by D. L. Kramer
Rial nodded his head. "Could I have some time to think about this?" he asked.
"Of course," Mo'ani said. "As long as you need. Lord Desan isn't going anywhere as long as we're all here." He stood up, as did everyone else. Rial kept his seat as they moved past him on their way out of the huge office. Kile set the treaty beside the dagger, then followed Paki from the room, closing the door behind them.
Seventeen - "A bit on the cold side"
It was well past mid-day when Rial finally emerged from the office with his decision. Paki and Bear were in one of the studies with Kile, Lord and Lady Bavol and Mo'ani when Rial came into the room. Adie and Gharald had returned to finish repairing the buildings inside the hold's walls.
"I've made my decision," Lord Valin said quietly from the doorway. He stepped away from the door and approached the table where they were all sitting. Paki looked up from the book he was reading and the others stopped talking.
"What is it?" Lord Bavol asked.
Rial's gaze shifted from one of them to the other, finally stopping on Mo'ani.
"My uncle has been the governor of Valin Hold since Lord Olorun left, and the Mo'ani of Valin have gotten to know him. I think they should have a say in what happens to him." Rial's voice was steady as he spoke. "I'd like to let them read the treaty, then make their own decisions."
Mo'ani nodded his head slowly, but Lord Bavol grunted his disapproval.
"It's your land," Matthios said. "If you want to avoid trouble later, you should take the reins now."
"Matthios, it's his decision," Evaine said gently.
Rial turned to look directly at Lord Bavol. "I don't have the experience the rest of you do," he said evenly. "And I can't trust myself to be fair, that's why I think it would be better to get the opinions of the loyal Mo'ani left here."
Paki looked at Lord Bavol, wondering what his next argument would be. To his surprise, Lord Bavol nodded his head slowly.
"Sometimes it's hard to keep your emotions out of it," Evaine said to Rial, reaching over to put her hand on Lord Bavol's. "I don't see anything wrong with your decision."
"Neither do I," Mo'ani added.
"I'll go 'ave everyone meet in the central room," Kile said, standing up. "Half an 'our all right?" He looked at Lord Valin, who only nodded. Kile walked from the study.
"I don't think you'll regret doing this," Evaine said to Rial after the door had closed behind Kile. "It'll leave an impression on the Mo'ani here."
"I just hope it's the right impression," Rial sat down in the chair between Paki and Bear's.
"You know," Mo'ani said absently. "One of these days I'll figure out when you all decided to start calling this army by my name."
Paki was surprised when both Matthios and Evaine chuckled.
"It gives you the infamy you deserve," Lord Bavol said. "I'm at least old enough to remember what your reputation was like when you were Captain of the Guard."
"Nothing like Lord Olorun's," Bear interjected, then smiled when Mo'ani looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You were never accused of murder."
"Just treason," Mo'ani said. "But it wasn't the king accusing me, so I disregarded it."
"Who accused you?" Rial asked.
"Her highness," Mo'ani answered. "The queen. It seems she was a little upset when I exposed her dalliances to the king."
"I can't imagine what it would be like to live under a king," Paki said thoughtfully.
"Depends on the king," Mo'ani said, looking at him with an even gaze. "Tomaz--the last king--would have been a good ruler. He was like his grandfather: even tempered, fair and quite unpretentious. It's too bad he had to die when he was so young." He sighed. "It's too bad we didn't get to him before the Archbishop."
"How old was he?" Rial asked.
"He was nineteen when he took the throne," Mo'ani continued. "He was twenty when the Archbishop had him murdered and seized power."
"Is Nahtan a descendant no one knows about?" Bear asked.
"No," Mo'ani shook his head. "There's a book somewhere in Lord Othon's library that says his spirit simply exists and wasn't created by Zakris."
"Then what is he?" Rial asked.
Mo'ani shrugged and looked at Rial. "Maybe when he gets here, he'll tell us--if he even knows."
"Or maybe we'll all be so glad to get rid of the Archbishop we won't care," Lord Bavol commented.
"It's not the Archbishop I'm so worried about," Evaine said. "It's his advisor--Tziyad."
"Nahtan can send that one back to the hell he came from," Matthios nodded.
