The Harpers - The Night Parade Part 11

You were forcing them to expose themselves to the light, to risk discovery. This way would be easier.

Now we must address the issue of the girl."

"I have a name," Krystin said.

"Yes, you have much to lay claim to," Shandower said.

"I don't have to listen to this," Krystin said. "I didn't ask to be rescued by you people." The child shot an angry glance at Myrmeen. "And I didn't ask for your name."

"Nevertheless, you would have it," Shandower said. "It might be desirable to them to place one of their own in succession for your throne, Myrmeen. They often need money and favors. In time, you could pa.s.s on and she-"

"But you can see our resemblance," Myrmeen said, fighting to preserve what she now perceived as a fragile illusion. "Look at our faces, our eyes."

Shandower laughed bitterly. "And how many of the Night Parade have you encountered who possess the gift to change their appearance?"

A river of ice suddenly leapt from Myrmeen's heart. She felt an unexpected vertigo and tried to calm herself.

"That's it!" Krystin said. "I've had about as much of this as I'm going to take. You think I'm one of them?"

Shandower said nothing. Myrmeen looked at Krystin with an expression of fear intermingled with hope. Prove him wrong, she seemed to plead with her eyes. Krystin suddenly felt Myrmeen's overwhelming need, and the sensation made her uncomfortable. She crossed her arms over her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and stared at Shandower with her best, most penetrating gambler's stare. The man did not flinch, but he eased back a few inches. Restraining a grin, Krystin said, "All right. That glove of yours. When it's charged, the magic will kill any of them at a touch, right?"

"Yes," Shandower replied.

She held her hand out, palm down. "Then do it."

"Krystin-" Myrmeen began desperately.

"Shut up," Krystin said. "If you are the woman who gave birth to me, you waited a d.a.m.n long time to come get me. I don't much care if you think it was worth the effort. But no one says I'm one of those things. How do I know the whole lot of you aren't with the Night Parade? This whole thing could be a punishment for me. They like to play games. That might be why you dragged me back to this filthy city."

Shandower regarded Myrmeen with the detachment of a professional a.s.sa.s.sin. "Do you wish this?"

"Forget her," Krystin said. "This is what I want." She placed her hand over his gauntlet, suddenly realizing that the flesh around his wrist was fused to the metal. "Do it."

He nodded and called upon the energies residing within him. The glove exploded in brilliant bluish white light. Snakes of green fire slithered up Krystin's arm. She remained perfectly still, only the sudden sweat that had broken out on her forehead revealing her fear. Then she smiled, the beautiful soft lights flickering in her eyes.

"What about the rest of you?" she asked.

One by one the Harpers rose and took the gloved hand. When it was over, Shandower allowedthe mystical fires to retreat. Myrmeen placed her hand on Krystin's arm, attempting a weak smile. The girl shook her head impatiently and pulled away. The tall brunette felt her last embers of hope smolder and die within her heart.

Several minutes later, Lucius said, "As long as there is a chance that Krystin is not your daughter, as long as there is doubt, I will remain at your side. Both of you deserve to know the truth."

"But who can tell us?" Myrmeen asked.

"They can," Krystin said. "The monsters. They're probably the only ones."

"Do you want to go to Arabel?" Myrmeen asked. "It will be safe for you there."

"No." Krystin rose slowly and walked past Myrmeen and the Harpers. Without looking back, she said, "I've spent fourteen years not knowing who my parents are. I didn't think it mattered." She looked over her shoulder, at Myrmeen. "But it matters. I'm not saying that you can ever be my mother or that I could ever be your daughter, but it matters anyway."

Ord nodded. "Yes. More than you know."

"I can't ask the rest of you to continue," Myrmeen said.

"You don't have to ask," Reisz said. "Remember Morlan? We avenge our own. I'm with you."

"As am I," Ord said.

Myrmeen stood and addressed the group. "If we're to do this thing, it should be for the right reasons, not for vengeance, and not for personal gain." She looked down and shrugged, her hands open at her sides. She never knew what to do with her hands when she was making a speech. "I sound so pompous." She laughed. "It's just that I think of my friends, those we lost today. Burke and Varina were family to all of us. If they had a vote, they would vote to do this only to fulfill the sacred duty and obligation of the Harpers. That is what they died for, as much as anything else. More importantly, that's what they lived for. I think we should honor their memories as best we can."

The Harpers conferred alone and decided that they would stay with Shandower, gain his trust, and learn his secrets. They were particularly interested in this apparatus that the Night Parade wanted so desperately to reacquire. They wanted to send at least one of their number to the Twilight Hall to alert the other Harpers. However, they knew that Shandower's suspicion would have been aroused if one of them suddenly departed. This was not information that they could trust to a messenger. For now, they were on their own.

