by Wendy Wang
“Calm my friends. All it takes is for them to overpower one guard.” D’Raq said, unruffled. “Then just like us the harnesses come off. There is no one in this room left to report anything. It will all be fine.”
“Yeah sure,” Egan mumbled.
“The guard in the other two viewing areas can easily be overcome as well.” D’Raq smiled reassuringly and patted Egan on the shoulder. “I want to make sure your wife is safe though before we release all the prisoners” A scurry of movement distracted D'Raq. “You see they’ve already taken down a guard. They’ll be harness free within moments. We must work faster. Crane, get dressed.”
D'Raq continued opening the cell block’s one at a time. Egan peeled off the guard’s pants, and yanked them up over his own hips. He hooked his thumb in the waistband and pulled it away from his belly by nearly an inch and a half. Two months ago, these would have fit him perfectly. He shook his head and pulled the man’s belt as tight as he could, passing almost every notch until he reached the last one. His thumb still slipped too easily into the waistband, but it would have to do. He holstered the baton in the leather sheath and disrobed the warden of his black tunic. There was no chest plate. He scowled. Of course there wasn’t. Why would there be? The wardens in here were perfectly safe. He shook his head. Fools. He would just have to make due until he could steal one off of a palace guard.
“How are we coming?” Egan buttoned the last silver button joining his collar.
“See for yourself,” D’Raq motioned towards the viewers. Prisoners were fighting guards, fighting each other, killing each other.
The dread in Egan's belly coiled tighter and he unholstered his baton.
“What about you?” Egan asked.
“What about me?” D'Raq said.
“Are you putting on a uniform?”
“No,” D'Raq said shaking his head. “I will not need one.”
“What's that supposed to mean? How do you expect to get out of here dressed like that?”
“Once I have my lifestone no one will stop me.”
“All right,” Egan said warily. “I guess we better go get that lifestone then.”
Twenty-Three
The warning horn resounded throughout the city to warn every citizen that some emergency was occurring and to go inside their homes and lock the doors until they received a message from the queen. The outer doors of the fence had been breached which meant 1,000 prisoners were now flooding the streets of Tamarik.
Egan passed bodies, some guards, some prisoners, all were dead. Every nerve in his body thrummed. Some of these prisoners were happy to just head straight out the door and some decided to take their time, to take out their enemies.
D'Raq walked between Hargett and Egan. He had taken a baton but had told them he wouldn't need it after he had his lifestone. Egan didn't know exactly what that little stone was going to do. His own stone was fairly good at protecting him when he was in the Emperor's guard from being shot but it'd never kept him from being read by the Emperor's cousin. Of course that little seer didn't use fire. He wondered if he would get to kill her too. He hoped so.
A stray blast of white fire sailed past the tops of their heads and they all cringed away from it.
“We need to walk faster,” D'Raq said.
They sped up but the next section was full of guards still trying to defend the prison. They crouched next to the entrance and Egan peered around the corner. A firefight between several prisoners and guards was blazing. The smell of heat and ions stung Egan's nose.
“I'm not walking into the middle of that,” Egan said.
“Well we need to hurry to find a way through.”
“Hey boss you still have that disk?” Hargett asked.
Egan gave D'Raq a sideways glance and jerked his head towards D’Raq. D’Raq pulled the small silver disk from his pocket and held it out. Hargett reached for it and D’Raq closed his fingers around it before Hargett could take it though.
“What is your plan?” D'Raq said.
Hargett shrugged. “You want to get through there are not? It's no skin off my nose. There are other exits here and like you said, I’m more likely to blend in than you are.”
D’Raq’s eyes narrowed and his mouth pressed into a straight line. He opened his fingers and Hargett took the disk and held it between his palms. Red light leaked around the edges of his hands, making Hargett's fingers glow red. When he was finished he stepped into the doorway and flicked the disk into the center of the room. It sailed through the air, firing lightning bolts of white and red. The energy he unleashed sliced through the room. Every person it hit — warden or prisoner — fell to the ground. The disk’s trajectory curved back towards them emitting more lightning. By the time it returned to them not a man was left standing. Hargett held his hand out and caught the disk with his left hand. He smiled down at it clearly pleased with himself.
