by Ian Rodgers
It was over in an instant. The massive mirrored orb was gone. With a groan, the Healer fixed her hearing with a spell. Once it was repaired she sighed with relief before looking around the ruins and letting off a huff.
“Great. Now I have to walk all the way back.” Dora massaged her forehead. “No use complaining.”
She headed off back to Annod Bol, plans for sneaking in through the gate flitting through her thoughts.
Chapter 17: Shrouded horizons
“I know you’re probably sick of hearing this by now, but I’m glad to see you’re alright and back with us, Dora,” Reesh said, patting the half-orc on the back.
“Yeah, me too,” Dora agreed, smiling faintly. She listened with half an ear to the greetings and encouragements the crew of the Yellowmoon Menagerie had given her since she’d been escorted back by some of Lord Tiegan’s guards.
Her mind was busy. And had been ever since she’d returned to the dark walled city.
Sneaking into the city had been a lot easier than she’d expected. A quick application of Salve of Slumber knocked out a pair of patrolling guards who’d stepped out of the gatehouse for a quick smoke.
Once inside, it’d been harder to maneuver around roving squads of enforcers and guards looking for errant slaves, and the slaves themselves were making a mess of the sections of the city they’d taken control of.
She managed to get back into the barracks and change her clothes with the help of Reesh. The tall man didn’t question why she’d returned alone, and she didn’t question why he had had such skimpy outfits in the first place. It was a good deal for the both of them.
Back in her original clothes she’d snuck back into the Tower with judicious use of her override command, and slipped back into her cell and fallen asleep, exhausted.
A part of her worried that the guards would find out she had escaped when they noticed that the door had been cut off its hinges, but when breakfast arrived Dora discovered that the damaged parts had miraculously fixed themselves.
She swore she saw the statue of Naliot wink at her from its spot next to the bed.
And then Tiegan had arrived a few hours later with some excellent news.
“Congratulations, Miss Dora. You’re free to go,” the lord of the East Tower said. She blinked in surprise before smiling. It took effort not to let it turn into a smirk.
“Any particular reason why?”
“Two things happened last night that allow us to remove your guilt,” Tiegan said as he leaned on his walking stick. “First, a cult of demon worshipers was discovered in the northern portion of the city, stirring up discontent and doing some kind of bloody ritual.”
“Are you blaming them for Krave’s death?” Dora inquired eagerly.
“To an extent. You see, we’re blaming dear Dominick’s personal slave, Kari, for his death. She’s gone missing.” Tiegan sighed in disappointment.
“I knew we should have kept a closer eye on her. But Krave firmly believe he had control over her. Apparently, her Bloodline Traits were stronger than he thought and she slipped away, and took the Aegis Sphere with her.”
“And she didn’t even try to break me free or say farewell? Some friend I thought she was,” Dora grumbled. Her act seemed to convince the aging lord of Annod Bol as he shook his head in a mocking yet mournful way.
“She was just trying to use you as a means of escape, my dear. Don’t let it worry you too much. You’re young, and have plenty of time to learn not to trust anyone.”
The half-orc nodded mutely and allowed herself to be escorted back to the barracks. A wide smile broke over her face when she saw the stunned looks on the crew. Rindel and Reesh both jogged over to her and embraced her, while Uldo and Holt both showed their relief and affection in a more subdued manner.
The only one who did not rush out to greet her was Scar. He remained distant, but the Healer noticed his eyes showed a great deal of emotion whenever he looked at her.
Dora couldn’t help but think back to Kari’s parting words about the meaning of the word ‘ildora.’ For as long as she’d been with the Menagerie, Scarrot had called her that.
She’d always thought it was an insult, his way of mocking her for her half-orc status or for her naivety. But now? Questions swirled through her head and distracted her again.
“Saddle up! I want to be out of the city by noon!” Scarrot bellowed, breaking Dora from her reverie. She mounted Starspot and the mare whinnied at the feel of her rider once more.
The crew had spent the previous day preparing for their departure from the City of Slaves. Everyone was eager to be gone from the place. There were no fond memories here for any of them.
“Move out!” Holt called, his voice cutting through the din of wheels, hooves, and metal that began to clink and clack and grind as the caravan made its way towards the gates.
Unrest in the city had quieted down with the revelation that Dora was fine and allowed to leave, but some pockets of violence remained so Lord Tiegan had graciously allowed the Menagerie an escort of armed men to the city’s gates. Scarrot had taken the offer, but with much growling and grunting.
“What now?” Dora asked, glancing over at Rindel. The gnome shifted in his custom saddle to glance at her.
“Now? We do whatever we want. Though I think Scar wants to head back to Creidor and give Reed a piece of his mind for sending us on this errand.”
Dora grunted at that. She had a few words for the old man as well. Two of them being “thank you” for the extremely useful alchemical salves, the rest of them swears unfit for utterance in polite company.
