Lan laughed at the merchant. The bidding sparked some instinct in him that had remained dormant for most of his life. This thrilled him in some way he didn' t understand. Stalking elusive game gave a similar rush of excitement, but the knowledge that he controlled the destinies of three human beings surged even more powerfully in his veins.
And he thwarted the grey- clads' scheme for domination. By purchasing these three and then freeing them, he formed a cadre of resistance. Given time and his riches, this world would be rid of the soldiers. If he could not return to his own world and fight them there, he' d make his stand on this world and form a bastion of freedom to rally all those who hated the greys.
" Fifty!"
" Fifty- five," said the man in the front. Lan pushed through to find the man sitting in a folding chair, a huge box filled with gold pieces in front of him. Markers from five other slaves dangled on a necklace around the man' s neck. Lan knew he bid against a veteran slaver, one who might go to any lengths for one as lovely as the blonde.
" Sixty," Lan said without hesitation. His wealth was vast. Holding back this churlish slaver' s financial attack amused him.
" I wish to inspect the merchandise before bidding further," the slaver said. The soldier conducting the auction started to motion the man to the platform when Lan interrupted.
" No! Either bid or drop out." He smiled as he saw the flash of consternation cross the slaver' s otherwise impassive face.
Turning to the three on the auction block, Lan saw a complete array of emotion displayed. The man tried to keep his rampaging emotions in check and failed. Sheer terror was mirrored in his bloodshot eyes. The blonde trembled like a thoroughbred before a race, but the dark- haired woman stood with back as straight as a ramrod and glared defiantly at him. For some reason, he had expected some show of gratitude and encouragement from the trio.
Wasn' t he going to free them?
" I bow out," said the slaver, waving his hand as if it no longer mattered.
" Sold," rapped the soldier. A few of the jewels changed hands, and Lan found himself the possessor of three markers indicating ownership of the slaves. He repositioned the jeweled cask under his arm and imperiously waved the trio down from the platform.
" Master," begged the man, " be kind to me. I: I' ll try to please you however I can."
Lan' s gorge rose at the servile attitude. He expected a man to be a man, not a grovelling dog. But the blonde clung seductively to his arm. This made him swell with pride. She, at least, recognized his true intentions.
The black- haired amazon said only, " You are careless with your riches. The soldiers have both eyes and greed."
" Never mind that," Lan said uneasily, recognizing the truth in her words. " Let' s go to the edge of town. I want to tell you what I plan."
" At once, master," came the instant reply from the man. Lan restrained his initial impulse of kicking the man senseless. Instead, he pointed down the road and let the man follow, three paces behind as slaves did. The blonde, however, stayed on his arm.
" I am called Velika, master, and am so grateful to you!" The adoration in her grey- green eyes warmed him and drove away the last tendrils of drunkenness entangling his brain. For a brief moment, he had worried that he hadn' t done the proper thing in buying these three. Now he knew that his wealth had been put to good use keeping them from the clutches of a real slaver.
Just to meet Velika, it had been put to the best use possible.
" And your name?" he asked the other woman.
Her eyes danced with a bright blue ferocity that told him she cared not at all for him. The words dripped ice water.
" I am Inyx, a traveller of the Road and warrior of the Klendalu. I bow to none."
Lan felt obligated to hurry through his explanation of how he intended freeing them all, how he hated the very concept of human ownership of other humans.
" So you see, I wanted nothing more than to free you from those grey- clad tyrants."
" But, master," pleaded Velika, " what am I to do? I cannot defend myself in this world! Not with King Waldron' s soldiers pouring out of thin air. My parents are dead and I am alone. Even my dog has run away. Protect me, I beg you, protect me!" She gripped his arm with a steely need that touched him.
Gently, Lan told her, " Very well, Velika. I' ll be more than happy to protect you."
Inyx cleared her throat and stared across the field at the edge of town.
" Here," Lan said, tossing the keys to their chains to the man. " Free yourself and go home. I have no need of a slave." As Velika tightened her grasp on his upper arm, he hastily added, " But a companion is always a welcome addition to one like myself who walks the Road."
