Darkness Falls (Tales of the Wolf) (19 page)

As Gray settled the hood into place, something in the tergum felt natural to him. It was comforting. A simple tug and it was pulled down low, plunging his face and eyes into shadows. The scarf that they were to use to cover their mouth and nose as a mask seemed redundant to him but their Döcent had declared that they wear it, so he put it on.

Once everyone was ready, Darnac lead them through winding passageways that were minimally lit. Finally, they reached the grand arena. It was a huge, nearly three times larger than their practice area with a sandy floor and the roof open to the night sky. Numerous side passages littered the walls and led into darkness. Higher up on the walls were bleachers and balconies. At the present time, they were all empty. Their coterie had been the first to arrive.

The Blademaster directed them to one side and sat down to wait. The Shadow Wolves followed suit.

“Rule seven; if possible arrive early to your mission. This allows you plenty of time to scout out your surroundings and will allow you time to relax before you strike.” Without another word, Darnac reassumed the lotus position and closed his eyes.

Gray had already realized that he taught many lessons this way. A cryptic remark followed by some sort of action or in this case, inaction. Gray and Galvorn copied their Döcent’s actions and waited.

It was almost an hour later when the next group arrived. It was the Panthers, led by the dark-haired light elf Mortharona. The elven prince seemed to do a double take when he discovered that another group had arrived before him. Recovering quickly, he nodded his greetings to Darnac and directed his Cöterie to a nearby patch of sand to wait.

Gray took this time to study the Panthers as they passed by. Their heads were covered by a tergum but these were actually helmets. Made of black iron, they were round and had a wide brim. The facial area was covered with a mesh cage that both allowed the wearer to see and hid their identity.

Minutes later, the Cobras arrived and marched passed the other two groups without acknowledgement. They too wore actual helmets but these were close fitting with a blank two-toned mask hiding their face.

Gray could not tell if it was supposed to be intimidating or humorous. He actually found it an odd mixture of both. That was when he spied movement in the bleachers. Without moving his head, Gray watched as spectators begin to file in and fill the seats. There was a mixture of races; dark elves, gnomes, orcs and humans. Yet, he realized they all wore the colors of the Dark Alliance army.

A strange perfume filled the air and Gray turned his attention back to the tunnels just in time to witness the entry of the Ravens. He immediately noticed three things about them; their outfits, gait and scent.

Their outfits covered about the same as his but somehow seemed more enticing, which Gray found odd. The girls had been naked for the last year just like the boys and after the first few days had ceased being sexually stimulating. But now with their bodies strategically covered, a short growth of hair and a veil hiding their faces, they became mysterious. Then, there was the fact of how they walked and smelled. They moved with a graceful sashaying motion that greatly enhanced their hips all the while keeping their head completely level. Gray could tell that some of the girls were struggling with the walk but others were not and Gray had to admit, it was very sensual. More than that was their smell. They were obviously wearing some sort of perfume. He had never encountered the fragrance before, so it was hard to describe. He found it both musky and sweet. Couple all of those factors together and the Ravens made a very unforgettable entrance.

Gray scanned the girls for any sign of Tamina but with the veils and new way of walking, they all looked and moved alike. He thought,
‘If only there was some way to tell them apart.’

That was when he noticed something else. Below the perfume, each person radiated his or her own scent. Just like Galvorn scent to his left was completely different from Nergüi’s to his right or Dovan’s one person down, or even the Blademaster’s odor.  He quickly realized that the scents had always been there, he just had not noticed them before. He also realized that if he concentrated hard enough he could differentiate individual scents from every person in the arena. It was at that moment when the words of Wolf Spirit echoed in his subconscious.

“When you are in dire need, call on us. We shall aid you in any way possible, be it spell, blessing or companion. If it is in our power to help, we shall do so. This we swear.”

Gray closed his eyes and began to sort through the scents and label them. For some it was easy, Galvorn and Darnac especially, but others were not so easy. If he could move around and follow the smells, it would help but that would not be wise at this juncture. He breathed in deep until he found the scent he was looking for, it was both sweet and familiar…Tamina.

However, before he could actually locate her, a dark and bitter odor assailed his nose that was both foreign and familiar. Even before he could put a name on the smell, he heard the voice of the Dôminus as he stepped out onto a balcony.

“Welcome, welcome. This will be your first Cërtatüs and I must say I am looking forward to it. This contest will allow myself and others to evaluate your training. It will also give you a chance to earn honor and prestige to yourself and your Döcent. Each year the Cërtatüs will be different but there will always be one constant
element, the possibility of death.” Kralm paused and gestured to his trainers. “From this moment forward, your Sicáe will be outfitted with a
cantatis lapis
which will allow you to train and fight to your full potential. I will be honest, most of the enchanted stones
you receive tonight will negate the killing aspects of your blades and only incapacitate your opponent. However, sprinkled in the mix are at least two
mors lapis
or death stones. So if you take tonight’s challenge lightly, you do so at your own peril.”

The Dôminus let that sink in for a minute before continuing.

“Tonight’s challenge is simple, survive. This is a free-for-all. Cöterie versus Cöterie, hunter against hunter and will continue until only one unit is left standing. And I must stress, that you must survive as a unit. That too is part of the challenge.” Kralm gestured at the tunnels. “The arena before you has many different levels, terrains and hiding spots. You will have a quarter-hour to get in place before the signal. Any attacks before then will be frowned upon and dealt with harshly.”

The half-orc slaver stepped back and Gray’s heart was caught in his throat when he saw who stepped forward.

