Warrior Priest of Dmon-Li: The Morcyth Saga Book Three (35 page)

“Check it out,” he tells him.

Jiron opens the door and looks inside. He
turns back to James and says, “Looks like a storage room.”

James turns his attention back to the guard
and the girl. He indicates the storage room and says, “Move
inside.”

The guard gives him a defiant look as he
walks over to the storage room, the girl following with fear in her
eyes. Jiron rips off two lengths of cloth from the girls dress and
uses them to gag their mouths. Then he proceeds to bind their hands
and legs. Once they’re secure, they leave the room and close the
door behind them.

Suddenly, from the other side of the double
doors, the sound of someone whistling comes to them. Jiron motions
for James and Miko to move out of the way as he takes position near
the door.

The whistling draws near and Jiron gets
ready. The door opens up, a guard enters with a smile on his face
and a bottle of wine in his hand. He stops abruptly when he sees
Jiron there in the hallway before him.

Jiron moves quickly, but not before the
guard realizes what’s going on and tries to shut the door. Slamming
into the door with his shoulder, Jiron knocks it open. The guard is
forcefully pushed back and falls to the floor, the bottle of wine
flies out of his hand and smashes against a wall several feet away.
As he hits the floor, the guard draws his sword while at the same
time attempting to roll out of Jiron’s way to regain his feet.

But Jiron doesn’t allow him the opportunity
to do that and kicks him hard in the side. The guard groans as
Jiron kicks out again, knocking the sword from his hand. As the
guard starts to cry out, he kicks one more time, this time in the
side of the head and silences his cry.

He picks up the unconscious guard and
carries him over to the storage room where the others are bound and
gagged. Miko picks up the guard’s sword and brings it to the
storage room as well. Once Jiron has him gagged and tied up, Miko
removes the sword belt from the guard and secures it around his own
waist.

When he sees James looking at him, he says,
“May need it before we’re out of here.”

“Just be careful,” he advises.

“I will,” replies Miko. “Don’t worry.”

As they again leave the storage room and
shut the door, James says, “That must’ve been the other guy’s
partner.”

“I’d hate to be them when they’re discovered
in there with that girl,” Jiron says with a grim smile. “They’ll be
hard pressed to explain what she’s doing there, and in that state
of undress.”

Chuckling, James nods his head.

They move to the end of the hallway where
Jiron takes the lead as they begin to climb up to the tower. After
making two complete circles, the stair comes to the next level.

This level is dark and has the look of a
storage area. They continue on past, following the stairs up as it
continues spiraling toward the top.

Voices begin to be heard coming from the
level above them as they finish the first circle after the storage
area. Light can also be seen coming from above them as well. Jiron
motions for them to stop as he proceeds alone to investigate.

They watch him as he follows the stairs
around, disappearing where the stairs curve out of sight. James
waits anxiously for several moments before he returns back down the
stairs. Coming close he whispers, “The next level looks to be a
guard room. I saw at least six guards taking their ease there.
Also, these stairs end there. I think I saw another flight going up
over on the other side of the guard room.”

“So in order to continue up, we’ll have to
pass through the guard room and the guards stationed there?” asks
James.

Jiron nods his head, “I didn’t see any other
way.”

James glances to Miko who nods his head and
draws his sword. “Alright then,” he says to them. “Let’s strike
hard and fast.”

With Jiron in the lead, they climb the
remainder of the stairs until they near the landing which opens
onto the guard room. James can hear the guards talking amongst
themselves as they come near.

Jiron looks back to him, both knives drawn.
James gives him a nod and they burst into the room. He strikes out
at the nearest guard, taking him across the throat. Two stones fly
in quick succession, taking out two more across the room.

The remaining three guards quickly recover
from their initial shock at seeing them and draw their swords. The
one closest to Jiron moves to engage while James’ last stone flies
and takes out one of the others.

Coming straight for James and Miko is the
last guard, sword ready and war cry on his lips. James readies a
spell but Miko shoves him aside as he moves to engage.

