Gates of Ruin (Magelands Eternal Siege, #6)

by Christopher Mitchell

  ‘You are right,’ said the dragon; ‘they have become my enemies, through no fault of my own. This makes things clearer, at least. If they are my enemies, then I need to strike them before they can strike at me.’ She turned her gaze to Aila. ‘Thank you, demigod, for your advice. I will take it. The soldiers that attacked us will pay; all of them.’

  She beat her wings and surged into the air, as Aila and Kelsey stared, open-mouthed.

  ‘What have you done?’ whispered Kelsey.

  ‘I didn’t mean that to happen,’ said Aila, as the figure of Frostback grew fainter in the northern sky. ‘I didn’t know she was going to react that way. I was trying to tell her that we should keep flying south, to get away from the soldiers, not that she should attack them.’

  ‘Pyre’s arse; next time, just say “thank you.”’

  * * *

  Several hours passed. Aila and Kelsey stared at the northern horizon for a long time, then explored the cave at the rear of the ledge. It went back thirty yards or so, and was dry and clean, though quite narrow in places.

  ‘Frostback will need to reverse in,’ said Kelsey, ‘otherwise her bum will be sticking out of the entrance.’

  Aila nodded, though her thoughts were on what the silver dragon might be doing at that moment.

  ‘There’s a little alcove further in,’ Kelsey went on, peering into the gloom of the cavern. ‘We could build a fire there, but it might get a bit smoky. I don’t think there’s any ventilation. Still, altogether it’s a much better lair than the last one.’

  ‘Does it matter?’ snapped Aila. ‘We won’t be here long.’

  ‘Here we go again,’ muttered Kelsey.

  ‘She took us twenty miles in under half an hour. It wasn’t a pleasant experience, but it was fast. She could probably take us to Kin Dai in a couple of hours, then we could use our gold to live like royalty for a while.’

  ‘You would just abandon Frostback?’

  ‘Abandon her? Don’t exaggerate.’

  ‘Right now, she’s off burning and pillaging, because of us, well, partly because of us. If she brings down the wrath of the Ascendants upon her, then it will be our fault. They’ll kill her, unless I’m here to stop them. Do you want her death on your conscience?’

  ‘Your reasoning is contorted, to put it mildly. We aren’t responsible for her actions. Are you sure this isn’t about your fear of starving?’

  Kelsey shook her head. ‘You say that like it’s an irrational fear. If we tell her we’re leaving, then she’ll refuse to carry us anywhere, and then, aye, I’m a little worried about starving in the forest. My humble apologies for being mortal.’

  Aila sat back down on the ledge. ‘Malik’s ass; we should have taken Amalia’s Quadrant.’

  ‘Hey,’ said Kelsey. ‘Remember our rule – no “should have” or “could have” – they’re not allowed. Regret will get us nowhere.’

  ‘So will following your plan! All I’m trying to do is get us moving.’

  She turned away from Kelsey, and stared out to the north. The sun was lowering to the west, and it was starting to turn cold up on the rocky hillside. Trees dotted the summit and the slopes, but none were in front of the ledge, and a chill wind was gusting from the east. Aila wasn’t sure how cold it would get over winter in Kinell, but they had no thick, warm clothes with them.

  She peered forwards, noticing a small dark speck in the sky. ‘Kelsey.’

  ‘Aye?’

  Aila pointed.

  Kelsey wandered over from the cave entrance and crouched down next to her, a hand up to shield her eyes from the setting sun.

  ‘I think that’s her,’ she said. She glanced at Aila. ‘Let’s give it a day or so. I know you want to get back to Corthie as soon as possible, but I’m telling you now; I’m not leaving until I can be sure that either Frostback will take us, or we have enough food for the journey. I’m sorry, but that’s that.’

  They watched as the dragon approached, her silver body glinting in the light from the fading sun. She circled over the hilltop a few times, then landed on the ledge as Aila and Kelsey stood. Frostback glanced at them, then dropped the carcass of a pig onto the ground in front of them.

  ‘Your dinner,’ said the dragon.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Kelsey. ‘Did you decide to go hunting?’

  ‘Clearly,’ said Frostback. ‘I knew you would be hungry, so I took this pig for you once I had dealt with the soldiers.’

