Zion: Light of the New Moon Part 3, The Imperial Palace Ch 5
Zion - Light of the New Moon, Part 3 The Imperial Palace Ch 5
Zeke was not at all pleased with the group's decision to separate. Despite his silent scowling and objections from one or two others, the majority of the party came to the conclusion that it would be wisest to split up; most of the group would push to the throne room while the rest sought out any cultist patrols in the palace hallways.
The fox realized he couldn't fault the group's strategists for coming to the conclusion that separating was the wisest way to accomplish two tasks at once, but he still didn't like the idea of being part of the smaller of two groups. Yearl had tasked the stealthiest members of the group to track down roaming cultists and 'neutralize' them before they became a problem.
"Neutralize." Dillan noted aside to Narissa, discussing that very last point, "As if it were as easy as adding a few extra sprinkles of chalk to a flask of acid."
"Maybe he's suggesting we convert them to the way of the Half Moon." the tigress proposed, the faintest hint of a smirk on her muzzle, "You can't be much more neutral than a balance priest."
"You've never been to Myre." Haldyn argued flatly.
"It was a joke." Narissa countered.
"Less joking." Kell stated from the front of the group, "More being quiet." and, as if to accentuate the point, the cowled leopard-wolf flattened his back against the wall of the passage just in time for Zeke to make out the sound of a conversation slowly making its way toward the party along the connecting hallway. Kell perked his ears and Zeke couldn't help but do likewise. In unison they listened and, just as the fox came to the conclusion that there were three, the leopard-wolf held up four digits.
Haldyn took control immediately. Zeke watched wordlessly as the lion motioned at each person individually and offered a set of orders with nothing but gestures. The fox had no idea how the lordling managed to clearly identify everyone's part in the task and yet, when it came time for the lion to look the fox in the eye, Zeke had no doubt what his orders were; several paw gestures indicated that he was to watch for runners and put an end to them before they could shout out a warning. Despite his reservations about combat Zeke knew with confidence it was something he could do. It turned out that he wasn't even needed.
Moving to the front of the group, Haldyn and Jasper rounded the corner right before the cultist patrol did and started off with a noiseless strike. Haldyn led with his sword first, driving it into the throat of one of the first guards while Jasper slipped into the open a split second later, taking advantage of the 2nd guard's surprise to bury three short blades into his abdomen. Before the third and fourth guard had a chance to act Narissa and Dillan emerged; the ferret loosed an arrow while the tigress shot a dart out of her flute as if it were a blowgun.
The whole of the party pooled out into the hallway but the skirmish had already come to an end. Kell moved to the two guards who had taken arrow or dart and slid his punching daggers into them to make certain they were truly dead. Dillan quickly took charge in stashing the bodies; it was almost frightening at how skillfully the ferret found a way to get them out of sight so quickly, but it turned out to the party's advantage as another small patrol appeared just as the group was finishing its task. Unfortunately that meant that there wasn't a chance to prepare an ambush.
"Don't let them escape." Haldyn spoke quickly to Zeke, rushing forward toward their front line even as Dillan and Narissa readied their volley of missile weapons. The fox, pausing no longer than a moment to think, quickly slid back down the hallway from which the group came. He heard an almost-taunting comment from Dillan suggesting that he was fleeing again... but that wasn't the case. Turning a side-hall, Zeke ran parallel to the passage where combat was taking place and quickly slid into position behind the cultists.
From his ready position Zeke wasn't able to clearly see the combat but he was able to follow its ebb and flow, tacking its tempo to determine that the party was doing well. The fact that no cultist had a chance to call for help meant that Haldyn and the other combatants pressed them hard. He didn't know if the party would let any of them get away, but he was ready... and it turned out to be fortunate that he was. Just as the sounds of battle began to die down, Zeke heard the unmistakable metallic beat of someone running in armor toward him.
"Ware the moon!" came a shout just as a young human rounded the corner. "Ware the moon!" the cultist cried again. So focused was the human on pursuit that he didn't really notice Zeke until the fox was upon him. The man had several cuts and a dart stuck out from the metal covering his shoulder but none of the wounds were fatal until Zeke added his blade to the man's chest. Slowly drawing the weapon out of the human's flesh, Zeke took a step back, letting the quivering cultist fall to the floor, helplessly trying to retain what blood he could, unable to take breath around the red froth that rose from his lips and dribbled out of the sword wound. Zeke looked away, unable to watch.
"Well done, Zeke." Jasper noted, the first to come into view. The rat, who was favoring his left leg and had one paw covering an open wound in his abdomen barely paused as he approached, "I knew you wouldn't let us down." Jasper offered an encouraging smile to him, then paused, astute enough to see the fox's expression, "Join up." he said in a less lively tone, "I'll take care of him." he motioned to the body. Zeke was only too happy to oblige.
