The Warriors of Valishna (Cartharia Book 1)

by Spencer Reaves McCoy

  Sean joined him after a while. "How is she?" he asked.

  "The medic said if she makes it through the night, she'll be fine," Eldrin said.

  Sean nodded. "She'll make it through, Sheldon. She's stronger than she looks right now."

  "Gods, I hope so," Eldrin muttered.

  Sean put a comforting hand on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "If you want to stay with her, I'll direct your squadron tonight. We're joining the Brigade that's here."

  Eldrin nodded, "That's fine," he said. As an after thought, he added, "Thank you."

  Sean nodded, "Of course. Anytime."

  Matilyn woke with a sore throat and a throbbing head. An unfamiliar woman was bending over her and she nearly screamed. The sound got caught in her throat and she coughed instead.

  "Good morning," Sara said, "I wouldn't try and talk yet. Your voice is probably all sorts of scratched up. You've been asleep for a few days now."

  Despite the warning, Matilyn managed to croak out an, "Excuse me?"

  "You were shot," Sara said. She moved away, and returned with a flask of water. She helped tip it up to Matilyn's mouth so she could get a drink. "Do you remember that?"

  "No," Matilyn admitted, "I remember getting off the ship and then nothing."

  Sara nodded, "That's normal," she said, "Do you remember your name?"

  "Matilyn Malevus," she said.

  Sara nodded once more, "And who are you, Miss Malevus?"

  Matilyn blinked at her. Then she licked her lips and winced at how dry they were, "Lieutenant Malevus of the Redhorn Charge, 8th Brigade."

  "Good," Sara said, "Good, the poison didn't have a chance to affect your mind then. I'm glad to hear it. Welcome to the Northern Forward Post of the Arinford Guard, Lieutenant Malevus."

  Matilyn sat up and winced at the pain in her chest. It shot through her like a knife. She let out a low breathe and then looked around. The camp was crawling with men.

  "Commander Amaris will be glad to meet with you," Sara said, "But I'm sure your men would like to know you're alright first. One in particular. I'll go get him."

  She disappeared again, and Matilyn laid back down. She tried to breathe evenly despite the pain, and cursed the woman for not explaining more while she was there. A few minutes later, she returned with Eldrin.

  "Captain," she said, offering a polite nod.

  Eldrin returned it, and then turned to face Matilyn, "Thank the gods you're awake, Mattie," he said, "I've been so worried. What were you trying to do, catch up on your beauty rest?"

  "Ha ha," Matilyn said dryly.

  "Seriously," Eldrin said, "You've been out for days. You were supposed to wake up the first night. Lazy bones."

  "Someone should have told me that," Matilyn said, "What happened, Eldrin?"

  "Well," Eldrin said, "We came off the boats and then one of the assholes here shot you. I mean, it's not entirely unfair--we were on Lamonte ships, and they were acting offensively, but still. Assholes. Janice quickly surrendered and they saw that we were Arinford and brought you here."

  "Was anyone else hurt?" Matilyn asked.

  Eldrin shook his head, "Just you," he said, "You're an attention hog. You know that?"

  Matilyn rolled her eyes and immediately regretted the decision. It made the pounding in her head worse, "Why hasn't anyone healed me?"

  "Some sort of manipulation blocking poison they use," Eldrin said, "You know, we should really get some of that. Then maybe we can shoot down our comrades."

  Despite herself, Matilyn rolled her eyes again, "Tell me about the base," she said.

  "It's exactly what it seems," Eldrin said, "A clusterfuck of a ton of different charges, all belonging to the 8th Brigade. Well, most of them. There are some charges from the 12th too, but they're serving under Amaris as well."

  "Have you met him yet?" Matilyn asked.

  Eldrin shook his head, "Sean has though, and Janice too. The rest of the captains as well. He gave orders on where to set up, that sort of thing."

  Matilyn frowned, "Why haven't you met with him?"

  "Because," Eldrin said, "Stupid, I've been here with you."

  "The whole time?" Matilyn asked, "What about your squadron?"

  "Sean's handling them," Eldrin said, "Mattie, I couldn't just leave your side. You could have died. You would have done the same if it was me."

