Sweep of the Blade Read online

  Karat’s headpiece flashed white. Seveline had scored a mortal wound. Karat swore and threw her sword to the ground. Seveline laughed and fell onto the Krahr’s defensive line.

  “Interesting,” Otubar said, watching Seveline massacre the knights from the rear.

  “What could we offer the Lees?” Ilemina sipped blue wine from her glass, her tone relaxed.

  “They want the trade station,” Maud said.

  Ilemina smiled. “Only that?”

  “The idea of a trade station has some merit,” Arland said, his gaze fixed on the crumbling Krahr line.

  Otubar made a low rumbling noise that may have been agreement or disdain. Maud didn’t know the Lord Consort well enough to tell.

  Ilemina’s eyebrows rose. “You too?”

  Otubar gave a barely perceptible shrug.

  “We can take the fleet to Seldak system, and I can reduce their fleets to space garbage,” Arland said. “We have military superiority in both numbers and the caliber of our ships. However, we can’t hold the system indefinitely. Lady Maud is a student of vampire history. Tell us, my Lady, what do we know about occupying the territory of other houses?”

  Thank you, that bus that just rolled over me, after you threw me under it, felt lovely. “Nobody in the history of the Holy Anocracy has ever won a partisan war. Any time an occupation of another House was attempted, it either failed or the weaker House ceased to exist.”

  “If you count both Sedlak and Kozor, there are almost a million beings between the two planets,” Arland said. “We cannot occupy their territory, so the only recourse would annihilation.”

  Arland’s destroyer flashed before Maud’s eyes. Stationary targets, like planets and defensive installations on moons, had no chance against space fleets. They followed a fixed orbit and they couldn’t dodge. Launching a kinetic projectile or a barrage of missiles when the computers could calculate the precise position of your target was child’s play. House Krahr could simply sit back and bombard the two planets until nothing alive remained on the surface. An icy needle pierced her spine. They were sitting here discussing potential death of a million beings. It wasn’t an abstract discussion on the morality of it; it wasn’t hypothetical. They really could do it. Whatever was said here in the next few minutes would determine if the next generation of Kozor and Sedlak children would ever grow up.

  “Some would see it as the only option,” Ilemina said.

  “We are not a House that would stoop to genocide against our own kind,” Arland said.

  Ilemina smiled.

  Seveline was climbing the pillar.

  “Lady Maud?” Ilemina asked. “Do you have any thoughts?”

  Maud sipped her wine. Her throat had suddenly gone dry. “It seems to me that since Sedlak and Kozor found themselves resorting to plundering trade vessels, they are short of funds.”

  “They are stuck on a remote system with no means to expand their military,” Otubar said.

  Seveline waived the flag from the pillar’s top.

  “So, there is very little gain to be had from wiping them out,” Maud said. “Financially, it’s a loss. It would cost a fortune in fuel and munitions. From a military stand point, it’s also a loss. House Krahr would gain no territory, resources, or strategic advantage. If one considers it a matter of honor, there is little of it in a victory over an opponent who never had a chance. It would do nothing to enhance the already stellar reputation of House Krahr.”

  Ilemina chuckled into her wine. “Such flattery, Lady Maud. They have raided our ships. Satisfaction must be achieved.”

  “And I’m sure Lord Arland would crush them so completely that by the time he finished, the only space-worthy vessels in the system will be escape pods.” Maud drank more wine. “It seems to me that once the pirating adventures of our esteemed guests become public knowledge, the trade would shift. The two systems will whither and rot without their main source of income. The trade will have to go somewhere.”

  “It will go to Sarenbar,” Arland said. “Or it can come here. Bringing it here via a trade station would allow us to control the terms of engagement. Placing the Lees in a key role will ensure its profitability.”

  “You would allow strangers into our secure space.” Ilemina’s face hardened.

  Arland faced her. “Eventually we will have to interact with the rest of the galaxy by means other than invasion and war. We can’t kill everyone, mother.”

  Otubar cleared his throat. “We have a visitor.”

  Tellis, the groom, was walking toward the tabl.

