The Severed City

by Christopher Mitchell

  ‘Laodoc,’ she said, ‘I’m so sorry. Have you been waiting long?’

  ‘It’s quite all right, miss,’ he replied. ‘Your servants said you were at the palace. I know how time can get away from you there.’

  ‘You’re too kind,’ she said, sitting down in an armchair.

  ‘I really just popped by to say cheerio,’ he said, ‘and that I’m going to miss you. You’ve been a true friend.’

  Daphne defences crumbled, and she burst into tears.

  ‘Oh dear,’ Laodoc said.

  ‘It’s not you,’ Shella said. ‘Well, it’s partly you. Daffers has had a rough day.’

  She sat on the arm of Daphne’s chair, and put an arm round her shoulder.

  Daphne took a handkerchief from a pocket, and wiped her eyes.

  ‘Sorry, Laodoc,’ she said.

  ‘No need to apologise, miss,’ he said. ‘Oh my, look at us. I might start crying myself at any moment.’

  ‘Please don’t,’ Shella said.

  ‘Are you nervous about going?’ Daphne said, sniffing.

  ‘Yes,’ he replied, ‘I’d be foolish to deny it. The Rahain government will see me as the worst kind of traitor, but I believe the alliance can defeat them, and bring about a better society for all of my people. It’s very exciting.’

  Daphne nodded.

  ‘I’ll be going as an advisory member to the council of eight,’ he went on, ‘but I’ll not have a vote. I suppose my role is to temper’s the alliance’s urge for revenge, and encourage its more benign instincts. The king told me he wants a clean transfer of power, and quite amazed me when he said that he wanted to use the constitution that I had prepared as the template for the new government.’

  ‘Well done,’ Daphne said.

  ‘It will be a long journey,’ he said, ‘and I regret that I’ll miss the birth of your child. I wish you all the luck and success, for you and your baby.’

  ‘Thanks Laodoc,’ she said. ‘I wish you luck as well. When you get to Rahain, and overthrow the government, will you do something for me?’

  ‘Of course, miss. Name it.’

  ‘Killop is leading a rebellion of slaves in the mountains.’

  ‘Ah, yes,’ Laodoc said. ‘I’ve been briefed on that. I don’t know the details, but Killop’s forces were discussed at the last meeting of the council of eight.’

  ‘If you see him,’ she said, ‘tell him I’m alive. Tell him about the baby.’

  ‘But why would he think you were not alive?’

  ‘Because Kylon told him I was dead.’

  ‘What?’ cried Shella. ‘Why didn’t you tell me? That lying bastard.’

  Daphne shrugged. ‘He did it to ensure Killop would stay to lead the rebellion. Compared to the war, I suppose me and my pregnancy are of small importance.’

  ‘I wouldn’t want to be Kylon when Killop finds out,’ Shella said.

  Daphne smiled. ‘Also, Laodoc,’ she said, ‘if the alliance is successful, and the government is overthrown, tell him I’ll come to him once the baby is old enough to travel. I’m sure he’ll have his hands full looking after his people.’

  ‘I will tell him,’ Laodoc said, ‘you have my word. I’d better be off, but before I go, I have something for you.’

  He reached down into a canvas bag, and took out a small object.

  ‘I found this,’ he said, ‘in the Kellach quarters of my mansion back in the Rahain capital, after the army had raided it. It was the only personal possession I ever saw them with, and if I had to speculate, I would say it was probably carried by them all the way from their homeland. The wood is of a type I do not recognise as being native to Rahain.’

  He handed her the object.

  It was a small wooden model of a mammal, rising on its hind legs, its powerful arms ending in finely carved claws. Its mouth was open in a roar, and sharp teeth were visible in its jaws.

  ‘It is a bear, I believe,’ Laodoc said, ‘a name I sometimes heard the others call Killop, so I think it might have been his.’

  It was too much.

  Daphne closed her eyes, and felt the tears stream down her face.

  Chapter 20

  Allure

  Severed City, Rahain Republic – 27th Day, Second Third Autumn 505

  ‘You did say you wanted the Rahain to come to us, Chief,’ Larissa whispered as they lay hidden under a thicket. ‘Well, you got your wish.’

