Whatever happens will be the gods’ will, he told himself. But on this irregular mission, among strangers, somehow the words were unconvincing.
~ ~ ~
Each dawn, all three sorcerers would leave the camp to replenish themselves with the dawn-tide. At sunset, only Soki and Priska partook of the dusk-tide. Aldric kept his relic hidden away too, preferring to wait for a more private place to continue his study of the gem, and the history and secrets it revealed.
Shortly before sunset on the fourth day, they came to a clear stream, and Aldric decided they might as well make camp for the night. There was a patch of sand on a nearby bend that would make for a comfortable bed, and they’d wake to sunlight for once rather than the oppressive gloom of the forest.
As he called for them to stop, Bryn emerged from the thick brush, holding up a couple of pheasants he’d bagged with a bow and arrow. Razmus and Stray Dog went hunting for firewood, as they’d done each previous evening.
Priska handled her talismans, her lips moving soundlessly as she recited tables and formulas to reinforce her sorcerous training. Soki stood close, observing everything she did with a watchful gaze. Aldric did similar exercises every evening to keep the calculations fresh in his mind. But Priska would have to stop with hers and begin different ones if she was to be retrained.
The high priestess perched on a fallen log, hands clasped in her lap.
“Are you going to help?” Bryn asked curtly, standing so close he loomed over her.
Valeria sneered up at him. “No.”
“Do you think we’re your servants? You expect us to do all the work and cook you dinner?”
Aldric was about to intervene when Valeria rose to her feet. “Are you not a gentleman, Bryn? Do you not respect women and those who serve a higher power? I can cook if you like, but I guarantee you won’t like the results.”
Her words brought a laugh from Priska.
“Those who don’t work don’t eat,” Bryn said with a sneer, and turned his back on Valeria.
The priestess sank down to her seat without another word.
So far, with everyone else pitching in, Valeria’s attitude hadn’t been a problem. But Aldric knew it wouldn’t take long for someone to do more than just comment, and the situation would come to a head. He’d probably have to use sorcery then, to keep people apart. Letting it play out would only make things worse.
He dug a shallow pit in the sand and peeled strips of tinder from a branch, piling them up until Razmus and Stray Dog returned with the wood. He took a pot from one of the supply horses’ saddlebags and poured in a prepared mix of vegetables and mushrooms. His Church had been generous with equipment and supplies, and they had enough of these meals to last for a few weeks if necessary. After that, there were dried beans and whatever they could forage and hunt. But the settlers would feed them, he was sure. It was the least they could do.
He half filled the pot with water from the stream, placed it next to the fire pit, and looked around. Valeria was watching him, her pale gray eyes visible in the fading light. Aldric smiled at her, then busied himself butchering the pheasants. The wild birds were lean, but fragrant from the plants they ate, which would flavor the dark meat. A quick roast, and they’d be done.
Razmus and Stray Dog returned before he’d finished, both depositing a load of wood by the fire pit. Soon they had a blaze going, with larger logs burning down to coals they could cook on. Aldric let Stray Dog take over roasting the pheasants. He had a knack for campfire cooking.
Aldric looked around for Niklaus and located him about fifty paces downstream on another patch of sand. He’d stripped off his shirt and was bare-chested, performing sword exercises with a long branch he’d trimmed of twigs and bark. He moved slowly, deliberately, not at all like the forms Aldric had been taught.
He approached Niklaus, his boots crunching over the smooth river stones. The mercenary stopped when Aldric was close, the branch extended in front of him, both arms at full stretch. His build was somewhere between Bryn’s and Stray Dog’s: cut muscles without being too lean, as if he exercised frequently. Aldric saw with surprise that Niklaus’s torso was scar-free. There wasn’t a single wound on his chest or back, unlike Stray Dog, who bore the marks of battle and violence.
Aldric weighed Niklaus up, wondering if he could take him in a fight. Niklaus moved well, was confident, and his reach exceeded Aldric’s. Realistically, he probably wouldn’t stand a chance against the mercenary … not without sorcery.
