From Darkness Won Part 44

We are in a boat and have nearly exited the city on the southern side. Can we meet you somewhere?

Don't risk yourselves for me. The knights will be better protection for you, anyway. I'll remain with the army. I'm... enjoying being a soldier, I think. Perhaps we'll meet again in Armonguard.

Arman be with you, Harnu Poe. You are a brave man.

Thank you, my lady. Take care of Grendolyn for me.

I shall. Averella relayed Harnu's news to Sir Eagan.

He chuckled. "You are Iamos, are you? Well, I am proud of you, Averella. And your mother shall be, as well. How do you feel? Those gowzals wanted you for dinner."

The memory of killing Macoun flashed in her mind, but she pushed it away. "I am sore, but I imagine being stabbed feels worse."

Sir Eagan hummed. "Remembered that, did you?"

"No. But Mother says that is how I got the wound in my side." A deep breath filled Averella's nostrils with body odor and the stench of the ca.n.a.ls. She sat on the center bench. A few distant torches glowed in the blackness, but their boat carried no light as it pa.s.sed out of the city.

"I am sorry we lost Harnu, but glad for Kopay. That is silly, is it not?"

"We've no further need of Harnu," Gren said.

Angry thoughts surfaced in Averella's mind. "Gren, Harnu left his father for us. Risked his life. Fought in a battle. Mainly because of his affection for you. Have you so small a heart that you would leave him to die?"

"Harnu is tough. And now he can go back to his father."

"You must know that he will not. He will do all he can to keep you safe. He said he will see us in Armonguard."

Gren snorted a laugh. "As if Harnu could offer more protection than these knights."

Averella scowled. "Of all the self-absorbed things to say. These men have more important matters at hand than escorting two women around. I blame myself. Why I ever agreed to leave Carmine, I shall never understand."

"To serve Prince Oren as a healer," Gren said.

"Then why not travel with the soldiers?"

Her father answered. "Because Prince Oren, Sir Jax, Master Rennan, and your mother forbade you to come."

Averella's eyes widened. "Really?"

"You have become quite stubborn, my lady." Bran's voice floated up to the bow and startled her.

His tone brought more angry thoughts to mind, but she did not let her pride overtake her. She twisted around and addressed everyone in the boat. "Forgive me then, for I have caused you all much grief." Averella paused, confused, and looked to Gren. "But why did you come, Gren?"

The water lapped. Silence. "I will tell you later."

Sir Rigil leaned around Jax. "Tell us now, Madam Hoff, for-"

A horrible screech silenced Sir Rigil's demand. The boat drifted past an intersecting ca.n.a.l, giving Averella a glimpse of a distant platform at the western Reshon Gate. A half dozen enemy soldiers stood on the platform, pulling ropes that were attached to a ma.s.sive snake that had raised up from the water. The creature screeched again, then swerved from the platform and dove under the water, causing two black knights to fall off the platform.

Sir Rigil whistled low. "I must confess, Lady Averella, regardless of how or why you came to Mahanaim, I am glad you did. For you have saved dozens from such a fate."

The boat pa.s.sed into a deep ca.n.a.l and they lost sight of the platform. Darkness closed in again. "What supplies did you take from the keep?" Averella asked her father. "For I am hungry."

Sir Eagan reached for a pack on the floor between his boots. "I have dried fish, flatbread, an apple..."

Averella took the apple and held the fruit under her nose. Its faint smell was sweet. She inhaled deeply, wis.h.i.+ng Darkness smelled of fresh apples rather than spoiled ones. She bit down and the sound brought a memory to mind.

Achan's voice. "And some apples. Crunchy ones!"

Followed by a thrill in her heart and the remembered knowledge that she would find Achan an apple no matter what.

The memory warmed her cheeks. Merciful heart! She did not understand why these memories brought on such reactions. And in them he was always Achan, not Your Highness nor Prince Gidon nor even Master Cham. Mother said no one knew he was the real Prince Gidon Hadar when Averella had first met him. And since she had been dressed as a stray, she would have had no reason to speak formally.

See? There was nothing scandalous to these memories.

Water splashed over the side of the boat, bringing Averella back to reality.

They were approaching the end of the ca.n.a.l. Though it was too dark to see, she knew that Arok Lake lay to the right and that going left would take them to the inner Reshon Gate. "How will we pa.s.s the gate with the soldiers there?"

