✨✨✨
D'you breathe the name
Of your savior in your hour of need
And taste the blame
If the flavor should remind you of greed,
Of implication, insinuation and ill will
Till you cannot lie still
In all this turmoil
Before red cape and foil
Come closing in for a kill
Come feed the rain
'Cause I'm thirsty for your love
Dancing underneath the skies of lust
Yeah, feed the rain
'Cause without your love my life
Ain't nothing but this carnival of rust
It's all a game, avoiding failure
When true colors will bleed
All in the name of misbehavior
And the things we don't need
I lust for after no disaster can touch
Touch us anymore
And more than ever
I hope to never fall
Where enough is not the same it was before
Come feed the rain
'Cause I'm thirsty for your love
Dancing underneath the skies of lust
Yeah, feed the rain
'Cause without your love my life
Ain't nothing but this carnival of rust
Yeah, feed the rain
'Cause I'm thirsty for your love
Dancing underneath the skies of lust
Yeah, feed the rain
'Cause without your love my life
Ain't nothing but this carnival of rust
Don't walk away, don't walk away, oh
When the world is burning
Don't walk away, don't walk away, oh
When the heart is yearning
Don't walk away, don't walk away, oh
When the world is burning
Don't walk away, don't walk away, oh
When the heart is yearning
✨✨✨
The lights of the Ketterdam harbour disappeared behind them. Kaz adjusted his mask and cloak, while Muzzen rowed driving them closer to Hellgate.
Fog lay low over the water, damp and curling. It carried the smell of tar and machinery from the shipyards, and something else: the stink of burning bodies from the Reaper's Barge, where Ketterdam disposed of the dead who couldn't afford to be buried in the cemeteries outside the city.
"Disgusting, why anyone would want to live in a city like this." Nina wrinkled her nose adjusting her blue veil, she was dressed as the Lost Bride.
Kaz had a big orange cape on with a Madman's mask; Muzzen had worn the same. The long nose and bulging eyes looked monstrous in the fog.
Through the shifting mists, they caught sight of other boats moving through the water, carrying the shapes of other Madmen, other Brides, a Mister Crimson, a Scarab Queen.
Kaz had refused to tell Nina the specifics of his plan, and when she'd insisted, he'd simply said, "Get in the boat." That was Kaz all over.
"Couldn't you just bribe the warden?" Nina muttered to Kaz.
"I don't need him knowing he has something I want." He responded.
"Where's doll?" She asked, because if she's heading to the dooms of Hellgate. She needed Aeolian by her side, without her she wouldn't be able to do this.
"She'll be with us soon," Kaz told her.
Aeolian had left with Jesper early to set the plan in motion, Kaz knew that she could handle herself but he finds himself being restless when she's not around. Making up scenarios in his head, of what might have happened.
When the boat's hull scraped sand, two men rushed forward to haul them further onto land.
"Money," one of them said as they clambered out of the boat.
Kaz handed over a stack of kruge and once it was counted, the Dime Lion waved them on. They followed a row of torches up an uneven path to the leeward side of the prison. They passed through a dank entry hall, onto a high stone walkway that connected the main prison to what looked like another tower.
As they entered the second tower, a figure emerged from the shadows, Kaz was the first to see her. Once he saw her, he knew how to keep seeing her. He gave a little sigh of relief as he saw her moving in the shadows, towards them.
Nina barely stifled a scream. "Doll," she said. Aeolian was wearing the horns and high-necked tunic of the Grey Imp, but Nina recognised her anyway. No one else moved liked the ghost. "How did you even get here?" Nina whispered to her.
"I came earlier on a supply barge," Aeolian responded.
Nina ground her teeth. "Do people just come and go from Hellgate for fun?"
"Once a week they do," said Aeolian, her little imp horns bobbing along with her head.
"What do you mean once a_" Nina jaws dropped.
"Keep quiet," Kaz growled at Nina.
