Krondor: The Assassins

by Raymond E. Feist

  Amos’s laughter redoubled.

  To Captain Guruth and Sheriff Means, Arutha said, ‘‘We tore out the heart of the Nighthawks in the area, but we didn’t destroy them all.’’

  Amos nodded. ‘‘Damn things are like cockroaches. Turn on the light and they’re scurrying for the shadows. You don’t see them most of the time, but they’re there.’’

  James kept grinning, while Arutha showed his displeasure at the interruption. ‘‘As I was saying, we didn’t destroy them all. If some of them reach the city, and if there are already agents here, they may mount a renewed attack on the duke to discharge their obligations.’’

  The door opened, and a soldier admitted a scribe, who 333

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  bowed. ‘‘Highness, I’ve read the text you surmised as being the most important.’’ He was a little man, in a simple blue tunic with gray trousers, and plain black boots. His most noticeable feature was a tendency to squint.

  ‘‘What can you tell me?’’ asked Arutha.

  ‘‘Admiral Trask mentioned to you the possibility the scribe might have been semi-literate,’’ said the clerk. ‘‘That is how it might look to the untrained eye, but rather than such being the case, it’s actually a clever code.’’

  ‘‘Code?’’

  ‘‘Not a cipher, such as the Quegans use—badly I might add—but rather a set of agreed-upon phrases that I believe are substitutions. The names of the duke and his family are quite plain to read, but other pertinent information is cleverly disguised by phrases that are seemingly innocuous.

  ‘‘Let me cite an example: ‘Our lord instructs everyone to be in place by the tide of green fulfillment.’ ‘Tide of green fulfillment’ is obviously a particular time agreed upon in advance by the writer and whoever the message was intended for. Here’s another: ‘The gift must reach the named one before he departs the feast of crows.’ ’

  Arutha said, ‘‘Is there any way to make any sense of this?’’

  ‘‘Had you a captive who knew these keys, and if you could get him to give them to you, then all would be clear. But to guess at what these arbitrary phrases mean is fruitless.’’

  ‘‘Read a couple more, please,’’ asked James.

  ‘‘Ah . . .’’ began the scribe, ‘‘ ‘Word must reach the master at winter’s coldest night.’ ’

  James nodded. ‘‘I doubt this will help, but there used to be a Keshian gang that ran slaves out of Durbin. Called themselves the Woeful Brothers, or something like that.’’

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  ‘‘Brotherhood of Woe,’’ supplied Amos. ‘‘I ran up against them a couple of times in my . . . raiding days. Bad bunch.

  Ignored laws in every land, took freeborn as well as prisoners and sold them on the blocks at Durbin.’’

  ‘‘They used to come into Krondor from time to time, and the Mockers would run them right back out as soon as we knew they were around,’’ said James. ‘‘I heard they used this code in which a place was a person, a person was a time, a time was a place, like that.’’

  ‘‘So the ‘feast of crows’ could be a place, rather than an event?’’ asked Arutha.

  ‘‘Yes,’’ said James. ‘‘Not that it will help much to know that, but I thought I’d mention it.’’

  Arutha sat back. ‘‘It might.’’ Looking at the scribe he said,

  ‘‘Does that help?’’

  The scribe said, ‘‘Perhaps. We have quite a number of such phrases in a large number of documents. Maybe we can learn something by looking for similar or identical phrases.’’

  Arutha waved him from the room, saying, ‘‘See to it, and report tomorrow morning on what you have learned.’’

  To Captains Issacs, Guruth, and the sheriff, Arutha said,

  ‘‘Turn over every rock and if you find any of those murderers, bring them here and don’t let them speak to anyone.’’

  The three men saluted and departed.

  Arutha stood and the others at the table immediately did likewise. ‘‘Let’s look at that trunk.’’ To the priest, he said, ‘‘Father, if you would join us, just in case there’s some magic that eluded your inspection?’’

  The priest of Prandur nodded.

  William and James fell in behind the Prince, and Arutha said, ‘‘Join us, Amos?’’