As James stumbles to the side, he cries out
“Miko! You’ll be killed!”

But Miko blocks the thrust of the guard and
deflects the blade to the side. He follows through with a counter
attack which the guard blocks.

Jiron is fighting with the remaining guard
and is unable to come to his aid. But Miko seems to not need any as
he again blocks an overhand hack. He kicks out with his foot and
connects with the man’s chest, knocking him backward.

Miko immediately follows the man as he trips
over a chair behind him and runs him through with his sword before
the guard hits the ground. Putting his foot on the man’s chest, he
yanks out his sword as he turns to the sound of Jiron battling the
last guard.

Before Miko has the chance to make it over
to help him, Jiron deflects a thrust with the knife in his right
hand, twirls and smashes his left elbow into the guard’s jaw as he
comes around.

The guard stumbles backward, blood streaming
down his face from his broken nose. Jiron follows through with a
quick series of attacks and succeeds in plunging one of his knifes
into the guard’s chest, puncturing his heart.

As the man falls, Jiron pulls his knife out
of his chest and turns back to the others when out of the corner of
his eye he sees a sword coming down toward him. With reflexes honed
through years in the pits, he brings up a knife and blocks the
attack.

Miko brings his sword around for another
attack when James yells, “Miko!”

Startled, Miko pauses as his eyes begin to
focus on who stands before him. Lowering his sword, he stands there
dazed for a moment.

Jiron and James look to each other, and
James mouths the words ‘The Fire’ silently as the points to Miko’s
pouch.

Sudden understanding comes to Jiron as he
steps back from Miko.

Miko begins looking around and James comes
over, saying, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he says, somewhat distantly. “I’m
fine.”

“You sure?” asks Jiron as he comes over.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” he says as he glances from
one to the other. “What’s the matter?” he asks, seeming to abruptly
snap out of whatever fugue he’d been in.

“Nothing,” James replies. “Let’s go.”

As they move across the guard room, James
and Jiron exchange concerned glances.

Miko seems alright, just the sudden skill at
arms and the way he attacks anyone gives James cause for concern.
He gestures for Jiron to take the lead as they come to the
stairs.

Jiron pauses at the bottom as he peers up
the stairs and finds that they extend up to a heavy door with a
small window. A face is looking out at him through the window. He
turns back to James and says, “I think we’ve found him.”

James moves around Jiron and climbs the
stairs, stopping several feet down from the door. The man is
looking straight at him. “Are you the Madoc general, Pytherian?” he
asks.

“Who wants to know?” the man behind the door
says.

“One who would bring you from here,” replies
James.

The man seems to consider a moment and then
says, “Yes, I am Lord Pytherian.”

James turns back to Jiron and says, “Open
the lock.”

Moving past James, Jiron takes out one of
his knives as he begins working to open the lock. They all hear a
‘click’ and then he pushes the door open into the room.

Lord Pytherian is a man in his middle years
who’s begun to gray along the temples. He looks at them and says,
“Is this all?”

“What do you mean?” James asks.

“Is this it, two of you and a boy?” he asks.
“How do you plan to get us out of here?”

“I assure you,” James tells him, “we are
more than enough to get you out of here.”

Lord Pytherian doesn’t look convinced.

James looks at him and asks, “Are you
coming?”

He starts to leave the room when from
outside the window of his cell, they hear a great commotion coming
from below. They all move to the window and look down to the
courtyard below. Several figures are moving quickly across the open
area as they head for the gate leading out of the keep. Soldiers
are moving to intercept them and soon they’re engaged in
battle.

“Are they part of your group?” Lord
Pytherian asks.

“No,” replies James, mystified. “I don’t
know who they are.”

“I do,” replies Miko. They all turn to him
as he continues, “They’re those prisoners in the cells down in the
dungeon.”

“But how did they escape?” asks James.

“They must’ve gotten a hold of the guards we
killed and managed to escape their cells,” figures Jiron.

