Moon's Artifice (38 page)

Once that was done he returned to Narin. The Investigator hung limp from a chain fixed to a ring in the ceiling. A jug of water and an unlit lamp sat on a small table, well out of Narin’s reach, but other than that the room was empty. The Investigator’s legs trailed feebly over the stone floor, legs and stone streaked with bodily waste. Enchei took no time in lifting him to relieve the pressure on his arms, wincing at the shudder and recoil from Narin despite his relief that the man was still alive. Through split, swollen lips, he heard a feeble sound, though whether it was pain or something else Enchei couldn’t tell.

‘You’re safe now,’ Enchei said to him, easing Narin back down to a relatively clean patch of floor. ‘Stay calm, Narin.’

Narin’s hands were roughly bound with chain ; the links looped through the ring above but were not actually locked in any way. Instead the weight hanging on it kept the chain too tight to slip, making it impossible for someone as weakened as Narin to free himself.

Enchei fetched the jug and gently sluiced Narin down, washing the worst of the filth and blood off and letting a little fall over the Investigator’s face. He saw Narin’s tongue twitch out a little to catch some of the drops and smiled in the darkness.

‘Aye, you’ll live,’ Enchei whispered to his friend. He cradled Narin’s head, supporting it so he could see into the younger man’s eyes. ‘Time to find you some clothes. I ain’t carrying you naked on my shoulder, that’s for damn sure. Nothing I want to grip there.’

The last light of evening was a gilt arc over the western horizon. Thick trails of cloud striated the sky ; bands of white graduating through shades of grey. Behind them hung the dark shapes of Knight’s divine constellations – appearing as distinct grey pinpricks while the sun was near the horizon. The Order of Empress hung almost directly above them in the sky – just waiting for the sunset to cast its own light on the world.

Lawbringer Rhe stood on the eastern shore of the Imperial Island and looked out across the Crescent, beyond the high towers of Eagle District, and at the Gods who had passed during the day. Unnoticed by all but the priests who would scan the daytime sky for the faint sight of their lord or lady, what remained of the Order of Emperor above the horizon was hard to make out in the cloud-streaked evening. The Lord General was the only daytime constellation he could discern ; the rest he could only guess at.

‘Sir,’ called one of his companions, a diminutive woman who fell short of his shoulder. She pointed north, towards the Arbold Warrant. ‘A signal – there !’

He turned to look. More than a mile away a white flag streamed in the fading light, swept from side to side by the one of the novices Rhe had sent out. The novice stood near the mouth of the river that defined the border between Arbold and Kayme.

Both Imperial warrants of the city. Is that a good thing or not ?
He knew there would be more guns in House-controlled districts to deal with the demons, but once the warrior caste got a taste for hunting demons how carefully would they discriminate in the dusk ?

‘In,’ he said, stepping down into the boat where a team of oarsmen sat ready.

Behind him the small woman, Investigator Soral, boarded with four others and the oarsmen set off. Rhe crouched at the bow of the boat as they headed across the Crescent, adjusting the sword on his back as he did so. It had been years since he’d carried such a weapon, not since he’d left his homeland in the north to come here and pledge his service.

He glanced back at the others. All noble-born, each had been taught to fight with sword and gun, then put aside their blade during their time as Investigators.

And I am told those noble-born Investigators will refuse to wear a sword, if they are raised to Lawbringer rank. My choice was my own yet they follow me like sheep. Law Master Sheven finds it instructive, being of the religious caste, but I am just unsurprised.

His gaze was noticed by Soral who raised her chin a little, awaiting instruction, but he looked away and the small woman did not question him. From a Major House under Eagle, rival to Rhe’s own House Brightlance, Soral was a typical House Fox warrior – compact and narrow-faced, with startling yellow eyes.

While she was very young to participate in such a dangerous assignment, Rhe had chosen all of the Investigators on marksmanship alone ; trusting the training of their caste to ensure they would stand with him when they found their prey. After his encounter earlier, he had pulled together every gun-permitted Lawbringer and Investigator. Divided into units, they had been assigned sections of the city to patrol, ready to respond to more demon sightings.

‘Demons walk the city streets,’ he said abruptly. ‘An affront to our Gods and their blood descendant, the Emperor. An affront to the honour of the Lawbringers. I will die before I allow this in our city.’

The stern men and woman in the boat each nodded briefly or grunted agreement.

‘They are stronger than men and command magics we cannot understand. Take them down and make certain of any kill. Questions ?’

