Echoes Of A Gloried Past (Book 2) (18 page)

“Stop any of the people from escaping. We are to capture these patrons, as they are believed to be the cause of dissidence and destruction near the Citadel of the Elite,” Josef said then waived them away.

Nolan deployed his men to the back of the inn, which itself was a three-story wooden building at least a hundred feet across, including a covered porch. The smell of a smoking hearth laced the air. He was pleased to see so many of the guards that they had met with in the temple of the Goddess return to the station and accompany him tonight. They made up more than a third of the men he had brought with him, and it was those men that he kept closest to him, knowing that he could trust them.

“Do you know anything about this?” Nolan asked Anson in hushed tones after deploying the men to cover the alleys leading away from the inn. 

Anson shook his head, and Nolan didn’t have time to ask any more questions as they heard the captain commander’s men break through the doors of the inn. He kept his men outside, as their orders were to lend support if needed. Screams came from inside the inn, and several patrons attempted to escape out the back. His men took them into custody, and he was pleased that they didn’t use an excessive amount of force. 

From the commotion inside, it sounded like the captain commander’s guards were being met with heavy resistance. A dark shadow crashed through a window and into the middle of the alleyway. Nolan’s men retrieved the bear of a man that laid unconscious, struggling to carry him even this far. 

After a few minutes, the sounds of struggle began to die down from inside, and an Elitesmen appeared in the doorway.

“You there, Captain,” the Elitesmen said. “Take your detainees and interrogate them. If anything appears out of place, you are to send them to the Citadel immediately. Is that understood?”

“Yes, my Lord,” Nolan answered.

They gathered the people they had captured and slung the unconscious form over a horse and headed back to the district headquarters.

***

Aaron and Tanneth quickly navigated the rooftops heading away from the Citadel when both their comms devices started blinking red. They stopped, and Aaron scanned for signs of pursuit while Tanneth opened his comms device.

“They’re in trouble,” Tanneth said.

“Where?” Aaron asked.

“They’re still at the inn,” Tanneth said.

“I can go faster myself,” Aaron said.

Tanneth plunged his hands into his pack and pulled out a golden rod a little more than a foot in length. Tanneth clicked a mechanism on the side of the rod, which fanned out at the points to form discs. He placed it down in front of him and stepped onto the discs and bands extended over his feet. Tanneth keyed a sequence on his wrist band and began to hover off the ground.

“I think I can keep up with you,” Tanneth said quietly.

Aaron smiled and nodded, then launched himself into the air, heading back toward the inn. He glanced back a few times to see Tanneth skating across the air, keeping pace with him. Aaron nodded back to him and really turned on the speed, using the air to propel himself forward and skipped along the rooftops of the sleeping city. They stopped at a building near the inn. The Blue Lantern where they had agreed to stay for the night was crawling with guards in black uniforms. The silver emblem of the dragon caught the light from the orbs that dotted the street below.

“How could they have found them?” Tanneth asked.

Aaron shrugged his shoulders, “I’m not sure.” He didn’t think they had been followed, but then his stomach sank. He had that nagging feeling along his senses and cursed himself for not paying more attention. “We may have been followed, but I couldn’t be positive, and there wasn’t enough evidence … ”

Tanneth grabbed his arm. “You couldn’t have known. We’re in enemy territory. We should assess the damage and decide from there.”

Aaron nodded and turned back to face the inn. They moved in closer to get a better look. There were many guards mixed in with a few Elitesmen. 

I shouldn’t have left them. 

People were filing out of the inn, and Aaron could see the unconscious forms of Verona and Gavril. Followed closely by Sarik and Roselyn, who huddled nearby. 

The energy of the bladesong churned inside him as he drew the Falcons from their sheath.

“No,” Tanneth said grabbing his arm. “If you go down there you will kill them all.”

The words of Tanneth penetrated the walls of his anger, but his body was poised to spring. 

“You’re right,” Aaron said, tensing his jaw.

A few moments later, they watched three Elitesmen approach their captured friends, and in a flash of light they were gone. Aaron could guess where they were taking them and glanced back at Tanneth. 

