Ascendancy Origins Trilogy

by Bradford Bates

  He slid back into his seat in the booth, and I asked him, “How about you give me the target now, and we work out the details of my pay for my services going forward tomorrow at your shop.”

  His Cheshire grin never reached his eyes. He slid a small envelope across the table to me and stood up again. “I love working with someone who is motivated. It seems I made the right choice in approaching you. This could be the start of a long and profitable relationship.” Without waiting for me to respond, he faded into the crowd and was gone.

  I put my glass down; if I was going to be working tonight, I needed to have my wits about me. I went back to my room to see what was in the envelope.

  Safely back in my room, I opened the envelope to find an address and a picture. Scribbled in ink on the bottom of the picture was a name, Charles Malgrave. With no time to waste, I grabbed my coat from the rack and headed for the door. It might be a long night, but I was hoping to get this done quickly. When I got back, I would celebrate by taking full advantage of the Palace’s renowned room service.

  Stepping outside, I had the doorman hail me a cab. The best part of having nearly unlimited funding was that I could afford not to walk across the city tonight. I gave the cabbie the address and we headed out. Thinking better of it, I asked him to drop me off a few blocks away. We had just passed a flower shop, and I used that as my excuse. Taking the cab straight to where I was going to murder someone seemed like a bad idea.

  After he let me out, I started to walk back in the direction from which we’d come, until the cab was completely out of sight. I turned around and ducked into an alley between buildings and then cut over to the neighborhood that I needed to be in. It started to dawn on me just what I had agreed to do. Killing a man in cold blood would give me the in that I needed, but it was a steep price to pay. The crime would also put me at odds with everything the Ascendancy stood for, which is probably why I was working off the books. Was the mission being completed worth sacrificing our values? I wished that I could speak with Adam, but the warlock had already been informed of me leaving today. What else could he find out?

  I had to do what needed to be done; that is why Adam picked me in the first place. It was too late to back out now. If I did, I would never get another chance with Mr. Cane again. Especially not after the show I had put on at the bar. I focused only on what needed to be done. Ice water flowed through my veins. I would kill this man without remorse. It was the only choice that I had left.

  When I finally reached the address, I was surprised to see the simple nature of the home. I thought he might have been sending me after a more high-profile target. To Mr. Cane, I was just a disposable lackey trying to prove himself. None of the lights were on outside, but even from a distance, I could see the house needed a fresh coat of paint. The fence around the yard had seen better days; some of the spindles had been broken. I made my way through the broken gate, wondering just what a man this poor could have done to earn the ire of the warlock.

  I called on my gift to wrap myself in the shadows. It wasn’t invisibility, but it would make it harder for anyone passing by to see me. Using the darkness for cover, I made my way to the back door. I wanted to use my gift on the lock, but I was afraid that would be too easy to trace back to me if someone looked too deeply into the matter. Instead, I simply reached for the knob after covering my hand with a handkerchief; I doubt anyone could have been more surprised than I was when the knob turned and the door slowly opened. I moved into the home, keeping myself concealed in the shadows

  Calling on my gift again, I used it to lighten myself. I had to make sure that a creaky floorboard wouldn’t be able to give me away. I also enhanced my vision to make it easier to see in the dark. Methodically, I moved from room to room. After passing through the kitchen, I noticed a feeble light coming from under one of the doors. Would my luck hold again and make my target this easy to find? It would be a blessing if he was separated from the rest of his family already. I didn’t want to have to hurt anyone else if it could be avoided. If every job I did for the warlock went as well as this one, it would be an easy relationship to exploit.

  Silently, I opened the door, dousing the magic I had used to enhance my sight. Stepping into the room, I could see a man huddled over a cramped workspace. He rose and turned to face me, and I watched as his face started to show the shock of an intruder being in his home. Once I confirmed it was the man in the picture, I used an old trick I had learned on the farm growing up. I placed a small amount of force around the man’s heart and gave it a gentle squeeze.

  It worked just as it always had on the animals we slaughtered for food. The man fell to his knees, gasping slightly for breath. I applied a little more pressure, and he stopped breathing altogether. The trick of it was to stop the heart without leaving any signs of damage. In the morning when his family found him, it would look as if he suffered a simple heart attack.

  I closed the door to the study and made my way out of the house. I kept myself wrapped in the shadows and walked slowly down the street until I had put the neighborhood well behind me. When I found myself approaching the busier part of town, I let the spell drop and waited on the corner until I could hail a cab.

  I entered the historic hotel again and stopped by the front desk. The man was more than happy to take my order for room service. I walked away knowing that my order was already being handled by the chef. That was exactly the kind of service you paid for at the Palace.

  I wasn’t sure what it was, but ever since my days on the farm, killing always made me hungry. I was looking forward to a well-prepared dinner of steak and potatoes to satisfy that hunger, after which I would enjoy a peaceful night’s sleep. I had important work to do tomorrow. This was the first step of many I would have to take to secure my relationship with Mr. Cane. I had no doubt that the trust I had earned tonight would go a long way to getting me to my goal. In time, I would find this underground market, and I would know just what other businesses he ran in the city. He had shown me how well it pays to be informed; that was something that I would have to work on.

