“He has a point,” I said to the others, and they gave me strange looks. “We haven’t looted the Ogre corpses.”
Zac barked a laugh. “Well, we better be quick about it.”
I ran over to the Ogre I’d skewered with the rapier. When I didn’t find any gear, my heart sunk. What was the point of clearing this particular Grendel level if the enemies didn’t offer any Arcane Dust material?
Neville knelt beside the Ogre and removed a knife from his belt pouch. He used the blade to carve off the giant’s left ear.
“What are you doing?” I asked. “We gotta move.”
“You don’t know anything about high-level Grendels, do you?” he asked.
I shook my head. “What am I missing here?”
“They don’t normally have weapons. These Ogres are somewhere between mid-level and high-level, which is why two of them were armed. The tree-trunk looks like it’s not enhanced with Arcane Dust at all, but I’m thinking the flails were. They’re lost in the thicket now, and I don’t imagine we have the time to retrieve them.”
I was noticing Neville’s penchant for lecturing, and he still hadn’t told me what I’d wanted to know. “What about the ear?”
“Oh,” he said as if he now remembered what his point had been. “It can be distilled for Alpha Dust. The process only takes five minutes if you can find a decent enchantry.”
“Only the ears?”
“The whole corpse,” he answered.
I gazed at the dead Ogres with new eyes. I couldn’t possibly carry the entire creature back through a portal. Even if I did, my chances of surviving outside an airlock wouldn’t be any greater with Alpha Dust. Still, if Polgar did somehow stop Captain Cross from punishing me for multiple insubordinations, then I could sell it for loads of KPs.
“Mind if I take the other ear?” I asked Neville.
“Go for it.”
I took the utility knife from my pouch and removed the Ogre’s right ear. We did the same to the second head, Neville taking one ear and me the other while Nathan, Richard, and Zac butchered parts of the second giant’s corpse. By the time we’d finished, our gauntlets were completely covered in the Grendel blood.
I paused to look at the mutilated corpses and wondered how much they would be worth. Probably enough to upgrade the Stalwart. The knights hadn’t been concerned to extract portions of these Ogres, so I figured whatever they were seeking at the portal zone was worth far more.
“Let’s go to the portal,” I said as I wiped my blood-soaked hands on my surcoat.
Ronan lifted his chin in disgust as we passed him. “The knights are already displeased with you squires. I would not presume upon their mercy another time.”
Nathan was hobbling, and he paused before we entered the thicket. “I’m going to wait here with the mage. He’s not the best company, but I’m too likely to slow you down.”
“I’ll wait here with my brother,” Richard said.
“We’ll be back as soon as we see what the knights are getting from the portal,” I said.
Zac, Neville, and I sprinted through the thicket, crossed the stream, and arrived at the portal. We had somehow got here before the knights, and I guessed they had been slowed down because of Flanagan’s injured leg. It didn’t explain why we hadn’t run into them while we were in the thicket, but there were probably more than half a dozen ways to get from the hill to the portal zone.
Alongside the artilleryman and the nobleman squire, I approached the miniature portal. It was still too bright to look at directly, and I narrowed my eyes in an attempt to fend off the intensity of the portal’s light.
I heard laughter and figured the knights were close by. I increased the strength of the UV filter on my visor and inched toward the portal, but I still had to squint because of the brightness. I got within a meter of the shimmering light before a searing pain flared in my head. The light seemed not only to blind me, but a white noise blocked out all other sounds.
I felt like I was standing in a soundless, white room. Except there was something else inside besides me and the rift. Even with my eyes closed, I could see the faintest outline of an object in front of the portal.
I leaned forward on one foot and reached for the rectangular box. I thought about what Polgar intended to do to my mom as my hands closed around the object, and I pulled it away from the portal as I turned from the searing light.
The burning afterimage remained, and so did the dull noise. I couldn’t see what I was holding, but it was metal, weighed about thirty kilos, and I could feel etchings on its surface.
