Chapter Thirty Five
The Confession
MELODY
Janus was right. This is complete bloody madness. She hadn't been expecting the news that Elsa had been captured by the mysterious men in cloaks. It came as an utter shock to her and caught her off guard.
With all her tactical planning and the laying out of scenarios, never had she imagined that she would arrive in Stormtide only to find that Elsa was missing. If what Tracy had told her was right, and Elsa had been taken last night, would she even still be alive now?
Gritting her teeth, Melody banished the thought from her mind. She's alive. She has to be.
Once back inside the prison walls, Janus led the way through the winding corridors, meeting more resistance as they went. The guards had switched tactics from preventing the prisoners from escaping to defending what was left of their fortress. A desperate attempt, more like.
"Don't they realise they're vastly outmatched?" Melody mused as three squads worth of ill-equipped guards came rushing down the narrow path towards the two archers.
"I suppose they're about to." Janus answered mildly. They darted forward to meet the challenge, and set to work dismantling the charging guards.
Melody ducked underneath a wild swing, and came up on the inside of the attacker's guard. A quick elbow strike and a kick to the knee later, the first guard staggered and the next man behind him tripped. Quickly slinging her bow across her back, she picked up two batons from the ground amongst the fallen shields, and met the next two guards head on.
The batons clanged off a guard's helmet, sending him reeling, and Melody slammed the batons into the midsection of another. Another tried to overwhelm her from behind, but she quickly spun away before he could clobber her to the ground, and countered with a kick that buckled his knee out from underneath him.
A simple strike of the baton to the head did the trick, and Melody whirled round to engage a couple more guards simultaneously. These ones were slightly smarter and had their shields raised. They attempted to ram her head on, and she dropped the batons. Springing back, she unslung her bow and faded sideways, bringing her bow to the side of the first man's head.
She vaulted over his body and her momentum met the other guards'. They staggered backwards at the sudden resistance, almost tumbling backwards like a row of dominos. Melody capitalised, arms moving swiftly to hit the common weak spots. Small of the back, midsection, sternum, shoulders, behind the knees. It came as a reflex to her like flowing water as she weaved in and out, ducking under shields and delivering quick successive blows to those targeted areas.
Arms hooking on to the last man standing, she pulled him sideways till he stumbled, and then drove her knee into his ribs. He stiffened and then his entire body softened, dropping and writhing in pain.
By the time she was finished, Melody was sweating, but she watched as Janus continued to work with fiercer opposition. He had forged ahead of her, but already he had left a trail of bodies and blood in his wake, and he was moving forward quickly, pushing the superior numbers back the way they had come.
Janus worked with a deadly efficiency and fluidity that Melody could only dream to match. She liked to think of herself as a skilled brawler, but Janus was positively a deadly technical fighter with the body language of a seasoned assassin.
He had also slung his bow across his back, a long chain in one hand and a double-edged dagger in the other. Weaving, slicing and slinging the chain, he carved through his opponents with the grace of a master chef working with a slab of meat. It was quite clear to Melody that unlike herself, he didn't have the same compunctions about killing to get the job done. Obviously the guards were no match for him.
The last guard was stupid enough to charge him, and Janus easily sidestepped him, positioning his arms around the man's waist. Heaving, he sent the guard crashing backwards into the wall, and plaster chipped off with the impact. Melody winced a little at his brutality and watched as he turned round to face her. She couldn't tell if he was sweating under the mask, but he seemed to be at least breathing a little more heavily than usual.
"Come on." Janus said. "This way."
The sounds of more clattering boots halted their advance, and they drew nearer by the second. Then, the first guard came into sight, wielding a musket, and the second came up behind him, holding a weapon as well. And then a third.
Janus cursed under his breath and jerked his head to the left, where a single door stood in the wall. "In here, quick!"
The door flew off its hinges as the two of them rammed through it without a second thought. And just in time, for the musket went off and the crack filled the air.
They had trapped themselves in a common bathroom. But at least it was spacious, leaving lots of room to manoeuvre and fight. Melody glanced over at Janus, who evidently had a similar train of thought, owing to their like-minded tactics.
The guards began pouring into the room, fumbling with their muskets. Big mistake. The two archers stuck close to each other, springing for the first guards that streamed into the bathroom. Hand to hand combat was the way to go, for wielding weapons in a bathroom wasn't exactly the best strategy.
Besides, it was agreed that both of them could do way more damage with both hands free. With bows slung across their shoulders, they fought back to back, trying to stave the numbers off them.
The guards had ceased the use of their muskets for it was far too dangerous in such a small space. For one, the two archers knew how to paint themselves as impossible targets, moving and striking in sync, using the bodies of the guards as barriers. For another, there was not much room to shoot without accidentally hitting a comrade.
Melody and Janus used that to their advantage, swiftly moving back to back across the wet bathroom while dispatching guards along the way. More guards were beginning to fill up the room to replace their fallen friends, and the two of them knew that it was only a matter of time. They had to fight their way out now before it was too late.