"Don't shush me, Brekker," Nina whispered furiously. "If it's this easy to get into Hellgate_"
"The problem isn't getting in, it's getting out. Now shut up and stay alert." Kaz told her. "And did you forget, you're not her."
Nina swallowed her anger. She had to trust Kaz to run the game. He'd made sure she didn't have any other choice. And he was right, Aeolian can slip in and out of places easily.
They entered a tight passageway. This tower felt different from the first, older. They spiralled lower, into the bowels of the rock. They didn't go far, but by the time they reached their destination, Nina was trembling, with the knowledge that Matthias was somewhere in this terrible place.
The Dime Lion led them around the tunnel to the third archway, where a prison guard dressed in a blue-and-grey uniform was posted, rifle slung across his back. "Four more for you," the Dime Lion shouted over the crowd. Then he turned to Kaz. "If you need to leave, the guard will call for an escort. No one goes wandering off without a guide, understood?"
"Of course, of course, wouldn't dream of it," Kaz said from behind his ridiculous mask.
"Enjoy," the Dime Lion said with an ugly grin. The prison guard waved them through.
They were on a jutting stone ledge, looking down into a shallow, crudely made amphitheatre. It was like standing in the hollowed-out trunk of a massive tree, something long dead and howling with echoes.
(The Amphitheater)
Around them, masked and veiled men and women crowded onto the terraced ledges, stamping their feet as the action proceeded below. The walls surrounding the fighting pit blazed with torchlight and the sand of the arena floor was red and damp where it had soaked up blood.
In front of the dark mouth of a cave, a man stood next to a big wooden wheel marked with drawings of little animals. The man gave the wheel a hard spin. A red needle ticked along the edges as it spun, then slowly the wheel came to a stop.
The crowd bellowed, and the prisoner shoulders drooped as a guard came forward to unlock his chains. Seconds later a roar that carried even over the excited baying of the crowd. The prisoner seized a knife from a bloody bunch of weapons lying in the sand. He backed as far away from the mouth of the tunnel as he could get.
The reptile appeared, its thick body covered in grey-green scales, its head wide, its eyes slitted.
(Rinca moten)
"What is that thing?" Nina asked, she had never seen a creature like this.
"Rinca moten," said Aeolian. "A desert lizard. The poison from its mouth is lethal."
Aeolian, knew this creature very well and how dangerous it was. Back at the desert, a pack of them attacked their camp while she was training for The Desert Blade. In the final stage of their training, the top five spies are left at the desert to fend, fight, survive and find their way back home. When the pack of lizards attacked them, she learned that the quickest way to kill the creature was to put a blade beneath the armour of its scales. But people were locked out of that knowledge, and by looking down at the prisoner below, she could already predict his tragic fate.
The prisoner lunged forward with a knife. The big lizard moved so quickly they could barely track it. One moment the prisoner was bearing down on it; the next, the lizard was on the other side of the arena. Bare seconds later, it had slammed into the prisoner, pinning him to the ground as he screamed, its poison dripping over his face, leaving smoky trails wherever it touched his skin.
The creature dropped its weight on the prisoner with a sickening crunch and set about slowly mauling his shoulder as he lay there shrieking. The crowd was booing.
Nina flinched. "What is this?"
"Welcome to the Hellshow," said Kaz. "Pekka Rollins got the idea a few years back and pitched it to the right Council member."
After Aeolian settled in Ketterdam, she came to know the infamous Pekka Rollins, the one Kaz Brekker couldn't stand. He was the reigning king of the Barrel, the owner of two gambling palaces and several of the higher-end brothels.
"The Merchant Council knows?" Nina was shocked.
"Of course they know, Nina. There's money to be made here." Kaz told her.
Nina dug her fingernails into her palms. That condescending tone made Kaz so slappable. She glanced at Aeolian, who was watching the show behind her mask. She knew the Shu girl knew death, and this was just another normal day for her.
None of them really knew Aeolian, the way she knew them. But Nina trusted her from their first meeting, because she spoke the truth. When Nina had asked her about Kaz Brekker back at the ship.
