‘Now, that sounded like a challenge.’
Corthie laughed. ‘You’re on. Let’s start with Pella, and then when we’re feeling dangerous, we’ll head into the Circuit.’
‘I’m starting to like you, mortal, but, I warn you, playing drinking games with demigods could lead to all kinds of trouble.’
Corthie slapped Naxor on the back, nearly bowling him over. ‘Sounds like my kind of fun.’
Chapter 11
Dragon Claws
Arrowhead Fort, The Bulwark, The City – 8th Izran 3419
The warm summer air felt wonderful on the bare skin of Maddie’s arms and legs as she moved through Arrowhead fort. Captain Hilde was strict about many things, but sometimes she would surprise Maddie, and when she had seen how hot the day was likely to be, she had told her she could dispense with her usual thick and heavy uniform. Maddie had grabbed one of the few summer dresses in her possession and pulled it on before the captain could change her mind.
It felt strange to wander the fort dressed as a civilian. Folk looked at her differently, and she was sure that one or two people hadn’t recognised her. The sergeant at the gatehouse had given her an approving wink from his office by the entrance archway, but the glances of a couple of other soldiers she had talked to more than once had passed over her without recognition.
The dress was sleeveless, which was her only worry, as it showed, in tattoo form, her chequered past. Each new division or unit she had joined had been inked into her skin in small letters and numbers, and she had a series of them usually only matched by old hands and experienced veterans. Some Blades went through their entire lives serving the same battalion or company, whereas Maddie was already on her fourth.
She eased her shopping basket into her other hand as she browsed the market stalls lining the inner walls of the fortress. Unlike Stormshield, with its strict rules on decorum and behaviour, the atmosphere in Arrowhead was more like a busy village at festival time. Large groups of merchants congregated to finalise deals, or to sell their wares to the crowds that came from the nearby Blade housing. The variety of goods on offer was far wider than at Stormshield, a consequence of Arrowhead’s policy of not looking too closely at the trading licences the merchants were all supposed to have, and the captain had asked Maddie if she could obtain a few items for her. With gold in her pocket, and the sun on her skin, she had set out, her spirits lightening away from the dark shadows of Blackrose’s lair.
For two months she had been with the dragon, easily surpassing the previous record for one of Hilde’s assistants. She had suffered bruises, scrapes, cuts, and one time Hilde had been forced to trim her hair after the last couple of inches had been singed by a blast of fire. It would grow back, the captain had told her as Maddie had wept in front of the mirror. Blackrose, needless to say, had found it all highly amusing.
There were fresh apples in from the Scythes, along with honey and butter, and Maddie loaded her basket. She filled the wine flagon she had brought with her from a barrel, and purchased a ceramic flask of seaweed-infused gin distilled by the Hammers, complete with a little stamp on the base displaying their tribal arms.
A loud commotion arose behind her and she glanced up to see if Buckler was in the air. The pink sky was empty, however, so she brought her glance downwards towards the base of the imposing Wolfpack Tower. She smiled. Corthie Holdfast was walking out from the building, flanked by his personal retinue, and the crowds were surging around him, stretching out their hands to try to touch the champion as he smiled and shook his head at them. There had been near-hysteria on the battlements a couple of nights previously, when the young Pack Leader had not emerged from the Outer Walls with the rest of the Wolves and Rats. Rumours had spread that Corthie was ill, injured or even dead, and an officer had to be dispatched to the soldiers watching from the walls to assure them that he was well, and merely enjoying his first night off since arriving. The doubts and rumours had persisted right up to the previous evening, when there had been a explosion of cheers and chants as Corthie had been seen leading the Wolf Pack again. The multitudes of his religious followers had taken this re-appearance as nothing less than a miracle, and their hymns of worship and thanksgiving had kept half the fort up all night.
He knows my name, she thought to herself as the tall warrior passed through the crowds on his way to the armouries. She chided her weakness. Who cares? He’s just another muscle-bound oaf. Good-natured maybe, and handsome. Very handsome. And strong. She had a crush on him, she couldn’t help it, but was determined not to become just another one of his legion of female admirers, who were almost as numerous as the religious fanatics. Wearing ever-shorter skirts, and showing ever more cleavage, they followed Corthie about, trying to catch his eye, or touch his arm as he passed.
