Silent Requiem (Tales of Ashkar Book 3) Page 9

“Avanos Hildir and Ohrl'han the Supreme, sirs,” saluted an officer of rank who had appeared through a doorway at the other side of the room. “The beach's forces have arrived!”

  Cad turned and stormed outside of the command center, descended a series of stairs, and walked onto the central area of the fort in front of the gates. Dozens of soldiers moved aside to give room for the sea of riders who galloped into the gates from the east. They waved banners of Arcadia's image: four individual images that represented each sector and came together as one. Cad’s own was at the top and depicted a frosty peak behind a vertical sword pointing upward. The Sol sector's was to the right and was an image of a closed fist in front of an orange sun. Eversong's was on the left. It was a large bolen tree—trees mostly found in southern Arcadia that had long branches and long leaves that grew outward. The tree was encapsulated in a circle of words that started at the top and moved to the right until the last word reached the first word. The words were a verse from one of their songs, which read:

  'The people breathe. The trees breathe. The land breathes. Together they breathe and Life flourishes.'

  Magia's was at the bottom. It was the same as the School of Eight's: an eye surrounded by the eight elements that the academy taught. The banners were waved, heralding the return of the beach's defenses and confirming that the initial stand had not been entirely crushed by Liberty's forces. Still, Cad could see that many horses returned with two bodies atop them—one full of life, the second strung over the back and as still as a steady hand.

  No battle was without cost, and some were bloodier than others, but the pain was always the same. In the end, the loved ones suffered most, for the dead had already forgotten of such a meager existence.

  Cad turned to the same officer. “Ensure that the wounded and dead are tended to immediately. Then record the number of men and women who are either deceased or unable to fight, and report back for further instruction.”

  The officer saluted and without ado went to fulfill his orders.

  Warren, Srdiv, and Wu appeared and followed Cad back inside to the command center. The three of them appeared disheveled and slumped down into chairs situated around the middle of the room where the map was. Food and water were ushered in, along with some medical items by other men and women.

  There was a long silence. Cad looked at their faces expectantly, and by their eyes he saw the sullenness invited by war. They had all seen more death than anyone really should have, but it was different when man killed his brothers and sisters. Only Ohrl'han still seemed calm, but he was never a person to outwardly show his thoughts anyway.

  “How long until they reach us?” asked Ohrl'han.

  “Judging from the fissure created by Wu and myself, and with such a large force to mobilize, I estimate several weeks at minimum,” Warren explained.

  “Do their numbers echo your informant's claims, Warren?” Cad asked.

  The Grand Arcanist nodded. “They do, but we have a bigger problem.”

  “What can be a bigger issue than the number of Liberty's forces?” pressed Cad as he rubbed his temple. He looked over at Ohrl'han, whose eyes flickered with curiosity.

  “We all tried taking Liberty himself down,” answered Srdiv with a deep breath. “We all tried, Cad. Nothing even seemed to touch him.”

  “What tactics did you employ?” Cad asked, shifting his gaze between all three of them. They all seem troubled, though Wu less so.

  Graeme sat back and waved his hand in the air. “Guy took a shot with his Thousand-Piercing Arrow. Wu and I first tried to take down Liberty's ship with a storm of wave and wind, then we tried several strikes of lightning.”

  “You're saying that above the hundreds of thousands of Liberty's army, you are more worried about just him?” asked Ohrl'han, echoing Cad's thoughts.

  “We can deal with their numbers,” Wu argued. “It is him who we need to devise a plan for.”

  Cad looked over at his resting blade.

  They have yet to try to attack him in close-quarters then.

  “We will bury him in a blizzard,” said Jaur, Cad's elemental.

  _ _ _

  Vanessa sat atop one of the bunk beds in the crewman's quarters in the hull of the ship. The pirate named Buck had managed to slip her in without a hitch, and she intended for the entire journey to stay that way.

