Wrath of the Fury Blade

by Geoff Habiger

  “Inspector Lunaria’s Seeker is an incompetent thug! He’s holding her back and preventing her from doing her job.”

  “The Inspector is too stubborn to admit when she’s lost in the woods. I don’t know why LCI Gania hasn’t pulled her off the case and put somebody better qualified—like Inspector Pflamtael—in charge.”

  The buzz of conversations and accusations put her on edge. This is Pflamtael’s doing, she thought. He wants me to look bad so he can take over. She knew that Pflamtael was a member of Pfeta fey Orung. It would be just his style to tell all of his friends that she was incompetent and that only someone with his skill could handle a case of this importance. Reva seethed at his interference and glory-seeking.

  A tall, slightly pudgy, elf stepped in front of Reva and blocked her progress. He wore a fine white shirt with gold laces at the collar and a blue jacket. A thick gold and silver chain necklace was prominently hung about his neck, showing that he was the head of some guild or another.

  “Inspector,” he said in a condescending tone, “we demand that you bring this murderer to justice immediately! These deaths of Pfeta fey Orung members is intolerable! If you can’t capture this maniac, then I will insist that you be removed from the case!”

  Reva snapped. She wouldn’t take this abuse from Pflamtael, and certainly not from this asshole. “Look you pompous, stuck-up son of a succubus!” She jammed a finger in his face, which was rapidly growing red with indignation. Ansee and Willem were rooted where they stood in shock. “Get your sorry ass out of my way so I can do my fuckin’ job, or I’ll have you arrested for interfering with my investigation!”

  “You can’t speak to me like that!” sputtered the elf. “Do you know who I am?”

  “I don’t give a kobold’s ass who the fuck you are. Move aside and let me do my job.” Reva shoved past the elf, letting her shoulder hit him. He was growing apoplectic with rage. Ansee and Willem quickly followed Reva. Ansee didn’t bother to hide the shock he felt. Willem did a better job of hiding his own feelings of approval for what the Inspector had done.

  “I will lodge a protest with the Mayor and the King!” bellowed the elf. “You’ll be kicked out of the Constabulary before the sun sets!”

  Reva flicked him a rude hand gesture as she continued walking to the building. Constables Aemyr and Olwynn stood guard at the door.

  “You gave him a good what for,” chuckled Aemyr.

  “He’s been raising a bloody stink ever since we told him he couldn’t enter the building,” added Olwynn.

  Reva just nodded. “Are the Alchemists here yet?” she asked.

  “No, ma’am,” answered Olwynn. “We’ll make sure they don’t have any problems getting through.”

  “Good. What about the archivist? The one who found the body.”

  “Constable Silverbough is with him,” said Aemyr. “He apparently vomited all over the floor when he first found the body.” Aemyr gave a chuckle.

  “As long as he didn’t do it on the body,” Reva said. “Come on.” She gestured and Ansee and Willem followed her into the building. The noise of the crowd outside was immediately lessened when the door shut.

  Walking down the short entrance hall, Ansee asked, “Reva, are you all right?”

  “Shut up, Seeker,” she snapped. “Just focus on your damn job so we can find this killer.”

  The rebuke stung. It implied that if Ansee had done his job yesterday, they wouldn’t be in this situation now. He was about to reply but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned and looked at Willem, who shook his head and mouthed “drop it” as they entered the rotunda.

  Reva took two steps into the room and stopped dead in her tracks. She swallowed hard, fighting to control her body and not vomit. My gods, she thought.

  The room was a scene of charnel horrors. Morning light shone through the many irregular-shaped windows, casting the scene in a mockingly inviting warm glow. The day was going to be another warm one and already the heat was cooking the remains; the sickly smell of butchered meat, blood, and offal filled the rotunda with a cloying miasma.

