Page 78 of Shardless

Skye grinned as he pulled out another shadow crystal. That was a far more effective strategy.

More of those undead monsters had split off from the main group and were headed towards him. Making a split-second decision, Skye charged at one of the creatures that ran ahead of the throng. These things were fast, but he was faster. Shifting his weight at the last moment, he dodged the creature’s blade, grabbing it by the arm and crushing its bones in his iron grip. Its sword clattered to the ground as Skye’s other hand swept forward to catch it by the neck. Twisting his body, he hurled the writhing corpse back into the advancing crowd of reanimated dead. They flew back, falling to the ground in a heap.

They didn’t stay down long. In fact, Skye could already see that the corpses were beginning to regain their feet. He was only slowing the creatures down. He searched the area around him, frantically looking for anything that could be used as a more effective weapon.

Most of the market stalls that lined the square had been destroyed, the wooden counters hacked apart and the crates of goods and wares overturned and strewn across the ground. Making his way to a stand that was still relatively intact, Skye’s hands gripped at a gnarled beam that used to be part of a fruit stand. The post was nearly eight feet tall and rooted in the ground—a product of an obscenely expensive earth spell that could create architectural structures from living trees. He suspected that the awning of the small shop had once been formed from a canopy of leaves, but any and all greenery had been burned away.

He pulled at the young tree, groaning as he felt the muscles in his arms strain. He pushed more aether into the augmentation spell, bolstering his strength, and felt the plant start to give way. With a final jerk, he ripped the tree from the ground in a shower of dirt and rock, giving the end a sharp kick to break away any remaining roots.

“This’ll do,” Skye said aloud, turning to face the rushing throng of undead. Widening his stance, he swung the makeshift weapon, slamming the fractured tree trunk into one of the creatures. The blow ripped apart the monster’s torso and sent the flailing corpse flying into another group of its comrades. Their bodies hit the ground like dolls.

One of the felled undead that had somehowmanaged to free itself from the heap of tangled corpses threw a rusted dagger at Skye as he struck at another group with the tree. The metal bit into the skin of his shoulder, embedding into his flesh between a gap in his armor. Blood welled around the wound, but with this much aether flooding his system, it was of no concern. Skye grimaced as he ripped the blade from his arm, watching with detached interest as the flesh knit itself back together.

They’re not using poison,he thought with a grin. That was a bad move on their part.

One of the creatures clawed at the ground, inching its way across the broken pavement. Its body had been cleaved in two, but its arms still reached for him. Adjusting his grip on the beam, Skye brought it down, smashing in the thing’s head. Its bone and flesh splattered across the pavement, staining the ground black with rotted blood.

Finding a moment of respite, Skye stopped to catch his breath, his eyes taking in the roiling mass of dead men that filled the market square. He stood off to the side of the main fray and could see that the majority of the creatures were scrambling over the debris piled in front of the compound, their mad, soulless eyes focused on the fey on the walls. Giant whorls of flames struck the group as the mages entered the fray, incinerating their bodies and igniting the debris. The fires quickly spread, zipping along the line of the barricade and creating a wall of flame in front of the compound.

Clever. Though the blaze didn’t wholly stem the tide, it did slow their attackers down. They stumbled over each other as their flesh turned toash, revealing cracked and broken bone beneath. The smell of smoke and charred meat permeated the air.

Skye heard a thunderous howl of rage, and his head whipped to the side, searching for the source of the cry. Another group of undead was rounding the corner, streaming in from one of the narrower side streets as they barreled toward the compound. Tightening his grip on the tree, he readied himself for their advance.

There were so many of these…things. None of this made sense.

“Back up the shadow mage! He’s one of ours!” a voice shouted from the walls.

A hailstorm of ice rained down in front of Skye, blasting him backward and creating a protective barrier of offensive magic. The creatures shrieked as the ice impaled their bodies and severed their limbs. Some were completely ripped apart by the onslaught, and many more were frozen solid, their forms fixed mid-charge in a ghastly portrait of feral rage.

Skye scrambled back to his feet. In an instant, he was in front of the group of undead, each swing of the bloodied trunk in his hands shattering the frozen creatures. Shards of blackened ice rocketed in every direction as he continued to slam the makeshift club against them again and again.

“Shadow mages, reinforce the Gate Watcher!” another shout sounded from the walls.

A group of men and women, other Gate Watchers, jumped from the walls of the compound. Their boots landed with heavy thuds, throwing up a cloud of dust where they hit the ground. They immediately drew their swords and leapt through the flames encircling the compound, wisps ofsmoke drifting from their armor as they emerged from the fire. Within seconds, they had fallen into line beside Skye.

“These things don’t go down easy!” Skye called to the others, brandishing his makeshift weapon. “Fire and slicing weapons only slow them down. You have to bludgeon them!”

The other shadow mages shared a look but followed his orders. Sheathing their weapons, they followed his example, ripping broken beams and girders from the remains of the market stalls as the oncoming swarm raced toward them.

Now that he had backup, the horde of dead men didn’t seem so daunting. The shadow mages cut through the enemy’s advances, crushing the creatures’ already broken bodies beneath the force of their blows and splattering more of that strange, blackened blood across the pavement. Occasionally, a rusty blade would pierce Skye’s skin, but the wounds healed themselves before they even had a chance to bleed.

The mob thinned out quickly, and Skye wiped the sweat from his eyes as he watched the other shadow mages pick off the remaining stragglers. The few creatures that managed to regain their feet were quickly torn down and dismembered. Though it didn’t stop them from writhing and groaning on the ground, desperately searching for their missing limbs, it did stop their advance.

Skye stared at the still-moving, disarticulated corpses. He couldn’t quite wrap his head around what he was seeing. He had a few ideas on how this might be possible, but every single one of them made his stomach churn. Not only that, he couldn’t figure out why this unknown, undead force had chosen to attack the compound directly. The frontof the compound was fortified and nigh impenetrable when the gates were closed. And while these creatures’ movements were uncoordinated and jerky, they worked together far too well to be considered completely feral. It was almost as though they were being directed.

Which left one question—what was their strategy?

He felt it before he heard it. The ground started to tremble, and then a deafening explosion reverberated through the air, drowning out the din of battle.

“The back of the compound!” someone screamed from the top wall. “They’re streaming in from the back of the compound!”

“It’s a decoy!” Skye shouted, turning and sprinting back towards the wall, the broken trunk still in hand. The other shadow mages turned to follow him.

As Skye leapt through the flames of the barricade, the heat assaulted his skin. Pulling another shadow crystal from his pocket, he yanked out the aether, supplementing it with the small amount he could find in the air nearby. Then, in one explosive movement, he jumped, clearing the edge of the 30-foot wall and landing with a heavy thud on the ramparts. The other shadow mages joined him a moment later, their boots thumping against the dense crystal of the wall in a dull, repetitive rhythm.

From the top of the wall walk, Skye could see a swarm of the creatures streaming in through a jagged, smoking gap in the back wall of the compound. They almost looked like ants, spilling through the narrow opening as they rushed the small contingent of fire mages that tried to holdthem back.

While earth mages were rare on the island, there were two standing behind the fiery vanguard, their hands waving through the air as they shaped a green cloud of earth magic. Moments later, vines erupted from the ground, blocking off the gap in the wall and partially stemming the tide. The creatures clawed at the vegetation as they pushed and shoved each other, and the vines were already starting to bend under the strain of their frenzied assault. The flimsy barricade wouldn’t hold them back for long.

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