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Vaelin ran on, cutting down any Volarian who contrived to block his path The sword flashed with all the effortless, terrible grace he had thought lost, parrying and killing as he moved without conscious decision Perhaps it was never the song, he thought gri behind hi to be a killer
He saw Al Hestian ahead, still crouched over Alucius, a group of Volarians rushing towards hi thrummed past Vaelin’s ear and the lead Volarian fell dead with an arrow protruding fro and loosing arrows from her finely carved boith a speed and precision he kneould nevertwo more Free Swords fall to Reva’s arrows Another cah to hack down at the for his blade to block the blow, ha his short sword back for a riposte, then snapped his head back and collapsed as one of Reva’s arrows found his eye
“Alucius!” Vaelin shoved Al Hestian aside and crouched next to the poet, his eyes tracking over the terrible wound in his chest to his face, the features bleached white, eyes half-closed Reva crouched at his side, touching a hand to Alucius’s face, sighing in sorrow
“Drunken sot,” she aze out to sea “He’s on the third ship with the other Gifted”
“Vaelin,” she said, reaching out to grasp his araze from Alucius’s body as the Seordah swept past theh the hastily asse their line apart So with their short swords at the too-swift, silent phanto only air as they fell by the dozen Others fled, sprinting away through the ruins or throwing the rather than face such an onslaught Here and there Kuritai could be seen,to strike a blow or two before they were clubbed down Beyond the slaughter Vaelin could see a dense forround near the warehouse district, neat ranks of Varitai falling into place with their uncanny precision
“They’ll fall back to the palace”
Vaelin turned to find Lakrhil Al Hestian regarding him with a vacant frown, his voice dull, listless “There are fire-traps surrounding it They could hold out for days”
He looked down at Alucius once er still clutched in the poet’s hand, and raised it towards his own throat Vaelin’s punch jabbed into the nerve cluster below Al Hestian’s nose, leaving him unconscious on the stones
“Muster your archers on the quay,” he told Reva, nodding towards the dense ranks of Varitai, now atte withdrawal into the city, the Seordah continually harrying them with volleys of arrows from their flat bows Despite their retreat he knew this was far froh the ruins, battalions for in the northern quarter with more to the west He saw Nortah a short distance away, hters amidst the remnants of a Free Sword company, sword bloody froate!” he called to hi up I’ll send the Realm Guard to join you when they dock”
Nortah nodded, then drew up short at the sight of so his reddened blade “Perhaps that won’t be necessary, brother”
Vaelin heard thereat, cacophonous clatter of steel on stone Clearly the Volarian commander heard it too as he attempted to switch cohts tore into the Volarian ranks, longswords and h the Varitai, cutting the fored in to coled blood, breath, and steae The Varitai, unlike the Free Swords, didn’t kno to flee and fought to the last
Vaelin ordered Nortah to join up with Reva’s archers and sweep towards the palace “There’s still half a division to kill,” he told them “Take no chances, keep them divided and let the archers do their work”
He waited for the Realiuely reuards on thisto Al Hestian’s unconscious for he would have to be the one to tell Alornis and feeling like a coward for hating the duty “And secure this man’s body,” he said “The queen ish to say words e give hih the scene of the Varitai’s defeat, a dense carpet of bodies breasting the wharf froer trotted up to hi bones under hoof He pushed back the red-painted visor covering his face, greeting Vaelin with a forced laugh “Quite the spectacle, eh, my lord?”
“Baron” Vaelin bowed “I had hoped it would be you”