"We will not pa.s.s through the Reshon Gate," Jax said. "Even if we managed to get through the gate, there will be too many of Esek's men on the King's Road. There is an underground river not far from here that comes out in one of the Nahar caves. From there we'll go on foot to Xulon, get supplies and horses, then decide how to continue on to Armonguard."

It sounded like a wise plan. They soon exited the ca.n.a.l and swept into the dark waters of the eastern end of Arok Lake. Stone houses edged the southern sh.o.r.e, their windows flecks of light in the Darkness. Jax steered the boat toward two cottages built into the low cliff. A narrow ca.n.a.l separated them. Jax propelled the boat inside, and Sir Rigil ignited a green torchlight.

The green light cast an eerie glow. Moss-covered beams stretched between the buildings above, perhaps to help support the walls on either side. Or perhaps to support the floor inside each home.

Jax pulled the paddles inside and reached up to slow the boat by slapping a beam. He kept his hand in the air and used the next two beams to slow the boat to a stop before an iron door coated in rust and moss. A stone wall encased the door and matched the masonry of the cottage on their right. Anyone who traveled this ca.n.a.l might a.s.sume this a back entrance to the cottage.

Jax reached around to the backside of the beam overhead and pried out a knot of wood. He reached inside and handed an iron key to Sir Eagan.

Sir Eagan took the key. The boat bobbed under his weight as he stood and reached for the door. Waves smacked the sides of the boat and the stone walls, and Sir Rigil's green torchlight swayed over their faces.

Sir Eagan fiddled with the key until a soft click sounded. He handed the key to Averella. "Pa.s.s that to Jax, please."

Averella did, and the giant put the key and the wooden knot back in place. Sir Eagan pushed the door inward. It moved slowly in the water, creating a small whirlpool. Sir Eagan pulled on the door frame, drawing the boat into the dark chasm. Jax helped by pus.h.i.+ng on the beam.

"Bran, close the door?" Jax said.

The door clanged shut. Gren whimpered. The torchlight lit up the ca.n.a.l walls. They were smooth stone with patches of slimy lime coating. Bushy green moss covered sections of the roof like sheepskins.

Wood sc.r.a.ped behind her. Jax picked up the paddles. They splooshed into the water and the boat surged forward.

The tunnel walls raced by, their contours rippling in the torchlight. Averella felt as if they were being poured down a long stone chute.

"Noam, help me take this armor off," Gren said.

"Leave it on," Noam said. "It'll keep you safe."

"But it's too heavy. I can't bear the weight anymore, nor can I breathe. And if I fell overboard, I'd go straight to the bottom. Master Rennan, would you like to wear it?"

"Sir Rigil is the better warrior."

"Which is why you should wear the armor, Master Rennan," Sir Rigil said.

Averella was just as tired of the stiffness of her own armor. "Sir Rigil, you may wear my armor, if you like."

Still holding the torchlight, Sir Rigil stretched his arm out over the edge of the boat. "As long as you can bear the weight, my lady, I beg you keep yours on."

The boat rocked as Averella and Sir Eagan removed the armor from Gren and Noam and Sir Rigil fastened it onto Bran. Averella pa.s.sed the time by fis.h.i.+ng her old rope belt out of her pack and tying it around her waist. She sheathed the new sword she had acquired in the Mahanaim courtyard, hoping her old sword, Firefox, would serve Harnu well. She put her helm and satchel in her pack to make everything easier to carry, and she felt for Prince Gidon's ring. It was still hanging on the twine around her neck. Good.

Hours pa.s.sed before Jax said, "Here we are."

The tunnel came to an end in a circular cave. The ceiling was covered in pale dripstones that resembled dirty icicles, some of them furry with what looked like frost but was likely some type of lichen. Perhaps Jax could reach a sample so Averella could take a closer look. A small cave in the back must be the way out. The idea of standing on solid ground again lightened the weight of Averella's armor some.

Jax jumped out of the boat. Sir Rigil handed the torch to Bran, then got out on the other side. The men ran the boat aground, splas.h.i.+ng through the water. A cl.u.s.ter of black on the ceiling s.h.i.+fted. The torchlight reflected dozens of tiny p.r.i.c.ks of light. Eyes?

"Sir Jax, are those bats?" Averella pointed toward the blackness on the ceiling.

"Gowzals, I fear." Jax helped Gren out of the boat. "It's best we move quickly. They can be savage in a bunch."

