The Fallen World

Escape - Part 6

     Thomas stared at the fallen Konnens, his head a blur of wild panic. At any moment doors would open and dozens more Konnens would come pouring out to bundle them away. They had to go. They had to run! He could only stand there, paralysed with shock, though, while he waited for his thoughts to calm down enough to plan a rational course of action.

     He was aware of Jerry and Diana standing beside him, equally shocked, and then he saw Willa peeping warily out into the corridor to see if it was over. She stared at Lord Basil with wide eyed shock, no doubt thinking he was dead, and a smile of savage satisfaction appeared on her face, but then she turned to look at the Tharians and her eyes widened with horror. She pointed at something behind Thomas and the wizard turned to see what it was. Parkus had already begun his swing and all Thomas could do was stagger back in alarm, tripping over Jerry’s foot and landing in a heap, taking the tiny nome down with him.

     Parkus continued the downward swing and Thomas rolled aside just in time, the sword shattering glazed floor tiles with a shower of tiny ceramic shards. He raised the sword again, but a pair of firebolts from Jerry’s pointing finger hit him squarely in the chest, making him double over with a cry of pain, and before he could recover he was hit by another pair from Thomas. He fell to the ground and lay there, smoke rising in little curls from the burnt patch in his chest.

     “Tom!” called out Diana urgently, and he looked up to see the cleric kneeling beside Lirenna’s blood soaked, unconscious form.

     “Lenny!” he screamed madly. He ran over to her, his heart pounding with fear, and fell to his knees beside her. “What happened?”

     “She’s alive,” said Diana with relief, turning the demi shae onto her front, tearing her clothes open and putting her hands over the knife wound while praying to the Lady of Healing. The wound closed, but there was no other improvement. She prayed more, begging Caroli to do everything she could, to send as much of Her holy power as her frail, human body was capable of channeling. Gradually, to Thomas's relief, some colour came back into Lirenna's face and she began to breathe more regularly.

     Diana breathed a sigh of weariness. “I think she’ll be all right now,” she said, wiping her bloody hands on her white leggings, leaving bloody smears on them that she ignored completely. “She’s very badly hurt, though, and I think I could pray 'till I collapse without healing her completely. Also, I want to hold some back in case anyone else gets hurt before we get out of here.”

     “We gotta move fast!” said Jerry urgently. He pointed down the corridor, to where a small crowd of maids, servants and family members had gathered, none of them, fortunately, brave enough to approach. Someone was yelling for the guards, though, and already they could hear the sound of running feet. The Tharians jumped to their feet and prepared to run, Thomas pulling the backpack from Parkus’s shoulders and slinging it across his own. He then stooped to pick up Lirenna.

     A sudden thought made him pause, however. If the attempt at secrecy was over then they might as well have the swords. He ran back to the laundry trolley, therefore, and rummaged about for them. He found one, but the other was proving elusive and the guards were getting closer. He abandoned it, therefore, and turned to run, but then he saw Willa still staring at him, her eyes wide with terror. They'll know she helped us, he thought. They’ll kill her!

     An idea came to him and he pushed her back into the reading room, out of sight of the watching crowd. “Trust me,” he said as he drew the sword from its scabbard. Her eyes were wide with fear but she nodded, so he put the blade to her throat, just above the adam’s apple, and gave her a tiny nick, just enough to draw blood. “Tell them we forced you to help us, with a knife at your throat.”