  Matilyn didn't have to consider this. She knew it was true. "Still," she said, "We're officers now. On the field--"

  "--Friendship comes second, yeah yeah," Eldrin said. "Anyway. They operate out of here, sending different squadrons or entire charges out to fight Lamonte soldiers. It's a pretty nifty set up. We're in a valley that's pretty well secluded, so it's not as if Lamonte sees us here, even with the size."

  "That's good," Matilyn said.

  "Anyway, you should rest more," Eldrin decided.

  "No," Matilyn said, "I'm tired of resting. Help me up."

  "I'm not sure that's the best idea," Eldrin said.

  "Eldrin," Matilyn said, "Help me up."

  Eldrin sighed and moved over to her, helping support her with an arm. She winced as she got to her feet, almost reconsidering her decision. She steeled herself and took a step though.

  "Really, I'm probably going to get yelled at for this," Eldrin muttered, "That woman, Sara, she's the head medic. She's very territorial over her patients. She kept trying to shoo me away. Of course, I didn't go. But still. She'll probably yell at me."

  "I'll talk to her," Matilyn said. She tried to straighten herself and realized she couldn't. She leaned on Eldrin for support, "Take me to our men."

  Eldrin sighed, but accommodated. Men rushed to her, happy to see her alive and moving. She greeted each one personally, glad to see their faces.

  Sean approached, offering out his amulet in a hand, "If you need it," he said, though his voice cracked a little near the end of the statement and he had a sort of desperation in his eyes that Matilyn didn't like.

  "No," she said, folding his fingers back over the stone, "Keep it, Sean. I'm going to be just fine. This is hardly more than a scratch."

  Janice approached next and offered a very gentle hug to Matilyn, "That's from all of us, Lieutenant," she said, "We're all so glad that you survived."

  "So am I," Matilyn murmured. After she'd finished the rounds, she felt so exhausted that Eldrin took her back to the medical tent to sleep longer.

  It took a few days before she was able to get up and move around without help. It still hurt to move, but she forced herself through the motions, knowing she'd need to return to the field soon. She began to meet the other officers, starting with Tommy Frederick.

  "I just want to apologize," Tommy said, "On behalf of my entire squadron. We didn't know you were friendly troops. If we had, we never would have shot you."

  "It's fine," Matilyn assured him. She couldn't help but like the earnest attitude of the young captain, "I would have done the same in your place, Captain Frederick. You did well."

  He blushed a bright red, but gave her a full blown smile, "Thank you, Lieutenant. That means a lot coming from you."

  Matilyn nodded. "Can you introduce me to Commander Amaris?"

  Commander Amaris, it turned out, was a tall man with sandy colored hair and blue eyes. He reminded her a lot of Sean with his willowy build and tall stature. He was polite when he first met her but warmed up considerably over their next few meetings. She found he had a sense of humor similar to Eldrin's, and this gave her hope for her best friend.

  "About time you started moving around more," he told her after her second week of healing, "I was beginning to believe that you weren't really a lieutenant, that it was all just an elaborate joke played by that Sweeton kid."

  "I think I'm almost ready to go back to the field," Matilyn confided. "I feel too antsy, sitting here while my men are out fighting."

  "Sometimes it's necessary," he told her, "Would you send any of your captains out in the state your in? Honestly, now."

  Ma
tilyn scowled at him, "Maybe not," she conceded.

  "Alright then," Amaris said, "Then what makes you think I'd let you go? Nope, you're going to stay right here and continue to heal up. You can start sitting in on military meetings though. We're going to have another tomorrow evening. Most of the lieutenants will be here. It'll be a good chance for you to meet them."

  So far, most of the officers had been deployed out on missions since she'd arrived. Matilyn swallowed and nodded.

  "Don't look so nervous," Amaris said, "You'll do fine. With a face like yours, they won't be able to concentrate on whatever you're saying anyway."

  Matilyn rolled her eyes, "Isn't there a protocol for officers flirting with their subordinates?" she teased.

  "Is there?" Amaris said, "If there is, I forgot it. Then again, who said I was flirting? I might have been insinuating that you resemble something far worse than something pretty. You could be like a wilted flower, all dried up."

  "Wilted flowers aren't dry," Matilyn said with a sigh.

