Pyforial Games

by B. T. Narro

  “Let me out of this chain and give me a horse. Bring me to the edge of the camp, and I will—” His own scream interrupted him as Jaymes plunged the blade into the center of his stomach.

  Neeko closed his eyes and looked away as he realized that Jaymes wasn’t pulling out the blade but leaving it in and wrenching up his arm to rip his way through to the man’s heart. The man’s scream reverberated throughout Neeko’s skull.

  Finally it was over and Neeko opened his eyes. He decided not to glance over at the gurgling spy whose life was quickly slipping away. Instead, Neeko looked straight ahead to find Shara running for the trees, holding her mouth but unable to keep in the vomit for long.

  “This is what happens to spies!” Jaymes announced, then stared straight at Neeko, stilling his heart. “Now for you.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  NEEKO

  When Neeko used to train under Jaymes’ tutelage, it was always the same man coaching him in the armory: stern, unfriendly, but forgiving—allowing Neeko to rest when he hadn’t slept the night before, and allowing him to eat when he needed sustenance, even if it cut into training time.

  But there was one moment when he saw the commander’s unforgiving side, when Neeko had made a careless joke about Jaymes’ wife. In response, he’d grabbed Neeko’s wrist and twisted, threatening to take Neeko’s hand if he made another comment like that…just as he’d threatened to cut open the spy’s chest.

  Looking into Jaymes’ eyes now, Neeko couldn’t find the forgiving instructor. Before him was a man who’d just taken a life and was ready to take another.

  “The king gave an order.” Jaymes turned. “Archers!”

  No one moved.

  “Archers, dammit!” he yelled again. Several bowmen looked at each other while others slunk back behind the lines of men. Jaymes started pointing and calling out men by names.

  Soon five of them had gathered with reluctance at the front of the crowd.

  “You can’t!” Shara screamed. “You know he’s an ally!”

  “Aim,” Jaymes commanded, clearing himself from the line of fire. Neeko stared at the five archers each nocking arrows, all too far for his py to reach. They loaded their arrows hesitantly, but their guilt wouldn’t keep them from shooting. He strained against the chain, the pressure on his chest making it difficult to breathe. It was no use trying to escape.

  “Jaymes, please,” he tried, but he barely heard himself over Cedri, Laney, and Shara, all pleading for his life.

  None of the archers drew their strings. “I said aim!” Jaymes screamed.

  Neeko was in disbelief. Straining for breath, he shot looks in each direction. There must be something he could do. He noticed Laney running toward him. Behind her, Shara tried to follow but the two men held her tight.

  Jaymes jumped in Laney’s path, but she made no motion of stopping. The commander drew his blade. Neeko noticed the archers keeping their strings drawn but diverting their attention to the one-armed woman about to run herself into Jaymes’ sword.

  She tossed her hand and the commander stumbled out of her way. She kept running, putting herself directly between Neeko and the archers.

  “Don’t shoot!” Jaymes yelled. “Dammit, don’t shoot.”

  Laney reached Neeko and spun around. She held out her one, right arm. “You will not kill him!”

  The archers let their arrows come off their strings. Laney spun again and pushed herself against Neeko. She stood on her toes and pressed her cheek against his, using her hand to hold the other side of his face. He could barely get his hands on her hips, the chain around his chest too restricting.

  “Thank you,” he whispered.

  “Laney, come here!” Jaymes demanded.

  She shouted back, “I’m not moving until he’s unchained.”

  “It’s the king’s order, Laney.” Jaymes sounded like he was pleading. “To ignore it is the same as treason.”

  “It was a failed threat,” Neeko said. “He wanted to keep me in his army instead of going after Shara. But I went after her anyway, and now both of us are fighting on the same side as you are. If he knew this, he would retract his order to have me killed.”

  There must’ve been more than a thousand watching now, all eyes on Jaymes. Even his trusted officers failed to recommend a solution.

  “Let me speak with Neeko in private,” Jaymes said at last.

