Dawn of War Read online

  It was the same for any living creature.

  As a child, Domor watched a horse stumble into the river. Its thrashing attempts at swimming filled its mouth with water, its panic driving it to swallow. As its stomach filled, the horse sank lower and lower, drowning with its head still above the surface. Its frantic motions caused only more water to be ingested until the horse ceased its thrashing and sunk silent to the bottom of the river. The mirrored surface, no longer broken by the horse’s motions, settled to a fine sheen. Just a moment later, it was as though the horse had never been.

  Domor purged the image from his memory and focused his attention on the way forward. The forest felt as though it were closing in on him, the silence deafening in its somber strangeness. Domor hunkered down inside the raft, his eyes just high enough to peer past the retaining wall. He slid his hand inside his pack and clasped the hilt of his dagger.

  It would be a long trip to Nurin.

  Chapter Nine

  Arrin stumbled as he emerged from the forest, the walls of Lathah suddenly looming before his vision. For fifteen years they had stood ominous in his mind, a memory both cherished for what they protected and despised for what they had kept him from. They were far grander than he remembered. His recollection was but a pale substitute for the spired glory that now filled his eyes.

  The soldiers at his sides righted him as he took a moment to collect himself. They released his arms and took a step back. Oblivious to their withdrawal, Arrin stared at the outer wall that projected from the mountain itself as though it were the jaw of a giant, the crenellated battlements its dull and stained teeth.

  The inner walls, of which there were nine, were set in rows within one another, each providing another layer of protection for those behind it should the wall before be breached. Since Lathah had risen from the mountainous land on the backs of its people, it had never happened.

  The great gate stood solid near the western rear of the outer wall. Placed thusly, it forced a sieging army that wished to test its stoutness up an incline and into a narrow valley that had been designed for just such an occasion. Lining the length of the city wall was an array of murder holes that looked out over the makeshift valley. A lower wall walk was set behind them, which allowed a legion of archers to fire upon those in the valley as the men on the walls above provided support between volleys.

  Were that not deterrent enough, a massive collection of skull-sized stones sat piled in a small cave that bore into the mountainside, its camouflaged mouth open just above the valley. Beneath it was a steep slope that prevented enemy forces from reaching the cave directly, the only entrance being through a network of tunnels that run through the mountain itself, all the way into the back of the city.

  The frontal slope provided a direct line of fire into the valley. Several wooden troughs, adjustable and mobile, had been built inside the cave mouth that could be loaded with dozens of the stones at a time. Once the barricades were removed, the stones would tumble from the troughs and down the steep slope, gathering momentum as they careened toward the valley. Like a miniature avalanche, the stones would crash into the enemy forces and shatter bones and crush skulls. At the very least, they would scatter the attacking soldiers and break apart their formations as the Lathahn archers rained death down atop them.

  “We have yet to be seen by the watch. Do you still wish to go through with this mad scheme of yours?” Barold asked, drawing Arrin’s attention from the city’s defenses. The sergeant looked even paler now than he had when Arrin first told him his name and demanded to see the prince.

  “There is no other way, sergeant.” He met the man’s gaze. “Olenn will never believe a message from me is sincere if I do not offer myself up to him as proof of my warning. However stubborn he may be, he is not stupid. I’ve spent fifteen years of my life longing for my love, my child, and my home, yet never once set foot upon Lathahn soil. To see me here, now, he must recognize that I am serious to so willingly cast all that aside and risk his wrath.” He gave Barold a grateful smile. “Thank you for your honor, but this is what I must do.”

  Barold nodded. “Then it is as it shall be.” He motioned his men forward.

  The soldiers at Arrin’s side latched onto his arms once more and tugged him forward. Arrin drew in a deep breath, savoring the rich scent of the oaks and evergreens as he was hauled toward his destiny. He might never smell them again.

  There was no doubt in his mind he was being led to his death, placing his neck in the noose for what he believed would be nothing more than a valiant waste of his life, his feet to swing just days before the truth of his words were to be discovered. It sickened him. He was no martyr to be prostrated for a cause, but he knew it was the only hope he had of saving Malya and his child from a horrific death.

  He heard the cry from the watchtower just moments after they entered the razed and uneven killing field that surrounded the city. Barold called back and the men slowed their pace to be certain no nervous soldier on the walls mistook them for an enemy. Archers stood ready across the battlements, the numbers growing as they moved closer. It was clear from their wide-eyed stares they were more interested in learning who Arrin was than in defending the walls.

  Arrin lowered his chin to his chest as they made their way up the slope toward the main gate. He knew it was likely there’d be men on the walls who would remember him if his name was given, so for the sake of his family, he felt it best to simply avoid any unnecessary attention. Not that he expected anyone to recognize him, especially from a distance. Much had changed in the fifteen years he’d been gone.

  His once close-cropped hair had grown long and shaggy, the dark brown of it littered with streaks of gray that were well on their way to white. The freshly-shaven face of his youth had been supplanted by a wild mustache and beard, deep lines furrowed at the corner of his eyes. Exposure to the elements had darkened his skin and made it like leather where it stood out from under his armor.

