The Kaldari pushed through the door, Garren translating Teveres's instructions. The un-braided man took hold of Fara and stared at her. She looked to Teveres for any kind of emotional response, finding nothing.
"I pray the gods take you from this world," she whispered at him, "and may your essence be scattered to the twelve corners."
The Kaldari grunted, impatient. In silent obedience, Fara led the warrior down the left hallway.
With everyone fully through the door, Teveres waved a hand toward the right-sided hallway. "We need to try to seal off that passage, quietly, then the left once Fara has removed the kids."
"You plan to lock them in?" said Garren.
"It's faster than killing them all," Les spoke up, "And more likely to succeed."
Garren nodded, immediately moving to construct a lock on the door with a rope tied in elaborate knots, narrowly anchoring the door to one of the columns. The other Kaldari set to work moving furniture with as little sound as they could manage.
Aia was bent over the fallen clergy next to a watchful Les, her hands on Michel's chest trying to force life back into him. Teveres put a hand on her shoulder and tried to pull her away, but she would not be moved. She was getting winded from trying so hard.
"He can't die that fast," she said between gasps, "Nobody dies like that."
"Aia," Teveres knelt down beside her and grabbed her hands forcefully. "He could go painfully or he could go quickly. This is how it works. He's gone."
"It doesn't make sense," she said, shaking her head, "How can you do that? Why can't I stop it?"
A noise from the library caught Teveres's attention. The commotion in the entrance hall had piqued the interest of a late-night library goer. The Kaldari stopped in their tracks, carrying a sofa towards the door.
"Michel?" a woman's voice called, "Michel, are you there?"
Teveres held a finger to his lips for the others to remain silent. Riding the periphery of the room, he slid next to the lip of the doorway leading to the library. A young, dark-haired clergywoman stepped past, squinting into the dim light. Teveres moved to subdue her from behind, one hand around her mouth and the other around he Cherto the lr arms, but she was quick witted - her dagger was already in hand. Her arms and mouth bound, she managed to slice her blade across his thigh. He swore under his breath as he clung to her, the pain in his leg channeled into an ironclad hold. When she bit his hand, his grip loosened. Her resonance created a wave of energy over his skin, powerful enough for her to spin away. She was going for one of the kelspar sconces when the large female Kaldari caught her, sword against the clergy's throat. The girl stopped instantly, both the Kaldari and the young woman staring at Teveres with wide, expectant eyes.
Teveres limped towards the clergy, itchy blood streaming down the inside of his pant leg. He ripped the young clergy's dagger from her hand.
"Are you alone in the library?" he asked.
The girl nodded, visibly swallowing, her eyes darting from side to side. "Who are you?" she asked barely above a whisper. "I have money. It's not much, but it's-"
Teveres wrapped his resonance around her mind, a stifling mental blanket. Her thoughts stopped racing. "You're going to walk outside, down the stairs. You're going to go buy a room in the inn and sleep until morning. You will not come back until you know that we are gone."
There was resistance at first to his manipulation. Closer to her face he could see that she could hardly be more than 16, just beginning the most intense part of clergy training. Ultimately her mind was no match for his.
Still looking at the girl, Teveres addressed Garren, "Tell your woman to let the girl go."
Garren spoke, and reluctantly the Kaldari warrior lowered the sword. The clergy girl stepped away shakily, paused only a moment, and then ran out the front door. Once she was out of sight, Teveres pressed his hand against his wound, the blood sticky between his fingers. He hissed in pain and frustration. It was a sizable cut. Every clergy carried a knife; he knew as much. His actions were careless. It had been years since he trained in combat. The time away from training made him sloppy.
Only a sullen Aia paid attention to his cut, drawing linen bandages from her bag. Two of the couches were already stacked on top of each other against the door, Garren's knot work admirable in complexity. Les had his own blade drawn at his side, watching Fara's hallway.
