Chief Boern rested his palm on the front door. It was made of dark wood, and though it was thicker than ordinary doors, it was nowhere as sturdy as the walls around it. “Now I need to show you how to open this. This is the only entrance into the kennel. Would one of you like to try?”
One of the Alter of Tower adventurers offered. He took the three steps in a single stride and yanked on the handle. It wouldn’t budge. Boern urged him on. The adventurer strained, pulling with all his strength, but the door remained shut.
“As you can see, it’s locked.” Chief Boern produced a key. “Sorry about that. Here.”
The adventurer stuck the key in the lock and twisted it—but it wouldn’t turn. He held it up. “Is this the right key?”
“It is.” The Nijāst leader took the key back. “Have any of you heard of Volokaus, the God of Locks?”
Mazik had, and said so, as did several others. Chief Boern muttered an incantation. A soft glow surrounded him, and then the key turned. He opened the door.
“I’m a disciple of Volokaus, and I enchanted this door to only open for set people who have the right key and say the right words.” Chief Boern held up the iron key. “Even if I give you this key and tell you what to say, the door wouldn’t open. That goes for opening it from the inside as well. There shouldn’t be any reason for you to access the building, but if for some reason you do, bear that in mind. Typically, there are only four people who can open this door: myself, the leader of our defensive forces, our head spellhound breeder, and our lead spellhound trainer.”
Mazik nodded. He had encountered Volokaus locks back at Telman, after several professors got tired of students sneaking into their offices. The good ones not only secured a door, but strengthened it too. He—
Wait a tick.
It didn’t take Mazik long to put two and two together. “If this is the only door into the kennel, and there are only four people who can open it, how did the Noble Hunt get inside? And how did they find your village in the first place?”
Chief Boern grimaced. It was the first honest emotion he had shown so far. “I’m afraid one of our own betrayed us.”
“Shit, hold that!” interrupted a voice from inside. The door swung open, and the voice’s owner slipped through the gap. “Thanks. Sorry, Effami was too busy to let me out.”
The newcomer was barely old enough to be called a man. Perhaps eighteen or nineteen years old, he had deeply tanned skin, brown hair that hung to his eyebrows, and a scrawny frame. He was wearing the same green vest as the Nijāst patrolling the kennel grounds, but with the cocksure smile of youth. On his back was a bow and quiver, and at his side was a long knife. His smile, his posture, the way he walked—Mazik couldn’t help it. Look at this punk kid.
“Caspian,” said Chief Boern. “Have you found anything yet?”
The young man shook his head. “Not yet. The bastard isn’t saying anything new. I find it hard to believe he wouldn’t have known, though.”
Mazik’s ears perked up. “Who wouldn’t have known? Your traitor?”
Chief Boern rubbed his forehead, and let out a long breath. “Not quite.” He turned to Caspian. “Would you mind staying with everyone until the captain arrives? I have business to attend to.”
The young Nijāst’s eyes narrowed. “Are these those mercenaries you were bringing in?”
“We prefer adventurers,” said Mazik.
“Yes, this is them,” said Chief Boern. “Will that be a problem?”
Caspian paused for a long second, then shrugged. “Whatever. Yeah, I’ll stay with them.”
“Thank you. Answer any questions they have, but only about the incident, or anything they need to know to do their jobs. Nothing unnecessary.”
Caspian waved him away. “I know, I know.”
Chief Boern turned to the adventurers and bowed. He looked exhausted. “Thank you again for agreeing to help us. For an old man who was never much good at magick, I feel much better having you here. If you have any questions, feel free to come see me.”
Mazik waited until Chief Boern had left, the big spellhound following him. He turned to the young man, Caspian. “So I assume he wasn’t the one who opened the door for your enemies. Who was it?”
Caspian looked like he wanted to spit. “The head breeder. Name’s Rhea Enc’Ordwinn. She was a total hardass. Always seemed pissed off about something, but real dedicated to her job. Then she goes and does this.”
“It doesn’t sound like you’re surprised.”
