The Cult of Sutek

by Joshua P. Simon

  Rondel shrugged. “This one has proven loyal.”

  A different one spoke. “Wait. That’s the Emperor’s daughter.”

  Rondel looked over his shoulder, feigning ignorance. “I guess?”

  “Doubly lucky to grab her.”

  The first cocked his head to the side. “Why are you walking this way? Shouldn’t you be taking them back to their chamber?”

  “Too much chaos there. I thought the safest place would be by the altar.”

  The first to speak rubbed his chin. “It’s as good a strategy as any.” He jerked his head. “We’ll walk with you to make sure none of the others try anything crazy.”

  “And to keep the servant honest,” said another.

  He saw them eye the two girls. And to claim credit for helping to keep them from escaping. Still, having them along will help alleviate suspicions.

  He glanced at Jahi and gave him a sly wink. The boy relaxed slightly, the shimmering air in his hands fading. Rondel could tell the boy had been itching to help, but just as Andrasta had suggested before, he wanted to keep the boy’s talents a secret for as long as possible.

  A scream echoed somewhere in one of the side tunnels. “We should get going until others are able to re-establish order.”

  * * *

  Confusion spread quickly in the network of tunnels. Even though Andrasta moved farther away from the origin of the chaos, the whole place was in disorder. She wasn’t sure how Rondel had managed to get those young girls and servants to fight, but she was glad he did. What they lacked in skill, they made up for in viciousness. Their screams and those of their victims echoed throughout the rock maze.

  There was no better sign of how fast chaos spread than in the reactions of those she passed. The first half dozen people ignored her. The next three only shouted or cursed in her direction. However, someone running away from the sounds of fighting with a bloody sword in hand started to draw attention.

  The next two cultists gave a half-hearted attempt at slowing her down. She barreled through them. Later, four others blocked her path with weapons drawn. She took them down quickly.

  She had heard dozens of footsteps approaching after that confrontation, too many for her to handle on her own. She ducked into a side passage, hoping she could loop around the reinforcements.

  Andrasta regretted her choice as no torches lined the tunnel she had chosen, and light from the opening behind her soon disappeared. She thought to go back, but shouting told her that someone had discovered the bodies of the four cultists.

  Groping in the dark, she felt like a fool. The last thing she wanted to happen was for the tunnel to dead end and be cornered.

  Or fall through some unseen hole in the floor.

  She froze and hunched lower to the ground, feeling more carefully with her feet as she edged forward.

  Andrasta cursed as one of her master’s sayings came to her.

  “Better to die with a sword in your hand and an opponent in front of you, than hiding and slinking in the dark like vermin.”

  Anger rose. A bitter taste rested on her tongue. She spat, ready to turn around and face the cultists on her terms.

  A scream ripped through the blackness ahead of her. It distracted her enough to think calmly. She continued on and after rounding several short bends saw torchlight from another opening.

  “Quit moving!” came a voice.

  “Just let me gut the stupid whore. She bit off part of my ear,” said another.

  The sound of thrashing and muffled screeches came next.

  “You heard the orders from Menetnashte. We aren’t to kill any of the girls.”

  “Then maim her or something.”

  “We’re going to hear it already for the other one. We need to bring this one back in good shape.”

  Andrasta poked her head outside where two men stood over a girl laying on her side. One held her down, blood streaming down the side of his head. The other bound her wrists.

  “Keep struggling,” he said. “I’ll get back at you during the Heka. I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you’re mine.”

  The girl paused momentarily in her struggles as a flicker of fear shone in her eyes. The two men stood the girl up. She tried to run, but they held her tight. She made herself dead weight and dropped to the floor.

  The one without injury cursed, then picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. “Let’s get her out of here.”

  The two guards moved away from Andrasta’s intended path. She thought about making a run for it, but could not. Not after knowing what awaited the girl. She sprinted after the men. She didn’t worry about silence. Speed was more important.

  The man with the injured ear wheeled. Andrasta slashed diagonally across the man’s chest, scoring his torso from shoulder to hip. Her follow-up cut off the scream forming in his throat.

  The other cultist dropped the girl and tried to draw his sword. Andrasta stabbed him through the heart. He crumpled beside the other.

  Andrasta bent over and untied the girl’s wrist. She caught the girl’s hand before fingernails scraped across her eyes.

  “Stop!” Andrasta pulled her mask down. “I’m not one of them.” The girl relaxed, wearing a look of confusion. “Come. I will take you out of here.”

  “We’re supposed to be a distraction.”

  “You have been. It’s time to go while you have the chance.”

  A loud boom sounded, echoing in all directions. Andrasta steadied herself as the explosion shook the tunnel. Small rocks cascaded down the sides to settle in the kicked-up dirt and dust. The girl’s eyes went wide.

  Andrasta replaced the covering over her face.

  She grabbed the girl and ran.

  * * *

  Jahi and the others finally reached the main corridor leading to the altar chamber when a group of six men approached with weapons drawn.

  He hid his hands while readying several spells, not knowing what to expect. Heat permeated in one hand, while the other felt with invisible fingers for loose stones at his feet.

  One of the six spoke. “Where are you going?”

