Ghost in the Tombs

By Jonathan Moeller

A sinister cult. Deadly assassins. Unless Caina can find their hidden lair, she's their next target.

Caina has foiled several plots of the Cult of Rhadamathar.

Unless she can find the Cult's leaders, she and her family will never be safe.

But the Cult's leaders lurk within the powerful city of New Kyre, and the journey there is filled with dangers.

Dangers that even Caina might not overcome...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Azure Flame Media, LLC
• Release date: Oct 17, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224346417

Jonathan Moeller

Standing over six feet tall, Jonathan Moeller has the piercing blue eyes of a Conan of Cimmeria, the bronze-colored hair of a Visigothic warrior-king, and the stern visage of a captain of men, none of which are useful in his career as a computer repairman, alas. He has written the "Demonsouled" trilogy of sword-and-sorcery novels, and continues to write the "Ghosts" sequence about assassin and spy Caina Amalas, the "$0.99 Beginner's Guide" series of computer books, and numerous other works. Visit his website at: http://www.jonathanmoeller.com Visit his technology blog at: http://www.jonathanmoeller.com/screed

Book preview

1

THE HEIR OF HOUSE KARDAMNOS

Caina Kardamnos gazed at the horsemen and realized she stood at the brink of momentous events.

She waited at the edge of the camp of the Emperor and the Padishah. Kylon was on Caina’s right, his expression stony, perhaps even thunderous. Kalliope Agramemnos stood at Caina’s left, her dark eyes wide, her expression uncertain as she glanced between Kylon, the horsemen, and the Emperor and his Imperial Guards. Kalliope had many good qualities, but control over her expressions was not among them, and Caina read her surprise, relief, and fear as easily as if they had been written upon the pages of a book.

The twenty horsemen were Kyracians with dark hair and the same olive-toned skin as Kylon and Kalliope. Two nobles led them. The first was Rhamphias Kardamnos, Kylon’s cousin and the current High Seat of House Kardamnos. The family resemblance between the two men was obvious, though Rhamphias was older and not nearly as fit as Kylon.

The second was about Kylon’s age, strong and fit with broad shoulders and a commanding jaw. He wore leather armor and carried a sword of storm-forged steel upon his belt. The stormdancer looked a great deal like Kalliope, and Kylon had introduced him as Tyndarion Agramemnos, Kalliope’s uncle. Given how close Kalliope and Tyndarion were in age, Caina could only assume that Kalliope’s grandfather had retained his vigor well into his twilight years.

Well? said Kylon. You’ve come a long way to see me. What is it?

Rhamphias braced himself like a man anticipating a blow or steeling himself before pulling out an arrow.

I wish to abdicate as High Seat of House Kardamnos in your favor, said Rhamphias.

Kylon said nothing.

These madmen from the Cult of Rhadamathar, said Rhamphias. They are targeting everyone in House Kardamnos, and I cannot protect them. I am…I am not Andromache, Kylon. I’m not you. We need Kylon Shipbreaker to come back and defend House Kardamnos before the entire family is extinguished.

Still Kylon said nothing, though he let out a breath.

You should have stayed in New Kyre, Kalliope, said Tyndarion. Lysikas and I would have been able to protect you and the children.

Kalliope gave a jerky shake of her head, a few loose strands of hair sliding across her face. But the assassins from the Cult almost slew my children in New Kyre. I could not guess which one of my father’s slaves or his free servants were members of the Cult. I came to Malarae to seek help I could not find elsewhere.

From who? said Tyndarion, glancing at Kylon. From a man exiled by the Assembly and his foreign-born wife?

Uncle, said Kalliope, I wish no quarrel with you, but I did what I needed to do. In the past few weeks, Countess Caina defended my children again and again and learned a great deal about our foes.

Tyndarion gave Caina a skeptical look. We have heard of the Countess’s reputation, but that seems…unlikely. Your father is more than capable of protecting you.

