Talon of the Unnamed Goddess, a Fantasy Adventure

by C. R. Daems

  "What if their force is larger?" I asked. Timing could present us with the worst possible scenario. I hadn't considered that when I talked Anton into going to Dassel. I couldn't sit still any more, so I rose and paced between the tents. I had never realized until now how many things had to be considered.

  "It will depend upon how they respond to a raid. If they split their force equally, say two hundred to chase the ambush and keep two hundred to attack, we will have to rely on hit-and-run tactics, where we should have a good advantage. The Jaddahan warriors are good with bow and knife, but the Granyan and Valdan troops depend more on swords."

  I realized he was watching me as I paced and felt myself blush. I stopped pacing and sat down. "Will they stop to attack the Terni Castle, continue on to Dassel, or split their forces again?" Jiang had always stressed that plans had to be flexible, because they seldom include all contingencies in the first encounter with the enemy.

  "We won't know until we know, Sister." I felt Jiang's eyes probing me. I kept my face bland.

  "Fir'Warrior Awotwi, you, your sec'Warriors, and the Granyan captains need to meet with us here tonight. Everyone needs to understand exactly what they need to do. There can be no confusion once the fighting starts. We need to understand where and when we will rendezvous in the event we are separated. In a shadow war, each warrior must understand how he fits in with the rest. It will appear to be chaos when the action starts. That is our advantage. The enemy must be confused, not us," I said.

  "I'm not sure I understand our strategy," Awotwi said in a whining tone.

  "It's like this," I said. "A group will attack the convoy, then flee. If they're pursued, the other groups waiting will attack them from the rear and both flanks. But we'll hold some soldiers in reserve to defend hi'Lady Rhiannon and against unforeseen needs."

  Awotwi nodded. "Tonight I'll meet with my sec'Warriors and go over the details of the plan."

  * * * *

  The light of early morning broke through the dense forest cover as a scout galloped in on a lathered horse and leapt off in front of the command tents in a panic. I stepped out. "A large force…only three leagues behind me, on the road to Terni!"

  Awotwi ran up from where he had been talking to one of his sec'Warriors. "How large?"

  Rhiannon, Bakaar, and Jiang joined us as the scout, bent from the waist to catch his breath, straightened and continued. "At least four hundred, possibly more."

  "Our chance to try out our strategy!" Awotwi ran to gather his men. He would lead the decoy group and lure Radulf's force into our trap. In a few minutes, the clatter of their horses' hooves marked their departure from the camp. The rest of us moved into place.

  Master Jiang had left with the unit that would circle behind to prevent their retreat. I would lead the unit from the left flank and Bakaar the unit from the right. Rhiannon scowled in front of her tent, strongly objecting to my leading one of the units, but she finally had to give in to the argument that we needed all the fighting force we could muster.

  I walked beside the sec'Warrior as we led the fifty Jaddahan warriors into the thick tree cover. The huge pines towered overhead as we moved silently through their huge trunks over the thick bed of dead needles. In the distance, a squirrel chattered. Otherwise, the forest was silent. We reached our assigned position on a small ridge overlooking the route along which Awotwi's unit would retreat. I pulled my bow and strung it as I checked around me to be sure that the sec'Warrior had all of the men well hidden in the thick cover of the trees.

  I motioned him over. "Any questions, sec'Warrior?"

  "No, Aisha Talon. They're set for the attack."

  I nodded. Now it was a waiting game. With everyone still and quiet, a few birds returned to the trees. Soon I could hear the chatter of magpies overhead. Below, a squirrel skittered up the bole of a tree. We had been in place for about half a glass when Awotwi's warriors thundered by below us, too fast for me to see whether he had taken any losses in the hit-and-run attack.

  Only a couple of horse lengths behind, the pursuers galloped between the trees on heavy warhorses, chain mail armor glinting in the shafts of sunlight through the branches.

  I lifted my arm and brought it down in a sharp motion. The twang of bowstrings filled the air. Sighting down, I concentrated on the warrior in the lead. My first arrow took his horse in the neck, my second arrow hitting the rider as he leapt from his falling steed. A steady rain of arrows fell from all three sides. Screams and shouts below echoed in the trees as the warriors realized they were trapped. One turned his horse and made it halfway up the slope before my arrow took him in the neck.

