The First Champion

by Sandell Wall

  Chapter 47

  LACRAEL LISTENED AS SORRELL explained what had happened with Mazareem and Morricant. She knew before Sorrell finished that the other woman was right: they had to make their move now or the opportunity would be lost forever. Lacrael tried not to let her frustration show. She had expected to have a few more days to formulate a plan. Luring Elise into a trap would not be easy, and right now, she had only a vague idea about how to go about it.

  “Are you hurt?” Lacrael said when Sorrell fell silent. “You’re favoring your right arm.”

  Sorrell grimaced. In answer, she lifted her right arm and let the sleeve of her robe fall away. Her hand was gone. In its place was a bloody, ice-covered stump.

  Lacrael’s heart sank. Niad gasped.

  “Who did that to you?” Gustavus said. Lacrael was surprised by the anger in his voice.

  “Morricant, but she didn’t intend to,” Sorrell said. “She was about to kill me, and Mazareem distracted her. In the scuffle that followed, the restraints that bound me cut off my hand.”

  Gustavus grunted. “Better your hand than your head.”

  “There is that.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Lacrael said.

  Niad drew near to Sorrell to inspect the wound. Sorrell shook her head, clearly fighting back tears.

  “We need to dress it properly,” Niad said.

  “I’m still alive,” Sorrell said. “I can still fight.”

  “At least you're free of Mazareem,” Lacrael said. “We’ll not let you go a second time.”

  Sorrell visibly shuddered. “I still can’t believe we’re trusting him to help us. Did you find Kaiser and Brant?”

  “They’re safe, for the time being,” Lacrael said with a nod. “Mazareem’s ceremony will take place in the grand arena in the center of the city. Kaiser and Brant will be a part of the entertainment for the crowd. When our powers are restored, they’ll collect Mazareem and bring him to the portal.”

  Sorrell was going to say something in response, but her attention had been diverted when she noticed Tarathine tied up on the bed. The girl was watching them with her feral eyes.

  “She’s awake!” Sorrell said. “But… what’s wrong with her? Why is she tied up?”

  “She came back a demon,” Gustavus said. He pointed at the angry red claw marks that still marred his face. “She’s restrained because she’s a menace to herself and us.”

  “I know you have questions,” Lacrael said, interrupting. “And the others can answer them later. But if this insane plan is going to work, I have to be in position outside of the city by tomorrow morning. That means I only have the rest of today and tonight to make that happen.”

  “You said you had an idea,” Niad said as she worked to bandage Sorrell’s bloody stump. “Now’s the time to tell us what it is.”

  “To survive in the concentrated miasma outside the city walls, I need the armor of a tomb keeper. I’m only going to get my hands on that if I steal it. I’ll never be able to infiltrate an armory, gather what I need, and carry it back here. The only other way is to lure one of them into an ambush.”

  Lacrael pulled Elise’s dagger from beneath her robe.

  “With this dagger, and the investigation being conducted on Hexia’s disappearance, I think I can tempt Elise into a clandestine meeting. I’ll tell her I know where Hexia’s killers are, and I’ll say she has to come alone. Niad will be waiting to get the drop on her. We’ll have to make it for tonight. We just need a good spot for the set up.”

  “But how will you prevent her from arresting you on the spot?” Sorrell said. “If you show her that dagger, she’ll know you're the forsaken that took it from her, which places you with us.”

  “If I don’t go as a forsaken, she won’t,” Lacrael said.

  Lacrael placed her mask on the table and started to strip out of her forsaken robes.

  “She doesn’t know my face,” Lacrael said. “Without the mark of the forsaken, I can pass as a simple servant. My dark skin is uncommon in the city, but it’s not unheard of. I’ll pose as a servant that’s helping a slave who wants to report her master. I’ll say I work in the slave quarters. She doesn’t have the authority to search the entire compound for us, but if I tell her I can help identify the specific room Hexia’s killers are hiding in, Elise will think she can get in and get out before anyone can stop her.”

  “But you’ve stayed hidden this entire time because someone might remember you from your childhood,” Sorrell said.

