DarkFyre Ch. 07

If she were honest with herself, Silmaria recognized that Lord Rael had kept his word and worked hard to turn his holdings around. He'd brought them from the brink of ruin, and if House IronWing was not yet as wealthy or well established as it had been at its height under Master Edwin, it would be there again soon. She saw it, she knew it, and she was even thankful for it. The Gnari woman was still unable to fully forgive the man, but when she allowed her stubborn pride to relax a bit, she could admit there was some good in him.

She resolved to put Lord Rael out of her mind, the matter too complicated to dwell on with the day so fine and life at last good again for a time. Silmaria took a deep breath and smiled. She began to hum the tune of a bawdy old marching song Master Edwin taught her that never failed to lift her spirits. The Gnari girl finished with the dining table and padded across the dining hall on bare, graceful feet, the wooden floor warmed by the hall's hearth fire. She walked to the hearth, wiping down the mantel above it, basking contentedly for a moment in the warm glow of the fire as she did her work.

The perfect, pleasant day shattered. A scream ripped through the Manor, high and stricken, coming from the direction of the foyer. Silmaria dropped her cleaning rag and bolted toward the front of the Manor, her heart pounding wildly.

Panic had already broken out by the time Silmaria dashed into the foyer. A number of servants had come running just as she did to see what the scream was about, and now ran scurrying this way and that in fright. Silmaria jumped out of the way as one of the men nearly ran her over in his haste to get away.

Looking past the dispersing cluster of servants, Silmaria clearly saw why. There was a group of strange men, half a dozen of them, standing in the middle of the foyer. They stood in a semicircle, and Tomar, the young Elven boy was sprawled on his back at their feet, one hand lifted in feeble defense. Blood dripped down into his frightened face from a deep cut on his upraised arm. The stranger standing foremost held a wickedly curved short sword that dripped wet and red with the Elf's blood.

Thinking quickly, Silmaria reached out and grabbed the next servant running past, who happened to be Margle. The woman was so panicked she didn't even give her usual sneer of distaste when she saw Silmaria.

"The Barracks! Go to the Barracks and bring the guards, quickly!"

Margle nodded and with a wordless cry, rushed down the halls. Silmaria turned and took a deep breath. She willed her feet to move forward and did her best not to shake. She hoped the men couldn't see her tremors, because she felt every one of them. The Gnari girl walked toward the unfolding scene, grabbed Tomar and pulled him back, shifting the lad behind her and shielding him.

The men before her did not move. They didn't seem to care about the boy, and stood perfectly still, eerily so, like strange statues, not the hint of a sway or shifting of weight among them. Each of them were shrouded in black, deep cloaks wrapped about their bodies. Heavy hoods hung over their faces, covering most of their features from view save the columns of their necks, which were thin and long, with flesh so white it appeared bloodless and sallow, like corpse flesh. The men all wore fingerless black gloves running up slender arms. Their exposed fingers was the same sickly white as their necks, like long albino worms. All of them carried the same dangerous, curved blades.

"What's the meaning of this? Are you cowards, the lot of you attacking an unarmed boy? Where is your honor?" Silmaria demanded, made bold by her fear.

"Where is your Master?" The lead man asked, ignoring her questions. At least, she thought it was him asking. It could have been any of the others, she supposed. It was hard to tell. The question was a harsh hiss, like the sound of gravel being ground together. Her ears flicked back against her head and she had to fight not to wince.

"My Master is dead," she answered.

One of the dark men lunged forward, his blade flashing out. Silmaria went very still, the point of the sword leveled just inches from her left eye. "Do not lie. We know he lives. Where is the Lord IronWing?"

The Gnari woman swallowed her fear, refusing to let it choke her, and instead clutched at every shred of her stubborn, foolish defiance. "Do you think if he were here, you'd be talking with me instead of him? He's not home. He's off cavorting who knows where. You know how Nobles are. Leave us small folk alone and go settle your business with him, and good riddance to the both of you!"

"She has a viper's tongue," one of the men rasped. "Cut it out."

Silmaria shifted back slowly, ready to spring away from the men should they come an inch closer. But in the next moment the cloaked stranger's forgot about her, their attention drawn to the seven House guards who came rushing into the room, dressed in full mail with shields strapped to their arms and swords flashing in hand.

