Etheric Knight Read online

  They fought their way toward the portal with a collection of mercenaries, former first lieutenants, and displaced Movers. This was the second battle where Astrid fought beside people who recently wanted her dead.

  This time, it wasn’t by choice. She wondered how soon after the fight ended these temporary allies would turn on her again.

  The sound of galloping hooves approached behind her, but she was too busy fighting to look. When the hoofbeats stopped, two loud explosions rattled her skull. Two remnant fell, hunks of their bodies blown away.

  Tarkon had arrived with his pistols. Astrid smiled and fought harder.

  “I guess you’re awake from your nap!” Astrid shouted to Vinnie as he plowed through a crowd of remnant with his bare fists.

  She was glad to see he wore the clamshell armor his students had created for him. It was fashioned from the same Sacred Steel as Astrid’s armor plates. The design lacked shoulder pieces to accommodate Vinnie’s hand-to-hand fighting style.

  But his fighting style worried her. It was based on the premise that a short, overwhelming attack was right for any situation. Vinnie wasn’t trained to fight long battles. He charged in, using his copious physical strength and the very brief period of near-invulnerability his Irth magic gave him.

  Astrid took advantage of Vinnie’s power attack to beat back the hordes that could not re-form fast enough. They were winning. The remnant were on the defensive. But new arrivals from the portal stood with weapons ready.

  Astrid found herself beside a slender woman with a half-shaved head. She was nearly as tall as Astrid. To her right, Tracker stood with his own blowpipe held across his body like a staff.

  “You must be Astrid,” Daku said. She loaded another bolt in her bow by flipping it downward. The stock incorporated a spring-loaded lever that pulled back the bow. “Heard about you.”

  “And you are?” Astrid asked.

  “Daku,” the black-haired woman replied.

  “That is similar to my own crossbow design,” Vinnie exclaimed, rushing to them. He gave scant attention to the remnant that tried to kill him. He simply reached out with both hands and snapped its neck as he walked toward Daku. He never took his eyes off the crossbow.

  “Where did you get this weapon?” Vinnie asked. Daku dispatched another remnant who lunged at them from the left. The bolt passed close to Vinnie’s shoulder.

  “Made it myself,” Daku admitted flatly. “You’re in my line of fire.”

  “Of course,” Vinnie replied with a bow. He stood beside Daku and divided his attention between the few remaining remnant and the crossbow that fascinated him.

  The long, wide street became a balance beam with an army of Remnant on one end, and a growing group of Kostree residents on the other. Displaced Movers and their former Lieutenants stood shoulder to shoulder with mercenaries, cutthroats, and shopkeepers.

  Tension built as the crowd around the portal grew. The Kostree defenders were outnumbered.

  On the other side of the portal was a lush, green forest full of tall trees. Remnant surrounded the trunks with glowing eyes and vacant expressions. There were hundreds.

  A voice boomed from the portal like the rasp of boulders down a metal chute. “Give me the Arbori,” the voice demanded. “This place promised it to me. I will punish this land until the Arbori is delivered to me. I give great rewards to those who obey. To those who do not, I bring punishment.

  “Bring me the Arbori!”

  The remnant on this side of the portal shot upright. Their eyes flashed brightly for a moment, then they turned away and walked slowly toward the portal.

  Daku cocked her head, then brought her crossbow to her shoulder and fired. Her bolt sank into a remnant shoulder blade. The creature didn’t even flinch. It kept walking.

  “What are those things on the backs of their necks?” Daku asked.

  Vinnie opened his mouth to answer, but Astrid silenced him with a sharp glance. “We’re trying to determine that,” Astrid responded.

  But with the Remnant in retreat, the crowd soon turned to other questions.

  “What the fuck is an Arbori?” someone growled.

  “I wanna know who the asshole is that shat on the job and pissed off an army of remnant.”

  Daku turned to Astrid. “You really should get off the street.”

  Astrid agreed with a nod.

  “Follow me.” Daku strode through the crowd, making it part before her like a choppy sea.

