Descent Into Darkness

Descent Into Darkness Chapter 26

And after a long as f*ck furlough, I'm back. Work has been hell, family problems galore, but I think it's all done for a while, which means I can finally wrench some time to write. And here is the product of said time, I hope you enjoy.

Phoenix pitched his tent and started a fire, waiting for Lian’s return from the hunt. They had slowly been working their way to the next dot on Foldon’s map, finally having truly left fire country. The next dot was the largest city that claimed to be water-born, and true to its claims most of its inhabitants were Piaslay, or least kin to one. Phoenix remembered the last large city he’d been in, and Ember, Lindani, and Spedro crossed his mind.

A scowl painted his face as he remembered their weakness, their schemes, and their fear once they had left Lanaro. They wouldn’t follow him in his mission, though it had not changed. They were to find and kill Demetrius, but the stones were more important, and Lindani herself had pointed out. Ember was angry with him for leaving Lanaro to Demetrius, Lindani was too weak and subservient to deny him anything he wanted, and a spark of desire rose in his groin. He remembered Lindani, her warmth, her kiss, her roaming fingers. Lian chose that moment to return, and he did nothing to hide the bulge in the front of his trousers. Without a glance in his direction, Lian got began cleaning her kill, a small fawn.

As the small sharp knife shuttled between her fingers and the hide of the deer, Phoenix noted how adroit she was with the blade, often spinning it between her fingers to change cutting angles. The deer was skinned in less than an hour, and instead of spitting the carcass, she began slicing the meat into strips and chunks. The chunks she placed into a small pot over the fire he had started, and then sliced up a few onions and parsnips they’d found the day before, adding them to the pot as well. She seasoned the stew, and then salted the rest of the meat, stowing it in a saddlebag before sitting back against a stone with her eyes closed.

He sat staring, wondering how deep her allegiance and obedience to his commands went. A single black eye opened, looked at him, then closed once more. “Do not even consider it, Phoenix. You are not the one to conquer me.”

Phoenix chuckled. “So you have never been… conquered?”

Lian bristled. “Your questions grow bold. Bolder than you even know.”

Phoenix laughed again. “Then you have my apologies.”

Silence returned, and soon the stew came to a boil. They ate quietly, and he turned to his tent. Lian went up the nearest tree, to take the watch as she always did. Phoenix fell into his bedroll, listening to the sounds of the wood before falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Five days later, Phoenix and Lian crested a hill and Drakurn came into view. Drakurn was a large city, larger than any Phoenix had seen thus far. Sprawling over countless acres, ringed by a thick, crenellated wall, Drakurn looked impenetrable from the back of Phoenix’s horse. A large, fast moving body of water, the Glasimbor River according to the map, came in from the north, carving the city into two parts. Phoenix stared as they closed in on the walls, noting that the river entrances to the city were heavily guarded, wood and iron lattice gates barring anything larger than an arm of leg from entering without an invitation.  

Phoenix glanced up at the crenellations and saw archers with nocked arrows peering down at him from the battlements. The city was tense, and Phoenix was curious to know the reason. The fishing boats he’d seen were moored and quiet, which was odd on a sunny day. A line of bedraggled and filthy people stretched from the main gate, the only one of five that was open. Phoenix glanced to Lian who walked beside his horse, her eyes never still, giving him the impression that she saw all and nothing in the same effort. Lian glanced up at him, meeting his eye before moving into the crowd, bringing the hood of her black cloak up to hide her face.

He languished in the slow moving line for over an hour until she returned, back at his side and holding Blaze’s reins before he even knew she was there.

“Demetrius has been attacking the farming villages near here, and these are refugees,” she said in a low voice, making Phoenix strain to hear her. “I convinced the noble in charge to let us pass to the front of the line and into the city without inspection. If we are stopped, pretend you are civilized.”

Phoenix lifted a brow and let her guide Blaze down the line of humanity, the common folk shooting him resentful glances. The guard at the gate was a red-bearded giant, the spear in his hand like a twig compared to the enormous broadsword on his back. His helm pushed his obviously unruly red hair onto his forehead and into his eyes, and he would raise a meaty hand every few moments to sweep the stray locks to the side. His green eyes locked onto the emblem on Phoenix’s chest plate, and he lowered the tip of the spear and planted his feet. “Halt!” he called in a booming voice. Lian lowered her head, hiding her face, slowing to a stop just before the spear’s tip. “I heard o’ that crest before,” he rumbled. “Ya wouldn’t happen to be a certain Phoenix o’ Yaag, wouldya?”

Phoenix stared, ready to roast this man alive should he keep prattling on. They glared at one another for a moment, tension building between them before a small man in a yellow long-coat came scurrying over, admonishing the guard to lay his spear aside. “This is Tanos of Marlbon, you fool! He may wear whichever crest he pleases!”

Phoenix looked down to Lian just in time to see her slip the skinning knife up her sleeve with a deft twist of her wrist. The bearded man raised his spear point, dipping his head to Phoenix. “A thousand apologies, my lord. There be rumors of a madman roamin’ the country.”

Phoenix adopted a Marlbornese accent, inclining his chin as he knew Tanos would. “You were simply doing your job.”

With that the man in the yellow coat led them through the gates, only stopping once they were behind the wall. “A thousand apologies, Lord Tanos, but the guard was correct. There are words on the wind of a crazed man running here and there, laying waste to the largest cities and armies. Friend or foe, he cuts them down like chaff.”

Lian chose then to sweep her hood back, baring her slanted eyes and black makeup. “My lord is tired, and wishes to rest, Liten.”

“Of course,” Liten answered. “I daresay Lord Frederick would like to meet him first, if Lord Tanos does not object?”

Phoenix opened his mouth, but Lian cut him off. “Lord Frederick knows we are here. Tell no one else, do not even mention it to your lord. The war council is meeting in secret, and if the secret is let out, Frederick will have your head.”

Liten’s eyes widened, and he bowed low to the ground. “It was good to see you once more, Lian, now if you will excuse me, I have refugees to sort out.”

Liten hurried off, his long-coat billowing behind him, and Phoenix looked down to the woman. “I’m Tanos?”

She walked off, still leading the horse. “Until we passed the gates, yes. I’ve been here before, and Frederick would try to kill you as soon as he heard you were in his city. With that blasted armor of yours we cannot pass anywhere in secret.”

Phoenix sat straighter on his mount. “If that is your way of asking me to remove it, I will not.”

“If that is your way of releasing me from your service, so be it,” Lian sneered.

Phoenix did not want to fight Lian here, but he would not allow her to leave with the other stone. The crowded city streets would restrict his movement and impede his mobility, so he tried to placate her. “What do you mean?”

“You blazed a path of death and destruction across many leagues. Many now know of the Black Phoenix, as you are now called. I will not die for your pig-headedness and pride, Phoenix. You remove it so we may navigate the city unnoticed, or I will take that as my leave to return to Tanos.”