Dian began to move, crawling along the floor to remain out of view.
First, the Chanter attempted what appeared to be Sign. He moved his hands and waited. Then tried one more time, making sure he had the man’s eye contact. With a shake of his head, he reached into his pocket. The space between his fingers was glowing with Glint. The man took Elix’s wrist and let a few grains fall onto the back of his hand.
The Chanter hadn’t used enough to do real harm, but Elix cried out regardless, flinching and trying to pull away. He drew his hand in, cradling it to his chest. He’d failed the test.
Dian was near the door when he realized Jade had frozen in place. She was still crouched, but not in cover. She was exposed and completely still. Her eyes were wide as she sat transfixed while Elix was released and the man with the sweater turned his gaze on her.
3
Jade didn’t react fast enough. With a few twists of the Chanter’s fingers, the restraint holding that ugly pirate broke into three. The first caught Jade around the middle, slamming her into the wall. Liam landed next to her, his arms pinned to his side, but Dian had ducked just in time.
Her mind was still spinning. Her fear had gotten them caught. She wanted to feel guilty, but she was still shaking. Stupid.
Dian was the only one still free and he faced the Chanter as he pulled a plain sword handle from his boot. It was unclear what he planned to do with it, since there was no blade attached. The Chanter barely paused, twisting his hands around until more tables and now chairs were pried from their restraints. He launched them at Dian like projectiles.
“He’s not going to win,” Jade said, wiggling against her restraint, “He’s going to get himself killed and where does that leave us?”
“Alive,” Liam answered. He gave up moving. His arms must have been pinned too tightly.
Jade ground her teeth and studied her restraint. The metal formed a perfect curve around her, squeezing her satchel into her hip. Once she tugged her bag free there was room to maneuver. Not much. And not enough to squeeze out the bottom. The ends of the curve were held against the wall by enchantment, some sort of bonding or even a magnetic…an idea occurred to her. Crazy, but maybe…
She pressed the tips of her fingers between the wall and the restraint. It gave just enough to allow her fingers to slip in, the metal now pressing into her hand as if it were the wall. Rather like a magnet.
Huh.
Jade wormed the rest of her hand down on both sides, so metal now pressed into her palms. Then she pushed.
The restraint moved with her hands, the enchantment tricked into treating her hands like the wall. She took a few steps, hands supporting the half-circle of metal, and then sidestepped quickly. The restraint shot backward. Only now she was free.
“Wow. It worked.” Jade was about to help Liam when a chair nearly took her head off. She had ducked just in time for it to fly harmlessly into the corner. Liam would have to wait.
She drew her revolver and crouched. It was hard to see through the mangled remains of the cabin. Dian was still on the defensive. The Chanter could control too much at once. Jade watched Dian duck and parry each new projectile with growing fatigue. His stance faltered. The Chanter, however, looked at ease.
Dian’s sword handle now had a short blade, the metal shimmering with golden light. It was ever changing, growing or shrinking depending on where the attack was coming from. Jade shifted her focus to the Chanter. It was impossible to find a shot. The fight was moving too fast.
Damn it, hold sti—wait a second. I have enchanted bullets. Let’s go with non-lethal.
Jade began squeezing the trigger. Over and over the barrel turned and enchantment refilled the chambers. If she didn’t manage to hit the guy, at least the onslaught would distract him and non-lethal rounds weren’t a threat to the soldier.
The Chanter’s attention swiveled toward her. Bullets pinged around him. He held his hand out to her and pointed up. Jade didn’t stop firing, but her head cocked curiously and—
Her boot landed on some debris and then Jade was catapulted straight into the air, smashing her head into the ceiling. She had to stop shooting to catch her balance. A square piece of tabletop was pushing her into the ceiling, trying to flatten her. Her knees were already bent and then caved. She lifted her arms to keep her chest from being compressed into the ceiling.
