Taste of Darkness (An Avry of Kazan Novel - Book 3)

by Maria V. Snyder

  My thoughts churned as we traveled through the forest in silent mode. No one spoke and, when we stopped for the night, we ate cold rations because it was too dangerous to light a fire. Odd set up a watch schedule.

  Wrapped in my cloak, I curled up on the ground. Flea and the monkeys kept their distance from me as they’d done all day. I didn’t blame them. If I’d seen one of them awaken the dead, I’d be keeping out of reach, too.

  * * *

  We arrived at the rendezvous point late the next afternoon. The location was a mile south of Estrid’s manor house outside Zabin. A woman with short blond hair waited with two men. They wore civilian clothes, but their movements and body language pegged them as military.

  “I’m Drisana from Ronel Realm. You must be Avry.” The blonde woman held out her hand.

  Hearing the correct realm, I shook her hand. “Yes, I’m Avry.”

  Drisana wouldn’t let go. “Prove it.”

  “How?”

  “Prince Ryne says you have a powerful handshake.”

  Oh. I sent a small bit of magic into her fingers, zapping them.

  She clenched my hand harder, but otherwise her face showed no reaction. I increased the intensity.

  The muscles along her jaw tightened. “Impressive.” She released her grip.

  I pulled away and gestured to my companions, introducing them.

  She nodded. “Here’s the plan. My team will lead an attack on the enemy bivouacking in the fields near the manor house. It will draw the soldiers from the house. At that time your team will breach the manor, find High Priestess Estrid and her staff, revive them, and leave.”

  Her tone suggested it would be easy.

  “Where do we meet up after we rescue them?” Odd asked.

  “Your team will head straight east. Another squad will be waiting to escort the survivors to Prince Ryne. My team will go north so don’t wait for us,” Drisana said. “I’m also assigning an additional squad to your team.”

  Odd nodded. “Good.”

  “What if we run into too many defenders inside the house?” Loren asked.

  “Save whoever you can and get the hell out. The High Priestess is the priority.”

  “What time?” I asked.

  “A few hours after midnight. Position your team near the manor. You’ll know when we attack. Get in and get out as fast as possible. Understand?”

  “Yes,” Odd and I said in unison.

  Odd glanced at me then turned to Drisana. “Captain, did Prince Ryne say who is going to lead our part of the mission?”

  She gave him a tight smile. “If you have to ask, then it’s not you, Sergeant.”

  Quain stifled a snicker.

  “My instructions from the prince indicated Healer Avry would take point. You’re familiar with the house. Correct?” she asked me.

  “Yes. Has anyone confirmed that Estrid and her staff are still in the ballroom?”

  “Our latest intel suggests they remain inside the house. As for their exact location... That’s harder to determine.”

  And that would be a no. “All right, where’s the other squad? Do they know how to go silent?”

  “I believe Sergeant Saul’s men had the training.”

  Odd and I grinned at each other.

  “Where is he?” I asked.

  “He said he’d meet you over by the rear entrance of the manor.”

  Perfect. “Thanks. Good luck.”

  “You, too.”

  “Let’s go,” I said to my team.

  We headed northeast, angling around to stay within the forest and to avoid being seen by anyone near or inside the house. As we drew closer, a few off notes sounded nearby. I stopped the team.

  “Come out, Saul,” I called. “You’re good, but not that good.”

  He stepped from behind a thick tree trunk. “I didn’t want to startle you.” Saul wore camouflaged fatigues. With his buzzed blond hair and blue eyes, he appeared to be Drisana’s slightly older brother.

  “Yeah, right,” Odd teased.

  Saul’s gaze swept my companions. “Nice to see so many familiar faces.”

  “And we’re back in familiar territory,” I said.

  “At least we’re not trapped by the dead,” Odd said.

  “Yet,” Flea added, meeting my gaze for the first time in days.

  Lovely. I needed to have a little chat with Flea before the mission. Focusing on the matter at hand, I asked Saul, “Where’s the rest of your squad?”

