“Volera!” Rosh grunted, summoning the woman to his side in an instant. “Boost me up.”
Volera spread her legs and knitted her fingers together before she held her arms out in front of her. Rosh stepped into her cupped hands and sprung off the ground and away from her hands. He suspected, rightly, that even her special nature would be hard pressed to hold someone as large as he was.
Rosh pulled himself up to stand atop the side of the wagon, giving him a complete view of the small battlefield. A few pistols fired, one missing him and the other lodging a bullet in the left side of his chest. He scowled and looked down at his companion. “Give me one of them barrels!”
Volera hurried around to the front of the wagon and picked up one of the casks. She held it up, putting enough force behind it so Rosh could catch it. He saw some of the Federation soldiers to the rear of their van reloading as fast as they could while the ones in front of them fought to get through the barricade the defenders of Port Freedom had set up. Rosh smashed his fist into the side of the barrel, spilled powder from the hole, then he hurled it up into the air in front of him.
“Fire!” Rosh called.
Volera responded with multiple streaks of fire erupting from her hands. They burned through the air with the speed of arrows, igniting the falling powder and creating a fuse in mid-air that raced to the powder keg and ignited it.
When the echoes of the explosion faded and the ringing of everyone’s ears had passed, they turned to stare at the giant standing atop the wagon. He reached up to his chest where his shirt was dark with blood and jammed his finger and thumb in. A moment later Rosh pulled out the bullet that had struck him and tossed it to the ground.
“You’re not fighting the right people!” Rosh shouted, certain he had everyone’s attention. He turned enough to point at the castle proper behind him. “You’ve been played the fool, all of you. There’s a bunch of demons tearing through the castle and making sure Port Freedom’s not owned by man nor elf, let alone free!”
“Demons?” one elf called out.
“Who’re you?” another shouted.
“I’m Rosh,” he said. “Dexter and Jenna Silvercloud are on their way to the castle to try and stop Rolxoth from loosing his demons on you. I expect he could use a little help.”
“You’re a human, how do we know we can trust you?” the elven question met with shouts of protest from the Federation soldiers.
Rosh swore then knelt down on the side of the wagon. The wood groaned under his weight, but held firm. “Volera, gimme your hand. They need to see an elf,” he hissed at her. Volera reached up and clutched firmly when Rosh yanked her up to stand beside him. She turned to face them and pulled back her hair, revealing pointed ears. When Rosh turned to look at her he saw her cheekbones had shifted. Her eyebrows were finer and even the shape of her eyes were different, more elfin.
“Volera and I work together, as do Dexter and Jenna. Now quit your pissing and moaning and fight for the right reasons!” Rosh hopped down then held out his arms. Volera stared at him, an amused smile lighting her face up. She stepped off and fell into his arms, then ventured so far as to plant her lips on his cheek.
Rosh felt his cheeks warm, distracting him momentarily from setting her down. Remembering himself, he stomped over to his sword and wrenched it free of the ground, then he turned. “You want to kill each other? That’s fine. I’m going to gut me some demons!”
* * * *
“How do we get in?” Jenna asked, staring at the large portcullis that had fallen.
“Wall’s too smooth to climb,” Dexter noted, studying the twelve foot stone barricade carefully. “Not that high though, might be I could boost Bailynn up there and she toss down a rope or raise the portcullis.”
“We’re fresh out of rope,” Jenna pointed out.
“Bailynn and I can do it,” Haley stepped forward. “I see no guards, let’s be quick before they show up.”
Haley and Bailynn ran across the open ground in front of the castle, drawing a curse from Dexter. He led the rest of them, trying to catch up to the two women. They all reached the wall without incident. Dexter leaned against the wall, noting it sloped inward at a very slight angle, and held his hands at his sides.
Bailynn grabbed onto his shoulders and began to climb him, sticking a foot in one hand then putting her knee on his shoulder. He grimaced, struggling to keep from shifting or falling as she scaled him like a tree. In moments she stood on his shoulders and reached up, but failed to get a purchase.
