Affinity for War

by Frank Morin

  "I am Captain Rory, embassy of High Lord Dougal, high commander of the Obrioner army, bearing messages for you, General Wolfram."

  Wolfram returned the salute. "I've heard you're a man of honor, but you still owe me a camp chest, Captain."

  Rory's formal expression cracked into a smile. "You still own it, sir?"

  "Of course. I keep it as a reminder to always remain on guard."

  "What's he talking about?" Verena whispered to Connor as she slipped her hand into his.

  Connor shrugged. "I have no idea, but I'm glad they're not trying to kill each other."

  "I must ask you to surrender all of your power stones," Wolfram said.

  Rory looked surprised, and Verena whispered, "That's unusual."

  Wolfram's gaze shifted to Ivor. "I have also heard of you, Commander Ivor, and I will not willingly endanger my soldiers with you two in this fortress bearing power stones. They will be returned to you at the conclusion of our discussion."

  "Very well," Rory said.

  A pair of Rumblers collected the stones and small bags of powder.

  Wolfram said, "I will not force you to purge, but I must have your word that none of you will tap your affinities while in the walls of this fortress."

  "You have my word," Rory said, then glanced at Tomas and Cameron and gave them a hard look.

  "You will join me in my study, Captain. The rest of your company will remain here."

  He led Rory from the courtyard. Kilian waited for Verena, Hamish, and Jean. Connor paused long enough to motion Aifric to join them. One of the Grandurian officers began to protest, but Kilian motioned the man back.

  "I am assuming you have a reason for inviting this Healer to join us."

  "I do," Connor assured him.

  "Explain when we get there," Kilian said. As the group left the courtyard, Erich followed at their heels.

  Before they reached Wolfram's office, Anika rushed past. Her face gleamed, and her long, blond hair was freshly braided. She had incorporated brightly colored late-season wildflowers into the braid, and the intricate pattern made her look radiant. Even her battle leathers looked polished.

  She was grinning so wide, it was a marvel her face fit through the door to Wolfram's office. Connor reached the doorway just as she swept Rory off his feet in an exuberant hug.

  Rory's smile changed to a grimace of pain and he exclaimed, "Tallan's mercy, woman. You're going to crush me to jelly."

  Anika dropped him and gave him a quick but passionate kiss on the lips. Her expression turned questioning. "Why no many strong hands, mine capitain?"

  Rory rubbed one shoulder and glanced at Wolfram, who was watching them with open amusement. "I promised the general that I wouldn't tap granite in the fortress."

  Anika turned to Wolfram and exclaimed, "How we wrestle?"

  "I am afraid you'll have to content yourself with holding hands."

  Verena took Connor's hand in hers, a wistful little smile on her lips, and said softly, "I don't imagine that relationship has any chance of success, but I can't help but think it was an unusual stroke of good luck that Dougal sent Rory."

  Kilian looked thoughtful. "Dougal does not make such mistakes. I expect he must know of Rory's interest in our Anika, which begs the question, why did he send him?"

  Connor led the way into the office. "Hopefully we're going to find out."

  Anika looked ready to argue further, but Wolfram spotted Aifric as they all crowded into the study. "What are you doing here, young lady?"

  The brown-haired, open-faced Aifric gave the general a happy smile, then stepped to Rory and touched one hand to his shoulder. His grimace faded under her touch and she said, "For the moment, it appears I am trying to preserve our good captain from the dangers of a broken heart."

  Rory grunted. "A broken body anyway."

  "I take it you know this girl?" Wolfram asked.

  Connor said, "She is a trusted friend. One of perhaps nineteen I can think of at the moment."

  He hoped he'd get to meet Aifric's other undercover personalities. She seemed to completely embody each identity she assumed, becoming a different person. If her other identities were as different, he couldn't wait to meet them all.

  Aifric said, "The only one of the nineteen who matters right now."

  Kilian approached Rory and extended a hand, which he shook. "Well met, Captain. I find it interesting that Dougal would risk such a valuable member of his staff as an envoy."

