by Sam Bowring
The rumours stirred her in a way she found surprising. She had to admit she loved Bel’s courage, reckless as it sometimes was. She could see him at the final battle, an immovable rock against which flowed a red and roaring stream. What would she be doing? Jaya had a harder time these days, picturing herself there. Maybe at one stage she had intended to fight by Bel’s side, but some of the horrors of their recent journey had left dints in her confidence. She remembered all too well being caught helpless in the grip of a Mireform as it hauled her up to its dripping maw. Then the retreat from Holdwith, in which soldiers had been torn asunder by the mander, while blue bolts sizzled in from shadow mages on the fort walls – through it all she had showed a brave face, determined that no one think her weak, when really inside she did not feel so dauntless. More and more she realised that the ways of a thief had been safe in comparison with her current life. Certainly there were dangers in her profession, but a slip from a high wall seemed somehow preferable to row upon row of fangs descending, or being fried in her skin by foul magic, or dragon fire. And unlike in battle, when you were a thief, the danger did not come at you randomly from all directions at once.
I never wanted to be a soldier , she thought. When did I forget that?
She knew that Bel didn’t want her riding into peril – in fact, he often entreated her to remain out of harm’s way. Always she’d railed against him, for no one told her what to do, no one was allowed to doubt her spirit …yet maybe the next time he attempted persuading her to take a safer route, she would allow it. After pretending to be strongly opposed, of course.
She moved through a group of Varenkai putting up tents under the supervision of a penulm. From the mixture of their armament, they obviously weren’t trained soldiers, but regular folk who had answered the call. Mostly younger men, they joked loudly with each other, trying to hide their nerves under a mask of high spirits.
‘Hello darlin’,’ leered one, as she traversed the edge of their firelight. He was younger than Jaya, his stubble patchy, his leather vest seeming to hang on him too largely. ‘Looking for a place to bed down tonight?’
‘Missing your mother?’ she responded, and he scowled, though the others chuckled.
Quickly she moved on. As dusk turned to night, it became more difficult to navigate. The camp sprawled in every direction, twinkling lanterns and fires dotting the landscape. Off on the flanks she could hear the sounds of horses whinnying and dune claws clicking their enormous appendages. Order was forming.
She noticed two blades – muscular women, proper soldiers – stooped over a burrow in the ground, holding a smoking brand inside the entrance. A clumsy attempt to catch whatever creature found its home so encircled? As smoke sucked down into the burrow, each blade drew back her sword, ready to skewer dinner. Some ten paces away, a rabbit sprang from another entrance and dashed away in panic. The blades cursed as other soldiers began to aim blows at the hapless beast, for there was no way they could claim the prize if someone else caught it. It darted into a clearer area where Syanti Saurians were being given some berth by the other races, where the end of a serpentine tail smacked down upon its head and killed it instantly. The tail coiled to lift the rabbit up to its owner, who reached out casually to wrench the body in two, giving half to a companion. The blades’ shoulders sagged as they watched their would-be meal so casually claimed by the snakes.
As Jaya continued towards the front, she began seeing evidence of the archer attack. Arrows lay underfoot, some still sticking up from the ground. Nearby a bow bent to retrieve one, turned it for inspection, and placed it in a basket under his arm.
A sky-blue tent denoted the presence of healers, and she saw mages in blue robes tending to the injured. There did not seem to be many, and if there were dead, they had already been taken away. When she heard two healers talking about Bel, she stopped and pretended to retie her boot.
‘…to hold back all of them by himself?’
‘I don’t know. And then when they shot their arrows, he rode in their way and they stopped.’
‘I heard he wears a magical artefact, which gives him some kind of power that makes the shadow fear to attack.’
Finally Jaya arrived at the front. Away down the line a lone camp stood, some twenty paces in front of everything else. There, she knew, was Bel, and not just because of what she’d been told, but because the Sprite in her blood sang at his presence. The days since they had parted seemed long, and she hated that she could not stand to be without him. Had it been the same for him? She doubted she would ask.