  Two more women with similar hairstyles fell in behind Astrid, Vinnie, Moxy, and Tracker.

  Astrid looked for Gormer but couldn’t find him. She just had to hope he was all right.

  “Keep your head down,” Daku growled, casting a quick glance over her shoulder.

  Astrid was certain a few people noticed her, but they were still too busy with their own concerns to do anything about it. She knew it was only a matter of time before the people of Kostree turned their attention to her and the Dregs.

  Daku led them back to the tavern. The split doors were locked.

  “Damn it,” Daku hissed. She pounded on the doors. “Open up!” she shouted.

  Astrid turned to the sound of approaching footsteps. A dozen people approached them. Two men and a woman were in the lead. They wore the blood-red chest plates of first lieutenants. The rest were foot soldiers from their former estates.

  Astrid bent her knees slightly and relaxed her arms for readiness. Vinnie turned sharply when he realized what was happening.

  The large first lieutenant with the artful hair stepped forward and lifted his hands out to his sides. “Just relax, Astrid,” he said. The edge in his voice made that hard for her to do. “We’re not here to fight.”

  “Then go away, Costin,” Daku snapped. She pounded on the door again.

  “You’re going to need our help,” Costin replied. He held his hands higher.

  “You’re dumber than I thought,” Daku sneered. “I was gonna kill you and your crony there before this all started.” She nodded to the other former first lieutenant.

  Daku pointed to the woman. “I don’t know where she came from, but I woulda killed her too—still might. You don’t belong here. You got lucky today.”

  “I don’t call any of this luck,” Costin countered. “We’re all magic users. You’re going to need all the power you can get.”

  Several latches clacked and scraped on the other side of the door and one of the sides opened a crack. Daku found her opening and pushed through.

  “Ouch,” a voice grunted.

  “It’s us, idiot,” Daku barked.

  “Daku,” Astrid called. “Let them in, please.”

  “Please?” Daku said from the other side of the threshold. She waved everyone else in, but Astrid stood firm. “Fuck you and your courtesy. You’re in the wrong town for that.”

  This is not going well, Astrid thought with a sigh.

  “Just me, then,” Costin offered, stepping forward. His hands were now even with his shoulders, palms out. “If you don’t like what I have to say, you can do the job you set out to do earlier.”

  A sharp smile crept across Daku’s lips. “That sounds like a good deal,” she intoned in a low, deadly voice. “Come on in.”

  Costin turned to the woman. “Gabi, if the negotiation fails, you’re in charge.” He turned to the man. “She’ll need a good Second, Rone.” Who responded with a sharp nod and a determined look on his face.

  Costin raised his voice to the nine lower-order magic users behind them. “The rest of you will do nothing if I don’t come out. Our fight is not here.”

  Though they didn’t look happy about it, Astrid got the impression they would obey. Her estimation of Costin rose a few notches.

  “Well, that was certainly dramatic,” Daku said as Costin entered the tavern.

  Someone had closed the shutters over the windows. Astrid noted they were made from thick oak planks studded with metal. The place was a fortress as well as a drinkery.

  Daku looked
surprised when Costin lowered his hands and put on a broad, easy smile. “It certainly was dramatic,” he acknowledged. “Should my end come, I’d not want it any other way.”

  “Ha!” Daku barked. She rested her hand on a long dagger secured to one of the wide leather straps crisscrossing her torso. “This was my father’s blade. This should provide you with all the drama your death requires.”

  “Would you begrudge me a drink before killing me?” Costin asked.

  “Of course not,” Daku said, turning toward the nearest table. “I’m not an animal.”

  Costin ended up on one side of the table and everyone else on the other. Vinnie grabbed his own chair and sat at the head, facing Costin. To Astrid, the arrangement looked like a court. She supposed that’s what it was.

  The bartender brought two pitchers of ale and enough cups to go around.

  “Ain’t you gonna pour for them?” a gruff, familiar voice boomed out.

  Mortsen entered from a back room with Gormer behind him. Astrid restrained herself from jumping up to get a better look at Gormer, who had a bandage across one cheek and several on each arm.

