by Tom Lloyd
Mikiss watched the oil lamps flicker. They were turned low, just enough for him to make out the lines and corners of the room. The door to the room was open, in the vain hope of a breeze; from where Mikiss was sitting he could see the dim light from the cramped kitchen where Nai was preparing something for his master. Somewhere beyond that, sheathed in shadow, was the door to Isherin Purn’s study, a room Mikiss never wanted to see inside.
‘Karkarn’s horn,’ Shart exclaimed, ‘you’re being miserable tonight -if you don’t mind me saying so, sir. Stench of death and presence of daemons aside, we’ve got food I can recognise bits of, drink so we don’t care what the rest of the food is, and we can make Keneg sleep in a different room to us. In my book, that puts us well ahead of where we were yesterday.’
‘Ah, this house puts me on edge; this whole damn city puts me on edge.’ The major grimaced. ‘Don’t any of you feel it?’
‘Feel what? All I feel is this heat.’
‘The . . .’ Amber’s voice tailed off as he gestured vaguely in the air. ‘I don’t know what it is exactly but there’s something—’
He didn’t get any further as a scream pierced the night air. They all jumped up, scrambling for the weapons they’d left propped against the wall. Mikiss caught himself on the arm of the chair he’d been sitting in and careened into Shart, who ploughed through Mikiss, knocking him out of the way and not missing a step as he went for his axe. From outside they heard men shouting, more than a few, and deeper sounds Mikiss could not place; sounds that reached down into his gut.
‘Shart, keep with Mikiss,’ Amber snapped. His yellowy eyes glowed in the weak light.
‘Prefer to be outside, sir,’ Shart commented, his eyes not leaving the doorway where Keneg was standing ready with both hands wrapped around the hilt of his brutal sword. ‘No room to swing in here.’ Shart hefted his axe, raising it so the head banged against the cellar’s low ceiling. The commotion outside continued, more screams, more shouts. A great hissing began from near the grille, a sibilant rustle of dry leaves and withered skin.
‘Fair enough, just keep tight,’ Major Amber said. ‘Sounds like Purn’s got some tricks, so don’t go looking for trouble because it might not understand friend or foe. The trapdoor is barred so we go up into the house. You two lead and get to the outside door, see what you can see. We’ll go up a floor and look out over the back. Keep your ears open and don’t stray into the grounds.’
The brothers led out into the corridor, past Nai, who was busy murmuring and making strange gestures over a blank wall. With a start, Mikiss realised that the wall had been the door to Purn’s study only a few moments ago.
The spell completed, Nai turned to face them, a purposeful expression on his face and an iron-tipped club in his hands. ‘I doubt they will make it to the house,’ he said with grim certainty, stalking past the soldiers and heading for the stairway that led up into the house. A great yawning groan suddenly cut through the clamour from outside, followed by a pair of heavy thumps, then the shouting came back with renewed intensity.
‘That might prove unfortunate,’ Nai said to no one in particular. The soldiers exchanged glances, but kept silent as they followed him into the old kitchen. The only reminder of the room’s former role was a great iron stove, rusted into uselessness by years of rain sweeping in through the shattered window. Someone had nailed up a few boards so there was no gap large enough for a person to climb through, but there were gaps to see a little of outside. As Mikiss trailed in he pulled out his own sword, as much for comfort as anything else.
Nai, peering between boards, said, ‘Looks like locals. My master’s pets will soon see them off - ah, they’re running in all directions. Some are making for the courtyard.’
‘Pitchforks and flaming brands?’ Shart asked. Nai gave the soldier a deeply unfriendly look as the brothers shared a snigger and barrelled out of the rear door.
Mikiss heard a cry of alarm break off as Keneg roared, then the clash of steel, followed by shrieks.
Major Amber grabbed Mikiss by the shoulder and gave him a shove towards the door. ‘Come on, then, sir, just your average angry mob. You’ve been trained, they haven’t. Stick close to me and you’ll be fine.’ There wasn’t time to argue even if Mikiss had dared, as he found himself swept along into the courtyard where Keneg and Shart were facing down half a dozen men. Two more were already down, lying there clutching their wounds and screaming.
