The Call of Kerberos Part 26

Kelos waited until the remaining Calma s.h.i.+ps surrounded the Llothriall Llothriall before he began to cast the spell. The parchment he took from the battered leather tube had the rainbow sheen of fish scale and, indeed, the sheet had been made from the hide of an extremely rare marine creature. It had cost Kelos a considerable amount to acquire and would crumble into dust once the spell was cast, but he considered that such circ.u.mstances as they now found themselves in more than justified its use. before he began to cast the spell. The parchment he took from the battered leather tube had the rainbow sheen of fish scale and, indeed, the sheet had been made from the hide of an extremely rare marine creature. It had cost Kelos a considerable amount to acquire and would crumble into dust once the spell was cast, but he considered that such circ.u.mstances as they now found themselves in more than justified its use.

Kelos lay the s.h.i.+mmering material flat on the table before taking out a small bottle of violet ink and a quill from a pocket in his robe.

"Kelos, what the f.u.c.k are you doing? This is no time to draw a picture," Jacquinto said, as he peered over his shoulder, "those b.l.o.o.d.y things are almost on us."

"I am not drawing a picture. It may not look like it, but I am performing some extremely powerful magic. You should be impressed."

Kelos began to draw a diagram onto the sheet, the ink of the chasm squid sinking into the page with the faintest of crackles as he moved the quill.

The Llothriall Llothriall shook as something ploughed into its side and the bottle of ink went skittering across the table. Jacquinto caught it just before it hit the floor and Kelos exhaled heavily. shook as something ploughed into its side and the bottle of ink went skittering across the table. Jacquinto caught it just before it hit the floor and Kelos exhaled heavily.

"Thank you, you may well just have saved all our lives."

Kelos finished his ill.u.s.tration as the sound of the a.s.sault increased on all sides. Then, after blowing on the ink to ensure it was dry, he took the page and folded it into eight segments.

The Llothirall Llothirall shuddered as the sea warped around it. Kelos closed his eyes as the geometry of the cabin ruptured, the scene before him breaking into a kaleidoscope of disparate fragments. He heard Jacquinto say something, but his voice seemed to be getting further and further away. shuddered as the sea warped around it. Kelos closed his eyes as the geometry of the cabin ruptured, the scene before him breaking into a kaleidoscope of disparate fragments. He heard Jacquinto say something, but his voice seemed to be getting further and further away.

Kelos tied the threads of elemental power together, spoke the closing words of the spell and unfolded the sheet.

The noise of the Chada.s.sa bombardment stopped suddenly and the quiet was only broken when Jacquinto dropped to his knees and vomited.

"What the h.e.l.l did you do?" he said, after the last spasm had died away. "It felt like being turned inside-out."

"I simply brought our destination closer to us, thus facilitating a swift exit and avoiding the need for a lot of tedious sailing. We are now not far from the Calma's city. Look."

But through the porthole, they saw not the gla.s.s domes of the city but a pall of thick black smoke boiling swiftly and steadily to the surface. Above, they could just make out the keels of a fleet of s.h.i.+ps, from which fell a steady rain of dazzling white fire.

"I thought that you said the Llothriall Llothriall was the only s.h.i.+p capable of sailing the Twilight seas," Jacquinto said. was the only s.h.i.+p capable of sailing the Twilight seas," Jacquinto said.

"It is."

"Then who in the name of the seven h.e.l.ls are they, and why are they attacking the Calma?"

Chapter Twenty-Six.

The Llothriall Llothriall surfaced and, at a gesture from Kelos, the covering that had enclosed the deck dissolved, bright sunlight was.h.i.+ng across the boards as it fell away. He chose to keep the masts down and the sails furled for now, not wanting to attract the attention of the fleet of eight s.h.i.+ps that sat some thirty yards from starboard. surfaced and, at a gesture from Kelos, the covering that had enclosed the deck dissolved, bright sunlight was.h.i.+ng across the boards as it fell away. He chose to keep the masts down and the sails furled for now, not wanting to attract the attention of the fleet of eight s.h.i.+ps that sat some thirty yards from starboard.