  Where he had once been wiry and thin, he was now thick with muscle heaped upon his frame by his years of battle against the other races of Ahreele and the deformed beasts that populated the Dead Lands. Had he not experienced the intervening years and were presented an image of himself now, even he would never have guessed at his identity. There was little left on the outside of the young man he once was and far less of him inside.

  The changes were a small comfort. While he might not have to face an uncomfortable reunion with the men of his legion as he passed, bound and humble, his appearance would alter nothing once he stood before the prince. Hate knew no disguise.

  A chill gnawed at his spine as he was led before the opening gates. The harrowing squeal of the gates struck a dismal chord and Arrin pushed the awakened memory to the side. There was too much sorrow in it to dare let it surface.

  Barold stood at his side as the watch commander came toward them, a dozen armed and armored men at his heels. Arrin peered through the tangle of his hair that hung in his face and groaned inside.

  “What is this, sergeant?” the commander asked as he came to stand before Arrin.

  Barold slammed his fist against his chest in salute. “Commander, we bring an exile before the mercy of Prince Olenn. We found him near the border at Fhen; he surrendered without resistance.” He paused for just a moment, drawing in an audible breath. “He says he is Arrin Urrael.”

  Arrin lifted his chin as the commander drew closer and brushed his hair from his face.

  The watch commander growled low in his throat and shook his head. “You had to come back on my watch, did you, Arrin?”

  Arrin straightened and met the man’s steely gaze. “I’m sorry for the inconvenience, but I didn’t think to ask about the guard roster before I gave myself over for my likely execution.” A tight smile touched his lips. “I presume you’re doing better than I, Maltis.”

  The commander twisted Arrin slightly to the side to look at the tight binds that held his arms. “I would have to say so if this is what it’s com
e to, my friend.” He gestured for the men to release Arrin and met Barold’s questioning stare. “I’ll take responsibility for him, sergeant.” When Barold hesitated, Maltis motioned with his eyes for the sergeant to follow his order. “We served together, Arrin and I. We blooded many a Grol in our last campaign beyond the walls, before...” He let the statement die away. “Just cut him loose, sergeant. He’ll mind his manners. I promise you.”

  Barold relented and passed Arrin’s sword to the commander before saluting him. Afterward, he let his shoulders slump. He nodded somberly at Arrin as his men cut the rope free.

  “Feed your men and then return to your station in an hour,” Maltis told the sergeant.

  “I’d wait to send them back out,” Arrin advised. The commander turned to look at him with narrow eyes. “You’ll understand when I deliver my message to the prince, but it’s best to keep every available man who can wield a sword close to home.”

  Maltis stood for a moment saying nothing before turning to the sergeant. “Two hours, but stay close should I call.” He looked back at Arrin. “I may need some help disposing of a body.”

  Arrin shrugged the ropes loose and shook his arms to speed the blood flow through them. He gave the sergeant a grateful smile.

  Commander Maltis waved Arrin on as the soldiers drew closer. “Welcome back, old friend. I suppose today is as good a day to die as any.” He spun on his heels and marched off.

  Arrin fell in step as they walked beneath the great arch of the gates. While the sense of coming home had struck him when he crossed the border, to walk through the gates of Lathah was to be bludgeoned with the feeling.

  The odious scents of civilization lay thick in the air, but Arrin drew them in with vigor, savoring even the basest of them. The smell of horse dung wafted rank into his nose, second only to that of the shallow sewers that ran behind the clustered houses and stores of those who lived on the lowest level, the Ninth. With the slight downward grade from the top levels down providing the momentum, the Ninth was assailed the worst by the odor before the waste was collected and sent out to fertilize the fields.

  The sharp scent of cooking meat and fragrant spices mingled with the other less attractive smells, and Arrin’s stomach rumbled in hungry dissent. He’d traveled for days without stopping, not realizing how much he’d relied on the power of the collar to see him through it. It had seen him through it all since he had been cast from Lathah.

  He was glad that Barold and his men hadn’t noticed it when they searched him for weapons. Not that they could have removed it if they had. The collar was bonded to his flesh by snaky tendrils that were sunk deep into the flesh of his neck and ran throughout the network of his veins. It was a part of him until his death. A death that was likely close at hand. He hoped it wouldn’t come to that, though the dreaded weight of certainty pressed down upon him.

  Possessing the collar now was a dilemma, a thought he had never before entertained. He had to resist the urge to use it when he confronted Olenn. With its power, he could easily kill the prince and slaughter his guards, and perhaps even escape from Lathah. But what then?

  No matter how much he hated the prince, Malya was still Olenn’s sister. She loved him as all sisters with good hearts would. Even if the people of Lathah let her ascend to the throne after what Arrin had done, knowing what their relationship had once been, she would be obligated to do what she must; what was expected of her.

  That would be to order Arrin’s death.