  The ship—Wildwind—primarily traded between Arcadia and Terra Sur, and would first make a stop at Port Banton to sell some of its haul before sailing toward southern Arcadia. The ship had already set sail from Corsair Cove, and it would be but less than a moon cycle until Vanessa was there. She could almost see his face smiling at her, but it had been so long that it wasn't as clear as it used to be, and she wondered if the man who she had grown to love was the same man still.

  Kalic… what happened? I thought the dragon had taken thine life. How did thou survive?

  Vanessa would know soon enough, she had no doubts of that. The elementalist who had relayed that information to her could not have possibly known both her and Kalic's name, which meant that her betrothed still drew breath.

  Once again her body shook, but she willed the temptation away. The thirst constantly pulled her down, and it became harder and harder to resist. She would not let it consume her. Not since she left the Isle of Undeath had she had even an ounce of blood, and she relied on Buck to bring her sustenance.

  It was a surprise that he hadn't simply told the crew and come after her together. Most would think that she was at their mercy on their own ship, but perhaps Buck was smart for a swashbuckling marauder. Perhaps he knew that she would simply tear them apart one-by-one, a scenario that her weakening body yearned for.

  Or perhaps it was because of the one thing that all pirates seemed to fear: curse. She was cursed to undeath, and she could impose the worst of all blights upon them if she chose to. Buck must have realized that. What Vanessa found odd was that pirates were cursed whether they suffered from an ailment or not. The thing that man feared most was the truth of themselves that they denied.

  The sound of footsteps and groaning wood emanated from the far side of the large quarters, and Vanessa rolled off the side of the bed and crouched behind the guise of a large, wooden chest. She tensed, anticipating that Buck had been foolish enough to tell the others and that they had all come running to their demise. From her cover she watched as one of the crewmen blundered toward his bed and nearly dove face-first into it.

  Carefully, she darted across the wall toward the door, constantly looking back at the resting man just in case. If he became alarmed to her presence, then she would have no choice but to take his death. She reached the door without trouble, and looking down the corridor she ensured that no one else was coming. Down the corridor to the right was the set of stairs that ascended upward to the deck.

  The door opposite to her led to the cargo room. Considering that the ship had set sail not too long ago, the haul was already accounted for and she could stay in there until they reached landfall. Looking right-to-left one more time, Vanessa made her way to the other side with care and slipped into the cargo room without a sound.

  It was the same size as the sleeping quarters, but stacked high with crates and barrels of all kinds. Vanessa moved through and briefly inspected the haul. There was rum, of course. Lots of it. There were also fruits, metals, leathers, and other commodities. She had the inkling that not even half had been traded willingly, and that there had been plenty of plundering. As she reached the back of the room, she found a nook behind a stack of crates at the corner that would serve as decent cover. The pale-skinned woman lowered herself into a seated position and waited.

  Vanessa waited in darkness. The only sound came from muffled steps above along with the groaning of wood. The rhythmic bobbing and weaving of the ship lulled her into a sleep until she was roused by the clamoring of voices above. She reopened her eyes but decided to continue to lay where she was and try to understand what the voices were shouting.

  The ship
rocked hard and threw her against the wall, but she caught herself and shifted into a vertical position. A ship could not be thrown like that unless it was besieged by a storm or bombarded by an attack.

  Dozens of steps echoed from the corridor on the far side, and Vanessa surmised that they headed for the cannons. Not even the most dimwitted of pirates would fire at a roaring tide. At least, that's what she thought. Then again, the pirates of today may not have been like the ones from her time.

  If they were under attack, then she had no choice. Vanessa leapt across the room toward the door, took a left, and ran for the stairs leading to the deck. As she ascended she heard cannons firing, men shouting, and elemental attacks destroying.

  The sky came into view, bright with blue and sunshine. Crewmen with weapons released and faces grim rushed about. Some climbed up the masts, others continued to fire attacks over the starboard side.