“Something you want?” Niklaus said evenly. His skin was sheened with sweat, though he wasn’t breathing heavily.
“This priestess of yours is going to be a problem,” Aldric replied. Best to be blunt.
Niklaus uttered a soft laugh and lowered the branch. He stuck the tip into the sand and left it standing on its own. “She wouldn’t take no for an answer. If we’d left without her, she’d have followed us, so I said yes.” He shrugged. “It was the easiest thing to do.”
Aldric fought the urge to sigh. “What good is she? What skills does she have?”
“She believes the goddess wants her to join us. She said she was shown signs.”
Niklaus walked toward the stream. Aldric hesitated, then followed.
“What signs? Can she fight? Or will we have to protect her as well?”
Niklaus bent and cupped water in his hands, splashing it over himself. “Ask her yourself. She’s not my priestess. But I will say this: just as you have been touched by your god, she has to have been touched by mine.”
Although he’d studied long and hard under many tutors, Aldric had only heard vague whispers about the powers the Lady Sylva Kalisia bestowed on her priestesses. Unlike the Five, whose power usually manifested as healing—though those touched by the other aspects had different powers—the Lady’s power was associated with pain, both physical and emotional. How that benefited anyone, Aldric couldn’t begin to guess.
“Why did you say no to her at first?” he asked. “Didn’t your Church send you on this mission? Don’t you answer to the priestesses?”
Niklaus ran water over his short hair and shook his head like a dog. “I … do what I want. I represent the Lady, that’s true. But her priestesses have no hold over me.”
Aldric frowned. What Niklaus said didn’t make sense. “What do you—”
“That’s all you need to know. The High Priestess Valeria is here on her own business. What that is, I couldn’t say.”
Holy Menselas. What a mess.
“Do you think,” Aldric said, taking a risk, “that she’s after whatever is in the ruins?”
Niklaus wiped water from his skin and trudged back to his branch. He tugged his shirt over his head. “You’re a smart man. What do you think?”
“I think,” Aldric said slowly, “that this mission is a shambles. We need to—”
“No. We don’t need to do anything. We’re here to kill some Dead-eyes and investigate the ruins; then we head back to Caronath. That’s all.”
Aldric couldn’t leave it alone. Didn’t Niklaus want to know what was going on? “Your priestess might have other ideas.”
“She can do what she wants. She’s not my responsibility.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Aldric said.
He left the mercenary and made his way back to the camp. Stray Dog had butterflied the pheasants, and the flattened birds were tied to sticks and roasting above the coals. Steam rose from the pot, and bowls and spoons had been set out. Neb bustled about, moving rocks and stones and wood and leaves so they’d have a clear patch for the campsite.
Aldric nodded his thanks to them both and went to see to his gear, giving himself time to think. He went through the motions of checking and rechecking his saddle and belts and weapons. Valeria was an unwelcome addition to the group, but if she stayed out of the way, she wouldn’t be a problem. That, however, was unlikely. Archbishop Hannus had ordered him to explore the ruins and bring back anything he found. Valeria likely had the same idea. S
haking his head, Aldric checked his khopesh for rust before oiling it.
Next, he grabbed his belt pouch containing his talisman and approached Priska. He couldn’t put this off any longer. Her expression was hopeful, almost causing Aldric to decide against what he was about to do. Who was he to try to teach someone sorcery? Especially someone like Priska, with her stunted pathways. His unease of his own power was so intense, sometimes he almost hated it himself. It had marked him for life and torn him away from what he’d been born to do: heal for the Five.
Taking a deep breath, he mastered his emotions and gave Priska a brief smile. “After our meal, I’ll go over some things, begin to teach you what I can. But it’s not going to be easy.”
Priska nodded gratefully, a lock of hair falling across her face. “Thank you. It’s been so long … I’d almost lost hope.”
“No,” Soki said from behind Aldric. He turned. “I’ll do it,” she added.
He nodded, relieved Soki had taken the task off his plate and that Priska would have a far more knowledgeable teacher.
