The man smiled. ‘Right you are, my good master, the best slaves in Pelloss I have here.’ He pointed to a group of eight Cravosi men all chained together. They looked dirty and angry, but they looked tough as well. Seth realised, though, that his handful of gold coins wouldn’t go very far at all. He knew he would need at least four men if they were going to sleep in shifts and also fetch meals if the food might be poisoned.
‘I have eight gold pieces and I want four men,’ Seth said.
The man actually snorted at him. ‘No, no, no, two pieces for a life? Not in Pelloss city. Maybe back across the sea you’ll get such a deal, but not from Sevron, not today or any day.’
Seth didn’t even wait to hear the rest of his talk and walked off along the line of cages to the cheaper and worse cared for of the living chattel. The bars on the cages were getting thicker and groups of people milling inside soon became people chained individually to the floor or the wall. Slaves without much life left but plenty of ambition to escape.
As he walked on, a dark-skinned Southerner approached Seth. ‘Sevron is a crook. I think two coins a man is a fine price and I have just the men to suit your purpose, my lord,’ he said.
Seth didn’t like the look of him at all. It was probably the long, rolled-up leather whip he had dangling at his side or the lopsided smile. The man indicated the cage and Seth saw five men all chained to the back wall, but that one of them had his head hanging at the angle of dead.
‘Bloody troublemakers they are, but they will work once you apply the good whip to them. Strong as beasts as well. Be glad to see them go with you at that price,’ he said.
Seth looked deep into the gloom of the cage and through the dirt and the blood thought they might even be Northerners; they seemed tall enough and had clothes that may have been sailors’ garbs once before saltwater, dirt and slavery had set to work on them.
Seth spoke to them in the first Northern he’d said in months. ‘How’d you boys get into this bloody mess?’ Slowly, four hanging heads came up to regard him. They were Northmen indeed, under the bruises, cuts and mistreatment he could see it clearly.
They looked at him but couldn’t see past the rapier, dagger and clothes that, while also sea stained, still looked fine enough.
‘Ignore the clothes. I’m a Northerner too, from Bloodcrest,’ he said with pride.
One with dirty blond hair and a very badly split lip spoke. ‘We were on The Fleet and it got taken by these pirate bastard Pellosi. Sold us to this piece of shit right here along with twelve or so others.’
‘What happened to the others? The Captain?’ Seth asked.
‘Captain drowned with three arrows in his back. Some were sold but most died in this cage,’ the man said.
Seth filled with anger. ‘I was almost on that ship, but got The Opulent instead.’ He thought of travelling with Minsetta instead of winding up in another slave cage.
‘Nice if you can afford it,’ the man said.
‘I’m in the mind to get you boys out of there; I have need of some guards in the next two days. What would you say to that?’
A different one who was a bit older and had a bruise almost black across his cheekbone spoke to Seth. ‘Better than dying in this fucking cage, I reckon.’
The deal was struck. Seth had bought four men body and soul for two gold coins apiece. He still had two gold coins left and some silvers from Yend to buy food and drink from outside the library. He walked slowly away from the slave market with four stumbling and limping shadows following behind him. The slaver had tried to sell him some good foot chains or a nice branding, but Seth had declined.
Once they were away from the market and on one of the cobblestone streets alone, Seth turned and looked at them. They were as tall as he but clearly had the look of sailors to them. Well-built but underfed with each carrying different small injuries and marks of bad treatment.
Seth regarded the Pellosi slave collars around their necks. One solid metal ring bent into place while hot and by two black smiths, Very simple and hard to remove. Seth reached out with his hands to the man with dirty blonde hair. He didn’t flinch as with an incredible display of strength Seth pulled the thick steel collar apart and cast it to the road. He repeated the process on all of them until they stood in front of him, rubbing sore necks and regarding him with awe.
