Erik de Bie - Downshadow

The dwarf frowned. "I don't under-" Rath started to say, but Kalen, continuing his swing, hauled himself up and grasped the dwarf s ankle in his free hand. He planted both feet on the slippery tower wall.

"Fly," Kalen dared him.

With a fierce kick, he wrenched Vindicator free. For one horrible, perfect instant, they were gliding, failing a little as if they had tripped. Vindicator was arcing, end over end, through the air beside them.

Then Kalen's guts rose up into his throat, and the two combatants were streaking down, wrestling in the air. The dwarf punched him soundly across the face and the world blurred. He held on.

They ricocheted off the palace roof-crashing hard, bones snapping-tumbling madly like dolls. Kalen tried to jump but the dwarf held on. Kalen rolled and wrestled and prayed and…

Hit.

For a long time, nothing existed but darkness. Darkness, and rain like knives. Then pain-sharp, stabbing agony that came from every broken limb and ounce of flesh. He had survived the fall-somehow, crashing against roofs and shattering almost every bone in his body.

Rath awoke on the cobbles of Castle Ward, in the shadow of the palace, and coughed up blood before he breathed. This magnified the pain a hundredfold. He couldn't feel his body. He was- Alone.

That couldn't be. Shadowbane had fallen with him. They must have hit something else-some building. Otherwise, Rath surely would have died.

But who had landed on the stone first? Who had borne the brunt of the fall?

Rath saw a silhouette emerge from the mist. No-he saw the sword first. Saw the silver flames rising from it, the fog boiling away. Shadowbane, he thought for a moment, but…

It was Myrin. She walked toward him, the sword held awkwardly in her frail hands. Blue runes covered her skin, but they were fading as she strode forward. Her magic was unraveling, leaving only mortal hatred in her eyes.

"Taking vengeance," Rath said. He burbled. "I slew him and you avenge him. Fitting."

His sword lay on the cobbles, where ir had fallen from the window. The hilt, still sizzling from Myrin's fire spell, sent up steam as rain fell on it. It was only a hand's length from his grasp.

A black boot fell on the hilt. Rath looked up.

Shadowbane loomed over him-stooped, bent, but not broken. His damp cloak draped around him. His helm dripped black rain.

"Kalen," Myrin whispered.

He reached toward her with his unbroken hand.

Myrin's face softened. "Kalen, no."

He curled his fingers, beckoning.

"Kalen, please. He's a monster, but he doesn't-you don't have to-"

Kalen said nothing-only held out his hand. Myrin looked at Rath once more, then put the hilt of Vindicator in Kalen's hand.

"Turn away," Kalen said. Myrin shook her head. Turn.

"No!" Myrin backed away. "I want to see what you are. What we are!"

Kalen looked only at Rath. He focused on the dwarf silently, ignoring Myrin's heaving breaths. Then she turned away and darred into the mist, vanishing into the night.

"For Cellica," Shadowbane said, as though in explanation.

Rath smiled, tasting blood in his mouth.

Kalen wrapped both hands around the hilt gingerly, reversed Vindicator, and held it ready to plunge into the dwarf's throat. He paused, his eyes unreadable.

"What will ir be, knight?" Rath did his best to smile. "Vengeance

… or mercy?"

Kalen coughed once and steadied himself.

"Justice."

The sword screeched against the stone.

Iunatic swordsmen cause havoc in Downshadow!" the broadcrier was yelling ar the entrance to the Knight 'n Shadow. "Same culprits suspected in damage to Timehands! Watch…"

He trailed off and gaped at a gray figure standing before himbare headed, bare handed, clad toe to chin in black leathers. Bandages wrapped his right hand and a sword was sheathed at his belt. In the dawn light, his brown-black hair was glossy and his chin dark with stubble. His eyes burned like light off snow.

"Boy," he said to the broadcrier. He took a hand out of the scrip satchel at his waist-in it gleamed five gold dragons. "Do you want these?"

The broadcrier had seen so much coin before, of course-this was, after all, the City of Splendors, where coin was king and blood was gold. But never had he owned that much wealth himself.

The boy nodded. The knight handed the coins over, and they quickly disappeared into the broadcrier s belt pouch. Then, his bandaged hand shaking, the knight unbuckled the black-sheathed sword from his hip and held it out as though presenting a gold scepter.

"Hold this for me." The knight nodded to the tavern. "When I collect it from you again, I shall give you twenty more dragons." "And-" The boy shivered. "And if you do not?" The knight smiled. "Then wear it well, and do not try to run from it as I did."

The boy nodded and took the knight's sword in his hands. It pulsed with inner strength-neither good nor evil, only powerful. Waiting for a worthy hand.

Without another word, the knight strode past the boy.

Fayne waited for him, legs crossed on the table. She was in a good mood.

She didn't care about being private or unnoticed; she wore her mosr beautiful red-haired half-elf face and her most revealing black and red harness, which was more leather straps than fabric. A dozen men had come to her with propositions, but she'd casually ignored each of them until they'd gone away. She'd had to fend off one with a charm to make him run away in terror. After her display of magic, no one bothered her.

She was waiting for one man, and one man alone. She hadn't slept that night, and neither had he, she knew. This would be their last meeting.

He came, just as she had anticipated, at about dawn, when the street lamps were being doused and the shadowy dealings in unused alleys gave way to legitimate business in the streets. The Knight 'n Shadow was mostly empty at dawn, though a few Waterdhavians had come for morningfeast before going about the business of the day.

He was dressed in leathers but carried no sword and wore no helm. His brown stubble defined his strong, tense jaw. His right hand was bandaged. His left was bare.

"Last place you expected this, eh?" Fayne asked.

"On the contrary," her visitor said. "Drinks and sly glances are your favored weapons. Why should I expect anything less than your element?"

"Mmm." She nodded to the two goblets of wine on the table, one before her and one before an empty chair. "Drink? 'Ware, though for-"

Kalen seized her gobler-not his own-drained it in a single gulp, then sat down.

Fayne blinked at him, then at the goblets. He'd ruined her game, and it offended her.

"My apologies," Kalen said. "Was one or the other meant to be poisoned?"

"Very well," she said, keeping the anger he'd roused off her face. "We don't have to play this game, if you don't want."

Kalen shrugged, then belched in a way rather unbefitting a paladin.

"So you beat Rath," Fayne said, tracing her finger along the lip of her empty wine goblet. Again, silence.

"And I suppose you know about Cellica," she said. "I imagine the dwarf told you / stabbed her, did he? I thought he might. That was the plan, after all."

"He did not," Kalen said. "But I had guessed."

"Poor puppy." Fayne grinned. "Surely you didn't believe all that romantic nonsense about me loving you."

Again, Kalen said nothing, but Fayne could see the vengeful wrath behind his eyes.

"Ah, Kalen." She smiled at him. "I knew-I knew the moment you went after the girl instead of me at the revel-that we would never work together."

He spoke, his voice grave. "Threatening to turn you in had naught to do with it?"

Fayne laughed. "No, no, silly boy-in my circles, that's just flirtation. No." Her eyes narrowed. "You just don't understand my very humble needs."