by Janet Woods
The pair clasped arms in recognition of their kinship and Laek murmured, ‘So if we cannot be foes we must be friends and comrades.’ And he recognized at that moment that he wasn’t as grand or important as he’d previously thought.
This man, Falcon Darkwater, had so much presence and power about him that it was obvious to all of them that he was the leader the people were waiting for.
* * * *
Just before dawn Iago roused them. He looked pleased with himself. Two of the commanders had arrived. Seeing their stealthy approach Iago had trussed them up and gagged them. Of the landflight there was no sign.
Tighe and Jon exchanged a grin at the sight of their commanders at such a disadvantage.
Iago looked embarrassed. ‘Sorry, it was dark and I couldn’t see their faces. They didn’t announce themselves just crept through the bushes like a couple of thieves ... so I pounced on them and cracked their heads together.’
The commanders poured down scorn, curses and threats on Iago when the gags were removed.
Setting them free, Laek told them, ‘You should have announced yourselves as blue bloods. Iago should be awarded extra credits for the capture. You might have been spies.’
‘I can’t think of any reason why someone would want to spy on you.’ He slapped Iago on the back and exchanged a sheepish glance with the other commander at being caught out. ‘It seems that we trained them too well. Well done Iago.’
The foursome fell quiet and gazed at each other.
‘No need to look so worried.’ The commander slapped Iago on the back and laughed. ‘Prince Laek is right ... well done, Iago. No hard feelings, and it won’t go against you ... unless it gets round, of course, then I’ll hang you from the highest tree by your manly bits.’
The ribald comment made them all laugh and eased the tension.
‘It’s time to break camp,’ the other commander said. ‘The trimarine is waiting and we’re to set sail along the coast for the port of Alba.’
When Falcon Darkwater came up behind Laek the commanders gazed at him with suspicion. Who’s this?’’
Laek moved to his uncle’s side. ‘This is the reason someone might have wanted to spy on us. May I introduce Falcon Darkwater, Lord of Karshal.’
The commanders bowed their heads. ‘Welcome to Soran Lord of Karshal. We expected your arrival, but didn’t know when. We thought you’d come at night, but by boat, and would make your presence known to the commanders’ quarters.’
‘I was injured, and was carried here by a landflight, who sensed the presence of my close kin. These troopers saved my life. I commend you on their training.’
Laek tried not to laugh at this bit of exaggeration to soothe the commanders’ ruffled feelings. His uncle seemed to be a diplomat rather than a warrior.
‘Now you are here we go to join lady Azarine in the forest.’
‘What of the final battle with the Belia troopers? Will we not now be awarded our insignia?’ Jon said, clearly disappointed, because they’d all been looking forward to crossing swords with the brutal Desii, and proving their superiority over Penn’s sons.
‘You’re true-bloods and you have no use for Cynan’s insignia, only Falcon Darkwater’s. Here are your cloaks. Those of you who haven’t been sent back to Arles are the true-blood force and can consider yourselves the very elite of the recruits. The four of you have been outstanding. You’re awarded the title of commander, and with every honor available attached.’ One of the commanders threw them a black cloak apiece, with a silver badge of a peregrine attached to it. ‘There is a bar to signify your rank. Wear them with pride, Commanders.’
To Falcon Darkwater they said, ‘Lady Azarine waits to greet you, Lord. We know it would warm her heart if you were to arrive with her son at your side. Are you fit to travel?’
Falcon’s burns had healed overnight. Tighe’s gift of black leather breeches and jerkin, to be worn over a soft blue tunic fit Falcon like a glove, as did the boots. A cloak of fine wool swirled around his ankles.
They broke camp as swiftly as possible and headed for the trimarine, where a general push and shove was taking place. The noise gradually abated, and the new troopers gazed at them in hushed expectation and with great reverence ... Laek, Jon and Iago flanked the Lord whose insignia they wore with such pride.
Laek stood side by side with his uncle when the introduction and vows of allegiances were made ... after all, as the Prince of Arles he could only be his uncle’s equal.
‘Where’s Tighe?’ Jon whispered as they neared the boat.