Teveres sunk to his knees, a hand outstretched to accept the wound dressings. Aia slapped his hand out of the way, tearing the hole in his pants wider to gain better access. Teveres clasped his hands together, avoiding her gaze.
As Aia was applying a hellfire salve, Fara appeared with several groggy children tagging behind her, all under the age of thirteen. The children were eerily quiet for their ages, but as young future clergy they had learned discipline first. If they had been told not to speak, they would not speak. Fara didn't even look at Teveres as she hurried the children out the door. A dozen kids were safe. It gave him small comfort in light of Michel's demise.
Aia pressed the bandage against his thigh tightly, making him tense. Her faintly glowing fingers pleasantly warmed the area around his cut. The pain lessened. " Csse a hand ou;I shouldn't spend the energy fixing it completely," she said, concealing a groan of pain. "But that should stop the bleeding."
"It's fine. Thank you," said Teveres.
By the time Teveres's wound was dressed, the Kaldari had already finished blocking the other door.
"That won't hold them forever," Garren murmured. "Maybe not even long enough for us to get in and out. You need a better plan."
"If you mean killing them all, then no, that's not a better plan." Teveres turned to continue down the hall towards the library.
"How many exits?"
Teveres paused. "From the temple? Two including the front. The back leads to the underground."
"And they can access this underground from the wings?"
"Well... yes?"
Garren exchanged a glance with the female Kaldari, spoke several words, a grunted.
"We can make this work."
"Just how, exactly?" Les spoke up suddenly. "Because I'm guessing it isn't a plan that any of us are going to like."
One of the male Kaldari was already jogging out the front door. Garren shrugged. "It is better if you do not know. We should continue."
"I don't think-"
"Les, just shut up," Aia gave him a stern look.
A stab of agony lanced through Teveres's leg as he put his weight on it. He struggled to focus on the task at hand.
"Beyond the library there is the main chamber," said Teveres, "We may encounter many more people there. I want Aia to stay in the middle of your warriors. Les, stay up here with me."
"I hope you're not counting on me to hurt anybody," said Les. "I assure you, I'm not the man you want by your side."
Teveres ventured into the forest of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, taking point. The light was much dimmer in the library than in the entry room, the looming shelves casting shadows over them as they threaded through the seemingly infinite rows of books. Though his boots were near soundless on the floor, the Kaldari footfalls were not nearly so well-masked.
"I'm a lot less worried about you," Teveres whispered.
"Because I'm worthless?" Les replied with a half-jovial tone. "I see your point. Healer before guy who plays with lights, I get that."
Teveres allowed himself a momentary smile.
I want you to be ready to get out safely, he thought to Aia.
What does that mean?
I can't guarantee your safety.
Why?
Their silent conversation was interrupted by the sensation of a group of clergy coming closer. With the right shoes and concentration, most clergy could move in complete silence - only Teveres's extra senses alerted him to their presence. He flung his arm out in front of Les to hold him back.
The presence of the clergy was confirmed for everyone when hushed voices could be heard in a friendly exchan
ge. The three Kaldari immediately arranged themselves in a protective circle around the healer, tucked off to the side one row behind Teveres. Les was so close to Teveres that he could feel that Les was shaking. Teveres elbowed him firmly, one hand on his dagger.
Suddenly there was a sound - the subtle slide of a heel across the floor - one row of books ahead and just to the left. Teveres's breath caught. In one, two, three seconds, a middle-aged male clergy appeared from around the corner. His head was cleanly shaved, eyebrows raised as he analyzed the scene, first inspecting Teveres, then Les. From where he stood he would be unable to see the Kaldari. The man gave Teveres a hesitant smile.
"Good evening. I haven't seen you here before," the clergy said.
Teveres didn't have time to fumble. Les shifted into a different persona, one that was much calmer than his tremors would indicate. He reached a friendly hand towards the man. "I'm Baron Les, of Pelle. This is my guard."
"I was not told about a visiting Baron."