" You," sneered Inyx, " have also followed the Cenotaph Road? Amazing." She stopped and cocked her head to one side, listening. " That roar. What is it?"
Above the treetops some distance away rose a parti- colored globe, a hot- air observation balloon. Lan watched it for some minutes, marvelling at its use on this world. On his, they were little more than toys for the wealthy. The soldiers contrasting greyly against the brilliant colors of the fabric and the multihued banner dangling from the gondola told him that this was a weapon of war on this world.
The roar and hiss of the burners carried across the field as the balloon rose in search of the proper air current. A hundred yards above the ground, the balloon sailed at right angles to its original drift. It glided silently toward the foursome.
" No," cried the man, " not again! They rained fire from the skies on me once, but not again!" He bolted and ran for the cover of trees. Lan called after him, but it was to no avail. He shrugged it off. Let the coward flee from this pretty aerial globe. As long as Lan felt the heft of his fine sword at his side, he could defeat anything this interloper warlord Waldron threw against him.
A jingle of chains indicated Inyx had freed her wrists. She cast her bonds aside and declared, " I agree with him. Standing in the middle of an unprotected area is folly. Let' s find shelter away from their prying eyes." She glanced up at the balloon, now almost overhead. While the man had displayed nothing but fear, Inyx showed only concern.
" Don' t worry. We' re all free citizens now," Lan told her. " They won' t attack simply out of spite." Lan felt Velika move beside him and a flutter of worry tugged at his mind. How much of what he said was bravado intended to impress the blond woman and how much was common sense? Inyx spoke from experience- experience he, too, shared. The grey- clad soldiers displayed nothing but a viciousness that was inexplicable. He knew from his brief but bloody encounters with themdamn Kyn- alLyk- Surepta!- they were treacherous.
" At least let me have the dagger so uselessly dangling from your belt," demanded Inyx. " With that, they' ll never be able to take me alive again."
" Again? How did they happen to catch you before?" he asked the young woman. He saw her stiffen and her features harden.
" They ambushed a merchant' s caravan, killing all save that craven who just fled and me. An arrow grazed my skull and knocked me unconscious; otherwise I' d have fought to the death. When I regained my senses, I had already been chained like some zoo beast. Never have I been so humiliated!"
Lan shook his head in wonder. He believed this proud woman fought with the best. Still, he vastly preferred the blonde so desperately needing his guidance and protection. Inyx obviously desired nothing but to be left alone. But how could he shirk his duties and cast Velika out into such a cruel world?
He couldn' t. Not after he had taken it upon himself to free her from slavery. That line of thinking made him wonder exactly what real good he' d done any of them. The man, now fled, had a slave' s mentality. He would cower and refuse to fight no matter what honor dictated. Sooner or later, he would again feel the chains of slavery that matched his behavior. And Inyx would never suffer such a fate. Too proud, too stubborn, she might wear a slave' s chains only until she escaped or died. Lan couldn' t see her accepting any other option. Lan had to admire her more t
han either of the others, but still he felt flattered at Velika' s need for him.
" Oh, master," cried Velika. " You are too kind!" The tears rolled down her full cheeks, leaving salty tracks behind. He reached out and touched the tear on her left cheek. For an instant, he recoiled, as if bitten by an insect. The fluid stung his finger and caused a sensation similar to needles being thrust into his flesh to race up his arm.
" You' re so lovely," he said, in a voice that sounded as if someone else spoke. He touched the other tear and experienced the same sensations, though less intense. Lan felt momentary confusion and reeled. Velika supported him.
" Master, are you well?"
" He' ll be better under cover of those trees," said Inyx, pointing.
" He' s in no condition." More tears welled in Velika' s eyes before starting their liquid tumble over her cheeks. Lan felt an overpowering urge to hold her. He bent and kissed her. Tears lightly caressed his parted lips, sent animal surges throughout his loins. Again the vertigo assailed him.