There was a soft draft and the passing of a shadow. A bird settled on Jon’s shoulder and trilled gently into his ear.
Laek laughed. ‘I guess he’s in an unsociable mood.’
Iago stroked the bird’s head and grinned. ‘I always knew he was a bird brain.’
The bird’s ruffled its feathers, and he pecked Iago’s finger, drawing blood. Crapping on Jon’s shoulder he flew up to perch on top of the mast. There, he sank into his feathers and gazed fiercely down over the assembly of true-bloods, looking as though he’d rather be anywhere than on the ship.
Chapter Ten
‘Laek’s mother should be here to welcome our son’s triumphant return. Why hasn’t she been found?’ Cynan said to Penn.
‘The trackers couldn’t find the remains of any temple of note, just a few tumbled stones here and there. It must have sunk beneath the surface again.’
‘Or it was never there in the first place. One of the trackers wandered into the area where the High Place is supposed to be. He has not returned.’
Cynan nodded. ‘The place is dangerous and the ground unstable there. He may have joined the rebels. If he does return, hang him.’
Penn cautioned, ‘We need all the trained troopers we can get if we’re to quell the uprising, so I will question him first.’ He shaded his eyes with his hands saying proudly, while Cynan seethed, ‘I can see my sons, Kadar and Grise. They are carrying the trophy between them.’
Annoyed by the news Cynan silently cursed. He’d made it clear to the commanders that Laek was to be rewarded with it, and the man had disobeyed him. He must talk to the lad when he came home. From what he’d heard his son did not suffer from a lack of fighting skills. In fact, he’d earned distinctions and was considered one of the elite. ‘Where is the third trimarine?’
‘It will arrive tomorrow, and I expect your lady will arrive home in time to greet her son. Soran is a day’s sail away from the other two islands if you recall. I’m going down to meet my sons, to congratulate them. Will you not come with me, Cynan? It would mean much to them.’
A small crowd had gathered at the harbor. Kadar and Grise stepped ashore. They were large and mean-eyed. A raggedly, unenthusiastic cheer went up when they held the trophy aloft.
When Cynan congratulated them on winning the trophy the pair exchanged a smirk. Penn looked smug. Bitter gall rose in Cynan’s throat as he remembered his own rivalry with Penn when they’d been youths. His brother had won the trophy by a fraction of a point for his tracking skills. They had come to blows over it and he’d nearly beaten Penn to a pulp before two commanders had dared to interfere and put a stop to it.
The new troopers lined up now, and they were a far cry from the shambling youths who’d embarked on their training three seasons ago.
Penn’s sons were part of the new batch of three commanders. No doubt they’d like to become his personal guard, so they could keep Penn informed of his business. They were going to be disappointed.
Cynan beckoned the other one forward. He was large and tautly muscled. ‘What is your name?’
He bowed. ‘Desii, my lord.’
‘What’s your record?’
‘I won a silver star for my skills with the blade.’
That would do. ‘Do you know my son, Laek?’
‘We were on Soran together, but in different groups.’
‘Laek’s group didn’t turn up for the final battle,’ Kadar informed him.
<
br /> Grise’s laughter had a sharp, mocking edge to it. ‘Perhaps he didn’t want to spoil his pretty Karshal face.’
A roar of laughter went up from the other troopers from the ship.
Desii pulled on an unctuous smile. ‘The prince and his group didn’t need to turn up. They’d already been graded as the outstanding recruits and awarded the rank of commander. Iago said he and Jon were trained with Laek from the cradle, and under Lord Cynan’s tutelage.’
Cynan nodded, trying to remain impervious to Grise’s provocation as well as Desii’s flattery. ‘I need to appoint two personal bodyguards ... someone I can trust. Will you take on the task, Desii?’ Not that he was in the position to refuse. And he could always get rid of him when Laek, Jon and Iago returned to fill the positions.
The new trooper’s eyes gleamed. ‘Yes, my lord.’
