei to the cobbles before the air above them erupted into fury and fire.

  Hot fragments of stone clattered on the street around them as Aleksei jumped to his feet. He darted forward, changing direction at the last second, sliding towards Bael on his knees.

  The rough stones slashed through his breeches and frayed his knees, but Aleksei kept his eyes on the target. As he slid to a halt he reached out and gripped Bael’s ankle. The Mantle exploded forward and sank into the Dark Man.

  For one exultant moment, Aleksei thought he’d won. And then the Mantle whipped away from the Demon. Pain such as Aleksei had never known coursed through him as he fell onto his side, convulsing while Mantle flailed wildly on the cobbles around him, trying to gather itself.

  “Idiot!” Bael bellowed, kicking Aleksei soundly in the side. “You were a fool to reject me.”

  Jonas slammed into Bael an instant later, ramming his shoulder into the man’s gut, knocking the wind from his lungs.

  Bael flew back and struck the cobbles, coughing up black blood
as he came to a stuttering halt. Thunder rained down around him, bursting the cobbles and sending splinters of red-hot rock into the air.

  The Demon cried out as the heat seared his face, but he managed to avoid the worst of the damage. Jonas was a hairsbreadth from unleashing his next spell when a bolt of dark fire lanced from Bael’s hand and struck the prince squarely in the chest.

  Jonas dropped to his knees, convulsing and desperately trying to breathe. His body seized up in agony. Bael stalked towards him triumphantly, and he could see the spirals of black flame once again spring up around the man.

  Jonas knew he was about to die.

  Bael cried out and collapsed onto the cobbles.

  Jonas stared in confounded confusion for a long moment before he noticed the dark scarlet stain billowing from the center of the Magus' back.

  Aleksei stood over the Demon, his golden eyes glittering with bloodlust.

  The Knight reached down for Jonas' hand. The Magus gripped Aleksei’s wrist, but found himself unable to speak. It was all he could do to breathe.

  I don’t know what he did to me. he sent his Knight across the bond.

  “It doesn’t matter.” Aleksei said softly.

  Before Jonas could signal his uncertainty, the talons of the Mantle clawed down Aleksei’s arm and spilled over his hand. Jonas gasped as it crawled into his skin, snaking its way up his sleeve and wrapping around his chest.

  His body relaxed. He could feel his heartbeat return to normal. The fires that burned within him cooled in an instant.

  Jonas gave a gulping cry of surprise as the Mantle fled from him, leaving him renewed.

  His eyes turned to Bael’s still body. “Is he dead?”

  Aleksei nodded, “The knife struck his heart. His heart is still.”

  Jonas breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

  “We have to get back to the Palace.” he said.

  Aleksei looked around at the bodies of men, Kalinori and rebel alike littering the streets. “The Guard and the Legionnaires will have been roused by now. If we’re lucky we can still reach the Palace Gate before it’s sealed.”

  Jonas closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. When he opened, his eyes they were electric with the light of the Archanium.

  “Follow me.”

  Colonel Ander shoved another rebel soldier off the tip of his blade and looked up from the fray, taking stock of the situation.

  By some miracle of the gods his men had held the southern Palace Gate. The other three were already sealed and holding. Atop the Palace walls, Legionnaires rained arrows into the massing ranks of the Zra-Uul’s army. Yet for all their efforts, Ander knew his men were barely a ripple in the ocean of swords and spears crashing ceaselessly forward.

  The only reason the gate held at all was due to the narrow confines of the avenues preventing the overwhelming force from surrounding them.

  “Colonel!”

  He turned and saw the Archanium Knight Marrik striding towards him. He noticed the Knight’s sword drooling blood onto the cobbles as the man approached.

  “Colonel, we can’t hold this gate much longer. What are you waiting for?”

  Ander looked away from the Knight and into the sea of enemy soldiers, “I last saw the Lord Captain on the outer walls of the city. Since then I’ve had no word from him. But I have to hold out hope that he will return safely.”

  Marrik grunted, “Sir, Aleksei was at death’s door last I saw. I sincerely doubt he could have made it from the walls of the city in his condition. I can’t even believe he got there. Whether or not he has fallen, he would not want you to hold the gate on his account.”

  “Nevertheless, I will hold the gate as long as possible. We have both seen the Lord Captain manage miracles in the past. Let us hope he can provide us with one more.”

  Marrik nodded curtly, “As you say, Colonel.”

  Ander sighed heavily as the Knight turned and reentered the battle. Was he holding out for an impossibility? Perhaps. But if Aleksei had fallen in battle, then Prince Jonas was also lost to them. Without those two, Ander knew there was very little chance of victory.

  There was a cry from the left and Ander turned to see the line breaking up. The enemy surged forward aggressively.

  “Hold the line!” he cried, rushing into the midst of the rebels and hacking away savagely.

  The men rallied around him and pushed the throbbing horde back a few paces.