Whatever Kelos had been expecting to see on breaking the waves, it certainly hadn't been the symbol of the Final Faith, painted in red on the white of the s.h.i.+ps' sails. For a moment he thought that the Faith had managed to repeat the success of the Llothriall Llothriall, but then he saw that these vessels weren't suited to the Twilight seas at all. Already several were sporting rents in their hulls where the waves had battered their way in and, as he watched, one of the s.h.i.+ps took a sudden nosedive. The men and women who fell from the deck were sucked under in her wake.

This, however, did not detract the remaining s.h.i.+ps from their task.

Gun ports stood open along each vessel and through these were being pitched weighted barrels that burned with a blinding light. Even as they sank the flames were undiminished and Kelos wondered what kind of fire burned underwater. His awe at this peculiar sorcery, however, was broken by the realisation that if they didn't act soon the Calma city would be entirely destroyed. More importantly, Dunsany was somewhere down there. For all Kelos knew he could already be dead.

Kelos raised his hands. The Llothriall's Llothriall's masts masts rose from the deck and the sails unfurled. He grabbed a speaking tube and shouted down to Emuel to begin the song. As the deck shuddered beneath him, Kelos brought the rose from the deck and the sails unfurled. He grabbed a speaking tube and shouted down to Emuel to begin the song. As the deck shuddered beneath him, Kelos brought the Llothriall Llothriall about, swiftly cutting a path towards the Faith vessels. about, swiftly cutting a path towards the Faith vessels.

He ran to the prow as they neared, raising his arms and shouting, "Stop! You're killing them!"

Perhaps it was Kelos's plea, perhaps it was the realisation that the Faith's fugitive s.h.i.+p was amongst them, but the bombardment finally came to a halt.

By the time the Llothriall Llothriall reached the fleet, more of the Faith's s.h.i.+ps had succ.u.mbed and only three remained. Kelos realised then that this must be a suicide squad of some kind, sent to enact Makennon's vengeance with no hope of returning. reached the fleet, more of the Faith's s.h.i.+ps had succ.u.mbed and only three remained. Kelos realised then that this must be a suicide squad of some kind, sent to enact Makennon's vengeance with no hope of returning.

As they came alongside, Kelos extended the Llothriall's Llothriall's protective field to encompa.s.s the diminished fleet, before leaping onto a neighbouring deck, only to be immediately seized by men in robes. protective field to encompa.s.s the diminished fleet, before leaping onto a neighbouring deck, only to be immediately seized by men in robes.

"Let go of me! What are you doing?"

"You are a fugitive of the Faith. We are detaining you in the name of the Anointed Lord."

"For G.o.d's sake, we're trying to stop you killing the Calma."

"The Calma? What are the Calma?"

As if summoned, a Calma vessel surfaced nearby. A door dilated open in its topside and out stepped Silus and Katya, followed by several of the creatures. The craft drifted towards the s.h.i.+p and the small party climbed onto deck.

"Those are the Calma." Kelos said, nodding towards the creatures. "Now why did Makennon send you to kill them?"

A man with the symbol of the Faith tattooed onto his face backed away from the visitors, his hand going to the dagger at his belt, but before he could wield it, one of his s.h.i.+pmates had knocked it from his grasp.

"No. Leave them. They're not your enemy, the Chada.s.sa are."

"The Chada.s.sa," Kelos said. "What do you know about them?"

"They have been attacking the Twilight coast. Makennon's inquisitor -"

"Fitch?"

"Yes, Querilous Fitch. Through his methods of interrogation he managed to get one of the Chada.s.sa to give up the location of its base here. Makennon's mages teleported us in to destroy it."

"You'd give your lives for her?"

"Gladly, it is the most holy duty one can perform."

"Then I'm afraid," Kelos said, "that your colleagues have died in vain. The Chada.s.sa citadel does not lie below you. It is the Calma who reside here and they are peaceful, no threat to Twilight. The Chada.s.sa have tricked you, sold you a lie. As you have been destroying the Calma's home a new breed of the Chada.s.sa are marching on Twilight."

"Lord of All, what have we done?"

