‘This way,’ said Bedig, and they turned to follow it. The waterway was full, its gate long broken, and stretched for a hundred yards until they reached a great open square, covered in oily patches and bones.
Bedig halted.
‘That was the palace,’ he said, pointing to the ruins on the right hand side of the square. He swung his arm round to the left. ‘And that was Shella’s headquarters, where I lived.’
‘With Leah?’ said Agang.
‘Aye, and Kylon.’
‘Shit,’ said Bonnie. ‘Everyone, get down.’
She crouched by the remains of a wall at the edge of the square, the others joining her.
‘What is it?’ asked Bridget.
‘Someone’s been here,’ she said, ‘recently. Look.’
She pointed over in the direction of the palace. The ruins were surrounded by a large, walled garden, its orchards shrivelled and dead.
Dyam frowned. ‘What am I supposed to be looking at?’
‘There,’ Bonnie said. ‘That’s a fresh midden, among the stumps of the trees.’
Laodoc squinted, and peered into the gardens. At last he saw what Bonnie was pointing at. There was a knee-high pile of rubbish over in the furthest corner from the ruins of the palace.
‘How do ye know it’s fresh?’ asked Bridget, her voice low.
Bonnie shook her head. ‘Ye can tell that none of ye are hunters. There’s fish bones on the top, I can see them from here.’
‘Let’s take a closer look,’ Bridget said. ‘Follow me and stay low.’
She set off at a run, crouching as she raced across the square towards the wall enclosing the palace gardens. Agang helped Laodoc to his feet, and they followed Bridget, keeping to the dry sections of the brickwork underfoot. The wall was three feet high, and they huddled behind it, peering over.
Laodoc gazed into the gardens. The rubbish heap was clear to him now, but more alarming were the tents and wagons positioned under the eaves of the palace wall to their left.
‘Pyre’s tits,’ muttered Bridget. ‘Who the fuck are they?’
‘Judging by the number of tents,’ said Bonnie, ‘I’d say there’s a dozen or so of them. No one seems to be home at the moment, though.’
‘If they’re Rakanese,’ Laodoc said, ‘they might be able to help us find Silverstream.’
‘Want me to go and check, boss?’ Bonnie said.
‘Aye,’ nodded Bridget.
‘Be careful,’ said Lola. ‘They could be in the palace right now, watching us.’
Bonnie caught her eye and smiled. She pulled off her pack, laid it on the ground, and ran by the side of the wall towards the palace gates. She gazed around, then sprinted into the gardens, keeping low through the lines of ruined tree trunks. At the corner of the palace she disappeared out of sight, and the others stared at the tents, waiting for her to re-appear.
There was a strangled cry.
‘Fuck,’ said Lola, rising.
‘Wait,’ said Bridget.
‘No way.’
‘If Bonnie just walked into a trap,’ Bridget said, ‘then I don’t want you following her in. We need to think.’
‘No,’ said Lola, ‘we need to fight.’
Bridget frowned, scanning the gardens for movement. ‘Right, here’s what we’re going to do…’
‘Come out from behind the wall,’ shouted a voice in Rahain. ‘We have your friend.’
‘Who are you?’ Bridget called out.
‘Come out or we’ll kill her.’
‘Lola,’ Bridget said, ‘stay down. Take Dean with you and find another way in.’
The Lach hunter nodded.
Bridget and the others stood, their arms raised. She gave a quick nod to Lola and Dean, who were still crouching, and began to walk towards the palace gates.
‘We’re not here to fight,’ she shouted as they reached the edge of the gardens. ‘Show us our friend.’
‘Come over and you’ll see her,’ cried the voice.
Bridget glanced at the others. Dyam frowned.
‘I’ll go,’ said Laodoc. ‘They won’t shoot an old man.’
‘No,’ said Agang.
Laodoc smiled, and strode through the gates before anyone could stop him.
‘Greetings,’ he said, coming closer to the tents. He glanced around, but could see no one. ‘We are merely passing through this place, and desire nothing more than to be on our way.’
He passed the corner of the ruined palace and halted, his tongue flickering. Bonnie was lying in a pool of blood, three crossbow bolts protruding from her chest. Her lifeless eyes stared up at the sky.
