Duskfall (30 page)

She had seen Knot slip underneath the bundle of cloth only a moment before, but now he emerged, sword drawn, as two Goddessguards advanced on him. Winter was about to pick them up and smash them together when she saw several Sons approaching Knot from the other side. She lifted a nearby wagon with a few of her
tendra
. The Sons stopped advancing on Knot and watched it rise into the air. Winter threw it down at them with all her strength, and the wagon smashed to bits against the gallows, collapsing another part of the wooden structure. She saw with disappointment that many of the Sons had leapt out of the way in time. But others had not.

Winter’s jaw set. She was almost there. She had almost reached him. She would not stop now.

She reached out another set of
tendra
, grasping weapon after weapon from the fallen, and sent them towards the remaining Sons. She heard the men scream.

* * *

Two Goddessguards faced Knot. One was carrying a huge longsword. Knot recognized him as the noble who’d taken Astrid. The other was Laurent, the Crucible’s Goddessguard, wielding a longsword and a blackbark shield. His blond hair stuck out in tufts beneath his helmet. The Crucible stood behind them, watching over her dogs.

“I’m not sure where you enlisted the help of the Nazaniin,” the Crucible said, her mouth tight, “but the High Camarilla will not be happy to know of their involvement.”

Knot didn’t know what the Nazaniin was, although the word did seem to echo in his mind. Then the noble rushed in on Knot’s left, hefting his longsword. The massive weapon would make the man slower but gave him a huge reach, and his blows would be unblockable without a shield. Knot would have to rely on his speed and parrying to avoid losing a limb, or worse.

Knot dodged the first attack, sweeping around and cutting in at the nobleman, but Knot’s blade whizzed through air as the man stepped back. That weapon’s reach was definitely going to be a problem.

The sun had nearly set. If Knot could hold out a few minutes longer, Astrid might be able to help him. But she was still in chains, and he wasn’t sure she could break them, even at her strongest.

Laurent deflected one of Knot’s blows with his shield, the attack bouncing harmlessly off the blackbark. The Goddessguard countered, throwing Knot off balance. Knot was barely staying on the defensive; the two men would soon overwhelm him. Another sweeping arc from the great longsword narrowly missed Knot’s scalp as he weaved under it. He needed a change of pace.

The Goddessguard swung at Knot again, but he made a mistake, stepping too close and slipping in the bloody snow. Knot parried the swing, catching the man off balance, and the massive sword careened away. Knot kicked the man in the chest, sending him sprawling backwards directly onto the bundle of cloth.

“An appetizer!” Knot’s voice came out in more of a ragged gasp than a shout. He didn’t have time to see whether Astrid got the message or not. He hoped she would understand.

He turned just in time to see Laurent’s sword coming towards him. Knot parried the blow but almost tripped on a spear lying on the ground between them. He recovered and hooked his foot on the weapon, kicking the spear up at the Goddessguard, who blocked it easily with his shield. But the action gave Knot enough time to rush in. Laurent parried the first stroke, partially blocked the second with his shield, but the man exhaled sharply as the third cut into his hamstring, and the fourth went through his neck.

Knot withdrew the blade, looking for the Crucible. He didn’t see her anywhere. He turned to where the noble Goddessguard was lying by the pile of cloth, his head hanging at an unnatural angle from his body. He was about to run back to Astrid, when he heard a voice behind him.

“Hello, Lathe.”

Knot stopped. That name again. He turned. A woman walked towards him. Brown hair, round face, light eyes. Tall. Knot had no recollection of her.

“Astrid!” he called over his shoulder as the sun flared one last time between the clouds before sinking beneath the horizon, “The sun has set.”

Knot heard rustling and dragging chains behind him.

“We’ve never met,” the woman said, “but I’ve heard much about you.” She wore a curiously curved sword at her hip. The weapon looked familiar, even if the woman didn’t.

Snow was floating lazily down from the darkening sky. Knot shivered. Sweat stung his eyes and matted his hair, but now that he’d stopped moving, he could feel the heat leaving him. “Who are you?” he asked. He still held the longsword, the leather grip damp with sweat and blood. He was exhausted. If this woman meant to fight, he wasn’t sure he had it in him.