  Lacrael shrugged. “It’s a risk I have to take.”

  “You speak as if I can crack Elise on the back of the head and it’s as simple as that,” Niad said. “Have you forgotten how formidable these tomb keepers are? She’ll not go down easy, that’s for sure.”

  “As soon as you reveal yourself, I’ll attack,” Lacrael said. “Do you know a spot where we can surprise her?”

  Niad pursed her lips. The other woman clearly was not sold on this plan.

  “If we’re going to do this at night, and you’re going to pose as a servant from this quarter, we’d best make the meeting spot believable,” Niad said. “Tell her to meet you in the alley that’s adjacent to the outer compound wall. That’s private enough, and it’s the most likely spot for such a meeting. It’s where Elise would expect you to send her.”

  Lacrael nodded. She had stripped down to her plain white undergarments. After glancing down at herself, she looked up at Sorrell.

  “I hate to ask, but can I have that dress?” Lacrael said. “I’d blend in much better wearing a proper servant’s uniform.”

  “Of course,” Sorrell said.

  Gustavus turned his back to them as Lacrael and Sorrell swapped outfits. Sorrell’s missing hand was painfully obvious when not hidden in the long sleeve of the dress. Lacrael adjusted the garment until it sat comfortably, and once she was happy with it, she tucked Elise’s dagger up her sleeve.

  “I’ll be back before sundown,” Lacrael said. “That should give us time to get to the alley and get into position before Elise arrives.”

  “And if you’re not?” Niad said.

  Lacrael paused with her hand on the door. “If I don’t return, take Tarathine and get to the arena before sunrise. With Kaiser and Brant, you might be able to fight your way to the portal.”

  With these dire words rattling around in her head, Lacrael left the room. She tried not to consider the possibility that Elise might simply arrest her on sight and use her as justification to search the slavers’ quarter.

  By now, the route down the servants’ stairs and out through the gate was a familiar pathway for Lacrael’s feet. She felt conspicuous without her mask and forsaken robe. The chances that someone might recognize her were remote, but the last thing she needed was for someone to identify her as the long-vanished flamekeeper.

  Once through the main gate of the compound, Lacrael made straight for the House Riggor estate. Everyone in the city knew where it was. Second only to Morricant’s dark citadel, the House Riggor castle was one of the largest buildings in Orcassus.

  Lacrael stopped at the head of the street that led up to the fortified gates of House Riggor’s territory. She wanted to make sure she had her story straight. The spires and towers of the urban castle rose high over the surrounding buildings, and Lacrael imagined Elise staring down at her from one of those lofty windows.

  When she had rehearsed her deception three times, Lacrael moved towards the squad of tomb keepers that stood watch outside the gate. They observed her approach, bored at first, but growing increasingly suspicious when Lacrael never diverted her path.

  “Begone, slave,” one of the tomb keepers said when Lacrael stopped in front of them. “Don’t you know where you are? You don’t belong here.”

  “I’ve come with information for Tomb Keeper Elise,” Lacrael said. “I saw the posted missive about the missing girl. I can help.”

  The tomb keepers regarded her silently for a moment before conferring quietly amongst themselves. F
inally, one of them turned back to Lacrael.

  “Wait here,” the woman said. “We’ll see if Elise deigns to speak with you.”

  Lacrael waited patiently while one of the tomb keepers disappeared through the gate to find Elise. The other tomb keepers ignored her completely. To keep her courage up, Lacrael thought of Brant. She missed him terribly, and she hoped he was okay. When he was at her side, there was no challenge Lacrael could not overcome, and even the thought of him strengthened her spirit.

  Loud footsteps on the other side of the gate brought Lacrael’s attention back to the present. Elise marched through the gate and straight up to Lacrael. The proud tomb keeper struck an imposing figure in her gilded armor and pointed sollerets. A conventional, close-faced helmet bounced on her right hip, and her sword hung in a sheath on her left. On her back, she wore the leather pack common to all tomb keepers.

  “Stand over here,” Elise commanded. “You’re blocking the gate.”

