A Dance of Ghosts

CHAPTER 26

Tarlak sat with his elbows on his desk, hands holding up his head as he stared at the large map of Veldaren spread out before him. At one time, it’d been color-coded to show the estimated territory of the various guilds, but that was gone now. There was no point. From the castle at the north to the slums in the south, it all belonged to the Sun Guild. Instead, he’d placed little pins to mark the location of their tiles, though by the fiftieth, he’d stopped. As he stared at it with his head pounding and the morning sun rising, he wondered if that had been a mistake.

“Come in,” he said when he heard a knock on the door behind him, refusing to turn around. It was either Brug or a person come to kill him, and given his mood, Tarlak didn’t feel like spending the effort to address either one.

“Starting early, are we?” asked Brug, and he leaned over Tarlak’s shoulder at the map. “Gods, there’s a lot of them, aren’t there?”

“No kidding,” said Tarlak, slumping back in his chair. “I saw five more along the marketplace yesterday; didn’t even bother to put them on the map.”

“There’s another two on Iron Road,” Brug said. “Probably added them a day or so ago.”

Tarlak glanced over at the bearded man.

“You’re sure?” he asked.

Brug nodded, brow furrowed.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” he said. “Where do you think I get my metal to make all your little toys? I go there once a week, and trust me, they’re new.”

Back to the map Tarlak turned, and if he could have glared it into flames, he would have. Technically, he could have burned it with a snap of his fingers, but that’d have involved effort.

“We’re missing something,” he said. “Something obvious. Why would Muzien be adding in more of those tiles to the Sun Guild? The city’s his, and ever since that sickening display at the marketplace, everyone knows it, too. Who else is left to oppose him?”

Brug shrugged.

“The king, maybe? I think the Ash Guild’s holding on, too, but they’re more hiding than anything else. Victor’s not dead yet, either.”

“None of them are threats, not anymore,” Tarlak insisted. “Besides, you think a few more tiles will change that? There’s something to them, and I’m thinking it is time we go and find out.”

Brug gestured to his long red bedrobes.

“Now?” he asked.

“Now,” Tarlak said, rising from his chair.

“Haven’t even eaten breakfast yet,” Brug mumbled as he headed for the door to change.

“Suffer for your vocation,” Tarlak said, following him. “Besides, I pay you to obey my every whim, not eat.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Brug asked as they walked down the main road running from the western gates of the city to its center.

“You assume I have one?” Tarlak asked as he kept his eyes open for the tiles. “That’s just foolish.”

“Well, you’re a foolish guy,” Brug said. “Any chance we can get something to eat while we’re out here?”

“Not until we’re done.”

“But I don’t know what it is we’re doing.”

Tarlak raised an eyebrow his way.

“Well, then,” he said. “You’ll just have to trust me to tell you when we’re done.”

Even amid the constant rumble of chatter and those passing by, there was no hiding Brug’s groan. Not that Tarlak would argue with him. Even he wasn’t entirely sure what he was doing, just playing a hunch. The tiles were important, and more and more, he felt certain it wasn’t for serving as a way to mark territory. That left relatively few possibilities for them, and none of them were particularly good.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s get somewhere a little quieter and less likely to have a member of the Sun Guild notice our poking and prodding.”

They ventured south, past the various workshops, past the large granaries and warehouses, and into the poorer stretches of Veldaren. Tarlak felt eyes upon him, not that he minded. Of course he stood out. He was wearing bright yellow robes, after all. Even without them, his hair and goatee were neatly trimmed, his clothes clean, his skin pale and free of dirt. Under normal circumstances, he’d have a sign floating above his head screaming, “Rob me,” but Tarlak knew wizards carried enough mystique, no one would dare harass him. When first setting up his mercenary band, he’d reinforced the matter by turning a few troublesome ruffians into frogs and leaving them in their respective guild territory, their cloaks still tied to their little green bodies. Some men didn’t fear death, but life as a frog?

Well, everyone had their limits.

“Getting quiet,” Brug said. A few children played down one alley, and stray dogs barked farther up the street. All around were ramshackle homes with heavily locked doors.

“Good enough for me,” Tarlak said. “See one of Muzien’s tiles lying about?”

“By the corner,” Brug said, pointing.

It was at the intersection of a road, a single tile dug into the rough dirt adjacent to the last home on the block. Tarlak knelt before it, analyzing it. It looked like all the others, thick, heavy stone with the four-pointed star carved into its front. His fingers traced along the star, and he racked his mind for any magical symbols or meaning the star might have beyond the guild affiliation. There were none that he knew of, though he made a note to check on it when he returned to the tower. As particular as Muzien was, Tarlak had a feeling he’d stolen it from somewhere to use as his own.