As he was about to cry out he saw a Rahain woman staring at him from a scorched window frame, her crossbow aiming at his head. The woman smiled.
‘Keep your hands in the air,’ cried the voice, and Laodoc glanced up. More Rahain were on the upper storey, pointing their weapons down at him from the ruins. One man was out on a half-collapsed balcony. ‘Call for the others,’ he said.
‘How dare you,’ Laodoc said. ‘We are peaceful travellers.’
‘Of course you are,’ the man said, ‘and you just happened to sneak into our camp as we were about to pack up and leave? Do you think I’m stupid? We haven’t spent the last third working our arses off just to be robbed at the last minute.’
Laodoc gazed up at the Rahain, and frowned. Their bodies were covered in sores and rashes, and several looked underweight.
‘You’ve been looting the palace?’ he said.
‘None of your fucking business,’ the man said. ‘Now call the others.’
‘No.’
‘I’ll have you shot.’
‘I don’t care.’
‘Tiana!’ the man yelled. ‘Grab that son of a whore. Put your crossbow to his fucking head.’
The woman on the lower floor jumped through the window, and approached Laodoc. She too, he noticed, had blisters and rashes on her face and arms.
‘You crazy old bastard,’ she cried, raising her crossbow and pointing it in his face. She wheeled round, until she was facing Bridget and the others.
‘Get over here,’ Tiana cried, ‘or I’ll shoot him in the eye.’
Laodoc watched in silence as Bridget, Bedig, Dyam and Agang approached. Tiana kept her crossbow an inch away from his nose.
The group stopped when they saw Bonnie.
‘You fucking bastards,’ Bridget cried. ‘What the fuck did ye do that for?’
‘She was sneaking through our property,’ the man yelled from the balcony. ‘Now throw down your weapons.’
‘We can take them,’ muttered Bedig, his face twisted in anger. ‘Rush the entrance, get up there and kill them.’
‘But how many would die?’ whispered Bridget. ‘You and Agang are the only hand to hand fighters here.’
‘But we cannae just surrender.’
‘Lola and Dean,’ she said, unbuckling her sword belt, ‘they’ll find a way.’
Agang followed her lead, and threw down his sword, then Dyam did the same.
‘You too,’ shouted the man, ‘you giant red-headed freak. Drop your sword.’
Bedig cursed, and did so.
The Rahain woman named Tiana backed away from Laodoc, and turned her weapon to Bridget.
‘Are you in charge?’ she said.
‘Aye.’
The woman pulled the trigger, and shot Bridget in the stomach. She grunted, and staggered backwards. Bedig raised his fists, but Agang grabbed his arm, pulling him back.
‘I’ll heal her,’ he said. ‘Don’t get yourself shot too.’
Dyam and Agang rushed to Bridget, who was writhing on the ground in agony.
‘All of you,’ shouted the man on the balcony. ‘Get inside.’
The Rahain woman waved her crossbow, and shepherded them into the ruins of the palace, with Agang and Dyam carrying Bridget. Laodoc noticed the Brig woman’s cries fade, and glanced over. Agang was sweating in concentration as he helped carry her. He noticed Laodoc’s ga
ze, and nodded.
‘I can’t do too much just now,’ he whispered, ‘or they’ll get suspicious. But I’ve eased her pain.’
They were led into a large, empty chamber, where they were met by the Rahain from the upper storey. Dyam and Agang put Bridget down by a wall and Bedig knelt by her, taking her hand.
Their leader paced up and down, staring at them.
‘Three Kellach, an old Rahain and a Sanang,’ he said. ‘Are you their guide?’ he asked Laodoc.
‘Let us go.’
The man smirked. ‘I’m guessing that you hired yourself some muscle,’ he said, ‘and came to see what you could find. Well, tough shit, old man, we were here first. Everything in those wagon’s is ours.’
‘We don’t want whatever you’ve robbed from this tomb,’ Laodoc said. ‘You make me sick.’