‘You can run if you want; all I’ve paid for is to get you out of those cages. I don’t think one man can own another and, believe it or not, I’ve been on your side of the transaction. I don’t hold with slaves, but, as I said, I need some strong lads to watch my back for the next two days. If you stick with me, I’ll get you fed, get a sword in your hand and, when I’m back into coin, I’ll get you a fighting man’s wage. Takers?’ Seth said.
The slightly older one of the group picked up his slave collar, looked at it, then, dropping it back down on the street, he stepped forward and clasped Seth wrist to wrist. Seth could see the painful black bruise across his right cheekbone, and he bore whip marks on his strongly muscled arms. ‘You’re a good damn lad, truly. I thought we were all dead in that cage, dead and thrown in with all the rest, buried not burned, too,’ the man said. ‘They call me Grimm and I’m with you.’
‘I’m Seth. Good to have you, Grimm,’ Seth said, gripping his arm.
Two of them stepped forward, and Seth saw now under the dirt they were brothers. Both had long black hair and were big men even for Northerners, at least half a hand taller than Seth. One clasped his wrist, then the other. ‘I’m Flint and he’s Stone. We’re with you, Master Seth.’
Seth felt the power in their arms on a friendly clasp. ‘No master needed, just Seth and glad to have you.’
The blond-haired man regarded Seth and slowly looked at the others and then the vacant streets of Pelloss, not a soul stood between him and freedom. Looking at Seth, he smiled a charming grin. ‘I’m Goldie, and I’m with you too, but I have a question to ask you.’
‘What’s that, then?’
‘What’re our chances of killing some Pellosi?’
Seth felt the rage coming off the man and the other three as well, and he understood it. ‘I’d say that’s part of the deal.
Chapter 16
They walked through the cobblestone streets in silence. Around them hustled the vibrant trader city, Seth let them buy some cooked meat on skewers which they devoured in mere moments like the half staved men they were. He followed the directions Minsetta had been given, and they weren’t hard to follow. The house was made of large white stones and set off on one of the main streets, surrounded by a large iron fence. The ornate but solid gate was guarded by two footmen in house livery. It wasn’t a hidden location; rather, it was hidden in plain sight. He knew that this large manor house actually had many levels underground where The Guild hid their leather-bound treasures.
Approaching the gate, Seth looked at the footmen. They were well-dressed but held their pikes with the rigid attention of soldiers. Much more than just servants these, they held themselves like men born to fight. The people on the street strolled quickly past this house, like many others in Pelloss with guards. Almost all of them did. It was only people like Seth who had made a profession of war who could spot a soldier underneath the fine garments.
He approached the man on the left. He was tall and looked at Seth intently as he approached, without moving from his stance of pike across the open archway, interlocking with the man across from him. Seth didn’t know what these men were expecting, but it probably wasn’t a slightly worn-looking Northern lordling with a gang of four dirty slaves with him.
The guard looked to his fellow and then back at Seth. ‘State your business, then,’ he said. Not exactly what he was supposed to say.
‘My business is knowledge, but the way is barred. Step aside,’ Seth said firmly.
The man looked again at his fellow guard and they stiffened, ready for action.
‘Disrespect aside, I am Brother Seth and I have entry for three days. The words you sh
ould have said were, ‘What do you seek?’ And I would have said, ‘To be the final link in the chain of life,’ Seth said.
Without a moment’s hesitation, the two men snapped their pikes out of the way and to attention.
‘Apologies, Brother Seth; we weren’t expecting such a large party.’
They weren’t expecting a party of scruffy hard-to-kill-looking Northerners is what they were really thinking, but Seth just pushed passed the two men, up the small stone path and up the few small stairs to the landing in front of the door. The large white double doors swung open inwards to reveal a large room with ornate decorations, tables, chairs and tapestries of some family history on the wall. They were greeted by a small flock of bowing servants in black. Seth had some idea of how he had to deal with his few day hiatus, and it started with playing the role of the tired traveller.