"I'm just passing through," Les replied fluidly. "I'm on my way to Alta. Trade negotiations. I decided to take a moment to admire your library."
"I see," said the clergy. Behind him, four more men gathered, all of them similarly dressed in clergy robes. Teveres's heart dropped when he recognized a short, blonde-haired priest from Ilvan. The priest was instantly taken aback, his spike of tension catching the attention of all of the people in the room. Teveres couldn't breathe.
"What are you doing here?" the Ilvan priest, Heleid, asked.
"Heleid, whatever you've heard-"
"He's Teveres," Heleid breathed to the others, "The murderer from Ilvan."
"Hey," Les interrupted, "You have this wrong. That is not what happened in Ilvan, this man-"
Daggers were drawn. Teveres shook his head slowly. "It doesn't have to be this way. Heleid, please, listen to me -"
"Just come with us, and then we will listen."
"I can't come with you," Teveres lowered his voice. "I would if I could."
The bald man made a hairsbreadth move towards them when the lights completely shut off. Teve Chut"2eres used the momentary confusion to grab Les and pull him harshly to the side. In pitch darkness, there was only sound to guide them.
There was a brief pause for Teveres to catch his footing. He knew it was coming. Clergy were trained to spar even in darkness, when the gods draw closer to the earth. They could sense him almost as well as he could sense them. He shoved Les further away just before the dagger came towards his neck. He was able to dodge, his expanded senses acute. He spun away, then towards the priest with his own offense, his muscles pulsing with old knowledge.
Behind him he could hear the Kaldari as the others attacked them, the inelegant scuffle of Kaldari boots as they went into action. Steel met steel, a sound that rang back into childhood. This time the blades were looking for real blood, not ceremonial sacrifice.
The priest used Teveres's momentary distraction to sweep away his blade, shoving Teveres against a bookshelf with his free arm. Teveres swore loudly, using a sweeping kick to knock the priest off balance. His blade met the flesh of the priest's chest, gliding through clothing and layers of skin. It only drove the priest harder, his attacks more rapid, pushing Teveres down a line of shelves farther from the group than he wanted to be. The dance they shared was far from sensual.
Slowly the lights began to come back, and with it the awareness that Les was in an unsuccessful battle with one of the priests. Sweat shining on his brow, Les was pinned by Heleid with his arms behind him. Heleid was not going for the kill.
The bald man attacking Teveres, however, was.
Determined to get back towards his group, Teveres made a desperate attempt to push the priest back with a sweeping thrust towards his ribs. The much more experienced priest anticipated the action, grabbing Teveres's knife hand and pressing his own dagger into Teveres's elbow, using the leverage to flip Teveres onto his back. The air escaped from his body painfully, blood trickling down his arm. The priest dug his knee into Teveres's right shoulder until it popped. The displacement of the joint ignited an instant panic reaction which set his heart soaring beyond tolerances. His scream was strangled through gritted teeth.
The grip on his ability was slipping. His thoughts were racing until he heard Aia cry out. He was not clear-headed enough to try to link minds with her. His actions proceeded on instinct, his rage pushed past the control point. Too many things were happening, all at once. Too much pain from within and without.
If he could have stopped it, he would have. His divinity exploded outwards, a release of energy which filled him with pain-killing pleasure even as he was praying to himself, Please don't let this kill her.
As expected, bodies hit the floor. The priest holding him to the ground sprawled out next to him, drained of life. Teveres gasped for breath, guilt roiling beneath the rush of the kill. Pleasure soaked him clean through even as he fought it off, focusing instead on the pain. He braced himself, expecting silence.
What he did not expect was a muffled sob. With his remaining good arm, Teveres pulled himself up by the shelves and looked behind him.
The Kaldari, now brandi Ci, shshing several cuts, were prodding the five deceased priests for signs of life. Garren took account of Teveres and Les, both of whom were also still alive. Les leaning against a shelf for support, looking disoriented. Aia was on the floor beside Garren, blood from a grazing blow seeping down the left side of her neck. She was bent over, taught as a loaded spring, the muscles in her hands shaking violently. She stared at the floor, gasping for breath.
