The Killing Grounds Read online

  The claxon sounded in the corridor and the three assassins ran back to the barracks. The rest of the class milled about not knowing what was going on, this was supposed to be their free time. Several boys were still wet from the showers and clothed only in a strategically placed towel.

  “Lord on deck!” Gideon announced.

  “Easy class,” the Quartermaster said as he marched into the barracks. “I want you dressed in full attire and ready to go in five, get to it. A4, a moment please.”

  Alara shot a look at Lucinda, who shrugged her shoulders. The Quartermaster walked into the corridor and Alara followed him.

  “We’ve had a complaint from Millhaven house, they seem to think that you have some interest in their affairs?” the Quartermaster asked. Alara waited, “Feel free to speak Du Preeze.”

  “I was just visiting with a friend, Sir.”

  “Assassins have no friends,” he said firmly.

  “Yes Sir,” Alara responded.

  He gave her a once over. “I don’t know what you’re up to Du Preeze, but I am guessing it’s something to do with Lord Osari’s disappearance. Millhaven house is a nest of snakes and I sincerely doubt if they would be able to kidnap and hold a senior Guild Council member.”

  “No Sir.”

  “My office Du Preeze! On the double! And you lot," he shouted into the dorm, “full inspection in three minutes so get your asses into gear. A1 double any penalties you deem fit!”

  ***

  Alara stood to attention in front of the Quartermaster's desk as he sat down. “At ease Du Preeze.” She was expecting a serious dressing down for prying into the Millhaven's business, but instead the Quartermaster invited her to pull up a chair and relax. “Shield the room please,” Alara was surprised by the request; each room had its own ward to protect the privacy within those walls. She threw up the shield and waited for the Quartermaster to continue. “Now would you like to tell me what’s going on?”

  “Yes Sir…” she started but the Quartermaster stopped her in mid-sentence.

  “Enough of the bullshit and get to the point, just spit it out Du Preeze.”

  Alara put a hand to her heart to feel for Lord Osari’s stone that now had a permanent home in the folds of her fatigues. It pulsed once. “Everything?” she asked the stone. It pulsed once.

  “Everything what, Du Preeze?” he asked.

  She took the stone from her shirt and placed it on the table. The Quartermaster visually examined it and reached out a hand to pick it up, but Alara put up a hand to stop him.

  “Is that Lord Osari’s?” he asked.

  “Yes, he left it for me to find in a book. Its power is dying and if I don’t find Lord Osari soon, I fear the worst.” She found it difficult not to add the Sir to the end of the sentence.

  “And you suspect Millhaven?”

  “Not directly, but I wanted to scout their house for any clues. From what I know so far the Senior Council is behind the plot and they may have had help from the inside from a group of our Guild members called The Affiliation.” No point in holding anything back, if the Quartermaster was a member of The Affiliation, she would be dead where she sat.

  It seemed like an age before he answered. “And what did you find in Millhaven House?”

  “A possible way forward Sir, the younger Lord Millhaven has offered information on a quid pro quo basis,” she replied.

  “And what’s your side of this deal Du Preeze?”

  “Sorry Sir but I can’t say,” she could see the thunder clouds start to build behind his eyes, he wasn’t used to apprentices speaking to him in that manner.

  “And why not apprentice?”

  “Plausible deniability Sir, if I am caught fulfilling my side of the deal I don’t want anyone else implicated.”

  “Very well. You do know that the Millhaven boy is as bad as his father and will end up stabbing you in the back or sending you to the mines?”

  Alara thought he would put up a fight “I’m well aware of his methods Sir, but in this instance it’s a case of keeping my enemies close until I can find Lord Osari.”

  “Indeed. Would it surprise you to know that I already have five bounties for your retirement Du Preeze?”

  Alara raised an eyebrow, “I thought that until I made top five I was out of bounds Sir.”

  “Pre-orders! Should you make it to five the bounties would become active immediately.”