"Is there any way of getting a message back to Makennon?" Kelos said. "If Twilight is pre-warned then they may be able to defeat the remaining Land Walkers."

"Spalding, our mage, should be able to help you reach her. Spalding?" The man with the tattooed face stepped forwards. "Take this man below. He wishes to converse with the Anointed Lord."

Spalding sketched the symbol of the Faith in the air, before nodding to Kelos to follow him.

An intense chemical smell emanating from the gun decks- a marriage of bad eggs and burning hair - hit Kelos as he followed the mage down a short flight of narrow steps. Compared to the Llothriall Llothriall, the Faith s.h.i.+p was squalid and cramped. Kelos's shoulders brushed the sides of the narrow corridor, and twice he stumbled in the candlelit gloom, falling over ropes and thudding into crates. Eventually they reached a box room, the walls of which had been daubed with the symbol of the Faith. In the centre stood a pedestal supporting a bowl of water.

Kelos shuffled in beside Spalding and looked up at him expectantly.

"So, are we going to talk to her, or did you just want to get close to me?"

Spalding looked down at Kelos with something like contempt before waving his hand over the bowl.

A soft glow suffused the room and Makennon's face came into focus upon the water.

"Spalding, is it done?" Katherine Makennon said. "If so you have my blessings. May the Lord of All take you into his arms."

Spalding nodded at Kelos and the mage leaned over the bowl.

"h.e.l.lo Katherine."

Shock briefly crossed Makennon's features only to be quickly replaced by her usual cold expression.

"Kelos. You're not dead."

"No, I'm not. Although your fanatics have been doing their best to rectify that."

"Do you still have my s.h.i.+p?"

"Yes, and we'd like to keep it if it's all the same to you. Anyway, this isn't a social chat Katherine. You have sent your suicide squad on a wild fish chase. The Chada.s.sa aren't here, they've tricked you. Your boys have been killing the wrong creatures."

"Kelos, if you're trying to sell me on some- "

"No, listen to me for once! The Chada.s.sa are going to launch another attack against Twilight, but this time with a new breed of creature. We managed to destroy the majority of them, but some got away. Now, if you prepare your best Swords you have a chance of defeating them, but you have to mobilise now. Drag Pontaine into this if you have to. The Land Walkers must not be allowed to reach the World's Ridge Mountains."

"How do I know that you're not spinning me lies?"

"Tell her Spalding, you've seen the Calma."

For a moment he thought that the fanatic wasn't going to say anything - was perhaps mute - but after staring at Kelos as though he were going to kill him, he leaned over the bowl and said, "It's true. The Chada.s.sa are not here. There are... other creatures."

"Makennon - Anointed One - we can use the Llothriall Llothriall to fight the Chada.s.sa," Kelos said. "After all, wasn't that what the s.h.i.+p was intended for all along, to be a holy weapon? And we have some of your most fanatical followers to fight beside us." to fight the Chada.s.sa," Kelos said. "After all, wasn't that what the s.h.i.+p was intended for all along, to be a holy weapon? And we have some of your most fanatical followers to fight beside us."

Katherine Makennon's head turned to one side and Kelos could hear her speaking to someone out of view. After a moment she turned back to them.

"When you have defeated the remaining Chada.s.sa forces you will return the Llothriall Llothriall to us." to us."

"Like f -" Kelos caught himself in time. "Of course Anointed Lord. We shall return directly to Turnitia once the battle is won. We shall, of course, be treated with leniency?"

"Goodbye Kelos."

The image in the bowl dissolved.

They were going to need a bigger boat, Kelos considered, as he ushered the remaining Final Faith fanatics on board the Llothriall Llothriall. At this rate, if they picked up any more refugees they would have to sleep three to a bunk. He had no idea what they were going to do with them once the battle was over. Makennnon had demanded that he return the Llothriall Llothriall to Turnitia, but Kelos had absolutely no intention of doing so. He had only warned her of the impending a.s.sault by the Land Walkers because he had dreaded the consequences otherwise. to Turnitia, but Kelos had absolutely no intention of doing so. He had only warned her of the impending a.s.sault by the Land Walkers because he had dreaded the consequences otherwise.

