God of Night by Tom Lloyd

Author:Tom Lloyd [Lloyd, Tom]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: tbr
ISBN: 9781473224667
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Published: 2020-10-01T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 26

Dawn crawled heavy and damp across the autumn sky. Lynx woke up cold. The hollow ache of hard liquor scraped at his gut and the ghost of nightmares haunted the edges of sight. The stink of burned flesh and scorched earth remained thick in the air as he got up and pulled his coat on. His dreams had been of To Lort prison. Of the mines beneath it and the stink of death about the place. The scars on his back ached as he walked through the grey gloom of morning, trying to shake the memories from his body, though his injuries had long ago healed.

The dead lay where they’d fallen. There was no time to bury them and few enough hands for the job anyway. Scavengers reigned here now. Though Lynx felt shamed by it he knew there was nothing they could do. The Cards would be back on the march soon enough today. They could spare no energy for digging pits.

‘End justifies the means, eh?’ someone called from behind him.

Lynx paused and saw Sitain following him, red-eyed and pale-cheeked. He doubted he looked much better.

‘No, it doesn’t.’

That made Sitain stop in her tracks. She gave him a curious look then pulled her coat tight around her body and continued towards him.

‘Then what the fuck are we doing here?’

‘What we need to do,’ he said, hating the platitude even as he spoke it. ‘This is war and we’re in strange times. Doesn’t mean we’re justified in everything we do. Folk just prefer to think of it that way.’

‘Deepest black, Lynx, don’t you ever let up?’ Sitain shook her head. ‘Just pick a side. We either need to do this or we shouldn’t have got so deep in.’

‘It’s war – a whole lot of nasty shit happens. I’m guessing there’s more to come. Doesn’t make me want to just shrug at the death of thousands or claim the moral high ground.’

‘I’m not saying …’ She paused then her shoulders sagged. ‘I ain’t glad at the sight, but what else could we do? They were soldiers and it’s not like it’s the first betrayal we’ve managed in the last month.’

‘Let’s just hope the ends are what we want,’ Lynx replied. ‘What do you make of this crowd?’

‘Sons of the Wind? I dunno, not seen much of them yet. Not as much as you. Everyone says they’re crazy, but any Militant Order devoted to Banesh has to be, doesn’t it? How about you? Got to know that one, Kalozhin, a bit, didn’t you?’

‘Oh they’re crazy, no doubt about that. Whether they’re any crazier than us I can’t say any more. This plan of Toil’s – would anyone sane sign up to it? And yesterday Anatin had to almost threaten Foren – gentle soul Foren, who’s little more’n a clerk who can just about shoot straight – to prevent him joining our assault on the holy valley. Even if we succeed, this might be a suicide mission.’

‘For you mebbe,’ Sitain said with forced humour.

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