Maddie liked how Corthie would be polite to them, but never seemed to show any real interest. As far as she knew, the young warrior had never taken any of them to his bed, and some were beginning to wonder if he wasn’t interested in girls, but as he hadn’t shown any interest in boys either, maybe he was just fussy. Keeping it in his pants had only increased the level of desire felt by his followers, and had made their efforts to sleep with him more desperate and embarrassing as far as Maddie was concerned.
Buckler swooped low overhead, as if to remind the crowds in the fort that Corthie wasn’t the only champion toiling day after day to keep the walls safe. The beast and the warrior clearly had respect for each other, as was seen every night in the way they co-ordinated their tactics, but there was also a fierce competition between the two, and both had a tendency to show off for the crowds watching from the battlements.
The volume of noise quietened a little as Corthie disappeared through the entrance to the fort’s main armoury. Buckler circled overhead a few more times, then landed onto his high perch, where he folded his long wings and gazed out over the enemy-held plains.
Maddie squeezed through the busy crowds and headed towards the tall curtain wall. She still had a few minutes before she had to return to Captain Hilde, and wanted to get as much sun on her skin as she could. The battlements were bathed in the pink glow of morning, and she smiled as she climbed the steps to the top. She laid her basket down and leaned her arm on the battlements. In the distance, the waves and masses of greenhides rolled across the plain as they always did, but the scene directly below her was unprecedented. For the first time in any summer that she could remember, the moat was clear, and no greenhides were between it and the outer walls. A long row of stakes stretched along the front of the moat, and each one had the head of a greenhide impaled upon it; the work of Corthie and the Wolfpack. The lifeless, rotting heads were staring back at their fellow greenhides, and the effect upon them was noticeable. Their loathing and clamouring hatred were undimmed, but they also knew fear, and avoided the stakes as if unable to look at the evidence of their failure.
Good, Maddie thought. It was about time the greenhides felt fear, and she hoped it would long continue. She crunched her way through a shiny red apple, then tossed the core over the side of the walls.
Maddie sat on one of the captain’s rickety wooden chairs as the older woman went through the shopping basket.
‘And how was the forecourt today?’
‘Mobbed. Could hardly move through the market.’
The captain shook her head. ‘It’s too busy for my liking. I abhor crowds at the best of times, but it’s gotten out of hand these last couple of months.’
‘I guess having Corthie and Buckler based here brings the folk in.’
The captain smiled. ‘I didn’t realise you were on first name terms with the young Pack Leader. Know him well, do you?’
Maddie’s cheeks flushed. ‘What? No, I…’
The captain laughed. ‘Just teasing. He’s nice to look at, I agree, but I hope you’re not getting too wrapped up in the cult of Corthie Holdfast. He may be a good warrior, but he’s a mortal like us, and it would only take one mistake, one split-second bad judgement, and
he’ll be as dead as all those greenhides he’s dispatched.’
‘Don’t say that. I mean, I know it’s true, but I don’t want to have to think about it.’
‘Always best to be prepared for the worst, Maddie; that way if it happens, you’ll be ready.’ She withdrew the flask of gin from the basket. ‘Ah, here’s what I was looking for. Fetch a couple of glasses.’
‘Is it not a bit early for that?’
Hilde frowned at her, so she got up and went over to the cabinet against the wall of the captain’s office, and collected two glasses. She brought them back to the table just as Hilde was breaking the seal on the flask. She poured out two generous measures and handed one of the glasses back to Maddie.
‘Is it a special occasion?’
The captain took a sip. ‘You could say that. I received a message informing me that we’re going to be having a visitor today.’
‘And we’re getting drunk for that?’
‘One gin shouldn’t make you too drunk; well, I hope not, but a little lubrication will certainly help.’
‘Who’s coming? Is it Duke Marcus?’
‘If it were, I wouldn’t be drinking, I’d be hiding and pretending we’re not in.’
