Kate jerked her head and Peiros moved up beside her. He dropped his torch to the floor and drew his other crescent. Together, they crept down the hallway, taking care to observe everything around them, especially the floor. A cleverly hidden trap could ruin their day, or night, or whatever time it was in this place.
Kate lifted one of the unlit torches from the wall as she passed and put it in her pack.
The hall was arranged with cells directly across from each other, the entire hallway one long row of facing chambers for prisoners. It was a common design in facilities for holding great numbers of captives in her world as well. She shivered to realize that prison design was something the two worlds shared.
When they arrived at the first of the cells, Kate and Peiros peered into the shadows of the shallow chambers. There was a crude pallet and an ancient bucket in the one Kate inspected, but nothing else. Peiros nodded to her, and they stepped up to the next set.
They traversed the hall like this, the others two steps behind them, watching for any movement. By the time they got to the forty-first set of cells, they had done nothing but wasted a regrettable amount of time.
A heavy door stood before them at the far wall, made of the same kind of stone as all the other doors they’d seen, but thicker, or at least denser. Kate got the impression that whatever lay behind that door was important.
“Do you feel it?” she asked.
Aurel swallowed. His face was tense, the muscles in his jaw standing out. She didn’t need his answer.
“It is something,” Peiros said, “a feeling…but I cannot hear any thoughts.”
Kate put her sword in her shield hand for a moment and tried the latch. It was not locked. She put her sword back in her right hand and met Aurel’s eyes. The dark man was well built for storming into an unknown situation. She just wished he had a shield. She didn’t like anyone being exposed.
Then it occurred to her that she was thinking about it incorrectly. She didn’t have to hold open the door. She did have a shield. Better that she lead the charge.
“Aurel,” she said in a whisper. “You open the door. I’ll go in first.”
“But Pretty Kate, I can—” he started.
“No,” she whispered back. “I have a shield. Open it.”
His face fell as if he had disappointed her. He looked to the others with pleading in his eyes, but none of them responded in any way. He breathed out a silent breath and put his hand on the latch.
With his eyes locked on hers, he nodded in time with a count. One, two, three.
He threw the door open and Kate rushed in, shield held high and sword at the ready behind it. The others were right on her heels.
The chamber beyond was empty.
It was a small room with a desk in the center, a chair, and two of the lit purple torches lighting the entire thing. It couldn’t have been more than ten feet on any side. Kate nearly crashed into the far wall when she entered. The walls to her left and right had doors in the direct center of the walls.
The tension was starting to get to her. Kate thought seriously of running through the structure opening doors until she reached something interesting. It was just impatience, though.
They chose the door to the left of the one they came through. They repeated the process, Aurel opening the door for her and her charging in with her shield ahead of her. After the third time, as Kate began feeling foolish for running into empty rooms, they finally reached something interesting.
Kate came through the doorway, half expecting another small room, but she knew without looking she’d entered a much bigger chamber. The air was less stale and slightly cooler. The floor was also different, with runnels in it instead of the flat stone they had been walking on up until that point.
The thing that was most different, though, was the table in the center of the room. It was larger than her bed back home at her family estate, made entirely of the same kind of stone the doors were made from, and tilted slightly.
In the restraints that seemed to be part of the table’s surface itself, there lay a pile of hair and black clothes. When it twitched, Kate realized what it was. A human. A human in a black uniform, though it was shredded almost unrecognizably. It was a Black brother. Or at least what was left of him.
28
Kate took one step toward the table, but that was all she managed before a loud stomping sound assailed her from her left. She swung her shield around barely in time to meet a massive sword wielded by what could only be a demon commander.
Her instincts kicked in, and she angled her arm enough to deflect the downward blow. Even so, needles shot up her arm and then it went numb. She spun out of reflex, slashing at the form that hadn’t even registered fully in her mind yet.
Her sword scored a long gash across the demon’s breast plate, but did no damage. It did, however, distract her opponent enough that she was able to back away, out of range, and get a good look at what she faced.
The monstrosity before her was about the size of a demon commander, seven and a half to eight feet tall. It seemed even bigger than her remembered fight with the other commanders, but those had been in the open field, not inside a room.
It was humanoid and heavily muscled, covered with rough skin the color of the rocky terrain surrounding the gaol. Small thorns stuck out of its skin at random intervals and bony ridges swept back from the top and sides of its head. It had the same depthless black eyes almost all demons had, and its hands grasped a huge sword, longer than Kate was tall.
The demon screeched its rage and frustration that it hadn’t killed her yet, but its look promised it would remedy that problem soon.
It lunged.
And, suddenly, Aurel was there, his own great sword sweeping up to knock the demon’s weapon aside. At the same time, an arrow appeared in the demon’s eye, Peiros cut deeply with both crescents to hamstring the monster, Benedict’s sword drilled through the demon’s right biceps, and Visimar’s double swords opened up the wrist on the same arm.
The demon tottered, a confused grimace on its face.
It took one step more, trying to raise its sword but unable to do so, but then it fell to its knees. Five weapons descended, and the demon fell to the ground and stopped moving altogether.
