“I hope the brothers get back soon,” Gage said, looking over his shoulder. “It’s going to look bad if they’re not here.”
“They’ll be here,” Lukas said. “They’ll see the soldiers from the other barracks coming in, and they’ll put it together.”
One of the officers moved to the front and began calling for attention. It was Captain Rouk, the officer who’d had Fen whipped.
“I’m not surprised to see him still alive. He’s a cockroach is what he is,” Strout said sourly.
“Cockroaches should be stomped on,” Noah said.
It took a bit, but finally Rouk had their attention. The wiry man looked out over them. He wasted no time getting to the point. “By now you all know the Fist is dead. What you don’t know is that we have a new king. King Lowellin has taken his place.”
“Who the hell is Lowellin?” a soldier yelled. “I never heard of him.”
“You’ll know who King Lowellin is soon enough,” Rouk said. “He’s on his way.”
“He’s not my king!” another soldier yelled. A few others yelled their agreement with him.
“I don’t blame you for not liking it,” Rouk continued. “I don’t like it either.”
“Looks to me like he does,” Noah said under his breath. “He looks all kinds of happy. I bet Lowellin made him a general.”
“But the Fist is dead,” Rouk continued. “We can’t change that. He’s dead, and a new king has taken his place. What can we do about it?”
“We can fight!” Noah yelled.
Cowley elbowed him and hissed at him to shut up.
“I figured someone would say that,” Rouk said. “You’re soldiers. You want to fight. But you need to be reasonable. They’re…” His voice faltered. “It’s not just Lowellin. There are others. They’re more powerful than you realize. There’s nothing we can do against them. Our old king is dead. What point is there in getting killed over it?”
“You gonna be general now, Rouk?” Noah yelled. “Is that it?”
“Who said that?” Rouk yelled, his face darkening. There was no response. The soldiers all stared at him stone-faced.
“Swear to the gods,” Cowley muttered to Noah, “if you don’t shut your mouth I’m going to knock you out.”
“I’m not going to stand here and listen—”
“Yes, you are,” Lukas snapped. “Shut up!”
Rouk was talking again. “You have a choice, and it’s a simple one. Resist and die. Or be part of what will happen no matter what you do. You’re upset now, but Samkara has a bright future ahead and so do her soldiers, those who are smart enough to see which way the wind is blowing. I’m talking of conquest. Right now, in the harbor, ships are being built. When they are finished, we will sail across the sea. With the power our king and his new allies have, we’ll conquer every nation we fight. None will stand against us. I can promise you that. This world will be ours. Loyal soldiers will be richly rewarded. There will be plunder beyond what you can imagine. There—”
“You’re a traitor!” a soldier yelled.
“I’m not a traitor!” Rouk yelled back at him. “I served my king loyally while he was alive. But now he’s dead. I can’t serve a dead man, and he has no heir.”
“What about Fen?” the soldier yelled.
“Fen is dead. He and the Fist were killed together.”
But no one was listening. Others joined in and began chanting Fen’s name. Rouk shouted, but they shouted louder, drowning him out. He’d lost control. To Cowley it seemed that the soldiers were about a heartbeat away from charging Rouk and the other officers and cutting them down where they stood. The officers realized it too, as they were edging backwards, looking over their shoulders at the palace doors.
The palace doors opened. Maphothet emerged first, followed by the other sorcerer. At the sight of them, the soldiers’ frenzy increased. Curses and howls of rage rose, and there was a general surge forward. Maphothet smiled coldly and waved them to come on. There was a stirring under his sleeve, and the winged, leathery creature emerged and hissed at the crowd. The whole situation was moments away from turning into a bloodbath.
The palace doors opened again. Out stepped three alien figures, tall, powerfully muscled, wearing armor like the scales on a snake. Behind them came a man wearing a long, red cloak and the crown, their new king. The officers and the sorcerers instantly went to one knee and pressed their faces to the ground. The three figures strode to the front of the top step and looked down on the massed soldiers, who began backing away, muttering uneasily. King Lowellin stood watching, his hands clasped behind his back.
“I am S’nash, leader of the Ichthalids,” the tallest of the aliens said in a harsh, rasping voice, looking them over. “We are your new rulers. Kneel.”
The soldiers began going to their knees. But not quickly enough for S’nash, whose face twisted with anger.
He held up one hand. Purple sparks crackled around it. The soldiers in the front ranks began trying to move back, their efforts hampered by the soldiers behind them who were still pressed close.
S’nash pointed at one of the soldiers near the front who was still standing. A look of alarm came into the soldier’s eyes as he rose up off the ground.
“Hey, let me go!” he yelled. He was now high enough to be clearly visible to all the soldiers, his head turning, arms and legs moving as he tried to break free of whatever it was that held him.
“You will obey me,” S’nash said, “or you will suffer.”
S’nash clenched his fist.
There came the loud crack of bones breaking, and the soldier crumpled, his skull crushed, his rib cage caved in. Blood spurted everywhere.
S’nash opened his fist. The soldier fell to the ground, a bloody mess.
“Kneel,” S’nash said.