  Alara thought for a moment, a plan was starting to hatch in her mind, “May I ask who would like to see me retired sir?”

  “No you may not, but let’s just say that when you question a Madam of the Senior Council you should expect certain repercussions.”

  “Sable!”

  “No, but if I were to look into this matter I am sure that I could trace the money trail to several of her businesses. You make dangerous enemies Du Preeze.”

  “Who would be tasked with my retirement, Sir?

  “The Council would outsource the matter to a lower Lord, one that has aspirations of advancement,” he said, looking into her eyes.

  “Basel?” she asked without thinking.

  “Lord Basel may be an option.”

  “Yes Sir, sorry Sir,” she said quickly.

  “If the lower Lord were not successful in his attempt it could possibly hinder the Guild Council plans in taking control, but inevitable they would have a backup plan. There are always others wanting quick advancement, maybe even an apprentice looking for acknowledgement.”

  “Point taken Sir.” So they would send one of her classmates after her, but who?

  “However this pans out Du Preeze, you will have assassins coming at you from every direction. The rewards on the bounties are extraordinarily high; I have had some other Lords inquire about accepting the bounties already.”

  “Yes Sir,” Alara’s stomach was in knots. She’d expected trouble, but nothing of this magnitude.

  “What did you think of the dragons Du Preeze?”

  She wasn’t expecting the question, “They’re very impressive Sir.”

  “It’s interesting that there are three dragons, three assassins, three Houses and three Councils involved in this matter isn’t it?” he said.

  “Indeed Sir,” she hadn’t thought about the coincidental numbers, but he was right. Three dragons; two females and one male, three assassins; two females and one male, three Councils and three houses. She knew who the numbers representing the assassins and the Councils were, but whose names could she link to the houses? Millhaven House was a certainty and so was Madam Isabelle’s Estates but who was the third? There were many houses represented on the Councils and it could conceivably be any of them. She’d visited Millhaven and Isabelle so maybe Lord Osari was being held in the third house. But how could she find out who owned the third house?

  “Anything else Du Preeze?”

  “No Sir,” she replied and tucked the stone back in her shirt.

  “Dismissed,” she got up to leave and made it to the door when she heard him mutter under his breath, “and good luck, you’re going to need it.”

  Twenty-One:

  The day before the final exam started the mood in the dorm was serious as each of the classmates readied themselves for the upcoming trials. The conversation with the Quartermaster had haunted Alara’s dreams and she was tired and irritable, she would need to get a good sleep that evening to be at her best the following day. Black had questioned her as to why the Quartermaster had screamed at her and ordered her to his office, but Alara decided to keep the information he gave her to herself. Both Black and Lucinda had pestered her about the plan to deal with Lord Basel, but she’d quickly changed the subject to avoid the question. They were her friends and she had to try to protect them as much as possible from bounties being placed on their heads, as well as hers. Maybe friends weren’t such a good idea after all. The Quartermaster emphasised that assassins weren’t supposed to have friends and she was beginning to comprehend why.

  The morning run was a godse
nd; all she wanted was to get out of the dorm and into the fresh air for some much needed peace and quiet. The common proved to be the very thing she needed to figure things out in her head. Lucinda and Black had gone on ahead and Alara smiled as the couple ran in step with each other. She’d noticed the small smiles here and there and twice they had gone off together without her.