My father is the greatest warrior in New Kyre, said Kalliope with a flash of anger. No one can stand against Lysikas Stormblade. But he is an honorable man, both in battle and in the Assembly’s politics. He…I fear he could not protect my children from the poisoned blades of the Cult assassins, the madmen who lurk in the shadows and stab in the back. And they have powers of sorcery I do not understand.

They are your children as well, cousin, said Rhamphias, or so Lord Tyndarion told me when he asked to join my journey to Malarae. Will you not return to New Kyre to take your place as High Seat of House Kardamnos?

House Kardamnos must be truly desperate, said Kylon, to turn to me for help. Given that the Assembly banished me from the city.

Rhamphias shifted atop his horse, and the animal whinnied, picking up on the distress of its rider. I am not your equal as a warrior, cousin, I admit that freely. Your blood kin need you now. Will you turn them away?

And I should point out, said Tyndarion, that after the new Padishah took the throne, the Surge summoned you back to New Kyre. Lord Rhamphias himself delivered the summons when he visited Istarinmul for the Padishah’s coronation. You chose to remain behind and marry a foreigner.

Kylon raised his chin just slightly. His expression didn’t change, but Caina knew the mention of the Surge would have angered him. He had never forgiven the oracle of the Kyracian people for not warning him about the Red Huntress. The Huntress had fallen on the Tower of Kardamnos like a storm, and in the process she had killed Kylon’s first wife Thalastre and their unborn child.

The fact that the Surge had ordered Kalliope to keep the children secret from Kylon had only hardened his opinion against the oracle.

It hadn’t done much for Kylon’s attitude towards Kalliope, either.

The Surge was the one topic that might anger Kylon enough to lose his temper.

Caina wondered if Tyndarion knew that, if he was deliberately trying to provoke Kylon. Probably not – the Kyracians held the Surge in reverence. Likely Tyndarion thought nothing of it.

My lord Emperor, said Caina. May I make a suggestion?

Yes, Countess? said Valerius Hadrazon. The Emperor of Nighmar looked more like a belligerent centurion than the ruler of the most powerful state in the civilized world. Despite that, he had been watching the discussion with the faint amusement of a man observing a family quarrel not his own.

The Cult of Rhadamathar has tried to assassinate you twice, said Caina. Just now, they attempted to kill the Padishah of Istarinmul, as well as his Great Royal Wife, the Lady Azar. The Cult tried to kill me, and they have been assassinating the blood of House Kardamnos. Lady Kalliope fled across the sea to evade them, and I know their assassins followed her because I stopped them. It seems we all face a common enemy attempting to sow chaos and discord between our nations. Perhaps, my lord Emperor, it would be best if we sat down and discussed our mutual foe.

That seems prudent counsel to me, said Valerius. Well, Lord Rhamphias, Lord Tyndarion? I trust you do not disagree?

What Rhamphias and Tyndarion wanted, Caina suspected, was for Kylon, Kalliope, and the children to leave with them at once. But they were in the heartland of the Empire, and in the Empire, a wise man did not say no to Valerius Hadrazon.

Besides, Caina could tell that Rhamphias was badly frightened, that he had come to Malarae to find Kylon partly out of fear for his own life.

Rhamphias wanted to gain allies against the mysterious foe that had been hunting his House, or at the very least, learn more about them.

This counsel also seems good to me, said Rhamphias. Emperor Valerius, we thank you for your hospitality.

A short time later Caina sat on a folding wooden chair in the center of the camp.

The servants of the Emperor and the Padishah were efficient. Soon a ring of camp chairs had been set up, and other servants appeared to offer food and drink to the Kyracian visitors. The Emperor and the Padishah sat next to each other, two monarchs of equal rank greeting guests, or so the seating arrangement suggested. The two rulers made a stark contrast with one another – Valerius was burly and dressed in the black armor of an Imperial Guard, while Kutal Sulaman Tarshahzon was slender, almost ascetic-looking, and wore white robes and a white turban. Yet both men, in their own ways, were capable rulers who held a strong hand over the governments of their respective realms.

