Legacy

Chapter 8 - Fight or Flight

By the time Falstis lead a column of the Iron Army back to the village everything was deserted. There was no one left to interrogate, not so much as a chicken had been left behind. Meals sat half eaten and cold upon kitchen tables; laundry was left hanging on the line; and every last keg of ale at The Wild Hunt had been broken open, their contents long since dried upon the floor. Only the black stone house of Solomon remained sealed tightly shut. A note stuck to the door simply said collectors would be along in few weeks to pick up the contents, and if the Praxis Republic wished to borrow anything they should wait till then.

When Falstis reached the smouldering remains of the farm he found nothing but blackened wood and ash. The fire had caught the wind and burned what was left of the fields to the ground. There was only the smallest traces left of the bodies of his men. He stopped to fill two flasks with their ashes before wrapping them in black silk and handing them to a subordinate who stored them carefully.

He stroked his chin in thought as he looked at the careful destruction around him and smiled. Gazing off in each direction he tried to place himself in the mind of his prey and work out which way the rabbit would run. They had, at most, two days' head start. There was time, the rabbit could run but the fox was a patient hunter. He divided the column in half sending them to sweep the roads leading to the two largest towns nearby and to pass the message. They'd be useless in the hunt but they might flush the prey out into the open. No, he needed proper hunters for this job, agents placed in waiting to lay traps for the young heir and his hound. Jacob would have to do for now. His six razorbacks were chomping at the bit to be unleashed. Heather had gone off to pursue a different angle and left Falstis to the hunt.

Falstis took a metal tube out of his bag and carefully unrolled the map Keffa and Zolo had painstakingly made. It radiated out around the village for many roheck, carefully drawn lines showing the elevations revealing hidden hills and valleys. Coded symbols marked the points of interest. He and Jacob traced out different paths before coming to a lone watchtower deep in the woods marked with supplies. Falstis tapped the spot and Jacob laughed nodding in agreement.

"Send out the beasts and chase them up towards Barren Ravine. I'll go along the road and send orders to gather more men further northwest at Marsh Crossing before sweeping back around from the other side. If they are foolish enough to stop to at the lookout for any length of time, we should be able to box them in at the Ravine," Falstis commanded.

"Agreed, Volton, my pets will enjoy the hunt."

"Jacob, we don't need them alive but we do need the bodies. Try not to make too much of a mess."

"Oh aye, don't worry about that. My pets are trained to leave their prey intact enough for identification."

***

Archon sat peering out of the window of the lookout. He'd been disappointed to discover that the villagers hadn't been keeping up the maintenance on the place as they should have been. There were a few empty jars of wine and most of the supplies were gone. There was enough preserved food and water to last a week but there should have been two months' worth of supplies – enough for him and the prince to cross the remains of the empire. From the looks of it, some of the younger villagers had been using it as a place to come and party.

The lack of supplies and the small cache of coins had thrown an unexpected kink in Kane's plans. He'd foolishly believed that he and the young prince would be able to avoid populated areas and travel across the back country, but now they'd have to stop in one of the towns or cities to trade for supplies.

The young prince had taken the brief respite to look at the metal box containing his family's legacy. It was a simple box of dull grey metal riveted around the edges, with a gold blood lock clasping it shut and the edges sealed with black wax. The mystery of it excited him and he'd had to resist the urge to open it since Kane had handed it to him.