“Her grandmother Eshe saved her life by sending her away from Rün-Taran, even by becoming an il’Kin battle seer. No one should have had to witness what happened to one’s parents as she did.” Desde tossed the arrow shaft stub into the river and watched it float on the water for a moment. “Eshe will need her back soon, I fear. She is old, older than my father. She did not look well last Quorumtide.”
She sat back on her heels and rubbed her face with her hands. The perfection of her long, elegant fingers was marred by cuts, bleeding from Ken’nar blades and her own. She slid her hands down to hug her arms, wincing as they brushed against the burn on her shoulder.
Kaarl took one of her torn, elegant hands in his. ... She will be all right, Ëi ama ...
She laughed darkly. “You are telling a seer the future?”
“No, I am trying to comfort a mother.”
“Did we make the right decision? All those summers of secrecy?”
He was no longer certain. “She’s still alive, isn’t she?” He meant the question to be a rhetorical one. Instead, he accidentally—or maybe not—had given voice to that terribly tenacious question in his mind. His wife avoided answering him for the same reason. “We would know it. We would know.”
She nodded. “She was right, you know. About the Trine Prophecy. None of our scriptures, philosophies, or writings mention three Trines. Only once before in recorded history has there been two Trines in power at the same time. I fear for what this means.”
He swallowed, the action sounding loud in his ears. “You don’t actually believe she could become—?”
“No. Never. I fear it means Tetric may not last.”
He frowned and nodded. As long as he lived long enough to see Mirana safe. His wife sat back from him, having heard his thought. “I’ve never been so uncharitable as to wish him ill.” Mock surprise momentarily erased the worry on her face. “Well, not truly, Desde, but I don’t want the man to die.” His expression turned serious. “If he does, there will be no one to protect her.”
“Unless she has never been a part of the prophecy at all. What if it always has been about Tetric and that Ken’nar monster? What if she is the one who is meant to die so Tetric will live to vanquish him? What have we done? Oh, Kaarl!” His wife deflated into his embrace. Her body shook in his arms with racking sobs. “We pushed her away. We pushed her right into the Dark Trine’s blade. My Lightness!”
He held Desde, rocking her gently. He let her vent the fear and the grief for both of them.
Binthe and Morgan approached. The fact that these two still breathed was about the only peace he could hold in his heart at the moment. He brushed his lips against Desde’s hair and helped her to her feet.
“Any sign of Mirana?” Kaarl asked, while his wife turned from them to compose herself.
Binthe’s eyes rested on Desde for a moment. “We looked everywhere. The riverbanks are flooded. We found no tracks.”
“I tried to swim back over to the Kin-Deren shore to search there, but the current was uncooperative,” Morgan said.
Kaarl suppressed a grin at his friend’s attempt at humor. Binthe, however, apparently found his comment anything but humorous.
“You washed downstream and nearly drowned. I had to call you back with the Aspects.”
The young defender commander gave her a wan smile, then shook his head. “I could find no sign of her, but I will keep looking.”
Desde turned to face the il’Kin. Except for the moisture on her cheeks, no sign remained of her grief. “What of Niah and Tennen?”
“Nothing,” Morgan said. “This might be a good sign, though. For all of them. We have no evidence whatsoever anyone has been harmed. And Tetric Garis is—”
“Lord Garis is Lord Garis,” Liaonne Edaran said. Kaarl turned as the Varn-Erdalan woman walked over to them. “I think he surprises even the Aspects Above themselves sometimes. Steward, Prime Kellis Pinal.” She gripped his wife’s forearm in greeting.
Desde held the defender woman’s forearm. “Liaonne.”
Kaarl did likewise. Liaonne had only seen twenty-five summers, but she fought like no defender he had ever known. The young woman who stood before him now, however, appeared more like a caricature of the strong-willed Varn-Erdalan he knew. A hollowness lay in her sienna-brown eyes, replacing the ferocious intensity which normally dwelt there.
“My heart weeps for the passing of your mother, noble Vallia,” Desde said. “You now carry an enormous burden as prime, one which was handed to you by violence and not by a peaceful passing such as how my elevation was initiated.”
