Noonshade

by James Barclay

  Belatedly spurred into action, Thraun barked and leapt after his companion, missing him by inches. Will reached the borders of the Cold Room and pushed a hand through. In that same moment, the demons and all their evil and malevolence disappeared. Ilkar, Erienne and Denser dropped their spell and the corridor was still once more.

  In the quiet that followed, Hirad took in The Raven and Sha-Kaan. The Unknown Warrior sat with the relatively unscathed mages, his head a mass of oozing cuts, his arms swathed in a slick of blood. The Great Kaan rested on his belly, his scales outwardly sound but Hirad could feel his hurt and knew the demons had made him suffer for each one he had killed.

  A piercing howl split the air. The Raven turned to see Thraun sitting by the prone form of Will, one paw resting on his chest, deep sorrow and blind fury clashing in his feral yellow eyes.

  “Oh no,” breathed Erienne.

  Will was not moving.

  Barras imagined rather than heard the clang as the crown closed the DemonShroud but the wails of frustration and fury that diminished to nothing in a few heartbeats were real enough.

  The Council had deployed the spell and with their release from its construction, came an intense relief and the briefest moment of euphoria. Vilif swayed and would have fallen but for the strong arms of Cordolan who was none too steady himself. Torvis, Seldane and Kerela all rushed to the crumpled but breathing form of Endorr while Barras kept the presence of mind to stumble across a line of books to the door to the Heart, pulling it open on to the pale, anxious face of Kard. A face that broke into a relieved smile on seeing him.

  “Gods Barras…the sounds I was hearing.”

  “We're all right. Endorr's hurt. Bring the Communion mages, the Shroud is down.”

  Kard hesitated. “Endorr?”

  “There's nothing you can do. See to the defence. Go. Go.” Barras watched Kard go, then turned back into the Heart.

  Kerela stood up and passed a hand over her forehead, her face grim. She caught Barras’ eye.

  “It isn't good. He's comatose.” She patted Cordolan on the shoulder. “Take him to the healers, all of you. I'll wait for the Communion mages. Hurry.” Cordolan, Torvis and Seldane picked up Endorr's limp body between them and carried him out of the door. Vilif, still unsteady, walked behind them. Outside, Barras heard Cordolan order assistance.

  “Thank you, Barras,” said Kerela.

  “For what?”

  “For showing us the way. All of us.”

  Barras shrugged. “It would have made no difference. If it hadn't—”

  A square outline of light appeared near the door to the Heart. Kerela opened her mouth but Barras raised a hand to stop her speaking.

  “It's all right, Kerela. I think you're going to learn something about me you never suspected.” With a whisper, the outline became solid and a figure stood silhouetted against the torchlight behind. He walked quickly forward, followed by others, one, a huge man, carrying a body in his arms and trailed very closely by a large dog or…

  “Great Gods—” began Barras.

  “Barras, don't worry,” said Ilkar. “The wolf is a shapechanger. He's with us.”

  He hadn't seen The Raven since their meeting at Triverne Lake before the casting of Dawnthief and assumed them trapped to the west of Understone Pass. But their bloodied appearance from what was, without a shadow of a doubt, a Dragonene portal threw him completely. None of them was Dragonene, he had known that when he met them, yet only a Dragonene could facilitate the opening of a portal and it was not Elu-Kaan who awaited him inside.

  “How did you get here?”

  “It's a long story,” said Ilkar, ushering The Raven straight out of the Heart, the nonmages struggling with the weight of mana and the Xeteskian and Dordovan unwelcome inside of it. “But it'll have to wait. Two things first. We need immediate access to the Library and some urgent healing help for Will.”

  Light dawned for Barras. “You came through the Shroud?”

  “Yes, but please, there isn't much time.”

  “Indeed not,” said Kerela. “But there is always a moment to welcome back a favourite son.” She kissed Ilkar on either cheek and squeezed his hands. “As you can see, some of the Library is here because the Wesmen are at our gates. We're soon to engage in a battle we can't hope to win but The Raven always help the odds. We have to clear the Heart now to start our Communion preparations. Come, we'll get your sick man to the infirmary and take a few minutes to talk in the Council chambers.” She gestured for Ilkar to precede her, turning to look at Barras, her face not unkindly. “You could have trusted me.”

