Apollo spun to face the assassin, her cloak flying off her body and settling on the countertop, hooked on the crossbow bolt. The lithe figure was already turning to spring away, when Apollo threw out her arm and, with a flick of her wrist, sent something spinning after the assassin.
The barbed metal bolas expanded in the air and wrapped itself around the assassin’s legs, high-tensile wire binding them together. The assassin twisted in mid-air, clutching, trying to free them, but it was too late…
Author: cplumbwriter
The Black Gateway: Chapter One
Apollo kicked off from one of the wooden beams that framed the teahouse and grabbed hold of the slats on the roof of the stall opposite, pulling herself up easily. As she swung her leg up, there was a tearing sound, which she ignored.
Running over the wooden roofs of the stalls, a figure clad in billowing robes. He moved with incredible precision, stepping the incredible distances from beam to beam as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Slung across his back, Apollo recognised the steel curve of a crossbow…
The War Machine: Chapter Four
The little wooden shack stood sideways to the road that Whisper rode along. When she saw it, she pulled Silk over to the side and walked her up to the shack. This was where she would put things into action. If everything went to plan, nobody would go home empty-handed tonight.
Inside the shack was a table and one chair, as well as a simple straw bed. Whisper laid the War-Machine’s case carefully on the table and sat down on the bed, feeling the prickling ends of the straw on her hands. She had hours before the handover would come, and she didn’t know when the last time she had slept was…
The War Machine: Chapter Three
As she came closer to the top, she heard voices and froze. She was completely vulnerable here. If a guard heard her and happened to look down, it would be a moment’s work to knock her off the wall and onto the hard cobblestones below.
She breathed slowly, shifted slightly. The soft mortar was starting to crumble under her hooks. It wasn’t meant to stand up to this kind of treatment. The guards were grumbling about the Inquestor working them harder than they were used to. They were right above her…
The War Machine: Chapter Two
Almost immediately something was wrong. The flagstones of the floor trembled, seeming to warp and bend suddenly around the hapless book. Then, with astonishing speed, strong hands emerged from the stones. First immediately around the book, then further and further afield until the entire hallway was carpeted by them, swaying faintly. The hands directly around the book snapped shut around it, opening it wide and cracking the binding. The Armoury man winced. The hands went on pulling, more moving in, tearing the book apart. It reminded Whisper of wild dogs with a piece of meat, everything else subsumed in the thrill of violence. Paper flew, leather binding torn to shreds, finely-embossed gold-leafed lettering strewn like confetti.
The War Machine: Chapter One
The Arraxas Armoury was a huge building, by any standard. Perfectly circular from base to the top of the thick stone keep-wall, when you were close to it it hardly seemed to curve at all. It would be hell to break into. Whisper spent some time walking all the way around it. Then she turned around and did it the opposite way, to check they were the same. All seemed normal…
The Pit Dogs: Chapter Four
The giant was armoured in black, the broad-brimmed helm and curved sword of the Thraex shining dully in the hot sunlight. Decius felt a pang of sympathy for the big man, sweating in that heat-absorbing helmet. He raised the trident like he had seen Tertius do dozens of times in sparring, and prepared to fight…
The Pit Dogs: Chapter Three
The room had a hazy quality, light no longer coming in directly through the window but from an undefinable source. Decius removed his armour, which he now realised he had forgotten to take off in the armoury when he had left the arena. He let the segmented metal plates of the arm guard clatter to the floor. His blank, smooth secutor helmet fell alongside it. He looked at the faceless helm, its tiny circular eyes that were its only human feature…
The Pit Dogs: Chapter Two
The signal was given to commence, and Decius dropped his sword to a defensive position across his body. The woman was already running, almost within reach, and he barely managed to move his shield to catch her vicious opening strike. She recoiled from the guard, but turned the momentum into a swing with the other blade that scraped Decius’ armored left arm and threw up sparks.
The Pit Dogs: Chapter One
Decius didn’t hear from the villa for several days after that. On the eve of the fifth day, however, he caught wind of some gossip that chilled his blood. He crossed the half-mile to the villa without thinking about it and hammered his club-like fist on the wood of the door. After a second, a servant opened it, and Decius swept in with confidence borne of anger.
Valentinian! He knew the name of old.
Fidelis was eating at a long table, alone, when Decius found him.
“Ah, my boy. Do sit. Have a grape,” said the old man.
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