“Brican, am I getting anywhere close?” he asked. The denarae officer was supposed to be attuned to his thoughts and helping him locate Danner. No one knew where their friend had gone, but a young Orange paladin said he’d seen an exhausted-looking Danner looking for someplace to sleep, and he’d headed in this direction. Brican zeroed in on what he thought was Danner’s mind, but it was hard to tell for sure at a distance when he was asleep. And even if it was Danner, his being asleep made it impossible for Brican to pass along word of their arrival so he could come meet them.
Which would have eliminated the need for Flasch to walk through half the corridors in the Prism looking for his slumbering friend. Of course, Brican was busy taking statements from his platoon and distilling them into a report, so he couldn’t just go find Danner himself. So he said.
“Quit whining,” Brican kythed. “You’re getting close, though. Feels like you’re within a couple dozen yards, slightly to your right. Look for a hallway that direction and start opening doors.”
“What if some woman is staying here and I walk in on her changing?”
“I won’t tell Deeta,” Brican replied with a slight mental chuckle. “Or you could just knock first.”
“Thanks.”
Flasch was relieved to hear the customary humor in Brican’s voice. When the denarae showed up at the Prism, he’d been abnormally subdued and thoughtful. Flasch wondered what had happened during his investigations that could have such a sobering effect on the normally brash and playful denarae.
Ahead of him, the hallway opened to the left and right in a T-intersection, and Flasch immediately turned to the right, following Brican’s guide. He knocked and got no response on the first two doors, then heard a low voice somewhere behind the third door.
“Danner?” Flasch asked, opening the door.
A woman’s scream caused Flasch to jerk back in surprise, and he quickly averted his eyes from a woman clad only in a towel who was sprinting toward a privacy screen on the other side of the room. Flasch immediately shut the door and grimaced in embarrassment.
“Problem?”
“Just shut up, Brican,” Flasch thought irritably. “Don’t say a word. Don’t think a word. Just shut up and leave it alone.”
Brican was silent, but Flasch thought he felt amusement trickle through the denarae’s mental link.
Flasch moved to the next door and knocked, then slowly opened it when he heard only light snores.
The room was lit primarily by the dim glow from a half-covered gnomish chemical light set on the wall, and it was starkly devoid of unnecessary decoration, as befitted a paladin’s chambers. Simple white, linen curtains obscured the only window, blocking most of the light from the early evening sky. A hand-woven rug – probably made by northern denarae village-folk, judging by the pattern – was laid just beyond the doorway, and another was laid between the bed and a small bathing room. The bed was made up with sheets of Tallan cotton; cheap but comfortable and long-lasting
Lying sprawled across the bed was Danner, his feet sticking awkwardly out into the air (boots still on) and his sword buckled on at his hip. Flasch seriously considered playing some sort of prank on his friend, but the very real possibility that Brican might then decide to tell everyone about Flasch’s… mistake… caused him to skip an otherwise golden opportunity.
“Danner,” he said softly, shaking his friend’s shoulder. Danner moaned and shifted in his sleep. Flasch tried again, louder this time. “Danner.”
Danner murmured something in his sleep, too low for Flasch to make out. Flasch shook him again, and suddenly Danner’s entire body spasmed and he rolled over. Flasch jerked back and reflexively put a hand on his sword, but Danner lay still for a moment, wide eyes staring hollowly at the ceiling. Then with a rasping gasp, Danner’s back arched upward as though he was being lifted at the waist by some invisible force. His arms were pinned rigidly at his side, leaving him precariously balanced on his heels and shoulders. His face was a mask of fear, and he yelled out hoarsely.
“Thanatos eilient! Thanatos ventriis eilist! Thanatos sasilius mortitus.”
He continued to stare at the ceiling blankly, and Flasch was shaken by the intense look of horror on his friend’s face. Danner’s body twisted in its rigid contortion, then abruptly he collapsed back to the bed and lay limp. His eyes were shut, and while his face still looked troubled, he no longer looked… possessed was the only word Flasch could think of that fit.