Jaya made her way along the line until the camp was just a skip across the grass. Here the troops seemed more vigilant, and lightfists stood scrutinising the distant shadow army. It was comforting to know that Bel was watched over. She left the army to make the short journey over the grass to his camp, but as soon as she did, vines shot up from the grass to entwine her legs.
‘Hold, miss.’
She managed to twist her torso around, and found a grizzled lightfist with a hand raised at her.
‘Release me,’ she said.
‘What business do you have in Blade Bel’s camp?’
‘The first thing,’ she said, ‘will be telling him to make it known that I can come and go as I please.’
‘There you are!’ came his voice. ‘I was wondering what was taking you so long.’
She smiled sweetly at the lightfist, who shrugged, and the vines fell away. She turned to find Bel hurrying towards her, his blue hair shimmering in the moonlight. Almost she could not help herself from running to him, grabbing him tightly …but then he did it instead. As his strong arms enclosed her, it felt like coming home.
‘Damn you,’ she whispered.
‘Why?’ he said with genuine concern.
‘Never mind.’ She kissed him fiercely.
‘Come,’ he said, taking her hand. ‘I do not like to be away from my camp, even so short a distance. I missed you,’ he added, giving her hand a squeeze.
At the camp, the mage called Querrus sat by a fire roasting a possum on a stick. Nearby his sleek horse was standing head down, maybe asleep. It seemed oddly prosaic here, considering the surrounds.
‘I must keep close watch on Losara,’ explained Bel, looking out into the night.
Jaya could make out ice lanterns across the field, and a few vague outlines, but that was all.
‘Can you see him?’ she asked dubiously.
‘Not right now,’ said Bel. ‘But I can see that.’ He pointed at a dark shape moving across the field. ‘He may try to take his creature elsewhere. If he does, he can move swiftly, and I must be ready to move just as swiftly if I’m to continue standing in his way.’
‘Want some possum?’ said Querrus, waving the stick at her.
‘Sure,’ she said, sitting down by the fire. Querrus handed her a smoking leg.
‘Bel,’ said Querrus, rising, ‘I shall watch the mander for a while. You sit down with your lady if you like.’
‘Hmm?’ said Bel. ‘Oh, yes.’ He sent one final glare into the dark, then came over to sit next to Jaya. Querrus moved off, chewing on his possum as if it required great concentration.
Bel placed his hand on her knee. ‘How has it been for you?’
‘As you might expect,’ she said. ‘We rejoined the army after you left, and it’s been a march ever since. Brahl pushed them hard after receiving word that you wished to converge here.’
‘I see.’
‘And for you?’ She swept her hand to encompass everything around them. ‘What have you been doing?’
Bel smiled and settled into updating her, telling her how he had reached the Shining Mines too late, then circled around to halt Losara’s advance. ‘He cannot attack with the mander while I wait here,’ he said, then glanced off towards Querrus. ‘And I had to tell the mage the reason why.’
Jaya frowned. It was dangerous, people knowing that killing Bel would kill Losara also.
‘You should be more guarded with that knowledge,
’ she said.
‘I had no choice. I had to convince the man to stand with me alone against all Fenvarrow. What was I supposed to tell him?’
‘But you have not made it common?’
‘Of course not.’
‘I heard the troops talking …there is open speculation over how you managed to hold back the shadow by yourself, and why they do not use the mander against us now.’
‘I’m sure there is,’ said Bel. ‘I have told Brahl that the Stone wards them off. I’m hoping he will put it about.’
‘That seems rather general,’ murmured Jaya.
‘Why should they doubt me?’ asked Bel. ‘The situation does not call me a liar.’
‘I suppose not.’
She realised she still held some of the possum in her hand, now gone cold.
‘Want some?’ she asked, holding it out.
‘Thanks,’ he said. As he sat munching slowly with shoulders hunched, for a moment he seemed very tired.
‘It is a shame,’ she said, ‘that we’re in plain view of so many. There are things I have missed about you besides your conversation.’ She nuzzled his neck. ‘You should get yourself a better shelter.’
