With his fist tightly gripping the wire wound hilt of his sword, Richard pulled a breath. The world around him seemed to go silent and still.
As he reached the apex of his backward twist, he paused.
Richard felt his heart begin a beat.
With all his power, as people stood frozen, as the man with the knife stood at the brink of murder, as the girl’s shrill scream drew out into a wire-thin sound filling the empty void in time, Richard unleashed himself in an explosive movement.
With all his strength he uncoiled. His blade erupted from its sheath fully charged not only with a wrath of its own but with Richard’s deadly resolve.
At the same time as the Sword of Truth rang with the unique sound of its liberation, Richard released a cry of fury. As he spun, he emptied all his rage into that roar. With every ounce of effort he had, he drove the blade around with as much speed and power as he could put behind it.
In a crystal-clear instant in time, Richard’s vision focused on the man with the knife standing rigid with surprise. Into that void in time Richard poured all his effort, all his muscle, all his wrath, all his need. That instant belonged to him alone and he used it to his singular purpose.
He could see the drops of sweat leave the man’s face as his head snapped toward Richard. Yellow-orange light from the lanterns reflected in tiny points on those drops as they floated weightless in midair. Richard could count each point of light from each lantern in each individual droplet of sweat as his sword ever so slowly swept around. He could count each greasy strand of the man’s hair as it whipped around, floating up into the air with the droplets.
Richard knew that eyes all around the stable were watching, that the eyes of the girl, too, were watching, but that made no difference. The only eyes that mattered to him were the dark eyes that at last met his glare.
In those black eyes Richard could see the initiation of thought. The tip of Richard’s sword whistled through the dusty air. Lantern-light glinted off the razor sharp steel. He could see the blade mirrored in the man’s dark eyes. Those eyes reflected the recognition of the full dimension of the threat.
Onward came the sword, sweeping like the crack of a whip toward those eyes, sweeping around toward the target Richard held in his own sight.
In that instant, the man completed his thought and made the decision to act. But even in the infinitesimal fragment of time that it took to come to the conclusion of that thought, the lightning arc of the blade closed most of the distance. Even as the man’s decision was being made, flinching fear from Richard’s battle cry caused the man to tense.
For that instant in time, the muscles of the man’s arms paused as fear fought intent.
It became a race to see which blade would first bite flesh.
Losing that race would be irrevocable.
With his gaze riveted on the man’s eyes, Richard at last saw his sword, flying at frightening speed, entering his line of sight. Seeing that blade again filled him with exhilaration.
Driven by thundering rage, the blade caught the side of the man’s head level with his dark eyes, exactly where Richard intended it.
In that instant, the crystal-clear moment in time that had been stretched to the breaking point shattered in sound and fury. The world went red in Richard’s vision as the man’s head came apart around the blade crashing through his skull. The hammer-hard sound of it thundered through the stables.
Bone fragmented. Crimson droplets sprayed up and away. The entire top of the skull lifted as the blade crashed through living tissue. In a long trail across the wall, bone, tissue, and blood traced the route of the sword’s sweep.
In that instant of shattering violence, the man’s life was gone. Richard’s remorseless rage shielded him from feeling the pain of any pity.
The force of the sword’s impact caused the arm with the knife to fall away from the girl even before the swing of Richard’s sword was complete. The man’s body, like nothing more than boneless meat, began collapsing.
The man had decided to kill the girl, but after he had made that choice, he had not had enough time to make his blade do his bidding.
Richard had.
He felt his heart finish the beat it had begun when he had leaped into the narrow window of time.
The man’s body gathered speed as it descended until it hit the ground heavily, lifting a small cloud of dust. The top portion of his head, most of his scalp still attached, landed with a heavy thud just outside the open stable doors, bouncing and tumbling away into the night, leaving a trail of gore to trace its crooked route.
Richard heard people gasp in shock. Others screamed.
The little girl, shrieking in terror, scrambled away into her mother’s outstretched arms.
As he held the blade cocked, ready for any other threat, Richard met the gaze of the wide eyes of the second man, still standing in place, held fast by Victor’s guards. The man made no attempt to escape or to fight.
Victor charged in through a gap in the bystanders, his heavy mace raised and ready. From somewhere Cara had appeared behind Richard, her Agiel in her fist.
Richard spotted Nicci for the first time. She raced across the passageway, her arms held up.
“No!” she screamed. “Stop!”
Victor straightened in surprise. Nicci seized his raised wrist as if she believed he was about to slaughter the other prisoner.
“Stand down, blacksmith!”
Startled, Victor paused and let his arm drop.
Nicci turned a furious glare on Richard. “You too, carpenter! You will do as I say and stand down. Do you hear me!” she screamed in fury.
Richard blinked. Carpenter?
Chapter 23
Through the haze of the sword’s anger storming through him, Richard realized that Nicci had to be up to something. He didn’t know her intent, but by calling both Victor and him by a trade rather than by their real names she was sending them a signal that was too obvious to miss. She was making an emphatic bid for them to catch on to her effort and to follow her lead.