  “A bit of swagger in his step,” Ilemina observed. “Do something about it, won’t you, dear?”

  “Yes,” Otubar and Arland said in unison.

  Maud braced herself.

  Tellis stopped about eighteen inches too close.

  Her father once explained to her that since vampires were aggressive and violent by nature, their interactions had to be strictly regimented. All of the rules and ceremony ensured that nobody would be casually offended. A vampire would have to actively ignore customs to cause offense, and when they did so, it was always deliberate.

  An appropriate distance between two potential enemies was about five feet, far enough for both to draw weapons if necessary. Allies stood a little closer, three and a half feet, just out of arm’s length. Friends stood within touching distance, and family members often allowed for only a few inches of personal space.

  Tellis had come close enough to brush against the table, which put him within three and a half feet of Ilemina and Otubar but only two feet away from Maud. He could reach out and touch her, and he was smiling. When vampires bared their teeth like that, it was done for one reason only: to impress. It was the grin of an apex predator demonstrating how awesome he was.

  It was also an obvious insult whichever way you spun it. Either he didn’t consider her belonging to Clan Krahr and, therefore, not worthy of basic courtesies, or he was deliberately overly familiar with another’s fiancé. A human equivalent would be to put his arm around a woman celebrating her engagement to another man and smirk while doing it. Tellis couldn’t have been more obvious about it if he’d had leered and asked her if she was free tonight.

  Out of the corner of her eye, Maud could see Arland’s face. His expression was thoroughly relaxed. In fact, she had never seen him so seemingly tranquil. He looked a hair away from a dreamy smile.

  Oh crap.

  “Excellent game,” Tellis said, “Our deepest compliments.”

  Lord Otubar smiled. It was enough to give human children nightmares. “Interesting tactics.”

  “Yes,” Lady Ilemina said. “We quite enjoyed this revealing glimpse into the minds of House Kozor and House Serak. Truly, the cooperation between your two houses is praiseworthy. Don’t you think so, Arland?”

  “An example to us all,” Arland said.

  Tellis’ eyebrows rose slightly. He wasn’t an idiot, and he had realized that they had overplayed their hand, revealing more than they intended. He had two options now: he could beat a graceful retreat, or he could barrel on ahead. Given that he was a male vampire knight, he valiantly chose the second and threw himself into assault with all the subtlety of a battering ram.

  “Speaking of examples, we were all in awe of Lord Arland’s escapades on Karhari.”

  Maud drank her wine, killing a wince before it started. Once she had paid the blood debt for her husband’s murder, she had started looking for ways to escape Karhari. In a desperate gamble, she had sent a message to Dina with a random courier, never expecting it to arrive. She’d included coordinates of a Road Lodge. Karhari lodges were rough. They served as waypoints for mercenaries, bandits, caravan raiders, and whatever other refuse floated in on the winds of the wastes. It was a dangerous place, but she had to try for Helen’s sake and her own.

  Then Dina arrived, bringing her werewolf and Arland with her. The moment Arland, in his top of the line armor, stepped into the lodge, Maud had known there would be a fight. And s
he was right. Arland had recorded himself during the brawl and the recording had gone viral throughout the Holy Anocracy.

  Tellis was still smiling. “How many attackers did you take on? Was it four or five, I can’t remember?”

  “I was a little busy and I didn’t have time to make them count off. In a real battle, things get a little hectic.” Arland was still floating in his own private cloud of Zen.

  “Would you care to give us a private demonstration, Lord Marshal? I’m afraid that the game hadn’t quite lasted as long as we would’ve liked. We still need a bit of exercise. If you don’t mind, that is.”

  He did not just say that. Apparently, House Krahr was so weak that Tellis hadn’t broken a sweat.

  Arland looked bored. “I haven’t finished my wine. If I take the time to engage in a demonstration, it will be warm by the time I return.”

  Tellis blinked. Maud hid a smile. Yes, he did just tell you that his wine getting warm was more important than you. Tellis would have abandon all pretense of propriety to goad Arland into action.