  The air was crisp and clear, but the cold bit into her skin beneath the thin fatigues, she could easily put up a shield to keep her warm, but she wanted to stay alert and awake. Just because there was a no kill order protecting the class it didn’t mean that she may not be involved in an unforeseen accident. From her vantage point it was easy to see the other nine apprentices. Black and Lucinda ran alone, probably working on a strategy for the killings to come. Alara’s mind went back to the problem of the three houses. If her assumptions of the houses involved being Millhaven and Sable were correct, that meant the third house was owned by a matriarchal figurehead. There were three other permanent female members of the Senior Council, but none had links to the Assassin’s Guild that she knew of. She closed her eyes and imagined the dragons that sat on top of the bookcases in the Millhaven's library. If Millhaven represented Parian, then who did Sable represent? On the one hand Sable's connections to the city and its underground could represent Trian, the evil mother. But on the other hand Sable had links to the Affiliation who wanted change, was she then represented by Paragon? Millhaven and Sable seemed as though they were close, but Alara had sensed Lord Millhaven’s angst when Sable had come close to him during the open day, but was Bastian’s or Lucinda’s viewpoint the correct interpretation of the story? She needed to find out who the third dragon represented before trying to put the jigsaw together. There were no senior female members of the Guild Council, but she would have to park that thought and come back to it another day. Maybe Bastian’s clue was the name of the third dragon, but the boy was a sneaky politician and couldn’t be trusted. The Quartermaster had alluded to the fact that there were also three assassins; the story would translate to Black being Parian and Lucinda, Paragon. This left Alara as Trian protecting her Guild and her Lord, much like Trian protecting the eggs between her massive legs. But that could mean that Black and Lucinda were planning to break free of her in favour of the change! She dismissed the thought. You’re overthinking things girl! she chastised herself, but the thought left a nagging doubt in her stomach.

  As she passed the Killing Grounds for the final lap she noticed all eight of the senior Guild Council members watching the group. She felt like they were sizing each of them up, maybe they were taking bets on who would survive the finals. Lord Basel and Lord Sirap joined the group as Alara finished her last lap, she’d sprinted the whole way and finished second only to Gideon. If Lord Basel were watching her for a weakness she was damn well not going to give him any clues. Black and Lucinda had separated once they saw the Council and stood apart as the Quartermaster spoke.

  “Class at ease. As you know, this time tomorrow your finals will start and at the end of it a maximum of five of you will be left. It has happened in the past that two assassins have retired each other and only four survive, and in that case we only take those four. We wish to thank you all for your hard work and commitment to the Guild over the last three years.” Most of the boys were shuffling about trying to keep warm, but Alara stood tall not moving, her eyes were firmly set on Lord Basel who was watching her with interest. The Quartermaster continued, “We have ten rooms set aside in the Guild and each of you will be shown where you will live.” He coughed, “Should you live I should say, after the finals are over. You will return to the dorm to collect your belongings and be escorted to your new quarters once you are dismissed. You will have no contact with your fellow classmates until the dinner this evening. Am I fully understood?”

  “Yes Quartermaster,” the class responded in the traditional manner.

  “The finals will begin on the third Claxon of the morning. You will not be told the time the claxon will sound, you will have a maximum of twelve hours to finish the assignment, if there are more than five then the apprentice with the fewest amount of retirements over the last year will be retired, there are no limits on where you may go, there are no limits on how many retirements you can collect on. Once the final five have been identified the claxon will sound to end the finals and you are to return to your new quarters and await the Council’s orders. Any questions?”

  “No Quartermaster,” they chorused as a group.

  “Members of the Senior and Junior City Councils will be at the Guild as our guests of honour this evening, A1 and A5 step forward.” Gideon and Lucinda stepped up. “You will be required to entertain your families this evening. Step back. A2 and A3 step forward. You will be required to entertain the ministers of finance and education, step back. A4 step forwards.” Alara took a deep breath and stepped up, “You have been requested to entertain the Junior Council members this evening.” Alara was pleasantly surprised; she thought that she would be instructed to entertain Madam Isabelle. “Step back A4. The rest of you pick an unassigned dignitary and do your best not to piss them off too much.” The other Council members laughed. “Those of you with sponsorship please go off with your Lords and remember that you are on your own now.” Gideon went directly to Lord Sirap who led him away, but before she could see who else was still sponsored Lord Basel walked toward her with his hand held out in a welcome.

  “The Council has asked me to be your guide A4. If you would care to step this way?”