  Vanessa stood in the middle of the deck and, despite being unnaturally pale and unaccounted for until now, did not receive an acknowledgement from anyone. Instead, they were much too busy fighting a seemingly unseen force. She looked around for the ship that should have been where fire, earth, lightning, and everything in between were being exchanged, but she was only met with the vast waters of the ocean.

  No, there was something there. Vanessa hurried over to the starboard side and looked down at the turbulent waters. Her eyes widened. Before her, on the surface of the water, were dozens of blue-skinned forms riding beasts of the sea.

  The blue humans had long, thick tails culminating into large fins. Their forearms also protruded sleek fins, and they also appeared to have fins on their heads shaped to resemble hair. They did not wear armor, but sleek garments of dark green that hugged their bodies. While the vestments appeared to be quite flexible, they were also durable. An emblem of a swirling maelstrom was emblazoned in the middle of the chest.

  “Have ye never seen a seamender, lassie?!” bellowed one of the grizzled pirates at her, who must have read her confused expression. “Grab a weapon and fight!” He turned his attention back to the battle and loosed a bolt of lightning at the waters below.

  Not all the pirates were elementalists, and some resorted to fireshooters or cutlasses to fend off the attack. The seamenders seemed much more organized and skilled, for they whittled down the number of humans little-by-little without much loss themselves.

  The finned beasts they rode were quick, maneuvering the waters with ease and dodging many of the attacks employed by the pirates. They swarmed around the ship, diving underneath it and resurfacing on the port side. It was becoming clear that the ship's crew would not hold.

  Another blast rocked the boat followed by the sharp snapping of wood, and the main mast came toppling over, smashing onto the deck and crushing the surface where it fell. The blasts continued, each time a portion of the ship coming undone.

  Vanessa bolted into action, running to the port side of the ship and leaping over. On her descent into the water she plowed into one of the seamenders, knocking him off his mount. She grabbed ahold of his arms, though he resisted and the two struggled underwater. She saw the seamender's mount close in from the side, and switched her position with that of the blue-skinned humanoid before the beast could sink its flesh into her.

  The beast barreled to the right and out of Vanessa's view, though she knew that it would turn around for another attempt. She turned back to the seamender, who had used the reprieve to reach for his blade. He thrust his tip at her abdomen, and she felt the sharp edge bury itself within her.

  Pain surged through Vanessa, though she shrugged it off and grasped onto the seamender's wrist. To his shock, she pulled out the blade despite his resistance, and proceeded to stab him in the same area. She then whipped around just in time to catch the beast's gaping maw with one hand on the top of its mouth and the other on the lower portion.

  The beast continued to swim, kicking its powerful tail back-and- forth and trying to clamp down on Vanessa, but she held its mouth open. Gradually, she pulled it wider and wider until she jerked her hands apart in different directions and nearly tore the beast apart.

  Crimson engulfed Vanessa. She didn't want this to happen. The pirates were thieves and murderers, cutthroats who looked for any opportunity to take advantage of another for selfish gain. She could have done the same, even though they probably deserved their fate.

  But now, these humans of the oceans had spilled blood over not what she knew. It might have been justly, or it might not have been. She didn't know if she had the strength to swim across continents. Islands, she did. But continents?

  Vanessa swam up to the surface and looked around. The beast had carried her further away from both the battle and the ship. At least, what was once the Wildwind, for the ship now drifted in pieces. She made her way past planks, torn sails, and still bodies. The ones who still lived reached for anything that could keep them afloat. Likewise, the seamenders were nowhere in sight. Either they had retreated, or the reason that they had attacked in the first place was sated.

  Buck wasn't too far away, gripping onto a floating piece like it was his soul. She swam up to him, and his eyes bulged in fear at her presence. “Ye gone an' got us killed. I knew it the moment ye came aboard. And now… now I can't even feel me legs.”

  The water around Buck was stained red, and it was more than evident that he no longer had legs. Either they were chewed off or a blast had struck the lower portion of his body.