Mikiss realised that Amber was right, so he raised his sword and ran at the nearest enemy. Swords took training, clubs didn’t; the man raised his weapon preparing to smash it down on Mikiss, only to find Mikiss’ blade buried in his gut. On the right, Amber was wielding his two blades with lethal efficiency, catching a club on one and hacking into his assailant’s knee with the other, then following that up with a blow to the man’s neck when he fell to the ground, wailing like a child.
Suddenly there was a bright burst of flame. Everyone hesitated, turning to see what had happened.
Mikiss looked around the illuminated grounds and saw men standing in groups wherever there were gaps in the vegetation, wildly fighting off the strange figures assailing them. One such group was being attacked by three bony, bloody figures dressed in rags. They had no weapons that Mikiss could see, but one stopped a club in mid-swing, then swiped a palm across the man’s face with such force the man spun around and collapsed in a heap on top of one of his comrades.
But the weirdness of that little group paled into insignificance next to what was going on in the centre of the grounds, where a creature something like a massive hairless bear stood hacking at anyone within reach of the double-headed axes it brandished in each hand. When it had cleared a circle, it leapt, a clear ten yards in one stride, and began again.
Mikiss started shuddering uncontrollably when he caught sight of a man just hanging in the air, flailing madly as unseen claws shredded his flesh and droplets of fresh blood sprayed all around him from severed arteries.
The Menin soldiers ignored the horrific scene, but took advantage of their enemies’ momentary distraction to dispatch the last of the men in the courtyard.
‘Where has that light come from?’ asked Amber angrily, scanning the grounds.
Shart reached out a hand, pointing off to the right. ‘There, there’s a mage in that bunch.’
A large group of men had formed a circle just inside the grounds, and were hewing a path through the injured and dead towards the house. One of the walking corpses burst into flames and blundered away.
‘They’re not locals; they’re fighting as a unit,’ Major Amber suddenly announced. The foreigners were now providing the only serious assault on the grounds; everyone else was dead or dying.
When Mikiss saw someone point towards them, he opened his mouth, ready to shout. But he closed his mouth in horror as a nearby bush started shaking violently, then lashed out with supernaturally long branches to envelop the man who’d pointed. A shadow crossed the still-hovering light and the branches slewed sideways and grabbed the man beside him instead, tugging the helpless figure into the body of the bush. Three of the attackers ran forward to help their comrade, but branches whipped at their faces and drove them back.
‘The master will be pleased,’ Nai commented brightly as the attackers struggled in vain to save the man, but all too soon it was over as, with one last shuddering moan, the man fell silent and the bush stopped shaking. Someone called out something, and in the next instant the bush burst into purple flames and an unholy howl echoed through the air.
‘What the hell was that?’ Shart asked.
‘Just one of the master’s pet projects,’ Nai said airily. ‘We hadn’t had a chance to test it properly before.’
‘They’re a determined lot, I must say,’ the major remarked, ‘and as it doesn’t look like your defences are going to stop them, and we don’t have the numbers, we should get back inside.’
The foreign unit was inching its way towards the house, hampered at every turn b
y the new horrors springing up. The giant creature had killed every man in its vicinity, and now it turned towards the remaining group. The bright flare left Mikiss’ eyes watering as he tried to make it out, but all he could be sure of was the dark skin, a mass of criss-crossing scars and tattoos, a low-hanging jaw with unusually sharp canine teeth, and horns that curled forward past its eyes.
‘Come on, you bastard,’ Amber growled, grabbing Mikiss by the arm and dragging him back inside. ‘Shart, check the other side of the house; let me know if there’s anyone out there as well. Nai, your master had better get more involved or we’re in trouble. There must be more than one mage out there.’
Shart ran into one of the front rooms. There was a clatter as something broke under the soldier’s weight. Then he called back, ‘Soldiers at the gate, pikemen of some sort -maybe the city guard. There are women in white standing before them. They’ve not come through yet.’
‘Damn, White Circle mages? How in the name of the Lowest Pit did they get here so fast?’ Amber looked at his men, assessing his options, then ordered, ‘Nai, go and tell your master we need a diversion.’