However, three guards rushed them at once, forcing both archers to disengage and isolate themselves. Shit, Melody thought as she was being separated from Janus.
Someone bulled into her, smashing her against a slimy bathroom wall and a tap. Freezing cold river water began to flow out of the pipes overhead, soaking them both. In the split second that her attacker flinched at the cold, Melody drove her knee upwards and slammed it into the man's stomach.
She spun away while another tried to pin her down against the wall, and rolled across the sloshing water on the tiled floor, coming up and throwing a punch at another guard in front of her. Someone struck her from behind, and she reeled, whirling round to counter another blow to the back of her head, and delivered a smashing elbow of her own. There were just too many of them to fight off in a cramp space like this.
Glancing over at Janus, she saw that he wasn't doing much better. Daggers had appeared in his hands, and he was slashing his way across the room, albeit being slowed down gradually by the guards in his way. Water sprayed as he moved and guards dropped like flies. The ex-mercenary swiped at a guard who dove out of the way, and then threw one of his daggers overhand at another guard behind him.
Crouching, Janus slid across the slippery bathroom floor and came up short in front of someone else. A blow to the side of the face floored him temporarily, but he scrambled back to his feet and rolled, smashing and chopping down another man's legs.
Then turning, he threw his remaining dagger into the chest of the man who had managed to land a punch on his face. Running, he yanked the dagger out of his chest and the man staggered. Then, Janus raised his leg and kicked his head against the corner of a wall, chipping off a few tiles and plaster. Someone else clobbered Janus from behind, and then came a flurry of arms and legs as the guards began to pummel him into submission.
Fending off another blow, Melody tried to call out to Janus but someone slammed her against the wall. Grunting, she winced as someone forcefully twisted her arms behind her back.
Just when she thought that it was over, the prison guards outside the bathroom yelled something in warning, and then followed up with terrified screams that sounded like they were being attacked.
From where she stood, she could feel the edges of a heat wave radiating into the bathroom, and she gave a tiny smile. The guard who was restraining her loosened his grip slightly, and there were some murmuring amongst the guards in their own language, even as the men pummelling Janus stopped their assault.
For a moment, there was an eerie silence, and then everything went dark. The lanterns of the guards extinguished by themselves, and the dimly lit bathroom was plunged back into utter darkness. Shouts of alarm and confusion filled the air, and then the orange glow of flames lit up the bathroom like Christmas.
And here comes the cavalry, Melody mused to herself, watching as Deirdre swept into the room with Maui, along with another woman and a big man that she didn't recognise.
They made short work of the guards, who threw down what remained of their weapons and surrendered. Others tried to fight, but Maui shape-shifted into a brown bull in a flash of light, and rammed into them, bulling them through the weak walls of the bathroom.
Then, the lights of the guards' lanterns seemed to return, flickering back into existence all of a sudden. When the room was lit dimly once again, all the guards had been dealt with one way or another.
"Good of you to drop in." Melody said, getting to her feet.
"You two are idiots." Deirdre snapped. "Rushing back into enemy territory without backup."
"You can lecture us later." Janus grunted as the new man helped him to his feet.
Melody inclined her head towards the two newcomers of their little band. "Who're these two?"
"A few new friends I made along the way," Janus said as he rubbed the side of his face.
"Name's Venetia." The girl said, grinning, and pointed over to the man helping Janus. "And that's Monco."
"Pleasure." Melody said, rolling her shoulder and nursing the back of her head which was aching a little.
"We've heard a little about you from Tracy." Venetia said.
"Good things I hope."
"We don't have much time." Maui said, having shape-shifted back into the form of a man. "Tracy's almost done ferrying everyone through the Crossing Points. We have to go."
"Just…give us five minutes. We're almost done." Janus staggered forward a little, and then straightened up to stretch his back. An audible pop could be heard as he winced.
"Where's the Warden's office?" Melody asked as they walked out of the bathroom, stepping over countless fallen bodies of the guards.
"Just a bit further." Janus took the lead, picking up the pace. "Follow me."
JANUS
After what had seemed like hours of fighting through numerous guards in the corridors, on the stairs and even the damned bathroom, they reached the hallway leading to the Warden's office. Melody, Janus, and their band of followers went down the corridor without much more resistance. A guard here, two more waiting down the hallway, but nothing the six of them couldn't handle quickly.
"Here." Janus kicked down the door of the office.
Inside, he found only four men. One of them was Deputy Warden Leonid, with two remaining guards that were armed with muskets. The fourth, seated behind a desk and cowering, he presumed to be the Warden.
Leonid was the first to rise, grabbing a musket from the nearest guard when both froze at the sight of the mercenary in black.
"Fine, I'll take care of this myself." Leonid snarled.
A tiny blade slid out from Janus' sleeve, falling nicely into his palm. He whipped it across the room, covering the distance between him and Leonid. The blade struck the deputy warden directly in the heart, and the musket dropped to the ground with a messy clatter.
Janus drew two arrows and nocked it as the remaining armed guard fumbled clumsily with his musket, his companion frozen in shock. He pulled back the bowstring, preparing to cut down the two guards.