"If you will have us," Myrmeen said as she returned to Shandower, "we will join you."

"Allies are hard to come by in this war," Shandower said. "I'm honored."

Suddenly there was a rustling from the pile of debris at the warehouse's far side. The Harpers were stunned to see a blond youth standing beside the mound of trash. He made the rustling sound on purpose, to draw their attention.

"The boy from the Gentleman's Hall," Myrmeen said.

"Alden McGregor," he said brightly. "And considering my wealth of experience, dear Madame Lhal, I would hardly describe myself as a boy. foung, maybe, but certainly a man. So, how would you like one more ally?"

The boy's wet hair was matted to his scalp, and he walked toward the Harpers, brus.h.i.+ng at his fine clothes in a vain attempt to remove the ingrained filth from his black s.h.i.+rt, boots, and leggings. He had left his fine red jacket outside.

"Excuse the stench," he said sheepishly. "I had to crawl up through the sewage tunnels to get in here. You really have a very secure location-"

Shandower grabbed the teenager and forced him down over one of the grates. Alden yelped in surprise. "I've come to help you!"

"We'll see," Shandower said.

Reisz tapped Ord on the shoulder. "Take a lamp and check the grating. Make sure there are no more."

"I will," Ord said, hurrying to the task.

His back upon the crate, Alden stared up at Shandower and said, "You seemed so even-tempered.""You work for Reraccinni," Shandower said. "He's-"

"One of them, the monsters, yes, I know," Alden said as he quickly explained the task he had been set to and his discovery at the Gentleman's Hall. He described Pieraccinni's transformation in great detail, and Lucius deduced Pieraccinni's nature, that of a living siphon of magical energy.

Ord returned. "We're clear. Reisz and I are going to check the perimeter."

"Good," Myrmeen said, drawing close to Shandower. Krys-tin joined her.

"Listen," Alden said, "if I wanted to betray you, I could have led those things back here to you. I didn't. I told Pierac-cinni I saw your party leave the city gates. They'll think you're gone. They won't be expecting anything from you."

"Let him up," Myrmeen said. "I believe him."

Reisz and Ord returned. The building was secure.

"Why betray your employer?" Shandower asked.

"I might not always be on the side of law and morality, but I insist on sticking with my own kind,"

Alden said. "You have something those monsters want, some kind of apparatus, and I have the feeling that if they get their hands on it, there's going to be a lot of human blood spilled."

"You're right," Shandower said. "But trust does not come easily. It has to be earned."

"Don't be so stiff," Alden said. "Whatever it is you want me to do, I'll do it. That's why I'm here."

He winked at Krystin. Her eyebrows went up in surprise.

Shandower suddenly noticed the gaunt mage's dark, burning stare. "Cardoc, did you have something to add?"

"Only that I think we should find a way to hurt these monsters, and I have an idea about where to begin. . . ."

Ten.

The cloud of flame reached into the night sky like an angry fist. The building seemed to shudder, its foundations rocked by the a.s.sault. Myrmeen stood a comfortable distance away, on a low rooftop, with Reisz and Ord flanking her and Krystin standing off to the side with a sullen expression. Both the Harpers and Myrmeen were armed with bows. "There's one," Myrmeen said.

"I've got it," Ord said quickly, a flickering light playing in his eyes. The source of the light was not the fire across the street; instead, the s.h.i.+mmering luminescence came from the bluish white arcane fires in which the shafts had been immersed, courtesy of Shandower and his sorceries.

Below, a creature with long, twisted horns growing from its head raced out of the building. It fell suddenly as Ord's shaft pierced its chest. Soon there were more of the monstrosities flooding into the street, driven there by the dual attacks of Lucius and Shandower, who had sealed off all other means of escape from the burning building. As the monsters ran outside, they were quickly dispatched by the sure arm of the archers across the street.

For the past week, the Harpers had been mounting similar a.s.saults against the clandestine homes of the Night Parade. With the information Shandower had gathered on his own and the invaluable help of Alden, who had been their eyes and ears at the Gentleman's Hall, the Harpers had been able to rout the creatures from a half dozen lairs in the low towns. Tonight marked the first attack on one of their nests in the garment district. The Harpers were dangerously close to their hiding place, which lay only blocks away.

Myrmeen saw a shambling creature break from the doorway below. Without hesitation, she placed a mystically charged arrow in its chest. Although some of the monsters fell to cold steel, magic was required for the rest.

Krystin moved to Ord's side. "Erin and Lucius should have been out of there by now," she said with concern.

"They know what they're doing," Myrmeen said sharply. "We've all been at this a lot longer than you have."Flinching as if she had been struck, Krystin hissed, "I'm sorry I said anything."