Caina knew that the Emperor was far shrewder than he looked. From the corner of her eye, she saw two of the Imperial Guards dragging something from the beach.

So, Countess Kardamnos, said Valerius. Since you have been at the center of these events, I think it best that you tell our guests of our enemy.

Rhamphias’s expression was puzzled, Tyndarion’s doubtful.

Of course, your Imperial Majesty, said Caina. It started a few weeks ago when I fell sick…

As briefly as she could, she sketched out what had happened since Livia Moranea had tried to kill her. She mentioned the alchemical weapon, the High Priest, the attempted poisoning of Lady Azar, and the attacks the Fangs of the Serpents had launched against both the Emperor and the Padishah. Caina did not mention her encounter with Mist, though she had told the Emperor and the Padishah about the elf-woman and her people.

This is a…remarkable tale, said Tyndarion. Serpent men? The Cult of Rhadamathar worships a serpent, aye, we knew that…but actual serpent men?

There have always been stories of such things in the far-flung Isles of Old Kyrace, said Rhamphias, who seemed less skeptical than Tyndarion. Serpent men and other creatures.

Tyndarion waved a dismissive hand. There are also stories of giant serpents that can swallow a ship whole, unicorns that grant wishes to virgins, and talking sphinxes. Tales for children. Or stories made up by drunken sailors in dockside taverns.

I agree it is a remarkable account, said the Padishah in his quiet voice. However, just because something is remarkable does not mean it is untrue. As the Emperor shall now demonstrate.

Two Imperial Guards walked into the circle, dragging something between them, and dropped it on the ground.

Caina found herself looking at a dead orc.

The creature looked a great deal like the ones she had fought in Istarinmul. It was roughly human-shaped but with broader shoulders and longer arms. The skin was an unhealthy shade of gray and marked with black veins, and fangs filled the mouth, claws tipping the fingers. The orc had black eyes with yellow pupils and ears that came to a point. The corpse wore ragged clothing and a chain mail hauberk.

What the hell is that thing? said Rhamphias. Tyndarion frowned at the corpse, his hand twitching towards his sword hilt.

An orc, said Caina.

A what?

There’s an old High Nighmarian word, said Caina. Orcus. It usually referred to a demon or an evil spirit that consumed human flesh. A…friend of mine, she didn’t want to mention Mist, was trying to find a word to describe these creatures. She happened to mention the word orcus, and we started calling them orcs. I don’t know what they call themselves. Perhaps they’re just the servants of the serpent men and cannot think for themselves. She did not quite believe that herself, though. Caina had seen a gleeful pleasure on the orcs’ faces as they rushed to battle, and she knew that the orcs would take joy inflicting pain and torment on anything in their path. She had seen such emotions in the faces of humans, of course, but it was as if the orcs’ very flesh had been twisted to reflect their cruel and bestial natures.

Yet cruel and evil men could conceal their natures behind a smiling mask. The orcs, it seemed, could not…and likely would not have any interest in concealing their natures even if they had been able to do so.

Tyndarion rose and squatted next to the dead orc. His face crinkled in disgust as he took a closer look at the creature.

You fought these things? said the stormdancer. He produced a dagger and raked its edge along the orc’s muscled forearm, and black sludge welled from the wound, accompanied by a faint yet foul odor.

Twice, said Caina. Once when I stumbled across their hiding place in Istarinmul. And again when the Fangs of the Serpent sent them to kill Lady Azar.

Tyndarion gazed at the dead orc for a few seconds longer, shook his head, and rose to his feet.

I confess, Countess, that I would be inclined to doubt your tale, said Tyndarion. Serpent men and these twisted orc-creatures? It all seems too fantastical to be believed.

Do you think we are lying, my lord Tyndarion? said Valerius in a pleasant voice. Perhaps a too-pleasant voice. Caina suspected it was a tone taken by an angry centurion giving a wayward legionary one last chance to confess to a misdeed before serious punishment ensued.

