ESKER VI

  The air in the crawlspace was growing thin, making it hard to breathe. Esker had taxed herself to the point of exhaustion. She needed to push herself further for her own sake and for Gabbro’s. Reaching deep within, she steeled herself with her ragged reserves to make one last push. The narrow tunnel opened before her outstretched hand, guided by her stone sense. Hundreds of span of solid rock stretched in every direction, the only exception was to return to the cavern where the fire balm had trapped the Jotman warriors. Gabbro held securely onto her ankle. He had not spoken since he had asserted that the life debt between them had been paid in full. Esker pulled herself forward, arm length by arm length, feeling the shifting stone flow away like liquid. Her consciousness dimmed, it felt like a black void was compressing her into a ball of nothingness.

  When Esker’s finger tip stretched forward and felt only air, her mind struggled to make sense of the moment. Acrid smoke scented with sulfur filled her lungs as she wormed her way out of the small tunnel and into the cavern. It was only relatively larger, the vast chamber was now greatly reduced in size. Much of the ceiling had collapsed, rubble and boulders filled the majority of the space. She convulsed in a coughing fit, writhing with agony. Gabbro gently lifted her, slowly shuffling with her body cradled in his arms. Esker’s head lulled, rocking back and force, offering a vertiginous view of her surroundings.

  As her neck swung like a pendulum, her sagging eyes caught sight of one of the Jotman champions. The warrior was pinned by rocks, his body broken and twisted. Despite his obvious pain, he reached for the cruel mace just beyond his finger tips. Gabbro set Esker down gently and walked over to the Jotman. She could not see either of them and was too tired to lift her head. She heard Gabbro’s sturdy steps. She heard the rasp of the mace as it was drawn from the ground. She heard the splinter of bone and splatter of flesh as it was brought down upon the champion. Gabbro returned to her and once again carried her like a child.

  The explosive detonations had exceeded their intended destruction. Pools of magma smoldered and after Gabbro felled that final champion, the entire host of Jotman were slain. Charred remains and melted armor dotted the floor. Limbs protruded from piles of rubble. Without instruction Gabbro carried Esker towards the tunnel Spar and Stibnite had exited from. It was now buried under a rockslide of boulders. He placed her down, positioning her body so that she could recline against a slope of debris. He then went to work, methodically clearing stones from the pile blocking the exit. Esker drifted in and out of consciousness, partly from exhaustion, partly due to the hazy fumes in the cavern. Gabbro never ceased his diligent labor. The gaps in her awareness created a strange perception of the rubble: portions of it disappeared each time she opened her eyes.

  ———

  Rough hands shook Esker’s shoulders, stirring her from the depths of sleep. She was groggy and confused. “Time to wake,” Gabbro said as he released her. “I cleared enough of the tunnel for us to pass through.”

  “You… you are speaking,” Esker mumbled, trying to piece together what she truly knew about her squad member.

  “I apologize for deceiving you Esker, to join your squad I had to hide who I am.”

  “So, who are you?”

  “I work with a group of Tengu who are not happy with the Keiretsu. I suspect that you might hold a similar opinion.” Gabbro studied her with an unnerving intensity. “I trust you with my secret Esker.” He paused for a beat. “Your secret is safe with me as well.” His veiled threat was not subtle. “You should join our efforts, help to make a difference.”

  “And if I do not wish to?”

  Gabbro’s eyes lingered on the blood-soaked mace on the floor. “You are free to do as you choose. Given our predicament, I suggest that we find our way back to civilization before either of us makes a decision that we might regret.” While his tone was calm, there was a ruthlessness burrowing beneath the surface of his words that was incongruent with the simple minded miner he had been presenting himself as. He offered her a hand to help rise.

  Esker studied Gabbro, the gears of her mind turning indecisively. She took his hand and was pulled to her unsteady feet.

  “What you did during and after the battle was incredible,” Gabbro gushed. “I have heard of stone-shapers, but I thought them to be nothing but tales from the amahs who raise our broodlings.” He smiled at her. “You would be a major asset to our cause.”

  Esker’s thoughts were too muddled to process all this information, it was challenge enough to stand. “I wish to know more about this resistance effort you spoke of, but not now. I am drained by our ordeal. Can we discuss it later?”

  “Of course.” Gabbro’s smile became more genuine. “I obscured the crawl space you created for us. However, it will not stand up to intense scrutiny.” He showed where he had stacked piles of rocks in front of the opening. “Let me show you the path I cleared through the collapsed tunnel.” He led the way to a shoulder-width hole leading through the slope of boulders and rubble blocking the collapsed exit. “Would you like to go first, or should I?”

