“All to kill themselves working? Makes me question how smart they really were.”
Exiting on the opposite side of the monolith, they led their horses down a gradually descending ramp to a large, flat, area, absent of buildings.
At the center of the open space, evenly spaced stone pillars forming a giant spiral created a single path. A three-quarter sandstone wall bordered the outside of the pillars. It enclosed enough of the space so anyone entering the monument could not leave the path. A red light illuminated the tops each layer. Rondel looked up and realized the spirals sat under the crown in the sky. The focal jewel of the crown shone brightest and hung directly over the spiral’s center.
As if reading his thoughts, Shadya whispered. “In the center, we’ll find the altar. It is where the power of the heavenly alignment will be focused. Never have we made it this far before.” She paused and lightly touched her stomach. She took a slow breath. “The first contractions have begun. It’s really happening.”
Rondel noted the lack of enthusiasm in her statement. It almost matched the building dread he felt for what lay ahead.
CHAPTER 23
Hubul’s Host descended the outer sand banks surrounding the City of Pillars in four groups of six men.
Melek ordered the groups toward the wide avenue that led into the massive city with a wave of his hand. They alternated which group led so the other groups could not only cover the advancing unit, but also retreat to safety if the first group triggered a trap.
A sheen of sweat adorned the faces of everyone as they stood on the road. They paused in awe at the architectural magnificence that thousands of years later had yet to be equaled by anyone in Erba.
A light brush of his arm from Khalil focused his thoughts.
Melek looked over each unit leader. If all went to plan, they would converge at approximately the same time before entering the spiraling pillars protecting the ceremonial altar.
But when do things ever go to plan?
He said a quick prayer to Hubul, just loud enough so others could hear in case they were too nervous to say their own.
He gave the signal, and the groups parted.
* * *
Rondel glanced at Shadya as she lay on her back some fifty feet from the large ivory altar, head propped up by old clothes, her feet wide. With Nasnas off seeking to further delay Hubul’s Host, Athar knelt beside her while she dealt with increasingly painful contractions.
This was not the first time Rondel’s unfortunate luck had put him near a woman in labor. He decided to take his position as far away from Shadya as possible, hiding between a pillar and their mounts. If he hadn’t spotted dozens of ghuls keeping guard in each layer of the spirals surrounding the altar, he might have tried to escape.
A low, painful moan from Shadya echoed.
The screaming won’t be far off.
The sweat, blood, and other bodily fluids involved with childbirth Rondel could do without. Screaming on the other hand, could at least be interesting, sometimes humorous. A colorful rant or turn of phrase shouted in labor would be under any other circumstance, unforgiveable by the local religious authority.
As if on cue, Shadya wailed, using at least three different languages. He thought he heard something about a hippopotamus charging out from between her legs.
Athar made an apparently unappreciated retort because her arm swept out and the ghul went flying. He cracked his head against a pillar, neck lolling back and forth.
Has she had that sort of strength all along?
“Rondel!”
He swallowed.
Oh no.
“Rondel, my love. I need you now!”
“Uh, coming,” he said, slipping out from behind his hiding spot and inching forward.
Sweat ran down Shadya’s face. Her dark wet hair lay against her cheeks. Her chest heaved as she took in quick breaths. Her natural smell was made stronger by the situation and it hung in the air.
Yet, she still remained beautiful.
And she’s the mother of your . . .
He couldn’t say it. His chest tightened, and he hestitated.
“Please. Come here, and take my hand. I can’t do this alone.”
“But Athar—”
“Athar is an idiot. He’s lucky I didn’t rip his heart out,” she snapped. Her expression softened. “You would never laugh at me, would you?”
“Gods, no,” Rondel replied quickly. “You know me. Sensitive to the needs of others in everything I do.”
She smiled and spoke in the sweetest voice possible. “Good.” Her eyes widened. “Your hand.”
Her back arched. She reached out, grabbed his hand, and squeezed. Curses, promises, and oaths spewed from Shadya’s mouth. Rondel’s voice soon joined hers as he tried desperately to pry Shadya’s fingers away from his grinding bones and popping knuckles.
After what seemed like an eternity, the screaming stopped. He tore his hand away from Shadya’s grip and examined it. Nothing seemed immediately broken, yet bruises had already started to form on reddened skin. Small cuts from fingernails pocked his palm.