Probably because people often did call him “blacksmith,” Victor didn’t seem to get the hint. He started to open his mouth to say something. Nicci smacked him across the face.
“Silence! I will hear none of your excuses.”
Shocked, Victor took a step back. The shock quickly curdled into a dark scowl but he didn’t say anything.
Seeing that Victor got the message to keep quiet, Nicci turned her ire on Richard. She shook her finger at him. “You will have to answer for this, carpenter.”
Richard didn’t have any idea what she was up to, but when their eyes met he gave her a slight nod. He feared to do anything else lest he spoil whatever it was she was doing.
Nicci appeared to be worked up into a fit. “What’s the matter with you?” she yelled at him. “Where would you ever get the unacceptable idea that you can act of your own accord in such a manner?”
Richard didn’t know what she wanted him to to say so he offered only a humble shrug, as if he were too ashamed to speak up for himself.
“He was saving my child!” cried Jamila. “That man was going to cut her throat.”
Nicci wheeled indignantly to the woman. “How dare you show such little regard for our fellow man! How dare you judge what is in another man’s heart! That is the Creator’s exclusive right, not yours. Are you a witch woman who can see the future? If not, then you can’t say what he would have done. Do you think he should be murdered for what you think he might do? Even if he would have acted, none of us alone has the authority to judge the right or wrong of whatever he did.”
Nicci turned again to Richard. “What would you expect the poor man to do? The two of them are dragged in here by a mob, without any charges, trial, or even being allowed to explain themselves. You treat a man like an animal and then are surprised when he acts out of confusion and fear?
“How do you expect Jagang the Just to ever decide to give our people another chance to do what is
right and proper when we act like this? The man had a right to fear for his life when among such a mindless rabble as he saw all around him.
“As the mayor’s wife, I will not allow such behavior! Do you hear me! The mayor will not like to hear how shamefully some of our fellow citizens have acted tonight. In the mayor’s absence, I will see that our ways are upheld. Now, put away your sword.”
Beginning to understand what she was doing, Richard made no attempt to answer and instead sheathed his sword, as instructed.
As he took his hand from the hilt, the weapon’s rage extinguished. Richard’s knees nearly buckled. No matter the justification, the need, the number of times he righteously used the sword, killing remained a hideous deed.
Not wanting to spoil Nicci’s act, Richard duly hung his head.
She turned a fierce look on the crowd. They all took a step back. “We are a peaceful people. Have you all forgotten our duty to our fellow man? To the Creator’s ways? How can we ever expect the emperor to someday accept us back into the fold of the Imperial Order if we behave like sub-human animals?”
The crowd stood mute. Richard certainly hoped that they, too, grasped that Nicci had a purpose and they should not spoil what she was trying to accomplish.
“As the mayor’s wife, I will not allow senseless violence to poison our people and our future.”
A younger woman in the crowd put her hands on her hips and took a step forward. “But they were—”
“We must at all times keep in mind our duty to our fellow man,” Nicci said in a threatening tone, cutting her off, “not our selfish desires.”
With a surreptitious glance to Victor, he understood her meaning and pulled the woman back to make sure she kept her mouth shut.
Nicci glanced around at the guards. “It is our responsibility to guide our fellow man, not to butcher him. One man has been murdered this night. The people’s authorities will have to hear this case and decide what will become of this carpenter. Some of you will have to see to it that he is confined until then.
“In the meantime, as the mayor’s wife, I will not allow this other man to meet a similar unjust fate. I know my husband would want to set matters right but I also know that he would not want it to have to wait until tomorrow just for him to say as much. He would want it rectified immediately, so you will take this other citizen outside of the city and release him. Let him go on his way in peace. We will cause him no harm. The carpenter, as I said, will have to be held until he can be brought before the proper authorities to answer for his heinous deed.”
Victor bowed. “Very wise, madam. I’m sure your husband, the mayor, would be pleased that you intervened on his behalf.”
Nicci glared at the top of his head for a moment while he was bowed before her. She then turned to stand before the second captive spy. She bowed to him.
Richard noticed that somewhere along the line the cord of Nicci’s bodice had come unlaced. It wasn’t lost on the man, either. Her deep bow provided him a good long look at her cleavage. Once she straightened, it was a moment before he finally looked up into her eyes.
“I hope that you will accept our apology for your inhumane treatment. It is not the way we were taught to respect all people as our brothers and equals.”
The man made a face, as if to say he might be able to forgive his mistreatment. “I can understand why you people are so touchy, what with your insurrection against the Imperial Order, and all.”
“Insurrection?” Nicci waved a hand dismissively. “Nonsense. It was little more than a misunderstanding. Some of the workers”—she gestured toward Richard without looking—“like these ignorant, selfish men, here, wanted more say for themselves and higher wages. It was nothing more than that. As my husband has often told me, it was misconstrued and blown all out of proportion. Selfish men caused an unfortunate panic that got out of control. It was much like this terrible tragedy here tonight—a misunderstanding resulting in needless harm to one of the Creator’s innocent children.”
