‘An… eagle?’
Zweil shrugged. ‘I suppose.’
The psyber-eagle started to thrash wildly in his arms, raking the air with its wings.
‘Steady! Steady!’ Zweil cried. He was forced to let it go. It flew back up the hallway away from them, feather filaments drifting in its wake.
‘See?’ said Zweil.
‘What?’
‘It’s going the same way. The way I was going. It can hear her too. Birds are very cunning. Hunters, you see? It’s attuned. It’s following her call. Saints can do that, you know? They can call animals and creatures of the wild to their side. The grazing beasts of the farm and the hunters of the woods alike, they come flocking. I’ll bet it can hear her better than I can. The sharp sense of the untamed, you see, untrammelled by conscious thought. Running on instinct.’
‘You’re saying we should follow it?’
‘Yes. It’ll take us to her. It’ll take us out of the shadows.’
‘Right,’ said Domor.
Dalin stopped, and leaned heavily against the stone wall.
‘Dal?’ Kolea asked, turning to look at him. Dalin was pale, and sweat was leaving blanched trickles in the dirt on his face.
‘Give me a moment,’ said Dalin.
‘Are you sick?’
‘I feel…’ Dalin swallowed hard. ‘My head hurts. My ears. You feel that? Like a buzzing? A scratching?’
Kolea nodded. ‘That’s been going on since before the lights failed.’
‘What is it?’
‘Some manifestation,’ Kolea said. ‘A harmonic, a vibration. I don’t know. It’s the background noise of this bad shadow.’
‘It’s making me feel ill,’ Dalin said. ‘My head, my gut. Like a fever–’
Kolea pressed the back of his hand to Dalin’s forehead. Dalin jerked back in surprise.
‘What are you doing?’
‘Checking your temperature. There’s no fever.’
‘What are you, my dad?’
Neither of them spoke for a moment.
‘Yes,’ said Kolea.
Tears welled in Dalin’s eyes. He wiped them away, hurriedly.
‘I’ll tell you what it is,’ said Kolea. ‘It’s just anxiety. I feel it too. We’re both worried sick about Yonce.’
‘I suppose.’
‘We’re going to find her, Dal.’
‘I know.’
‘No, I mean it.’ Kolea sighed. ‘I made an oath, you see? Swore I’d protect the both of you.’
‘When was this?’
‘Oh, when you were born. That was the first time. But it was after the Aigor drop. That’s when I made it, out loud. Spoke it. To myself, and to the Emperor, who I hope was listening.’
‘We could die down here,’ said Dalin. ‘I think we probably will die down here.’
‘No, that’s the thing,’ said Kolea. ‘It wasn’t a whim. It was an oath. Solemn in intent. A Kolea oath, you see? The Kolea family has a strong and proud tradition. The universe respects a Kolea oath like, Throne yes. Knows not to go breaking it.’
‘Gol–’
‘I’m serious, Dal. Even the fething Ruinous Powers know better than to try and defy an oath like that. I will stand with you, you and Yoncy, even in the darkness. I’ll stand between you and hell–’
‘Gol.’
‘What?’
‘I know you mean well. I appreciate the effort. You’re just pretty new at this father business, aren’t you?’
Kolea shrugged. ‘Not had much practice over the years,’ he said.
‘I know,’ said Dalin. ‘I appreciate it. But it’s weird. Let’s just find her.’
Kolea nodded. ‘I was trying too hard?’ he asked.
Dalin smiled. ‘Just a bit.’
Kolea turned and hefted his weapon up.
‘All right, Trooper Dalin,’ he said. ‘Let’s head that way. To the left.’
He let his voice trial off. He raised his right fist and flicked the signal for ‘noise’.
Dalin raised his weapon, instantly alert.
Somewhere, not close, but still in the undercroft, there was a sawing howl.
Then, nearby, a splash.
They both wheeled.
‘Show yourself!’ Kolea growled.
‘Gol?’
‘Bask?’
Baskevyl and his squad appeared. They lowered their weapons and sloshed towards Kolea and Dalin.
Kolea and Baskevyl embraced.
‘Thank the Throne!’ Bask said.
‘You all right?’ Kolea asked.
‘Just lost,’ said Baskevyl.
‘And scared,’ Osket said.
‘What’s up with him?’ Kolea asked, looking over at Blenner. The commissar was leaning against the wall, his eyes closed.
‘This is getting to him,’ said Baskevyl quietly. ‘The tension’s making people sick.’
Kolea nodded. ‘It’s not just tension,’ he replied. ‘I think the warp is acting on us all. Dalin’s sick too.’
‘At least you found him,’ said Baskevyl.
‘Yeah. And Yoncy’s around here somewhere too.’
‘All right, let’s stay together and find her. We ran into Meryn’s team a while back, but divided again. That was a mistake.’
‘Safety in numbers?’ asked Kolea.
‘Right,’ said Baskevyl. ‘And firepower. Whatever this is, I think we’re going to need to put it down hard. It makes a real mess of people.’
‘It’s killing?’ asked Kolea.
‘Yes, whatever it is. It’s trapped us in here and it’s killing. You seen anybody?’
‘No,’ said Kolea. ‘This gakking place is playing mind-games. I was with Erish and that lot, then lost them. The walls moved. I haven’t seen anybody except Dal and Yonce. And that’s weird, because there were a lot of people down here. I don’t know where they’ve all gone.’
‘Bonin was leading them out,’ said trooper Ells. ‘But, I dunno…’
‘Maybe it’s eaten them all,’ said Osket.
Kolea and Baskevyl looked at him.
‘You’re a fething ray of sunshine, Osket,’ said Baskevyl.
‘Sorry, sir.’
‘Let’s move forward,’ Baskevyl said. ‘Eyes open for Kolea’s girl, all right?’
‘Stay close to Dalin for me,’ Kolea whispered to Baskevyl.
‘Sure. Why?’
‘I think I got a little heavy-handed. Tried to do the whole caring father thing and did not pull it off. He needs a comrade and an officer.’
Baskevyl nodded. ‘No problem.’
‘And I’ll see if I can get Blenner to pull his wits together,’ Kolea said.
‘Good,’ Baskevyl whispered back. ‘He’s spooked badly, Gol. I think… I think he might be on something.’
‘Pharms?’
‘I don’t know. But I think he keeps taking something. If he’s wired, he’s a liability. I mean, I feel sorry for him. Fear is a bitch, and I know it bites us all in different ways. But he’s been a useless sack of shit since this whole thing started.’
‘You mean since he joined the regiment?’ asked Kolea.
Baskevyl snorted.
‘Don’t be unkind,’ said Baskevyl. ‘He’s had his moments. But down here today? I think he might have been more rattled over the Ezra business than we thought.’
‘What, executing Wilder?’
‘I know, I know. It was the right call after what that shit did. But I think our dear Vaynom might be struggling with it. Killing a foe in battle is one thing. Sanctioning one of your own…’
‘He’s a commissar, Bask.’
‘Yeah. But as you point out, not a very good one. I wonder if he’s ever had to do that before. I mean, carry out a summary sentence that way. I think it’s shaken him.’
‘He almost said as much to me,’ said Kolea.
‘Right. Now this, plus maybe pharms. It might be a good idea to get his weapon off him. If this goes balls-up and turns into a close-quarter firefight, he could be an utter liability.’
‘Got it,’ said Kolea.
‘Right!’ Baskevyl announced, raising his voice again. ‘Let’s roll out. Head down to the left.’