Chapter 20: Undertow

Elaene heard the explosions first.

She hadn't been working. There was still a schedule to fix for the next few weeks, some assistance for some of the local priests and priestesses who were overwhelmed with charges, and prayers to be said for Lito and her interrogation session with Parish.

Elaene was too worried to sleep and too tired to work. She would alternate between pacing the cramped stone quarters she lived in, or sitting in a corner, wracked with shaking and dry sobs.

The explosions came in quick stages-- Elaene would later decide that the Carpenter's men were being extraordinarily well coordinated. There was a muffled bang, which sounded like it came from far away, and then a one or two smaller, but louder, ones near her.

She threw on her priestesses robe and headed out at once. The streets, already filled with people going about their busy day, were remarkably calm. No one was screaming, few were showing outright signs of panic. There was a murmur of babble as people tried to figure out the cause of the noise, which increased as there were no visible indicators of damage or oncoming destruction.

Then the Carpenter's men arrived.

There was a group of about five that entered the main square around which Elaene lived. They were well armored, and three of the five carried odd looking crossbows, in addition to swords and other weapons.

The gathered crowd closed together, and their sounds withdrew to a hush. Elaene found herself pressed in on all sides, somehow in the middle of a group.

"This city," one of the men said, "belongs to the Carpenter, now. Please continue to go about your daily lives. We intend to cause no interruption to you in Cael Proper. If you will not cause a disturbance, neither will we."

Nobody said anything, at first. Then one person-- safely anonymous, Elaene supposed, shouted out a challenge. "The city guards will stop you," he yelled. "We don't want any murderous lunatics running this city!"

There was a somewhat subdued clamor of assent.

The Carpenter's man nodded. He looked towards one of the stone buildings that circled the square.

"Bold words," he said, grinning. "Do you live here?" He pointed to the building. It looked residential to Elaene. It could have been the house of a family. There could be children inside. "No?" the man continued. "I suppose it doesn't matter."

Two of the men kept their crossbows trained on the crowd, discouraging interference.

The other two men walked over to the door, as the speaker watched, impassively.

One pulled out a small bag, and took out a brush. He opened the bag and dipped the brush into it. The brush came out sticky with an obsidian black substance, looking like some kind of tar. He slathered it liberally over the door frame, coating the crack between the metal door and the stone lintel. He stepped back, and waited.

After a few dozen heartbeats, the two men were back in motion. The walked over to the windows and busted them through with the hilts of their swords. Alarmed yells and screams came from the inside of the house, but the Carpenter's men ignored them. They opened another bag they had with them, containing small sacks. These they lit on fire, and threw into the small windows.

Everything burned.

* * * * * * * *

The crowd hadn't put up much of a fight after that, but Elaene could hear the screams and the explosions from other demonstrations throughout Cael Proper.

Elaene bit her knuckles until they bled, shaking in her small quarters.

The Carpenter's peace was short lived, she thought. It was based on fear and submission, and not anything rational. If enough of the people rose up...

She shook her head to clear it. If the people rose up, many would die. Lito's guard had been more or less wiped out, except the fifty that she had sent down the Rush. The King in the Deep may have preserved them in their struggle, he may have not.

Lito. Lito could be imprisoned, she could be dead. The woman that Elaene swore to guide and to take care of.

Spiritually, some traitorous voice from inside counseled her. Spiritually alone. You can pray for her just as well here as in there-- perhaps even better. You don't need to throw your life away.

Elaene got up with sudden decision, and put on her best priestly garbs. She headed out of her quarters, head held high.

Inside, she was shaking with fear and worry. Had Lito killed Parish, during the interrogation? That would have been for the best. The guards she had used to capture Parish were likely dead, the guards that Parish had brought with him were certainly dead. The only people who knew about her betrayal, apart from her, were Lito and Parish. Lito wouldn't tell-- and if Parish was dead, neither could he.

This still could work.

She walked up to the nearest Carpenter's man that she could find.

“Excuse me,” she said, in a firm tone. “I'm the counselor for the head of the guard. I'm here to offer my services to the Carpenter.”

* * * * * * * *

It hadn't been easy. The Carpenter's man hadn't believed her, at first, but by detailing some of Lito's non-damaging personal information, and by proving her knowledge as a priestess, Elaene had convinced him.