“Holy crap,” Flasch muttered. He hesitantly reached out again and shook Danner’s shoulder.
“Danner,” he said softly.
Danner’s eyes immediately snapped open, then drooped again in weariness as he stared at Flasch.
“Damn it,” he groaned, rolling to look away. “I was just trying to get some sleep. Can’t you come back in an hour when I’ve had a chance to rest?”
Flasch shook his head, even though Danner couldn’t see him. He was still a little stunned from Danner’s sudden episode, but for the moment he decided it would be best if he pretended nothing had happened.
“Danner, you came to the Prism almost two hours ago,” he said in what he hoped was a normal tone. “You’ve been asleep most of that time, probably.”
The Blue paladin turned back and stared at Flasch. “That can’t be right,” Danner said grumpily. “I feel like I just laid down and closed my eyes, then suddenly there you were pawing at me.”
“Nevertheless,” Flasch said, shrugging in apology. “Sorry, buddy. I hate to do this, but you need to get up and come meet for a quick debriefing. It’s getting toward nighttime anyway, so maybe you can crash again once we get back Home. I’m sure Garnet won’t mind.”
“It’s not Garnet I’m worried about, it’s Alicia,” Danner grumbled as he rolled himself out of bed. He fumbled with his sword, which had gotten twisted about, then finally stood up straight.
“Alicia?” Flasch asked.
“I don’t think she’s feeling well, and the last thing she needs is me suffering from some bizarre insomnia around her,” Danner said. He sighed. “I’m getting sleep, though. I don’t toss and turn, at least not that Alicia’s complained of, and I don’t wake up in the middle of the night. Still, no matter how much I get, it feels like I haven’t slept in days.”
Flasch looked at his friend sympathetically, but shook his head.
“I wish there was something I could do to help,” he said, “really, I do. But right now, we need to high-tail our asses to meet the others, okay?”
And I need to ask Marc what in the Hell you just said, Flasch added mentally.
“Fine,” Danner grumbled.
They closed the door behind them and started down the hallway. Flasch pointedly ignored the door next to Danner’s. Just before they reached the intersection where Flasch had turned, though, Danner stopped and his breath hissed in surprise. He pointed down the hallway, and Flasch felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he saw a pair of legs protruding from a doorway with a pool of blood coating the floor.
“Damn, another one, here in the heart of the Prism,” Flasch cursed. He sent a mental message ahead to Brican warning him of the situation.
They hurried down the hall, even though there was clearly nothing to be done for their slain brother. From the consistency and sheer volume of blood pooled on the floor, he had been dead for some time. Flasch avoided the crimson coating on the floor and grasped the door jamb so he could twist around to peer into the room. He looked down at the face of the slain paladin and recoiled in horror.
“What?” Danner asked. “Who is it?”
Flasch straightened and turned to look at Danner.
“It’s Maki,” he said hoarsely. “God have mercy, it’s Maki.”
- 2 -
After the deaths of two paladins within the hallowed walls of the Prismatic Order – the body of Alister de’Kelenath was found shortly after Maki’s – the Council issued a command directing all paladins to move about in pairs at all times. Who
- or whatever was behind the rash of deaths, it was obvious that paladins were being singled out as targets and cut down without anyone witnessing the attack. Until the culprit or culprits were found, all of the holy warriors were to remain on their highest alert and watch each other’s backs.
For the paladin members of Shadow Company, this posed little problem. They lived with each other, and rarely were any of them alone without at least one of the others within hailing distance. The only time they were truly separated from each other was at night in their respective rooms.
Garnet slowly ran his hands through his hair, wishing he could start pulling it out by the roots. Fate, God, Satan, or pure unfortunate chance had placed him in an a singularly unenviable position, and he had put off the inevitable confrontation for as long as he dared.
He had spoken separately with each of the Shadow Company officers, asking them their thoughts about the recent events and anything they might have noticed that could give them any insight into Garnet’s growing dilemma. One by one, they told him all they could, and one by one they left with a sinking feeling weighing at their hearts and souls.
