Starfall Read online

  Aboard the Great Iron Horse

  #5

  ––––––––

  STARFALL

  ––––––––

  By:

  Jamie Sedgwick

  Published by Timber Hill Press

  Also by Jamie Sedgwick

  Aboard the Great Iron Horse

  The Clockwork God

  Killing the Machine

  The Dragon's Breath

  Clockwork Legion

  Starfall

  Hank Mossberg, Private Ogre

  Murder in the Boughs

  Death in the Hallows

  The Killer in the Shadow

  A Fool There Was

  A Dame to Die For

  When the Boughs Break

  Shadow Born Trilogy

  Shadow Born

  Shadow Rising

  Shadowlord

  The Tinkerer's Daughter

  The Tinkerer's Daughter

  Blood and Steam

  Standalone

  Karma Crossed

  The Darkling Wind

  Watch for more at Jamie Sedgwick’s site.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Also By Jamie Sedgwick

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Epilogue

  A Note from the Author:

  Sign up for Jamie Sedgwick's Mailing List

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  Micah stood at the edge of the plateau and swept his gaze across the fiery expanse of Ashago. The halfling had heard many stories about the volcanic wasteland, but this was his first time seeing it with his own eyes. The stories, terrifying as they were, paled in comparison to the real thing. Roiling black clouds churned in the sky over the Firelands, shimmering with the reflected carmine glow of the lava fields and volcanoes below. Momentary bursts of lightning flashed across the sky, arcing tendrils of blue that cast a glint on the weapons and armor of the ghouls encamped across the plains. The air was thick with the smell of sulfur, and a continuous hot wind blew up the slopes, tugging at the broad brim of his hat and shaking the long feather in Micah’s hatband.

  Far to the south, the peaks of distant mountains rose like black shadows to blot out the horizon. To the southwest, the halfling saw a sharp black line, a great iron wall cutting a swath across the cracked earth. Beyond the wall, the tall spires of a city thrust up to meet the blackened sky like spear points piercing the heavens.

  Ironhold was the city’s name. Socrates had found it on one of his oldest maps, though he knew nothing more of the place. There had been no other records in the Iron Horse’s library.

  A Legion encampment sat on the plain west of Ironhold, where like so many toys scattered throughout the camp, were the burned and twisted remains of the Iron Horse. Pillars of fire rose from the locomotive wreckage. Electricity crackled over the chassis. Erratic discharges shot out in every direction like miniature bolts of lightning. Fires burned here and there, and tents lay strewn across the desert like scraps of cloth on a seamster’s floor. Frantic ghoul warriors surrounded the locomotive and passenger cars, but the fires held them at bay.

  I can’t believe it has come to this, the halfling thought.

  Micah flinched as a hand clapped down on his shoulder. He raised his gaze to find Thane staring down at him. The blond-haired bard wore a somber expression, a disconcerting change from his usual upbeat demeanor. A few feet back and to his left stood Morgane, the niece of the late King Dane of Dragonwall. She was tall and beautiful, and the pained look on her face made his heart ache that much more. The wind tugged at her raven-black hair. A frown marred her delicate features, and tears brimmed her silver eyes. The halfling drew his gaze back to the crash.

  “Do you want to draw it?” Thane said in a low voice, nodding at Micah’s satchel. “We have time.”

  Micah shook his head. “No. I don’t ever want to see it again. I’m afraid I’ll never get it out of my head.”

  “Nor I,” Morgane said quietly. “Do you see them? River or Socrates?”

  Thane averted his gaze, fiddling with the strap on his lute. He couldn’t speak what Micah knew they were all thinking: River is dead... No one could have survived that crash...

  “We can’t think like that,” Micah blurted out, as much for his own benefit as for the others. “We have to believe they made it. We must believe.”

  Thane exchanged a glance with Morgane. She forced a smile. He looked down at Micah. “You’re right, my friend. To believe anything else... We might as well give up now if we accept this fate for our companions.”

  “Well, we’re not giving up,” Micah said. “River is depending on us. Let’s get moving!”

  A slight grin came to Thane’s face. “All right, then,” he said. He turned to climb onto the waiting steamscout. “Ladies and gentlemen, all aboard! Next stop, Dragonwall.”

  Chapter 2

  Kale stood on the terrace outside Queen Aileen’s chamber, gazing out over Stormwatch. A chill wind tousled his long black hair, teasing his nostrils with the scent of the sea and of campfires and making his eyes water. His long bangs tickled the hardened red flesh of the scar on his cheek that had been there most of his life. Once, that scar had served to remind him of his family, and his hatred of the Vangar invaders who had murdered them. Now, those memories had faded into a haze that made them seem almost as if they weren’t his own. That life, that young child seemed so distant now that it left him wondering if it was really him.

