The Destroyer Book 3 (55 page)

Then he struck.

It was the same feeling I had with Fehalda, I couldn't move. I couldn't dodge, I felt the blow coming and then . . .

Then?

I'd seen thousands of my kin killed in battle. I helped clear their broken and soulless corpses from the fields of war. We could die. None of us were immortal.

Yet here I was. From what these Elvens and Kannath explained, it had been around five thousand years since I last battled the Elvens. I wasn't dead. Was it because I slept in the Radicle that time had no effect on me?

You'll be angry for what we have done to you, but we had no choice
.

Did my old generals try to kill me and fail? Maybe they captured me and couldn't bring themselves to end my life, instead choosing to exile me through the Radicle to some world that they thought no one would ever visit. But then why had I slept for so long? How did Nadea and Paug awaken me?

I had asked these questions before, but the only answers came through my strange flashbacks. Each one pulled me into my past, offering me insight at the same time that they created more questions. It was frustrating, but I had plenty to do in this time and I had to keep my focus here.

Something about Fehalda deeply disturbed me and I could not puzzle out what it was. I had the same sensation as trying to remember a forgotten name. The answer was shallowly buried, but I had yet to find the right place to dig.

The road had been moving up the sloped hill of a valley. These were wide, rutted out switchbacks surrounded by cactus and rosemary bushes. I recalled descending the climb with Kannath and his two guards many nights ago. I figured that we were probably sixty miles northeast of Nia now since it had taken us a few days to reach the camp where Jessmei and Beltor were being held. When I crested the small mountain I glanced off into the distance. The night had descended into darkness lit by one of the two moons and the sea of stars. Despite the darkness, my eyes saw the faint outline of distant campfires coming from the capital. The trail wound and dipped like a river through half a dozen other shallow valleys. But I was unable to see light from another campsite fire between me and the city. Either Fehalda's warriors did not make a campfire for the night, or they had pressed on to the Elven army without stopping.

Or they were already at the castle.

The road forked and I took the south route toward the castle. The path became less dirt and mud and more gravel poured over hard packed sand. I was thankful for the change since it allowed me to run faster. I passed by more farms and estates with vineyards covering the hills behind the grand villas. When I followed Jessmei's kidnappers, we took a different route north, more inland, and while I chased them through many farmlands, I had not seen such massive and elaborate looking homes. It must be that the countryside some sixty miles closer to the coast was better for wine.

I ran for another hour and a half before I slowed my sprint. I had not come across Fehalda's assassins and I was within ten miles of the capital. The roads were now cobblestone and the homes were more frequent. It was possible that my quarry took a different route, but a quick inhale brought me the lingering scent of Elvens, horses, and Jessmei. Her scent was very faded, so I guessed I was six or more hours behind her.

They had probably already reached the castle.

I cursed my luck and pushed onward, slowing my run to a normal human pace so as to not cause too much attention to myself. Or, at least as much attention as someone jogging at midnight with an axe and a quiver of arrows tied to their back would draw. I crested one of the last sloping hills before the bowled valley surrounding the capital.

Nia.

I had already been within the borders of the city for the last few miles, but it wasn't until a traveler got within sight of the castle that the enormity of the land became apparent. The Stone River ran like a small ink scratch east to west and fed into the coiled maze of the city. The walls were higher than eighty feet, half that distance thick, and would probably never fall to an army that didn't possess magic. Within the walls homes, businesses, streets, and parks fought an endless struggle for dominance. Roads twisted and turned as if they were alive. If a structure met too much opposition on its sides, it rose up into the sky to mock those who had tried to crowd it.

But neither the walls nor any tower in the city rose as high as the castle. It sat like a fat black spider in the center of the web-like streets. The fortress must have been over two hundred feet tall, with smooth sloped walls, towers that extended as legs, and hundreds of windows that gave the impression of glowing eyes against the night sky. It was beautiful and menacing at the same time.

Looking at it again made me wonder if humans had actually built the palace. The stonework of the castle wasn't the same odd greenish metal material that graced the walls of the Radicle, but the fortress seemed to be impossibly tall and alien when compared to the other crafted dwellings of the city. Even Brilla’s brilliant blue capital had nothing that came close in grandeur to the castle of Nia. I also doubted Elvens had built it. From what I understood from various conversations with Isslata, Alatorict, Vernine, and Telaxthe, Elvens had never been to this world.

But they sure as hell were here now.

The tents from the Elven army surrounded the outside of the wall like too many grains of rice on a dark wooden table, but there weren't as many fires as I thought should have been lit. The gate into the city was open but glowed brightly under the mantle of enough wall braziers to melt the stone of the wall. Although I was about three miles away I could still count twenty Elvens plus half a dozen human guards inspecting another group of a hundred or so soldiers. The situation seemed odd until I recognized one of the soldiers being inspected.

Danor.

"Fuck!" I cursed again and did mathematics in my head. I had been a day or two off in my plan. Nadea was already here. She must have been notified of Brilla's political shift a few days after Isslata had captured me and made her way north with the army. I needed speak with Danor and find out exactly where Nadea was. If she hadn't met with the empress I would still have leverage.

The conversation with Telaxthe in her pavilion had not gone quite as I expected. She wanted to see her daughter, but she asked no questions as to her health or wellbeing. I wouldn't have answered if she had, but her detachment made me think that she saw her half-human child as a tool instead of an offspring. Perhaps this was how all Elvens viewed their children. It was possible that if Nadea and the empress met they could work out their disagreements. Perhaps Telaxthe would throw her arms around the duchess, overjoyed to be reunited with her long lost daughter. Nadea would be able to negotiate a surrender or removal of the Elven forces. Or maybe because of their kinship our two races really could coexist in peace. I suspected the empress would be more interested in manipulating Nadea to her own ends. She wanted her army in Nia for some reason.