Dian took advantage of the distraction. He swept in from the Chanter’s left. His strike was blocked, but barely. They were now in reach of each other, enough for Dian to keep the Chanter from using his hands and creating more mayhem. The Chanter grabbed a chair by its leg, the metal reforming into a sword shape as he blocked Dian’s attack. The soldier, however, was the better swordsman. The enchantment must have been weak and the hold on Jade’s floating debris lessened. She clattered to the floor, legs buckling, an ungracious string of curses preceding a groan of pain.
She pushed herself up just as a woman entered the cabin.
The woman waltzed through the far doorway. “What is going on here?” Her gaze stopped on Dian, a sneer curling her lips before she addressed her friend. “Having trouble?” Her voice had a raspy quality, with a touch of mockery and malice. She waved her hand and enchantment sparked through the air, sizzling and popping with shocks of light. The room grew cold. A string of pirates marched into the cabin, their steps mechanical, and formed a line. The woman sauntered, advancing on Dian, effortlessly dodging his attacks until she could reach out and her fingers stroked his jacket. He froze, posture suddenly rigid and awkward.
The woman leaned close to him. “You’re the one, aren’t you? You’re why they’re here?” She grinned. “Fel, dear, I came to find you—a Legion airship is just behind us. They’ll be boarding soon. So let’s do this quickly. I’m afraid I’ve run out of Glint and there are still so many to test. These men claim they’re Chanters, but, I want to be sure.” She held out her hand and Fel, the Chanter they’d been fighting, supplied a handful of Glint. Jade’s muscles surged to action. She stood upright, gun raised, ready to fire, but the woman was too quick. She threw a handful of Glint into the mass of captured pirates. Wasting Glint like it was worthless.
Two had no reaction, the rest cried out as their skin sizzled. Unlike the Chanter in the sweater, this woman seemed to enjoy their pain. She had used it on their faces and necks, wielding way more Glint than was necessary for the task, and so their pain was greater. Red blotches marred their skin where the Glint had touched. There was a sadistic gleam in the Chanter’s eye as they writhed.
“Well,” she rounded on Dian, as if suddenly bored, “I’d love to know if you’re one of us, but I’m afraid your friends will be here soon and I have very little of this stuff left.” Her eyes shifted to Jade as she added, “Let’s see how much I have left after these two, hm?” She stroked a long-nailed finger down Dian’s cheek, then let him fall. Dian hit the ground, his body still rigid. His coat shimmered with enchantment. Jade had stood and watched the scene play out. She knew she should have done something, the Prince in her book would have, maybe even the Thief, but horror had grounded her to the spot. Her eyes followed the handful of glowing dust in the woman’s palm.
Jade was trembling now. Liam was calling her name, but she couldn’t hear him. He was right there, but she could only hear static. Her own heartbeat. Jade had never touched Glint, there was no need in Harrowind. Judging by the pirates nursing their blemishes and blisters she had good reason to avoid the stuff. Neither she nor Liam had ever—
Her heart squeezed. Liam. He was still restrained. Jade rushed to him. They needed to leave. Now. Ten minutes ago. She berated herself with each step until her boots lost traction on the floor, slipping out from under her as she crashed. She righted herself, only to run in place, like ice had suddenly coated the floor. Some sort of traction enchantment meant to keep her from reaching Liam.
The Chanter Woman was touching the floor, sending enchantment through it.
Then she stood, her spikes of red and blac
k hair bobbing with her movements. She went to Liam first.
Jade struggled against her new prison, just managing to pull herself free when a rain of debris showered her. Table legs and chair backing and scrap surrounded Jade’s body to trap her. She struggled, but the sharp, jagged edges dug cut into her. Liam’s usual scowl had shifted to completely blank. He was dead-eyed. Scared. Jade didn’t realize she was screaming for the woman to stop until her voice cracked.
No more scars. Jade had promised him—no more scars. He had so little skin left to cover up. The woman pinched some of the Glint between her fingers and raised it to Liam’s face.
“Me first,” Jade said, shaking, “I’ll go first. He’s not a Chanter. I can tell you that already. There’s no point testing him.”
The woman stopped, turned away from Liam, and Jade could breathe again.