Maddie’s eyes flashed. ‘Is it Corthie? I mean, Pack Leader Holdfast?’
‘Gods preserve us, no,’ Hilde smiled. ‘The lad I could deal with; his crazed followers on the other hand? Come on, drink up.’
Maddie glanced at the glass. ‘I feel a bit weird, drinking this early.’
‘I’m sure you’ve done it before.’
‘But not in front of my boss.’
Hilde shook her head. ‘Stop arguing and get it down you, girl.’
‘If you insist.’ She lifted the glass to her lips and sipped. ‘So, we’re getting a little bit… fortified for someone’s visit. Who could it be?’
‘Shall I just tell you?’
‘No! I want to guess. Is it someone I know?’
‘I’m sure you’ve heard of them, and seen them often.’
‘One clue; a boy or a girl?’
‘Male.’
‘I hope it’s not Lord Kano. That would a bit of a let-down, to be honest.’
‘I agree, but thankfully it’s not him either.’
‘The God-King?’
The captain gave her a funny look.
‘Alright, not him. Handsome?’
‘Not my type.’
‘A mortal?’
‘He is mortal.’
‘Ahh, but not “a mortal”?’
Hilde shrugged, smiling as she sipped more of her gin. ‘Think bigger.’
Maddie frowned.
‘Think big and scaly.’
‘What? You mean... Buckler?’
Hilde laughed. ‘Yes. Remember the big red gate in the tunnel outside Blackrose’s lair? Today it opens, and the dragons will have one of their rare meetings.’ Her laugh fell away. ‘They don’t always go to plan.’
‘When was it arranged? Blackrose said nothing to me about it.’
‘She doesn’t know. I only got word while you were out shopping. I think it should be you that tells her.’
‘Why?’
‘I thought you’d want to.’
‘It depends. How is she likely to react?’
‘I think that after two months you probably know her well enough to answer that yourself.’
Maddie took a larger drink of gin, swallowed it, then downed the rest. The captain had already finished hers, and they stood.
‘When is he coming?’ Maddie said.
‘Now. The note said as soon as possible, so I told them that I’d unlock our side of the red gate when we were ready.’
‘Sounds important.’
‘Buckler’s a young dragon. He’s quite impulsive, so he may have decided to do it just because he was bored.’
Maddie paused as they approached the door leading to the lair. ‘Should I get changed out of this dress first?’
‘Leave it on. It makes you look pretty, and I’m curious to see what Blackrose thinks. She might treat you differently out of a soldier’s uniform.’
Maddie said nothing for a moment. Had Hilde just said that she was pretty? Weird, she thought; the captain rarely gave her compliments, but she had just finished a large gin, so was probably a bit drunk. Hilde took the keys from her belt, and unlocked the door. They stepped through into the vast cavern that led to Blackrose’s lair, and Maddie saw the massive red gate ahead of them.
‘Go and tell her ladyship,’ Hilde said, ‘and I’ll get the gate ready.’
‘Don’t open it until…
‘I won’t. I’ll wait for your signal.’
‘What signal should I make?’
‘Whatever you damn well feel like, girl,’ Hilde said waving her hand at Maddie.
The captain walked away towards the gate and Maddie turned for the corresponding black doorway that led to the lair of Blackrose. She slid the bolts free in the small door inset into the gate, and walked through.
The dragon opened an eye, its head low to the ground in the near darkness.
‘Good morning. Blackrose.’
‘I would say that the world has made another revolution, but I don’t think that’s the case here.’
‘What?’
‘Never mind. Your insect brain wouldn’t comprehend it, anyway.’
‘How are you today?’
‘Hungry.’
‘That’s good.’
The dragon fixed her with a stare. ‘Get on with delivering whatever bad news you’ve come to say.’
‘How did you know?’
‘The terrified look on your face gave it away. I know how my day’s going to go as soon as you walk in here and I sense your mood. The best days are when you’re sad; I enjoy those. The worst days are when you walk in here with an inquisitive air about you, then I know I’m in store for a hundred stupid questions.’
