Blades of the Old Empire (18 page)

“Answer my questions, Gahang.”

Sharrim settled back into place with a defeated look. “I’m good with a crossbow,” he said. His tone was earnest, but the chilling glance he threw at Ellah showed how much this honesty was costing him. “But I don’t carry it. I’m much better with a bow. And, I can throw knives, but not as well as you, Aghat.”

“How about that dagger on your belt? Can you use it?”

“If necessary.”

Ellah sensed a change of color go through her mind as he said these words. She raised her chin. Sharrim gave her a reproachful look.

“What is it?” Mai asked Ellah.

She frowned. “I’m not sure. It’s as if he carries it for a different purpose.”

Sharrim shifted in his seat. “I’m not that good in a hand fight with daggers.”

“Then, why do you carry one?”

Sharrim ran his eyes between Ellah and Mai with a hunted look.

Mai slowly put his mug down and leaned forward in his seat, stretching a hand out to Sharrim. “May I see it?”

The Jade hesitated. For a moment it seemed to Ellah that he was going to refuse. But then he slowly reached to his belt and drew the dagger, handing it to Mai, hilt forward.

“Don’t touch the blade,” he warned.

Mai took the weapon and turned it in his hands. He carefully studied the blade, then brought it closer to his face and sniffed.

“Black Death,” he said. “A strange choice of poison, Gahang.”

Sharrim shrugged. “It’s slow, but certain. And, there’s no known antidote. I also use it on some of my arrows.”

Mai’s eyes narrowed. “
Not
on this assignment, Gahang.”

“Whatever you say, Aghat Mai.” Sharrim threw a nervous look around.

Mai handed back the knife and winked to Ellah across the fire. She smiled.

“I know it’s not my place to ask, Aghat,” Sharrim said, “but why’s
she
here?”

Mai gave him a calm stare. “You’re right, Gahang. It’s not your place to ask.
Ellah
is here because I asked her to come with us. That’s all you need to know.” He held Sharrim’s gaze until the Jade sank back into his seat. Then, he got up and collected the dishes into the empty kettle.

“I’m going for a swim,” he said. “Want to come along, Gahang?”

Sharrim hesitated, then nodded.

“We’ll be right back,” Mai told Ellah. “You should sleep. We start early tomorrow.”

He walked away along the trail to the lake, Sharrim hurrying in his wake. Before disappearing behind the bushes, the Jade turned back and gave Ellah such a bloodcurdling glance that she felt her hair stand on end.

Morning mists hung low over the Holy City of Aknabar, mixing with thick wisps of smoke. Slow gusts of wind carried odors of refuse and rot, blending with heady aromas of incense and the stale smell of the river water. To their left Kyth could see the ominous star-shaped building of the Great Shal Addim Temple looming over the top of the West Hill. The monastery wall ran from the temple all the way through the city, enclosing a large chunk of the hillside and the area beyond. The Dwelling of the Holy Maidens crowned the distant East Hill, its smoothly polished stones glowing in the sun. Ahead, the oily gleam of the River Elligar showed in patches through the gaps in the stone maze of buildings that ran in cascades down to its turbid waters.

At this early hour the streets were empty. Regular citizens were just waking up, throwing open heavy window shutters and bathing their sleepy faces in early sunbeams. As for the pilgrims, Kyth was fairly sure that all of them were gathered at the river bank, prostrating on the stone steps that lined the entire Aknabar riverfront, in the holy ceremony of greeting the sun.

“We should go straight to the port,” Kara said. “By the time we get there, the morning rituals should be over. That’s the time the boats start to Jaimir.”

Kyth nodded. She looked refreshed after her night’s sleep. The feverish gleam in her eyes was gone, and her posture in the saddle had become more relaxed. Her quick smile made him feel warm inside.

They made their way down the street maze, maneuvering around the burnt heaps of trash. Closer to the port the streets became more busy, people hurrying around on early morning chores. Aromas of baked bread and roasting meat joined the bouquet of other smells, creating a dizzying combination that made Kyth’s mouth water. All they had eaten for the past ten days were the rations Kara brought from the Majat Fortress. Meat and bread seemed unattainable – like heaven.

“Nimos’s men didn’t bother us much on the road,” he said. “You must’ve scared him off.”

Kara shook her head. “They’ve been following us all the way. Even through the city.”

“They have?” Kyth glanced over his shoulder to the empty street behind.

“Yes.”

“But why?”

She shrugged. “There’s only one explanation. Their purpose is not to stop us, but to make sure we get to our destination.”

“They
want
us to reach the Grasslands?”

“Whatever they want is not important anymore.”

“Why?”

“I can’t tell you. Sorry.”

Kyth recognized the determined expression on her face that made it useless to question her further. She rode on ahead and there was nothing left but to follow.

The maze of streets became denser as they approached the port. As they cleared the last stone archway, the market plaza opened ahead of them wide and long, running in cascaded stone terraces all the way down to the docks.