“Thank you, my love.”
My hands won’t survive this. Maybe . . .
He looked to Athar. The ghul appeared in no better shape than before. Its head rolled up quickly and back down. He would have assumed Athar had trouble focusing except Rondel saw the faintest of smiles.
He’s faking it! That whoreson is smarter than I thought.
“Rondel. I feel another one.”
Rondel edged away to avoid his hands being crushed again. However, Shadya simply latched onto his retreating calf. She squeezed with enough strength that it would have humbled the wulfron that had once bitten him there.
He joined Shadya’s string of curses.
* * *
It didn’t take long for the first attack on Andrasta’s group. Barely a minute off the main road, a pack of five ghuls in the form of hyenas pounded down the narrow road, snarling and frothing. Andrasta had given orders for her unit to assume their defensive formation. They easily repelled the initial clash. However, another pack came in from behind, then two more from side streets, bring the number close to twenty
The pungent hyenas pressed so tightly against their defenses that Andrasta had to stab with her dagger as she didn’t have room to swing her sword effectively.
Those under her command fought well. They felled ten of the ghuls and wounded six more before their enemies retreated. In the aftermath, not a person in her squad remained unscathed. Thankfully, the wounds were mostly minor.
They continued through the city, weaving back and forth over adjoining streets so the enemy could not ambush them as easily. They took to running through people’s homes, crashing through doors and windows in order to avoid side alleys that would leave them trapped.
Even still, the ghuls found them twice more. The second time came on the open road. Rather than a pack of hyenas, the horde of ghuls attacked in human form, some as former Host members. Andrasta’s unit turned back the assault, but not without losing one of their own.
The third attack came after following the suggestion of their sorcerer, Zaid. They took an alternate route through an old mansion to avoid suspected traps in the streets that would alert the ghuls of their presence. Their decision fed right into the hands of the enemy.
Halfway through the home, ghuls sprang up from cellar doors while others dropped from the ceiling. Given the tight space, Andrasta could not get her men into proper formation to defend themselves. They suffered another loss.
Zaid distracted the ghuls with a blinding spell long enough for them to escape. She hated running from any enemy but she also knew that killing was not the intended goal. The only true measure of success was whether she could save Rondel.
With ghuls writhing on the floor, palms over their eyes, she gestured for others to follow her.
She zipped past a large, stone hearth on her way toward a door that led to a narrow street.
They hustled across cobbled stones. She winced at each pounding step, its echo carrying too well across the empty city.
High-pitched howls that finished in cackles rang out behind them. She looked over to Zaid. “Can you throw them off our trail?”
“Not while running. If we stop somewhere safe, I can create a few confusion wards.”
With quite a ways left to travel, stopping was not what she had in mind. But she knew they needed to try something to shake their pursuers.
Andrasta took a sharp left, then a quick right toward a tall rectangular building that stood at the center of six intersecting roads. Engraved on the face of each wall were the various images of the moon during its natural cycle. From Melek’s briefing, she knew the building was once a temple for Hubul until the people converted it to the worship of his son. It marked the halfway point of Andrasta’s route through the city.
Ignoring the howls that grew ever louder, she sprinted toward the half-open door and barreled inside. The others followed.
She closed and barricaded the door while Zaid took out a piece of charcoal from his shirt and frantically drew wards on not only the door, but also the walls and floor around it.
“These should not only confuse them, but also stop them from hearing or smelling us.”
Andrasta stepped back to let the man work. Her gaze drifted over the surviving members of her unit. Zaid bore shallow cuts on his shoulder and chest. Yousef carried a deeper wound on his upper arm that dribbled blood. Qasim held his side. She sheathed her blade without cleaning it and examined Qasim first.
Something had punctured his side just below the rib cage between the plates of his lamellar armor. She stuffed the wound with bandages while Qasim grit his teeth. The young warrior’s face had begun to lose color.
When the sorcerer stepped away, she gestured for him to look over Qasim’s wounds first, but healing was not his strength. What little he knew did Yousef more good instead.
A commotion outside drew her attention. Despite Zaid’s wards, she held up a hand for silence.
Peering out of a tiny crack between the frame and door, the pattering of countless feet and paws preceded a horde of ghuls in various forms rounding a corner. They charged down the road and came to a screeching halt just before reaching the six-way intersection. Those in hyena form sniffed the air. The ones in human guise scanned the area. In moments, the ghuls began arguing with each other about which way to go. Unable to reach a consensus, they broke off in smaller groups, each taking a different road.