“Receiving any magical revelations?” Brug asked, leaning against the home beside him with his arms crossed.

“Not yet,” Tarlak said. “But that’s next on the agenda.”

Closing his eyes, he put his palm flat on the tile and began murmuring the words to a spell. It was fairly simple, the very first one taught to any student that gained admittance to the Apprentices’ Tower governed by the Council of Mages. His eyes changed for a brief moment, accessing a vision spectrum known to very few. Any object that contained a spell or enchantment would shimmer and glow with a multitude of colors, revealing to him its intricate mechanics so he might dispel or activate the magic if necessary. The required incantations finished, he opened his eyes.

The tile was as dim as the dirt it was buried in.

“Huh,” said Tarlak, baffled.

“What is it?” Brug asked. “They enchanted?”

“I can’t decide if it’s good news or bad,” Tarlak said, standing. “I was sure they had some sort of arcane effect sneaked into them, but, well … nothing. Far as I can tell, they’re plain old regular stone.”

“Excellent,” Brug said. “We’ve learned what they’re not. I’m willing to call that a good day. Care if I run off to the market and grab me a caraway cake?”

“Sure, go ahead,” said Tarlak. “Teach me to try making you work on an empty stomach.”

“Work?” asked Brug. “You want me to work, how about this? I’ll start scouting out the northern district, tallying up these tiles, where and how many. May not know what it is they’re for, but at least we’ll know where they all are.”

Tarlak scratched at his red goatee, frowning down at the stone tile as if it’d insulted him.

“Sounds like a plan,” he said. “Go ahead. I’ll start here in the south. Make sure you check the symbol carved into them. You find any that are different in the slightest, I want to know about it.”

“Will do,” said Brug, who was already walking away with his back to him.

What am I missing? wondered Tarlak. And what game are you playing, Muzien?

He’d told Brug he’d work on the south, but his heart wasn’t in it yet. The four-pointed star surely had some history to it, and he’d feel more comfortable scouring his personal library for books than wandering around jotting down locations of those stupid tiles. That was more his territory, anyway. After all, what other reason had he hired Brug for other than for grunt work and blacksmithing skill? Surely not his prowess in combat.

Tarlak returned to the main crossroad, then headed west. As he left the city, a wagon was passing through the guard post, and painted in white on the wagon’s side was the symbol of the Sun Guild. Tarlak watched the guards wave the driver in without even a cursory glance at his goods.

What did you just let in? Poisons, wines, more of those damn tiles?

Ignoring a childish desire to set the wagon aflame, he continued on to his tower. The weather was fine, the sun high and warm, and so he enjoyed the breeze blowing against him as he crossed the grass. By the time he reached his tower, he was smiling, and he was thinking maybe he should just take a break and relax for a few hours. He couldn’t spend his whole life trying to keep track of the underhanded dealings of a city. Snapping his fingers, the door opened for him, and pulling his hat off his head, he moved to step inside, then froze.

Waiting for him, arms crossed and standing beside the hearth, was the giant man with the painted face.

“How did you…?” Tarlak began, mouth dropping open. He had a dozen various alarms cast all across his tower. Should a man try scaling the walls, digging through the floor, breaking down the door, even flying through one of the windows, he’d have known.

“Simple enough,” said Ghost. “I walked right in.”

Tarlak extended his right hand, palm outward, and shot a bolt of lightning straight for Ghost’s chest. The thunder of its casting echoed throughout the lower floor and hurt Tarlak’s ears. Amid the flash, Ghost dropped to his knees, and come the return of Tarlak’s vision, the man was gone. Tarlak stood there frozen, baffled. Seconds passed, and he heard nothing, saw nothing.

“I’m losing it,” Tarlak said, staring at the blackened scorch marks above the fireplace where his bolt had blasted into the stone.

“Not quite.”

He whirled, deadly shards of ice growing on his fingertips, but it was too late. A meaty fist greeted him, and then all was darkness and stars.

When Tarlak came to, he lay propped against a wall, hands bound behind his back. His head throbbed, and when he opened his mouth to groan, he tasted the coarse dirt of a gag wedged between his teeth. Vision tilting as if he’d just spun in a circle for several minutes, Tarlak shut his eyes and waited out the distortion. His stomach felt as if he’d eaten a vulture’s meal, and as for his fingers, they were tied so tightly, they’d gone numb. A precaution against any spellcasting, he knew. At least Ghost hadn’t gone the full distance and just chopped them all off.

“You’re awake,” he heard Ghost say.