“It is a difficult burden regardless of how one receives it. I have never had the privilege of watching you in battle, Desde. My estimation of battle seers has changed.”
Kaarl glanced at his wife. She gave the defender woman a curt nod. Binthe’s face remained placid with a faint smile, but he wasn’t all that surprised. He knew the il’Kin battle seer well. It took far more than a vague insult to release her ire.
Liaonne fidgeted for a moment. “Forgive me, I do not have my mother’s way with words, so I shall be direct. I need Kin-Deren’s help.”
“We will offer you whatever aid we can,” Desde replied.
“I need defenders. Other than a handful of old seers who have never called a battle, I have no Fal’kin. Even my hall sentries are now dead. I have two defender scholaire’e who might be ready for Choosing, but the rest are children. Most have not even seen twelve summers. The unending skirmishes with the Ken’nar over the recent summers have left us weaker than we’ve ever been. We are a hall of brepaithe’e and biraen’e.” She paused, then took a breath. “I am asking for a cleaving.”
“A cleaving?” Desde blinked. “Take half my Fal’kin? Permanently? I have none to spare. Look around you.” She spread her arms wide. “This is all that remains to safeguard my own province. Liaonne, you may ask anything of me but this.”
“There is more to consider,” Morgan said. “With a cleaving, you might as well have a clarion announce to the Dark Trine your vulnerable situation, and Kin-Deren’s, too.”
“He already knows,” Liaonne replied, exasperation coloring her hard alto voice. “The Dark bastard had to have been at the Ford. The calling of that massacre had to have been from his diseased mind. If it hadn’t been for Lord Garis destroying the bridges, all of us would have been lost.” She clenched her hands to calm herself.
Kaarl’s eyes went wide. “Did you see him? Garis? Did you see him destroy the Ford?”
Liaonne shook her head and straightened in surprise at his emphatic questions. “Well, no. But who else could have done that?”
His wife took a deep breath before she answered. “It was Mirana.”
He stiffened at her response, then let his shoulders fall. There was no point in keeping the secret any longer.
Liaonne scowled. “Your daughter? I remember her bitter words in the command tent—it’s true? She is a Trine?”
“Ai.” It was such a simple word, yet it was the most difficult one he had ever spoken.
“Then I need her. One does not have to be a seer to know Edara will be the Dark Trine’s next target.”
Binthe fingered her amulet. “We believe his true goal is Deren.”
“That may be, but he won’t get there without conquering Edara. Varn-Erdal province is the last point of resistance in the northern half of the continent.”
“You may be correct, Liaonne,” Desde said. “He has the forests of Kana-Akün to build his war machines. Without Two Rivers Ford, he will have a long, slow march overland, but he will not wait forever. He will need to mount his men now to make up for lost time and turn his infantry into a cavalry.”
The young defender prime nodded. “Then you understand my situation. He means to go after my horses.”
The seers were correct. Kaarl had expected the Dark Trine to make a play for Deren, and he would, but not yet. Varn-Erdal bred the most prized warhorses on the continent. With Vallia and most of Varn
-Erdal’s defenders now dead, the province’s capital city of Edara and its fabled horses were ripe for conquest.
“Unless you honor my cleaving, I will not be able to turn him back. Protection of the south will then be on Kin-Deren’s shoulders alone.”
He cursed under his breath. Liaonne was not exaggerating. If Varn-Erdal fell, Kin-Deren would soon as well. Neither province had enough defenders to repel any serious attack. With Kana-Akün under Ken’nar control, and Trak-Calan too far and too small to send any substantive aid, the Dark Trine would effectively hold the entire northern half of the continent. Much of Kinderra’s population, to say nothing of her food crops and resources, lay south of the Anarath River. Granted, the southern provinces had the largest complements of Fal’kin, but the collateral damage in the wake of a Ken’nar onslaught would be catastrophic. The whole continent could starve. If Kinderra was to survive, Edara and Deren would have to survive as well.
Kaarl sensed his wife’s emotions spike then slip back under her control. She was in an untenable spot. If she gave away half her troops, they would be made even more vulnerable, if that was possible. It was unlikely Liaonne could withstand a direct assault of any sizable force even if she had five hundred defenders. The Fal’kin Deren needed so badly were likely to be sacrificed at Edara, yet the citadel at least had its walls and gates. Edara had little more than wooden ramparts.
