Shilah put her hand on the Frost. After a moment of contemplation, she nodded. ‘Looks like all three of us are hurting.’ Then she shrugged, a hopeful smile playing across her face. ‘Doesn’t mean we won’t get better.’
‘So you saw it already?’ I asked.
‘To see only with the eyes,’ she said, stroking her fingers around her delicate mouth like she had a goatee, ‘is to be truly blind.’
I raised an eyebrow.
‘You think you’re the only one who learned things from Leroi?’ she asked.
‘He told you that?’
‘And more.’ She gave me a mischievous look. ‘There’s more secrets in the world than you know.’
‘So what do we do?’ I asked. ‘Because I’m feeling rather blind at the moment.’
‘We have faith,’ she said.
I paused, taken aback. ‘I thought you don’t believe in the Crier like that?’
She looked me straight on again, her eyes soft this time. ‘I have faith in you. I have faith in us. I have faith that we’ll find a solution, just like we always have.’
‘Is that faith?’
‘Just because you don’t have faith in something divine,’ she said. ‘You still have to have faith in something. Otherwise, what’s the point?’
I let out a long breath, the crushing weight beginning to slide off my shoulders. ‘So what do we do?’
All of a sudden there was a rush of darkness at the edge of my vision; a shadow moving without any sound. My heart leaped as I spun towards the motion, the muddled silhouette forming into the shape of Dunes as it swept closer. He stopped at the edge of the platform, the hooked blade held over his heart. He’d refused any groan salve at all for his wounds, and his forearms were still rough and angry with cuts.
‘Meshua,’ he said, bowing to me.
Shilah sighed.
‘She’s Meshua too, Dunes,’ I said.
Dunes hesitated and then nodded, bowing to Shilah as well. ‘Of course.’
‘So I assume you heard all that?’ I asked, wondering if I’d just undone all the confidence the flock had in me. ‘Our new obstacle.’
‘Apologies,’ he said. ‘It was not intended. But I have the best ears in the World Cried.’
I swallowed hard. ‘So you still choosing our side?’
Dunes ran a finger over the scar on his cheek. ‘Forever. And I will get you another Frost. If you need another Frost I will get you another Frost. And then another. And another. You will never run out. I swear by the Crier’s first tears you will never run out.’
Shilah and I exchanged a look.
‘And where would you get a Frost?’ I asked, remembering what had happened the last time someone brought me a Frost. I looked at Cam, who was fast asleep, a rope of drool hanging from his lips.
‘The Sanctuary,’ Dunes said.
I knew that’s what he was going to suggest. I also knew that it would be madness for him to return there now, the one place where the enemy knew we’d been.
But I also thought of the Ice bridge.
And the crossbows.
And allowing a Hookman into our family.
Madness had a way of working in our favour.
Shilah shook her head. ‘No. It’ll be crawling with guards and Nobles and probably even the Vicaress and Hookmen, all looking for a clue as to how to find us. No, Dunes. We’ll find ano—’
‘Go,’ I said.
‘I will not be caught,’ Dunes announced, dropping into a bow.
Shilah turned to me, her face aghast. ‘Spout. No.’
‘He won’t get caught,’ I said. ‘You told me to have faith.’
‘I will be silence,’ Dunes said, bowed so low that I thought his blade might scrape the shine off the stone floor. ‘I will be the blackness between stars.’
‘Go,’ I said. ‘Don’t get caught.’
Dunes’s eyes were full of resolve. ‘I will return with everything you need.’
And with a final bow he was gone.
That night I dreamt of the Vicaress.
She found us in the cave, my eyes opening from sleep to see her silently gliding through the dark, every step full of determined fury. She stepped around the Domestics, ignoring Cam and the Pedlar, and went right for me. Shilah and I had been sleeping next to the Coldmaker on the dancing platform, and she sauntered up on the polished stone edge. She hovered over me, flaming dagger in hand, and dripped some wax beside my sleeping body. The splatter smelled like the dead-carts baking in the Sun. Then Shilah got a dose. The heat of the fire felt real. The Vicaress had her Hookmen at her back, and there were five of them again. They waited just off the platform in deadly formation, more terrifying than I recalled.
Dunes was back under her command.
It seemed I was to be his final scar, marking the last patch of clean skin. He’d completed his grandest task yet: fooling the runaway into thinking he was a friend. Offering a kiss and then unsheathing fangs.
The Vicaress stepped back from my body, a wicked smile on her face. Her eyes shone crystal blue, catching the light of her flaming dagger, and she nodded to the Hookmen. She was wearing the tight black silk she always preferred, both her curves and the outline of her face outstandingly attractive, and my sleeping mind felt an embarrassing stirring between my legs. I didn’t fault myself too deeply, however, because I knew I couldn’t control what happened in my dream.
Ellia and Ellcia began screaming in my dream.
Leah hid behind one of the rocks in my dream.
Cam blubbered, pulling at his yellow hair in my dream. Split had the Glassland Dream in my dream, trying to get the cork out of the bottle. Everything was too vivid and uncomfortable, and I was ready to be done with it.
