How Black the Sky

by T J Marquis

  The ultra-Monstrosity groaned to itself, as if the long trek had wearied it, and began to bend its knees. It lowered itself down to the wet ground and settled into a cross-legged sit.

  Pierce and the others had to adjust their grips on its hide as the giant's legs pivoted, but when the movement stopped, they were left only a few hundred feet above the ground. It would be much easier to climb down from here.

  This they did, taking care to keep quiet, now that the giant's loud movements would no longer cover up any noises they made. They snuck around the thing's back and out of its shadow, just in case it decided to lay down and rest.

  "I can't believe we got away with it," said Agrathor, grinning. "You really are good luck, kid."

  Pierce still took exception to that notion of luck, but the skeleton man seemed so pleased, he didn't want to contradict the sentiment.

  "There should be a convergence where the center of the Temple would have been. Most likely, Testadel would have been centered on it too," said Scythia. "We should be able to ride it straight up into the fortress."

  "Wait," said Pierce, "Kash's anti-folding curses won't kill us?"

  Ess shook her head. "No, the convergences operate differently. It is like they knit points in reality together, without warping either end. Plus, they are natural, and cannot be enchanted against. It is why the central chamber of the Temple was so heavily guarded."

  "Never knew that," said Pierce. He looked out as far as he could see, trying to gauge where the center of the fortress would have been. "I'm surprised he doesn't have the area guarded down here."

  "He probably thinks this giant will be enough," said Scythia. "But anything could be waiting on the other side."

  "Everything's waiting on the other side," said Agrathor.

  "But all we have to do is punch through to Kash," said Ess. "There is nothing for us to defend this time, so there is no reason to engage more of his forces than is necessary."

  The statement was sort of sad, despite also being a relief. Pierce loved the rush of battle, but even he knew that there was no point in fighting more than was necessary to meet your goal. Grondell was gone, and that still sat heavy in the hearts of Gorgonbane, but at least now, they wouldn't have to worry about saving the place. They could be quick, efficient, or even reckless if they needed to. Pierce wondered what kind of havoc the group could wreak if there were no limiting factors to consider. He guessed he was about to find out.

  "I can feel it," said Sev. "The convergence is not far, but it is beneath the gaze of the Monstrosity."

  "You are more sensitive to it than I, forgemaster," said Ess.

  "I suppose it's built into me," he replied.

  "Can we get through before it sees, or at least before it can try to kill us?" asked Agrathor.

  "It's either that, or we wait until the thing sleeps. If it does sleep..." said Scythia.

  "We should probably just go for it," said Pierce.

  "You would say that," said Agrathor. "But this time, I agree."

  They all looked around as if the world might hold more palatable options they'd simply not yet seen.

  "Well," said Ess, "shall we?"

  Sev indicated the general direction of the convergence, and the others followed him in a wide arc away from the Monstrosity. They were trying to keep out of its line of sight until there was no other choice. The plan was to dash in as quickly as possible, then engage the convergence, one by one. Scythia would go through first, and use one of her many enchantments to shield the group from any attack on the other side. If and when the giant noticed them, Pierce would try his blue sword to blind it, or Ess could harass it with her liquid orbs until everyone was through. Even Pierce had to admit it wasn't a very good plan - they were way too close to the giant for his comfort. Still, they had to try something.

  Gorgonbane got into position and Scythia counted down on her fingers. She gave the signal, and everyone dashed forward. Ess floated.

  Pierce couldn't help but watch the giant's face as they moved into its eyeline. Its eyes were half-lidded as if it were barely staving off sleep, and its cavernous mouth was open like a drunk's after the bottle had been drained. This one was unbearded, and its drool dripped down from its mouth and onto its chest in foul imitation of an infant.

