by Devon Vesper
Pushing the heavy double doors open, he glanced inside before stepping through and heading down the short hall. The entire place seemed eerie as a sepulchral silence stretched on ahead of him.
He ducked into a room and sent mage lights ahead of him. In the glow, he found dozens of terrified eyes, most with trails of fresh tears streaming down their faces.
“It’s okay. I’m Aesriphos. The Qos adherents are gone. We beat them.”
An elderly man hobbled forward and squinted at him. “Prove it.”
Valis held up his right hand and called upon his power, pushing magic into his hand in a golden sphere. Sound came rushing back into the room almost instantly as if everyone finally felt like they could breathe again.
“The square is filled with blood, but the bodies are cleaned up. If you have young children with you, you may want to shield their eyes from the gore, but we did the best we could.”
“Oh, bless you, Aesriphos,” a woman said. She came up and smirked at him. “Let us worry about the young ones. They can already see you, and you are most likely a more terrifying sight than pools of blood on the ground.”
Valis grimaced and touched his cheek. Yeah. He was covered in blood and bits of nastiness. “Sorry.”
“Worry not, lad. We’ll start drawing baths for you and your people. And you can tender your armor to us for cleaning. It is the least we can do.”
“Gods, thank you.” Valis’s shoulders sagged and he leaned against the door jamb. “We’re about six-hundred strong. Are there enough extra beds in the city? We can easily camp outside the city’s perimeter, but many of us would appreciate beds if the inn has enough room.”
“We will see what we can do, dear,” another woman said. She seemed older than the elderly man but walked with better posture and a noticeable lack of hobbling. “Go tend to your wounded while we get the city running again and clean up the mess the Qos adherents most likely made. Feed your men if you have food stores left, and return here before dark sets in.”
“We do need food stores,” Valis said. He winced at how tired he sounded. “We used the last of our reserves for lunch when we had to regroup.”
“Then leave it to us,” the matron said. “Get your men and women into the city before dark sets in and we will get you sorted.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
Valis itched his nose, flaking off a bit of dried blood and sighed. Then he perked up when he remembered his reason for coming in. “Where are Ella and Athar? I saw them in a vision. It’s how I knew to come to Setira City.”
The woman smoothed back her brown hair, making the gray streaks shine in his mage lights. “There are many rooms in this hall. If you saw them come to this building, they can be in any one of them.”
“Then I’ll search them all,” Valis said. “My men and women are checking all the rest of the buildings, letting everyone know that the threat has passed. And I do apologize now for the blood. We’re tracking it everywhere.”
The woman giggled and rolled her eyes. “Why do I have the feeling that only you would be worried about tracking blood everywhere after a major battle? Your mother must have reared you well.”
Valis didn’t have the heart to correct her that he’d gotten beaten more times than he could count if he didn’t wipe his feet well enough before entering the house. It didn’t matter that he was the one who cleaned the place. His parents sure as hell hadn’t. But he ducked his head. “We don’t want to cause you more work than necessary.”
“Nonsense.” She sighed and motioned for him to precede her. “You go find your Ella and Athar, and I will start getting this city back in order.”
“You’re the city’s leader?”
She shook her head and smoothed down her brown dress. “No. I’m Rysine, one of the councilwomen. There are six of us, four men and two women.” She smirked at him. “Now go. You look like you’re about to fall over, young man. Get out of this storage room before I take a broom to you.”
Laughing, Valis said no more and started clearing rooms in the hall. On the sixth door, he sent in his mage lights and met the eyes of Ella. Athar must have been the boy attached to her skirts. Seeing them, Valis’s heart eased and he squatted down to the boy’s level. “Are you Athar?”
The boy’s lower lip wobbled and fear clouded his green eyes. “Yes, sir.”
Valis gave him a soft smile. “I’m Valis, the Grand Master Aesriphos from Avristin. Your great-granduncle, Shyvus, is with us. He’s worried about you.”
“Shyvus is here?” Ella asked.