  Everyone stood still.

  “Now!” he demanded, and they broke apart like a flock of frightened birds. He pointed at Cedri. “Tell my officers everything you know about the PCQ.”

  *****

  It took the better part of an hour before Jaymes was ready to speak to Neeko. His officers had stayed in the area and spoken with the commander for too long for it to be only about Neeko. In the distance, he watched Shara convince her holders to bring her to Cedri, where the psychic was surely telling the officers everything about the PCQ.

  Shara shot many looks at Neeko, the worry never leaving her eyes. He tried to return a look that told her not to fear, figuring a slight smile was the best way, but she never smiled back.

  Laney was the last to clear the area, leaving Neeko with Jaymes only after she made sure the commander had no weapons with him.

  “We’ll be speaking about your actions later, Laney,” he called out to her.

  She nodded glumly and went to join Cedri and Shara.

  Jaymes stood just a step away with his arms folded. Fatigue made Neeko want to sit, but the chain held him up against the tree just as it did the spy’s body beside him. Neeko felt sick whenever he glanced over at the mangled carcass.

  Jaymes sighed. “I wonder what the history books will say about you, Neeko Aquin. If you’ll be described as stubborn or brave.”

  Neeko didn’t care about the history books when the fear of death still squeezed his heart.

  “I knew Laney would interfere,” Jaymes said. He sighed again. “But I haven’t yet determined what to do now.”

  Neeko had never seen uncertainty from his commander. It reminded him that the man was as human as the rest of them.

  “How did you know Laney would do that?”

  “She’s spoken about you enough for anyone to know she would risk her life for yours. It’s foolish but admirable.” Jaymes gave a sideways glance at Neeko. “I first thought she had superficial feelings for you, but after weeks of walking beside her, I know now that it’s not that. She values her friends more than many people value their own family. She knows what it’s like to lose everyone and everything, so it means more to her to keep who she has.”

  “I know the feeling,” Neeko admitted.

  Jaymes’ face twisted for a moment as he thought, probably remembering Neeko’s past. Then the lines in his forehead faded as he nodded.

  Neeko could feel himself relax seeing this side of Jaymes. It was as if the long trip had chipped away at the commander’s rough exterior and now some emotions besides anger could come out.

  Jaymes seemed to be waiting for Neeko to tell him something that would make the decision easier. He spoke quickly at the opportunity.

  “After I found Shara, we thought about leaving Sumar. The group from Ovira was still willing to take us. But we’d both gone through too much. This war has become part of our lives, sir, and we can’t leave without forever regretting the decision. We teamed with Steffen and Cedri. We plan to eliminate the two red priests who would take over the army once the king is removed from his throne, and then the king himself.”

  “Shara has said this much. She hasn’t had the opportunity to explain your plan, though. Knowing you, there isn’t much of one yet.”

  Neeko frowned, for it was true. “We have to see the cities first.”

  “Even if you somehow manage to kill two of the most powerful men in the Southern army, you’re relying on us to take over the capital.” Jaymes took a long breath, showing his fatigue and reminding Neeko that it was the middle of the night. “Shara knows as well as anyone that we don’t have th
e numbers to take the capital after the battle. She should’ve told you.”

  “She has. We’re not relying on you to take over the capital. I’ll find a way to the king while Khalinar is under enemy control. No walls can keep me away, and no one knows I’m coming.”

  Jaymes rubbed his chin. “You’re too eager to end this war, and it’s putting Shara, Cedri, and Steffen in danger. Instead, you should join our army once more. Join the battle.” His voice rose back to what Neeko was used to, strong and deep. “You’ll fight beside Laney as you promised her.” Neeko felt a pang of guilt. “Yes,” Jaymes continued. “I remember all the times you gave her courage by telling her you would be there. And she remembers, too.”

  “But how many more years will it take for this war to end if I don’t focus my efforts on eliminating the red priests and taking King Marteph down from his throne?”

