The Ghosts Omnibus One

by Jonathan Moeller

  Jadriga shrugged. “Because I teach any who come to grasp the truth. The only path to true strength is through power. And they gave away their power. They submitted to their husbands and to their children, to chains that held them back, made them into servants. I taught them to shatter those chains, to make themselves stronger.” She shook her head. “But they have never known pain, true pain, and if they know such pain now, it will destroy them. So they are limited.” Her black eyes, heavy and bottomless, bored into Caina. “But you…you could be so much more. Become my student, and I will share my teachings with you. I will make you stronger than any who walk the earth.”

  Caina took a deep breath. “So you are a truly a sorceress?”

  “That is only a word,” said Jadriga. “But, yes, I have power. And I can teach you. I can show you wonders that defy imagination, arcane secrets that the petty Magisterium cannot comprehend.”

  “I…no,” said Caina. “I only wish…I only wish to find a husband.” She needed to get away from this woman. The tingling of Jadriga’s arcane strength was making her nauseous, light-headed. Sooner or later she would slip up, say something that she should not.

  “A husband?” said Jadriga. “You lie well…but not well enough. Let me show you something.”

  She stepped forward, crimson skirts rustling, her hand coming up. A single cool fingertip brushed Caina’s forehead, followed by a sharp, painful tingle. Caina’s hand snapped up, seizing Jadriga’s wrist, and she intended to sidestep, twisting Jadriga’s arm into a lock…

  And then she gasped, releasing Jadriga’s wrist.

  She had never felt so…peaceful.

  A warm numbness filled her, like floating in a hot bath. Her muscles relaxed, and she let out a shuddering gasp. Her pain, she realized. It had been taken away.

  “Oh,” said Jadriga. “Oh, you poor child. What pains you have known. What torments.”

  “She killed my father,” breathed Caina. The words came bubbling out of her. “My mother. He disapproved of her arcane experiments. So she invaded his thoughts, tried to enslave him. Instead she broke his mind. He couldn’t even feed himself.”

  “You were only eleven,” said Jadriga. Her hand came up, brushing Caina’s temple. Her fingers had become very cold. “Eleven, and you killed your mother. She was going to kill you, after she destroyed your father. So you seized the poker from the fireplace, and she lost her balance…ah.” Again her cool fingers brushed Caina’s temple. “But that’s not all she did to you, is it?”

  “Maglarion,” said Caina, voice tight with pain. But Jadriga’s fingers brushed her cheek, and the pain faded away.

  "Ah," said Jadriga. "So you were the one who killed him? Not surprising. He was a clever student, but a fool in the end. He thought the flesh could live forever, but only the spirit is immortal." She shook her head, as if dismissing a memory. "What did Maglarion do to you?"

  “He demanded payment for his teachings. So my mother gave me to him. He chained me to a table. He cut me, draining my blood away, using it for the spells. He cut deeper and deeper, and I screamed and screamed. He cut too deep. I can’t have children. I want children so much.” She let out a shuddering sob, and again Jadriga’s fingers drained the pain away. “I can’t ever have children.”

  Jadriga nodded to herself. “And that is why you became a Ghost, isn’t it?”

  “Halfdan saved me,” said Caina. “I have to keep it from happening again. To others, I mean. I can’t let them hurt more people the way I was hurt. I won’t let them.”

  “Strange,” murmured Jadriga. “I had a different reaction. Why should not others suffer, as I have suffered?”

  “No,” said Caina. “No. I can’t let that happen..."

  Caina felt Jadriga’s palm under her chin, and she looked up at the taller woman.

  “Listen to me,” said Jadriga. “Your pain has made you strong…but you have squandered your strength in the service of those who do not deserve it. The Ghosts do not deserve you. Follow me, instead, and I will make you even stronger. I will teach you true power, power to make the Magisterium look like simpering children. Caina.” Her other hand cupped Caina’s cheek. “I can teach you to heal yourself, to smooth away the scars. You can bear children of your own. You can have many strong sons, Caina, sons who will grow up like trees around you, sons who will love you with all their hearts.”

