The crowd roared, though the feeling was mixed. Arguments broke out amongst the warriors on the hillsides. Mala’kii shoved one another and shouted curses. A few Sadiri called for order as fistfights erupted amongst the crowd. Nalia’s men stiffened, hands going toward their weapons. Hardin called an order to the Red Swords, who all came to a knee, one hand resting through the grips in their shields.
This is spinning out of control.
Just as the action was reaching a fever pitch, another sharp horn blast sounded above the din. The women gathered in the speaking circle, Nalia included, turned their eyes to the top of one of the surrounding hills. The commotion faded as everyone turned their attention to the disturbance.
A space formed in the crowd as three riders appeared. They were being led by a Mala’kii scout on a painted horse. Nalia’s heart gave a warm surge when she saw Yurian astride one of the horses. He was accompanied by a pair of men wearing the leather armor of Imperial scouts.
The Mala’kii on the painted horse ushered the crowd aside as the group moved down the hill. Yurian wore a grim expression while the Imperial scouts looked exhausted. The Imperials shot nervous glances over the hillsides, looking more than a little uncomfortable at being surrounded by so many savage warriors.
Allisondra stood and moved to the center of the circle, gesturing both Nalia and Gehenia aside. Nalia took the opportunity to move back to her place in the circle—closer to the protection of her Sworn Men and Red Swords. The next few moments were crucial.
Things are about to get bloody.
The riders dismounted outside the circle and continued forward on foot. One of the Mala’kii took the reins of a horse and led it into the circle. A bundle was tied across the animal’s back, secured by thin ropes. Nalia couldn’t make out what was inside the wrapped bundle, but there were blood stains on the tarp that covered it. A hush fell over the crowd as the warrior who had led the newcomers into the circle spoke with Allisondra.
“These men were found in the hills, Maihdrim. They were riding hard for the camp. They say they have a message for Nalia Arynthaal.”
Allisondra gave Nalia a suspicious look. “A message for the Ice Princess, you say? And who is this message from?”
“From the Imperial Army.”
The Imperial scouts gave each other confused looks as the crowd responded with an angry buzz. Nalia cleared her throat and took a step forward, raising her hands for peace. The scouts didn’t have chokers allowing them to understand the Mala’kii tongue. After a nod from Allisondra, Nalia addressed the Imperial messengers.
“Be at ease.” Nalia gave the men a warm smile. “They mean you no harm. You have a message for me?”
The soldiers sighed, the tension leaving their shoulders. Remembering themselves, they snapped her a smart salute and bowed at the waist. The older of the two stepped forward, pulling a small rolled parchment from a belt pouch. He offered it to Nalia.
“Colonel Marcus sends his compliments, Your Highness. His orders were to relay this to you with all possible haste.”
Nalia spared Allisondra a questioning glance before moving to take the message. She tried to convey a sense of importance through her gaze, but she couldn’t put much feeling into the expression, lest anyone notice the exchange. Allisondra watched with a raised eyebrow.
“Please, Ice Princess.” Allisondra spoke loud enough for the crowd to hear. “Open this message and tell us all what the Imperial Army has to say.”
Nalia glared at the woman as the crowd muttered with laughter. She stepped forward and took the message from the scout’s hand, then motioned for the Imperials to join her retinue. Yurian had already moved to stand beside his Sworn Men, silent and grim as ever.
Bless his line for a thousand years—I knew he would come through for me.
Nalia pulled the knot on the ribbon around the scroll and unraveled the message. Her eyes scanned the words before she spoke, heart beating an excited rhythm in her chest. She cleared her throat and read aloud.
“To Her Highness Nalia Arynthaal, Princess of Thardin, Word and Will of his Eminence, Emperor Dargorin.” Nalia’s voice almost tripped over her Imperial honorific. “I, Colonel Barion Marcus, send my regards, and regret to inform Your Highness of grim tidings. We have standing orders to report acts of hostility on the Great North Road directly to Your Highness, and one such incident has occurred.”
A murmur went up from the crowd as Jeshanda translated the words. Nalia shared a glance with Allisondra, who moved a step toward her with an interested look on her face. The Maihdrim gestured for Nalia to continue.
