by Eric Ugland
I frowned, really wanting to launch into a diatribe about the importance of free speech. But I knew this wasn’t the right place to have that fight. And certainly not with people who were still my potential political enemies.
“Perhaps,” I said softly, quietly, “you are right. I have much to learn.”
“I urge you to consider Valamir when you think about the position of Emperor,” Northwoods said. “He is a man of honor who has held many positions of power. He will lead this Empire in such a way that we all come out victors.”
“Unless he has me killed,” I said.
Northwoods started to get red in the face, and I noticed Eliza put her hand on his forearm. He took a deep breath at her touch, and let it out ever so slowly.
“His Royal Highness Valamir Glaton would not engage in such underhanded behavior.”
“Certainly not—”
Nikolai kicked me in the shin. I shut up.
“My lord duke has not had the greatest of interactions with His highness so far,” Nikolai said. “I cannot say for certain if it is fair to ask Coggeshall to support Valamir until such time as better relations are given time to form. Regardless, unless we are able to dig ourselves out of this current predicament, I doubt we will need to bother wondering which side of Valamir’s bread will be buttered by Duke Coggeshall.”
“If these are just mercenaries outside the gate,” I said, “and they aren’t from the Empire, is there any reason I can’t just go out there and fuck them all up?”
“Besides you being outnumbered ten to one?” Northwoods asked.
Nikolai rolled his eyes, but it wasn’t exactly clear if it was at me and my violent nature or if it was at Northwoods thinking I’d be outclassed even if I was outnumbered.
“It is not a good idea to do that,” Nikolai said. Given the tone, it was pretty clear Nikolai had no desire for me to say anything about my warfighting potential.
“They are mercenaries,” Northwoods said. “That I can confirm. And I have it on good authority that the funding for this army has come from outside the boundaries of the Empire.”
“Being they speak Carchedonian,” I said, “I think that’s a safe guess.”
“If they are from Carchedon, that makes things much simpler,” Nikolai said. “In some ways. If I might, my lord, perhaps we should relax the restrictions we placed on our soldiers. Let them actually fight back.”
“That’s not going to make us into assholes?” I asked.
“It makes a big difference if they attack us.”
“I suppose that sounds like a plan,” I said. I was about to say more about the plan, but I heard something. Just barely.
My name. Someone was yelling for me. Quiet and distant, and I couldn’t make out who it was, but someone was calling my name over and over again. I turned to look back towards the rest of Coggeshall only to see Ragnar sprinting my way.
“This can’t be good,” I said.
“I imagine it is not,” Nikolai replied.
We were right.
Chapter Fifty-Two
Emeline.
She’d been found.
In her room.
Well, some of her.
I stood in the doorway and looked at the scene in front of me. No one else was there. Ragnar hadn’t been willing to tell me what had happened, just that both Nikolai and I needed to come with him, that it was bad, but not immediately in danger bad.
Emeline’s room was virtually unchanged from when we’d investigated it. I mean, there was one very large and important difference. Before, Emeline hadn’t been in there. But now, Emeline was only mostly missing. Her head had been placed on her desk with a smear of blood around the ravaged base of her neck, as if the person, or monster, who’d put the head in place had needed to shift it ever so slightly before he, or she, was happy with the positioning.
Her eyelids were up, but her eyeballs were missing. There was no other obvious trauma to her, though one would imagine decapitation would probably be sufficient trauma to end anyone. All I mean is that there was nothing to go on in terms of investigation. Sure, if Coggeshall CSI was in session, we’d probably be able to get hair or fur fibers and trace all sorts of DNA, if DNA even existed in this twisted fucking world. But sadly, the civil services Coggeshall had to offer at the moment were limited. And medical examiners were low on the list. We were still trying to figure out how to keep people alive. How people died was usually pretty evident. In this case, the separation of head and body could be blamed.
But right, the who was the real question.
As I stepped over the threshold and put my foot firmly into the room, there was a slight tingle across my whole body, as if I’d brushed ever so slightly against a dying electric fence. I saw a flutter of color around Emeline’s head, an aura so brief that had this been back on Earth I would have attributed it to a blip of fluorescent lighting, or a bit of quantum shit zipping through my brain. Here, though, it could only mean one thing: magic. Emeline’s mouth opened.
I stopped, leaning back, worried poison gas or something else equally nasty was about to come pouring out.
Nope.
Nothing so dynamic.
Instead, there was a square of paper. Bright white that stood out in impressive contrast to the dark flesh all around that used to be Emeline’s mouth.
“Should I take the paper?” I asked without looking over my shoulder, knowing that Nikolai would still be there.
“Yes,” he said. “Clearly it was meant for you.”
Almost delicately, I reached my fingers into Emeline’s mouth, careful to touch nothing but the paper, and I plucked it out.
It was thin — bible paper thin. And folded. It took a moment to unfold, and I saw that there was a very neat rolling script on the inside. A note:
Your Grace, Duke of Coggeshall.