  Caina felt the tears trickling down her cheeks, falling on Jadriga’s fingers. “You…you can?”

  “Yes,” whispered Jadriga. “All that you desire can be yours. Become my student, and you will have it.”

  The wild dreams filled Caina’s mind. She saw herself cradling a son in her arms, her son. The image filled her with such longing that she almost groaned aloud. It could be hers. It could be hers. She need only…only…

  A price. Something tugged at the back of her mind, some memory of sorcery and blood.

  “No,” whispered Caina. “No. No sorcery. I won’t have anything to do with it.”

  Jadriga sighed. “Are you sure?”

  “I hate sorcery,” said Caina. “Almost as much as I hate my mother.”

  “Do as you will,” said Jadriga. “You are strong enough that I will respect your choice. Though you will regret it bitterly before you die.”

  She pushed, and Caina stumbled away, blackness rushing up to envelop her.

  ###

  Caina sat up with a gasp, her head spinning, her stomach churning.

  The coach. She was in the coach. It was in motion, the rattle of the wheels and the clop of hooves audible through the walls. She looked around in wild panic. How had she gotten in her? Memories tumbled through in mind. There was dinner with Agria and the others, a walk in the garden, and then…and then…

  She remembered a red gown, a black veil…

  “Ark,” said Caina, almost screaming. “Ark. Ark!”

  The coach stopped. A moment later the door opened, and Ark looked up at her.

  “Ark,” said Caina. “What…what happened? I…I don’t…”

  “Gods,” said Ark, climbing into the coach. “What's wrong?”

  “I…don’t know,” said Caina. She pressed the heels of her hands into her forehead, trying to think. “I…how did I get in the coach?”

  “You don’t remember?” said Ark.

  “Just tell me!” said Caina.

  “Lady Palaegus sent me to wait outside,” said Ark. “About an hour later you came back. You told me to get in the coach and take you back to Zorgi’s Inn.” He paused, frowning. “You don’t remember any of that?”

  “No,” whispered Caina. “No. I…think someone got into my mind, Ark.”

  “Lady Palaegus?’ said Ark, incredulous. “You didn’t think she was that strong. Were you wrong?”

  “No,” said Caina, shaking her head. “She’s not that strong. It was someone else. I met…I met…I think I met her.”

  “Her?”

  “The one who’s been teaching sorcery to Agria and the others,” said Caina. The name refused to come to her jumbled mind. Then she remembered ambushing Hiram in that alley by the Dead Fish Tavern. “Jadriga. The woman Hiram mentioned.”

  “Jadriga?” said Ark. “Hiram thought she was a charlatan.”

  A wild laugh burst from Caina’s lips. The sound of it frightened her, and she fought to get herself under control. “He was wrong. Badly. She’s not a charlatan. She’s got power, Ark. More than the Magisterium, I think. Maybe even more than Kalastus.”

  That set Ark aback. Kalastus had almost killed them both with his pyromancy, and a lot of other people besides.

  “That strong?” said Ark. “Do…you think she is the necromancer Nicorus mentioned?”

  “I don’t know,” said Caina. She thought about it. “Probably.” Something else occurred to her. “We’d better get going. Fast. Don’t spare the horses.”

  “Why not?” said Ark.

  “Think about it,” said Caina, stumbling out of the coach. “I don’t remember what we talked about
, I can barely even remembering meeting her, but Jadriga looked into my mind. That means…”

  “That means she knows you’re a Ghost,” said Ark. “She might know everything.”

  “And if Icaraeus is working for her and Agria,” said Caina, “then he might try to kill us all. Tonight.”

  Ark nodded. “We’d better get moving.”

  Chapter 14 - Assassins

  “You’re an idiot,” said Ducas, pacing before the windows.

  “You’re right,” said Caina.

  She sat on a stool in Radast’s workshop. With its intricate locks and traps, Halfdan had decided that the workshop was a more defensible location, one that would not expose Zorgi and his staff to risk. Halfdan and Ark stood at a table, checking their weapons. Jiri worked in the hearth, cooking, while Radast muttered to himself and scribbled equations on the slates.

  Ducas blinked. “You agree with me?”