No one spoke and the rest of the short journey passed in silence. Even on the other side, the white-faced novice who greeted them did so without words. He bowed briefly to Rhe and waved them forward, heading at a trot down a nearby street. Rhe followed, running tall and stiff with one hand on a pistol grip. The shadows were long in the narrow street, the air close and sickly from the refuse underfoot. It didn’t take them long before they had passed a dozen plague symbols across the doors of houses.

The street itself was deserted. He saw a few fearful faces at windows, but every door was shut and he guessed barred as well. As dusk deepened, Rhe found himself heading down gloomy, unlit alleys that ran parallel to the river. A rat scampered across their path, making for the river and the novice turned left there, heading for wherever the rat was fleeing.

Rhe followed him and drew his pistol instinctively as the novice faltered. Ahead was a market square where a dozen or so stone pillars supported a broad roof at the centre, all pitted with age. On the ground was a body, what remained of an Investigator, while through the pillars Rhe saw a large figure moving. He pointed and his companions also drew their guns, fanning out behind him.

Rhe advanced ahead of the rest, skirting the square with one eye on the various alleys and streets leading off it. The demon was quite unlike the one he’d pursued. It had pale skin that shone in the waning light, but something like shadows slipped across its naked, angular body. As he got closer Rhe saw it had caught a dog and was bent over its struggling form – twice-jointed arms picking at the creature’s body with deliberate, careful movements.

All of a sudden the elusive shadows on its body sharpened and quickened, becoming dark circles that raced for a moment then snapped still. Rhe felt his breath catch as he saw the circles surge towards him, clustering in the nearest part of the demon’s back while the rest of its skin became as white as snow.

Gods above, they’re eyes !

The demon jerkily turned, the shadow-eyes staying focused on Rhe as the body moved around. Its face was blank, just scars where its eyes and mouth had once been – the nose a mere impression on its hairless, earless face. He took a slow pace forward, determined to buy a few moments and let the others line up a good shot. The demon ducked its head, eyes swirling off around its body to form new clusters as it caught sight of the other Lawbringers.

Rhe blinked and realised its long fingers had begun to twitch, white light starting to emanate from the thin digits. He wasted no time in wondering what was about to happen and levelled his pistol. The demon recoiled from the movement, eyes spinning around its body as the others did the same, but the light continued to grow so Rhe pulled the trigger.

The crack of his gun echoed around the square, his bullet snapping the demon’s head back. More shots followed his ; one caught it in the shoulder and the force twisted it around, another lower down and it faltered but remained standing.

As Rhe went for his other gun a second shot caught it in the head. This time there was a spray of something against the sky behind – grey, not red, but the demon reeled and he knew they’d hurt it.

More shots rang out, two in quick succession as the last two Investigators fired their pistols. Rhe advanced while the demon was distracted, closing the ground with his second gun ready. Less than ten yards from the demon, he stopped and aimed. The demon’s hands were now painfully bright to look at, haloed in the gloom by pure white light. Rhe lowered his gun a shade, aiming at the raised palm of the demon, and put a bullet right through its spindly hand. From somewhere there was a high sound of pain, near-inaudible to human ears, and the wound in its hand turned black. The light faltered, shadows seeming to fill the skin of its limbs as more bullets rocked its body backward.

Rhe charged, longsword drawn and ready to strike. The demon failed to notice him, so intent was it on the injury he’d done, but then his first blow sheared through the blackening limb. The demon screamed again, this time a sound so loud and high it felt like daggers in their ears. Rhe staggered sideways, clutching his head as the sound seemed to explode off the surrounding walls and strike him on all sides. His vision blurred and shuddered, his muscles suddenly turned to liquid inside him.

Rhe tumbled backwards as a white shape cut through the confusion and crashed down just in front of him. Finding his sword still in his hand Rhe slashed blindly, catching nothing. The movement seemed to return him to his senses, however ; the feel of swinging a sword was so ingrained in his body that from somewhere he found his composure return. Unable to see properly, guided by the light of its remaining hand, Rhe stepped away from a second swing and struck up at where its arm should be.

He caught it a glancing blow, but life-long training drove him on and he chopped down at the hand in the next instant. Something burst under the force of his blow and he twisted sideways as the light dimmed. The demon was ahead of him, bowed over the blackened ruins of its hands and he hacked down at the back of its neck. The blow sent it crashing to the floor – not severing the neck but enough to cripple the demon. Rhe stepped back, blinking away stars from his eyes as he heard the running footsteps of his colleagues close by.