  She ignored the handshake, if he hadn’t paid attention to her strength in class she wouldn’t give him an opportunity to do so now. “Thank you for honouring me Lord Basel,” she said calmly and followed the man back into the Killing Grounds. “If I may be so bold Lord Basel, I would prefer some privacy to pack my personal items; a lady has secrets that no man should have to bear witness to.”

  Lord Basel looked her up and down, “Nothing that I haven’t seen before A4.”

  “Even so my Lord, I would prefer my own company for a short while and you have my word that I will not break any of the rules.”

  “So be it A4, you have earned that right. You will have three minutes to pack and be ready in the corridor. If you are not there I will come in and drag you out. Clear?”

  “Understood Lord Basel.” She could easily shield her belongings from him and the stone was safely tucked inside her shirt, but she wanted to know how much leeway he would give her as a female. The more information she could collect on the assassin the more she was likely to successfully retire the man. He had never shown any softness toward woman before, but she had never had a chance to get close to him.

  It took her less than a minute to collect her things and pack them into her bag. She left the books and stationery in the locker for a servant to bring to her room later. As an afterthought she grabbed her pillow and met Lord Basel in the corridor.

  “There are ample pillows in your room Du Preeze, you won’t need that,” he said making a grab for the pillow.

  “I need a decent night’s sleep tonight and a new bed will be bad enough, I’ll need some creature comforts.” She drew the pillow in tightly to her body.

  He harrumphed, but let it slide. She was pleased that he thought her a soft target that needed her own pillow to sleep. She’d played at being hard in front of the Council, but her strategy of being just a girl in front of Lord Basel may come in very handy if she made the cut the next day.

  He led her upstairs into the many corridors of the Killing Grounds. She was hoping that her new quarters would be close to Lord Osari’s rooms, but Lord Basel led her in the opposite direction. The hallways were small and dim, unlike Lord Osari’s lodgings that seemed majestic in comparison to hers. She counted the rooms as she passed; none of them were numbered as they would have been in years gone by. Lord Basel stopped at the end of the corridor and opened Alara’s room with a key card that he handed to her as she entered.

  “Dinner will commence at si
x-thirty, you will pick your guests up outside the great hall on the hour.”

  “Thank you Lord Basel.”

  “I wish you luck tomorrow Du Preeze, I really am looking forward to you making the top five and being welcomed into the Guild.” Lord Basel closed the doors behind him and left.

  “Oh, I’m sure you are,” she said aloud and threw her bag and pillow onto the double bed that took up most of the room. She did a quick scan of her new home, but found no sign of any Artistry. The bed felt rock hard as she sat down, but she ignored the discomfort factor and scanned the two rooms next to hers and found no one. She pushed further out and searched the whole floor of the building, but came across nothing except empty rooms. The floor above and below had been protected by a powerful ward that easily knocked back her scan. If she had known this was going to happen she would have joined Black and Lucinda for the morning run to go over the plan that had been fizzing around in her brain, but it was too late now, maybe she could find some time tonight, but she doubted it.

  The room was small with no windows; a wooden table was fixed to the wall with a mirror above it and a plain wooden chair beside it. In one corner was an armchair that looked like it had stood there for hundreds of years, and even though the room was spotlessly clean she still felt uncomfortable with the general shabbiness. Next to the bed there was a small cupboard with hanging space for her fatigues and a rack for her boots. The only other door led to a small bathroom that housed a leaky shower, a toilet that would need some serious attention before she sat on it and the smallest sink she had ever seen. If this was to be her new home it needed a lot of hard work to make it liveable.

  She threw the bedspread on the floor and inspected the sheets, but they were as crisp and clean as the ones in the dorms. She tossed the pillows aside onto the armchair and stretched out onto the bed with her own pillow. A small television was fixed to the wall opposite the bed and Alara found a remote control on the bedside table. She pressed the on button but nothing happened. “Typical,” she said and tossed the remote across the room.