Valis removed his gauntlet and ran his fingers through the boy’s hair as he stood. “Yes.” He rolled his shoulders and brightened the mage lights. “Sorry it took us so long, but we were ten days out when I saw the city get taken through young Athar’s eyes.”
“You saw through my eyes?” the boy asked, his eyes wide with wonder. “How?”
Grinning, Valis hunkered down to his level again. “I sometimes get visions from Phaerith. In this one, I saw you watching the Qos adherents funnel people into the town hall from an alleyway. Then a big man grabbed you by the back of the neck and threw you. Your Aunt Ella picked you up and carried you inside, saying the Aesriphos would come. And I couldn’t make a liar out of her, now could I?”
The young boy grinned and shook his head. “No, sir.”
“That’s right.” Valis stood again and motioned for Ella and Athar to follow him. “You two come with me, and I’ll take you to Shyvus. The rest of you, I’d be grateful if you let everyone else in this building and the surrounding buildings know that the battle is over, and the Aesriphos have cleared the threat. The city is safe.”
Cheers erupted, deafening Valis. They all-but chased him out of the room and down the hall. But he laughed as he jogged toward the double doors. Little Athar ran at his side, squealing, “Uncle Shy! Uncle Shy!”
As they made it out into the evening light, Valis amplified his voice with magic and shouted, “Shyvus! Get to the town hall immediately!”
From a distance, Valis heard Shyvus shout, “SIR!”
“He’s on his way,” Valis said to Athar. “He’s safe.”
Athar’s eyes widened as he looked around the ruined square. Plants had been destroyed. Smoke rose from what used to be trees and bushes. Blood coated almost all of the once-tan cobblestones. Some of the buildings had scorch marks, and others had chunks missing from the walls, though not deep enough to have penetrated the buildings.
Bits of flesh and bone still littered the ground, and Valis hoped the sight wouldn’t cause the city’s children to have more nightmares than their imprisonment would.
“Are you really the Aesriphos Grand Master?” Athar asked. “Really?”
Valis grinned. “Yep. I just attained that rank this year.”
“That’s so neat!” The boy bounced on the balls of his feet, his energy infectious. “What’s it like? I wanna be Aesriphos someday!”
Valis smirked. “It’s a lot of hard work, but it’s also a lot of fun, and your family grows exponentially. You’ll never be alone if you join the monastery in any capacity.”
The sound of a horse’s hooves pounding the cobblestones interrupted their discussion. Soon, Shyvus trotted up on his horse and swung down from the saddle. Somehow, he was cleaner than Valis and his team. He bent down and swung Athar up into his arms and cradled the kid against his chest. “Gods, I was so worried. Are you both all right?”
Ella went to Shyvus’s arms and rested her forehead against his neck. “We’re better now, Uncle Shyvus.”
He squeezed them both, and Valis smiled. “Shy, why don’t you take an hour to spend with your family while we get things set up? The city will be feeding us, and they’re going to try and find us all beds for the night.”
“Don’t forget your nasty armor, young man,” Councilwoman Rysine muttered. “Get your duties done so you can get out of that armor and get bathed.”
Blushing, Valis turned to give her a lopsided smile. “Yes, ma’am
.”
“Don’t ‘yes, ma’am’ me, young man. Just do it.”
Knowing better than to argue, Valis jogged back to camp. What he saw made him skid to a stop and stare. Hundreds of men and women in stasis were stacked head-high like cordwood. Several others held stacks of dead bodies. Then there were piles of severed limbs. Then, off to the side were six men and women in stasis laying side by side, all wearing red tabards with silver stitching around their Marks of Qos, except for one man whose entire Mark of Qos was embroidered in silver.
He shook his shock away and blinked. Then raised his voice, “Translocators! Transport the six Qos leaders back to the city’s square. Everyone else, ride to the city. They’re going to try and put us up tonight! Tavros, you’re with me. We’re on pyre duty.”
As everyone mounted up and headed out, Valis stared at the piles of bodies, both those full of the living and those of the dead. They couldn’t leave the Qos adherents alive, and they couldn’t transport that many bodies. The only logical solution was to kill them. Especially when the leaders killed themselves, rather than give Valis any of the information he demanded of them. He didn’t dare wake any of the others before lighting their pyres.
