Escana

by J. R. Karlsson

  'If you had seen him just days ago, you'd understand,' he finally answered, shifting uncomfortably. 'He always finds a way. You saw what he did to those guards, that's but a facet of his power. If the Black Quail had a score of men like him Urial would be free.'

  Ella looked at him sceptically. 'His bravado and luck got us out of the warehouse but it'll take more to convince me that he's what you claim.'

  Jimmy crooked a brief but weary smile. 'Is my word not good enough?'

  'I just think all the adrenaline from running around the sewers has gone to your head. He may have got you out of a few tough scrapes but there's a reason that there's only the two of you left.'

  She expected him to deflate somewhat at her words, his face only seemed to harden with resolve.

  'I know what I saw, it doesn't matter if you believe me. We have even more to worry about. Thom is here in Urial and he's looking for us, he probably thinks I killed Solomon now. I wish that was the worst of our worries.'

  Ella's heart unexpectedly jumped at his tone, the brash confidence Jimmy had exuded throughout their journey seemed to have dissolved in front of her eyes. 'We're on the run from both the Justice's guards and the Escana Warden while Jakob lies critically ill, what could be worse?'

  Jimmy shook his head. 'Gadtor mentioned something about a phantom creature slicing up all his men. Entire squads were lost and all to this one thing, it took them apart methodically, bled our numbers dry for sport. It's the bandit that we met on the road in pursuit of you.'

  The chest nearby was slammed shut violently, making them jump. The Hermit gazed at them with a grim expression and put a finger to his lips. He didn't want Jimmy talking about this mysterious ghoul.

  They had landed themselves in an enormous amount of trouble and she sensed the depths of the danger could escalate if they kept blundering about. She would have attributed Jimmy's talk to his over-active imagination but this was no ghost story he was revelling in. If anything it sounded tangible and dangerous, something they needed to avoid given Jakob's condition.

  The heightened tension of the conflict and the ensuing flight seemed to have sapped her of all the rest she had in the warehouse, leaving her immensely weary. She sunk down the wall to sit beside Jimmy, taking little comfort in his presence.

  Looking through the crack under the door, she saw that the night cloaked everything, making the ominous silence that bit more unbearable.

  She stared at The Hermit's back for a long time, futilely pondering what kind of life the man had led up until now. If he had always been this way, what he spent his days doing and how he had involved himself in this Black Quail group. She rose up from the floor and walked over to him, curiosity finally getting the better of her.

  He was still bent over the bedside, either in great concentration or slumber, surrounded by various ingredients Ella couldn't begin to describe. Whatever frantic work he had been undertaking on Jakob appeared to have ended. Whether that was a good thing or not she couldn't say.

  His figure had remained cloaked to ward off the chill of the room, that managed to hide anything else Ella could have used to pinpoint what sort of person this man was.

  'You can hear others but you cannot respond?'

  There was no response for a period of time, just as Ella thought he was ignoring her or deaf as well as dumb, he inclined his head slightly in a nod.

  Her inquisitiveness renewed, she pushed her luck somewhat. 'Does anyone in Urial know who you are?'

  He seemed to think about this for a moment, possibly deciding whether to dignify her with a response, then nodded again.

  'If I were to obtain parchment and ink, would you tell me a little about who you are?'

  The faintest of smiles touched his face as he shook his head.

  'Why won't you tell me who you are?'

  The smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared, a stupid question to ask one who cannot talk.

  'I'm sorry.' Ella replied, feeling idiotic and insensitive. 'Have you always been this way?'

  An almost imperceptible shake of the head, a very sensitive subject.

  'Do you mind me asking all these questions? We've been thrown in the deep end here, with little hope of salvation until you seemed to appear from nowhere. Can you understand why we'd want to know who you are?'

  He shook his head and then nodded at that, she was getting somewhere.

  She felt Jimmy's gaze on her and spotted his approving nod from the corner of her eye, she wasn't the only one who wanted answers.