  “To the altar chamber,” said one of the three they met earlier.

  “Why?”

  The man looked to Rondel. “It seemed like a safe place with so much disorder near the virgins’ chamber.”

  “It doesn’t matter. We received orders that all women and servants are to be brought back to the chambers. Turn around. We’ll go with you.”

  “I really don’t think—” started Rondel.

  “Turn around and start walking.”

  “I’m sorry. We really can’t do that.”

  All nine cultists gave the former minstrel a look that put Jahi on edge. He carefully stepped in front of Dendera, Oni, and two other girls they had also picked up.

  “Why?” asked one of the cultists.

  Rondel shifted his gaze to Jahi. “Start on the right and don’t hold back.”

  He nodded.

  “Grab them!”

  Several men moved toward Rondel but none fast enough. His blade licked out at the first, slicing the man’s arm.

  Jahi didn’t wait to see what happened next, nor did he freeze. After the horrors he had faced recently, he doubted little would unnerve him again.

  Three stones in rapid succession pelted his targets. Two of the men died instantly, rocks plowing through their skulls. Bits of bone and brain flew off at impact. The third stone struck low and wide, but managed to rip through the cultist’s shoulder. He fell screaming.

  Jahi launched three small fire balls before the last man hit the ground. Black and gray clothing burned. Thrashing figures collided while begging for help. More went up in flames.

  Jahi raised more stones and sent them at the blazing men before they reached him or the girls. The force of their impact threw the cultists backward.

  Their lifeless bodies burned.

  A clash of steel preceded a loud gasp of breath. The former minstrel withdrew his blade from his
opponent’s gut. Another body lay motionless at his feet.

  Rondel surveyed the scene. “Good work.”

  “Oh, Jahi,” said a whisper from behind.

  Jahi turned and caught sight of the shock on his sister’s face. She held a hand over her mouth and nose. The smell of charred flesh entered his nostrils and he understood. “It does smell awful.”

  “It’s not that. I-I never wanted you to use your talent for this.”

  “It was necessary.”

  Her mouth twisted. “I know. I’m not angry. After all, I helped convince the girls to do the same. But . . . you’re so young.”

  “We all have to grow up some time,” said Rondel.

  A rumbling thunder erupted from somewhere deep inside the labyrinth of tunnels. The blow shook the walls. The girls screamed.

  Rondel swore. “We need to get moving. That was stronger than I thought it would be.”

  “What?” asked Jahi as he grabbed the girls and ran after Rondel.

  “You saw me give the servants some of the clay containers I found. Well, I also told them about the cache where the chemicals are stored. I told the servants to use the containers and then the stores as a last resort. I had hoped we would be out before then.”

  Realization dawned on Jahi. “Maskini was right all along. . . .”

  “Those were my father’s,” panted Oni, more out of breath than the others. “Menetnashte demanded that Father hand over his private stores.”

  “The emperor had that much of the stuff on hand?” asked Rondel.

  “It’s partly how he maintained power.”

  “Chuma will have to find a new way now.”

  “How much are we talking about?” asked Jahi.

  “Barrels,” said Rondel.

  Rondel slowed down before an intersection, raising a hand for silence. Jahi hugged the shadowed walls while hurried footsteps trampled stone beyond them. Rondel peeked out when the pounding faded. He gestured them onward.

  “We may need to move slower to ensure we don’t run into any cultists again,” said Rondel.

  Another round of thunder sounded.

  Jahi came up to Rondel. “I can’t believe you told the servants where to find the chemicals. I should have told you not to. They’re not trained to use any of that stuff.”

  “You don’t need to be a genius. Add heat and take cover if you can.”

  “They could bring the whole mountain down.”

  “It’s possible. I told them to use the smallest containers first and progress in size. Then if all else failed, threaten to blow the whole room. They’ll hold off as long as they can. The way I figured it, if we couldn’t get out of here by the time it comes to blowing the entire supply, it’s likely we never would.” He paused. “I’ve seen enough to know I don’t want any of the cult to get out.”

  Jahi started to protest, but closed his mouth with a gesture from Rondel for silence. He crept ahead to survey the next intersection.

  Dendera laid a hand on Jahi’s shoulder. “He’s right.”

  “I didn’t come all this way just to have you die in a cave-in.”

  “I’d rather we both die than have the horrors continue. Wouldn’t you?”

  Jahi said nothing. He knew his sister was right, but a part of him just wanted to be back in Girga with his family, regardless of the costs to the world.

  “All clear,” said Rondel. “The altar chamber should be just up ahead.”

  * * *

  Andrasta had to admit that the girls looked their parts as helpless women with white robes and well-cared skin, but everything she had seen from them proved that initial impression wrong. Two others had joined the first girl Andrasta saved. None were trained fighters, but that didn’t stop them from doing their share of it, surprising Andrasta several times with their efficiency.

  Their breathing was heavy from running, but none were exhausted. She looked back at the hard muscles of the arms and shoulders of one girl when they paused at a brief intersection.

  “What’s your name?”

  “Nailah.”

  “What did you do before you were captured?”

  “I helped my father on our farm.”

  Andrasta grunted. “Not easy work.”