One by one… all except Danner: the one person around whom all of Garnet’s personal anguish now centered.
Garnet sat slumped at a table in the common room of the Iron Axe. Forlorn, but resolved in his decision, he knocked once on the table to attract Brican’s attention. The denarae looked up from across the room and locked eyes with Garnet.
“Brican, send word for Danner to meet me in the war room immediately,” Garnet thought, trying to keep his mental voice steady and resolute. After a moment, Brican replied that Danner was on his way.
“Good. Brican… I know I don’t have to say this, but stay out of it,” Garnet thought firmly. “More important, though, I want you to make sure everyone else stays out, too. No mistakes. This is going to be hard enough as it is. Not just for Danner and me, but potentially the whole company, and I don’t want to have to worry about who might be eavesdropping or accidentally stumble into the conversation. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Garnet,” Brican replied. His mental voice wasn’t resentful or bitter, but compassionate and understanding.
Garnet stood slowly and went to the war room. He activated the complex series of locking mechanisms to open the door, then went inside, leaving the door slightly ajar. He had a few minutes to compose himself before Danner showed up.
“Close the door behind you,” Garnet said when Danner stuck his head into the room.
“My turn for the one-on-one?” Danner asked. His tone was light, but his voice lacked the energy and personal strength Garnet normally associated with Danner.
Garnet took a good, long look at his friend as he locked the door and took his seat. Danner was still obviously lacking in sleep. His emerald-green eyes had deep circles of weariness under them that Garnet hadn’t noticed; even earlier that day they hadn’t been so prominent. Danner’s entire body radiated exhaustion, and for a moment Garnet’s resolve wavered at seeing his friend in such a pathetic state. Then he remembered one of Marc’s theories, and he put aside his doubts and pity.
“Danner, I’ve spoken with the others to get their insight into a terrible problem, and I would give absolutely anything if we’d come to a different conclusion,” Garnet said heavily. Sensing the gravity of Garnet’s words, Danner’s manner lost all trace of good-natured ease, and his face turned somber. With the weariness etched into his features, it made for a hideous caricature of Danner’s normal light-hearted expression. “Please just bear with me silently for a moment, my friend. This won’t be pleasant.”
Danner nodded, his face expressionless.
“The deaths of the Nocka paladins and city soldiers started about two and a half days ago, almost exactly the time we returned from our demon hunt,” Garnet said. “The Green paladins were able to approximate the times of death, and they confirmed this a few hours ago. All of them show evidence of being slain by the same attacker.
“Before this, however, three of our brother paladins were slain during the demon hunt,” Garnet continued grimly. “Their bodies and the manner of their death are identical to the deaths in the city. Again, it seems they were all killed by the same person or creature. Maki’s body was the same, as was Alister’s.”
Danner nodded. “I’d sort of gathered that, even if I hadn’t heard all the evidence. Someone is stalking paladins. No,” Danner corrected himself with a frown, “it’s not just paladins. They’re stalking warriors, and good men at that.”
Garnet nodded, filing Danner’s comment away. Interesting that he should make that distinction. Interesting, and potentially condemning as well.
“That’s the pattern that finally emerged,” Garnet said. “Every one of the dead men was not only a paladin or a soldier, but a good and decent man. Paladins have been hit the hardest for obvious reasons. What’s most disturbing about them, though, is the manner of their deaths. You remember after the demon attack, when you examined the bodies and told us the killing blows weren’t dealt by demons?”
Danner nodded.
“Those were the wounds that match the injuries on the other victims,” Garnet said. “Everyone who has examined them agrees, those injuries were not caused by a mortal hand. Most men wouldn’t have the strength to deal some of those blows, and the sheer perfection of the cuts indicates immortal power.”
“But I told you they weren’t caused by demons,” Danner said, perplexed. “They looked like sword cuts, not claw marks, which was obvious. More than that, I didn’t feel any residual demonic taint, and I would have, believe me.”
