Chapter 20

Rome feinted to the right, shifted back to his left and brought the axe around in a low, whistling sweep.

His opponent, a squat, heavyset man with a gray beard and thick jowls, brought his short sword around, redirecting the blow so that it skipped harmlessly past him. He stepped in towards Rome, moving faster than seemed possible for his age and size. The sword flashed towards Rome’s chest, who barely got his shield up in time to stop it.

With a wicked smile on his face, the heavyset man hooked his foot behind Rome’s and threw his shoulder into the shield.

Rome stumbled back, throwing his arms wide to catch his balance, and found himself looking at a blade held up to his chin.

His smile stretching wider, the heavyset man lowered the blade and backed up. With a mocking bow to Rome and to the watching recruits he said, “That is how you handle a taller, bigger opponent in battle.” He spun the short sword in his hand, then tossed it to one of the recruits, who caught it awkwardly.

“Well done, Sergeant,” Rome said. He’d known Lucent was going to pull that trick and he’d left himself open to it—this was a demonstration for new recruits—but it still surprised him how fast the old sergeant was after all these years.

He felt a presence then and looked up. Lowellin was standing at the edge of the practice field, both hands resting on the black staff, staring at him. Rome had a sinking feeling he wasn’t going to like this. Handing the practice weapon to Lucent he patted the older man on the shoulder and walked over to Lowellin.

“What do you want?” Rome asked.

“You have learned that the Guardian Gulagh is in Nelton. I assume this means you believe what I am saying now.”

Rome crossed his arms and gave Lowellin a long look. Lowellin’s eyes were like chipped quartz today. Whatever he was thinking, it didn’t show there. “Yeah. I think I do. Something’s going on anyway.”

“I can wait no longer. I have to be sure of the origin of your axe.”

“I’ve told you everything I remember.”

“It’s what you don’t remember that concerns me. That’s what I’m here for.” Lowellin took a step forward and reached toward Rome’s face.

“Hold on,” Rome said, backing up. “What are you doing?”

“He blocked your memories. I can release them.”

“I don’t want you touching me. Why are these memories you say I lost so important to you anyway?”

“If I am right, and that axe is what I think it is, then you are the one who freed Melekath.”

Rome gaped at him. “You’re crazy! How would I…? You think I released Melekath?”

“There is only one way to be sure,” Lowellin said, raising his hand once again.

Rome realized that a number of the recruits were looking at them. “Let’s talk about this somewhere else.” He led Lowellin off to a quiet area.

“You’re saying Melekath hid my own memories from me. Why would he do that?”

“So he would have more time before he was noticed. He knows I am watching.”

Rome nodded. “That makes sense. But I still don’t want you in my head.”

“You don’t care that Melekath hid your own memories from you?”

“I don’t know for sure that he did that. I have only your word on it.”

“So you think maybe you just forgot? Is that it?” Frustration was becoming evident in Lowellin’s voice.

Rome shrugged. “I’m not sure what happened.”

“Don’t you wonder what else he might have hidden from you?”

“Yeah. And I also wonder what you’re hiding from me.”

Lowellin’s anger was apparent now. His voice was sharp, his gaze hard. “I tire of your constant suspicion of me. We have the same enemy. We are on the same side. You can trust me.”

“We may have the same enemy, but that doesn’t mean I trust you. I think you are hiding things from me.”

“Of course I am,” Lowellin snapped. “As you hide things from me. Because we are allies does not mean we must share everything. Nor does it mean we must like each other. All that is required is a recognition of a common enemy. Are you too dense to see that?”

Rome took a deep breath and stared hard at Lowellin. His gut told him not to trust this…thing that wore a man’s form. But he also knew that what Lowellin said was true. They had a common enemy. He needed all the allies he could get.

“Tell me what you’re doing to Quyloc.”

“I’m not doing anything to him. What he does, he has chosen of his own free will.”

“You know what I’m talking about. You’re sending him to some kind of other world, telling him he can find some kind of weapon there.”