Cynan had the satisfaction of seeing the affront suffuse Penn’s face with a mottled red stain. ‘But Cynan, we have discussed this appointment and decided––’
‘You decided, Penn. I have been thinking it over. If a rebellion arises, and I’m not convinced that one won’t, we’ll need good commanders in the field. Your sons will get some much needed battle craft, hunting down the outlaws. Mock battles are a far cry from the real thing. After all, they did win the trophy.’
‘Who will you appoint to be the second bodyguard, when there is no other troopers of commander rank here?’
‘You forget that the Soran trimarine is yet to dock. It will be my son, Laek, of course. He will be home tomorrow and will be awarded the elite forces shield.’
Penn’s hand unconsciously strayed to the hilt of his dagger as he stared at him in suspicion. ‘What shield is that?’
‘The one being designed for the most outstanding recruit with top marks in all subjects.’
Penn looked affronted. ‘There is no such award.’
‘The silversmith is making the shield now ... did I forget to advise you of the fact?’
When Penn’s dagger was loosened a little, Desii drew out his sword and stepped in front of Cynan. The rest of the troopers moved to protect him, as they’d been sworn to do before they’d taken their places on the trimarine. There was no mistaking whose side they were on.
Cynan smiled at his brother almost challengingly. ‘I’ll find a suitable position for your sons, Penn. The commanders at one or two of the far outposts need replacing, and it will give them experience.’ Aware he was insulting both Penn and his sons he turned and walked away, leaving an angry and rancorous silence behind him.
After giving Penn and his sons a warning glance Desii swaggered after Cynan, the new troopers forming a smart line behind him – including, after a momentary hesitation, Penn’s sons, Gris and Kadar.
All the next day and the following few days after that, Cynan and the townspeople gathered at the harbor waiting for the trimarine to arrive from Soran.
‘I imagine they are becalmed and drifting,’ Penn suggested. ‘There might have been a storm at sea.’
Eventually, Cynan allowed himself to be convinced, and he withdrew to his quarters to wait, unable to admit to an uncomfortable notion that kept entering his head as he paced angrily up and down. Had Azarine and the son they’d created between them abandoned him?
He sent out spies and waited for them to come back. One day he looked at the silver shield he’d hurriedly had made, and knew he’d been made a fool of. Picking up a club he flew into a frenzy, battering the glittering metal out of shape. Afterwards, his anger and strength spent, he sank on to a bench, put his head in his hands and mourned the loss of his wife and son.
* * * *
The true-blood troopers stepped ashore in the small fishing settlement of Alba. The sails were run down the masts, which were then lowered. The boat was carried ashore by the troopers and concealed in a cave used for the storage of nets and equipment.
‘The red scorpion should be removed from the sails and replaced with a silver peregrine.’
‘Not yet, Laek,’ Falcon counseled. ‘Lady Azarine will eventually want to march on Arles in our campaign and flying my insignia at the mast will remove the element of surprise.’
Laek asked him, ‘Why should she need the element of surprise?’
‘She swore over the slain bodies of her family that she’d avenge their deaths by killing Cynan with her own hands when the time arrives. This she must do. Surprise will give her an edge. Have you forgotten battle strategy already?’
‘But my mother is a gentlewoman, not a trooper. She cannot hope to overcome Cynan, who is a fully trained warrior. Besides, she has us to do the fighting on her behalf.’
‘It’s a matter of honor for her, Laek. This she must do.’
‘She will not face such a task alone. I’ll go with her.’
‘We all will. If there’s an uprising she will need defenders loyal to her.’
The short column made their way inland by foot, and they were soon crossing the plain. The wind blew incessantly from all directions. It circled into towering whirlwinds filled with dust that collapsed as quickly as it arrived. The wind began to howl amongst the scattered rocks, making it impossible for them to proceed. They took shelter where they could and the gibber monkeys hurled insults and rocks when the insurgence of strangers tried to enter their stinking caves for shelter, or competed with them for the acidic-tasting berries that grew on the thorn bushes and provided basic nutrition for the gibbers.
Laek lost a precious ring his mother had given him, one that had a crystal healing stone concealed under a hinged lid. Not that he’d ever had to use the stone. No amount of searching would find it, despite Tighe’s many solicitous suggestions that sent him scrabbling under stones and down holes.
