Obsidian Ridge - Jess Lebow [3]
"We'll deal with one piece at a time. First the king, then the Magistrates."
Behind them, the glass contraption sputtered and creaked.
"The batch is almost ready," said Jallal. He pulled out a handkerchief and cleaned the sticky, concentrated Elixir off his fingers. "I should leave you to your work."
Pello ignored his brother's prompting. "You must tell me, Brother, how are we going to kill the king? Does the Matron know? When will it happen?"
"Patience, Pello. This is not the time nor the place to be outlining the details. You will know what you need to soon enough." He handed his soiled handkerchief to his brother. "Now really, get back to work."
The older man nodded to his guards and headed for the sliding double doors at the other end of the slaughterhouse.
"You heard my brother," shouted Pello Tasca. "Get to work."
The workers began dismantling the Elixir contraption.
The older brother and his entourage passed through the beam of moonlight illuminating the slaughterhouse floor.
A shadow flashed over them, and one of the guards looked up-into eight steel blades, glimmering in the moonlight. The man had time to let out a single scream before his face and neck were cut to ribbons.
The figure hit the ground and tumbled past the entourage, coming to his feet between the older brother and the open slaughterhouse doors. Shrugging off his cloak, the figure lifted himself to his full height, then crouched, holding his arms wide as if he were preparing to grapple a wrestler. Dressed all in black, the figure wore a thick featureless mask. Simple, smooth, and black, the mask made him disappear into the dark, leaving only his piercing eyes and the heavy metal gauntlets on his hands-each with four sharpened steel blades-as his only distinguishing features.
"What sort of beast is this?" the older brother cried. Then realization struck the man, and he shivered. His voice dropping to a whisper, he sputtered, "The… the Claw!"
The guards pulled their swords. The air rang with the grinding sound of steel on steel, and the men spread out, surrounding the masked man.
The dark figure didn't give them the chance to trap him. Taking a single step, he somersaulted forward in a tight ball. Jallal tried to sidestep the tumbling mass, but he was too slow, and he left his feet, falling hard onto his back.
The Claw came out of his roll on top of his victim, the blades on his right hand buried deep in Jallal's gray beard.
"No!" shouted Pello, recoiling at the sight of his older brother pinned to the wood floor.
The guards closed in from all sides.
The Claw did not wait. Yanking his blades free, he stood, stepped, and tumbled, dodging between two of the armed men. Both took quick, short strikes, but both missed their target, and the Claw came to his feet again, outside the circle of guards.
Pello Tasca rushed to his brother's side. Dropping to his knees, he lifted his head from the floor, smearing blood all over the sleeves of his robes. "Jallal! Brother!"
Jallal Tasca sputtered, trying to speak. But it was no use. He fell back limp.
Pello shook his brother. "No! No! Open your eyes."
Jallal didn't respond.
"This can't be happening. This can't be happening." Pello looked up and pointed at the Claw. "Kill him!" he shouted. "Make him pay for this."
The guards charged, a wall of chain mail and sharpened steel. Their blades came down, and the Claw bashed them aside, his gauntlets catching the incoming swords and turning them away.
Flipping forward, the Claw bounded over his assailants. Upside down, hurtling through the air, his bladed hands flashed out, striking one guard on the shoulder and another along the back of the neck. Both collapsed to the floor, one clutching his arm, the other simply in a heap.
That was all the workers needed to see.
"I'm getting out of here!" shouted one, and he ran for the door. The rest followed.
"Where are you going?" shouted Pello. "I gave you an order.