They walked along the bridge towards Raven's Run. As they walked, Elaene could see two gaping holes, on either side of the river, blown into the Wall. They revealed a cavernous interior, and darkness beyond that.

Elaene was amazed. As the marvel of Fiach, the Lady of the Soil, Elaene had assumed that the Wall would be straight and solid all the way through. She knew that there were some storage tunnels, but Elaene could only picture small caverns. Nothing to this extent. It worried her.

They lead her through Raven's Run, which also had holes blown in it from street to street. Had the Carpenter burrowed under Raven's Run, too? Or were the caves already there to begin with? Elaene did not know.

The guards roughly lead her deeper and deeper into Raven's Run. They occasionally asked the other guards about the Carpenter's whereabouts, and the responses compelled them down stairs and through winding corridors. They finally they stopped before a small door.

“He's in here,” the guard said. He knocked a few times, in a particular pattern.

The door opened. A thin man stood behind it. He had dirty blonde hair, and an oddly joyous expression on his face.

“Come in, come in,” the man said. “Carpenter-- at your service.”

“She wanted to see you,” the guard said. “She said she was the Sunset Knight's priestess.”

“That's right,” Elaene said. She tried to keep her voice as firm as possible. “My name is Elaene Alkalae. I was Lito's counselor. But Ard-Abthen does not concern itself with the political disputes of the Island Beneath. I am instructed to assist you-- rather, the commander of your guard-- with their spiritual needs until such time as Ard-Abthen can send a replacement.”

The Carpenter smiled. “Isn't that nice,” he said. “Unfortunately, the head of my guard is gravely injured at the moment. Could you serve me instead?”

Elaene thought quickly. “I'm afraid not,” she said. “There is a priest who can do so, however. He would have been Altor Caeton's counselor. I apologize, but we can only perform the duty that we were sent to do.”

“I understand,” the Carpenter said. “Unfortunately, my men were a little hasty when they found the King's quarters. They killed him, quite viciously and against my orders-- as well as his retinue. The priest was among them, I believe.”

“That is grave news,” Elaene said. “Ard-Abthen will not take this lightly.”

The Carpenter shrugged. “I will, of course, have the men responsible punished. You can be there to witness it yourself, if you like.”

“That may not be necessary,” Elaene said.

“Suit yourself.”

The Carpenter paused, in thought. “As a priestess... you are able to lend spiritual aid. The head of my guard is injured, but he is still alive. Perhaps you could pray for him? Come in-- you can see him for yourself.”

“I would be honored to so do.” Elaene entered the room, silently thanking the King in the Deep that the leader of the Carpenter's guard was a man. She would continue the farce for as long as she had to, and Ard-Abthen would send a male priest as a replacement.

She stopped short as she saw the man on the table. It was Parish.

“Paene Umber,” the Carpenter said. “He was captured, in our last hours of preparation, by Lito Laeth and her forces. They must have tortured him terribly.”

Paene-- or Parish-- lay on the table. His arm was wrapped in a bandage, but she could smell dried blood and see a faint residue of red on the bandage. Lito must have cut deep through his arm. From the smell, Elaene thought it may have been infected. That didn't bode well.

“Is he recovering?” Elaene asked. Her fingernails dug into her palm, and beads of sweat ran down the back of her neck.

“My healers think so,” the Carpenter said. “It is always hard to tell, in cases like these.”

He signed. “I had such hopes. He was going to rendezvous with an agent of the Sunset Knight's, in an attempt to treat with her.” He turned back to Paene, and put a hand on the man's brow. “I didn't want to let him,” the Carpenter said. “What would I do without my Shoulder Soldier? I would be lost in the wilderness.”

The Carpenter turned back towards Elaene, and smiled. “But then I heard that this trusted agent was a priestess,” he said. “And all my fears were dispelled. I let him treat with this person, in an attempt to settle my disputes with the King Enclosed peacefully. And... you see, this happened.”

Elaene felt her heart drop in her chest. She controlled her facial expressions as much as she could, setting her face into an impassive mask. Inside she was screaming.

“Very curious, that,” the Carpenter said. “I'm very eager to hear the whole story, straight from your mouth-- and I will hear it.” The Carpenter strode forward, his smile growing wider. “Right. Now.”

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