The Iron Butterfly

by Chanda Hahn

  I watched her leave and gently latched the door before I opened the sack and began to work. I had arrows, paints, clothes and a large jar of a special blend of Ruzaa’s perfume. I broke the ends of the arrows off and padded them with balls filled with paint.

  Putting a wooden clothespin on my nose, I transferred Ruzaa’s perfume into smaller clay vessels with a rubber stopper and put them in a thick leather pouch on my hip, being careful not to jostle them too much.

  Garit agreed to furnish me with a small grappling hook and just grinned at my initiative. I wound the rope around my slim waist and used the hook to loop around the rope, holding it there. It wouldn’t hold much more than my own body weight, but that’s all I needed. I couldn’t afford to get a bigger one because I needed to carry my arrows and bow over my back.

  Running to my mirror, I pulled my hair into a ponytail and rubbed the black grease paint all over my face, making it itch. I stared at myself and noted the changes in my face since I first arrived at the Citadel. I had gained weight in my face and body, my skin had tanned taking on a healthy glow instead of the pasty white it had been. My eyes were still huge and had softened with happiness and health, but tonight they looked dark with determination.

  Shutting my window, I strung a piece of very fine thread around the window latch. The string would break if someone tried to enter my room through the window. Donning my cloak I let myself out of my room, and kneeling down I poured a fine powder of dust around my door that would only be discernible if you got down to the floor level with cheek pressed to the marble and looked. I took the quickest exit to outside knowing that midnight would be fast upon me.

  Running toward the stables, I opened Faraway’s stall and attached the new set of reins I had specially made for him. They no longer had a bit, but went around his muzzle and ears.

  Faraway as my guardian didn’t need a bit, and he had expressed his displeasure at them. I had gotten an amazed stare from Horse Master Grese when I had it commissioned. That’s where the rest of my gold had gone. Leading Faraway at a slow walk I took him out to the pasture and let him loose.

  If he were not penned up in the stall, then he would be an extra set of eyes watching out for me. From this pasture he had a very good view of the training grounds and would be my eyes and ears.

  Quickly I slipped into the shadows and watched the guards patrol around the keep’s grounds. If I were the SwordBrother, I thought to myself, I would probably already be on the grounds in hiding. Just because the game didn’t start until midnight didn’t mean that he couldn’t already be here. And I was about to do the same thing. Hide.

  Waiting, I leaned my head against the outer wall of the stable and tried to calm my nerves as I silently went over everything that I had on me.

  It’s clear, go now.

  The signal from Faraway was what I was waiting for. I slid along the building, staying in shadows until I slipped into the stable. Climbing up the ladder into the loft I moved through the hay until I came to a small window. I had gotten the idea from Jury and Pim. I was impressed by their resourcefulness of living in attics and lofts. I pushed it opened and crouched in the window sill. It wasn’t very far to the roof so I swung the hook and rope and pulled myself to the very top and carefully, using my bow, I closed the door.

  Since the stable was a fairly large building in the shape of an L and two stories high, it gave me enough of a vantage point to see the layout of the yard. Carefully moving to the far-facing roof, I laid down in the shadows facing the keep. Pulling my cloak over my body I rested my head on my hands and waited. It was an hour until the bell would toll and I could hear the guards talking excitedly amongst themselves.

  “This is going to be so easy. Who would be stupid enough to take on a whole training facility of Denai and the Citadel’s guards? This game will be over in an hour,” a gruff voice commented.

  “And that purse of gold will be mine,” another challenged.

  “Ha, not if I have any say in it.”

  “What does it matter about a purse of gold when there are promotions at stake? We have the chance to prove ourselves and make Captains.” A few grumbled agreements followed. I heard someone spit into the bushes, and then the men moved away.

  Trying to wiggle my toes to keep them from falling asleep, I decided to count how many lighted windows I could see in the dorm rooms. There were a lot of people still awake when the bell rang out twelve times. A cheer of excitement rang out among the guards and a frenzied pace of patrolling began.