Did her reason have something to do with the castle? The thought struck me suddenly and for a few seconds I forgot about trying to speak with Danor. The story they had fed me was that Nia was the most prosperous of countries, with perfect vineyards, endless ranch land, and easy borders to defend. But I sensed that was bullshit.

She needed the ruins beneath the castle.

Danor looked to be arguing with one of the Elven guards. They stood too far away for me to hear but I could tell that their troops were being denied entry into the city. There were tents on either side of the main road and various Elvens walking or riding between me and the gates, even at this late hour.

I debated jogging the rest of the way down the road but didn't know if it was worth the risk. The last time I entered the gates, the guards did little more than nod at me. But I had concealed my weapons in my travel bag and a river of refugees coming and going from the city helped obscure me. Now that the empress was here, it appeared that the Elvens were being more vigilant about protecting their new city. I suspected that I would be stopped and questioned before I even made it to Danor. But if Nadea's troops were allowed to enter the gates, I could lose Danor in the streets and would never get any answers.

I started to jog down the hill.

Paug had told me that no one was allowed to build or own the property for a mile radius around the walls of the city. The boy said it was to make sure that an attacking army did not have easy access to timber, food, and archer cover. I wasn't thankful for the law now; since it meant that I jogged across the open road surrounded by Elven tents, and no cover. At least if I was called out I would run through the encampment and cause some hilarious confusion before I would be killed.

I passed a group of Elvens sitting at their campsite playing a dice game next to the fire. They looked up from the game and eyed me suspiciously. I noticed their uniforms were blue with white threading and guessed that meant they were part of Jayita's army. I kept jogging past them and hoped they stuck to their game.

The tents grew more dense a mile from the gates and I decided to slow down to a walk as I passed another group of Elvens going northward on the road. There were two women and four men, all clothed in brown leather armor with red circles etched on silk cloth that hung from their shoulders. I moved to the edge of the road to let them pass.

"Good evening," I said with a slight smile to a male that looked at me.

"Get to a medic, human." He seemed disgusted and I nodded in agreement before I turned my back to them and continued my walk. It was a strange response, but I did reek of blood, and the Elven sense of smell was stronger than a human’s.

I passed a dozen more Elvens that gave me little notice. In fact, the closer I got to the gate, the less suspicious the looks seemed to be. They probably thought that since I had passed other Elven soldiers and not been stopped I must have a purpose here that was approved by someone of authority. Each step drew me closer to the gate and I almost doubted that I would make it the last hundred yards. Then I stood at the back of Danor's group of warriors and shouldered my way through them to where the knight captain argued with the Elvens.

"My orders were to enter the city and wait for the duchess. I don't care what you say."

"You'll care what I say when we butcher you and your little soldiers and send your heads back to your army for consideration." The guard arguing with Danor was a male and dressed in Alatorict's gold uniform.

I put my hand on Danor's shoulder and interrupted the man's reply. He turned his head around with a frown but when he saw me his face changed to shock.

"Kaiyer!" He smiled and grabbed my shoulders. Then his face grew worried. "By the Spirits friend, are you hurt?" His eyes went to my chest.

"No I'm fine. Where is Nadea? How long have you been here?"

"She was escorted into the city shortly before sunset. Greykin and Runir are with her. She asked me to bring a small attachment of troops into the castle walls if she did not return by midnight. Their general," he pointed back at the Elvens, "gave us permission to enter."

"I was not notified of that," the Elven sneered. "You should leave now. I've grown tired of arguing with you."

"Where is the rest of the army?" I pulled Danor's shoulder so that he turned to face me instead of the Elven. One of them could kill three of Danor's men easily and he was dangerously close to escalating the situation.

"We are on the south fields."

"Let's go back. Nothing can be accomplished at the gate."

"What name did he call you, human?" the guard asked me and I realized that Danor used my name.

"Doesn't matter. Sorry for bothering you. We'll return for the duchess another time." I gave Danor a look that communicated the seriousness of our situation and he nodded.

"Back to the camp!" he ordered the sergeant standing next to him, who promptly shouted out the orders. The warriors turned and slid south along the wall, rounding its curve but leaving plenty of space between us and the Elven tents.

"I thought you'd be dead, my friend," he said once we could no longer see the gate guards.

"I'm hard to kill."

"You practically look dead. Please tell me that is someone else's blood on your tunic?" he squinted in the torch light and pointed a finger at my collarbone.

I looked down and realized that the blood I had smelled was coming from the green shirt I wore. The collar, top of the sleeves, and half of the chest were stained dark red.

"It smells like mine, but I am fine. Do not worry." He nodded and gestured to their campsite. There were a few thousand tents organized in a neat grid on the south side of the wall. Each tent flew a purple Nia flag along with a small source of light nearby, either a campfire or a lantern. The humans needed much more light in their camp than the Elvens did.

"When did Greykin find you?"

"The army had marched up the coast. He sailed on a boat with the queen and they flagged us."

"How did they get separated from Beltor and Jessmei?"

"I'll tell you that tale, but first let me take you to my tent. Get you a bath and a change of clothes."

"Yes to the change of clothes, but take me to the command tent first." He hesitated and then nodded before he issued orders to have the men disperse through the camp.