Iron Will

by James Maxwell

  Pacing and scanning, muttering to himself, Kargan was surprised to see Javid approaching with a stranger at his side. The newcomer was tall and lean, with long silver-white hair flowing to his shoulders. His skin was pale and dry, with faint lines like bleached leather, and he had a crescent scar on one cheek. He wore clothing of deerskin, but his feet were bare.

  Kargan’s mouth dropped open. The stranger wasn’t human.

  ‘King Kargan,’ Javid said soberly, without preamble. ‘This is Zachary.’

  Taller than both men, Zachary stopped in front of Kargan and gave a slight bow of his head. The eldran’s gold-flecked eyes regarded Kargan; they were kind eyes, full of compassion. Something made Kargan nod his head in response.

  ‘You are far from home, eldran,’ Kargan said. ‘What brings you to Lamara?’

  It was Javid who answered. The proud warrior, who was the only man Kargan could call a friend, was grim-faced as he spoke. ‘Zachary and I have been talking. You need to hear what he has to say.’

  ‘No.’ Zachary gave a small shake of his head. His voice wasn’t as thin as Kargan had expected; he was undeniably old, but there was strength in him. ‘He needs to see.’

  ‘See what?’ Kargan growled.

  ‘The state of the world.’ Zachary let the words hang in the air. ‘King of Ilea, I can tell by looking at you that you are a man who needs to see things with his own eyes to truly appreciate them. You do not know me, but the king of all eldren is my son. He, and everyone else I hold dear, are about to face the dragons of Aleuthea.’

  Kargan opened his mouth to speak, but Zachary raised a hand, and Kargan’s mouth snapped shut.

  ‘Now,’ Zachary said, still gazing into Kargan’s eyes, ‘you may not think it a concern of yours. You may hope that we are victorious, and consider yourself well prepared if we are not.’ The eldran cast his eerie eyes over the soldiers manning the walls. ‘But you are wrong. Only with your help can we defeat the changelings. And only with our help can you prevent the destruction of your homeland.’

  Zachary’s words, spoken so plainly, sent a shiver down Kargan’s spine. The eldran didn’t speak with emotion, but with certainty. For the first time in many years, Kargan felt like a child next to someone full grown.

  ‘King of Ilea,’ Zachary said, ‘I want to take you on a journey. Will you come with me? Let me show you what will happen if we do not unite against this foe. Let me show you the damage that has already been done.’

  ‘Please,’ Javid said.

  Kargan tore his eyes away from Zachary’s and looked around him. Here in Lamara he was surrounded by strong walls and a multitude of soldiers night and day. He reminded himself that he was the ruler of an empire. His people needed a leader. He couldn’t risk his life on some foolhardy quest.

  When he finally spoke, it was to Javid. ‘Why did you bring him to me? Surely you know that I can’t abandon Lamara. Who would lead us through the dark times to come? No.’ He shook his head savagely.

  ‘Look inside your heart,’ Zachary said. ‘And then use your mind. Do you want to know what has happened in the lands you share this world with? Is not knowledge the true source of power?’

  Kargan looked to Javid for help, but his friend was gazing at him sternly. Kargan hesitated, and then barked a laugh. ‘How could I trust my fate to an eldran? Javid, you are supposed to keep me safe.’ He indicated Zachary. ‘I don’t even know this eldran.’

  ‘You will be back by tomorrow’s end,’ Zachary said. ‘You have my word.’

  Kargan began to feel panicked. The stares from both Javid and Zachary were unrelenting. ‘But what if we’re seen?’ He thrust a finger at the sky. ‘They are out there, somewhere.’

  ‘I may look old, but I am one of the most powerful of my race,’ Zachary said, and it wasn’t a boast; he was stating a fact. ‘I can fly faster than any of them.’

  Kargan looked from face to face. He reminded himself that he was the king. He had fought hard to get where he was. No one could tell him what to do. His eyes narrowed. It was time to send these two away.

  ‘Listen to me, Kargan,’ Javid said before he could speak.

  Kargan drew in a sharp breath; it was the only time Javid had used his first name, and he had never spoken so fiercely. For a moment he thought Javid might strike him.