The young Nijāst shrugged. “Wouldn’t have thought anyone would do this. But if anyone would, I’m not surprised it was her.”
Mazik pointed at the kennel. “So I guess you changed the spells so she can’t get inside anymore?”
“Obviously.” Caspian looked insulted by the question. “The chief changed it so only him, Captain Sie, and Effami can open it. Effami is the lead trainer,” Caspian added.
“Probably wise.” Off to their right, Mazik could see Knapp returning with a woman. She was also wearing a green vest, over which she had added a green breastplate. Her hair was collected in a severe military braid, though it was tied off with a blue ribbon. “Did you capture her, or did she get away? The traitor, I mean.”
“She got away.” This time, Caspian did spit. “Totally got away with it. I wish I had been on duty that night, so I coulda cracked her upside the head. The bastard.”
“Hm.”
By then, Knapp and the woman had reached the group. Knapp bowed. “Sorry for the wait. This is Captain Sie.”
“Pleasure,” said Captain Sie, though she didn’t sound like she meant it. She scowled at them, though Mazik suspected this was her usual expression.
The captain stopped at Caspian, who saluted lazily. “Anything else from General Ordwinn?”
“Nothing. He’s saying the same things.”
It was Gavi who caught it this time. “Wait—Ordwinn? Isn’t that the same name as your traitor?”
Mazik looked to Gavi, even as he realized she was right. But the traitor was a woman, and she had gotten away, and they just said he … “Her husband? Was the traitor related to your old boss?”
Captain Sie’s scowl deepened. “That’s right. They’re married. The general claims to know nothing about her betrayal, but we’re taking precautions.”
“Yeah, right. How could he not have known?” Caspian joined the captain in a scowl.
Iiiinteresting … Mazik scratched his chin. He realized that they had a choice. The three of them could wait quietly for Captain Sie to assign them their roles, or … This sounds much more fun.
Mazik nodded at the door. “Do you mind if we go inside? I’d like to see where everything happened. Maybe there’s something we can do to help you figure out if this General Ordwinn is lying.”
Caspian brightened. For the first time, the suspicion he had been directing at the adventurers dissipated. “Really? Do you have experience with this kind of thing?”
Mazik rested a hand over his heart. “Absolutely. We’ve unraveled a plot or two in our time, and I’m particularly knowledgeable about the arts of deception.” Which is absolutely true, he added, though the way he worded it was in itself deceptive. He found that fitting.
Fortunately, Caspian took it hook, line, and sinker. “That would be a big help! No one around here seems to know how to proceed, and this is my first time. I’m investigating, by the way.” He turned to Captain Sie. “Do you mind?”
She shrugged. “Just don’t take too long. And you three”—she skewered Mazik and the others with a glare—“report to me when you’re done. If I’m not here, I’ll be at my office.” She took the key hanging from her neck and unlocked the door.
Caspian shoved his foot in the doorjamb and kicked the door fully open. “Follow me.”
*
Mazik, Gavi, and Raedren followed Caspian into the kennel. “Just let it close,” said Caspian. “It’s a pain to get someone to let us out again, but we’re not supposed to leave it open.
Otherwise there’s no point in the locks.”
The interior of the kennel reminded Mazik of a stable he had visited once. It had been during his military service, when he briefly considered learning how to ride a horse, before rejecting it as a smelly waste of time since he could run nearly as fast. But he remembered the stables. They had originally been built for racehorses, if memory served, and had a big indoor track for training.
The kennel had a similar setup. Well over half of the building was taken up by a training ring, and inside it was a sight that sent Mazik bouncing up and down in glee.
The building was filled with spellhounds. From energetic pups to fully-grown adults, dogs bolted across the room at the command of their trainers—or not, as was the case with the younger, barely trained ones. The five Nijāst handling the dogs were up to their knees in fur which ran the gamut from white-blonde to golden-blonde to rust red, all of the colors swirling as the dogs scrambled about in an excited melee.
“Puppies!” chirped Mazik.
Several of the smallest dogs ignored their trainers and scampered over. Mazik dropped to the floor and began cooing as fluffy pups collided with his shins and leapt into his lap.
