Towers of Redact

by RG Long

  Teresa was running right with him and Jurrin, Jill and Jaxon were behind. Ealrin still felt horrible about leaving Urt and Galp on the airship, but with the condition Galp was in, he was in no state to follow them. Leaving Blume with the two of them was the surest way to keep them safe.

  Unfortunately, it was also the thing that brought the most at risk down on his group. And without any magic or weapons of note, there was nothing they could do against the airships.

  Except run and try to draw their attention away.

  It was certainly not a sound strategy.

  Currently, however, was the best they had.

  Over to the south of where they were running, Ealrin saw signs of a city. Smoke was rising up, and he was certain there were guard towers that were poking over the horizon. There is no use in running there. They were in the nation of Darc now, but if they made it to the city, they certainly would be questioned for why they were running away from Rerial.

  And Ealrin had way too much experience with running from one nation to another.

  The trees were just out ahead of them as Ealrin felt one of his legs give way.

  He tripped and hit the ground hard.

  Teresa was beside him within a moment even as she had run past him a few steps. She was reaching down and trying to pull him up.

  The other three ran past and just made it into the cover of the low trees when Ealrin heard a sound that dwarfed what was coming out of the north.

  It was magical in nature, a sound he had heard only a few times before.

  He turned to look and see red marks of energy flying up through the air and going directly towards the airships. One of the arcs hit the side of the airship, and it veered off course, heading away from their direction. The other one struck an airship right in its core, and it exploded as the magical arc reacted with the rimstone within the flagship.

  The airship that of been hit continued to veer away until Ealrin saw it crash into the side of the mountains.

  It was a spectacular sight, as well.

  “Here!” came a voice Ealrin had not heard in a long time. “Up here!”

  Ealrin got up and dusted himself off as best he could before he looked up to see Holve standing just inside the tree line, a little bit up the foothills of the mountain.

  Holve was standing just beside Alma, of all people, who was still glowing red and to Ealrin, looked both scared and exhausted at the same time.

  Then, out from behind the trees, came the rest of his friends who he hadn’t seen since they had been separated at the Court of Three.

  They were safe.

  He let out a deep sigh.

  But before he ran up to them, he waved them his way.

  “We need to go get Blume and Galp! He’s sick!”

  It wasn’t long before the group was reunited on the Sky Dart, though Ealrin could hardly believe the news he was hearing.

  “You’re sure?” he asked Serinde even as her head was bowed. She slowly nodded.

  “I saw it. On the wall. She managed to fend off the guards from shooting their arrows at us. I nearly took one in the shoulder. One of them pierced Holve’s pack.”

  “If I hadn’t been for that, he’d be dead for sure, ya know?” Trotta said.

  “Alma had gotten knocked out, and we didn’t have her magic. There were so many guards; all we could do was run.”

  Serinde let that last line with a tone of despair.

  Gorplin wiped his nose noisily.

  “Bah,” he said. “She saved us. Sacrificed herself for us.”

  Ealrin looked up from where they sat inside the Sky Dart. They were inside the hallway that served as the meeting space sometimes between them. To living quarters were to the right. Another two were to the left. Galp was in one where Holve was watching him. Alma was in another as Blume was trying to take care of her.

  The other two were unused at the moment. No one had wanted to go to bed.

  Holve stood at the doorway, looking out. Ealrin could hear Jurrin, Jill, and Jaxon working away down below the deck of the ship, trying to get it to fly.

  Elise looked out of place in this group. She had not traveled with them as far as the rest. She had not seen the mighty deeds of Wisym and knew what a kind-hearted soul and brilliant fighter she was.

  She sat with her arms crossed next to Ealrin. For now, she was quiet.

  It wasn’t long before Ealrin stood up and spoke so that everyone could hear him, even Blume and the others in the room.

  “Once the Sky Dart is ready to fly,” he said. “I think we should make our way back to Thoran. If Teresa’s brother is unwilling to have us, then Good Harbor. We’ve been all over Gilia. We’ve seen demons come and go. For now, it appears like they’re at bay. Maybe this is the time when we need to regroup. Figure out what we ought to do. We have some tools available to us. And we have an airship.”

  He looked around thankfully at the Sky Dart.

  “According to what Teresa and the others saw, we have one of the last few airships. And with Rerial in the state that it’s in, they won’t be building more anytime soon. We have the advantage of time. I think this is a moment we should rest. Leave Redact to the chaos of this crazy war at the moment. Then perhaps we can come back later and help when the time is better for us.”

  Ealrin looked around the hall and saw more than one head nodding.

  He felt tired.

  Wisym was not the first of their companions he had lost. She would not be the last. They had lost many more than her, but this particular death struck Ealrin much harder than some of the others. He didn’t know why.

  He wanted time to think. To consider. Yes, there were wars looming on Redact, but they had no more to do with them. They were potentially out of the reach of his father and would be for some time.

  Perhaps now was the best time to rest.

  He was just about to say so when another voice spoke up.

  “I disagree,” said Holve from the doorway.

