by Peter Glenn
A moment later, she performed the same ritual on the other unconscious guard. “There. They’ll be quite surprised when they wake up in a few hours and have a massive headache, but they should be just fine.”
“You always were the smarter one,” I told her, flashing her a grin.
She smiled back at me and stood up a little straighter. “And don’t you go forgetting it, eh?”
Ah, Sheila. She had always been a character. I really hoped for her sake that everything would work out okay this time.
“So, where to next?” Isaiah asked. “Which door? They all look the same.”
“No idea,” I told him honestly. “One of the guards I knocked out was trying to get into the middle door there, but I can’t say for certain that Allie isn’t down one of the other paths.
“Well, I guess we’ll just have to try them all, then, won’t we?” Isaiah replied.
I nodded. “Indeed.”
I went over to Hooded Guard and grabbed the keyring that had fallen next to his body. I tried to remember which key he’d tried to put into the door earlier, but I hadn’t been watching close enough. In the end, I just started jamming keys into the door until one of them worked.
Thankfully, it only took three tries. The lock opened with a loud clack, and the door slid smoothly inward.
“Catch!” I whispered to Isaiah as I threw him the keyring. “I’ll take this door. You take the one closest to you, and Sheila can take the last one. We’ll meet back up in this room in fifteen minutes if no one has found Allie yet. Sound good?”
Isaiah caught the keys like a pro and nodded his assent. I turned to look at Sheila, and she nodded as well.
With that settled, I turned my attention to the hallway in front of me. It was more dimly lit than the foyer had been, but that could be for dozens of reasons. I paused for just another moment, then plunged into the hallway and shut the door behind me. If anyone passed by and opened that door, I’d want to know. The guards might not wake up soon, but they were still lying rather conspicuously on the floor.
Grabbing the hood of my cloak, I pulled it as low on my face as I could and still be able to see out of it. There was no magic protecting me this time, so I had to be extra careful.
One hand slid down to Grax’thor’s familiar weight at my side. I had the sneaking suspicion I’d have to use her again soon enough.
I crept down the hallway, moving slowly. There were more of those strange bloody crosses from before on the walls here, and another pentagram with an eye in it. This one was more garish than the iron ones had been. The eye was rimmed in gold paint, and the iris was a stunning green. It looked like the iris had been made out of jade, in fact.
A strange grating sound caught my attention from up ahead. I froze, wrapping my fingers tight around the hilt of my sword, and waited.
I watched as a door I hadn’t seen opened up a short ways down the hall and a red-robed figure burst into view. He started coming down toward me, almost running right into me in the process.
“Sorry!” I mumbled as his shoulder bumped into mine.
The red-robed figure looked up from his feet. His cheeks were bright red. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t see you there, Brother…”
“Farthington.” Hey, it had worked on the earlier guard.
“Right. Farthington. Well, I’d hurry on down to the altar room if I were you. The fun is going to start any minute now.”
I flashed him a small grin. “Yes, of course.”
The red-robed figure brushed past me, heading for the foyer.
Damn it. I had hoped he wasn’t going to do that. My sword was in my hand before I even knew I’d called for it. I swung it mercilessly, cutting the man down where he stood. I couldn’t have him discovering the downed guards and putting up an alarm. Not yet.
I felt a little bad for killing him defenseless like that, but I hadn’t had many options this time. I gave his body one last forlorn look, then replaced Grax’thor in her sheath and went over to the door he’d come out of.
The man had said something about an altar room, and I had the sinking feeling that it was through the hidden doorway he’d come out of.
I caught the door before it closed all the way and forced my way into the hallway beyond it. It was a mirror of the hallway I’d just been in, but the lighting was better. Plus, I could hear the distinct noise of chatter coming from one end of it.
Glancing down the hallway, I spotted a red-cloaked individual not far away. He was looking the other direction at something in front of him.
I made my way over, going slowly to keep from raising an alarm. The red-cloaked individual I’d spotted was flanked by several other similar people on either side, and several in front of him, as well.
They were blocking my view of what laid in the room beyond them, so I wedged my way in between two of them and kept going.
The room beyond them opened up all around me. It was vast, with several rows of benches situated in the middle of it. More red-cloaked people sat on these benches. There must have been almost a hundred of them altogether, and they were all staring at the two people on the stage against the far wall.
A slight gasp escaped my lips as I made out the stage proper. A rather large altar took up most of the stage. It was nothing special in and of itself, just a granite number with that same pentagram pattern from before emblazoned on the side of it. But on top of the altar, tied down with several thick ropes, was Allie. And behind her, holding one of his overly ornate daggers in his right hand, was none other than Kedron himself.
“Welcome, Death’s Head devotees,” Kedron’s smooth voice said a moment later, “to the end of the world.”
15
Kedron was slightly favoring his right side as he stood there, garnering everyone’s attention, which made me smile just a little bit. After all, I’d caused the injury that made him do it.
My hand wrapped around Grax’thor’s hilt. The smooth metal of her handle was comforting. A well-placed throw from here could end that miserable man’s life, but then I’d have a hundred cultists descend on me at once.