  The steak was rare and the potato crispy, what a perfect night.

  Ascendancy Night of the Demon

  Copyright 2016, Bradford Bates

  All Rights Reserved

  This novel is a work of fiction. All characters, places, and incidents described in this work are used fictitiously, or are entirely fictional.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, except by an authorized retailer, or by obtaining written permission from the author. Any inquires may be addressed via email to freetheblizz@gmail.com

  Prologue

  Edward, New Ashton Mining Colony 1349

  “Get off the floor you lazy piece of shit.”

  I wasn’t too surprised when the kick landed on my ribs, flipping me onto my back with a thud. Apparently this morning was the time for another mandatory beating. I wondered if he actually expected me to be able to instantly comply with his orders or if he did it just for fun. I rolled away from the next blow and somehow managed to stagger to my feet. Pain rippled through my already bruised and broken body. They had already beaten the fight from me when I had been sentenced to this hellhole. Doing more damage now almost seemed redundant. Except for the pain, the pain was all new and fresh. Leaning against the wall didn’t stop the room from spinning and if I had to walk right away, I’d end up right back where I started.

  “Now that you have decided to get off your lazy ass, it’s time to get you cleaned up.” The guard prodded me in the back with his billy club sending a shiver of pain running down my side.

  The guards at my sentencing hearing had really done a number on me, and with the runed bracelet cutting off most of the access to my magic there was no way to heal the damage. Instead I tried to use the pain as a motivator, though I just wasn’t sure if I needed any more incentives to do what I was told. With that in mind I stumbled down a dark hallway totally at the mercy of my
new friend. You knew it was going to be a bad day when your only contact introduced themselves by trying to break a few of your ribs. My nose was already broken and one of my eyes was swollen shut. The fact that I couldn’t do more than shuffle along let me know that my legs had received a pretty good beating as well. Not exactly the kind of shape you wanted to be in when they tossed you in with the general prison population.

  Everything about New Ashton screamed death to the weak. Limited food, limited water, rewards for squealing on your fellow prisoners, and lots of time spent mining worthless rocks. They say it builds character. Here you have to take what you wanted to survive, if you wanted to survive. There was no doubt that when they found out who I was that I would be forced to fight. A man’s reputation always preceded him into a place like this, and until now mine had been of honor and class. That meant I had probably sent more than a few of these people into New Ashton in the first place. Sure they would laugh about me joining the ranks, but there would be those looking for payback as well. I wondered if it was even worth it to fight back. With no chance to see my wife and son again, did it even matter?

  “Move against the wall and take your clothes off.”

  “If you wanted to get me naked you only had to buy my dinner first.” A grunt escaped from my lips as his club slammed into my back. Ok, so the guards didn’t have a sense of humor. Normally I would have pushed the issue until they had to beat me unconscious to strip my clothes off, but today the clothes I had on were so dirty that it would be a relief to get out of them. It seems clothes weren’t made to soak in that much blood, but they did find a way to pick up a lot of dirt when you were dragged across the ground when they were soaked in it.

  The wounds on my back had started to scab over already, and the fabric of my shirt had dried into the cuts. It was going to hurt when I stripped this shirt off. Waiting was only going to make it worse. The guard was already eyeing me and spinning his club idly around in his hand. I decided to just rip the shirt off as fast as I could. I tugged it hard over my head and felt some of the wounds on my back tear open. I didn’t scream out, mostly because I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. The pants came away much easier, and my shoes had already been removed at some point.

  “Soap and shampoo are in the cubbyhole. You have five minutes, make it count.”

  I’m not too proud to admit that when the freezing cold water hit me I let out a little gasp. The sound that escaped sounded loud in the quiet space. I didn’t have enough time to wait and see if the water was going to get warm, so I started scrubbing. I looked over at the guard and just nodded back. His look told me everything I needed to know. This was the best it was going to get, I had better make the most of it. He did me a small courtesy by keeping his eyes facing forward. I guess at least that was something. Now with my clothes removed I could see the purple and yellow bruises that bloomed on my skin. With bruises that deep and colorful they had to have hit me so hard it had bruised the bone.

  I tried to move as fast as I could but the cold water only added to the stiffness that had already enveloped my limbs. My arms felt weak as they moved up and down lathering the soap against my chilled skin. The dried blood was hard enough to scrub off and now I was a shivering mess. When the water finally turned off I was grateful for the momentary warmth. It didn’t last long as the first tendrils of cold air moved over my skin and my teeth started to chatter.

  The guard watched me shiver for a minute before tossing me a towel. Once I had dried off I started to move out of the shower area and the guard growled. “Leave the towel, you won’t be needing it for what comes next.”

  That was an ominous thing to say. My mind started spinning with all of the possibilities as to what he meant by “what comes next.” We entered the next room and it was a wide open circle, except for what was in the center. An old metal chair with worn green cushions and tan straps dominated the center of the room. It almost looked like more of a torture device then a chair.