I was thrown off my feet with a hard shove, and the metal chest clattered to the ground. Strong hands grabbed my shoulders and lifted me from the ground.
“You are a fucking troublemaker, Squire,” Olav said, his voice dull as my sense of hearing slowly returned. His arms squeezed, and the pressure from his enhanced armor almost crushed me like an aluminum can. I could barely see his eyes beneath his visor, but what little I could catch suggested the knight was prepared to kill me.
“Let him go, Olav,” Moses’ voice demanded, and the afterimage started to fade so I could see him lay a hand on the berserker’s shoulder.
I watched Moses’ fingers tighten, and the berserker tossed me aside. I fell on my hands, and Neville helped me up.
I looked to where the blinding portal had been, but it was gone. In its place was a golden chest, and I guessed it was the metal box I’d been holding when Olav had shoved me.
Leith was kneeling in front of the chest while Moses, Olav, and Flanagan looked on in awe behind him. The slayer inserted a medallion into an inlet and the lid popped open. Then he dipped his hands into the box and removed two boots. Elaborate engravings rippled over the burnished gold, and I recognized their make from the gloves Casey had been repairing in the Stalwart’s enchantry.
Everyone was silent as Leith handed Olav the magical boots. The berserker seemed uncharacteristically reverent as he took the items and fastened them to his magnetons. The golden boots shone like tiny stars against Olav’s blood and green ichor covered power armor.
I needed to take a snapshot of the boots, but they were all standing around me right now, so I’d have to wait until a better opportunity presented itself.
Until then, I had questions.
“Those look like the gloves in the armory,” I said, breaking the awed silence as everyone stared at the boots. “Who do they belong to? Why are you clearing portals for them?” It probably wasn’t a good idea to anger the knights further, but I’d gone through a lot today, and I wanted answers.
“It’s the captain’s place to tell you,” Leith said, “so you better make your story good or he’ll throw you out of the airlock.”
Olav snarled at me. “So, what’s your story, Squires?”
I gave the berserker a blank look, unable to conjure a reasonable explanation. If I could delay until we got back to the starship, I’d have sufficient time to come up with something for Captain Cross.
“How about you start with why you jumped from the Stalwart early,” Flanagan suggested as he nursed his injured leg. “Then you can move onto why you were involved with the Aquitanians. And why the Rutheni decided to massacre all the nobles we were giving aid to.”
“What I really want to know,” Leith begun, “is why you followed us here on a stolen skiff, and then why you decided to loot this Seraphic portal?”
“We weren’t involved with the Rutheni,” Neville said. “They came to the palace of their own accord.”
“And the rest?” Moses asked, and he turned to me this time. I could see the shield knight who’d befriended me didn’t trust me one bit.
I sighed and slumped my shoulders. “I don’t have an explanation.”
“You’ll return to the Stalwart and give your reasoning to the captain,” Moses said.
“Best you think up a good story before you get there, or you’re all getting thrown out of the airlock!” Olav screamed with glee.
“You can’t do that!” Neville yelled at the knight. “We’re squires in the RTF! I’m a . . . I’m a Core World noble!”
“We haven’t had many casualties on this mission. With all the drama we’ve got ourselves involved in, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for a few squires to get themselves killed.” Lieth snickered, and I couldn’t tell whether he was serious.
From the way Moses hadn’t moved at all while other knight issued the veiled threat, it didn’t seem like a joke.
“Follow us back to the jump mage,” Moses commanded.
Zac hadn’t spoken while the knights accused us, and I couldn’t blame him. What defense could he give?
While the knights marched ahead, I trailed behind Olav. Once I was close enough to the boots, I captured them with my prot-belt. The berserker turned his head and snarled at me, and I offered him a smile. When he’d faced forward again, I slipped my hand into my belt pouch and flicked the switch on the comms device’s short-range broadcast. I then connected my prot-belt to the comms device and transferred the snapshot to it. I didn’t have the time to read the statistics, and I didn’t want them showing on my visor, either. Olav snapped his head toward me again, and I tried to remain calm until he looked away.
