by Dan Decker
Adar’s men had the battle well in hand by the time she’d dealt with the soldier and there was little for her to do. Helam had somehow managed to get the Portal doors open and she’d been wondering if there was something she ought to do about that when she spotted Elaire, squatting on the ground while using a dead soldier's sword to cut her bonds.
Nelion was surprised to see her there because she had assumed that Helam had sent Elaire away or left her back at one of the gates. Was the man so vain that he needed an audience to witness his treasonous actions? Or did he just not trust any of his men enough to leave her with them? The way Helam and Elaire been snapping at each other, it was clear he was furious but torn about what to do with her.
Nelion’s face flared with pain when she took in Elaire, hunched over the blade, pulling the rope across the sharp edge. The woman had tortured her because of the Kopal man she’d killed. Had he and Elaire been friends? Lovers? It was plain enough that there was little love in Elaire’s heart for Helam.
Nelion hadn’t been sure what she was going to do when she headed in Elaire’s direction. She tried telling herself that she was above revenge and that Elaire needed to be captured because she was Kopal but Nelion found that she became angrier by the footstep. When she was several feet away, Elaire looked up. Their eyes met. Elaire’s face went white when she saw Nelion with her red sword in hand.
“Melyah’s sword take my eyes,” Elaire said, straightening while rubbing her free wrists. “I should have figured you’d turn up.”
“We can’t have you getting away,” Nelion said. “Let’s skip the foamy mouth part. I know you have a little vial of poison. Hand it over.”
Elaire sniffed. “Don’t carry one. Never saw the need.” She took a step back in the direction of the exit. “I’ll make you a deal, don’t come after me and I’ll leave you and your mother alone.”
At the mention of her mother, Nelion lunged. Elaire was prepared for it and dodged out of the way.
Several daggers flashed into Elaire’s hands. “I’m leaving now. Don’t follow me. I keep my promises. Always.”
Nelion attacked again and was surprised when Elaire didn’t back down but instead crossed her daggers to block the blow. Nelion was so surprised that she wasn’t prepared for the counterattack. Elaire swept Nelion’s feet out from underneath her and she fell backwards, landing on the body of a Paroke soldier.
Nelion rolled away, expecting Elaire to follow her down with a dagger aimed for her chest but it didn’t happen. Her hands touched something sticky as she moved and she clenched her teeth without looking down. She didn't need her eyes to know that she'd just rolled through a puddle of blood.
By the time that she was on her feet again, Elaire was halfway to the exit, stepping over bodies and dodging around the Napael soldiers. Nelion cried out for someone to stop Elaire but it was loud enough that nobody heard her.
One of the soldiers near the exit looked at Nelion so she repeated what she said. The man looked at Elaire and then back at Nelion with a confused expression. Nelion didn't bother to repeat herself as Elaire sped by the man without any resistance.
By that time, Nelion had already broken into a run as well. The soldier tried to block her path but she growled and pushed past. Perhaps it was the blood on her sword that gave him pause. Whatever the reason she was tempted to kick him on her way by or at the very least throw an insult but she refrained from doing either.
When she reached the exit, Elaire was out of view. Nelion began taking the stairs two at a time, something that she hadn't done since the first days of her training in Korew army. There had been a day early on where they’d been forced to run stairs on and off for a full day and night with only a little food and rest in between sessions. Her legs had been sore at the end; if she’d been given a chance to recuperate, she would not have been able to walk for a week. The next morning, after a couple hours rest, she and her teammates had all been awoken when their sergeant began tipping them out of their beds. Afterward, they’d gone on a three-day patrol.
She wasn’t in that kind of shape any longer and before she hit the third flight was already gasping for breath. Elaire was still far enough ahead that Nelion was yet to catch a glimpse of the woman, although she could hear Elaire rushing up the steps. She pushed harder, thinking that before too long, she would catch up. But Elaire proved to be too quick for her and continued to stay out of reach. If Nelion had still been running several miles a day like she had back in Korew Army, she would have caught Elaire on the stairs. It was just one more reason that illustrated why her decision to enlist again was a good one.
As Nelion walked through the ballroom, she was surrounded by noise and chaos and smells that weren’t helping with the queasy feeling she had in her stomach. She worked her way along the left side of the room, stopping every few steps to scan the crowd. It had been a long time since she’d last been in here and she couldn’t remember the location of all the exits. She knew for sure that there were a couple of doors at the back, but she couldn’t recall if there were doors on the sides as well. The high ceilinged room had an encircling balcony and she had no recollection about what exits might be up there. She was tempted to go up but decided against it. Elaire had been just a step or two ahead of her and couldn’t have gone far.
It wasn’t until she was well past the door that she realized she was getting alarmed looks from the people around her. She’d been planning to draw a few curious glances and continued without pausing, attributing the attention to her odd behavior and bruised face until she happened to look down at her blouse. It was covered with blood. She thought of the puddle that she’d rolled through earlier. Had she really been running around this whole time covered in somebody else’s blood? Gritting her teeth, she pushed down an urge to run away. If she didn’t look like the dead walking, she would be surprised. Small wonder she was causing a stir among those that saw her.