  Everyone looked toward the old man as he turned around. He stood silhouetted in the door as the clanking of hammers and tools below them continued.

  “This is not the time to rest,” he said. “It’s time to prepare — the calm before the storm. There is something more dangerous than anything we’ve faced brewing here. I have felt it ever since we’ve come to Redact, but have not been able to put my finger to it or name it. After seeing the way the people of Darc acted and how those who have allied themselves with them, like the Skrilx. And the stories of what is going on a Rerial. I believe that to rest now would be foolish and an opportunity wasted.”

  He took a breath.

  “There is one more place we have yet to explore. I have loved Thoran and would love to return there someday, but today is not that time. Now we must ready ourselves for what is to come.”

  Ealrin looked at Holve. He didn’t know what to think. There have been very few times on their journey where he had disagreed with the old man. He considered Holve to be a mentor. There had been some times where he had trusted him less, but those circumstances had always worked themselves out.

  “What are you suggesting?” Teresa asked from across the table.

  Ealrin looked at her at intently before returning back to Holve.

  “The ruler in the tower is who we all heard about,” Holve said. “The one the high Council says they answer to. The one who the ships say guide them as they sail and the one who the barkeeper said that they Seek wisdom from.”

  “I say we seek him out. I have heard tales of such men before but have ignored them or just regarded them as something of a sham. They perhaps may be false rumors of someone trying to make themselves appear great. With all that is happened on Redact, I think we have to see who he is and what his role in all this has been.”

  “And risk more death?” Ealrin asked.

  He felt the very air in the hall grow tense as everyone looked between him and Holve.

  “I think we’ve risked enough. We need to find a place to s
ay that is safe. Somewhere we can think and regroup, not another quest to seek out. Not now.”

  Blume came out of the hallway room, holding her hands.

  “I’ve done what I could for Alma,” she said. “And I think Ealrin is right. Now’s the time to rest.”

  Ealrin felt a swell of pride well up inside of him as he looked at Blume.

  Both he and Holve had saved her. But now she attached herself to him. It meant a great deal to Ealrin, to have her support in this.

  He smiled at her and nodded.

  “Bah,” Gorplin said. “Since when have we ever been about safety? What if we’re missing something huge? More demons? We can’t just let that slip by! We have to do something.”

  It was as if Gorplin and Blume taking sides had let loose a torrent of conversation.

  “I think we are to check out the man in the tower, you know?” Trotta said.

  “But what if it’s just another ruse?” Teresa offered. “What if you wind up dead this time?”

  “It’s a bit of what we signed up for,” Felicia said who had not left Urt’s side since the two had been reunited. The large Skrilx folded his arms and nodded.

  “I want to know what is happening to my people,” he said definitively.

  “Perhaps what is happening to our people is none of our concern?” came a voice from outside of the doorway.

  Everyone started when the smaller Skrilx stood beside Holve. Even the older man looked shocked. Galp has been bedridden as far as they all had known.

  Felicia moved to help him, but he waved her away with a hand as he held on to the door.

  “I’ve seen terrible things here,” he said. “Experienced horrors I could never speak of. I would like time to rest and to study and think. There is work here of the demons, of that I am sure. But a rash decision may be a deadly one.”

  Everyone in the room looked around at each other. Ealrin was very much aware that they had each taken sides. Some with him, and some of Holve. But now what would they do?

  The small, cautious voice of Jurrin filled the hall as he came out and spoke to the assembly.

  “You are really ought to see this.”

  32: Mistrust

  The swords of many soldiers clanged against the sides of the ship they were sailing as it landed down on the soil beneath them. Cyna grunted as she grabbed onto the railing. She was putting on more of a show than she knew was necessary.

  Word of her deeds in front of Ferdinand had spread far wherever she had gone. No matter what army she fought in now, there were whispers of her dispatching assassins of the Court and high-ranking members of the Blackthorns. And any who decided to come up against her to test their might was added to her list of growing accomplishments. Several had been dispatched just before they took off on this particular leg of the journey.

  But Cyna hated flying.

  There was no joy in being off the ground or away from things that were solid. She hated the feeling of not being completely connected to the earth.

  She breathed a sigh of relief as the ship touched the ground and a board stretched out to the shore. Troops spilled out from the ship. Some of them potentially as happy to get off the ship as she was.

  After the capital of Rerial fell, Commander Sefen wasted no time getting his troops mobilized to fight another battle. Ferdinand was more than happy to add troops to the growing number that was rallying under Sefen’s banner. With the ruin of both the Court and Rerial underway, many of the downtrodden and misplaced of society were glad to be given a reason to cause violence.

  And so the ranks of Sefen swelled.

  Cyna shoved her way to the front of the queue and found the solace of the ground. Many other airships were making a landing close to theirs, and soldiers were disembarking as they had been ordered to. Cyna found herself in awe of the sight in front of her. Commander Sefen sauntered up beside her as she was marveling at the surroundings and those who greeted them.

  Skrilx.

  An army of them.

  “The army of cats is going to be another boon to this growing empire,” Sefen said.