  Lacrael obeyed and moved to the side of the street. This benefited her, because now she could talk without the other tomb keepers overhearing.

  “Speak your part,” Elise said. “I’ll be the judge over whether your information is worth a reward.”

  Lacrael smiled to herself. She was pretty sure what she had to say would get Elise’s interest.

  “I’m a servant in the slavers’ quarter,” Lacrael said. “A forsaken contacted me and bade me come to you. She didn’t come herself because she thinks you’d arrest her on sight. She says her master is responsible for the disappearance of your missing girl, and she wants no part in it. She’ll lead you to her master, on the condition that you’ll not hold her accountable.”

  Elise looked like she had swallowed something foul. “Strike a bargain with a forsaken? She was right to stay away. I’d have taken her head for such impertinence. You're the tenth idiot today claiming to have information and the most absurd by far.”

  “Forgive me,” Lacrael said, ducking her head. “She said to show you this. She said you’d recognize it.”

  Moving slowly, Lacrael pulled Elise’s dagger from her sleeve. She presented the weapon hilt first to Elise, making sure the markings on the handle were visible. As Lacrael had hoped, the sight of the blade galvanized Elise.

  “She gave you that?” Elise said. “Put it away, the sight of it annoys me.”

  Lacrael complied. She waited, watching Elise ponder this new evidence.

  “How am I supposed to make contact with this… woman?” Elise finally asked.

  “There’s an alley just outside the walls of the slavers’ quarter,” Lacrael said. “Meet her there after nightfall. And come alone or she won’t reveal herself.”

  Elise’s eyes narrowed. “What’s in this for you? Don’t tell me you came here out of the goodness of your own heart.”

  Lacrael tried to put a self-satisfied smirk on her face. “You’d never give the reward to a forsaken,” she said. “So I want it all for myself.”

  At this, Elise tilted her head back and let out a harsh laugh. Lacrael flinched and hoped the tomb keeper did not notice.

  “Of course you do,” Elise said. “Run along now. Tell your friend that I’ll be there tonight, and she’d better deliver on her promises, or I’ll give the both of you to the Ravening.”

  Lacrael bowed her head and scurried away, doing her best to keep up the act of a contrite slave. She did not look back as she turned the corner and moved out of sight of the House Riggor castle. That had gone better than she expected. Judging by Elise’s reaction, Lacrael thought there was a good chance the tomb keeper would appear as requested tonight. The dagger had done the trick.

  The only trouble remaining was to actually pull off the ambush. Niad was right—Elise was a formidable warrior. Even taken by surprise, Elise would still be dangerous. The one advantage Lacrael was counting on was the tomb keeper’s pride. She hoped that Elise would never suspect an attack from a slave and a forsaken. After all, the thought that they might assault a tomb keeper armed with nothing but a single dagger was preposterous.

  Lacrael walked quickly as she retraced her steps through the city. The afternoon sun was low in the sky. It would soon be evening, and she wanted to get back to the room with enough time to hide in the alley with Niad before nightfall.

  To Lacrael’s surprise, there was a queue to get back into the slavers’ quarter. Ten women waited their turn to be questioned and then either turned away or allowed to pass by the tomb keepers at the gate. The city was on edge for some reason, and the guards were giving everyone extra scrutiny.

  Taking her place at the back of the line, Lacrael forced herself to remain calm. She only had to tell the truth: she had ventured out into the city on an errand for her master and was now returning to report its completion. They had to let her back in. Lacrael refused to contemplate the consequences if they did not.

  While she waited, Lacrael scanned the surrounding buildings. Impatience got the better of her, and she caught herself tapping her foot. She admonished herself for this. It would do her no good for the guards to know how desperately Lacrael needed to get by. To distract herself, she turned and looked back down the street the way she had come. A sudden movement drew her eye, and Lacrael’s impatience turned to fear in an instant.

  Elise had followed her.

  Chapter 48

  LACRAEL HAD ONLY CAUGHT the briefest of glimpses, but she had seen Elise ducking out of sight around the corner of a building. The tomb keeper had trailed her. Lacrael cursed under her breath—how had she not anticipated this? Nothing ever went according to plan in this blighted realm. Now she was trapped.