The man nodded to Tiana, and the woman sprang forward and clubbed Laodoc with the butt of her crossbow. He fell to the floor. Agang crouched by his side, raising a protective arm. Laodoc gazed up from where he lay. Agang placed his hand on his arm, and within seconds he felt himself heal.
‘Think yer a bunch of fucking heroes, do ye?’ Dyam shouted. ‘Punching old men, and shooting unarmed women.’
The man leered at her. ‘We might keep you, blondie. There’s Old Free still willing to pay for young Kellach flesh.’
‘We should kill them all, boss,’ Tiana said.
‘Yeah, probably,’ he said, ‘though the red-haired guy might get us some cash, as well as the blonde one.’
‘Too much hassle, boss.’
The man rubbed his chin. ‘I’ll think on it.’ He turned to the rest of his crew. ‘Get the last of the stuff into the wagons, then dismantle the camp. We’re leaving in an hour.’ He glanced at Tiana. ‘Take three and guard the prisoners.’
The Rahain woman nodded.
The man left the chamber, accompanied by the majority of the others, leaving Tiana and three Rahain, all armed with crossbows. Laodoc moved into a sitting position, and the others crouched down as well. Bedig remained by Bridget, ignoring everything else in the room. Agang edged along to them.
‘Pull out the bolt,’ he muttered.
‘No speaking!’ Tiana yelled.
The Brig man blinked.
‘Sorry, babe,’ he whispered, and yanked the bolt from Bridget’s stomach. She convulsed in agony, blood pouring from her wound. Agang raised his hand towards her.
‘Get the fuck away from her!’ screamed Tiana. ‘Stop moving, and stop talking, or I’ll kill you all.’
Laodoc caught Agang’s eye, and stood.
‘Please, miss,’ he said, his arms outstretched.
Tiana strode forwards and struck him again, as Agang’s fingers reached out and made contact with Bridget’s side. Laodoc smiled as he fell. Dyam knelt by him, shaking her head.
‘Thank you,’ she mouthed.
This time Laodoc had to ride the pain out on his own, as Agang was next to Bedig and Bridget, out of arm’s reach. He felt his cheek, and his fingers came away bloody.
The prisoners sat in silence and the guards settled down, squatting or sitting against the opposite wall. Through the open doorway behind them, Laodoc watched as other members of the crew passed by with filled crates, on their way outside to where the wagons were parked.
The next few minutes seemed like an eternity to Laodoc, his head sore and his body aching from his fall. The crew stopped work and filed outside. Their leader came back into the room, leading a young Rakanese woman by a chain linked to a collar round her neck. The woman’s face was bruised and covered in the same rashes as the Rahain, and her hands were tied behind her back.
‘We’re ready to go,’ he said.
Tiana leapt to her feet. ‘Let me kill them, boss.’
The man frowned, gazing down at the row of prisoners.
‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘I’m still inclined to take the blonde one, and him.’ He pointed at Bedig. ‘I know it’ll be a right pain in the ass, but we’ll get a good price for those two.’
‘So I can kill the rest?’
As the man was about to speak there was a loud noise from outside of something catching fire, followed by shouts and cries from the Rahain crew.
‘Shit,’ the man said, turning. ‘Stay here.’
He ran from the room.
‘But…’ Tiana said, then frowned. She stared at the prisoners. ‘You know,’ she said, ‘I’m gonna pretend I heard him say yes.’
She glanced at the other three guards. ‘Get over here and cover me.’
They got to their feet and approached, their crossbows levelled.
‘Please,’ Laodoc said. ‘You can’t…’
‘Watch me,’ Tiana said. She walked to the end of the line, where Bedig sat next to Bridget. The Brig woman was lying unconscious, but her bleeding had stopped.
‘Let’s start with her,’ the Rahain woman said, and shot Bridget in the throat.
She began to reload but Bedig sprang up and slammed into her. As they fell to the ground, her crossbow went off, and a bolt struck Agang’s chest, sending him falling to the ground. The three other guards jumped back in fright. One of them aimed at Bedig, and shot him in the back. Dyam pulled a knife from her boot and jumped at the nearest guard.
Laodoc shrank back against the wall, pulling Agang towards him. The Sanang man’s eyes were closed. Laodoc reached out with both hands and freed the bolt from Agang’s chest. He threw it down and held onto his friend.
