by Rowe, Andrew
For several moments, the only sound was the other scythe sweeping behind him, nearly close enough to draw blood.
“Is that all?” Taelien muttered. “I thought this was supposed to be a challenge.”
Discarding the borrowed blade in his left hand, Taelien wrapped his now-broken belt back around this waist. After a few moments, he managed to tie a knot to get it to sit on his waist, and he glanced around the room to try to find the source of the green light.
He found an open doorway about ten feet beyond him, nearly directly across from his tunnel, the green shimmering from somewhere beyond.
Shaking out his wet hair, Taelien stepped forward toward the light.
As he approached, Taelien inspected the chamber beyond. It was much larger than the room he stood within – and in the distance, he could see the glittering of metal objects lined against a wall. Toward the center, directly across from where he stood, was a raised pedestal – and on it was a bright green gemstone, shining with the light that illuminated both rooms.
I think I found what I’m here for, Taelien considered with a smirk. At least for my first trip.
It was only after Taelien stepped into the doorway that he saw the chains.
A colossal figure appeared from beyond the pedestal, a wall of shadows and glittering metal, only humanoid in the vaguest of senses. It stood half again Taelien’s height, and its body seemed composed of solid darkness, save for long, bladed metal claws on its four front appendages. Its head resembled something that might have been on a huge insect, if the insect had been born in the nightmares of a madman.
A long chain bound the creature around the waist, and that chain was attached directly to the pedestal carrying the gemstone.
Taelien took an involuntary step back. He had heard of creatures like this before – beasts from the Dominion of Shadow itself. They had been bound by the sorcerers of Xixis to be used as weapons in battle, and each one was said to be capable of fighting a hundred men at a time.
He stood before a harvester of shadows, one of the most dangerous creatures of legend.
His hand darted to the hilt of his sword as the creature vanished, appearing right in front of him. The harvester’s bladed claws flashed through the air, and Taelien didn’t even attempt to parry – the monster was just too large. He stepped backward awkwardly, barely avoiding the strike as it scraped against the stone doorway.
Taelien tensed for another attack, but the creature came no further.
The chains, he realized. The metal chains that were bound around the harvester’s waist glittered in the green light, and he realized that they had an inscription – too tiny to read – across the entire surface of each ring. They prevent it from leaving the room.
His first instinct was to draw his sword and strike. With the legendary sword of the gods of the Tae’os Pantheon, perhaps he could land a telling blow, even against such a powerful monster. It was bound to the room, which would limit its angles of attack – although he judged that its reach still exceeded his, even with the sword. He would have to be fast.
He released his grip on the sword. No, he told himself. I will not kill another prisoner.
But neither will I be enough of a fool to let it free.
Taelien charged.
The creature swept its claws at him in a broad strike, just as he had predicted. Taelien dropped and rolled under the strike, pushing himself back to his feet in an instant. He sprinted toward the gem, but the creature reappeared directly in front of him.
Resh. The claws flashed toward him, and his feet were too slow – he had no alternative.
The Sae’kes flashed into his hand, four runes glowing blue on the surface as he parried the strike. Sparks flickered as the claws impacted against the surface, the force of the blow carrying Taelien back several feet. He kept his footing – barely – and stared the harvester down.
To his surprise, the creature paused, lowering its head. A moment later, it opened its maw impossibly wide, revealing a glittering row of teeth as long as Taelien’s arm. The harvester made a cackling noise and vanished.
Taelien spun to find the creature immediately, but he didn’t parry this time.
Chain, he told the sword.
The blade shifted into a length of gleaming metal chain, and he swept it outward, wrapping it around the incoming claw.
As the claw approached, Taelien jumped backward, merging the Sae’kes chains together into a solid cable and yanking backward. The harvester struggled, pulling Taelien forward with strength that exceeded his own – but that was fine. He didn’t need to be stronger than the harvester.
Only the sword did.
As the harvester dragged him in, he launched himself past it, flipping the sword over. Wings into blades, he commanded, and the wings of the hilt shifted into dagger-like protrusions. He shoved them straight into the stone floor.
Spread, he commanded, and the daggers embedded in the floor branched outward, creating flat surfaces of metal parallel to the stone.
Taelien danced backward as the creature spun and lashed out with another claw – and then struggled as the new chains from the sword prevented pinned it just out of reach.
The creature emitted loud, guttural growl, straining against its bonds. Taelien circled around it at a careful distance, with his own chains binding it from moving more than a few feet, and the other set of chains limiting its ability to move away from the pedestal.
Taelien approached the pedestal hastily, only taking a brief glance at the other objects lined against the wall. There were swords, spears, and daggers of metals – and even types of stone – he wasn’t even sure he recognized. He noted a golden crown with a ruby set in the center aside some sort of wooden scepter. They were undoubtedly all of great value, but the gem was the most obvious object of value in this room – and the longer he stayed, the more danger he would be exposed to.
It would be a shame not to grab at least a couple more things, he told himself. He found a long sword of a strange red metal that looked like it might fit his scabbard, sheathed it awkwardly, and hooked a silvery dagger into his belt. He didn’t trust himself to be able to carry much more through the water.