  “I made an error,” said Caina. “I shouldn’t have left myself alone with Jadriga.” She thought about it some more. “I’m fortunate to be alive.”

  “Tigrane and Icaraeus will probably call off the raid now,” said Ducas. “Which means we just lost our best chance to catch them.”

  Caina nodded.

  “What were you thinking?” said Ducas. “You knew Agria would try to invade your mind. Why didn’t you…”

  “Ducas,” said Halfdan, glancing up from a crossbow, “shut up. It could be worse.”

  “How?” said Ducas.

  “Jadriga clearly tried to wipe Anna’s memory of the conversation,” said Halfdan. “If she had, we’d have no warning whatsoever, and most likely we’d have been murdered in our sleep.”

  Caina hadn’t thought of that. It made her feel better, if only a little.

  “Tribune, you’ve been in the Legions long enough to know that no battle plan survives contact with the enemy,” said Ark.

  Ducas frowned. “Don’t quote the classics at me.”

  “And would you have done as well, if you had been confronted with a magus who could read your thoughts?” said Ark.

  Ducas spat something sulfurous, but he scowled and turned away.

  “I have some food,” said Jiri, straightening up from the hearth. “Stew, and bread.” She grinned at Halfdan. “Not quite the rich stuff you’re used to, Basil, but it will fill your belly well enough.”

  “My dear,” said Halfdan, “I’ll have you know I once went a fortnight without a bite to eat. Stew and bread shall be quite lovely, thank you.”

  “I’m going to sleep,” said Caina, sliding off the stool. She had changed to her nightfighter clothes, weapons at the ready. She would probably need them very soon. “It’s going to be a long couple of days, I think.”

  Ducas snorted and crossed to the stew.

  “Don’t let him upset you,” said Jiri to Caina, voice quiet.

  “He isn’t,” said Caina. “But he’s still right. I made a mistake.”

  “But if I came face to face with a magus…” Jiri shuddered. “You’re so calm. I wouldn’t know what to do.”

  Caina grinned. “Easy enough. Stab until he stops moving.”

  Jiri laughed. “I like you. Sleep well, Anna.”

  There were cots and blankets in the corner. Caina lay down, wrapped herself in a blanket, and fell asleep.

  ###

  The dream was darker and stranger than ever, no doubt an aftereffect of Jadriga’s attack upon her mind.

  Caina found herself in her father’s library, shadows thick and tangled upon the walls. She was wearing her nightfighter clothes, weapons heavy in their sheaths. That was odd; she never wore her nightfighter clothes in these dreams. And she was lucid enough to notice these details. Usually she was caught in the grip of uncontrollable emotion.

  She turned, and saw her mother staring at her.

  Caina stepped back in alarm, yanking her daggers from their sheaths.

  Her mother did not move.

  She wore a strange black dress that crawled and writhed over her body like something alive. Her pale face lay half-hidden behind curtains of ragged, greasy hair. That alone caught Caina’s attention. Her mother had always been fastidious to the point of madness, and would fly into a rage if anyone saw her disheveled.

  She stepped closer, and Caina saw her eyes. They burned, blazing from within like hot coals. The hellish glow illuminated her face, exposing its gaunt lines, showing the mocking smile on her thin lips. Caina’s mother had alternated between icy indifference and furious rage, and she had never worn such a smile.

  Suddenly Caina wanted to run.

  “Who are you?” said Caina.

  “We…can see you now,” said her mother. Her voice was a harsh whisper, filled with a buzzing modulation. It made Caina’s ears hurt. “Yes. She touched you, soul-scarred child. And now we can see you, you who would defy us.”

  “Who are you?” repeated Caina. “Are you Jadriga?”

  “Shadow-marked child. We are legion. We have waited long,” said the shape of her mother. “So very long. Empires have risen and fallen, and cities have burned, yet still we have waited. But soon…we will wait no longer.” The mocking smile sharpened. “She thinks to become our master. But we are older than her. Older than the world. We shall have no master.”

  “You are not my mother,” said Caina.

