The Brightest Shadow, page 72
Though Celivia had the decency to look pained, that couldn't cool Tani's rage. Celivia might have dropped her gaze, but her knife was still ready to fight. "It wasn't all a lie, Tani. I knew that a technique might be used to view some of my memories, so I had to change them. But my intent wasn't to deceive you..."
"I don't believe you. What about when you pretended you cared about stopping Destrela from searching me? You didn't care, you just didn't want her to search you!"
"Just because I was concerned for myself doesn't mean I-"
"Don't lie! Can you honestly tell me that part of you didn't know that I'd trust you more? Look me in the eyes and tell me!"
Celivia raised her head to meet her gaze, but she said nothing. Staring into those bright red eyes, Tani felt a twinge of doubt. Nothing could erase the betrayal, but the rage pumping in her veins began to give way to a painful tangle of emotions.
At that moment, she heard someone let out a battlecry from behind her. Tani whirled, knife ready. If it had been Melal, she would have thrown a knife directly at his face.
But it was Walernel. He gasped for breath, his sword shaking, but he stared at Celivia with pure rage. "You! I looked up to you, and you're a damn Deathspawn!"
"Stay out of this." Celivia's voice turned completely cold and Tani saw a glint of the hatred lurking within her.
"Die, Deathspawn!"
Walernel raised his sword over his head and lunged forward. Tani started to move to pull him back, but she was already too late. Celivia struck before he could even swing, her knife slicing through his throat and then slamming into his chest before pulling out in a smooth motion that left his corpse to drop to the ground.
Though she hadn't known him well, Tani grieved to see someone so young die. She saw no regret in Celivia's eyes: the woman merely flicked the blood off her knife and turned so she was still facing them. Tani gritted her teeth and knew that there could be no peace between them.
"Tani, wait." Slaten spoke in a low voice and she whirled on him.
"If you even try to tell me we should listen to her, I-"
But Slaten shook his head, gaze still locked on Celivia, stance ready for combat. "Even if we could beat her together, it would take too much time. She said Aryabaus is coming, do we know how close he is?"
"They already..." Tani clenched her eyes closed and tried to think clearly. "They're probably here by now. I woke as many people as I could, but I saw plenty of Catai and trained warriors. It doesn't look good."
"Then our only hope is to flee. Anyone you sent to fight will go to their deaths. You need to convince the resistance leaders to retreat. And if it comes down to it, you need to get Laeri and a few other strong warriors and plan to escape in a small group. That might be the best we can do."
"And leave you here with her?" Tani jabbed a knife toward Celivia, who still watched them silently.
"I think I can hold her off. You're the only one fast enough to gather the others and get back here. Please, at least save Teren. I'll try to guard your back."
Celivia shook her head. "I won't try to stop her. If you want to bring Laeri or Teren with us, I'll allow it. Veron, I'd consider helping if she cooperates. The others... they're too strong for me to fight, so the best I can do is let them live and escape on their own."
Tani glowered at her, but started to move away. She knew that Slaten couldn't beat Celivia, and judging from his expression, he knew that too. But Celivia had implied that she wouldn't kill him, so Tani could bear to leave him. What she needed to do was gather everyone else before he lost, bring them all back here to bring Celivia down, and then escape.
Behind her, she saw Slaten and Celivia begin to face off. Tani didn't look back again, wiped her eyes only once, then sprinted into the tunnels.
~ ~ ~
Out of the frying pan, into the fucking deathtrap with a whole goddamn army bearing down. When Veron had gotten up that morning, her biggest concern had been that Destrela was going to steal all of the money. Stealing some of it was expected - obviously Destrela couldn't be trusted. Yet she'd hoped that the bitch would leave at least a little for her.
A Deathspawn lunged out of the shadows and there was no time to think, she just stabbed him in the neck, drove him to the ground, and kept stabbing until he stopped moving. Veron knelt over the corpse, gasping for breath. At least she'd gotten her shoes on and grabbed some supplies.