“That tears it!” exclaims James. “They’ll be
here to check on him,” he says as he points to Lord Pytherian,
“once they’ve dealt with them. If they’re not already on the
way.”

“Then let’s move!” Jiron says as he heads
for the stairs.

They follow him as he quickly moves down the
stairs. When they reach the guard room, Lord Pytherian pauses a
moment to remove a scabbard from a fallen guard and buckle it
around his waist. As they hurry through, he takes out the sword and
tests its balance. Satisfied, he returns the sword to its scabbard
and hurries after them.

Almost running down the stairs, they reach
the bottom just as the double doors open up and a squad of eight
soldiers enters, led by a man richly dressed. Both groups pause
momentarily in stunned silence at seeing the others before the
soldiers draw their swords and charge.

James hears a strange cry behind him as Miko
rushes past, sword in hand. He meets the lead soldier and in two
passes of his sword, the man lies dead at his feet.

Jiron and Lord Pytherian follow and the
battle is joined.

Deflecting a sword thrust with a knife,
Jiron follows through with the other and is able to stab the man in
the exposed armpit. When the knife is pulled out, blood flows
quickly from the artery that was severed.

Lord Pytherian, with a war cry, wades into
the soldiers. He deflects one sword thrust and quickly brings
around his sword and slices into the man’s leg, practically
severing it. Another soldier engages him and he blocks a downward
hack as he kicks out at the man’s stomach, knocking the wind out of
him and causing him to stagger back.

The man staggers back near Miko who almost
absentmindedly swings his sword in that direction and takes the
man’s head off. The head flies and bounces off the wall as the
torso falls to the floor, blood spraying everywhere.

Then all of a sudden it’s over. James
glances over to see Miko looking around. His eyes catch sight of
Lord Pytherian standing there and begins moving toward him to
attack. “Miko!” he yells.

Lord Pytherian sees him coming and backs
away from him, sword at the ready.

“Miko!” he cries one more time.

Miko slows and then suddenly comes to
himself. He looks around at the dead bodies and almost without
thinking, reaches down and cleans his sword on a fallen soldier
before replacing it in its scabbard.

Lord Pytherian glances from Miko to James
and back again. “What’s wrong with him?” he asks.

“No time to explain,” replies James. “Just
stay away from him when he’s fighting.”

He nods and then looks around at the dead,
“Where’s the other guy?”

“What other guy?” Jiron asks.

“The one that was with them, the one in the
fancy clothes,” replies Lord Pytherian.

They look around but fail to find him among
the dead. “He must’ve gotten away,” James says.

“Then we’re out of time,” Lord Pytherian
says. “He’ll bring the whole army to hunt for me.”

“He’s got to find us first!” Jiron cries as
they hurry out through the double doors. A couple servants can be
seen in the hallway, looking around confused. But when they see
them burst through the double doors, all covered in blood, they
begin to scream and yell as they run away down the hallway.

Jiron leads them down to where they left the
girl and opens the door. He looks in but finds her gone.

“Where to?” asks Lord Pytherian as he
continues glancing down the hallway.

James looks to Jiron and says, “Back the way
we came?”

“As good a way as any,” he replies as he
moves toward the banquet hall. Before they come very close to it, a
group of soldiers enters the hallway from there, the fancy dressed
man in the fore.

He hollers to the soldiers and they rush to
attack.

Turning around, they run back the way they’d
come and turn down the other hallway at the double doors. Racing
with a dozen soldiers at their back, they fly down the hallway
until it suddenly opens up onto an inner garden.

They run along the walkway, past many types
of flowering bushes and benches where people could rest while
enjoying them. “Do you guys know where you’re going?” Lord
Pytherian asks.

“No,” replies James. He hears a curse from
Lord Pytherian behind him.

They exit the garden through another door
and they swing it closed. The room they’re in is not too large,
several benches sit on either side.

“Give me a hand!” hollers Jiron as he
indicates one of the benches. Lord Pytherian moves to help him and
they pick it up, carrying it over to in front of the door, blocking
it somewhat.