  Javid raised a finger. ‘I did nothing when you refused to share what we knew about Palemon’s army with Lothar of Koulis. I did nothing when you held back, knowing that an attack on Fort Liberty was imminent. An attack on an ally, the very man you owe your life to! If you won’t do this’ – he spoke with venom – ‘I will leave your side and never return. I vow it on my life and on my soul, in front of all the gods.’

  Kargan scowled. Zachary gazed at him with his strange, wise eyes. Javid was red-faced and breathing heavily.

  ‘Guard!’ Kargan bellowed. A palace soldier immediately appeared. ‘Fetch me Lord Haviar!’

  The guard disappeared and after a moment returned with the orange-clad noble at his side. ‘Great King?’ Haviar asked, his eyebrows shooting up when he saw Zachary.

  ‘I will be gone for a day,’ Kargan said. ‘The Council of Lords is in charge. If I don’t return . . . Well, if I don’t return, never trust an eldran again.’ Haviar nodded and waited, twining his hands together. ‘That’s enough, you may go.’ With a final glance at Zachary, Haviar fled the terrace.

  ‘When do we leave?’ Kargan asked Zachary. ‘I’ll need to get some things.’

  ‘How about now?’ Zachary replied. ‘There is nothing you will need.’

  The eldran strode away from Kargan and Javid, moving to a part of the terrace where there was space on all sides. He turned and spread his arms.

  Mist welled from his body, thickening around him, cloaking him from head to toe. The mist changed shape, elongating. Kargan swallowed. He saw a patch of silver scales. The gray cloud shimmered.

  Wings suddenly opened up, beating the mist to shreds. A huge, ancient dragon rose onto its hind legs before settling down again. Its scales were mottled with age, and its body was long and lean rather than muscular. But it was big. Its gold-flecked eyes were narrowed and the flashes of yellowed teeth in its jaws were sharp. There was a crescent scar on the side of its face.

  ‘Well?’ Javid demanded, glaring at Kargan. ‘Get on.’

  42

  The fleet limped along at half the speed it had made before. A stiff breeze blew steadily eastward, chopping up the sea. It was perfect for their return voyage to the Realm, but they needed sails to make the most of it, and four of the ships’ masts had been wrecked in the storm.

  Kyphos wiped a hand over his face as he paced the deck. He had barely been sleeping, his days and nights consumed with communicating with the other captains and trying in vain to make repairs while still on the open sea. At least the twelve ships had miraculously remained together. It was the only good news. Eight vessels were taking on water, with one bireme dangerously close to sinking. If they didn’t find land soon, somewhere they could beach the ships and repair their hulls, they would never make it to Malakai.

  He was worried about the men, women, and children rescued from the north. On every ship it was the same: they were wet and miserable, crammed into the holds, taking turns to stretch on the decks and get some sunshine. Their diet of salted meat, dried fruit, and hard biscuit was keeping them going, but what they really needed was fresh food and rest. They needed the voyage to be over.

  The Targus was still in the lead with the other members of the fleet fanned out behind it. Kyphos almost didn’t believe it when he heard a cry from the lookout.

  ‘Land ho!’

  Every crewman ran to the rail, leaning out and shielding his eyes from the summer sun. Kyphos raced to the bow, pushing a sailor out of the way to get to the very front of the ship. He gazed out at the unbroken horizon, praying to all the gods for the lookout’s words to be true.

  He scowled. The ocean spread out in a vast expanse. There was no land out here, so far f
rom any shore. If the great continent that was their destination lay ahead, it would be rising from the horizon to fill his vision. They still had weeks of travel remaining before they would get to the Realm.

  If they made it at all.

  Around him the sailors were muttering and cursing the lookout, who hadn’t made any friends with the false sighting.

  Then one of them pointed. ‘Look,’ he said urgently. ‘I see it.’

  Kyphos waited to make his own judgment as he peered ahead, struggling to spy something to break up the endless rows of waves. He frowned. There was a place where the waves formed a pattern, an arc of whitecaps. He stared at the area intently while the sail snapped in the wind.

