Honor and Blood

by James Galloway

  "We have enough to take out the garrison if the Rangers don't show up in time," Tarrin said. "I doubt that the garrison is more than fifty men. The Were-cats have killed a good many of them already."

  "My reasoning as well," Mikos agreed with another snort, as if it were a crime to agree with a Were-cat. "It would be best to stop here, before any realize we are so close."

  "A good idea," Sathon agreed.

  "Column, halt!" Mikos boomed in a voice they probably heard in Watch Hill. "Rest!"

  Tarrin set down Jasana, who kept hold of his leg for a moment. "I'm hungry," she complained.

  "So am I, cub," Tarrin told her. "I think we can find something to eat around here."

  "I'll get you something, cub," Jesmind told her, holding her paw out to her. Jasana took it, and Jesmind led her off towards the middle of the column. Tarrin turned and looked up into the sky, and managed to spot Ariana ghosting across the base of a low-lying cloud. The sky was a bit threatening, with a bank of clouds hanging to the north, being pushed down by the Skydancer Mountains. The thunderstorms that could form about that time of year could be savage, but the prime of the storm season was still some rides away. Ariana was carrying a shaeram, so he could contact her. He grabbed hold of his amulet and called her name. "We need to talk to you, Ari," he told her. "Could you land?"

  "I'll be there in a minute," she replied immediately.

  "That's a clever little trick," Sathon said appreciatively, looking at the amulet. "A remnant of the Age of Power?"

  Tarrin nodded. "It comes in handy," he said.

  "Can you make one?" Sathon asked.

  Tarrin glanced at him. "I probably could, but I haven't quite had the time to pick apart the magic used to make them yet," he replied. "The only one I have to study is this one, but it has more spells cast into it. They merge together after a while, and it's difficult to tell one from another."

  Sathon nodded. "Sorcery degrades over time, even spells meant to be permanent. It's a basic limitation to the art."

  "There are very few permanent spells in Sorcery, Sathon," Tarrin told him absently. "Only High Sorcery can be made permanent, and even that isn't easy." He looked around. "You know, I haven't seen Alix since yesterday. Is he with us?"

  "I have no idea," Sathon chuckled. "If he turns up, I wouldn't be surprised."

  "Sarraya can't be too far from us right now, so maybe he went to go see her," Tarrin replied.

  "She is?"

  "She's leading a Selani Clan through the Frontier," he told him. "Right now, I'll bet she's close to Minara." Minara was a large town almost due south of Torrian, close to the Shacèan border. It was due east of Ultern. Sarraya would lead the Selani out of the Frontier at Minara, then get on the King's Road that ran from Minara to Suld for faster travel.

  "Selani? What are Selani doing all the way over here?"

  "Helping," Tarrin answered. "I didn't ask them to come, but they insisted. Not that I'm going to tell them to go home."

  "You know Selani?" Mikos asked curiously.

  "I know alot of people, Mikos. Some of them you wouldn't like. Some of them would get me cast out of Fae-da'Nar if they knew I knew them."

  "Like who?" Sathon asked with a grin.

  "A Demon," Tarrin replied calmly. "A Demoness, to be precise. She's the one that did this to me," he added, holding out his arms to display his fetlocks, the visible symbol of his unnatural age.

  "She attacks you, yet you don't take revenge on her?" Mikos asked in disapproval.

  "I took a revenge on her she'll never forget," Tarrin said deliberately. "But it didn't dissuade her in the slightest. She likes me."

  "It's dangerous when a Demon likes you, brother," Sathon laughed.

  "True, but she also happens to be the new Empress of Yar Arak," he said conversationally. "She's lending the katzh-dashi a few Legions to aid in the defense of Suld. So I'll endure the fact that she likes me."

  Sathon gave him a wild look, then he laughed. "Is there anyone not coming to Suld to help?" he asked.

  "The Goblinoids, for one," Tarrin said with a slight smile.

  "May their blood feed the ground," Mikos spat.

  With a flourish of wings, Ariana landed just at the head of the column. She shivered her wings a few times before folding them behind her. "What did you need?" she asked.

  "My dear, we need a report on what's ahead," Sathon told her. "What did you see?"