As they descended in the Llothriall Llothriall to the Calma city the last of the fires were dying out. Kelos almost wished that the shroud of smoke had remained, because now that he could see the extent of the devastation he realised what little hope they had against the Chada.s.sa. All but a handful of the gla.s.s domes had been shattered - though Kelos's horror was somewhat alleviated when he saw that the dome Dunsany had been recuperating in still stood - while the rest of the city seemed to have melted into the seabed. Within the soot stained ruins he could just make out the few surviving Calma, pulling the dead and dying from the rubble. Silus was out there already, doing what he could to help. Kelos would have offered his own a.s.sistance but, as he pulled on an underwater exploration suit, he had thoughts for only one man. to the Calma city the last of the fires were dying out. Kelos almost wished that the shroud of smoke had remained, because now that he could see the extent of the devastation he realised what little hope they had against the Chada.s.sa. All but a handful of the gla.s.s domes had been shattered - though Kelos's horror was somewhat alleviated when he saw that the dome Dunsany had been recuperating in still stood - while the rest of the city seemed to have melted into the seabed. Within the soot stained ruins he could just make out the few surviving Calma, pulling the dead and dying from the rubble. Silus was out there already, doing what he could to help. Kelos would have offered his own a.s.sistance but, as he pulled on an underwater exploration suit, he had thoughts for only one man.

Dunsany.

Once out of the s.h.i.+p he headed for the gla.s.s dome. There Kelos could see several Calma working on sealing a crack in the structure's side, a stream of bubbles steadily rising from the fissure.

He stepped through the entrance membrane to find himself ankle deep in water.

"Dunsany!"

There was no reply. The only sound was the steady trickle of the sea as it poured into the dome. Ahead of him the water was tinted with swirls of blood, was.h.i.+ng from the entrance to a room. Kelos felt his stomach tighten as he splashed towards the doorway, but inside the room there was no sign of Dunsany, only five Calma corpses lying neatly side by side. Each room he pa.s.sed held more corpses and he was beginning to lose all hope of ever finding his friend when he heard the splash of footsteps from up ahead.

"Dunsany?"

Dunsany was pale and his long hair was plastered wetly to his scalp. When he looked up at Kelos it seemed he didn't recognise him for a moment, but then a smile crept into his features.

"Kelos? You know, all through my dreams you were there. Every step of the way, even to the edge of death. But you led me away from that dark vale and here I am. Though I can't quite remember where here is."

Kelos wanted nothing so much as to hold Dunsany, but as he approached his friend there was a bang and a crack zigzagged up the wall of the dome. Beads of moisture began to leak through.

He held out the spare underwater suit he had brought from the Llothriall Llothriall.

"I hope that you're not too weak to swim."

The drip had become a trickle by the time Dunsany suited up and the dome had begun to sing as more cracks raced across its surface.

"Thank you for coming for me, old friend," Dunsany said before sealing the suit's hood.

And then, as the dome came down around them, their arms found each other.

Katya stood in the Calma s.h.i.+p, watching Silus help with the rescue operation outside, feeling as though she were losing him all over again.

This man who flitted through the water as quickly as the Calma - more quickly in fact - and who breathed the sea as easily as air, surely this man wasn't her husband? In fact, he was barely human. Katya still loved him, but the part she loved was the fisherman from Nurn, not the strange creature he had become.

If Zac had lived would he have grown into this this, she wondered. Would father and son have spent their time together exploring the world beneath the waves, returning to her with treasures from ancient wrecks and tales of mermaids, sunken cities and forgotten islands; things she could never experience, never share?

The thought of Zac sent a new shard of grief through her. Katya tried to hold it in, only for it to erupt as a high-pitched sob. The Calma looked up from where they worked, but made no move to offer comfort or sympathy. A few even stood staring at her, as though wondering what she would do next. In her embarra.s.sment, Katya tried to hide her grief, but it was too big to contain.

When Silus stepped back onto the s.h.i.+p, naked and dripping, he went to her but she pushed him away.