The Quarrygate Gambit, page 28
“We need to—”
“You need to stay out of my business,” Sholiar said from the shadows. “But since you’ve decided to involve yourselves, I will make you my business.”
A whistling noise cut through the air, and as quick as Asti could see, Almer and Hoskins had become ensnared in cables. Kat’rick had only avoided that fate by a quick slice of her blade.
“Come on,” Asti said, pulling Tharek to his feet. The man was actually trembling. “Get them out.”
“Run!” Grieson said. “Just all of you—”
“Oh, they’ll run,” Sholiar said. “I’m very interested to see how motivated they can be. Very interested indeed.”
Another whistle cut, and a net whipped over Grieson, pinning him to the ground.
Each of those attacks had come from a different place. Sholiar moving through the darkness, in an arc around the room. Asti drew another knife and threw nearly blindly.
“So let’s—ah!”
Struck true, thank Saint Senea.
“Now I have you,” Asti said, and he spotted the silhouette of the man near the warehouse doors.
“Do you?” That came from Sholiar and Liora at once, and her sudden appearance made Asti stumble when he had intended to charge.
That stumble cost him a second, and in that second, something else wrapped around Yendick, and extinguishing his light. The darkness only lasted for a moment, as the warehouse doors flew open, sunlight pouring in.
A team of horses were right outside, and the man by the door—Sholiar, surely—stood in shadow with a manic grin across his pale, wild face.
A rope was tied to the horses’ yoke, the other end of which was wrapped around Yendick.
“Now I’m afraid I must run,” Sholiar said. “But I suspect, so do you.”
He leaped from his spot on the ground onto one horse, and that was all it needed to take off like a shot. The horses raced down the road, and Yendick was yanked away and dragged along with them.
Immediately, Asti felt the distance between him and Yendick burn in his skull.
“Go, run!” he told the others. They needed no prodding. Kat’rick had cut Almer and Hoskins free, and Tharek was already charging down after Yendick like a mad bull. The others were right behind.
The pounding in Asti’s skull was becoming more than he could bear. He tossed a knife to Grieson, still struggling under the net. He didn’t have much time, but he had to make one thing clear as he started to run.
“Get me Verci!” he shouted to Grieson as he chased after the rest. “I can’t do this without him!”
* * *
His head pounding, burning, Asti ran like all the sinners in the canon were at his heels. Maybe they were, that was how it felt.
Asti couldn’t see Yendick, but he could feel him, in the back of his skull, he knew where the man was, being dragged by horses at a near gallop. His body getting knocked and cut and bruised.
He could see the group, running as hard as they could to keep up. Tharek at the front, muscles pounding like a race horse. If anyone could catch the ones pulling Yendick, it was him. Kat’rick was right on his heels, endurance making up what she lacked in speed. He could feel Tharek forcing his way through the pain, but Kat’rick wasn’t even close to buckling.
Almer and Hoskins, though, their lungs were on fire. They were losing ground as they stumbled in their run. Asti caught up just as Almer was about to drop.
“Got you,” he said as he grabbed him, keeping him on his feet.
“I can’t . . .” Almer wheezed.
“You’re not dying on me today,” Asti said. He couldn’t carry the man, not and still keep pace, but he could keep him from falling over as he found his feet.
“Come on!” Hoskins yelled, his face red as he gasped for breath. He tripped and started to fall, but Kat’rick was right there, catching him before he did. She scooped him over her shoulder and spun around, reclaiming her pace without losing a beat.
Then there was a shift in the sensation, an easing of the throbbing pain in the back of Asti’s skull. Pain still radiated from Yendick, but he was alive, Asti could feel it.
Tharek was stopped a bit ahead, leaning against the wall in an alley and catching his breath, and Asti forced himself to push ahead to get up to him, letting the others come at their own pace. The immediate danger had passed, now they needed to assess the situation.
“Where?” he asked Tharek as he approached.
“That one,” Tharek said, pointing out of the alley down the street to the near-empty square. Across the other side of the square, another old factory, one that looked like it had been shut down for some time, but definitely not abandoned or unoccupied. Even in the daylight, they could see lamplight in the window, flickers of movement. Plus four or five bruisers standing around the front door.
“So that’s the trap,” Asti said.
“We need to strike,” Tharek said. “We can carve though those fellows at the door.”
“Ones at the door, sure,” Asti said. “But what’s beyond the door?”
“Yendick,” Tharek said. “As much as I loathe to say it, liberating him is our paramount concern.”
“He’s definitely in there?” Almer asked, as the rest caught up.
“Since the horses went in the front door, he doesn’t seem to have moved too far,” Tharek said. “You can feel that?”
“I can,” Asti said. Not that he could sense exactly where Yendick was, but if he had kept moving, that burning, pounding sense of imminent death would be in the back of his skull.
Yendick was in pain, though, and terrified. Asti realized the man must have been shielding his own feelings from the rest of them all this time, because now those emotions and sensations were coming in strong.
“That is definitely a problem,” Liora said, manifesting next to Asti.
“Who is she, now?” Kat’rick asked, pointing right to her.
“A symptom of my broken mind,” Asti said. “Try to ignore her.”
