War of the Fathers: War of the Fathers Universe: Volumes One - Three Box Set (War of the Fathers Series Box Set Book 1)

by Dan Decker

  “Never figured I’d have the chance to hunt Radim,” Maual said, his voice sounded jovial. Adar could have imagined him saying the same thing about hunting a bear or a lion.

  Adar frowned but if Maual noticed, he didn’t say anything. At least Maual was a touch more respectful now in the way he addressed Adar. It seemed that Adar had earned some from the confounded man, though, he wasn’t sure how.

  “This way,” Adar said. “Stay in the shadows.”

  They moved at a quick pace and Adar assumed by the way that the others kept looking around that none of them had spent much time in the palace. Whenever they passed a room that was decorated or a fixture on the wall that glinted with gold when the light of the lantern hit it, their heads would turn and he had to hurry them along.

  He shook his head. It was easy to forget how unusual his childhood had been, growing up here, wandering the hallways for hours at a time.

  He’d have given it all up in a heartbeat if it meant he had a father who wasn’t at war with him and a mother that was still alive. The doctors had said his mother died of natural causes, but with somebody like his father around, Adar had never been sure what to believe.

  “Stay close,” Adar whispered when he noticed Hendrick falling out of sight of the lantern. If they became separated and had to spend time looking for a straggler, it could take hours to get to the main levels and there was precious little time as it was without something like that happening.

  When they came to a stairway, Adar took them up to the next level. Lare commented to Lathar when he saw the stairs going down that he’d thought they were on the lowest level.

  Adar shook his head but said nothing. It was surprising to him how people could live in Rarbon all their life and could still not know a single thing about it. He’d thought it common knowledge that there were tunnels under the city. Adar hadn’t been deeper than a dozen levels, but he’d heard an old palace guard once claim to have gone below thirty. Adar hadn’t believed him because the man had been full of unbelievable stories.

  Adar had probed down as deep as he had; hoping to find weapons that could be used against the Hunwei, but all he found was trash. Discarded clothes and broken furniture were the most common items.

  He’d wondered if perhaps buried away on the deeper levels there might be something of use, but once he’d explored twelve levels down, he’d given up. Even on the lowest level he explored, he was still finding the same refuse. There hadn’t been a single hint of the technology of their fathers.

  If he’d had a year to do nothing but look, he might have found something of use, but he didn’t have that kind of time. The secrets buried in the depths of Rarbon would have to wait for yet another day. There were far more pressing matters.

  The next levels they passed were still unlit by lanterns and it wasn’t until the fourth set of stairs that they came to a hall where every other lantern was lit. Adar took the opportunity to blow out the lantern he was carrying and went to hide it. It wasn’t likely that Helam’s men would be wandering around on this level, but it was best not to take any chances. He didn’t want somebody stumbling across a warm lantern that would make them start asking questions.

  He had to try several doors before he found one that was unlocked. He slipped into the room and hid the lantern in the corner.

  Adar was almost back to the stairway when he heard metal clanging against metal. He grimaced, he couldn’t have been gone for more than a minute and somehow they’d managed to run into trouble. He slowly unsheathed his sword so as to not make a sound and peeked his head around the corner.

  Lare was fighting with Tymy.

  Melyah! I should have fully explored that other hallway. The others stood behind Lare on the stairs. Maual had his sword out and was looking for a way to help, but Lare’s sword work was keeping Maual from finding an opening. Hendrick still had his bow fitted with an arrow but he was at a bad angle to fire because he was the furthest up on the stairs and was trying to jostle Maual and Lathar out of the way so he could come down. Both were ignoring him in their own efforts to help.

  Tymy dwarfed Lare in the enclosed space and Lare already had a gash on his cheek and a slash across his chest. Before Adar had time to do anything Tymy ran his blade through Lare and then yanked his sword free. Lare fell to the floor with blood gushing from his chest as Tymy growled.