Tani had been yelling warnings and it looked like the kid was right. The army might not be able to surround the entire hilly region, but if they had already invaded the main entrance, they'd be swarming through the caverns soon enough. Veron knew the resistance was as good as dead, so the only question was how best to escape.
A lot of the soldiers were trying to group together, either to fight or retreat. They were all dead. Only a small group well-trained in sein had a chance of escaping out the hidden exit. At best the rest of them might provide a distraction for the Deathspawn.
Veron felt an impulse to find the kids and make sure they were safe, but crushed it. Tani would be running to warn them. They'd either make it to the back or they wouldn't. She didn't have time for compassion, she needed to make sure they could survive. Not bothering to wipe off her sword, Veron hopped up and began moving downward.
The only two people she could justify saving were Graenin and Hanfel, since they'd need strong warriors to survive their escape. She'd prefer Graenin, but either would be adequate. Both might fight to the death, not understanding how hopeless it was. Go down, grab one of them, then get the hell out. Simple.
She rushed into one of the sein-lit chambers and saw a brawl amid several corpses. Hanfel and a beefy Deathspawn were locked in combat, smashing one another into the walls. Veron rushed to them, waited for an opening, then struck. Her blow nicked Hanfel's arm, but it went through the Deathspawn's shoulder.
He growled and grabbed her sword, wrenching it out of her hands with surprising strength. But he couldn't just ignore an injury like that. Hanfel easily overpowered the Deathspawn's weakened arm, lifting him overhead and slamming him down into the ground head-first. The Deathspawn's neck made an crunching sound and he lay still.
Hanfel dropped onto his ass, gasping and clutching his ribs. Looked like there might be a few broken, and he'd certainly taken a beating. Veron walked past him and tore her sword out of the corpse. "You okay?"
"I'll live. But they had a fast group going straight for the healers. I think they know the cavern layout."
"Yeah, things are pretty fucked. Healers get away?"
"They retreated to the southwestern chambers. Better defended, but..."
"But no way out." Veron turned to him, grabbed his shoulder, and tugged his bulk to his feet. "That will get them killed. You're in no shape to fight - go after them and get them to the secret passage. Not much of a secret anymore, but fuck it. Just go."
Fortunately, Hanfel didn't argue. Veron looked after him for just a bit before she headed back into the corridors, trying to think about the layout of the caverns.
Where was the fighting likely to be worst? If the Deathspawn wanted to kill people in their sleep, they'd scatter out to the sleeping chambers. Going into those would be a death trap, so she'd have to trust Graenin could fight his way out. The question was where the Catai and the other tough warriors would go.
Though her plan was to avoid them, when Veron reached one of the large central chambers, she realized that she wouldn't have a choice. She saw no less than three Catai fighting their way through the terrified defenders. The kids had balls, she had to admit that, standing their ground, trying to surround the Catai and thrusting with their spears. Didn't stop them from dying, of course.
This whole room was fucked. The battle would be over soon and then the Catai would spread through all the other tunnels. Veron realized that this was her last chance to pick the right tunnel and get out. Too bad she hadn't spent more time memorizing the exact layout. She thought Hanfel and the healers would have another path to the secret exit, but the number of ways back was running out fast.
Before she could choose how to run away, Veron heard the sound of a harp emerging from one of the tunnels. The jarring notes made her wince, the sein in her body vibrating violently. All the soldiers and even the Catai stopped, staring in that direction.
Balunel emerged slowly, apparently completely focused on his playing. He looked up and blinked his milky white eyes almost as if he could see them. "Oh dear, this isn't good. Three of you strong fellows. What do you say you let the boys go and humor an old man?"
"Kill him." One of the Catai jerked a hand to another and the second charged straight through the soldiers, sending them scattering like toys. His club thrust out to splatter the old man's brains across the stone.
Stepping past it, Balunel pushed the end of his harp into the Catai's stomach. Despite the gentle movement and the difference in size, the massive Deathspawn was knocked off his feet and tumbled over the stone.