Not at all, said Tyndarion, returning to his seat. Only a fool denies the evidence of his own eyes. And the idea that the Emperor of Nighmar, the Padishah of Istarinmul, and Lady Kalliope would conspire together to tell the same fantastical tale is too implausible. He let out a breath and looked at Kalliope. As much as it pains me to admit it, I believe you acted wisely in seeking out help from outside New Kyre, Kalliope. It seems this danger is far larger and greater than we believed.

Thank you, uncle, said Kalliope, relaxing. Caina knew that she held her father in awe, but it seemed she also had a great deal of respect for her uncle.

And the danger is great, said Rhamphias, looking at Kylon, which is why you must return and become High Seat of House Kardamnos once more, cousin. If these serpent men are attacking, we must defend ourselves. You must lead the defense of our House.

But why is the Cult of Rhadamathar attacking House Kardamnos? said Caina.

Rhamphias looked taken aback by the question. Well…you said it yourself. They tried to assassinate the Emperor and the Padishah, and they tried to kill the Great Royal Wife to start a war between Anshan and Istarinmul. Why would they not attack House Kardamnos?

Killing the Emperor or the Padishah would start a war, said Caina. Would wiping out everyone in House Kardamnos do the same? The Cult went to great efforts to kill Nikarion and Zoe. They’re six years old. Why would the Cult expend so much effort to kill a pair of children who are no threats to anyone?

I…well, I confess I do not know, said Rhamphias.

I had not considered the matter in that light, said Tyndarion, but I think the Countess speaks truly. If the serpent men wish to conquer us, it makes sense to kill the Emperor and the Padishah. War between the Empire and Istarinmul would weaken both. House Kardamnos is one of the strongest noble houses in New Kyre, it is true…but even if House Kardamnos was completely destroyed, New Kyre would still remain strong.

So why is the Cult of Rhadamathar coming after the blood of House Kardamnos? said Caina.

Tyndarion shrugged. I do not know. In truth, we have learned more in the last hour than we have in the last several months.

There is another one thing to consider, my lord Rhamphias, said Caina. It seems clear that the serpent men have been here for a very long time. The Cult of Rhadamathar is at least fifteen hundred years old, if not older.

The history of House Kardamnos goes back even farther than that, said Rhamphias, to the ancient days of Old Kyrace.

It does, agreed Caina. And the serpent men are long-lived. It is possible that one of your ancestors defeated or hindered the serpent men in some way and they are now seeking revenge.

Yet she wasn’t certain. From her encounter with the High Priest in the catacombs of Malarae and what Mist had said, Caina was certain that the serpent men, the Rhadamathi, were cold and cruel and brutal, but also logical. Cruelty to them was a pleasure to be enjoyed, but only when it did not hinder their other goals.

So there had to be some other reason they sought to wipe out House Kardamnos.

Vengeance after fifteen hundred years? said Rhamphias. That seems…unlikely.

More unlikely than what lies before us? said Tyndarion, gesturing at the corpse. And you know what the politics of the Assembly are like. Is fifteen hundred years too long to let a grudge pass?

I suspect some of the Archons could hold a grudge for centuries after they died, said Rhamphias. The gods of storm and brine know that Andromache could. Kylon frowned, and Rhamphias held his hands up. I mean no offense, cousin. I know she was your sister, and she was the High Seat of our House and rebuilt our power and fortune after your parents drowned…but, gods, she could hold a grudge.

Lady Andromache was a formidable woman indeed, said Caina, who had been there when Andromache had died. But can you recall anything in the history of House Kardamnos that might have inspired enmity from the serpent men?

Like what? said Rhamphias, bewildered. I assume Lord Kylon knows the history of our House at least as well as I do. If you had told me this morning there were such things as serpent men and these orc creatures, I would have laughed in your face or assumed you had drunk too much wine. He gestured at the dead orc. Yet here we are. I thought the Cult of Rhadamathar only worshipped a serpent. I didn’t know they were led by actual serpent men.