He ducked as the Rahain woman was flung over his head, crashing into the wall, and falling lifeless to the ground. Laodoc glanced up. Bedig was strangling a Rahain man, as Dyam faced off against another guard, her knife bloodied. As Bedig crushed the guard’s skull, the leader burst back into the room, a sword in his hand. He lunged forwards and slashed Bedig down the back, then thrust the blade between his shoulder blades, the point protruding from his ribs.
Bedig collapsed to the ground, and the man pulled his sword from his back. He smiled at Dyam, who retreated, her knife grasped in her right hand, the other guard dead by her feet.
‘Your friends set fire to my fucking wagons, you bitch,’ he cried, advancing with his sword. Dyam moved back until she was against the wall. ‘I’m going to enjoy killing you.’
He raised his sword.
Agang grunted, and reached out with his hand, grabbing hold of the Rahain man’s ankle. He dropped the sword, his face contorted in pain, and fell to his knees. His eyes sank back into their sockets, and he collapsed to the floor, dead.
Laodoc clung onto Agang. ‘My friend, you are alive!’
Agang nodded. He tried to speak, but coughed, his breath raspy.
Lola ran into the chamber, her sword dripping blood and her eyes in a fighting frenzy. She glared about the room, her teeth bared.
‘Lola!’ cried Dyam. ‘It’s us.’
Lola gazed at the bodies of Bridget and Bedig, and broke down, sobs wracking her body. Dean appeared in the doorway, his empty hands shaking.
Dyam staggered forward. ‘Dean. What’s going on outside? Dean?’
The young mage looked up. ‘Lola went mental when she saw Bonnie. She killed them all.’
Dyam dropped the knife and fell to her knees. She stared at Bridget and Bedig.
‘Fuck.’
Laodoc felt Agang pull himself from his grasp, and crawl across the floor to where the bodies of the two Brig lay. The Sanang man drew himself up and sat on the ground between them, gazing from one to the other. His head hung low, and exhaustion was etched into his face.
‘Who?’
Dyam looked at him, her eyes wide. ‘Who what?’
‘Who do I try to save?’
Dyam’s mouth hung open, but no words came out. Laodoc moved to Agang’s side.
‘Please do what you can, my friend,’ he said.
Agang turned to Bridget.
‘Pull the bolt out for me.’
The others gathered round and Laodoc ripped the crossbow bolt from Bridget’s
neck. Blood seeped from the wound. Agang placed his hands on the sides of Bridget’s head, and closed his eyes, while the others stared in silence.
For a long moment nothing happened, then Laodoc saw the hole in Bridget’s neck heal, and some colour return to her pale skin. Sweat was pouring down Agang’s face. He cried out, and collapsed onto the ground. Dyam put her face to his chest.
‘He’s breathing,’ she said.
‘What about Bridget?’ Dean said, his voice wavering.
Dyam reached out and held onto the Brig woman’s hand.
Bridget coughed up blood, her eyes opening. Dyam leaned her head to the side, and she vomited blood down her tunic and onto the ground. Dyam started crying, the tears rolling down her cheeks.
Bridget tried to speak, but her voice was husky and hoarse.
‘Rest,’ said Laodoc, stroking the hair from her eyes. ‘Rest.’
Lola leaned over with a skin of water, and held it to Bridget’s lips. She drank. Her eyes were cloudy and red, and her breath sounded painful and harsh.
Laodoc stood, as tears threatened to come. He watched the others crowd round Bridget, staring at her with a mixture of relief and disbelief. A few yards away, Bedig’s body lay alone, the blood pooling under him. Laodoc walked to the door, went through the corridor, and emerged back into the grey light of the afternoon. The wagons were burnt-out shells. Smoke still rose from the smouldering remains of the valuables that had been packed into the crates and boxes. The corpses of the Rahain looters littered the ground. Four had arrows piercing them, while the others had been hacked to pieces. Bonnie’s body remained where she had fallen, blood soaking the earth around her.
Laodoc wept.
He heard a noise, and noticed Dean standing beside him.
The Magelands Box Set Page 166