  “Especially since I have no brothers.”

  “I thought Menetnashte kidnapped nobles.”

  “Just virgins. The only girls of noble birth were Oni and Dendera.”

  Andrasta glanced down at the girl’s bloody sword. She had taken off the lower arm of a cultist a minute before. “Their mistake.”

  They ran again.

  Another explosion sounded, sending dust into the air. She had no idea what was going on but based on the reactions of the cultists they had crossed, she knew it had been unexpected for them too.

  These servants and women are doing better than holding their own. They just needed a push. Leadership.

  That was something she could understand. Some people were better equipped to follow the commands of others than they were to lead.

  She wondered what Rondel’s part had been in the escape of the virgins.

  I always thought him a follower. But perhaps not.

  Chapter 19

  Rondel’s heart raced with fear and excitement. The opening to the altar chamber stood open just ahead, urging him forward despite his fatigue.

  He slowed before entering, sword raised. Remnants of the ceremony they had witnessed earlier lay on the gruesome altar at the center of the chamber. The smell of cooked human flesh still hung in the air.

  A clash of swords followed by a sudden gasp drew his attention to the far side. There, three young girls in blood-spattered white robes stood beside a large figure dressed in black and gray garb. Despite the disguise, he recognized Andrasta right away from the way she withdrew her sword from a slain man’s midsection with a yank and twist. Three other followers of Sutek lay dead at their feet.

  He was surprised to be so relieved to see her again. Thoughts of her fighting alone through the maze of underground tunnels had bothered him. Though they had only known each other for a short time, the strange woman had become the closest thing he had to a friend.

  Andrasta caught sight of him and the others. She gave a hint of a smile. Rondel couldn’t tell whether it was a greeting or a sign of approval. She hurried over with the other three girls in tow, each of which carried blood-slick swords.

  It would be like her to find the most vicious of the fighters.

  “The girls told me your plans.” Andrasta looked to Dendera. “And your idea with the rocks. I’m impressed by both.”

  Rondel’s chest swelled with pride. Compliments weren’t something Andrasta easily gave.

  “Is this all who made it out?” asked Oni.

  The princess stared at the three girls with Andrasta. She wore a look heavy with sorrow. Including the two girls Rondel had picked up along the way, only five of the young women had made it besides Oni and Dendera. A part of him understood Oni’s distress. However, another part of him was glad that any had made it through the chaos.

  No one answered Oni’s question.

  Rondel pointed toward one of several openings that fed into the altar chamber. “The girls said the exit outside is that way.”

  They only made it halfway across the chamber when pounding boots sounded from their destination. Two dozen guards bearing fresh wounds from recent fighting emerged with Menetnashte and his bodyguard, Nizam, following.

  Crap.

  “Is there another way?” hissed Andrasta.

  “None that we can get to from here.” His eyes flicked to the opening to another tunnel. “Well, except the way we came in.”

  “We all won’t make it through The Blood Forest this time.”

  Rondel stepped back, tapping his chest where he kept the remaining clay containers he had stolen in pouches. “We’re better prepared if it comes down to us taking that chance.”

  Andrasta didn’t ask what he meant by that.

  “I can tak
e out most of them,” offered Jahi.

  “Menetnashte is a sorcerer,” said Andrasta.

  Rondel tensed. “That changes things.” He slipped one of the clay containers into his free hand, doing his best to conceal the movement.

  His palm enveloped the container, the smallest of those he had grabbed.

  Hopefully, it’s enough.

  “Get a little fire ready,” Rondel whispered to Jahi.

  “The disguises do not fool me,” Menetnashte boomed. “Put your weapons down and your deaths will be quick.”

  Rondel cast aside the itchy face covering. “You mean you aren’t going to promise us freedom for returning the girls to you?” He slowly backed away, subtly directing everyone else to follow him as he maneuvered his way closer to the altar. We need something solid between us and them. He suppressed a shiver after catching a glance at the gruesome stone slab. Bugs swarmed atop it, feasting on the sticky blood and gore that remained unclean from the last sacrifices.

  “Why bother lying?”

  Rondel cocked an eyebrow, continuing to move into position. “We’ve killed many of your followers and ruined your precious ceremony. You expect us to trust that your promise of a quick death isn’t a lie?”

  Three large booms sounded, shaking the stone beneath their feet. Several in the chamber struggled for balance. Dust billowed from several of the side tunnels as a fourth concussive blast went off. It rocked the altar chamber with such force, that half a dozen stalactites broke from the ceiling and fell. Everyone dove to avoid the cone-shaped shards crashing to the floor, shattering into hundreds of pieces. Screams erupted from two of the cultists unable to avoid the spears of rock.

  Rondel stood, coughing. He blanched when he saw their path of escape had been blocked by fallen stone.

  We’re not leaving that way. Gods, going through The Blood Forest again.

  Angry and frustrated, Rondel couldn’t help but taunt the high priest. “Oh, I’m also the one who told your servants where you keep the chemicals.”

  Menetnashte seethed. “Kill them all.”

  I just can’t keep my mouth shut.

  “Jahi! The container,” shouted Rondel, tossing the vial toward the cultists.