  Aila’s heart fell. For a brief moment, she had thought that maybe the dragon had changed her mind.

  ‘What happened?’ said Kelsey.

  ‘I flew back to my old lair,’ said Frostback, ‘and destroyed every insect that had attacked my home. Then I went further, and discovered a camp full of soldiers on the edge of the forest. I kept low, so they wouldn’t see me, and then razed the camp to the ground. I burned it all, except for that pig.’

  Aila groaned aloud.

  ‘I was following your advice, demigod. And it was good advice; the soldiers had wagons full of nets, and other wagons with ballistae mounted on the back. They would have attacked me again, of that there is no doubt.’ She paused, her red eyes glowing. ‘You should have heard the soldiers scream. They were running around in a wild panic, this way and that; it was good sport.’

  ‘How many did you kill?’ said Aila.

  ‘I didn’t keep an exact count. Perhaps two hundred? Certainly many more than any other raid I have taken part in, except for Yoneath. My father would have been… I mean, my former father, he… never mind.’ She lowered her head. ‘Regardless, it is done. I am victorious, and my enemies are no more.’

  Aila opened her mouth to speak, but Kelsey shot her a glance.

  ‘You are every bit as powerful as you claimed,’ said the Holdfast woman; ‘not that I doubted that for a single moment.’ She turned to Aila. ‘Can you go and collect some firewood? I’ll show Frostback our new cave.’

  ‘Sure,’ said Aila.

  She turned and walked to the far end of the stone ledge, then climbed down a few feet to the earthen slope of the hillside. She knew that Kelsey wanted some time alone with the dragon; time without Aila’s frown ruining things, and she understood why the Holdfast woman was acting the way she was, but the knowledge did nothing to improve the demigod’s mood.

  Two hundred soldiers? The authorities in Kinell would not be able to ignore that; they would have to retaliate. They had sent an armed force because Frostback had killed one man; what would they do now that two hundred had been reduced to smoking ruins?

  She bent over and starting picking up wood from the ground as her mind went over the implications of Frostback’s actions. Blackrose would never have behaved so rashly, but the silver dragon was young and inexperienced, like a teenager with death powers. Damn wild dragons were a menace to civilised society, and the sooner they were away from Frostback, the better.

  She returned when her arms were full of wood, and she piled it up onto the ledge, then went back for more. When a full night’s supply had been gathered, she climbed up onto the flat stone platform. Frostback was in the cave, with only her head, neck and forelimbs visible, like a dog looking out from its kennel. Kelsey was standing by, talking and smiling. Blood was staining the front of her clothes and her hands.

  ‘Here’s the wood,’ said the demigod.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Kelsey. ‘Bring it over and we’ll get a fire started. I’ve already gutted the pig.’

  Frostback watched, as Aila started carrying the wood over to the cave entrance.

  ‘Kelsey has revealed some things to me,’ said the dragon, ‘which help explain your unfriendly demeanour.’

  Aila frowned. ‘What?’

  ‘I hope you don’t mind,’ said Kelsey.

  ‘What did you tell her?’

  ‘That you are with child,’ said the dragon. ‘You are frustrated that you cannot build a nest for your young. I understand you a little better now, demigod.’

  Aila’s eyes widened, then anger ripple
d through her. ‘I told you not to mention that,’ she snapped at Kelsey.

  ‘I had to,’ said the Holdfast woman. ‘Frostback was… well, she was…’

  ‘I was considering killing you for your ingratitude,’ said the dragon. ‘But now, I will make some allowances due to your condition. When will your brood come?’

  Aila stared at the silver dragon.

  ‘She has five or so months to go,’ said Kelsey. ‘If you look closely, you can see her starting to show. And, I think it’s only the one child.’

  ‘All that effort for just one?’ said Frostback. ‘A clutch of three of four is more usual for dragons. If you are still here when the child comes, I will help you make a nest, and then I would be interested in observing the birth. I am a little unfamiliar with the method by which insects reproduce. It seems to me that eggs are far more civilised than live births, especially with all that blood. Yes, I will look after you, and make sure you have plenty to eat. No harm will come to you or your child while you remain under my protection; I swear it.’

