Soldiers of Ruin

by Stephen L. Nowland

  He cried out in pain and dropped his dagger, watching as the familiar figure of Sloane MacAliese appeared ahead, pulling back the lever on Nellise’s crossbow to drop another bolt into place.

  Reacting instinctively, Pacian quickly drew a knife with his left hand and threw it towards her, the spiralling metal missing her head by inches as she bent to one side to avoid the oncoming blade. Pacian took advantage of the distraction to roll and pick up the dagger he’d dropped when he’d been struck in the arm, then rushed straight at Sloane before she could fire another shot.

  Leaning in at the last moment of his reckless charge, Pacian slammed into Sloane just as she readied the crossbow for another shot, sending them both tumbling down the stone passage. The crossbow was knocked clear as they scrambled back onto their feet. Pacian ignored his injured arm as best as he could, as he found himself facing off against Clavis’ daughter, his daggers in her hands.

  Realising his disadvantage, Pacian struck out first, slashing back and forth with his single blade to keep her on the defensive. She ducked and dodged expertly, avoiding each cut by mere inches. On the downstroke of one of Pacian’s attacks, he grabbed a handful of dirt with his other hand and managed to fling it up towards her. He winced in pain as the sharp motion aggravated his injury, but it was worth it as Sloane was forced to shield her eyes from the dirt flying at her face.

  He gave her a swift kick in the stomach, but she was already recoiling from his distraction, so the blow landed with little impact. Unfortunately for Pacian, he was now overstretched and an easy target for retribution.

  He felt the white-hot sensation on his chest as one of her daggers cut through his leathers. Quickly drawing another knife, he gave her a nasty slash across one arm as she withdrew, Pacian gasping for breath at the searing pain in his chest and Sloane nursing her wounded arm. They circled each other warily, each having learned newfound respect for their opponent.

  “Feeling a little betrayed?” Sloane taunted as they faced off in the gloomy tunnel.

  “You sly bitch,” Pacian spat, his frustration bubbling to the surface. “How long was Tosh working for you? Did you buy him off with gold, or take him into your bed a few times?” Sloane chuckled morbidly at his words, though she didn’t take her eyes off him for even a moment.

  “We’ve had ties to the military since we came here,” she laughed. “How else do you think a criminal organisation would survive in an enclosed place like this? No, Tosh was more than willing to hear our story, and from then on, he didn’t even want coin for the job. He betrayed ya because he’s a true believer — as soon as he saw that axe, he hatched this little scheme to get Hamish on the throne, and made sure our new friends could get into the city proper to help us out.”

  “What have you done with Nellise?” Pacian growled, having heard enough about Tosh already.

  “My my, she is a pretty one, ain’t she,” Sloane hissed. “Oh, the things our lads will do to her if you don’t get out of here right now—”

  She didn’t have a chance to finish the sentence before Pacian’s dagger was flying through the air towards her. Blood dimmed his sight as he charged recklessly at her, his dagger embedding itself deeply into her already wounded arm. He barely had the presence of mind to draw out another of his knives before he reached her and drove the point straight for her heart.

  The dwarven thief managed to avoid the worst of it and snarled in pain as she was shoved against the wall, breathing hard. Pacian drew another knife, but Sloane saw it coming and dodged it with ease. She whirled around an grabbed the crossbow, just as Pacian was about to charge again.

  The sound of a crossbow bolt dropping into place echoed through the passageway, a chilling sound that froze Pacian on the spot. He slowly brought his eyes up to see Sloane standing there, the crossbow levelled at his body. Her chest heaved as she caught her breath from the vicious fight, yet the weapon remained perfectly aimed at his face.

  “Ya should have turned and walked away,” she lamented, gazing at him along the weapons’ sights. There was no way he could throw a knife before she pulled the trigger, but he still had one trick to pull. He clenched his right hand and spoke the command word to activate his magic ring.