She waited until all were out of sight before turning. Zaid was once again at work on Qasim, trying to create a new ward to compensate for his lack of healing knowledge.
“How is everyone?” she asked in a whisper.
“We’ll survive,” the sorcerer said wearily. “Though we’ll likely have to move slower because of Qasim’s injury. I can only do so much. I’m afraid I don’t have Khalil’s skills.”
“Don’t worry about me,” said Qasim. “The bleeding stopped. That’s more than enough. If I die, then so be it. I won’t be the reason we fail Hubul.”
She took a look at his pale face and nodded.
“All right then. Let’s move.”
She removed the barricade and slowly opened the door. With her first step outside, a ghul in its natural gray form descended from above and landed in the middle of her path. Its long claws clacked against stone.
The blasted thing managed to cling to solid stone. It guessed we were still here.
The ghul screeched, lashing out at Andrasta. She managed to sidestep the strike and shear off the beast’s left arm at the elbow. A backswing took off its head.
The city erupted as every ghul in the immediate area responded to the creature’s call.
She swore and took off in a sprint with her men at her heels, hoping to put some distance between them and their victim before others tracked them.
* * *
Rondel dabbed a dry cloth against Shadya’s forehead, gently wiping away sweat. His gut wrenched at her pain, his chest tightened with a familiar ache, one that was not brought on by an amulet or ward. Watching the woman struggle under the stresses of labor, he no longer doubted or fought against his feelings for her.
This is real. Gods, and I still don’t even know what she really is.
Shadya relaxed as the contraction passed. She looked up at him with dark eyes. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze rather than the bone-crushing grip of earlier. “Thank you, my love,” she whispered. “I knew you’d come back to me.”
Rondel heard something there he hadn’t before, perhaps, didn’t want to see before.
She really means it.
He squeezed her hand back, not trusting what he might say should he open his mouth.
Does it matter what she is? We’re having a child together. What could we possibly deal with more taboo than that? Besides, she never shied away from me. In fact, it seems that she specifically chose me, a less-than-perfect human.
Shadya’s breathing increased. He rubbed her arm. Anticipating the next contraction, he placed a stone in her hand to squeeze.
“You’re doing good,” he whispered. “Keep taking them one at a time.”
* * *
Melek heaved up the contents of his stomach. His embarrassment for having done so waned when two others in his unit joined him in response to the overwhelming sulfuric smell.
He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, then immediately wished he hadn’t. He spat profusely, trying to get the taste of ghul blood off his lips. He straightened and surveyed the carnage around him. Fire had blackened the outer walls of the homes as well as the street, which held an assortment of gore. Thick sludge, purplish entrails, and gray limbs, were all that remained of the horde of ghuls.
He lost two men in the confrontation.
Without Khalil, we’d all be dead.
The old sorcerer leaned against a nearby wall, his hands on his knees. Blackish blood from the ghuls flecked Khalil’s salt and pepper beard. A third of its length had been singed by fire. Scorch marks adorned the fringes of his outer garments.
And we haven’t even faced Nasnas yet.
He looked back to the other two men in his unit. “Any major injuries?”
Heads shook. “No, Captain.”
“Good. Ready yourselves.”
Melek walked to Khalil.
The sorcerer grinned. “That was interesting.”
“To put it lightly. I didn’t know you could protect us like that from such heat.”
Khalil pushed himself off the wall. “Neither did I. Of course, I never had need to. Who ever heard of djinns and ghuls fighting side-by-side before?”
“How did you kill the djinns?” asked Melek. “I thought it was impossible unless you knew their true name.”
“It is.”
“Did you trap them? I don’t see any containers.”
“No.”
“Are you going to tell me?”
“Eventually. I’m just stalling to catch my breath.”
Melek smiled. “That only means we’ll need to run all the harder to make up for lost time.”
Khalil sighed. “True. Really, all I did was get the djinns mad at each other. You take creatures that arrogant and start making them question who’s the best, well it’s only natural they’ll pit their skills against each other. Apparently, only
we
can’t kill them without their true names, because they didn’t have any problem killing each other. Right before they burned out, I put a shield over us as best as I could.”