"You bastards dare shed blood in House IronWing? You'll suffer our Lord's justice!" one of the guards, who she recognized as Tomas, screamed loudly, then charged forward, his fellows screaming, "IronWing!" and advancing behind him. Silmaria scrambled out of the way, darting back and huddling under the stairs, staring out into the foyer with wide eyes.

When the House guard arrived, Silmaria felt a blossom of hope. The guardsmen charged out, shoving with their shields as they slashed and stabbed with their long swords. The shadowy men met them with their deadly steel. The cloaked men moved nimbly and quick, weaving and dodging the guard's strikes. It seemed no matter where or how the guards attacked, the strangers weaved and shifted away, swaying disconcertingly under or around the cutting offense of the IronWing men. The strangers worked together in deadly tandem, and soon the Guardsmen were no longer attacking at all, and instead were forced onto the defensive. Their shields were all that kept them alive, and only barely. The foyer was filled with the clinging-clack and thunk of steel blades cutting shallowly into the thick oak of IronWing shields. The Dragon of the House coat of arms emblazoned on their shields was soon gashed and mutilated.

The guards formed up a circle with their backs turned inward and shields raised. It was an impressive, steadfast defensive ring, but even then, the guardsmen were too pressed by their attackers. The cloaked men circled and spun, one attacking after the other, methodical and relentless. When one man's attack was blocked or parried, he still managed to effectively create an opening for the next man to exploit.

The first guard fell to a stabbing thrust that lunged up into his chest from under his upraised shield. His death left an opening, and it was all the strangers needed. Before the body fully crumpled to the ground, one of the cloaked men vaulted past and into the middle of the ring, and his cruelly curved blade buried deep into the exposed back of one of the guard. The circle of shields crumpled, guardsmen scrambling to get some space from the suddenly swarming shadows to no avail. The guards were cut down, falling to the brutality and efficiency of their enemy.

A hand raised over her mouth, Silmaria watched with mounting horror as the guards, most of them good, decent men, fell one after the other. The air was thick with the smell of blood and pain. Screams and moans of the dying were spaced between the screech of metal on metal and the wet sound of meat being torn and separated from itself. The Gnari sank to her knees, struck helpless and paralyzed by the carnage and cruelty of life's violent end playing out before her.

Tomas was the only guard left alive now. He edged back toward the far wall, panting as blood seeped in a steady pour down the side of his face. He was struggling to hold his shield between his body and the ashen skinned killers, but his arm was wounded as well, and it was heavy, so heavy. They stepped slowly now, circled him casually and without hurry; they had all the time in the world, and he had none. They were toying with him.

Then the heavy front doors were thrown wide, the boom of them hitting the walls echoing in an ominous thud through the Manor halls. Silmaria blinked, expecting more doom to come pouring through the door. Instead, Lord Rael stood, dressed all in commoner's clothes and leaning on his walking stick.

His appearance froze the cloaked men in their tracks. All of them turned toward the Nobleman and staring silently behind the shadows of their hoods.

"Run, my Lord! Get away!" Silmaria screamed, breaking the sudden, heavy silence.

"Go! Lord Rael, go!" Tomas croaked from where he'd sagged against the wall.

Lord Rael scanned the room, sweeping over the blood spattered and pooled liberally all over the wooden floors, the limp, torn bodies of his guardsmen tossed carelessly about to lay in whatever unsightly crumple they fell in. His gaze took in the wicked men and their bloodied swords. His face changed, becoming hard and sharp. His expression was the picture of focus and deadly, calculating calm. Yet his eyes burned with such a raging, consuming silver fire that Silmaria felt chills run the length of her spine.

One of the strangers lunged for him, exploding into swift motion. Too late, Silmaria screamed a warning.

Lord Rael moved, and his speed was stunning for a man his size. Rael met the attacker, his walking stick cutting through the air to turn the man's blade aside. He pushed the dark warrior's blade downward to the ground, unbalancing the man. Just as fast he brought his stick back up in a vicious strike to the slim, cloaked man's throat with enough force to crush his airway. The man dropped to the ground, choking on his own blood.

