The Guardians (Book 2) (19 page)

Chapter 25

Attack

If it wasn’t for the strange haze creeping across the sky, the morning might have been described as perfect. It was warm and sunny, with a light breeze ruffling the leaves at the tops of the tyallas. At dawn, Kelian went onto the wall and walked the perimeter, looking as far as possible in each direction. He could see the ‘Swift’ waiting patiently for the last of the citizens of Castle to board. Even at the early hour, he could see families hurrying their children towards the docks with small bags of possessions. He had asked that each person take only basic needs, and he was pleased to see that no-one was carrying a great deal of gear onto the ship, though this wasn’t a surprise as many had lost most of their possessions in the Nailmarni attack. The majority of families had boarded the night before and slept on the ship, leaving only a small number to come aboard in the early hours of the morning. A large, cage-like construction was fastened to the deck of the ship. Inside family pets were eyeing each other warily. The blacksmith, who had been clever enough to foresee the need to create such an enclosure, had also had the intelligence to divide the cage into several sections to cater for different animals. He had even put a roof on the cage to provide shelter and to ensure the animals could not attempt to leave the ship, and fastened the structure to the deck to prevent it sliding if on heavy seas. Now a bunch of energetic cockatoos were squawking excitedly towards the cage of surprise looking bilbys, whose very postures and expressions showed their displeasure towards their travelling companions. Another compartment housed a number of lambs. Kelian watched for a few moments as several children climbed into the enclosure with the lambs, and then he lifted his gaze and stared out to sea, wondering at the strange darkening of the sky close to the horizon to the north east. There was nothing visible to explain the haze, so he descended the stone stairs and made his way back towards the keep. The cry came even as he crossed the courtyard.

‘
Nailmarni!’ a voice shouted from the watchtower. Kelian froze in dismay and swung around. ‘They’re coming fast!’ another voice cried out. ‘I can see them! Are they adjusted?’ someone shouted, sounding confused. Many other voices called out and then King’s Marshall Danil’s voice cut over the babble.

‘
Report!’ Twelve men dashed along the wall towards him. ‘South?’ he prompted the three men who had been positioned amongst the soldiers on the southern wall for this very purpose. ‘Numbers?’

‘
More than fifty, and all moving really fast. King’s Marshall, they’re not disappearing! We can see them!’

‘
How long until they arrive?’

‘
Minutes.’

‘
Weapons?’

‘
Swords, and some now have bows as well.’

‘
West?’

‘
Exactly the same as in the south but I think it’s not just the Nailmarni from the nest. I think all the ones who were forming the barrier around Castle are coming as well!’

Danil nodded grimly.
‘East?’

‘
Not so many as they are describing to the south and west, but more than enough for our soldiers to handle.’

‘
South?’

‘
Nothing. They haven’t got anyone on the water and there’s no-one between the wall and the ship – well, none of the Nailmarni. The last of the citizens are going aboard now.’

‘
Highness!’ Danil shouted as Kelian sprinted up the steps towards him. ‘We need to get your family onto the ‘Swift’ now!’ Kelian hesitated for a second then dashed back down the stairs.

‘
Tim, Araas!’ he shouted as he ran across the courtyard and seconds later the two guardians appeared at his side. ‘Get my parents onto the ship as quickly as you can.’ He stopped speaking as he saw arrows beginning to fly from the curtain walls, and he knew the Nailmarni were already within striking distance. ‘Don’t let father object!’ said Kelian firmly and Timbul and Araas ran back towards the eastern wall. ‘Drag him onto the ship if you have to!’ Kelian shouted after them and Araas waved his hand in acknowledgement.

‘
You need to go too,’ said Danil, appearing behind him.

‘
Where are Elena and Immosey?’ asked Kelian.

‘
They’re waiting for you at the north western tower.’

‘
Can we win this battle?’

‘
No Highness, we cannot. But we can slow them down enough to get you and your family away on the ship.’

