Chaosmage (Age of Darkness)

by Stephen Aryan

  “I know them,” said Tammy. “His name is Kovac. He helped me at Fenne’s camp.”

  “They look like mercenaries,” said Alyssa. Zannah was inclined to agree.

  “They are,” said Tammy.

  The one she had called Kovac wore grey furs and chainmail armour, but she noticed it was well cared for. Behind him came two women, who looked like sisters, with black hair that stood up like the spines of a hedgehog. Their leather armour fitted perfectly and their weapons were without elaborate decoration. Zannah also noticed that neither of them had any scars on their face, which told her they knew their business. The last stood a little behind them, a tall white-skinned Yerskani. He didn’t have the same swagger as the others and looked very out of place. They were trying to pretend they weren’t scared of being trapped outside as night approached, but Zannah could see it. She could almost smell the fear coming off them in waves.

  “Fenne exiled us,” said Kovac. “He waited until it was near dark before forcing us out.”

  “Why?” asked Alyssa.

  “For helping me,” said Tammy before the mercenary had a chance to speak.

  “That, and a few other things,” admitted Kovac, nervously scanning the street.

  “Can they be trusted?” said Alyssa, addressing the question to Tammy.

  “I think so.”

  “Throw down the rope.” Alyssa’s tone of voice brooked no argument and no one muttered under their breath. As the fourth mercenary made it to the top of the rope Zannah noted that it had begun snowing. A light shower of flakes was drifting down, briefly clinging to everything before they melted.

  “Tammy, you’re in charge of them and the other mercenaries in our camp,” said Alyssa, not waiting for the big Seve to respond before she faced the four armed mercenaries. Alyssa carried no weapon but she faced them down with only her will and her words. Most surprising was that they suddenly seemed uncomfortable with her staring at them, as if she had power over them.

  “Everyone here plays a role and so will you. We have dozens of people who can fight, so we don’t really need you, but I won’t turn anyone away.” That sounded like the old Alyssa and yet the four mercenaries continued to squirm under her gaze. “As long as you fight you’re welcome to stay. If you steal or hurt anyone here, I will have someone rip out your lungs. Any questions?”

  The mercenaries shook their heads and their relief was palpable when Alyssa went back inside.

  A minute later Monella appeared, to fulfil her new role and find the mercenaries somewhere to live. Although they went with the old woman Zannah could see they were still startled by their abrupt welcome. Perhaps they had expected something less organised, with someone more pliable in charge. Zannah knew they would not be the last people to be surprised by Alyssa today.

  When it was fully dark they lit the torches above the gate and Zannah prepared herself for a long and uncomfortable night. The light snow continued to fall, soaking into her clothes, trickling down the back of her neck. The hazy sky obscured much of the city and everything else was wet and grey. It was difficult to see very far and they all squinted through the shower as the torches continually fizzed.

  “This might help,” said Balfruss, touching his hand against the top of the wall. Light blossomed between his fingers and a pale blue orb the size of a small melon appeared, glowing steadily like a lantern. Leaving the orb where it was he moved down the wall a short distance and deposited another magic lantern. The defenders stared with some concern at the magical lights but once it was done they could see most of the street, even with the snow shower. More people came up to the wall carrying weapons, but Zannah made sure they kept their bows unstrung until the last second.

  Movement caught everyone’s attention and Zannah watched as a familiar bedraggled shape shuffled into view. Roake looked much worse than when she’d last seen him a few days ago. His pale skin was so washed out it was almost translucent and his clothing was more ragged than before. The snow made it stick to his skin, outlining every bony joint of his body. Hollowed-out cheeks and black-rimmed eyes made him resemble a corpse more than ever. Perhaps whatever cruel trick had kept him alive was starting to wear off. It looked as if he was very close to a final and painful death.

  “Come down, Zannah!” he shouted. Even his voice was weak compared to what it used to be.

  “Maybe we should put him out of his misery,” said Zannah. “Could you burn him to ash?” she asked the Sorcerer. She doubted Roake would be able to come back from that.