  The section of whitecaps became a long, thin ellipse. Finally Kyphos let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. It was the island they had found on the outward journey.

  He paid it far more attention than he had before, watching the waves crash against its shore, carrying water up its sides. The island was narrow and low, with the highest ground only a dozen feet above the water. There were no trees on its barren surface, and it was covered in bird excrement. It was tiny compared to the vastness of the ocean, but it was five times the length of the Targus, easily large enough for the fleet to anchor while everyone rested on solid ground. They could build fires, and some of the people from Necropolis could fish while the crews made their repairs.

  A multitude of seagulls and larger birds covered the island, filling the air with their raucous cries. Kyphos’s mouth started watering just looking at them. He grinned and shook his head at his reaction.

  Already he felt his spirits rising. People were smiling and clapping each other on the shoulders. Some were even laughing and embracing. They knew that their chances of survival had gone from slim to very good indeed.

  Kyphos left his position and crossed the deck. ‘All right,’ he called. ‘We are going to stop and make repairs. Slow us down so we can pass the word to the other ships.’ The crewmen cheered, raising their arms into the air. ‘We’ll need the carpenters ready to go. There will be no rest, no hunting, and no fires until we’ve made progress getting the fleet back in order.’

  The sailors sobered. Kyphos knew they were desperate to eat and spend time on solid ground, but it was always possible another storm could take them by surprise.

  ‘Before you curse my name,’ he said, ‘just remember. We are only a few weeks from Malakai. That storm was tough, granted. But we are going to make it home.’

  Another cheer greeted his words as the island grew steadily nearer.

  43

  Kargan stood on the crest of a hill and stared out to sea, watching the blue horizon. It was late in the day, and he was somewhere on Parnos, one of the Maltherean Sea’s larger islands. The green field around him was once a pasture – but of course the goats were all dead, and all that was left of them were wisps of white hair along with a multitude of bones. Behind him a wooden fence separated the paddock from a thin screen of forest and the cave Zachary had chosen for them to spend the night in. A tall peak towered over the area, rising above the caves at its base.

  Kargan was on high ground and could see all the way to the Maltherean. He tried to keep his attention on the water and ignore the village on its shore. What he had seen there – and at others like it, too many places to count – made bile rise to the back of his throat.

  He was shaken. If he hadn’t seen it all with his own eyes, he would never have believed it. In just a few short weeks, the great cities of the Galean nations had been abandoned. Fields of ripening wheat lay untended. There were no livestock left alive at all. Bodies were everywhere, or at least what remained of them.

  Zachary came up to stand beside him, moving so silently that Kargan hadn’t heard him approach.

  ‘I am ready,’ Kargan said hoarsely, avoiding Zachary’s eyes. ‘Take me home.’

  Zachary shook his head. His face was even paler than usual. ‘I need to rest. But I will return you to Lamara in the morning.’ He shared the view with Kargan for a moment, and then glanced up at the sky. ‘You should not be here, out in the open. Come.’

  Kargan wished he could forget what he’d seen, but now that the images were in his mind, he couldn’t get rid of them. He remained pensive as he followed Zachary past the remnants of the goats and they climbed the fence. Trees cast them in shade, and then the terrain opened up again, to where a section of caves stood in a row, inset into the cliff. There were over a dozen of them, some tiny, others burrowing far into the rock. Zachary led Kargan to one that was big enough for the pair of them.

  Zachary indicated two flat rocks near the entrance. ‘Sit with me.’

  With a sigh, Kargan collapsed onto the makeshift stool. Zachary sat slowly, his joints obviously paining him, and Kargan noticed he was panting, surprisingly out of breath.

  ‘Are you all right?’

  ‘Just old.’ Zachary smiled, waving a hand. He leaned forward. ‘So tell me, Great King, ruler of a mighty empire, was it as you expected?’

  ‘No,’ Kargan said shortly. He glanced at the ground, and then met Zachary’s steadfast expression. ‘It was worse.’