  Then it was quiet. I held up my hand. The firing stopped as Awotwi led his unit back into the little vale below us. He bent over his horse's withers as he rode, examining the downed enemies.

  I signaled and the sec'Warrior joined me as I walked down to see how many we had killed. We counted around fifty dead, not even close to the entire force. Radulf had not taken our bait.

  * * * *

  We returned to the camp to find Rhiannon pacing. "What happened?"

  "We only lost six men. But Radulf ignored our bait. We only lured away a few." Awotwi shrugged, but I could see that he was pleased at his success. "They're dead."

  "A messenger came while you were gone, from Anton," Rhiannon said, waving a letter in her hand. "Salda has attacked Dassel. They captured the castle."

  We looked at each other in shock. "What do we do now?" Awotwi said.

  "I never anticipated this complication." I grew frustrated by the collapse of what I had thought was an excellent plan.

  "That is why plans have to be flexible," Jiang replied with a smile, "and commanders have to be willing to adapt to new circumstances. What now, advisor Aisha?"

  "Me?" Heat rose to my face. I sounded like a little girl. Jiang was the Master here, not me.

  "Yes, you, advisor Aisha. We still follow your original plan. It obviously needs adjusting."

  I stood and walked away.

  Rhiannon followed. "Savona has very few soldiers defending it," she said. "Couldn't we take it and kill sec'Tadzio at the same time?"

  "I would think sec'Tadzio has about two hundred warriors. Do you think we could attack the Savona castle with the three hundred we have?"

  "Could we trick our way in like we did here in Terni?"

  "Maybe. But won't we be losing sight of the real enemy, hi'Radulf? And what about your commitment to the Jaddahans who are helping you?"

  "Aren't you supposed to agree with me?" Rhiannon shook her head with a small smile. "You were a terrible chaperone, and you are a terrible advisor. I want sec'Tadzio to pay for his treachery."

  "I know, hi'Lady, and he will. But his real power comes from hi'Radulf. Without his support, sec'Tadzio will be easy to defeat. At least half of the two hundred at Savona are Valdan warriors." The situation began to crystallize in my mind. Rhiannon had helped me to see the real issues. "I think we need to join Anton Talon."

  "How does that help?"

  "If we can take Dassel, I think the rest will fall into our laps." I had my answer for Master Jiang.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Livorno: Liberated

  For two days the Jaddahan scouts followed the Valdan troops as they rode toward Livorno.

  "Hi'Lady Rhiannon, hi'Radulf has stopped in Livorno. He and his commanders occupy the castle; his army is camped on the outskirts of the city." The scout reported to the whole group seated around a small fire, although he addressed Rhiannon, the highest-ranking person.

  "Thank you, Warrior," Rhiannon answered. "Master Jiang, why do you think he stopped at Livorno?"

  "I would guess he intends to collect his soldiers. There must be fifty or more holding the castle along with a small number of Granyan soldiers."

  "Sec'Lucjan, if he does withdraw the Valdan soldiers," I asked, "how many Granyan soldiers do you believe that will leave to guard the castle?" My estimate put the number at less than fifty. The total strength before t
he takeover was less than two hundred.

  "I doubt it is more than forty, more likely twenty-five to thirty," Lucjan said. "More than fifty left with me when we retreated to Dahab. Over a hundred were killed in the fighting and others deserted."

  "Who would be in charge?"

  "If hi'Radulf withdraws his troops, I would think two young cousins of tri'Lady Castor."

  "If that is the case, I would like to stay here and recapture Livorno, Master Jiang. You could proceed to Dassel and join up with Master Anton. I don't think we would be more than a few days."

  "Not without me!" Rhiannon cried.

  "Yes, hi'Lady, with you." I couldn't suppress a small smile. "If you tour the city and show yourself to all of the people, the young nobles will either have to recognize you as the legitimate hi'Lady or attempt assassination. If we do it right, we won't have to attack the castle. They will come to us."

  "A good plan, but it would put hi'Lady Rhiannon at risk." Jiang said what we all knew.

  "I will take Aisha's advice. I am at risk as long as any resistance exists in Granya. I trust her to keep me as safe as possible."