" How do they power those balloons?" he asked, craning his neck to peer upward at the globe. This brief question allowed him to hide the unexplained confusion inside him. The three grey soldiers in the gondola waved their arms frantically as if signalling. " Do they use a demon spell to manufacture the hot air?"
" Of course not. Too wasteful," came Inyx' s tart reply. " The burning gas is manufactured on the bleak world. But enough of that. Let' s go before they drop their flame nets on us."
Lan twisted to get a better view of the colorful balloon. He might have heard the crunch of boot heels in the dirt. He heard nothing else, unconsciousness claiming him before he struck the ground.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Lan Martak might have had a worse hangover at some time in the past. The pain intensified to the point, however, where any mental feat, such as remembering when this might have been, drowned out the purpose. He groaned and found that even this hurt. Everything hurt. Terribly. He rolled onto his back and stared into the patches of blue sky. For long minutes, he wondered if his eyes were focusing properly. The billowing clouds formed mind- confusing patterns in their mad haste to coalesce into a raging storm.
The first heavy droplets spattered coldly into his face. He groaned again, this time feeling better for the movement. Lan managed to sit up and waited for the whirling world to calm. When he had regained some semblance of control, he saw he was naked. Whoever had robbed him had been extraordinarily thorough in not leaving him even one thread. Gone were his jewels and fine sword and cape and even his newly liberated slaves.
" Velika!" he cried out, immediately regretting it. Pain shot through his ribs and around the purple and green bruise blossoming there in the general shape of a boot sole. " All the gods take them!" he raged impotently, knowing the grey- clad soldiers had again entered his life. He banged his fist against the ground, as much railing against his own stupidity as anything else.
After a time, his anger at the soldiers changed into something colder, something more controlled. He felt himself returning to his old self, the man who knew intimately the ways of the forest, who prided himself on the things he did well and never pretended to be something he wasn' t. Lan sat down in the mud and ruefully shook his head. He knew quite well now what a complete fool he' d been. The money had given him a false sense of security; the only real security lay in what he was, not what he fantasized being. His dreams of riches had come true, and they had almost ruined him.
If he wanted to fight the greys, he' d have to do it with the weapons he was most accustomed to using. And most of all, he' d have to rely on his wits, something he' d failed to do since delivering Krek to his web and mate.
The rain became bolder as the clouds formed into the proper configurations. The lead- heavy drops pelted him unmercifully now, stinging coldly, savagely, against his bare hide. He made a vain attempt to reconstruct the site of his defeat, but the rain rapidly turned it into muddy soup. Lan hardly needed the evidence of the ground to relive the events. Inyx had warned him, and he had ignored her sage advice. While he had stared at the pretty hot- air balloon, those soldiers inside had signalled to others on the ground. He had felt so confused after kissing Velika that he had failed to hear others sneak up on him. The rest was obvious.
Lan sheepishly smiled to himself. It could have been worse. Only some quirk of fate had allowed him to survive the attack. The lesson had been a hard one, but one that was burned indelibly into his brain. The liquor and women and sudden wealth had changed him, and not for the better.
Turning his bare feet toward the beckoning green overhang of the trees, he slipped and stumbled in the glass- slick mud. Soon covered with brown slime, he succeeded in reaching the shelter promised by the forest. For a few minutes, he stood naked to wash off the mud. He soon found himself singing loudly and off- key. He lived. What more did he need? He walked the Road like Inyx and, like her, he took care of himself. After a fashion.
Sitting under the protection of the thickly woven leaves, he started making a simple loincloth. It didn' t provide the warmth needed, but it was a start. As his nimble fingers traced familiar patterns, he heard a piteous whirling noise. He stopped work on his project and concentrated. Not quite human, the keening noise raced up and down the scale, passing the upper limits of his hearing, only to return again, almost a child' s cry.
Curious, Lan investigated. This time history aided him. A dark lump appearing to be a rock with ropy tendrils extending to either side pulsated near a tree bole.
" Krek?" he called. " Is that you? Really you?"
" Oh, silly human, who else in all the world is as miserable as I? This rain! My fur is wet, and I wish to die. Never has one so noble born been subjected to such base treatment."