Tarlak opened his eyes, and this time the world did not tilt back and forth. Ghost sat opposite him on a wooden chair. The chair from his study, he realized. To his left was the fireplace, his right the door to the tower, which was now shut. Tarlak wondered how much time had passed. If he’d been out for a few hours, perhaps Brug might return. Even the slightest distraction might be enough for him to pry his hands free …

“I want you to listen carefully,” Ghost said, rising from the chair and crossing the carpet. When he reached Tarlak, he knelt down so they might stare eye to eye. At such distance, he could easily see the white paint smeared across the man’s face … only it didn’t seem like paint anymore. It looked like scarred flesh.

“Your hands are bound, and bound well,” Ghost continued. “Now, I know there are some spells you can cast using just your words, but I’m going to risk this. Just ask yourself which will be faster, your tongue or my swords?” The man ripped the gag from Tarlak’s mouth. “Trust me, few men who doubted my speed have ever lived.”

“It’s nice to see you too, Ghost,” Tarlak said, and he swallowed. It made his stomach gag, but he needed the taste gone from his mouth. “You’re looking as cheery as ever.”

Ghost walked back to the chair and sat down. As if to purposefully contradict Tarlak’s words, he frowned all the deeper. He said nothing, though, just stared. Tarlak would hardly describe his situation as comfortable, but that stare certainly didn’t help matters. So, he did what he normally did when faced with awkward situations: he rambled.

“Sorry about burning you like I did,” he said. “Not that I had much choice, since you seemed pretty bent on killing me and Brug. Glad you’re all right, though. You nearly killed me and failed, and now I’ve nearly killed you and failed. So, let’s just call this whole thing even. Sound good?”

Ghost’s left hand drifted to the sword at his hip, and he gripped the hilt hard enough to whiten his knuckles. For the first time, Tarlak noticed how pale the man’s skin had become. He looked unhealthy, there was no denying that, yet the man also had a cold sweat breaking out across his face and neck.

“I have no true desire to kill you,” Ghost said, ignoring his earlier rambles.

“That so?” Tarlak asked. “You have a unique way of showing it.”

“The first time, you were merely in my way,” said Ghost. “A potential interference to my hunt for the Watcher. I’d not dueled a wizard in years, and I must admit, I was eager to test my abilities. You were a worthy foe, so when I say I am glad you survived, you must understand I speak the truth.”

“Comforting,” said Tarlak, still clueless as to where the conversation was going. “Is that why you gutted Senke, too? He was in the way?”

This seemed to affect Ghost far more than Tarlak expected.

“The Watcher called me a monster afterward,” Ghost said. “Do you think that is true?”

“If you’re trying to argue you’re not, you’re going about it a pretty piss-poor way.”

Finally, Ghost laughed, leaning back in his chair and running a hand across his bald head.

“I argue nothing,” he said. “Monsters. Aren’t we all monsters? You wield fire with your bare hands and summon lightning from your palms. Tell me, would men not quake in fear of you should you bring your wrath upon them?”

“Anyone afraid of me will deserve whatever wrath that befalls them,” Tarlak said. “I don’t kill the innocent.”

“Innocent?” Another laugh. “An odd way to call men and women you know nothing about. I doubt anyone would call you innocent, Tarlak.”

“Is that why you tried to kill us the second time?”

Ghost shook in his chair, and it made Tarlak all the more nervous. Something was terribly wrong with the man. He looked ready to explode, yet at the same time, it seemed he clung to consciousness by a thin thread made solely of pure stubbornness.

“I don’t have a choice,” he said. A smile flashed on his face, vanished. “Not anymore. Right now, it’s your life or mine, Tarlak. Would you blame me for killing you when forced into such a situation?”

“Honestly?” asked Tarlak. “I think you look like a man who doesn’t care whatsoever about what I have to say. Nor do you look like a man who can be forced to do anything, not even when threatened with his life. So, if you’re going to kill me, please, for the love of Ashhur, just go ahead and kill me.”

Ghost stood, and now both hands clutched the hilts of his swords.

“Or we can continue chatting,” Tarlak offered.

“All my life,” Ghost said, slowly walking toward him. “All my life, I denied being a monster. I embraced people’s fear. I painted my face and grinned at their prejudice and unease. That fear was their own failure, not mine. The color of my skin gave them their anger, not my own self. No matter what, because of my skill, my strength, I was free. I was dangerous and proud. But now?”

He drew a sword and placed the edge against Tarlak’s neck. Tarlak tensed, and he refused to look away from Ghost’s bloodshot eyes.