She'd replied. "A liar, a thief, and utterly without conscience. But he'll keep to any deal you strike with him."
"And you trust him?" Nina was shocked.
"Trust must be earned," she said. "I won't lie to you Nina Zenik, asking you to trust Kaz. But you're a heartrender you can hear my heartbeat, so you can trust me."
The monster was sated after its meal; it allowed itself to be herded back to the tunnel. The crowd continued to boo.
"Why are they complaining?" Nina asked angrily. "Isn't this what they came here for?"
"They wanted a fight," said Kaz. "They were expecting him to last longer."
"This is disgusting." Nina muttered.
Kaz shrugged. "Only disgusting thing about it is that I didn't think of it first."
"These men aren't slaves, Kaz. They're prisoners." Nina looked at him in disbelief.
"They're murderers and rapists." Kaz told her.
Even though Kaz was a murderer, he kills people for a reason. And he's not the kind of person who go after helpless kids and women.
"And thieves and con artists. Your people." She frowned.
"Nina, simpleton, they aren't forced to fight. They line up for the chance. They earn better food, private cells, liquor, jurda, conjugals with girls from West Stave." Kaz explained.
As soon as Nina heard the word conjugal, an alarm rang inside her 'Matthias Benedik Helvar'.
Muzzen murmured. "Sounds better than we got it at the Slat."
"Muzzy," Aeolian turned to him. "Your wish will be granted soon, so why don't you invite Kaz, to join you as well."
Kaz squinted. "Angel, if you really want to lock me up, just say the magical words."
Aeolian pushed up her mask and fluttered her lashes. "Ten million kruge."
Muzzen barked out a loud laugh, Kaz grinned behind his mask as Aeolian pulled down her mask with a light smirk across her face.
Nina wasn't paying attention to their conversation. She asked Kaz "Helvar doesn't fight in the arena, does he?"
"We aren't here for the ambience," Kaz said.
"Are you aware that I could waggle my fingers and make you wet your trousers?" She muttered.
"Easy. I like these trousers. And if you start messing with my vital organs, Helvar will never see sunshine again." There was no humour in his voice.
Nina blew out a breath. Even though that would be a sight, Aeolian knew that if Nina ever does something like that to Kaz, he'd shove her down the arena. Kaz liked to joke around with the crew sometimes, but he was the last person to be messed with.
Aeolian knew Nina wouldn't dare to mess with Kaz in a clear mind, but sometimes our emotions take the best of us. She looked at Nina, "It will all work out. Let Kaz do what he does best. Being angry at Kaz for being ruthless is like being angry at a stove for being hot. You know what he is."
Nina crossed her arms. "I'm mad at you, too."
"Me? Why?" She asked.
"I don't know yet. I just am." Nina puffed. She wasn't mad at Aeolian, but the Shu girl was always right, being mad at Kaz was useless it's just his nature, he's ruthless. But that's how he make things work and that's how effective he is, and if not Kaz Brekker no one can help Matthias out.
When Matthias emerged from the mouth of the cave below, Nina saw Kaz hadn't lied: Matthias was much changed. He looked like what he truly was: a killer. He seemed bigger, as if the very structure of his body had changed. His head had been shaved, whichever guard had done it had made a mess of the job.
Snakes. Tiger. Bear. Boar. The wheel ticked merrily along, then slowed and finally stopped.
"No," Nina said when she saw where the needle was pointing.
"It could be worse," said Muzzen. "Could have landed on the desert lizard again."
She grabbed Kaz's arm through his cloak and felt his muscles tense. "You have to stop this."
"Let go of me, Nina." His voice was low, but she sensed real menace in it.
Aeolian knew that Kaz didn't like to be touched. She just assumed that it was his thing, to scare people, like the way he is never seen without his gloves. There was an incident where she poked his nose, when he was busy with some paperworks. Just to see how he'll react and he flipped in an instant, like he was bitten by a snake. She still remembers that look on his face.
But what she didn't realise was that if it was any other member of the Dregs instead of her. Kaz would have broken his or her nose, but with Aeolian he could never.
