“How does she plan to do that without getting caught?” Lester inquires as he strokes his goatee thoughtfully.
“She does not say,” Cygni shakes his head. “She says that once they have retrieved General Cruelseas and gotten him safely from the city she will meet her people at the coast and lead them into the city from the West. We are to storm the southern gate and converge upon the palace. And there we shall bring this all to an end.”
“The Perscesian Princess has decided all this without consulting us or anyone else? Not even her Queen?” Lester questions as he narrows his eyes.
“It appears that way,” Cygni sighs as he crumples the scroll and shoves it into the pocket of his trousers.
“That’s gutsy,” Lester shakes his head.
“I believe that’s just the way she is,” Cygni snorts. Unlike Lester, he finds Andromeda’s ambition admirable. “We will be reaching the capital soon. I will allow Andromeda to do what she needs to do, we will hang back in the shadows until nightfall. Get some rest. Then at nightfall we will move on the palace.”
❖
Daegan
Daegan had been uneasy ever since Andromeda disembarked. He hadn’t been able to stop worrying about all the ways her plans could go wrong, whatever her plans were that is. It distracted him and consumed his every thought even as the Internment and its’ crew had rejoined the Perscesian fleet and opened fire on the Shroudanian fleet.
The sound of artillery and cannon balls erupted around Daegan as he finally forced himself to focus and began barking orders to his crew. Beyond the Shroudanian fleet a mechanical creaking and groaning sounded as eight large tentacles burst through the surface of the sea.
It was the Perscesians’ secret weapon, fashioned after a mythical beast in an old story that swallowed ships whole. Carina called it the Kraegen. As a whole it resembled a massive octopus with eight steel tentacles fixed with razor sharp thorns the size of a Landborn wagon that rose from the depths and could crush two ships whole at a time as it contracted like a closing fist. Any soul not killed on impact had no chance of surviving as they became sucked into the open maw of the Kraegen and mashed to bits within.
The sounds of Shroudanian soldiers dying filled the air as the Kraegen descended on the back end of the fleet. The ships toward the front of the fleet tried to scramble out of the Kraegen’s path of destruction only to be blown to bits by the cannon fire of the Perscesian fleet. Queen Carina could be seen standing proudly at the bow of a ship surveying the carnage with glee. No one poisoned her people and got away with it.
A Shroudanian ship coasted too close to the Internment, scraping against the starboard side of Daegan’s ship. He commanded Serpane to veer left and the eight-armed man twirled the wheel vigorously to get out of the way. Six of Daegan’s best swordsmen and women he sent across the short expanse between the two vessels and they made quick work of slaying the enemy ship’s crew. Blood ran slick across the deck of the Shroudanian ship by the time his crew was finished with the Shroudanians and they returned to the Internment looking as if they had bathed in the blood of their enemies.
The ship ravaged and the crew dead, Daegan put the Shroudanian ship out of its’ misery by unloading six cannon balls onto the ship’s deck. The impact broke the ship into pieces which quickly sunk beneath the surface of the sea where the wreckage would land on the sea floor and the crew would be damned to the deepest pits of the undrawhorl.
A few of the Perscesian and Losteroan ships had also taken massive hits and the Perscesian soldiers fled into mist to avoid going down with their vessel as the Losteroans leapt to neighboring ally vessels. But the Shroudanian fleet was getting hit harder.
As the last of the Shroudanian fleet burned and sunk a raven soared overhead and landed on the bow of the Internment.
Daegan warily approached the bird and retrieved the missive attached to the bird’s leg. The bird nipped and groomed at its’ feathers before turning its’ red eyes on Daegan expectantly.
“Give the bird a fish,” Daegan gestured to the bird as he passed Serpane mid-deck.
Serpane gave out the command and Sithryn disappeared into the hold and returned with a fresh gold-back trout in her hand which she tossed to the messenger bird.
“What news does the fowl bring?” Serpane asks as he mans the wheel.