Even this early, the place buzzed with activity. In the semicircle adjacent to the front row of buildings, merchants were setting up their stalls, preparing for a big market day. Further on, the docks gave way to a network of floating platforms that connected to each other and to the shore, creating a labyrinth of pathways and streets that extended almost to the middle of the river. Boats of all sizes and shapes towered among the platforms, rocking with the flow of the Elligar waters.

The morning bathing ritual was over. Scantily clad people made their way out of the river, dripping wet, emanating a faint smell of mud and decay. Holy books taught that the waters of Elligar had the power to purify, but it took a real fanatic to ignore the fact that this river also served as the sewerage for the entire city, as well as the burial place for the holy pilgrims, whose rotting corpses were often seen floating up from the river’s turbid gut. Kyth shivered, pulling his horse to a stop next to Kara, who was peering through the sunlit morning haze toward the docks.

“There’re many boats about to leave,” she said. “Let’s go.”

She dismounted and led her horse toward the water. Kyth and Alder followed, trying not to fall behind.

It wasn’t easy to maneuver in the thickening crowd. The pilgrims streamed the other way, their enlightened faces turned up to the looming shape of the Great Temple that loomed over the city from the top of the Western Hill. They showed no awareness of the three travelers struggling to pick their way through.

Kara headed toward a large freight barge at end of the boat row. Something about it was familiar. Its upper deck was piled with crates, and the lower deck had a row of openings, with oars sticking out halfway like a set of short, thick bristles. A name was written on its side in large bold letters. Kyth was almost sure he knew what it said, even before they got close enough to read it.

“
Lady of Fortune
,” Alder said.

Kyth nodded. A few months ago, he took this barge upriver with Alder, Ellah and Kara, on their way to Tandar. He wasn’t looking forward to repeating the experience.

“Imagine that,” he murmured. “Captain Beater’d be thrilled to see us.”

“Not
us
,” Alder corrected.

Kyth looked ahead with a sinking heart.

Kara stood beside the boat talking to a short, bald man, whose sturdy build suggested a considerable physical force. His yellow beard stuck out over the bushy growth on his chest, visible through the open collar of his linen shirt. He held a polished wooden stick, tapping it on the open palm of his other hand. His beady eyes misted as they rested on Kara, his tongue licking his lips in such a meaningful way that Kyth’s stomach turned. He hurried to catch up.

As the foster brothers approached, Captain Beater tore his eyes away from Kara and gave her companions a disappointed look. “So, the boys’re still tagging along with you, my pretty? Eh?”

“We’re traveling together, yes,” Kara said. “And I’m not ‘your pretty’.”

He measured her with a slow, sticky glance that stopped just short of reaching her face. “Not yet. But if we’re to spend all this time together on the boat, there’s no reason to get lonely, eh?”

“I won’t be lonely, thanks.”

Captain Beater winked. “Neither will I, I hope. ’specially with you on board.”

Kyth grasped the reins of his horse. “We’re wasting time. Let’s go find another boat.”

The captain laughed. “Moody, eh? Do you want passage to Jaimir or not?”

“It depends,” Kara said, “on when you’re planning to leave.”

He gave her a meaningful smile. “When do you
want
to leave?”

Kyth bit his lip. The barge was one of the very few boats in this port capable of carrying horses. They needed it badly, but the idea of watching this man undress Kara with his eyes for the entire trip was too much to think of. He opened his mouth to refuse, but Kara’s look stopped him.

“We’d like to leave right now,” she said. “We’re in a hurry.”

The captain held his stick to the side and gave her an elaborate bow. “Anything you say, my beauty. Captain Beater and his boat are at your service.”

She paused, giving him an appraising glance of her own. “The pay’s six silvers. This covers myself, my companions, and our horses.”

Captain Beater smacked his lips, holding her gaze. “You drive a hard bargain, girl. How about somethin’ extra? Such as you, warming up my bed on a cold night, eh?”

She moved her face closer to him. “Only in your dreams. And this had better be the last time I hear about them, Captain Beater, or else the nights you mention might become a lot colder than they already are.”

The captain swallowed and took a careful step back. “There’s no need to get touchy. I was just suggestin’ we get to know each other better, that’s all.”

She smiled. “That, we certainly will. Now, here’s another silver for the horse feed. Have your men get some hay. We’re in a
real
hurry.”

Captain Beater’s misty expression made Kyth wonder if he really took Kara’s warning seriously.

“Don’t you worry, my beauty,” he said. “It goes fast when you travel downstream. You and your lads’ll be in Jaimir in no more’n ten days.”

“At this speed,” Mai said, “we’ll be in Jaimir in about ten days.”

Ellah leaned closer to the fire. She felt sore after a long day’s ride, but she wasn’t about to show it. She bit her lip as she reached over to take a mug of tea from Sharrim’s hands, her muscles screaming in protest at her every move.

The forest darkness was alive with sounds. A distant howling, answered by barking in the depth of the trees around the camp, made Ellah’s skin creep. At times the sounds seemed to get closer, as if some large dog-like beasts circled the camp, having an invisible conversation.

Sharrim shifted nervously in his seat.