  “We can tell no one. It's not a question of trust.”

  “Later,” said Kerela. Hirad Coldheart passed her, coming back into the Heart despite the discomfort caused by the mana.

  “Sha-Kaan needs to speak to you,” he said, addressing himself to Barras.

  “You? Dragonene?” Barras frowned.

  Hirad nodded. “Come on. Elu-Kaan is badly hurt. He needs your help.” He led the way back into the melde-corridor.

  General Kard walked quickly to the kitchens at the base of the Tower and ordered the Communion mages to stand by outside the Heart. Immediately afterward, he walked out a few steps into the silent courtyard, nodding his approval at the discipline of the Julatsans who had heeded the order to remain quiet after the Shroud was dispersed. He glanced up at the Wesmen's mobile watchtower, which was lit by torches all night long. He couldn't believe that the guards inside had not noticed the disappearance of the Shroud but, by their silence, he assumed they had not. On the other hand he had noted before that, in the dark, it was very hard to see the swirling grey of the Shroud and there was no doubting that people saw what they expected to see. But the feel of evil was gone and the Wesmen had so far missed that too. He only hoped that it stayed that way for another hour. By then, not only would the tower attack mages be fully prepared, their preparation for casting had already begun, but the rest of his preemptive strike force would be completely ready to enter the streets of Julatsa.

  He stood for a moment, knowing that all around the walls his men were primed and ready, having seen and, more than that, felt the Shroud disperse. Behind closed doors, his army, such as it was, waited for the order to attack and were receiving their final briefings. Elsewhere, the mages who would fly point and those who would cover the run back inside the walls from the ramparts were resting and practising the shapes that would release death over the Wesmen.

  A commotion behind him in the Tower had him turn, then take two paces backward in complete surprise. A huge warrior came striding toward him, bearing the body of another, much smaller, man in his arms. He was trailed very closely by what had to be a large wolf and, behind them, two of the Council hurried alongside soldiers carrying the limp body of Endorr. His jaw dropped and his hand strayed reflexively to the hilt of his sword.

  “We're friends,” said the warrior brusquely. “Now, which way to the infirmary? Quickly man, Will doesn't have much time.” Kard found himself pointing vaguely across the courtyard to the left. The warrior nodded and ran in the indicated direction, the wolf at his heels. Just behind them, the soldiers carried Endorr. Cordolan stopped briefly.

  “The Raven are here, Barras is a Dragonene, or so it seems and…well, go to the chambers, Kerela is talking to them, I think.” He hurried after Endorr. Kard cast his gaze heavenward and ran back inside, pausing only to speak to a Lieutenant.

  “You know the drill,” he said. “The orders haven't changed, just that things have moved very slightly in our favour. If the alarm sounds before I get back outside, take the tower and start the attack. Do you understand?”

  “Yes sir.”

  Kard made for the chambers.

  Hirad joined the impromptu meeting between Kerela and The Raven's mages after acquainting Barras with Sha-Kaan. The Great Kaan was to return immediately to Wingspread, leaving the corridor open for Elu-Kaan to receive the aid he needed in the interdimensional streams under the watchful eye
of Barras. He was introduced quickly to Kerela, Julatsa's senior mage, and General Kard, the middle-aged soldier in charge of the College's military defence. The Unknown would stay with Will and Thraun.

  “The Communion is even now under way inside the Heart.” Kerela continued where she had paused as Hirad entered the room. “We have no idea who will hear us and how soon they can reach us. What we do know is, as the sky lightens, the likelihood increases that the Wesmen will see the DemonShroud is gone. Once the attack starts, we think we can hold out for two, maybe three days, but beyond that, the College will be lost.”

  “All right,” said Ilkar, plainly finding the situation difficult to take on board despite the information he'd been receiving. “What odds do we have exactly?”