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  With a laugh, Amos answered, ‘‘As if you could stop me.’’

  They went to a large storage room used by the royal family for a variety of purposes. It was currently half-filled with furni-ture, trunks of old clothing, toys the royal children had outgrown, and other family items.

  James said, ‘‘Perhaps we should move this lot down to the lower dungeon before we open it?’’

  ‘‘After you inspect the lock, squire, if you think it’s dangerous, we will do so.’’

  James produced a set of tools, rolled up in a leather strip.

  He untied it, unfolded it, and took out a probe. He examined the lock and after a few moments said, ‘‘There is a trap, but it’s a very simple needle, almost certainly poisoned.’’ He removed a tool and inserted it in the lock. He experimented a bit, then everyone in the room heard a loud click. At that instant, James swiftly removed the probe, and cut the needle with a tiny pair of metal clippers.

  ‘‘Just in case,’’ suggested James as he stood up, ‘‘everyone stand back.’’

  James lifted the hasp from the lock and opened the trunk.

  Instantly the room darkened, as if a cloud had passed over every light in the chamber. A puff of wind came from within the trunk and a dark shape billowed up.

  It was man-shaped, but lacked depth, as if a shadow could be cast in air, without a surface upon which to rest. It appeared to look around the room, then stepped out of the trunk and hurried toward the door.

  Everyone in the room was rooted to the spot in astonishment, until James shouted, ‘‘Stop it!’’

  Arutha pulled out his sword, as did William and Amos.

  William was the only one in a position between the entity and 336

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  the door, and he tried to block its movement by thrusting his sword before it. The creature walked through the sword as if it wasn’t there.

  ‘‘After it!’’ shouted Arutha. To James he said, ‘‘What is this thing?’’

  ‘‘I’ve never seen anything like it,’’ said Amos.

  ‘‘Neither have I,’’ said James, ‘‘but I’ve heard about them.’’

  ‘‘What is it?’’ repeated Arutha.

  ‘‘It’s a Shadow Stalker. A magical assassin. The reason the chest was so easy to open is that someone wanted it here and easy to open!’’

  ‘‘You’ll have a hard time convincing me the assassins let their entire population be slaughtered so that we could bring this chest here,’’ said Arutha, hurrying after the creature as it passed through a closed door into the hall.

  They pulled open the door and peered down the hall. There was no sign of the creature. James said, ‘‘I don’t think that, Highness, but they might have been getting ready to bring that chest to someplace we could find it—there!’’ He pointed down the hall.

  ‘‘What?’’ asked Arutha.

  ‘‘Movement in the shadows.’’

  ‘‘I see nothing,’’ said Amos.

  James was running, Arutha a step behind him. James shouted, ‘‘You could have looked right at it, admiral. You wouldn’t have seen a thing!’’

  Abruptly a ball of flame came flying overhead, then it came to a halt and hung at the corner where the hallway turned to the right. All shadows seemed to fade in the bright light, except for the man-shaped shadow-assassin who stood revealed in stark relief.

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  Arutha and the others looked behind and saw Father Belson holding his hand aloft, as if guiding the ball of
fire. ‘‘Prandur’s fire burns true, Highness. I do not know if I can halt the creature, but I can show you where it hides!’’

  ‘‘Keep following, Father!’’ shouted the Prince.

  William said, ‘‘Highness, where is it going?’’

  ‘‘Wherever His Grace, the Duke of Olasko, rests,’’ said the Prince.

  James said, ‘‘It’s heading for the guest wing.’’

  Arutha caught up with the creature and slashed at it with his sword. The blade passed through the man-shaped shadow, which hesitated, its head moving as if it was looking around, then it continued on.

  ‘‘You got its attention,’’ said James, ‘‘but it doesn’t seem harmed.’’

  Arutha said, ‘‘I welcome any suggestion as to how to stop this creature.’’

  ‘‘Keep hitting it,’’ said Amos.

  Arutha again overtook the moving shape and struck it several times. The shadow flinched and turned this way, then that, then it fled straight up to the ceiling where it looked like a painted human silhouette. It paused for a moment, then resumed its journey.