  The magic of the ring manifested and slugged her with incredible force, slamming the thief into the stone wall and cracking most of her bones in the process. Her mouth opened in a silent scream as she slumped to the ground, a bloodied mess. The ring, finally depleted, crumbled away to dust, though it had served its purpose. Pacian dragged himself over beside the dying woman, her last breaths rattling in her lungs.

  “Where… is… Nellise?” he whispered harshly in her ear. There was no response from Sloane, so Pacian shoved his thumb into one of her wounds and twisted. She writhed in silent agony for a moment, and Pacian repeated his question with greater intensity. The dwarven woman managed to turn her head and spit in his face, so he repeated the unpleasant process with his thumb.

  “Tell me, and I will end it quickly,” he said with quiet promise, releasing the pressure as Sloane let out a strangled gasp.

  “In the miners… equipment room,” she whispered with trembling lips. “Near the work site,” she added before her head fell back against the stone floor.

  “Thank you,” Pacian said without feeling as he grabbed one of his daggers from her unfeeling hand and quickly ended her life. Pacian fell to the floor, gasping for breath as pain in his body came at him in full force.

  The crossbow bolt was still lodged in his arm and the sharp ache was distracting to say the least. Pacian retrieved a bandage from his pack, and then took off his belt and bit down hard on the leather strap between his teeth. Then, he slowly wrapped his fingers around the protruding quarrel in his arm.

  Deciding that a swift movement was better than a slow, steady one, Pacian braced himself against the wall and ripped the bolt out, screaming from the sudden agony and almost passing out. Fortunately, the bolt itself wasn’t barbed and didn’t do any further damage on its way out, but a torrent of blood flowed from the open wound.

  He wrapped the bandage tightly around his arm, hoping it would be enough to stop the bleeding and then recalled he had one of Nellise’s tonics in his pack. He rifled around with his good arm and produced a small vial of liquid. Uncorking it, he drank it down in one gulp and rested his head against the stone wall, eyes closed as he began to feel the effects of the healing draught tingling throughout his body.

  It wasn’t enough to restore him fully — not by a long shot — but it would be enough to keep him on his feet for the time being. The sound of fiery explosions nearby reminded him that Sayana was still out there, somewhere. Breathing hard, Pacian dragged himself onward, spurred on by the thought of saving Nellise from a fate worse than death.

  Chapter Twelve

  In the past, when Aiden would dream of strange events, his mind was always swept away, unable to tell it was a dream. This time, however, he knew he was dreaming. He could almost feel himself lying upon his bedroll, but for a flurry of images and sensations tumbling through his mind.

  There was a tall and elegant tower soaring above a young city filled with life and promise. The city was obscured by a great shadow from above and a tremendous earthquake struck, undermining its foundations and sinking it into the ground. Families clutched onto each other as they fled in terror, many of who would not make it out alive.

  A robed man atop the tower stood against the shadow as it fell over the city, but as the tower crumbled, he fell from the parapet, his aged and whiskered face etched into Aiden’s mind as he tumbled through the air. A sphere of energy encased the tower as the robed man fell through the air. Just before he met his end upon the flagstones below, he vanished.

  More images of time passing flitted through Aiden’s restless mind as clouds passed overhead, impossibly fast. An empty coffin seemed to linger in his thoughts amongst the fleeting images, and something about it caught his attention, something important. The city decayed around it as the deca
des passed then, with a flash, Aiden was looking down at his own body amongst the ruins of Feybourne, twisting and turning in his blankets. He looked up at himself and for a moment, he was staring into the blazing eyes of a dragon.

  * * *

  “Aiden, wake up!” Ronan whispered harshly as Aiden was jolted awake. “You were making a lot of noise for someone who was supposed to be sleeping. You okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” Aiden muttered, trying to shake the last vestiges of the bizarre dream from his mind. He sat up and looked around, noticing that the fire was burning low, and the dull grey light on the horizon indicated dawn was close. Maggie was helping Sir William put on his armour, and most of the camp had been packed up. Pulling aside his blanket, Aiden was relieved to see the swelling in his feet all but gone.