  “Yes, if that’s what you want.”

  “If he used to be one of the Forsaken, maybe we can use him,” said Tammy. “He might be able to lead us to the others.”

  “I doubt that,” said Zannah. “He runs away whenever they’re in sight. He’s afraid of them.”

  “Even so, there might be a connection,” said Balfruss. “If we capture him I might be able to use him to find the others.”

  “Maybe we should try something less direct,” suggested Tammy. “It didn’t go well the last time we captured one of the Forsaken.”

  Zannah hadn’t spoken to them yet about what had happened, but judging by their reaction something had gone very wrong.

  “I’ll be back,” shouted Roake, hurrying off into the dark.

  A few minutes later Zannah saw a crowd begin to build up at the far end of the street. A quick headcount told her it was a force unlike any they’d seen before. While the locals gawped and began to tremble she grabbed the nearest person on the wall and shoved him towards the stairs.

  “Tell Alyssa we need everyone who can fight.”

  The Sorcerer was squinting at the crowd of Forsaken. “Perhaps I should use magic to get rid of them all.”

  “Can you do that?” asked Zannah, glancing at the snow-filled sky.

  “I could, but it would need to be something fairly significant to destroy so many at once.”

  “I thought you said that would draw attention,” said Tammy. “Won’t the Master and all of his pupils know where you are?”

  “I don’t think it matters any more. They know I’m in the city.”

  “You can protect yourself, but what about everyone else?” asked Tammy, gesturing at the other defenders. “What if they come here when you’re elsewhere? You’d be putting their lives at risk.”

  Balfruss considered it for a long while before finally drawing the axe from his belt. “Then we do it the hard way,” he said, hefting the weapon.

  Alyssa came marching up the stairs followed closely by at least two dozen people until the wall was packed. Among them were Kovac and his three friends, plus mercenaries from the other camp. More people were waiting on the stairs and in the courtyard as well.

  “It’s too crowded up here,” said Zannah in a quiet voice to Alyssa, knowing that people wouldn’t listen to her. “Send at least a dozen to wait in the courtyard. We need room to fight and we’ll need reserves. And clear the stairs too.”

  Alyssa listened to her advice and then ordered people off the wall. It seemed as if the time when she made suggestions was over. Those remaining on the wall spread out a little and Zannah found herself with Balfruss on one side and Tammy on the other. The big warrior ordered the mercenaries to spread themselves along the wall in pairs, creating pockets of people with skill to shore up the locals.

  Staring at the approaching horde Zannah cocked her head to one side, trying to listen for sounds of fighting elsewhere in the city. Despite the constant shuffling of people on the wall beside her, she couldn’t hear any distant screams. It seemed as if tonight the other camps would be harassed by just a few Forsaken and theirs was the one destined to be destroyed.

  The thump of many approaching feet brought her back to the immediate problem. The Forsaken were a mix of people, locals and a few mercenaries, and for once there were no familiar faces. Unfortunately she heard cries of alarm from others further down the wall as people recognised former friends or relatives. That familiarity might be what killed them. It woul
d make them hesitate and in that moment the Forsaken would strike.

  Most of the Forsaken carried makeshift clubs fashioned from lumps of wood and bars of metal, but several carried swords and axes. Zannah knew they would do their best to incapacitate the defenders without killing them. Usually that meant clubbing them about the head until they were unconscious, but sometimes that wasn’t possible. If it meant they had to cut off an arm or a hand they would do it. Their power to heal meant that even severe wounds could be regenerated over time.

  The Forsaken horde picked up their pace, moving to a sprint as they rushed the walls with their homemade ladders.

  “Fire!” shouted Alyssa. All along the wall a chorus of bowstrings hummed in response. A dozen Forsaken stumbled and went down, only to be trampled by those behind. The rest of the Forsaken raced on and people began firing at will, picking individual targets. Several metal ladders rose up into the air before coming down with a heavy impact against the wall. A few defenders tried to shove one of the ladders backwards but their combined efforts barely moved it. Kovac stepped in with the two feral women and they slid it to one side instead, where it collided with another ladder, sending them both tumbling. That trick only worked once though. As soon as the Forsaken started to climb a ladder the weight became too great to move.

