Blackstone (Book 2) (13 page)

“I’m not sending just those two,” Siobhan negated. “I need
to send the Pathmaker that is an expert at hand-to-hand combat, so Rune needs
to go. But Rune’s too new to Robarge, he won’t know who to talk to in each
city, so someone else should go with him. Tran, Wolf, who wants to go? Who
wants to stay?”

Her two enforcers eyed each other. Siobhan knew very well
that Wolf would not want to leave her side during such a dangerous time, but
Tran was just as protective of the guild, and wouldn’t be easily persuaded to
separate from them.

With a devious smile, Tran said, “I had to go ahead last
time as a scout. It’s your turn.”

Wolf scowled at him.

Siobhan rolled her eyes. Seriously? They were keeping score
on things like that? “Fine. Ryu Jin Ho-zhi, Wolf, and Rune will go.”

With a slight clearing of the throat, Tran offered, “I think
Markl should go with them.”

Her two Saoleords looked confused by this, but Siobhan saw
sense in the suggestion as soon as he made it. “Of course. Thanks, Tran, I’m
not thinking clearly.” Raising up to her knees, she called across the fire,
“Markl!”

Hyun Woo leaned in closer to Wolf and whispered, “Why
Markl-gui?”

“Markl is the son of a very large guild in Robarge,” Wolf
answered in the same confidential tone. “He carries great influence with the
major guilds. He’s also very good at speaking. He can charm his way into places
that we sometimes are barred from.”

And both of those reasons were why she should have thought
of sending him earlier.

Markl rose from where he sat next to Sylvie and came around
the fire, kneeling next to her. “Yes?”

“We have a plan to send ahead messengers to the next city
before they can get attacked,” Siobhan quickly explained. “I also need to send
at least two people ahead that can help them prepare. Rune, Wolf and Ryu Jin
Ho-zhi are going. We think you should go as well.”

Markl studied her expression for a long moment, clearly
having heard her and agreeing with her point, but torn anyway. Then he gave a
long glance over his shoulder to where Sylvie was sitting, and Siobhan abruptly
understood why he hesitated.

Tran knew it as well, as he reached around Siobhan’s
shoulders to lay a comforting hand on the man’s shoulder. “She’ll not see harm
while I breathe, man. You know that.”

“I know,” Markl assured him, heaving out a resigned sigh. He
forced a smile onto his face that looked beyond strained. “I know, Tran. I’m
trusting you with her. Alright, Siobhan, I think you’re right. I think I need
to go. When do we leave?”

“First light.”

Wolf hated very few things in the world, but being away from
Siobhan while danger loomed made the top of the list. The knowledge that he
would be scouting the path ahead of her, at least part of the way, was only
partially comforting.

While they waited for the sun to gain strength that morning,
he met with every fighter and made sure that they were clear on what to do if
danger did find them. Every enforcer had specific people to defend if it came
to that. Wolf just prayed that they wouldn’t run into trouble getting across
the bridge. That was the most dangerous part for today’s journey. Once on the
path, nothing could strike at them or follow them. But there were no such
guarantees on the bridge.

Their two Pathmakers stood shoulder to shoulder, eyes
trained on the morning sun as it climbed over the horizon. He could tell when
they abruptly turned, heading toward different carts, that it was time to
leave.

It wouldn’t be any faster separating for this first leg, so
they went by path back toward Channel Pass, only this time they were more
prepared to see the desolate city. Wolf eyed it sideways as he climbed off the
cart. The place looked even more eerie this morning than it had yesterday. The
morning fog, still lingering in the air, probably had something to do with
that. The place felt moist and cool, the lighting dim, giving the city a
haunted air about it. If a ghost had popped out from behind a wall and said
“boo!” he wouldn’t have even raised an eyebrow.

Turning, he offered Siobhan a hand down, which she took with
one of those fleeting smiles of hers. He’d been seeing a lot of those the past
two days. For a woman that usually smiled brightly no matter the circumstance,
it hurt seeing her expression strained and grim.

He stole a moment and hugged her tight to him, bending his
head enough to put his mouth near her ear. “Mind yourself.”

She hugged him around the waist just as tightly, nodding
against his chest. “I will. You be careful too. I’m more worried about your
group than mine.”

Wolf snorted. “I pity the fools that cross us.”

Siobhan relaxed enough to giggle softly. “It’s true, you’re
a dangerous lot. Even Markl, with the mood he’s in.”

Their resident scholar’s temperament had grown increasingly
black over the course of the night as the realization set in just how dangerous
things had gotten, and how far from Sylvie’s side he’d have to be. Normally he
was mild mannered even in the worst circumstances, but Wolf judged that by this
point, Markl would just as soon punch someone than  look at them.