"I know I don't envy Nahtan the work he's going to have to do to win," Bear said.
"You don't envy anyone with work to do," Paki commented dryly.
"But when I do work," Bear looked at Paki. "I do as much or more than anyone else."
"Most anyone else," Lord Bavol corrected.
"Shall we head to the central room?" Mo'ani asked, pushing his chair back. "We don't want to be the last to show up."
"We don't?" Bear asked, standing up.
"No, we don't." Mo'ani gave him a deliberate look before walking to the door and opening it for Lord and Lady Bavol.
Paki closed his book and took the time to put it back on the shelf, making him the last one out of the room before Mo'ani.
They walked silently to the large central room on the main floor. As they drew nearer, Paki saw Rial pulling the dagger and treaty from inside his vest. He hadn't noticed the weapon on him, and was surprised to see he had hidden it so well.
The Valin Mo'ani had assembled and were waiting while Kile was talking with the two guards outside the office Lord Desan was locked in. When he saw Rial with them, he came to meet them as the guards went into the office.
"This is it," Kile said, motioning to the room. The majority were men wearing the familiar red cloaks, but Paki spotted a few women with the same red sash Adie wore. Adie and Gharald stood to one side, speaking quietly.
The guards came out of the office, each holding one of Desan's arms. Paki noticed his hands were bound behind him. The Mo'ani escorted him to one side of the room, safely away from Rial. Desan scowled at the group standing by the stairs, giving Paki an especially black look. Once again, Paki found he wasn't intimidated by him, and had to suppress the sudden urge to walk over and slap him.
"Do you want one of us to address them?" Evaine asked Rial.
Rial looked over the men and women in the room.
"No," he said after a moment. "If I'm going to be their lord, I should do it." He walked over to the raised area to the right of the room, climbing the couple of steps, then turning to look out at everyone there. "I know most of you only really know Lord Desan and not me," he began. Paki was surprised when silence fell over the room immediately, especially since Rial wasn't speaking all that loudly. "But there has been evidence found that could prove him a traitor to Valin." Rial motioned to the Valin Mo'ani nearest him, then handed him the treaty and dagger as he stepped forward. "This was found in the office of one of his advisors. I'd like you all to read it and verify the signature as his."
The first Mo'ani read through the treaty, then passed it to his neighbor as he examined the dagger. After several seconds, that too was passed on. The room sat in silence, with the only sound being the rustling of the treaty as it was passed from one Mo'ani to the next. When Rial saw it had made its way to the back of the room, he continued.
"I know what I have seen Lord Desan do," he said. "But because he is my uncle, I'd also like to know what you've seen or heard."
The room was silent for several seconds, then a man toward the front stepped forward, looking at Rial. Paki thought he saw a look of recognition on Rial's face when the man came closer to him.
"We know you, M'lord," he said evenly. "A few of us stood watch on your nursery. We also remember what this land was like when Lady Raqueal was Valin's Lady, and we've seen what it's become with your uncle as her governor."
"Don't you remember the hysterics he was in?" Desan call
ed to the man who had stepped forward. "The nightmares, the madness--"
"With all due respect, Desan," another Mo'ani said, and Paki was surprised to clearly hear a woman's voice. Paki realized he'd mistaken her for a man at first, between her cloak and shaved head, she'd blended in with the men around her. "We've heard enough of your lies the last seven years. None of us ever witnessed Lord Valin's 'madness' firsthand."
"The only lies here are the ones that child is spinning!" Desan pulled against the Mo'ani holding him, but found himself quickly subdued.
"You've asked to know what we've seen and heard," the first man continued. He turned and pointed to two young Mo'ani standing against one wall. "They were standing an unauthorized watch and saw Lord Desan open the gates and let the church soldiers in to attack, subdue and arrest us. They're the ones who weren't arrested and managed to free the rest of us so we could take Valin back." He looked at Desan. "We've seen our friends cut down by his greed, and we've heard their souls cry for justice." The man looked back at Rial. "My vote is guilty." He stepped back to blend in with the others again. The bald woman's voice came next, also declaring Desan guilty.