  The locals screamed at the Forsaken, cursing them and doing anything to fire up their blood, creating an illusion of courage where none existed. The mercenaries remained silent, conserving their energy for the fight. Beside Zannah, Tammy and the Sorcerer wore grim expressions and both just watched and waited.

  A ragged face appeared above the top of the wall to Zannah’s left and she immediately attacked. Her sword split the man’s skull in two down to the bridge of his nose, pulping his brain in the process. The Forsaken tumbled away, but was swiftly replaced by two more, and then the time for thinking was over.

  Grunting and sweating Zannah moved from one strike to another, rarely having to worry about parrying, since those she faced had little skill. The Forsaken, though, had the advantage of numbers, and almost immediately it began to tell. Bodies forced themselves onto the wall and several defenders fell, collapsing to the ground in stunned and silent heaps. Some fell into the courtyard below where they were quickly pulled out of the way by those waiting in reserve.

  To her left Balfruss hacked away, severing arms and splitting skulls with ruthless efficiency. On her right Tammy fought more stiffly than usual but her ability was nonetheless greater than her opponents. Blood sprayed across over the stones as her peculiar sword cut through the Forsaken with ease. When one woman tried to swing her club at the big warrior Tammy took off the woman’s hand with a flick of her sword and then split her in two with the follow-up. The two halves of the Forsaken slid off the wall and her organs rained down on those below.

  The snow had built up a little underfoot, creating slush that was quickly churned from grey into pink. It made finding footing a little difficult but if someone slipped they were quickly pulled upright by the defender beside them.

  Six Forsaken burst onto the wall to her far right and in a rush they overpowered the defenders. But rather than continue to fight the Forsaken threw themselves forward into the courtyard. Those waiting in reserve did what was instinctive. They attempted to catch the falling bodies, noticing at the last second they were not friends. Several defenders were knocked down and more were stunned before they started to recover and fight back. The Forsaken ran for the main stairs and five made it to the main entrance. The sixth was cut down in the courtyard.

  “I saw it,” said Tammy, moving to the stairs. “I’ll go after them.”

  The big warrior raced after the Forsaken and a second later Kovac followed.

  The breach on the wall was closed and several reserves came up the stairs at Zannah’s frantic gesturing. But the Forsaken were not done yet and still more of them were scrambling up the ladders. Looking along the wall she couldn’t tell how the fight would end. The locals were barely holding on. Their brief spurt of courage had abandoned them and their anger had worn thin in the face of such an unrelenting enemy. All it would take was one person to run and the rest would follow.

  It was time to change the odds.

  Zannah reached into the energy reserve within and forced herself to move faster. She whirled from one Forsaken to the next, slicing off pieces until they fell away. Their screams started to fill her ears until it became the only sound in the world.

  Space opened up around her on all sides as no Forsaken seemed willing to get too close. Moving one step at a time she began to work her way down the wall, killing Forsaken as she went.

  As she’d hoped, the defenders saw the Forsaken fall back from her assault and it gave them a boost. The mercenaries were smart enough to follow her lead, a few laughing at the Forsaken while others mocked and jeered. The defenders rallied and started to force the Forsaken back, screaming their own insults. The tide of the battle began to turn.

  CHAPTER 29

  Tammy followed the screams and the trail of felled bodies lying in the corridor. All of the people she passed in the first hallway were either huddled in corners or unconscious on the floor. Several doors were closed and she could hear frantic breathing coming from the other side. Only a few had seen the Forsaken coming and none had been fast enough to protect themselves.

  At the end of the corridor Tammy found a man bleeding from his scalp with a second wound in his leg. A dagger lay on the ground not far away but he was more concerned with trying to stem the bleeding. It didn’t look too deep but even so she paused to help him.

  “Keep pressure on it,” she told him, folding both of his hands on top of the wound and pushing down hard. The man groaned in pain and blanched, but he gritted his teeth and nodded with determination.