Then it seems we do indeed face a common enemy, my lords, said Valerius. You may be certain that I shall hunt down the Cult of Rhadamathar within the Empire and thwart its adherents wherever they may be found.

I shall instruct my wazirs and hakims to do likewise, said Sulaman.

Then the original question remains, said Tyndarion. Lord Kylon, will you return to New Kyre and accept the High Seat of House Kardamnos once again? He nodded at the dead orc. I recognize those wounds. You killed that orc with a frost-wreathed sword. You have already fought in defense of your son and daughter. Will you raise your sword in defense of the rest of House Kardamnos?

Caina gazed at her husband, but she already knew how he would answer.

Beneath his stoic mask was a great deal of anger. Losing Thalastre and his unborn daughter to the blade of the Red Huntress had hurt him deeply. The Surge refusing to warn him about the threat and the banishment of the Assembly had further wounded him. He rarely spoke of it, but she knew that he missed New Kyre and wanted to return and that it had been the root cause of his restlessness over the last year.

Caina had known that one day, her husband would return to New Kyre…and she had been preparing for this.

He had done so much for her. He had saved her life so many times and had stood with her in some very dark times and against powerful foes. Caina might not be able to give him children, but she could do this for Kylon. She could make sure that the Assembly accepted him back in New Kyre and did not threaten him again.

His eyes turned to her, and she saw the question there. If she asked it of him, he would refuse, even though it would hurt him. But Caina thought he needed to accept, that they both needed to go to New Kyre. Partly for Kylon’s sake, and partly for the sake of his son and daughter.

If they could not figure out why the Cult of Rhadamathar had been trying to kill Nikarion and Zoe, the children would never be safe.

She gave a faint incline of her head, and Kylon rose to his feet.

Then it seems for the sake of my children, and the sake of our House, said Kylon, that I have no choice but to accept. I will take up the High Seat of House Kardamnos once more and return to New Kyre.

Silence answered his pronouncement.

Well, said the Emperor to the Padishah. I expect that your visit to Malarae has turned out to be much more eventful than you expected.

Emperor Valerius, said the Padishah, you are entirely correct.

2

NEW KYRE

Kylon had decided to return to New Kyre, but there was much to be done.

For one thing, he refused to take the children through the Tower of the Cataphract. Using the Hall of Gates in the Tower could take them from Malarae to New Kyre in an hour's time, but the dangers were unacceptable. Caina and the other valikarion knights were the only ones who could use the Tower safely. Anyone else ran the risk of a painful death from the defensive spells the Cataphract had placed over the Hall to prevent its misuse.

For another, Rhamphias had brought five ships with him to Malarae. If Kylon was to be the High Seat of House Kardamnos once again, then those ships were under his command. He could sail with Caina, the children, and Kalliope to New Kyre. First, all their baggage would need to be organized, and fresh supplies would need to be loaded onto the ships. Another day or two, Kylon thought, and they would sail from Malarae.

For the first time in years, Kylon would return to his homeland.

His emotions, as they had so often been over the last few weeks, were mixed. Kylon had been furious to learn that Kalliope and Andromache had kept the children secret from him, and even angrier to learn that the Surge had ordered them to keep the twins hidden. Yet that was no fault of the children, and Kylon had loved them immediately. He would have thought there would have been a feeling of distance, of estrangement.

Within five minutes of meeting his children for the first time, he would have done anything for them.

And the children had clearly been desperate for a father.

Again, Kylon felt that anger towards Kalliope, and he pushed it aside. He didn’t like her, but he could not deny that she was a good mother to Nikarion and Zoe. As angry as he was that his son and daughter had been kept secret from him, Kylon could not have reasonably expected Kalliope to defy a command from the Surge.

For most of his life, he wouldn’t have disobeyed the Surge, either.

Yet why had the Surge ordered Kalliope to keep the children secret?