  I scouted this spot out days ago. I knew for a fact that you couldn’t see onto the roof I was lying on unless you were in a far field outside of the grounds.

  The stable backed right up to the edge of the grounds, so in order for anyone to see me they would have to be out of bounds or get a ladder. After about an hour and no commotion, many of the students that were celebrating or out hunting decided to go to bed.

  It was almost two in the morning when I heard the first scream followed by a second. The sound sent chills down my back because they sounded so real, until I heard some cursing, name calling and laughter.

  “He’s over here. Get him!” a male voice called.

  “Hey, you are dead; you can’t call out for help. That’s not fair,” a loud chiding female voice retorted.

  A unit of guards hurried over to where three students wearing cloaks covered in blue dye were emerging from the greenhouse. They were too far away to distinguish faces.

  “Where did he go?” a guard yelled. I could see a female student glare at her fallen blue splattered comrade and shake her head stubbornly.

  “Sorry, can’t talk. We’re dead and must report inside. It wouldn’t be fair to tell you.” She pulled her upset comrade by his cloak and he started walking, grumbling and complaining.

  Her third companion was chuckling at their misfortune and just shrugged at the guards and followed behind. The guards took off running into the direction that they came from as the three students headed inside.

  It wasn’t long before more yelling, shouts, screams and laughing were heard, as student after student was taken out.

  “He’s in the Citadel! Go…go…go!” yelled a Captain, as a line of guards rushed inside, only to come back out covered in blue paint, cursing and swearing.

  One short man threw his sword on the ground and kicked the dirt. They dejectedly made their way back toward the barracks in humiliation. I could hear the jeering as they went inside and waited. They didn’t wait long before they were joined by five more guards with bright blue spots on their back.

  “He’s a sneaky turd, isn’t he!” one of the first killed, yelled at the newcomer. “He shot us one by one, when we came in the front, couldn’t even see where it came from.”

  I watched as more lights came on as the students woke up during the commotion. My hands itched for action, but the last place I wanted to be right now was in the middle of that madhouse.

  The one advantage I had was that I knew that he was eventually going to come after me, and I wasn’t going to be an easy target and wait quietly in my room. The next hour was similar to the first with more screams and laughter. My skin crawled in nervousness as I realized he was going for the students first. Students, who in all reality, really, were the biggest threat over the guards.

  Now the guards weren’t treating this like a normal attack, because they knew that no one was actually going to get hurt. They were counting on ambushing the assailants and stealth.

  Soon I saw Adept Pax and Lorna walk out of the main hall across the courtyard and head toward the barracks and Captain Meryl.

  Captain Meryl wiped his sweaty bald head and asked, “How’s it going inside?”

  “Unfortunately, good and bad,” Adept Pax remarked. His dark skin looked even darker under the moonlight. “The SwordBrother is very good and is teaching many of our uptight students a lesson; that you need more than just Denai power to defeat an opponent.”

  Adept Lorna frowned, her body stiff. “
Too bad, it’s somewhat humiliating to the students that are being hit, and to our training. It shows how unprepared we really were.”

  “Ah, come now, Lorna,” Adept Pax patted her shoulder reassuringly. “How often in their life will they really be fighting against a SwordBrother? We agreed that this would be a good lesson for them. We believe two of the Captains, Rugen and Barstol have already been taken out by Joss.”

  “Not to mention a few of the younger more eager students created elaborate traps with nets and despite all of their effort only managed to catch their fellow students.”

  In my head I calculated how many attackers were left. There were a total of five people that we would have to contend with; four of Commander Meryl’s Captains and one crazy SwordBrother. If Joss took out two, then that meant that there were three left?

  “What about the SwordBrother?” Commander Meryl asked, his face gleaming with wild anticipation.

  Adept Lorna threw her head back and laughed. “That one walked right in the front door.”

  “WHAT! Impossible! How…..the three students?”