  "Well, the village ahead looks to be quiet," she replied. "There are very few villagers moving around. There are some patrols of men wearing those Dal uniforms. There's a pack of wolves blocking the south road, and there's a force of about two hundred humans wearing green uniforms gathered to the north of the village, and they look to be about ready to attack."

  "Green uniforms?" Tarrin asked.

  Ariana nodded. "They're all carrying bows."

  "Those are the Rangers," Tarrin told them. "They usually don't wear uniforms except when they're going to engage in an open battle. They must have had the same idea we did, to eliminate the Watch Hill garrison."

  Sathon raised his fingers to his lips and blew out a very loud, shrill whistle. He'd used that whistle to recall the Were-cats scouting ahead. "Do they know we're here, Ariana?"

  "I think so," she replied. "You passed one of them hiding in the forest, and he broke off and moved towards the others about ten minutes ago."

  "You mean the Were-cats missed a human?" Mikos asked scathingly.

  "I think they knew he was there, because that one with blue eyes actively avoided passing close to him," Ariana replied. "Since he's not in a Dal uniform, they probably ignored him."

  "Probably," Sathon agreed. "Were-cats' senses are too sharp for them to miss something like that. At least unless the human was downwind."

  "I never scented him," Tarrin admitted.

  "Alright then. Why don't you pay those human soldiers a visit, my dear?" Sathon asked politely. "Tell them that we're getting set up, and if they would like some help defeating the Dals, just tell us what to do. Just be careful and don't get yourself shot."

  "I'll be careful, Sathon," Ariana grinned. "Just give me a pen and some paper, and I'll drop a note to them before I land."

  "A good idea," Sathon agreed. Tarrin felt him touch his Druidic ability, and a piece of parchment, writing quill, and inkpot appeared in his hands. "Let me write it, my dear. I don't think you know how to write in Sulasian."

  "No, I'm afraid not," Ariana agreed with a chuckle.

  Sathon scribbled out the note, then handed it to her from Mikos' back. "We'll wait here until you come back," he told the Aeradalla.

  "I'll be back in a bit," she told him, turning, taking two steps, then vaulting into the air with a powerful sweep of her wings.

  Tarrin felt a small paw grab him by the tail, so he looked back behind him. He saw Jasana holding onto his tail while gnawing on a large piece of trail bread, held in the other paw. Jesmind had a similar chunk of bread, which she broke in half and offered part of it to him. He nodded his thanks as he bit into it, finding it to be flat and not entirely pleasant tasting. "I saw her take off. What's she up to?" Jesmind asked.

  "The Sulasian Rangers are massed up north of Watch Hill," Tarrin told her. "She's going to tell them we'll cooperate with any plan they have."

  "When is it going to start?"

  "I have no idea."

  "I don't think Jasana should be around for something like that, my mate."

  "I agree. I think she'll be alright without me for a while, as long as she doesn't get excited."

  "That's not easy," Jasana chuckled. "She gets excited without anything helping her."

  One by one, the other Were-cats came in from up the road, and one by one Sathon told them why they were waiting, then suggested they go get something to eat or take a short rest before the action started. Kimmie was the last one to come in, leading a riderless horse that was shying and bucking against the reins. Were-cats had a cat smell that wasn't entirely like a housecat when they
were in their natural form, and that was close enough to a rock lion or cougar for horses for them to fear it. Only horses that had been approached the right way by a Were-cat showed no fear, to show them that the new, strange smell that was almost like a predator they were bred to fear really wasn't dangerous. Kimmie probably didn't approach the horse properly, so now it rebelled against her, thinking her to be an enemy.

  "Why did we stop?" she asked, yanking on the reins. Kimmie wasn't as strong as most Were-cats, but that was a purely relative comparison. She still had inhuman power, and it was enough to snap the horse back down from its half-rear and startle the animal.

  Tarrin shook his head and took the reins from her, then put his paw over the horse's muzzle. He held it firmly yet gently, making it inhale his scent, then he stroked the horse on the snouth gently. That made it calm down some, and it calmed down even more when Tarrin let the reins slack slightly and scratched the animal behind the ear. Tarrin was so tall that his eyes were over the horse's, and the horse looked up at him with a strange kind of curiosity. He reached behind its head and stroked the side of its neck, then he turned his back to it deliberately. The horse stepped up behind him, then nudged him slightly on the shoulder with its muzzle.