‘Maybe I will.’
‘Walls would be a good start.’
Querrus appeared back by the fireside. ‘Sorry, but I thought you’d want to know – I just felt a great many of our mages start channelling.’
‘What goes on?’
‘Hard to say,’ said Querrus. ‘But …’ He trailed off, looking to the sky. From high above came the sound of wind, though on the ground things remained unruffled. Several horses clomped up next to the camp – Brahl and some of his guards. With the sudden influx of people, the illusion of serenity was quickly dispelled.
Brahl dismounted. ‘Ah,’ he said, glancing at Jaya, ‘so you found your way, mistress Jaya.’
There was no accusation in his voice, though they both knew she had disobeyed him when she’d abandoned her protectors.
‘Yes,’ she replied, giving him a cheeky grin. ‘Thank you for your help getting me here.’
‘A pleasure,’ he said blandly. ‘You must have been one step ahead of the man I sent to guide you to this camp.’
‘It was easy enough to find myself.’
‘Of course.’
‘ Excuse me,’ said Bel snippily, ‘but what is going on? Why does the sky sound like it’s full of the howling dead?’
‘Ah,’ said Brahl. ‘Well, it seems the shadow is trying to do something about the weather. See?’ He pointed at the moon, which was beginning to be obscured by wispy clouds.
‘This far from the Cloud, they seek to create their own?’ asked Bel.
‘Yes,’ said Brahl. ‘It would give them relief during the day, and make it easier for their mages to replenish their power.’
‘And weaken ours in the diminished light,’ said Bel.
‘Well,’ finished Brahl in a jolly tone, ‘luckily we have plentiful mages of our own, to blow away their efforts. Easier to summon wind, I’m told, than create vapour out of the air.’ He cast a glance at Querrus, who gave a nod of confirmation.
Jaya took heart at Brahl’s demeanour. The man spoke with such confidence that for a moment he made the situation seem less overwhelming.
‘Mind if I sit by your fire?’ asked Brahl.
Bel gestured for Brahl to join them. Despite the gerent’s apparent ease, he could not forget the roaring wind above them.
‘You don’t seem worried,’ he said.
‘There’s not much I can do,’ said Brahl. ‘Nor you. A plain old sword-wielding soldier must sometimes realise that mages’ work is mages’ work.’
‘Aye,’ said Bel darkly.
‘Take heart,’ said Brahl. ‘I am told the shadow mages were trying to hide their conjuring. Chances are they knew we’d have the advantage if we realised in time what they attempted. Which we did.’ He leaned forward. ‘And now we must talk about our next move. You said before that the Stone you wear keeps back the shadow?’
Bel wondered how he was going to keep the truth from Brahl. He had only given the man a brief explanation when he’d first arrived and, with much to organise, Brahl had asked no more. Now it seemed as if greater lies would be required.
‘Yes,’ Bel said. ‘The Stone is a way to defeat Losara, and thus he fears it.’
‘Can you be more specific?’ said Brahl, neatly cutting through Bel’s attempt to be vague.
He glanced at Jaya who, unseen by Brahl, gave a little shake of her head. He well understood why she didn’t want people knowing the truth, and he was inclined to agree. Having Losara floating about in the world already made him feel vulnerable, exposed in a way he could not control. On the other hand it seemed wrong that he had told Querrus the truth and yet withheld it from the gerent of the army.
‘Fahren is really the one to ask,’ he said. ‘I don’t completely understand it myself.’
Brahl frowned. ‘I’m not a fool, Blade Bel. I can tell when someone is being cagey. However, I will respect your desire for secrecy, given who you are. At times like this, one should have a little faith. But I must know this – given the apparent advantage you possess with the Stone, are we to attack?’
‘No,’ said Bel. He rubbed his eyes. This ambiguity was becoming a headache.
‘Bel,’ said Jaya quietly. ‘The gerent knows he isn’t being told the whole story. And has declared himself a man of faith.’ She looked at Brahl, who seemed about to say something, but then instead merely nodded. ‘Some of the withholding,’ she told him almost apologetically, ‘is for the greater good, believe me.’