  Ander pulled back again and realized that he was bleeding from his shoulder in places where a spear managed to sneak past his light armor. Gods, but he hoped Aleksei would appear soon.

  No sooner had the thought entered Ander’s mind than there was a terrific explosion from behind the invading ranks. A moment later a burst of light erupted in the midst of the enemy line, hurling the charred bodies of men into the maelstrom. As the eruptions came closer, Ander began to wonder what could possibly be wreaking so much havoc.

  Standing mere paces from the enemy line, he caught sight of the answer several seconds before anyone else.

  Jonas Belgi stormed through the enemy like some divine vision of wrath, the air around him crackling with electricity. Every now and then he would point his hand in the direction of a group of soldiers. A heartbeat later the earth would lance upwards in a spike of light and thunder. And then the men were gone.

  Behind the prince stalked Aleksei Drago. The Knight looked impossibly healthy, even as he wove a tapestry of death with his glistening blade. Any who managed to avoid Jonas' spellcraft were cut down by the Lord Captain’s sword.

  A few moments later the men caught sight of them. A collective cheer rang out from the lines and the Legionnaires redoubled their efforts. The line actually advanced into the avenue before the gate. It swung up long enough to swallow Aleksei and Jonas before crashing back down upon the surprised rebels.

  Jonas passed into relative safety, then stopped. Ander frowned as the Magus turned and raised a fist above his head. There was a thunderclap, and the enemy soldiers were flattened against the stones.

  “Retreat!” he roared.

  But rather than turn towards the Palace, Jonas remained facing the horde. Ander noticed that the enemy was stirring from their prone positions. Not twenty paces back, a man was on his feet. A nimbus of red light surrounded him.

  Ander recognized the man as an enemy Magus only moments before bolts of fire began searing through the lines of his Legionnaires.

  Jonas summoned the Archanium and the air erupted in a brilliant blue flash. When Ander’s vision cleared, the enemy Magus was gone.

  “Close the gate!” Jonas cried, stumbling backwards towards the Lawn.

  He was now the only man outside the gate. The enemy had regained their feet and were beginning to race towards him, but Ander could tell he was too slow to make it in time. He was a heartbeat from rushing towards the prince himself when Aleksei darted out in an impossible blur of speed and swept the Magus into his arms.

  A moment later they were both inside the safety of the gate.

  The Palace gate closed with a gut-wrenching crack. Ander allowed himself to relax as a wild cry was raised from the defenders of Kalinor.

  He stood there, looking over the men who had survived. Of the five thousand who had been roused from their beds, it looked as though a scant fifteen hundred remained. Heavy losses had been taken, yet it was remarkable that any had survived at all.

  “Lord Captain Drago.” he called as he caught sight of Aleksei mere paces away.

  Ander dropped to a knee, “My Lord Captain. I understand the repercussions of my actions, of course. If you feel I am no longer worthy of serving under you, I will surrender my position. But I do beg the privilege of continuing to serve, even if it means fighting as a foot soldier.”

  He looked up, unsure how his commanding officer would respond. What he saw sent a wave of shock and surprise through him.

  Aleksei hardly seemed to have heard anything Ander said. Instead h
e was intently watching the face of his unconscious Magus. After pressing his ear carefully to Jonas' chest, Aleksei carried him to an abandoned cart and gently laid him in the straw. Upon catching sight of his colonel, Aleksei turned.

  “Get up, Charles.”

  Ander rose, but kept his eyes focused on the ground.

  “I don’t have time for this.” Aleksei growled. “All of us have failed in some way, myself most of all. But neither of us has time to wallow in our mistakes.”

  “As you say, Lord Captain.”

  “Why don’t you go around to the men and get volunteers for watch. Allow the rest to return to their beds. And see what you can do about getting some food in their bellies?

  “At sunup I will expect you in my office with your senior staff, whatever’s left of them.”

  “As you command, Lord Captain.”

  And then Ander was off, leading his horse through the ranks of wounded, battered, unusually hopeful men.

  Aleksei sighed and rubbed a hand across his face. Gods, but they had been lucky. But such luck couldn’t last.New plans would have to be drawn up. He would have to reassess their options. He’d spent weeks on battle plans that had been shattered beyond all hope within seconds.

  He knew the mark of a good tactician was the ability to adapt.

  Those who couldn’t adapt ended up dead.

  But before anything else, Aleksei had to take care of something far more important. He turned back to Jonas' prone form.

  “How long have you been planning that?”

  “What?” the Magus asked weakly, looking around in confusion.

  “That stunt at the gate.”

  “Ten seconds?” Jonas laughed. “I was doubtful it would even work. If that Magus had shown up any sooner it wouldn’t have.”

  Aleksei nodded, gently lifting the prince and helping him make his way towards the Palace. He could feel the weight of exhaustion pressing down upon his Magus.

  Jonas had joined the battle only after racing towards Kalinor in the form of a bird. He was using up precious reserves of energy just by keeping his eyes open.