A ravishingly beautiful dark elf with long flowing snow-white hair glided into view. She was dressed in a flimsy red silk outfit that both hid and revealed her feminine wares. Even without Galvorn’s reaction, he would have guessed that this was Lalith the Dark Lady and the murderer of his parents. When she spoke, her words were so melodious that they were almost hypnotic.

“Greetings to you all. Your Dôminus was kind enough to invite me to watch you compete tonight. Even though tonight is the anniversary of the beginning of the time of Darkness, I wouldn’t miss being here for anything. You are the future of the Dark Alliance. Your skills will be paramount in our victory, of this I am certain. This war will be a long and bloody campaign. We will need skilled assassins and soldiers in the field to do Clotho’s bidding.”

She smiled and everyone in the arena found it intoxicating.

“
Amat victoria curam
.”

Darnac looked over his shoulder and whispered, “Victory rewards the prepared.”

As she stepped out of sight, a gong echoed loudly throughout the arena. Members of the other Cöteries dashed off into the dark corridors until only the Shadow Wolves were left.

Darnac turned to face them and smiled. It was genuine and warm. “Remember your training. Trust your instincts and work as a team. Do this and in the end, the Shadow Wolves will rule the day.” Turning his back on them, he walked away.

Everyone looked around as if they were lost.

Galvorn shrugged his shoulders and began to walk away but Gray held him back. The dark elf gave him a hard look but Gray ignored him. Turning his attention back to the rest of the Cöterie, he began giving orders. He paired up Aciês and sent them down different passageways until there were only four of them left. Nergüi and Dovan had become their shadows.

Galvorn shook his head and asked, “Why?”

“Why not? The Kënnári hinted that we should work together. This is just the most efficient strategy.”

Galvorn glared at the other Aciês with distrust. “But they could attack us at any time, do we dare trust them?”

Gray shrugged. “Should they trust you? Trust is earned, not given. I have no doubt that my fellow Shadow Wolves will come to my aid if I ever needed it. Why? Because they know that I will risk my life for them, I have in the past and I will do so in the future.”

“But Grim, there can only one can be the victor.”

Gray shrugged. “If we four or any other Shadow Wolves are the last standing, then we will spar
amongst ourselves to determine this day’s victor. But we will do it as comrades-in-arms, not as enemies.”

Galvorn furrowed his brow as he tried to understand. “But why?”

“Because in the end, we are all slaves.” Gray turned his back on his friend and moved into the darkness.

The other three warriors followed silently.

Galvorn could not really argue with that logic. Technically, he was not a slave but he had been isolated and ostracized for so long that he may as well have been one. Growing up, his only friend had been Darnac. Period. His parents rarely spoke to him unless it was to berate him for something that he had done. Then add in the fact that his father was stuck in his hybrid werewolf form and it was an odd childhood. It was at that moment, he realized how much he enjoyed Grim’s friendship.

The four Shadow Wolf warriors entered the passageways of the Arena just as the gong sounded.

Gray moved up close to the right wall of the passageway while Galvorn hugged the left. Nergüi and Dovan paused for a split second before copying their motions. All throughout the tunnels, sounds of combat echoed off the stone walls and filled the air. Nergüi and Dovan longed to rush forward and join in the fray.  However, a stern look from Galvorn and a simple pat on the shoulder from Grim was enough to curb that impulse.

Minutes later Gray found what he had been looking for, a crossroads of tunnels with plenty of cover for an ambush. He breathed in deeply but no new scents were in the area. Satisfied that they were alone for now, he turned to his companions and pointed at a large group of boulders. “Nergüi, you and Dovan take up positions there but don’t expose yourselves until you see us attack.”

Dovan grunted. “Where will you two be?”

Gray pointed upwards at the small ledge that ran along the walls a dozen or so feet above the ground. “Once we attack, feel free to jump in at any time but not a moment before. Let us be the focus of their attention. Now move.”

Within minutes, all four Shadow Wolves were in position and just waiting for their first victims.

*    *    *   *    *

Lalith beamed with pride as her son and partner used restraint and set up an ambush. Primarily, since they were the only ones to do so. Turning her head to gaze on her subordinates, she graced Darnac with a smile. “Blademaster, you should be commended on your leadership. Your Cöterie is showing great promise.”

The dark elf took the off-hand compliment with grace but the other Döcents did not like the fact that she had singled him out.

Mortharona was actually jealous and slightly hurt since she had not spoken to him since she arrived. He had received a single wink and one squeeze of her hand as she walked by but that was it. Of course, his mind was still filled with images of the last passion filled night they had spent together a month ago. She had warned him that their relationship needed to stay hidden for the time being and that she would be cold to him in public. He had heard the words but this was the first time he had experienced it; he did not like it.

Espen did not like the complement that Darnac had received for the simple fact that it meant that the Blademaster had eclipsed him, again. No matter how successful he would become as an assassin in the Subterreth, Darnac’s reputation was greater and it galled him. To add insult to injury, he was now forced to work beside the damned dark elf.

Chikk Forlorn did not care one way or the other. She was fine with Lalith not talking to her. As a matter of fact, it took a great deal of restraint not to draw her cutlass and strike her down. She was only here to pay off her debt, period. Nothing in her contract said that she had to be friendly to the Dark Lady.

Kralm just grinned with joy as he watched his dream of having high-trained warrior-assassins at his beck and call. He knew that one day his
Sicárii would be the backbone of the Dark Alliance.

When the
dignitaries spied two rival Cöteries approaching the crossroads, they all quieted down to watch.

*    *    *   *    *

In the etherness that was the misty realm of the gods, the Dhyana also watched as the events played out below. They knew that their fate was entwined in the destiny of one of the combatants and for better or worse; they could not interfere but only watch.