  “You keep refusing to use the words ‘kill’ or ‘murder,’ although that’s what it really is. If you can’t even discuss catching these leaders by surprise and murdering them, how do you expect to actually do it? You’ll need more than Cedri’s psyche, Shara’s brilliance, Steffen’s potions, and your ability with pyforial energy. You’ll need luck.” Jaymes stopped as a thought seemed to cross his mind. “Is Steffen hiding as you were? He might as well come into our camp.”

  “He left with Terren to go back to Ovira.” Neeko had hoped Steffen would return, but it seemed as if the chemist had made up his mind. “It’s just the three of us now, but we can still do what we came to do.”

  “Murder Southern leaders.”

  Neeko proved he could say it. “Yes, I will kill them.”

  Jaymes shook his head. “Stubborn or brave…I just don’t know.” He sucked in a slow breath as if about to sigh. Instead, he crossed his arms as words came out in a stern tone. “Let me tell you what’s going to happen now. I’ll fetch someone to unlock these chains. Then I’ll confer with my officers who’ve spoken to Cedri and decide what to do about this possible ambush. You’ll leave with her and Shara. Your party will go to Wertisall and kill Priest Elbick. Meanwhile, I’ll take my troops east to infiltrate Priest Gamilt’s city of Tramberr. This will draw the Southern army away from the capital, giving you the chance you need to get within the city’s walls, unseen. Kill the king, Neeko, if you can. If you can’t, find the Southern Queen, Wendi Mallen, and speak with her. She might be able to help.”

  Shocked, Neeko felt his breath come out in a small gasp. “The enemy queen…she is still in love with Quince?”

  “Even Quince doesn’t know the answer to that anymore. It might be just as difficult getting to her as it is Marteph, but don’t worry about scaring the woman if you do encounter her. Even as a child, she was fearless.”

  So Jaymes was likely the commander when Quince’s father was still ruler. “I’ll do that.” Neeko felt eager to escape the chains pressing against his chest. But there was one more thing he needed to know. “Sir, why follow through with the king’s order to have me shot if you knew Laney would interfere?”

  “I needed to gauge the response of my men. Their reluctance to kill you told me that this might be one order better left ignored, however I didn’t decide until our conversation that I was going to let you go. You’re no longer the distracted sixteen-year-old orphan I trained in the castle armory. You’re determined and focused…and brave, even if you are stubborn.”

  It was the first compliment the commander had given him, sending warmth throughout his body. “Thank—”

  “We’re under attack!” Jaymes yelled over his shoulder. He must’ve seen something behind the tree.

  Still chained, Neeko could only see the curve of the wide trunk as he turned. When he looked back, Jaymes was gone, already rushing toward his officers. Neeko didn’t know what the commander had seen, but he didn’t want to stay there, trapped, waiting for them to come.

  “Jaymes!”

  His shout was drowned out over the scramble of everyone around him, officers yelling orders and the scrape of weapons being drawn.

  Arrows shot past the tree, burying in the legs and chests of Neeko’s allies. Fireballs came next, exploding against tents, one striking a woman in her stomach. Light flashed from the impact, then dimmed instantly and revealed her toppling body.

  Where was Shara and the rest of them? His allies started firing their own arrows and fireballs. He was caught in the middle, his tree shaking as fire slammed against it from both sides.

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  NEEKO

  All of Neeko’s efforts went into breaking free from the chain. He got his hands behind it and heaved. The chain came away from his chest enough for him to slide down an inch. Then he was stuck again.

  The chain had been at the base of his chest, and all he’d managed now was to move it near the top, where his muscle was fuller, preventing him from sinking lower.

  He couldn’t tell what was going on around him, too many fireballs, arrows…and were those daggers zipping through the air now? Pyforial mages, of course.

  He tried to push the chain again, this time getting his hands and pyforial energy behind it. The metal links began to give when he noticed movement just beside him—the dead spy falling now that the chain no longer held the top of his chest, the man’s chin catching the top of the metal.

