The Rogue Knight (2 page)

The ragbeast wheeled toward Jace. Mira sprang out of hiding, flying through the air, Jumping Sword extended. Her blade struck the ragbeast's rider in the side, knocking him to the ground without piercing his armor. Mira tumbled to the nearby creek bed, her sword falling from her grasp.

The huge jungle cat streaked toward Mira. Pointing his sword at a spot ahead of the jungle cat, Cole shouted, “Away!”

The sword pulled Cole through the air on a low trajectory, skimming along just above the ravine's floor. As the big cat pounced at Mira, Cole, backed by the momentum of his flight, plunged his blade into the feline's ribs. The Jumping Sword had slowed just before reaching the target, but even so, Cole drove it deep, then collided with the furry, meaty side of the huge cat. Cole spun through the air and landed on the ground, painfully wrenching his shoulder and scraping his legs.

Twisting to nip at the sword in its side, the jungle cat hissed. Then an arrow hit the big cat in the neck.

“Flail, attack!” Mira called, pointing at the feline.

Accompanied by the crunch of smashed wood, the Shaper's Flail flew out of the wrecked autocoach. Composed of six heavy iron balls joined to a central ring by weighty chains, the flail whirred to the jungle cat, simultaneously pummeling it and wrapping it up. With two legs pinned, the huge feline ended up on its back, hissing and struggling.

The armored rider Mira had unseated was now on his feet clutching a double-bit battle-ax. He clomped toward Cole, weapon raised high. Curling his legs, Cole prepared to lunge away from the downswing of the heavy weapon.

Before he could move, a golden rope lashed the rider's ankles together, jerked him upward, and flung him against a boulder across the ravine. The gigantic jungle cat went still as arrows accumulated.

Jace whipped the ragbeast a couple of times, but the golden rope passed through it without grabbing hold of anything. The attack seemed to spur the tattered mass of fabric into action. After whirling in place for a moment, the ragbeast swished by Cole, doing no more damage than a thrown pile of laundry.

Cole went and retrieved his sword from the big cat, jiggling it to wrench it free. He wiped the blade against the animal's fur.

At the top of the ravine, near the bridge, a horse gave a loud whinny. Cole glanced up in time to see the steed rearing. A rider slid off before both silhouettes moved out of sight.

Wings fluttering, Twitch landed beside Mira. He crouched and helped her to her feet. The ragbeast glided swiftly upstream alongside the trickle of water.

Joe ran over to them, holding an arrow ready against the bowstring. “Mira, get that rider.” His bow pointed toward the top of the ravine.

“Flail, attack,” Mira ordered. The tangle of balls and chains disengaged from the fallen cat and zoomed up the slope of the ravine. At the top, it paused.

“Flail, attack,” Mira repeated, gesturing in the direction the stranger had gone.

The flail hovered benignly.

“I'm trying to picture the rider,” Mira said. “He moved out of sight before I really saw him. I think I have to see the target. Should I go up the slope?”

“No,” Joe said quietly. “It isn't worth the risk. Can't you command the flail to strike whatever is within range up there?”

“It isn't an attack dog,” Mira said. “I have to direct it.”

Joe nodded. “I hit the rider's horse with an arrow. I'm not sure how much damage it did. We can't let him escape. He could round up reinforcements. I should go after him.”

“How'd they make the autocoach run wild?” Twitch asked.

“They must have reshaped it somehow,” Jace said.

“But Declan made the coach,” Mira murmured. “It would take quite a shaper to hijack a Grand Shaper's work.”

“Might have been shapecraft,” Cole said. “If shapecrafters can mess with the shaping power itself, who knows what else they can do?”

“They organized Mira's power into Carnag,” Twitch said. “Why couldn't they tamper with a semblance?”

“Whatever their skills, those were no ordinary soldiers,” Joe said. “You just met some Enforcers. And one of them is getting away. I can't let that happen. He probably won't go to the legion or any regular authorities, but there may be others of his kind in the area.”

“We're splitting up?” Jace asked.

“For now, yes,” Joe said.

“We follow the road?” Twitch checked.

“It will take you to Carthage, on the border between Sambria and Elloweer,” Joe confirmed. “Honor's star has held steady in that direction. If danger forces you to abandon the road, Mira knows how to follow the star.”

Cole glanced at Mira, who had turned her gaze to the sky. To help guard the precious secret that Mira's mother could mark the location of her five daughters, only Mira and Joe knew what Honor's star looked like. If that information ever leaked to the High Shaper, the girls would be doomed.

“Am I just flustered?” Mira asked. “I don't see it.”

Joe looked skyward in the same direction she was peering. “Oh, no,” he muttered after a tense pause. “You're right. The star is gone.”

C
HAPTER

 2 

STARLESS

“W
hat does that mean?” Mira cried.

