finger jab, neck. Straight kick, gut. Roundhouse, left temple.
He didn’t land a single one of them. Takaar’s defence was quicker than Auum could follow. His ripostes just predictable enough to evade. The two TaiGethen bounced away from each other, sizing up the space around them and each other’s weaknesses.
‘Takaar. I am not here to kill you or lead you to your death. As Yniss is my witness and Shorth owns my soul. I am TaiGethen. You can believe me without fear of betrayal.’
Takaar was staring to his right.
‘He is who he says he is. I never forget a face.’
‘I shouldn’t have come, you’re right. Best on the cliff top, rocking over the drop. Perhaps tomorrow I will tumble.’
‘I am not here to prove myself to you. I do not have to prove myself to anyone. I am Takaar. I-’
Takaar’s expression darkened.
‘I did. I killed them. All of them. Blood is on my hands. But I can wash it.’
Takaar scrambled back down to the stream and plunged his hands into it, scraping at his palms with his nails.
‘See? It fades. It fades. And one day it will all be gone.’
Takaar stood up and jabbed a finger at Auum.
‘You are a spy. You would steal all my secrets.’ Takaar ran up the slope towards him. ‘I want them back. Where is all my work?’
‘It’s in the boat,’ said Auum. ‘Completely safe and completely untouched.’
Takaar planted his left foot on level ground and leapt at Auum. His right leg outstretched, fists balled and covering his face. Auum swivelled his torso, putting his weight into a two-handed block. Takaar tumbled in the air, came down and rolled to his haunches, springing up in the next movement.
Auum took up a crouched defence, legs wide, centre of gravity low. Takaar’s fists blurred. Auum defended on instinct. Left high, block right. Right torso, block down. Riposte palm to chest. Blocked. Straight kick groin, block right foot. Riposte right fist to head. Evaded. Roundhouse right temple. Landed. One, two, three.
Auum sprawled on the ground, rolling over and on to his haunches. Takaar was on him. Left fist cracking into his jaw, sending him down again. Auum tumbled, bounced back to his feet, ran three paces up a tree trunk and grasped a branch ten feet from the ground. He spun around and dropped, both feet flat. Takaar dodged. Auum landed, ducked low. Takaar’s foot washed over his head. Auum straightened, powered into a standing jump and kicked out first left, then right foot.
Takaar caught his right foot and twisted. Auum followed the movement with his body to avoid his ankle being snapped. Takaar pulled his foot in and smashed a kick at Auum’s groin. Auum blocked with his left thigh. Auum landed on his back, twisted his foot from Takaar’s grasp.
Takaar hurdled him. Auum scrambled to turn round. Not fast enough. Takaar kicked out backwards, catching Auum in the kidney. Pain blossomed up his back. He pitched forwards. Auum rolled onto his back. Takaar’s fist was at his face. He knocked it aside but not the second blow which slammed into his nose, bloodying but not breaking it.
Auum’s head thudded against the ground. He brought his knees up sharply and twisted, catching Takaar’s side and unbalancing him. Auum’s fists licked out, the left catching Takaar in the side of the jaw. Takaar pushed himself away back to his feet. Auum ran at him, steadied and kicked out to the knee. Takaar moved easily aside.
Auum blocked a punch to his throat. The second and third were too quick though. One made more of a mess of his nose, the last, an elbow caught him in the side of the neck. He hit the ground again. Takaar pounced on him, cocked his hand for a straight fingered jab to the throat.
‘No one should look for me,’ said Takaar. ‘I am not to be found. Not ever. And you. Came here alone and you will die alone. We see it and we agree.’
Ghost white loomed overhead. Fingers with cruelly sharpened nails closed around Takaar’s throat and a knife point came to rest at his temple.
‘You of all people should know that a TaiGethen is never alone.’
Chapter 27
Speed is nothing without the wit to use it. ‘Why did you authorise this? What purpose was there? We are here to subdue not slaughter! We want to keep them divided. You are forcing them to reunite.’
Sildaan was incandescent. Screaming her rage. She kept rubbing her hands over her face and walking round in tight circles. Garan let her exhaust her dismay, keeping his expression neutral and his lieutenants elsewhere entirely. Here, in the middle of the Park of Tual, with the stacked bodies beginning to stink in the heat of a day which had yielded little rain, they could be quite alone.
‘I cannot believe what you have done here!’
Sildaan pointed at the bodies. Carts and oxen were being found to take them out to the rainforest for reclamation. Garan found the idea repellent. Apparently, elves drew great comfort in knowing their bodies would be torn apart by a thousand different species of animal and bug when they died. All it did to Garan was make him itch more.
‘Llyron wanted to rule these people, not pray for their souls in a mass service of Shorth’s embrace.’ Her face cleared just about enough. ‘Why did you do it?’
‘Right,’ said Garan, taking a breath. ‘There are two reasons, but first let me apologise for not squaring this with you. That was an error.’
‘An error? Oh, sorry, I made a little error of judgement. Rather than herd these Tuali into the harbour master’s warehouse, I accidentally ordered a total butchering. Silly me. Such an easy mistake though, don’t you think?’
Garan took it. Just. ‘Sarcasm doesn’t become you, Sildaan.’
‘False apology doesn’t become you, blink-life.’
Garan felt his anger rising. ‘The fact that you pay me does not give you the right to insult me. Sharp-ears. I am trying to subdue this city as quickly as I can. Your interruptions and lack of knowledge regarding proper tactics are undermining your own operation. You should just let me do the job you are underpaying me to do.’
Sildaan shook her head. ‘I’m interrupting to stop you doing two things I expressly ordered you not to do. Razing the city to the ground and throwing every elven body on the fire. Your way, you get submission by having no one left to rebel. And because I pay you, I get to interfere any time I like and change my mind as often as I like. Is that completely clear or must I spell it out further to your slow human brain?’
Garan almost snapped. Only the thought of the near future stayed him from breaking her neck right then and there. He grabbed the collars of her coat in one gloved hand and hauled her towards him. He knew what she’d do and made no attempt to move the knife blade he felt pressing against his shirt over his stomach.
‘You will let me go or I will kill you,’ said Sildaan.
‘I have no doubt that you will. Just ask yourself how long you will last with my blood on your blade and four hundred of my men waiting for my next order. So you will listen to me and then we will move on.’
The knife did not withdraw. Nor did it push in further. Good enough. Neither of them would look away. Garan stared into eyes full of indignation and contempt. He trusted his were as cold as others told him they were. He let her coat go.
‘You don’t believe me but this needed to happen,’ said Garan. ‘Firstly because every elf in this city needs to understand the price of resistance or rebellion. And your message will be about how these elves set an ambush and would not lay down their arms, leaving us with no choice. Secondly, these are Tuali. This is the warlike thread you warned me needed shocking into submission. Let me ask you something. Which is more desirable? To have all these Tuali just waiting their opportunity to strike – not now perhaps, not even tomorrow or the next day. But one day. Or to have them gone and to have every other Tuali, maybe every other elf, too scared to dare oppose you in the street.
‘This has happened in Balaia too. You cannot afford to have elves like this in your new society. You can’t. You need order and obedience from day one. Damn me if you like, and I’ll take my chances with your god Shorth. Or wait to see the wisdom of my slow human brain.’