“You’re losing your ferocious image,” said Gavi as she knelt to pet the dogs.
“Don’t care,” said Mazik in a sing-song voice. “Who’s a good boy?” He glanced under the dog. “Who’s a good girl? That’s right, you are!” He ruffled the dog’s neck and ears, and it yipped happily.
“You aren’t making our jobs easier, you know.”
Mazik looked up as a trainer limped toward them. The man was favoring his left leg, which was splinted and bandaged from ankle to knee.
“Yeah, well, you aren’t making our … something something.” Mazik returned his attention to the puppies.
The trainer whistled, and the young spellhounds, with great reluctance, scrambled back to him. While they fell on each other and continued playing, the trainer nodded to Mazik’s group. “You’re the mercs they called in, right? Thanks for the help.”
“We prefer adventurers,” said Mazik.
Gavi bowed. “It’s no problem.”
Mazik watched as the puppies left, not bothering to hide his disappointment. He looked around for any other dogs he could pet.
He noticed an older spellhound staring at him, so he cocked his head and beckoned to the dog. It was a golden-blond male with dark blue eyes. Its trainer was calling for it, but the dog ignored her.
Mazik stretched out his arm, letting the spellhound sniff him. It did, and then it stared at him again, as if it were taking the measure of the man.
Apparently, Mazik passed. The dog’s tail began wagging, and it pushed forward, burying its face in Mazik’s stomach. Mazik laughed as the dog knocked him onto his butt, and then began licking his face.
“I like this one,” said Mazik between pouts of patting. “Can I keep him? Pretty please?” He aimed a puppy-dog look of his own at Gavi, though it fell apart as the dog kept licking him. He laughed.
“I wouldn’t get attached. Spellhounds are expensive.” Caspian leaned down to scratch the dog’s ear. “Even if you three were getting double the rate you’re probably getting, this whole deal would have to last for a month or two for you to earn enough for one of these. Maybe.”
Mazik ruffled the spellhound’s mane. “Challenge accepted.”
“Weren’t you worrying about money just the other day?” asked Gavi.
“Shhh. Don’t ruin the moment.”
Gavi rolled her eyes.
“Twenty-seven, heel!” The trainer whistled again, and the dog finally turned. The trainer repeated her command. With one last lick of Mazik’s palm, the dog calmly returned.
Mazik stood and dusted himself off. “Twenty-seven? You don’t give them names?”
“Naw. Their owners will rename them anyway, so we just give them numbers,” said Caspian. “So, you want me to explain what happened?”
“Yeah, sorry about that.” Mazik gave an exaggerated bow. “Please proceed.”
Caspian tugged at his vest lapels, his sense of self-importance swelling. “If it’ll help, I can show you the exact route they took to get here later on, but here’s the basics. Er—imagine this ring is the village.” He waved at the scrambling mass of spellhounds. “If where we’re standing is the northern approach, then over there would be the southeastern approach. Those two forested areas are the only ways to get into the village. To our right here would be the peak on this side of the river, and to the left would be the one across the gap.”
“Do any of these places have names?” asked Mazik.
“Not that we’re going to tell an outsider,” said Caspian, a little too quickly. He winced. “Sorry. We’re going to end up moving the whole damn village soon, but we don’t want to get lax.”
“Whoa, you’re moving the entire village?” Mazik scratched his chin. “Well, secret village and all that, and you did get discovered. I guess it makes sense, though it sounds like a pain in the ass.”
“Tell me about it. We’ve been here for—for a while,” said Caspian, catching himself. “Do you know how much work it is to rebuild every damn building in this place? And we have to do it before winter. Not looking forward to that.”
Gavi looked between them. “You were saying they got here how?”
“Oh, right.” Caspian pointed across the room. “They came in from the southeastern approach. Only about ten of ’em, apparently, plus a familiar for each, but they got the jump on us. They must have snuck to the kennel after that, because no one heard them. They got the jump on the guards here, too.” He scowled. “Or maybe Rhea killed them, ’cause that’s where she enters the story.