  "I am not overly concerned about treachery."

  Rory seemed at ease in the company, and Connor doubted that the simple, enthusiastic presence of Anika close beside him was enough to justify it. She usually made anyone else with a shred of self-preservation decidedly nervous.

  Kilian said, "I, on the other hand, do worry. Especially after what happened at the pass."

  Rory said, "I assume by our success at the border that neither you nor Connor were present during the assault."

  "If we had been, it would've gone very differently," Connor promised. He leaned his back against a nearby bookshelf. He didn't want to face another elfonnel, but if he'd been there, maybe Ingrid would have survived.

  Rory said, "I expect it would have, although I think the day would have gone badly for Redmund, either way."

  Connor frowned as he thought of Redmund. "He must have ascended. I wonder if Dougal could have seized his mind and forced him to raise that elfonnel if he hadn't?"

  "You think that was Dougal's doing?" Rory asked.

  Kilian said, "Without a doubt. Dougal used him as a pawn, just as he was planning to do with Connor."

  Hamish leaned forward with that surprised look that suggested he just had a thought. “If Dougal seizes Connor’s mind and forces him to raise an elfonnel—“

  “Don’t even suggest it,” Verena interrupted.

  Hamish made a calming gesture. “I know, but if he did, would Connor appear as a monster that looked like Redmund did? His elfonnel looked just like the one at the Carraig.”

  “That’s a good point, Jean said. “But Evander’s looked more human-shaped.”

  Kilian gave Hamish an approving nod. “I’m impressed. That mind of yours works pretty well sometimes.”

  “I had twenty-three smashpacked cakes on the flight back to the fortress,” Hamish said with a shrug. “Fuels the mind.”

  Connor shared a stunned look with Verena, while Jean just laughed.

  Through his own chuckle, Kilian said, “The stronger the Petralist, the greater their control over the form they take. However, Dougal’s influence might well affect the ultimate form chosen.”

  "How does he seize other people’s minds?" Aifric asked.

  "We'll discuss that question in more detail later," Kilian said with a glance at Rory. "I believe we are already taxing the captain's honor to the uttermost. There is only so much he can withhold from his high lord."

  Rory gave him a wry smile. "It sure would be easier if I hated you people."

  Hamish, who had been lounging near the door eating a sugared pastry, suddenly said, "Aifric, Dougal doesn't know you're here, does he?"

  She shook her head. "I doubt he's aware that I was in the army at all. I was keeping a pretty low profile after what happened at the Carraig."

  Hamish said, "You're insane to join that army at all. If he discovers you, he'll execute you."

  "Worse, probably." Aifric said with an enthusiastic grin.

  "I suspect there is history here that I should know about," Wolfram said.

  "When High Lord Dougal was attacking Connor's mind at the Carraig, Aifric had me fly her up the mountain and find Dougal's secret hideout. She attacked him alone and nearly killed him." Hamish shook his head. "I can't believe you wasted time gloating."

  Aifric grimaced. "I should have killed him instantly. Gregor must have figured out that I had tricked him and clobbered me from behind."

  "Perhaps," Kilian said, his expression unreadable.

  She shrugged. "All I can figure is that
Dougal planned to return for me after he secured his hold on Connor." She gave Connor a happy smile. "You saved my life without even realizing it."

  "It's the least I could do after how many times you saved mine."

  Connor wanted to ask her more about that day to see if they could confirm that Dougal had flipped the trap on her using obsidian. She might not even understand what happened, but maybe together they could figure it out.

  Rory interrupted. "Who are you?"

  "Oh, Captain, I imagine that's another one of those things that would push your loyalty past the breaking point," Aifric said warmly.

  Kilian said, "Don't get distracted, Captain. You came to deliver an official message."

  "I did, but first General Carbrey ordered me to laugh in Wolfram's face." Rory regarded Wolfram, who now wore a wry smile. With his craggy face impassive, Rory said in a deadpan voice, "Consider yourself laughed at."