Maddie smothered the first reply that came into her head. The dragon loved to talk about herself, yet seemed to hate answering any of Maddie’s questions. ‘It might not be bad news. The truth is, I don’t know how you’ll take it.’
‘If it’s not that I am to be released and escorted back to my home, then it’s bad news.’
‘What? Released? That doesn’t make any sense. If you agreed to fly, then you could just… fly. Fly away and go back to your home.’
The dragon laughed, a noise that filled the lair. ‘Your stupidity does amuse me at times, little insect. Either that, or it makes me want to eat you; it’s hard to tell.’
Maddie’s cheeks flushed, and she felt her anger rise. ‘Maybe if you explained things to me properly then I wouldn’t say stupid stuff.’
‘You’re claiming your stupidity is somehow my fault? If we play the truth game, I’m sure we’ll get to the bottom of your insecurities regarding your lack of intelligence, and I’ll wager a shiny gold coin that I’m not the real cause. How about it?’
‘I know I’m clever, despite you trying to trip me up all the time.’ She took a breath, trying to remember the reason she entered the lair in the first place. ‘You have a visitor.’
The dragon hesitated for a fraction of a second, and Maddie smiled.
‘Who?’
Maddie met the beast’s gaze. ‘Buckler.’
The dragon closed her eyes and reached out with one of her great fore-limbs, with the claws extended. She brought it down and began drawing it back, scraping the heavy claws against the blackened stone floor. The flagstones split and buckled as the claws dug deep into the ground, and Maddie jumped back, her hands covering her ears to block out the harsh noise. She stared at the gouges in the floor, then at Blackrose.
‘You finished?’
Blackrose opened her eyes. ‘Yes.’
‘That’s it? No arguments?’
‘I never argue with insects. Open the gates and send the boy in.’
‘Boy? Someone told me Buckler was about eighty years old.’
‘Exactly. A you
th among dragons. It’s my misfortune that the only other of my kind on this world is an impressionable, foolish child.’
Maddie smiled. Blackrose’s reaction had been milder than she been expecting. ‘When did you last see him?’
‘Two years ago, I believe.’
‘Oh. That’s a while.’
‘It didn’t end well.’
‘What happened?’
‘I ripped his wing with those claws you just saw, and he was unable to fly for three months.’
‘Wait! I remember that. Well, not the reason, but I remember when Buckler was grounded for a while. We all thought the greenhides had injured him.’
Blackrose laughed again. ‘I think of that day whenever the tedium of this prison taxes me; it always makes me smile.’
Maddie shook her head, then turned to the gate. She poked her head through to the cavern outside, and waved at Captain Hilde, who was standing by the red gate.
‘Her Majesty’s ready!’
Hilde nodded, and began opening the bolts that kept the gate secured. Maddie pulled her head back from the door to find Blackrose’s face a foot from hers.
‘Never call me that again.’
‘But…’ Maddie said as she cowered backwards, ‘I thought you said you were a queen; you told me that when I first arrived.’
‘I am a queen, and you used that title to mock me. I heard the sneer in your voice, insect.’
Maddie raised her hands. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘Do it again, and I’ll rip your body in two. The next time you refer to me by that title, you will be kneeling before my throne, do you understand?’
‘Yes!’
Blackrose pulled her head back. ‘Open the gate. Oh, and by the way, wear more clothes the next time you come into my lair. All that bare flesh just makes me want to eat you more than I usually do.’
Maddie turned, shaking. Her fingers went to the bolts, but they were trembling so much that she couldn’t grip them. A low rumble of laughter echoed from behind her, and anger rose up to fight her paralysing fear. Damned lizard. She was nothing more than a bully. Maddie cleared the last bolt and began to heave on the door. She had only opened it herself once or twice, and had been surprised at the ease with which she had been able to shift the huge gate. Its hinges and rollers were thick with grease and the gate made no sound as it slid open. On the other side, Hilde had done the same with the red gate, and was standing in the cavern talking to a couple of people whom Maddie assumed were the Blades who looked after Buckler.
The Mortal Blade: An Epic Fantasy Adventure (The Magelands Eternal Siege Book 1) Page 16