Eighteen soldiers – Strings had carried them through. Three more skirmishes, bloody and without mercy, and now they crouched before the palace gates – which yawned wide, a huge mouth filled with fire. Smoke billowed above the fortification, glowing in the night. Bottle, on his knees, gasping, slowly looked round at his fellow soldiers. A few heavies, the whole of Strings's squad, and most of Sergeant Cord's, along with the few marines surviving from Borduke's squad.
They had hoped, prayed, even, to arrive and find other squads – anyone, more survivors, defying this damned conflagration… this far.
Just this far, that's all. It would have been enough. But they were alone, with no sign anywhere that any other Malazans had made it.
If Leoman of the Flails was in the palace, he was naught but ashes, now.
'Crump, Maybe, Cuttle, over to me,' Strings ordered, crouching and setting down his satchel. 'Any other sappers? No? Anyone carrying munitions? All right, I just checked mine – the wax is way too soft and getting softer – it's all gonna go up, and that's the plan. All of it, except the burners – toss those – the rest goes right into the mouth of that palace-'
'What's the point?' Cord demanded. 'I mean, fine by me if you're thinking it's a better way to go.'
'I want to try and blow a hole in this growing firestorm – knock it back – and we're heading through that hole, for as long as it survives – Hood knows where it'll lead. But I don't see any fire right behind the palace, and that'll do for me. Problems with that, Cord?'
'No. I love it. It's brilliant. Genius. If only I hadn't tossed my helm away.'
A few laughs. Good sign.
Then hacking coughs. Bad sign.
Someone shrieked, and Bottle turned to see a figure lumbering out from a nearby building, flasks and bottles hanging from him, another bottle in one hand, a torch in the other – heading straight for them. And they had discarded their crossbows.
A bellowing answer from a soldier in Cord's squad, and the man, Bell, rushed forward to intercept the fanatic.
'Get back!' Cord screamed.
Sprinting, Bell flung himself at the man, colliding with him twenty paces away, and both went down.
Bottle dropped flat, rolled away, bumping up against other soldiers doing the same.
A whoosh, then more screams. Terrible screams. And a wave of heat, blistering, fierce as the breath of a forge.
Then Strings was swearing, scrambling with his collection of satchels.
'Away from the palace! Everyone!'
'Not me!' Cuttle growled. 'You need help.'
'Fine. Everyone else! Sixty, seventy paces at least! More if you can!
Go!'
Bottle climbed upright, watched as Strings and Cuttle ran crab-like towards the palace gates. Then he looked round. Sixty paces? We ain't got sixty paces – flames were devouring buildings in every direction he could see, now.
Still, as far away as possible. He began running.
And found himself colliding with someone – who gripped his left arm and spun him round.
Gesler. And behind him Thom Tissy, then a handful of soldiers. 'What are those fools doing?' Gesler demanded.
'Blow – a hole – through the storm-'
'Puckered gods of the Abyss. Sands – you still got your munitions?'
'Aye, Sergeant-'
'Damned fool. Give 'em to me-'
'No,' said Truth, stepping in between. 'I'll take them. We've gone through fire before, right, Sergeant?' With that he snatched the satchel from Sands's hands and ran towards the palace gatesWhere Strings and Cuttle had been forced back – the heat too fierce, the flames slashing bright arms out at them.
'Damn him!' Gesler hissed. 'That was a different kind of fire-'
Bottle pulled loose from the sergeant's grip. 'We got to get going!
Away!'
Moments later all were running – except Gesler, who was heading towards the sappers outside the gate. Bottle hesitated. He could not help it. He had to seeTruth reached Cuttle and Strings, tugged their bags away, slung them over a shoulder, then shouted something and ran towards the palace gates.
Both sappers leapt to their feet, retreating, intercepting Gesler – who looked determined to follow his young recruit – Cuttle and Strings dragged the sergeant back. Gesler struggled, turning a ravaged face in Truth's directionBut the soldier had plunged into the flames.
Bottle ran back, joined with the two sappers to help drag a shrieking Gesler away.
Away.
They had managed thirty paces down the street, heading towards a huddled mass of soldiers shying from a wall of flames, when the palace blew up behind them.
And out, huge sections of stone flung skyward.
Batted into the air, tumbling in a savage wind, Bottle rolled in the midst of bouncing rubble, limbs and bodies, faces, mouths opened wide, everyone screaming – in silence. No sound – no… nothing.
Pain in his head, stabbing fierce in his ears, a pressure closing on his temples, his skull ready to implodeThe wind suddenly reversed, pulling sheets of flame after it, closing in from every street. The pressure loosed. And the flames drew back, writhing like tentacles.
Then the air was still.
Coughing, staggering upright, Bottle turned.
The palace's heart was gone, split asunder, and naught but dust and smoke filled the vast swath of rubble.
'Now!' Strings shrieked, his voice sounding leagues away. 'Go!
Everyone! Go!'
The wind returned, sudden, a scream rising to a wail, pushing them onward – onto the battered road between jagged, sagging palace walls.
Dunsparrow had been first to the temple doors, shoving them wide even as explosions of fire lit up the horizon, all round the city… all within the city walls.
Gasping, heart pounding and something like a knife-blade twisting in his gut, Corabb Bhilan Thenu'alas followed Leoman and the Malazan woman into the Temple of Scalissara, L'oric two paces behind him.
No, not Scalissara – the Queen of Dreams. Scalissara the matron goddess of olive oil would not have… no, she would not have allowed this. Not… this.
And things had begun to make sense. Terrible, awful sense, like chiselled stones fitting together, raising a wall between humanity… and what Leoman of the Flails had become.
The warriors – who had ridden with them, lived with them since the rebellion first began, who had fought at their side against the Malazans, who even now fought like fiends in the streets – they were all going to die. Y'Ghatan, this whole city, it's going to die.
Hurrying down the central hallway, into the nave, from which gusted a cold, dusty wind, wind that seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at once. Reeking of mould, rot and death.
Leoman spun to L'oric. 'Open a gate, High Mage! Quickly!'
'You must not do this,' Corabb said to his commander. 'We must die, this night. Fighting in the name of Dryjhna-'
