Kingdom's Fall

Chapter 26, Part 2

Cuan watched Gray carefully all the way back to the dam. The Engineers had dumped half of the food for the oxen and laid him in the remainder so that he could ride in what little comfort was available. The hand looked bad. What little flesh remained free of the bandages was badly swollen, the skin stretched tight, expanding away from his joints under incredible pressure. Even worse was the fact that there was nothing they could do for him. The Engineers had suggested bleeding it, but Gray was sufficiently aware of the discussion to warn them off the attempt. With no reliable source of clean water and the need to press on, they could not stop to try. You can hack it off when we're safe were the commander's exact words, and Cuan had taken him at his word.

When they got back, they were met by an uncannily different camp to the one that they had left. The stockade had been almost completely torn down, and the long, sharpened logs that once comprised its walls had been planted in a low ridge of earth, a double row of stakes angled up to ward off the entrance to the dam valley. They had the look of a defence, but it made no sense to Cuan. The valley was blocked by the dam, and any defenders who retreated behind the ring of stakes would be trapped with no means of escape. As they halted the wagons just short of the earth wall, the remainder of the engineers appeared over it, swarming down to take advantage of the sudden abundance of food. Farran and Bronya trailed behind the mass of them, obviously pleased by their successes.

"What are the spikes for?" Cuan asked.

"Do you like them?" Farran asked. "They were Bronya's idea."

"I don't understand," Cuan said. "What are they for?"

"I was thinking about what happens when the dam breaks," Bronya said. "We can't be certain it'll slow the Carelian advance, much less stop them. I decided that our best chance is to try and draw them here."

"You're going to do what?"

"Not going to," she said. "It's done. We put Holder and his men to work building these earthworks, and gave everyone working with them instructions to talk about how we're going to hold the dam once the supplies come back to us. Then we let them escape."

Cuan closed his eyes. Their plan was a terrible, sinking weight in his gut. "When did you let them go?"

"They escaped the night before last."

Cuan sighed. It was too late to catch them. "So much for blowing up the dam," he said. Bronya made to speak, but Cuan was already moving away. He went over to the wagon where Gray was lying, apparently asleep. The commander's face was ashen, as though sleep had not come as part of a natural desire for rest, but out of sheer exhaustion. Cuan tapped his shoulder lightly, and he started awake. His eyes cast about wildly for a moment before settling on Cuan's face. "Are we there, lad?"

"We are, Gray. Something has happened, though."

"What is it?"

"What's happened to him?" Farran interrupted, leaning over the side of the cart. Cuan ignored him.

"They've let Holder escape so they can draw the Carelians here to us."

Gray's eyes closed, and Cuan braced himself for a reaction that never came. Instead, the soldier nodded his head encouragingly. "Good idea. I wish I'd thought of it myself."

"If the Carelians are coming, how can we be sure the dam will blow?"

Gray's eyes opened, and he fixed Cuan with a withering look. "Don't be stupid, lad. Someone will have to stay behind and blow it."

"And that someone is me," Bronya said firmly. Cuan realised it was what she'd been planning to tell him when he went to wake up Gray. She and Farran had probably argued the whole thing out long before they'd put it in motion.

"No it isn't," Gray said, and it was Bronya's turn to falter under the steel of his gaze. "I'll do it." With that, he settled back down into the cart, looking straight up at the sky.

"What happened out there?" Farran asked again.

"He injured his hand," Cuan said. "Badly. We decided to wait until we had the time to treat it properly," he looked from Farran to Bronya, "now it seems we won't have that time after all."

"Did you get the powder?"

"We did." Cuan pointed to the wagons. "I hope it's enough. We should start unloading it now. The sooner the dam is ready, the sooner we can move."

"But if Gray is staying here..."

"I'll lead you north. I haven't got Gray's experience, but I've been across the marshes. I know what the crossing is like."

Farran looked doubtful. "And when we get to the Kingdom?"

"You wait." Gray was with them again, and his voice was steady. He lifted his good hand and held out a palm-sized packet to Cuan. "Take this. It's my official seal, the king's proof of who I am. Who I was. If the queen dies - if we win - then this will be your proof to whoever takes over in her place."

"If she dies?" Bronya sounded confused. "What does it matter if she lives or dies if the Kingdom repels Carelia?"

"If she lives, and she wins," Gray said, "you turn round and run back to Carelia, and pray they have some sort of mercy in their hearts. You will find no welcome with her."

"I don't like this. You never mentioned this before."

Gray laughed, a wheeze catching on the tail end of it. "It wouldn't have changed things. I needed this dam gone, and the marshes flooded. Now, you don't have a choice."

"We could leave the dam standing." Bronya wielded the threat like a weapon.

"You could, and when the Carelians come you can try to tell them why. You've killed a lot of soldiers, Bronya. They won't be best pleased about it. You'll destroy this dam to cover your escape."

Her mouth was set. "You've tricked us."

"No." He shook his head, and Cuan could see the effort it cost him. "No I haven't. We've both got what we wanted. I give my people a chance at survival, you get your promised land." Gray waved the packet again, and Cuan went to take it from him. As it left Gray's hand, he grabbed at Cuan's wrist, gripping it tightly. There was an astonishing amount of strength left in his good hand. "I got everything I wanted," he said, and there was a weight to his words that went far beyond out-manoeuvring Bronya. He was looking straight at Cuan as he said it.

Cuan turned to Farran. If the tall Engineer was as angry as Bronya, he was keeping it well hidden. "We need to unload these carts," Cuan said. "All of them. The oxen won't make it across what's left of the marshes. Do you want to start setting up the powder?"

Farran's eyes flicked to Bronya, anticipating dissent. She returned the look, and gave him a nod. Immediately, he started directing people to unload the barrels of powder for transport through the barricade and up to the dam. Bronya stepped close to Cuan, pitching her voice low enough so that only he could hear.

"When all of this is over and we have our freedom, there will be a reckoning. Someone is going to pay for this."

"When you get your freedom," Cuan said, not bothering to lower his voice. "Gray will have already paid for it."

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this week's chapter. Don't forget to vote, and as always all comments are welcome. We're into the last month of updates, so brace yourselves for the finish!