Alaric Swifthand

by Steve Lazarowitz

  She nodded, smiled sadly and moved toward me. I held up a hand. “You can help set up and break down camp, just like the rest of us. You can talk to me and keep me company on the road. In exchange for that, I’ll share my food and protect you.”

  Her smile faded. She studied me, as if she didn’t believe her luck. “Why not just make use of me?”

  I shrugged. “It’s just not my style. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to return to camp and get some rest. There aren’t enough hours until sunrise.”

  I turned and walked off into the night, flanked by Tindal and Graham. A quick glance assured me Aynslae followed immediately behind.

  I didn’t sleep well that night. I dreamt of Theona, deep in the Labyrinth of Kerrenar. Jeren was there too, but I wasn’t. They were in horrible trouble and I couldn’t help them. I kept trying to enter the dream myself, but failed time after time. Only after they had been claimed by darkness did I awaken, shivering and sweating at the same time.

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  Chapter Twenty-five

  The days that followed were as routine as any I can remember. We walked all day, every day. Graham would sing, until we asked him to stop. Tindal listened raptly to my tales of adventure, until Graham could no longer stand it. And Aynslae remained aloof, doing anything asked of her, but never volunteering to perform even the simplest chore.

  I thought that odd behavior for a servant, though it was possible she was testing her new situation, seeing just how far she could go. I was also impressed with her conversational abilities. While she never volunteered information, I could tell from her choice of words, she was more educated than she let on. I couldn’t imagine why she would choose to keep that information from us, but it didn’t really matter at the time.

  We headed south toward Rikkordia, what we humans called Gigantia. The city was the legendary home of Graham’s people and was known for its great warriors and skillful craftsmen. Graham, as large as he seemed to me, was not particularly large for one of his kind. While I happily supported my friend’s urge to visit his family, I wasn’t exactly thrilled with meeting a race of warriors, twice my size … especially with my penchant for trouble.

  Tindal didn’t seem to mind though. Nothing seemed to bother him, not even the oppressive heat that seemed to increase daily as we continued south. I thought about him then.

  We had met him on the road, after the Drintu showed Graham and I the way out of the Labyrinth of Kerrenar. We were quite relieved to find ourselves back in the present instead of the past, as I feared might be the case. Apparently the present day Labyrinth could only be entered from the Dangling Dagger, two hundred years ago. It was a truly brilliant way to hide the place.

  Tindal was another traveler, like ourselves, wandering the world with no real plan. He was only a hair taller than me and somewhat thinner, though I wasn’t heavy myself. His hair was black and short and he wore a goatee which he kept neatly trimmed. His garb was too fine to be peasant garb, but not rich enough to be worn by nobility. Still, it was impeccable. The dust and grime that seemed to find my clothes and boots, avoided his for some reason.

  Tindal was as good-natured a fellow as I’d ever encountered, yet there was something about him that was a little off. It wouldn’t have surprised me if I later found out he had been raised by wolves, or a field of wheat for that matter. Tindal, in fact, did have a secret, but it would be a long time before he chose to reveal it.

  Nights were the hardest for me. They hadn’t been before we’d met Aynslae, but I suppose her presence, in some way, reminded me of how lonely I had been since Theona left me. Not that she had always been nice to me, but traveling with Graham, as good a man as he was, couldn’t fulfill me the way my relationship with Theona had. The fact was, though I was hurt by her decision to go off with Jeren, I accepted much of the responsibility for the separation. I had lied to her about the nature of the Sword of Truth and she had lost her ability to trust me. I can’t say I blamed her.

  In Theona’s absence, I had tried, fruitlessly I might add, to get to know Aynslae better. I had, several times, tried to question her about her past. As with all things, she would answer anything I asked, but with minimal detail. I wasn’t certain if she was shy or taciturn and it didn’t matter. After a while even Tindal got tired of attempting to interrogate her and we had to content ourselves with speculation as to her past.