Teveres picked up his fallen dagger and slung it through his belt, then gingerly cradled his damaged arm with the working one. They were all alive - all the ones he would have wanted to spare. For the life of him he could not fathom why.
Aia, are you okay? he projected at her, not trusting himself to speak. Please say something.
She wouldn't look up at him. Garren knelt down next to her, gloved hands pushing the hair from her face. His voice was kind but steady, a tone that seemed so very out of place on the scout's tongue.
"Aiasjia, you're alright. You are not going to die. You're alive." It was clear he had said such words to someone else long ago.
She hugged her arms around her chest and melted against Garren's touch. Teveres walked towards them cautiously, glad that they were alive but terrified of Aia's apparent state of shock. He knew, without question, that her distress was his doing.
"We still have a ways to go," said Garren.
The color in Aia's eyes was somehow brightened by her pain and tears. The tremors were beginning to dissipate.
"Lie down," she said with a hoarse voice. "You need your shoulder set before we go."
He saw through her, disturbed by her determination. He desperately wanted to destroy whatever the source of her pain - the fact that it was within himself drove him mad. They didn't all die when they should have. It had to be her. She spared the lives he couldn't.
Tell me what happened, he demanded.
Get on the fucking ground, her thoughts shot back at him.
He obeyed, offering the bad shoulder to her. She took his arm in her hands, not looking at him when she slowly pushed the joint back towards its rightful place. Teveres bit down on his free hand, the anticipation of the pain worse than the subtle pop when it went back in place. There was a familiar achy weakness in the shoulder much like the last three times he had dislocated it. As he was sitting up, cursing at the misfortune of his injury, Aia presented a needle from her bag which he had seen only in more sophisticated clinics. He shied away from it, but she jerked his arm closer to her, wiping blood from the cut on his inner elbow away with her sleeve. She examined the amber liquid in the syringe in the dim light.
"It takes away the pain," she murmured. He winced when she sunk Cwheround,
Teveres nodded. The concoction from the syringe was drawing a trail up his arm, wicking away his discomfort.
"Good thinking with the li
ghts," he told Les.
Les shrugged. "It's the one thing I have."
The impatience of the Kaldari spurred Teveres's motivation. Much worse for wear after the incident, he led them the rest of the way through the library without further difficulty. The next large arena, the hall of meditation, was completely empty.
The twelve pillars representing the twelve corners of the world stood ominously in a circle, no priests to worship them. The central reflecting pool stirred quietly with the circulation of the air. The bareness of the room was a gift. There would be no conflict for a moment, no run-ins with people who once trusted him but now saw him as a monster.
Torvid's tomb was just beyond a set of tall double doors much like those at the entrance. Garren spoke words in Kaldari, stationing a guard at each door. When they opened, darkness greeted them only a moment before Les flooded the room with light.
The tomb was vacant except for a large, forbidding sandstone column which took up over half of the space. Torches, not kelspar, lit the edges of the chamber. It was almost six feet wide and perfectly cylindrical. On the stone were words in a spiral from the top of the column down, broken up by decorative whitestone slabs. Teveres felt a ringing sensation coming from the stone - there was the grandiose vibration of an old place of worship, but also a discordant, forbidding thread at its core. It made the hairs on his arms stand on end.
The three Deldri circled the stone slowly. Les furrowed his brow. "This is it?"
"Yeah," Teveres murmured, "I saw it once when I was a kid, just for a minute. My father performed an initiation ceremony for one of the temple priestesses here. They only come to this room for major rituals."
"But Drei said there was something here," said Aia, "Some kind of item that the Kaldari wouldn't be able to acquire by themselves. So far this hasn't been..." she cleared her throat, "Well, comparatively speaking, not bad. They could have gotten this far without any of us."
Tragedy (Forsaken Lands) Page 13