  "That's something I didn't think I'd see," Sathon chuckled. "Where did you learn to handle horses?"

  "I was born human, Sathon, and my father spent half his life on horseback," Tarrin said dismissively as Jasana padded up to look at the horse with curious eyes. "I learned how to handle horses when I was Jasana's size." He reached down and picked up his daughter, then set her in the saddle still strapped to the horse's back. "Gently now, cub, and don't scratch him with your claws," Tarrin told her as she giggled and reached forward to put her paws on the animal's fur coat. "Horses are very nervous animals, so you have to be kind and delicate with them."

  "I'll be careful, papa," she assured him, patting the horse's back gently.

  "I never did like horses," Jesmind said with a snort. "Now I'll have to wash that smell off of her."

  "Anyway, to answer your question, Kimmie, the Aeradalla found the human Rangers we're supposed to meet here. They're formed up to attack the village, so she's going to tell them that we're here and we're willing to help."

  "I saw a human in a Ranger's uniform not too long ago," Kimmie mused. "I left him alone, I figured he was a scout. I'm sure they knew we were here before Ariana dropped in on them."

  "True, but now they know that we'll coordinate with them," the Druid told her. "Go take a break while you can, my dear. We may be moving fast in just a few moments."

  "What is this, mama?" Jasana asked. Tarrin turned to look, and saw that she had a sword half drawn from where it had been stowed under the stirrup.

  "It's a sword, cub," Tarrin told her sharply. "It's not a toy. Put it back."

  "Yes, papa," she said obediently, letting the weapon go. It dropped back into the scabbard on its own.

  "Where'd you get the horse?" Tarrin asked Kimmie.

  "About a longspan up the road," she replied. "The man riding it seemed to be very nervous for some reason. I think he was a scout sent out by the garrison because we've killed all the other scouts and patrols."

  "I figured as much," he grunted. "Those Rangers had better be ready to move soon. The Dals have to know that something is seriously wrong, and they're going to start preparing for a fight."

  "Why don't you just go magic them, papa?" Jasana asked innocently.

  "Because I don't like to do that, cub," he answered seriously. "There's always a risk I'll hurt an innocent person by accident. I don't use magic like that unless I don't have any other choice."

  "Quit yammering on about things you have no business talking about, cub," Jesmind chided her daughter.

  "Yes, mama," Jasana sighed.

  "There's the winged one," Mikos announced, pointing to the sky. Ariana landed just behind the horse and stepped up to them.

  "The leader of the Rangers told me to tell you to come up to the edge of the village, but stay out of sight," she said to Sathon and Mikos. "He'll give us about an hour, because I told him you were a few longspans from the village. We're supposed to charge the village when we hear someone blow on a horn three times. He asked me to make sure whoever you brought with you doesn't kill the villagers," she said pointedly.

  "My Centaurs know Dal uniforms," Mikos told her. "I'm sure the Were-kin know too."

  "He told me to tell you that the new building at the top of the hill, by the burned building, is the Dal barracks," she continued. "He wants you to attack that building first."

  "Then that is what will happen," Mikos said confidently. "Ardo, spread the order, just as the Aeradalla stated it," he called back to one of the Centaur following them. "We attack the new building by the burned ruins at the top of the hill when the signal is given, and we kill only men in Dal uniforms."

  "As you order, Mikos," the other Centaur said, thumping his chest before turning and galloping back to the main host.

  "Ariana, please go back to the human commander and tell him we'll be ready," Sathon asked politely of the Aeradalla.

  "Of course, Sathon," she said with a smile. "I kind of like him," she admitted. "He's a nice man. He even has a nice name."

  "And what is it?" Kimmie asked.

  "Arren."

  Tarrin's ears picked up. "Duke Arren?" he asked quickly. "A tall man with graying black hair and a strong jaw?"

  "That's him," Ariana replied. "Do you know him?"

  "Yes, I know him, Ari," he replied with a chuckle. "I was turned in his keep in Torrian, so I have good reason to remember him."