Taking a step back from him, she looked up, snaring his
eyes. “Erik Wolfinsky.”

His attention abruptly sharpened. “What.”

“Do not fall. No matter what happens on the road, do not
fall.”

His throat tightened as tears threatened. He cleared it and
managed a gruff, “Aye.”

She grabbed him once more, the embrace hard and fierce, then
pulled away. “Good. Go.”

His heart rebelled on obeying that command. The only thing
that gave him the strength to turn around was that he trusted her judgement,
and he trusted Tran and Fei to keep the rest of the guild safe. If not for that
bone-deep surety in them, he would not have been able to force his feet to
move. But he did, turning resolutely toward the road.

Rune, Markl, and Ryu Jin Ho were already waiting, feet
dancing impatiently. He lengthened his stride, catching up quickly. Rune waited
until he was almost within range before spinning on his toes and starting off
in a ground-eating lope for the bridge. The rest of them caught up quickly and
matched the pace, more or less forming a V with Wolf as their anchor, watching
their backs.

They ran silently, conserving their breath. Their footsteps
echoed on the stone bridge. The scent of the sea was strong here, the breeze
coming off of it colder, and Wolf was glad of it as his body heated up quickly
from the exertion.

From the pace Rune set, it kept them from speaking, but it
didn’t stop Wolf from thinking or praying. He mostly prayed. Every worst case
scenario that his mind could conjure flashed through his head, and he prayed
every time that they wouldn’t come to pass.

But mostly, he prayed that Siobhan and the rest would reach
Winziane safely and that Goldschmidt would not fall.

Of course, no one (but Tran) could run for hours without
being completely winded. They stopped when they had to, walking, getting their
air back, and then when they were recovered enough to do so, they went back to
running. Doing that bought them an extra hour of time so that they arrived on
Robargean soil just before noon.

Rune lost no time in going to the channel, scooping up a
flask of water, and then leading them straight to the pre-built path. This one
was larger than they really needed, but they could hardly stop and build one
that was more appropriate for their smaller party. Rune apparently had been
coached by Grae how to make the right adjustments, or so Wolf assumed by the
boy’s muttering to himself in high speed mathematics.

Their new Pathmaker paused right before he activated the
path and said over his shoulder, “Ryu Jin Ho-zhi, make sure you only step on
the stepping stones. If you put a foot off of it, I have no way of knowing
where you’ll end up.”

Ryu Jin Ho gave him a grim nod. “I understand. I will put my
feet only where you step.”

“Good.” With that warning issued, Rune tipped the flask and
put the first drop of water on the stepping stone. The pathway instantly lit up
in soft blue light, the stones glowing in the ground.

Wolf knew from personal experience what happened if someone
fell off the pathway (Denney had taught that lesson to all of them) so he was
very careful where he put his feet. Ryu Jin Ho was directly in front of him, and
he kept an eye on the man, ready to grab him and yank him back if he fell.

They went through without losing anyone, thank mercy, and
arrived safely in Stott.

Or what was left of Stott.

For a bare second Wolf was half-convinced that Rune had done
something wrong and put them back on Orin’s soil, outside of Channel Pass, as
the resemblance was uncanny. There were no signs of life, not even of birds or
insects. The main gates hung crookedly, the streets empty, the very air so
still that the silence was almost crushing.

All around the outskirts of the city were traces of
battles—ruined wagons and handcarts, discarded weapons, and the graves of the
fallen, shoddily done as they were.

Ryu Jin Ho was the only one that dared to speak and shatter
the silence. “Should we return briefly to the bridge and leave behind a
message?”

“There’s no need,” Rune responded, voice hollow. “They’ll
use a different path and go directly to Winziane. They won’t see this.”

Wolf blessed that fact right now. Hardened as he was to
violence, a sight like this still made a lump form in his belly. But the rest
of his guild were not like him. Channel Pass had saddened and angered them, and
they weren’t on friendly terms with that city. Stott was a place that had
always welcomed them. His guild would not take its destruction well.

“Let’s go,” Rune urged them, already moving for the path
that lay further ahead.

Wolf caught Markl’s eye as they moved to follow Rune.
Markl’s eyes were red from unshed tears, fists clenched in anger. He understood
the man’s feelings well. If there had been a target readily at hand to blame
for all of this, then they’d have taken the man down without hesitation. But
there wasn’t, and their task was to relay the message of the danger ahead, and
hope to prevent the fall of their own city. As hard as it was to see Stott like
this, there was also nothing they could do here.