  "Master Jiang," I said, "I will need ten Talons in addition to Leszek and hi'Lady Rhiannon's normal guard, as well as twenty-five Granyan soldiers."

  "And what do you plan to do with them?" Jiang looked at me with the usual twitch of his lips.

  "I will disguise Leszek and our Talons as Granyan soldiers and the Granyan soldiers as commoners, with sec'Lucjan hidden among them. We will tour the town announcing that hi'Lady Rhiannon is alive and well." I paused until Jiang nodded. "If the nobles are loyal, they will come to pledge their allegiance to hi'Rhiannon. If not, they can't afford to do anything else but try to kill her. In either case, I will have forty soldiers ready to meet them, half of them Talons."

  "Sounds a reasonable plan, so long as hi'Lady Rhiannon is willing to take the risk," Jiang said as Lucjan nodded agreement.

  "If I had been the oldest," Rhiannon said, "I would have been reared and trained to fight with the soldiers, to lead them into battle, as was my older sister. The very least I can do is to risk my life with you. I don't deserve to rule if I am not willing to do that for my kingdom."

  * * * *

  At noon the next day two scouts returned. "Hi'Lady Rhiannon," one scout reported, "hi'Radulf has left the castle with seventy soldiers to join his army. They broke camp when we left to report. Four scouts will follow them. As ordered, they will keep you informed on the army's movements."

  "Thank you, Warrior. Get yourself something to eat before you return," Awotwi said.

  "I suggest," Jiang said, "we wait until tomorrow to move out. That will put their army several leagues ahead of us. We don't want them to know we're behind them until we're ready. I have sent messengers to Master Anton telling him we are coming and for him to let the Valdans pass unmolested."

  "Why?" Awotwi asked. "Aren't we going to ambush them?"

  "Not yet, fir'Warrior Awotwi," Jiang answered. "It's likely they will attack the castle in an attempt to displace the Salda force. Or they will besiege the castle, forcing the Salda soldiers to attack them. In either case, if we let them weaken each other first, we will have fewer to fight."

  "Interesting. I had always imagined these great battles on an open field where the two armies met in a bloody clash. It seemed so heroic."

  "War is seldom heroic. Mostly, there are losers, the dead, the crippled, destroyed property, and poisoned land. War is heroic only in the history parchments."

  "But you are warriors!" Awotwi raised his eyebrows.

  "That is the difference, fir'Warrior. We are not after glory. We don't expect to be hailed as heroes. It is merely our clan's profession, and we know the consequences of war. Both sides, winner and loser, will pay a price." Jiang paused. "Look at the current war. Sec'Tadzio thought he could be hi'Lord by killing the heirs to the Granya kingdom. When he failed, he teamed with hi'Radulf, who seized the opportunity to expand his power. Jaddah was pulled into an alliance with Granya, and Salda has tried to exploit the situation by invading Valda. Four kingdoms have a wild cat by the tail and can't hold on or let go."

  I went to sleep that night thinking about what Master Jiang had said. I had to agree with him. The greedy, the power hungry, and the ideologues never considered the consequences of war, except for themselves, and never understood the inevitable realities. I never considered that Salda would attack Valda if we weakened it, which made me one of them.

  * * * *

  The next morning Master Jiang began moving our army of two hundred and fifty troops south, behind the Valdan force, while hi'Lady Rhiannon and I rode into Livorno. I kept the entourage around Rhiannon small: ten Talons dressed like Granyan soldiers. I wore the uniform of a Granyan officer. The other thirty-two drifted into town in twos and threes and mingled with the crowds.

  We started in the town center, where we stopped, setting up a small stand. I mounted it and waited to be noticed. Soon a small crowd assembled to hear what I was going to say.

  "Citizens of Livorno, I am Captain Aisha here to dispel the lies being spread by the killers of hi'Lord Varius." Several people in the small crowd began looking nervous and kept watching behind them. "Yes, hi'Lord Varius was killed, but not by Jaddahan soldiers crossing our borders. They were killed by Valdan soldiers."

  "How do you know?" An old man asked this in a loud voice as the crowd began to grow.

  "How, you ask? Because I was there. I was there when they snuck up in the early morning to kill our men, your sons, your daughters, your husbands, and friends. They slaughtered maids, cooks, and servants, in addition to our soldiers."

