Expanded Territory

Lord Caladan, five captains, and Demenik and his group stood on a rooftop and watched Bertrand exit the alley. Caladan held out one hand and Lissandra emerged from the darkness, drifting forward and stopping beside him to rest her hand on his. "All is ready, my wolf."

Caladan smiled and tilted his head at one of the captains, who lowered a large sack to the gravel surface of the roof and opened it to reveal the contents. The sack was filled with hundreds of identical small, tear shaped clay pots, each one three inches at the widest part with silver and black runes painted onto their surface.

"Are you certain this is how you want it done?" The mock concern in Lissandra's voice did not match the hungry grin on her face.

"Want has nothing to do with it. This is how it must be." Caladan turned and looked at those assembled. "The people below us are of another alley and therefore loyal to other families."

Everyone nodded.

"Even one child can grow into a powerful enemy." Caladan pointed at Demenik. "Look what one of our own has become. This is the way of the alleys. When a lord falls, his protection disappears and those beneath him are lost."

"This is the way of the alleys," the others replied.

Caladan pointed at the small pots. "I do not enjoy cutting children down. Lissandra has provided us with a different way to do what must be done." He looked at his men and stroked his beard. "It is not pretty."

"There is no pleasant way to accomplish the task before us, Lord," one of the captains said.

"Just so." Caladan nodded. "Give the signal and let's be about our business."

Demenik looked towards the alley exit on the ground below and saw men—Caladan's men—pushing boards and large wheels into place to block them. Triax was freshly dead and word would soon spread throughout his territory. In less than an hour, the majority of alley dwellers would be leaving or preparing to defend themselves from an attack that would come from some neighbouring alley lord or another. Caladan had been favoured in this matter and the advantage of surprise was his alone.

One of the captains removed a small tube and lit a black fuse attached to its base which cracked and sizzled as he held the tube aloft. The fuse burned down and made contact with the flash powder.

A burst of white light flew skywards and exploded, causing a sparkling shower of white and silver to light the area below. A moment later, the rooftops around them burst with the same display of lights.

Caladan nodded and everyone moved to grab clay pots from the sack. "Not so many that you drop one," Lissandra warned. "Come back for more instead of trying to carry too many at once."

Demenik grabbed five of the small pots. They were warm to the touch. He walked to the side of the roof and joined the others as they began to throw the small pots into the alley below. The clay broke with tiny cracking noises followed by a hiss. People on the ground began to scream and cough as the gas surrounded them.

"Get more quickly," Lissandra hissed. "Don't dawdle until they are all thrown."

It took less than five minutes for them to throw all of the pots to the ground. One captain took a dozen and dropped them into the chimneys so that they broke inside the building below.

Demenik and his friends threw the last of the pots and remained at the edge to watch. Brownish orange mist floated in the corridors. The screaming had stopped almost as abruptly as it had begun before they were finished throwing the pots. The only sound they could hear was the ominous hissing.

Lord Caladan came to stand beside Demenik. "This is the unpleasant part of leading, Demenik."

"But necessary."

Caladan looked at the boy and raised one eyebrow at what he saw. "You do not appear overly upset."

"Mouse tells me that Triax was attempting to overthrow you, Lord. If he had been successful, it would be my body in the streets below. I prefer this."

"Indeed." Lissandra appeared between the two of them and put one hand on each man's arm. "It is done, my wolf."

"The strength of your magic pales only in comparison to your beauty, fair lady. No one could have escaped?"

Her laughter was soft and sultry. "No."

"When will it be safe to enter the alleys?"

"By morning's light."

Caladan looked at one of his captains. "Guard the exits just to make certain no one escapes."

The captain nodded.

Caladan smiled. "Then let us go celebrate our expanded territory."