  So now it was just the six of us. Myself, Graham, Tindal, Aynslae, the Sword of Truth and the Shield of Reckoning, the last of which, against all odds, also speaks. I won’t go into further detail about my rather eccentric armaments at this time, but I will say this. Since their reunion, the Sword of Truth and the Shield of Reckoning have spent more time talking to each other than to me. Over the weeks, I had learned to tune them out, though at times I found their gentle banter a source of amusement.

  We reached the outskirts of Rikkordia about a week after I cut Aynslae down from her pole. By that time, she was finally beginning to suspect I was as good as my word.

  Certainly, she began spending more time closer to me. Or it might just be that the traffic we met coming north consisted largely of well-armed giants that didn’t, at first sight, look all that friendly. Whatever the reason, I didn’t mind a spot of female company, even if there was something decidedly odd about her.

  As the days passed, I began to suspect Aynslae had been lying about her past, but it didn’t really matter to me. The source of my suspicion seemed barely out of reach; like the way you sometimes see a flash of movement from the corner of your eye that’s gone by the time you turn. There was definitely more to our reluctant servant than met the eye, but I didn’t care. I found I had grown to like her in spite of her reticence.

  Rikkordia was an interesting city. Unlike the human cities of the north, Rikkordia was more of a sprawling village. Most of the houses were made of sun-baked clay and were, to my surprise, hard as stone. Because they were all a single level, the city was huge. Nor did it seem to have a beginning or end. It simply spread out into the surrounding areas, with no seeming rhyme or reason. There were no streets, no walls, nothing to divide one section from another, or indeed the city from the surrounding wilderness. This last was particularly odd to me, since almost all major cities in the north have huge walls around them to protect them from attack. Perhaps the giants didn’t fear attack or perhaps no one had ever been stupid enough to make the attempt.

  Another quality that made the city surreal to me, was the lack of color. Everything was constructed of the same material, so every structure had the same gray-green hue. Nor did the giants dress colorfully. I thought that if I had to stay here for any length of time, I might go mad, just from the monotony of the surroundings.

  None of this seemed to bother Graham, who was happy to be home. He navigated between the dwellings, as if he knew exactly where he was going. How that was possible, I couldn’t imagine, since everything looked exactly like everything else. After only a few minutes, I was completely lost.

  Tindal was taking it all in with a sort of bemused detachment, while Aynslae stayed even closer to my side, a circumstance I didn’t at all mind. We wandered for a long time before we came to a house that looked, for the life of me, like every other. Graham walked up to the doorway and entered. Like all the dwellings we’d seen so far, there were no doors or windows, but rather holes where they should have been. I found this an odd arrangement and made a mental note to ask Graham about it later.

  Tindal and I looked at each other, but didn’t enter. Not at first. Graham had not invited us in and so we stood out in the hot sun and baked like the clay. Flies were plentiful here. After a time, I gave up swatting them. They had no such compunctions about biting me however and after a while, I thought I could learn to hate it here.

  It was roughly at this point that a particularly large giant approached us. I could tell by his weapons and his carriage he was a warrior of no small skill. Almost instinctively, I placed my hand on the hilt of my sword
and jerked it away when I realized what I was doing. There was no way I was about to threaten a giant in his own territory.

  He looked us over without slowing and entered the house without saying a word. Only a moment later, there was a loud shout from inside and then another. Tindal and I exchanged glances and charged in. Aynslae, rather intelligently, remained outside with the flies.

  Inside, the newcomer had grabbed Graham and thrown him to the ground. Before we could intervene, he dove and landed directly on top of my now prone friend. Graham struggled to get out from under him, but found it impossible. I drew my sword and approached. What happened next happened very fast.

  Graham struggled out from under his assailant just enough to get a glimpse of me. Tindal moved forward to support my effort, though he didn’t draw his weapon. It was roughly at this point that the larger of the two giants became aware of me.