Drain them first, my son, Roba said in Valis’s mind. May as well make them useful before they go.
Yeah. I just really don’t like the thought of that much power flooding me, because that will make my fatigue return.
Unless, Roba said in that teacher's voice he sometimes used, you convert it. It doesn’t have to go through a shield for you to do so. You have proven this as fact back in Tigak.
Sighing, Valis nodded. You’re right. Thanks, Dad.
Always, my son.
Stepping up to the first stack of those in stasis, Valis placed his hand on the nearest body and started the drain. But then he had a better idea and set shields over all of the stacks. He was tired, and he wanted this done.
With those in place, Valis used the shields to siphon the black magic from the bodies for him. Ten minutes later, he had drained them all, converting the black magic into gold.
“You okay?” Tavros asked. “You look a bit pale.”
Valis shook himself. “Just drained them all of their magic. Time to create the pyres.”
“We’re burning them alive?”
Valis shrugged. “They’re in stasis. They won’t know the difference.”
Tavros snorted. “You morbid little shit.”
Shrugging again, Valis waved his left hand and the grass around each stack of bodies withered and turned to dust. A wave of his right and the golden fire roared around them all, leaping high into the evening sky.
Valis drew his sword, and knowing what Valis was about to do, Tavros drew his as well, and together they lit their swords with their golden magic as Valis said the funerary prayer.
“May Phaerith grant our fallen brothers and sisters compassion, and rebirth them anew to live in His Light. May Karei and Sotec grant them endless peace in their everlasting dream. May Vorik and Xysoz defend their spirits with their savage might as they make their way Home. May Asenth and Delys cradle them, nurture and nourish them along their journey. And may Dapen and Racal speed them on their way. Blessed are our brothers and sisters, and blessed are we to carry your memories with us always.”
Sheathing his sword, Valis took a deep breath and closed his eyes. That was when he heard it.
“Valis!”
Valis’s heart thudded somewhere into his stomach and he whirled around. “Aenali! What the fuck are you doing here? How did you get here? Where did you come from? What… what the actual fuck? Start answering my questions, you little shit!”
Aenali ran for him and held up her arms, seeming not to care about the gory state of his armor. “I phased here, silly. Just now. Calm down.”
“Did Thyran let you phase here?”
Aenali ducked her head with a grimace. “Well… not exactly. But he didn’t say no, either!”
Valis’s heart continued to race as he picked Aenali up. “Gods, girl. You need to not scare me like that. Please phase back to the monastery.”
She set her mouth into a stern frown. Her green eyes lit up with a stubborn flare as she stared at him. “Not until I see my brother.”
“Aenali…”
Rolling her eyes, she cuddled against Valis’s chest. “Jedai’s okay. So is Maph. They’re both injured, but they’re alive.”
Valis sagged and carried her away from the pyres. “Thanks.”
She hugged his neck. “Yep.”
It took Valis a few moments of concentration to break the pyres off from himself after adding the parameter for the flames to not spread to the surrounding grass and brush as the light snow melted. A few moments later, he and Tavros were in the saddle with Aenali on Valis’s lap. “You know I’m getting your uniform all dirty.” He sighed. “At least you dressed for winter.”
She looked over her shoulder at him. “I’m not dumb, Valis.”
He couldn’t argue with that point. So, he didn’t. Instead, he urged Rasera into a canter to get them to the city and into a warm building. Hopefully, they had some food going, as well. Valis’s stomach growled at the idea of something other than bland stew, hardtack biscuits, and jerky.
The moment they entered the city square, Valis pushed power into his voice and yelled, “Jedai! Get over here. Now.”
Tavros dismounted and reached for Aenali. Once Valis handed her off, he got out of his own saddle and stroked his horse’s mane. “Sorry, boy. I’ll take care of you in a moment.”