“We’ll be heading back to the Citadel sooner than expected.”

“Where are Eric and Braden?” Tanneth asked.

A horse-drawn wagon pulled up, and the guards began to pile up dead bodies carried out from the inn. Two guards struggled with a large body, and Aaron felt a cry freeze in his throat.

Eric, no!

Aaron struggled against Tanneth’s grip. Eric was dead. He scanned the crowd, looking for Braden, but couldn’t find him. Aaron refused to believe that Braden would abandon his brother. An Elitesmen reached onto the wagon and took something from Eric’s body. 

Aaron sheathed his swords and drew his small curved ax. 

The shield of the De’anjard extended in the Elitesmen’s hands, showing the Alenzar’seth coat of arms emblazoned upon it. 

Aaron was poised to unleash the ax and kill the Elitesmen holding the shield. The very same shield that Eric unearthed in Shandara with an enormous sense of pride. In a flash, the Elitesmen was gone.

Aaron secured the ax to his belt.

“I don’t see Braden. Let's circle around and see if he is in the back.” Tanneth said.

Aaron nodded, and they circled to the back of the inn. Aaron took grim pleasure at the number of dead and injured guards, knowing full well that Eric had fought to the bitter end.

They said nothing more as they came to the back of the inn. Aaron immediately recognized the district captain from earlier and saw his second in command hovering near an unconscious Braden lying across the saddle of a horse. Aaron sighed in relief as he realized that Braden was breathing and took a small amount of comfort knowing that Braden, for the moment, had escaped the Elitesmen.

“I can’t let them take Eric’s body like some piece of meat,” Aaron said.

Tanneth nodded. “I’ll take care of it.” 

The Hythariam slipped silently away and returned a short while later. “We have a few minutes. Then we should be away from here.”

Aaron nodded. The captain was leaving with Braden in tow, and they decided to follow. They would free Braden first before going after the others. A loud explosion painted the street in an orange blaze, and Aaron turned to see a plume of smoke rising into the air. The streets echoed the cries of the guards at the front of the inn. Captain Nolan, Aaron noted, did not look back but kept heading away from the inn. With a grim nod to Tanneth, they followed Braden’s unconscious form amid the guards and the rogue district captain.

C
HAPTER
12

AN ALLIANCE

NOLAN snapped his head back at the sound of the explosion and was about to order his men back, but decided against it. The captain commander’s men could deal with the cleanup. He motioned to two guards. “Have a look and see if they need aid. If the commander’s men are okay then return to headquarters.” The guards saluted and headed off.

“What do you think caused the explosion?” Anson asked.

“Don’t know, but I’m glad that none of us were in front of the inn,” Nolan answered, glancing at the rooftop. “I think we have a shadow.”

Anson nodded, not looking up. “Do you want me to look into it?”

Nolan thought about it for a minute and shook his head. "No, if it’s the Elitesmen then there is nothing we can do about that, but if it’s the same man who helped us earlier today then I don’t want to send him off.” 

Nolan could feel the wheels turning in his mind as the pieces slowly slipped into place. He glanced at the prisoners taken from the Blue Lantern Inn and moved closer to Anson. “I don’t think he was alone. I think the whole purpose of the night raid was to capture the man’s companions. And if he’s following us then it seems that one of his companions is among our captives.”

Anson nodded in understanding and took a closer look at their prisoners. After peering at them for a few seconds, Anson turned back to him. “I think you’re right, and I would wager that the unconscious man is tied to this. Look at his build. He has the build of a warrior.”

Nolan glanced at the unconscious man and nodded. “I won’t give him up to the Elitesmen if I can help it. When we get back to the station, I want him secluded away from the others. Be quick and use only men you trust. Treat his wounds, but post some extra guards just the same, because I doubt when he wakes he will realize we mean him no harm.”

“Yes, Captain.” Anson said and saluted.

Nolan returned the salute and watched as Anson made his rounds among the men and took point near their mysterious prisoner. It took all his will not to look at the rooftops, being both afraid at what he would find and wary of what he couldn’t see. 

