Steel And Sorrow (Book 2)

by Joshua P. Simon

  Kaz swore in his native tongue.

  Yanasi looked up and cleared her throat. “Sir, I’d like to make a request.”

  “Go on.”

  “I want permission to command a platoon of our heavy cavalry along with spare mounts to transport three squads of my archers.”

  “Is that all?” he asked.

  “No, sir. I’ll want two of our green mages as well.”

  “And why should I grant this request?”

  “So I can hunt out the remainder of Tomalt’s men. I’m sick of them picking us off.”

  Grayer chimed in. “It’s not a bad idea, Commander. The men are growing more frustrated with each attack. They’re tired of being targets.”

  Kaz scowled. “Then I’ll need to speak with the officers to get a grip on their men. They can grow frustrated all they want, but they’re not to leave the main body and pursue anyone. Not now anyway.” He turned to Yanasi. “Captain, your request is denied. Tomalt is trying to hamper our pace and I won’t allow him to do so. We’ll continue on as before.” He met both of their eyes. “I’ll see that their raids are taken care of.”

  Kaz left them without waiting for an answer. The news had put him in a more sour mood than before. He rode to the front of the column where Rygar waited.

  “What’s your report?”

  “All clear for miles around, sir,” said Rygar.

  Kaz shook his head. “You’ve missed something. You need to go out again and retrace the same ground.”

  “But as I said—”

  “I heard you. But Tomalt’s men just attacked us and used mages to conceal their movements. You missed them, so who’s to say you didn’t miss anyone ahead? Take Krytien with you and go back out.”

  “But Krytien’s never been very good with a horse. He’s liable to slow us down.”

  “You need his sorcery, not his skills with a horse.”

  Rygar gave Kaz a hurried salute and left.

  * * *

  “Pick up the pace, you pieces of garbage! I’m sick of watching each and every one of you move like we’re on a stroll through the streets.” Raker spat a brown wad and raised the bottle in his hand. He took a long pull at its neck. “Senald! What do you think you’re doing? Do I need to put my foot up your rear to wake you up? You know better than to manhandle that piece of equipment.”

  The mercenary turned, face sour. “I know what I’m doing. We’ve been running these drills for over a year and a half.”

  “Then act like it. You look like an amateur. I’d figure by now I could trust you to do something right.”

  Senald turned back to the equipment and mumbled something under his breath that Raker couldn’t make out.

  “What did you just say?” asked Raker while taking a step forward.

  Senald turned around and threw the rope he held to the ground. “I said I’m surprised you can see anything through that bottle you keep your head in. The only time you take it out is when you’re looking to yell at someone.”

  Raker noticed the sudden silence around them as all eyes turned his way. He spat and took another drink. Raker moved forward, forming a fist. But as he closed in, a hand grabbed him by the arm.

  “We need to talk,” said Drake.

  Raker tore away from Drake’s grasp. “Get your hands off me. I’m in the middle of something.”

  Drake grabbed his arm again. “That’s what we need to talk about,” he said in a low voice. “Now.”

  Raker stared down at the kid through narrowed eyes.

  Kid’s getting too big for himself. I’ll humor him this once.

  “Fine. Let’s take a walk.” He turned back to Senald. “Get the rest of the equipment off the wagons. And it better be done right by the time I get back.” Senald grunted a response as Raker turned away.

  Not even a ‘Yes, sir.’

  “You better have a good reason for interrupting me like that.”

  “I do,” said Drake. “You need to get a hold of yourself and your drinking.”

  Raker spat. “You trying to tell me I can’t hold my liquor. I can drink anyone here under the table.”

  “Yeah, that’s the problem. You don’t know when to stop. All that whiskey is feeding your miserable state of mind.”

  “Says who? I’ve always been this way.”

  “Yeah, but at least before when you’d yell at someone, there was reason behind it. Now, you’re just yelling out of spite. Senald’s a good soldier and you’ve got no reason to ride him like you do.”

  “Don’t try to guess the reasons for what I do. You don’t know me.”