‘
No. Not good enough. I want everyone to make it to the ship. What can we do?’

‘
We’ll leave only the fastest, skilled soldiers on the walls until everyone else is aboard, then they can make a run for the ship. Are you sure this is what you want?’

‘
Danil, this is just a place. I see no point in needlessly wasting lives if there’s no chance of victory or even survival. Where’s Callian?’

‘
There.’ Without turning, Danil gestured to the western wall and Kelian could see the big, dark guardian firing arrow after arrow from his position.

‘
Danil, I want the guardians and the free warriors on the boat as well,’ said Kelian.

‘
Understood.’ Danil turned and ran towards the eastern wall.

*  *  *

Kelian ran frantically through the castle towards the kitchen, his heart pounding from grief and panic as he tried to find Elena and Immosey. He dashed through the dining room and paused with relief when he saw the girls being taken by Dale and Enri into the kitchen towards the tunnel leading to the baker’s door.

‘
Where are the King and Queen?’ called Dale, frantically grabbing Kelian’s arm as the Prince ran to Elena and Immosey and hugged them. Kelian couldn’t answer. He shook his head and took several deep breaths, knowing that regardless of his grief and pain, he had no choice but to hold himself together, and to get the people who remained in the castle to safety.

‘
They didn’t make it,’ he choked, and Elena and Immosey cried out in horror and grief. ‘Why aren’t you on the ship? I thought you were ahead of me!’

‘
They came back looking for you,’ Dale explained. ‘Take the ladies to the baker’s door and wait there with the others,’ he instructed Enri, who immediately rushed the girls into the tunnel. Dale stopped moving. ‘I’m so sorry Kelian.’

‘
So am I,’ said Kelian softly, taking a deep breath to steady his voice. ‘I wonder how many actually made it to the ship.’ His voice broke and he frantically blinked back tears.

‘
As far as I can tell, Alex and Gillam got the last of the citizens aboard as the Nailmarni struck. Probably half the soldiers made it to the ship, but a lot went ashore to defend the King and Queen.’

‘
Where’s everyone else?’

‘
Everyone else has gone down the baker’s tunnel apart from Callian, Timbul, Araas, Danil and Milgorry. You should go, and I’ll wait here for them.’

‘
No, I won’t go without them,’ said Kelian, turning back towards the dining room.

‘
So are you intending to make their job easier or more difficult?’ said Dale crossly, blocking Kelian’s path. ‘As far as I am aware, Callian and Danil went back to make sure everyone is
out
. I doubt they’ll be impressed if they have to rescue you, since they probably already know you’ve made it safely to the kitchen.’

‘
Dale, they’re my friends. I have to go back.’

‘
No,’ said Dale stubbornly. ‘You can hang me or banish me or do whatever you like as soon as I have you safely away from this hell, but if you try to go back through that dining room door when the place is being overrun with Nailmarni, I will stop you Kelian. Any second now they’ll make it to the below levels and if you haven’t gone through the tunnel, you’re dead. We need you alive. Your people need you alive, now more than ever before.’ Dale stood in the doorway obstinately. Kelian’s face darkened as he glared at Dale. Dale decided he couldn’t wait any longer and he grabbed Kelian and pushed him towards the door leading into the tunnel. ‘Forgive me Kelian,’ he pleaded, ‘or at least survive long enough to punish me for shoving the Prince of Alkira. Danil!’ he shouted, knowing the King’s Marshall would hear his thoughts, even if he couldn’t hear his shout.

‘
We’re on our way, Dale,’
Danil’s thoughts came back reassuringly.
‘And don’t worry, I’ll pick him up and carry him out if he refuses to go. He can hang me beside you, Baron.’

Dale laughed and Kelian glared at him.
‘You will tell me what Danil said!’ he demanded.