“Oh, I finally get to be heard, there will be no ignoring,” Liora said. “And you all have a serious problem here, you need to listen to anyone with a good idea.”
“Is she real?” Hoskins asked, trying to touch her form.
“There is a real woman, his old partner,” Almer said. “A right miserable woman who betrayed him.”
“Did I betray him?” Liora asked. “Or did I sacrifice him for a greater cause?”
“Shut it, we don’t need you.”
“We need to tear through those guards, kick the doors open and get our man out of there,” Tharek said.
“Not the best plan,” Asti said. “And you know that.”
“That Sholiar fellow is going to do saints-only-know to Yendick,” Tharek said. “We don’t have time to waste.”
“That’s Sholiar’s place. We already fell right into his trap.”
“No, we—”
“He came at us, chose a fight, and was ready to take Yendick and drag him to precisely here,” Asti said. “And we saw what he had set up at the temple. Don’t doubt, this place is ready for us. We need to scout it, and wait.”
“Wait for what?” Kat’rick asked.
Liora gave a sly smile. “His brother.”
“Your brother?” Tharek asked. “Why would we—”
“Grieson has him at the prison,” Asti said. “He put me on this mission because he thought it was Crenaxin he was trying to catch, he thought my mind would be able to handle it. For this Sholiar fellow, we need my brother.”
“Why?” Hoskins asked.
“Sholiar makes machines, traps, and death devices. Put one in the Parliament floor—”
“Really?” Tharek asked. “Have to respect that.”
“Which Verci was able to disarm. Same with another trap—a death jacket—that Sholiar had put a young woman into. If anyone can get us in there safely, get us through Sholiar’s genius, it’s Verci.”
Tharek, Kat’rick, and Hoskins all scowled, and looked to Almer. “You know this brother?” Tharek asked.
“I do,” Almer said. “And Asti’s right about him. But we may not have that kind of time.”
“Why do you—oh”
Asti could feel it—they all did. Something had shifted in the sensations from Yendick. Not quite pain, but discomfort, building pressure.
“Sholiar’s put him in one of his machines,” Asti said.
“It’s going to kill him,” Kat’rick said. “We have to move.”
“Wait,” Asti said, having a revelation. “Scander, the other fellow. They had fresh wounds. Is it . . . is it possible?”
Tharek caught on. “This Sholiar caught them, put them in a machine, and the experience was somehow . . . revelatory?”
“A religious experience even,” Asti said. “Being part of . . .”
“Sholiar’s symphony,” Liora finished.
“So maybe Yendick will survive this,” Hoskins said.
“Survive but converted to that zealotry is very bad,” Kat’rick said. “Especially with all our fates so tied to his.”
“We need to go in there,” Tharek said. “Pull him out, and be done with this madness.”
“I agree,” Asti said. “But we can’t be foolish. We need to do this smart, and do it together.”
“I don’t need to listen to you,” Tharek said. “Or that lady in your head.”
“No,” Asti said. “But I need you, Tharek. We’re all stuck together, and we can’t do this without each other.”
“He’s right,” Kat’rick said.
Tharek growled and said, “Fine. What do you suggest?”
“Hoskins?” Asti asked. “Can you get your friends inside to scout?”
“I’ll see if I can get any squirrels to listen to me,” he said as he closed his eyes. “But I don’t know if they will.”
“Whatever you can do,” Asti said. “We need to know what’s going on in there, and then have a plan to strike hard and quick, pull Yendick out, and get back to Grieson.”
“Grieson?” Tharek asked.
“We need to be disconnected, and Yendick will only do that for Grieson. It’s our only chance to be free of each other.”
“All the sooner, all the better,” Tharek said. “Where are your squirrels, man?”
“On it,” Hoskins said, as a pair of gray squirrels went chittering past the alley. “Let’s see what we can do in there.”
Asti nodded, giving a little prayer that he hoped whatever they could do, it would be enough.
Chapter 27
THE FIVE OF THEM HUDDLING in the alley should have drawn all of the wrong kind of attention, but this part of town seemed to have no Constabulary presence. Nothing worth policing here, most likely. The heavies outside the factory door were clearly there as bait—no one was patrolling or even making an attempt to do anything beyond stand at the door and look intimidating.
Sholiar knew they were watching. He wanted them to come.
And they blazing well had to, which was the last thing Asti wanted to do.
The circumstances were terrible, so at the very least they could scout the mission, determine their assets, have a plan. Thank whatever saint was watching over them that they had still been dressed and ready for action when they woke up, and didn’t have to chase after Sholiar unarmed.
Assets: Asti had several blades, and no injury that was limiting or debilitating. He was as close to fighting peak as he could hope to be. His head was as clear as he could hope, though Liora had made herself an active presence that he couldn’t shut down. The beast stayed on its chain. It wasn’t even fighting right now. Perhaps Almer’s concoction held it at bay better than Liora.
Almer wasn’t in good shape, certainly not ready to fight. No weapons, but he did have several chemicals in the pouches on his belt. A few smoke shots, one explosive boom, and a few vials of acid.