Kate pulled her sword free from the eye she had rammed it through. The blade made a rough, grinding sound as it emerged, sliding off cartilage and bone within the demon’s head. She scanned the area for more enemies, then dropped her shield and shook her arm vigorously. It would be a while until her shield arm would be working normally. She hoped to get feeling back into it soon.
Peiros had already darted in the direction the demon had come from, checking to see if there were any more. He was only gone for a moment, and then he slipped back into the room shaking his head.
At least they wouldn’t be swarmed again. Probably.
As he came into the room, Peiros wore an expression she had never seen on his normally calm face. Anxiety? Concern? Fear? She wasn’t sure what it was. He looked to have eaten something both extremely sour and nausea-inducing. He mechanically padded toward the black pile of clothing on the table.
“Koren?” he said, almost in a whisper. “Is it really you?”
The figure lying on the stone table coughed and turned its head. Kate hadn’t realized she had been looking at the side of his face, with the mass of hair tangled and swirled around his features.
“Peiros,” the man said in a raspy voice like sand filled his throat. “It’s about damn time.”
Then his head slumped to the side and he stopped moving.
With Peiros washing his face with a towel he produced from his pack and a bucket of water nearby, the man revived in a few minutes. He coughed, cleared his throat, spat a glob of something on the floor, and fixed his eyes on the dark, curly-haired man.
“It really is you,” he rasped, reaching out to touch Peiros’s face.
While he was unconscious, they had broken the stone bands restraining his
arms and legs. They weren’t able to figure out the controls for the bonds, if there were any, but an iron pole leaning nearby and Aurel’s strength did the trick.
“Koren,” Peiros said. “How is this possible? You’ve been missing for months. Even the most optimistic of us could not have hoped that you were still alive.”
A wheezing laugh projected from beneath the filthy hair and clothing. “What have I taught you about that, Peiros?”
A smile cracked the other man’s face. “Never to believe someone is dead unless you have observed the body unmoving for three days.”
“Damn right. It takes more than a little bit to kill me, and no doubt.”
“No doubt indeed,” Peiros said. The smile slid off his face and he looked the man over. “Are you seriously injured? Can you stand?”
Is this really Koren Merklen? Kate thought as she stood off to the side and watched the reunion. The hero of the Black? The legend? The way Peiros reacted when he saw the man, the relief and fondness, showed the two had been close. From everything Kate had heard, Peiros had been something of a protégé of the famous Black.
And it wasn’t just his manner that reinforced the claim. Aurel dipped his head every time the ragged man’s gaze washed over him. Jurdan’s eyes held more hope than she had seen since he had been poisoned. In fact, everyone seemed to be oozing respect. Benedict’s wild, crazy eyes shone with something nearing zeal and reverence.
The man grunted, grabbed one leg with both hands, and swung it to the edge of the table. He carefully moved the other leg, and then slid more than stepped to the floor. Both legs buckled and he almost fell, but caught himself with his arms, one on the table and one on Peiros’s shoulder. He steadied himself and stood up straighter, though he wobbled a bit.
“There,” he said. “No problem. Who’re your playmates? I recognize Jurdan there, though he seems to have seen better days. Aur…Aurel, right?” he said to Aurel. The big man grinned widely and nodded.
“Benedict Dressen,” Benedict said.
“Visimar Torten,” Visimar said.
“Yes, yes, I remember now,” Koren said. “A bit on the fuzzy side. The girl. Who’s the girl? She wears the black and has a mask at her belt, but there weren’t no girls in the Black when I left.”
“I am Kate Courtenay, Koren,” Kate said. “It is an honor to meet you, though the circumstances could probably be better.”
“Ha!” Koren laughed, this one more like a bark than the earlier wheeze.
“Kate is new to our ranks,” Peiros said. “She is the leader of this team. The captain believes her to possess great potential. She is also undoubtedly the best fighter among us.”
The unkempt hair moved as Koren’s forehead crinkled. “Best fighter, eh? Well, then, well met Kate Courtenay, leader of the team. What’re you about, and do you have room for one more old Black in your ranks?”
Kate smiled at the filthy man. “Most definitely.”
29
They explained their mission to Koren, and their predicament.
“So we must get back to the gate to prevent the army from flanking us and to get Jurdan treatment for his poison,” Kate concluded. “Do you know the way?”
“Sorry,” Koren said. “I have no idea where we are. They took me and moved me around. I haven’t been here very long. I don’t think. They just cleared the place out when Arkith left. There were only a handful of demons and the warden, there.” He pointed toward the body of the large demon on the floor. “They were going to finish their games and then dispose of me. Least, that’s what I could gather from what demon I speak. I was wishing for Peiros’s facility with language.”
“Arkith?” Peiros asked.
“Yeah, he’s a mage, a really powerful one. He’s been working on a project. Capturing me has been a big part of it. Not me specifically, mind you, but one of the Black, including his firestone.
“Arkith is working on something that will negate the protection of the firestones. A counter that will make it like the stones don’t exist at all. If he finishes it, we’re in real trouble. Imagine their forces coming through the gate and being impervious to our weapons. It will be a slaughter.