  The bottom of the dry valley in front of them was covered in the tents of the republic’s military. Thousands of conscripted soldiers milled around, dug ditches, or were out on scouting patrols, trying to find a way into the Severed City.

  ‘The warriors are betting,’ Larissa went on, ‘about what will come first. Them finding one of the tunnels, or us starving to death.’

  Up on the horizon, a pair of winged gaien circled, bringing in supplies. Dozens of soldiers were on the ridge-top, guiding them in to land.

  ‘Come on,’ said Killop, ‘I’ve seen enough.’

  They crawled back through the low and twisted undergrowth, and squeezed through a small hole, remembering to replace the boulder covering the entrance. They emerged into a small rock-cut chamber, where a squad of warriors were waiting for them.

  ‘No changes,’ Killop said to them. ‘Rahain army is sitting fast. They’re being supplied from the air.’

  He gazed at the grim faces before him.

  ‘Keep guard here,’ he said, ‘and remember your orders.’

  ‘Aye, Chief,’ they replied.

  Killop nodded to Larissa, and they left by another tunnel, heading down into the heart of the city.

  ‘Still no sign of your plan working,’ she said.

  ‘You got a better one?’

  ‘Send them Lilyann,’ Larissa said. ‘She’s such a pain in the arse, she’ll annoy the lizards so much they’ll leave.’

  Killop suppressed an urge to agree. The young mage had accompanied them on their previous raid, before the Rahain army had arrived, but she had proved to be a hindrance, questioning every order, and slowing them down. The other warriors had been quick to complain, and he had needed to defend her in front of them, despite his own feelings.

  They reached a large tunnel junction, and turned left along a tall wide passageway.

  The route was busy, with Kellach civilians packing and moving crates and sacks, all heading to the deep southern caverns, to be away from the fighting when it came.

  He received a few grunts and nods of acknowledgement from his people, and came to the chief’s hall. Inside, his council were arguing.

  Bridget, Brodie and Kalden were shouting at each other round the table, while Draewyn looked bemused, and Dyam sat bent over her maps and plans. The Rahain captain Tiel was sitting alone, his arms folded, and his tongue flickering. Dim light from the overcast sky outside filled the hall.

  They quietened as they saw Killop and Larissa approach.

  ‘It’s happened, Chief,’ Bridget said, her face hard.

  Brodie turned to him, snarling. ‘One of the wee bastards ran away in the night. Why did we ever trust them?’

  ‘But Brodie,’ Killop said, ‘this is what we’ve been waiting for.’

  ‘That’s what I’ve been trying to tell him,’ Bridget said, picking up her mug.

  ‘We must throw the rest of them out,’ Brodie spat.

  ‘Calm down,’ Bridget said. ‘It would have been stupid to think that the Rahain wouldn’t plant a spy here in the city, or that one of them wouldn’t want to leave. It was only a matter of time. Why do you think we told the guards to turn the other way if any tried to get out?’

  ‘This does not sit well with me,’ Tiel said. ‘The implication that you expected to find a traitor among my people is most insulting.’

  ‘If it’s an insult,’ Killop said, ‘then it’s an insult to everyone. People are people. Races aren’t good or bad, people are good or bad. Or both, sometimes in the same day.’

  ‘The clan’s Rahain are very upset about this.’
r />   ‘As long as they’re ready to fight.’

  ‘Of course they are, Chief,’ Tiel said. ‘To the death.’

  Killop looked at the Rahain man. His tongue was flickering rapidly, as if he was having difficulty controlling his emotions.

  ‘Once the battle’s over,’ Killop said, ‘it’ll be a victory we’ll have won together. I’ve no doubt that our Rahain warriors will fight well.’

  Tiel nodded.

  ‘Now I want to hear from Dyam,’ Killop said. ‘What tunnel did the runaway leave from?’

  Dyam looked up. Her pale face had thinned, and she had dark circles under her eyes. Killop knew she had been working hard to keep afloat of her deep grief for Dominic. He worried that she might be close to a breakdown, but needed her at her best for a bit longer.

  ‘South-west exit, Chief,’ she said, her finger moving across the map in front of her. ‘It was the way we originally came in, and was always the most likely point of escape.’ She glanced up. ‘There are really only three main routes in or out of the city. For each I have prepared a plan, but I gave this route the most attention.’