“I have to jump,” Bailynn hissed down at him.
“Go ahead,” Dexter grunted.
He felt the pressure on his shoulders shift as Bailynn knelt down. The weight shifted to the balls of her feet. Before he had a chance to steel himself properly she pushed off of him and sent him staggering away from the wall. When he looked up she was hanging from the crenellated wall, scrambling to try and get a foothold.
“Now what?” Jenna muttered.
Dexter rushed forward to lean against the wall. He thrust his hands up until they found her feet. She relaxed slightly, allowing him to straighten his arms enough to give her several more inches of clearance. Bailynn jammed her fingers into the stone wall and pulled herself up until she slipped between the raised crenellations.
After several tense moments she stuck her head back over and looked down at them. “This is bad!” her whisper carried down to them. “Everybody’s dead! It looks like that guard room.”
“Any sign of the demons?” Logan asked her, his eyes wide.
“None…wait, yes! Oh gods…they’re eating some of the people!”
“Get out of there,” Logan growled.
“Calm down,” Haley said to the healer. “Kneel down and boost me up. Bailynn, grab my hand and help.”
Bailynn nodded and wedged herself between the stone blocks. Logan knelt down as requested, but the set of his jaw showed his disapproval. Haley ran at him and stepped into his hand. Logan struggled to rise and lift her even as he heaved with his hands. Haley sprang from his grip and grabbed Bailynn’s hand easily, her feet running against the side of the wall. She flung herself around and landed with the breath being knocked from her in the gap between stones one block away from Bailynn.
She gulped in air for a moment then grinned. “They’re on the far side, we’ll be fine.”
“They’re fast,” Dexter warned. “Be safe!”
“Xander, why couldn’t you make one of those discs to take us up and over this wall?” Jenna asked.
Xander turned to look at her. He stared for a long moment, then nodded his head slowly. “I think I could,” he said. “I’d have to take into consideration the single fixed gravity field, but it’s certainly possible.”
Dexter scowled at him. “I’m paying you to think of these things quicker!”
“I’m getting paid for this?” Xander asked.
Dexter raised his finger to point it at the wizard but Tasha stopped him. “Captain, they’ve made for the gate. Let’s hurry!”
Dexter shook his finger threateningly at the wizard then turned and led the way to the barred gate. Bailynn and Haley were staring at the wheel that a chain was attached to. “Use the levers!” Dexter said, pointing at the two long levers, one on either side of the wheel.
Bailynn grabbed one and pulled on it, heaving to turn the wheel several notches. The portcullis shifted after a moment, slowly lifting a few inches. Haley grabbed the other lever and yanked on it, only to find it moved easily. Bailynn returned her lever to its original position and began to pull it back towards her again. Haley waited until Bailynn had completed the journey and then pushed her lever back to its original position.
Dexter had knelt down stared at the six inch opening, eager to crawl through as soon as he could. With Haley’s latest movement the heavy iron barrier crashed down into the stone, missing him by inches and sending broken chips of rock into his face. Dexter stumbled away, cursing and rubbing at his face.
“That’s
the lock!” Xander sputtered, pointing at the handle in Haley’s hands. “It sets it so the portcullis won’t fall. Pull it and leave it in place!”
“And hurry,” Tasha said. “You’re going to have company.”
Haley pulled her lever back in place before turning to see the three demons rising up from their grisly meal. Bailynn hauled on her lever, raising the portcullis inch by inch. She’d finished cranking the handle four times when something black streaked beneath the gate, causing Dexter to curse anew. He spun about, seeking understanding, and saw a pile of clothing behind him.
“What the—”
“Logan!” Bailynn screamed. She cranked the heavy lever once more then turned and ran after the wolf her lover had turned into.
“Haley! Open! This! Gate!” Dexter demanded.
Haley grabbed the lever and started pumping it as fast as the heavy machine would allow. Dexter rolled under it, Jenna close behind him. Tasha tried to follow them but had to cry out when her armor left her lodged beneath it. Haley cranked it up another few inches then turned and ran after the others.