The soldiers went instantly to their knees. S’nash surveyed them for a moment, then turned and went back into the palace, followed by the other Ichthalids, Lowellin, and the sorcerers.
In the stunned silence that followed the closing of the palace doors, Rouk spoke up once again. “Now you see. Now you understand why I took their offer. Follow them or die horribly. It’s your choice. You are dismissed.”
The soldiers began to leave. No one spoke. There were no words.
Cowley turned around and saw that the brothers had rejoined them at some point. Sticking closely together, the seven of them headed back to the barracks. All of them looked pale. Even Noah was shaken, his normal bluster deserting him. They went inside and closed the door behind them. Wallice took up a position at the door, watching through the cracks to make sure no one was eavesdropping.
“What was that?” Gage said, slumping down onto his cot. “I never…how did he do that?”
“I don’t know,” Cowley said, sitting down. He felt sick to his stomach. Over and over in his mind he kept seeing the soldier crumpling. He’d known the man, played dice and drank with him more than once.
“How did they get through?” Lukas asked. “I thought they had to have the rest of the key. They don’t have the other pieces, do they?”
“I don’t know,” Cowley said. “I don’t know any more than you do.”
“It’s hopeless,” Gage said. “How do we fight something that can do that?”
“It’s not hopeless,” Lukas said stoutly. “Fen can defeat them.” But from the look in his eyes he was trying to convince himself.
“He better be able to, because it sure as hell isn’t going to be us,” Strout said. “There’s nothing we can do.”
“I don’t believe that,” Noah shot back. “There’s always a way.” But there was no conviction in his voice.
“What are we going to do?” Gage asked.
“We keep moving forward,” Cowley said. “We find Fen, and together we find a way to kill those things.”
“You’re talking about foolishly throwing our lives away. You know that, right?” Strout said.
“It ain’t foolish to die fighting,” Noah sai
d, glaring at him.
“It is when there’s no chance.” Strout was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. He looked them all over. “No one wants to hear it, but it has to be said. Why don’t we just give in? So, we serve a different king. What difference does it make?”
“You better shut your mouth,” Noah exploded, looking like he was close to throwing himself at Strout. “I don’t want to hear this kind of talk from you.”
“Let him talk,” Cowley said. “He’s Wolfpack. He’s earned that right.”
“All I’m saying is, what are we really fighting for? Rouk was right about one thing. You can’t be loyal to a dead man. We’re soldiers. We fight for who pays us, we go where we’re told to, and do what we’re told to do.”
“You’d serve those monsters?” Gage said. He looked confused, like he couldn’t quite believe what was going on.
“I didn’t say that. I asked why we are doing this. Why die in a hopeless battle? Why not go along and stay alive?”
“Because we’re fighters. We don’t give up, no matter what!” Noah spat, rising up off his cot. Lukas grabbed onto his shoulder and pushed him back down.
“You want to live under those…things?” Gage asked.
“No. I don’t. But I sure don’t want to die under them either.”
“He makes a good point,” Cowley said.
“What?” Noah burst out. “You’re siding with him now?”
“No, I’m not. But he makes a good point. Why should we fight?”
“I can’t believe you’re going to just give up,” Noah said sullenly.
“To be clear,” Cowley said, “that’s not what I mean to do. I mean to fight. But in every other barracks right now soldiers are asking themselves these same questions. I guarantee it. A lot of them, probably most of them, are going to decide that dying uselessly makes no sense. If we’re going to do this, we need to be sure. We need to know why. We need to make sure every one of us is completely in.” He looked around the room. “Who’s in?”
Wallice immediately said, “We are.” His brother, Eben, nodded.
“You know I’m in,” Noah said.
“I am,” Lukas said.
“Me too,” Gage added.
Everyone looked at Strout. “I’m in,” he said.
“Then why’d you go make such a fuss?” Noah demanded.
“Because you lot want to run off like headless chickens and get yourself killed without giving it a second thought. If I’m going to die, I want to think about it first. And just so you all know, I still don’t think this is a good idea.”
“But you’re going along with it anyway?” Lukas asked, looking confused. “I don’t understand.”
“You know why,” Strout said, angry suddenly. “Don’t make me say it.”
“No, I don’t. Why?”
“Because you idiots all said you’re in. I don’t know what gods hate me or why, but I’m part of this squad and where you go I go.”
“Wolfpack squad!” Noah yelled, throwing his fist in the air and grinning darkly.
“Yeah, Wolfpack squad,” Strout muttered. “Now let’s go get some chow.”
“Someone’s coming,” Wallice said. “It’s Rouk.” He stepped back from the door.
The door opened, and Rouk entered. He stood there with his hands on his hips, looking at them. “Done plotting already?” he asked.
“No one’s plotting here,” Cowley said.
“Bullshit,” Rouk replied. “Where’s the girl?”
Noah looked under his bed. “What girl?”
“You know very well what girl,” Rouk snarled. “Fen’s doxie.”
“You better not let that word come out of your mouth again when you’re talking about Ravin,” Cowley said, laying his hand on his sword. Others did the same.