We continued through the thicket while I attached the snapshot in a message to Polgar. Once the attachment delivered, I breathed a sigh and prayed the sorcerer would somehow get me out of this bind.
If that didn’t happen, I’d have to take all the blame. After all, the squires and Zac were involved, too, and I couldn’t let my friends suffer for my mission.
Chapter 24
The knights didn’t speak to us on the journey from the portal zone, and I couldn’t help but stare at the boots fastened to the magnetons on the back of Olav’s chest armor. It was hard to accept they’d once belonged to King Justinian, and even harder to believe they had come from a Grendel portal. I’d been party to and witnessed firsthand the latter, and their exquisite craftsmanship made the former less of a stretch.
When we arrived beneath the hill where we’d fought the Ogres, Moses marched to the jump mage waiting beside Richard and Nathan.
“Is the portal ready, Ronan?” the shield knight asked.
“Aye, just a few more minutes. I’ve contacted the bridge, and they’re preparing a decontamination cycle.”
“Good,” Moses said before addressing the other knights. “You lot ready to travel? I’ll have a word with Zac and the squires before they get aboard.”
The magical energy flowing from Ronan’s hands suddenly stopped, and he nodded in satisfaction. “It’s ready now.”
The mage entered the gateway first, and Leith and Flanagan followed him, but Olav stopped and turned to me.
“Don’t you dare lie to Captain Cross about what happened today,” he said. “You tell him the truth. Why the squires jumped through the portal early. Why you got involved with those Aquitanian bastards, and why you followed us here. I know you’re up to something, Squires.”
I tried not to look away from the berserker’s cold eyes as he stared at me, and he grunted before entering the portal.
“Tell the captain the truth,” Moses said to me. “What’s the worst that can happen?”
“We’ll get thrown out of an airlock,” I said.
“Ha!” The shield knight laughed but stopped suddenly. I could barely make out his expression beneath his visor, but he shook his head in disapproval. His head turned on each of the other squires. “You all think the same?”
The others nodded.
“What about you, Zac?” Moses asked.
The artilleryman didn’t meet the knight’s gaze, but he swallowed and answered. “I don’t know what to think, sir. There’s some strange business happening aboard our ship.”
Moses grunted. “I can believe Nick thinking so poorly of the crew, but three squires with a tour already under their belts and an artilleryman with two? It’s ridiculous. We treat insubordination harshly, but we don’t go throwing anyone out of an airlock.”
I exhaled, and my relief washed over my aching muscles. At least I wouldn’t be responsible for the deaths of my friends. I half-smiled to myself when I realized how foolish I’d been to think Olav would ever follow through with his threats. The berserker was probably insane, but he was loyal.
Although I wondered whether the threat would be so harmless if any of them found out I was a traitor to the crew. I still didn’t have any hard proof of rebellion, but Polgar had seemed intrigued when I told him the crew was searching for King Justinian’s armor. He and the duke would probably find a way to spin the story so the crew looked guilty for various heinous crimes. After all, clearing portals without a kingdom-issued mission was barely a crime.
My gut roiled as I considered the fate of all those aboard the starship once the duke and the sorcerer got their way.
These men who stood beside me now, their armor stained with the blood of our enemies, were my friends. I’d known them barely a fortnight, but I’d killed for them, and they’d killed for me.
What would happen to Casey? Would she be labeled guilty along with the rest of the crew?
“Apologies for the error in judgment, sir,” Zac said to Moses. “I’m sure the squires are equally apologetic.”
“You lot need to remember what it means to be a crew,” Moses said. “We’re brothers in arms. The shit you pulled on this planet doesn’t make you any less in our eyes, but you’re gonna be cleaning the decks for the rest of your time on the Stalwart. The captain might have something worse for you, but it certainly isn’t a trip out of an airlock.”