  “He walked in wearing a cloak splattered with his own blue paint. He followed the first two students he killed, right into the main hall. He’s also taken the highest number of students and guards out. He is one to be reckoned with.”

  Commander Meryl clapped his hands in delight and laughed out loud. “Aha, that is one cocky son of a SwordBrother. I wouldn’t have expected that.” After wiping the tears from his eyes his face became serious. “Any word on Thalia?”

  “No one has seen or heard from her since this afternoon,” Lorna said turning toward the courtyard, a worried look on her face.

  “She was last seen running around the keep,” Adept Pax replied, eyes darting to and fro looking for movement in the shadows.

  Commander Meryl took in the Adepts position and brought his voice down to a whisper. “She wasn’t planning on running away, was she?”

  Adept Pax snorted in reply. “No, I think she was getting ready to hunker down and wait out the SwordBrother. She had been practicing all week for this. I don’t think she would run from this chance. I truly believe she would rise to the task.”

  Movement. By the south tower.

  I quit spying on the Adepts down below and turned my eyes to where Faraway saw something. Sure enough, there was either one the Captains or the SwordBrother lying flat on the ground and crawling along the side of the wall in the shadows.

  Moving to my knees, I blew heat back into my fingertips and flexed the muscles. Pulling out my bow, I notched my padded, paint-filled arrow and took aim. Following all of my training, I aimed and released, watching it fly through the air to come down on top of the sneaking assassin.

  A loud “OOMMPHH” coming from the person in shadow declared it to be a true shot, as well as the splash of yellow that slowly moved from the ground into the form of a standing person. But it also gave away my position as the Adepts and Commander Meryl’s gaze immediately flew to the top of the stable where I kneeled. Slinging the bow over my shoulder, I gave a spry little wave to them as I ducked down and slid to the low end of the roof using my hook to climb down.

  I could hear the Adepts and the Commander laughing as Adept Pax said, “Definitely has risen to the occasion.”

  Mentally I counted down. Three left.

  Wait! Faraway commanded, I froze and tried to slow my beating heart and breath.

  On your left, he’s coming around the armory. It’s a Captain, he’s going to try and surprise you. He’s fifty feet, forty-five feet, forty feet. NOW.

  Notching another padded arrow I quickly followed my bow around the corner and shot the Captain. He was very close and tried to dodge my arrow, but I was faster and grazed his shoulder. He let out a grunt in pain.

  Rats, I thought, a shoulder graze wouldn’t be considered a killing wound and the Captain knew it. He ducked into a doorway to wait me out. Slowly reaching into my leather hip pouch, I pulled forth one of Ruzaa’s concoctions that I had transferred into a clay container.

  I peeked just enough around the corner to aim and threw the jar as hard as I could at the ground. It broke open and a heady potion spilled out, a sleeping potion.

  Ducking back around the corner, I pulled out a black cloth mask that covered my nose and the bottom half of my face, and waited until I heard a soft thud.

  Holding my breath I dashed around the corner with the painted knife in hand. Feeling awful at what I was about to do, I almost backed out, but decided to run the fake knife across his stomach, so there wouldn’t be any chance of accidental injury. The scent of the sleep inducing potion was making my eyes burn, I needed to move away quickly.

  Two left.

  GO! GET GOING! RUN TO THE RIGHT!

  Listening to Faraway I ran and followed his directions past the garden and courtyard. Stopping when he told me to and moving when it was clear, until I reached the locked wood chute that led down into the kitchen.

  I pulled out the keys that I had conveniently borrowed from Donn this morning and forgot to return. Grabbing the cold iron lock between my fingers, I quickly looked over my shoulder to make sure no one was near and prayed that no one filled the chute a day early.

  My nerves made me drop the key twice before I heard the quiet click of the lock. I was in luck, the wood chute was low enough on wood for me to squeeze through. But the darkness of the chute intimidated me. I almost decided to turn around and go in the front door of the main hall, but that would be suicide. And the training game over.

