“What am I doing here? What are you doing here? Wait, where exactly is here?” Vi glanced around, disoriented.
“Nevermind what you’re doing here,” Leigh snapped, “what am I doing here? Where’s Drang?”
“Mother?” Leibrev stood up.
The young man had been sitting against the wall, behind the spot where Leigh had materialized. The White Sorceress turned with a delighted shriek and flew into his arms.
“My baby!”
“Mother! Stop it,” Leibrev snapped. His face colored slightly. “You’re embarrassing me in front of the other gladiators.”
“How can you say that? To me! Your moth— Gladiators?” Leigh looked around her.
The tatterdemalion group had found themselves in a low, dark room. Metal was everywhere, all lacquered white and black. Human and goblins, orcs, bugbears and all manner of strange ches-men figures looked on with interest. Several of them were drooling openly and behaving in all manner of inappropriate ways. In a rare moment of modesty, the White Sorceress went red and fell silent.
No one spoke. The heavy panting increased in volume and tempo. It was Leibrev that broke the awkward silence.
“Come on, guys, that’s my mom!”
***
The sudden translocation across three separate boards disturbed the Grandmaster’s strategem. The unexpected move left several units badly out of position and concentrated enemy forces. He roared and smashed his fist down on an unoffending knight. Some levels away, a poker game was suddenly deprived of its fifth, as the knight in question was swatted out of consciousness.
It did not improve his mood.
“They cheated!” He roared, outraged.
Growling deep within his chest, he leaned over the board and attempted to salvage the situation as best he could. The game had quite unexpected ended up on something far too akin to even footing for his tastes.
“It’s not fair.”
Even to his own ears, his voice sounded petulant.
***
“Leigh? Leigh!” Drang bellowed and came charging through a gaggle of particoloured kobold spearmen, trailing Glag around his neck like a scarf. The gladiators scattered before him like so many, well, like so many ches-pieces.
“Oh thank the Lord of Light,” Leigh took refuge near Drang immediately. “Keep this riff raff away from me.”
Valeral and Leibrev stood with Gavriel and Vi, calmly talking about how they had ended up in this predicament.
However, before accounts could be settled to satisfaction on either side, a gong rang and Valeral faded from view.
Vi’s sword was out in an instant. A split second later, dozens, if not hundreds, of weapons bristled in reply. The swordswoman froze. Gavriel cleared his throat.
“Ah, I don’t suppose anyone could tell us where he went?”
“He’s in the ring,” Leibrev answered, gesturing towards a crustal sphere set in the ceiling. A miniature Valeral had appeared therein. “He’ll be back as soon as he wins.”
“What if he doesn’t?” Leigh asked.
“He will,” Vi and Leibrev answered simultaneously.
“Yes,” Gavriel said slowly. He looked askance at Leigh and Drang. One long finger tapped thoughtfully at his chin.
“Leibrev, have Leigh and Drang been with you this whole time?”
“What? No.” Leibrev blinked. “They showed up when you did.”
“Yes, Gavriel darling,” Leigh slid up to him, purring, “you really must tell us how you managed that little trick. It was nice work, but I didn’t think you went in for that sort of lightshow. Is there something you aren’t telling me?”
“Oh, it wasn’t me,” Gavriel said lightly, “it was Vi.”
“Vi?” Leigh shot an incredulous glance towards the swordswoman. “You must be joking.”
Vi glowered at the sorceress.
“Oh, it’s no joke.” Gavriel flicked a glance to the supremely confused Drang. “Although I’m surprised you and Drang got caught up in it.”
“Well, obviously we did. Now, why do you suppose that happened?”
“Well, we were brought here along Vi’s familial connection to Valeral. That’s why we all arrived arm in arm. I can only presume that you got caught up in the wave because of your, ah, familiar connection to Leibrev. But you arrived alone, didn’t you?”
“I fail to see what that has to do with anything,” Leigh snapped.
“Congratulations,” Gavriel turned to the clueless barbarian, “Drang, I had no idea you were a father.”
Silence. Vi shot Gavriel a wide-eyed look. A maliciously delighted smile crept across her face.
“Say what?” Drang blinked.
The White Sorceress had gone as pale as her moniker. Leibrev just looked stunned. Gavriel crossed his arms and stepped back. The gladiators nearby were all watching with avid interest. Vi sheathed her sword and stepped onto the verbal battlefield.
“Leigh, Drang, congratulations! I had no idea you were taking your son out on a family training run. You must be so proud!”
Vi leveled a congratulatory slap on the back at Drang. The barbarian actually stumbled. He seemed to regain his balance quickly enough, however, with his mental balance following just a bit behind his physical balance.
“Son?” Drang looked slowly from Leigh to Leibrev. His featured alternately hardened and softened.
“Dad?” Leibrev’s voice was, if anything, just as dumbfounded as Drang’s.
“Oh yes, I can see the resemblance now,” Gavriel murmured.
The shimmering sound of the gong made itself heard once more and Valeral faded into view.
“What did I miss?”
“Your friend Leibrev is having a little family reunion. Apparently Drang is his father. A little detail Leigh neglected to mention to either of them.” Vi smirked.