  In the center of the rotunda, over the inlaid seal of the order, were the remains of Olea Aucarii. Or at least Reva thought they were his remains. It was hard to tell. Body parts were strewn about the area, like some large animal had shaken the body apart and the pieces landed in a chaotic mess. The floor was coated with blood, a thin lake of drying red color. Looking around, Reva saw blood had been cast off, splattering the walls, long arcs of blood flung across the floor. Even the flags above the room had been pelted with the blood.

  Taking in the room, Reva saw the balcony across from them. She could make out a silvery cone-shaped object attached to the balcony railing. “What’s that?” she asked, pointing at the object.

  Ansee was preparing his spells and he either didn’t hear the question or was ignoring Lunaria. A long paused filled the time and she was about to explode when Willem said, “Not sure, ma’am.”

  “Well, get your ass up there and find out!”

  Willem bit his tongue. It was clear that the Inspector was not herself this morning, but it would be counter-productive to point that out right now, especially for him. Better to do what she wanted quickly and efficiently and see if the Seeker could do something.

  He walked around the edge of the room, passing Seeker Carya on his way to the stairs. “Seeker,” he called quietly, “you need to get the Inspector under control before she completely loses it—again.” He jerked his head back to where the Inspector stood.

  Ansee paled a bit, but nodded his head. It was clear that Reva was acting strangely. First the unexplained outburst with the Guild Luminary outside, now the abrasive tone with him and Willem. This was something more than just being mad at him for not doing his job right yesterday. He turned and walked over to Reva, heart in his throat.

  She was walking around the edge of the seal, looking at the various remains of the victim. She turned to look at him as he approached. Ansee immediately saw that her pupils were dilated. Something clicked within Ansee—the irritability and abuse—and now physical symptoms. Ansee thought he knew what the problem was, though he was surprised to be seeing this coming from he Inspector. He made a quick decision to not address the matter right now. If he was right, then this was not the place, or the time, to deal with her.

  “Inspector Lunaria,” Ansee said, adopting a formal tone. She’d looked as if she was going to snap at him but then she relaxed a bit. “My preliminary inspection indicates that Aucarii was killed with the same sword as First Magistrate Avecath and Lady Ochroma. The full comparison will be done when we return to New Port.”

  Reva nodded. It seemed pretty clear that this was the same work of their killer, but the auras would bind the three deaths together unequivocally.

  Ansee continued his report. “The killer seems to have appeared at this spot.” He pointed to a place near the seal that was in line with the entry hall. The spot was covered with blood, but that didn’t hide the aura. “The magical aura for the alteration spell first appears there. Knowing our killer’s apparent obsession with dramatic entrances, I would expect that he was originally on the balcony.”

  Ansee pointed up to where the strange object was located. Senior Constable Ghrellstone was approaching the object. He leaned over the railing to get a closer look and then stood up.

  “Constable Inspector,” he called. His voice echoed around the rotunda. “It looks like one of those lamps the folks at the playhouses use to light the stage. There’s a crystal set into it and the inside is polished metal.”

  Reva nodded her understanding. Most of the playhouses she attended still used oil lamps to light the stage, but some of the fancier theaters were now using magic to do the job. She’d even heard that the opera had a lamp that could cast a bright spot of light onto the stage from one of the balconies, to better highlight an actor or singer givin
g a solo performance.

  She turned back to Ansee. The Seeker was pointing at the floor, his finger tracing an arc around the seal. “The killer moved around the outside edge of the seal, probably keeping his victim centered until he was ready to kill him.” He looked up at Lunaria. “But if this is our killer, why is the body such a mess?”

  Reva had been pondering that very question. The first two victims had been dispatched cleanly, in a very neat and orderly manner—for bodies being cut in half—as if the killer were making a statement. But Aucarii looks as if he’s been butchered and mauled by some wild owlbear.

  Reva unconsciously stuck the end of a strand of her hair between her lips, studying the carnage. “Rage,” she finally said. “For some reason the killer snapped and lost control, going into a killing rage.” She’d heard of this before, but usually with soldiers who’d lost control on the battlefield.

  “It may not just be our killer that snapped,” suggested Ansee. “If the enchantment on the sword is as powerful as we think it is, then it might possess other qualities too. Maybe some kind of battle frenzy or blood lust. Such weapons are rare, but they do exist.”