Nina dropped her hand, "Please, you don't understand. He_"
"If he survives, I'll take Helvar out of this place tonight, but this part is up to him." He said to Nina, he could sense Aeolian eyes on him behind her mask. Every time someone touched him, his expression changes and Aeolian had noticed it. The Shu girl was very smart, and one of these days she might find out the real reason why. So, this job has to go well so that she'll get her money and leave Ketterdam before she unfolds his secret.
The crowd screamed and stamped. But Matthias stood silent, unmoving, even when the gate opened, even when the wolves charged out of the tunnel, three of them snarling and snapping, tumbling over one another to get to him.
At the last second, Matthias dropped into a crouch, knocking the first wolf into the dirt, then rolling right to pick up the bloodied knife of the previous combatant. He sprang to his feet, but Nina could sense his reluctance. Matthias crouched low and spun, lodging his knife in the wolf's belly.
The third wolf was on him, knocking him to the sand. Its teeth sank into his shoulder. He rolled, taking the wolf with him. The wolf's jaws snapped, and Matthias caught them. He wrenched them apart. Nina squeezed her eyes shut. There was a sickening crack, the crowd roared. He reached for a rock and slammed it hard into the poor animal's skull.
The people howled, stomping their feet. Nina and Aeolian knew what this was costing him, that he'd been a drüskelle Wolves were sacred to his kind, bred for battle. They were friends, fighting side by side with their drüskelle masters.
The first wolf had recovered and lunged, sinking its teeth into Matthias side. He grunted, and hit the ground. Then he reached out, his fingers closed over the shackles that had bound his wrists. He seized them, looped the chain across the wolf's throat, and pulled, the veins in his neck cording from the strain.
The announcer sprang down, hauling Matthias to his feet, he lifted his head. Nina caught her breath.
Tears streaked the dirt on Matthias' face. The rage was gone, his eyes stripped of anything human at all. This was what Hellgate had done to him. And it was her fault.
The guards took hold of Matthias and led him away, the crowd chanted its disapproval, clamouring. "More! More!"
"Where are they taking him?" Nina asked.
"To a cell to sleep off the fight," Kaz said. "We'll wait to make sure he's alone."
I could heal him, Nina thought. But a darker voice rose in her, rich with mocking. Not even you can be that foolish, Nina. No Healer can cure that boy. You made sure of it.
They watched the next fight. Muzzen speculating on the outcome, Kaz inscrutable as always, scheming away behind the mask. Nina trying to calm herself, but she could do nothing to mute the riot in her head. Aeolian was silent, but she knew what the plan was and even though how crazy it was, she had agreed to it. When Jesper put the plan into action, innocent blood will be on her hands as well.
Finally, Kaz rose up. "Ready, Nina? The guard first."
"How down?" Nina asked. It was a Barrel turn of phrase. How badly do you want him hurt?
"Shut eye." Kaz replied.
They followed Kaz to the arch through which they'd entered. The rest of the crowd took little notice, eyes focused on the fighting below.
"Need your escort?" the guard asked as they approached.
"I had a question," said Kaz. Beneath her cape, Nina lifted her hands. "About your mother and whether the rumours are true."
Nina felt the guard's pulse leap and sighed. "Never can make it easy, can you, Kaz?"
The guard stepped forward, lifting his gun. "What did you say?" His eyelids drooped.
Muzzen grabbed him before he could fall as Aeolian swept him into the cloak Kaz had been wearing just moments before. Kaz was wearing a prison guard's uniform beneath it.
"Couldn't you have just asked him the time or something?" Nina said. "And where did you get that uniform?"
Aeolian slid the Madman's mask down over the guard's face, and Muzzen deposited him on one of the benches pressed against the back wall.
Kaz tugged on the sleeves of his uniform. "Nina, people love to give up authority to men in nice clothes. I have uniforms for every occasion."
They slipped down the passageway. The guards posted at each archway paid them little more than a glance, though a few nodded at Kaz, who kept a brisk pace, his face buried in his collar.