  The giant's head twitched back. It took a sharp breath in through its nose, and its eyes began to widen. A look of disgust and anger dawned on its face as its cheeks rose up, its nostrils flared, and it bared its teeth. The ultra-Monstrosity roared, a gut-wrenching sound louder than a dozen black obelisks, almost pitiful in its suggestion of human remorse and ire. If it had merely leaned forward and swatted, it could have killed all of Gorgonbane like the insects they were, but instead, it began to struggle to its feet, slowly, as if its joints were arthritic.

  "Here!" Sev cried. He guided Scythia to where the convergence was and she immediately started to fade away. Agrathor went second. When he was gone, Pierce gestured Sev into place. He nodded and began to fade as well.

  Pierce took a few more moments to engage the convergence, for he had only used them a handful of times, but he, too, faded through the connection between parts of reality, trusting Ess to follow them through. The furious roar of the Monstrosity faded behind him.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  Testadel

  Scythia's shield of defense was flaring and straining already when Pierce materialized beside her. The space around them was a world of flame and lightning, flying arrows and waiting clubs and swords. Agrathor was right - everything was waiting. Kash had indeed guarded this place well.

  "I need Ess," Scythia cried.

  The Second was only a few moments behind Pierce, and immediately upon arrival, she used her power to amplify Scythia's shield. The sound of all the power in the room lashing against the shield was a deafening crackle that rattled Pierce's eardrums.

  "There's only the one hall to get out," Sev yelled. "It will be full of bodies."

  "I've got it," said Agrathor. "Ready to switch, Ess." She nodded.

  Agrathor readied his spear, and Ess abandoned Scythia's shield to amplify his lightning instead. One of the gems on Scythia's belt exploded, and the shield fell just as Agrathor let loose with a channeled blast of electricity that bore into the mass of armored bodies in front of him. The chaotic jumble of soldiers waiting to attack transformed into a vortex of flaming or disintegrating forms as Agrathor's amplified lightning consumed them. The bodies fell in heaps of ash, but the far end of the hallway immediately began to fill with more troops.

  Gorgonbane charged into the gap, Ess and Pierce fighting to keep their flanks and rear protected from the few attackers remaining in the convergence chamber.

  All the halls were stuffed to the brim with as many guards and monsters as could effectively fight in such tight quarters.

  Some of these will be Sev's old friends, Pierce thought. How did the forgemaster feel about that?

  But Sev was laying about with his fists like small boulders, knocking his foes unconscious with rarely more than one punch. He was loyal to Gorgonbane now.

  Pierce swung his sword between the jaws of a werewolf, cleaving off the top of its head.

  Scythia ruined the skulls of two gen with a wide swing of her flail, its spiked ball crashing through them like clay vessels.

  Ess had cleared the space behind them, sending her fiery orbs through the crowd in a tight, zigzagging pattern, ripping their torsos clean off of their waists, spilling their entrails onto the floor.

  Pierce flinched inwardly, though he too was spilling the blood of living creatures. It was odd to see someone so beautiful fighting so brutally. Her face was impassive as she slew her foes, as if she were exterminating vermin.

  Had she really kissed him last night?

  They fought their way down hall after cramped hall, filling alcoves with the dead, leaving destruction in their wake. The rush of battle was enlivening, though Pierce and Scythia did sweat with exertion.

  At last, they
came to an open space that might have been a courtyard but for the vaulted ceiling overhead. It looked like some kind of training ground. At the far end of the enclosed expanse was a series of terraces leading up to an ornate entryway that marked some other section of the fortress.

  "This is one of the staging grounds. That's the Underlord's apartment," cried Sev. "He might be in there if he hasn't fled."

  "He has not yet fled," said Ess. "I would have felt him fold away."

  "Can you tell if that's where he is?" asked Pierce. There had been a lull in the fighting. Werewolves and gen were forming up on the terraces across the courtyard from them.

  Ess shook her head. "I do not know where he is, only that he is here somewhere. If he tries to fold, I will know from where."

  Gorgonbane arrayed themselves in a straight line, Ess and Agrathor on the wings.

  "They will give no thought to their own safety," said Sev. "They will do anything to protect the Underlord."