“I do not intend for Varn-Erdal province be left defenseless,” Desde said. She then turned from the group and walked a few steps away.
“Desde?” He went over to her. Eyes closed, she cupped her topaz amulet, and golden light leaked from between her fingers. “Ama?” He placed his hand on Desde’s back. She was invisible from within the Aspects. Whatever she was thinking, she did not even want him to know.
“I cannot give you half of my Fal’kin, Liaonne,” she said at last and turned back around.
Liaonne tensed as if an amulet had struck her. “What?”
Binthe shook her head in astonishment. “You cannot refuse her, Ëi siba. The other primes will take note. If you do, Kin-Deren may find herself alone when she needs aid.”
The young defender prime stepped in close to Desde, standing toe to toe. “I am begging you, woman. Do you not understand both of our provinces are in mortal peril?”
“I will give you twenty-five,” she replied.
“Twenty-five?” Liaonne’ laughed in disbelief. “Twenty-five? I need at least a hundred.”
“No. You need at least three thousand. As do I. But we do not have that many. Only the southern provinces have those numbers, but they are too far to come to aid either of us, and time is short. Less than two hundred of my Fal’kin survived. I, too, have nothing left but children.”
Kaarl now sensed Desde’s resolve growing stronger, along with her dismay. Whatever she was planning, it terrified her. Very little frightened his wife like this, and that made him concerned. So much so, his Defending Aspect began to smolder within him. “We will send riders south. Perhaps Sün-Kasal or Tash-Hamar or even Jad-Anüna will help.”
Liaonne gave a derisive laugh. “Sün-Kasal. I have sat in Quorum enough as a prime’s second to know Sahm Klai is an obstinate isolationist. It would take me a sevenday of sevendays to convince the defender prime. It would take at least that long for any defenders from Tash-Hamar to reach Edara, even if Prime Fasen Aldi would agree to give them to me. I do not have that kind of time. Jad-Anüna lies so far east from Varn-Erdal, Prime Nambre Dinir has the luxury of pretending to be ignorant of what goes on in this land. The last time the Jad-Anünans came out in any sizable force I had yet to hold an amulet. As much as I do not wish to take my mother’s seat, Varn-Erdal lies leaderless, and the Ken’nar who attacked us here at the Ford may already be planning their strike on my province. I need to move now.”
“I can give you twenty-five now,” Desde said, “but I will bring you more before the Ken’nar attack Edara. Many more.”
“How? Do you intend to make Fal’kin out of clay?”
His wife gave the young defender prime an intense stare. “I am asking you to trust me.”
“I trust you will try, Ëi siba. I do not trust you will succeed.” Liaonne nodded a farewell and left to prepare for her ride north.
Kaarl witnessed the devastation in Liaonne’s face at his wife’s decision. He would not have wanted to wait for help either. He also knew the offer was the best Desde could make under the circumstances.
Tetric Garis’s desire to become Primus Magne came back to him. Maybe Kinderra was that desperate. Even as Primus Magne, though, he would need fighters. Not even three hundred remained between the two provinces. Even the il’Kin were effectively gone. Well, almost gone. Morgan said something quietly to Binthe as he watched the Varn-Erdalan woman leave.
“I can give Varn-Erdal a few more Fal’kin.” Kaarl smiled at the pair.
“Do you understand what you are doing if you order us to Varn-Erdal?” Binthe asked.
It was not a question at all. It was a protest, but since the il’Kin were bound by the Quorum steward’s directives—his directives, now—it was as much of a protest as the young battle seer could make.
Desde shook her head. “By giving up Morgan and Binthe to Liaonne, you’ll dissolve the il’Kin.”
He nodded slowly. “Ai. The il’Kin have always served Kinderra whenever and wherever she needed them. That has not changed.”
“He is right,” Morgan said. “That duty hasn’t changed even if I were to stand alone. And Varn-Erdal was my home. For five summers.” Binthe touched the back of Morgan’s hand with her fingertips.