“And it is there.”

“He says he nearly died.”

“More than once. What he is attempting is extremely dangerous.”

“I don’t like it.”

“This is war. People die in war. You are a soldier. You, of all people, should understand this. The weapon he is looking for is vital to our war against Melekath. Why would you think such a weapon could be obtained with no risk?”

Rome stared at him. He made sense, everything he said made sense. His gut told him not to trust this man, but his head said wars were not won without taking risks. All at once he decided.

“Okay.”

“You will let me release the memories?”

Rome nodded.

“Do not move. Once I start this, hold very still. I am trying to bring out one specific memory without damaging others. If you move, I cannot be responsible for the result.”

“You better know what you’re doing,” Rome replied.

Lowellin placed the fingers of one hand on Rome’s forehead. Rome stiffened. It felt as if something was crawling around in his mind. He wanted very badly to strike Lowellin, but he held still.

“This will hurt,” Lowellin said.

A sudden, sharp, searing pain and Rome gritted his teeth, his hands balling into fists. There was a tearing sensation and all at once he remembered. It all came flooding back, the creature that came up out of the earth, killing the rest of his men, the tunnel into the earth, the vast wall underground.

“That’s it.” Lowellin pulled back and Rome slumped and almost fell.

“It wasn’t an axe when I pulled it out, though I remember hoping that was what it would be,” Rome breathed. “It started to move, then it changed, taking on the shape of an axe.” He drew a shaky hand across his brow. “What is that thing?”

“I don’t know for sure. I haven’t been able to learn that.”

“Is it alive?”

Lowellin gave him a strange look. “I don’t know that either.” He started to leave, then paused. “Be careful with that thing. It may turn on you.”

Rome stared after him, thinking. The axe might be alive. He’d found it underground, stuck in the wall of the prison. He was the one who freed Melekath? It was too much to take in.

Tairus came walking up right then. “Are you feeling okay? You don’t look very good.”

“It’s not every day you find out you caused the end of the world.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Later,” Rome said, turning away. “I need to find Quyloc right now.”

He left Tairus staring after him and went to Quyloc’s office. His secretary, Robson, looked up when he came in and without a word jumped up and opened the door for him. Quyloc was standing at the window behind his desk, staring out.

Rome slumped into the chair in front of Quyloc’s desk. “You won’t believe what just happened,” Rome said, still having trouble grappling with it.

Quyloc turned around. Rome broke off what he’d been about to say and gaped at him. Quyloc’s hands had turned white. There were white speckles on his face and neck. “What happened to you?”

“The Pente Akka,” Quyloc said grimly, sitting down.

“Will it go away?”

“No, Rome. I don’t think so.”

“Are you okay?”

Quyloc gave him a wan smile. “I think so. For now, anyway. I might not get so lucky next time.”

“What in the hell have we gotten ourselves into?”

“I don’t know. I really don’t. What happened to you? You look terrible.”

“Yeah, I guess I do.” Rome rubbed his eyes and then sighed. “I think maybe I’m the one who let Melekath out.”

Now it was Quyloc’s turn to be incredulous. “Where did you get that idea?”

“Lowellin. He did something to me, pulled out some lost memories from our little trip into the Gur al Krin. I know now where I got the black axe.” He then proceeded to tell Quyloc what he’d learned. As he did so, the memories began to return for Quyloc as well so that by the time he got to the part where they first saw the wall of the prison, Quyloc stopped him.

“How could we both forget this?”

“Lowellin says Melekath made us forget, to buy him more time.”

“When you pulled that thing out of the wall, what made it turn into an axe?”

“The only thing I can think is that I was thinking about an axe, hoping that’s what it was. If that makes any sense.”

“Somehow it responded to your thoughts.”

Rome shrugged. “Maybe. I don’t see where it makes much difference now. I guess Lowellin’s been telling us the truth all along.”

“It looks that way.”

Rome sighed. “Gorim’s tail, Quyloc, I think we might be in over our heads on this one.”

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