The Sleeping Life (Eferum Book 2) Read online

  Sukata and the Pest weren't anywhere Kendall could see. Even without the glare the coaches blocked at least half of what was going on. Two men came to help Lieutenant Faral lift injured people out of the fallen coach. Captain Faille carried another person up to Lieutenant Meniar, a woman with a stain down her stomach and skirt, who clung to him when he tried to put her down. The light made the colour all wrong, but Kendall knew the stain was blood.

  Sukata ran up then and handed Lieutenant Meniar a slate, but raced straight away again, burning white. She and the pest must be in the other coach writing up Sigillics for him, in oil pastel to withstand the rain. Captain Faille went to one knee, talking to Meniar as he detached the woman's arm from around his neck. But he stayed holding her as Meniar began to cast.

  Kendall was abruptly glad she wasn't any closer. Turning, she fussed with Rennyn's blankets, and wrapped her charge's icy hands around the glowstone, holding them in place. Out in the rain the woman had arched backward on Captain Faille's lap, and something had come out of her stomach. A little bug, hand-sized, shaking out its wings like a butterfly from a chrysalis in the few moments before the light made it sizzle and burn.

  The woman was screaming. Screaming and screaming, and Kendall would probably do the same if a bug had come out of her stomach. The things had been stinging the people they were chasing, laying eggs in them. They'd grown so big, so quickly. Fel, it was no wonder Rennyn had cast, even knowing what it would do to her. It explained why Lieutenant Meniar was doing his healing out in the pouring rain, too. In the light.

  Every time she glanced out, Captain Faille and Lieutenant Faral were in a different place. Collecting injured people, herding those who had run outward back into the Waystation's circle, organising for the wreckage to be moved, getting the final two coaches into the safety of the glare. Babysitting was the easiest job going. Not that Kendall was really doing more than stopping Rennyn from falling off the seat as the driver continued to struggle with the horses. But she'd been around the Kellian enough by now to know that having someone to sit with Rennyn made all the difference when they couldn't be with her themselves.

  Even Lieutenant Meniar, who had more to do than any person could manage, came straight to check on Rennyn once he'd dealt with the people who'd been stung. Dripping all over Kendall, he didn't do much more than see how Rennyn was breathing, but he frowned all the time.

  "It's not so much what she's done to herself by casting with all her strength, it's that when her system's shocked like this she's ridiculously vulnerable. If she grows at all responsive, try and give her a little honey and water. I'll send Sukata with a fortifier."

  Rubbing a hand over his face, he hurried away, leaving Kendall to go through Rennyn and Captain Faille's belongings in the hopes of finding honey and water, or anything more useful than the squashed packet of honey cakes she discovered where she'd been sitting. She'd given up and was wetting Rennyn's lips with drops of rainwater when a blazing blue-white girl arrived, herding a crowd into the coach with a few words of Kolan.

  Kendall needed a moment to recognise them as the people from the first coach, a family of Kolans who had ponced about in masks to show they were noble, and had both a maid and a manservant to send to tell people what to do. Only one of them, the extra-snotty oldest daughter, was still wearing a mask, and they all looked shaken and battered. They squeezed four across on the seat opposite Rennyn and Kendall's, both the father and the manservant missing.

  "Move her a little closer," Sukata said, pulling out her slate. It helped when she spoke, because she looked like nothing in the world.

  "Thought you didn't feel ready to try any healing magic," Kendall said, swapping sides with Rennyn again.

  "A fortifier is straightforward. And one of the reasons we've been getting so many lectures on healing magic is so we can help in emergencies."

  Those who were allowed to cast Sigillic Magic. Not that Kendall would want to try and mess with healing, but it was constantly annoying that Rennyn wouldn't even let her start with something simple. Sukata was a good caster though, and she didn't have any trouble with the spell, which would make it a little less likely Rennyn would get sick.

  "We'll be heading out very soon," Sukata said, folding her slate. "You'll need to sit between Her Grace and I."