  "So don't let them get behind us," said Scythia.

  They began to move toward the waiting ranks of snarling beastmen and armored gen. Pierce saw a shadow out of the corner of his eye. Ess must have seen something too, for she turned to her left and brought her orbs in tight to defend herself from the attack.

  Black clothed forms with jet-black faces fell upon Gorgonbane from the sides, silently phasing into existence, displacing the dank air in tiny shockwaves. Ess gave her kinspeople no more quarter than she would have any other foe and sent her orbs careening into their guts with a thought. Pierce had to turn toward his own attacker.

  The supra-gen assassin came rushing out of its fold as if he had built up momentum before folding. It collided with Pierce, slamming into his armor and knocking him to the floor. Absently he wished for Axebourne's skill of Stability. The assassin brought a short, straight dagger down toward Pierce's faceplate, aiming for the eyeslit. He deflected it with his blast gauntlet and slammed a fist into the man's face. He should have just fired the blast. The assassin fell back and Pierce regained his feet, drawing his sword. The supra-gen only glanced at the blue light, then began to circle him. Pierce turned and moved to keep somewhat in formation with his comrades, who were all dealing with threats of their own.

  The supra-gen dashed in several steps, feinting with its dagger, but Pierce wasn't taken in. In a fluid motion, the assassin drew a katana from its side while simultaneously throwing its dagger at the chainmail covering Pierce's thigh. The dagger broke through enchantment and mail, sinking deep into Pierce's leg.

  He should have expected this to happen at some point. No enchantment was foolproof.

  The wound hurt, but Pierce left the dagger in and danced away with a stumble. The assassin swiped with its sword after him. Was the katana anti-enchanted too? No sense risking it. He'd already been too gentle with this foe.

  Pierce shifted his stance and held his sword above his shoulder. He lunged forward, ignoring the pain in his thigh, and feinted twice, then swung his long blade toward the supra-gen. The assassin lifted its blade to parry, but Pierce's sword cut through it effortlessly. The assassin leapt backward to avoid being gutted but inadvertently looked down at Pierce's blade as he did so. Pierce took the moment to aim his blast gauntlet, then let its power loose.

  Red-orange fire enveloped the supra-gen's torso, melting armor, burning leather, consuming flesh. The assassin collapsed into a pile of limbs, its head rolling to the side with a shocked look still on its face. All that was left of its trunk was bone and vitals.

  Pierce turned back toward his comrades.

  They were advancing on the horde in front of Kash's apartments, having already slain their own would-be assassins. Sev was covered in purple blood, but it didn't seem to be his own. Scythia had a small cut on her cheek. Ess and Agrathor were unscathed.

  Then a shadow phased into existence at Ess's back, its katana drawn back for a thrust. Ess slipped into the aether without looking, reappeared behind the shadow, and recalled her orbs to her hand through its chest. The assassin froze mid-step, dropped its sword to the floor, then fell to its knees and onto its side.

  Hadn't Ess told Pierce she couldn't fold within Testadel? Maybe this was some similar Skill he didn't know about.

  The courtyard had several large halls spilling out from it, and over a dozen Monstrosities had appeared, hunched over to fit in the halls. They were all growling and slavering, muck and drool running down their fronts.

  "I tire of this," said Ess.

  She held both hands out to the sides, palms up. An invisible wind blew across the room, rippling her robes and hair. She closed her eyes, white lids against the black of her skin, and clenched her hands violently into fists.

  The courtyard erupted into a cacophony of halted screams, no sooner uttered than cut off by the destruction of any flesh capable of creating sound. The short, horrific sound echoed across the large chamber as hundreds of werewolves and gen, and the several Monstrosities, blew apart from the inside out. It was as if their bones suddenly felt the need to be in the open air, as if the lowest layer of their skin sought the light of the outside world, as if their blood lusted for the touch of the ground. Gore hung in the air for a long moment, then fell to the floor in a splatter and splash like a hellish waterfall.