  I’m OK, he thought-projected in her mind. His eyes flashed white just long enough to send the message. Nobody else seemed to notice the presence of mental magic. Astrid let out a tense breath and nodded.

  Mortsen made a show of pouring ale for everyone. “Here’s to a life of duty, First Lieutenant Costin,” Mortsen said, holding up his cup in a tribute.

  Costin shrugged and drank to the toast. “I accept that, though I am not a first lieutenant anymore. I’m an exile, trying to find my place again.” He leveled a pointed look at Astrid. “I won’t pretend we can ever be friends, but at the very least, I can promise I won’t be your enemy, nor will my people. Not while this threat looms, at least.”

  “Your people,” Daku said with disgust, “are who made my people. Now that you’re beaten, you want mercy from us? This world is better off without you.”

  “Possibly,” Costin allowed to universal surprise. “But I would plead with you for my family. They are innocent. They can go on without us, but they deserve the chance to go on living.”

  Daku didn’t have a ready answer. She paused. “I can’t argue with that, though vengeance begs me to believe otherwise. Our families were cast out of the Protectorate by you and your soldiers simply because we lived in a village that couldn’t contribute enough to the Protector. My father was murdered by one of yours for daring to protest.”

  “And that system is gone forever,” Costin said, looking directly at Astrid. “It can never come back.”

  “I’m still not hearing why I should let you live,” Daku said. “Especially since you sound so disappointed your way of life is over.”

  Costin took another pull from his mug, then leaned back in his chair. “Because I’m good at killing things and it seems to me there are things out there that need killing. Here is the deal. I have a small army of magic users who are loyal to me. I use them to defend Kostree against the remnant, and you let us alone from here on out to live freely in the vicinity.”

  “So, you want to set up a protection system just like the one we just got free of?” Daku asked. She slapped the table.

  “No,” Costin denied sharply, leaning forward. “It’s a one-time proposition. We won’t ever demand tribute. You might find this hard to believe, but I still feel a duty to this land. I will protect it any way I can. If I must give my life to you right now to secure a place for my family, I will do so. But I would much rather die defending anyone or any place in these lands from things like the remnant.”

  “So, you want a guarantee we’ll leave your new settlement alone,” Daku ventured. She paused, then laughed. “It’s funny how you’ve taken over an abandoned village not too far from here. It was your people who evicted everyone from it. Now it’s your refuge.”

  “I can’t argue with that.” Costin sighed. “But only because I don’t want to. Just give me your damn answer. I don’t have time for this.” He drained the rest of his ale and slammed the mug on the table.

  Daku reached slowly for her knife. Her companions readied themselves.

  “You are a bunch of fucking idiots,” Gormer announced loudly. “You’re about to kill your best shot at surviving this.”

  Mortsen stood beside Gormer with his thick arms folded across his chest. Daku moved to draw her dagger, but a hard stare from Mortsen stayed her hand. Even Costin looked wary of the big man with the gold teeth. Mortsen could have a deadly aura about him when it suited him.

  “It’s not just the remnant,” Gormer continued. “That voice you heard belongs to something else. Something much, much worse. It’s from another world. Letting it have what it wants dooms us all. Right now, it’s weak—”

  “It didn’t seem that weak to me!” Daku exclaimed.

  “He’s right. It is weak,” Costin retorted. “Why did it attack us, then ask us to give it what it wanted? If it had the power to do it, don’t you think it would have?”

  “Huh.” Daku’s hand fell away from her dagger, and she relaxed in her chair.

  Gormer pressed his argument. “There are people out there who are dumb enough to go after Charlie because they’re scared. They want to believe that will keep them safe. That was the whole point of this show today.”

  “Who is Charlie?” Costin asked.

  “The Arbori,” Daku replied, shooting him an annoyed glance. “Not too swift.”

  Costin chuckled. Astrid caught his sigh of relief. It was very subtle, but he must have realized he would be allowed to walk out of the tavern. “So, you do have the Arbori, then,” he said.

  Gormer capitalized on the attention he had earned. “Our best chances of defeating this thing is to work together. We came here to find out who was originally hired to find Char—the Arbori.”