They reached the crude iron door of the cell, Kaz bent to the lock.
"This place is barbaric." Nina muttered.
It took Kaz a few quick heartbeats to pick the lock. The door creaked open and they slipped inside.
The cell was pitch-black. A brief moment passed, and the cold green glow of a bonelight flickered to life beside them. The substance inside was made from the dried and crushed bodies of luminous deep-sea fishes. They were common among crooks in the Barrel, and for ships crossing the Fold.
This was what the men of Hellgate competed for: a private cell, a blanket, clean water, a bucket for waste. Matthias slept with his back to the wall.
Nina moved towards him, but Kaz stopped her. "Let Lin assess the damage. I need you to work on Muzzen."
Aeolian tossed Kaz the crow cane she have been hiding beneath her costume, and kneeled over Matthias body with the bonelight. Muzzen stepped forward. He removed his cloak and shirt and the Madman's mask. The two boys were about the same height and the same build, but that was where the similarities ended.
"Bruised knuckles, chipped tooth, two broken ribs," Aeolian said. "Third and fourth on the left."
"This isn't going to work," Nina said in frustration. "I can match the damage to Helvar's body, but I'm not a good Tailor to make Muzzen look like him."
"Just trust me, Nina." Kaz leaned on his cane.
"I wouldn't trust you to tie my shoes without stealing the laces, Dirtyhands." She peered at Muzzen's face. "Even if I swell him up, he'll never pass."
"Tonight, Muzzen is going to contract firepox, he will be unrecognisable, and quarantined for a month. Meanwhile Helvar will be with us." Kaz explained, "and do it quickly because in about ten minutes, things are going to get very hectic."
With a sharp slice of her right hand over her left, she snapped Muzzen's ribs. He let out a grunt and doubled over.
"That's a good boy," said Kaz. "Taking it like a champion. Knuckles next, then face."
Nina spread bruises and cuts over Muzzen's knuckles and arms, matching the wounds to Aeolian's descriptions.
"I've never seen firepox up close," Nina said. She was only familiar with illustrations from books they'd used in their anatomy training at the Little Palace.
"Count yourself lucky," Kaz said grimly. "Hurry!"
"Why would you agree to do this?" Nina asked Muzzen.
"Money was good," he said.
She sighed. "Why else did anyone do anything in the Barrel? Good enough to get locked up in Hellgate?"
Kaz tapped his cane on the cell floor. "Stop making trouble. If Helvar cooperates, he and Muzzen will both have their freedom just as soon as the job is done."
"And if he doesn't?" Nina asked.
"Then Helvar gets locked back in his cell, and Muzzen still gets paid. And I'll take him and Lin to breakfast at the Kooperom." Kaz said.
"Can I have the chocolate syrup waffles?" Muzzen mumbled.
"Hey, that's my special." Aeolian looked at Muzzen.
"We'll all have waffles. And whisky. If this job doesn't come off, no one's going to want to be around me sober." Kaz drummed his gloved fingers on the crow head.
"Don't break my heart saying that," Aeolian said slowly. "I still am not done annoying you."
"Lucky me," Kaz huffed, he knew she was playing with him like always. He asked Nina, "Finished?"
Nina nodded, and Aeolian took her place to bandage Muzzen to look like Matthias.
Nina crouched beside Matthias as Kaz stood over her with the bonelight. "Helvar," she said. "Matthias."
A lump rose in her throat, and she felt the ache of tears threatening. She pressed a kiss to his temple. She knew that Kaz and the others were watching and that she was making an idiot of herself, but after so long he was finally here, in front of her, and so very broken. "Matthias," she repeated.
"Nina?" His voice was raw but as lovely as she remembered.
"Oh, Saints, Matthias," she whispered. "Please wake up."
Matthias was dreaming again. Dreaming of her.
"Nina," he growled. Then his hands closed over her throat. She clawed at his hands. "Witch," he hissed, leaning over her. "Beg me! Beg me for your life."