The gibbers watched him, mocking him and copying his actions, but when he neared their cave they bared their teeth and rushed at him, throwing stones and sand. Laughter came from his fellow troopers when he backed off, cursing under his breath.
Tighe said, ‘If you weren’t wearing a cloak I would have sworn you were a gibber too. You smell the same.’
Laek lunged at the grinning Tighe and wrestled him to the sand, where they rolled around to the whistles and shouts of their companions. Each tried to get a winning hold on the other, until their energy was spent. Then the wind began to moan and the troopers closed ranks.
‘I’ll keep watch,’ Tighe said, and he took up his usual position on top of the highest granite outcrop.
The body of the blue-blood troop, curled up together in the lea of an outcrop, covered in dust and looking as though they were part of the shadows. They hid their faces under their cloaks to filter the airborn sand and they slept until dawn. When they woke the wind had subsided and they were thirsty and hungry.
Of Tighe there was no sign, but Laek had watched the peregrine fly off at dawn and knew his friend could take care of himself. The bird came back with a leaf in its beak. Giving a shrill cry it then headed towards the far hill.
Laek broke camp and headed in the same direction. Followed by the troop.
The landscape became slightly more interesting, dotted as it was with scrubby plants and an occasional tree struggling to survive. By noon they nearly fell off the rocks they’d scrambled through, into a pool set amongst some palm nut trees.
‘What took you so long?’ Tighe said, and a cheer went up. Seated by a fire, Tighe had a wild goat and a young boar roasting over a spit. It was tough meat, but tasty. When roasted in the ashes, the palm nuts cooking inside the meat made for a tangy side dish. There was enough for them all.
They buried the remains and allowed the fires to go out. Rested and fed, they tramped on towards a distant line of trees. Evening fell, and beyond that they could see flames spit and arc as they escaped from the fire-mountains. Pinpricks of blue light glowed and twinkled like stars amongst the trees ... signs of a camp some distance ahead.
Falcon brought the band of troopers to a halt. ‘We can either rest for the night or carry on. It looks as though the
camp might be expecting us, though.’
Laek smiled tiredly at the others. ‘Then it would be a shame to disappoint them.’ They elected to go on, and it was a weary bunch that finally entered the camp.
Azarine was waiting for them, a smile on her face.
Laek hurried forward to embrace her. ‘Lady mother how wonderful to see you again. You look well, and I’ve missed your counsel.’
‘You look old enough to manage without it.’ She held him at arm’s length for a moment, her eyes darting over him, missing nothing. ‘You’ve grown into a man, Laek. I’ve been waiting for you.’
‘How did you know we were coming?’
She took his ring from her finger and handed it to him. ‘A peregrine dropped this into my lap yesterday.’
Tighe slid him a grin.
Azarine’s smile embraced Iago and Jon. ‘The pair of you have also grown, and how handsome you’ve become.’
Laek snorted when his friends grinned, shuffled their feet then jostled each other to be the first to kiss her hand. They managed to grab one apiece. ‘Well met, Lady Azarine. Our hearts and minds are yours to command.’
‘Thank you Jon and Iago. I have always regarded you as my sons, and I’m happy to see you are safe.’
Laek, Jon and Iago stood to one side, revealing the presence of Falcon Darkwater.
Azarine’s glance went to their powerful companion, and tears filled her eyes. ‘My dearest brother, at long last we meet again. Welcome, Falcon Darkwater, Lord of Karshal. You are so much like your father.’
‘Azarine, sister of my soul.’ Falcon smiled as he stepped forward, and he folded her into his embrace. ‘Thank you for the gift of my life, and gratitude is due also to you, Esbel the watcher. Not only did you bring me into the world, but you and your small companions lit our path across the plain with your inner light.’
Esbel smiled at him. ‘Your mother was a sweet and gentle woman who didn’t deserve the cruelty of her fate.’
‘I know ... and my lady mother was not the only one who suffered from my birth.’ Falcon lifted Azarine’s hand to his mouth and kissed it. ‘Now I am at one with my sister and her son. I am truly blessed.’
