Daughter of Hauk (The Raven Chronicles Book 1) (4 page)

              Y’Dürkie nodded in agreement. “Sounds like a good place to start, if nothink else. They have a good month’s head start on us, but ve can move faster. Ve might be able to pick up horses there, too. A rest in a proper bed vill do us good as vell.” Arwenna could hear the thinly veiled concern for her in Y’Dürkie’s voice.

              Arwenna’s back straightened. This town of Lexi’s sounded good. “We will need to take precautions. We wouldn’t want to be recognized. I’m sure our descriptions will get there before we do.”

              Y’Dürkie looked around the campsite at the various plants and bushes. “There is stuff here ve can gather and use right before ve get into the town. I can change your hair color, Arvenna. You as vell, Lexi. That should keep us from beink recognized, for a vhile anyway.”

              Arwenna reached over her shoulder and fingered her braided black hair. Before anyone could react, she unsheathed a belt knife and began to cut through the thick plait. “There,” she said, shaking out her new shorter hair, “it’ll be even harder now. They’ll be looking for someone with long hair, not short.”  She shuddered involuntarily, remembering it was one of the things that had made it easier for Bohrs to restrain her.

              She was aware of Lexi’s eyes on her, but she could only sit there and hold her cast off hair. That was hard for her to do, almost a death of sorts. Silently, a pair of young hands took the braid out of her hands and put it off to the side. Arwenna leaned forward into Lexi’s arms, and the tears started to flow as the stresses of the last weeks finally came spilling out. She sobbed for what seemed like hours, finally collapsing on her blankets as the mental and physical exhaustion overcame her will to stay awake. She could feel blankets being placed over her as sleep claimed her.

              Arwenna looked down at her patient, hoping he could pull through, but uncertain if he had the strength. It had been a long time since she’d seen one of her own kind. The scars on his bare torso were raw and fresh. She shuddered involuntarily over the knowledge of what Father Morgyn had to do to keep him alive.

              He stirred as she dabbed a cool rag against his face in an attempt to reduce the fever ravaging his body. His eyes opened and focused on her. “Am I dead?” he asked in a breaking voice. This was the first time he’d used it in days.

              “No, you aren’t dead. You’re in an infirmary. My name’s Arwenna. I’m a cleric of Silas. We’ve been taking care of you for several days now.” Arwenna turned slightly to rinse out the cloth in a bowl beside the bed.

              “You’re not an angel, then?” He almost sounded disappointed.

              Arwenna smiled and laughed slightly. “No, I’m no angel. I’m just someone who wants to help.” She helped him raise his head enough to sip some water.

              “What happened?” he asked as she helped him rest back on the pillow.

              “You don’t remember anything?” Father Morgyn told her to be careful about what she told him. If she triggered a wrong memory, it could destroy his mind.

              “No, nothing. I don’t think I even know my own name.” He looked at the ceiling, his eyes moved as if searching for something.

              “Well, some of the Order have taken to calling you Senyan Dakar. Would that sit well with you, at least until we can discover the right name?” She smiled at him, hoping this would help him somewhat.

              “Senyan, huh? I suppose that will work as well as anything else.” He closed his eyes once again. It did not take long for him to sleep again.

              She watched him sleep, saying a silent prayer to Silas that he might continue to recover. The door opened and she looked up to see Father Morgyn and a wizard she did not know. The wizard’s eyes burned with a knowledge that made her shrink back slightly. There was a raven perched on his shoulder.

              “Arwenna, this is Master Johannes. He is here to help us with your patient.” Father Morgyn’s face was as calm as ever. “We need your help, though. We three need to bind this bird as a familiar to him.” He nodded towards Senyan’s sleeping form. “It’s the only thing left that we can do to keep him alive.”

              Arwenna rose, and did a brief curtsey to Master Johannes. “How can I help, Father?” If he trusted the wizard, so could she.

              “Just take our hands, my child, and lend us some of your energy. Master Johannes will do the work needed to bind Senyan to Corse.”

              Arwenna woke with a jolt, causing Lexi to bolt up from her seat. Arwenna looked to the heavens and called out, “Hauk, no….what have I done?!” She met Lexi’s concerned gaze and returned a panicked one of her own.

Chapter Four

            
 
H
is chest heaving in anger, Barek struck out at the bars of his cell. At least they didn’t try to chain him like an animal this time. Hauling out three dead bodies after the last attempt dampened the enthusiasm of the guards to even attempt it. He’d killed more when they moved him away from the general population. At least this cell had a window.

Giving the bars one final blow, he walked over to the window. It wasn’t much, but at least he could look out and see the sun. It had been days since he’d seen any sunlight. He grasped a bar of the window in each of his massive hands and pulled hard. They didn’t move. The mortar was fresh, not old and crumbling. The opening was too small to fit his massive frame anyhow. Rhiannon could’ve fit through it, or just about any of his other friends. The thought of them made him walk away from the window and sit down.

              With luck, they were far away from here by now. Mialee, Senyan, and he had left them outside of Tanisal in the cave while they went to get supplies. Being met by armed guards wasn’t the welcome they expected in a city where they were once hailed as heroes.
Run
, he called to them silently.
Don’t come looking for us, just run
.