“Effami was on duty that night. She was asleep over there when the door opened.” Caspian pointed over his right shoulder. There were rooms off to each side of the entrance hallway. Mazik could see several folded-up cotton mattresses in each.
“That’s where people sleep when they stay overnight?” asked Gavi.
Caspian nodded. “Women in that one, men in the other. Effami was asleep when the door opened, as was most everybody else.”
“How many people are here each night?”
“Uh, three? Four? Either Effami or Rhea always had to be here, in case of an emergency. The rest are usually breeders, in case there’s a problem with the dogs. One of ’em is always supposed to be awake so us guards have someone to report to, but that doesn’t always happen. Usually doesn’t happen,” he admitted.
Gavi dug a notepad out of her jacket pocket. “Why did they attack on a night Rhea wasn’t on duty here? Wouldn’t that have meant one more person they had to subdue?”
The young man hesitated. “Maybe it’s easier if I tell you everything in order. May I continue?”
“Oh, yes. Sorry.” Gavi laughed uneasily.
“So, Rhea opened the door, and all these Noble Hunt bastards came charging in. Some of them went straight for the dogs, and broke into the room over there. That’s where the dogs sleep.” Caspian was pointing to an open doorway to the left of the training ring. There were three such rooms, on the left, right, and straight ahead. The door on the left was missing. All that remained was the bottom hinges—the others had been ripped out of the wall.
“The others went straight for Effami. We think they’re trying to restart our breeding program. With Rhea and some of our spellhounds, they’ve already got most of what they need, but Rhea doesn’t know everything.” There was a note of satisfaction in Caspian’s voice. “That’s by design. We make sure nobody knows all our secrets, so no single person can do what they’re trying to do now. They need one of our top trainers to get all our best training methods.”
“And they didn’t get her?” asked Mazik.
“Righto. Two of the breeders who were here that night were awake at the time. One managed to sound the alarm.” Caspian pointed to a bell in the tower overhead. It wouldn’t have looked out of place in a church or a clock tower. “But, uh …”
Mazik noticed the flowers atop a dark stain on the ground. He nodded knowingly. “Ah. No good deed goes unpunished.”
Caspian crossed his arms. “Ain’t that the truth.”
“I don’t think the Noble Hunt thought it was a good deed, but …” Raedren lowered his head, mumbling a few words for the breeder who died.
Mazik kneeled beside the stain, looking for clues. He didn’t know what to look for, so he was unsurprised when he found nothing. “What was this Rhea woman’s reason for betraying you all?”
Caspian shrugged. “If we knew that, it’d make my job a lot easier. But she must have coordinated with the Noble Hunt, so I can’t imagine her husband didn’t know.”
Gavi looked up from the notepad pressed against her thigh. She twirled her pencil and tapped her lips. “She could have been paid off, or joined the Noble Hunt, or been angry about something. Or …”
“Blackmailed?” offered Raedren.
Mazik gave Raedren a thumbs up. “Now you’re thinking like a true bastard. I like it.”
Raedren smiled weakly. “I was thinking that maybe she didn’t want to betray everyone, but sure.”
Mazik snapped his fingers, and several spellhounds looked up. “Damn. I’ll turn you into a duplicitous bastard one of these days. I assume you chased them off?”
“Yup. They had knocked the dogs out, and were carrying them off when we arrived. We think they used our—uh, this sleeping gas we use when a hound gets too unruly, or for surgeries and stuff. I bet Rhea stole it for them,” Caspian added.
“So they ran off with the spellhounds,” said Mazik. “You figure out where they went?”
“They disappeared into the forests. I tried to track them, but every time we got away from the village, we got attacked.”
Mazik perked up. “Ooo. You know how to track? Like examining twigs and footprints and such?”
Caspian nodded. Mazik sidled over to the young man and draped an arm around his shoulders. “Do you think you could teach us? We were involved in this incident recently, there were these orcks, and it would have been nice to be able to track ’em down. And by us, I mean these two, ’cause I’m lazy.”
Freelance Heroics (Firesign Book 2) Page 29