  'Will Falarus and Gadtor survive where they are being taken by the guards?'

  He shook his head quite emphatically.

  'Will the guards lock them away?'

  Another more surprising shake of the head.

  Jimmy answered for him this time. 'They're going to put them to death and The Hermit wants us to help him do something about.'

  The Hermit pointed at Jimmy and nodded.

  'What can we do against a whole city? There's only three of us left and they butchered all the rest and....' She stopped in shock. The Hermit's hand had crept up and a single finger had been placed on her lips. She fought down the urge to slap the hand away and tried to focus on how gentle and cautious his touch had been, something she knew existed but had never experienced. It was an odd feeling and an altogether unexpected one.

  'I think he wants us both to sleep,' Jimmy remarked, an amused smile once more playing across his tired face.

  She felt her own tiredness creep back into her head, whatever fire that sustained her had been snuffed out. She vaguely noted The Hermit leaving and returning shortly after with arms full of straw, her last sight was his back as he settled down into the chair for the night.

  41

  Thom

  The frightened looking man rapped on the door cautiously, sweat soaking his shaking fists. 'Lord Kelgrimm, my lord, there is a situation that requires your immediate attention, if you can my lord.'

  Thom eased Skullcleaver from the man's back. Gaining entrance to the Justice's manor had been a largely perfunctory exercise in power, being a local Warden meant that he could not be denied at any hour. This piss-pants bureaucrat had been most irritating to deal with and had wasted far too much of his time. The direct route was surprisingly enjoyable as a result.

  The large door swung open, admitting him into a small antechamber, yet another delay.

  He pushed the man up against one of the walls and set the steel to his throat. 'Now listen carefully you son of a bitch, you will tell Lord Kelgrimm that if he doesn't see me immediately I will break his Judiciary door down and give him a nice shave with Skullcleaver. Understand?'

  A small puddle was forming at the man's feet. Thom didn't need to see his frantic nod to know he understood, piss-pants was living up to his name.

  As soon as he lowered his blade the man sank down the wall in relief, then as if remembering himself scuttled off toward the far door where Kelgrimm was undoubtedly in conference with some lesser nobles.

  It didn't take long for the large doors to swing open in admittance, clearly his message had been delivered verbatim by the quivering fool.

  A number of displeased looking diplomats strutted into the antechamber in all their flowery pomp. Thom had seen such posturing far too many times, they reminded him of birds deep in plumage that were yet to realise that life could pluck them at any given moment. Sadly he wasn't going to be the one to enjoy such an event this day, he had business to attend to.

  'Warden Thomas of Escana province, you may enter,' said the same voice that was terrified by his activities mere moments ago. Here was a man surrounded by friends and in his element, such false confidence didn't become him. In spite of how irritating the man had been, Thom felt the Justice would frown upon murder in his Judiciary room.

  Thom knew that the Urian council was a series a noblemen and elected officials that gathered in this chamber to deliberate on any number of matters. What he was almost exclusively privy to was that Kelgrimm had mani
pulated his way into nothing short of total dominance in the past twenty years, if action was required, he was the man to go to. In more modern times the chamber had seen less and less of the minor nobles and even the councilmen found ways to excuse themselves. Kelgrimm had a stranglehold on who was elected and precisely how much power they knew they possessed, any opposition soon found themselves out of office by whatever means necessary. The old man was powerful in many ways, Thom had heard that not all of them were political.

  As he strode in he noticed that there were no other councillors present, it seemed that he had done away with the pretence of power-sharing altogether. Thom nodded in approval, he wasn't in the mood for deceptions and the honesty in layout was refreshing at least. Direct speech, no middle man.

  He sat at the head of the council table on the far side of the room, his white beard and black eyebrows visible even from here. He was garbed in the usual golden splendour of office, Thom always found the meticulous presentation of the man repulsive.

