The Complete Twilight Reign Ebook Collection (373 page)

Tiniq sneered, ‘And to think the Gods placed you above my brother. There’s no name for what I am. I was infected by the vampire blood, but sharing a womb with one touched by the Gods. For years I fought the thirst, knowing my own people would kill me if they ever discovered the truth.’

‘Until the shadows spoke to him,’ Ruhen added, delight in his voice as he savoured the words and his own triumph. ‘Until I gave him the strength to survive its growing call – to become more than a man in hiding from his own nature.’

‘What are you going to offer me, then?’ Isak said, weakly pushing himself back to his knees.

‘Offer?’ Ruhen cocked his head to one side. ‘Why should I do that?’

Isak tried to smile as he gestured to the black hand bound tight to his chest. ‘Got anyone else who can hold this? You reckon your pet Jester could stand it?’

Ruhen turned and looked around Ilumene at the tall, grey-skinned Demi-God not far behind. ‘Koteer? I think he might, yes: a son of Death with Ruling in his hand and Aenaris nearby – yes, if you forced my hand, I think he would.’

‘But would you trust the bastard to follow orders?’

If Isak stirred anything up, he couldn’t see it. Koteer remained impassive, and Ruhen was more amused than anything else.

‘Trust? Koteer’s brothers have died for the cause. Loyalty like that buys everything they were promised and more.’ Ruhen looked past Isak. ‘But I don’t think you will press the matter. Your friends might yet break through to meet you. It would be a shame if Ilumene had already taken your head before Emin manage to conjure something.’

‘We wouldn’t want them to be disheartened now,’ Ilumene agreed. ‘They might give up and leave us to it.’

‘You don’t want that?’ Isak coughed.

‘Of course not,’ said Ruhen. ‘The greatest magic is always consecrated by blood, after all, and the presence of power is almost as important. I don’t need your cooperation, you see, just your presence. With a majority of Skulls and the rest nearby, magnifying the presence of Demi-Gods and Mortal-Aspects …’ The boy laughed. ‘It will be more than enough; you overestimate any resistance the Gods are likely to mount.’

Isak had nothing to say. Under the assault from Termin Mystt and Ruhen’s carelessly spoken words, he felt enfeebled. He found himself unable to move from his position of subjugation, kneeling, head bowed, before the shadow eye of Ruhen.

‘Ilumene, set your pieces,’ Ruhen said to the former King’s Man, and Ilumene nodded and beckoned forward a white-eye in bright robes and a Farlan man Isak hadn’t noticed before. The former had to be Lord Larim, the Menin mage who was Larat’s Chosen – they hadn’t found his body at Moorview, and no one had dared to hope the man would be dead. The sickly-looking Farlan had dark circles around his eyes and gaunt cheeks. The armour he wore was that of a general of the Knights of the Temples and Isak realised belatedly this had to be Knight-Cardinal Certinse, the last living member of that troublesome family.

‘Definitely going to make sure I kill you,’ Isak declared in a heavy, slurring voice. ‘Get myself the full family set.’

If the Knight-Cardinal reacted, Isak didn’t see, for Tiniq struck him on the back of the head and sent him sprawling to the ground, pink and black stars bursting before his eyes.

‘Close order infantry on both hills, archers behind and space for the cavalry to descend. Give them leave to range around the rear of the hill. I doubt an attack’ll come there, but we still need to watch for troops like the Legion. What we can offer Emin is the lower rise – this flank’s the best one to attack but it leaves them badly open. Larim, you’re the heart of the defence,’ Ilumene began in a business-like voice. ‘Yours will be the only Skull outside the barrow.’

‘What? The rest are going in with you?’ Certinse blurted out.

Ilumene nodded. ‘Six Skulls and Aenaris are what the master needs, so you’ll make do with what you’ve got: seventy thousand troops to stop them taking one fucking hill, so don’t whine.’

‘Seventy thousand closely packed soldiers facing five Crystal Skulls amongst Narkang and Tirah’s élite?’ the man protested. ‘It’ll be a slaughter – how long do you expect us to last?’

‘Long enough. Don’t worry; we’ve a few cards still to play.’

‘Those damned fanatics? Last I heard you’d poisoned them all; they’re just lying on the hillside like they’re bloody dead.’

‘They’re resting – conserving their strength,’ Ilumene assured him as Larim gave the Farlan a reptilian smile. ‘Most of ’em anyways. Probably.’

‘Unarmed and too ill to move, if they’re not already dead!’