Moses’ words struck a chord with me, and I wished more than anything I could retrieve the snapshot I’d sent to Polgar. The crew was my family, and the sorcerer was searching for any reason whatsoever to condemn them. If they were insurrectionists, then I needed sure proof, not an image of Master class boots. I figured now was as good a time as any to ask someone who could give me an answer.
“I want to ask you a question, sir,” I said to Moses, and he nodded for me to continue. “I’ve heard a rumor the Stalwart’s crew might not be loyal to Queen Catrina.” The last few words came out a hoarse whisper, but I knew my helmet’s microphone would deliver them to the knight’s ears without trouble.
I was expecting him to launch into a tirade, but Moses sighed. “You heard that from one of the Core World barons, right? Don’t bother answering; I know it’s true. There’s a group who have been searching in vain for evidence to prove we’re rebels. Some even label us insurrectionists. The thing is, they don’t have any proof. So they send their spies to gather information, but all we’re doing is clearing portals, and delivering humanitarian supplies. That’s not exactly insurgence.”
Moses’ tone remained level when he’d referred to spies, so I didn’t think he suspected me. But I still didn’t understand why they were clearing the portals and gathering the late king’s armor. Leith had said it was the captain’s job to explain it to me, but I doubted Captain Cross would trust me if he found out the aim of my mission with Duke Barnes.
All the events leading to this moment flickered through my mind, and I realized I’d made a mistake accepting the mission. I knew that ever since Polgar had threatened my mom, but I didn’t want to believe it. My duty to the Queen prevented me from seeing what should have been clear. I should have confessed everything to Captain Cross as soon as the sorcerer showed himself to be a dishonorable and evil man.
But that moment had already past. From now on, I wasn’t going to lie to the crew. As soon as we got back on the Stalwart, I’d come clean to Captain Cross. I’d take whatever punishment he saw fit to inflict on me. At least my conscience would be clear, and the captain might have some way of preempting Polgar’s next move and preventing a royal indictment against them. The sorcerer wouldn’t arrive in the Augusti Vetera System for another day, so I had time. I just needed to muster up the courage to be honest to the captain.
“If you want more information, you’
ll have to prove you can be trusted. That goes for all of you.” Moses nodded at the others. “Get your stories straight and get back to the ship. You have two minutes until the portal closes.”
“Sir!” I yelled as Moses walked to the portal.
“Yes, Squire?” he said as he turned to face me.
“I haven’t exactly been honest. I--”
“Tell it to the captain,” Moses interrupted before I could continue. “He’s the one you gotta own up to, not me,” the shield knight said in a disappointed tone and then entered the portal.
“I think your boss in the hierarchy might have fooled you,” Zac said to me. The squires didn’t voice any objections, so I figured they agreed with the artilleryman.
“I’m thinking the same thing,” I said. “It doesn’t sound at all like the crew are rebels. I’m going to tell Captain Cross everything; all about my mission and the person who gave it to me.”
Polgar had threatened my mom, but I figured Captain Cross would know how to prevent her from coming to harm. I might even be able to send her a message and some KPs so she could go somewhere the sorcerer couldn’t hurt her.
“That’s a good idea,” Zac said.
“You sure you don’t want us to take some of the blame?” Nathan asked as he limped forward.
“Nah, I’ll take the fallout. I just want to make sure the Stalwart is prepared for whatever might come next. Maybe I can tell the captain everything before the shitstorm starts.”
No one responded to me, and I got the feeling they were all wondering the depth of shit I was in.
A combination of exhaustion and nerves sucked all the moisture from my mouth, and my tongue felt like dried leather as I jumped to the Stalwart’s deployment room. The longest day of my life had left me ready to collapse, and I still had my conversation with Captain Cross to look forward to. I didn’t imagine he’d let me rest before interrogating me.
The knights were waiting in the containment area, and it didn’t look like they’d gone through decontamination yet. We were unable to move out from the cramped circular chamber because of the forcefield separating us from the rest of the room. The field would remain until everyone had been scanned for foreign organic and digital organisms.
Space Knight Page 37