"Hands off her, Helvar." Kaz pressed a gun to his neck. "If you've actually lost your mind, this is going to be a lot tougher than I thought."
Matthias felt a wrenching pain shot through his left shoulder. It felt like he'd been punched by a tiny fist, but his entire arm went numb. He grunted as he fell forward, one hand still clamped around Nina's throat. He would have fallen directly onto her, but he was yanked backwards by the collar of his shirt. He saw that a masked girl was behind it, whoever she was, she knew her way around the human body.
They heard the thunder of footsteps from the arena, cresting like a wave as people burst into the passageway outside the cell. The shouts of guards, and then the roaring of a great cat, the trumpet of an elephant.
"You opened the cages." Nina's voice was shaky.
"Jesper was supposed to wait until three bells," said Kaz.
"It is three bells, Kaz," replied Aeolian, her voice sounded like a lullaby in the confinement of Matthias cell, was he dreaming?
"You knew?" Nina looked at Aeolian in disbelief as Aeolian gave her a nod.
Matthias stared at them. This is a dream. The strangest dream, but definitely a dream. Or maybe killing the wolves had finally driven him truly mad. He'd murdered family tonight. No whispered prayers for their wild souls would make it right.
He looked up at the pale demon with his black-gloved hands. Kaz, the girl behind the mask with the most beautiful voice Matthias had heard, had called him. Would he lead Matthias out of this nightmare or just drag him into another kind of hell?
Aeolian tossed the cloak and mask to Matthias. The passageway outside the cell was chaos. Men and women surged past, screaming and pushing each other, trying to get away from the arena. Guards had their guns out, and they could hear shots being fired. Matthias felt dizzy, and his side ached badly. His left arm was still useless.
Kaz signalled towards the far right archway, Aeolian knew there were snakes in the cages as well. She could only hope that Jesper hadn't been foolish enough to set them free, too. If the passage had been chaos, then the arena was a special kind of madness.
Kaz led them down the tunnel past the cages. He carried the green light, Aeolian was right behind him. A tiny boat moored up ahead. Jesper raised a hand and waved them forward.
"You were early, Jesper," Kaz said as he nudged Matthias towards the boat.
"I was on time." Jesper puffed.
"For you, that's early. Next time you plan to impress me give me some warning." Kaz muttered.
"The animals are out, and I found you a boat. This is when a thank you would be in order." Jesper looked at Kaz.
"Thank you, wonder boy," said Aeolian.
"You're very welcome, gorgeous. See, Kaz? That's how the civilised folk do." Jesper said.
Matthias was only half listening. The fingers of his left hand had started to tingle as sensation returned. He couldn't fight all of them, not in this state and not when they were armed. But Kaz and Jesper, looked to be the only ones with guns. Unhook the rope, disable Jesper. He'd have a gun and possession of the boat. Shoot Nina first. Put a bullet in her heart. Stay long enough to watch her fall and then be done with this place. He could do it. He knew he could. All he needed was a distraction.
The masked girl was standing just to his right. She barely reached his shoulder. Even injured, he could knock her into the water without losing his footing or doing her any real harm.
Drop the girl. Free the boat. Disable the shooter. Kill Nina. Kill Nina. Kill Nina. He took a deep breath and threw his weight at the girl. She stepped aside as if she'd known he was coming. Matthias let out a loud grunt as he landed hard on the stones.
"Don't be so clumsy, muscleman." She slipped off her mask, revealing her pulchritudinous face. He was absolutely dreaming Matthias thought, no one looks like her and those eyes were as green as the northern lights, under the moonlight.
"Put him under, Nina," commanded Kaz.
"Don't," Matthias came back to his senses.
"You're dumb enough to capsize the boat." Kaz said.
"Stay away from me, witch!" Matthias growled at Nina.
Nina gave him a tight nod. "With pleasure."
She lifted her hands, and Matthias felt his eyelids grow heavy as she dragged him into unconsciousness. "Kill you," he mumbled.