The City of Towers: The Dreaming Dark - Book I (13 page)

“Your uncle, your decision.” Daine shrugged. “Jode, be ready to help her the instant she needs it.”

The halfling nodded.

Lei turned and bowed to the minotaur. It watched her, its inhuman expression impossible to read. Handing the darkwood staff to Pierce, Lei ran her fingers along the studs of her armor, murmuring quietly, then she produced a pinch of powdered stone from her pouch and rubbed it into the leather of her belt. Daine recognized the mystical significance of her actions, but he had no idea what enchantments she was weaving into her clothing.

After a few minutes, Lei’s preparations were complete. She turned and walked toward the minotaur, pausing at the bottom of the steps. She stood straight and tall, her arms at her sides, and took one slow, deep breath.

“I wish to talk to the wind,” she said.

The guardian nodded, then without warning he charged down the steps, a blur of black and gold.

Lei was no soldier. She had been assigned to Daine’s unit to care for the warforged. By the rules of war, she was a non-combatant, safe from the danger of battle so long as she posed no threat to anyone involved. Most artificers and magewrights had relied entirely on this pledge to serve as their shield, but Lei’s parents had not been so trusting. She was no warrior, but she’d been taught to defend herself with both magical and martial skill. To the others, the minotaur might be moving with blinding speed. But Lei had prepared for the fight, and to her enchanted eyes the beast was like a bull charging through three feet of mud. She barely moved, slipping just beyond his reach and turning as he rumbled past.

The minotaur turned to face her, and Lei raised her left hand. With a whispered word she activated the power stored within her glove, and a dark bolt lanced out to strike her foe. Shadows wreathed the minotaur, blue light tracing his muscles as the magic leached the energy from his sinews. But the minotaur was already in motion, and he slammed into Lei before she could slip out of the way. The golden studs of Lei’s armor flared with light, and a shimmering field of translucent energy deflected much of the raw force of the blow—but the sheer momentum of the attack threw her to the ground.

Lei cursed as she struggled to her feet. Never start a fight. Never draw a blade. Her parents had taught her defense, but the first principle of defense was to avoid the fight. Challenging a minotaur … what would her mother say to such foolishness?

She hadn’t hurt the minotaur, but she had weakened him, and he was acting with more caution. They circled for a moment, then Lei slipped forward and past him, coming up behind and planting a powerful kick where she thought his kidneys might be. But if the minotaur felt any pain, he didn’t show it, and Lei had left herself open with the attack. Grunting, the beast slapped her with a powerful backhand blow. Her enchanted armor kept her on her feet, but for a moment the world went black, and when her vision cleared a monstrous fist was flying toward her face. Calling on every ounce of will, Lei dropped beneath the blow and slipped forward. Bringing her right hand up against her opponent’s chest, she extended her mind, reaching into the glove and unlocking the power she’d bound within. The minotaur howled as a brilliant arc of electrical energy surged through his body. The beast dropped to his knees and offered no resistance as Lei put her foot to his throat and pushed him to the ground.

The smell of ozone and burned fur filled the air, and for a moment the only sound was the minotaur’s labored breathing. Finally, he opened his eyes and looked up at her.

“You may enter,” he said. There was a distinct
click
, and the door to the temple swung open a few inches.

“What of my friends?”

“You have earned … passage for all.”

Lei nodded. “Then let’s go.” She looked over at Daine, and surprise spread over her face. “Daine!”

He turned around. They had been so focused on the battle that they had not heard the others approach. Over a dozen men spread out behind them, wearing the green and black of the Sharn Watch. Daine hadn’t seen any watchmen during their earlier exploration of the district, and he had a sinking feeling this was no ordinary patrol. These men had the look of veteran soldiers, and the occasional spot of blood hinted at a recent clash with residents of the Gate. Four crossbows were
leveled in their direction. Four halberdiers moved into flanking positions, and the four closest men carried iron cudgels.

The sergeant leveled his sword at Daine and said, “Lay down your arms! By the authority of the Lord Mayor of Sharn, I hereby place you under arrest for the heinous crime of murder!”

Jode looked up at Daine. “Well, I guess no one caught him.”

D
aine studied the enemy and their surroundings, strategies flashing through his mind. None were good. The numbers were against them, Lei was unarmed, and all he had was his thrice-damned dagger. Even if they could fight, the guards were just doing their jobs, and resisting arrest would only make matters worse. For a moment Daine thought about running for the open door of the church, but they had no idea what was inside or any reason to believe they would be offered shelter against the law.

“Captain?” Pierce said quietly.

Daine knew that the ’forged could drop two of the archers in the first few seconds of battle. But it just wasn’t enough.

There were no real alternatives. Slowly, Daine set his dagger on the ground and gestured for the others to follow suit. Guards surrounded them and bound their wrists, and they were led out of the district.

The guards were silent and tense, and the halberdiers and archers kept their weapons at the ready, as if they expected an attack to come at any moment. Maybe they did. Goblins glared from the shadows, and an ogre sneered at the guardsmen, revealing filthy fangs. The Watch was not welcome in Malleon’s Gate, and only sheer numbers protected the patrol. Daine was impressed. Clearly this force had been dispatched to track them down and apprehend them only hours
after the guard’s death. Even in Metrol, Daine wouldn’t have expected such a swift response. And with Sharn’s sordid reputation, he had half-expected that the law wouldn’t even try to solve the crime—though the fact that the victim was a guardsman probably had a great deal to do with the speed of the response.

They made it out of Malleon’s Gate without incident, and the guards relaxed as they boarded a lift and rose up through the towers. Nothing could keep Jode quiet, and he’d managed to strike up a conversation with one of the guards as they were moving out of the district. Now that they were standing still, Daine picked up on the end of the conversation.

