The plan is simple. Upon my signal, the Trainmen abandon their posts, bottlenecking everyone in the upper cavern before the workday begins. The Warden will vacate his private quarters to investigate. The Haulers have been slowly smuggling tools from the lockers for weeks. They’ll distribute the picks and axes, ropes and cleats to the men. They’re not weapons, but in the hands of the willing they’ll be effective enough. Once The Warden is exposed, the gangs will overwhelm the guards, capture The Warden, and “persuade” him to pass ownership of the Wendigo to me. My father will have no choice but to meet me in person. I will challenge him to his face, and vengeance will be mine.
I finish my morning meditations, take a deep breath, and look at Faria, who’s even more gaunt than ever. “Today’s the day, Master,” I say. “Soon I’ll rule, and you’ll escape.”
“This is our last chance,” he adds quietly, staring blindly into the pale licks of flame.
I exit the hut and walk through the shantytown of the Wendigo to meet destiny. The ramshackle buildings that line the feces-ridden alleys will be a thing of the past. We’ll clean this place under my leadership and build proper domiciles. We’ll encourage true shops to open and offer incentive to work, rather than the end of the whip. We’ll claim our independence from the College of Electors. Faria will take a ship off-world and find his treasure. All will be well. It’s a beautiful delusion.
“Edmon!” Korban runs to meet me.
“Why aren’t you with the other Haulers?” I ask.
“The Warden and his men were already in the streets before the morning bell!”
They know.
“Have the weapons been distributed?” I ask.
“There was no time,” he pants. “The Trainmen have been apprehended. Carrick’s running interference with the Pickers, trying to delay The Warden as long as he can, but they’re all looking for you. What do we do?”
The plan has been smashed, and there aren’t many places to hide. Who betrayed me?
“The plan will proceed, but not today. If I’m taken to the Citadel or killed, the gangs must stay together. That’s the only way. Do you understand?” I say vehemently.
“Without you, there’s no truce. No one’s strong enough to maintain your position.”
“Faria will do it.” I try to keep calm, but there’s an edge in my voice.
“The old man?” Korban asks.
“He’s stronger than you know,” I fire back. “There’s no time to debate.” I turn back to the igloo.
“Where are you going?” Korban hisses.
“To get the healer,” I respond.
“That’s the first place they’ll look. You’ll never make it.”
I wave him off and stride forward. I gather energy in my belly. They’ll have stationed guards. I’ve kept my true abilities secret from The Warden. That will give me a temporary advantage. They won’t be prepared for what I can do, and I’ve been itching to let loose.
I open my senses. Heartbeats. Three of them. The Warden has underestimated me. I’m going to look forward to this. I smell something, too. Gas? They’re lacing the area with an irritant. I suck in my breath. I may not be able to completely protect my eyes and mucosal membranes, but I’ve fought without seeing before.
I round the corner and am hit with the toxic miasma. I move with the swiftness of a shark and am on the guards before they see me. The first throws a punch wildly. I hear it and duck. I slam a short fist into his gut. He collapses like a puppet whose strings have been cut. My fingers lash out and tap the back of his neck as he falls. He’ll be paralyzed for the next hour.
I feel the next guard’s hand grab my arm. I break it. A subtle movement of my hips and I toss the man to the ground. A quick tap to his neck and his body goes limp, too.
The third pulls his humbaton from a holster and fires. Damn. The sound will alert others, which means I’ve lost time. My foot connects with the side of his knee, destroying the joint. He falls into my hands, which close around his neck in a simple choke. He passes out. All remain alive but down for the count.
I hurry into the hut. “Master, they knew. We must go quickly.” I hurry to Faria’s side. I can hear the crackling of his joints as I help him off the ground.
“Boy,” the old man croaks. “It’s too late.”
“We can still make it,” I insist.
“Fool!” the dark-skinned man barks as we exit the hut.
I drag him with me through the haze, but when my eyes see again, they’re confronted by the truth. The Warden stands at the head of over a hundred men wearing the colors of midnight and silver—Leontes guards. The gang foremen of the Haulers, Pickers, Smelters, and Welders are on their knees in front of him. Alberich steps from behind The Warden’s bloated body.
“Alberich?” I can’t hide my astonishment.
The seneschal appraises me as he addresses me. “Edgaard is dead.”
I’ve horribly miscalculated. I should have known the Combat was coming.
“Who?” I ask. My thoughts are for the little boy with the square face and warm blue eyes.
“Sigurd of House Flanders in the aristeia,” Alberich replies gravely. The aristeia, the final duel between the last two contestants. “It’s time to come home.”
I’m a child again, too frightened to move. However, I find my tongue. “Drown in the depths,” I respond.
Alberich nods. “Take him.” House Leontes’s men step forward to bind me.
“No!” My shout erupts like volcano fire, and everything explodes in chaos around me. The entirety of the Wendigo turns on its head in riotous calamity. I’m the eye of the storm, first here then there, throwing fists in every direction. I’ll not be taken ever again. I’d rather die.
My boot slams a Leontes guard’s helmet, smashing his face to pudding. I feel the sting of a humbaton pulse rip my shoulder, and I drop. I snag a pickax I find on the frozen earth and hurl it in the direction of the shooter. End over end, it whirls until the point thunks into the neck of Greelo. His blood sprays like a fountain as he collapses in the snow.
I punch, I kick, I claw, and I bite. A horde piles on top of me. I can’t breathe. I can’t see. I don’t need to see to fight. One guard goes down, then another, but there are too many. I’m buried under a hill of people. Something sharp strikes the back of my skull. All goes black for a moment. That second is all they need to subdue me. My hands and feet are bound.
“Stand back from him now!” Alberich screams.
Something is jabbed into my arm. An urchin needle? My body goes numb. I can see and hear, but I cannot move. Memories of my marriage to Miranda Wusong flash through my head. I look inward to try and counteract the poison, but it works through my system like wildfire. The battle is already over.