  As he drew closer he noticed a second figure in the room, the wary announcer of his title had since been dismissed by Kelgrimm and had been more than happy to leave. This one was swathed in a hooded robe as if he were a leper hiding his wounds from sight. Not a member of the council, that's for sure. His wariness at the presence of this unexpected person grew with each step.

  'Greetings again, Warden of Escana,' Kelgrimm said simply, his basso voice carrying all the expected gravitas. 'How may I be of service to you?'

  He wasn't fooled by the succinct words at all, There was depth immeasurable behind each of them, Kelgrimm being an unrivalled master of tongues. Thom was no fool, he knew that the man didn't appreciate the intrusion or the candour of his entrance.

  'I have come in search of some runaway criminals who have entered this land and I require your assistance in apprehending them.'

  He seemed to muse on this for a moment, then nodded. 'Yes, we are aware of your missing persons, there are three of them and they will soon be accounted for.'

  So he had been right then, they were either holding Ella captive or in league with her in an effort to get rid of Solomon.

  'I would like to arrest them personally, if you can spare the men.'

  Kelgrimm shook his head. 'I said they would soon be accounted for, not that they had been found. Your usual eagerness to apprehend has you leaping to conclusions once more. I am fully confident that we will bring the perpetrators to justice, my best weapon is on the case.'

  Thom bristled at that somewhat, he was used to getting what he wanted, but this was Kelgrimm's turf and he had to be patient. Perhaps now was the time to inform him of his discovery.

  'One of The Six is present in Urial. He prevented my apprehension, I would not have bothered you otherwise.'

  Any hope of shocking Kelgrimm left Thom when he saw that the man smiled at even that piece of bad news, was there nothing he hadn't already foreseen?

  'I appreciate your warning, but I have already appropriated this character and they are in use in my search.' He looked up at the hooded figure. 'Why did you prevent the good Warden from ensnaring the suspects?'

  Thom's heart stopped, he should have known who this was the moment he entered the door.

  'Well, this is an unexpected development,' El-Vador said, removing the hood with sanguine grace. 'I had informed our dearest Thom that he would perish if he passed the bridge, and here he comes stomping into your mansion without even considering the consequences.'

  Thom knew he should have double-checked the safe house, his leg had wearied him so greatly that his mind had dwindled into a muggy haze, focusing on this one task alone. That it was to the expense of El-Vador only confirmed how weakened he had been from their encounter in both body and spirit. Even now he struggled to follow the beast's complicated gestures and mocking tone.

  'My dear Thom,' El-Vador continued, walking toward him with a sword that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. 'You are a stubborn fool, even you know that one who is aware of The Six and speaks of their whereabouts, even in this place, cannot be left alive.'

  In spite of everything, Thom smiled. 'I never thought to witness you like this, a vengeful cur snarling by a master's lap, fear creeping into the eyes that seek to exorcise it with violence.'

  He knew they were cheap words before a painful death, but he couldn't help but show his glee that after all the taunts, it was his words that caused the slightest pause in the creature's gait. He had scored a hard-earned point. Now for his final play.

  'That's right my Lord Kelgrimm, your best weapon is also your most devious one. It knows what's out there, but it's also bound by oath not to speak of who it is. There is no doubt in my mind that while it may not be able to give you the information, if you call your dog off I will.'

  Kelgrimm nodded at this. 'I am aware of The Six, even if I am not privy to their identity.' He rose from his seat, crossing toward a rack mounted by the wall. 'El-Vador, desist your posturing, we have business with the Warden.'

  There was a long silence, this was a heavy power play, now he'd find out if it was his last.

  The room seemed to contract, as if his focus had sharpened on the two of them, waiting for a response.

  He didn't know how long they stood there, staring at each other, neither of them blinking. He found Skullcleaver nestled in his palm, ready to strike.

  It was Kelgrimm that broke the gaze, carrying three goblets of fine wine in a carefree fashion and gently pressing one into El-Vador's hand. This simple gesture stopped Thom fearing for his life, Kelgrimm seemed entirely in control here.