The man regarded her with a long, unreadable look before he spoke. “And all of Altur’Rang feels this way?”
Nicci sighed. “Well, along with the vast majority of the people of Altur’Rang, my husband, the mayor, certainly does. He’s been working to bring to task the hotheads and troublemakers. Along with representatives of the people he has worked to make these few reactionary types see what a mistake they made and what great harm they do us all. They acted without considering the greater good. My husband has brought the leaders of the trouble before the people’s council and they have decreed the proper punishment. Most have repented. At the same time, he works to reform and reeducate the less intelligent of the lot.”
The man tipped his head to her in a slight bow. “Please tell your husband that he is a wise man and has a wise wife who knows that her place is properly in service to the greater good.”
Nicci nodded in return. “Yes, exactly, the greater good. My husband has often said that, despite our own personal wishes or feelings, we must always consider the greater good above all else; that despite any personal sacrifice we must think only of the betterment of all people and not cling to the sinful ways of individual wishes and greed. No one has a right to place themselves above the well-being of others.”
Nicci’s words seemed to have struck a cord with the man; such notions were the fundamental teachings and beliefs of the Imperial Order. She knew precisely how to strum those cords.
“How true,” he said as he watched her, taking another long look down the gaping neckline of her dress. “I guess I’d better be on my way.”
“And where are you headed?” Nicci asked. Her hand came up to modestly contain the sagging front of her dress.
He looked back up to her face. “Oh, we were just traveling through, heading farther to the south to where we have family. We were hoping to take up some work, there. I didn’t know this fellow all that well. We’ve simply been traveling together for the last few days.”
“Well,” Nicci said, “considering what happened here tonight, I’m sure that my husband would suggest that for your own safety you continue with your journey and, considering the few reactionary types still about, it would be best if you were to do so at once. There has already been one tragedy tonight; we would not like to chance another.”
The man passed a murderous glare across the assembled crowd. His gaze settled on Richard, but Richard kept his eyes turned to the ground.
“Yes, of course, madam. Please thank the mayor for trying to bring the filthy troublemakers back to the ways of the Creator.”
Nicci flicked her hand toward a few of the guards. “You men, show this citizen safely out of the city. Take enough men to ensure that there will be no trouble. And I need not remind you of how displeased the mayor and the people’s council would be should they discover that any harm whatsoever came to this man. He is to be allowed to go on his way.”
The men bowed and mumbled that they would see to it. By the way they acted, Richard could tell that they knew how to fall back into the role of what life had been like under the Imperial Order. All the people in the stable watched in silence as the men disappeared into the night with their charge. Long after they were gone, everyone stood still in tense silence, watching the empty doorway, fearful to speak until the man was far enough away, lest he hear anything.
“Well,” Nicci said at last with a sigh, “I hope that he makes it back to his fellow soldiers. If he does, then we have gone a long way toward spreading a little confusion before the battle.”
“Oh, he will,” Victor said. “He will be eager to report such news as you have given him tonight. Hopefully, they will be so confident that we can give them a real surprise.”
“Let’s hope so,” Nicci said.
Some of the people still remaining in the stable broke into chatter, pleased with Nicci’s apparent stratagem of confusing the enemy. Some bid a good night and went on their way. Some stood around the corpse, staring.
Nicci of
fered Victor a brief smile. “Sorry to have to strike you.”
Victor shrugged. “Well, it was to a good purpose.”
When Nicci turned to Richard, she looked uneasy, as if she feared a lecture or a reprimand.
“I want the troops coming this way to think they will have no trouble crushing us,” she explained. “Overconfidence leads to mistakes.”
“There was more to it,” Richard said.
Nicci cast a quick glance at the people still in the stables and then eased closer to him so that others couldn’t hear. “You said that I could come and join up with you once the troops coming to crush the people of Altur’Rang are destroyed.”
“And?”
Her blue eyes turned as hard as iron. “And I intend to see to it.”
Richard considered her for a time, finally deciding to let her do what she could to help the people of Altur’Rang and not interfere with how she planned to accomplish it. Besides, he was more than a little worried about what her plan might be. Right then, he didn’t really want to know what she was up to; he already had enough to worry about.
Richard took the loose ends of the cords lacing her bodice, drew them tight, and retied them.
She stood with her hands at her side, watching his eyes the whole time he did it. “Thank you,” she said when he finished. “I guess that must have come undone in all the excitement.”
Richard ignored her lie and checked to the side to see Jamila there, behind some of the other people. The woman, her cheek swollen and red, was kneeling, hugging the frightened little girl.
Richard stepped closer. “How is she?”
Jamila looked up at him. “Safe. Thank you, Lord Rahl. You saved her precious life. Thank you.”
As the little girl sobbed and clutched her mother, she eyed Richard with a look of terror, as if she feared he might slay her next. She had witnessed something terrible at Richard’s hand.
Chainfire Page 27
