Titans nest, p.31
Titan's Nest, page 31
“Maybe you’re just getting old?” Sampson snickered. “Twos,” Sampson used little effort to remove a bright green barb.
“Booze,” everyone at the table replied as they all quickly took a drink. “Oh ya,” Sampson leaned back towards me. “On twos, we booze.” “Naturally,” I snickered.
Their game went on for a few minutes, and I was surprised to see Sampson out first despite his impressive stack of stingers.
“Bad luck,” I clapped him on the shoulder. The men all snickered.
“It’s kinda tradition,” Sampson whispered to me, “everyone goes for the new guy’s barbs first. It's sort of like earning your spot at the table. Think of it as your buy in.”
“Fours!” Kip snarled with glee as he ripped the bald man’s final stinger from the table triumphantly. I raised my mug and cheered, laughing with Sampson and the others. Kip still had two barbs implanted in the wood. “The fastest fingers in the north!” Kip boasted as he collected his shells.
Our ruckus naturally drew some attention. I caught the eye of a dark-haired gentleman at the bar… in a silver cloak. My eyes darted back down to the table. After a moment I cautiously lifted my eyes. The bearded man was slyly pointing in my direction, the younger lad who accompanied him followed his finger and glanced over at me.
Silver Guard, I thought as I drew my hood further over my face. I looked down at Sampson who was already stabbing his stingers back into the table for a second round with his new friends. Might as well try and sweet talk the lads, I thought.
I leisurely made my way to the bar, polishing off my mug as I walked so, I didn’t seem strange to be requesting a refill. As I drew closer to the Silver Guards, I realized I knew their faces. They often stood guard outside the dining hall.
“Pardon me,” I said calmly as I stepped between them. “Top me off would you, my lady?” I placed my mug on the bar top. A blonde girl with bright blue eyes grinned and snatched the cup.
“What are you drinking tonight, Lord Duskfell?” The bearded soldier asked.
Well, he certainly knows it’s me, I sighed deeply. “Same as you, I hope,” I gestured to the barkeep for two more drinks. She placed three full mugs on the counter. I slid them in front of the guards. They exchanged a curious look then both chuckled.
“Relax, Lord Duskfell,” he nudged me. “I ain’t gonna tell on ya.”
I felt my shoulders loosen. “You’re not?”
“Doppler can take a dive into the Chasm for all I care,” he shrugged, taking a sip. I couldn’t help but laugh. “Brilliant.”
“But tell Sunflare he better keep it down,” the guard shook his head, “I’m off duty for the night. I won’t step in if some drunk fool wants to try his luck against a Ward.”
“Yes sir,” I looked back at Sampson who just ripped a barb from his table. “I’ll leave you to your drinks then, sir…” I held out my hand.
“Remy,” the older guard said, sounding surprised that I asked. He shook my hand firmly.
“Colin,” the younger guard grabbed my forearm.
“Well, Remy. Colin. I imagine I will see you bright and early for breakfast.”
“Unfortunately, my Lord, you will,” Remy nodded. They raised their mugs to me as I pulled away.
I made my way back to Sampson’s table; they were already finishing the second round.
“Fours!” Kip cried out as he lunged across the table.
“Ones!” Sampson called a second later, but Kip already had a hold of the Ward’s final barb. Kip gave a great yank, budging the table, but not freeing the deeply embedded stinger.
Sampson took advantage and snatched Kip’s last barb in a flash. Sampson howled and the other men pounded the table.
“I think I just beat the fastest fingers in the North,” Sampson clapped. “That is what he called himself, wasn’t it lads?”
“Ah, come off it,” Kip growled. He still rocked the final stinger back and forth in the wood, finally plucking it free. “You’re a real truffle,” Kip spat as he slid Sampson the shells he owed.
Truffle? My heart cracked. A northern phrase Maximus called me often. Maximus, I looked around the bustling tavern. Here I am, laughing, drinking… my chest felt so heavy I thought I might fall to the floor. Tears swelled in my eyes as I watched a girl wipe down the counter of the bar with a wet rag. I was suddenly in the Bat Belly with Maximus. Guilt came crashing in like a wave. I turned and darted for the exit.