Rael was already moving forward, and his left hand reached down to pull a longsword from the scabbard at his right hip. Silmaria had seen him with the steel at his hip before. She always thought, given the condition of his leg, he wore it out of habit, or perhaps even out of vanity. Now, his limp gone, she saw the truth of it.

The assassins moved as one to meet him. He waded into them, fearless and bold and aggressive, his walking stick in one hand and his steel in the other. One of the men squared off with him and brought his sword in an arching overhead cut. Rael caught it with his walking stick. The blade was sharp enough to sever the stick in two, but it served to deflect the blow upward and to the side. Nimbly, Rael ducked under the cut as he surged forward under and past his attacker's guard, bringing his own sword forward in a horizontal cut that laid the man's belly open from hip to hip.

Then it was all motion and frenzied action, a deadly dancing and weaving of man and muscle and razor edged steel. As before, the men attacked as a team, moving in tandem and looking to create openings for one another. Rael moved through them, aggressive and precise. He parried and dodged their attackers, his blade quick and flashing as he blocked and turned their slashes aside. For long, tense moments, each one seeming to last an age, the Knight Captain held them at bay. He spun and lunged, dipped and turned, moving instinctively one step ahead of the men. He moved to keep them always adjusting and compensating for his changing stance or position. For a brief time, the men seemed at a standstill, Rael too busy defending against the four to begin any sort of offense, and the four unable to pass his guard or find a clean cut.

A momentary lapse was all it took, and the standstill was broken. The cloaked swordsman on Rael's left overextended, throwing his balance off just enough when Rael parried. The Nobleman's foot shot out and kicked the man's lead leg out from under him, and the assassin tipped forward just as Rael's longsword arced in an upward cut to flay his chest cavity open. The Knight spun, dropping into a crouch as he whipped his blade out, cutting the legs out from under the assassin behind him. He brought his sword back around in a downward slash across the man's throat to end his life, then quickly rolled back to his feet just in time to parry the next attack.

The assassin pressed him furiously, his curved short sword slashing and stabbing frantically as he lashed out. Sparks flared where Rael parried and blocked, their steel meeting again and again. Then Rael was the one advancing, his blade flashing in arcs of deadly grace, forcing his foe to dance away and retreat before his assault.

Lord Rael was focused on the man engaging him and had lost track of the other remaining assassin. The sinister figure had edged away from the Knight, and now his hooded gaze fell on Tomas, slumped and panting against the wall. He rushed the injured guardsman and knocked his feebly raised shield aside. Pale, strong fingers grabbed Tomas by his hair and yanked him up to his feet. He circled behind the struggling man, pulled his head back, and laid his blade to the guard's throat.

"Stop!" the assassin rasped. The other cloaked attacker disengaged from the Nobleman.

A look of rage swept over Rael's face. He flicked his blade, sending droplets of blood spraying from the length of steel and onto the floor. "Let him go. I'm the one you want, your fight is with me."

"You're the one we want, yes. And we will cut down everyone around you to get you," the man growled.

"Milord, don't worry about me," Tomas began, then stilled as the blade at his throat bit into his skin and a thin trickle of blood slipped down his neck.

Rael kept his blade in hand, but allowed the tip of his sword to point at the floor. "Release him and I will give you a merciful end."

"Fool," the shadowy warrior replied. "Keep your mercy. You'll receive none in return."

Before the words had left the man's lips, his fellow lunged at the distracted Nobleman. Rael felt the approach and leapt to the side, but he was a moment too late and the assassin's sword bit deep into his side. A dark red stain spread across the side of his gray wool jerkin. Tomas thrashed against his captors hold. The assassin raised his blade to give the guardsman the killing blow.

Silmaria burst from her hiding place, moving on fleet, silent feet, swift and agile as any predator moving for the kill. She sprang, leaping onto the back of the man behind Tomas. Her legs wrapped around his bony waist, and one hand grabbed his sword arm, gripping tight to still his blade.

"Go, Tomas! Go!" she screamed, and raked her long, wicked claws across the assassin's face. The man's grip on Tomas released as he screamed, trying to grab at the wild woman thrashing and clawing on his back. Tomas let out a desperate shout and rounded on the injured man, wrestling for his sword.