  “I don't know exactly,” said Kerela. “But a fighting level of between ten and fifteen to one is a good guess. Of course, we do have the walls and all the mages.”

  “It's bad,” said Erienne gently. “But it's not our primary concern, is it, Ilkar?” After what seemed an eternity, Ilkar shook his head.

  “Kerela, we have not come here to help in the salvation of Julatsa.” He licked his upper lip before continuing. “There is a threat to Balaia far greater than the Wesmen and The Raven are charged with halting it before it consumes us all, the Wesmen included.”

  Kerela was quiet for a while. Denser maintained a considered silence, choosing to light his pipe and confine his reactions to noddings or shakings of his head. For once, Hirad was glad of his reticence.

  “But Dawnthief. Didn't that guarantee us victory?” she asked, confusion dancing across her expression.

  “Over the Wytch Lords, yes,” said Erienne. “However, the casting has led to a tearing of the fabric of our dimension and it's a tear that is growing with every breath we draw. It links us to the dragons and eventually it will be too big for the Kaan to defend in their own space. Then we will have invasion by dragons.”

  Kerela's silence was longer this time. There was a curious symmetry with the dimensional damage they described and the sudden extraordinary strength of the demons’ fight to stop them dispersing the Shroud. She examined the faces of The Raven, searching for the lies and treachery that she already knew she would not find, and for the truth she knew she would find but did not want to believe.

  “What is it you're looking for?” she asked.

  “Septern's texts,” said Erienne almost before Kerela's words were out. “Anything that will help us close a dimensional portal. A big one.”

  Kerela nodded but spread her hands. “Of course, access is yours. I'm sure Barras will confirm your words when he has finished with whatever he has to do. I suggest you begin in the Heart once our Communion is complete. Barras moved a number of key texts there and many of Septern's will be among them. But the Library contains better than a hundred of his works and associated researches. The duty mage will help you but it could be a long search.”

  “We have two days at most,” said Ilkar, rising.

  “Meantime,” said Hirad. “If you'll allow, General Kard, you might benefit from talking to The Unknown Warrior and myself. If we're to fight for you, we need a say in how the defence is conducted.”

  Kard bridled. “I am well aware how to conduct a siege defence,” he said.

  “But we are The Raven,” said Hirad. “And we've been in more sieges than you could ever dream of. From both sides. Please, I insist.”

  Kerela laid a hand on Kard's arm and nodded. “Anything that might help us, we should use.”

  Kard nodded. “Very well, though I doubt you'll change the structure I have made.”

  “So do I. But if we can improve upon one segment, it will be worth our while. The Unknown is in the infirmary.”

  Kard gestured at the door. “Come on. The Wesmen won't wait long.”

  The Unknown Warrior had lain Will on a bed in the mercifully empty infirmary, knowing that neither poultices nor any manner of compresses or infusions would help. The little man was far beyond conventional intervention.

  Thraun sat up at the bedside, occasionally licking Will's face reflexively but mostly just staring, his yellow eyes moist and large, his expression plainly desperate. The Unknown stroked him absently while Will was examined, following a précis of what had caused his condition.

  The infirmary was a low stone and slate-roofed structure, the walls decked in bright tapestries and punctuated by windows. It held twenty well-spaced beds in two rows of ten, though The Unknown knew it would soon hold three or four times that many wounded and be wholly inadequate. At the far end of the single ward, with piles of spare bedding stacked to warm, a fire burned in a large grate, providing the calming sight of gentle flame, and heat for both patients and healing balms.

  The Unknown truly felt for Will. He knew only too well the terror of the soul being snagged by the claws of demons. Dead or alive, it made no difference. The soul belonged in the body until it chose to travel beyond mortal confines.

  Will's soul was not gone but the demons had most certainly touched it. And the ice chill of a demon's claw on the core of his being was the reason Will lay so deep in shock. It was a miracle his brain could tell his lungs to breathe. The Unknown was fairly sure the little man would die and, as the healer mage finished her attempted contact with Will's buried consciousness, the blank look on her face told its own story.