I sat up, blinking, trying to wake myself.
Shilah was already on her feet, refusing to die on her knees.
I worked my jaw and hammered a fist into my leg.
I could smell the Vicaress’s fire in my dream.
I could feel the fear in the air, my flock deathly afraid.
I blinked and blinked, but the vision did not dissipate.
Everything stopped.
The truth struck.
It was all real.
This was not a dream.
Dunes had led the Vicaress and the Hookmen right to us.
I’d been betrayed.
‘You bastard,’ Shilah seethed, pointing at Dunes. ‘You Sun-damned bastard! How could you do this?’
Split was standing in front of Picka, his eyes already glazed over from the grey powder. The Pedlar was smiling, a pinky twisting in his ear. ‘Told you. Hah! Once a Hookman, always a Hookman.’
‘You really did well, Hamman,’ the Vicaress said. ‘I can’t believe I doubted your commitment. Once again, I offer a rare apology. Everything is as you said.’
For the first time, Dunes did not correct his name.
Hamman was back.
‘They took us!’ Leah shouted. ‘We didn’t have a choice! They stole us and brought us here in chains!’
‘Trick,’ Ellcia exhaled. ‘We gunn back to Ka’in. We gunn get the Fall.’
Cam went to pick up his crossbow, his face full of rage, but the Vicaress waved her blade at him. ‘Touch that weapon, Camlish Tavor, and I’ll give them worse than death! It’s an easy thing with girls. And I’ll make you watch the whole thing.’
Cam paused. None of the Hookmen were wearing anything like armour, nothing solid for the Abb to explode against.
It was over.
They had us cornered.
‘Cam,’ I said. ‘Don’t.’
Cam shot Hamman a look of pure revulsion.
I couldn’t even muster up any sort of hate or barbed last words for the Hookman in these final moments. I’d truly believed he was my friend. He’d played the part so convincingly that I could only stare in disbelief, my whole body sinking, melting into the stone. The final bit of hope holding my heart together had turned to dust. Everything good in me finally fell apart.
<
br /> I was to end as a broken fool.
‘Now then,’ the Vicaress said, a laugh in her voice. ‘The Crier is very excited to meet you all. To punish those who dare oppose his Gospels. You shall spend an eternity pondering your mistake in complete darkness, blind and deaf, as your skin is boiled away and your eyes are eaten by beetles. And did you know that it doesn’t end? The Crier told me personally that everything will grow back and start again fresh and brutal. Oh, what agony shall be the eternal fate you have chosen. Who would like to go first?’
Hamman gave a nod to the other Hookmen. He reached into his pocket, showed them a single Abb, and then tossed it into the sacred pool.
The whole thing changed to Ice, the deep crackling resonating in my chest.
The four other Hookmen dropped to their knees, bowing their heads. But not towards the Vicaress.
Towards me.
The Vicaress’s eyes went wild, her mouth at a loss.
‘They do not kneel for you,’ Hamman said, cutting her off.
She looked as if she might topple over in shock. ‘Hamman. How—’
‘Hamman. Is. Gone,’ he bellowed.
Hope jolted into my chest.
‘Get up, Hookmen!’ the Vicaress screamed, waving her blade. ‘Get off your knees and—’
‘They do not bow for you!’ Dunes bellowed, spit flying from his lips. ‘You are unworthy!’
The Vicaress’s mouth gaped, trying to understand what was happening. My jaw did the same, hanging low. It was the first time the Vicaress and I had something in common.
‘Meshua,’ Dunes said, dropping to his knees. ‘We kneel for you.’
‘I kneel for you,’ one of the Hookmen said, making a strange gesture over his heart and then reaching out towards the Ice. ‘Meshua.’
The others echoed his movements, their voices all gravelly, yet distinct.
‘I kneel for you. Meshua.’
‘I kneel for you. Meshua.’
Only the biggest and most menacing Hookman didn’t speak.
I’d never been so out of sorts in my entire life.
The Vicaress stepped forwards, her body shaking with rage. ‘Get off your knees, slaves! I don’t know what you think you’re playing at, it’s just a trick! They are tricking you, and you will be severely punished! The Ice isn’t real!’
The Hookmen all looked to Dunes, their faces serious.
Dunes gave another nod.
They rose as one unit.
‘Meshua,’ Dunes said. ‘I have promised to get you what you need. I could not find the Frost in the Sanctuary. Apologies. The whole place is swarming with enemies. I will get you a Frost, but in the meantime, I bring you this.’
‘Brought us what?’ I asked, mouth dry. I didn’t notice until that moment, but Shilah’s hand had found mine and was squeezing tightly, her palm sweaty.
Dunes took his blade off his hip, holding it high.
The other Hookmen did the same.
‘Family,’ Dunes said.