The fox, unharmed and unfatigued, moved into the carnage that took up most of the hallway. Though he had missed the battle it was entirely impossible to not see the results. Although nobody in the party appeared to be wounded greatly there were several significant injuries; Haldyn appeared to have taken two nasty blows, and Kell, who had already been wounded, had sustained a nasty-looking gash on one arm which he held close to his body... but that was nothing compared to the casualties taken by their foes. By Zeke's count it appeared that there were eight slain cultists, and the human he himself killed in the adjoining hall.
"Including the four from earlier it looks like we have a full baker's dozen." Dillan noted, appearing quite pleased with himself as he made the same assessment as the fox had.
"We're not going to be able to hide this." Narissa commented, obviously less enthusiastic about the kill count.
Haldyn leaned down to wipe his blade off on the tabard of one of the fallen cultists, "Don't have to... we just need to keep moving." he tore a long strip off of another cultist's tunic and began bandaging his wounds, "They already know we're in the palace... we just have to keep them sweeping the halls and redirect their manpower from the throne room."
"So... we're bait." Jasper stated, emerging from the side hall.
"You look better." Dillan noted simply to the rat, "Are you holding out some healing magic on us?"
"The Goddess provides for the faithful." Zeke spoke up, unable to miss the distinctive 'feel' of residual Sickle Moon prayer.
"If that's true then everyone'd be rich..." the ferret retorted, "...fat and rich."
"Not everyone who prays is all that faithful..." Jasper noted, tapping him on the shoulder with his tail as he walked around the other side. Dillan glanced in the direction of the tap, allowing the rat to pass by him unseen.
"If we don't get moving soon, the same can be said that not everyone dead was unfaithful." Haldyn chimed in. He inclined his head toward a side-passage, "Come on... we don't have to kill them all..." and he added with a grin," ...just yet."
The group gathered up and began to move quickly after the lion. Haldyn led the party down one hallway and up a staircase. Zeke followed along toward the rear of the group, speeding up his gait just as Jasper slowed down to let him catch up, "And they say the Wild Lands are dangerous..." the rat offered the fox a flashy, needle-toothed grin.
"When I'm in the Wild-Lands I don't go poking serpents and throwing knives at orgs." Zeke offered sagely.
"I can't fault you there." Jasper gave him a wink, "I suppose if we didn't go seeking out cultists to kill it might almost be relaxing finding a nice little corner of the city to call home."
"We have to live through this first." the fox reminded him.
"Oh please," Jasper dismissed him with an eye-roll, "Surviving is something I do very well, and don't tell me you don't still have a few tricks up your sleeves."
Zeke's paw went reflexively to his necklace, "Maybe... but I'm not into pressing my luck."
"Luck is just like any muscle in your body... you have to give it a work out now and again or it'll start to grow useless." the rat offered sagely.
Zeke halted himself on the stairway the moment Haldyn opened the door at the top to an enormous, many-voiced cry of "BRING THE SUN!" He looked calmly to Jasper as he drew his blade, "There's a difference between a work-out and a marathon." and the two rushed forth to join the battle.
* * * * * *
The path to the throne room was surprisingly unguarded. Yearl kept the party moving forward quickly with as little deviation to their goal as possible. Between limiting the active patrols and providing a distraction for any remaining cultists, Yearl hoped that the other group would provide them a faster, more direct route to the throne room with as little combat as possible. Thera had said she needed to get to the throne and he was intent on making that happen.
"He'll be alright." the mouse said softly, moving resolutely beside the lion and she slid her paw into his. Yearl cast her a questioning glance, though he knew who she spoke of before she said the name, "Haldyn."
"I'm proud of him." the lion stated, not refuting nor confirming her comforting thought, "He'll do his best."
"And you'll see him again." she did not relent.
"We need to stay focused on the throne room." he sidestepped the discussion.
A moment later he was aided by Josh's curiosity, "Why do we need to get to the throne so bad?" he asked from his position astride Sebastian.
The gryphon offered a beaky grin as he raised his eyes as if to look back over his shoulder at the cub, "Because there isn't enough of me to go around and she wants to sit somewhere."
"The throne of Zion must be claimed by the blood of Tah'aveen if Her favor is to be granted to her Children." Artemisia spoke up, her voice almost monotone as she said the divine rule by rote; the sound of it sent a chill up Yearl's spine.
"If this is divine decree then the cultists have to know this too..." Tolen spoke quietly when the rest of the group halted at the dragoness' recitation. "They'll try to stop us from retaking the throne room."
Yearl did not miss the mischievous glint that shone in Palo's eye, "Have you ever heard of misdirection, my finely fair-furred fox?"
"Misdirection?" Tolen inquired, ears up, and slightly red from embarrassment on the inside.
"The torches..." Yearl spoke up, not having realized it until Palo's mention of subtle mechinations, "Are YOU lowering the flames in the hall?"