Not great odds.
Besides, if I missed, I’d be surrounded and unarmed, and I wasn’t exactly the world’s best thrower. No, I’d have to wait and see if I could get closer first. Give some time for Isaiah and Sheila to catch up. Where were they, anyway? Surely, they could find their way into this room, right? It was in the center of the church, after all.
“Long have we awaited the return of our patron god,” Kedron continued. His voice kept all the room’s attention on him, so I crept forward through the ranks while he prattled on. “Long have we sought favor with Quix’tlal, the All-Seeing.”
All-Seeing, huh? Well that explained the eye pattern everywhere. Not the bloody crosses, though. Those were still a mystery.
“At every turn, we have been shunned and shamed. Cast aside by those who thought they knew better than us,” Kedron said.
Come on, just keep talking a little bit longer. I was maybe three rows back from the stage at this point, moving slowly and keeping my head low. Just a little bit closer.
“But now, with this...”
He raised a small object in his other hand high in the air. I recognized it instantly. It was the Jade Jaguar. Was the thing glowing a little bit in the light of the church, or were my eyes just weary from lack of sleep? I couldn’t be sure.
“With this, we shall resurrect our god, and he shall rain down his blessings upon each and every one of us. All the faithful shall be rewarded.” His hands raised higher in the air as his little speech reached a crescendo. “And to those who opposed us? Who kicked us and told us we were crazy? To them shall be granted only death.”
Great. Was he another one of those sniveling kids that had been bullied as a youth and had now pledged his life to a death god? That would sure explain things.
Believe it or not, those were more common than you’d think. But I digress.
“All of you shall be blessed, but none sha
ll be blessed greater than Sister Alejandra,” Kedron said. He lowered his hands and head and looked his people in the eye. “Only she has offered up her very life so that Quix’tlal may be resurrected. By her great sacrifice shall his rebirth be made possible. Everyone give thanks for Sister Alejandra’s sacrifice and revel in its glory.”
A chill ran down my spine. I should have guessed that was coming next. But one look into Allie’s eyes, and the fear I could see there, and I knew she was nowhere near willing. It was all a show. Kedron must have caught her and decided to use her as the sacrifice in place of someone else.
It was a good ploy—no one would question the whole thing if they thought she was willing. But it just made me want to kill him all the more.
“Brother Hobart! Sister Carmine! Come forth and present the gifts to our god at the altar!”
Two of the red cloaks made their way through the crowd. Hobart and Carmine. Good. I’d finally get my revenge on them, too. It was about time.
I glanced around for Isaiah and Sheila, but I still didn’t see them anywhere. I was only one row back from the front now.
Just hang in there another few moments, Allie. I’m coming for you.
Hobart and Carmine knelt in front of the altar. Hobart placed a blood-soaked cross on the ground, and Carmine set another ornate dagger on top of it. Those must be more symbols of this Quix’tlal character. I’d have to ask Rick where that god had come from when this was all over. Hey, I enjoyed history too, you know.
“Thank you,” Kedron said. He set down the Jade Jaguar next to the other treasures and placed a hand on both of their heads. They both bowed deeply, then took their places next to him.
“Now, under the light of the full moon, the ritual can begin. With Alejandra’s blood, the seal will be shattered. Witness the rebirth of our god!”
A cheer erupted from the crowd, and everyone stood at the same time. It was chaos. I lost sight of the stage for a half second and almost pushed someone over trying to get up to the front so I could see everything again.
Curse being a short Asian. Why couldn’t I have been taller? But then, I was actually kind of tall for people from my time period.
Frantically, I pushed my way forward, no longer being subtle. Someone beside me groaned and another whined that I was now blocking their view, but I didn’t care. The time for stealth was over.
I stared up at Kedron. His face had contorted into something out of a B horror flick. He held his little dagger in both hands, high over Allie’s chest, chanting something I didn’t understand.
Time had run out. I didn’t have time to wait for Isaiah or Sheila. I had to act now, or Allie was done for. And everyone else, for that matter.
Kedron’s dagger gleamed in the light. He brought it up a little higher, then it started its descent.
In the same motion, Grax’thor left my side as I lunged for the stage, moving almost of her own volition. She flew through the air, gliding freely toward Kedron and Allie. I watched as the tip of her blade slammed into Kedron’s dagger, shattering it into several pieces. Then Grax’thor landed tip-first into the mess of ropes that held Allie fast.
It was nothing short of a miracle. I’d stopped the execution. It had all happened so fast, even I could hardly believe it.
A second later, the room devolved into chaos.
“Stop him!” Kedron shouted, pointing a hand at me. “He’s a nonbeliever!”
Several red cloaks started closing in on me, and I was still without my weapon. I reached my hand toward her and tried to will her to come to me, but she was fickle at best. I knew I couldn’t count on her. She didn’t budge.
I spun to face the knot of cultists in front of me. “Heh. Can’t we all just get along?”
One of them produced a dagger. Another produced a small revolver. Things were not looking good.
“Guess not, eh?”