“It is from Andromeda,” Daegan sighs. “She asks that the Perscesian and Losteroan soldiers meet her at the coast shortly before nightfall so that we may storm the palace from the West. She has send a similar missive to Prince Cygni asking his men to infiltrate the walled city from the southern gates.”
“What are you going to do, Captain?” Serpane asks.
“I’m going to pass the message along to Queen Carina and hope that she doesn’t filet me for allowing her daughter to disembark without a guard.” Daegan growls in frustration. “Stubborn girl.”
❖
Thane
Thane stumbled forward as he was led up onto the platform. His hands were still bound behind his back interfering with his balance. Not that the guard dragging him to the noose cared at all. The guard lined Thane up beside four other men and a woman whose nooses had already been fastened around their necks.
It finally kicked in then for Thane. He was going to die. His soul would leave his body and be judged by Baster to determine what his afterlife would be; bliss or torture.
The guard nudged him forward roughly and thrust the noose over his head before tightening it around his neck. Thane looked bleakly into the crowd of wary citizens of Vanyia. They used to be greedier and more excited for the thrill of the execution but with so many of their friends, family, and neighbors taken to the executioner’s block and the gallows the people of Vanyia had come to dread execution days.
Thane’s gaze froze on a man standing in the second wave of people. His hair was dark brown and his skin was several shades lighter than Thane’s but Thane would have recognized him anywhere. His father had come to the city center on the day of his execution. Thane didn’t know whether to feel sickened or comforted by this development. His father had used his mother, a Losteroan slave in his home, until he couldn’t use her anymore then he cast Thane and his mother and infant brother out into the streets. His mother died of heartbreak and a fast moving illness that had spread like fire through the southern coast of Vacantia not long after the Perscesian maiden took his brother from them.
Thane forced himself to look away as the Master of the Gallows read the crimes the hangees had been deemed guilty of and his gaze traveled to the grand balcony of the palace rising up before the gallows. Lyra sat proudly at the center of the balcony and though Thane could not see her clearly from the distance he could feel the triumph radiating from her. She thought she’d won. And maybe, in this instance, she had.
A dense mist settled over the city center as the Master of the Gallows finished reading off names and crimes. In mere seconds Thane couldn’t see an inch in front of his face, the mist was so thick. He heard the pained grunt of a man and the nervous tittering of voices below the platform then Thane was falling. He landed hard on his knees on the platform but his neck was unbroken and he was not hanging, the noose falling limply around his neck like a rope necklace.
“Quick, come with me,” A female voice whispered urgently as small hands wrapped around his wrist to help him to his feet.
Thane didn’t need to be told twice as he followed his disembodied savior down from the platform and in a zig-zagging path. The hands on his wrist didn’t let go and he had no choice but to blindly follow this person wherever their destination. He could hear shouting in the distance and he realized they were moving away from the city center. They didn’t stop for a long time and the terrain changed several times beneath Thane’s feet.
Then as quickly as the mist had descended it rolled away. Thane blinked several times as his eyes adjusted to his surroundings. He was standing in the middle of a copse of trees and standing before him was Andromeda looking fairly smug.
“The mist — that was you?” Thane asked in surprise.
“Of course,” Andromeda nodded. “After all, my people are made of sea and mist, are they not? If I can breathe beneath the sea then it only made sense that I could become mist or water.”
“Why did you come? You know that Lyra is after you,” Thane scolds her. “What if someone saw you?”
“No one saw me,” Andromeda rolls her eyes. “And I had Octavia with me. So much for a simple ‘thank you’ for saving your ass.”
“Where is Octavia now?” Thane’s heart thuds to a halt at the mention of her name.
“She’ll be here soon,” Andromeda assures him. “I was in charge of dispatching the guards and freeing those heading for the gallows and Octavia was to evacuate the city center and as many of the citizens of Vanyia as she could. She’s supposed to lead them into the foothills and meet us here.”
Chapter 25
Andromeda
Once Octavia arrives Andromeda and Octavia stash Thane away under the roots of a hollow tree that the Watierai Warriors had used as an arsenal outside Vanyia for generations.