  Then the fireball went out and the creature vanished into the gloom.

  James pointed, ‘‘There!’’

  Father Belson said, ‘‘If I cast another globe, I may not be able to do much else.’’

  ‘‘Have you any spells that might stop this creature, Father?’’

  asked Arutha, hurrying at a fast walk after James.

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  ‘‘Most of my order’s spells suited for combat tend to result in extreme damage, Highness.’’

  ‘‘I would risk a fire in the palace to stop a war, Father.’’

  ‘‘But it might not do any good,’’ said the priest.

  William said, ‘‘Should I run ahead and make the guards ready?’’

  Arutha said, ‘‘Ready to do what? Their weapons are no bar to that thing.’’

  James was hurrying along, keeping his eyes on the ceiling, lest he lose sight of the entity. Amos shouted, ‘‘Clear the way!’’

  as they reached a more heavily trafficked hall.

  Servants and guards stationed at the corners looked over at the odd sight of their monarch and several members of his council hurrying along, eyes cast upward to the ceiling. When they glanced up, all they saw was a slight flickering of shadows, but nothing else.

  James said, ‘‘Now, at least, I know who was killing magicians in Krondor and why.’’

  ‘‘So the Prince couldn’t send for anyone to stop this thing?’’

  said William.

  ‘‘Or check the trunk with different magic than used by the good Father,’’ said Amos.

  ‘‘What else do you know of these creatures?’’ Arutha asked James.

  Keeping his eyes on the moving shadow on the ceiling, James said, ‘‘All I know is what one of the old street magicians told me of this conjuration. It’s mindless. Once set on its task it does not stop until it’s killed its prey or is destroyed.’’

  The cleric said, ‘‘There are counter-spells for specific magic, but I have no idea what would be required for this one, and I 339

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  hardly have time to consult my superiors at the temple, or request help from the other orders.’’

  William said, ‘‘I may know something.’’

  ‘‘What?’’ asked Arutha.

  ‘‘I’m guessing, but I’ve got an idea.’’

  James said, ‘‘Don’t be shy, Will. We’re nearing the guests’

  wing.’’

  ‘‘It has two possible ways to kill, as I see it. It either solidifies and tries to kill the duke as a man would, with a weapon or by strangling him or—’’

  ‘‘Breaking his neck,’’ supplied Amos. ‘‘Yes, we get the idea.

  Go on.’’

  ‘‘Or it has to . . . afflict the duke with a poison, or an illness, or something of that sort.’’

  Arutha said, ‘‘Father, if it strikes the duke with an illness or injury of some sort, can you help?’’

  ‘‘I can keep the duke alive,’’ said the priest. ‘‘Certainly long enough for you to bring other healers to the palace.’’

  ‘‘What if it turns solid?’’ asked James as he reached the large doors leading into the duke’s quarters. ‘‘Open the doors!’’ he shouted to the two soldiers guarding them.

  To Arutha, Amos echoed, ‘‘What if it turns solid?’’

  ‘‘Then we kill it,’’ answered the Prince.

  Running ahead, William ordered guards to open the doors before James lost sight of the flickering shadow on the ceiling.

  In moments they reached the duke’s private quarters. The creature ignored that door and continued on down the hall. It reached another set of doors and paused. Arutha shouted,

  ‘‘Open those doors!’’

  The guards hesitated for an instant, then complied, but in 340

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  that brief moment, the creature seemed to slip between the top of the doors and the jamb.

  Vladic, Crown Prince of Olasko sat up in bed, the woman at his side sliding under the covers, as if to hide. ‘‘What is the meaning of this?’’ shouted Vladic.

  James looked up at the ceiling and then around the room.

  ‘‘Father, if you please,’’ he said in an insistent, pleading tone.

  The priest cast another fireball, and Vladic drew back.

  ‘‘What is this?’’ he demanded, getting out of bed and grabbing his sword.

  ‘‘There!’’ cried James as the creature came into sharp relief again. It crouched on the wall behind Vladic.