“Sokhelle, I cannot thank you enough,” said Priska. “To learn under you is a privilege. I’ll do anything you say.”
Soki laughed gently. “No, don’t do that. Think for yourself, reason, evaluate my lessons, ask questions.”
Under Aldric’s tutelage, it would have taken years for Priska to recover, if she ever could. Learning from Soki, he imagined she might recover in a year or so. However, she still had years of frustrating work and failures ahead of her, and would need deep motivation and a strong will to come out the other side a fully functioning sorcerer.
Priska nodded eagerly. “I know it will be hard. My Covenant went down the wrong path, and retraining myself out of years of exercises and instruction will be difficult, but … I want to do it.”
I want the power was what Aldric heard. And who could blame her? Though he was a reluctant sorcerer, to others, like Soki, it was their life, their dream. He knew what it was like to want something so badly you couldn’t think about anything else. For Priska, there was a chance she’d achieve her dream with hard work. His own dream had been taken from him as soon as he became a sorcerer.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Cherish
ALDRIC WOKE, HIS THOUGHTS groggy. He scrabbled for the hilt of his sword before realizing his defensive wards hadn’t been triggered. After the encounter at Soki’s the other night though, he wasn’t taking any chances. He’d asked Soki to set up another type of ward every night before they slept, attuned to both of them. One that warned if anything larger than a child moved outside their camp. It was this ward activating that had woken him.
He looked around at the indistinct shapes of his companions. Two were missing. Niklaus and Valeria. What are they up to?
Taking care not to make any noise, he threw off his blanket and sat up. Bryn’s eyes glittered in the dark. They’d opened as soon as Aldric had moved. Aldric peered to where Stray Dog lay, but the big man’s back was to him. Soki sniffed and turned under her blanket. She didn’t seem to think the alarm was anything to be worried about.
Aldric tilted his head and listened to the night. Insects hummed and clicked, and somewhere south an owl hooted. He made out a shape downriver and squinted. He couldn’t be sure, but it looked like Niklaus had returned to the sandy stretch he’d practiced sword forms on, and next to him stood Valeria. They were talking in low tones.
If Aldric wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation, it was dusk-tide sorcery he needed. He had avoided using it, as if it might stain his soul, but his dealings with Soki had shown him it was only his reticence to handle a metaphorical darkness that stood in his way. Was this why Menselas had guided him here? To show him his foolishness?
He searched his memory for the words and calculations he’d been taught long ago. Mumbling to himself, he rehearsed them in his head and then whispered a cant. Sorcery flared—dusk-tide, oozing through his mind like shadowy oil. Sounds grew louder, sharper. Aldric could hear every word Niklaus whispered as if he stood right behind him.
“What do you expect to find here?” the mercenary asked Valeria. His tone was polite, formal even.
“Don’t you know?” The priestess uttered a soft laugh. “No, I suppose you wouldn’t. You’re just her tool.”
It was Niklaus’s turn to chuckle. “Don’t mistake your own desires for hers. Others have walked that path before, and I can tell you, they’ve regretted it. If you’re here for personal glory, I’d reconsider your plan.”
“I am one of her touched. The Lady wants me here. I’ve seen the signs.”
“Is that so?” drawled Niklaus.
“How dare you question me!” hissed Valeria. “I bear her mark. I am her high priestess. You’re only a sword that—”
“Careful now. I’m here because she wants me to be. You’re meddling. I don’t like that.”
“What you don’t like doesn’t matter.”
“Doesn’t it? It seems to me, High Priestess, that what I dislike matters very much.” There was an unspoken threat in his tone.
After a long pause, Valeria said, “We don’t have to be at odds. If we work together, this mission will go much more smoothly.”
“For you maybe. You’re forgetting that I don’t care about what you want. I only care about her. She directs me. And if you try to put your wants ahead of hers, you’d better watch yourself.”