Nalia raised her voice. “A caravan of tradesmen was ambushed two days north of the Imperial war camp. There were no survivors. A patrol was alerted to the crime after the perpetrators had disappeared, but my men found evidence to suggest that guilt lies on the shoulders of Mala’kii raiders.”
The murmurs from the crowd became a buzz of conversation. Allisondra raised her hand and called for silence. Once the crowd had calmed, she turned an angry stare on Nalia.
“By what right does your army accuse my people? A sacred peace was declared between us, and no Mala’kii would dishonor themselves by breaking it. Speak your next words with care.”
Nalia returned the woman’s dangerous glare with an icy smile. Her eyes went to the covered bundle on the horse’s back before she found her place in the message. Taking a deep breath and speaking in a loud, clear voice, Nalia read the remaining words.
“I am forced to send proof of my suspicions to Your Highness, though it is a sight not fit for your eyes. Given the grave importance of Your Highness’s negotiation, however, I felt it was imperative Your Highness be made aware of its existence. I am sending the proof in the care of two of my men, and will be doubling patrols along the road. With my compliments, Colonel Barion Marcus, Commander of Second Attachment, Third Imperial Infantry.”
The entire gathering went silent. Allisondra reached for the message, which Nalia gave to her without protest. The woman ran her eyes once over the letter, then turned to the bundle on the back of the horse. She moved forward, yanking a dagger from her belt, and cut the parcel free with quick, angry motions. The package slid to the ground, making a squelching noise as it hit. Allisondra gave Nalia another skeptical look before moving to the bundle and throwing back the tarp.
Nalia gasped as the body of a young girl was revealed. Her limbs were gray with the pallor of death, her tissues just beginning to swell. The filmy dress around her body was covered in blood and sliced to ribbons. The poor girl’s face had been cut upon, and Nalia averted her eyes before she could tally the sum of those terrible wounds. There was a gaping slice across her midsection with wet, ropy material bulging from the hole.
The crowd muttered as Allisondra revealed the body. The Maihdrim stood over the corpse for a long moment, looking over the wounds as if she could see secrets written in the cuts. She reached down to the girl’s face, eliciting a surge of revulsion from Nalia, and grasped something hanging from the corpse’s mouth. Nalia hadn’t noticed it beside the horror of her wounds.
Allisondra pulled a long, blue streamer from between the dead girl’s teeth. The flag was stained with dark patches of blood, which made the fabric stick together. Allisondra held it up at arm’s-length, wrinkling her nose with disgust. The crowd leaned forward, a collective gasp escaping its lips. People all over the hillside looked at the flags trailing from the spears at the edge of the speaking circle—the standards of the various Mala’kii herds.
Allisondra pulled the flag wide, revealing the symbol sewn in the center. An angry mutter went through the crowd as she held the banner up for all to see, spinning in a circle until she faced Gehenia. Allisondra stepped forward and dropped the bloody flag at Gehenia’s feet.
Nalia could have cut the tension with the dagger at her waist.
“Explain yourself.” Allisondra’s voice was tight with anger.
Gehenia’s eyes blazed, her chin rising in challenge. “Explain w
hat? I know nothing of this.”
“How did your flag come to be stuffed in the mouth of a veledrim girl?” Allisondra gave Gehenia a withering look. “Do you think she tried to eat it with her soup?”
Dark ripples of laughter went through the crowd. The muscles in Gehenia’s jaw worked as she ground her teeth. She lowered her brows, fixing Allisondra with a hateful glare.
“Perhaps she did,” Gehenia said. “I did not put it there.”
Allisondra gave a disgusted shake of her head and turned away, creating distance between the two of them. She stopped in front of Nalia and regarded her for a moment. Nalia tried to convey meaning through the look they shared, but Allisondra’s expression was unreadable. The Maihdrim turned back to Gehenia and put her hands on the hilts of her swords.
“You would stand before the proof of your treachery and deny its existence?” Allisondra’s tone grew angrier with every word. “You say you seek honor, that you have broken nothing by disregarding the haidar. I have honored you by inviting you here, and you repay my leniency with this? That answer is not worthy of one with honor. I will give you one more chance to explain yourself. Why did you break the sacred peace?”