“They say these woods run south all the way to the Forestlands,” he said, “and the wolves that live here are descended from the ancient breed of dogs that went astray after the first Holy Wars. They’re huge and vicious, and they’re not afraid of people.”

Mai sat for a while looking at the fire.

“They say a lot of things, Gahang,” he said. “But we don’t have to listen to all ‘they’ say, do we?”

Sharrim glanced at him sidelong. “But it’s true, Aghat. I’ve seen one myself. It was as big as a bear, and its fur was pale like–”

“Like a ghost,
” Mai said slowly, looking past him into the darkness.

Ellah turned, a chill running down her spine.

A large animal stood at the edge of the trees, barely visible against the light. It resembled a very big wolf, with fur so pale it made the creature seem transparent in the wavering shadows. Firelight reflected in its eyes with a deep greenish glow. Behind it, more eyes glowed in the forest darkness like eerie swamp lights. Ellah suddenly realized how still it was, and how the howling had stopped right at the moment the beast appeared in the glade.

Sharrim slowly reached for his sheathed bow, but Mai’s hand stopped him.

“You can’t hope to shoot all of them, Gahang,” he said quietly. “There are too many out there.”

Sharrim gave him a helpless glance. “But we can’t just let them attack us, Aghat, can we?”

“No.”

Mai rose to his feet and walked toward the beast, so fluidly that his movements were hard to trace in the gathering darkness. Ellah’s breath caught in her throat, her heart pounding.

“What is he going to do?” Sharrim whispered by her ear.

Mai stopped five paces away from the beast, keeping his hands loosely by his sides, so that they were in plain sight. His still shape blended with the shadows, and Ellah had to blink to see him. The man and the wolf stood, staring at each other. After a while the large beast started to look restless, as if it was having trouble keeping its eyes focused. It growled, turning its head from side to side. Then it lowered its eyes and crept forward, sniffing the air.

When the wolf came within touching distance, Mai slowly reached forward and put a hand onto its forehead.

The beast became very still as Mai ran his hand along its fur. Then it crept another step and leaned its head against Mai’s knees. The movement was so forceful that Mai’s body shook with the impact. He kept one hand on the beast’s forehead, his stillness blending with the wolf’s so that both of them had become barely visible in the darkness.

After a while, the wolf raised its head. It gave Mai a long look, then turned and padded away into the forest.

The greenish lights of the eyes went out one by one. The howling stopped. The forest turned dark and still again.

Mai came back to the fire. He looked calm, as if nothing had happened.

Sharrim slowly opened his mouth, struggling to produce a sound. Ellah could only stare.

“What– what did you just do, Aghat?” Sharrim managed.

Mai shrugged. “You said they were descended from dogs, didn’t you?”

“Yes, but–”

“I took your word for it.” Mai leaned back against a tree and subsided into silence. Ellah couldn’t help noticing that after his encounter he continued to emanate calmness, so that just by sitting next to him she felt relaxed and sleepy.

“Are you really an animal whisperer, Aghat?” Sharrim asked quietly.

Mai laughed. “Is that what they say about me?”

“I never believed it. But how else could you–”

Mai shook his head. “I assure you, Gahang, I possess no such power. What I did was just common sense.”

“What’s an animal whisperer?” Ellah asked.

“It’s a power,” Sharrim told her. “An ability to talk to animals and understand what they say. An animal whisperer can tame any animal, even a raging tiger leaping to attack.”

Mai laughed. “You don’t really believe this nonsense, Gahang, do you?”

“I didn’t, Aghat Mai, until I saw what you did just now. If it wasn’t a special power, how did you do it?”

Mai looked at him, laughter dancing in his eyes. “Simple. I was calm as I approached, and the beast sensed it. Dogs always do. They only attack someone who’s out of balance inside.”

Sharrim shivered.

“I suggest,” Mai went on, “that we go to sleep now. We need to move on at dawn. I’ll stay up for a while and keep the fire going.”

He wrapped himself in his cloak and leaned against a tree. As Ellah settled down on the other side of the fire, she watched his still shape illuminated by the firelight. He was so perfect as he sat there, his pose graceful and easy, his golden hair resting against the smooth skin of his muscular neck. His eyes were open, looking absently into the darkness. He still emanated that special feeling of calmness which made his closeness, even from across the fire, so soothing.

Ellah felt so happy she was traveling with him, even if Sharrim was constantly nearby and clearly didn’t like her. She had thought before that she wanted to find Kyth and help him on his quest, but now she was beginning to realize all she wished was for this trip never to end so that she could always be by Mai’s side.

She was sure he cared for her – the way he cut off Sharrim when the Jade asked about her on their previous stop, the way he was so attentive to her needs and comforts. She was sure the only reason he could have asked her to come along was so that they could be together for longer, even if his duties prevented him from taking any further steps. She felt lightheaded from his closeness, from the way he sat there looking so handsome, so that she could just lie quietly and enjoy the incredible force and calmness that he emanated.

He said they would be in Jaimir in ten days. She wished the next ten days could last forever.