She set her sights on the horizon and wondered if Kari had made it back to her home yet.
“Yeah. Freedom sounds nice,” Dora said with a smile. The diminutive quartermaster bobbed his head in agreement.
This was not the life Dora had envisioned for herself. But it was the one she was going to live to the fullest.
She spared a glance at the orc at the head of the wagon trail and frowned, deep in thought. And maybe she’d get answers from Scarrot about who she was. And who he was to her.
.
Lord Tiegan stood in his study, looking down on the city from wide bay windows. Now, it was all his. Without Krave to oppose him, the other Tower Lords would fall into line. And the few who had supported Rapture Dawn were forced to go underground to avoid the purge. Annod Bol was under his rule. Completely and utterly.
True, he no longer had the Aegis Sphere, but that had honestly been mostly Krave’s pet project. He did not need ancient magitech to control the masses or expand his rule. Tiegan was fine with what he had here. Why bother to kick at hornets’ nests for little reward?
A frown marred his face and he wandered over to a table that had a fine selection of wine set up.
“You know, it’s rude to enter someone’s domain without announcing yourself,” the grey-haired slave master commented without looking up from his task.
“You failed to do what we asked of you.”
Out of the shadows in the corner of the room a man wearing an all-concealing black cloak appeared. He seemed to meld out of the darkness itself. His face was obscured by a silver mask with a spiral etched into the surface.
“It was a mistake, I admit, not to check more closely on the woman’s slave collar and its conditions and contract. Or to make sure her Godhands Bloodline Trait was properly restricted from manipulating magical artifacts. Now she’s fled, taking the Aegis Sphere with her. A loss to both of us, I’m afraid. Though being able to get rid of the more malcontent slaves and cultists was a nice bonus.”
The masked man snorted in distain. “We needed her and her two Bloodline Traits. The deal was simple; once she had served her purpose here, you’d give her to us. That you could not complete such a basic request makes me question the validity of maintaining our relationship.”
“And who else would serve you and your comrades, Swirl? The World Rebellion is not flush with companions and allies. You need Annod Bol and t
he Tower Lords. You need our resources. And without me, you won’t be able to get any of it.” Tiegan poured himself a generous serving of red wine, smiling at the heady aroma. He held out a glass to the black swathed man but it was declined.
“It’s ‘Spiral’ to you. And we needed that woman’s eyes! The Time of Lilies is approaching, and we need to find the remaining prophesized ones!”
“Apologies for your loss, then. But I’m sure you’ll manage. You’re a resourceful group if nothing else,” Tiegan said dismissively. He sipped at his wine and gave the silver masked man a neutral look.
He could tell the high-ranked disciple of the Void was fuming under his robes, and took silent pleasure in that. The World Rebellion had just swaggered into his office one day and demanded his subservience.
“You overestimate your importance, vulture,” Spiral hissed angrily. Tiegan snorted.
“You touch me, and everyone will know it was your group who slew me. Ever since that idiotic count in Varia tried to assassinate the royal family using your methods all of Erafore knows you have returned,” Tiegan pointed out.
When no response came the Lord of the East Tower nodded at his victory and turned back to the window, staring out. He could almost imagine he could see the dust trail of the Yellowmoon Menagerie in the distance. He’d miss the grizzled orc and his crew. Especially the half-blood Healer. He’d always had a taste for the exotic. Shame she’d left as soon as she could.
His thoughts were interrupted by a tightness in his chest. He grunted and raised a hand, clutching at his heart.
“You know, it’s a shame. Such an elderly gentleman, with such a weak heart. After all the stress in the past few days and the new-found responsibility of running a city and corralling all the other upstarts, it just stopped working properly. At least, that’s what they’ll say when they find you.”
Tiegan gagged in pain and dropped his wineglass. As it shattered on the ground he staggered over to the window and leaned against it, trying to steady himself.
Out of the corner of his eyes he saw the servant of the Void walking towards him, right hand stretched out in front of him. Tiegan opened his mouth to call for help, but a dark grey aura burst to life around the figure’s outstretched appendage. His words were cut off by a wave of agony. He fell to his knees with a gasp.
“The other four Tower Lords are cravens and weak-willed. Without you they will look to someone who’ll take the lead. And that will be me. They’ll kneel once they see that trying to resist is futile.”
The man in the silver mask stared Tiegan dead in the eyes. The emblem on the mask glowed ominously with a grey light.
“You were useful. But, you’ve made too many mistakes. Goodbye. May the Void welcome you.”
Tiegan clawed at the air, trying to lash out at his murderer. But his vision was fading and he collapsed. One final death rattle escaped his lips. His heart gave out on him, and the rest of his organs followed.
After a moment, the man in the mask walked over to the well-dressed body. He gave it a kick to make sure Tiegan was truly dead before letting out a cruel laugh.
“Let the world rebel!”