              He heard the sound of rain hitting the cobblestoned courtyard and approached the window again. Sticking one of his huge hands out from the bars, he could feel the cool rain on his fingertips. He began to wonder if he’d ever feel rain on his face again.

              There was a faint
click
in the lock of his cell, but he did not turn around immediately. There was something out in the courtyard that had caught his attention. The body of a young female elf was being thrown onto a platform. Bellowing in rage, he shook the bars of the window again as he recognized the body of Lexi. She was obviously dead. A hand touched his shoulder. He turned, ready to grab at whoever or whatever belonged to that hand.             

              Mialee jumped back quickly, deftly getting out of reach of Barek’s grip. “It’s OK, Barek!” She spoke in hushed tones. “It’s just me and Senyan. They finally made a mistake and gave me something sharp enough to pick the locks with. We need to go, now!”

              The three of them slipped out of the cell and crept silently towards the exit. Senyan led them past sleeping guards and into a small storage closet. Their gear was still here. Quickly they grabbed some equipment. None of them expected to get out of here without a fight.

              “They killed Lexi.” Barek informed them as they were finishing up. “I saw her body out in the courtyard.” Mialee and Senyan lowered their heads in sorrow. “I say we see if we can’t bring her body with us. Arwenna can resurrect her, I’m sure of it.”

              “It won’t be easy, but we can try.” Senyan agreed.

              They moved on silent feet towards the courtyard entry. There seemed to be a trial of some kind going on. Barek craned his head and his face paled. Arwenna, Y’Dürkie, and Rhiannon were out there. The lead paladin, the one who had arrested them, was there as well. He stared in disbelief as a sword sliced through Arwenna.

              Rage came over him and he bellowed a challenge as he saw Y’Dürkie and Rhiannon slain moments after Arwenna. He unsheathed his sword as the paladin and other guards began to run towards him.

              Senyan touched his huge shoulder. A whispered command of, “Go”, reached his ear.

              Barek stopped short in his charge as he realized he was no longer in the courtyard, but in a heavily wooded forest. Mialee was there, a look of confusion on her face. Her green eyes met Barek’s as they realized Senyan wasn’t with them.

              “He must’ve teleported us and stayed behind.” Mialee slumped against a tree. “What are we going to do now, Barek? Even if he’s not dead yet, he will be soon enough. Everyone else is gone.” She looked lost.

              Barek punched a tree hard enough to send bark flying. By teleporting them out and staying behind, Senyan had commited suicide. Barek didn’t like people dying needlessly. The need to avenge the deaths of his friends began to course through his blood.

              “We head north,” he said decisively. “They may be dead now, but if we raise an army of our own and burn that cesspool to the ground, we should be able to find at least one cleric willing to live long enough to bring them back.”

              “Just not one that is a follower of Silas. Considering Arwenna’s faith, I find it very disturbing that the militant arm of that church would be the ones executing her.” Mialee’s sharp eyes had recognized the symbol worn by the paladin.

              “Understand this….that one is
mine
!” Barek began to amuse himself with thoughts of what he would do to the paladin responsible for executing his companions.

              They headed north, only stopping to rest when exhaustion threatened to overtake them.               Barek had a destination in mind. His clan threw him out years ago for not being a pure orc. He knew he could persuade most, if not all of them, to march on Tanisal. It was a human city, after all. And orcs had no love of humans. Y’Dürkie’s tribe would want the chance to avenge her death, as well. As long as the two armies could agree to not fight each other until
after
the city was razed, all would be well.

              After several weeks of hard travel, Mialee insisted on stopping at a small town they found on the way. Salsburg seemed peaceful enough, though the guards were wary of letting Barek in. There had been problems with orcs in the past. Barek made note of it. If there were orcs nearby, that was more for his army.

              They found a quiet inn near the gate. The innkeeper was a pleasant enough fellow. He didn’t seem concerned about a well-armed half orc wanting a room. “Break anything, you’ll be paying the owner for it,” he muttered at him. Barek nodded in agreement.

              “I don’t suppose you have any baths? We’ve been on the road for a while and my hair is just filthy!” Mialee batted her eyes at the innkeeper. He nodded to her and gave her directions to the bathhouse.

              A few hours later, Mialee joined Barek down in the common room for dinner. The meat was well cooked, but not anything special. Still, after the meager rations they’d stopped and gathered on the road, the meal was more than adequate. Her eyes scanned the room while they ate.

              “Did some checking around town after I got done in the bathhouse. No word about fugitives that would match you and me, but there’s not much info coming out of Tanisal right now apparently. Someone even mentioned that the city was closing itself off to merchants. Most folks believe they’re preparing for a war of some kind, but don’t know with whom,” Mialee spoke low.

              “With me, that’s who. Even if they don’t know it yet.” Barek took a long drink of his ale. “Did you find out anything about the orcs in these parts?”