Kylon could think of no good reason. Just as he could think of no reason she had not told him about the Red Huntress, or why she had summoned him back to New Kyre after the defeat of Callatas, explicitly saying in her message that he could not bring Caina with him. Kylon had refused and married Caina instead, which had unexpectedly drawn him into the final phases of the Empire’s civil war against the sorcerers of the Umbarian Order. In the aftermath, he decided to stay with Caina in Malarae and Istarinmul and gave no further thought to returning to New Kyre.

Most of the time, anyway.

But now, with the reality of it before him, he did look forward to going home.

There had been weeks when Caina had been the only one to whom he had spoken Kyracian. Kylon had friends in both Malarae and Istarinmul, but it wasn’t the same. Home was wherever Caina was…but New Kyre was still his homeland.

Yet all that might not have been enough to induce him to return to New Kyre, and he had considered telling Rhamphias to go to hell. But the fact remained that for whatever reason, the Cult of Rhadamathar wanted his children dead. He could not imagine why. Nikarion and Zoe were only six years old and no threat to anyone. The serpent men were necromancers, at least the one that Caina had encountered, and perhaps it had something to do with a necromantic spell.

His son and daughter would not be safe until Kylon found and destroyed the leadership of the Cult of Rhadamathar. His course was now clear. He would return to New Kyre, accept the High Seat of House Kardamnos, and hunt down his enemies.

A flicker of fear had gone through Kylon when he had agreed to become the lord of House Kardamnos once more.

The last time he had been the High Seat of House Kardamnos, his wife and unborn child had been murdered in front of him, and Kylon hadn’t been able to stop it.

But things would be different now. He had a valikon he could summon at will, the very blade that had killed the Red Huntress. Caina was not Thalastre – she was a valikarion, with powerful weapons and allies. While Kylon did not like to compare the women who had been his wives – he had loved Thalastre, and he loved Caina – he could not deny that Caina was smarter than Thalastre. Truth be told, Caina was much smarter than most people, and her intellect and logic enabled her to uncover secrets in a way that seemed almost unnatural at times. It was because of Caina that they knew as much about the Cult of Rhadamathar as they did.

Truth be told, it was because of Caina that they were alive at all. If she hadn’t uncovered the High Priest’s plot in Malarae, the Cult’s alchemical weapon would have killed Kylon, along with the Emperor and the Padishah and thousands of others. Kylon would never have known he had a son and a daughter.

He considered all these problems as the Emperor and the Padishah broke their camp and rode north back to Malarae. By ancient tradition, the Padishah would not come to any quay within Malarae itself (one of Sulaman’s predecessors had vowed that he and his heirs would only sail to Malarae at the head of a conquering army), so the Padishah’s ships had docked at one of the smaller towns south of the Imperial capital. The two monarchs stopped at the town, and the Emperor bade farewell to the Padishah and his Radiant Guards.

The Emperor’s party stopped for the night at the town. Kylon considered continuing towards Malarae with Caina, Kalliope, the children, and Rhamphias’s escort, but decided against it. The Cult of Rhadamathar had made one attempt on the Emperor’s life already, and they might try again. For that matter, they might launch an attack on the road. Some of Rhamphias’s escort were distant cousins of House Kardamnos. If the Cult truly wanted to wipe out all the blood of House Kardamnos, that many of the family traveling together would make a tempting target.

We might not need to worry about that for a few days, said Caina.

Why not? said Kylon.

They sat together on the floor of their tent. The town did not have much in the way of an inn, and the Emperor and his officers had commandeered the building. Kylon had been sleeping in a large tent during the Emperor’s journey, as had the children. He expected the experience would be good for them, and so far they had treated it as an adventure. Kalliope would keep an eye on the children tonight, along with Caina’s maid Cornelia.

I think, said Caina, there is a practical limit to how often the Cult can open gates like that. If the Rhadamathi serpent men are from another world, and they are crossing the netherworld to get to ours, they expended a lot of power to attack both the Emperor and the Padishah and Lady Azar at the same time.