Kaarl turned to the young seer woman. “Binthe?”
Desde held up her hand, silencing her before she could answer him. “Binthe needs to go home. Her bremaithe needs her.”
“Maybe the il’Kin exists in little more than in name only, but we do exist,” the young seer said, determination hardening her sea-green eyes. “The steward elevated Morgan as defender commander of the il’Kin. Where he goes, I go. Edara needs a battle seer. Rün-Taran does not. Not yet.”
“Dav Koehl fell,” Desde pointed out. “The Ken’nar swarmed him like vultures. They didn’t even leave a body behind. I elevated Niall Corran to defender commander. He will need a good defender second at his side. Morgan was born to Kin-Deren province. I will need him to help lead what’s left of my provincial troops.”
Kaarl gave his wife a roguish grin. “Maybe I know of another defender born to Kin-Deren who is more or less unemployed at the moment.”
Desde put her hands on her hips, not amused at all. “You cannot. You are Steward of the Quorum of Light.”
“Even I have to accept the state of the il’Kin,” he replied, serious this time. “Your father was steward and still held his role as prime and seer. I am a defender. I will defend. The steward’s office is sworn to negotiate between provinces, assisting in their needs. I have done that. Varn-Erdal needs fighters. I have given her fighters. Kin-Deren needs a defender second, at least for the time being. I have given her one.” His wife crossed her arms, eyeing the group, then nodded.
“Morgan and Binthe, go to Varn-Erdal,” he continued. “Liaonne will need you more than Desde for the moment.”
“However, you will go as il’Kin,” Desde added, her dark eyes on Kaarl, “and you will return to Deren as il’Kin after this crisis has been resolved.”
A group of five Kin-Deren Fal’kin riders approached. “Steward Pinal, Prime Kellis Pinal.” Niall Corran nodded quickly to Kaarl and Desde.
Kaarl returned the gesture. “Defender Commander.”
Niall frowned. “I didn’t want it.”
Desde reached up and held his forearm for a moment. “I know. That is why you have the rank.”
He gave her a spare smile. “We searched the foothills for the healers and the herbsfolk. We found the bodies of Ken’nar and some of the herbsfolk. And ash.”
“Any amulets?” Kaarl asked.
He shook his head. “They were
probably taken for bounty,” he replied, hatred thick in his voice.
Kaarl cursed. The Ken’nar bastards often stole amulets still warm from the fight right off the necks of Fal’kin they had just killed as trophies.
His wife stiffened. “Teague.”
That tenacious question fell hard in his brain once again. “Corran, the bodies. Was there a boy, sixteen summers?”
Niall Corran shook his head. “No. But there was a large amount of ash.”
Kaarl nodded bleakly. “Gratas Oë. Get yourselves some food and water.” The Kin-Deren commander nodded once more and trotted off with his fighters.
“I know how close Teague and Mirana were,” Morgan said. “And I know Tennen was a good friend.”
“You heard me accuse him and Niah of putting my daughter in harm’s way to keep Teague and her apart.” He looked to the mountain foothills on the western horizon. “I never had a chance to apologize. To either of them.”
“Tennen knows you were frightened for Mirana’s life. They both do.”
Kaarl noted his friend’s use of the present tense. He thanked the Aspects Above once again for having a man like Morgan Jord at his side. Even though the il’Kin were all but gone, Kinderra would need a leader like him.
With Kana-Akün province under Ken’nar control, Kaarl was all but certain Healer Prime Belessa Tir was dead. The enormity of the loss of Tennen and Niah now struck him. He wiped at his face. “Kinderra has no more healers.”
“We don’t know that any more than we know what happened to Teague,” Desde said. “There are many possible reasons they haven’t been found. Perhaps the three of them escaped together and are on their way home now. Maybe—” She reached for his hand. ... Maybe they have Mirana with them ...
“There is still Lord Garis,” Binthe added. “And your daughter.”
He did not answer her. Oh, that tenacious thought.
“As we ride with Liaonne, we will look for the Beltrans and Mirana,” Morgan said. “If they are alive, we’ll find them.”
He nodded. “Gratas.”
Trine Rising Page 28