“And now,” said Ghost, “all I can feel is a need to cut your throat. It doesn’t matter, my desires, my thoughts. That need is there, an ache, an addiction. I’ve been made into a monster, wizard, and my heart rebels against it with every last vestige of my pride.”

“Then fight it,” insisted Tarlak. “No one can make you into a monster, Ghost, only show you the way.”

The blade quivered at his neck. Ghost’s eyes narrowed, his obsidian skin considerably paled. Tarlak could hear his breathing, and he swore he could even hear the hammering of the giant man’s heart.

Ghost let out a scream, turned, and drove his sword with all his strength into the floor of the tower. Back to him, the man stood there, shoulders rising and falling as he gasped in air. His hands were clenched into fists, and they trembled.

“The man I killed,” Ghost said. “Senke … was he a friend of yours?”

Tarlak swallowed down a sudden knot in his throat.

“Yes,” he said. “A good friend.”

Ghost turned his head.

“I’m sorry,” he said, his eyes firmly locked on the floor. “I long told myself it was because of the job, but it never was. I killed because I could, because I thought it elevated me beyond all others. But when the choice is taken away … when it’s still my hands…”

“You’re sorry,” Tarlak said, and he rose to his feet. His hands were still tied behind him, and he pulled against them as he felt his own rage growing. “You’re sorry? Good for you, you bastard, but I’m not the one you should be apologizing to. Senke was my friend, but he was a brother to Delysia, and you butchered him like a piece of meat.”

Eyes still on the floor, Ghost opened his mouth to speak, but instead, he collapsed to his knees … and then seemed to sink into the very floor. Tarlak’s mouth dropped open, baffled by the sight. Letting out a slow groan, Ghost pushed himself back up through it, his feet setting back atop the floor with a heavy thud before he collapsed onto his hands and knees. Boils shimmered across his arms, rising, popping, and vanishing without leaving a trace beyond the faintest of scars.

“Delysia,” he said, and he sounded feverish. “She’s … she’s the priestess that was with you. Your sister?”

“Yes,” Tarlak said. “You nearly killed Senke once, but she saved him, brought him back. And then you stabbed him again, except this time, she wasn’t there, and you know why? Because I made her stay behind. I wish she’d have just blamed me like any normal person, but she never did. Just herself for not ignoring me, for not coming with us. You killed him, and she carried the guilt instead of you. I don’t want your damn apology. I just want you out of my life. I want to stop thinking about how if I’d only been stronger, if I’d only turned you to ash before you ran into Leon Connington’s mansion…”

His voice trailed off, unable to finish, too angry, too hurt.

“If that’s what you want, then so be it,” Ghost said. Retrieving his sword, he slipped it into the sheath strapped to his thigh, then slowly rose to his feet. He wobbled, grabbed the doorframe to steady himself. His back was to Tarlak, and he looked over his shoulder to ask his question.

“Where is your sister?”

Tarlak glared at him.

“Why do you care?”

“Because of Senke,” he said. The white paint began to run down his neck as if it were melting. “I have to tell her. I have to know.”

It made no sense. Why would he even ask? Did Ghost truly think he’d just reveal Delysia’s location?

“I won’t tell you,” he said. “Kill me if you must, but I’m not putting my sister’s life in danger.”

He’d thought Ghost would be upset or threaten him, but doing the expected appeared to be the last thing the giant man intended.

No, instead, he laughed.

“Threaten?” he asked. “Threaten? Look at me, wizard. Look at the fever in my face. Look at the rot in my flesh. Death comes for me, not your sister. I just want to talk. You say she carries the guilt, so let me absolve her of it. That’s all. Can you do that? For her?”

It was insane, Tarlak knew. Absolutely insane. Every part of his mind told him to lie, but deep in his chest, he felt something insisting he speak the truth. Haern would be at her side, and he’d have to trust them to be strong enough to endure whatever it was Ghost had planned.

“She traveled west months ago, toward the Stronghold,” he said. “I don’t know how long it will be until she returns, but if she does, it’ll be by the main road.”

“Thank you,” Ghost said, swallowing heavily. His eyes closed for a moment, opened again. Blood had pooled in them, washing away the white with red. “Thank you.”

With that he was gone, leaving Tarlak standing there by the wall with his hands bound behind his back.

“What in the world did I just do?” he wondered aloud. Hurrying to the stairs, he climbed up to Brug’s room, where there were more than enough sharp instruments scattered about the workplace for him to cut into the rope binding his hands. Once they were free and he felt the feeling returning to his fingers with each painful throb of his heartbeat, he looked to the roof and shook his head.

“Keep an eye on her,” he said to Ashhur. “Because if something happens because I just told that lunatic where she is, you better be hiding when I enter the golden lands for myself.”