“There you go,” Hargett said handing the disk back to D’Raq.
D’Raq’s shoulders shook and a grin stretched his lips wide. He threw his head back and laughed, deep enough to press one hand against his stomach. His other hand clapped Hargett hard on the back. “I like you Hargett. You are a man who can get things done.”
“Yes, Sir, I am,” Hargett said meeting D’Raq’s gaze. “Now it's your turn to prove you are.”
“Indeed it is.” D’Raq’s wide grin faded to a smirk. “Come. Let me show you what I can do.”
******
D'Raq never looked over his shoulder and Egan wasn’t sure if it was because he was truly that confident or if he just expected them to have his back.
“This way,” Egan said pointing them towards another hallway.
“Wardens up ahead,” D’Raq said.
Egan stared at the empty hallway. “How do you know?”
D'Raq quirked one eyebrow and gave Egan a sideways glance. “I can hear them. Well, their thoughts anyway.”
Egan frowned. “What are they thinking?”
“That no one will find them in here.”
“They’re hiding in prisoner storage?”
“Yes,” D’Raq said. “They're young and afraid. They just want to make it out alive.” He almost sounded sad about it as if he didn't want to kill them.
“Well, they stay out of our way they just might stay alive,” Egan said.
“Good,” D'Raq said, his voice serene. “Let’s get this done.”
They moved close to the metal door leading to the room where all the prisoner’s effects were kept until they were either released or executed. Egan signaled Hargett to move into position and Hargett placed his hand on the knob and nodded. Egan held up three fingers, counting down. Three. Two. One. Egan touched the tip of his baton to the door’s lock and as soon as it clicked Hargett shoved his shoulder hard against it. It met with some resistance. He pushed harder but it barely budged. A bright white bolt of light struck the door, blinding them for a moment, sending a shock through Hargett. His short brown hair stood away from his head and he stepped back, shaking his hand.
“Damn,” Hargett muttered under his breath. He yanked the door shut and kept his voice low. “Whoever they are, one of them is a Metal Kael. I don’t think he wants to kill us, otherwise he could have done it with that shot. What do you want to do boss?”
Egan scowled. “We could blast the door open but that could catch all those boxes on fire. Some of them are pretty old.”
“Well, let's not do that,” D'Raq said.
“Well then what do you suggest?” Egan snapped. He glanced behind them making sure they had not been followed by a warden or by another prisoner.
“Hargett? Do you have any ideas?”
Hargett shook his head. “None to keep them alive if that's your goal.”
D'Raq scratched his chin.
“Why do you care if they live or die?” Egan said.
“Killing them is not my goal,” D'Raq said.
Egan gritted his teeth, his jaw tightening. “I thought you wanted out of here
. No matter what the cost.”
D'Raq leveled his icy gaze his eyes glowing like blue fire. “I have many sins to pay for in the fires of Nahl. But taking life without reason won't be one of them if I can help it.”
Egan's lips pulled into the ghost of a sneer. “Now you have a conscience.”
“Boss, if I may interject,” Hargett said.
“Please,” D'Raq said.
“We don't know exactly what we're dealing with here. We do know that one of them is a reasonably strong Metal Kael with an affinity for fire as well. I could do a reverse shock. Using the metal of the door. I could make it strong enough to stun them. I will need your disk again to do that though, Sir.”
D'Raq's lips curved slightly and he nodded. He reached in his pocket and pulled out the silver disk handing it to Hargett.
Hargett nodded and pressed the flat disk against the metal door. He rubbed it in a circle until it stuck to the door. A loud ping echoed through the core door and Hargett touched the tip of his baton to the center of the disk. All the hair on their heads stood up and Egan's skin thrummed to the point of discomfort. Another loud ping and their hair dropped back in place, a little messier than it was before.