Gehenia’s eyes shot between Nalia, Allisondra, and Nalia’s retinue of fighting men. She stepped over to look at the corpse, then gave Allisondra another hateful glance. Gehenia gripped the hilts of her own weapons and spat on the young girl’s body.
“This? This is not proof! What does this prove? This is just another veledrim lie! This is a scheme, and you, Maihdrim, are a part of it!”
The crowd muttered a groan of surprise at Gehenia’s words. Nalia was unsure of the various customs of the Mala’kii, but she could hear the insult clear enough. Gehenia had accused Allisondra of being a tool of the Empire.
A tool, perhaps, but one belonging to me.
“You dishonor yourself with every word you speak.” Allisondra moved to a place in the circle opposite Gehenia. “Your flag lies bloody in the mouth of a corpse, yet you cast accusations at me? I, who have offered you respect!”
The crowd gave an angry whisper of approval.
“I, who have allowed you to ride Mala’keen unopposed, despite your heresy!”
The crowd cheered again and calls for vengeance rose from the warriors on the hillsides. Gehenia’s eyes darted around the gathering. Her shoulders grew tense. Allisondra scowled as she continued, her eyes alight with a predatory gleam.
“Why should I expect honor from one who stands in opposition to everything we are? Why would I expect integrity from one who has abandoned all claim to it?”
Gehenia muttered a curse and drew her weapons, eliciting another angry chatter from the crowd. Allisondra smiled and shook her head, as if she expected nothing less. With a slow, deliberate motion, Allisondra drew the pair of slender, curving blades from her waist. She pointed one of them at Gehenia.
“I declare you honor-less, Gehenia.” Allisondra’s eyes blazed with a fell light. “You have demonstrated your disdain for our ways by breaking the sacred peace. You have broken a pact with a foreign people and dishonored all Mala’kii before them. You should fall on your knees and beg the forgiveness of your betters!”
“Betters?” Gehenia snarled. “You are not superior to me! You are nothing! I care nothing for your forgiveness! Let the gods prove my honor!”
Allisondra gave a short nod. “So be it.”
Gehenia raised her weapons and rushed forward, expression twisted into something predatory. Allisondra met her in a whirl of steel, blades spinning with motions like those of the levinkala. Nalia leaned forward, watching the exchange with a fluttering heart.
Gehenia was all rage and fire, advancing with a snarl fixed on her face. She let out vicious little grunts with each thrust of her bone-handled sword and howled in frustration when her dagger sought Allisondra’s flesh and met nothing but air. She moved ever forward, forcing Allisondra to fend off her frenzied attacks. Her feet kicked up dust, and the crowd howled with excitement at each clash of steel.
Allisondra fought like a ghost. Her swords whipped in deadly arcs, slapping Gehenia’s thrusts aside and keeping her advances at bay. Where Gehenia came forward, snarling and puffing like an animal, Allisondra skipped across the dirt with an almost supernatural agility. Her eyes were burning with insolence, a wolfish smile splitting her face.
I wonder if she’s using her sorcery. Is it natural to move with such grace?
How odd it felt to see women fighting with swords—and with as much skill as any man Nalia had seen. The ladies of her father’s court were pale, meek creatures compared to their Mala’kii counterparts. Allisondra and Gehenia moved with ferocious, practiced motion. Their steel flashed in the sun.
The dueling women danced across the speaking ground, the air tense with their exchanges. The crowd grew excited, shouting with more fervor as either woman avoided lethal cuts. Warriors stood on the hillsides, calling either curses or encouragement as the fight raged on. Nalia eyed the crowd with suspicion, her hand going once again to the dagger at her belt.
Lot of good that will do you if it comes to a fight.
Gehenia tried to cut off Allisondra by stepping into her path. Her blades were a silvery blur as they sought Allisondra’s blood, but the Maihdrim was too quick for Gehenia. Each time the snarling woman tried to trick Allisondra into taking a misstep, she would slip aside just enough to avoid Gehenia’s blades and dance out of range. Gehenia screamed and cursed as each attempt was met with failure, until her attacks became more desperate, more reckless. Veins bulged from Gehenia’s forehead.