Before Rial could say anything else, each of the Mo'ani began stepping forward, a clear "guilty" from each of them. By the time the sound of their voices died away, Desan began yelling about Rial's supposed insanity, this time including Mo'ani and Lord Bavol in his raving.
Rial nodded slowly as the last "guilty" was spoken. "I've overheard many of you talk about my mother and father with a great deal of respect," he said. "I only hope in time you can respect me half that much." Rial turned to look at Desan. "You have been found guilty of treason, Desan," he said evenly. "Unfortunately, none of the Valin Mo'ani saw you chase me up to the tower." Paki noticed angry frowns from a few of the Mo'ani when they heard that. Rial was quiet for a moment before continuing. "Valin Hold has never fallen, and I won't be responsible for leaving any opening for that to happen in the future. At dawn, you will die by hanging." Rial started to turn away, then stopped and looked back at his uncle. "Do you remember what you said you were going to do to me after running me through?"
When Bear nudged him, Paki looked at Desan, and was somehow happy to see him go pale.
"You bastard," Desan spat, glaring at Rial.
Rial looked to the Mo'ani holding Desan. "After he's dead, his body is to be burned, then the ashes tilled into an unmarked place in the forest. I don't want any grave or marker for anyone to turn him into a martyr." Rial looked back at the few Mo'ani left in Valin, his attention appearing to stop on a few that he nodded to when they spoke quietly to him directly.
Screaming in rage, Desan was drug from the hall, several of the Mo'ani cursing after him. With a nod from Kile, the Mo'ani dispersed, most leaving the keep and talking between themselves.
"He's going to be a very good lord," Matthios said with a chuckle.
"A bit on the cold side," Mo'ani noted. "But that may be what Valin needs to regain her strength."
Adie walked over to them while Gharald followed the last of the Mo'ani back outside.
"They're going to start building the gallows right now," she said. "It sounds like they've been looking for a reason to get rid of Desan for quite a while. Talk was even turning to assassinating him."
"It's not good to assassinate ye're own lord," Kile commented.
"Oh, so that's why you won't go back to Olorun," Adie smiled at him.
"Ye're the only assassin I know," Kile shrugged. "And unless ye're plannin' on followin' me--"
Adie smiled and winked at him.
"All right you two," Mo'ani rolled his eyes. "I thought you'd quit trying to kill each other when you were kids."
"Kill each other later," Lord Bavol said, offering his arm to his wife. "There's more than enough work to do right now." With a nod to Mo'ani, he escorted Evaine to the main door, then outside.
"More than enough," Mo'ani agreed. He looked at Paki and Bear. "We'll be moving into the hold, why don't you two go help strike Lord Bavol's camp."
"Okay," Paki nodded his head, then elbowed Bear when he started to speak. Bear sighed and followed him from the hold.
It took quite a while to strike the camp, but by the time it started getting dark, they were setting up the last of the tents outside Valin Hold. Paki collapsed into a deep sleep shortly after dinner, and it was Bear who had to wake him up just before dawn.
With no form of ceremony, Desan was led to the gallows the Mo'ani had built the day before. When asked if he had anything to say before he died, he had only turned to where Rial stood with Lord and Lady Bavol and Mo'ani spat on the ground.
Rial stood still, his young face blank of expression as the noose was tightened around his uncle's neck, then the trapdoor dropped out from under him. The young lord stayed until Lord Desan's body was cut down, then thrown into the bonfire that was built while Desan was hung. As his uncle's body burned, Rial turned to the gathered Mo'ani and promised them that the rebuilding of Valin Hold would begin the next day.
Paki knew the young lord of Valin Hold had set the cornerstone of a reputation that would follow him the rest of his life. At the age of thirteen, he had convicted and executed his uncle for treason. This action, more than anything else, would warn everyone he was someone to take seriously.
Epilogue - "He's not going back"
Paki woke a couple of hours before dawn. He'd sworn someone was in the tent with himself and Bear, but found no one there when he sat up. A quick look at the soundly sleeping Bear and Tiimu proved it had all been in his dreams. The humming in his head faded quickly, but he was unable to go back to sleep.