“Wanna play a round, Maxy? You can use my barbs,” I heard Sampson ask. “Max?” But I was already through the door, tears in the corners of my eyes.
I barreled over two people who had just paid the fat man and were heading inside.
“Watch it!” he hollered after me as I broke into an all-out sprint down the stone street.
Hot tears now rolled all the way down my cheeks.
I followed the river as if I were racing the current itself. I chased it all the way to the edge of the city and to the lip of the Chasm. There I finally stopped and collapsed to my knees.
I sobbed deep from my chest, realizing once again, this was Maximus’ life. These were Maximus’ clothes around my shoulders. His shells I was spending from his purse. His friends I was playing and drinking with. His dragon’s fang marks in my arm. I wished I could give it all back to him. I wish I could return to him that I had stolen. The joy I felt tonight didn’t belong to me. I didn’t deserve it. Maximus did.
29
RYKER DAWNROSE
It had been more than a week since the Hollow attack and the snow became slosh beneath our feet. We were quickly leaving behind the brutal cold of the west. Soon, instead of frost and stone, shrubbery and wild flowers lined our path. That is, until Roark’s forces trampled them beneath their marching. The occasional line of aspen or pines shaded our journey and there was no longer much need for such heavy cloaks.
We had made our way to the Copper River; a large river that runs down from the north-east and channels into the southern seas of Dazawrath. The stones of the river bed were smooth and rust colored, giving the water a copper hue, hence its name.
Sagebrush covered most the area, a dry and earthy scented plant. Thin flowers grew in between the brush and sprouted magenta petals on top of one another like a colorful tower. The Swarmborne loved to chew on them, but their thin bristles made my skin itch.
Fuzzy, hazel colored, mice with strangely long bodies scurried past our boots. Silver whiskers sprung from their noses and twitched as they sniffed for crumbs. Small red birds with pink tail feathers nested between large rocks and whistled warnings each time someone walked past their homes.
Much of the earth in this area had been separated by massive cracks like a stained-glass window made of stone. Unique shapes and sizes of rock fit together like a giant puzzle and the Copper River often parted into the spaces between the earth, creating thousands of smaller streams. The cracks were easy enough to avoid, usually with a single step, but if you weren’t paying attention, it was likely you were going to get your boots wet. Some of the larger gaps were over ten strides long.
“Oy, you’re not bad with that thing,” Leanne said as my third arrow found its mark against a brittle log. Hyperion hummed in agreement in the back of my mind. I shrugged indifferently as I marched through the brush to reclaim my arrows from the fallen tree, a long bow resting in my free hand. I often shot on the outskirts of camp, a simple way to pass the time and keep my skills sharp.
Leanne sat beside a narrow stream; a small pile of clothing gathered beside her. She dunked a tunic in the water and let the dust that once clung to the shirt be pulled away by the current.
Hyperion lay across from her on a flat stone, bathing contently in the sunlight. Her canary scales reflected the sun like tiny, ivory flames.
“Come take a rest for a while, you’ve nearly split that log in two,” Leanne said as she patted the earth beside her. I grasped the last arrow by the neck and plucked it from the wood before heading towards the stream to join her.
The water shimmered around Leanne and she welcomed me with a warm grin. I lowered myself next to her and reclined on my elbows, dangling my feet over the stream. I placed the longbow and the handful of arrows opposite of Leanne.
Leanne finished scrubbing out the tunic she had in the water, spread it out over a flat rock, and slid beside me. Her hand brushed against my own.
I cleared my throat and announced, “We’re not far from Volcaro now.”
“Oy, not far at all,” Leanne looked out over the camp intently, as if she could see the islands of Cy’ann on the horizon. “We’ll be home soon.”
“Aye.”
No one said anything for a long time, we just let the cool breeze slide over us and watched the current’s steady flow.
“What’s the first thing you're gonna do when you get home?” Leanne asked curiously.
“I don’t know,” I shrugged as I flicked a loose pebble into the water.