‘Have baths drawn for my new servants here and send for some tailors from the city as well. We’re tired from the sea travel and these clothes of mine feel like the only thing holding them together is the salt,’ he said.
The head of the servants was an old man of around sixty years with a pronounced stoop and a very cold expression. ‘Welcome, brother, to this place of learning. We are yours to command.’ With that, he turned and, talking in a hurried hushed voice to the other servants, then left the room, seeking to fulfil his new temporary Master’s wishes.
The General had heard of this place even though he’d never been here. He knew that each one of these servants and guards was bought and owned by a different member of The Guild. They may have had different masters and owners, but someone was still filling their pockets with coins to find out what they could of the other members who travelled and stayed here.
The Dark Guild was only united in its lust for power and desire for more. The members didn’t feel any sense of kinship with one another. Each was in his or her own struggle to be, as he said, ‘the last link in the chain’.
Chapter 17
The warm water of the bath soothed the stiff muscles in Seth’s body, but he knew it must have felt even more like heaven to his new companions. They had been led away by the servants to bathe and be fitted with new clothes and even arms. They were treated like what they were, the armed guards of a highly respected brother of the Guild.
Seth let his mind drift as he laid his wet head against the metal rim of the clawed bathtub. He was imagining the vaults of this place and what would be hidden within. What he was seeking hadn’t been uncovered for untold years, and while he’d been given permission to browse, he knew that once he made an actual attempt at the prize, the servants and guards would soon show their true colours.
Seth stood dripping from the bathtub and then stepped out. Two servants in their plain black robes quickly dried his naked body with brisk and impersonal movements, their faces turned away from him as they did so. The head servant of the stewards ushered two men into the room before him. They were both dressed in garish and rich clothing with fabric wrapped around their heads in some form of covering. Following them were even more slaves, carrying bolts of the same garish fabrics and the various tools and implements of tailoring.
‘Something simple only,’ Seth said, stepping towards them.
One of those who was smiling broadly seemed crestfallen. ‘Simple yet majestic, Master,’ he said, regaining his smile.
Seth allowed himself to smile back. He would be lying if he said he didn’t like being the centre of attention and the one to control and command these people just a little.
The tailors soon sensed his personality and attitude as he picked various dark fabrics: black silk, rich blood reds. The servants set to work, cutting, sewing, piecing. They put together an outfit of fitted dark pants, a tailored black shirt that was wide set across the shoulders and left his arms bare, with the gold crest of the Guild attached on the breast . At his side, he still wore his blades which looked in place with the dark outfit. The whole process took hours but Seth tried to conceal his impatience.
As they put on the finishing touches, Seth was joined in the room by Grimm, Flint, Stone and Goldie . They strolled into the room tall and proud, looking now very much like fighting men and not servants or slaves. They were scrubbed and cleaned, in outfits of dark leather armour and even swords from the armoury. The head servant approached Seth quietly and spoke softly to him. ‘Just a question of your sponsor, brother? Whose ledger will I scribe these costs?’ Seth almost laughed. He need not have worried about saving a few coins at all.
There were only a select few in the Guild, who were allowed here, and he had to pick the name carefully; they hadn’t told Minsetta a name. Seth cast in his mind and reached out for Stephan’s contacts and stories of other members. He knew a name but knew it was just rumour for Stephan. Still, he’d try.
Seth whispered back, ‘Why, it’s Luthor,’ he said.
The servant didn’t understand. ‘Who, sir?’
Seth tried again ‘The Duke of Twin Waters.’
The head servant was truly stunned. He almost stuttered. ‘Yes, Brother, thank you,’ he said. Seth had no idea who this duke was, only that he was some shadowy figure high in the Guild, who Stephan hated and slightly feared.
Seth turned to Goldie and passed a few silvers coin into his rough hand. ‘Take Grimm and get some proper dinner and wine for us all; it will be a late night,’ he said.