The Hookmen advanced on the Vicaress, their blades gleaming. She was so taken aback that she didn’t even get a chance to move away from the attack. Dunes drove his blade into her stomach, angling it so it would go in all the way up to the hilt. He lifted her whole body off the ground. The curved tip came through her back, pointing towards the sky. Her flaming blade skittered across the stone, landing on the Ice with a hiss. The other Hookmen circled the Vicaress, slashing their blades through the air, waiting their turn. One at a time they silently thrust their weapons into her flesh, the polished steel finding a home in the Vicaress’s chest and back and throat, the whole platform stained red in a matter of moments. Trails of blood flowed past my feet, and I could only look down in shock.
Everything was over almost as fast as it had begun.
The Vicaress was dead.
Five blades had been driven through her body.
The Hookmen were kneeling again, hands empty. They ignored the corpse at their feet, unconcerned with the holy Noble who had once controlled their every move.
‘They believe in you,’ Dunes said, lifting his head just enough so he could look me in the eyes as he spoke. His face was splattered with red. ‘They have faith in you now. I told them your truth, and convinced them to join the cause. We are yours. We will protect you until the final tear streaks the night. We will escort you on your most holy Coldmarch, and destroy any enemies in your path. Only say the word and it shall be done. By your command.’
‘By your command,’ the other Hookmen echoed one by one, the Closed Eyes that had been scarred into their heads stark from this angle. ‘By your command.’
Again the final Hookman was silent, but he bowed nonetheless.
Shilah’s hand was still in mine, and I pulled her off the platform and away from the pooling blood. She stumbled along, caught in disbelief as well, her eyes not leaving the fallen body.
The Hookmen pivoted to face us as we moved, remaining on their knees.
‘What do we do?’ I asked. ‘What in the World Cried just happened?’
Shilah paused, her eyes never straying from the Vicaress. She didn’t smile, but something was stirring behind her eyes.
‘Shilah,’ I said, totally at a loss for any other words, my heart hammering.
‘The Hookmen are gone,’ she said, surveying all the blood. She finally broke her gaze and looked instead at the kneeling figures, a dark smile finally rising to her lips. ‘These men will need a new title.’
Dunes looked up at Shilah with a wide grin, nodding his head. ‘Meshua.’
Shilah’s cheeks flushed with pride.
Cam skirted over to us, tapping me on the shoulder. ‘Um, Spout.’
‘Yeah, Cam.’
‘I think those Hookmen just killed the Vicaress.’
‘The Hookmen are gone,’ I said. ‘But I believe you’re right.’
‘Did that really happen?’ Cam said, tapping his glasses.
‘Yeah, Cam,’ I said.
‘So …’ Cam wobbled from foot to foot, staring at the whole pool of Ice. ‘Are we just going to go on like everything’s normal, or …?’
‘We burn the body and finish the Coldmarch,’ Shilah said. ‘Take everyone to Langria.’
‘No,’ I said.
Shilah let go of my hand, looking at me sideways.
‘Not yet,’ I said, going over to these new Jadans. ‘My family. Stand up, please.’
They rose as one unit, unfazed. They were powerful and mysterious and could strike fear into most every heart, Noble or Jadan. The silent one in the middle was somehow even bigger than Dunes, his brow prominent and eyes deadly.
‘The Khat is coming,’ I said, trying not to let my lack of confidence show.
‘Yes,’ Cam squeaked. ‘All the more reason to leave.’
‘We can’t get to Langria without another Frost,’ I said. ‘And the Khat is on his way here.’
‘You think that’s a sign?’ Cam asked.
Shilah gave me a gentle and knowing nod.
I glanced at the group of Jadans and Nobles surrounding me, counting on me, not only to make the right decision, but to change everything. I thought about all those Domestics still trapped in the Sanctuary, with the Khat on his way. And of all the Jadans around the World Cried still in chains tonight.
I thought about Abb, and what he might think if he could see all of this.
Then I smiled, looking at the Coldmaker.
What an absurd thing to ponder.
My father was right there by my side.
‘I’m not sure about signs,’ I said. ‘But you know what I do think?’
Cam breathed deeply, his eyes following the streams of red streaking towards the Ice. ‘What?’
‘I think that we have the beginning of an army,’ I said, rubbing the back of my neck. ‘And I think it’s time to begin the war.’
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to an invaluable cast of characters living on the other side of these pages:
Da
nielle Zigner – The Mighty Pedlar
Vicky Leech – The Story Sage
Jardin Telling – The Enchantress
Steve Cohen – The Wise Father (w/Jokes)
Charlotte Webb – The Open Eye Scribe
Fionnuala Barrett – The Open Ear Scout
Natasha Bardon – The Queen
Jack Renninson – The Builder
Thomas Judd – The Bard
Stephen Mulcahey – The Artist
About the Author
Having spent most of his life trapped in the frozen tundra of upstate New York, Daniel Cohen decided to dream himself somewhere new. It was from this quest for heat that the scorching world of COLDMAKER was born.
www.danielacohenbooks.com
@saxophonehome
Also by Daniel A. Cohen
Coldmaker
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