  Handing the second goblet to him, the Justice prompted Thom with a nod of his head and raised his own. 'To the spirit of mutual cooperation.'

  Thom walked forward and hoisted his own glass, lowering his sword so the blade almost touched the ground. 'To mutual cooperation.'

  They both turned to look at El-Vador, who seemed to have recovered the saunter previously exhibited. Even when touching both goblets with a crooked smile, the murderous eyes never dimmed.

  42

  Ella

  The purse weighed heavily in her hands. It had been an almost casual gesture from The Hermit, to offer her coin for the market. The cheerful thanks in response died shortly after they had shut the door. Little did either of them realise that by leaving her with the responsibility of caring for Jakob and insisting that she go to market they had torn her.

  She knew that they would need food and fresh water but even out of necessity she couldn't bring herself to leave the room.

  She had thought at first that the strange sense of haven was relief at having escaped the House of Falarus alive. Yet that couldn't dampen the feeling of security brought about by this small room. She realised after a time that it was an aspect of following this mysterious and protective man. There was an unnatural reassurance that she could sense was working in both her and Jimmy, yet she found her heart didn't warn her against it.

  The pangs of hunger intruded into her thoughts, she had eaten sparingly since her arrival in the House of Falarus, it seemed to signal a turning point in her own confidence.

  However well she mulled it over, the sense of safety kept impressing itself upon her and washing away her concerns as irrational and fear-driven. She knew they had a real basis, but for some reason it was a moot point and her reasons weren't enough to keep her here. The practical rumblings of her stomach indicated that now was a time for action.

  She took one last look at the room before slipping out the door, as if in counterpoint to her decisiveness, Jakob's fever appeared to grow worse by the moment. His occasional thrashings had grown weaker as if they had sapped the spirit from him and the beading sweat on his brow ran in hopeless rivets across his burning face. Whatever illness had gripped him seemed to be winning the fight against the stubborn efforts of his body to recover from the wound.

  A sudden sense of urgency drove her to leave the house, she locked the door with shaking hands and fled at great pace. />
  The marketplace she eventually stumbled into was a welcome relief from the confines of the hideout, the commerce she witnessed put a face to the various stories she had been told at the inn. Had circumstances been different she may even have taken in the unfamiliar surroundings with interest but the pressing need and the nightmare she seemed caught up in killed any potential curiosity.

  She spared little time looking at the many racks and containers of marine life both living and dead, settling for a large ceramic pitcher, a meagre loaf of bread and strips of smoked fish without any haggling.

  She felt dangerously exposed as she queued for the well in the middle of the market, constantly surveying the many bodies milling about the cobbled square, the queue seemed to grow with her fears.

  A hand tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to drop the bread in panic. She spun round and was face to face with an old withered crone.

  'You don't belong here,' the crone spoke in a cracked voice that hissed and rasped over the words.

  Ella floundered for words, still not over the initial shock. 'I don't?'

  The crone nodded with the hint of a smirk passing over her face. 'I can tell ye see, when someone doesn't belong. You don't want to be seen and right now you're screaming it out loud to any that listen.'

  She stooped with a groan and handed Ella the bread. 'You're so preoccupied by your own fears and doubts that you're letting anyone pass you by without the slightest bit of protest.' She pointed at the growing queue of women that shuffled forward. 'Your plight has already been taken advantage of.' Then she waved a stick-like arm across the market. 'And the local guards are on alert and appear to have noticed your presence.'

  Ella tensed up at the sight of the approaching men, preparing to sprint away to the hideout.

  The old woman gripped her arm painfully, wrenching her down to her level. 'No you silly mare. You won't get any further away from them like that, follow me.'

  She pushed her way through the queue with surprising force, though Ella soon realised that the women were intentionally yielding their place to the stranger, letting them converge upon the well.