  "And you're far too literal," Amaris said, "Go rest. Tomorrow, though, we're having that meeting. Show up, don't be late. I don't take well to tardiness."

  Matilyn knew that much was true. Despite his jovial manner, Amaris was a strict commander that took his responsibilities seriously. There was a rumor that the last man who'd skipped out on a required meeting had been whipped. She didn't think she could stand lashes along with her wound.

  She rested well that evening, finally beginning to feel a bit better. She couldn't help the bit of dread that filled her stomach the next morning though, when she thought of the upcoming meeting.

  "I've never been good at politics," she told Eldrin.

  "You'll do fine," he promised.

  "I wasn't the best speaker when we led debates during our training," Matilyn said, "I would always fumble."

  "No," Eldrin said, "not unless you didn't care. If you cared, you'd never stumble. You'd speak better than anyone there. Besides, you gave that speech in training and you didn't fumble."

  Matilyn shook her head, "That was different," she said again.

  "It's not different," Eldrin told her, "You're going to be fine, Mattie. Just..."

  "Just what?" Matilyn demanded.

  "Just be yourself," Eldrin said, "You'll wow them all."

  Matilyn sighed, "How's Tania?"

  Eldrin frowned at her, "What do you mean?"

  "Isn't there something going on between the two of you?" Matilyn asked.

  Eldrin sighed, "No," he said, "And I think I've said that before. We're friends, Mattie. That's all. We can't be anymore than that."

  "Because officers aren't supposed to get involved with their subordinates?" Matilyn asked, "Or because we're at war? Like I said, it's not an ideal place to meet someone but... it is what it is, right?"

  "Right," Eldrin said, his voice sounding a bit strained, "Sure."

  Matilyn studied him for a moment, Janice's words occurring to her again, "Eldrin..."

  "You need to get going," Eldrin said, giving her a light nudge. She winced, and he quickly made a face, "Sorry. You're going to be late if you don't go though."

  "Right," Matilyn said. She hurried off to the main officer tent. Several men and women, including Amaris, were gathered there already. There was a round table in the center of them, with dozens of small figurines atop it that represented their real troop numbers. The Arinford color was in red, the Lamonte in black.

  Amaris stood to greet her, "Lieutenant Malevus, welcome."

  "Thank you," Matilyn said.

  "Let me introduce you to the rest of the lieutenants," he offered. He gestured at each one in turn, "This is Lieutenant Hallie Coine, Lieutenant Colton Aries, Lieutenant Bryce Nickles, and Lieutenant Mary Lancaster."

  Each one stood up in turn to shake her hand.

  "The way you took the ships from Lamonte was impressive," Colton said, "It's an honor and a pleasure to serve beside you, Lieutenant Malevus." The others added their agreement.

  "Thank you," Matilyn said. She took one of the available seats.

  "Now that we're all here," Amaris said, "We can go over reports. The most recent one talks about a large group of Lamonte soldiers traveling towards the shore."

  "Are they small enough to outnumber and crush?" Bryce asked.

  "Potentially," Amaris said, "But we'd have to send a lot, and I don't like the idea of dividing the men up like that. Thoughts?"

  "We meet them in battle," Mary suggested, "If they survive, we send out a force take out the remainder."

  "And risk half our men?" Colton said, "I don't think so."

  Hallie sighed, "Well, we can't let them pass."

  The group fell into silence for a moment, considering.

  "I have an idea," Matilyn suggested.

  Everyone looked at her. She leaned forward, ignoring the sharp pain that flared up in her chest as she did so. She moved the pieces on the table top around to form a diagram. "We send in a small group," she said, "to the north, right here. They'll send men out to greet them. They're going to be expecting it's a diversion, and if they don't, they will as soon as they see how few men we send.

  "Then," she said, "We send men into the back. They're going to expect that, so we send another small unit. As soon as they move to attack that group, thinking that was the diversion, we move troops to join the first group, attacking them while they're divided."

  "It could work," Colton said.

  Amaris considered the diagram for a moment, "It could," he agreed, "But the back group would have to retreat, and fast. Otherwise, they're going to end up slaughtered. Or they have to fight hard."

  Mary said, "I'll take my men. We fight hard, and we're quick on our feet. As soon as they come for us, we'll be move like the wind."