  The crowd was growing now. I had their attention.

  "And why were the Valdan soldiers in Granya? Because sec'Tadzio invited them in to rule you!" I shouted. "Sec'Tadzio was responsible for killing hi'Lady Varius and her oldest daughter and son. And when he failed to kill pri'Rhiannon and hi'Varius, he invited hi'Radulf to help him gain power."

  "What can we do about it? He has killed all the Varius line," a woman shouted.

  "But he hasn't. I present to you hi'Lady Rhiannon, your rightful hi'Lady. A lady who loves you and Granya." I pointed to Rhiannon. Stunned silence descended on the square as Rhiannon stepped up on the stand next to me with two Talons.

  "Pri'Rhiannon was killed, they say," a couple of people in the crowd shouted.

  "They tried, and they will wish they had before we are through with them," I shouted as Rhiannon raised her hands. The crowd fell silent.

  "Citizens of Granya, a great injustice has been done to you and to me. Many of our people have died for the greed of a few, a few who already had a privileged life. All of us will suffer if hi'Radulf gains control of Granya. Sec'Tadzio is nothing but a puppet. Hi'Radulf has no love of us and will rob and pillage our land for his own greed. He must be stopped."

  "What can we do? We aren't soldiers." Many nodded in agreement with the woman who spoke up.

  "I would ask the young and the fit to join me in opposing Valda. The rest of you, I would only ask your support, your best wishes, and your lack of cooperation with the enemies of Granya."

  "Rhiannon, Rhiannon…" the crowd chanted as she stepped down and began walking up the road into the market district. Varius had been well liked by the general population and so Rhiannon was given the benefit of the doubt. Besides, they liked her little speech.

  Rhiannon stopped frequently to talk with vendors, shopkeepers, and people milling around. She listened, genuinely interested in their lives, their work, and their families. It only took two hours before twenty-six men rode into the street where Rhiannon had wandered.

  "Halt in the name of for'Alair. You are under arrest for treason against hi'Lord Tadzio!" a young noble shouted as he and his men dismounted. I detected for'Alair's moderate War Sigil and the strong one of the man next to him. Another man a few paces away had a strong Illusion Sigil.

  I stepped forward, noting the Talons uncloaking their bows to string t
hem and nock arrows. The Granyans moved in closer.

  "Kneel in the presence of hi'Lady Rhiannon, or die," I proclaimed as I cupped two throwing daggers.

  "I don't kneel to commoners. Rhiannon will be hanged for treason against the people of Granya. Arrest her," he said to an officer next to him.

  "Sergeant, you heard for'Alair, arrest her and her soldiers," the captain said. At the same time, Alair's soldiers seemed to double as the officer with the Illusion Sigil activated.

  "So be it," I said and activated my Negation Sigil. The illusion failed. I signed and eighteen arrows left their bows. Ten of the soldiers died. All of our guards pulled their swords as the sound of steel echoed in the square. People screamed, ducked, and ran in a moment of mayhem. Alair and his captain kicked their horses into motion, charging Rhiannon and me with their swords raised. I realized they were on warhorses, so just killing the men wasn't going to be enough. I threw my knives at the horses' eyes. They struck when the horses were still several paces away. Once more arrows flew, and the two men fell dead. The horses stumbled and fell with their two dead riders. When the panic stopped, all of the castle soldiers were dead.

  "Leszek, the castle, I think," I said. In a minute, all the arrows, except one, were removed from the young noble, who was strapped to one of the horses. Four Talons supporting the dead for'Alair and dressed as Granyan soldiers rode toward the castle.

  We followed slowly several minutes later. By the time we arrived, the Talons had entered the castle and killed or captured the remaining soldiers. I ordered the women who were not soldiers and children put in the giant reception room.

  As we entered the room, full of women and children, some shouting, some crying, and some huddled in small groups, one woman dashed at Rhiannon with a dagger that she had managed to hide. I grabbed her from behind. I would have slit her throat, but she dropped the dagger. I nodded to two of the guards. They dragged her out of the room as she screamed, "No! No!" It might have been kinder to kill her, since she was guilty of treason, attacking her sovereign lady. I shook my head.