  Refugee camps encircled the city below, spilling out onto the plains in a patchwork of tents and wagons, the dark blur of thousands and thousands of migrants like a swarm of ants. There was no rhyme or reason to their layout; they had arrived too quickly and in numbers too great to manage any sort of order. Some groups had arranged their tents and caravans into circles with cooking fires in the center, but mostly things just sat where they had landed.

  Seventy-five thousand, the warrior thought as he gazed at the scene. So, this is what seventy-five thousand looks like.

  That number was just an approximation. They were streaming in too fast to take any sort of accurate count, and the number didn’t even include the twenty thousand more who already lived in Stormwatch and Dragonwall. According to the reports, some had even come from Nepotane, the city of pyramids located in the crater.

  “So many,” Aileen said as she appeared next to him. The scent of her perfume followed the soft warmth of her touch on his shoulder, but Kale resisted the urge to reach out to her. In mere hours, the two would be married, but the warrior still didn’t know if he loved her, or if he ever could. He was torn on the matter, his heart divided between a dream and a promise.

  “It’s an endless stream,” Kale said with a resigned sigh. “More every hour. Another five thousand today, probably fifteen more by nightfall tomorrow. Where are they all coming from?”

  “There are many villages in the mountains along our western border,” Aileen said. “And Lydian tells me others are coming: Th
e Plainsmen from the west, moving through the pass at Stonemount, the dwarf-men of Granite Hall. Already, the Legion moves through the southernmost territories.”

  Kale turned to face her. His voice froze in his throat. Aileen stood before him in a long dress of shimmering silver fabric with forest green embroidery. The embellishments brought out the color in the queen’s eyes, and the finely-wrought silver crown that encircled her head shimmered like the sea at sunset. Aileen’s auburn locks framed her face like a portrait. She was breathtaking.

  “You’re... You look...”

  “Do you like it?” she said with a wide smile. “This is the dress I will wear for our wedding tomorrow.”

  “It’s very nice,” he said.

  Aileen pulled close, weaving her arms around his waist. She gazed up into Kale’s face, her eyes glinting with mischief. In a quiet voice, she whispered, “You should see what’s under it.”

  Kale’s face reddened a little, which was strange for him. He was unaccustomed to this sort of female aggression. He cleared his throat. “Isn’t there some rule about bedding the bride before the ceremony?”

  “Yes,” Aileen said with a twisted grin. “Don’t get caught.”

  Kale smiled as he bent forward to kiss her. He heard shouting down below, and someone blew a guardsman’s horn. Kale pulled away. He leaned over the terrace, gazing down at the mountain’s entrance. He narrowed his eyes and pressed his lips together.

  “What is it?” Aileen said, leaning around behind him.

  “Nothing,” Kale said. “Stay here.”

  He hurried across the terrace, his cloak billowing out behind him as he disappeared inside. Aileen stared after him until she heard the door close. She turned back, frowning as she gazed down at the scene taking place at the front gates.

  In the tunnel, Kale rounded a corner and nearly ran into a page. The young boy leapt back in surprise, tripping over his own feet, and nearly fell over. Kale’s hand shot out to catch him by the shoulder.

  “Sir Kale!” The page said as the knight steadied him. “The front gate-”

  “I know,” Kale growled. He brushed past the boy and hurried on his way. A few seconds later, he emerged into the main chamber of the volcano, where he flagged down a passing wagon.

  “Take me to the gate,” he told the vehicle’s driver. He didn’t have to say it twice. The man revved up the spring-powered transmission and they took off like a rocket.

  Moments later, Kale found a cluster of guards and knights standing at the entrance, some shouting, others waving spears in the air. Sir Gavin was there, and the elderly knight waved as Kale leapt off the wagon.

  “Glad you’re here,” Gavin said, his voice like gravel crushed under the wheels of a steamwagon. “I have a feeling things are about to get out of hand.”

  “Ready the archers,” Kale said in a low voice. Gavin nodded. He hurried into an adjacent tunnel.

  Kale pushed his way through the crowd, making his way out of the keep. As he emerged from the mountain, he found himself facing a herd of elk. There must have been three hundred of them, clustered in a tight press across the clearing, their numbers stretching down the road towards Stormwatch.

  At the front of the herd stood a massive white bull elk. The creature was a giant, easily ten feet at the shoulder, and he bore a rider. She was tall and thin with long, slender elfin ears. She was dressed in buckskins, and wore a sword at her side and a bow slung over her shoulder. If not for her face, Kale would never have recognized her. It seemed the only thing about her that hadn’t changed.

  “Shayla,” he said, stepping forward. “I was beginning to think I’d never see you again.”

  “You won’t,” she said in a somber voice. “Shayla is dead.”