  Taking a deep breath I gently placed each foot into the chute and waited until the logs quit moving before I applied more weight. Once I was fully inside, I pulled the outside doors closed, encasing myself in pitch black nothingness. Taking a second to calm my nerves, I painstakingly made my way down the wood chute inches at a time, stopping every so often to listen for sounds.

  By the time I reached the bottom and the floor began to level out, my hands were full of splinters. I could see a faint glow coming from the kitchen fire under the chute doors.

  Pressing my eye to the crack, I waited to see if anyone was in the kitchen. The fire was dim and the kitchen deserted. Here was the final test. I had asked Avina to sneak into the kitchen and unlock the wood chute door after dinner.

  Pressing my splintered hands to the door I gently pushed against the heavy door and felt it give and then meet resistance. All kinds of doubts assailed me. Was I locked in? Did Avina not get it unlocked? Glancing up the chute the way I had come, I doubted I would be able to make it up without anyone hearing me. Before I started to panic, I pressed my eye to the bottom crack to notice that something was leaning against the door.

  Letting my eyes adjust to the light I saw that it was a mop and bucket, the mop handle was leaning against the door. The ground was about three feet from the bottom of the chute, and if I swung open the door, I would knock over the mop handle and the bucket of water. Weighing my options, I decided to chance it. Pushing against the door with one hand the mop started to slide sideways.

  When the door was opened far enough, I darted my free hand under the door and caught the broom as it fell to the floor. The water in the bucket sloshed precariously back and forth making a small puddle on the floor. Sweat formed along my brow as I stepped out of the chute, closed the door and moved the mop handle back.

  Moving silently down the kitchen I peeked into the dining hall. I was surprised at how many students were gathered there covered in green and blue dye. Almost the whole student body was there. I couldn’t see Joss anywhere so that gave me hope.

  There were long tables set up like a buffet, with fruits, rolls, desserts, drinkable chocolate and spiced cider. My stomach growled in protest and I envied the students laughing casually and eating.

  Adept Cirrus and Adept Kambel were monitoring the students coming in and both looked to be in good spirits, taking the whole training game in fun compared to Adept Lorna and Pax.

  Syrani was furious, sitting on a ta
ble, legs crossed with evidence of a green paint pack still plastered to her head and smeared along her chin. A group of younger students listened in awe, fawning over her.

  “I so would have had him,” she sniffed, taking a handkerchief from a young love-struck boy and dabbing at her face, which only seemed to make the green paint smear more. “I had followed one of them into the library and watched as he snuck into the archives. Just as I was about to send the whole shelf of books on top of him, one of them somehow got behind me and hit me in the face. He must have cheated; I can see no other possible explanation.”

  A chorus of agreements followed her statement. She looked like a queen addressing her subjects.

  Looking at the fresh paint smearing her face I knew that I had little time, because both of the targets were at that moment in the library. Not about to take them both on at once, I took the servant stairs toward my room.

  Stopping a few feet from my door I knelt and pressed my cheek to the cold marble floor. The dust hadn’t been disturbed; no one had entered my room … yet.

  Slipping into the room across the hall from mine, I closed the door with a quiet click. Turning my back toward the door, I glanced around the empty room to check for any signs of intruders. This room wasn’t occupied, but it was a complete mirror of my own room, except that it was empty.

  Seeing that the armoire door was open and empty and doing a quick check under the bed, I moved back to the door and kneeled in front of the keyhole so I could spy on my own room. Pulling another sleeping potion from my pouch I waited, with the intention of throwing the jar at whoever tried to enter, while I hid behind a locked door until they fell asleep.

  All of the excitement was filling me with adrenaline, and I realized I was no longer afraid. I licked my lips in anticipation as a thought hit me. I enjoyed being the predator, instead of the prey.

  My fingers itched with the eagerness to act, and I felt a bubble of self-pride filling my body. Reflecting on my earlier conquest, I did a quick tally; I took down two Captains, Joss took down two, which left the one SwordBrother.