Read Online The Starfall Knight by Ken Lim - Free Book Online

Starfall Knight.  I will be assisted by my team of physickers as well as Professor Amara of the university’s natural studies department and Professor Conrick of the history department.”  He gestured to a group of white-apronned physickers who hopped onto the stage with leather tool-bags.  “Let us begin!”
    Devan leaned forward as the physickers unpacked their surgery implements and gear – scalpels and saws, tweezers and clamps, hand-drills and needles.  A couple of the assistants removed the sheet from the table, revealing the knight and his armour.  A gasp shot through the crowd and the inevitable murmurs began.
    “One can see that the body is encased in a metallic armour, likely iron,” Conrick said as Orval and his physickers prepared their gloves and aprons.  “The armour is reminscient of plate but rust and corrosion has rendered many details non-existent.  Several pieces of the armour contain latches and serve as small compartments.  We hypothesise that these compartments were filled with some sort of materials in battle, thereby absorbing the force of strikes against the knight.”
    “We shall now remove the armour from the knight,” Orval said.
    The physickers gently raised the knight’s head and slid off the visored helm.  A titter ran through the crowd as the withered head appeared.  Wisps of white hair fluttered in the breeze.  The grey, mottled skin appeared dry with the lips peeled back from blackened gums and cracked ivory teeth.  Eyeless sockets stared at the clear sky.  The nose had rotted away, exposing the two gaping sinus cavities of the skull.
    “As we can see,” Orval said, “the body is somewhat decomposed but has been mummified through an unknown process.”
    The assistants unbuckled the breast-plate and pauldrons.  Decayed cloth half-stuck to the knight’s body, with shreds adhering to the underside of the armour.
    “This is to be expected,” Amara said to the audience.  “Cloth decays much faster than metal.  It appears to be the underpadding, which prevents chafing and injuries when donning metal armour.”  Professor Amara peered at the body as the assistants moved the torso armour out of the way.  “There’s another strip of cloth around the knight’s chest.”  Amara chuckled to herself.
    “What is it, Amara?” Conrick asked.
    “I believe our colleague has made a deduction in the identity of the knight,” Orval said.
    Amara nodded.  “That extra strip around the chest.  It’s a bra.”
    “The knight is a woman?”  Conrick’s voice lilted unexpectedly.
    “It would seem so,” Orval said.
    Conrick cleared his throat.  “It’s not unknown for women to engage in combat roles, as our own city knows, but historically it is rare.”
    An assistant peeled back the armour padding, revealing more mottled skin.  The underlay stuck against the knight’s stomach and another assistant held down the torso.  The knight’s body deflated and blue fog shot out of her mouth.
    Tayu jumped to his feet.  “Andon gas!  Clear out!”
    Training kicked in and Devan sprawled onto the brickwork of the amphitheatre, pulling his shirt over his head, covering his mouth and nose.  Judging by the thumps, Rika and Tayu had followed suit.  Between the audience members scurrying for the exits, the professors stumbled away from the body, gagging and spluttering.  Only a fistful of gaseous andonite had escaped from the knight and it plumed into an azure cloud that soon filled the stage and first couple rows.  The distinctive sharp odour of andonite filled Devan’s nostrils and he squeezed his eyes shut.
    Boots and shoes drummed against the structure of the amphitheatre, drilling into Devan’s jaw and cheek as he huddled with his friends.  Tayu had taught them what to do in an andonite emergency – while exposure to the gaseous form of the mineral was uncommon, even amongst the miners, the effects were not to be dismissed as they included nausea to the point of