they moved about the nave, throwing open the doors leading down to the crypt and checking the transept for any sign of ursks. Nobody was protesting the presence of the heavily armed free company soldiers with them. The green-uniformed police militia was interviewing the few monks and vergers left inside the cathedral. Hannah and Chalph pressed past for a view of the confessional booths along the side of the far wall.
‘We weren’t here,’ Hannah heard a verger telling a militia officer. ‘Hordes of people came across the cathedral’s bridges begging for help. We were out with the people carrying torches alongside the canals. Only she stayed behind.’
She. Hannah looked unbelievingly towards where the police were kneeling outside the confessional booths, blood flooded across the flagstones. Dear Circle, those were the archbishop’s robes on that stump. That decapitated stump.
‘Alice!’ yelled Hannah, trying to press forward.
‘Who let her in here?’ frowned Colonel Knipe. Jago’s imposing silver-headed police commander limped forward on his artificial leg.
‘Is it Alice?’
‘It is the archbishop’s body,’ said the colonel sadly, pushing Hannah and Chalph back.
‘Where’s her head? Where’s her head?’
‘Don’t look at the body, this isn’t something for you to see,’ ordered the colonel.
She couldn’t take it in. There wasn’t even a skull left on the woman who had raised Hannah as her own daughter. And some of their last words…The accusation that Alice had been trying to trap her here…
‘Where’s her head?’ Chalph demanded.
‘I wish I knew,’ said the colonel. ‘It’s not inside the cathedral. The ursk that did this must have ripped pieces off the archbishop to feed on later.’
Chalph sniffed the air. ‘I can’t smell any ursk scent in here.’
‘You think her head fell off of its own accord, sprouted legs and ran away?’ snapped the colonel. He tapped his metal leg, the clockwork-driven mechanism inside whirring back at him. ‘I know things about ursks, wet-snout. The only difference between filth like those monsters and your people is about twenty stone in weight and a leather shirt.’
‘Pericurian free company soldiers are the only thing keeping Hermetica City safe,’ cried Chalph in outrage.
‘What a good job your people are doing,’ sneered the colonel. ‘I told the senate that paying for free company mercenaries to patrol our walls was a mistake of the highest order. When you fight for money, money is all you value. You wet-snouts let this happen, cub. You want to scare us all off your sacred soil, but it’s not going to happen. We’ve been here for two thousand years and we’ll be here for another thousand before your damn archduchess holds one inch of Jago’s mud for her scriptures.’
‘But there’s no claw marks on the confessional’s walls,’ observed Hannah. ‘Let me see the body!’
Colonel Knipe snapped his fingers and two of his police militia came forward grabbing Hannah and Chalph.
‘I don’t have time for this! You can see her body at the funeral like everyone else – get these two out of here.’
Chalph snarled as the Jagonese militia pushed him rudely out of the cathedral, shoving with their lamp rods and rifle butts, no doubt venting the frustration they felt at the usurpation of their role manning the battlements by Chalph’s race. They were only slightly kinder in their handling of Hannah.
In the crowd that had begun to form outside on the bridge, Hannah spotted one of the junior priests – Father Baine – the young man who usually clerked for the archbishop.
‘Is it true?’ he called out, seeing Hannah. ‘The militia won’t even let us back into our own rooms.’
‘I think so,’ said Hannah. ‘There’s a dead body by the confessionals and it’s wearing Alice’s robes. Sweet Circle, I think she’s dead. The ursks…’
‘May serenity find her,’ mumbled the priest, shocked to the core by the
‘We weren’t here,’ Hannah heard a verger telling a militia officer. ‘Hordes of people came across the cathedral’s bridges begging for help. We were out with the people carrying torches alongside the canals. Only she stayed behind.’
She. Hannah looked unbelievingly towards where the police were kneeling outside the confessional booths, blood flooded across the flagstones. Dear Circle, those were the archbishop’s robes on that stump. That decapitated stump.
‘Alice!’ yelled Hannah, trying to press forward.
‘Who let her in here?’ frowned Colonel Knipe. Jago’s imposing silver-headed police commander limped forward on his artificial leg.
‘Is it Alice?’
‘It is the archbishop’s body,’ said the colonel sadly, pushing Hannah and Chalph back.
‘Where’s her head? Where’s her head?’
‘Don’t look at the body, this isn’t something for you to see,’ ordered the colonel.
She couldn’t take it in. There wasn’t even a skull left on the woman who had raised Hannah as her own daughter. And some of their last words…The accusation that Alice had been trying to trap her here…
‘Where’s her head?’ Chalph demanded.
‘I wish I knew,’ said the colonel. ‘It’s not inside the cathedral. The ursk that did this must have ripped pieces off the archbishop to feed on later.’
Chalph sniffed the air. ‘I can’t smell any ursk scent in here.’
‘You think her head fell off of its own accord, sprouted legs and ran away?’ snapped the colonel. He tapped his metal leg, the clockwork-driven mechanism inside whirring back at him. ‘I know things about ursks, wet-snout. The only difference between filth like those monsters and your people is about twenty stone in weight and a leather shirt.’
‘Pericurian free company soldiers are the only thing keeping Hermetica City safe,’ cried Chalph in outrage.
‘What a good job your people are doing,’ sneered the colonel. ‘I told the senate that paying for free company mercenaries to patrol our walls was a mistake of the highest order. When you fight for money, money is all you value. You wet-snouts let this happen, cub. You want to scare us all off your sacred soil, but it’s not going to happen. We’ve been here for two thousand years and we’ll be here for another thousand before your damn archduchess holds one inch of Jago’s mud for her scriptures.’
‘But there’s no claw marks on the confessional’s walls,’ observed Hannah. ‘Let me see the body!’
Colonel Knipe snapped his fingers and two of his police militia came forward grabbing Hannah and Chalph.
‘I don’t have time for this! You can see her body at the funeral like everyone else – get these two out of here.’
Chalph snarled as the Jagonese militia pushed him rudely out of the cathedral, shoving with their lamp rods and rifle butts, no doubt venting the frustration they felt at the usurpation of their role manning the battlements by Chalph’s race. They were only slightly kinder in their handling of Hannah.
In the crowd that had begun to form outside on the bridge, Hannah spotted one of the junior priests – Father Baine – the young man who usually clerked for the archbishop.
‘Is it true?’ he called out, seeing Hannah. ‘The militia won’t even let us back into our own rooms.’
‘I think so,’ said Hannah. ‘There’s a dead body by the confessionals and it’s wearing Alice’s robes. Sweet Circle, I think she’s dead. The ursks…’
‘May serenity find her,’ mumbled the priest, shocked to the core by the
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