Allisondra laughed in her face.
The Maihdrim seemed to know what Gehenia would do before she moved. She stepped aside from thrusts before Gehenia’s blade could extend, moved at just the right moment to make Gehenia stumble, or laughed as she ducked aside from a lethal slash, allowing the blade to come so close it nearly sliced through her hair. Allisondra seemed unconcerned. She began to make a game of the fight, baiting Gehenia and laughing as the woman failed to touch her with steel. The gathered Mala’kii cheered Allisondra’s antics, and before long, every warrior was on their feet.
“Perhaps you should return to killing veledrim children, Gehenia!” Alessandra slipped aside from another blow. “They’re the only thing you’re quick enough to catch!”
The crowd roared with laughter. Gehenia turned a murderous look on Allisondra, her face so flushed with anger that tears were brimming in her eyes. She snarled curses through her teeth—harsh, guttural words—and rushed at Allisondra once more.
She’s as predictable as a half-trained dog.
Just as Nalia had the thought, Gehenia broke her cycle. She feinted toward Allisondra with her sword, which the Maihdrim answered with another dancing step. Instead of advancing, however, Gehenia threw the knife in her offhand.
The dagger tumbled end over end, catching Allisondra off-guard. She snapped a quick parry with one of her swords, slapping the dagger aside with a loud clang. Gehenia stepped forward, sword descending in a vicious line toward Allisondra’s shoulder. The Maihdrim saw it coming too late and stumbled as she tried to slip away.
Gehenia’s blade scored a long slash down the back of Allisondra’s arm. Allisondra cursed and spun away, dropping the sword from her wounded arm. Gehenia screamed in triumph and rushed forward, her bone-handled sword blurring through the air. Allisondra was forced to stand and meet Gehenia’s blade with her remaining sword, and the circle rang with the clash of steel.
All trace of mirth fled Allisondra’s expression. She matched Gehenia’s anger, baring her teeth as she fought. Allisondra moved with expert grace and animal intensity, but Nalia could see the pained motions of her body when she tried to move her wounded arm.
Gehenia snarled a stream of curses as she cut, thrust, and slashed her way across the dirt. The woman poured sweat, and her rage was fueling her blows, driving her forward. Spilling the Maihdrim’s blood only made Gehenia more eager for the kill, as she sought Alli
sondra’s life with every stroke.
Allisondra began to flag, her attacks coming with less fervor, her steps growing unsteady. Nalia’s heart sped up as the Maihdrim tired and Gehenia gained the advantage. The severe, whipcord woman screamed as she battered Allisondra across the circle, gripping her sword in both hands. Gehenia lashed out with a kick to Allisondra’s stomach and sent the Maihdrim sprawling to the ground.
The crowd went still.
Gehenia paused, staring down at Allisondra with an expression somewhere between righteous ecstasy and murderous rage. She glanced to the edge of the circle, where her personal retainers were on their feet, shouting with encouragement. Gehenia looked at the grim faces of the Sadiri on the edge of the circle, and her expression grew resolute.
“You have ruled us for too long!” Gehenia gestured at them as she screamed. “The Blood is corrupt and here is the proof! The haidar is broken! My people will be free!”
Allisondra took up her sword as Gehenia spoke, wincing as she tried to move her injured arm. She breathed hard and kept silent, glaring at Gehenia with a grim, determined expression. She grunted in pain as she rose to a knee, glancing at the blood covering her wounded arm. She looked down at her sword and closed her eyes as she gripped the hilt.
Oh, gods—no!
Gehenia rushed forward, sword raised in both hands. Allisondra opened her eyes, and for a moment it seemed as if she was going to embrace her death. In the last instants of Gehenia’s charge, Allisondra smiled.
The Maihdrim spun to the side as Gehenia brought her blade down, coming to her feet in a graceful motion. Allisondra’s sword came up with her, drawing a delicate bloody arc through the air. The steel made a fleshy thump as it bit into Gehenia’s stomach.
Gehenia took another faltering step before her blade tumbled into the dirt. She wobbled, clutching a hand across her midsection. Gehenia’s body spasmed as her legs gave out, and she cried out as she fell to her knees.
The City Under the Mountain Page 36