  “I'm sorry,” said Vanessa as she reached for Buck and pulled him closer to her. He did not resist, not that he could even if he wanted to. His eyes only flickered at her, accepting his fate. Accepting the curse. Exposing his neck, she bit into his flesh and drained him of his essence.

  The blood was refreshing. More refreshing than the coldest of waters that had ever touched her parched lips. Vanessa drank and drank while Buck's head slowly tilted down onto the wet wood. The vampire withdrew her bite and licked her blood-soaked lips.

  She then looked around for any others who still clung on to life dearly. There wasn't enough for her to fly to Arcadia, but hopefully it would still give her the strength to reach Kalic.

  _ _ _

  Up ahead, several riders on horseback neared from the east.

  Cad was atop his own horse, trotting down and back the lines of the men and women who followed his command. Just like Warren had guessed, it had been weeks without a sign from Liberty's forces. The scouts up ahead who drew closer were, without a doubt, about to claim otherwise.

  “Avanos Hildir, I bring tidings of Liberty's forces,” said one of the scouts as he galloped up to Cad.

  Cad nodded for the soldier to continue.

  “His forces are moving fast and will be upon us within a half-day,” continued the scout. “It is just like you said. The main body is moving in a straight path through the plains. We noticed some forces mobilizing toward the north and south, but they are not large.”

  Another nod, and the scout moved to relay the information elsewhere.

  It was clear that Liberty would be forced to move such a large army through the plains. The Tokkan Highlands to the north were unsuitable for moving so many people, and the woodland areas to the south were the same.

  Cad looked back to the many faces that gazed at him. Most of them would be charging into battle on foot. They were all fitted with the same plate and mail, though not all of them were elementalists. Some of them were even considered children unfit to fight, but Arcadia had no choice.

  Most of Ohrl'han's forces were to the north, including his cavalry that was set to flank Liberty's forces. Many of Srdiv's and Warren's elementalists were situated in the rear lines, ready to attack from afar just as they had on the beach. Even further beyond them were hundreds of trebuchet and other siege weaponry situated in key areas.

  “We are here today,” announced Cad, making sure that he reached as many ears as he could. “We are here today, because once again there are those who are willing to see us in ru
in to achieve what only we have achieved: unity. We are united, not by race or faith, but of circumstance. The circumstance that came about when the Dommogin invaded Arcadia from the west.” Cad stopped for a moment, letting his words wash over the thousands of men and women like a warm wave. “Then, we were weak and divided. Our hearts were elsewhere, and sometimes we fought each other as well. But when the Dommogin arrived, we saw the truth. The truth that holds us all together. The truth that all people are cherished by Ashkar alike.”

  A soft rumble came from the east, and Cad paused to divert his attention its source. He lifted up a spyglass to his eye. Over the horizon approached the tide that sought to drown Arcadia.

  Cad looked back to his people, and in their faces he saw their thoughts. Some were veterans, and he saw their solemnity. Others were younger, most likely never seeing war until now. They held fear and trepidation. “Again they come, but they are not from the west nor do they rise from the oceans. To many of us, they are our brothers and sisters. Even so, we will not falter. Dommogin, seamender, or human, they come to tear apart our truth. Will you let them? Will Arcadia allow the truth to be taken from them?”

  Roars and shouts of applause echoed throughout the fields, and the rumble of thousands of voices in unity shook Cad far more than Liberty's army did. He smiled, and raising his blade up high into the air, dismounted from his horse. He was told by Warren that Liberty had pushed at the front of his fleet.

  So too would Cad. Like in the Tokkan Peaks, he was the example that allowed his people to find a better way. Their hopes and dreams were tempered on the forge of Avanos, the way of life of the Tokkan people. The bitter mountains and harsh winters were hard to overcome, but they had overcome it. And they would again. Today would be no different, and upon his blade would be Liberty's head by the time the day was through.

  _ _ _

  Sora gazed at the unmarked grave with a blank face. A single pota flower, full of life and warmth, rose from the site where she had planted it so long ago. It may wither and die every so often, but Sora would replace it and keep it alive.