  “A little farther north. I figured you’d remembered that back entrance.”

  Hard to forget. I’d used it to escape Tohon. “Any activity?”

  “Nope. Been quiet all day.”

  I glanced at the darkening sky. “Let’s go over the plan and get into position before it’s full dark.”

  “What’s there to plan?” Odd asked. “It’s a straightforward mission.”

  “Uh-huh. And what happens when we reach the ballroom and no one is there?” I asked.

  “We search the rest of the house.”

  “All of us together? Or do we split up and search different areas?”

  “Oh.”

  “And what if we’re attacked? Do we stay and fight or retreat?”

  “Gee, Avry, you sound more like a general than a healer,” Odd grumbled.

  “I was a healer on the run for three years. I’ve learned the hard way to have plenty of backup plans.”

  “All right, you made your point. What are the contingency plans?” Odd asked.

  I told him. He wasn’t happy about a few of them, but since I was in charge, he couldn’t do anything about it. Once the team understood, they moved to their positions to wait for the signal. I pulled Flea aside before he joined the monkeys.

  He shook off my hand and stared at the ground.

  “Flea, we need to talk.”

  No response, but he didn’t turn away.

  “You’re going to need my energy to break the stasis trapping Estrid and the others.”

  His gaze snapped to mine. “What if I don’t want to free them? No one asked me.”

  “Didn’t Ryne discuss—”

  “No, he just assumed I’d do it.”

  “Then why didn’t you say something sooner?”

  “’Cause I’m gonna do it. It’s important. It’s just... I don’t want to use my powers. Look at what you did to Yuri with yours. It’s horrible. I hate magic.”

  Flea had rotten timing. “I understand. I’m hating it, too, right now. But let’s just get through this mission, and we’ll talk it through, okay?”

  “There won’t be anything to discuss. Once this mission is complete, I’m done using magic.”

  “It is your choice, Flea. Let’s hope Sepp lied when he claimed he’d put Belen into a magical stasis.”

  “I’d wake Belen.”

  “Why?”

  “He’s my friend.”

  “Oh, so you’ll help your friends but not the strangers who also need you?”

  “Yes,” Flea said with a belligerent tone.

  “Hmm. Maybe I should do the same thing. I’d have more energy and not as many scars. Except...”

  Flea refused to take the bait. He kept his sullen expression.

  “Except, Poppa Bear would be disappointed in me, and I’d have a hard time sleeping at night, so I guess I’m stuck helping everyone.” I shrugged. “Anyway, for this mission, you’ll need me to share my energy with you. Will you be able to?”

  “Yes. Is that all?”

  I studied Flea, hoping this new attitude was just his way of dealing with his magic. Eventually, he’d accept it. Unless my mistake with Yuri had scared him away from using his magic for good. Yet another consequence of my actions.

  “Yeah, we’re done. For now,” I said.

  * * *

  Perched on a low limb of a maple tree, I peered at the dark manor house. No lanterns glowed in any of the rooms facing our direction. A good sign. Bursts of laughter from the soldiers’ camp floated on the ch
illy air. Other noises reached us as well, but none indicated distress. The moonlight cast shadows on the ground. At three-quarters full, it provided almost too much illumination for my comfort.

  I traced the limb’s bark with a finger. No magic hummed under my touch. Sadness filled me. How long should I wait and hope? Would I turn angry and bitter as years passed without any news of Kerrick? Or would I wall off my emotions? Actually, that last one sounded appealing. No grief, no guilt, no fear, and no worries. I hadn’t been without at least one of them since the plague started six years ago. Of course, the wall would block joy, happiness, and love. Not like there was a lot of that going on right now, anyway. And the future...looked bleak to me.

  A shout jolted me from my depressing thoughts. More yells and the rasp of metal followed. Clangs, curses, and thuds meant the other team had engaged the enemy.

  We waited a little longer before my small team dashed across the open lawn. I reached the door first. Locked. Loren yanked out his lock picks, while Quain and Flea protected our backs.