  Aila said nothing for a long moment, then she realised that the dragon was expecting a response.

  ‘Thank you,’ she said.

  Frostback tilted her head. ‘You are most welcome, demigod, most welcome indeed.’

  Chapter 15

  Without a Cause

  C apston, Southern Cape, Southern Khatanax – 22nd Luddinch 5252

  The four men stood by the ship’s railing, watching as the harbour of Capston drew closer. The sun was halfway up the eastern sky, and it was another hot day in the Southern Cape. Corthie bit his tongue. The others had heard enough of his complaints during the voyage, and he was sick of making them.

  They had gone the wrong way. His anger had initially been directed towards Sohul for buying the tickets, but he knew the lieutenant had done only what he had been told to do – get passage on any ship leaving that night. Following that, the speed of the old merchant vessel had been the next target of his ire. Nine days it had taken to plough through the seas by the eastern coast of Khatanax from Kin Dai to its destination at Capston; nine days of enforced inaction. He had paced the deck, lain in his bunk, then paced the deck again. For better or worse, the ship had been dry, with no alcohol permitted, and the sailors were looking forward to their arrival as eagerly as the passengers.

  The person he was most angry with was himself. True, he had been sick and in pain, but even so, they should have left Kin Dai earlier to search for Aila and Kelsey. He had let them down again. Not only had he failed to defeat the Ascendants, he had failed to find those he loved. The idea that he had any kind of destiny felt farcical to him now, a conceit born of over-confidence and arrogance. His strength may have returned, but many of his previous assumptions had been ripped to shreds; he was strong, but he wasn’t the strongest; a powerful warrior, but not the best. He wasn’t invincible – push a sword through his heart and he would die like any other mortal.

  ‘I’ll be glad to get off this boat,’ said Sohul. ‘Yes, I know I always say that; ships and me just don’t get along.’

  Van smiled. ‘It’s been a good voyage, all things considered. The weather held, and the ocean was smooth. Could’ve been a lot worse.’

  ‘It could have been a lot better, too,’ said Naxor, ‘especially if we hadn’t had to listen to Corthie whine the entire way.’

  ‘Fair enough,’ said Corthie; ‘I did whine a lot, particularly in the first few days. Knowing that Aila and Kelsey were getting further away with every mile that passed was enough to send me half-demented. So, sorry if I might have been a bit much at times.’

  Van shrugged. ‘It frustrated me too,’ he said, ‘but when you can’t change something, it does no good to let it rile you up. But anyway, I appreciate the apology.’

  ‘Yes, me too,’ said Sohul; ‘let’s put it behind us.’

  ‘I wonder if Vana is here,’ said Naxor, his eyes on the approaching town as the ship passed the breakwaters of the harbour. ‘This is where her boat was headed. She would have disembarked here, like us.’

  ‘If she is,’ said Corthie, ‘then the first thing I’ll do is apologise to her as well.’

  Naxor nodded. ‘Make sure you do that.’

  Corthie bit his tongue again, suppressing the comment that was forming on his lips. His companions had a right to be annoyed with him, and for a while he was going to have to take it on the chin.

  ‘There are no agents of the Ascendants on the quayside that I can see,’ Naxor went on. ‘So for now we should assume that our presence onboard has not been noticed. Getting through the harbour to a hostelry might prove otherwise, of course.’

  Sohul pointed. ‘There’s our old ship; the one that took us from the Falls of Iron to Yoneath.’

  They all turned. The vessel Sohul was pointing towards was berthed by a pier to their left. Corthie’s thoughts went to the luggage they had left behind. Buried among it had been the jug of salve left over from when Blackrose had been attacked by the Bloodflies, which had been left on board with the rest of their things when they had gone to Yoneath.

  ‘It’ll be gone,’ said Naxor. He sighed. ‘Some lucky sailor probably sold it for a thousand in gold.’

  Corthie nodded. Of the three jugs, one had gone with Maddie and the black dragon, Corthie’s had been left on the ship, and Naxor had never mentioned the one that he had been given. When they had asked him about it, he had feigned ignorance at first, and had then told them a story about how he had accidentally smashed it in the Falls of Iron. Corthie knew it hadn’t been in Kin Dai, and it wasn’t onboard the ship they were currently on – he, Sohul, and Van had searched everywhere for it. A few doses would have been enough to have drastically shortened Corthie’s recovery time, and if Naxor had been keeping it hidden from him, then it was another mark against the demigod’s name.