***

Aaron and Tanneth followed the guards from the rooftops, keeping pace easily. They kept silent with Aaron still stuck between disbelief and acceptance that Eric was dead. He tried to deny the guilt within that selfishly demanded that he should have fought by his friend’s side and could have turned the tide by allowing them to escape. 

He gave grief’s guilt its due then allowed reason to slowly push those thoughts aside only to have it start again. Sarah had tried to tell him that he couldn’t be everywhere at once, nor could he protect everyone around him, but there could be no denying the fact that they got caught in a moment of complacency. Now the Elitesmen had captured all but himself, Tanneth, and Braden. He had thought they could move in the city undetected, but then the incident with the miners occurred. This was all his fault. He had brought the attention of the Elitesmen down upon them, and his friends had paid the price. The blaring truth dragged at the pit of his stomach making him feel hollow and empty inside. Even though they all knew the risks coming here, Aaron couldn’t help but feel responsible. This was the burden of being a leader, and there was nothing he could do for Eric but take the fight to the Elitesmen by striking in the very place where they thought they were safe. He would prove them wrong. He vowed to make the Elitesmen fear the shadows.

Tanneth motioned down to the street, and Aaron noticed that the lieutenant had taken up point nearest to Braden. They must have realized that Braden was somehow connected to him. His thoughts were confirmed when the lieutenant brought Braden into the district headquarters through a side entrance by a small number of guards broken off from the main group.

“Do you have any drones left at the Citadel?” Aaron asked.

Tanneth nodded. “I didn’t pull them out, I just had them shut down after we tripped the alarms.”

“We need to find out exactly where the others are being held if we’re going to have any hope of a rescue,” Aaron said.

“What are you proposing?” Tanneth asked.

“I want you to have the drones look for the others. We know that there is a way into the Citadel through the arena, but what if there is another way? I will go and get Braden,” Aaron said.

“By yourself?” Tanneth asked.

Aaron shook his head. “I think I have a friend on the inside. They are part of the Resistance and could perhaps mobilize the De’anjard remnants in the city. I won’t know until I go down there.”

Tanneth nodded and then frowned. “Do you intend to just walk in there?”

Aaron’s lips lifted into a small grin. “I thought about it. Just walk in there and ask to see the district captain.”

“What makes you think they will let you in?” 

“I’ll think of something. If things go badly then I’ll try and get Braden out by force,” Aaron said.

“You’re right, we need to divide our efforts if we are to have any hope of success,” said Tanneth.

“Thank you for agreeing,” Aaron said.

“Let me show you how to call up the video feeds from the drones. I will highlight the important finds in a way that will be easy for you to find,” Tanneth said and began showing him the sequences to bring up the video feeds. It was actually quite easy. The Hythariam designed their interfaces for simplicity rather than complexity of which Aaron appreciated.

“I think you have it,” Tanneth said after Aaron went through the sequence a few times on his own.

“Be safe,” Aaron said.

“Safe journey to you as well,” Tanneth said and melted into the shadows, heading back toward the Citadel of the Elite.

Aaron studied the district guard headquarters. The bustle of activity had died down as the night drew on. He could try sneaking in through the side entrance, but dismissed the thought because he didn’t want to cross swords with people who could be allies. Going through the front door in this case was the best approach. He leaped down to the street and walked purposefully toward the building, saying a silent prayer for the safety of his friends, hoping that fortune had not entirely forsaken them this night.

The district headquarters with its marbled facade and polished columns appeared more impressive from the street than the rooftops. Aaron walked calmly up the wide staircase without any of the guards giving him more than a passing glance. 

He pushed open the metallic gray doors, which yielded easily and required very little force once he engaged the handle. The air had the faintest hints of a musky leather aroma mixed with the sweet smell of a smoking pipe. The inside was swept clean and held the inner trappings of a police station with a duty clerk sitting behind the counter, grumbling to himself. Behind the clerk was a room filled with mostly empty desks. A few guards were stationed throughout, with some polishing their armor or sharpening a blade. More than a few glanced in his direction.