Deathstalker 03 - Deathstalker War

into the woods, and Kit went after him. It was cool and calm and quiet among the tall trees, a dark and private place almost set apart from the rest of the world. The troubles hadn't reached here yet. The air
    was full of the smell of grass and bark and living things. Kit strode along beside David, enjoying the calm and the songs of the birds. David strode along the open trail, eyes dark and brooding, untouched by the peace around him. Kit kept trying to think of something to say to him, but couldn't think what. He didn't have much experience with this kind of thing. So he strolled along beside David, his hands near his weapons, and left his friend to his thoughts. David would come up with something. He always did.
    Kit was wary and alert, but even so the first he knew they had company in the woods was when three figures stepped out onto the trail ahead of them, blocking their way. One wore a Captain's uniform, one was an Investigator, and the third figure stood well back, holding a gun in a not very threatening way. David and Kit came to a halt, and for a long time they all just stood and looked at each other. The woods were like a great green arena, a place where destinies could be decided, and anything could happen. Anything at all.
    "I'm Captain Silence," said the man with the sword in his hand. "This is Investigator Frost and Security Officer Stelmach. You're under arrest, my lords.
    Hand over your weapons, and come with us."
    "I don't think so," said David. "I am the Deathstalker, and my people need me.
    Stand aside and let me pass, or die where you stand."
    "What he said," said Kit. He smiled at Frost. "I've always wondered how I'd do against an Investigator."
    "You'd die, boy," said Frost. "Throw down your weapons, and you'll live to stand trial."
    "Get out of our way," said David. "I won't be stopped."
    The Captain shrugged. "Do what you have to, my lord. In the end, it always comes
    down to steel, doesn't it?"
    He stepped forward, and David drew his sword and went forward to meet him. Their swords slammed together, sparks flying on the air, and the sound of steel on steel was painfully loud in the quiet. Kit SummerIsle smiled his Kid Death smile and went lightly forward to meet the Investigator. They circled each other slowly, searching for weaknesses in the other's eyes. Stelmach lowered his gun and backed off out of the way. He knew he was only an observer in this.
    David boosted, calling on his Deathstalker inheritance, and new strength and energy surged through him, pushing back the tiredness. Even so, he knew it wouldn't last long. It wasn't that long ago he'd spent a whole evening drinking and carousing in the Heart's Ease tavern. He almost smiled. It seemed like a lifetime ago, but his body knew different. Too much drink and too little sleep would have made him fatally slow without the boost to hold him up, and even with it he doubted he could last long. So he pressed the attack, his sword rising and falling with all his considerable strength behind it. Silence backed away, one step at a time, but still he met the Deathstalker's every blow with equal strength, which should have been impossible. They swung and thrust, stabbing and parrying and recovering, blades moving almost too fast for the human eye to follow. And then Silence stopped and would not back away farther. He met the Deathstalker's savage attacks with calm skill and would not be moved.
    Kit SummerIsle, also known as Kid Death, the smiling killer, pressed his attack with more thought. He'd never lost a fight in his life, and didn't intend to start now, but this was an Investigator, after all. Kit and Frost circled warily around each other, their blades licking out from time to time, to test the other's speed and reflexes. They were masters of their craft, and saw no reason to hurry. They meant to enjoy this. They smiled at each other and went on
    circling.
    David fought on, rage boiling within him. This one Captain had come to represent to him all the Empire forces, the blind, awful forces that were destroying his life and his world. He hacked and cut with increasing fury, drawing recklessly on the boost's support, and it was only a matter of time before Silence turned aside one particular wide blow, and ran David through. He cried out with shock as much as pain, and sank to one knee, still somehow holding on to his sword.
    Silence's blade had punched right through David's gut and out his back. He could feel blood running out of him, hear