Logan was bleeding from several cuts along his sides and face. The fur around his mouth was burnt and smoking, but the arm of one of the demons hung limp at its side. Bailynn circled with a grace that made Dexter pause. She faced one of the gray demons and neither of them seemed ready to press the attack.
“They’re fast!” Dexter warned.
Haley ran past him, a sword in one hand and a hand axe in the other. She swung at the second demon facing Logan, forcing it to break away from the wolf and turn to deal with her. It snarled, the hissing noise it made more of an insane laugh than a threat.
Haley swung her weapons, aiming to disable or kill with each. The demon slapped the axe away and slipped to the side of her sword, then ripped bloody furrows on her hip, tearing easily through the leather skirt she wore. Rather than showing dismay or defeat, Haley spun away from the talons and backhanded the demon in the face with the flat of her axe.
It fell back, hissing and shaking its head. She advanced while she had the advantage. She’d seen how quick it was and knew what to do. When it came for her next she threw herself into it, earning a painful scrape across her ribs from its teeth but keeping its claws from finding purchase. The gray fiend fell back, off balance, and gave her the chance to thrust her sword into its bowels.
It let loose a screeching howl that faded from a sound into a hiss that turned into gray smoke that poured out of its mouth and chest. In seconds it was gone, retreating to its own realm. She turned and saw Dexter sweep the head from the demon facing Logan and Tasha kneeling on top of the demon that Bailynn had opposed, the Golden Lady’s sword pinning it to the ground until it faded into a noxious cloud.
“Can you go on?” Dexter asked, looking at the blood running down Haley’s thigh to her boots.
Haley put her weight on her leg and nodded. “It hurts, but I’ll be all right.”
“I can help,” Logan growled. The hair receded from his naked body as he straightened slowly.
“Got control over that, did you?” Dexter asked.
Logan turned his head to look at him, then let his eyes take in Bailynn. Her own scratches from the fight had barely broken the skin. She grinned at him and he let his shoulders droop a little. “With Bailynn’s help,” he answered.
“Don’t have time to get your pants, see if you can’t find some along the way.”
Logan glanced down and blushed. “Aye, Captain.”
“Only if we have time,” Bailynn said, winking at her lover. Logan turned a deeper shade of red.
A moment later and Haley was walking without a limp. A bellow from behind them stopped them before they could move any further ahead. Resigned to what misery awaited them, Dexter turned to see Rosh lifting the heavy iron portcullis with his bare hands. Volera slipped under it, barely needing to duck, and cranked the lever until the slack in the chain was taken up. Rosh stooped to grab something then hurried through to join them. Moments later Dexter saw the combined forces of Port Freedom and the Federation approaching the gate.
“Can’t say you got the best timing, healer,” Rosh said, tossing Logan his pants that he’d picked up. “But I think a little more highly of you all the same.”
Bailynn giggled at Logan’s side while he struggled to pull the pants on. “You brought reinforcements,” Dexter noted.
“Too late, looks like.”
“There’s plenty more inside, I’m sure,” Dexter said. He turned to face the small army of men and women. He pointed at some of the grisly remains of fallen defenders. “You’ve seen what they can do. They’re fast, vicious, and without remorse. One on one you don’t stand a chance. We don’t know how many there are or where. Split into groups and hunt them down or they’ll find you while you’re asleep and eat your guts while you’re still alive.”
The partially eaten bodies behind him gave credence to his threat. “Go! Don’t let them get dug in!”
Dexter turned to Volera. “So you’re some kind of demon?”
“I used to be.”
Dexter nodded. “Then maybe you can tell me where Rolxoth’s keeping my daughter?”
“It’ll be with him,” she said without a second thought. “And he’ll be somewhere safe and stable. Like the cavern he used to summon his minions.”
“Down then. I’m guessing the castle has a dungeon. That’s where we’ll go.”
“A dungeon? Where? These are manor houses of the wealthiest of Port Freedom here!” Jenna said, turning around and staring at the luxurious estates contained within the castle proper.