  The two of them had been circling the body. Reva was looking at the mutilated corpse, trying to understand the killer’s motivation. Ansee had continued to scan the area for magical clues. “Look, Inspector,” Ansee said, pointing. Reva turned and saw what could be a break for their case: bloody footprints. They were spaced far apart, as if the killer had been running, but they clearly led toward another hallway leading off the rotunda.

  “It looks like our killer finally made a mistake,” said Reva. She and Ansee started to follow the footprints, when there came a deep bellow from behind them.

  “Constable Inspector Lunaria,” yelled First Constable Aescel. Reva and Ansee both turned to see the First Constable standing in the entryway to the rotunda. He wore his armor and a furious expression on his face. His hands were clenched into fists and were planted on his hips. “What kind of gods damn investigation are you running here?”

  Reva sighed and forced herself to control her anger. I don’t fucking need this. She turned to Ansee and pointed at the hallway. “Follow those and see if they lead anywhere.”

  Ansee nodded and followed the footprints while Reva walked around the rotunda to stand before the First Constable. His armor and bracers nearly glowed in the morning light, the leather having been recently buffed. He glared at Reva as she stood there, gathering his words.

  Without preamble Reva said, “It’s my case, sir. I won’t stand idle while you give it to Pflamtael or anybody else.”

  Aescel squinted, giving her a quizzical look. “Who said anything about giving the case to Constable Inspector Pflamtael?” He pointed back toward the entrance. “But if you keep assaulting members of the general public—and a Guild Luminary to boot!—then I’ll be forced to pull you and Seeker Carya off this case.

  “They,” he waved his hand to indicate the crowd outside, “are demanding your removal right now. Hell, some of them are demanding I kick your sorry ass off the Constabulary. Luminary Sedgeworth is taking his grievance directly to the Mayor, and probably to the King as well, and there’s not a damn thing I can do to change his mind. You really stuck your head in the hornet’s nest this time, Reva.”

  Reva let her head drop. You really fucked up big time, she scolded herself. She saw that now, but couldn’t quite remember why she’d done everything she did outside.

  “Sir,” she said, still looking down at the floor, “I really don’t know what came over me. With the attack on Ansee I didn’t get much rest last night.” It sounded like a lame excuse, but she looked up to see Aescel nodding his head. She looked him square in the eyes. “If you give me the chance, I will find the person doing this, sir.”

  “I know you will,” Aescel said. “But tread carefully, Inspector. You are on a narrow branch here. Any more missteps and I won’t be able to keep you from falling.”

  Reva nodded her understanding.

  There was a low whistle from behind Aescel. “I don’t know if I should have brought the burial shroud or butcher paper,” commented Alchemist Bromide. She and her two assistants stood in the entryway to the rotunda. Her assistants were turning a bit green after seeing the body, but Thea seemed to be made from sterner stuff. They started unpacking their gear.

  Aescel stepped around Reva and finally took a good look at the corpse. His birch-colored skin paled noticeably and he had to swallow hard a couple of times to keep from losing his breakfast.

  “Aucarii was a good elf,” he managed to say. “It will be hard for the order to find a leader that was as competent as he was. He was well-liked by everybody here.”

  “So, you don’t think anybody from the order could have done this?” Reva asked. She wanted to get a look at Aucarii’s possessions, especially his order pin. But she still wasn’t ready to tell Aescel her theory yet.

  “Never,” said the First Constable. “Nobody in the order had a grudge with Aucarii.”

  “At least not openly,” suggested Reva.

  Aescel appeared to be about to protest, but then thought better. He’d been a Constable for a long time and knew that Reva was right. “At least not openly,” he admitted.

  Reva left it at that. As long as Aescel understood that not everything in the world was so absolute, she was satisfied. It would make the task of explaining her theory to him all that easier when the time came.

  Aescel gave the body one last look and then walked out of the rotunda. He passed Constable Silverbough and Senior Constable Ghrellstone, both of whom gave him a salute. Constable Silverbough walked up to Reva.