  However, the more likely outcome would be that another of the royal households would supply one of their own to be leader and remove the line of Orrick from the throne altogether. At the very least, that would leave Malya without a future, an outcast princess brought low by the irresponsible acts of her young lover, fifteen years removed from her life. That would be little better than death.

  Neither option sat well with Arrin, thus making the choice of sacrificing himself to save Lathah and Malya the only viable course of action.

  Not having noticed he had slowed, his legs leaden with his thoughts, Arrin muttered an apology to the soldier at his side who nudged his shoulder. He sped his pace as they wound their way through the city, once more keeping his chin tucked to avoid possible recognition.

  Built like a puzzle to thwart any invaders that might make it past the outer wall, the gates to the next highest level had been placed on opposite sides of the city, each level alternated. From one gate to the next, an enemy force would need to traverse the entire span of the crowded level to reach the next entryway. Caught between two walls and slowed by the multitude of buildings between them, the passage was a charnel house waiting to happen.

  Defensive battlements lined each and every wall, all prepared with the same instruments of war that the outer wall was. An enemy force would be bombarded along the entire route without mercy or reprieve. Were all else to fail, the level could be fired, the inner walls keeping the flames contained and the upper city safe from harm as Lathah’s enemies were consumed.

  Against any normal foe, such defensive preparations were a guarantee of safety. However, against the empowered Grol, who didn’t need to traverse the gauntlet of levels to reach the throne, they were nothing.

  Able to rain down fire from the sky, the Grol needed do nothing but attack and wait. Soon enough, the fires would flare up or the walls would crumble and chase the Lathahns from their holes and out into the open.

  It would be a slaughter.

  Arrin shook the vision from his head as they continued on, winding their way through the crowded city streets as the sun slowly set behind the wall of the fortress Mountains. He gritted his teeth at what was to come.

  While he was in no hurry to see the prince and learn of his fate, the trip to the Crown seemed as though it would take yet another fifteen years.

  With a sigh he swallowed his impatience. His death would come soon enough.

  Chapter Ten

  Desperate to not be caught out in the open fields by the Korme soldiers, Cael hugged the tree line, traveling just within the shadowed boundary of the Dead Lands. Despite its well-deserved reputation for terror, he had encountered nothing in his day-long flight from Nurale. For that, he was grateful.

  His limbs tingling and unsteady, he stumbled to a halt beside a thick copse of twisted bushes. He dropped to his knees to catch his breath, setting the bag his father had given him beside him on the ground. His fingers ached when he released it, having clutched it so tight, for so long.

  The rumble in his stomach had turned into a searing boil over the course of the day. His throat was parched and it stung each time he swallowed, a painful reminder of his thirst. Days from the river, Cael didn’t think he’d make it. He felt weak.

  His head throbbed, pressure pushing against his eyes. There was a constant ringing in his ears that only seemed to further emphasize the near silence of the woods. His thoughts were mired in an agonizing quicksand, each sucked screaming into the depths before reaching full coherency.

  Anger and adrenaline had spurred him onward since dawn. Each and every sound that sprung up around him was but another dose that lightened his step and sent him scurrying for cover. With no food or water to fuel his horrified flight, he had run until his joints felt on fire and his heart threatened to burst from the cage of his ribs. He had not stopped since he saw the Korme cavalry mowing down the vineyards that morning. It had taken its toll upon his flesh and his spirit.

  Disjointed, he crawled and propped his back against the nearest tree trunk. His burden seemed to ooze from his shoulders as the tree bore his weight. Glad to be rid of it, he loosed a whistling sigh as waves of exhaustion washed over him. As he rested, the pain in his skull eased. Reveling in the opportunity to sit and do nothing, he stared off into the cluster of withered foliage before him. His eyelids blinked once, twice, and then stayed shut.

  ~

  Cael’s eyes sprung wide to an ear-splitting screech. He sat upright, searching the trees for signs of movement. The shadows th
at had sheltered him as he made his way along the tree line had deepened, sinking into the true darkness of night. The silence that had allowed him to sleep so easily was gone, replaced by the screeches and cries of the unknown. He held his panicked breath at a rustle of branches just to his side. An instant later, he heard it again, only closer.

  He crept to his feet with pained effort, nearly hissing as he realized he no longer had his father’s bag. It lay in the darkness, just feet away; somewhere. Certain of what was inside, Cael knew he could never leave it behind. What he wasn’t so sure of was exactly where he had left it. He remembered dropping it before he had fallen asleep, but with the exception of the morning’s horror, everything that happened before his eyes closed was a tangled blur in his head.

  The rustle of branches seemed even closer, a low, feral growl accompanying it. With his breath held Cael inched forward, barely daring to let his feet touch the ground before taking the next step. His heart thundered as he squinted, doing his best to see in the nocturnal gloom. His eyes were slow to adjust. After several steps his foot bumped something solid that seemed to shift with the impact. Sure it was the bag he squatted and reached for it. Warm relief flooded his cheeks as his fingers closed around the clasp of his bag.