  Daku clenched her jaw and exchanged furtive looks with her sisters.

  “If you know something, you need to tell us,” Astrid urged.

  “No, I really don’t,” Daku argued.

  They were all surprised when the tavern keeper strode over to the table wiping his hands on a rag he then threw it on the table. “This is no time for the silence of thieves,” he declared. “I know who hired the people for the Arbori job.”

  Daku stabbed him with murderous eyes. “You’re making a mistake, Clyde,” she hissed.

  “No, I’m not,” Clyde ground out. “You are wrong this time. Your friendship means a lot to me. Know that. I’m asking you to trust me, set aside your anger for once and work for something bigger.”

  Daku’s face turned splotchy red. Her eyes narrowed to slits, and her breath came in quick, sharp bursts.

  “He called himself ‘Boone.’ Weird name. Weirder guy. He looked just kind of…wrong.”

  “How do you mean, ‘wrong’?” Astrid asked.

  Clyde scratched his head. “He was tall and kind of skinny but had a pot belly. His head was shaped funny, his arms were too long, and his fingers were thick and clumsy. He walked with a limp, his teeth were all crooked and his eyes…” Clyde shivered. “They were mostly pupil all the time, no matter the light.”

  “Sounds easy enough to find,” Gormer concluded. “Just ask for the weird fuck.”

  “Damn it!” Daku shouted, drawing her dagger in a single motion and driving it into the table. “Blood truce until this thing is over.” She slid the palm of her right hand along the blade.

  She stood and extended her bleeding hand to Costin. She pulled back when he reached out to shake on the truce.

  “Blood truce,” she commanded.

  Costin cut his palm on the dagger as well and gripped her hand.

  “There was one other weird thing about him,” Clyde added.

  “What’s that?” Vinnie asked.

  “Well, every time he came here all of my menus disappeared.”

  “Menus…” Vinnie mused.

  “Yeah,” Clyde answered. “This might be Kostree, but my tavern is high-quality.
I use paper menus. I think he took them, for some reason. I even searched him once but never found any on him.”

  “Maybe he liked the menus better than the food,” Gormer replied.

  Chapter Eleven

  Gormer, It’s Cold Outside

  The sound of raised voices filtered into the room through the thick shutters and barred doors. It sounded like an argument.

  “Truce might be over before it begins,” Daku grumbled.

  “My blood says it won’t,” Costin replied. He wiped his bloody hand on the barkeep’s rag.

  “It’s Jiri and his squire,” Gormer said. His eyes were bright white. “Let him in.” The voices outside suddenly stopped, and a calm settled over the room. “I sense a lot of anger out there. I’m doing what I can to diffuse it, but we need to get going soon.”

  “What’s he talking about?” Daku asked, leaning her body away from Gormer as if the smell of him was offensive.

  “He senses emotional states,” Vinnie remarked. He postured for a lecture. “A rare and unique ability—”

  Astrid cast him a sharp eye and shook her head nearly imperceptibly. Vinnie trailed off.

  “It’s not so unique,” Costin replied suspiciously. “This is the type of magic used by the Reachers down in the Vasile Protectorate. He’s not one of them, is he?”

  Gormer snapped out of it and his whole body spasmed with a shiver. “No,” he replied with a smirk. “I learned this type of magic by killing a Reacher. Can’t say I like it, but it comes in handy. I calmed the crowd for a while. Is someone gonna let Jiri in?”

  Astrid hopped up and unbarred the door. A quick peek outside revealed a crowd gathered in front of the tavern. She pulled Jiri and his squire inside.

  Astrid introduced everyone but paused when she got to Jiri’s squire. “What is your proper name, anyway?” she asked.

  “You can call me Squire because that’s what I am,” he replied.

  Jiri stepped in to clarify. “In my tradition, the Energetic novice takes their name from their function until they achieve mastery.”

  Daku groaned and rolled her eyes. “Fuckin’ magic users. Who’s gonna ‘achieve mastery’ over that crowd out there?”