“I’m coming with you,” Thane protests.
“In the eyes of the Vanyians you’re a wanted fugitive. They’d turn you in in a heartbeat if it meant saving someone they cared about,” Andromeda explains calmly.
Thane snorts, “And if I’m a fugitive, what are you?”
“Someone the people cannot identify on sight and someone who knows how to blend in,” Andromeda comments dryly.
“The scars on your face might say otherwise,” Thane replies then winces. “I’m sorry, that wasn’t fair.”
“Will you please stop arguing?” Octavia begs. “It will be nightfall soon and Andromeda and I both have people to meet and things to do. Andromeda is right, Thane. I don’t want you putting yourself in danger of being recaptured again so this is the best place for you.”
“And I’m just supposed to wait here while you storm the city?” Thane furrows his brow.
Octavia shushes him with her lips and Andromeda takes a few steps away and turns around to give them privacy.
A few minutes later Octavia crunches through the bushes and rejoins Andromeda looking flush and happy.
“All better now?” Andromeda teases and Octavia swats her arm.
“He’ll stay put at least,” Octavia looks down to hide her smile. “For now anyway.”
“Will you rejoin the foot soldiers or take to the skies?” Andromeda inquires as she tucks a loose snarl of hair back into the bun she’s tied her hair back into.
“Adventrya and The Three will expect me to lead my riders into battle, so in the skies I shall be,” Octavia smiles nervously.
Andromeda nods like that was the answer she was expecting, “Be careful, Octavia. And good luck.”
“You too,” Octavia’s smile grows more confident. “Give the usurper queen the fight she’s been spoiling for.”
❖
After splitting off from Octavia, Andromeda darts through the forest letting the trees lend her cover for as long as possible. Lyra undoubtably has her guards out looking for the source of the mayhem at the gallows and the last thing Andromeda needs is to get caught up by a guard loyal to Lyra.
The forest abruptly cuts off to a cliff and a sharp fall to the rocky coast below. Andromeda skids to a halt digging her feet into the soft soil beneath her boots. Looking down she calculates the distance between the cliff and the nearest patch of solid ground. Closing her eyes and counting to ten she fights to calm her racing heart. She opens her eyes and leaps.
With catlike grace Andromeda lands on her feet on a flat stone. The day begins to get darker and Andromeda determines that nightfall is not far off so she doesn’t allow herself a minute to rest as she leaps quickly from rock to rock up the coastline toward the North and the capital city. As she gets closer she’s relieved to see ships bearing the Perscesian and Losteroan flags lining the coast as far as the eye can see.
Daegan is pacing impatiently as Andromeda races up the coast. When he sees her he rushes her and hugs her like he’s never been happier to see anyone in his entire life.
Carina clears her throat and Daegan reluctantly sets Andromeda back on her feet.
“Should I even ask what in the mother goddess’s name you were thinking taking off on your own?” Carina demands as she shoves Daegan aside and takes Andromeda in her arms.
“Relax, I’m fine,” Andromeda rolls her eyes impatiently. “There’s not a scratch on me. But we need to get moving. Has Daegan gotten you up to speed?”
“Yes, about that,” Carina levels Andromeda with a hard stare. “Not only did you disappear on a potentially life-threatening fool’s errand then you send word to Captain Brykmaker - not your mother — with instructions on where to meet you. I am still Queen and I deserve the courtesy of being in on strategy and plan-making from the beginning, not to hear about it secondhand.”
“I’m sorry,” Andromeda says though her tone suggests otherwise.
“You’re not,” Carina calls her out. “But you’re right about one thing. Night is about to fall and we need to get moving.”
Carina stalks away and Ajax falls into step beside her as her guards fall into line behind them. Andromeda shoots Daegan an incredulous look before darting to catch up. Daegan sighs and has no choice but to follow her. Because while Queen Carina didn’t take his life for letting Andromeda leave she warned him that if he let her out of his sight again he would not like what would become of him.