“What in Nahl was that?” Egan asked.
“That was genius,” D'Raq said. “I don't hear them but it's not the blankness of death.” He patted Hargett on the back. “Good job. Crane is lucky to have you as his accomplice.”
“Yes, Sir,” Hargett pressed his mouth into a straight line and gave him a curt nod.
“Is it safe to touch?” D'Raq asked pointing to the doorknob.
Hargett nodded, grabbed the doorknob and pushed. There was still something obstructing the door though. It took all three of them to get it open wide enough for them to slip into the room. Hargett went first followed by D'Raq and then Egan. The young wardens had taken one of the metal shelves and pushed it against the door. The two wardens were collapsed in a heap, unconscious, next to the shelving unit. They each stepped over the warden’s bodies and stopped. The room extended farther than Egan remembered. Floor to ceiling metal shelves lined both sides of the long narrow room and rectangular boxes filled the spaces on every shelf.
“Jerugia's crown,” Hargett said under his breath. “How are we supposed to find it in this?”
“Be quiet.” D'Raq closed his eyes and held out his hands. His shoulders and chest expanded with each deep breath he took.
“Go ahead and call to it if you need to.” Egan rolled his eyes and took a look at the first shelf. “But the boxes are filed alphabetically by last name. From the looks of it we should find it —” He walked along the walls scanning the boxes. “Yep, the D's are here.” He pointed to the shelf in front of him.
D'Raq opened his eyes and chuckled. “Thank you Crane. I always count on you to find the shortest route.”
“Let's just find it and get out of here.”
“You don't want to retrieve your own?” D'Raq asked.
Egan stopped and thought about it. He supposed it might be useful, so he and Hargett quickly dug up their boxes.
Egan slipped the long piece of leather over his head and let the triangular pendant holding his lifestone slip into his collar. Hargett stopped and brushed his thumb over the gold pendant and bright green stone that reminded Egan of a cat's-eye. Hargett slipped the gold chain over his head.
“We need to get out of here and fast. Before they send reinforcements,” Egan said.
“The boss is right,” Hargett said. “We still have to figure out how to get into the palace.”
“The palace will be simple enough,” Egan said. “Toby would've known that if he had consulted me.”
“Patience my friends,” D’Raq said. “There's plenty of time.”
“Yeah easy for you to say,” Hargett muttered under his breath. Egan punched him in the arm. “What?” Hargett said shrugging his shoulders.
D’Raq touched his thumb to the stone set in a silver circular pendant. The light and dark striations in the flat brown stone were different thicknesses and it made Egan think of pictures he’d seen as a boy of cross sections of trees. Growth rings. D’Raq took his silver disk from his pocket and held it between his thumb and forefinger. The edges of the disk began to glow blue, then red, and finally changing to a shimmering white. When it was done, the disk had shrunk from the useful three-inch diameter to only about a half an inch in size. D’Raq opened a small compartment on the back of his lifestone pendant and slipped the disk inside. He fastened the long silver chain around his neck and slipped it inside his shirt.
“I thought you were a Wood Kael?” Egan said.
A smile ghosted the corners of D’Raq’s lips. “I am many things, but if you are asking about my affinities. I am like my sister. Although my strongest affinity is for wood.”
“So you have all five?” Egan stared, unable to stop himself. He had never met anyone who could command them all, other than the queen, and she was not very impressive. She seemed to favor only one or two. If he had all five he would have made sure everyone knew exactly how powerful he was, even the Emperor.
“Indeed,” D’Raq said.
“I’ve never met a man with all five before.”
“We are rare,” D'Raq said. “And not quite as powerful as our female counterparts. Which is why they do not cull us. They don’t see us as a threat. I am however a Wood Kael first and foremost. Shall we go to the palace?”