  For a moment Kendall couldn't think why, but of course Sukata was completely soaked. "We're not going to stay here?"

  "There's no way of knowing how long this light will last," Sukata explained. "Even if it burned long enough for us to fully clear the buildings, there are more outside the circle. We need to give warning, or this will be a plague across the region. There is a town an hour along the road, and if they reach there...."

  "How did they cross the circle in the first place?"

  One of the Kolans said something and Sukata paused, then replied in the careful Kolan she'd learned at the Arkathan.

  "Kentatsuki are one of the most dangerous of the Eferum-Get," she went on in Tyrian. "Relatively easy to kill individually, but they can tolerate dull light, so roam on overcast days, or during dusk. And they implant their young in those they attack, without immediately killing them. The injured run for safety, and their bodies shield the Kentatsuki young when they cross the circle. Those who have been attacked rarely survive more than ten or twenty minutes, and the new Kentatsuki reaches full size within an hour."

  "And when it starts stinging people inside the circle, some run outside," Kendall finished, shaking her head at the implications. "And you said there were dozens..."

  But Sukata had turned away, looking back at the big main building. Without a word she walked off, catching Captain Faille as he strode past. Kendall watched them blankly, not used to Sukata being in any way impolite. Lieutenant Faral joined them, and the three Kellian stood studying the main building's entrance and ground floor windows.

  One of the Kolans said something, a question, but Kendall could only shrug. The Kellian were obviously talking about going inside, but why they would suddenly want to do that was anyone's guess.

  As usual, they didn't waste any time about it. Captain Faille took his shorter sword from Sukata and tucked the really long one on the roof of the nearest coach. He and Lieutenant Faral went through the open front door of the inn in one rush, and Sukata was a blur in their wake.

  The Kolans broke into a spate of gabble, and the people the Kellian had been ordering about gathered in a confused clutch. Kendall strained to listen over the rain and chatter, and thought she heard something smashing. She didn't know whether to be worried or not: the Kellian moved faster than almost anything, but it had seemed like there were a lot of the bugs inside. Kendall had watched Sukata practice with Captain Faille, and knew she could easily kill almost anyone who attacked her. Still…

  Rather than think about it, Kendall began inching Rennyn across to the far corner of the coach, since by now the inside of the open door was soaked. There still wasn't a speck of response from Rennyn, even with someone pulling and trying to lift her. Kendall propped her in the corner, tucking a small cushion behind her head and making sure she was as warmly wrapped as possible.

  The Kolans had crowded around the open door and, when they gasped and began to point, Kendall let herself look and saw a lightning girl climbing out a window on the middle floor of the building. There was a shadow at her side, lost in her glare, and it was only when a second figure emerged with someone over their shoulder that Kendall realised that they were both carrying people.

  The third lightning figure waited inside the building until the first two had reached the ground, then leapt down. Kendall knew this one was Captain Faille because he was taller, and stopped to collect his sword. The Kolans broke out in excited murmurs, then went mouse-quiet as the three headed straight for their coach. Sukata was first, and climbed inside to become herself again, except with a pearly radiance from the light streaming through the door. A little girl, four or five years old, clung to her side so tight Kendall couldn't see any of her
face.

  Lieutenant Faral handed another girl in: this one twelve or thirteen, eyes red from crying. She latched on to Sukata as well, while Lieutenant Faral turned away to say something to Captain Faille, and then start shooing people back to their coaches. Captain Faille gazed in at them—checking how Rennyn looked—then closed the door.

  "How did you know they were in there?" Kendall asked, looking for anything she could give Sukata to dry herself on, since her friend was absolutely sopping.

  "This one began crying," Sukata said, glancing to her left, then reaching to slide open the window. "They had locked themselves in a closet, but the door was weakening."

  Captain Faille was standing in between the two rows of coaches. He signalled, and the driver of the coach ahead whipped up his horses. Kendall had only enough warning to put a restraining arm across Rennyn before their own coach jerked and moved forward. She stared back out the window, but couldn't see Captain Faille any more.