“The fuck you will,” said a young man. He had short sandy-blond hair and clear blue eyes, and couldn’t be more than a teenager. “I’ll take care of your horses. Get that kid out of the cold.”
Valis smirked. “Thanks, kid. I appreciate it.”
The boy nodded. “Stables are almost full, but I’ll make sure they’re warm and cared for. The entire east side of the city in the back are stables, so you’ll find your beasts there.”
Nodding, Valis thanked him again and carried Aenali to where Jedai jogged toward them.
“Aenali? What the fuck?”
“Valis said the same thing.” Aenali huffed. “Shut up and hug me.”
“Sis, you need to go back home! How did you even get here?” Jedai’s face was red from the cold, but it grew redder as his ire spiked. “When did you get here?”
She shrugged. “Phased here a few minutes ago. I’ll leave soon.”
Valis ruffled her auburn curls. “You can stay for an hour. Then you need to go back home. And I need to contact Thyran to let him know you’re here and safe.”
Jedai frowned but hugged his sister tight before turning to Valis. “Everything taken care of back at camp?”
Nodding, Valis motioned back toward where their camp had been. “All broken down. Everyone is in the city. I drained all the Qos adherents who were in stasis, and they’re burning in pyres along with the rest of the dead. All is as well as can be for now.”
Then Valis narrowed his eyes at Jedai. “Aenali said you and Maphias were injured?”
Jedai nodded. “Seza forced us into submission. We’re good, man. She wouldn’t let us leave her sight until she was satisfied that we were healed to her standards.” He snorted. “I think she was more worried about us than you were.”
Valis ducked his head. “Was I that bad?”
“Every time I looked at you, you were searching for someone. It wasn’t that far a stretch to know you were searching out the laymen as much as you were keeping tabs on all aspects of the battle.”
Huffing a laugh, Valis rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced as he felt all the blood that coated his skin. “I need food. Food, a bath, and preferably a bed. Let’s get warm, guys. It’s getting dark.”
Chapter Eight
“Are you sure you all have enough supplies?” Valis asked. That was a lot of Qos adherents plowing through your stores for a few days.
Councilwoman Rysine smirked at him. “Do you honestl
y think I would offer if we hadn’t the stores to spare? I am not about to put my own people into jeopardy, regardless of how you helped us.”
She patted his cheek. “Yes, Valis. We have the supplies to spare. Please stop worrying. We wouldn’t short ourselves. And the surrounding farms are sending in what they can spare, as well.”
Valis still felt extremely uncomfortable and shifted where he stood. “If you’re sure.”
“I am.”
Sighing, Valis went back to watching the Kalutakeni and mercenaries. They worked with military precision, packing food stores into the wagons and lashing everything down. Setira City afforded them two extra wagons to pack more supplies in since the weather was about to turn bad. They also had mages spell the food to keep it fresh and to keep it and their water stores from freezing solid in the bitter cold that had descended with the setting of the sun.
Someone pressed a mug of something hot into his hands, and the girl smiled at him. “Your mate said to give this to you.”
Valis took a tentative sip and moaned. “Gods. Thank you. I’ll thank him later.” He took another sip of his spiced tea and closed his eyes, letting the warmth and spicy scent soothe him. When he opened his eyes, Tavros stood in front of him, his eyes sparkling with such love that Valis couldn’t help but lean forward and kiss him.
“I knew that would calm you down.” Tavros kissed him again and stepped to the side so they could both watch the Kalutakeni and mercenaries work. “You were so worked up, I thought you were going to snap.”
Valis shrugged. “I was just worried the city was going to cut themselves short.”
“They’re not stupid, love.”
With a sigh, Valis took another long drink from his mug. “Yeah. I know.”
Tavros clanked his armored elbow against Valis’s armored side and grinned. “Why don’t we go in and spend some time with Aenali and Jedai before we send the little shit home?”
“I can’t believe she phased here,” Valis muttered. “That ‘little shit’ nearly gave me heart failure.”
“That’s what little shits do,” Tavros said as he clapped Valis on the back of his neck. “Trust me. With three younger brothers, I had heart failure often.”