Ord glanced at her. "Your mom's got a case of nerves."

"She's an idiot," she whispered harshly.

"There is that, too."

Krystin stared at the young man as if she were seeing him for the first time and smiled. Below, two figures raced from the burning building. Reisz drew back from the edge of the roof. "Cardoc and Shandower are out. Time to go."

As a group, Myrmeen, Krystin, and the Harpers retreated to the back of the building, where they were met by Lucius, who levitated them to the ground. Shandower waited at the end of the alley, waving his hand for them to follow.

Within ten minutes they were back at Shandower's safe house. While the others celebrated the victory, Myrmeen remained alone, examining the looms stacked in the corner.

During the last several days, Myrmeen had immersed herself in the work of helping to plan their attacks against the Night Parade. In her spare moments, she trained with Shan-dower and Reisz, learning new and more deadly techniques of hand-to-hand combat. Her only contact with Krystin had been when she shared her lessons with the girl, and that had been at Reisz's urging. Reisz had taken a keen interest in the girl, and had been saddened by the steady disintegration of her relations.h.i.+p with Myrmeen.

Krystin went to Myrmeen. "You couldn't be less subtle."

Myrmeen turned suddenly. "I don't understand."

"On the roof you wouldn't give me a weapon. When we're in the field, you don't want to hear anything I have to say. I'm amazed you're willing to turn your back on me."

"I told you, when you're as accomplished as the rest of us, we'll arm you."

Krystin hugged herself. "Why are you lying to me? If you don't want me around, just say so and I'll leave."

c.o.c.king her head slightly, Myrmeen raised an eyebrow and said, "You mean you want to go to Arabel?" She hated herself for the excitement that had crept into her voice.

"No," Krystin said firmly. "I can survive on the street. I have the feeling that I'd be more welcome there."

Myrmeen's mask of indifference fell away at once. "What are you talking about?"

"You don't want me here," Krystin said. "If you can't be honest with me, then at least be honest with yourself. I can pack up and leave at any time if you want me to go."

The tall brunette seemed to shrink. Her shoulders fell and she leaned against the filthy wall.

"That's not what I want. It's just that I don't know how to be a parent. I've never been responsible for anyone except myself."

"You think you're responsible for me?" Krystin said, aghast. "What makes you think I want that?"

Myrmeen was silent. She bit her lip and looked away. Krystin had a point. Myrmeen had been on her own at a young age, and she would have resented a complete stranger walking into her life, trying to dictate her actions. Frustrated, she cried, "What is it I'm supposed to do? If I pay too much attention, I'm crowding you. Too little, and I'm being cold!" Krystin shuddered. "You hate me, don't you?" "No,"

Myrmeen said, though it was true that she felt tight around the girl, unable to be herself. Staring into Krystin's eyes, so like her own, the uncomfortable feeling deepened. "I just don't want to make any mistakes with you." "You've already made the first. You just lied to me." "Krystin-" Myrmeen began as she reached for the child. "Leave me alone!" the girl cried as she turned and stormed off. Walking away, Krystin firmly resolved not to bring up the true reason why she had approached Myrmeen. For the past week she had been witnessing brief flashes of scenes playing before her eyes. The images felt like memories, but they were of events that she had never experienced. Over the past two days, the visions had come with increasing frequency. Although they only lasted a second, no more, the faces she saw were clear and distinct. One, in particular, an old man with a kind, gentle look, had returned more often than any other. She wanted to know if the others were experiencing such waking dreams, as the visions had disturbed her. But when she saw the distrust in Myrmeen's eyes, the naked suspicion with whichKrystin was still regarded, she chose not to bring up the subject.

"You're going to walk into a wall if you don't look up," a voice said.

Krystin glanced upward and saw Ord approaching. She realized that she had crossed the length of the warehouse and looked around to see Shandower gathering Myrmeen and the Harpers to an old table they had appropriated from a nearby alley. Scrolls and sc.r.a.ps of paper were strewn about.

"Shouldn't you be attending the planning session with the others?" Krystin asked.

"I will when my opinion means something around here."

"I can appreciate that," Krystin murmured. Gazing into Ord's relaxed face, she was certain that she was watching a carefully maintained performance. He was still grieving for Burke and Varina. "How are you, Ord? How are you, really?"

"Quite good, I've been told."

Krystin felt suddenly flushed. "Will you stop," she said, embarra.s.sed by how easily he had made her blush.

"Only if I have to."

"Well, you have to," she said, shaking her head.

"What?" Ord said with a laugh.

Krystin shrugged. "Don't let it go to your head, but the only time I feel good anymore is when we're together."