  “Who’s next?”

  Maual attacked with a scream and Tymy met his blade with a clang. Adar plunged his sword into Tymy’s back causing the man to howl.

  Tymy tried to turn but was stopped by the blade sticking into him. Adar pushed it in further and then while holding it with one hand used the other to pull out a dagger that he used to slit Tymy’s neck. Maual took advantage of the distraction to stab Tymy as well.

  Tymy dropped his sword and put his hands to his neck. Using his shoulder, Adar pushed the man free of his sword and down the flight of stairs. When Tymy came to a rest at the bottom, his neck was at an awkward angle along with one of his legs.

  Maual stood beside Adar, his face wrenched in pain and his sword bloody. Now that Adar thought about it, he realized that he was lucky that Maual hadn’t done something to him when stabbing Tymy.

  “Quick,” Adar said while bending over Lare, “we need something to stop the blood.” Lare was still breathing, but it didn’t look like he had long to live. Using the same dagger he’d just used to kill Tymy, he cut through Lare’s clothing to reveal that the wound was just left of center in the man’s chest.

  Bleeding Melyah, Adar thought, Lare isn’t going to make it, that’s right through his heart.

  Maual squatted beside them, his face pale and his hand still grasping his sword. He took in a breath of air that sounded a lot like a sob. His lips curled up and there were tears in his eyes. “There’s nothing you can do.” He cleared his throat. “Nothing any of us can do. The traitors might have heard that. You need to get going. If you don’t make it to the gate on time, we won’t be able to stop Helam. How many more people will he kill to complete his upheaval of the government?”

  Lare took another breath; it was raspy and filled with gurgling.

  Maual’s face straightened. “I’ve never left a live man behind and I’m not going to start with my brother in law. I’d rather die.” He motioned to the other two. “Go with him. He’ll need your help.”

  Adar was at a loss for what to say but something needed to be said. “He fought well.” He put a hand on Lare’s shoulder, careful to not press too hard.

  With a final look at Maual, who had turned his attention back to Lare and was cutting off a piece of Lare’s shirt, presumably to try to stop the blood, Adar made eye contact with the other men and stood. Hendrick’s eyes were red but his mouth was narrow and he looked ready to kill somebody. Adar hoped to put that man’s determination and anger to good use. As he ran up the stairs with the other men close behind him, Adar cursed under his breath.

  This whole situation illustrated why Adar spent so much time trying to get to know his men. If Adar had known Maual and Lare were family, he would have tried to handle the situation with a little bit more tact, though, he didn’t know what more he could have done. Tymy had come for Adar but Lare had paid the price.

  The thought made Adar grab the hilt of his sword tighter as he ran up the stairs with the others close behind him. A few flights later, they came up to the main floor of the southern tower and darted out across the entryway towards the stairs that led to the arrow slits over the gate.

  He wasn’t looking for the approval of his men, but he did need their respect. He would have to keep an eye on Maual after this to see if he blamed Adar for the death of his brother in law. If the man was disrespectful or saying things behind Adar’s back, Adar might overlook the indiscretions for an appropriate time while he grieved for his brother in law. After that had passed, Adar would bring Maual into line or court-martial him.

  Because he was distracted with his thoughts, Adar didn’t see the group of men until
he was almost on top of them. By that time, he was already swinging his sword before he thought to check to make sure that they belonged to Paroke army. As his sword ran through the first, he realized that his assumption had been correct and that he hadn’t killed a palace guard.

  He heaved a silent sigh of relief as he pulled the blade from the traitor and turned to the others to find that Hendrick and Lathar had taken care of them. One had an arrow in his throat and Lathar was pulling his sword out of the other.

  “Sun’s not up,” Hendrick said, “and I’ve seen more blood today then I have the last five years.”

  Adar didn’t answer. The floors would be bathed in the stuff before they were done.

