“The last I saw of him he was slumped over his saddle with an arrow in his back. I was trying to get Leah to safety at the time so I wasn’t close enough to see if he still lived,” Lex replied, his voice faint and subdued. He glanced over at Shade and flicked a finger toward the cigarette that was burning forgotten in his hand. “Have you got another one of those? I haven’t had decent tobacco in weeks.”
Shade nodded silently and handed his friend the cigarette case. The news about Leah’s death was a shock to him. She hadn’t even been Fionaveir and he hadn’t realized she had been involved in the fighting. He knew now wasn’t the time to push the topic with Lex though. Lex had been very close with his twin sister. As well as his friend seemed to be handling it, the wound was still too fresh for conversation. “An arrow in his back, eh,” he said finally to steer the conversation further from Leah.
Lex nodded slowly and took a long drag from the freshly lit cigarette, seeming to savor the smoke. “First time I’ve ever seen an arrow in a Blight ambush. Funny, I haven’t heard any other reports of them being used either. From all I’ve seen the Blights don’t use weapons other than the ones they are born with. I’ve seen one or two of the smarter ones use magic, but never weapons.”
“Can’t say that I’ve ever seen them use anything made by us. They travel naked and seem to shun anything manmade,” Shade said in agreement. “That makes three of our allies hit this week, Adana Firym, RenDelvayon, and now Sebastian. If I were Nicoli Blackwolf, I would be checking all of the shadows before I slept at night.”
Lex chuckled darkly. “Would take a braver man than me to tackle Nicoli Blackwolf. Have you ever actually met the man?”
Shade shook his head slowly. “I knew Sebastian a bit. He seemed nice enough, though he had no love for me. My last name of Morcaillo kind of branded me from certain social circles.”
“Sebastian was nothing like his father,” Lex said firmly. “Sebastian was touched by the wolf. Nicoli is like a wolf in a man’s body. When he moves it’s like he is prowling and when he watches you, you feel like prey. He is refined and dresses nobly. Hell, he even wears plate mail in battle, but still there is something about him that is positively feral.”
More forms had filled their area of the courtyard and they both grew silent as Vaze approached. Moonlight glimmered off the man’s black armor as he moved.
“What exactly is that he is wearing?” Shade asked quietly. He had wondered about the armor since the first time he had seen it. He had never seen anything like it, not even in the Arcanetech classes at the Academy.
“Shadowsteel,” Lex answered in a hushed voice, his eyes on Vaze. “He is the last of the Lords of Shadow, though he is a bastard of the line. I think that is the only set of Shadowsteel armor left on Sanctuary,” Turning to Shade he motioned toward their commander. “Have you seen him fight yet?”
Shade shook his head slowly. “Charm said I should watch him. Though I must say I’ve been to the Spring Games enough to believe one sword slinger is the same as the next.”
Lex snorted in amusement and shook his head. “Not true,” he said simply and turned back to watch Vaze as the man moved among them inspecting armor and weapons. He barely paused as he passed by the two of them, simply nodding approval at their gear.
“I’ve never even heard of the Lords of Shadow,” Shade admitted, once Vaze was well past them.
“You won’t either. They were omitted from the history books after they fell. No one talks about them. As far as I know they had no allies at all in Sanctuary,” Lex explained.
“Because they were absolute bastards,” Charm said conversationally as he dropped down from the wall to land beside the two of them. The rogue was dressed in mottled grey silk and even his blond hair was covered tonight.
“Goswin wasn’t too sweet either and they are still in the history books,” Shade pointed out.
Charm shook his head lightly and sighed. “It’s a prison, Shade. Everyone here is a bastard in one shape or form. There are no good guys in Sanctuary. The Veyetta were frightening enough though that even the Morcaillo steered clear of them.”
“Veyetta?” Shade asked, unsure if it was the house name or the races.
“House Veyetta. Our noble commander is Vaze Veyetta, though he doesn’t use the surname. He was born three days before his House fell. His mother died in childbirth and Lutheron stole him just before the city fell. So, by rights he is the last Lord of Shadows even though he is bastard born. Only a few Fionaveir actually know where he is from, though. He is wise enough to keep his origins secret. As I’m sure you will be doing in the future as well,” Charm explained.
“If everyone steered clear of them, how did they fall?” Shade asked.
“We will be going in secretly. The Justicars outnumber our full attack force four to one,” Vaze said loudly. Shade watched the man, wondering if he had overheard the conversation and had chosen that moment to speak to end it. “There will be four staging points. Our goal is to secure the inner city. Lutheron has ordered no quarter in this fight. If they raise sword or spell against you, kill them. They will not show us mercy, so we will show them none. Some of you have separate assignments. If you see one of your brothers or sisters depart silently do not draw attention to them. If you have not been given a special task, then your only duty is to fight. We leave in five minutes, be ready.” Vaze nodded to them as he finished speaking and moved away from his group to confer with the other strike leaders.
“I would be one of those ‘leaving silently’ individuals, so please ignore me once we arrive in the city,” Charm said with a smile to both of them.
Shade nodded quickly. his eyes on Vaze’s retreating back. “I guessed that. He is gone now, so answer my question. Who killed them off?” he asked quickly and motioned for Charm to speak.
Charm snorted in amusement and shook his head. “Such a child,” he said in amusement as he studied Shade’s impatient expression. “The Stormlord finished them off.”