Rouk took a step back, but Wallice pushed the door shut with his foot, and he could go no further. His eyes moved nervously side to side. “Lowellin wants her. That means he’s going to have her. It’ll do no good, but I’ll tell you anyway. He’ll pay. You want to be general? Hand her over and it’s done.”
“Who doesn’t want to be a general?” Noah asked the others. “I know I do. I think I’d make a great general.”
“I do,” Lukas piped up.
“Me too,” Gage added. Strout raised his hand. The brothers nodded.
“This is serious,” Rouk said.
“So are we,” Cowley replied. “But we don’t know where she is.”
“You’re Fen’s squad. You have to know.”
“We only got back from fighting fires and mobs a little while before you started talking,” Cowley said. “You can ask the guards at the gates.”
Rouk glared at them in turn. “Fine. Have it your way. But I’ll be watching you. You put so much as one toe out of line, and I’ll turn you over to the Ichthalids.”
“You wipe their asses after they crap too?” Noah asked.
Rouk smiled at him. “I’m going to enjoy it when you die.” He opened the door.
“Wait! Don’t go!” Noah jumped up, turned around and dropped his pants. “Wipe my ass before you leave.”
Rouk slammed the door.
“You just can’t stop, can you?” Cowley said.
“It’s how I am,” Noah replied seriously, pulling his pants back up. “There’s no point in fighting it.”
Chapter 10
When Fen awakened, he could see by the angle of the light coming into the room that it was early afternoon. He got up and went to look out the front window. The street below was empty. He went back to the cot and sat down. It was time to assess his situation, figure out what he had and what he needed.
He had a sword. It wasn’t much of a sword. The hilt was loose, and the blade was nicked, but it was a lot better than nothing. Other than that, he didn’t have much. He needed food. He needed information. To get those things, he needed a disguise, if he wanted to move around the city without being recognized. A cloak with a hood would be best. It would also be a good idea to ditch his uniform and get normal clothes. The uniform would mark him as a deserter. And it smelled pretty bad after his days in prison.
And he needed allies. This war was too big to fight alone. He had to find a way to talk to Wolfpack squad.
He realized something suddenly and cursed himself for not thinking of it sooner.
Ravin was in danger. It was only a matter of time until Lowellin thought to take her prisoner and use her against Fen again. How had he not thought of this already?
He jumped up, ready to run to her right then. But he forced himself to stop and think. He couldn’t help her if he ran off half-cocked. He needed to think clearly. He needed to use his head.
First priority was still to acquire a disguise. He went to the front door of the temple and peeked out. Seeing no one around, he hurried out. Keeping his head down and staying close to the wall, he moved down the street. When the street intersected with another, he paused to look around.
This street was wider, the buildings fronting it in better shape than the ones around the temple. He saw only one person on it, an old woman hurrying as best she could, lugging a heavy, bulging bag. He started to dismiss her, then realized she looked familiar and took another look.
It was Elace, the old woman who’d been his neighbor when he was a child. He and Cowley had talked to her one time to find information on his father’s illness and death. Could he trust her? Though he didn’t know her that well, she’d been kind enough to him and his mother, several times watching him when his mother had work that she couldn’t bring a small child along on. It didn’t mean he could trust her, but at least he knew her, and it wasn’t like he had a lot of options at this point.
Making a sudden decision, he hurried after her, catching up to her before she reached the next corner. She glanced over her shoulder as he approached and struggled to move faster.
“Elace,” he said in a low voice.
She glanced back again. “How do you know my name?
Who are you?”
“It’s me, Fen.” Still she showed no sign of recognition. “I lived next door with my mother, Deerna.”
Recognition dawned. “It’s you.” Then her eyes went wide. “You’re him.”
“What do you mean?”
“‘Free Fen.’” She pointed. Across the street the words were painted on the wall.
“Yeah,” he said, looking around to make sure they were still alone.
“I wondered if it was you they’ve been carrying on about.” She looked him up and down. “You don’t look so good.” Her nose wrinkled. “You stink. Better than being dead, I guess, which is what you should be, from what I heard.”
“Can you help me?”
Her wrinkled old hand clenched into a fist. “You’re going to fight those damned sorcerers?”
“The Fist and I killed two of them last night.”
“That’s a good start. All the bad things happened once they showed up. Come on. I’m headed home. I’m sure you don’t want to stand out here on the street waiting for someone to notice you. In case you’re not aware of it, you’re pretty famous now.”
“I have some idea.” He took the heavy bag from her, and they continued down the street. The few people they passed kept their heads down and hurried by without making eye contact. Fen could feel the tension in the air, as the Samkarans braced themselves to deal with whatever nightmare was coming next. He wondered how people would react once word of the Fist’s death got out, and people learned of the arrival of the Devourers.
“It’s quite a story you have, I’m sure,” Elace said.
“It’s a long one,” Fen admitted. “It might have to wait.”
“I expect you’re right. Here, let me take your arm. Anyone looking for you won’t expect to see you with an old woman hanging off you.” She took hold of Fen’s arm and leaned on him. “I wasn’t there when they tried to execute you. I hate that stuff, and I knew it wouldn’t be safe anyway, the way things are these days. But I’ve heard stories about it. Lately people hardly seem to talk about anything else. Did the axe really explode?”
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