  Wolfram shook his head slowly. "I suppose it's too much to hope that Carbrey will ever grow up."

  "What's that all about?" Connor asked.

  "Over the years, our ongoing clashes have become a personal vendetta for Carbrey. Every time he can claim the least bit of advantage from a skirmish, he is renowned for bragging about it and bemoaning the fact that he's never gotten the chance to face me man to man in single combat."

  "I'd like to see that," Verena said, and it was clear which of the generals she expected would win.

  Connor was not sure. He had never seen Wolfram fight, but knew the man had affinity with obsidian. As a Boulder, Carbrey would seem to hold the advantage, but a skilled Allcarver could still win.

  Rory continued, "My Lord Dougal proposes an exchange. He will return the powdered primary affinity stone captured at the border in exchange for the diorite chisels recently captured in Grandurian raids across the border."

  "It must gall him that his own identical raids failed," Wolfram said.

  Kilian added, "What about the other power stones you captured?"

  "He suspected you would ask about that. He wanted me to inform you that we discovered the entire cache, as well as the weakening powder. That powder, along with the tertiary stones, will not be returned."

  Kilian kept his expression neutral, but Wolfram's brows drew together just a fraction.

  Connor asked, "Captain, why don't you stay with us? It's clear you understand the kind of man that High Lord Dougal is. Come help us stop him."

  Wolfram looked stunned by the audacity of the offer, and even Kilian looked surprised. Hamish and Jean were both nodding eagerly, and Anika looked like she was preparing to tackle him again to celebrate, but Rory shook his head.

  He glanced at Anika and said, "I'll admit I'm conflicted, but my duty is to my men as much as it is to my lord. I could not live with myself if I abandoned them."

  "Bring your men along," Connor offered.

  He would love to have Tomas and Cameron join him in exile. Their irreverent outlook would fit the life of rebellion perfectly, and no doubt they could offer tremendous insights about how to best start a patronage revolution.

  Rory actually hesitated before shaking his head again. "They wouldn't come, lad. You know that."

  "One day they may."

  He hoped that when that day came, Rory made the right choice. Now he knew the offer was open. Connor was beginning to understand that they would not defeat Dougal and restore peace without help from more of the honorable men and women of Obrion.

  Besides, once they shared the truth about unclaimed, there would be even less holding Rory and the other Guardians back. He wanted to reveal the truth to Rory, but couldn't risk Dougal learning that he knew the secret.

  "Now is probably the best time for me to deliver the message I have for you too, Connor. He suspected I might find you here, or find a way to get a message to you."

  Connor wasn't sure he wanted to hear it. Even though he was safely away from Dougal, the man still scared him. Connor loved his country, and it still bothered him to think that he had been forced to fight his own countrymen.

  "Shona did not have the authority to let you go. Her conditional patronage was respected, but only your high lord can choose to release you from service."

  She hadn't mentioned that in her letter.

  "He still clings to the lie," Verena growled.

  "High Lord Dougal orders you to return and submit to him," Rory continued. He looked like he could barely believe the words he spoke.

  Connor said, "He knows that's impossible. Why would he even suggest such a thing?"

  "Because your refusal grants him justification for the rest of the message. If you refuse, he swears to punish you and those who have twisted your loyalty away from the cause of justice."

  "He is such a legendary liar," Verena exclaimed. She looked ready to go hunt down Dougal and punch him in the throat. Twice.

  Rory continued, his expression grim. "He promises to not only conquer Granadure, but to lay waste to the nation. His sworn intention is to stomp out rebellion. He will initiate a second great purge and destroy every last Builder and every last mechanical."

  "Now he's made it personal," Hamish growled, his fists clenching.

  "This war was always personal to him," Kilian said, looking unaffected by the threats.

  Rory said, "He ordered me to suggest another alternative. If you agree to stay out of this war, he will show mercy and petition the king to allow the Builders to continue their work after Granadure is brought back under Obrioner control.

  "Leave for the Arishat League, if you like. Or he is willing to grant you a palace in the southern part of his realm to live in. All you need to do swear an oath of neutrality."