  His eyes narrowed as he approached her. A few steps away, the elk gave a snort of warning. The meaning was clear. Just to be safe, Kale held his hands out, showing that he was unarmed.

  “What happened to you?”

  “I think you know,” she said with a sneer. “Your friends tried to kill me.”

  “We found three bodies by the river last week. The scouts said they had been trampled to death by elk. I think I understand now.”

  “Nothing more than they deserved,” Shayla said.

  “How can you say that? They were simple, honest men on a hunting trip. They had families!”

  “Then they should have killed me when they had the chance. Their families are better off, I’m sure.”

  Kale glared up at her. “You’d better go.”

  “I will, just as soon as you give me what I want.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “And what is that?”

  “I want the other three.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  She leaned forward, glaring into his eyes. “The men who tried to kill me! There are three more, and I want them. Bring them out, and I’ll leave you in peace.”

  “You must be joking.”

  Shayla’s smile was gone, and she stared down at him with fire in her eyes. “Get them, before I-”

  “Before what?” Kale demanded, taking a step closer. “Are you threatening me?” The elk snorted again, and started pawing at the ground with its massive hoof. All around them, the other beasts snapped to attention.

  “Archers,” Gavin’s gravelly voice called out from the tunnel. He raised his right arm and there was a flurry of activity as two dozen archers appeared on the balconies overlooking the plateau. They drew their arrows and zeroed in on Shayla and the rest of the herd. She raised her gaze, drawing her eyes from side to side as she looked them over.

  “So, this is what has become of our friendship?” she said.

  “I’m not the one who turned into a murderous maniac.”

  “Perhaps not... Yet you shelter murderers like a protective father shelters a child. What does that make you, Sir Kale?” She accentuated the title, emphasizing the irony. Kale seemed unaffected.

  “It’s my job to protect these people,” he said in a low voice. “I don’t know what happened to you Shayla. I’m not even sure you know what happened. You can’t come here demanding the lives of men without any witnesses or proof. Think about what you’re asking.”

  “I’m not asking,” she said.

  “Leave,” he commanded. “Do it now, and your lives will be spared. And Shayla, it would be best if you don’t ever come back.”

  Shayla’s smile was back, but it was superficial, and the look in her eyes was venomous. “I’ll leave,” she said in a steady, controlled tone. “But I promise you, I will be back, and I will have my revenge.”

  The white elk turned, drawing back into the throng. It began making its way down the road and others closed in behind, protecting Shayla from the rear. Gavin appeared at Kale’s side as he watched her disappear.

  “What the devils was that about?” the older knight said breathlessly.

  “I almost wish I knew.”

  “Almost?” Gavin frowned.

  “At this point, what difference would it make? Her decision is made. There’s nothing I can do to help her. She’s beyond reason.”

  “I’m not sure she’s the one who needs help,” Gavin said. “She’s got three hundred elk there, and apparently they’re willing to do whatever she wants.”

  “They’re just animals.”

  “Aye, but sooner or later, we’re gonna have to go back into those woods.”

  A shiver crept down Kale’s back. He turned away from the scene and headed back inside the keep. As they entered, he gave Gavin a sideways glance.

  “Something on your mind?” said the older knight.

  “Look into this for me,” Kale said in a quiet voice. “See if you can figure out what happened to Shayla. I want to know what she was talking about. She said some of the men tried to kill her...”

  “I’ll see what I can do. What are your plans?”

  Kale sighed. “I’m planning a wedding.”

  Gavin laughed and slapped the warrior on the shou
lder. “It’s not all bad,” he said. “Tomorrow, you’ll be king.”

  Gavin turned down a side tunnel and disappeared. Kale stepped out into the cone and started making his way back up the mountain. King, he thought, exhausted. Do I even want to be king?

  Chapter 3

  The steamscout was not designed for comfort. In fact, it was designed to be driven manually for only brief intervals. The machine was semi-autonomous. It had the ability to drive itself over great distances, scanning, repairing, and even replacing sections of railroad tracks. That being the vehicle’s primary purpose, the driver’s seat had been little more than an afterthought.

  Worse yet, there was only one seat, and the steamscout had very little room for passengers. Micah had begun the trip crowded into the cab on one side of Thane, with Morgane on the other. The two passengers had to stand, clinging to the safety bars as they hung out over the wheels. It didn’t take long for this to get old, and Micah began looking for alternatives.

  First, he moved around to the rear of the vehicle and found a place to wedge himself in between the cab and the scout’s mechanical arms. This was a little better, because he could lean back against the arms and prop his feet up to take some of the weight off. Unfortunately, leaning back against the hard metal framing proved even more uncomfortable in short order. It was also dangerous. If Thane happened to hit the wrong lever and accidentally activate one of the steamscout’s appendages, Micah would be crushed.