"Stop," Melody put a hand on his arm. "That's enough." She lifted her voice, directing it at the two guards. "If you value your lives, I suggest you surrender. If you don't, you know how this ends."
The man hastily dropped his musket, and both raised both hands. They obviously had much more sense than the deputy warden did. Maui, Deirdre and the other two escorted the two men outside the room, while Janus kept the two arrows back in his quiver.
He stepped over the body of the deputy warden, heading straight for the man behind the desk, whose eyes were very wide. Janus felt the rage bubbling up from within as he stared across the desk at the warden.
"So you're the one responsible for her disappearance." He lunged, reaching across the desk and grabbing the man's collar.
The warden gave an alarmed shout as Janus drew him nearer to his face. From the corner of his eye, he saw Melody flinch slightly, almost as if she wanted to stop him. But she knew that they needed the information from the warden, even though she obviously didn't approve of all his methods. We need to know where he sent Elsa, and we're running out of time.
"N-no, I-I'm not!" The Warden cowered in fear as Janus twisted his collar in clenched fist.
"I know you had her brought to your office. The Snow Queen." Janus said through gritted teeth, trying not to let his feelings get the better of him. "Tell me where you sent her."
"I-I don't know what you're talking about!"
Classic response. Janus slammed his bow onto the desk with a loud sound, which drew an unconcealed flinch of terror from the warden. He unsheathed a dagger from his belt, and the blade gleamed a little under the dim lantern light.
"You're working for the men in the brown cloaks." Janus snarled. "I saw them with my own eyes. Tell me where you sent her."
"I…I-"
"Don't test me." Janus growled like an angry lion. In truth, all he really wanted was to slit the insufferable man's throat. This snivelling, sorry excuse for a Warden had sent his lover off to the men in cloaks, effectively sealing her fate. He so badly wanted to make the Warden pay for it all. With great control and precision, he pressed the blade gently against the man's throat, drawing a little trickle of blood.
The warden stiffened and whimpered.
"I'm going to ask one last time." Janus snarled, gradually pressing the blade deeper into the man's skin. "Where the hell did you send Elsa?"
"Alright, alright, I'll tell you!" The warden caved. "It's not my fault. I had orders. They said they wanted the Snow Queen!"
"Who?" Janus bellowed. "The men in the brown cloaks?"
The warden nodded, trembling.
"Where did they take her?"
"I don't know! I swear on my life!"
"Swear to me!"
"I swear!" The warden grovelled. "They don't tell me where they take their prisoners."
"Who are they?" Janus hissed, blade still pressed against his throat. "Who exactly are you working for? Tell me!"
"Janus. Please." Melody said.
"He's going to crack." Janus growled. "I know his kind. He'll answer, or I'll slit his damn throat and leave him to bleed out slowly in a pool of his own blood."
"Elsa wouldn't want you to kill him." Melody put a hand on his arm, lowering the dagger from the warden's throat. "Please."
Hesitating a couple of seconds, Janus finally relented and let go of the shaking man. He felt a wave of guilt washing over him. This isn't what Elsa would have wanted me to do.
"Tell us what we want to know, and I promise we'll let you go." Melody said, playing the role of the good cop. "Are you working for the Confederation?"
"Yes." The warden answered shakily. "But it's not the Confederation who ordered her disappearance."
"Then who?"
"King Uxzas told me to obey them. The men in the cloaks."
"Who are the men in the cloaks?" Janus repeated dangerously.
"I-I don't know. I swear! I only know of a name."
"What's the name?"
"It's not really a name. A…a title." The warden said nervously, voice dropping to a barely audible whisper as if afraid someone was going to overhear them. "The men in the cloaks, they call him 'the High Priest'. He's-"
The warden's face grew pale, and he clutched at his throat, fumbling at his collar. Janus' eyes widened in disbelief as the man made a gagging noise. There was an audible snap, and the man slumped forward, head hitting the desk. The room was silent.
Janus rushed forward, placing two fingers on the warden's pale neck to feel for a pulse. Nothing. He blinked, and stared up at Melody whose eyes were very wide.
"He's…he's gone." Janus finally managed to say.
"What the hell did we just see?" Melody whispered.
"The men in the brown cloaks." Janus said. It had to be them. Who else could it have been? "They have some kind of magic behind them, I'm guessing. They don't want the warden spilling their secrets."
"But at least we got a name." Melody said. "The High Priest. Who the hell is the High Priest?"
"Damned if I know." Janus muttered in exasperation. "Not much of a lead to go on."
"Hurry up!" Deirdre's voice screeched from outside with a fairly obvious air of impatience. "We need to go now before more guards come this way! Tracy's still waiting for us! Get your asses out here now!"
"Come on. Let's get the hell out of Stormtide." Melody tore her eyes away from the lifeless figure slumped across his desk. "We'll have time to figure this out later."
Janus nodded grimly, taking one last look at the haunted expression on the warden's face before bolting out the door after Melody. We have a hell of a lot to figure out.