I jabbed at the closest attacker, hooking them in the jaw with my fist. They staggered backward into several other people, then I turned and faced the man with the revolver. I crouched and slammed my shoulder into his arm, and I heard the weapon clatter to the ground, then I followed that up with a headbutt to his sternum to send him staggering.
The dagger wielder came for me then, slicing deep into my robe and getting caught in its folds. Thankfully, it didn’t cut any deeper. I whirled and thrust forward with an open palm, catching the man full on his chest. He went down, too, into a mass of bodies and limbs flailing about.
But there were far more cultists than there was Damian, and I knew Kedron could restart the ritual at any point. I had to get out of here and put an end to things once and for all. Just needed to figure out how.
I heard a muffled cry as Allie shouted something and spun around to look at her. She was writhing against what was left of her bonds while Hobart and Carmine tried to pin her down and Kedron produced another dagger.
Forgetting the mob for a moment, I sprinted in her direction. But a new wave of cultists surged forth, closing in quickly and blocking off that path.
Pain shot up my back as something hard smacked into it from behind. I spun to see someone brandishing a small club, readying for another swing.
I grabbed the club with one of my hands and shoved hard against the cultist’s chest with my other. Gravity took over, and he went sprawling backward, losing the grip on his club as he tumbled to the ground.
With a new weapon at my disposal, I swung the club in a low arc, making some room between me and the cultists as they all backed away.
I heard a loud crack from behind me and spun to see the barrel of a revolver smoking as the cultist that had fired it stared down at the barrel in shock. I followed his gaze and saw another dead cultist lying on the ground, a fresh pool of blood forming under his head.
The cultist must have been trying to hit me and had hit one of his friends instead.
Well, that was one way to thin the odds.
I brought my club to bear, swinging for the stunned man’s weapon. The club crashed into the revolver, and I heard the cultist howl in pain as the bones in his hand were crushed under my swing. The revolver clattered to the floor a moment later.
One good upswing was all it took to send that man flying.
I swung and spun around in a circle, trying to keep everyone at bay, but more and more cultists were coming for me with a variety of weapons, and time was running out. I needed a better diversion.
As if on cue, a massive fireball erupted off to my left, drawing the attention of several cultists all at once as half a dozen of the red-cloaked freaks fell writhing to the ground.
I looked to see who the cause of the fire was and saw Isaiah standing in one of the entryways to the altar room. He was already brandishing another fireball, ready to let it loose into the mass of cultists.
Thank goodness the cavalry had arrived at last. There was hope yet.
I took advantage of the momentary shock of the cultists around me and cracked one of them over the head with my club. He went sprawling to the ground, knocking over his friend in the process.
A wicked-looking curved blade came for me next, and it was all I could do to bring the club around in time to block it. Metal clashed with hardened wood, and neither came back the victor.
Curved Sword came at me with a low jab, and I danced backward just in time to save my legs. He lunged at me with another wide swipe, but before he could connect, my own weapon finally came to my rescue, embedding itself into the man’s head.
He groaned once and fell over, then Grax’thor was mine once more, leaving the body of the cultist behind and gliding into my hand.
Now armed with my trusty sword, the remaining cultists around me seemed more hesitant. Even the ones with their own bladed weapons.
Couldn’t blame them. I’d held my own quite well up to this point. Maybe they weren’t all as ready for this whole death thing as they thought they were.
One of the blade-wielding cultists finally got up the nerve to charge me. He lunged low,
aiming for my midsection. I brought my own weapon around in time to block his and send the blow wide.
The area around him was so crowded that the tip of his sword ended up slicing into the arm of one of his companions. That man cried out in pain and clutched his bad arm, which gave me all the opening I needed as Sword Guy turned to face the sudden noise.
My blade eased into Sword Guy’s throat, cutting off his windpipe and ending his life. A hail of blood droplets flew through the air as I pulled my sword free, staining everything in sight.
Maybe it was a good thing all their cloaks were red…
Before I could revel in my victory, I felt another wave of pain as my left leg buckled, struck by something from behind. My leg gave out, and I ended up kneeling and rolling to the side to get out of the way of another club blow that threatened to take out my head.
I came up quickly, swinging wildly, and managed to sever someone’s arm as I got into another defensive position.
The club wielder thrust forward, and I came up under his guard, slicing deep into his belly. He grunted and fell to the side as I scrambled back up to a standing position. My left leg was still throbbing, but I did my best to ignore it.
Just then, another man with a revolver faced me down. There was nothing between him and me. He gave me a wicked grin, then pulled the trigger.
Nothing happened. He glanced down at the weapon, but it was already too late. I skewered him quickly through an eye socket, and he fell to the ground like so many of his friends.
Off in the distance, Isaiah put one of his fists in the air and nodded at me. I nodded back. Nice save, magic boy. Nice save.
The crowd of cultists around me was starting to thin. Several of them were dead, and the rest were starting to back off. It seemed no one else wanted a piece of me.
An ear-splitting scream from behind me shattered the air. It was Allie. She was in trouble.
Spinning around, I took in the whole scene. Hobart and Carmine had a hold of her arms and legs and Kedron had his new dagger poised to strike. I only had moments to act.