They went to the last path of the day, the one that would
take them directly to Goldschmidt. Once again Rune did his job admirably and
brought them through without incident. After the last two incidents where they’d
arrived at a ruined city, Wolf half-feared that Goldschmidt would be the same.
But his fears proved groundless. They left the path, their home city spread out
in front of their eyes; it bustled with traffic, sounds, and the mix of every
nationality going about on about their own business. The gates were wide open,
letting traffic through, and there wasn’t a hint of danger hovering about the
place.

Markl let out a noisy breath. “They haven’t gotten here
yet.”

“Then there’s hope,” Ryu Jin Ho said, jaw set in a
determined way. “Let us go. Quickly. We do not have much time.”

They moved with alacrity, Wolf taking lead, as he was the
one that best knew where to go and who to talk to. As this was their home city,
there was no need to flash their guild crests or stop to talk to the guards.
Wolf waved hellos to the dozen men that guarded the gate, receiving calls of
“Welcome home!” in return, but they did not stop. Or at least, they tried not
to, but one man detached himself and caught Wolf’s arm, dragging him to a halt.

“Wait, Wolf,” Tarik commanded, planting his feet. He was
shorter than Wolf, but massively built, with the strength of two average men.
Even Wolf would be hard pressed to win a wrestling match against him. “Where
are you coming from?”

“Saoleord,” Wolf answered shortly.

“Then do you know what’s going on out there?” Tarik threw a
hand out, gesturing toward the dense traffic shoving their way past. “Half of
these people say they’re from either Stott or Channel Pass. We’ve been hearing
wild tales about an army, an
army
of all things, that came in and
destroyed their cities overnight.”

“The army exists.” Wolf’s mouth felt as if had bitten into a
rotten lemon saying those words. “Really, it’s a mob that’s as large as an army
and it’s set on pillaging and looting every major city it can reach.”

Tarik’s blue eyes went wide, his tan skin going almost
white. “Mercy preserve us. Where did it come from?”

“Orin.” Wolf realized that talking to this man wasted
precious time, but it might also save them later. Grabbing both shoulders, he
said intensely, “Tarik, they’re coming this direction. You’ll get precise
orders later, but right now you have to prepare to defend the walls. Get hot
oil up there and stones and archers so that you can fight off anyone that tries
to scale them. Be prepared to close the gates at a moment’s notice. We brought
someone from Saoleord who knows how to fight off an army, but it’ll take time
to speak to Darrens and get the orders back to you. Do what you can while we’re
talking to him.”

Tarik was a seasoned member of Teregraph Guild, and was
directly in charge of the security for the east section of Goldschmidt. His
words carried weight. If there was anyone in this part of Goldschmidt that
could get things unofficially moving, it would be him.

He grasped Wolf’s arm in a reassuring hold. “I’ll do that.
I’ll send word to the other sections to do the same. Go find Darrens, quickly.”

“My thanks.” Wolf clapped him on the shoulder before moving
on, almost having to use force to get past the clog of people near the gate and
into a more deserted street that would let them navigate toward the center of
the city faster.

Even on these side streets, there was quite a bit of
traffic, so conversation between the group was challenging. Wolf had to duck
in, around, and between carts going both directions, and only slowed his pace
enough to make sure that everyone kept up. They were halfway to their
destination when it occurred to him that he should have asked Ryu Jin Ho if
there was anything else that Tarik could do while waiting on Darrens’ official
orders. Well, likely it would take hours to pull together what Wolf had
suggested. Tarik might not be able to manage much more than that even if he
knew about it.

Wolf was constrained to a half-trot because of the denseness
of the crowd. It frustrated him, making him irritable to the point of punching
random things, but of course it would just block the way more if he let his
fists fly. Instead, he constrained his temper and focused on finding any gaps
in between the people.

It seemed to take hours, but in fact was closer to thirty
minutes before they finally came to Blackstone’s main compound.

Every major guild in the four continents seemed similar to
each other. Oh, the architecture might be different, and the layout, but the
basic function of it was the same. There was always a huge, well-guarded gate
to get through, and then a smaller building that housed visitors temporarily
until they could be collected, and a much larger place beyond that housed all
of the main offices. There were storerooms, warehouses, training yards,
barracks, guest quarters, and main residences for anyone that belonged to the
family. To the uninitiated, it looked as complex as a labyrinth and no one
friendly enough to provide either a map or a guide.

Which was precisely why Wolf had had to go with this group.
He had been in and out of this place multiple times in the past decade he lived
in Goldschmidt. He might not know it like the back of his hand, but he knew
where Darrens’ office was located, and that of his right hand-men. If he
couldn’t find one, he’d find another.