“What!?”
Valeral’s impression of a poleaxed steer was excellent, Gavriel noted. His body language, however was– The sorcerer’s eyes widened. So that was it. A slow smile stole across his lips. Oh, that was priceless. Vi was going to have a cat.
The swordswoman in question was watching Leigh and Drang scream at one another with great satisfaction.
“Some people just don’t know how to behave,” she gloated.
“Now, Vi,” Gavriel chided, “that’s not terribly polite. You should be more considerate. After all, this affects Valeral as well.”
The youth shot the sorcerer a narrow, darting glance. Vi turned to her partner, attention still half on the domestic drama in front of them.
“What? This has nothing to do with Valeral. Leibrev, sure, but Valeral–”
“Is Leibrev’s shieldmate, or hadn’t you figured that out yet?”
Vi’s jaw dropped. Valeral groaned and hid his face in his hand. Gavriel leveled a pointed look at Vi’s sword.
“I think your aim was not quite so precise as you assured us it would be. Looks like you pulled the whole family in again.”
“Family?” Vi’s head shot up. “Leigh? Me? Drang?”
Gavriel’s smile widened. Some days, it was just good to be alive.
***
Vi loosed a bloodcurdling warcry and swung her sword with extreme prejudice towards the hapless ches-man before her. He just had time to gape and bulge his eyes at her before the white light claimed him. Everyone that died faded away in that same, strange white light. Swordlady only knew why.
“You may advance.”
The voice echoed hollowly from within the black helm of the Black Knight who occupied the prime spectator’s box. He was the ruler of this level, so far as they could tell. His box was lower than such boxes usually were. Vi snorted. Yeah, like he was going to be worried about a gladiatorial uprising. He’d probably welcome it. She accepted the upgrade of victor and rose one rank before she too faded away. Unlike her opponent, however, she materialized back in the gladiatorial barracks or holding cells or whatever they were calling them.
“It went well, I take it?” Gavriel was buffing his nails on his robe.
“Well enough,” Vi grunted. “Slow and steady and all that claptrap.”
“It’ll speed up.”
“What makes you say that?”
“The higher you get, the fewer challenges of your rank. Battles take longer, but there are fewer of them.”
“You know all this how?”
Gavriel gestured languidly at the warriors surrounding them.
“I talk to people, Vi. It’s a skill you should cultivate.”
“And what else have they told you?”
“Well, for starters, there are only two ways out of here.”
“And those are?”
“The white light. That is, get beaten by an opponent and die–”
“Oh, that’s tremendously helpful.”
“Or advance all the way through the ranks and beat the Black Knight,” Gavriel continued as if Vi had not spoken.
“I like the sound of that,” Vi grinned.
“You would. In any case, you defeat the Black Knight, you can demand one boon, anything within his power. And on this level, he’s got more of it than anyone else.”
“So we could all get out of here, maybe even get a direct path to whomever is behind all of this.”
“At the bottom, I would have said, but yes.”
“You would,” Vi smirked.
“Grow up, Vi,” Gavriel colored.
“Make me.” The swordswoman snickered.
“It could be arranged.” Gavriel’s hands flickered with a dangerous black light.
The sound of the gong shimmered through once more and interrupted. Leigh’s shriek soon followed. Vi winced.
“I’m guessing that means Leibrev was called to fight.”
“Valeral as well,” Gavriel said, a note of concern creeping into his voice.
“Third circle fight!”
The subdued hubbub of the holding tanks suddenly vanished. All eyes turned upwards towards the spherical globe attached to the ceiling. Mists swirled within before parting to reveal Valeral and Leibrev.
“Swordlady be merciful,” Vi breathed. “They’re facing off against one another.”
“To the death,” the Black Knight’s voice rang with a crystalline timbre throughout the room. “The first to kill the other may advance two ranks and face me.”
There was a collective gasp from the assembled warriors. Conversations buzzed to life and whispers dashed from group to group carrying rumors. Somewhere off to one side, there was an explosion of white light.
“Did she manage to dent anything this time?”
“Nope.”
“We have to get up there and help them.”
“I’m working on it.”
“Well, work faster.”
Gavriel shot Vi a dark look.
“Not. Helping.”
Reflected in the crystal above, Valeral and Leibrev began their bout. Neither looked happy, but they advanced upon one another nonetheless, swords at the ready.
“Drang,” Leigh wailed, “do something.”
“I’m trying,” the barbarian grunted in reply.
A meaty thud slapped off one wall and bounced back towards the assembled. Drang groaned. Leigh wailed again and rushed over to Vi.
“Vi, darling, what’s happening? Why are they fighting? You have to do something.”
“Leigh,” Vi attempted to remove the sorceress, who appeared to be clinging to her arm with all the tenacity of a drowning woman to a straw, “there’s nothing I can do without getting into that ring. And so far, none of us has managed to. They have to fight. If they don’t, they’ll both die.”
“There has to be something you can do! You brought us to them once, can’t you take us to them again?”
“I didn’t do it on my own,” Vi snapped. “I had help, and I don’t have that help anymore right now.”
“Well, get it. Get it back,” Leigh regained some measure of her old fire. “I demand you find it.”