‘That won’t be necessary,’ said a calm voice from the cellar stair, making them all jump. Isherin Purn loomed suddenly from the kitchen shadows and stepped into the hallway, a smile of quiet pleasure on his face and a red flicker in his eyes. ‘Nai, please fetch my books from the study table.’
‘We’ve got at least three separate parties surrounding us, two with mages. You have an escape route planned?’ Amber snapped.
Purn glared at him, and both the major and the messenger recoiled. The necromancer was a thin man, and hairless, no taller than Mikiss. He was believed to be around sixty winters, but his face remained unlined. Mikiss guessed that was some dark pact. It gave the necromancer an air of unearthly, timeless cruelty.
‘Major, you will modify your tone of voice with me.’ Purn’s voice sounded distracted, as though the physical world were only part of what he had to concentrate on at any one moment. ‘I have released the wards on the boundary and triggered all the invocations within the grounds.’
‘They hadn’t all been triggered already?’ the major asked, a little taken aback.
‘The magic is complicated; you will not understand it,’ Purn said. ‘All you need to know is that there will be more appearing as we speak, drawn by the murder already done. They are free to leave the grounds now, and you will be just as great a target as any other mortal nearby.’
‘Isn’t that going to make this even harder?’ Amber asked, trying to control his temper.
‘Not at all, as long as you stay close to me. In the general chaos they will cause it will be simple enough to go unnoticed.’ Purn turned at the sound of his servant returning, laden with a bulky canvas bag slung over his left shoulder. ‘Ah, excellent, Nai; you are sure you have them all?’
‘Yes, master,’ Nai replied, ‘and you had missed Chalem’s Experiments with Fire so I took the liberty of bringing that as well.’
Purn sniffed. ‘The loss of any book is a waste, I suppose.’ He pointed past Amber and through the high empty reception rooms. ‘Come then, Major, that way, please. Get ready to go through one of the windows, but don’t leave the building until I have joined you.’
Purn’s smile faded as he touched his fingers against the splintered door frame, concentrating. He began to whisper under his breath. As Amber grabbed Mikiss by the collar and hauled him off after the brothers, they caught sight of a thin finger of flame that darted up to the ceiling and spread in all directions. By the time they had crossed the two rooms to reach the tall shuttered windows on the far side, a deep orange light outlined the doorway and Mikiss could hear the flames hungrily consuming the building.
Shart and Mikiss set to clearing away the debris below the window and forcing the warped shutters open. From outside came the sounds of magic; the fierce crackle of lightning and, suddenly, a raging wind, all overlaid with panicked cries. Despite the noise, Mikiss heard Purn’s footfalls as the necromancer marched in after them, silhouetted against the rising flames.
‘Well now, chaos reigns in my wake,’ Purn declared, ‘so let us be off.’
He pushed past the soldiers and peered out of the window, then hopped through with remarkable agility. As Keneg and Shart followed, a great chattering began in the low undergrowth nearby.
‘Tsatach’s balls, what’s that?’ Shart demanded, looking anxiously at Purn.
The necromancer tugged his cloak straight. ‘That? A local spirit I recruited to the cause.’ Any further explanation was cut short as a shape burst from under a bush and leaped at Purn. It passed straight through the necromancer’s body, skidded on the ground and slammed into the side of the house.
Mikiss stared down at it as the spirit scrabbled to right itself. It looked somewhat like a spider, only with four short, powerful legs, each one ending in a pair of large claws. He couldn’t see the face, which was set deep into the body, but the hiss of fury it directed towards Purn was all too obvious.
The necromancer stared down at the creature, an expression of mild curiosity on his face. He said nothing, but continued to inspect the creature, until Shart took matters into his own hands and slammed his axe down onto it, cutting it nearly in two. ‘It didn’t seem to like you so much,’ he said, hauling his axe free. ‘It looked at me for a moment, then went back to working out how it was going to gut you.’ He stopped talking as a black man-like shape rose up behind Purn, claws outstretched.