The woman smiled, but her eyes weren’t friendly. “I am many people.”

Knot frowned. “You’re insane.”

The woman frowned back, her blue eyes cold. Before she could reply there was a scream from behind Knot, and he turned in time to see Astrid, a small blur, streak towards the woman. Knot felt a moment of panic. He could learn about Lathe—whoever that was—from this woman. Astrid couldn’t kill her, not yet.

Astrid sped past him, and Knot saw the woman raise something in her hand. Astrid slid to a stop, screaming, covering her ears as she crumpled to the ground.

“What’re you doing to her?” Knot shouted. He looked down at Astrid, who was bleeding from her nose. She stopped screaming, but still kept her hands over her ears. Her mouth was open wide, but no sound came out. Knot looked up at the woman, who held a small, silvery flower in her hand.

“You know what nightsbane does just as well as I do,” she said. Knot watched as the woman tossed the flower carelessly onto Astrid’s body. The girl had stopped moving.

“What d’you want?” Knot asked.

The woman stared at him, her face a stone-cold frown. Slowly, she drew the curved blade from her hip.

“Surely you couldn’t have thought to avoid us forever? Not after what you did.”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Knot said. “I don’t remember anything.” For the briefest moment, he wondered if he deserved to go with this woman, wherever she intended to take him. Perhaps she meant to punish him for the crimes he’d committed, whatever they were. Perhaps it was for the best.

Then he looked down at Astrid, her body motionless. He thought of Winter, back in Pranna. He could be a better man. For them, he might be.

“You’re thinking of her, aren’t you?” Knot looked at the woman sharply. “Yes, I’m talking about your elf friend. She’s closer than you think. If you come with me, we may allow you to see her.”

Knot’s jaw set. He didn’t know who this woman was, or what she wanted. But she knew about Winter, and he couldn’t let her live if she did.

Knot raised his sword and rushed towards the woman.

The woman’s smile widened, and she raised her own.

Then, in a blur of movement and an ear-splitting crash, Knot watched a massive ball of stone smash into the woman. The huge rock tore through the gallows and through the building behind, carrying the mysterious woman with it.

* * *

Winter had almost reached the gallows when Lian cried out. She turned just in time to see another group of Sons, led by a Goddessguard, rushing them from behind.

Lian raised his sword, engaging the Goddessguard. The man dodged Lian’s slash easily, slamming into him with his shield.

Winter screamed in protest, and immediately used a
tendra
to tear the shield away from the Goddessguard, carrying it back to smash the man into the slush. The Sons looked at her warily as she lifted the circular shield up with one of her
tendra
. Though the tendra was invisible, they clearly recognized the source of the danger. She snatched a spear out of the hand of one of the men.

The Sons of Canta panicked.

They ran, but didn’t get far. She spun the shield and spear round and round, crushing helmets, piercing armor and mail, smashing men like rotten fruit.

Winter could feel her power draining, the
faltira
seeping out of her. Soon, she would be helpless again.

She knelt down by Lian. He was groaning but conscious. He had a gash on one of his legs, and the blow from the shield would have left a bruise, but he looked like he would be all right. He started to say something, but Winter was already standing. She ran to the gallows, reality closing in on her. She was growing cold.

Knot was there, in front of her. Facing Kali.

Winter frowned. What was the woman doing? Nash was nowhere to be seen. Something wasn’t right.

Kali raised her sword. The look that passed between Knot and Kali told Winter all she needed to know.

One of them was about to die.

Winter had to stop this. She didn’t have much strength left; it was seeping away by the moment. She saw the massive stone globe of the fountain, capped in snow. Winter extended all of her
tendra
, reaching around it. She pulled with all her strength, and the huge sculpture slowly ripped from its base. With one last effort, Winter flung the huge rock at Kali.

Winter fell to her knees, the exertion finally overwhelming her. Through darkening vision she watched the globe ram through the gallows and into the building behind, throwing up a cloud of debris and snow. Only rubble and splintered wood remained where Kali had been standing moments before.

Winter looked at Knot, who stared at the destruction in disbelief. Then the darkness took her.