  He growled and lashed out with his foot, kicking me roughly across the dirt floor. Graham found his feet. Tindal was clearly uncertain about approaching the melee. There was no telling whether his reaction was born of cowardice or wisdom, though in this instance his hesitation turned out to be the best possible circumstance.

  Only now that Graham stood beside his attacker could I see how much smaller he was. I took a step forward, but Graham raised his hand. I took a final halting step and waited for him to say something.

  “Alaric, I’d like you to meet my brother, Rolland.”

  I paused and studied them. There seemed to be little resemblance between my pacifist friend and the huge warrior beside him. Before I could speak, Graham continued. “He was just happy to see me, Alaric.”

  “So he grabbed you and threw you to the ground?”

  Graham nodded. “Admittedly, he was somewhat over-enthusiastic, but then, it has been a long time since we’ve seen each other.”

  His brother walked forward until he stood directly in front of me. I looked up to meet his gaze, determined not to flinch.

  “You are very brave for a little man. Your presence honors our home.”

  Only at those words did I sheath my sword. “Ummmm, thanks.”

  I still couldn’t believe I’d gotten out of it with a whole skin.

  “I’m sure the High Elder would like to hear all about your adventures, Graham. You were planning on reporting to him, were you not?”

  Even I couldn’t miss the tone of accusation in the statement.

  “Of course. I just wanted to see the family first.”

  “You know the rules….

  Graham shrugged.

  “Go now. Fulfill your obligation and we will celebrate your return afterwards.”

  Graham nodded, turned and walked out. Tindal and I joined him. Aynslae was waiting outside. If she was surprised to see us alive, she didn’t show it.

  “What the hell was all that?” I asked.

  “Whenever a giant goes on an outing, he is required to recount it to the High Elder. The Elder will then decide if the adventure did justice to the traveler’s family name. Honor is very important among our people.” He lowered his voice so only I could hear it. “Alaric … if the High Elder finds out the truth about me, I will never be able to face my family again.”

  I remembered finding out how Prince Dendrac had blackmailed the giant into doing his bidding. Graham’s family were all warriors and his own refusal to fight would indeed darken their reputation.

  “You have nothing to worry about. Your secret is safe with me.”

  He breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Alaric.”

  The High Elder’s house was like every other. No palaces for the highest ranking official of the giants. In fact, with the exception of ruling the race, there was nothing to set him, or his home, apart from every other. I later learned the giants saw leadership as grave responsibility, rather than a privilege. There was no status associated with the position, but rather a great pressure to live by the rules perfectly, thus setting an example for the rest of the population.

  By the time we reached the Elder’s house it was just getting dark and I was beginning to feel tired. Apparently the long trek, followed by the false alarm, left me drained. The heat, I’m certain, played a part in it. The walk to the Elder’s hut seemed to take forever. By the time we reached the place, I was ready to turn in for the night.

  I didn’t look forward to standing outside, but I certainly wasn’t about to enter without an invitation. Graham turned and motioned for me to follow, and though Tindal wasn’t invited, he joined us inside as well. Aynslae, perhaps because she had been a servant, did not.

  At first glance, I was almost disappointed. The High Elder was smaller than Graham and looked to be about the same age. I had taken the word ‘Elder’ literally, though that was not, apparently, the case. The Elder examined us before addressing Graham.

  “Well met, traveler. You have a report for me?”

  Tindal and I turned toward Graham and waited expectantly. He paused for a long while, perhaps to gather his thoughts. When he spoke, his voice was strong and steady. As his words unfolded, I found myself plunged into the past, remembering, but also experiencing it for the first time through Graham’s eyes. Only then did I realize how little Graham spoke about our adventures. I suppose with me around, it was a good thing.

  “I left here with Prince Dendrac, as you know, looking for the Lost Labyrinth of Kerrenar. Prince Dendrac was later slain by a thief who took the magical tome that had belonged to my family for generations, along with a magical key that had been provided by the Prince.”

  I held my breath as the story progressed, until I realized he wasn’t going to name me as the murderer. I almost sighed relief, but caught myself.