              “Not much. Though someone mentioned the owner of this inn has a half-orc whelp running with him. Not very old, but they say he’s got the makings of a good fighter once he grows up a bit. Supposed to be a new enclave of orcs to the east about a day or two from here, as well.”

              “Any idea where we can find this owner and his whelp?”

              “No…they run around with several others and are in and out of town constantly. More out of it than in.”

              Barek nodded, though he didn’t agree with the idea himself. Having a known base of operations just gave your enemy an easy place to look for you.

              “What about horses? Any chance we can find some of those before we leave? It would make travel much faster.”

              “Already done. We can pick them up in the stables in the morning. I talked with the local shop owner about some fresh supplies.” She paused, “There’s a local magic shop as well, so I picked up some healing potions. With Arwenna not with us…” Her voice trailed off.

              He put a massive hand over her smaller one in comfort. “I know. I miss them all as well. We’ll find a way to bring them back. And, if we can’t, we’ll make damn certain that some others join them.”

              After much prodding, Barek finally gave in and visited the bathhouse at Mialee’s insistence. Muttering under his breath something about how all half-orcs smell bad, clean or dirty, he lowered himself into the water. After a few moments, the warmth overtook his weary muscles and he drifted off to sleep.

              He stood under his bridge. It was a nice spot, with all the comforts of home. Well, it was comfortable for him anyhow. “Barek!” A familiar voice called out from above him.

              Barek came around and looked up. Senyan was on the bridge beckoning to him. He clamored up the bank, shouting questions. “How’d you escape? Where have you been? How’d you get here? Were you able to save any of the others?” He paused and looked at Senyan expectantly.

              “No, they weren’t able to be saved. They’ve been buried back in Tanisal.” Senyan took a deep breath and stared Barek in the eye. “Barek, you cannot do this. Any army you bring will only die. There is great evil in that city, demonic evil. Let me give you a fresh start! I can lead you and Mialee to a hoard that would make a dragon envious! Just let go of the anger, let them stay dead, and you can go back to your quiet life under this bridge with more treasure than you could ever imagine!” His voice was quiet, but insistent.

              Barek blinked at Senyan and shook his head. “Don’t ask me that. Arwenna’s saved my behind too many times, brought me back from the dead more than once. Y’Dürkie and Rhiannon have watched my back in too many fights. Lexi is just a young one. People that young should be among the living, not buried with the dead. I can’t let them go without retribution.”

              “Think about what you’re doing though!” Senyan chose his words carefully. “Would they want you to throw away your life needlessly? Or those of the army you want to build? Would Arwenna want all those innocent lives to be given up just for her? You can have riches beyond imagining and still be breathing.” His eyes bored into Barek’s, almost commanding him to take the treasure.

              “What life is there for me to be surrounded by treasure if I mourn the loss of them every day? I cannot do this, and you should know better than to even ask me. There is no honor in what you would have me do.” Barek paused, then stared back at Senyan. “The Senyan I knew would know better than to ask. I don’t know who or what you are, but you aren’t him.” Quickly, he drew his massive, great sword and swung at the head of the creature before him. It passed right through the figure.

              Senyan laughed mirthlessly. “Very well, Barek. Your loyalties are duly noted.” He raised his hand and a blast of energy knocked Barek over the bridge and into the water.

              Barek bolted upright in the tub, trying to find his sword. It took him a few moments to realize where he was. He sat back again, wiping water drops from his face.
Damn
, he thought.
Now I’m going to have to fight him as well
. He sighed heavily. Hauling his large frame out of the tub, he quickly dried and dressed himself before heading back to his room.

              Mialee was sleeping when he returned. Judging from the small grin on her face, she was having much better dreams than he had. He paced briefly before settling into a chair near the window. There are some orcs to the east, if Mialee’s information was correct. They would head that way in the morning. There were enough trees to have them working on siege engines while he headed up north looking for more volunteers. It would be at least another two months before they could march towards Tanisal. Winter was almost done, which was good. It’s always easier to go to war in the spring.

              He sat up the rest of the night, worrying if he could tear down the city before his friends were lost to death permanently.

              They set out at first light towards the orc enclave. Neither one of them said much. Barek was reluctant to tell Mialee about his dream. He knew she and Senyan had kept each other company in the past. Telling her that he’d changed sides wasn’t a conversation he wanted to have.

              Mialee rode next to Barek, seemingly content with the world. She would keep her eyes and ears open at the camp while he did all the talking.

              They came to the enclave about an hour after they left town. Barek stopped his horse, motioning Mialee to do the same. He waited for the sentries to show themselves. “To the right,” she whispered to him. “The watch is behind the boulder to the right.”

              Barek moved his head slightly in acknowledgement, eyes still searching the area. He began speaking in a guttural language, calling out who they were and why they were here.

              A voice shouted back from behind the rock in a challenging tone. Barek listened to the words, then shouted a reply.

              Two orcs came out from behind the rock, weapons at their sides. Barek turned to Mialee. ”Don’t talk, just watch and listen. Women here aren’t allowed to talk much, if at all. If you talk at the wrong time, they’ll take your tongue. Wait until we’re alone again and you can fill me in as to what you see.”