  ‘I’ll take a look around anyway,’ Naxor said. ‘Who knows? I can think of a few places on our old ship where someone might have overlooked a bag.’

  ‘And will you tell me if you find it?’ said Corthie.

  Naxor smiled. ‘Probably.’

  They sailed past the other merchant vessels by the long pier, and came in next to the high, stone wharf. Dock workers picked up the ropes thrown from the deck, and looped them round the iron cleats jutting up from the edge of the wharf. A gangway was placed between the wharf and the deck, and the passengers began to disembark. Corthie and the others joined the dozen or so merchants who had made the trip, and they ascended the wooden board up to the solid foundations of the wharf.

  ‘That’s better,’ said Sohul, smiling for the first time in days.

  ‘Follow me, chaps,’ said Naxor; ‘I’ve already scouted the way to a hostelry.’

  They walked through the busy harbour, and Corthie collected a few glances from the dock workers and fishing boat crews.

  ‘How do they feel about Banner deserters down here?’ said Corthie. ‘Assuming that’s what they’ll take me for?’

  ‘Much the same as Kin Dai,’ said Van, ‘but they’ve never been occupied by Banner forces. The Southern Cape’s too out of the way to get much attention from Alea Tanton. All the same, it would be better if you…’

  ‘Stayed in my room?’ said Corthie. ‘Aye, I get it.’

  The hostelry was close to the harbour, and a pair of gulls was fighting over some scraps by the kitchen door.

  ‘It might not be as comfortable as the villa we stayed in last time,’ said Naxor, ‘but our reserves are a little low at the moment.’

  They walked into a smoky, low-ceilinged bar and paid for a room, then took their meagre possessions up a narrow flight of stairs. Their quarters consisted of a single, cramped chamber, with four bed pallets taking up most of the floor space. Corthie picked a bed by the window and sat, while the others left to explore and procure supplies. Van was the first to return.

  ‘There’s a little garden up on the roof,’ he said. ‘Ramshackle, but we can sit out there in the evenings to escape the humidity in
side.’ He pulled a bottle of raki from his coat. ‘I also got us this. Are you going to behave? We can’t have you smashing up any more taverns.’

  ‘I’ll be fine,’ said Corthie.

  ‘Hmm. I’ve heard that before.’ He smiled. ‘It’s usually me that people have to worry about. I’ve disgraced myself in a hundred different bars, brothels and smoking dens in Serene. Now I know how my friends felt.’

  Corthie frowned. ‘Why would you pay for a woman? I never understood that.’

  ‘It kept my life simple,’ he said. ‘I used to look at married guys in the Banner, and how they would leave their wives for months at a time to go on operations or training exercises. All they did was worry about what their other halves were doing in their absence, and many of the men would stray. They were plagued with guilt and paranoia, and I had enough problems of my own without having to deal with that as well. Now, Sohul on the other hand, he stayed clear of all of that. I don’t think he’s set foot in a brothel in his life; oh, apart from that time he had to help carry me out of one; I was too drunk to walk.’

  Corthie laughed. ‘How come you never acted like that in Kin Dai?’

  ‘I was too busy looking after you. I had a rule – never when on an operation, and being in Lostwell still feels like I’m on an operation; I haven’t relaxed in months. And before you ask; I’m not about to let my guard down now.’

  Naxor and Sohul entered the room, and it immediately felt cramped. The lieutenant was carrying a large basket, and Corthie could smell the cooked food that lay within.

  ‘Let’s go onto the roof,’ said Van. ‘There are tables and chairs up there, and a view of the harbour.’

  * * *

  An hour later, the four men were sitting under the shade of a canvas canopy, as the noonday sun beat down on the village of Capston. Their empty plates and bowls were piled up on a low table, and the bottle of raki had been opened. Everyone except for Corthie was smoking, Naxor having purchased some fresh tobacco from the market. Their bellies full, the conversation moved onto their next steps.