  Tammy heard footsteps coming up behind and a few seconds later Kovac came into view. A woman screamed below them, long and shrill. They took the stairs two at a time and on the next level found more of the same. The Forsaken had left a trail of unconscious and bleeding bodies in their wake. A scuffle in the doorway of one room and more shouting led them on.

  One of the Forsaken, a woman with red hair, was trying to drag another woman away by the hand. Two local people had taken hold of her other arm and a tug of war was taking place.

  “Come with me,” said the Forsaken. “It’s so much better now.”

  Tammy didn’t hesitate. She brought her sword down on the Forsaken’s arm, just above the elbow. Maligne seemed to glow slightly in the gloomy corridor as it severed the arm. The Forsaken screamed but before she could raise the axe in her other hand, Kovac stabbed the woman in the chest, pinning her to the wall. They left the body where it fell and ran on, following the sounds of raised voices.

  On the next level down four women were fighting off a Forsaken with pans and broom handles. Tammy stepped up behind the man and stabbed him through the back. She held him upright for a second then yanked her sword free.

  A short distance ahead a burly man stepped into view. He carried a short sword in either hand and Tammy saw a look pass between him and Kovac.

  “Friend of yours?”

  Kovac shook his head. “No, but we’ve run into each other a few times. I didn’t realise he’d been taken.”

  “All these years, Kovac,” said the mercenary as they walked towards him. “We’ve been chasing stories, hoping to find something life-changing. And it was here all along.”

  “Do they ever shut up?” said Kovac.

  “Listen to me. It’s worth more gold than any job you’ve ever had.” The mercenary was almost pleading. “Just let me explain.”

  Tammy’s instincts told her something wasn’t right and quickly realised what he was doing. “He doesn’t want to convert us. He’s just trying to delay us.”

  Realising that his ruse had been uncovered the mercenary grinned and raised his weapons. With Kovac on her right Tammy stayed to the left side of the corridor. Just as she was about to reach the merc
enary someone burst out of an open doorway.

  She turned and managed to get her sword up just in time to block a cut towards her head. The two swords sheared together and a shower of sparks rained down. A leather-clad mercenary came at her again with a broadsword, driving Tammy back. She could hear Kovac fighting the other mercenary but couldn’t risk looking away from her opponent. The Forsaken was skilled, and her face was tight with concentration. In the narrow corridor their struggle became more of a brawl than a sword fight. With little space to move they resorted to jabbing, trying to kick, punch, or smash each other against the walls.

  The woman’s fetid breath made Tammy’s eyes water so she quickly pushed her away and followed up with a kick at her opponent’s leg. She caught a knee and the mercenary stumbled back, bounced off the wall and came back with an underhand cut. Tammy’s momentum was already carrying her forward and with no time to reverse she threw herself to one side. Despite her efforts the tip of the Forsaken’s blade scored a line up one thigh, making her hiss in pain. Tammy lashed out with an elbow, snapping the woman’s head to one side.

  The Forsaken cracked the pommel of her sword into Tammy’s side, catching her bruised ribs, and she fell back wheezing as fingers of pain jabbed into her side. Using a double-handed grip she blocked a slash then leaned into it, forcing the Forsaken back with her weight and strength. They collided with a wall but not enough to stun her opponent, so Tammy smashed her forehead into the woman’s face. It bought her a couple of seconds, which she used to step back and swing at the Forsaken’s stomach. The mercenary saw it coming but was too slow to block it in time.

  Tammy’s sword entered the woman’s body just under the ribcage and emerged out the back, severing her spine. With her last breath before she toppled over, the Forsaken tried to curse Tammy. Her lips formed the words but she had no air in her lungs to say anything out loud.

  “A little help,” said Kovac. A second later he was thrown past her and skidded down the corridor on his back. He scrambled to his feet but the mercenary hadn’t followed to finish him off. This was still part of a delaying tactic but she couldn’t work out what it was for. Five Forsaken could not take over the whole base by themselves, let alone one, so what would a few minutes buy the remaining Forsaken?