Tharek was hurt, even if he wouldn’t admit it. But an injured Tharek was likely worth more than almost any other warrior. He had his sword and a few knives.
Kat’rick had her blade, which could deal some serious damage. Any plan Asti came up with would need to involve Tharek and Kat’rick as pure force, which they could definitely deliver.
Hoskins was an asset Asti couldn’t fully figure out. His thing with the squirrels, Asti couldn’t deny that was useful. He was counting on learning of what was going on inside from the man. But his instinct told him Hoskins wasn’t reliable, something was off there. Asti couldn’t put his finger on why he felt it, but he suspected the man was holding back.
Asti had climbed up to the top of the building they had been hiding behind, to get a better look at the factory. Wide open area all around it, no easy way to sneak up. And other than the front doors and window, everything else boarded up.
This was very much a trap, and they were going to have to walk in.
He came back down to the group, who were all looking impatient.
“Can you feel it?” Kat’rick asked. “Yendick is about to crack. Either his will, or just plain in half. I don’t want to know what’ll happen to us if he does.”
“We can’t wait,” Tharek said.
“They’re right,” Liora said slyly. “You know you can’t hold out for Verci to come rescue you.”
“I don’t think they’re coming,” Almer said. “Could Grieson even find us?”
“Grieson can definitely find us,” Asti said. “If nothing else, believe that.”
“But he might have just written us off,” Tharek said. “He looked terrified when he realized it was this Sholiar fellow.”
“With good reason,” Asti said. “Fine, Hoskins, what do we know?”
“There’s a large work floor with a lot of . . . I’m presuming torture devices. Squirrels said ‘metal beasts.’ But there’s not a clear route to that work floor.”
“How did the squirrels get there?”
“Crawlspaces and rafters, nothing we could move through. They say there’s a lot of doors, and lot of walls.”
“Can they lead us there once inside?”
Hoskins shrugged. “They can try.”
“No time to waste, Asti,” Liora said.
“Must she?” Tharek asked.
“Not my choice.”
“Keep her in check,” Tharek said. “We need to strike.”
“Right,” Asti said. “All right, we’re going to move in hard and clean. I’ll take center, Tharek on my left, Kat’rick on my right. You two neutralize those guards quick and hard. I get the door open, deal with any immediate threat from inside. Almer and Hoskins, you get inside the wedge the three of us make, try to avoid a direct fight if you can. Hoskins, have the squirrels then take point and lead us in to where Yendick is. We move quick and hard.”
“No mercy?” Kat’rick asked.
“We can’t spare mercy right now,” Hoskins said.
“When we get to Yendick, cover Almer and me, and we’ll try to get him free.”
“Are we going to be able to do that?” Almer asked.
“I would prefer Verci be here with his toolkit, and he could dismantle whatever traps we find, but . . .”
“There’s no time,” Liora said.
She was right, damn it.
“We set?” Asti asked. “Any questions?”
“What are we waiting for?” Tharek asked.
Asti tapped Tharek on his chest. “All five of us walk in, six walk out. Make sure of that.”
“If I must be a Tarian today and keep them safe, so be it.”
“All right,” Asti said. “No time to waste.”
Knives out, he charged in. He could feel Kat’rick and Tharek at his sides, rushing at the heavies at the door. No mercy was exactly right—they were brutal as they carved into these fellows.
Asti hit the door. Barn door, big enough load a whole carriage in. He grabbed hold of the handle and pulled it open, the thing swinging wide. Lighter than he expected.
Glance to either side. Heavies dispatched with ease. “We ready?”
“Let’s go,” Tharek said.
A trio of squirrels ran ahead of Asti as he pushed inside. It was a surprisingly small room, with great steel panels surrounding them on all sides. Nowhere to go.
“So what do we—” Almer started, as the main door slammed shut behind them all.
“Wait a damned—” Tharek said, and as he did, the steel panels all spun, sweeping Tharek, Kat’rick, and Hoskins in separate directions. Almer would have been swept up by a panel if Asti hadn’t grabbed him and yanked him close. Even still, Almer was clipped by the wall as they were knocked down a chute and slid into darkness.
“Asti!” Almer shouted, and just as they were about to be ejected into another room, Asti braced himself against the chute wall and held on to Almer, stopping them both.
“You all right?” Asti asked.
“Arm bleeding, something might be broken,” Almer said. In the position they were in, stuck in the chute, Asti couldn’t see what they would have dropped into.
“What do you see?” Asti asked.
“Something with cuffs and locks and gears,” Almer said. “This chute is pretty narrow, so it’s only because we’re together that we were able to stop ourselves and not get caught in that.”
“Can you get down without getting caught in that device?”
“Maybe if we reposition, you can lower me by my good arm.”
Asti twisted around a bit, got himself to where he could manage such a thing, and lowered Almer down as far as he could.
“Let go, I think I can drop safely.”
Asti did so, and then crawled out to look. Definitely some device to ensnare a man, and then take him off along a railtrack. He hopped down to the side of it.
“Let’s not set this off,” Asti said.
“But do we follow the track?”
“Not much choice,” Asti said, drawing a knife out. Then there was a clicking sound, which startled him enough that he almost threw it toward the source.