Lord Bavol had moved his camp down outside Valin Hold, while Mo'ani's men had moved inside. While burning the last of the bodies after Lord Desan's execution, they had found the body of the sympathizer Mo'ani had sent to help rebuild Valin. At some point, he had fled to the stables and cut his own throat. No one knew where Desan's ashes were tilled into the ground. Kile had taken that job, and he would never tell anyone. Paki guessed it was quite a distance away, since Kile hadn't gotten back to Valin until well after nightfall.
Paki lay still, listening for any sounds outside his tent. After almost an hour, he sat up. Pulling on his heavy shirt and boots, he slipped outside. Bear could lie in bed for hours if he didn't have to get up for anything, but Paki couldn't.
The Mo'ani on watch nodded to Paki as he made his way to the corral outside the hold. Paki nodded back and walked to the gate. The mare was also awake and trotted over to him. Scratching her nose with one hand, he unlatched the gate with the other. The mare came out and waited patiently while he retrieved her saddle and tack. He pulled a couple of burrs from her mane, then saddled and bridled her. Swinging onto her back, he reached out with his mind to her. He didn't know why he hadn't tried to speak with her before, and he was surprised now to find her expecting him to. Knowing where he wanted to go, he gave her an image of the river to the west of Valin. Before she turned and started in that direction, she sent a single thought to him.
"Ayita?" Paki asked out loud, realizing she was telling him her name.
The mare snorted, stamping her feet. Content Paki understood, she started walking, barely making a sound as she made her way through the camp.
Another Mo'ani on watch waved to him as he passed by, then turned his attention back to watching the forest. Once clear of the camp, Ayita broke into a trot and reached the river in good time. Paki let go of the reins and she dropped her head to drink from the cold water as he looked around. He looked up at the western battlement of Valin, wondering how Rial had ever survived the jump from that height. The river must have been exceptionally deep here by the walls for him to have gotten away without injury.
Ayita picked up her head and turned to look at him over her shoulder. Paki reached forward and patted her neck. He found himself missing the stallion and reached out, feeling for the familiar mind. The feeling he got back was faint, but it was definitely the stallion. Safe and healt
hy, Paki smiled to himself. Halona had, indeed, accepted his offering and request to heal the stallion. He didn't know how long Mo'ani wanted him to stay at Valin, and he hoped the stallion would still be healthy when he returned to the Stronghold.
"It's gettin' cold," Kile said, appearing beside him. He was riding Nicho, and Paki was surprised to see Nicho wasn't wearing a saddle. "Another month and a half and there'll be snow on the ground."
Paki smiled faintly. "There's been snow in the Dwellers' valley for a good two weeks now," he said.
"Most likely," Kile agreed. "I saw ye leave the camp, is somethin' botherin' ye?"
Paki shrugged. "Not really. I just couldn't sleep. There's a--lady who keeps showing up in my dreams. She seems to think I like her humming."
"And ye don't?" Kile asked.
Paki shrugged again. "Maybe if I knew what she was humming about it would be better, or even if I knew who she was."
"What's it sound like?" Kile let go of Nicho's reins, letting him drink with the mare.
"I can't describe it," Paki tried to remember any part of the woman's song. "Actually, I'm lucky if I can remember it at all after I wake up."
Kile nodded his head in understanding, then fell silent as he looked out over the land of Valin Hold. "There's a lot of work to be done 'ere," he finally said. "We could use Bear's help."
"He's not going back," Paki assured him. "He knows what Mo'ani was talking about when he told him the next year would decide if he was taken as a student or not."
Kile chuckled. "Lord Bavol swears 'e'll either be one of the best Mo'ani, or die before 'e gets cloaked."
"I don't think either one would surprise me," Paki decided.
"Ye two work well together," Kile said. "I'd like to see ye train together, but Mo'ani takin' ye this year'll put ye ahead of 'im."
"I don't think I'm going to be doing much training for a while," Paki looked back at Valin Hold. "A long while."
"We'll get 'er back on 'er feet," Kile assured Paki. "Lord and Lady Bavol will be stayin' for at least a month, and Mo'ani'll be 'ere for quite a while. We'll get ye're trainin' started while ye're 'ere as well."