  “No,” said her mother, the fires in her eyes blazing brighter. “We are not. But you will meet us soon enough. Shall we show you who we really are, defiant child? Shall you see us without guise, without artifice? The sight would shatter your mind and sear your soul. You would awake screaming and gibbering and drooling.” She paused. “Yes. We will show you.”

  She stepped forward, the strange black dress writhing, her eyes turning molten. Then she looked up, rage flashing across her face.

  The library vanished. Caina found herself standing in Radast’s workshop, the window shutters open, the night breeze blowing inside.

  The solemn girl in the gray dress waited for her, the silver comb glinting in her hair.

  “You,” said Caina. “I’ve…seen you before, haven’t I? In my nightmares. Who are you?”

  The girl said nothing. She kept staring, yet Caina felt no disquiet. There was no hint of the malevolence, the hatred she had sensed from whatever had worn her mother’s shape.

  “Is there something you want from me?” said Caina.

  The girl stepped forward, her small warm hand closing about Caina’s wrist. She guided Caina to the windows and pointed.

  Caina peered into the night. “What I am looking…”

  She saw it at once, and her breath hissed through her teeth.

  Something like a misshapen wolf waited in the street below. It stood on two legs, tongue lolling over yellowed fangs, and held a crooked sword in one paw. Another one lurked in a doorway across the square, and two more stood before the door to Radast’s building. Each creature wore spiked iron bracers on its forearms, the black metal marked with runes of ghostly emerald light.

  All four watched her with red eyes.

  “What are they?” said Caina.

  For the first time the barest hint of an expression touched the girl’s face.

  Fear. But not for herself. She was afraid for Caina.

  “You’re warning me?” said Caina.

  The girl nodded, and touched Caina’s wrist again.

  The workshop dissolved into nothingness.

  ###

  Caina awoke with a gasp. She sat up, pushed the blanket away, and looked around. Radast’s workshop was dark, save for a pair of candles. Ark, Ducas, and Halfdan lay on cots nearby, sleeping. Radast sat in the candlelight, scribbling notes into a book.

  Caina hurried over to Radast. The dream remained lodged in her mind, and she half-expected to see red-eyed wolves lurking under the tables. Radast looked up as she approached.

  “Anna Callenius,” he said. “I calculate a ninety-seven percent chance you have experienced a nightmare.”

  “Yes,” said Ca
ina thickly, looking at the shutters. If she opened them, would she see wolves prowling the street? Absurd. It had been a dream.

  Yet…

  “My calculations were right about you,” said Radast. “Despite what Ducas might say. You found the truth. Lady Palaegus and her teacher are behind the disappearances, that is plain.”

  “We don’t know everything yet,” said Caina, staring at the metal shutters. Jadriga, for one. Where had she come from? What did she want? “Not by a long shot. Radast, these shutters…is there a way to look through them without opening them?”

  “Of course,” said Radast, rising to his feet. He pressed a latch on the shutters and slid aside a small panel. Caina peered through the narrow opening.

  And froze in alarm.

  A man stood in the street, staring up at her. Another stood in the shadows of the doorway across the square, and two more stood before the door to Radast’s building. They stood in the exact position of wolves from her dream.

  And they all wore bracers identical to Icaraeus’s.

  “What is it?” said Radast.

  “Trouble,” said Caina.

  Even as she spoke, the nearest man’s eyes widened. In a single smooth motion, he produced a light crossbow from beneath his cloak and raised it.

  “Down!” shouted Caina, shoving Radast away from the window. A heartbeat later the quarrel bounced off the shutter with a loud clang.

  “Ha!” said Radast. “As if a crossbow could penetrate my work!”

  “What’s going on?” said Halfdan. He and the others had risen, and Jiri hurried out of the bedroom.

  “Icaraeus’s men,” said Caina. “They’ve found us.”

  Ducas glared at her. “Jadriga must have pulled the location from Anna’s mind.”

  Halfdan shoved past him, walking towards the shutter.

  “Careful,” said Caina. “The one in the street is a good shot.”

  Halfdan nodded, took a quick look, and snapped the panel shut. “Ten of them. Six were heading into the alley, towards the stairs.”

  Caina glanced at the massive steel door bolted to the brickwork.