  “Inspector,” said Silverbough. His hair was a dark brown and cut so it fell loose to his shoulders. He had tired-looking, hazel-colored eyes. “The archivist is in a sitting room waiting to be interviewed. He’s been in shock since finding the body, but I think he’s recovered enough by now to answer questions.”

  “Do you want me to speak to him, ma’am?” asked Willem.

  “No,” Reva said. “Silverbough and I will do it. Go find Ansee and see if he’s learned anything. He was following some footprints our killer carelessly left out that way.” She pointed to the hallway across the rotunda.

  Willem nodded and headed toward the hallway.

  “Come on, Constable,” Reva said. Silverbough turned and led Reva to a small door set between a painting of a waterfall and trees in autumn colors, and a marble bust of some important elf. He opened the door and then followed Reva into the room.

  The sitting room was small, an irregularly-shaped room that appeared to have been hewn out of the heart of the tree. There were two tall-backed armchairs and a small settee, all upholstered in a light blue velvet and arranged over a thick wool rug. A pair of small wooden side tables flanked the chairs, and against the left wall was a wheeled cart set with a silver tray, cut crystal glasses, and decanters of wine and liquor. The room was dim, the only light coming from two oval-shaped windows set into the far wall. Reva saw dust motes hanging in the still air.

  Roya Locera was sitting in one of the armchairs, an empty glass sitting on the table to his left. Reva took a moment to assess the archivist. He was maybe 110 to 120 years old, with a narrow face and a pointed chin. His cheeks looked hollow, but that could have been due to his sitting in shadow. He wore a white linen tunic with grey woolen trousers and soft, brown leather shoes. The cuffs of the pants and the shoes were spattered with dried vomit. Locera had fine, gold-colored hair. It had been pulled into a ponytail, but several strands had pulled loose and it gave him a disheveled look.

  “Mr. Locera,” Reva said. He looked up and Reva could tell he’d been crying, his eyes puffy and red. “Constable Silverbough says you are ready to answer some questions.”

  Locera nodded his head slowly but didn’t say anything. Reva walked over and moved the other armchair so that it faced the
elf. She pulled out her notebook and sat down. Silverbough moved to stand behind Reva.

  “I’m Constable Inspector Lunaria,” Reva started. She thought she saw a flicker of something in his eyes at the mention of her name—recognition maybe? “I know this has been a shock for you, but I need you to tell me what happened.” She pulled open the notebook to a new page, jotting down the date and Locera’s name.

  “I arrived just after sunrise,” he said. His voice was hoarse and scratchy.

  “Do you normally arrive that early?”

  “No. I had some work to do before Seeker Carya arrived. I had to spend a lot of my time yesterday baby sitting him.” There was annoyance in his voice. “So I got behind in my own work. I wanted to get caught up, since I expected to have to watch him again today.” More annoyance, almost anger in his voice this time. Reva made a mental note to talk to Ansee about what had happened yesterday. He’d said something earlier about needing to come back, but he’d not given any details. Was he withholding information about the case? Maybe he’d found something and wanted to keep it to himself. Is he trying to take all the credit?

  Reva had been silent, pondering what Ansee might not be telling her. Locera looked at her for a moment and then continued his discussion. “Anyway, I arrived around sunrise. I entered through the main door and I immediately realized something was wrong. From the hall, I could see a bright light coming from the rotunda. I walked down that hall and stepped into the rotunda and . . .” He paused and swallowed, licking his lips.

  “What did you see?” prompted Reva.

  “It was horrible,” said Roya, his voice quavering. “There was so much blood. It seemed to cover everything.”

  “Please focus. I need to know what you saw.”

  “Aucarii’s body lay in the middle of the rotunda, surrounded by a forest of blood. He . . . he was all . . . cut up. Body parts were scattered everywhere. His head was right in front of me . . . staring up at me.”

  “Then what happened?”

  An embarrassed look. “I vomited.”