“… Carralag?” Jode said. “I’ve heard he’s got quite a few tricks tucked away.”

“He’s a
gargoyle,”
said his captor, a half-elf woman with short silvery hair and freckled cheeks. “It doesn’t matter how tricky he is, he just doesn’t have the wingspan to compete with a pegasus or hippogriff.”

“Daeras!
Don’t talk to the prisoners!” The sergeant was almost as large as Pierce, and Daine guessed that he owed his gray complexion and flat nose to orcish blood. The half-elf nodded sullenly and turned away from Jode.

“We’re going to Daggerwatch,” Jode whispered, sidling up to Daine. Daggerwatch was the garrison district Jode had mentioned earlier.

“Great. So while I’m being boiled in oil, why don’t you try to ask a few questions about Rasial.”

“What’s interesting is that the guard didn’t know anything about the nature of our crime. She knew that the charge was murder, but she was instructed to apprehend you and anyone you might be traveling with. Let’s face it: you’re the killer.”

“Thanks, Jode. Good to know you’re standing at my side. Besides which, you stabbed the woman.”

“And healed her,” Jode pointed out. “But don’t worry, I’m sure I can talk us through this. I was just thinking of Lei and Pierce. How could the Watch possibly hold them responsible?”

“Silence!”
The sergeant sent Jode sprawling with a kick. Daine gritted his teeth but stood his ground—the last time he’d fought
on a lift it had ended poorly, and the gray-skinned sergeant was looking for an excuse for further violence.

That excuse came from an unexpected quarter. As the sergeant turned toward Daine, there was a flash of movement. Lei’s foot caught the back of the half-orc’s knee and sent him sprawling to the ground. The guards knew nothing of the enchantments Lei had woven for her battle with the minotaur, and none were prepared for her blinding speed. She dove forward, stripped the rope from the hands of her captor, and rolled into a defensive crouch, raising her bound fists before her like a mace.

The sergeant rose to his feet and drew his blade. “I’ll have your foot for that, Mourner trash!”

“Try me, brute,” Lei hissed. “You saw that minotaur a minute ago? I did that with my bare hands. You touch my friends again and you’ll be kissing cobblestones before you can blink.”

The sergeant watched her through narrowed eyes, and Daine caught the hint of motion he made with his sword. The four archers readied themselves, moving along the perimeter and preparing to fire on a moment’s notice. Pierce caught Daine’s glance, and his thoughts were clear—for all her supernatural speed, Lei couldn’t fight the guards alone. Either they acted together, or—

“Lei, stand down,” Daine said firmly. “I’m the one you want here, grayskin. If you’re going to take your anger out on someone, deal with me.”

Lei remained in her crouch. Behind her, the archers were taking aim.

“Lei!”

Reluctantly, Lei lowered her arms. A guard took hold of her tether, but the others were taking no chances. Two of the archers kept their crossbows leveled at her back. The sergeant walked over, glared at Daine, then smashed him in the face with the pommel of his sword, knocking him to the ground. Glaring down, the half-orc spat at him and turned away. Slowly Daine rose to his feet and shuffled over towards Lei.

“I never thought you’d be the one to start a fight,” he muttered, testing his teeth with his tongue.

“I never thought you’d be the one to stop me,” she replied. He could see the anger in her eyes, but the archers still stood at the ready, fingers white on the stocks of their crossbows.

“I’ve fought too many fights that couldn’t be won. I’m proud of what you did—now and earlier—but it’s not the time. Let’s see where this takes us.”

She nodded, but she wouldn’t meet his gaze.

The lift came to a stop, and they were escorted through the streets of Daggerwatch. Every district seemed to have its own flavor, and Daggerwatch was no exception. It had the atmosphere of a vast fortress. The walls were reinforced to resist siege weaponry, and guardsmen filled the streets. Compared to the lower districts and even Den’iyas, the streets were remarkably quiet. People spoke in lowered voices, and even the merchants refrained from hawking their wares. A pair of hippogriffs wheeled overhead, and Daine could see soldiers riding the beasts. Once Rasial Tann had been up there.

“It’s quite clean, I’ll give it that,” Jode remarked. “I wonder who cleans up all the hippogriff shit.”

A guard shoved him with the butt of a halberd.

They passed a large open square, containing a circle of pillories. A group of criminals were on display, heads and hands pinned in the wooden restraints. A few spectators were throwing refuse at prisoners, but even this behavior seemed rather quiet and reserved compared to what Daine had come to expect.

Daggerwatch was home to the local military as well as the Sharn Watch. Occasionally squads of Brelish soldiers passed by, some marching in strict formation, others off-duty and drifting. Daine was still wearing his Cyran uniform, and he was greeted with sneers and the occasional thrown stone.

They reached their destination. Daggerwatch Garrison was an impressive sight. The stone walls were two feet thick, studded with arrow slits and murder holes, and Daine could see a few archers watching them as they approached. There were deep scars in a few spots along the wall, as if acid or fire
had eaten away at the rock—apparently the fortifications had been tested in the past. A massive stone hippogriff stood to either side of the gate, foreclaws raised and ready to strike. Daine wondered if the statues would come to life if there was an attack.

Entering the garrison, they were surrounded by even more guards. Steel manacles replaced their rope bonds—apparently the Sharn Watch was taking no chances.

The sergeant conferred with an administrator in black-and-green robes. The sergeant looked displeased with the news, but Daine couldn’t hear the conversation. Eventually, he returned and spoke quietly with his men. The sergeant nodded to Daine. The next thing he knew, there was a splitting pain in the back of his head and everything went black.