  Another prod in the back from his club got me moving again. “Get in the chair.”

  That was something I really didn’t want to do. The steel beast look uncomfortable and cold, the straps for your legs and arms didn’t speak well for the personal health of the person getting in it. I had to try and draw the line somewhere. I turned to face the guard and was rewarded with a club to the stomach.

  The floor was just as cold as the chair would have been, and what had I been hoping to accomplish anyway? Even if I had managed to take that guard out, how many more would I have to kill before I was free? I tried to rise to my feet and was rewarded with his club crashing down into the center of my back. The floor wasn’t any warmer the second time I fell to it in a heap.

  “Was that really necessary, Sam?” A female voice carried across the room.

  “He wouldn’t get in the chair.”

  “Well, have you looked at the chair, it doesn’t seem very inviting, does it?”

  “No, ma’am.”

  “Well let’s get him in it anyway. I have other things that I need to get done.”

  Rough hands grabbed me from under the shoulders and I found myself being lifted into the air. The metal back of the chair was just as cold as I thought it would be when I landed roughly against it. The sound my teeth were making reached a whole new level of chattering as the guard tightened the straps around my wrists and ankles. At least the rough leather was warmer than the metal. Sometimes you had to find comfort in the small things.

  The female finally materialized from the side of the room. After I had been secured she must have deemed it safe to enter the room. She wasn’t much to look at but then again if you worked here you probably didn’t want to be. Her hair was tied back in a rough bun. Her white outfit looked to be cared for well but the color had faded over time. It was the kind of long loose garment that left everything to the imagination. She could have easily been twice as large as she appeared and there would be no way to know. Her eyes seemed warm which was out of character for this place. She came forward with a sense of urgency and purpose, and as she stepped closer the guard moved away.

  “It looks as if you had an interesting arrival.” Her eyebrow went up with the question.

  “You could say that.”

  “Care to tell me a little bit about it, so I know where to look for the rest of the injuries?”

  The chair below me started to move, pulling me into an almost flat position. It was uncomfortable to say the least, and for the first time I thought about my nakedness. The woman continued to move around me seeming to take stock of the injuries I suffered previously. For some reason it felt rude not to answer her questions, even though I could feel a little bit of panic setting in.

  “I can’t tell you about all of them, I was unconscious for most of it. I think my legs and back hurt the worst, although I recently took a shot to the ribs that didn’t tickle.”

  “I can see that, and a few other fresh wounds.” She placed a hand on my belly where the guard had just hit me. “I can’t have you going into the colony like this, you wouldn’t last a day.”

  That didn’t fill me with a ton of confidence. I had been imagining the worst and telling myself to prepare for it, but hearing it from the only person that had shown me an ounce of decency somehow made it real.

  “I guess I’ll just start at the top and work my way down. This might hurt, just a tiny bit.” She placed a hand to either side of my nose and I heard the crack before I felt the pain.

  A small cry escaped my lips and my nose was bleeding freely again. That probably meant I would get to enjoy another one of those wonderful showers when we were done. She moved forward again placing a hand on my forehead. I almost cringed away from her touch but managed to stop myself at the last second. She was obviously a healer of some kind. She had fixed what had been a badly broken nose. Funny, with how much everything else hurt I had almost forgotten about it.

  Warmth flowed into me from her hand and I could feel my nose finish stitching back to
gether and the blood slowed to a trickle before stopping altogether. The wound on the back of my head closed, it was an odd feeling since I hadn’t even known it was there, and I could now see out of both eyes perfectly. She moved across my body slowly and methodically, repairing the worst of the damage but not all of it. She placed her hand back on my shoulder, in almost a caring gesture.

  “That takes care of the worst of it, but now I have some rather unfortunate news for you.”

  My eyes met hers in question. I wish I could say without fear in them but I knew that wasn’t the case.

  She smiled at me reassuringly and pulled something off the table behind her. When she turned around I could see that it was a pair of scissors. “Unfortunately that hair has to go.”

  Well at least someone here had a sense of humor. Terrifying, but at least it was there. I could hear the scissors doing their work as she cut my hair quickly into something that I would have never chosen for myself. She set the scissors down and this time when she came towards me she had a straight razor in her hand. This time I didn’t flinch, it seemed I was due for a shave.

  After she finished shaving me she said, “Ah, now you almost look human again.” She motioned behind her to someone and the guard came back into view. The chair pulled awkwardly at me again and then moved me back into a sitting position. “He is all yours, Sam.”

  “Thank you, ma’am.”

  I felt the straps being unfastened and then a beefy hand on my chest pushing me back against the chair. “Time for another shower, then you get your new clothes.”

  Grudgingly I stepped from the chair and headed back the way we had come. The water was just as cold the second time but thankfully this shower was much shorter. Shivering again with my teeth chattering away, he led me down a passage I hadn’t noticed before. The air was drying me slowly but the cold bite it had to it didn’t help me appreciate it much. Funny, the guard didn’t seem too concerned about giving me a towel after my second shower. Just another way to make sure they knew that I was under their control. Finally we made it into a room with large bins of clothing.