She moved through the crowd at a faster pace but that also brought her unwelcome attention as more people turned to stare. Her ears reddened and she felt out of place.
Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. What was more important, catching a woman that would lead her to the other members of the Kopal or fleeing the room in embarrassment?
It was a harder decision than it should have been. She knew what she needed to do but knew also that she might run into someone who recognized her. After several more breaths, she hardened her resolve.
When she opened her eyes, she reminded herself that a number of the people around her were drunk and that she was barely recognizable. Before the evening was over, they’d be lucky to remember their own names much less her. As soon as she passed, they would lose interest in her appearance and return to their food and drink. She hoped that they would just ascribe her bloody clothing to the alcohol coursing through their bodies combining with the lateness of the hour.
The crowd parted and she caught a glimpse of Elaire not more than twenty feet ahead of her. Nelion was unable to restrain herself and she cried out. Bleeding Melyah! She immediately covered her mouth. She was too tired and making dumb mistakes. At first, she was afraid that she’d tipped off Elaire to her presence but her voice had been drowned out by the throng. Several people looked at her but she ignored them and surged ahead into the crowd.
Somebody grabbed her arm from behind. “Nelion!” She recognized the voice of her mother and cringed. “What happened to your face? Whose blood is that?”
“We have to stop Elaire.” Nelion pointed in the direction she’d last seen her. “She’s Kopal. Helam just tried to get into the Portal.” She was about to explain more of the nuances of the relationship between Helam and Elaire but stopped. There wasn’t time.
Her mother spun her around. For an older woman, she had an iron grip and knew just the right way to leverage her strength. Nelion was powerless to fight it off unless she was willing to hurt her mother in the process. When she came face to face with her mother, she wore a stern look.
“Careful!” Her mother hissed. “You can’t go around making accusations like that.”
“I barely escaped. You want to know what happened to me? She did.” Nelion ripped her arm free and pushed through the crowd. She had to jostle and elbow some people but she made it through to the other side.
Nelion’s eyes narrowed when she spotted Elaire walking with another woman. They were headed towards an exit that was located at the side of the ballroom.
Cursing, Nelion broke into a run and caught up to them just as they stepped outside. Neither Elaire nor her companion looked back as Nelion approached, the noisy ballroom covering up the sound of her clattering footsteps. After they turned out into the adjacent hallway, Nelion slipped out after them.
It was the closest she had been to Elaire since leaving the Portal and she wasn’t about to squander the opportunity. If Nelion had caught up to Elaire while still in the ballroom, she would have been uncertain about what to do next. If she’d taken out her sword and tried to take Elaire into custody, the casual bystander might have interpreted her actions incorrectly and would have tried to help Elaire, if they helped anybody.
Now that they were out of the ballroom, Nelion didn’t hesitate to bare her sword and placed it at the base of Elaire’s neck. The woman in Elaire’s company was an unknown but Nelion wasn’t going to let Elaire escape again.
Elaire froze when the blade touched her skin and Nelion couldn’t help but feel a bit of satisfaction at having gotten the drop on the scheming woman. Nelion was preparing to trip the other woman when she recognized that it was General Nettie Loepel.
Nelion’s foot was already halfway to the general’s knees but she managed to pull it back to keep from touching the general.
Loepel's lips pinched when she saw what Nelion had been about to do. “Nelion!”
It was hard for Nelion to say what surprised her more, the fact the Loepel recognized her in her condition or that Loepel was Elaire’s companion. Nelion had just assumed that Elaire had met up with one of her confederates and that they were hatching a plan to handle the situation.
Ninth level of the fires! Nelion thought as she took in Loepel’s shocked look. She looked at Elaire as she spoke. “I’m sorry General, I didn’t see you there. Elaire is Kopal. I’m taking her captive at General Adar Rahid’s order. He instructed me to deliver her to him.” She hoped that Adar would back up her lie. He had seemed skeptical when she’d told him that Elaire was Kopal but after what had happened with Helam tonight, Adar should be more inclined to believe her. She had been right about what Helam was up to. At the very least, her lie would buy her time because the order would need to be verified by Loepel. “He didn’t care if she was breathing or not.”
“So you quit Korew army only to start taking orders from a man?” Loepel folded her arms. “It’s quite late and this is hardly the time or the place for an arrest.” Her eyes took on a hard look that she split between Elaire and Nelion. “Is this the crazy person you spoke of Elaire?”
Elaire nodded. “She’s been chasing me all the way from the Paroke base. I have no idea how she managed to get past the guards. Best send somebody to check and make sure she didn’t kill her way through.”
“Lies,” Nelion said, struggling to keep control of her voice. “We just came from the Portal. Helam is trying to take it by force.”
“The Kopal tried to take the Portal?” Loepel looked surprised.
“Not the Kopal. Helam.”
“General.” Nelion’s mother stepped up beside her with a grim look on her face; Nelion hadn’t even seen her approaching, but they stood right by the door so it had been easy for her mother to catch them by surprise. “I can’t deny my daughter lacks a decent sense of timing at times but please keep in mind the source of her order.”