Wounded, Rael was still a force to be reckoned with. As soon as he saw Silmaria jump onto the other assassin's back, he rounded on his attacker, his blade flashing out viciously. The power of his blows rang against the assassin's sword, knocking him back. The cloaked figure scrambled back and away, trying to recover, but Rael was relentless, springing after him and pressing the advantage until the assassin's blade slipped from nerveless fingers and Rael swept his head from his shoulders.

The Nobleman turned, ready to finish the last of the attackers. The cloaked assassin was crumpling, his hood torn and pulled to the side. Silmaria had sank one of her claws into the man's left eye, blinding him and disabling him long enough for Tomas to win the struggle for the assassin's sword. The Gnari leapt free and Tomas stabbed the curved blade into the man's chest.

The whole thing took a matter of moments, really, though it seemed a lifetime had passed. The last of his energy spent in that final struggle, Tomas let out a groan and began to fall. Silmaria grabbed hold of him to keep him from going face first into the floor. His body was limp and heavy. Blood poured from his head, the wound in his arm and another on his chest. It spread across the front of her dress in a warm, sticky smear. Then Rael was there, gripping the guardsman and helping Silmaria ease him to the ground. Rael tore a strip from his ripped shirt and pressed it firmly against the gash in Tomas's chest.

Rael and Silmaria's eyes locked over the panting man's body. Tomas's breathing was shallow and obviously painful. Rael nodded to her, the fire in his eyes faded and his face somber. "You're okay?"

"I...I'm fine," Silmaria said, her voice shaking slightly. She took a deep breath and tried again, more steadily this time. "Tomas isn't. I'll go get help."

"Good. Go now," Rael said softly but firmly.

Silmaria glanced down at Tomas worriedly once more before rising and going down the hall at a run to find where everyone was hiding.

Silmaria returned soon with a multitude of servants wearing fearful expressions, and the two guardsmen who had gathered everyone up and protected them.

Lirena's small form pushed her way to the front of the group and knelt beside Tomas, ignoring her creaking joints. She touched his brow and pressed her fingers to the pulse point at his throat. Rael and one of the guardsmen helped the old woman peel off Tomas's shirt of chainmail so she could examine the wound on his chest.

Rael stepped back to give Lirena time to check Tomas without being in the way. He looked over the faces of his people. There was too much fear in their eyes, fear and confusion and restless, anxious energy. They needed some direction, something to occupy themselves with and distract them from the terrible things that had just burst violently into their lives.

"Oen, help Lirena with anything she needs for Tomas. Porton and Alir, take the stranger's bodies and dump them outside. We will dispose of them later. Saul and Mirini, take our dead to the east day room and tend and clean the bodies. I want it notated who we lost, who their families, if any, are and what kind of burial rites they're to receive. The rest of you, clean this mess, then get supper and retire for the night. I'll meet with you all soon."

Given purpose once again, the servants scattered to obey, glad to have something to do. Rael turned his attention to his small books keeper, who was looking pale and not entirely well. "Selm, I want our guard replaced immediately, and doubled. I don't care if you have to enlist some of the more able bodied field hands, hire mercenaries, or get men on loan from the palace guard itself. Whatever must be done, do it. Use whatever coin it takes."

"I understand, Milord," Selm nodded, looking unsettled still, but determined. "It will be done."

"Good. See that we have guards ready to keep the House secure by tomorrow night."

Selm looked doubtful at that, but nodded nonetheless. "MiLord."

Silmaria was crouched down with Lirena at Tomas's side, helping her check over the man's wounds and holding pressure where the old Human woman instructed. Her pelt was already matted with blood up to her elbows. Tomas's wounds were worse than she realized. Rael moved to their position and bent down. Silmaria stared at him for a moment, then shifted to allow him to huddle in a bit closer.

"How is he?" Rael asked softly, his voice pitched so only Silmaria and Lirena could hear.

Lirena shook her head slowly. She reached up, wiping sweat from her brow with her forearm to avoid smearing Tomas's blood across her face, and not quite succeeding.

"He's lost a lot of blood. The head wound will heal well, though he'd bear the scar of it. The wound to his chest isn't too bad. The cut very nearly went through his breast bone, but none of his vital organs beneath were damaged. The cut to his arm may be the worst. It's bleeding very badly. I think he may have a severed artery."

"What needs to be done?" Rael asked.