“Our Church could be so much greater!” Valeria whispered. “Think about what we could achieve if we weren’t treated like some minor religion. If our priestesses had more influence, people would flock to us! The other faiths would have to acknowledge us as a power to be reckoned with. We’d be able to—”
Niklaus’s soft laughter grew louder and cut off her words. “You’re traveling a dangerous path. As I said, you should think long and hard about whether you’re confusing your wishes for hers. Others have done so, and it didn’t turn out well for them. The Lady will know what you do. Count on it. As for me … if she directs me to help you, I will. Until then, you’re on your own.”
Sand crunched underfoot, and Aldric looked up to see Niklaus’s shadow coming toward the camp. Valeria was still, as if considering his words, which took Aldric aback. Niklaus had suggested the high priestess was guilty of placing her own goals above those of her goddess. In other parts of the world, he would have been strung up for his temerity.
The mercenary entered the camp, and Aldric saw that even for the brief talk with Valeria, he’d buckled on his short sword and wore his longer sword across his back. He held his metal cane in one hand and rested it on his collarbone.
As Niklaus passed by Aldric, he leaned over him and said, “Never use sorcery to eavesdrop on me again.”
~ ~ ~
The day was overcast, but the rain stayed away. Aldric missed the patches of sunlight that usually dappled the forest’s floor. Without the sun, their path became darker and more threatening. Bryn still ranged around their group, but the others unconsciously drew closer together, their mood subdued. Except for Soki, who gazed around as if nothing could hurt her.
Ahead of Aldric, Niklaus talked animatedly with Stray Dog, who didn’t say much, just gave an occasional nod or shake of his head. The high priestess with questionable motives rode next to Priska again today. From the look of things, she and Priska were talking, though so softly Aldric couldn’t hear what they said.
Razmus rode up beside them, and Priska frowned at him, while Valeria kept a smile fixed on her face.
“Perhaps you should spend less time with this priestess and more time with Sokhelle, learning sorcery,” Razmus told his daughter. “It’s what you’ve always wanted, isn’t it?”
“I have time for both, Father. And please don’t tell me what to do. You’ve interrupted our conversation, which is rude.”
Razmus glared at Valeria, but slowed his mount to let the two women move ahead. He trailed behind them as if he were a spare wheel, giving them disapproving glances they were unlikely t
o see through the backs of their heads.
Aldric couldn’t blame Razmus for disapproving of Priska’s choice of friends. The others didn’t know what he did after eavesdropping on Niklaus and Valeria. The priestess was touched by her goddess, just as Aldric was by Menselas. But what powers that gave her, he couldn’t say.
Ahead of Niklaus and Stray Dog, Neb came trotting back to the group, a grin plastered across his face. “Almost there!” he crowed, and twisted in his saddle to point to the west. “Between those two hills is where we want to go.”
Aldric couldn’t see anything different about the surrounding forest, but so far the old settler had proved knowledgeable about the terrain, and they’d eaten fresh meat and root vegetables every day because of him.
Niklaus stood in his stirrups and peered westward. “I don’t see any smoke. So maybe we’re here before the Dead-eyes.”
Neb’s expression twisted in fear.
“Pants-pisser,” Niklaus said callously, and Bryn snorted in amusement.
Aldric urged his mount forward and shot Niklaus a stern look. “I’m sure everything’s fine,” he assured Neb. “Remember, they don’t gather in numbers unless it’s full-dark.”
“Aldric’s correct,” said Soki. “To attack a settlement in numbers, the Dead-eyes will wait for an auspicious time. What is it called, this settlement of yours?”
Neb took off his battered hat and scratched his head. “Yes. Of course.” But his eyes still flicked left and right. “The town is called Cherish—the original settlers voted on the name. In Cherish Valley.”
Niklaus chuckled and shook his head while Bryn grimaced.
“We’ll quicken the pace from here,” Aldric said. “Neb, lead the way as usual. We’ll make sure Cherish is safe as soon as we can.”
Neb gave him a grateful smile.
The others urged their horses after Neb. Taking one last look behind him, Aldric joined the back of the group. The settlement is all that matters, he thought. Leave Niklaus and Valeria, and Hannus, to their games.
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