The last time Nelion had witnessed a conversation between her mother and Loepel, her mother had to refer to Loepel as “Sir.” How it must have grated on her mother. Now that she was retired and a civilian, the formal language wasn’t required. Was it Nelion’s imagination or had her mother hesitated on purpose to emphasize the lack of the honorific?
It had been so slight that Nelion had almost missed it but now as she thought about it, she became more certain. It had been intentional on her mother’s part.
“Adar isn’t known for his patience or his love of frivolity. If he sent Nelion after Elaire, he won’t care if she finds Elaire in the bath or at a wedding. Would you rather Nelion wait until tomorrow? Elaire now knows that Adar is after her and will escape. The Rahids aren’t known for their calm heads. If you stop this, he’ll blame you.”
Loepel’s eyebrows narrowed as Nelion’s mother finished and Nelion was half expecting her to argue but she nodded. “Adar is sometimes more trouble than he’s worth.” She growled. “If Abel had Adar’s wits he would have been Ghar a long time ago.”
Nelion’s mother nodded. “He is a difficult man. But if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t be a man.”
Loepel frowned at Elaire. “Answer these accusations. Speak the truth or I’ll take your tongue before sending you back.”
Elaire blinked, panic spreading across her face as she looked between all three of them. She opened her mouth to speak but instead ducked while using her arm to push away Nelion’s sword as she pulled out a dagger.
Nelion yelled when Elaire lunged towards her with the blade outstretched. The moment seemed to slow as Nelion twisted; her sword was too long to do much good. She dropped it and reached for a dagger but knew she was too late. The best she could hope for would be to take the blade in her shoulder rather than her chest.
She cringed. It was just one more example. If she had been keeping up on her training, Elaire wouldn’t have been able to take her by surprise.
General Loepel yanked Elaire back and snatched the dagger. Elaire’s face paled while she struggled but she was unable to break free. She brought up another dagger and brandished it. Loepel ripped Elaire’s throat open with Elaire’s own blade and stepped away to let Elaire fall to the ground.
A scream died in Nelion’s throat. Nelion had oversold the lie. She should have said that Adar wanted Elaire alive. Any chance they had of learning more about the Kopal slipped away with the gurgling attempts Elaire made at breathing. Her mouth moved as if to form words but nothing came out.
Loepel looked down at Elaire with cold eyes. “Kopal.” She spat and looked up at Nelion. “I see you’re back to carrying a sword. This mean you’re going to enlist again? You hear about my offer?”
Nelion looked from Elaire to Loepel as her mother looked on. Whatever her mother thought about what had just happened was masked by a tight frown.
Loepel held Elaire’s bloody dagger to the side and the body of the woman she’d just killed seemed already forgotten.
Stinging Nettle indeed. Nelion couldn’t help but wonder how Loepel had first earned the nickname.
It turned Nelion’s stomach when she wondered if Loepel had gone for Elaire’s throat on purpose. Sure, Nelion had said Adar wanted Elaire dead or alive, but there was a difference between dead and dead in such a way as to never be able to utter a word while dying. Loepel had made sure there would be no last words on Elaire’s deathbed. She looked into Loepel’s steel cold eyes as she nodded her head. “It does indeed. The life of a scribe is a little boring.”
Nelion’s mother hid a small smile but Nelion didn’t care. If the events of the night had taught her anything, it was that truth didn’t matter if everybody believed a lie. There were enough lies and deception that she’d never be able to sort out the truth anyway.
Loepel could have killed Elaire to save Nelion or she could have done it to keep Elaire quiet. It was impossible to tell. Why hadn’t Elaire gone for Loepel first? Of the three women, she was the most dangerous. Of course, it had been Nelion with a sword to her throat.
Had Elaire planned on Loepel attacking Nelion’s mother to allow them both to escape? Whatever the answer to that question was, it had died with her.
Lo
epel gave a small shake of her head. “Report to me in the morning.”
Nelion nodded. If Loepel was Kopal, she had made a shrewd move in killing Elaire. Who would question her loyalties now? She had just saved Nelion. She would be untouchable after word of this got around.
Nelion shook her head, there were too many questions but at least she’d answered what she was going to do about her future.
In this kind of world, a woman needed to be able to protect herself. Taking the oath would ensure that Nelion would always have the ability to do that. She smelled the fresh blood and retched, finally heaving up the contents of her belly. Despite her embarrassment, she was glad for the excuse to break eye contact with Loepel.
The question about Loepel was a problem for another day. Perhaps her mother might have some insight on the matter. Her mother had tried to quiet her when she’d heard her words about Elaire, but when it had come down to it, her mother had backed her up when she’d needed it. She pushed the thoughts away as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
Once she had rested, she’d think about Loepel again, until then Elaire had been stopped.
She took a deep breath and thought about how much she would enjoy spending more time outside of Rarbon and all the sunsets she’d be able to see.
Chapter 28
Adar's words hung in the air without a response; he could almost reach out and touch the tension. The Redd Guard closest to him smelled of blood but it wasn’t his own, he looked unscathed. It was the blood of Adar’s men on the man. Adar tightened his lips and growled, drawing Boulder’s attention, who frowned.