  Zachary nodded. ‘We are different, you and I,’ he said, ‘as different as could be. But we are all made from the same stuff. We both have eyes to see beauty and ears to hear sweet music. We smell the same salt breeze, and when we were young we both felt the caress of our mothers. If you can believe that, and I think that you can, then realize that the same can be said for every other man, woman, and child in this world. We all care. We all love. We can imagine what other people feel.’

  ‘Few people love a king,’ Kargan grunted.

  ‘That is simply not true,’ Zachary said with a smile. ‘I know two kings well, Dion of Xanthos and my son Eiric. Both are loved, by me, as well as others. And do not forget, I spent time with Javid. He cares for you a great deal.’

  Kargan looked away. For some reason his eyes were burning.

  ‘All of us are worth protecting,’ Zachary continued. ‘Borders, nations, religions, kings – these are just constructs. The universe created us equal. If there is something you can do to prevent immense suffering, you should do it.’

  ‘If you had lived as I have—’

  ‘Are you saying I haven’t lived?’ Zachary raised an eyebrow. ‘Perhaps that I haven’t suffered?’

  Zachary finally looked away, releasing Kargan from his gaze. His eyes became unfocused.

  ‘When I was growing up, and in my adult years, before I became old, my people were persecuted. Humans blamed us for the wildren that preyed on their livestock. They were afraid of us, but in truth, it was we who were terrified. There are only a few hundred of us, and many, many more humans. Sometimes they would hunt us, hanging those I knew and loved from trees with metal collars around their necks. If the victims were lucky, the iron was sharp, and it would slice their throats until they bled out. If they were not, the collar would rob them of breath until they were dead. It didn’t matter if the humans caught women or children. They called us vermin. They exterminated us.’

  Zachary’s voice shook at the end. He was still looking into the distance. Kargan watched him, transfixed.

  ‘We all lived through it, until one day a pack of giants – wildren of course – killed a group of humans. A young, dark-haired woman, dressed in golden jewelry, survived the attack, but not for long, despite our efforts to help her. We learned that she was destined to be the new bride of King Markos of Xanthos, despite having never met him in the flesh. At that moment, we knew we were doomed.’

  Kargan focused on Zachary’s words. He had heard the tale in rumors, but never in its entirety.

  ‘One of my closest friends devised a bold plan. She dyed her hair black and dressed in the dead princess’s clothes. She traveled to Xanthos alone, claiming to have survived the giants, and praised my people for helping her. Giving up her life, her people, everything she had known, she married the king of Xanthos. In time, she came
to love him. A child was born. You of course know his identity.’ Zachary looked sad. ‘I never saw that woman again.’

  Kargan shook his head. ‘How could she give up so much?’

  ‘Love,’ Zachary said simply.

  There was silence for a time, before Kargan spoke.

  ‘And then Solon killed Dion’s parents,’ he said. ‘How he must hate us.’

  ‘If he hated you, why did he save you when Palemon attacked your fleet? Why did my son and his strongest warriors help him?’ Zachary’s voice was soft, but his gold-flecked eyes stared directly into Kargan’s. He suddenly changed the subject. ‘Tell me, King of Ilea, have you ever had a wife?’

  ‘I have several wives.’

  ‘Ah, but I can tell that you may have had women, yet you have never realized what life is like when you have a woman who makes your heart swell every time you look at her. I had a wife. Her name was Aella. She was the half that made me whole. Since her passing, I have never felt the same. Part of me longs to join her in the next life.’

  Kargan felt strangely ashamed. He looked up to meet Zachary’s gaze. ‘Let no man tell you that you haven’t lived.’

  Zachary’s eyes were still far away. Taking a deep breath, he looked up at the sky; it had grown dark while they were talking. ‘It is late. I have fashioned a bed for you inside the cave. Would you mind leaving me for a time?’

  Kargan stood. ‘Of course.’ He gave a deep bow. ‘Thank you . . . Thank you, Zachary. For sharing your life with me.’ He hesitated. ‘I just have one question. How did you get to be so wise?’

  Zachary gave a ghost of a smile. ‘When I wailed as a babe, and demanded attention as a child, I was anything but. It was on the first day of marriage that I began my journey to understanding. And I have her to thank. She is gone now. Soon I will join her.’