  “Of course, if the Lord Marshal is too fatigued from chasing his unwilling human bride to redeem the honor of his House, I understand completely. We have all enjoyed your noble pursuit, however, I do believe the lady finds you wanting.” Tellis looked at Maud and smiled.

  Yes, that would do it.

  Arland sighed and rose to his feet, looking put upon as if someone had asked him to take out the trash in the middle of a good movie.

  “I’ll have your wine refreshed, dear,” Ilemina said. “Go and have some fun.”

  Arland turned to Tellis. “If you insist. Full armor, primed weapons, first down?”

  Tellis’ grin didn’t die all the way but definitely faltered. Under normal circumstances, vampire weapons had the same limitations as Earth weapons. They were made of an advanced alloy that provided greater durability, and the vampire metalsmiths had developed weapon making into an art, but if one tried to chop a large tree down with a vampire sword, the sword would break before the tree did. Priming a weapon flooded it with Rathan Rhun, the Shining Blood. Nobody, not even her father, knew exactly what Rathan Rhun was. It was red and glowing, and it flowed through the weapon emitting a telltale whine, spreading through the metal just like its name suggested it would. Once you heard a blood weapon being primed, you never forgot it. A blood mace wielded by a strong vampire knight would knock down a telephone pole.

  Blood weapons were not used for practice. Arland had just suggested a fight under battle conditions, to the point where combatants were out when they were unable to continue.

  “Primed weapons?’ Tellis asked.

  “You are the one who wanted exercise.” Arland looked at Tellis. “Was my lord under the impression that the fight at the Road Lodge was an exhibition bout? You asked for an accurate demonstration. I have honored your request.”

  Arland raised his head and bellowed, “Bring our guests their blood weapons! Gather to honor their bravery for they are about to do battle. And someone alert the medic. We shall require full use of his talents today.”

  Chapter 12

  This was stupid, Maud decided. In fact, this was one of the dumbest things she had seen Arland do, and he was, by no means, a stupid man.

  Arland eyed the two Serak knights that stepped forward to join Tellis. Both held themselves with the seasoned confidence of veterans. They had fought before, they had won, and they didn’t find Arland’s presence or his reputation especially intimidating. In a word, they seemed ready, and Maud didn’t like it one bit.

  Arland raised his voice. “Are these the only brave knights House Serak has to offer?”

  What is he doing?

  He looked around, spreading his arms. “Is there no one else?”

  Two more knights stood up from their tables on House Kozor’s side, Onda and a grizzled male knight, who looked like he would knock a charging bull out with one punch. Great, just great.

  “We are up to five,” Arland said. “Fantastic.”

  Maud grabbed her glass and drank.

  “The Road Lodge offered me seven, but if five brave souls is the best your two mighty Houses can scrounge, I’ll make do.”

  What? The wine went down the wrong way, and she choked.

  Four more knights stood up, two from Serak, two from Kozor.

  “That’s more like it,” Arland declared.

  Nine opponents. He’d gone insane. That was the only explanation.

  The weapon racks were being brought onto the lawn. The knights armed themselves. The sharp whine of blood weapons being primed sliced the quiet. Arland hefted his mace. Their stares crossed, and he grinned at her.

  “He’s gone mad,” she muttered.

  “Nexus,” Otubar said.

  She glanced at him. “I don’t follow, my lord.”

  “We have advanced quite far from the days when this castle was built,” Ilemina said. “These days the conflicts between Houses are decided in space. The ground battles are precious few. I doubt either Kozor or Serak have ever truly fought in one.”

  “Nexus permits no air battles,” Otubar said. “On Nexus, ground is fought and won inch by inch, watered with blood and fertilized with corpses.”

  “I knew I would have to send my son to Nexus twenty years ago.” Ilemina smiled. “His father and I did everything we could to make sure he came back alive. This is what he does best. Trust him.”