  “Damn, this has seven pins,” Loren muttered.

  “Do you need Quain’s lightning juice?” I asked.

  “No. This is almost... There.” The tumbler turned. Loren pushed the door open and checked for guards before motioning the all clear.

  Once we were inside, Odd and his squad crossed to the manor, and then Saul’s men followed in the third wave. From this point on, we would use hand signals to communicate. Saul and his squad would keep our exit clear as we infiltrated the house. Odd’s squad stayed with me, the monkeys, and Flea. We headed to the second-floor ballroom.

  I took them up the back stairs. Cracking the door open, I listened. No sounds echoed off the marble-tiled floors. We eased into the hallway. No one had lit the sconces. Darkness lined the gaps under the doors. The area appeared deserted. And smelled of dust.

  We reached the ballroom without trouble. The large double glass doors had been closed, but not locked. In the ballroom, moonlight streamed through the long windows like white gauzy curtains. Motionless bodies littered the ground.

  Odd’s squad moved in first in case of an ambush. He opened the doors, pushing them wide before they rushed in. They checked the other doors before signaling the all clear.

  Women dressed in gowns and men wearing evening clothes lay in a haphazard pattern on the floor. Large crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, but otherwise the place was empty.

  The monkeys and Flea fanned out to check the victims and search for Estrid. The High Priestess had worn a red silk gown with gold brocade when she had pledged loyalty to Tohon before Sepp had trapped her and her staff in magical stases. Flea would save her first.

  Odd raised his hand, waving me over. He stood next to a woman in red.

  Estrid? I moved closer.

  The prone bodies surged to their feet.

  KERRICK

  Even camouflaged by Kerrick’s forest magic, Harper still remained a big noisy horse. While they traveled twice as fast as Kerrick could on foot, they attracted too much attention. A few patrols already tracked him and soon he’d be too close to Zabin to ride.

  He stayed on horseback as long as he dared, releasing Harper late on the second day. Unfortunately, he still had to cover five miles and would miss the rendezvous time by hours. Kerrick hoped they planned to attack during the night or tomorrow morning as he headed south. As long as he caught up to Avry at some point, he’d be happy.

  Dodging enemy patrols slowed his pace. And their numbers grew as he neared the city. He stopped for a rest and considered. Ryne had said Cellina pulled most of her forces to Vyg in order to lure him to Zabin and attack his flank. Did his scouts underestimate how many soldiers had remained?

  With his new and improved senses, he felt whole companies moving through the forest. Way too many for Ryne’s small forces to handle. Somehow Cellina had managed to trick the scout. Or the scout was one of Cellina’s spies. He remained too far away to sense if any of Cellina’s troops waited south of Zabin.

  Ryne’s comments repeated in his mind. You’re my best scout...I really need accurate information. If Kerrick hadn’t been sick, he would have sensed the extra soldiers and averted the major fiasco that was poised to happen.

  Despite the danger, Kerrick increased his pace to a run. He had to warn the team in charge of creating the distraction. If he stopped them, then Avry and her team wouldn’t go into the manor house, where Kerrick was sure another ambush waited for them.

  He arrived too late. The sounds of fighting reached him before he neared the camp outside Zabin. And through his connection to the living green, he discovered another trap was poised to spring a few yards inside the forest. A wall of soldiers lined up, creating a blockade, which would prevent Captain Drisana’s team from retreating to the north or east.

  Kerrick concentrated on the string of soldiers and determined it hooked behind the manor house.

  Not good. Avry’s exit was obstructed, as well. He dug his hands into the soil, strengthening his bond, seeking irritations to the south. Sure enough, another one of Cellina’s platoons lurked. Damn. The scout had to be a double agent. How could someone miss the mass of humanity occupying the woods around Zabin?

  He pushed his awareness farther out. A group of ten intruders waited to the east. This group was well past the blockade and probably one of Ryne’s.

  Kerrick considered. He needed to create an exit for the others. But how? Yanking his hands from the dirt, he jogged east.