“Xander? Bekka? Anybody?” Dexter asked. “These demons been here for a while now, any second might be the one we spent too much time working our jaws!”
Bekka had the good grace to look miserable. She shook her head and let her eyes fall to the ground. “I’m sorry, Dex,” she whispered. “I learned so much, but it doesn’t help for what you’re after.”
“You’re a necromancer,” Volera snapped at her.
Bekka’s head jerked up in surprise. “What?”
“I can feel your sorcery. You’re magic focuses on the dead, you’re a necromancer. Necromancers also have power over the energies of a living thing, including its soul. Reach out for the girl. Her soul, if it’s still on this realm, will still be linked to her body. Find that bond and follow it.”
“Jia’s body’s on the ‘Hawk,” Dexter added. “About three days toward the Federation in the void.”
“Um…okay,” Bekka said. She took a deep breath in spite of the tightly laced corset she wore and closed her eyes. After several tense moments she opened them again to reveal they were milky and white, as though her pupils and irises had disappeared. She walked, stepping over piles of gore and around other obstacles as though she was guided. She came to the entrance of an estate, the doors swinging in the entryway. “Here,” Bekka whispered. Even her voice had taken on a ghostly timbre.
Dexter rushed past her into the building. Jenna paused, hugging the half elven sorceress and startling her out of her trance. The color rushed back into her eyes and she blushed. “I think I did it!” Bekka squeaked out thanks to Jenna’s crushing grip.
“I think you did,” Jenna let her go and hurried after the others into the manor house.
They found demons roaming the house, seeking out whatever mayhem they could. The servants and family had long been butchered. Now destruction alone remained to delight them. A group of six of them were destroying a large dining room when the group tried to hurry past them. The demons shrieked out a warning and ran towards them.
“Go on,” Rosh told Dexter. “I got this.”
Before Dexter could voice disapproval Rosh bellowed out his own war cry and charged into the room brandishing his sword. The raised ceiling allowed him room to move the weapon but it did little to stop him from smashing an enormous crystal chandelier with his first swing. Two demons launched themselves at him, scratching and beating as he fought to free h
is sword.
Volera followed behind, more fiery bolts streaking from her hands to catch a demon ready to pounce and slam it back into the wall. Her sword lashed out, catching a seventh demon that had been hiding as it tried to sneak up on her.
Rosh yanked one of the biting demons free, losing some flesh as he did so, and threw it across the room. He pounded his sword-turned-mace into another demon, shattering the ornate decoration enough to let his sword slide free of it. A moment later the other demon clinging to his leg was sent back to hell in a puff of smoke.
“Dex, go!” Jenna urged him.
Dexter surged forward, hesitating at the next hallway that offered a cross passage.
“Right,” Bekka called out from behind him. Dexter turned to the right, rushing past a larder where a gray skinned demon was ripping apart a closet filled with foodstuffs.
The demon turned and launched itself them. Tasha threw herself in front of it, accepting the scraping claws and biting teeth against her mail clad arm. She fell under the powerful force of the attack but before the demon could find a soft spot to chew through her armor Haley’s magical blade cleaved into its back and dispersed it.
Logan helped the Golden Lady to her feet, exchanging thanks along the way. With the latest threat removed, they moved on after their Captain. Dexter and Jenna waited at an open doorway leading to a dark staircase ahead of them. A faint sulfurous smell rose out of the depths, promising and end to their trek.
Chapter 14
“This’d be a good time for Rosh’s pet to show up and offer some guidance,” Dexter said as he stared into the dark staircase.
“She’s not a pet,” Bekka defended.
Dexter glanced at her then shrugged. “I suppose not. Don’t mean I wouldn’t like knowing what’s coming a little better.”
“Only one way to find out,” Haley encouraged.
Dexter nodded and started down the stairs. Jenna moved behind him, a sword in each hand. The others followed as space allowed, descending the staircase until it opened into a cellar once used for storing vegetables and other perishables.
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