  “I tracked his murderer across the Kingdom until at last, in Modron, I caught up with him. Amazingly, the thief had somehow managed to solve the puzzle and discover the whereabouts of the Labyrinth. When I learned of this, I knew I couldn’t kill him and bury the secret forever. Instead we joined forces and penetrated the place, looking for the treasure reputed to be there.”

  “Alas, there was no treasure, though danger and wonders abounded. It was during my time in the Labyrinth that I found new respect for my traveling companion. Thoughts of revenge faded from my heart, for I knew to kill him would be wrong. Especially because there were circumstances surrounding the Prince’s murder that still bothered me.”

  My new found relief began to fade as his tale unfolded. Graham turned to look at me and the High Elder followed his gaze. Suddenly, I felt very uncomfortable. I had agreed to keep his secret, why couldn’t he keep mine?

  “What bothered you, Graham?” The High Elder’s attention was completely focused on me. I shifted uncomfortably under that steady gaze.

  I was about to speak, when darkness descended suddenly. Not the kind that accompanies night, but something more sinister like a thick fog. I drew my blade, hoping its glow would be visible, but even directly before my eyes, I couldn’t see it. Reluctantly I sheathed it. I didn’t want to accidentally injure one of my friends, or the High Elder either, for that matter.

  I could hear Graham’s voice calling my name as if from a great distance. There was the brief sound of a scuffle, then a groan of pain. I took a few hesitant steps forward, but stopped when I felt something move past me. I reached for it and felt something pressed into my hand. More sounds, distant and hard to place. I shook my head to clear it and tried to make sense of the item I now held.

  Even without benefit of sight, I felt I knew what it was, though how it came to be here was beyond me.

  Suddenly the darkness faded and everything became clear. It had happened again. The High Elder lay on the ground in a puddle of blood and I stood nearby, holding a dripping dagger. The very same dagger that had once been used to frame me for the death of another.

  PAGGEBREAK

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  Chapter Twenty-six

  For a time that must have been shorter than it seemed, we all stood and stared at each
other. It was Graham who finally broke the silence.

  “Alaric? Would you mind telling me what’s going on?”

  I looked at him, then at the dagger in my hands. “I honestly don’t know. All I can tell you is I didn’t do this.”

  “You were awfully fast to draw your sword on Graham’s brother,” said Tindal.

  I turned to face him, momentarily annoyed by his lack of loyalty. Then I thought about it and realized that in his place, I’d probably feel much the way he did.

  “That’s true, but I didn’t know it was his brother at the time. Graham and I have been through a lot. I wasn’t about to sit by and watch him get mauled. I noticed you weren’t exactly placing yourself in any danger.”

  “Are you calling me a coward?”

  “Why shouldn’t I state the plain truth?”

  “Enough!” Graham’s voice quickly slammed a lid on the accusations.

  He walked forward and knelt beside the High Elder. I held my breath while he performed a quick, but thorough examination. When he looked up, there were tears rolling down his cheeks, but his voice was clear, when he spoke.

  “He’s dead, Alaric. If you didn’t kill him, who did?”

  “There are only three of us in the room. I didn’t do it and I strongly suspect you didn’t. What about it, Tindal? Have you ever seen a dagger like this?”

  He studied it, then met my gaze, unflinching. “No, Alaric. I have never seen a dagger like it. I don’t suppose you have.”

  “Actually, I have seen this dagger before, or one just like it. It’s used by a powerful sect of assassins. I once had a run in with one of their members.”

  “Naturally, you survived. Tell me, how is it you managed to pull that off? After all you’ve been through, I might think it would take a great wizard, or perhaps even a skilled assassin to last as long as you have.”

  I glared at him, but before I could respond, Graham rose and spoke.

  “This is getting us nowhere. At the moment, we are in terrible danger. Alaric perhaps more than the rest of us, but few will believe he did this on his own. We were all present and will likely share the same fate.”