“Oh, I believe you,” Garnet said. Part of his brain was gauging Danner’s reaction, which made him frown. Something didn’t add up. Garnet began again to doubt their conclusions.
“We all agree those wounds weren’t caused by a demon, but they were,” Garnet said emphatically, “caused by immortal power and strength.”
“You aren’t suggesting an angel did this?” Danner said. Then suddenly something clicked in his mind. Garnet could see the instant of realization, and he cringed inwardly at the hurt expression on Danner’s face.
“No, you’re not saying that at all, are you?” Danner whispered. “You think I had something to do with these deaths. That’s it, isn’t it?”
“Listen to me for a moment, Danner,” Garnet said placatingly, but his friend practically leapt out of his chair and stood defiantly before him.
“How could you possibly think something like that?” Danner shouted. “You’re my friend!”
Garnet carefully stood and looked down slightly at Danner’s shorter stature.
“Yes, I am your friend, Danner, which is why…”
“And everyone else thinks the same thing, don’t they?” Danner asked. “That’s why you’ve all been so bloody anxious around me lately. Some friends you are, sneaking around behind my back and…”
With a surge of motion, Garnet gripped the material of Danner’s tunic and hauled Danner into the air, then slammed him against the wall.
“Listen to me, you self-righteous little prick,” Garnet thundered, and he saw Danner cringe slightly. Garnet had only rarely raised his voice to his friends since they’d been under his command, and he had never to his knowledge used physical force against anyone to intimidate them. His friends all knew this, and he was counting on that knowledge now to keep Danner off-balance long enough to get his point across.
“We’re all your friends, and we’ve been wracking our brains trying to figure out what’s going on before someone else puts things together and jumps to the wrong conclusion,” Garnet said forcefully. “God knows I’d give anything to have the evidence point somewhere else, but right now everything we know indicates you’re involved somehow. I’ve been putting this off because I just couldn’t believe it, but it’s finally come to a point where I couldn’t delay any longer.
“Now if you’ll shut up and listen, maybe you can offer some sort of explanation other than w
hat we’ve come up with,” Garnet said, letting some of the power drain out of his voice. He relaxed his grip on Danner’s tunic and let him slide gently to the ground. “I hope to God you can.”
Danner’s fists clenched angrily, and for a moment Garnet thought Danner might actually attack him. If he was enraged enough to use his immortality, Garnet knew he’d stand little chance. When Danner’s wings were asolved, he was all but impervious to physical blows, and he had strength enough to toss Garnet around like one of his sister’s toy dolls. Even if Garnet summoned help through Brican, there was nothing they could do except perhaps help to talk Danner down from his rage.
Fortunately for all of them, Danner mastered his anger and relaxed visibly.
“Alright,” he said, and Garnet could still hear the tenseness in his voice, “I’ll listen.”
They returned to their seats, and quickly Garnet laid it all out for him.
“I asked Brican to do a deep kythe on you after your incident during the demon hunting expedition, or rather after we considered the deaths of those paladins,” Garnet said, and he saw Danner’s face tighten. “I’m not happy or proud of it, but at the time it was the best option. More than anything, I wanted to verify what you’d told me to remove any of my doubts. No matter the results, I swore I’d tell you what I had him do so things would be honest between us.”
Danner nodded. He was obviously not pleased at the decision, but it seemed as if he at least understood Garnet’s reasoning.
“Most of your memories then were blocked because of that mental shield of yours, but Brican did see a few images that seemed to center around two of the paladins that died,” Garnet explained. “We both know you tend to go a little haywire when it comes to demons, especially when your angelic heritage is involved. I didn’t think it likely, but we couldn’t rule out the possibility that you’d slain them during a frenzy and just didn’t remember doing it. It was a little strange that you focused in on those men alone during the battle, and that’s ultimately what started this unfortunate theory.”
Satan's Gambit (The Barrier War Book 3) Page 10