  William, seeing where James pointed, leapt forward, grabbed Vladic and yanked the Prince away.

  At that moment, the shadow stepped down from the wall to the floor. Before everyone’s eyes, it swelled, filled out and became solid.

  Arutha moved in front of Vladic and said, ‘‘Pardon, Your Highness.’’

  Vladic, ignoring his own nudity, stood with his sword at the ready. ‘‘What is that?’’

  ‘‘Something that doesn’t want you around, apparently,’’ said James, coming to join Arutha. He had his sword out as well.

  The shadow-form now appeared fully solid, looking like a man without features, hair, or any visible blemish, painted coal-black. No light reflected from it.

  Arutha slashed at it and, as the creature hesitated, the Prince’s blade cut through it.

  Then it sprang for Prince Vladic.

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  W ILLIAM leapt.

  He knocked Prince Vladic aside as the monster lunged. Soldiers hurried into the room, while Amos and Arutha prepared to attack. Several hurled themselves at the shadow-stalker in an attempt to protect their prince, and the first of them tried to shield-bash the stalker, to knock it off balance. The shield rang as if he had struck a tree bole, and the stalker slashed with his hand. The soldier’s throat dissolved into a red fountain as blood sprayed across the room.

  James worked his way around behind the creature, as Arutha shouted, ‘‘Archers!’’

  One soldier hurried out of the room to relay the order, while two bearing long pikes attacked. The weapons were decorative, heads gilded and hardwood polished, bearing the royal pennon of Krondor, but they were still fully functional. Both men were well-schooled in their use and approached the stalker, barbs ready to hook and pull, points ready to impale.

  The first soldier thrust with all the force he could muster so that the steel point should have impaled the creature, but it 344

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  slid off harmlessly. The shadow-stalker paused for a moment and caught the pole under one arm, then with a sharp blow struck with the other hand and snapped the pole as if it were kindling.

  ‘‘That’s solid oak!’’ said Amos.

  Willi
am was up and pulling Vladic across the bed, past the young woman who was now crouched down on the other side from where the stalker was cornered. Sensing that its prey was leaving, the creature leapt upon the bed, and the young woman screamed and cowered even lower. The shadow-assassin ignored her.

  Arutha hurried around and lunged at the creature, the point of his blade sliding off its featureless hide. ‘‘Highness!’’ shouted James. ‘‘You’re doing no good; please avoid getting yourself killed.’’

  Amos took a more direct approach, grabbing Arutha’s shoulder and yanking him back as the monster turned and lashed out at where the Prince had stood a moment before.

  ‘‘You’re irritating it, Arutha,’’ said the former pirate.

  Archers entered, bows at the ready, and let fly as William half-dragged Prince Vladic out of the room. The arrows merely glanced off or broke as they struck the stalker’s hide.

  ‘‘This is doing no good!’’ shouted Arutha. ‘‘Fall back, but slow it down!’’

  Soldiers with shields and swords moved to form a shieldwall and more soldiers with pikes fell in behind. The shield-bearers braced themselves, their shields overlapping like scales. From behind, the pikemen reached over and formed a steel barrier; but the creature ignored it, walking into the points. Strong men braced themselves as the heavy shafts were pushed back.

  The stalker raised both arms and smashed downward. One 345

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  pike on the left shattered, while another was knocked to the stone floor, flying out of the grip of the soldier holding it.

  More soldiers hurried to support those who faced the monster, and their sergeant looked to William for instructions.

  ‘‘Pin it against the wall,’’ said William. ‘‘Use shields and be cautious, for it is extremely powerful.’’

  The sergeant shouted, ‘‘You heard the lieutenant! Charge!’’

  The shieldmen and pikemen charged as one, and the creature was borne backward. It resisted but could not get traction on the smooth stone floor.

  More men arrived and slowly they pushed the stalker away from Prince Arutha and the others. The stalker sensed its prey escaping, and its struggle intensified. It drew back an arm and lashed out, crushing the face of the closest soldier. He fell, tripping two soldiers behind him, and the mass of soldiers pressing the creature back disintegrated.