  “We need to get moving,” Ronan suggested, pushing Aiden’s backpack into his arms. “Maggie says whoever was helping the druids last night has been weakened from the effort, but by morning he’ll be ready to hit us again. We need to track him down and finish this.”

  “Are you sure about that?” Aiden asked of Maggie.

  “Nobody can channel that much energy without being drained from the effort,” she replied.

  “What about us? If you’re wrong, we’re hardly in any condition for another fight,” Aiden pressed. Sir William looked on with interest, trying to hide his fatigue from the others.

  “Don’t worry, I can take him,” Ronan assured Aiden. “If I do it right, he won’t even know I’m coming.”

  Aiden nodded dubiously, then reluctantly began preparing to leave. Half a night’s sleep and one quick meal were hardly enough to recover from their arduous day, but he understood the urgency of their situation and forced his body back into action.

  On a hunch, he reached under his tunic and felt the small shard of crystal that hung around his neck, the remains of a device that linked him to the dragon, Salinder. It was very warm, a sure sign his experience was supernatural in origin. Typically, the dreams they’d shared through the link had been clear to the point of seeming absolutely real, but there had been limits to how much information it could actually convey.

  The dream of last night however, seemed to bombard his mind with sights and sounds, brief sensations and complex ideas. Aiden didn’t know when he’d next have the opportunity to speak with the dragon, but when he did, he would try to find out exactly what that message was supposed to have achieved.

  After gingerly sliding his feet back into his dry boots, Aiden was packed and ready to go. As he was about to walk over to speak with Maggie, his attention was caught by a gleam of light from the floor nearby. Moving closer, he saw it was from the remains of his sceptre that had exploded during the battle last night. The shaft of the weapon had vanished, having been hurled far from the explosion, but several of the gemstones remained on the ground.

  An image flashed through Aiden’s mind as he looked down at the debris, and he was compelled to sift through the remains. Logically, he knew it was pointless to try and recover anything of value from amongst the mud and snow, but something in his head told him that he should keep looking anyway.

  After a moment, he uncovered an intact gemstone, a violet amethyst that had somehow survived the destruction of the device. He quickly pocketed it without knowing why, as Maggie came over to see what he was doing.

  “I’m pretty sure it’s broken,” she said with a wan smile, rubbing his shoulder fondly. “Are you feeling better?”

  “My feet are, although the rest of me could use a week’s rest to be honest,” Aiden replied, standing up and dusting off his coat. The dried mud and dirt remained, mocking his futile attempt to clean it.

  “Don’t worry, I have something that will help us with that,” she said as she took out a tiny mortar and pestle, and began to grind up a dark herb with a familiar aroma that caused Aiden to groan inwardly.

  “You’re giving us a tincture of Kahve?” he asked ruefully.

  “I see you’re familiar with it,” she nodded. “I don’t care for it much myself, but we’re all looking worse for wear, and this will keep us going.”

  “I don’t recall hearing about such a tincture before,” Sir William remarked as he walked Bastion over to them.

  “And after you have some, you’ll probably wish you’d never touched the stuff,” Aiden grumbled.

  “That won’t be for a few hours,” Maggie assured them. “Until then, you’ll feel ten years younger.”

  “Now that would be something of a miracle,” Sir William said with a chuckle. Maggie quickly dispensed a few small vials of the tincture amongst the four of them, which they quickly drank. The bitterness made Aiden shudder, but within moments he started to feel the effects spread through his body.

  “I say, that is remarkable,” Sir William breathed. “Is it safe to give to a horse?”

  “I didn’t have enough for our animal friends, I’m sorry,” Maggie apologised, walking up to the great tiger and stroking his fur fondly. “I’m sending Thorn off to hunt and rest, since he’s given all he can for the time being. You would do well to walk Bastion for a time.”

  “Indeed, I shall,” Sir William replied as Thorn growled and loped out of the ruined building to hunt.