* * *

Nash saw Kali confront Knot, and he knew it was time to go. He was frustrated at the thought of leaving Winter. She was important; he hoped he would encounter her again soon, and not on opposite sides of the battlefield. Not that she would be able to choose, of course. According to prophecy, the Harbinger did not have the luxury of choice.

Then Nash saw the globe, and watched Kali disappear beneath it. The great twisting feeling in his gut surprised him. Even with Kali’s talent, he didn’t know if she would walk away from that. Unlikely.

Despite the fear gripping him, Nash turned away. He looked over his shoulder at where Kali had been. At least for now, the mission was his alone.

He made his way through the thinning crowds, pulling his hood up against the falling snow.

* * *

Cinzia could not look away. Lying limply below the gallows, was Nara. Something had cut her rope right after she had dropped, but Cinzia had heard the bones snap. The woman was dead. She was not sure how long she stood there, staring down at the body. The fighting continued around her, but she could not bring herself to move.

Cinzia slumped to her knees. People shouted, one of them Kovac. Another sounded like Jane. Cinzia could not understand what they were saying.

Could any of this be Canta’s will? Could the Goddess to which Cinzia had devoted her life be a deity of anger, jealousy, and violence? As Cinzia looked down at Nara’s body, a woman she had known her entire life, she began to wonder.

Then she heard a thunderous crash, and the gallows shook beneath her. Jane shouted her name.

Cinzia turned. Kovac was struggling on the ground with one of the Sons of Canta. The man was on top of her Goddessguard, pressing a dagger towards Kovac’s throat. Kovac was barely keeping it away.

Cinzia felt a jolt go through her. She ran towards her Goddessguard, looking around for anything she could use as a weapon. There, on the ground, was an abandoned spear. Cinzia picked it up, but nearly fell over as she gripped it. The thing was
heavy
. She managed to lift it, feeling a nervous energy in her limbs, and ran to Kovac. The knife blade had sunk lower, nearing Kovac’s neck just above his collarbone. Cinzia lifted the spear and rammed the blade into the Son’s side. The man screamed, arching his body in pain, and Kovac moved quickly. In a fraction of a moment their positions were reversed, and Kovac stood over the body of the Son, his own knife dripping blood.

Cinzia dropped the spear, her hands shaking. Kovac grabbed her arm. “Come, Priestess,” he said.

“Where’s Jane?”

“We can worry about her later. I need to get you to safety.”

“
No
,” Cinzia said firmly, wresting her arm from his grip. “I’m finding my sister.”

* * *

Knot stared ahead of him. Whoever the woman had been, she was dead now.

But he feared Astrid was too.

He leapt into the rubble. Astrid had been lying near the woman, the nightsbane herb on her body, when the globe had crashed through the gallows. Now Astrid, the strange woman, and almost a third of the platform were gone, in their place shattered stone and splintered wood. Snow still fell around him, defying the chaos with its serenity.

Knot shouted Astrid’s name as he dug through the snow and debris. No answer came. “Astrid!” he shouted again, louder, his voice raw and hoarse. She
had
to be alive. He hadn’t come all this way to fail her.

Again.

To his right, the rubble shifted. He scrambled over, losing his balance on shifting stone and snow. Then he heard a cough, and a layer of debris fell away.

The girl poked her head up. “I’m all right, nomad,” she said between hacking coughs. “I’m all right.”

Knot reached down to help the girl out, when someone called his name. A chill went up his spine. He knew that voice.

He turned, and saw a figure limping towards him in the dusk, carrying something. Knot blinked. It couldn’t be.

“Knot,” the tiellan said again, and there was no doubt in Knot’s mind. It was Lian.

“Help me,” Lian said. He was carrying a body.

Knot suddenly felt what little hope he’d gained in the past few moments—surviving the execution, defeating the Goddessguards, finding Astrid—wilt to nothing.

She
was there in Lian’s arms. Sweat stung Knot’s eyes. He heard his own rasping breath. The falling snow seemed to hover in the air around him. He moved to her, and an eternity passed between each footstep.

“How?” Knot whispered. Lian didn’t respond; he stumbled and almost dropped his burden. He was wounded, Knot realized. Blood spread from a wound beneath Lian’s shirt. Knot took her from him, feeling the weight of her in his arms.

The last time he’d carried her like this was their wedding night.