  Esker placed her hand on the mound of stones, sending her consciousness through them to study the tunnel’s integrity. “We are safe to pass, your careful work has created a stable passage.”

  His eyes lit up. “My background as a miner was true, only the claim that an accident compromised my mind.”

  “I am glad to hear that your handicap was only performative,” she answered with a sourness that surprised both of them. Phantom pains emanated from where her left arm used to be. Esker refused to look at it, but caught Gabbro’s brief glance.

  “I will go first,” Gabbro offered. Esker suspected that it was primarily to escape the awkward silence that had bloomed between them. “We should bring proof that we survived this battle.” He retrieved the Jotman’s mace and ascended the loose rubble to the opening, careful to not disturb any of the larger rocks. Esker followed after he squirmed his way into the tunnel.

  Their escape from the fire balm explosions, through the crawlspace that Esker created with her geomancy, was adequate practice for the next stretch of their journey. It was a strange symmetry to now be the one following behind Gabbro’s heels, as opposed to being in the lead. This reminded Esker of how she had led Guillaume by the hand in the caves beneath the Jotman dungeon and was led by him, in turn, after they emerged into the harsh light of the surface. She missed her friend dearly.

  This tunnel of loose rock was exactly the kind of situation one sought to avoid as a miner. There were too many variables that could disturb the precarious balance and lead to an immediate collapse. Esker had many suspicions and reservations about Gabbro; his claim that he had worked as a miner was not one of them. The pathway he chose to clear was precise and deliberate, creating as stable a tunnel as one could hope for in such circumstances.

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  She could hear his muffled grunts and the scrape of the mace on stone as it was angled around sharp bends. Reaching out with her stone sense was not a significant toll on her energy reserves and provided her with a comprehensive view of her surroundings. It proved difficult to crawl forward only on one arm, so Esker experimented with using the stump of her left arm where it was severed at the elbow. The additional balance and power she could generate with it was effective. It struck her that she bore an illogical shame over her injury, shaped by the beliefs of her people. To be less than whole was to be a burden upon the collective. Esker was more than enough, more than capable. She would no longer let such thoughts erode her sense of self-worth.

  The destruction of the large cavern was extensive, fissures had torn through solid rock and collapsed more of the exit tunnel than Esker would have anticipated. The fire balm charges were devastating, she could understand why Gabbro and his associates had been keen to gain access to this weaponry. How she felt about the matter was as torturous as the path she and Gabbro took through the collapsed exit. Could she trust him? Was she willing to betray her people’s military? Esker’s priority was to return to her friends and Rhyolite at the temple, perhaps working with Gabbro was her best opportunity to do so. He must have a plan to escape his conscription, allying with his cause might be a way to safely desert.

  Ahead of her, Gabbro pulled himself out of the final stretch of the tunnel. Through her stone sense she could perceive him waiting by the exit. She felt a flash of suspicion. Was he waiting to brain her with that mace? Before she was consumed by paranoia, she noticed that he had laid the weapon down on the slope of rock. It was much more likely that he was waiting to aid her out of the narrow tunnel. Gabbro had plenty of opportunity to kill me, Esker thought. Her fear was proven baseless as she emerged and her squad member assisted her to her feet.

  “Your skill in excavation is impressive,” she said in appreciation. “You must have made a good workmate.”

  The first part of her compliment elicited a smile, the second part pained Gabbro with an expression that was difficult to read. He turned without answering and hefted the mace, using it as a walking stick to descend the loose rubble. “We will encounter patrols shortly, I must resume the role I was playing and will no longer be able to speak directly to you. Even in private. I cannot risk being discovered, I would be tortured by the Keiretsu. The risk that they would… extract,” his emphasis was not subtle, “information that could endanger the resistance is too great.”

  “I understand. How will we end our obligation with the military?” she asked tactfully.

  “So you stand with us?” Gabbro’s eyes lit with a fervor of conviction that rivaled Liadan’s faith. “I sensed that you shared our ideals.”

  “That remains to be determined, I must learn more about what you wish to accomplish and the means with which you plan to do so.”

  “Fair,” Gabbro answered. “It is imperative that we avoid any undue attention. Behave as if we never had this conversation. The signal for us to depart will be clear.”

  Esker felt a growing uneasiness about the mess she had found herself in. Subterfuge and deception were not her areas of expertise. Unfortunately, it appeared that her current predicament had left her with little choice.