He clawed his way back to a standing position, clutching his stomach in pain. Balunel frowned and turned one of the tuning knobs on his harp. "That wasn't quite right... you'll have to forgive this old man, it has really been quite some time."
The other two Catai lunged at him next, a mace and an axe swinging from opposite sides. Balunel evaded the mace with deceptively simple movements and raised his harp in the way of the axe.
When the blow landed, the air was torn by the sound of a hideous jarring note. Somehow the Catai and his axe were the ones who fell backward. The other Catai swung again, yet Balunel reversed direction before he could complete the movement, striking the Deathspawn across the side of the head with the harp.
"Getting old..." Balunel sighed and ran his fingers over the harp. It should have been reduced to kindling, yet only a single string had broken. But all three Catai were getting to their feet, far from disabled by the blows they had taken.
Usually Veron didn't give a shit about technique, but part of her wanted to stay and watch the fight. A larger part of her knew that was fucking idiocy. Balunel might be a master, but in his weakened state he was going to lose, even if she tried to help him. And she was definitely not going to do that, since against three Catai it would only take the tiniest mistake to end up in a fatal position.
The soldiers were mostly fleeing into one of the side corridors, so Veron took a different one. She had only gone down a few corridors when she saw light hurtling toward her.
Melal, waving his shimmering sword and screaming at the top of his lungs. "Slay the Deathspawn! Defend yourselves, you cowards!"
Veron flattened herself against the wall so he wouldn't trample her. She saw him glance at her, but he was too busy charging to stop and bother her. Yet as he rushed past and she heard other cries joining his, Veron realized that she couldn't run, not yet.
Melal might be a stupid fucker, but he was the Hero. With him around, things might go differently. Maybe they could even manage to save Balunel - Veron hadn't taken him seriously, but if the old man was that skilled, he would be an even bigger asset to their escape than Graenin.
Before Veron could reach the chamber where Balunel fought, she discovered that one of the previous corridors had been filled by a snarl of combat. Deathspawn soldiers and resistance fighters were hacking each other apart all down the corridor. The tunnel was one of the larger ones, but it was still a terrible place for a fight. On the opposite side she saw Melal charging on, getting closer to the fight with the Catai.
There was no time for this. Veron leapt up and ran several steps along the side of the wall, running over the main fight. A few saw her, but they had no sein training and were too surprised to do anything but stare.
Veron came down on the other side with only two fighters in between her and the exit. The Deathspawn she cut down from behind, leaving the resistance man staring at her stupidly, his bulk blocking the doorway. She punched him in the face and hopped over him as he fell.
"How dare the three of you bully an old man?" Melal had entered the central chamber, now brandishing his sword toward the Catai. They looked back as if they weren't sure what they were seeing.
It looked like they'd taken a few more blows and one of the Catai was favoring an arm as if it might be broken. But she saw that Balunel had blood trickling from his forehead and his harp was in much worse shape, with two more strings broken and several gouges taken out of the wood. This was going to be rough, no matter how it played out.
Melal charged toward the fight, but at that moment another Catai emerged from the nearby tunnel and intercepted him. His maul swung in a lethal arc that Melal only barely parried, the force of it knocking him into one of the walls.
The new Catai loomed even larger than the others and wore a too-fancy uniform. Looked vaguely familiar, but Veron didn't give a shit about that. What mattered was that the balance had just tipped in favor of running again. Logically she should grab Melal and go, hope that she could outpace them in the familiar tunnels, yet she doubted he'd cooperate.
"You!" Melal spat out blood and stepped forward, now facing the new Catai. "I've become far more powerful! This won't be like the last time we fought!"
Instead of answering, the Deathspawn raised his over-sized maul in one hand and lifted his free hand, gesturing for Melal to attack him.
On the other side of the room, the three Catai turned away and started attacking Balunel again. His skill was damn impressive, always splitting up their efforts to use their numbers against him. Every blow passed just beside him or was deflected, and he almost always left his opponents reeling. But the Catai weren't overconfident anymore and they weren't just brutes: they'd work together and take him down eventually.