Ilumene draped a comradely arm around Certinse’s shoulders and the slender man shrank under the touch. ‘Haven’t you learned to trust me by now? They’ll give a good account o’ themselves, and they’re not the only tricks our friend has up those big sleeves of his.’

Larim who bowed his head to acknowledge Ilumene’s words; a strange gesture of deference given the reputation of the Chosen of Larat, Isak thought. But then he remembered what Doranei and King Emin had told him about Ilumene – if anyone was to command the respect of savage and callous men, it was him.

‘Don’t bring them in too early,’ Ilumene added for Larim’s benefit. ‘Feel free to tire their mages first. Blood must be spilled this day, the blood of thousands – our ritual demands it.’

‘And if they do manage a breach?’

‘Then they’ll be vulnerable to your surprises, but don’t let it get to that. Our positions are fortified, our troops disciplined. The Knight-Cardinal and his generals know their trade well enough; soften them up as they approach, outflank them with cavalry and let them exhaust themselves on the shield-wall.’

‘It’s the Legion of the Damned I’m more concerned with,’ Certinse said in a subdued voice. ‘They can break the line and open us up.’

‘So you find ’em, Larim, and you break ’em,’ Ilumene declared. ‘They’re not invulnerable and they’ll be at the heart of Emin’s assault. The Knight-Cardinal’s right, the Legion is their greatest weapon – but how many do they number now? Five hundred? They can’t recruit, and every skirmish with General Vener’s troops has reduced their numbers. You direct your magic there and use Vorizh – his presence with those wyverns will counter their impact.’

‘Questions?’ Ruhen asked, prompting all three men to turn and shake their heads. ‘Excellent, then we will delay no longer. Venn, Koteer: summon your troops. It’s not that I lack faith in the Knight-Cardinal’s abilities, but if King Emin does break through we will be fighting in near darkness.’

Ilumene came towards Isak and before the white-eye had managed to focus on him properly, the man had slipped a leather noose around his neck and yanked it tight.

‘Come my little pet,’ Ruhen said with delight as Ilumene dragged Isak stumbling forward on hand and knees. ‘It is time we went to meet our Gods.’

Standing high in his stirrups, King Emin cast around to check the army was ready. It was an impressive sight by most standards, but nagging doubts still lingered. The bulk of the army was infantry, arrayed in two lines on each side of him and angled like a flattened V, since they would be charging an enemy set at an angle. At the centre of the army was an arrowhead of heavy cavalry, serving as the hinge between their forces, Kingsguard and Palace Guard, with the remaining Ghosts on foot behind, alongside the Legion of the Damned.

Between the three sets of troops were gaps of fifty yards, space enough for the cavalry to manoeuvre or the advance units of skirmishers and light cavalry to retreat. They had already engaged with the Devoted’s ranging cavalry, but neither side was keen to get embroiled in a standing fight and it had been short-lived.

On his right were the four heavy infantry legions of the Kingsguard and the same number of Menin, while the left flank was headed by the mercenary legions and the battle-clans of Canar Fell. Behind both were the Narkang regular spearmen, and cavalry and archers ranged on both flanks. Emin had ordered there be no reserve at all, unable to contemplate retreat or even a protracted battle.

‘Endine, is Nai ready to provide our decoy?’

‘He is, your Majesty. The battle mages know to wait for him to act first. Wentersorn and Morghien are ready too.’

The king took one last look around at the men and woman riding at his side. Count Vesna shone darkly at the head of the Ghosts; Legana was a gleaming emerald thorn amidst her spear-bearing sisters. Doranei and Veil clapped each other on the shoulder and Daken snarled with barely restrained blood-rage, already sinking into the white-eye battle-fury. Carel, a still, silent figure behind him with his face hidden by his helm, was steeling himself for the slaughter to come.

‘Brothers!’ King Emin called, drawing his sword and holding it high for as many as possible to see. ‘Our time has come – our place in history is at hand!’

There was a roar from the soldiers around him, one that was taken up by the savage battle-clans before the rest joined in. Soon even the fanatical Menin added their voices and the air shook with murderous intent.

With Endine’s assistance Emin continued, this time with a voice that echoed like thunder down the assembled ranks. ‘My brothers: the enemy lies before us, the enemy of the Gods themselves! There can be no retreat, no respite or surrender. Here is our moment. This day we determine the future of the Land itself! The songs of heroes will bear your names, each and every one of you fêted by the Gods themselves.