I regret the impersonal nature of this style of communication. It irks me we have yet to meet, but, alas, the gods seem to have their own plans for us at the moment. Nonetheless, I wished to let you know you have been in my thoughts of late. I hunger for the moment when our paths may cross once again. Your follower, here, was ill-equipped for the mission she hoped to accomplish, and I fear it unwise for her to have even attempted it. She was, however, formidable in her own way, you should feel proud of her for that. I know you were too busy to have ordered or arranged this particular trespass, and so I do regret, ever so slightly, the outcome. In that regard, I have provided a modicum of recompense for your loss. I have requested my servant clear the corrupted ones inside your walls. It should be complete by the time you read this. The corruption is quite a thorn in my side. I do not like what it does. So, be a dear: clean up that mess without delay, else, I might have to intervene myself, and I fear you would find that most unpleasant.
All the best.
The Master.
My hands trembled, and the blood drained from my face. An intense cold welled up from my center, and my brain started to shut off anything not related to rage and violence. I barely noticed the note light itself on fire. It flared, the feat scalding my face and hands before disappearing, leaving a soft dusting of ash against my beard.
I blinked a few times, the remnants of the letter still seared into my eyes, dissipating slowly in flashes of color.
“What was that?” Nikolai asked.
“A letter,” I said softly. My mind whirring, but it was like I was two separate people. In the background, my mind zipped along, putting things together, trying to comprehend who this “Master” guy might be. Or, more importantly, what this guy was. The other side of my brain was quiet. Tranquil. It lusted for revenge.
“What did it say?” Nikolai asked.
I turned to speak to him and realized the spectacle of the duke and his chancellor running into Emeline’s room had caused a bit of a hubbub, and a crowd had gathered in the hallway trying to peek in on the drama.
“Everyone not in the hirð, get the fuck out of here,” I snarled.
The hall empti
ed out in a hurry. I didn’t know if they’d just got out of sight, but, then again, I didn’t really care. I pulled the hirð boys into the room, and I shut the door.
I went over the letter to the best of my memory.
A heavy silence hung over the room.
“I’m going to Osterstadt through the tunnel,” I said.
“You cannot go to Osterstadt,” Nikolai said.
“That’s where he is,” I replied.
“There are issues that must be resolved here.”
“This asshole killed a member of our family—”
“Correction,” Nikolai interrupted to clarify, “whoever this is killed someone who is a member of the underworld’s family. Her father is going to find out about this, and I cannot imagine he is going to be particularly happy about what happened to his daughter, regardless of how he treated her in life.”
“Not our fault.”
“He will not see it that way. As I remember from what you told me about the quest, he entrusted the girl into your care. You were supposed to keep her here, and safe.”
“I was supposed to keep her out of Osterstadt.”
“Partial success then,” Ragnar said.
I shot a glance his way. This wasn’t the time for humor.
“Regardless of the quest,” Nikolai said, “you cannot slaughter your way through Caticorix and his men—”
“Why not?”
“Beyond being branded a blood-thirsty monster?”
“People already think I’m a blood thirsty monster.”
“People may think that, but if you do this, an entire empire will know it.”
“So? At least no one will fuck with us after that.”
“Unless they decide you are too great a danger to exist, and band together to wipe your from Vuldranni.”
“Let them try.”
“Then all the rest of us die in that process, Montana,” Nikolai yelled. “You agreed to be a duke. You agreed to have people follow you. To trust in your ability to keep them safe. You routinely forget that aspect of the deal. You must look out for everyone here. And if you slaughter your way from here through Osterstadt seeking vengeance, you doom all those here to suffer a fate you cannot.”
I grabbed a table and snapped it in half as if it were made of balsa wood, roaring my disapproval at everything, then threw the wood into the fireplace. Ragnar and Skeld just got out of my way.
“I can’t sit here and do nothing,” I said, getting in Nikolai’s face, “pretend this didn’t happen.”
“When did I say that was the plan?” Nikolai retorted. “As much as it pains me to admit the grain of truth in that letter, it is plain the corrupted ones are a legitimate threat. You want to be violent? You want revenge? Go outside of the walls and get rid of the ursus there. Break one siege, and it matters not what Caticorix wants. Or Valamir for that matter. We will survive. He can break his forces upon our walls until his men climb the ramp of their bodies, and we will still shove him back. But go out there now, and you may defeat Caticorix, but Coggeshall will have lost everything.”
I wanted to reach out and strangle Nikolai. Well, not really him. Mainly I wanted to take the pain and anguish I felt and deal that to someone else. But in that back of my brain, the part that was still working and thinking, I knew Nikolai was right. In the past, I had always allowed the violent brain to do what it wanted. But that was ultimately selfish. I had to think of how my actions would affect those who’d tied their lives to mine.
“You’re right,” I said, doing my best to let the rage quell for a moment. “It is time to go out and deal with the ursus at our back gate.”
“Yes, your grace,” Nikolai said.
“I want limited people out there,” I said. “It’s too easy to get infected. I’m not sure I can be, and—”
“I suggest taking just the hirð and the cleric,” Nikolai said.
“Except you.”
“Exactly, your grace.”