The head servant overheard. ‘No need, Brother Seth. Our kitchen can provide all you will need.’
Seth wasn’t planning on trusting any food, wine or even the water in this place. Goldie had already left the room with Grimm in tow. ‘I have a sensitive stomach and prefer to provide my own food,’ he said. ‘Now show me to the library.’
For two days and nights, Seth had been in the main library room of the manor house and had even slept in there with the men in watches of two, keeping someone always on guard. The library rooms were an impressive sight. The entrance formed by double doors as grand as the manor’s main entrance. The room itself had a large ceiling with elaborate embossed patterns decorating the ceiling where a large crystal candelabrum hung. In the middle of the side wall was a large empty fireplace with walls and walls of leather-bound books on either side. One side housed identical volumes of the same size and the other hundreds and hundreds of various volumes collected from the world over in different sizes, shapes and languages. The room also held many tables and desks for study and scribing. Seth could imagine a time hundreds of years ago when this place had been a centre of learning for the growing guild. Now it was deadly quiet with only the sound of the incessant turn of the pages as Seth slowly worked through book after book.
He worked his way through the recollections, mostly, and was surprised not only by how many there were but how many by the same people. One brother must have written a dozen volumes’ worth describing in rich detail his own life and all the lives of those he had come to take. Seth could see that by the very act of describing it in words, his recollection of the events and the power to embody it became complete. By writing what he had absorbed, the brother had been able to take it in fully. No wonder this place was filled with so many books, the brothers wrote them for selfish reasons.
Seth was biding his time, reading the public volumes and letting the house, as he thought of it, grow used to him, his men and his eccentric ways. He was yet to eat a meal in the place and every day he would send the men to wander the house and see if they could locate something of where this secret volume might be.
Seth was sitting in a chair with light from the candelabra shinning down, when Goldie sat next to him and spoke. ‘I know where it is,’ he said.
Seth stopped reading and smiled up at him. ‘I knew one of you would find it. Tell me first how you know, then where.’
‘We’ve not eaten a meal in this place, yet they still cook. The servants cook for themselves, yes, I know, but servants eat in the kitchen or servants’ quarters. Yet a few times a day I see that old one taking plates of food to the s
outh wing. Someone is there guarding something,’ he said.
It made sense to Seth. They wouldn’t leave it unguarded. ‘Let’s get moving now then,’ he said.
Goldie motioned to Grimm with a quick nod of the head, and he slowly roused Flint and Stone from where they slept soundly on the floor, spare clothes tucked under their heads. As soon they were standing around him, Seth pulled his rapier out and they all did the same with their broadswords.
‘Waiting’s over. Most of this house is asleep, but we put the number of guards at six at least that we know of and servants around ten. I think only the guards will fight, but if Goldie is right there may be more at the door. You ready to get bloody?’ he whispered.
Grimm whispered back for all four of them. ‘We’ve just been waiting for you.’
Seth led the way through the manor house, the point of his drawn rapier cutting through the dark and silence of the house. Behind him, his men walked with weapons also drawn, quietly stalking up the darkened corridors. They moved with much stealth for men of their size. He could feel the deadly purpose and cold reserve coming off them all. Seth led them to the wing of the house where the food was being taken every day. Stepping through an archway, they came out into a large receiving room of sorts. At the end of the room was a pair of vast double doors, made of thick oak. Clearly another kind of master bedroom with this as a salon. Seth had been expecting a fight in this very room.
He could see even in the dark that the floorboards were worn in the areas on both sides of the doors. During the daylight hours, surely two guardsmen stood here.
He looked back at the men and shrugged. ‘They might be on the inside with it.’
The doors were large carved oak wooden things, but they were still doors inside of a house, and the lock and handle looked only so strong. They stood before the doors in preparation.
‘Flint, do you think you can go through this?’ Seth whispered.
He saw a flash of teeth in the darkness. ‘Like paper.’
Take the body and give me the rest Page 10