  “I want to find this protective barrier Alain mentioned,” Aiden suggested. “I think it might be our best chance to locate the sceptre, and we might even find this ‘enlightened one’ along the way.”

  “I think he should be our priority,” Maggie said in disagreement. “We’ll have plenty of time to search the city once we’re safe.”

  “She has a point,” Ronan agreed mildly. “Any idea where he could be hiding?”

  “I don’t suppose he could be behind this mystic barrier Alain spoke of?” Sir William wondered.

  “I don’t see how,” Maggie replied thoughtfully. “It’s impassable, surrounding an entire section of the city with a shimmering field, and it’s deadly to the touch.”

  “It’s obviously connected to the old tower that used to…” Aiden began, trailing off as he recalled the image of the tower from his scattered dreams. He could picture it in his mind, the tower surrounded by an immense sphere of glass… or the arcane wall that Alain spoke of.

  “What is it, Aiden?” Maggie asked, a little concerned.

  “The wall is protecting the site of the old tower,” he explained, absolutely confident he knew what he was talking about. “It was created by the arch mage when the city was destroyed. The only way past it would be to use a control device, like a spectral key.”

  “So, it’s possible your enlightened leader has one of these keys?” Ronan asked. “It’s been here for a century, and who knows what’s been uncovered over the years?”

  “We’ll know more when we find it,” Aiden surmised. “Maggie, take us to this barrier, preferably at a place where there is a path through it, like an doorway or stairwell.”

  She led them through the broken streets, picking her way carefully by the half-light of dawn. Entire sections of the city had sunk, slowing their progress as they negotiated the dangerous terrain. After nearly an hour of traversing the broken streets, they rounded a corner and Aiden laid eyes upon the sight of a broken tower, its shattered husk still looming over the surrounding terrain, even at this distance.

  The faint glimmer of the protective barrier was visible, a sphere of distorted light which had protected the inner heart of the city for the better part of a century. Maggie didn’t stop and wait for them to gawk at the sight however, and Aiden soon had to hurry along to catch up.

  The trail led them into a part of the city so low it was practically underground, with branches and broken structures forming a sort of canopy overhead. They wended their way through, with Aiden summoning a light to aid their progress. Soon enough, they arrived at a point between two large buildings that had survived the destruction relatively intact. Their intricate stonework was criss-crossed by a maze of roots and vines, dormant in winter, but undoubtedly covering the area in
vibrant green during the warmer months.

  A passageway led between the buildings, evidently some sort of ancient gate. The shimmering field of the barrier was easier to see here, shadowed from the light of the rising sun. They approached it cautiously, hearing the faint crackle of electricity as they stopped only yards from the mystical construct.

  “Here it is,” Maggie said needlessly, gesturing at the impassable barrier before them.

  “I can scarcely believe it’s still working after all these years,” Aiden remarked. He crept towards it until he could see faint symbols of arcane power around the edge of the wall, where the barrier met the stone.

  “That’s what I was hoping to find,” Aiden remarked, pointing at the arcane sigils. He peered at them closely, mindful of his proximity to the field. The quality of the engravings had diminished over time, yet he could still make out many of the important symbols which told him much about how the field worked. There was no indication of any way to dispel it, however.

  “You don’t seem pleased with what you’re finding,” Ronan observed.

  “From the research I’ve done on the barriers like this, we need to find a key to get through it,” Aiden explained.

  “You don’t think we could find passage through one of the broken buildings in the city?” Sir William asked, absently stroking Bastion’s nose.

  “It completely surrounds what lies beyond,” Aiden answered. “I think the main reason these buildings still stand is this field of energy is holding them up. No, we’ll have to find…” he trailed off as more images from his dream came to the surface.

  “He’s doing that thing again,” Ronan remarked as Aiden recalled the sight of an old robed man falling from the tower — clearly the arch mage — disappearing before he hit the ground. The empty coffin made more sense now and he had a sudden feeling that’s what they needed to find.