“If you’re staying,” I said, “I want a few things to happen. First, send an envoy to the kobolds. Make sure they know the night goblins won’t be a threat for the moment, at least not through the tunnel. Ask them if they are open to trade. Second, anyone you don’t know, you investigate. I want you to personally interrogate everyone who is new. Find out who they are and why they came here. Third, find out who was killed along with Emeline.”
“Yes, my lord. And might I suggest you taking a sneak over the wall? Might be a bit better than going out the gate.”
“Got it.”
“Happy hunting, your grace.”
Chapter Fifty-Three
I took a few minutes to get armor on, and sent Ragnar and Skeld to snag the cleric. We met up under Amber’s tree fort, along with Tarryn. I passed around magical weapons and items from the treasury, anything I thought would help keep them alive.
“Listen up,” I said. “It’s going to be nasty fighting out there. I am the tip of the spear. You two,” I pointed to Ragnar and Skeld, “will keep me from getting flanked and Tarryn from getting shanked. Tarryn, you’re there to clean up after me. Nothing gets left alive, nothing escapes. These fuckers are just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Understand?”
Nods.
“Meikeljan, you’re keeping our asses out of the fire. I don’t really know what you bring to the party, but I suspect you can help keep us alive and uncorrupted.”
The little white head nodded at me, his tiny eyes wide.
“Right,” he said. “I can do that, my lord. Just, uh, I believe it is very important to keep, uh, all fluids from you.”
“Yup,” I said, “good safety tip. Helms on.”
The group all pulled out the full coverage helmets I’d asked them to bring, and everyone plopped them on their heads.
I thought about pulling out Eona’s bow, and while that was definitely staying with me, I worried the noise of the bow would make it hard to keep things secret for long. I also worried it would do serious damage to the rest of the dudes around me. I felt mildly annoyed when I made myself deaf, but it probably wouldn’t go so well for someone who couldn’t just regenerate like I could. Instead of the bow, I pulled out the Sword of Weight and a large heavy shield that gave me a little more oomph when I bashed my shield.
Finally, I took the little glowing rock out, my handy guide to hunting the corrupted ones, and tied it to the inside of my shield arm. At a glance, I could see the direction of one of the corrupted. A quick twirl of the giant sword, and I was ready to go. The boys had their spears out, and Tarryn’s smiling face was lit by the small fireball he held in his hands.
“Let’s hunt,” I said.
Chapter Fifty-Four
The sun was low over the mountains – our little corner of the valley had yet to get the light. Fog swirled low amongst the trees and grass. It was a sharp cold, like winter was here, but playing with us. All the little animals of the forest had gone silent. Or just gone. It wasn’t clear.
We slipped over the wall and followed along the mountain wall until we were in the trees.
It was mere moments before the enemy found us.
I think they thought they’d catch us by surprise, but the little glowing rock was going crazy. So as soon as they burst through the undergrowth, I was ready. Three of the huge bears, one ahead of the other two, leapt through the air.
I caught the lead bear’s attack on my shield, and stood up to lift him high above my head. He continued flying, with only a slight alteration in direction. I used my momentum to bring a great underhand chop right through the legs of the next of my opponents. The sword bit deep into the bear, and blood poured forth. Behind me, I heard the grunts and squelches indicating the end to the first bear I threw.
Number three seemed completely unconcerned with what happened to his comrades, and came at me with a giant metal club aimed for my head.
A small stream of fire shot right by me, splashing over the bear. The bear’s heavy armor seemed to keep some of it at bay, but it seemed l
ike the magical fire was a liquid sort, and that meant it splashed. And once it got on the fur, things went south in a hurry. He went from fur ball to fireball in 1.8 seconds flat.
I gave him a swift kick and sent him fumbling away from me, screaming. He tripped over a large root and hit the ground. I put the poor bastard out of his misery with a quick swing.
I looked over my shoulder to see one shocked face, Meikeljan, and three grim faces. The lutra nodded at me, and I nodded back. This was just beginning.
We worked from camp to camp, following the glowing rock. We had a real advantage in the ursus army being so spread out in order to cover the entire forest surrounding Coggeshall, meaning that we never faced overwhelming odds. Sure, there were times when we were pressed, but perhaps because of my Choice as Burgmann or because Eona was watching over us, we managed to hold on. I had to change out my shield twice because the ursus beat on them so hard. Another time when stats came in handy – I could see when a shield’s durability was just about done, and then switch it out before it failed completely.
My hunting party downed potions of stamina, healing, mana, just pouring elixirs down their throats on the regular. The wounds they received were never horrific, but they mounted up until we had to take a short rest. Meikeljan was quite useful in that regard, because he was able to provide spot healing during conflicts, even for me.
As night neared, we came to a clearing. Finally, we saw the thing I’d been worried about.
The bulk of the corrupted ones were there, arrayed for battle. I wasn’t positive it was the entire remainder of their forces, but it seemed likely. They knew we were coming, they knew we were able to find them, and they knew they only had one real advantage – numbers. I couldn’t imagine their overconfident commander sending anyone away. He stood in the middle, looming over all the other ursus.
They hadn’t seen us yet; we were still in the underbrush.