  “I know that Jonrell’s death affected you harder than you want to admit. His death affected a lot of people, but you don’t see others drinking themselves to death.”

  People cope in their own ways.

  But Raker wouldn’t admit that to Drake. His eyes narrowed. “Kaz keeps giving you all these projects to do instead of giving them to me. You think that makes you special? I could do most of that stuff too.”

  “If you weren’t always drunk, you could. What are you going to do in the next battle?”

  Raker took a drink and pointed at Drake with the bottle. “Don’t worry about me. I’ve been doing this since before you were sucking at your momma’s teat. I may drink and I may even be a drunk, but when the fighting starts, I’ll be ready.”

  * * *

  Drake stormed off. He just couldn’t get through to Raker these days.

  Not that it had ever been easy.

  Drake passed by the engineers and gave Senald and the others a word of encouragement. He could see Senald growing more disenfranchised with not only Raker, but the entire Hell Patrol.

  I’ve got to make sure he doesn’t quit.

  By the time Drake left, the engineers’ spirits had lifted, but he couldn’t say the same for himself.

  He made his way through camp with head down, kicking up dirt with each step. Lost in thought, he failed to notice the giant wall that stepped in front of him until the collision knocked him to the ground.

  Drake stared up at Crusher. The giant turned and chuckled. “You need to watch where you’re going, kid. You didn’t even have a book in your hand this time.” The Ghal reached down and yanked Drake to his feet.

  “Yeah, yeah. Real funny.”

  “What’s gotten into you?” Drake thought he saw what appeared to be a look of concern on the giant’s face.

  “Nothing. Look, I’ve got things to do.”

  Crusher frowned. “I hope one of them is removing that stick you got shoved up your rear. You’re starting to become as sour as the veterans around here.”

  Drake sulked off without responding.

  What do you know? This is all a game to you. You’re not even in charge of your own squad. All you have to worry about is taking that big club of yours and knocking over as many men as you can with each swing.

  “Drake!” a ragged voice shouted over the noise around him.

  Drake saw Hag staring in his direction from the chow line.

  “Quit looking at me like I’m a ghost and come over here and get your dinner,” she shouted.

  “I’m not hungry,” Drake yelled back and started to walk away.

  Hag pushed aside soldiers in line and waddled into his path, carrying a bowl of stew. She shoved it into his stomach, nearly splashing the contents over him. “I ain’t asked you if you were hungry. Now take it and eat! I won’t have you lagging behind on the march tomorrow because you’re weak from a lack of food.”

  She left him without waiting for a response and slapped some soldier aside who thought to give her lip for slowing down dinner. Drake’s stomach growled as the rising steam reached his nostrils.

  I guess I was hungry after all.

  He shouted out his thanks, but Hag waved him off and went back to dishing out meals.

  Drake ate as he walked to the southern edge of camp, ignoring the bustling activity around him. He settled down on a newly raised mound of dirt. Patrols moved back a
nd forth some hundred yards away. A flickering glow from the dancing campfires behind him cast shadows that stretched into the night. Away from the rowdy games of dice, he finally felt like he had a moment to work things out on his own.

  “So, what’s bothering you?” asked a voice to Drake’s left.

  He jumped and whipped his head around. Rygar lay on his back, no more than a few feet away, staring up into the starry sky. “One Above, I didn’t even see you there.”

  “Figured as much. That’s why I assumed something was bothering you. This seems to be the place for it.”

  Drake heard the sad tone in the scout’s voice. He reclined on the rough ground and brought his hands over his head. “So, what’s eating you?” he asked.

  “I asked you first.”

  Drake blew out a puff of air. “Raker.”

  “The drinking?”

  “It’s getting out of hand.”

  “Yeah, I heard some of the engineers grumbling about him. To be honest, I’m too busy scouting to notice much. Usually when I see him, it’s late in the night and he’s not the only one drunk then.”

  “I just wish I knew how to help him get his act together,” said Drake. “Since Jonrell died, each day is worse than the day before.”