They certainly could. Again Averella pushed thoughts of the Mahanaim watchtower away. She put on her pack. Jax helped her stand, then grabbed her waist, lifted her out of the boat, and set her feet on pebbled sand before the mouth of the cave.

"Ooh, look how pretty the rocks are!" Gren crouched and scooped up two handfuls. "Could they be obsidian?"

Averella's breath caught, frozen by a distant memory she could not quite grasp. "No, Gren. Do not touch-"

Gren screamed. She dropped the rocks and jumped up and down, shaking her arms and hands.

Sir Rigil ran over. "What is it?"

Black spots wriggled on Gren's skirt. She screamed again. "Get them off!" She shook her skirt, but the black things remained. "Get them away! I don't want them to-"

"Shh!" Jax said.

Sir Rigil batted at the beetles on Gren's skirt.

Gren continued to shriek. "There's another one there!"

A shriek of a different kind chilled Averella's blood. Gren quieted. Everyone's head turned in unison toward the cl.u.s.ter of black on the ceiling. The gowzals rustled and chirped, a sweet sound like a hundred hungry baby chicks.

"Out." Jax waved at the cave. "Quietly as you can."

Averella took Gren's hand and walked over the crunchy ground to the cave. Gren's hand trembled. Averella pulled her along, trying not to think about the beetles underfoot. Sir Rigil lit a second torchlight and handed it to Gren.

The green light revealed a bare tunnel. No beetles in sight or gowzals on the ceiling. The sound of rustling wings behind Averella caused her to increase her speed. Then the gowzals cried out, high-pitched screeches that seemed to shake the tunnel walls. Steel sc.r.a.ped against wood. A sword drawn.

Averella and Gren pa.s.sed through the dark, winding cave, stumbling over rocky terrain. She glanced over her shoulder to see Sir Rigil run around the corner holding his torchlight above his head, followed by Jax and Bran, who moved backward, shuffling their feet, swords drawn.

The gowzals came in a cl.u.s.ter, the way a herd of cattle might stampede. Hundreds of eyes glinted in the torchlight.

"Run!" Jax shouted.

Averella's memory of the gowzals in Macoun's tower made her legs move faster. Gren stumbled. Sir Rigil grabbed her arm and pulled her along.

A hole in the ground swallowed Averella's right foot. She fell, breastplate and sword clanking on the stone floor. Her hands, knees, and her left cheek slammed against the ground. Jax lumbered past, but Bran tripped over her. His sword clattered to the ground, and their armor sc.r.a.ped against each another.

"Averella! What are you doing?" Bran said.

"I fell. There's a hole." She pushed her raw palms against the ground to lift herself, but Bran threw himself over her, pressing her back against the cool stone.

Wings flapped above like the trill of a tabor drum, fanning what little bit of her arm that was not s.h.i.+elded by armor or Bran's body. Averella held her breath, praying the creatures would not notice them, praying the panic and excitement would keep the flock together.

Sudden silence but for Bran's heavy breathing in her ear.

He s.h.i.+fted, and his weight left her back. "It's all right now. They've gone."

"I do not hear Gren screaming. Think they are well?"

"They must be," Bran said.

"Unfortunate that they have taken both lights with them." Averella pushed up with the sides of her hands, avoiding the stings of her ravaged palms. She put down a knee, but it hurt as well. She grunted and pushed up anyway.

A sword sc.r.a.ped against wood. Bran sheathing his weapon. "Are you well?"

"I skinned my hands and knees. I shall live."

Bran wrapped an arm around the armor protecting her waist. "Need me to carry you?"

She laughed. "If I can breathe, I can walk. How can we know which way is forward?"

Bran's hand found hers. "Let me worry about that."

His touch sent a thrill through her. She held tight as they proceeded forward slowly. Averella's free hand found the right wall and used it as a guide. She relaxed when torchlight gleamed around the curve of the cave. But then it went out, and the blackness returned. Her temples itched.

Jax mi Katt.

We are well, Jax. I fell in a hole and skinned my- Ebens at the mouth of the cave, Vrell. Keep quiet!

25.

Lord Nathak thrust his hands out. Green fire sizzled from his palms like a bolt of lightning. Achan threw himself to his stomach on the mossy ground to avoid the hit. The fire bolt struck the already burning wagon, causing it to leap off the ground and come smas.h.i.+ng down in a pile of shredded wood.

Lord Nathak cackled like a madman and let fly two more streams of green fire, one to Achan's men to the north and one to the south. Men screamed. Some fell to the road, on fire, rolling in the dirt.