  “Well?” asked The Unknown. The mage turned to him, moving aside to let two of the town's women assigned to the infirmary make Will comfortable. She was a tall woman, graceful, with long fingers and bobbed grey hair, her face wrinkled by age.

  “I have never experienced someone so far down. Even though he is breathing, I find it hard to believe his soul still resides in his body. I cannot even hear his mind, let alone contact it. His brain is keeping him alive but how long that continues is anybody's guess though it will not be long.” She glanced at Thraun as she had done many times already.

  “Don't worry about him. I think he understands you're trying to help and he is certainly aware that Will is gravely ill. So how long?” The Unknown saw Hirad and the Julatsan General enter the infirmary, making a bee-line for him.

  “Before he wakes or before he dies?”

  “I think we both know it's unlikely to be the former,” said The Unknown. The mage smiled sadly and nodded.

  “Well, put it this way, if he doesn't begin to recover in a day, I'll be moving him to the rest house to die—we'll need the bed here and, after that time, I don't think he'll know how to come back.”

  The Unknown crouched by the wolf, who stared mournfully at him. “I don't know if you understand me, Thraun, but there's going to be a battle. To help Will, fight with us. We need you and Will needs time.”

  Thraun didn't blink but met The Unknown's eyes squarely for a time before moving past him. He licked Will's face, then lay on the ground at the head of his bed. The Unknown pushed himself to his feet, noting the cuts in his arms steadily fading under the continued influence of Erienne and Ilkar's CareHeal.

  “Well, it was worth a try,” he said, approaching Hirad, whose wounds had received the same treatment, and General Kard. “About this siege then, gentlemen?” he ventured. They nodded. “Over a mug of coffee, I think.” He indicated the rest area at the western end of the infirmary. The fire burned brightly and several small pots hung over its flames. Once ensconced, The Unknown offered a hand to Kard, who shook it.

  “I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier. I'm The Unknown Warrior.”

  Kard smiled. “I know. I'm Kard, General of the Julatsan forces.”

  “This had better be brief,” said The Unknown.

  “Very well,” said Kard. “Communion is underway to alert anyone up to a day away that we need assistance; one of your mages, Ilkar, gave me the name of one mage we know we can contact.”

  “Pheone,” said The Unknown.

  “Yes. Following that, we await the inevitable alarm from the watchtower before mounting our attack.”

  “Why wou
ld you wait?” asked Hirad.

  “Because every moment we can buy brings help that much closer. And without help we will surely lose this fight.”

  “But it's still an error to wait for them,” said The Unknown. “It leaves your people on edge and removes the total surprise that is so vital to you. Attack when you are ready. Obliterate the tower before they have a chance to sound their alarms and get your men out into the streets right behind the first spell assault, assuming that's what you were intending to do.”

  “But—” began Kard.

  “Your ideas are sound, General, and the Dordovans do need to be given the maximum time to arrive, but think of the effect on the Wesmen. Before they even know the Shroud is gone, they are being killed where they sleep and around their camp fires. And before they can mount a meaningful resistance, we are back inside the walls waiting for them. And then what?” The Unknown invited Kard to speak.

  The General nodded. “I can see the sense in it. Then we keep them back as long as possible with spells, stop them mounting a serious assault.”

  “Exactly, but make sure you hit them hard to begin with. Make them scared to approach,” said The Unknown. “Keep your mages moving after first strike. Don't let the Wesmen know where the magic is coming from next.”

  “All right,” said Kard, looking a little hurt. “But we'll have to clear the wall run.”

  “That's fine because you can have warriors standing down all around the walls until they're called. Though you might want to keep archers behind the battlements,” said Hirad. “Remember, if the flash attack into the streets is a success, the Wesmen will already be disorganised and demoralised. It'll take them several hours to organise for siege and attack. If you can damage them as they approach the walls, you can delay them still further. But you have to use the mages right.”

  The Unknown smiled and reached out a hand to grip Kard's upper arm briefly. “General, we're not questioning your skill or authority, just adding our experience. How many sieges have you been involved in?”