  Rygar grunted. “Yeah, Jonrell’s death sure made people forget themselves. It wasn’t so obvious at first. Everyone was too caught up in the campaign after Cathyrium to dwell on his death, but once we got to Lyrosene for the winter, I guess people had time to think.” He sighed. “Now it seems that some people can’t stop thinking.”

  “You mean Yanasi?”

  “Yep.”

  “I was wondering why you weren’t with her. No offense, but you two are usually joined at the hip, especially when you make it back to camp after scouting.”

  “That’s generally the truth. Or at least it was. But same as Raker, Yanasi still hasn’t moved on from Jonrell’s death. She may not be drinking, but I’ll wake up in the middle of the night to hear her sobbing next to me. She makes up some excuse, but I’m not dumb. He was like a brother to her. She practically worshipped the man.”

  “Have you talked to her about it?”

  Rygar snorted. “I’ve tried, but it’s no use. One moment she’s clinging to me, the next she’s pushing me away. Especially since we left Lyrosene. She won’t admit it, but I think she feels like I don’t understand what she’s going through since I didn’t know Jonrell as well as she did.” He paused. “She’s right to a point. I didn’t know him as well or as long as others. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t think he was a good leader or a good man. Besides I’ve had more than my fair share of losses too. We all have.”

  “Raker’s pretty much the same way when I try to talk to him about it.”

  “Too bad he and Yanasi can’t talk it out themselves,” said Rygar.

  “I don’t know how effective that conversation would be. I’m sure it wouldn’t be long before Yanasi would slam her bow between his legs.”

  The two started laughing. “You’re probably right.”

  Drake felt the weight on his shoulders lighten.

  After a moment Rygar asked, “So what are we going to do with them then?”

  Drake blew out a chest full of air. “I wish I knew.”

  * * *

  Krytien hobbled through camp. His back ached and so did his rear. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that everything hurt on some level. He wasn’t a young man any longer and scouting with Rygar had taken its toll on him.

  Kaz did it on purpose just to spite me. Just to make me suffer and just so I’d be out of his way. Well, I’ve had it with him. We’re going to have a talk tonight. Just as soon as I get to my things and take something for this pain.

  He headed toward his gear and saw Raker stumble through camp. He had seen the sight many times before, but it struck him that Raker’s behavior had grown worse as of late. Krytien debated whether to go after the man when Yanasi’s screaming voice caught his attention. Yanasi gestured wildly with her arms as her ponytail whipped about her head. The men of her command stood there with shoulders hunched forward as she carried on.

  Krytien glanced back at Raker and saw the engineer sitting at a fire with his bottle as soldiers dealt him into a hand of cards.

  He’s probably fine.

  He turned back to Yanasi as she kicked over a pile a wood.

  That situation’s a bit more pressing.

  * * *

  “We’re letting too much slip by us. There is no excuse for getting caught off guard like we did today,” said Yanasi, pacing up and down a line of her men. She carried her black bow across her back and it bounced against her hip with each step. “We’ve got to be better. We can’t afford any more mistakes.”

  “But Captain, they had mages cloaking them. There was nothing we could do. Not without a mage of our own.”

  Yanasi stopped and wheeled on the man. “One Above, Corporal. A mage isn’t invincible. And we’re no stranger to seeing them in battle. They bleed just like everyone else. We can’t use them as an excuse for our mistake. Men died today because we weren’t doing our job as we should have. We let our Commander down.” Heads dropped as she spoke. Hers did the same. “I let you down. We have to do better and that starts with me. Now eat and get some rest. We’re rising an hour before the rest of camp tomorrow morning. We’ll run through our drills before hitting the road. It’s obvious we’re not where I thought we were.”

  There were several groans as her men shuffled back into camp. Yanasi watched them drudge past. None met her gaze.

  “Don’t you think you were a bit hard on them?”