  Cyna would have looked over to see the elf’s expression. This time, however, she was more interested in the snarl forming on one of the cats who was stepping forward to greet them. She got the feeling that these Skrilx did not appreciate being called ‘cats.’

  “I am Chief Rark,” said the one who was snarling at Commander Sefen. “I do hope we can work together for our mutual benefit.”

  “Such are the times,” Sefen said. “I have never been one who had much dealing with your kind. The wars in Rerial happened outside of my reach, and so I have not had to fight Skrilx in the past. Tell me, are you adequate warriors?”

  A Skrilx behind Chief Rark growled, and she held up her paw.

  “We are more than adequate warriors, elf,” Rark said. “Are you one who would lead us to any type of victory over Redact?”

  This time, Cyna did look over at Sefen.

  The elf was not smiling per se; rather, he wore a grin on his face that spoke pride of his arrogance and experience.

  “I have seen more battles than you have warriors here,” he said. “I will lead you to more victories than you could possibly imagine. Ferdinand tells me that you desire to have back the continent for your kind. Once I have laid this miserable space of land down in ashes, you will be able to regrow whatever you desire here. Ferdinand has promised me more wars beyond this one. Do what you will, as long as you're kind listen to my instruction in battle.”

  Cyna did not perceive that Rark was impressed by the commander’s speech. If anything, the Skrilx looked annoyed.

  “Ferdinand has made me promises as well,” Chief Roark said. “You would do well to remember that we are both alive by the will of the same man. I am to receive for my people the lands of Rerial and the Court of Three. I desire no more and need no less. The crimes of the Court and of Rerial must be repaid. If their cities really are destroyed and have been laid to ruins, then I have reason to thank you.

  Cyna watched as she gave a type of salute to him and bent her waist ever-so-slightly.

  Commander Sefen apparently thought this was good enough.

  “Ferdinand says he will come and deliver three more airships in order to move your troops once we have dealt with Poral. From there we can continue on to Legrove, Severn, and Taystone.”

  “Does he really wish to conquer the entire continent?” Chief Rark asked. “It seems like quite the task.”

  “That is one of his intentions yes,” said a voice that made Cyna spin.

  It was Ferdinand.

  Cyna saluted, knowing her place. Several guards approached them alongside Ferdinand. He was looking more and more regal every time they met. The first Cyna had laid eyes on him; she had mistaken him for a common thief holding court in the woods. Now he wore fine clothes and a golden chain around his neck. He was positioning himself as a ruler in his attire if nothing else. Ferdinand looked in between Rark and Sefen.

  “This was a union I do not think either of you anticipated. I would like to see how your two armies fight against Poral. There’s one more threat there that needs to be neutralized before we continue on. It is of the utmost importance that we move quickly. After this threat has been properly dealt with, we will move on to greater accomplishments.”

  Ferdinand turned his attention to chief Rark.

  “It is not completely accurate to say that I desire to conquer the whole continent. I only desire to throw it into chaos. Whatever you do with it after that point is up to you. If you can build a nation out of war and famine and disease, you are welcome to do so. “

  This struck Cyna. It did not seem like the same vision was being cast by Sefen and Ferdinand. The man who stood before her said he had wanted the whole world to burn. Why would he allow a fledgling nation to come up from the ashes? Did he doubt that Rark could pull it off? Or was there something else at hand?

  “March down to Poral and insure for me that you destroy this
last bastion of Rerial. Once that is done, we release you to bring chaos wherever you see fit on the continent of Redact.”

  He looked at Cyna.

  “I see that you’ve been making a name for yourself among my troops,” he said.

  Cyna tried to keep her expression blank, though her insides swelled. This was what she wanted. To be known for her fighting ability and to be feared among men.

  He smiled.

  “Just make sure you clear it with me before taking on anyone of much higher ranks,” he said. “I’d hate to lose a commanding officer or a captain I favor.”

  Ferdinan looked between Rark and Sefen before turning his back on them all.

  He strode off in the direction of another airship while Cyna looked between Commander Sefen and Chief Rark. Both of them gave her a wary glance before looking at one another. There was mistrust in their eyes towards each other. Cyna could not say that she blamed them.

  At this point, all Cyna was concerned about was her own survival and that her reputation of being a fierce and warrior continue to grow. No matter what contention there might be between these two, Cyna would strive even harder to be known as a lethal woman.

  33: Family

  Lord Evan was pleased with the work that had been done on the airship. The resident of Poral had given to them what they had needed from ships that had gone unused in the harbor. Because of these old ships and the skill of the speakers, they had been able to repair the ship in a timely manner. It was not as quickly as he would’ve preferred, but with airships of this one’s size, it was necessary.

  What worried him was that no airships from Rerial had come to check on him.

  Perhaps it had been because of the fighting in the Court of Three was so intense. Or because they did not know which direction they should begin their search.

  Commander Polk’s rash decision to shoot them out of the air would cost him dearly.

  The Commodore would ensure that Commander Polk be reprimanded at the very least we’re taking his ship out of action when he had been so desperate to use it.