Bel supposed that was true. It wasn’t just himself he protected by not telling Brahl. Anyone could be tempted to do him in, if they knew it would also kill the much-feared Losara – and yet such an outcome would really be no solution at all. Balance would return to the world, and the war might drag on another thousand years. By protecting the information, he was also protecting the possibility of outright victory.
‘I can accept that,’ said Brahl.
‘But,’ went on Jaya, ‘without telling him why, he should know what he is dealing with.’
Bel regarded her curiously. If Jaya had some idea that solved his problem, he was happy to let her run with it. He spread his palms wide, indicating for her to continue.
‘Know this then, Gerent,’ she said. ‘While Bel stands in their way, the shadow cannot attack us with the shadowmander – but that does not mean we can defeat it either. We are each held back by its presence.’
Brahl frowned. ‘I see.’
‘Fahren is working on the problem,’ put in Bel. ‘We must wait for him to arrive, and in the meantime I will keep close watch on the mander to make sure Losara does not take it elsewhere to create more mischief.’
‘So it is a siege,’ muttered Brahl. ‘Except there are no walls …only a rotten, big lizard.’
‘Something like that.’
Brahl scratched his grey stubble. ‘We are not so badly set up for such a thing,’ he said. ‘We have Jeddies close by, and other towns besides, for our supplies. They, on the other hand, have only what they brought with them, whatever else they can catch from the land, and ultimately they will have to bring more from Fenvarrow. I could organise raiding parties to move around behind them, and try to interfere with any supply parties that may be bringing up their rear.’
Bel nodded.
‘That is acceptable?’ asked Brahl. ‘I’m still trying to work out my parameters here.’
‘As long as it does not involve putting great numbers at risk from that creature,’ Bel waved across the plain, ‘for it will simply tear them apart.’
‘Well,’ said Brahl, ‘now we’re getting somewhere!’ His eyes glinted as he considered possibilities. ‘We could attack from the air! The Zyvanix are faster than the Graka, although less durable. I could send them high, and they could pepper down arrows before the Graka could rise to meet them.’
In his mind’s eye Bel saw
Losara collapsing to his knees with a barbed arrow in his head …but he dismissed the vision instantly. He could not allow his secret to stop the army doing anything at all.
‘Maybe …’ continued Brahl, then stared off towards the Nyul’ya. ‘They need the river, not just for fresh drinking water, but also because those amphibious Vorthargs rely on it. We are upstream from them here, so if we could do something to the water, some poison or magic …’
Bel nodded. ‘These sound like good ideas, Gerent.’
‘You are happy for me to proceed?’
‘Keep me informed,’ said Bel, ‘but yes. If we can think of ways to attack them indirectly, they are most welcome.’
Brahl rose. ‘I shall start planning.’
‘What will you tell the troops?’ said Jaya. Brahl glanced at her without comprehension. ‘About why they cannot simply charge,’ she clarified.
‘They have heard stories of the mander,’ said Brahl. ‘They know it cannot be touched by mortal blade. I will put it about that Bel’s pendant keeps it back. Beyond that, I need tell them nothing. They are soldiers, after all, who will follow orders or get a good thrashing.’ He paused. ‘One more thing, though.’
‘Yes?’
‘What is to stop the shadow from attacking us without the aid of the mander? I assume they can move it away if they want.’
Bel gave a faint smile. ‘Nothing,’ he said.
Brahl smiled in return. ‘You welcome the idea?’
‘I do like to swing a sword around.’
Brahl nodded, returned to his guards, and they all headed back to the main camp.
‘Well,’ said Bel, looking at Jaya admiringly.
‘What?’
‘That was some very reasonable logic just now.’
‘Reasonable?’ said Jaya, quirking an eyebrow.
‘Yes,’ said Bel. ‘I agree that it doesn’t seem much like you either.’
She grinned, then suddenly looked annoyed.
‘What?’
‘Forgot to ask for a proper tent.’