  Connor was not sure how to respond. He should laugh it off, but he hated to admit even to himself that he found the offer tempting.

  He respected the people of Granadure, but the Arishat League did hold potential advantages. If Verena and his other friends came with him, he could guarantee their safety.

  If they instead pursued the war to its uttermost end, they'd face constant peril for weeks or months or years. If any of them died when he could have offered them a safe alternative, he wasn't sure he could live with himself.

  Wolfram said, "You have to admit that man is brilliant."

  Kilian said, "No doubt he plans to remove you, even should you accept that offer. It is his way to divide and distract before striking."

  Aifric nodded. "I guarantee he has contingency plans already in play. I swore an oath to protect you, Connor. While embedded in the army, I did not find an opportunity to take another stab at Dougal. However, I learned that Dougal has already sent at least one secret assassin across the border."

  Connor exchanged glances with Kilian. That's exactly what Martys had suggested. "Do you know their mission?"

  She shook her head. "All I found out was that they had a high level target." She glanced around the room. "Could be any of you."

  Wolfram shrugged. "It would not be the first time I've been targeted, and it will not be the last."

  Connor gripped Verena's warm hand tighter. The thought of a secret assassin possibly hunting her terrified him. It also filled him with rage. "If he did strike one of us, that would only guarantee that we'd fight that much harder."

  "Like I said, contingencies," Aifric said.

  "Will you excuse us, Captain?" Wolfram said to Rory. "We need to confer in private about your message." He gestured toward the door. "Anika, why don't you show the captain to the library? He can wait in comfort until we call for him."

  She eagerly took Rory's hand and led him from the room. Erich looked furious that he was not ordered to follow.

  After they left, Wolfram faced Aifric. "You're not just a Healer."

  Connor answered for her. "She's Mhortair. I suppose I should introduce you to my personal Assassin."

  Wolfram looked shocked, showing more emotion than Connor had ever seen. His stance shifted a little, and he suddenly radiated the deadly grace of an Allcarver tapping
obsidian. Fire began to flicker around Kilian's fingers, and even Verena took half a step back, her free hand dipping into her ever-present satchel.

  Aifric noted their responses and grinned. Her expression turned more predatory, her features shifting subtly as she slipped into her alternate Assassin persona. She curtsied, her movements as graceful as Wolfram's. "Pleasure to meet you all. I am here to join you."

  Kilian chuckled. "What makes you think we would accept the Mhortair into our company?"

  "Who better to stop an assassin than an Assassin? Connor, I swore an oath to protect you and remove any who sought to do you harm. I failed last time, so I'm asking for a chance to redeem myself and regain my honor."

  "Of course you can join us."

  Connor felt no reservation about accepting her. Sure, she had tried to kill him once, but they had cleared up that little misunderstanding.

  Real friends didn't hold grudges.

  Chapter Thirty

  "The fortified stronghold falls not to a single assault, but relents under the combined might of attacks on all sides."

  ~Evander

  The next day passed quickly. Harz was a constant buzz of activity as the army prepared to meet the expected Obrioner advance. Connor saw little of Verena and Hamish. They disappeared with the other Builders into a laboratory set up in a huge barn at the outskirts of town. Jean joined them to study flying and to help Hamish fine-tune his suit.

  Connor wanted to help, but had to admit he was pretty useless when it came to Builder work. Besides, he was needed elsewhere.

  Captain Ilse introduced him to most of the high command of the Grandurian army. Their initial distrust usually faded to enthusiastic support once they learned he was Blood of the Tallan. The constant glares from soldiers who knew only that he was Obrioner got old real fast.

  "What do you expect?" Ilse asked when he confided in her. "It takes time to build trust, especially now. Did you think that just because you've got a special gift that everyone would drop to their knees and start worshipping you?"

  "Of course not." If anyone tried, Verena would probably punch him unconscious to remind him that he was still just Connor. "So let's build some trust and start developing those inter-affinity battle plans."