‘
He said he would carry you out and you can hang us side by side,’ said Dale gleefully, and Kelian glared at him indignantly. Half a minute later, Callian and Danil sprinted into the room, with Timbul, Arras and Milgorry hard on their heels.

‘
Tim! Araas!’ Kelian exclaimed, his face lighting with hope for a second, wondering if there was any way his parents could have escaped from the Nailmarni.

Araas shook his head sadly.
‘They didn’t make it Kelian. We did everything we possibly could, but as soon as the King and Queen appeared they all descended on us like a pack of ngurakin. We tried to get them through the foray but it was like trying to dodge a hailstorm of arrows. In the end it was only our speed that saved us. I’m truly sorry.’ His voice was distorted by grief and personal failure. The faces of the two guardians were nothing short of tormented.

‘
We managed to get their bodies onto the ship, but they were not alive. At least the Nailmarni won’t be able to-’ He stopped speaking as Araas shook his head slightly. Timbul sighed. ‘I won’t give you false hope. I couldn’t sense them at all. They didn’t survive,’ he said sadly. Kelian swallowed hard, trying to breathe slowly to calm his racing heart.

‘Can we go, now?’ asked Dale anxiously.

‘
Yes!’ said Kelian decisively. ‘Now I’m ready to go.’

Dale and Kelian sprinted down the tunnel with the
guardians right behind them. They reached the end of the tunnel when Dale noticed that Callian wasn’t following. He stared back up the empty tunnel in dismay, then without a word he turned and ran back into the darkness.

‘
No!’ Danil’s shout came after him but he ignored him as he sped through the tunnel. In the inky darkness he caught his foot on a protrusion and crashed forward, cursing as his head struck the rocky wall. He lay stunned for a moment then gave a gasp of shock as someone dragged him to his feet.

‘
What are you doing, Dale?’ asked Callian incredulously.

‘
I was coming back for you,’ Dale mumbled.

‘
I was just closing the door leading into the tunnel from the kitchen,’ Callian explained. ‘Hopefully the Nailmarni won’t find the door; it’s really well disguised from both sides when it’s closed.’

‘
Ahh…my head!’ Dale clutched his skull and felt warm blood run through his fingers and down his face. ‘No! I can walk, I can walk!’ he protested as Callian indicated he would carry him on his back. He took two steps and staggered sideways into the wall. Callian caught him before he hit the ground and held his hand over the cut on Dale’s scalp. Dale was feeling significantly better by the time they reached the group of people waiting crammed into the end of the tunnel. Danil raised his hand and everyone stopped whispering and waited for him to speak.

‘
We need to get out of here as fast as we can. Highness, with your permission, I think we’ll make for the place where we hid with Rudi and his warriors.’ Kelian nodded. A pang of pain struck his heart as he remembered the first time he crawled into the rocky hiding place to find his mother and father alive. Now they were dead and he wondered if Rudiger and Eibhear would feel that all their effort had been wasted. He felt a wave of annoyance from Rudiger and he turned towards the warrior.

‘
I’m sorry Rudi,’ Kelian apologized and the warrior inclined his head in acknowledgement. ‘Continue Danil,’ he ordered.

‘
As far as I could tell, almost all of the Nailmarni are now within the curtain walls, mostly still on the killing field between the two walls, and between the outer wall and the harbor but they won’t stay there for long. The good news is that means we have a chance of getting out of Castle undetected. Maybe. Hopefully. With a lot of luck.’

‘
Wonderful,’ said Dale drily. ‘What’s the bad news?’

‘
Unfortunately, we have no supplies, no food, no blankets-’

‘
Danil,’ Dale interrupted, ‘l can get us some gear, but we’ll need to get down to the stables near the city gates.’

Kelian
eyed Dale suspiciously. ‘Have you been stealing the soldier’s packs, Dale?’

‘
Yes sir. I have. It turned out to be impossible to distract the soldiers guarding the provisions cellar, so I had to find a better way of getting some supplies…just in case.’