In the time they exchanged multiple blows, Melal had only charged toward his opponent. His sword flashed out brilliantly, yet it was deflected by the Catai's heavy maul. Melal roared and swung again and again, a ferocious attack that didn't let up in the slightest, yet his opponent stayed calm and didn't let his defense waver.
Then he lunged out, hand striking Melal's arm and sending his blade flying. The Catai followed with a swipe of his maul that Melal barely managed to dodge. Yet the blow shifted after it missed, the Catai smashing the pommel of his maul into Melal's chest and sending him crashing to the ground.
"You've gotten a little stronger." The Catai lifted his maul in reversed position, ready to thrust downward. "So have I. You think the rest of the world is going to just stand still and wait for you?"
Veron watched him, knew that she could have done something to attack. She didn't. If the Deathspawn killed Melal here, what were the odds that she became the Hero? Balunel was there too, but he wouldn't be alive for long. But there were a lot of other fighters not far off and Veron wasn't sure how it actually worked. Maybe she should do something after all.
Before she could decide, a green burst hit the Catai in the chest. It knocked him off his feet and was instantly followed by a second that sent him hurtling down one of the tunnels. Graenin, aiming to disable rather than to kill. He'd just made her decision for her.
Jumping down next to Melal, Veron grabbed his shoulder to pull him to his feet. "Get up! We need to move!" He stared at her blankly. His eyes were white, but just the color white, not that fucking shimmer that ruined everything. Instead of arguing, he nodded numbly and weakly followed her.
Meanwhile, Graenin had entered the chamber and was dividing his attention between the battle surrounding Balunel and the corridor down which the fourth Catai had gone. The old master had traded many more blows without taking a serious injury, but he was panting for breath now. When his fingers plucked a string of his harp, making all the Catai flinch backward, his fingers bled.
"It's too late." Veron grabbed Graenin's robe and jerked him around to face her. "Our only hope is to get the hell out."
"How many are there?" She saw his eyes shifting around them, knew that he was thinking in all the wrong ways. Analyzing and considering when he needed to move. That had always been his weakness. Veron started to drag him behind her when she heard footsteps stomping through the stone.
The uniformed Catai came charging out of the corridor at full speed. Yet a moment later he crashed to the side, faster than Veron's eyes could follow.
Only afterward did she realize that Balunel had leapt over his other opponents and delivered a kick to the Deathspawn's head in midair. He landed back on his feet and readied his harp. When he looked toward them, his milky eyes didn't quite face in her direction, yet she felt certain that he knew exactly where everyone in the room stood.
"Don't worry about me, children. I have a few more songs in me yet."
Veron had been planning to abandon him to die anyway, but there was no need to say that. She shoved Melal toward Graenin, which seemed to make him realize the urgency of the matter. The two of them began running down the remaining tunnel that had a chance of getting to the hidden exit.
Meanwhile, Veron lingered a final moment in the chamber. The three Catai had turned around and the fourth was getting back to his feet. Balunel stood in the center of the chamber, now without a wall to his back. Though he stood straight, the harp in his hands had become a mangled mess.
"Not bad, you old bastard." Veron saluted him with her sword, then ran into the tunnels. Jarring notes sounded behind her.
~ ~ ~
Slaten thrust forward again, knowing that the knife would knock aside the blow. He tried to convert his movement into a slash, but Celivia had already raised her other knife, threatening his arm. The most he could do was dodge back and avoid another cut.
He needed to buy time, yet to do that he had no choice but to fight aggressively. If he tried to put everything he had into defense, Celivia would overwhelm him in a rush. As he'd feared, she had even larger sein reserves than when they'd sparred, now that whatever poison made her appear human was out of her system.
Yet fighting aggressively, he was constantly on the edge of an injury that would mean failure. Slaten slashed down with enough force that she would have to work to redirect his sword, yet Celivia spun aside, her other knife flashing out. He barely dodged it, retreated again, brought his sword back into position. She was fast enough to neutralize the difference in range, and used both duusha horn knives together perfectly.