He opened his mouth to shout an order but the words died unneeded in his throat – drowned out by the double-crack of pistol shots that burst the demon’s head apart.

Night had fallen by the time Law Master Sheven came to find Rhe at his station on the bank of the Crescent. Behind his grey beard, Sheven’s face was a mass of anxiety. Bows from the Investigators went unnoticed as he hurried up to Rhe, scimitar flapping on his hip.

‘Lawbringer – you’ve had a successful night ?’

Rhe did not respond for a moment, at last inclining his head. ‘We killed two ; reports from the other teams give us a total of five.’

‘But we have taken losses ?’ Sheven finished, seeing the grave expression on Rhe’s face.

‘At least six of ours dead – perhaps thirty civilians at the hands of the demons. I have no way of knowing how many have been killed accidentally, but I myself witnessed one instance.’

‘What did you do ?’

Rhe turned briefly towards where the flag-wielding novices would now be ready with torches in the darkness. ‘Nothing. It was unintentional and he was a House Wolf nobleman, they were a servant.’

Sheven ducked his head in acknowledgement. Putting anyone of the noble caste on charges was fraught with difficulties at the best of times, especially when the victim was low-born.

‘How fares the rest of the city ?’

Sheven’s shoulders sagged lower. ‘Chaos. The fever has been reported in every district of the city bar the Imperial Island itself.’

‘Deaths ?’

‘A handful only, but that will change.’

‘You are sure ?’

Sheven nodded. ‘The Emperor sent us his personal doctors to assess matters. Those who died today were the weakest, but the fevers are running hot. More will die in the night and it will continue that way.’

‘The cause ?’

‘They are still arguing that. It is not plague, no matter what the common folk say, but nor is it some simple fever. It is too swift for that ; too widespread over the course of a day. From what I’ve gathered they are leaning towards some sort of ill vapour rising up from the water in the night. The fear is that the breath of those stricken could infect everyone nearby. The doctors are frightened, truly fearful for what tomorrow may bring.’

‘They want us to quarantine the entire city ?’ Rhe asked. ‘Or perhaps close the bridges to the Imperial Island and pretend the Crescent isn’t easily crossed by boat ?’

‘They are frightened for the population ; there has been a suggestion of moving those who are ill into quarantine to protect the rest.’

Rhe frowned. ‘Moving them ? Where could possibly suit such a large number of ill people ? We would need an army of doctors.’

‘A suggestion has been made,’ Sheven said, distaste dripping from his words.

It didn’t take Rhe long to realise why. ‘The goshe,’ he said flatly. ‘They comprise the greater part of doctors in this city. They are the ones willing to care for the sick – and they are the ones with a leper colony and sanatorium five miles off-shore.’

Sheven growled some form of agreement. ‘One Imperial lady raised the idea with the Emperor at court – Princess Kerata. You’ve seen her before.’

‘The An-Goshe, she was part of their delegation. Meanwhile, our numbers are wholly occupied by this fever and the demons that accompany it. We are unable to pursue our investigation of the goshe, leaving this Father Jehq and his conspirators free.’

‘Don’t forget the favour they might win with the Emperor,’ Sheven added sourly.

‘The timing cannot be a coincidence, but leaving aside how they managed such a thing – to what purpose is this all ?’

‘Investigator Narin had not been able to discover that from the turncoat ?’

‘Narin !’ Rhe gasped. ‘You’ve not spoken to him yourself today ? Has there not been any word from him, from any of them ?’

Sheven shook his bald head. ‘None, nothing since they disappeared into Coldcliffs.’

Rhe nodded. ‘I suspect running to Lord Vanden Wyvern was always a feint for the sake of informers in our ranks.’
And given the girl’s story, the last thing we need is a fight on the streets of Dragon – magic-enhanced goshe being seen by an Astaren agent. This is a test of the Emperor’s law ; it does not need a bloodbath to match the Ebalee Trading Company.

‘I had still hoped to hear from Narin by now. This turncoat goshe might yet be able to provide us with something to unravel this mystery.’

‘I trust Narin,’ Rhe said plainly, ‘he will find us when he can.’
I may not trust the tattooist, but like as not he’ll see the other three safely through this.

‘And until then ?’ Sheven sounded like a tired old man for the first time Rhe could remember. ‘What is our plan ?’

‘The Emperor approves of this goshe suggestion ?’