  At the top of the stairs over the arch, he came to a stop by some barrels of oil that were kept here to pour down the murder holes once it had been heated. An idea occurred to him as waited for the others to catch up.

  Around the next bend was the room where the arrow slits looked out over the gate and where there were murder holes in the floor. If his estimate was correct, there would be six or seven men. Hopefully, they were still keeping a close eye on Adar’s men outside.

  Chapter 23

  Nelion was beginning to wish that she hadn’t waited with the men that Adar had left outside the southern gate. The night sky had clouded over, though, it was patchy in places and the moons had peeked out several times during the last few hours. The moons were behind the clouds again and there was a cold wind blowing.

  She shivered as the wind found its way through her thin blouse and she resisted the urge to wrap her arms around her body for comfort.

  It wasn't so cold that she couldn't endure it. She was normally up before dawn and on her way to the palace archives by this time, enjoying the pleasures of being outside with the rising sun as the world began to lighten with a new day. The potential of it filling her with vigor and a determination to make it productive enough that by the time she went home she would feel satisfied with her labor.

  When she had been in Korew army that had been easy enough, there was something about strenuous physical activity that left her fulfilled. It was much more difficult to find that kind of satisfaction in the archives while chasing down answers to questions about the past. The payoffs were fewer but when they came, it was well worth the wait.

  She missed Korew army and was having an easier time admitting that to herself now that she had made the decision to enlist again. It would provide her with the opportunity to do what she loved most. Travel the wide world. Perhaps she would still help Semal, but on a voluntary basis.

  The cuts on her arm were painful and starting to become inflamed. Fatigue had finally set in, and she was filled with a gnawing hunger that made her feel dizzy. She remained standing with the others though it made her queasy to do so. Times like this made her glad for the training she received in Korew army. She tried to overcome her lightheadedness by walking around to keep her blood flowing. It seemed to work at first, but then she became dizzier and had to stand still again.

  She refused to sit down on the ground. She was receiving more attention than she would have liked and didn’t need to do anything that might be interpreted as a sign of weakness. They probably all thought her a girl without a lick of training.

  She was tired of the looks she was getting from the soldiers when they took in her bruised face. None of them had tried to engage her in conversation, for which she was grateful because she wasn’t sure that she’d be able to string together more than a few words. She should have followed Adar.

  She had been tempted when Adar and his men had slipped away, but the Colonel—she thought Adar had referred to him as Lucas, but she’d been too far away to know for sure—had made a point of staring at her as they left, as if he knew what she wanted to do and was planning to stop it.

  After all that she had been through, the last thing she wanted to do was let Adar go, but she was lucky that he had let her stay in the first place. She had been able to tell that he had been thinking about sending her away and she was glad that he had not. She had been prepared to put up a fight. She hadn’t come this far to not see it through to the end.

  Elaire popped into Nelion's mind and she suddenly wasn't feeling as tired. Nobody treated Nelion like that and got away with it if she had anything to say about it.

  “Need a drink?” said a man that had approached while she hadn’t been paying attention. He was tall and bulky but not fat, with scars running up and down his arms. His face was sunburned and she liked the way that his dark hair framed his features. He held out a water skin to her, a pleasant smile on his face.

  Nelion had noticed him earlier. He'd been among a group of soldiers that had kept looking at her while they'd been talking. There had been enough laughter coming from them that she'd begun to suspect that she was being made fun of in some way.

  So much for being left alone, she thought, but I could use a drink.

  She took the proffered bag and was surprised when she emptied the skin. “Thank you, I hadn’t realized I was so thirsty.” She handed it back to him.

  He hefted it. “Glad I offered, looks like you needed it.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a package of waxed paper, which he unfolded to remove a piece of jerky. He held it out to her.

  Still wary of his true intentions, Nelion took it and tore off a piece. How long had it been since she’d last eaten? She had been planning to grab a bite before heading over to the Paroke archives, but the surprise visit from her mother had kept her from doing that. Had it really been since lunch of the previous day?