  Pierce had seen a lot in his adventures, but this almost brought him to retching. As he tried to calm his stomach, he wondered why Ess hadn't just killed everything in their path this way. Did the rest of Gorgonbane even need to fight at all?

  The courtyard went quiet, and Ess led the way forward, into Kash's apartments.

  "Let us get your revenge," she said to Scythia.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  Revenge

  They found Kash in the antechamber leading deeper into his lavish apartments. He was large, grey like the forgemasters, but lanky where they were typically bulky. He had a handsome, chiseled face, but his granite skin was marred by black patches like birthmarks. He stood unnaturally still, watching them enter the room with a strangely resigned look on his face. Pierce wondered, why was he so still?

  "That wasn't a very nice sound," Kash said. The movements of his mouth were stiff.

  "They were not very nice men," said Ess.

  "This is some enchantment you've conjured, little witch," he said casually. "I don't think I've ever been this helpless."

  "The First taught me to teach myself well," she said. "I have brought someone to see you." She raised a hand to indicate Scythia.

  "My pleasure," Kash mocked, blinking and smiling in place of a bow, for he clearly could not move. "What luck, the wise Lady of Gorgonbane does not deign to meet many of her subjects."

  Scythia strode forward with heavy steps. "You had my husband killed," she said. "Those assassins of yours. They killed my husband, and the First."

  "And you no doubt dispatched them on your way in here," Kash said. He flicked his eyes left and right, accusing the stains of red and purple blood on their armor. "Unless my eyes are mistaken."

  "But the order came from you."

  Pierce thought the man would have shrugged if he could.

  "If they killed anyone but the First, it was merely collateral, and not of my design. Gorgonbane need not have even been there. Standing in the way of Overland's salvation was entirely your choice."

  Scythia seethed and gritted her teeth. Agrathor spoke what she was no doubt thinking.

  "Our salvation?" he spat drily. "Overland had just entered a time of peace, what did you think you could save?"

  "Your welfare, then," said Kash. "There is something coming that you know nothing of. Over and Underlands need to be united in order to stand against it, lest we perish separately. I elected to forego the hassles of diplomacy, to be sure, but the end result would have been life and safety for us all."

  Agrathor scoffed. "Safety for all those people you've already killed?"

  "Have you been back to Grondell since you murdered my giants and those few battalions?" Kash asked, eyes widening. "It
s residents have in large part returned, with others besides. They work day and night to restore the city, and they do it hand in hand with my people. We, of the Underlands, have taught your people to lay aside difference, race, religion, and focus on what matters most - the survival of us all. What argument can you possibly have against that?"

  "It doesn't matter what foolhardy thing you believe," said Scythia. "You killed to reach your goal, murdered innocent people. You killed Axebourne."

  "The Cleaver, isn't it?" asked Kash drily. "And how did he get that title?"

  "All he ever did was fight to protect those less fortunate than himself. He was a giant of a man."

  "And a worthy warrior," said Kash. "I won't disagree. If your Glorious Paths are real - that's not an admission of faith - I'd wager your husband is walking them now, fully forged, held tight in the hand of some heavenly knight and slaying the ethereal forces of unknown evils."

  From the way his eyes moved, the way he spoke, Pierce could tell Kash would normally be talking with his hands, drawing out wide gestures to accompany his points. How had Ess bound him so? He'd already been bound when they entered the room. Wouldn't she have needed to know where he was to do this?

  Pierce caught sight of a form in the doorway leading in from the antechamber. It looked like a woman in dark robes, with the jet-black skin of a supra-gen. She wasn't moving, but Pierce kept an eye on her.

  "We've let him speak enough," said Ess. "It is time to claim your revenge, Scythia."

  Pierce put a hand on his sword.

  "Oh you've never liked me, have you, little witch?" Kash laughed. "Do it then, I'm getting tired of waiting."

  "Why would she harbor any like of you?" Agrathor asked. "Why would anyone from Overland care for the Underlord?"