  Possible outcomes raced through Lacrael’s mind, none of them good. If she managed to escape Elise’s attempt to track her, the tomb keeper would be suspicious, and the planned ambush in the alley would be impossible. But if Lacrael allowed herself to be caught before returning to the room, Elise would probably arrest her.

  The only option left was to lead Elise back to the room where the others waited. If Lacrael moved fast, she could give them a few seconds warning before Elise arrived. They would have to try to take down the tomb keeper now. As Lacrael considered this, she decided it was not a terrible alternative. They had needed to get Elise alone somehow, and the room was private enough.

  Lacrael was certain that the tomb keeper would burst in on them once she reached the room. Elise was a proud warrior out for vengeance. She did not strike Lacrael as someone who would fall back, regroup, and wait for reinforcements. This meant they gave up the element of surprise, but there was nothing she could do about that.

  Finally, Lacrael’s turn came to approach the guards watching the gate. She calmed her nerves and stepped up for their inspection.

  “State your business,” one of the tomb keepers said.

  “I was on an errand for my master,” Lacrael said. “I left less than two hours go, and now, I’ve returned to report its completion.”

  Another tomb keeper waved a hand at the first. “I remember her. She’s telling the truth. Let her pass.”

  The tomb keeper questioning Lacrael nodded and stepped aside. Lacrael ducked her head and moved through the gate. No doubt, Elise would skip the queue and breeze past the guards.

  Lacrael was anxious to reach the room and warn the others, but she did not dare move too fast. She wanted Elise to stay on her tail, and she did not want to alert the other woman that she was wise to the pursuit.

  Walking at a determined but not hurried pace, Lacrael moved around the left side of the building and made for the servants’ entrance. Only with a tremendous amount of effort did she stop herself from looking over her shoulder to see if Elise still followed. She pushed through the door, and the instant she was hidden from the outside, Lacrael sprinted up the first two flights of stairs. At the second landing, she paused. She leaned out over the railing and looked down.

  Sure enough, the door below her swung open and Elise stepped through. Lacrael jerked her head back. After a deep breath,
she resumed her climb. This time, she walked slowly, and with a loud enough tread that Elise could not fail to hear her.

  On the fourth floor, Lacrael pushed through the door into the hallway. This was the top floor, so there was no chance Elise would lose her trail. Again, Lacrael dashed down the hallway until she stood in front of the door to the room where the others waited. She hesitated with her hand on the handle, waiting to see the stairwell door move before she went inside. Lacrael uttered a silent prayer in the hope that Elise would stop for a moment to plan her attack.

  A few seconds later, the stairwell door swung open, and Lacrael pushed inside the room. Niad and Gustavus were seated at the single table. Tarathine was still secured on the bed. All three of them looked up at Lacrael’s entrance.

  “She followed me,” Lacrael said. “We have about ten seconds before she’s outside the door. If we don’t take her out now, we’re dead.”

  To their credit, Niad and Gustavus reacted immediately. Sometimes Lacrael forgot that they had been smugglers for as long as she had been alive. Gustavus flipped the table on its side, and with two savage downward strikes of his palm, snapped the highest legs clean off. He handed one of the makeshift clubs to Niad, and he brandished the other.

  “Where’s Sorrell?” Lacrael asked, suddenly realizing she was missing.

  “She went to get food,” Niad said.

  Accepting this with a nod, Lacrael slipped the dagger out of her sleeve and into her palm. She took up position on the left side of the door where it would swing open and cover her from view. Niad took the right side, and Gustavus planted his feet in the center of the room. The ambush was in place without a word being spoken to coordinate it.

  Elise would come through the door, see Gustavus, and react to the threat of his club. Niad would blindside her from the right. When Elise was off-balance, Lacrael would slip in from behind and finish her with a killing stab from the dagger.

  The three of them waited in tense silence. After a few terrible moments, Lacrael started to worry that she had been wrong. Elise must have fallen back to report their location and bring more soldiers. She was just about to open her mouth to speak her misgivings when the door crashed open.