  "Is he—?"

  "Part of the swarm is outside the circle," Sukata said. "Once we are gone, they will disperse, searching for other hosts. Faille will remain, and attempt to hunt them."

  Alone in the dark. Captain Faille might be the most dangerous non-mage around, but if he got stung, what could he do? Kendall glanced at Rennyn, slumped beside her, and pulled a face. What Rennyn would do didn't bear thinking about.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Fallon tried not to eavesdrop on the Kolans sharing their carriage as they spoke in choked undertones. He only caught the occasional word. That was enough.

  Cold, wet and fighting his own perennial weariness, Fallon struggled to put away horror, and think in purely practical terms. He would catch a chill. Worse, Duchess Surclere, though far less damp, really needed to be kept warm and quiet after casting such a powerful spell, not racketing along through the rain.

  Such an incredible casting! Fallon had had barely a chance to consider it, but it hadn't resembled any of the standard light conjurations: there had been no container or point of focus. A twist of air, it seemed, burning white. Duchess Surclere cast so differently, with such complete assurance.

  Reminded of the need to keep his teacher alive, Fallon debated the risk of another casting. Lieutenant Meniar, when his strength had run low, had had Fallon and Sukata cast the last few expulsions, since they could afford no delay. That had quickly brought Fallon near the limit of his casting capacity, but surely he could afford a standard warmth Sigillic, to dry them all out a little.

  He slept immediately after, which was no escape since it only brought him the same scene in the Dream, with the added complication of Auri, confused and anxious. She stood in the middle of the carriage, unable to avoid the many knees, staring at the dripping, tightly-crammed occupants.

  "Some kind of accident?" she asked, turning to Fallon. But she was at least able to gauge his state, and not attempt to bring him in all the way to talk to her. Vexed, she made an ungainly upward leap and swam through the ceiling of the carriage.

  Fallon shifted restlessly, hoping in the vague way that the Dream brought to him that he would manage to catch up on sleep before Auri's impatience overcame her sense. Or at least listening to people within range would provide her with a little potted explanation in Tyrian. She could speak some Kolan, of course, but was years behind him now.

  Beside Fallon, the older of the two girls the Kellian had brought out from the Waystation burrowed deeper into Sukata's side, kicking Fallon in the process. Neither of them had loosed their grip on the Kellian girl for a moment, even though she no longer burned like lightning.

  Fallon didn't blame the girls—he'd been inordinately glad of Sukata himself—but clinginess did complicate matters when they arrived at the next safe place along the Imperial Way: a small town about an hour away.

  Lieutenant Meniar, with officials crowding around him, became very firm on the subject of making sure Duchess Surclere was bedded down somewhere warm and quiet, and dealt with the girls by telling Sukata to just take them with her. Then he and Lieutenant Faral left.

  Fallon played gatekeeper for a while, chasing off the curious, then retreated to one of the rooms they'd been allotted. He took time out to write a 'diary entry' he could prop open for Auri's benefit, then finally crawled under his blankets and stayed there.

  oOo

  Someone was making a lot of noise downstairs. None too pleased, Kendall cast a watchful eye over Rennyn and Sukata. Rennyn stayed as she had been since they'd put her to bed the night before, but of course Sukata's eyes opened. Kendall hadn't been able to convince her friend she needn't stay up all night when they were in the safety of a circle, and had only won her point after she herself had slept and could take the next watch. Now, not even midday and there'd be no getting the Kellian girl back to sleep.

  The noise was coming closer: at least a half-dozen people, gabbling away. Sukata sat up, carefully shifting the little leech she'd rescued from the Waystation. The other girl had been a local maid, and had been collected by her family the previous evening, but the younger was harder to get rid of. She spoke a mix of Verisian and Kolan, only seemed to know her first name, and had a fit whenever anyone tried to take her away from Sukata. Eventually Sukata had agreed to look after her overnight while the Kolan version of the Guard tried to find where she belonged.