The red fox chuckled heartily, "Sun Cultist or Devout Child of the Moon, it is against all nature to choose a more dimly lit passage than a well-lit one... funny to think how being more obviously aglow usually suggests that something is more important."
Thera hrumphed, "You're not saying that something as stupid as how well lit the torches are is why we're not fighting cultists."
"Ah, but your Highness, I am SAYING no such thing...", he dipped the brim of his hat in her direction, "but I DO infer to my heart's content."
"If that really worked then we wouldn't be taking these passages either." Josh offered, "...would we?"
"Our Empress knows the way to the throne room, lad." Palo responded, taking his hat off and setting it on the cub's head, "Why should a little more or less light deter her?"
The young lion laughed at that, adjusting the too-big hat on his head, "So it really DOES work?"
"I will leave that up to you to decide." Palo answered with a grin, "By the end of tonight I wager I'll have many of you speak on personal testimony."
"We're one hall from the Throne Room." Thera offered, "If our good luck holds true, I suppose you'll have us believing, fox."
"Stop." Yearl noted before anyone could take the turn the mouse indicated, "Good luck, misdirection, chicanery, or whatever you want to call it--"
"Oh.. 'chicanery'... I'll have to remember that one." Palo interjected, stroking his muzzle.
"Whatever you want to call it," Yearl repeated, "The sun worshipers won't be stupid-- they're bound to have guards at the throne room door."
"There are four." Tolen spoke up, his eyes glowing a soft blue, as did a small metal plate in his grasp.
"Divination..." Josh noted with admiration, "Neat!"
"Then we'll kill them." Artemisia answered simply; her talons popped as she tightly gripped the pommel of her great sword.
"If we make any amount of noise it will cause a problem... any inside the throne room will be ready for us." the lion stated.
"I might be able to stun them." Tolen offered, and all eyes went to the arctic fox. He cleared his throat, "Four isn't THAT many..."
"Is your Divination skill that strong?" Thera asked.
"I... haven't tried before." the fox answered uncertainly.
"I've always favored a good bit of mind control." Palo grinned, but the smile quickly slipped from his face, "except waking up the following morning in a dungeon... truly undesirable."
"Shush." Yearl scowled, then looked to Tolen, "What can you do?"
The fox shrugged, "I... might be able to stun them for a moment." he proposed.
Yearl nodded, "Do that." and he looked then to Palo and Josh, "Regardless of what happens with the magic, we need you both to hit them with magic too... quiet magic."
"I can summon fir--" Josh began, but was interrupted.
"No fire magic, cub." Palo grabbed his hat back from Josh's head, "Ice... shards of ice."
"I guess I can do that too." the young lion acknowledged, "Why can't I use fire? I like it more."
"You need diversity." the fox stated flatly, then glanced back to Yearl, "Alright... we can do this."
"Tolen..." the Captain continued, "Allin will need to finish anyone off the spells don't get."
"Do what he says, Allin." the arctic fox acknowledged.
The Tamaskan nodded, "As you wish, Master."
Yearl had no idea what to expect the moment he said "Now.", but, as it unfolded, he could not have been more pleased. Everyone's fur stood on end as Tolen's noiseless command thrummed through the air. Following a split second later, Palo stepped into the hallway and fire flared into being in his paws, running its way up either of his arms, and Sebastian gave a single flap-leap forward, allowing Josh to launch out a blast of icicles. Palo raised both his arms and unleashed an inferno, which met with the cub's ice and resulted in a hyper-heated blast of steam to cook all four guards at the far end of the hall... all with no more sound than a kettle taken off the heat.
"And you were worried." Artemisia stated flatly, stalking down the hallway toward the now-unguarded throne room door. "Four Sun Worshipers killed by--" and her words failed her as she paused, looking at the corpses.
Yearl moved up quickly to her side and stopped, staring at the tabards, "They're Myrhean." he breathed, the Sickle Moon sigil unmistakable.
"Something is very wrong." the dragoness decreed and she forcefully kicked in both doors. The throne room was almost completely uninhabited, save for two cowled figures, one standing on either side of the throne, and a single individual seated upon it. One figure was hunched forward, its features hidden save for the distinctive three-toed taloned feet of a bird, and the other figure stood tall and true, robe too long and to thick to provide any hints.
The occupant of the throne had his head down, obscuring Yearl's view of his face but the lion could tell that he held onto his seat with a death grip... as the party moved forward, however, the seated man started and looked up. Only then did Yearl realize that the dog did not occupy the throne by choice. The graying fur on the sight-hound's face was spotted with blood and his aged paws were not gripping the arm-rests as he had first thought; they had been nailed to the stone seat with metal spikes.
Artemisia stood frozen in place, "Tomal." the name fell from her tongue in utter horror.