Lan went and hunkered down beside Krek. The giant spider was completely drenched, sitting under a natural rainspout formed by leaves. The man dragged the arachnid a few yards deeper into the forest, where the boughs formed a more perfect rain shelter.
" Now, you sodden spider, what are you doing here? I thought you' d be swinging high up in your web, mating with Klawn."
" Oh, you saw the mating!" cried the spider, showing signs of excitement for the first time. " Was it not the most glorious mating of two noble spiders you have ever witnessed? Such bliss! We lived for that wonderous ecstasy."
Lan moved closer. The spider might have been damp, but he also radiated warmth necessary to keep Lan from shivering. The coarse fur on the legs had softened in the rain and now caressed his naked flesh like a velvet comforter. He burrowed deeper and was rewarded by Krek' s shifting position. He found a berth between two of the large legs and settled down to listen.
" I don' t understand. I didn' t stay for the nuptials. All I saw was the web swinging back and forth when you greeted Klawn."
" Ah," signed Krek in remembrance, " the sweet epithalamion of our bliss! Such poignancy, such dexterity of spinning!"
" You mean you' ve already mated? You did it while I was there, watching?"
" Certainly," Krek said snappishly. " You silly humans prolong the moment of bliss to ridiculous lengths. We spiders concentrate our joy into one intense movement. I shall remember it forever," he sighed, sounding more like a maiden in love than ever before.
" If you' re so damned happy, what are you doing out here in the forest getting soaked through and through?"
Krek rose up and peered at Lan. The limpid eyes were as expressionless as ever.
" I simply will never understand you humans and your peculiar ways. Klawn must try to devour me as the ultimate act of our coupling." He didn' t have to add, " You stupid human." It carried in his tone.
" So you decided to explore again?"
" Of course. The Cenotaph Road provides a modicum of excitement for me. If I must leave my lovely bride, at least I can experience all the many worlds have to offer, in way of small recompense."
" Seems fair," muttered Lan. He again began weaving together more strands for a covering, t
hen stopped. The universe' s finest silk was at his beck and call. All he had to do was ask. So he did.
" A cape?" murmured Krek. " I assume you mean one of those square things you toss around your frail bodies. Hmmm, yes, quite easily done, for one of my skill." In less than an hour, Lan securely wrapped a strong, warm silk cape around his chilled body.
Lan contemplated starting a fire with one of his simple spells, but he decided against it because of Krek' s aversion to flame.
Instead, Lan asked, " Have you been near the city recently?"
" I skirted it. My kind has little intercourse with those from that village. They most unkindly scream and flee from us as if we were some sort of monsters. On occasion, they have been known to use fire." The giant spider' s body shuddered until Lan thought it would fall apart under the vibration. Krek finally controlled himself and continued, " I have seen the patrols of the grey- clad soldiers, however, and decided that it was pointless to antagonize them further."
" Did you happen to see a small patrol with a woman prisoner?" Lan rapidly described Velika, hoping that the spider' s oddly different sensory apparatus had picked up a clue as to her whereabouts.
Lan felt his pulse rate increasing as he described the woman. His forehead dotted with sweat and an uncomfortable feeling mounted in his loins. He turned to keep the spider from seeing his arousal. Worse than the embarrassment was the confusion that accompanied the physical response. Just thinking about Velika excited him, yet he had seen her only briefly. She was lovely, yes, definitely! But a single kiss shouldn' t create such mental turmoil.
He remembered vividly the tears rolling down her face, and the acid burn as he touched them. The kiss. The tears on his lips. The surge of stark animal desire throughout his body. The confusion. He shook away the rest of the memory. Reliving his stupidity over and over accomplished nothing.
" I saw a mounted guard with two females. One as you describe and the other with black fur on her cranium. She fought well, but the chains binding her wrists prevented much damage. A shame she did not possess proper snippers." Krek grated his mandibles together in an awful sound that made Lan cringe. " That would have been a fight truly worth witnessing."
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