“Anyway, he did things to me, testing how the stone reacted and what kind of protection it provided. He sacrificed a couple dozen of his own lesser demons to figure out what it does to them, too.”
“Your firestone?” Jurdan asked. “I thought they couldn’t come near one.”
“This one can.” Kore swiveled his eyes to the blond archer. “He wears some kind of gloves, heavily enchanted if my guess is correct. He never touches the stone directly, of course, but he has enough safeguards to put it into a container and take it where he wants. In this case, to his own laboratory away from here. He’s just putting the finishing touches on whatever it is he’s making to counteract the stones.”
“He…he took your firestone?” Peiros said.
“Yep. When we fight the next bunch of them, I’ll have to stay real close to one or more of you, or I won’t be able to harm them. Which reminds me, who’s got a weapon I can use? I seem to have lost track of mine.”
Peiros smirked and withdrew a scabbarded short sword from his pack. “It’s all I’ve got. Sorry.”
Koren gripped the hilt, and a bare hint of white teeth showed through his scraggly beard. “It’ll do, for now. I thought I’d never hold a weapon again.”
“If you’d like to use my shield,” Benedict said, “feel free. Damn szitrith injected me with its poison, so my left arm isn’t strong enough to use it.”
“Ooh,” Koren said. “Always hated those things. You’re lucky to still have an arm.”
“Peiros got to it in time.”
“Yeah, he’s good like that. Thank you kindly. I would love to use it. Wish that bastard Arkith hadn’t taken my death mask. I suppose this fearsome visage will have to do.” He gestured toward his own face and barked another laugh.
“Terrifying,” Jurdan said, producing a small field mirror. “Though you may want to cut off the dirtier bits. One of those filth-ridden flails you call hair swings in at you at the wrong moment, and it’s likely to put your own eye out.”
Koren took the shield, and the mirror, laughing again. “Don’t mind if I do. It won’t take but a moment.”
The others took the opportunity to eat a little and to drink some of their remaining water as Koren expertly trimmed his hair and beard with the short sword. He took a few bites and drank a few gulps of water himself. When he was done, he was still clad in filthy rags, but at least he looked more like a human in all those rags.
In fact, he looked more than human. Kate had seen paintings and drawings of the man—he was famous, after all—and even in the condition he was in, he looked regal. He was not a legend for no reason, and even beaten down, the intensity in his eyes gave a glimpse of what kind of person he was.
“Much better,” he said. “So let’s get moving.” He stopped, looking at Kate. “Pardon, Kate. I’m used to working alone or with one other person. It’s your team, your decision.”
“Yes, thank you,” she said. “So let’s get moving.” She winked at him as they made their way out of the room and up the long hall.
The small group—though larger now by one—wended through the corridors of the prison, retracing their steps to the entrance. There were no other demons present. Apparently, they had killed all that had remained.
“You came at a good time,” Koren said. “The damn bastard of a warden was tiring of his sport and was ready to kill me, I think. I thank you for the rescue.”
Peiros hadn’t left the man’s side since they had found him. “It will strike away one of the many times you saved my life, Koren. I am glad we found you. It will mean much to the rest of the Black that you still live.”
“Don’t forget that we’re not out yet. We have some hard times ahead of us to escape this place.” Koren’s hard eyes softened marginally as he continued. “But yes, we are alive now, which makes all the differ
ence.” He didn’t quite smile, but his eyes seemed to be trying hard to do what his mouth apparently could not.
“What else can you tell us, Koren?” Kate said. “For example, do you know which way the gate is? Peiros has told us that your sense of direction is unerring. I know you said you didn’t know where we were at, but any help would be appreciated.”
“I do have a general sense of where the gate might be,” he said. “I can’t be sure, mind you, on account that I have no idea where we are. Much of the time, when they transported me, they used some kind of demon poison to keep me asleep. I’m pretty sure we should be going that way, though.” He pointed off in a direction that looked exactly like all the other directions they had open to them.
“Works for me.” Benedict turned toward the way indicated and started to walk.
“It makes sense now, you know,” Koren said.
“What does?” Peiros asked.
“I caught enough of their conversations, mainly between the warden and the mage, to understand some. They kept mentioning Thozrixith. Does that name mean anything to you?”
“It does,” Peiros said. “That is the name of the demon lord who we were sent here to kill. He is working on a plan to destroy the Order—”
“They’re always working on a plan to destroy the Order,” Koren interrupted. “It’s their primary goal.”
“Yes, but apparently he is close to bringing his plan to fruition,” Kate said. “He has been waiting for one thing to come into place. It seems obvious now that was what Arkith was working on.”
“Yes. Anyway,” Koren continued, “they spoke of Thozrixith and how he knew others were coming for him. They said that he wanted them to follow him into Hell so he could hunt them at his leisure. I am guessing now that they were talking about you. Have you been hunted?”
Kate and Peiros looked at each other, and the rest of the team exchanged looks as well.
Hero of Fire Page 19