  It didn’t take him long to find the squad. He crept closer. The moonlight shone bright enough to observe them. They wore the green fatigues that marked them as part of Estrid’s holy army. Nice to see not all of them had taken off once Estrid had been captured. Good news, except he didn’t recognize any of them. Quiet and watchful with weapons in hand, they appeared to be on alert.

  Pulling magic, Kerrick transformed to normal. Not wishing to scare them, he backed up a few yards before crunching through the fallen leaves. He spread his hands wide so they didn’t skewer him on sight.

  With plenty of warning, the squad hid and then surrounded him as soon as he walked into their “trap.” One man hung back. Kerrick spotted the sergeant strips on the man’s sleeves.

  “I’m on your side,” Kerrick said. “Prince Ryne sent me.” Not exactly true, but close enough. He explained about the blockade. “We need to clear a path for our soldiers.”

  The eight men and two women looked to their sergeant when Kerrick finished.

  “You certainly know an awful lot about the mission,” the sergeant said. “Who are you?”

  “Prince Kerrick.”

  “Really? We heard he died fighting the northern tribes.”

  “You heard wrong. Look, Sergeant...”

  “Vic.”

  “We don’t have time for this.”

  “I’m not risking my squad. If that blockade is there like you said, a dozen of us aren’t going to make a dent.”

  “We only need to clear one section,” Kerrick said.

  “And how do you propose we do that?” Vic asked. “As soon as we strike, the whole line will turn on us.”

  “I’ve a plan.”

  The sergeant laughed. “Good for you. Let us know how it works out.”

  Expecting resistance from the man, Kerrick encouraged the vines growing on a nearby tree to snake toward Vic’s head. “There’s a section of the wall that’s not as closely connected to the others due to a dried-out creek that makes a deep dip in the terrain. My plan is to take out that section and replace Cellina’s soldiers with yours.”

  “You’re mad. One shout and we’re done.”

  “Then I’ll make sure they won’t make a sound.”

  “You?”

  “I’m a forest mage.”

  “Okay, I’ll play along, Prince Kerrick. Just how—”

  The vines looped around Vic’s mouth and head, making an effective gag. When the man tried to use his weapon, the vines circled his upper body, trapping his a
rms. Half his squad rushed to help, but they were soon entangled, as well.

  Before, Kerrick would have expanded all his energy to make those vines move. One perk of being a forest mage. However, now using his magic to look normal drained him.

  A sword point pricked Kerrick’s neck.

  “Stop it now,” a woman ordered.

  Kerrick inclined his head. “I’m simply demonstrating my plan.” The vines retreated, freeing the soldiers.

  “Heck of a demonstration.” Vic rubbed his cheeks.

  “Will you come?” Kerrick asked.

  “Yeah, what do you need us to do?”

  “I’ll trap the soldiers with the vines, but this time I’ll also cut off their air supply, knocking them out. You drag them away and then take their place.”

  “Should we put on their uniforms?”

  “No need. It’s dark and they’re similar enough. Plus we don’t have the time. Ready?”

  They sheathed their weapons and collected their packs. Kerrick led them back to the blockade.

  Once they reached the dried creek bed, Kerrick whispered, “I’m going to disappear. You’ll be able to see from here when the vines have done their job. I’ll go warn Captain Drisana and send her your way.”

  Sergeant Vic nodded. Kerrick moved away and dropped his normal look. He edged closer to his targets—eight in all. Thick bushes and thorny briars grew along the creek’s raised banks, creating a barrier between those in the dip and the others.

  Kerrick knelt on the ground and visualized what he needed the vines to do. Concentrating, he directed the vines to drop down and quickly ensnare the soldiers all at once. While this action didn’t require magical energy, his connection to the forest deepened and the task became a physical effort. Sweat soaked his shirt.

  A few muffled grunts sounded as the vines captured the enemy, but none loud enough to raise an alarm. When the squad appeared to do their job, Kerrick staggered to his feet. He headed toward the fighting. Keeping to the edge of the forest, he crossed behind the POW camp and stopped.