Cole felt horrible for her. That star was her one connection to her endangered sister. Mira's panicked eyes studied the section of sky where the star should be.

“Could mean lots of things,” Joe said, his voice deliberately calm. “Might mean your mom was worried about enemies using the star. Might mean your sister has been rescued.”

“What if it means she's . . . ?” Mira whispered, covering her mouth.

“I'm sure that isn't it,” Joe said. “We can't let this sink us. I have to track down whoever is slipping away. You go to Carthage. There's a fountain with seven spouts on the Elloweer side. If I don't catch up to you on the road, look for me there every day at noon. Lay low. If I'm more than three days behind you, I'll be either dead or captured.” Joe glanced at Cole, Jace, and Twitch. “Watch over her.”

Joe turned and dashed up the hill.

Mira continued to stare at the patch of sky. Following her gaze, Cole saw many stars. But he knew the one she yearned to see was not among them.

“Don't linger,” Joe called down to them as he charged up the slope. “There's no telling who else might be headed this way.”

“He's right,” Twitch said.

“What about our stuff?” Jace asked, dipping his head toward the crippled autocoach. “At least the money!”

“Good thought,” Cole said.

“You two grab what you need,” Twitch said. “I'll get Mira out of sight. We'll wait for you up the road.”

“Fine, shoo,” Jace said, waving a hand. “You too, Cole, if you want.”

“I'll stay with you,” Cole told Jace, then glanced at Mira. “See you in a minute.”

Twitch took flight, and Mira used her Jumping Sword to leap halfway up the slope opposite the one Joe had climbed. “Flail, follow,” Mira called, and the weapon obeyed.

His shoulder smarting and his scraped legs sore, Cole crossed to the autocoach. No longer harnessed to the coach, the walking brick lay motionless on its side, two of its legs broken off at the thigh.

Cole and Jace reached the opening where the door had been and climbed inside. Bertram lay facedown, his body limp.

“Is he dead?” Jace asked.

Worried that Jace might be right, Cole crouched and shook the elderly coachman's shoulder. “Are you okay, Bertram?”

The old man stirred and raised his head. “I'm on holiday with my grandniece and my grandnephews.” He gave a small smile. “Nothing to worry about here.”

After climbing to reach the floor of the coach, Jace opened a hatch and several items fell. He jumped down and started rummaging. From outside, Cole heard the faint trickle of the stream.

“You didn't seem like yourself back there,” Cole said to Bertram. “You screamed.”

The old guy blinked. “I'm no longer a spring chicken. The young must forgive us older gents a little episode from time to time. I've been under the weather. I won't let it ruin our holiday.”

Jace dropped down. “We should go,” he said, backing out of the coach.

Cole held up a finger to tell him to wait. He tried to frame a question in terms that might enable Bertram to respond. “Our holiday is in trouble. The coach went wild and crashed. How will we get to Elloweer now? What happened?”

Bertram gave an uncomfortable chuckle. “The coach did what it had to do.”

“The coach takes orders from Mira,” Cole said. “It doesn't go fast. What happened?”

“It performed as required,” Bertram said. “So did I.”

“Who gave the order?” Cole asked. “Who changed the autocoach?”

Bertram looked unperturbed. “You youngsters may have to go ahead without me for now. The coach is in poor repair. Might do me some good to rest here for a time. This holiday has worn me out! Every uncle has his limits.”

“Come on,” Jace urged. “I grabbed the money and some food.”

“Bye, Bertram,” Cole said. “Thanks for the holiday.”

Bertram gave a nod. “You're a fine grandnephew.”

Cole stepped out of the autocoach.

“Are those tears?” Jace asked.

Cole wiped his eyes and glanced away. “No.”

“He isn't real,” Jace said. “He's a semblance. He was constructed.”

Cole sighed. “That almost makes it worse. He'll just sit there thinking he's supposed to be on vacation with us.”

“He's not thinking,” Jace said. “He just blabs the kind of stuff Declan taught him to say. Don't be sad for him. Just be sad we lost our ride. Let's go find Mira.”

“What about the guys you took out with your rope?” Cole asked. “Should we check if they're alive?”

“No chance,” Jace said. “They tried to kill us. I didn't hold back.”

“They had armor.”

“Armor won't protect you from falling off a cliff. I threw them hard. Joe wasn't worried about them.”

“Joe was in a hurry,” Cole pointed out.

Jace exhaled sharply. “Fine. You take that one.” He pointed toward the man closest to them. Jace's rope coiled like a spring, then uncoiled, launching him over to where the farthest of the two fallen riders had been thrown. The rope coiled ahead of him to soften his landing.

Cole trotted over to the other rider. The front of his helmet and breastplate were badly dented from the impact with the boulder. The figure didn't move. Cole knelt beside him and put his ear by the helmet, listening for breathing. He heard nothing.