  "And I'll take my Charge to lead the first group in," Hallie said, "We're large enough to look like trouble but small enough to obviously be a diversion."

  "Lieutenant Aries and I can lead the final group," Bryce said, looking at Colton for confirmation. The other man nodded.

  "I'll send my men in with you," Matilyn said.

  "You're not ready for the field yet," Amaris said.

  "I'll send my executor in my place then," Matilyn said, "He's capable of leading the men."

  Amaris considered and then nodded, "It could work," he said, "It could definitely work."

  That night, Eldrin joined Matilyn in the medical tent. The evening had been long, and exhausting. Sara had stop administering herbal remedies for the pain and since she couldn't deaden her nerves with manipulation, the wound on her chest felt as though it were on fire. She wanted nothing more than to close her eyes and sleep for a long time.

  Instead, she smiled at Eldrin, "Hey."

  "Hey," he said back. "How was it?"

  "Good," Matilyn said, "I liked the other lieutenants. They're easy to get along with."

  "Anything interesting happen?" Eldrin asked, taking a seat beside her.

  "Just reports," Matilyn said, "A lot of reports. That, and planning out missions. I never realized how much work it takes to be an officer." She gave a small laugh and then remembered, "Oh, our men are deploying soon. You'll want to ready your soldiers."

  Eldrin frowned, "You're not ready for battle," he told her.

  "I know that," Matilyn said, sounding irritated. It was the second time she'd been reminded that night and the pain in her chest was the third reminder. "I know I can't go. As much as I'd like to. What good is an officer that can't ride out with her men? Sean is going to do it in my place, though, as soon as I give the order."

  "He can lead my men again too," Eldrin said.

  Matilyn frowned, confused, "Why would he need to lead your men?" she asked.

  "Because I'm going to stay here with you," Eldrin told her.

  "Eldrin," Matilyn said.

  "What?" Eldrin asked, "You're not fully recovered yet. I want to make sure I'm here in case you need anything."

  "There are a hundred other soldiers
who can do that," Matilyn said, "and most of them are officers' boys. You don't need to stay behind and babysit me."

  A pained look flashed across Eldrin's face. "It's not that," he said, "Mattie, you almost died. I'm not ready to leave your side just yet."

  Matilyn sighed, "It's not a choice, Eldrin. Friendship comes second. You're an officer. I need you to lead your men."

  "I can't," Eldrin said, "Seriously, Mattie. I can't leave you."

  Matilyn glared at him, "You don't have a choice," she repeated, "I'm ordering you as your lieutenant. You're going to join your men on the field."

  Eldrin scowled at her, "Seriously? You're ordering me to go?"

  "Seriously," Matilyn said.

  "That's not fair," Eldrin told her.

  "It's perfectly fair," Matilyn said, "I'm your commanding officer. I can order you if I want to order you, and if you're not willing to go with your men of your own volition, then I'm ordering you. Do you understand?"

  "Yes ma'am," Eldrin said sarcastically. He reached into his vest, pulling out his flask as he turned away.

  "Eldrin," Matilyn said sharply.

  He looked back at her.

  "Pull yourself together," she said, "No more drinking. I mean it."

  Eldrin rolled his eyes, "I'm fine," he said.

  "No," Matilyn disagreed, "You're not fine. You haven't been fine for a while. Maybe I was too busy to see it, or maybe I just didn't want to, but you haven't been okay in quite some time. Eldrin, I care about you."

  Eldrin sighed.

  "I'm serious," Matilyn said, "Eldrin, I love you."

  "But not in the same way that I love you," Eldrin spit out, almost violently. He knew he should say something else, anything else, but the words had slipped out on their own. There was no taking it back.

  Matilyn sat up suddenly, grabbing a fistful of his shirt. She dragged him closer, pressing her lips against his. Eldrin let himself enjoy the kiss for a moment longer than he should have and then shoved Matilyn away, "Don't do that," he said. "Don't pretend for me. We both know you're in love with Penny. I don't need your pity."

  She stared at him, unable to argue. She knew he was right, but she wasn't sure what else she was supposed to do or say. She didn't feel the same way, but she still loved him, "You're my best friend," she said.