“Oy, come on. You know you’ve thought about it,” she reclined on her right elbow beside me, her coffee-colored eyes watching me intently. “Come on. What would you do?”
I squirmed for a moment, unsure if I would answer truthfully or not. Leanne glared at me with her soft features, not relenting. I watched the sky and pictured the clouds of Voltar, dark and ever swirling.
Finally, I said, “I’d listen to the roll of thunder. I’d stand in the rain. I’d shoot a hundred arrows into the straw target my father made down by the stream. I’d hug my mum. I’d hug my father.” I found myself longing for the things I named far more than I imagined I would.
“Oy, aren’t you precious?” Leanne said adoringly as if she spoke to a child.
“Oh, come off it,” I rolled my eyes and remained on my back. “What ‘bout you? What will you do?”
Leanne used her finger to twirl a loose strand of hair and she puckered her lips tightly as she thought. After a moment she said, “I’d tackle my father into the sand. I’d kiss my mum. Oy, I’d probably even hug my brothers,” she said with a snicker. “Then, we’d all go down to the cove and swim out to the wrecked ship on the rocks, like we used to,” her voice faded as she spoke, as if the memory itself began to slip away. “Would you come and meet them?” she asked suddenly.
“Not if they’re anything like you.”
Leanne drew herself closer and playfully struck me on the chest. She laughed and pulled her hair from her face; I could feel her breath against the skin of my neck. Everything else around me seemed to fade when I joked with Leanne. For a moment I forgot about the legions of Swarmborne and Verdourin just across from us.
She looked around for a moment, making sure no one lurked about.
“When should we leave?” she asked softly. I noticed Hyperion perk up from her where she lounged.
“Roark plans to lead the army to Sunstone,” I informed her quietly. “He wants to camp within the ruins for a night or two before they march on the Nest. That’s as close to the Capital as we should go. On the first night in Sunstone, I’ll volunteer to take a late watch, we will gather our things and break for the heart of Volcaro in the cover of darkness.”
Leanne nodded slowly, “Do you think Roark suspects us?”
I titled my head and thought in silence for a moment. “I never know what’s on Roark’s mind. But I do know he’s too sharp for his own good. We have to be careful. I’ve never killed a careful buck. They always bolt at the first snap of a twig. It’s the careless and arrogant bucks that catch my arrows. Be ready to leave at any moment-”
“Oy, there ya are,” Tua’s deep voice spoke up behind us. Leanne and I slid apart in an obvious scramble. A cheeky grin pulled across Tua’s face, Vulkan smoldered upon his shoulder. “I hate to pull you away, but Roark would like to see his Lumikai.”
“Fine,” I rose quickly, grabbing my bow and arrows from the dirt. “Hyperion.”
She spread her four wings and batted them against the wind, sailing gracefully to my shoulder.
“Bye,” Leanne said sweetly, Tua watched me carefully, still grinning like a fool. I simply nodded and lent a grunt as my farewell. Tua clapped me on the shoulder and gestured towards the sea of tents.
Like a pebble dropped at the center of a lake, Roark and the queen’s tents were at the heart of the camp. Row after row of tents, canopies, and bonfires, rippled out from the center and surrounded them for as far I could see. The main body of the Copper River streamed along the eastern most side of the camp where the horses and livestock were being kept.
Roark’s tent was as simple as any of the common foot soldier’s.
The Queen’s tent looked like a castle beside Roark’s and was truly a work of art. The outer layer of the pavilion had been crafted from giant, white leaves and colorful insect wings. The outer frame was formed from enormous bug legs painted an icy blue. Twenty Scarabs stood around the tent at all times, while ten Hornets armed with bows and arrows circled from above.
I thought that the Copper River had proved to be a quiet and peaceful place to rest. Ezra, however, disagreed.
“Five days?” Ezra snapped from inside Roark’s tent as we approached the entrance. “Five days, you want to camp here?” Tua and I exchanged an amused glance before entering.