  Jesmind sighed, then reached up and put her paw on his shoulder. She probably thought that it was a bad memory for him, but truth be told, it wasn't much of a memory at all. The events that had caused his turning had been lost in the mists of his mind. He only remembered that he and Jesmind had fought, and that somewhere during the course of it she had bitten him.

  "All things considered, Arren's keep was a good place to have that kind of thing happen. Arren was a kind and considerate man, and his cooperation helped me a great deal. I'm glad he's here. I'll be happy to see him again."

  "I'll tell him you're looking forward to seeing him," Ariana said, then she turned and vaulted into the air.

  "Alright then, let's get into position," Sathon said crisply, patting Mikos on his back.

  "Jesmind, why don't you wait here with Jasana?" Tarrin asked. "I'd like to keep both of you out of harm's way."

  "I can take care of myself, Tarrin," she said indignantly.

  "I know that," he said smoothly, "but I also don't want to expose Jasana to danger."

  "I'll stay with them, Tarrin," Kimmie offered. "Jasana likes me, and that way there will be two here in case something sneaks by you."

  Tarrin nodded appreciatively. "Is that alright with you, Jesmind?"

  "That's fine," she agreed.

  "Come on, little rat," Kimmie grinned at Jasana, taking her paw. "You and me and your mother are going to play for a while."

  "Can we go hunting? Can we fish? Can we climb trees and scare the squirrels?" Jasana asked enthusiastically.

  "I saw a stream not too far over that way," Kimmie said, pointing north. "I think there might be some fish in it with our names on them."

  "That sounds like a good idea," Jesmind agreed with a smile. "We'll be over there, my mate."

  "We'll send someone when it's safe," Tarrin told her, taking her paw for a moment, then watching his mate, daughter, and friend pad off into the forest. Tarrin felt much better knowing that Jesmind would have a second pair of eyes helping to protect his cub. And it looked like Kimmie and Jasana knew each other, and that Jasana liked her. That was also a good thing.

  "Alright then, let's get ready," Sathon said after the three of them disappeared into the trees.

  Woodkin were at home in the forest, and it showed as they quickly and quietly moved up to the edge of the treeline, looking out on the small hill on
which the village was situated, and settled in with speed and stealth. Even the large Centaurs had little trouble moving up to that position without so much as breaking a twig on the ground, and their brown or mottled or reddish coats blended in with the forest to give them camoflage. The Were-kin were all in their hybrid forms, and like that it was easy to tell the Were-wolves from the Were-bears from the Were-boars from the Were-foxes from the Were-rats from the Were-lions. They all looked remarkably akin to Wikuni, with their fur and animal heads situated atop humanoid bodies. In that hybrid form, they would enjoy all the Were immunities and gifts, the things the Were-cats enjoyed all the time. While in human form, a Were-kin was as frail and vulnerable as a human. Only in hybrid or animal form did they gain their Were resistances.

  The Aldreth villagers with the Woodkin didn't disappoint their sylvan companions. All of the men were experienced hunters, and they set up with their bows near the road, setting up with a quiet efficiency that surprised the Centaurs that set up to either side of them to protect the fragile humans. Bows were strung and arrows checked, then they too settled in and waited for the signal.

  Tarrin found himself crouching in the brush right on the edge of the treeline with Thean on one side and a Were-bear on the other. Tarrin didn't know the Were-bear, but it plopped down beside him without so much as batting an eye, then smiled at him and nodded as it crouched down into the brush so its shaggy brown coat would blend into the shadows. Were-bears were pretty easy going creatures, mellow and laid back, and they didn't mind Were-cats all that much. They were one of the few Were-kin that didn't have a bad opinion of the Were-cats.

  "Now comes the waiting," Thean whispered. "You know humans, lad. When will they call for us?"

  "Whenever Arren thinks we're ready," he replied quietly. "If he said an hour, knowing Arren, it'll be exactly one hour after Ariana left with the message."

  "It's a shame we have to do things this way," the Were-bear said with a low rumble and obvious sadness in his voice. "Violence is so wasteful."

  "Sometimes you have to oppose the violent with violence," Tarrin told him quietly. "It's all they understand."