“You look frightened.” Her head tilted to the side, very cat who had already trapped its prey. “Do you know what will happen?”
Jade snorted. “I have a pretty good guess. But, for the record, I’m not a Chanter either.”
“Ah,” the woman sprang forward, her entire focus on Jade, “But you’ve never been tested, have you? You don’t really know what it will feel like.”
Jade met her eyes, humor rising to ease the quaking of her muscles, the tightness in her chest. “Lady, if you had skin like mine would you risk it?”
Her response was a smile. The woman took another pinch of Glint and held it in front of her lips, preparing to blow the grains of enchanting dust into Jade’s face.
True panic surged through Jade’s body. She couldn’t stop it. She couldn’t move. Her mind spun while she failed to back away. She would be scarred forever. On her face. Forever. Her body both froze and revved up, adrenaline mixing with terror so she was itching to move, to run, but she remained utterly still.
4
He couldn’t move. Blink. Turn. It took effort to get his eyes to move enough for him to see what was happening across the room. Jade was trapped again, though she should have escaped when she had the opportunity. Her body was pinned to the wall opposite her friend and she was screaming.
Dian watched the Chanter woman approach her. Watched their exchange, hearing only part of it, but seeing was enough. The terror that took over her pretty features—she suddenly looked so much younger. He would have guessed she was in her mid-20s, but as the woman taunted her with Glint she looked like a child. He saw the woman purse her lips, ready to blow the Glint into Jade’s face. Jade had gone completely still.
Then the ship jostled and the warning alarm blared again, a different siren, a warning of critical malfunction with the airship. And in the few seconds of distraction, Jade leaned forward and blew first. The particles of Glint flew harmlessly into the Chanter’s face. Wasted. If the woman intended to retry, she didn’t get the chance. A voice filled the room as if from a speaker, a voice warning every Free Chanter on board that the Legion had arrived and it was time to go.
The woman’s maniacal attention shifted off Jade. Dian watched the Chanter Woman share a look with her colleague, the quiet man with the fraying sweater, Fel. Fel signed to her, moving his hands in a way Dian couldn’t translate, but recognized, and they headed in Dian’s direction.
They were no longer in view, but Dian could still hear as they talked above him. Laying prone like this, arms and legs useless, was worse than any air sickness. Worse than those first few nights with his prosthetic, getting used to the freedom of movement without a crutch nearby for support. The airship groaned an echoing wail of death and Dian’s heart somersaulted. He could feel the pull of a sharp descent, as if in a free fall. In his view, Dian watched Jade’s restraints fall away and Liam rushed to her side.
“Let’s take the Legionnaire,” the woman’s voice stole back his attention. “I want to bring something useful back to Kade. A prisoner could be useful.”
Whatever her companion replied, Dian couldn’t detect it. He struggled to get his arms to obey, for his legs to move, but nothing. It was like a waking dream. He was conscious but still asleep. He felt hands on him and his body was lifted into the air—
“Whoa there, hey now. I’d say you both have done your damage. Why not just make your escape and get the hell out of here?” Jade’s voice. He could no longer see her, but she was close now.
“You and I are not inherently enemies—”
“Well, forgive me if I still think you’re a bitch.”
The Chanter woman continued, “Listen, I don’t have time to fight you over this. I’m willing to pay to make this faster. Fel, pay her.”
“As...uh, as tempting as, whew that’s a lot of gold.” Dian didn’t expect her loyalty. A pirate turning down profit for some soldier they just met? He knew his chances had been slim. He wasn’t thrilled, but he was practical. Then she surprised him, again.
“But I have to say no. Thanks, but no thanks.” Jade’s boots moved into view. She turned down the offer. It was not the practical choice. It was not what he expected from a pirate. It was the last thing he expected from her, who so clearly followed her desires and whims without quandary. He didn’t know what to do with the jarring contradiction.
Their conversation was forced to end, Legion orders echoed from down the passageways. They were clearing the ship room by room, searching for him. He heard two pairs of footsteps retreating, but Jade’s boots were still the only thing in his line of sight.