“Die!” a voice said as hands grabbed Cole by the shoulders from behind.

Cole jumped and turned, startled enough to make Jace laugh.

“The other guy is no longer with us,” Jace said. “We're wasting time. Let's fly.”

His rope coiled again, and Jace shot up the slope. Cole pointed his sword, spoke the command, and whooshed upward.

No matter how many times Cole did it, jumping with the sword remained exhilarating, partly because he always felt a little out of control. Landing tended to be the trickiest part. Cole had learned that if he immediately took another sword-assisted jump instead of coming to a full stop, the impact was greatly reduced. So he strung together some jumps up the slope, over to the bridge, and along the road until he saw Twitch and Mira waving at him from up ahead.

Pointing his blade at a spot near his friends, Cole shouted the command again and flew through the air toward them. The sword slowed him at the last second, but not enough to prevent him from stumbling to his knees on the dirt road.

While bounding with the sword, Cole had passed Jace, who was using his rope to grab trees beside the road and slingshot himself forward. Jace caught up by the time Cole rose to his feet.

“You need to practice those landings,” Jace said.

“You need to work on your speed,” Cole shot back.

Jace gestured toward the side of the road. “What's that supposed to be?”

Cole turned to see a misshapen brown lump the height of his waist rocking back and forth on two uneven legs. Perhaps sensing the attention, the ungainly object hobbled toward them.

“Mira tried to shape something for us to ride to Carthage,” Twitch explained.

Jace exploded into laughter. “That? It looks like a walking mud ball.”

Cole tried not to laugh. The description was pretty accurate.

“I was rushed,” Mira said, flustered. “Making semblances is very hard. Even the best shapers take their time when simulating life.”

“So why try?” Jace asked.

Mira shrugged. “I saw what my power can do when we fought Carnag. Remember how big it was? How well it simulated me and my father? That power is inside of me now. I just have to learn to use it. I know I'm capable of big feats of shaping. I thought maybe if I harnessed my desperation, I could shape something useful.”

The mud ball toddled over to Jace, then bumped into his leg and tipped over. The undersized semblance started to sway gently and made a garbled, squishy sound.

“Is it trying to speak?” Jace asked. “You know, it looks a little like Twitch. Was he your model?”

“Stop it,” Mira said, swatting Jace on the shoulder. She staggered, and he caught hold of her.

“What's the matter?” Jace asked.

“The effort took a lot out of me,” Mira said. “I'll be all right.”

“You realize we have a long way to go,” Cole reminded her.

“I was trying to make it easier for all of us,” Mira said. They watched the misshapen little semblance as it tried to rock back into a standing position. Mira gave a little laugh. “It was supposed to be bigger.”

Her comment freed the others to laugh, and they did.

“Are you telling it to move?” Cole wondered.

“I designed it to follow us when we weren't riding it,” Mira explained. “I think it understands that part. It was supposed to have four legs. And it was supposed to obey instructions from me, but it seems mostly oblivious.”

“Can you shape it more?” Cole asked. “Improve it?”

Mira shook her head. “I'm wiped out.”

“Can you unshape it?” Jace inquired. “People might find it.”

“Probably, but it would drain me too much. I'm already going to have a hard time keeping up with you guys. I was stupid to try to make a semblance all at once. Carnag did it, so I thought maybe I could too. Projects like this are normally done step-by-step, a little at a time.”

The semblance stood up and waddled toward Cole. He backed away. It was kind of creepy.

“What's it made of?” Jace asked.

“Looks like dirt, but feels more like cork,” Mira said. “It's tougher than it feels, but again, not quite what I was after.”

Jace pushed the semblance over. Crouching, he ran his palms over it, rocking it gently. “You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up after I ditch this thing.”

“What are you going to do?” Cole asked.

“Stash it in the woods far from the road,” Jace said. “It isn't light, but with my rope I can handle it.”

“Isn't that kind of mean?” Cole asked.

Jace gave a frustrated sigh. “It's a walking hunk of cork, Cole! Mira made it out of rubble. It doesn't have feelings. But it might try to walk toward us, which would be a big favor to anybody who wants to track us down.”

“Okay,” Cole said. “Makes sense.”

“Get going,” Jace said. “People might be after us. We don't want to waste our head start.”

“Are you okay to travel?” Cole asked Mira.

She wiped a hand across her forehead. “I have to be. No other choice.” She glanced at the sky. “I just wish the star was still there.”

“It'll be all right,” Cole said, unsure about whether he believed his words but trying to help her feel better.

“You go first, Mira,” Twitch suggested. “We'll keep an eye on you from behind.”

Mira drew her Jumping Sword, aimed it down the road, and called, “Away.” The Shaper's Flail followed. Cole heard her repeat the command when she landed, leaping forward again. Wings fluttering, Twitch sprang after her. Cole held out his sword and jumped.