Roark sat quietly sipping a cup of tea. Rhyparus stood beside him and Ezra paced in front of them both, Zircon clenched to her shoulder. She shoved past Rhyparus’ hulking body to reach the center of the pavilion. Although the tent’s domed shape proved rather spacious, Roark had very little in the grey colored tent: a cot with a few good blankets, a wooden table covered in maps and documents listing our supplies, three lamps, and a second table that housed his mysterious wooden box and sword.
“Our party needs a good rest. They have been marching through the snow for seventeen days without a sabbath,” Roark shrugged as he lit the end of his pipe and leaned deep into his chair. “There are no towns or villages for leagues in any direction, no one will see us. Besides, Ryker and Tua need to master many more skills before we reach the Nest. This will be a good place for them to train and learn.”
“So our entire mission is postponed because of their incompetence?” Ezra sneered as she gestured at us.
Tua and I rolled our eyes and smirked at one another-she had said far worse. Vulkan snarled from Tua’s arm and embers shot from his nostrils.
Incompetent? You are the most powerful Bitten that Dazawrath has ever seen, Hyperion sang fiercely in my mind.
Ezra would disagree, I chuckled
Rhyparus handed Tua and I both warm cups of tea as we cautiously slid past Ezra and Zircon. We took seats on either side of Roark.
“Next month we will reach the northern border of Volcaro and have to travel by night through the Scarab’s Pass,” Roark said calmly, plumes of smoke spun off his scarred lips. “We will have to push on without rest for days until we reach Sunstone, then go to war with the most powerful force in Dazawrath. Our warriors will need all their strength. Therefore, the next five days, we rest.”
“We can rest when the Bitten Knight’s corpses are at our feet,” Ezra said lifelessly, her expression hidden beneath her black mask. She turned, her and Zircon stormed out the way we had just come in. She nearly ripped down the canvas panel that hung over the door as she left.
“Vengeance clouds her mind,” Rhyparus buzzed softly from where he stood, he crossed all four of his massive arms over his thorax.
The random clicks and snaps of the Swarmborne suddenly became, “good morning” and “how are you?”, as I slowly pieced together the secrets of their tongue. Although I began to understand many of their phrases, I could hardly speak even the simplest of greetings. It seemed that Roark and Ezra were the only humans in the camp that could fully speak their dialect.
“She has many scars,” Roark nodded as he released another wave of smoke from the wooden pipe at his lips, “both on her skin and in her heart. She believes they will be healed when the Knights are sacrificed.”
“I’m just glad she fights for us,” Rhyparus clicked nervously. We all agreed.
“Aye, I will not envy the Knights when they stand before her.” I took the last sip of my tea and asked, “What do you except her do when she faces the Knights? As powerful as she may be, you can’t expect her to beat any of them in single combat, let alone fight all six.”
Roark nodded his understanding of my question. His one good eye ran over me coldly.
“We cannot win this fight without you and Hyperion, Ryker,” he finally said. “The moment I saw your Fury, we knew you were the key. The gift from the Verdour that we had so patiently been awaiting. You’re right, we cannot match the full might of the Bitten Knights. Therefore, our first priority is to eliminate them as a threat, remove their source of power and the Nest will fall.”
“Remove their power? Their dragons?”
“Precisely,” Roark drew in another cloud from his pipe. “When you first conjured a sphere of light back at the White Hive, Vulkan and Zircon became so hypnotized by your Fury that their own partners could not un-cloud their minds. They were drawn to you, they became mindless, trapped in a trance. Your trance.”
“Oy, Vulkan’s mind fell completely silent,” Tua agreed as he leaned forward in his seat.
“Then I saw you shatter the sky with the beam of light during the blizzard,” Roark’s lips pulled into a grin.
“And the same thing happened again to Vulkan,” Tua announced. “Those few seconds the beacon was lit Vulkan mindlessly flew towards you until you released the light. Probably happened to Zircon too.”
It has the same effect even at a great distance… I realized.
“Our plan, Lord Dawnrose, is for you to summon that pillar of light from a safe distance in order to draw the dragons away from their Knights,” a flicker of brilliance flashed in Roark’s eye.
“The Knights will be defenseless,” Rhyparus clicked. “The Silver Guard will be their only shield, and my warriors will crush them.”