❖
Octavia
Octavia called her stormrider, Sturmfyre, to her and took to the skies, taking her place at the head of the Starborn fleet as if she had been there all along. Her second and third kept quiet though her absence had been noted only by the eleven in her Sisterhood.
Down below the Order of the Thorn and the Watierai Warriors spilled from the forest like ants pouring out of an anthill.
“All right ladies,” Octavia called back to her Sisterhood, “Spread out and stay high enough that the archers on the parapets cannot reach you. Once we pass the gate dive down and set fire to the buildings at the outermost circle of the city. They’ve been evacuated but the flame will keep the Vacantian and Shroudanian armies trapped in the city center. Tell the rest of the fleet to hang back and pick off enemy soldiers once the fighting begins.”
“You got it, Storm Leader,” Imelda calls out in response as the last two of the eleven riders split away to pass the order on to the six generals of the fleet.
Ducking low to Sturmfyre’s back Octavia squeezes her knees harder to her mount’s sides urging her onward. Beast and rider soar upward on the wind as they breach the airspace above Vanyia. The inner city sparkles with candlelight and for a moment Octavia regrets what she must do. But Thane’s face flashes before her eyes and her resolve hardens as she thinks of drawing the usurper queen out into the open. Digging her heels in to Sturmfyre’s flank they dive down as one becoming living flame spewing ropes of fire onto the ramshackle buildings that stand half falling down on the edge of the city.
❖
Lyra
The sound of shouting throughout the palace and in the streets beyond Lyra’s window rip her from a restless slumber.
“Your Majesty,” Lyra’s lady’s maid bursts through the door frantically. “The city is burning! We must evacuate the castle and take to the tunnels.”
“Nonsense,” Lyra yawns as she tosses back her blankets. “Bring me my dressing gown, I wish to see what is going on.”
“But Your Majesty,” the lady’s maid’s eyes bulge worriedly.
“But nothing, Ingrid,” Lyra snaps. “Bring me my dressing gown, now.”
Ingrid moves to grab the dressing gown from where it lays draped over the end of the bed and hurriedly helps Lyra into it.
Pushing the girl away Lyra stalks to the balcony doors and throws them open
letting in a gust of chill wind and icy rain. Unholy blue flames ring the edge of the city undeterred by the rain as the flames lick higher toward the sky.
“Get the children and take to the tunnels,” Lyra orders Ingrid. “I will remain as I am.”
“Your Majesty, I must urge-” Ingrid is abruptly cut off as Lyra backhands her. The girl falls to the floor in shock as she grasps her cheek and raises terrified eyes to her queen.
“When I give you an order I expect you to follow it at once,” Lyra snarls. “Now get out and do as I say before I have you thrown in the dungeon for treason.”
Ingrid shuffles from the room without a backward glance. Lyra turns back to the burning city stoically. First the freeing of the Watierai Warrior General and the other criminals headed for execution and now Lyra’s city ablaze. The rebellion is growing bolder.
“It is beginning,” Lyra comments as she crosses her arms and taps razor sharp nails against her forearm.
“Our allies have followed the crown-less prince through the mountains and have his people surrounded,” Lyra’s sister murmurs as she emerges from the dark passage way hidden behind a panel in the wall. “They await your command to strike.”
“Help me dress, dear sister,” Lyra demands never tearing her eyes from the city below. “Tonight we go to war.”
❖
Andromeda
Andromeda leads the charge to the secret channel into the city she discovered when she split from Daegan’s crew earlier. The channel leads from the coast into a subterranean tunnel and up three flights of stairs that feeds into an alleyway deep in the slums of the city.
Daegan marches at her side as an ally and a guard at Carina’s insistence despite Andromeda’s protests that she can protect herself. Carina, Ajax, and their next youngest daughters divide their ally forces into four groups that will fan out from the alleyway. If all goes according to plan Cygni and Octavia will be spilling through the walls of the city from the southern entrance. A wave of Perscesian Legionnaires, Starborn riders, and the Losteroan leader’s Wuju will descend on the city once they finish setting the perimeter ablaze.
Monsters & Mist Page 33