A Warrior's Redemption (The Warrior Kind) (47 page)

I saw General Nadero’s men up ahead and I turned Flin with my knees so that we headed up the enemy line to carve out our own bloody path of car
nage.
Sparks of color sheeted off the sword with every heavy overhanded swing downward that connected.

Curls of colored smoke twined down my arms to my torso and then down onto Flin. I was getting used to it, but it was still rather jarring to behold. Man and beast alike of the enemy drew back from us, as much as the tight press would allow, unnerved by our appearance. Flin had gone berserk and I’m not sure how I stayed in the sad
dle, but I did.

The sound and sight of a stallion at war is to see what utter fearlessness looks like. It is an utter ferocity of magnifi
cent blood lust and I allowed myself to be swept up in it as I swung my sword with abandon.

There was space around me and in the fog of war I looked around to see why only to discover more of my own kind than that of the enemy. Where was the enemy?

It was then that I saw that they had broken and were flee
ing back towards the main army. It was time to finish this day! Grabbing the sword in one hand I hauled Flin around and charged after the departing riders determined to not let any of them get away.

So lost was I in the action of the moment that I did not know that I charged alone after the enemy, but General Nadero saw it.

He surged free of a knot of the enemy that was still fighting and screamed gesturing after me with his sword, “To Roric men! To Victory!”

He surged after me waving his bloody sword in a call to arms, as screaming warriors pulled away from finishing off the rest of the enemy, to charge madly towards the bigger battle ensuing on the plain. Passed over enemy lancers wheeled their mounts toward the south and home as the Valley Lander cavalry surged in a screaming mass of raw emo
tion after their leaders and the greater battle raging on the plain.

Flin stretched out in a pace eating cantor. Flin’s sweat soaked sides heaved for air as we caught up with fleeing en
emy cavalrymen one by one. I sent them toppling from their saddles with savage strokes of my sword. Ahead of us I saw the pressed ranks of the enemy and I urged Flin onwards toward them screaming insanely in my desire to destroy them all.

We plowed into them full tilt. The impact almost sent Flin to his knees, but he regained his stride and we carved our way into them once again lost in the bloodlust of the moment.

One by one front running Valley Lander cavalry plowed into the enemy and then thousands hit the panicking enemy line with deadening force.

The heavy cavalry swept through the Zoarinian ranks with the tenacity of a sheep dog through a herd of sheep and the enemy reacted as sheep. The Zoarinian army as a whole visibly wavered, as they saw that their supporting cavalry was gone and that they were being attacked from all sides.

Surrounded and disheartened by a campaign that had promised easy victory, but had only de
livered them losses, they broke. The will to fight was gone, only to be replaced with
a desperation
to live.

The broken soldiers rushed past the onrushing cavalry towards the shore and the ships at anchor beyond. Thou
sands more of them fell in their headlong rush to the sea, as they were hounded by the Valley Landers and their allies as savagely as a pack of wolves would run down a lame elk.

I drew up in the sand and watched as the survivors of the broken army swam out into the sea with a strength and fer
vor born out of desperation. The ships had come in close to pick up the survivors and they began to
loose
off arrows at us. I gave the order to pull back from the beach to avoid further casualties on our side. The battle was won.

Upon hearing excited screams ring out all around me I turned in the saddle to look back once more at the escaping soldiers. The enemy ships dotting the shoreline were shaking and pitching around like they were the chew toys of some mas
sive unseen hound. Had they run aground?

Then I saw some of the unknown aggressors as they sur
faced briefly for air.

Whales!

The same beasts that had brought our allies to us were now smashing away at the enemy’s fleet without mercy. Ships began to sink, their hulls shattered as still other ships made way for the open ocean forsaking the screaming sol
diers trying to swim out to them.

The escape of the navy wasn’t to be though. I saw one of the farthest out to sea ships completely pulled under by the encircling tentacles of some huge sea monster.

What a bloodbath this day had been!

I noticed General Nadero by my side and as if sensing a gathering darkness crowding the corners of my conscious
ness I reached out and clutched at his shoulder, “General no more killing! Let the survivors go! We have our victory.”

He grabbed my arm, “Consider it done Roric! Roric are you okay? Roric are….”

His words sounded hollow and far away from me and I realized that I was falling. Endlessly freefalling downward.

Chapter Twenty Two

Awareness Begun

General Nadero stood at the end of the bed with a look of puzzlement tinged with concern on his face as he stared down at the still figure resting on the bed before him.

“I don’t understand doctor it’s been almost two weeks since the battle! His injuries have healed! Even his shoulder bruising has gone down. Why is he still not stirring?”

The bent over doctor tried to straighten up, but gave up on the attempt with a grimace of pain on his face and sighed loudly.

Turning to the General he asked, “General have you ever had a bad fever that lasted for days?”

“Yes.”

“How did you feel after it broke?”

“Like I’d just fought a war.” General Nadero said clearly still not understanding what the doc
tor was getting at.

“Well that’s exactly what Roric’s going through. Not only did he exhaust himself physically, but his mind too I think. There may be damage done inside his head that we can’t see. Shutting down like this is the body’s way of tak
ing the time to heal itself. He’ll come out of it when he’s ready. What he needs now is rest.”

The G
eneral still looked puzzled, but less concerned. He nodded and then left the room.

The doctor stared at the closed door for a moment and then turned back to the patient lying still in the bed and Thaddeus, who was sitting in a chair beside the bed.

“Thaddeus I didn’t want to tell the General, but I am growing con
cerned. Two weeks is a long time.”

“I know.” Thaddeus said softly, as he stared at his grand
son lying so still on the bed.