The necromancer disappeared entirely as the phantom touched him. It surged forward and raked its claws down Shart’s face, and he howled and collapsed in a heap. The phantom ignored Keneg, who jumped over his prone brother and attacked, but it was like trying to cut through fog. His sword was useless against the strange being.
Major Amber shoved Mikiss out the way and vaulted through the window, but before he could join the attack, a shaft of white light lanced out from inside the room and pierced the shadowy form assailing Shart. The phantom reeled, shrieking, and rose up in the air, writhing and screeching, then fled over the tree tops until it dissipated in the sky.
Mikiss turned to see who had cast the spell, and was shocked at the sight of Isherin Purn, standing placidly beside his encumbered servant. He looked back: there was no trace of the necromancer on the ground.
‘But? I saw it—’
‘What you saw was an illusion,’ Purn said.
‘My master abhors the prospect of physical injury,’ Nai explained, rather contemptuously. ‘He sent an illusion of himself on ahead to see what was out there.’
‘They are now released from my control,’ Purn protested, ‘and obviously some will try to kill me for imprisoning them in the first place.’ He looked flustered now, as if Nai’s unspoken reprimand had struck a nerve.
Nai gave a snort that seemed to indicate sympathy for the daemons outside and clambered out of the window. Mikiss gave Purn a puzzled look, but the necromancer had regained his composure and his dark glower returned. Mikiss didn’t wait to see the red glow return to Purn’s eyes. He almost fell out of the window in his hurry to escape.
Shart lay on the floor, the major kneeling over him, pressing hard on his chest. Mikiss could see blood all around him.
The major’s face was grim when he looked up. ‘Purn, can your magic help him?’
The necromancer laid a hand on Shart’s bloodied face. He shook his head. ‘Your man is dead. I could have him up and walking in half a minute, but I doubt you would appreciate it.’ He didn’t have to go into detail.
Before anyone could move, a group of men rounded the corner of the house, weapons held low against whatever they were likely to meet. They stopped dead when they saw the Menin soldiers. The sight of six men, one probably dead, rather than a horde of daemons, left them momentarily confused.
One man said something and the rest closed ranks, in anticipation of attack. Keneg obliged with a roar and Major Amber ran to his side, followed by Nai, who abandoned h
is bag of books and snatched up Shart’s axe from the ground. Keneg battered aside one pike-head and decapitated its owner without a pause. The major followed suit before anyone else had the chance to attack.
Then Mikiss found himself screaming a warning -a woman was sprinting around the corner after the soldiers. He couldn’t work out what she thought she could achieve, for she carried no weapons . . . She was making straight for Keneg, who raised his sword and stood ready. The woman didn’t slow her charge, but her body blurred and dropped low to all fours with astonishing speed and Keneg’s blade met nothing as a huge lioness came up under his guard and slapped one razor-sharp clawed paw into his gut. The lioness buried its teeth into Keneg’s forearm and used its great weight to bear him to the ground.
Major Amber rushed to join the attack, but the lioness pulled Keneg, howling in pain, out of reach, dragging him by the arm as if he were a rag-doll. Amber raised his sword, preparing to rush the lioness, when another group of soldiers rounded the corner, led by a second woman brandishing two swords.
‘Put up your weapons,’ the woman shouted, the men behind her spreading out. On her left was a nobleman, dressed as if for a state banquet but clearly able to use the needle-sharp rapier in his hand.
‘Fucking animal,’ Keneg bellowed, swinging his free arm around to punch the lioness in the throat with all the strength of a desperate man.
Major Amber stood ready against the oncoming soldiers as Keneg struggled to his feet, trying to buy them some space, all thoughts of his own safety long vanished. Once upright, Keneg charged forward, swinging wildly at the lioness, who growled at him and retreated, leaving him facing the other woman. He screamed a challenge at her and rushed in, but she parried his blows with ease, her twin blades moving in perfect unison.
Finally Keneg gasped and sank to his knees, his fury gone in a shudder of pain. The woman hardly broke her stride as she spun around and pierced his body, heart and lung. He heaved one great hacking cough, gouts of blood erupting from his mouth, and sank to the ground.