The Ghost Army

Chapter 4

The sound hit Juliana brass device before it hit anything. It was a loud voice that seemed to come from the air itself. The voice was tearing through the courtyards silence like something

General Thorne stopped moving. He just stopped. His massive greatsword was frozen inches above Robbins face. For one moment the world held its breath.

Then the Generals armor started to shake. The midnight-black plates were sliding against each other with a grinding sound. The cold blue light behind Thornes visor was flickering. It flickered once twice and then dimmed to something that was almost human. It was almost weak.

Robbin watched as Juliana backed away. She had both hands wrapped around the brass mechanism. The gears inside were spinning fast they became a single gleaming blur. Smoke was coming out of the seams now. The smoke was thick and acrid. Julianas face had gone pale in a way Robbin had never seen before.

Juliana was scared. She was really scared.

Robbin scrambled backward through the snow. The snow squelched beneath his boots. Stained his knees red. He could not find the hilt of his broadsword. He must have lost it in some blow. He could not even remember. His hand found the leather grip of a soldiers cavalry saber. The weight of the saber was wrong. It was too light.. It was steel.. Steel was all Robbin had.

Elaine appeared at his shoulder. Her breath was clouding in the cold. "What did you do to him?" she asked.

Julianas voice was ragged. "The shards. We connected them to a high-frequency resonator. Something in that frequency. It disrupts their networks."

Robbin almost laughed. Something in that frequency. That was all Juliana could offer. Juliana was the mind in three kingdoms.

General Thorne let out a sound. It was not quite a roar. It was too low for that. It was too grinding. It sounded like two plates scraping against each other.. His eyes were still locked on Juliana. The malice in them was not mechanical. He was fighting. He was fighting the wave. He was forcing his boot forward one inch.

There was a crack. A gear inside Julianas device shattered. Robbin heard it clearly. It was a sharp snap. Then the sound died. All that remained was the wind.

The blue light in Thornes eyes flared back to life. "Fragile flesh. Fragile tools."

The Generals voice was still metallic. It was still wrong.. Something in the cadence sounded almost human. It sounded almost satisfied. He raised his greatsword. Robbin felt the blade hum against his skin from fifteen feet away.

Robbin grabbed Julianas arm. "Fall back! Into the keep!" he said.

They ran. The Ironborn Legion surged over the collapsed watchtower. They moved like one creature. One terrible unified will.

Robbin slammed through the service door. He pulled Juliana after him. Elaine followed. Robbin dropped the iron locking bar just as something massive hit the side. The wood. Held.

The armory was long and cold. A few wall torches threw light across stone walls. The silence after the chaos outside felt wrong. It felt heavy.

Robbin looked at Juliana. "That machine " he said. "Can you fix it?"

Juliana clutched the smoking brass device against her chest. "I need time.. A larger power source. The shards I used were fragments. If I could reach the repository in the Blackwood mine. " She stopped. She swallowed. "I could build something that would disable his army.. Right now? This is nothing."

Robbin looked at Elaine. "We don't have time " Elaine said. She pointed toward the barred windows.

The courtyard had become a slaughterhouse. Commander Cedric Montgomery was fighting an Ironborn executioner. He was fighting with aristocratic grace. His rapier was a silver blur. It was thrusting into joints. It was exploiting openings.

The rapier bounced off the plate. Cedric flew backward. He crashed into crates. He did not get up.

Robbin looked at Juliana. "We have to help them " she whispered.

Robbin shook his head. "We help them by surviving " he said. He tested the cavalry sabers weight. It was still too light.

Elaine looked at him. "I'm not leaving you Captain " she said.

Robbin looked at her. "That wasn't a suggestion, Scout " he said.

Elaine held his gaze for a moment. Robbin saw the fight in her. He saw the reckless courage that had gotten both of them through a dozen impossible situations.. She also saw what he saw. Juliana was the weapon they had against an army of machines. The mission was bigger than either of them.

Robbin looked at Elaine. "Keep her alive " he said.

The oak door exploded inward. A shock trooper crashed into the armory. Its right arm was a drill. The drill was spinning with a pitched whine. The whine set Robbins teeth on edge. Its eyes burned that blue.

Robbin stepped into the center of the room. He raised his saber. "Go!" he said.

The shock trooper charged. Robbin did not try to block. He dropped. He rolled beneath the spinning drill. He felt the wind of it pass over his face. As he passed under he slashed upward. The saber bit into cables behind the creatures knee. The cut was deep. Black oil sprayed across his face. It was hot and iridescent. He tasted it on his lips before he could wipe it away.

The monster shrieked. Its leg buckled. Robbin scrambled to his feet. He drove the sabers point into the glowing core in its chest. The crystal shattered. The machine went still.

Robbin wiped his eyes. The oil smeared across his face. He wanted to throw up.. There was not time. He heard something from the staircase. It sounded wrong.

Heavy footsteps were marching upward from the drainage tunnels. They were not running. They were not fleeing. They were marching.

A loud voice cut through the darkness. It was Julianas voice.

Robbin took the stairs three at a time. He burst into the cellar. He saw Elaine with her back against a wall of wine casks. She had short-swords raised. Three Ironborn scouts blocked the exit.. In the center of the room an officer held Juliana by the throat. He had a short-sword pressed against her ribs.

This one was different. Silver runes crawled across his armor. They were glowing faintly. He was bigger than the others. He was more dangerous. His voice carried something that sounded like amusement.

"Drop your weapon primitive " he said. ". The female dies first."

Robbins hand was shaking. The saber trembled in his grip. It was slick with oil.

He was outnumbered. He was cornered.. The one person who might save them all was a single blade away, from death.