And, feeling satisfied with his discoveries, he grabbed the green gem with his left hand.
The chains emanating from the pedestal shattered.
Oh, that’s –
The creature ripped the Sae’kes out of the floor, snapping the stone apart as it rushed toward him. Taelien managed to draw the red metal sword in time to parry, but the claws pushed past the weapon, ripping into Taelien’s left arm. He stumbled back into the pillar, dropping the green gem, and lashing out with a counterstrike.
The harvester batted the red sword aside effortlessly, sweeping a pair of claws toward Taelien’s waist level to bisect him.
Noting the length of the claws, Taelien stepped inward, the metal claws clashing against one another as he called the Dominion of Flame around his left hand – and slammed a blazing fist into the harvester’s face.
The creature reeled back, emitting a hideous screeching noise as smoke rose from what was presumably a wound. Taelien shuddered at the pain that shot through his injured arm at the impact, but he did not slow his movements. He grasped the metallic cords of the Sae’kes with his left hand, commanding the sword back into a chain.
He stepped forward again, slamming the hilt of the red-bladed sword into the creature’s chest as he unraveled the Sae’kes chain from around its claw. After a moment, the sacred blade came free, and he slashed the gleaming blade through the air, sending the creature staggering back to avoid the strike.
That was all the room he needed. He sheathed the red blade and ducked right under another sweeping claw, grabbing the green gemstone, and slammed a shoulder into the harvester as he rose. The creature staggered backward, feeling lighter than its size would have indicated, and he slammed the glowing gemstone straight into the creature’s chest. A flash of light nearly blinded Taelien, and another tra
il of smoke issued from the creature’s body as it fell backward.
Taelien shoved past it, prepared to block another strike using the Sae’kes, but it never came. The creature vanished, and after a moment of panic, Taelien realized it had not reappeared within the room.
Good, he told himself. I don’t think I injured it too badly – it should live.
On one level, he knew it seemed nonsensical to care about the survival of a creature that had just attempted to bisect him...but he needed it to live. He needed to be able to fight without killing.
With the gem in his right hand and the Sae’kes in his left, he strode through the trap room. The claw marks on his left arm burned, and he could feel the Sae’kes drawing at his strength every moment it was drawn – but he didn’t care. He had a light source, he had protection, and he knew the way out.
The scythe-like blade guarding the entrance to the tunnel swept in front of him, and he stuck the Sae’kes out. The scythe parted like paper as it impacted with his blade, veering off to strike a stone wall on one of the sides of the room. Taelien smirked as he shivered, climbing into the tunnel.
The next several minutes were agonizing. Brushing up against the wall of the tunnel sent jolts of fresh pain through his injured arm, and every push seemed to threaten to drain away the rest of his remaining strength. The tunnel was angled downward now, at least, which made progress somewhat faster. It was almost refreshing when his hand brushed the surface of the water from the first room – almost.
The chill from the liquid was overwhelming. He shuddered, pushing himself into the water in spite of his growing weariness, and shined the gemstone into the water to find the entrance doors.
He spotted the massive metal doors across the room – so far that he could scarcely believe he had made the swim before – and a second and third set of doors near the bottom of the pool. He ignored the additional doors, groggily swimming using only his legs, his hands still gripped tightly around his sword and gem. The water felt soothing against the burning of his wound, but it nevertheless drained at his strength further. The once-brilliant light of his blade had faded to near invisibility. By the time he reached the opposite wall, he could barely keep his legs moving. He didn’t swim downward – he simply held his breath and sank.
When he reached the metal door, his blade flashed outward, carving a gaping hole. Pressure did most of the rest of the work, pushing him against the wall – he simply had to cut the hole wider, and then fit himself through.
He had forgotten how far the top of the door was from the ground.
The water pushed him outside the vault, and Taelien fell more than ten feet before slamming into another pool of water – the water that had collected from the breaches he had created in the barrier after opening the door. The pool barely cushioned his fall, but it prevented him from slamming directly into the stone floor. The impact drove the last air out of his lungs, forcing the glowing stone from his grasp.
For a moment, Taelien was insensate, and then strong arms pulled him from the water.
His vision was a blur at first, and then Myros’ helmed head was looming above him. Myros held the green gem in a hand – and stretched it out, placing it in Taelien’s hand.
“I think you earned this,” came the booming voice.
Taelien gave a weak smile, grasping the gem with what was left of his flagging strength. “Thanks,” he managed to stammer before breaking into a series of coughs.
Myros dragged him to his feet, and he barely managed to keep himself from falling back down. How embarrassing.
Edon hovered nearby, smiling. “You’ve done very well, Taelien, just as I had hoped. Now, hand me the gem, and we’ll see about giving you godhood, as you deserve.”
Taelien wiped the water out of his eyes, and then groggily reached out with his hand, offering the gemstone to Edon. “Here,” he said. “Take it.”
Edon stepped forward with an outstretched hand, but Myros stepped in between the two of them, raising the Heartlance.
“Don’t give it to him yet. He has some questions to answer first,” Myros demanded.