  She swallowed without chewing and took another bite.

  “You were in there when the executions happened, correct?”

  She bristled and hesitated before nodding her head. She noticed that the men he'd been with earlier were all staring at her now. She frowned, hoping that he would notice her cue that she did not want to talk about it, but he continued without noticing her mood change.

  “Old Stoneface left quite the mess back there.” A look of mock concern plastered his face. “They say his wife Elaire was there too.” He looked around and pretended to lower his voice, but spoke even louder than before. The other soldiers were suppressing laughter now. “Is that what happened? Did she do this to you? Is that why Helam executed all those people? To rescue his mis—”

  Nelion didn't give him a chance to finish, she didn't like his implication. She knew his type and there had only been one way that she'd dealt with them in the past. She kneed him in the groin and pushed him to the ground. His friends laughed as she went down with him and put her dagger to his neck. It was the one she’d stolen from the Paroke soldier when escaping.

  “Finish what you were saying,” she said, letting the sharp blade touch his throat. The man looked up at her, every hint of mockery gone. The fear touched his eyes as she pushed it down into his neck. “Finish.”

  He coughed. “—mistress?”

  Nelion scowled. “And what do you think the answer is?” He shook his head refusing to speak further. “Some women may take such abuse from you, but that’s because they’re not willing to hurt others. I still have blood on me from the last man I killed.” She remained crouching but put her feet underneath her while continuing to hold the dagger to his throat. “Any other questions?”

  When he shook his head, she released him. He scooted back on his behind until he was out of grabbing distance before he stood and faced her. He looked as though he wanted to say something but Nelion waved her dagger in the air as if she was going to hurl it his way and he ducked.

  Some of the nearby soldiers had fallen silent during the exchange, but everybody near her seemed to be laughing now. Nelion was satisfied to see that even some from the group he’d come from were hooting with derision as the man rejoined their ranks.

  Her actions hadn’t done anything to dispel the rumor that was going around but now at least they would think of her as a mistress with claws. The thought satisfied her until she made eye cont
act with the Colonel.

  She couldn’t tell if he’d witnessed the exchange or not, but there did appear to be the makings of a tiny smile on his face.

  His attention was diverted by a shout from a soldier at the front of the group. Smoke was billowing out of the arrow slits. The Colonel gave an order for the men to prepare to rush the palace.

  Several minutes passed during which Nelion thought she could hear shouts coming through the smoke but they were faint enough that she wasn’t certain if she was imagining them or not.

  When the gates of the palace swung open, the Colonel gave the order to charge. Nelion stayed near the back of the men as they surged forward. She felt naked without a shield but when they drew within range of the arrows, none came.

  It wasn’t long before they made it to the palace and in through the opening gate. As she entered, she noticed that the palace guards were lying off to one side of the hallway. She was startled when one of them let out a snore. There were bits of bread on the floor around them and she wondered if they had been poisoned. Helam’s plan began to make a little bit more sense.

  Once inside, Nelion began to slip through the group towards the tower lobby. At one point, she was forced to find another way forward because the man she’d humiliated was several feet ahead.

  She got to the front just as Adar was finishing his orders to the Colonel. She heard enough to learn that fifty men were to stay here while the Colonel took most of the rest and recaptured the other gates. Adar had then asked for twenty volunteers to follow him. She’d almost stepped forward but had then thought better of it. Adar didn’t need a reminder that she was here.

  As the men sorted into groups, Nelion noticed several dead Paroke soldiers that had been pulled to the side of the lobby. She recognized one from Helam’s group. He had died with an arrow through the neck.

  She couldn’t help but wonder how Helam had convinced his men to do the things they’d done. Had he paid them or had he appealed to something else? A promise to be put into a position of authority? Whatever it was, she couldn’t explain it. She felt a little guilty stealing the man’s sword, but reminded herself that he was a traitor as she strapped it on.