  The extra weight pulled it down. It seemed looser now. Perhaps Neeko could lower it enough to get his feet free.

  He got it down to his knees, but he couldn’t seem to get it over them no matter how hard he tried. The entourage of arrows, daggers, and fireballs slowed. He took a quick glimpse. His allies had all fallen back and taken cover behind trees…except Laney and Shara.

  He was about to yell for them to go back, but it was too late.

  “Turn the chain around,” Shara instructed. She and Laney seemed to have the same idea, grabbing it and turning it along the tree as more arrows flew past them from both directions. A fireball landed near enough to blast Neeko’s side with heat. It stopped everyone for the moment, Shara grabbing him for balance as she stumbled.

  Neeko didn’t understand why turning the chain would help, but he trusted them, and soon they’d brought the locked-end around. Then Neeko noticed the key in Shara’s right palm. One of Jaymes’ officers must’ve given it to her, and Laney probably had volunteered to help.

  The lock came open and the chain fell. “Run back to everyone else, Laney,” Neeko said, crouching. “Shara, get on my back.”

  A moment later, Neeko and Shara were hovering above Laney as they sped toward their allies. Neeko landed in the ranks well behind a line of men donning shields, and then let Shara down. Laney was right beside them.

  Keeping mostly behind the trees, Neeko edged closer for a glimpse at their enemies. They, too, had the cover of the trees, making it impossible to tell how many there were.

  Shara grabbed his hand. “Let’s go, Neeko!” She tried to pull him away, but he held his ground.

  “I need to fight.”

  “Jaymes may kill you when this is done.”

  “He said—”

  Laney popped between them and grabbed the back of Neeko’s head to press her lips squarely against his. The kiss was over before Neeko even realized what was happening.

  “In case I die,” Laney said, then ran toward the front line.

  Shara stared after Laney, her mouth open in a mixture of shock and infuriation.

  “I’m going, too,” Neeko warned.

  Her eyes bulged as her head snapped back to him.

  The men at the front had begun marching forward to shield the hailstorm. As Neeko and Laney found Jaymes, Neeko noticed that fireballs were giving the frontline the most trouble, for even a blocked fireball often sent the man behind the shield rolling backward.

  Neeko spotted the tree where he’d been trapped, the dead spy slumped and the chain drooped over him. The PCQs had advanced to now stand directly behind it and other trees at its side.

  Men and women on both sides fell, picked off
by arrows or daggers. But as a whole, neither side seemed to be losing or winning. Neeko had his swords drawn and Laney her single sword, but neither of them were close enough to do as they’d trained. Hurling a weapon now would mean losing it.

  Jaymes yelled to his officers managing the line farther down, “Halt here!”

  The same order was screamed by the officers, and the line stopped.

  “We can’t get too close!” Jaymes yelled next, “or their py mages will take the shields out of our men’s hands.”

  With numbers in their favor, he sent out two battalions, one to flank from the left and the other from the right. Neeko and Laney joined the left.

  Laney grabbed his hand and looked hard into his eyes. “I knew you would find a way to be beside me during battle, like you promised.”

  It was mostly luck, but he decided to tell her something more comforting. “I won’t let anything happen to you if I can help it.”

  Unfortunately, their enemies began to retreat before the battalions could close in, falling back to their mounts, and riding away in haste…but seemingly without fear. It was a strategic choice, one that left Neeko filled with rage when he saw what they’d left behind.

  About a thousand of his allies had been killed before Jaymes had spotted their enemies.

  “Damn!” Laney made a fist and struck her leg. She bit her lip as tears came next, her face still contorted by anger.

  Neeko thought about going after them. They couldn’t ride through the forest at night. Flying above the trees, he should be able to at least catch up to those in back. He could slay a couple of them, though he probably would leave his swords behind when he fled.

  No. What was the point of killing only a few? If he had the chance to slay them all, he would. But he couldn’t.

  It made him realize that all that mattered in the end was who won the war, not the individuals who died. He looked at the bodies of his allies again, this time with sadness.