  Kendall guessed that they'd worked something out, since the leech's name was Maribe and that was about the only word Kendall recognised from the squawking and fussing outside. It woke the leech up, anyway. Sukata made a quick motion, but too late, as big blue eyes went wide and the little pink mouth opened.

  "Nonna!"

  The brat had a squeal like a needle. Rennyn sure jerked like she'd been stuck with one, then wrapped her arms over her head and cringed down under the blankets. Sukata froze for an instant, then crossed and opened the door, just as the leech barrelled toward it. She followed the girl through, and closed the door neatly behind.

  It didn't seem like anything could stop the fuss outside, with excited gabble filling the hall, but then it lowered, heading downstairs. Sukata had drawn them off. No fun for her, since everyone in the town had heard about the 'lightning spirits' who had saved the caravan, and wanted nothing more than to gawp and ask questions.

  The door opened again, but it was just the Pest, and Kendall waved him off, going to close the curtains and make sure the mageglows were most-ways covered. The Pest was sensible for once and went away, and when the door shut Rennyn uncurled enough to poke her head out from beneath the blanket.

  Kendall helped her drink honey water and washed her face, and then Sukata was back to carry her into the so-fancy privy closet that Kolans actually built into the corner of their hostelry rooms. Rennyn was in bad shape, shaking, with her eyes slitted in pain. Sukata was worried enough about her to fret visibly about not staying in there to hold her upright.

  They'd tucked her back in bed by the time the Pest showed up with hot soup, which Sukata tipped into a mug and held it for Rennyn to drink. Rennyn barely managed two swallows before she passed out again.

  "There are city officials downstairs wanting to talk to her," the Pest whispered, after they'd all withdrawn to the door to discuss what to do next. "One of them speaks Tyrian, and doesn't plan to be fobbed off. They have a healer mage with them."

  He'd no sooner told them then there was a brisk knock at the door. Sukata and the Pest slipped back into the corridor, but Kendall wasn't surprised when the door opened again and a skinny, grandfatherly sort bustled straight across to Rennyn. Sukata could stop anyone getting in if it was really necessary, but Lieutenant Meniar had told them not to make too much of a fuss.

  A short, plump woman wearing a half-mask followed. In Kole, nobles, bureaucrats and people getting above themselves wore these masks to honour their creepy-sounding Emperor, who never took his off. The very plain masks covering the top half of the face seemed to be the style that meant 'official'. Despite the mask, Kendall could see the woman's dark eyes flicking left
and right, checking out everything lying about the room.

  Kendall left her to Sukata and the Pest, and went and stayed obstinately at the healer-mage's side. Lieutenant Meniar had given Rennyn a thorough examination and done what he could for her before he and Lieutenant Faral had headed out with a troop of the local soldiers to go bug hunting and find Captain Faille, and he'd said there wasn't much that could be done beyond keeping her warm and fed and casting the fortifier he'd taught Sukata. Fortunately the healer-mage just checked her over, and Sukata and the Pest had no problem with the official, who was more curious than suspicious. Their reason for visiting Kole was real enough—it was just the whole thing about hunting Rennyn's demon uncle down afterwards that they weren't broadcasting.

  After they left, Sukata stayed by the door a little while, clearly listening, and finally said: "They are very interested because of the strength of the light casting, which is still active. The official has been specifically instructed to report directly to the Emperor's…to the palace intelligence network? Any incidents relating to mages, particularly mages of strength, is to be reported."

  "The whole town is talking of nothing but lightning spirits and mages," the Pest said. "Though it's as much Lieutenant Meniar as the Duchess they've been discussing. He saved a lot of lives."

  So much for keeping a low profile. If demon princes could read Kolan newssheets, then they'd just told him exactly where Rennyn was. Kendall didn't think that was much of a problem until the day stretched into the next, and they were still waiting around in the inn.