Icy dread filled Egan’s chest. He tightened his grip on his baton. “There's nothing to worry about from me,” D'Raq said with a ghost of a smile on his lips. “I only have one agenda here today. And hurting you is not part of it.”
Egan nodded. “That's good to know. Let's get out of here and fulfill your agenda than.”
“My freedom is important just as it is to you. But just like you my family is the most important thing to me.”
“Your family?”
“My sister.” He paused. A shadow darkened his strong features. “And my niece.”
Understanding bloomed in Egan's head. Cilla had mentioned the girl on her first visit. He knew D'Raq was listening. He was always listening. Of course he had overheard Cilla talking about the child.
“I thought you just wanted to be free,” Egan said.
“No one is free until the queen is dead. But killing her is not my mission today. It's Toby's.”
“Toby?”
“Yes,” D'Raq said his gaze carefully scrutinizing Egan's face.
“How do you know what Toby's agenda is? He wouldn't even tell me.”
“Why would he? You were never meant to take part in his mission.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You forget how much I hear,” D'Raq said. “You were meant to be a distraction. A sacrifice as it were.”
Egan's stomach dropped to his belly like an icy rock. That’s why his orders were to free himself of the harness. To escape. But he was never given a destination. How stupid of him!
“Didn't you understand that? The instructions he gave you were vague. An escape attempt from the prison would have caused the palace lock down but it would also call every unused warden to the prison leaving the palace and the queen exposed.”
Fury exploded inside of Egan's chest and his face burned. He pumped his fingers around the baton willing himself not to lash out.
“I didn't tell you any of this because I believe your anger at Toby would have stymied your will to be free.”
“You don't think much of me do you?”
“On the contrary, you've proved to be quite an ally. Now do you want to stay here and discuss this,” D'Raq said. “Or do you want to go rescue your family?” An explosion shook the room and dust and dirt sifted from the rafters onto their heads. “There is still a way to beat Toby at his own game.”
“Let's get out of here,” Egan said. “We've got work to do.”
D'Raq chuckled and a grin stretched his full lips. “Indeed we do.”
Twenty-Four
&n
bsp; Neala laid everything out on the bed. She could have let a maid pack for her and probably should have because she was having a hard time deciding what to take. Sorrel sat curled up in the chair in the corner watching, with a simper on her face and a sketchbook lying open on the ottoman.
“You think this is funny?” Neala asked glancing over at Sorrel.
Sorrel’s eyebrows raised halfway up her forehead and she held her arms up in surrender. “I didn’t say anything,” she said her voice rasping. “But you’re only going overnight. I don’t think you need twenty outfits.”
“I know that,” Neala snapped. “I just want to look nice for him that’s all.”
“Well, pick something green. He loves you in green.”
Neala gave her a sideways glance. “He does?”
“Yes. And you would know that if you would pay more attention to him and his words.”
Neala faked a frown and picked up a forest green silk blouse. It seemed rather frivolous to wear silk. Especially since she was going to have to hide it under a protective layer of chest and back armor. She wore it nearly all the time now, even at home.
It had been weeks since she’d seen Cai and she wanted to look her best. Never in a million years would she have thought she could miss someone so much. Her skin ached for his touch, for his kiss. Sorrel got up and scanned the clothes lying on the bed. She picked an ivory sweater knit from the softest wool available in all the realms. She picked a pair of dark brown pants that had a drawstring around the belly to make it easy.
“See?” Sorrel said. “Problem solved.”
“I had no idea you were so fashion oriented.”
Sorrel snorted softly and rolled her eyes. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a folded square of canvas. “You should take this too.”
Neala smiled but she didn’t laugh. It was one of the paintings she had made for the wardens to use as an escape route if they were ever caught inside enemy territory. “Where did you get that?”
Sorrel shrugged. “Gordon.” Sorrel’s brown eyes darkened. “I’m never getting stuck behind a wall without a way out again.”