Roric’s chest was barely moving as he breathed shallow
ly.

“Thaddeus I know something like this happened to you when you were a young man. What brought you out of it?”

A slow tear slid down Thaddeus’s old weathered cheek, “My wife. She brought me out of it.”

“Is there anything strong and focal in Roric’s life that would inspire him to keep living?” The doctor asked.

“I don’t know! I’ve sat here racking my brain about it! I thought bringing him home to Thunder Ridge would help. He loves it here. He could be and do almost anything he wanted too. Everyone adores him. He has the little girl he brought back with him from the forests to raise. I don’t know what to do to motivate him to come back to us Orlanin.”

“Thaddeus isn’t there a woman in his life? Someone he cares a great deal for like you did for your wife?”

“No I ….” Thaddeus paused mid sentence as if pondering on some
thing, “Where’s Zarsha?” Thaddeus asked abruptly.

The nurse that accom
panied the old doctor everywhere he went spoke up from a corner of the room, “I saw her playing in the butterfly garden near the eastern tower earlier Sir.”

Thaddeus shoved his chair back and rose to his feet ab
ruptly and headed around the bed for the door. He thumped the doctor on the back harder than he should have as he left the room.

The old doctor after recovering from the hard smack met the nurse’s eyes and they shared a smile, as they listened to the rapid tap of Thaddeus’s cane departing down the hall.

Thaddeus was breathing hard by the time he reached the butterfly garden near the east tower.

“Haven’t walked so fast in years.”
Thaddeus wheezed out to himself, as he leaned against a stone wall briefly trying to get his breathing under control.

He looked out over the pro
fusion of flowers in garden in search of Zarsha. There she was.

She was such a beautiful child, with such a sweet temperament to match. Her arrival at Thunder Ridge had been an unexpected joy for him. He had spent many of his after
noons listening to her imaginative stories and then had told her many fanciful ones of his own making. He made his way over to her his leg throbbing painfully.

She was standing waist deep in the middle of a patch of purple Hatacha flowers. She had her finger held up in front
of her face and he could see that a beautiful Naortian Butterfly had chosen to land on her fin
ger.

Thaddeus sat down on a garden bench not wanting to interrupt the girl’s fascination with the beauti
ful creature that was expressively flexing its wings in front of Zarsha’s nose. The butterfly suddenly flew off in search of another flower. The girl watched it go her lips parted in a sweet smile.

“Zarsha dear?
Could you come over here please? I have something I need to ask you.” Thaddeus said.

The little girl whirled around her face all lit up at the sound of his voice. She ran to him with the grace of a young deer through the wild profusion of blooms scattering butter
flies to the wind as she came bounding up to him.

The smile at seeing him abruptly faded as she saw his face “Did some
thing happen to daddy?”

“No, no! He’s the same honey just sleeping!” Thaddeus said before patting the seat beside him.

The little girl sat down beside him her ex
pression openly curious.

“Zarsha?”

Thaddeus paused not quite sure how to put the question to the little girl in the best way, “Have you seen how the baker’s daughter and the young guard over by the armory carry on over each other?”

The girl shook her head yes, with a disgusted look on her face.

Thaddeus couldn’t help but smile at the face she made, but then the seriousness of the matter took over again. “Did your daddy every act like that with a girl?”

The little girl shook her head emphatically yes and hope began to spring forth in Thadde
us’s heart, “Do you know what her name is?”

“Krista. I don’t know what her last name is though. She’s very nice!” Zarsha replied in the exuberance of a free spirit
ed little girl.

“Do you know where she is Zarsha?”

A sad look came over the girl’s face, “No, she ran away.”

Thaddeus rather puzzled by this asked, “Why did she run away?”

“She didn’t want to be daddy’s slave.” The little girl said matter-of-factly.

After Thaddeus got over his initial shock a smile creased up at the corners of his mouth. So his quiet and reserved grandson with a heart of gold had a slave girl.

“Do you know what Thaddeus?” Zarsha asked leaning in toward him secretively like she was sharing a closely guard
ed secret.

“No, what?”
He said as he leaned toward her playing along.

“I don’t think she really wanted to leave daddy.”

“You don’t say.”

“I do say!” The little girl said, as she nodded her head sagely.

“How did your daddy react after she left?” Thaddeus asked inquisitively.

Zarsha made a mean angry face, which was comical to behold on the little girl’s face.

Thaddeus got the picture though. “Zarsha I need you to tell me everything you know about the slave girl you call Krista. Don’t leave anything out.”

Thaddeus spent well over an hour listening to the little girl talk. After she was done with her story he took her to the kitchens for a late morning treat. Leaving her in the adoring care of the kitchen staff, he made his way to his of
fice and summoned his clerk.

The clerk left the office soon thereafter in a hurry. Within the hour twelve dark clad capable looking men quietly slipped into the office to stand across the desk from Thadde
us.

“Good! You’re all here. I have a mission for you that supersedes everything else on the agenda! I need you to find this woman!” Thaddeus said, as he rose and handed over a surprisingly good facial sketch that Zarsha had drawn for him with some charcoal.

“This is some more information about her. She has likely set up shop as an herbalist healer in a small town some
where. It is doubtful that she is in Attorgron or Zoarinian territory, but leave no stone unturned. Gentlemen, you have all served me well in the past please do not fail me now! Find her at all costs and report back to me at once. You can
pick up travel expense money from my clerk on the way out. Find her and I will make wealthy men out of you all!”

One of the men looked up from the sketch of the beauti
ful young woman, with the prominent exotic facial scar and asked knowingly, “Does this woman have anything to do with your grandson?”