  She shuffled the maps on the table, and found one marked with red ink.

  ‘There are ten thousand Rahain soldiers camped in the valley,’ she went on, ‘and they’ll take a long time to get into the caverns. We set off the trap too soon, and we’re left with thousands still outside. Too late, and we give them the opportunity of spreading throughout the city, where they’ll be much harder to find and kill.

  ‘Therefore, we need to guide them along a certain route, to make sure they end up where we want them.’

  She traced her finger along the map. Killop could see the tunnel they had first discovered, and then the large chamber with the three exits and the toppled statue that they had found on the first day. Dyam had marked the northernmost exit with an arrow, and had blocked off the other two.

  ‘How do we stop them going those ways?’ he asked.

  ‘It takes six Rahain shields abreast to fully block those tunnels. Crossbows teams at the front, fire-lamp throwers at the rear. Fifty of our Rahain in each tunnel, with twenty Kellach to back them up, should be enough to stop the enemy from getting through. If they use stone mages to bring the tunnels down it’ll have the same result.’ She pointed at the northernmost tunnel. ‘We need them to go down here, into this long tunnel. I’ve blocked off most of the side routes along it, and camouflaged the others. Crossbow teams and Kellach warriors will lie in wait here, here and here. When we set off the trap, the entire tunnel should be crowded with Rahain.’

  Killop pointed to a large cavern at the end of the long tunnel.

  ‘Is this where it will take place?’

  Dyam nodded.

  ‘Good job.’

  She shrugged. ‘I’m worried they won’t take the bait, and go up the northern tunnel.’

  ‘We’ll need someone to lure them,’ Bridget said.

  ‘I’ll do it,’ Killop said. ‘I’ll take a half-squad of raiders, and wait for them in the entrance cavern, where the broken statue lies.’

  ‘No Chief,’ Kalden said. ‘There are a hundred things that could go wrong.’

  ‘When I was a prisoner,’ Killop said, ‘Rahain officers used to come by to gawk at the brother of the fire mage. I’ve got more chance of being recognised than anyone else.’

  ‘That’s what makes it dangerous.’

  ‘Larissa,’ he said, ‘select six raiders and get them ready.’

  ‘Aye, Chief,’ she smiled.

  ‘Let’s go,’ Killop said. ‘You all know what to do. Keep to the plan. We’ll lure them in, and destroy them.’

  Killop paced, his boots crunching on the loose debris covering the floor of the cavern. Larissa sat up on the toppled statue’s pedestal, fidgeting with her longbow. Five warriors from their raiding company were gathered by the narrow tunnel in the west wall that led outside, watching for signs of the Rahain.

  Workteams had boarded up two of the three large openings in the east wall, leaving the northernmost entrance open. Behind the nailed-in planks and beams blocking the other two tunnels were half of the clan’s Rahain crossbow squads, the front rows of which were equipped with great door-sized shields.

  Oil lamps gave the chamber a low level of illumination, the opening in the roof above showing nothing but the blackness of the night sky.

  ‘Maybe they won’t come tonight,’ Larissa said, swinging her legs. ‘Maybe they know it’s a trap.’

  Killop shrugged.

  ‘Maybe they haven’t caught our wee runaway,’ she went on.

  ‘Or he’s slipped down a crevasse and broken his neck.’

  ‘And then what?’

  ‘Next, we deliberately send out a Rahain, who’ll get himself caught, and offer to lead them to us.’

  ‘Whoever volunteers for that is dead.’

  Killop nodded.

  Larissa took a swig from a skin of water. ‘What do you think you’ll do, Killop, once this is all over?’

  ‘Will it ever be over?’ Killop said. ‘I can’t walk away from being chief, no matter how this turns out.’

  ‘But will you take us all back to Kellach Brigdomin?’

  ‘I don’t know. I’m not sure everyone wants to go back. The Rahain levelled Kell, and most of Brig and Lach. They destroyed our farms and villages, and opened up enormous mines in the countryside. I’m not sure I want to go back.’

  ‘We could build a life here,’ she said, ‘if the lizards leave us alone.’

  ‘When there’s an end to slavery in Rahain.’