The White Sorceress drew herself up haughtily. In the crystal above, the fight was intensifying. Bloodlust sparked a roar of approval as simultaneous first blood was drawn. The White Sorceress looked up and then collapsed into a heap.
“Did she just faint?”
“Yes.” Vi sighed and arranged Leigh into some semblance of dignity. At least she was safe from trampling feet or groping hands for the moment. All eyes were on the match above.
“Gav, you got anything yet?”
“Still working on it,” the sorcerer hummed nervously. “This place is sealed up tighter than–”
Another surge of sound cut him off. Vi looked quickly back towards the crystal. Damn. She had missed it. The swordswoman turned to a grizzled veteran. Maybe he’d be able to control his bloodlust long enough to tell her what she missed.
“What happened?”
“Eh?” The old warrior eyed her for a minute. Literally. He only had one eye. Whether it was natural or no, Vi did not inquire. It wasn’t polite. He shrugged.
“They tried to attack the Black Knight.”
“They what?”
“Oh, they hid it pretty good. Made it look like a couple near misses with boot daggers, but it was an attack on himself, sure as I’m standing here.” The old warrior spat. “Didn’t do no good, though. It’s against the rules, so they just bounced right off of some invisible wall in front of his box.”
Vi smiled. “I’m sorry I missed it.”
“Pay attention or you’ll miss more. Those two are up to something. I don’t know what, but they’ve been plotting it ever since they got here.”
***
The Grandmaster’s eyes narrowed. His Black Knight was exposed. There were too many hostile forces too well arrayed against him. The piece would have to be sacrificed. An acceptable loss, provided the Black Knight could remove a number of pieces before it met its demise.
Fingers moved across the board, tactical adjustments to make the best out of a less than ideal situation.
***
Gavriel’s hands stopped seeking a chink in the armour of this place. He glanced over to Vi. The swordswoman frowned in thought as she gazed up at the crystal.
“Are you sure?” she asked.
“Positive,” the old man asserted. “Asking lots of questions, whispering with one another. Those two have some sort of agenda. And it’s more than them just being shieldmates and all.”
There was a squeak, followed by another thud. Leigh, regaining consciousness, had just risen shakily to her feet. Just in time to hear the old man’s assessment of Leibrev’s relationship with Valeral. It seems she had still not quite come to terms with that little fact. She promptly collapsed into a dead faint once more. This time, no one bothered to buttress her modesty.
“How long were they here before we arrived?” Vi muttered with some incredulity.
Gavriel just smirked. Vi caught the action and turned towards him slowly. Her voice was low and just a bit too calm.
“How long have you known about this?”
“What,” Gavriel asked, “Valeral and Leibrev? Only a few minutes longer than you.”
“Then what, pray tell, is so amusing?”
“Oh, come off it, Vi. You’ve known Valeral’s past halfway to fey ever since you caught him prancing around in your second-best brass bra.”
“I just thought he wanted to be a swordsman!”
“He apparently still does,” Gavriel grinned.
“Not funny,” Vi hissed.
“You’re being ridiculous, Vi. Calm down. He’s old enough to make his own decisions.”
“He is not! He’s barely–.”
“Barely two years older than you were when you lost your virginity?”
“That has nothing to do with this,” Vi sputtered.
“It has everything to do with this. He’s past his majority. He’s old enough to call his lands his own.”
“I– That– You–” Vi was grasping at straws.
“If he’s old enough to live by the sword and die by the sword, he’s old enough to play at crossing blades with whomever he likes.”
“My sister is going to kill me.” Vi wilted.
“Ah. So that’s the issue. I should have suspected as much.” A surprised chuckle escaped his lips. “Oh my, she is going to kill you, isn’t she?”
“Only because she can’t gut you like a fish,” Vi growled. “Now shut up and get me up there before someone gets hurt.”
“Working on it.” Gavriel’s fingers glimmered darkly as he began seeking a point of egress. “Why don’t you try and rouse that sword of yours?”
“Working on it.” Vi winced and rubbed her forehead. “It’s like shouting in a hurricane. The silence in there is deafening.”
A strangled shriek from Leigh brought attention rocketing back around to the viewing crystal. Valeral and Leibrev were fighting furiously now. Their swords flashed in the too-white light and there were a few nods of approval and whistles of appreciation.
“Nice form,” one axeman commented.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Leigh bristled.
Vi’s attention was locked on the battle.
“He’s very good. They’re both very good.” She frowned. “When did he get that good?”
The swords flashed faster and faster. Each young man bled from several shallow wounds. In the background, Vi could just make out the frenzy of a bloodthirsty crowd. They were keyed to fever pitch.
It was over too quickly. Double-feint-riposte. Two swords slipped past two guards. Two blades slid home and two young faces went white. Two figures slumped to the ground, fading into white light just as they reached one another.
“No!” An anguished scream burst from Leigh’s mouth. Gavriel stood, stunned. Drang bellowed and threw himself once more against the wall, trying to batter through with sheer physical force. Vi just stared, and the world faded into endless white nothingness around her.
To Be Continued…
Comments on this entry are closed.