‘We go to fight, we go to die. This nameless place shall forever be remembered by those who speak of glory. Your names, your legions, will be whispered with reverence by all peoples to come. This is our war – this is our purpose. Come, my brothers – the Gods await us!’

To remind them of Moorview, he removed his feathered hat and tossed it forward to resounding cheers up and down the line. In its place went an engraved golden helm, a band of black-iron lattice-like bee wings covering his eyes and nose. A second cheer rose up as the symbol of their king and greatest of the Gods shone in the pale light.

Emin lowered his sword and there was a renewed bellow from the thousands at his side as they started off towards the enemy, legion after legion marching in unison, the glaives of the Ghosts and halberds of the Kingsguard ready to chop a path through the Devoted. The word had been spread through the officers and sergeants; every man knew his place that day. Not a step backwards would be considered.

Alongside allies whose legend spanned the West, alongside the hated Menin who would never show weakness, the soldiers of Narkang and the Three Kingdoms roared their defiance.

‘Thank you, my friends,’ the king said to those around him, the clamour almost drowning out his words. ‘It has been an honour.’

Before anyone could respond Count Vesna roared out the first line of the Farlan battle-hymn and the sky erupted into sound once more.

Ruhen led his small party to the entrance to the barrow – the place of power to where his shadow soul had once led Aryn Bwr. There the Crystal Skulls had been unearthed, their place in the Land’s fabric revealed and subverted. Isak managed one brief glance back at the Narkang army advancing over the plain and felt a shudder of fear for them. There were thousands of Devoted massed on the hill’s slopes, divisions of archers perched in inaccessible parts, and lines of heavy infantry blocking all the routes to the summit.

The lower rise was similarly covered in troops, serried ranks of infantry on its lower slopes, with channels for the cavalry to surge down. He couldn’t see the fanatical mob of Ruhen’s Children, but something told him the talk of a blood sacrifice was not just some idle reference to battle.

As devoted as they might be, Ruhen’s Children were unarmed and sickly, from what their scryers could discern. Their lord might simply have them driven into a cavalry charge to be obliterated, and the attackers would have no option, no matter how horrific the act.

‘Come on, puppy,’ Ilumene said, yanking Isak’s leash and dragging him to his knees once more. ‘Heel.’

Tiniq gave him no time to rest, kicking Isak’s buttocks and causing the white-eye to cry out in pain, but somehow the survival instinct inside him drove him onwards. The chain binding his chest grew heavier with every step. A whimper of fear crept through Isak’s lips as he took the first step down the wide entrance, set between the two enormous carved stones each more than sixty feet high. His skin crawled under the chain’s touch, and as memories of the Dark Place gripped his mind, suddenly it burned and tore at his skin. It was only the pressure Tiniq maintained on the chain that kept the shuddering white-eye from pitching forward down the steps.

As the darkness surrounded him Isak’s stomach heaved and he bent over; puke dribbling over his lips and piss darkening his trousers.

‘Don’t bring back good memories, eh?’ Ilumene cackled, dragging Isak forward once more.

Isak slipped and fell, moaning and shaking uncontrollably as the scars on his body burned as they had in Ghenna itself. Again he was beaten upright; again his deep instincts drove him onwards. He heaved desperately at the silver chain, but it was imbued with magic stronger than even one of the Chosen. He wrenched round, trying to dislodge it, but more violence brought him back to his knees and he realised the links were bound together behind his shoulder.

Ilumene stopped and smashed a steel covered knee up into Isak’s face, breaking his misshapen nose again and snapping his head backwards in a burst of pain and blood. ‘Do what you’re fucking told,’ he growled at Isak, and when Isak tried to reach out with his free hand, he punched it away, then whipped out a dagger and sliced deep into the muscle of Isak’s forearm as punishment.

‘Listen to me, white-eye,’ he continued, ‘you remember this pain? You remember what the daemons did to you? Aye, you feel it in your bones: you’re crippled by the memories. Well, here’s your one chance; keep quiet and don’t cause us trouble and you’ll not go back there. Hear me? A free pass, like all the Chosen – but don’t you dare fucking cross me! Any trouble, any delaying tactics, any attempts on any of us, and you’ll not even see the slope of Ghain.

‘You’ve fallen that way once before and it’ll be damn easy to send you straight into Ghenna a second time. There’ll be no escaping again. This place is halfway to the other lands. The flames of Maram light its heart, so Ruhen tells me, and I’ll gladly toss you in if you cause any trouble, so here’s your last chance: behave, or burn until the end o’ days in the darkest place.’