  ‘Might be a while then,’ she smirked, ‘but if that ever did happen, would we live here?’

  ‘I love the Severed City,’ he said. ‘But we couldn’t stay here long term. There’s not enough arable land to support a large population. A few thousand folk are fine, but there are over a hundred thousand Kellach slaves in Rahain, and they won’t all be heading back to the homeland. We’ll need to find somewhere better if we’re going to settle here.’

  ‘Somewhere out in the open,’ she said. ‘I’m sick of caverns and tunnels.’

  ‘Me too.’

  ‘Chief!’ one of the warriors by the wall called over. ‘They’re coming.’

  Moments later, the Kellach scout who had been watching further up the tunnel sprinted into the chamber.

  ‘It’s them,’ she cried. ‘And they’ve brought the bloody lot.’

  ‘Remember,’ Larissa said as they walked over, ‘we’re just a bored and lazy guard unit, caught by surprise. Light a couple more lamps, and talk loudly enough for them to hear you halfway down the tunnel.’

  ‘What if they collapse the roof on us?’ one asked.

  ‘They won’t,’ Killop said. ‘They’ve been looking for a way in since they got here, they won’t destroy one now that they’ve found it.’

  Killop peered up the narrow tunnel in the west wall. It was in utter darkness.

  Killop turned to the warriors. ‘Get your arses out of here as soon as they enter this chamber, but make sure they see which way you go.’

  From the corner of his eye he noticed a flicker of light. At the far end of the tunnel, where it turned towards the outside, he saw the tiny glow of a lamp.

  ‘There they are,’ he said. ‘Get into your positions.’

  The warriors ran back to the pedestal in the centre of the room, and gathered behind it. Their faces looked nervous, but they began talking loudly, about any nonsense that came into their heads.

  ‘I don’t like being the bait,’ Larissa said. ‘Usually it’s us sneaking up on the Rahain, not the other way about.’

  For what seemed like an age, they waited by the pedestal, talking rubbish.

  ‘They must have heard us,’ Larissa said, ‘otherwise they’d be here by now.’

  ‘Stay alert everybody,’ Killop said. ‘Keep your eyes open.’

  Without warning, a line of shields appeared at the entrance to the narrow tunnel, and a shower of crossbow bolts were fired i
nto the chamber.

  ‘Stay where you are,’ Killop shouted, as bolts flew past them, ricocheting off the stone walls. They kept their heads down behind the large marble pedestal. One warrior cried out as a splinter of stone gashed the side of his face.

  Killop leaned against the pedestal and closed his eyes. The thrum-thrum from the crossbows, and the sharp noise of the bolts impacting off the stone walls and pedestal rang through his ears.

  It went quiet, and he raised his head.

  Lines of Rahain soldiers were rushing into the room. Many stayed behind the shield wall, but others were fanning out to either side.

  ‘Go!’ Killop cried. ‘Run!’

  The warriors at his side shook the dust and debris from themselves, and bolted for the open tunnel in the east wall. Crossbow bolts rang out, and two were struck, one in the shoulder, and the other through the back of his head.

  Killop swerved and dodged, his shield swung round to protect his back. He grabbed hold of the wounded warrior, and pulled her towards the tunnel. Larissa ran past him, and turned at the entrance. She knelt, and drew back her bow.

  An arrow flew past his shoulder as he fell over the threshold of the tunnel. There was a deep lip next to the entrance, and he hauled the wounded warrior behind it.

  ‘Secure this room,’ shouted a Rahain voice from the cavern.

  The sound of crossbows stopped, and he heard the rumble of boots run through the hall. He looked up. His warriors were crouching behind the other side of the entranceway. Larissa was kneeling behind him.

  Killop peered round the edge. A line of shields had been positioned in front of the tunnel where the Kellach crouched. Over the top of it, he saw Rahain soldiers pouring into the cavern, and forming up into ranks. A tight knot of officers were standing, pointing at the three entranceways in the eastern wall.

  ‘Larissa,’ Killop whispered, ‘can your longbow reach one of them?’

  She peeked round the side of the lip, glanced at Killop and nodded. She nocked an arrow, and stretched back her bow.

  ‘Pull me in as soon as the arrow’s gone,’ she said.

  Killop nodded, and gripped onto her belt with both hands.