  Yanasi faced Krytien walking toward her. He brushed back the wisps of white hair that fell into his face. She lowered her face in shame once more. “What do you want me to do? Jonrell always expected the best out of his men.”

  “Yes, but he also knew when to let up. I think you should do the same.”

  “But we screwed up today.”

  “It happens,” said Krytien. “And it’ll happen again. Learn from it and get better. It won’t do them any good to feel even worse about themselves. Nor will it do you any good to keep punishing yourself like you’ve been doing.” He paused. “Maybe I should tell Kaz to redistribute some of your responsibilities to others for awhile.”

  “No!” said Yanasi, looking up. Krytien flinched which caused her to lower her voice again. “Sorry. It’s just that, I want to help. I need to help. Jonrell was finally letting me do more and it felt good. Kaz has done the same. It might sound stupid, but I don’t want to let Kaz down. It would be like letting Jonrell down too.”

  Yanasi started to shake. An arm reached around her and pulled her in tight. She buried her head in Krytien’s old robes. “I miss him so much.”

  “I know,” said Krytien. He cleared his throat and she heard the strain in his voice. “We all do.”

  * * *

  “We’ll reconvene in the morning then?” asked General Grayer.

  Kaz nodded. “I want to talk to you more about the terrain we’re heading into. I’ve noticed some small inconsistencies to the maps we have at our disposal.”

  “Unfortunately, many are out of date. I’ll take a look tonight and make sure there isn’t anything that could hamper our plans.”

  “Until morning then.”

  Kaz stood at the entrance to the command tent as the old general left. He stared out at his camp. The trenches had been completed long ago and soldiers sat around campfires relaxing and chatting. Grayer had complimented him less than an hour ago on how orderly he ran things. Kaz had simply shrugged. He saw no other way in which a camp should be maintained.

  Some of the captains had expressed concern that Kaz had not allowed the normal camp followers to travel with the army. But he didn’t care and gave his officers a look that told them the issue had been settled. He refused to allow the whores or sellers of goods to distract marching soldiers.

  If they’re unable to find comfort
in the arms of some whore or the delight in some useless trinket, maybe their frustration will come out on the enemy. The sooner the opponent falls, the sooner they can go back to the real comforts of home.

  The thought of home grabbed his thoughts and a flood of small flashes entered his mind. The images remained quick and jumbled.

  Pieces of the culture or even a few faces mean nothing to me without any context or understanding.

  A group of laughing soldiers around a raging fire caught his attention. He felt alone.

  Will I ever learn who I am? Will I ever see my home again? And if so, will I want the life I find waiting for me?

  A gray form walked in front of his line of sight. Kaz scowled.

  What does he want?

  He turned back inside of his tent and closed the flap behind him.

  * * *

  “That no good piece of horse dung,” Krytien mumbled. “I know he saw me.” The mage quickened his pace as he headed toward the command tent.

  I’m not going to be put off tonight.

  Krytien pushed through the tent unannounced. Kaz stood over a table, looking down at a map.

  “We need to talk.”

  “I’m busy,” said Kaz without looking up.

  “Then make time because I’m not going anywhere.”

  Kaz stepped away from the table and glared across at Krytien.

  “It’s Yanasi,” said Krytien.

  “What about her?”

  “She’s not handling things well.”

  “Did she tell you this?”

  “Not in those words, but she didn’t have to. She’s worried that she might disappoint you and let you down. And in her mind, letting you down is just as bad as letting Jonrell down.”

  “Why would she think that?”

  “I don’t know, but what happened with the raid today only compounded things. It wouldn’t hurt if you told her she was doing a good job.”

  “She should know that already. I wouldn’t be giving her so many things to do if she hadn’t already proven herself to me.”

  “Did you tell her that?”

  “I didn’t think I had to treat one of my best captains as a child,” said Kaz in an exasperated tone.

  “In many ways, she still is one. She had a rough childhood before she joined us. And she craves the approval and reassurance from others because she’s so worried she’ll be seen as expendable. Even the smallest bit of praise, especially from Jonrell, made all the difference to her.”