“Jade, this isn’t going to look good to those soldiers,” Liam said, from Dian’s other side.
Jade knelt, her eyes staring into his. She blinked and craned her head, snapped her fingers in front of him, then winced. “Liam, I think he’s dead.”
Dian wanted to sigh. No. Not dead. I’m clearly breathing. Check for a pulse, please.
“He’s not blinking.”
A pulse.
He felt a hand on his neck. Liam.
“He’s alive. But this still won’t look right. What’s to stop them from firing on us the moment they walk in here and see us hovering over, what appears to be, a dead body?”
Jade sighed. “What do you want me to do? Sit him up and talk for him? Look, I saved him now he’ll owe us. We just need to get this enchantment turned off.” Dian felt her boot in his side and the room shifted as she turned his body with her toe. Now he could only see straight up.
“Alright, soldier, what sort of enchantment has she got on you, huh?” Jade hovered above him, her face intimately close. “The enchantment’s on his jacket. If we take it off, he should wake up, right?”
“How the fuck would I know?”
Jade’s hand brushed his sleeve, her expression drained away. She stiffened, body falling toward his. She pulled her hand away just before their faces met. “Whoa, shit. It’s like a coma or something. Except—” She grinned down at him, “You can hear us, can’t you?”
He could do nothing in response.
“Don’t worry,” She yelled in his face, as if he were miles away, “We’ll get you sorted.” She sat back and rubbed her hands together. “Solution: the jacket needs to go. New problem: can’t touch the jacket. So we need…something...sharp...Liam! Help me find his sword.”
Dian listened to her crawl around, the occasional bickering or shifting of debris as they searched the destroyed room for his sword. He was mildly concerned with her plan. First, his sword had an enchanted blade that she would not understand how to use. Second, he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of her wielding a sword so close to his person. She popped into view once again, sword hilt in hand.
“Alright, so how do I work this thing?” She was twisting it in her hands. Dian mentally screamed at her to be careful when the blade extended fast, nearly slicing off some of her hair. “Whoa. Does it just do the length thing or can I…” The blade transformed, now it was a shovel.
Shovel? Why, though? Why a shovel?
“Very nice.” She went through a few more transformations before deciding on a very small, dual pointed tool she cal
led a ‘seam ripper.’ She began to tear the fibers of Dian’s jacket apart. He wanted to close his eyes, waiting for her to nick his skin or slice into something necessary. He felt her tear at every seam of his jacket until the garment fell away. Then she started kicking him.
He sensed the enchantment lessen, but he was still stiff. Jade was using her feet to push him off his jacket, away from the last remnants of the enchanted fabric, and she was not doing it gently.
Dian finally jolted upright, with her elbow wedged between his shoulder blades. He bared his teeth in pain before turning to meet her attempt at an innocent smile. He worked a kink out of his wrist, looking away from her quickly.
“Thank you. For the help—”
Her smile grew, but any further thanks was interrupted by the arrival of Dian’s squad. Jesiah pushed his way forward, relief on his face. He offered a hand to help Dian stand.
“Alright, Faer?”
Dian rubbed his temple. “Just a headache.”
Jesiah clapped his back. “Still airsick?”
Dian nodded. Jesiah used a radio to alert the rest of the squad that Dian was secured. The reply was that they hurry, the Maiden was losing altitude.
“Copy that,” said Jesiah as he signaled the rest of the men, “Alright guys, let’s get out of here.”
“Wait,” Dian caught his friend’s arm, “We need to get any remaining crew aboard the Peregrine.”
Jesiah hesitated. “Sir, this ship is falling from the sky. We calculated descent before boarding, if Tallius wants us off that means we’re falling faster than predicted—”
“I have authority on this mission. Until the ship is captured, I can give orders to the men on board. Tell everyone to take alternate routes back to the main deck. Any crewmen found are to be escorted, not captured. If they wish to use their lifeboats, let them. The priority is Legion lives, but I’m not going to leave this ship’s crew to its fate.”
Catalyst (The Second Cycle Book 1) Page 6