  A young knight ran up to Arland and held out a round shield, about eighteen inches across, made of the same dark alloy as the syn-armor. A half-moon indentation had been cut out on one side, just large enough to trap an arm. A buckler, she realized. Not just a bucker, her buckler. She had shown him the buckler and blade technique during one of their practice sessions at Dina’s Inn. He had asked about Earth sword fighting and she had gone through several different styles with him. At the time, he’d scoffed at the buckler. Vampire shields were obsolete. The syn-armor offered superior protection without encumbering and the only shields still in use were massive and designed to protect the wielder during bombardment. Vampires either dual-wielded or favored enormous two-handed weapons that made the most of their strength and stamina. After she’d stabbed him a couple of times, he had changed his tune.

  Arland gripped the buckler with his left hand. The shield whined, priming. Veins of red streaked it, and as he turned the buckler, Maud saw its red tinted edge. It was razor sharp.

  Aww. He had a custom shield made based on her buckler.

  Tellis, carrying twin blades, laughed. “Are you so poor that you couldn’t afford a proper shield or so stupid that you think that little toy will protect you?”

  “All in good time,” Arland said. “Wait, and I’ll show you.”

  Ilemina leaned forward, focused on Arland. “A shield. Interesting. But why so small?”

  Otubar grimaced. “Because it’s lively.”

  The nine vampires spread out, encircling Arland. Suddenly she understood. Because there were nine of them, arranged around him in a rough circle, each knight only had a forty-degree angle to work with. The ideal distance for combat was about the length of your weapon plus a step. If they had stayed at the ideal distance, they would be nearly touching. They needed room to work, so instinctively they backed up, giving themselves space, but now they were so far away from Arland, they might as well announce their attacks before launching them. He had more than enough time to react, and they could only come at him two or three at a time, or they would get in each other’s way.

  The knights realized it, too, but there was no time to plan any kind of strategy. The longer they just stood there, the more it looked like they were afraid, and their plan to humiliate Arland was going belly up.

  “Today!” Arland bellowed.

  An older knight on his left charged, the huge two-handed sword slicing through the air in a vicious arc. Arland dodged. The vampire’s momentum carried him past Arland who smashed his mace into the back of the other man’s helmet. The force of the blow kno
cked the knight to the ground. He rolled and lay still.

  Onda and a blond knight to her right charged at the same time and collided. A leaner red headed knight dashed in at Arland, thrusting his sword. Funny thing about bucklers: held close to the body, they offered very little protection, but when held out at arm’s length, not only did they protect most of you, they also cut your opponent’s view down to nothing. Arland let the blow glance off the buckler, directing it to his right and brought his mace down like a hammer on the knight’s exposed right shoulder. Bone crunched as the armor failed to fully absorb the force of the hit. The red headed vampire dropped his sword, but Arland was already turning to meet Tellis attacking him from behind.

  Tellis’ left sword met Arland’s mace, his right glanced off the buckler, leaving Tellis wide open for a fraction of a second, and Arland sank a vicious front kick in his stomach. Tellis stumbled back.

  A broad shouldered female knight leaped at Arland from the left, while a tall male knight charged from the right. He stepped back, and the female knight plowed into the male, both collapsing in a heap. Arland smashed the woman’s back with his mace. She screamed and rolled off the knight flailing under her. The knight tried to rise and got a face full of buckler.

  Onda smashed her hammer into Arland’s back. He must’ve sensed the blow but with no way to avoid it, he simply hunched his shoulders and took the hit. Onda must have expected him to go down, because she stared at him for half a second. Maud knew from experience that giving Arland half a second was a lethal mistake. He spun around, putting all of his weight behind a horizontal strike. His mace connected with Onda’s ribs. The hit swept her off her feet. It was almost comical – one moment she was there, brandishing her hammer, and the next she was gone, lying somewhere on the grass.

  The six knights still standing attacked. Arland worked through his attackers with methodical precision, crushing limbs, smashing bone, ramming his buckler into their joints. They swarmed him, and he broke them one by one, until they could no longer move. It was a cold, controlled rage, harnessed and channeled into carnage.

  Finally, only Tellis and Arland remained standing. Arland bled from a cut on his left temple. Gouges and dents marked his armor. The right side of his jaw swelled. Maud feverishly tried to remember all the hits he had taken. There was no way to tell if he was okay or bleeding inside that damn armor.