  ———

  “Why are you not dead? Or disfigured further?” Magnate Citrine demanded with obvious distaste, waving her hand in their general direction. She appeared to be frustrated by Esker and Gabbro’s return. As her squad member had predicted, soon after they traveled into the outer mine shafts, a Tengu patrol detained them. They were imprisoned in a holding cell at the nearest military camp and shackled. Eventually, they were brought before this tribunal. The arbitration room was lit in a way that only those being judged and the arbiter, in this case Magnate Citrine, were visible. The rest of judging panel were shrouded in a darkness that even Tengu eyes could not pierce. Magnate Citrine paced back and forth in her sharp officer’s uniform. “The addled one is incapable of speech, correct?” She jabbed an accusing finger at Gabbro.

  Since Gabbro had resumed his stupefied act, that left Esker solely responsible for the questioning. Gabbro stood by her side, with his eyes softly focused on nothing in particular. “That is correct Magnate Citrine,” Esker answered. “The fire balm charges were placed at either end of the chamber, as was commanded. We found shelter on the overhang, in the center of the cavern.”

  “Then the detonation failed?” Magnate Citrine snapped. “That entire area should have been obliterated.”

  Esker could not risk revealing her geomancy, she needed to come up with a plausible explanation for their survival. “We managed to find shelter in a hollow of the cavern wall, magnate. Prior to the explosion, we had enough time to build a protective barrier out of loose stone.”

  Magnate Citrine narrowed her eyes, as if trying to see through her flimsy story. Esker was grateful that neither she nor Gabbro had been granted permission to bathe: the blood, dust, and ash that coated their bodies masked the fact that neither of them had experienced and severe burns.

  Esker coughed, in earnest. Her throat rasped from all the smoke she had inhaled. “Apologies for my rudeness, magnate. The air of the cavern was thick with fumes.”

  The tips of the fingers on Gabbro’s left hand twitched, besides that he gave no outward signs of anxiety.

  “What could have gone wrong with the formula… “ Magnate Citrine muttered to herself.

  Esker came to realize that the magnate was not angry that they survived, she cared nothing about their lives, she was concerned that her fire balm had failed. It was time to change tact. “May I present testimony about the fire balm, magnate?”

  “Proceed.”

  “Thank you, magnate. The destruction exceeded all expectations. Barring a single enemy who clung to life, the rest of their forces were annihilated.” Esker was not used to speaking in formal settings, or at such length. Her throat was raw from inhaling acrid smoke and her mouth grew dry, making it hard to swallow. She took a moment to compose herself. “The damage to the surrounding rock was impressively extensive.” She was making an effort to paint her words with exaggeration, drawing upon Eógan for inspiration. “The ceiling collapsed on both sides, like a hammer onto an anvil.”

  Esker’s gambit appeared to succeed: Magnate Citrine’s demeanor changed and her attention became fixated on the testimony. “Continue,” she ordered.

  “It took hours for Gabbro… and I,” Esker nearly revealed her ruse, “to excavate a small tunnel through the rubble blocking the way into the mines. Even with our experience as miners, it was precarious work, due to far fissures spreading throughout the upper mantle near the explosion.”

  Magnate Citrine was clearly pleased, there was now a strut present in her pacing. Her nose was held high. “Does that conclude your testimony?”

  “One last detail, magnate,” Esker answered. “Gabbro and I brought evidence from the site of the battle. A weapon from one of the enemy’s champions.”

  Magnate Citrine gestured and a soldier approached from the back of the room with the Jotman mace held disdainfully in his hand. “This is not the weapon of a champion,” Magnate Citrine insisted. “This crude tool would barely serve to stir alloys in a forge.”

  “You are correct, Magnate.” Esker needed to tread carefully here and not overstep. “May I present my impression of the battle?”

  “Yes, yes.” Magnate Citrine’s demeanor returned to being dismissive.

  “The enemy appeared to be different… from prior reports.” Once again Esker was fortunate to catch herself before she revealed details that would require significant explaining and likely a visit from an agent of the Keiretsu. Gabbro’s nervous twitching was beginning to become more pronounced. “Our soldiers fared favorably against most of the enemy. These new champions, who wielded weapons like the one brought forth as evidence, proved to be more dangerous. Before the changes were detonated, the entire squadron of Tengu had been slain.”

  This news sent ripples throughout the preceding. Cries of dissent came from the back of the room. Magnate Citrine was not pleased.

  Esker was compelled to continue. “Within the enemy forces, a different kind of warrior was present. One who did not wear armor or carry a weapon. One who used inexplicable abilities to slay our soldiers.” The uproar that followed this statement dwarfed the prior one.

  Magnate Citrine stilled the room with one sweep of her arm. “Your testimony has ended,” she said coldly. “Bring in the other members of this squad.” She turned back to Esker and Gabbro. “You had best hope that your stories align.”