What? Taelien shook his head, trying to regain his focus, but he was so tired. With a jolt, he realized he was still clutching the Sae’kes in a death grip in his left hand – and only one rune on the surface was still lit. Oh, gods. He fumbled with the new sword in his scabbard, unsheathing it and discarding it onto the floor, and noting that the silver dagger had been lost at some point – presumably during the swim.
He sheathed the Sae’kes immediately thereafter, feeling its drain on his strength cease, but regaining none of the energy it had already stolen from him.
“What’s this about, Myros?” Edon asked, his question mirroring Taelien’s bleary thoughts. “Is there a problem?”
“There might be,” Myros said. “Someone visited me last night. That someone claimed you’ve been sacrificing Rethri for immortality.”
Oh, the Rethri. I knew I was forgetting something important. Guess Jonan or Lydia has been busy.
Edon quirked a brow. “That’s quite a claim, and absurd. I do have Rethri guests in the city, as you already know – but they’re here of their own volition. Sacrificing people for immortality? That’s nonsense.”
“See, that’s what I thought – until I read the journal they gave me. I didn’t read it quite the way they did. I don’t think you’re doing ritual sacrifices. I think you’ve been using the Rethri as test subjects for making some kind of dominion bonds, and telling the Rethri it’s for their benefit. And you’re killing them with your tests.” Myros shifted the Heartlance into a combat stance, preparing to strike.
Edon frowned, looking down. “It’s not like that,” he mumbled. “I never wanted anyone to die. I just need to understand how they work. Without research, without testing, I’ll never know enough.”
Myros stood a little straighter, and Taelien shuffled the gemstone to his left hand, moving his right to the hilt of the Sae’kes. This is a really bad time for a fight, at least for me.
“So, you admit it, then? You’ve been killing people with your tests?” Myros sounded shocked, perhaps even a bit sad, but it was difficult to judge with the sound-augmentation from the helmet.
“It’s more complicated than that,” Edon insisted. “I’ve been testing on people who are already ill. Sometimes, those tests are too strenuous for people in their condition. I had hoped to be able to save everyone, but my progress has been too slow. I’ve had my failures. I admit that. But I’ll figure out how to cure them soon – it will be a net positive on lives. I will save more than I lose.”
Myros growled, taking a step forward. “And do these people know you’ve been risking their lives?”
“The ones who are conscious, yes,” Edon replied, shaking his head. “The others were brought by their families. Families that needed hope, and had nowhere else to turn. They needed something miraculous. Divine intervention.”
Taelien wearily lifted a hand and pointed at Edon. “That might be true for some, but what about the Esharen you were keeping under the bank?”
Edon spun toward Taelien, raising a clenched fist. “You – you’re the one... I should have known. That Esharen, like all Esharen, was a monster. It deserved no better. And I was making valuable progress with my studies on it.”
“It,” Taelien pointed out, “Was a him. A living, sentient creature – not an object for your studies. If you were really just taking volunteers, I’d think about helping you, even if there were risks. What you were doing to that Esharen wasn’t research – it was torture. Taking notes on torture does not make it research.”
Myros looked to Taelien, then back to Edon. “You had an Esharen prisoner? And you didn’t think that was worth mentioning to the rest of us?”
“You’re fixating on the wrong things, Myros. Calm down. I’m sure you don’t tell me every little thing that happens in your day. Where would you be if I hadn’t found you? Still in Valeria, playing politics with petty nobles? I gave
you a part in something greater – a purpose. That’s the same thing I’m doing for these test subjects.” He was no longer stumbling over his words – he had raised his voice, nearly to yelling.
Myros set the Heartlance against the floor. “You’re right about one thing – I wasn’t much of anything back at home. You taught me a lot, and I’m grateful for that, I really am. But there’s no excuse for torture and taking lives – and if you’ve been lying about that, I can’t trust that you haven’t been lying about anything – or everything – else.”
“If you’re not satisfied with my progress – or my methods – help me. If you turn on me, you’re just throwing away all the progress that I made from their sacrifices. Help me, we can finish my research. We can make things better,” Edon offered.
“I nearly killed someone last night because of your lies. I nearly killed Taelien a few weeks before – again, because of your lies. I will have no further part in this...and neither will you. You will answer for your crimes,” Myros raised the Heartlance. “Surrender now, and I will turn you over to the queen for judgment. Taelien, are you with me?”
Taelien nodded to Myros immediately, plucking the red-bladed sword from the floor and stepping behind Edon. He put the sword at Edon’s back.
Edon quirked a brow. “If you were going to try to make a coup, it would have been smarter to do it before Taelien walked the path. Do you really want to do this, Myros?”
“If I had done this before, Taelien wouldn’t have had the gem. I’ve been down there more often than you have – I know how the vault works. I knew he’d find it. And I know what it does,” Myros explained.
“Well,” Edon said, “That’s comforting, that you had a plan, at least. Unfortunately, I must decline to surrender.”
Taelien tensed. This wasn’t what he wanted, but he was too tired to argue. He was too tired to do much of anything – and he was certainly too tired to fight.
Hope Myros plans to do all the heavy lifting for this one, Taelien considered.
