He dropped to the ground with a muffled thump. I knelt and examined the flint tip on his spear. A green, sticky substance coated it and I smelled it. The sweet scent instantly identified it for me: it was a plant poison that festered in wounds and the amount of the spear tip was enough to kill a man slowly and painfully.
I looked around saw no other Xne'kal, nor could I hear anything to suggest others might be out there, but that did little to make me comfortable. I'd not seen or heard the dead Aelf at my feet sneaking up on me. I ran further along the trail and broke through when I saw the bandits.
As could be expected, having a Talion arrive unannounced in their midst surprised them. One, a rakishly handsome man in well-worn finery, dropped a hand to his sword hilt.
I smiled at him and held my sword up so they could see the dark red—almost black—blood running down it.
"Don't be hasty, there'll be more than enough killing for all of us momentarily." I turned to Dav. "I just killed a Xne'kal back on a trail running beside this one. I'd guess they have us surrounded."
Dav, if nothing else, was a man of action and a leader in every sense of the word. "Morai, you and the Talion here in front. Head due east. Leave the horses. Elston, you and Ivan are in the rear. Ario, Giac, get the gold."
I pointed back the way I'd come. "There's a faster trail just over here."
Dav looked to where I pointed, nodded, and then ordered Morai and the others to follow me. "Morai, if we can make the granite hill we saw before we entered this cursed wood we might be able to hold them off."
Morai drew his longsword and we set a quick pace down the Xne'kal footpath. We wanted to go faster, but we could not because Giac and Ario hauled several sacks of gold along in the middle of the party. Elston and Ivan, a blond giant with a broadax, watched the back trail. "Ivan's a mute, but a demon in battle," Morai told me. Behind us the horses screamed.
Dav shook his head. "That's it then, mates. Drop the gold and run. The rocks are our only chance."
Giac, a man who was average in every respect, refused. "I'll carry it, and it'll be mine." "Fine. Let's move."
Elston and Ivan ran past Giac. Giac took one step forward, then pitched over onto his face with a Xne'kal dart quivering in his back. We all panicked and ran as fast as we could through the sepulchral depths of the sylvan copse.
We stopped short of the granite hill and all caught our breaths. Ahead undergrowth thinned and sunlight gleamed I through the trees. The open area was a tumbled, chaotic landscape of huge boulders surrounding a naked granite spire twisting up into the sky. It was inhospitable, but seemed like a paradise to each of us.
We waited for Ario but he never joined us. Thankfully Woodholm swallowed his screams as completely as it swallowed him. I turned to Dav and wiped my forehead on my left sleeve. "They'll be waiting in the rocks, you know." Dav acknowledged the veracity of my comment with a grim nod, but urged all of us on. He was right because we could not avoid the Xne'kal, but in the rocks we could see them before they struck. We followed him out onto the rocks and into the toughest battle of our lives.
Without Ivan we would have all died. Silent and awful, he surged ahead of Dav. He charged across the open area of rockslide and boulders heedless of the darts flying through the air around him. He leaped from stone to stone with an amazing agility and presented the Xne'kal a difficult target for their darts and spears.
One Xne'kal warrior stood and screamed a war cry that sounded distressingly similar to High Tal to me. He slashed at Ivan with his spear, but the giant dodged the attack and split the warrior's head with an overhand blow. The first warrior crumpled as a companion lunged at Ivan from the left. Ivan laughed silently and caught the spear behind its head with his massive left hand. As if it were a twig, Ivan snapped the spear in half and whipped one end of it across the Xne'kal's face. That Aelf slid to the ground and Ivan signaled for us to advance.
We surged forward and sprinted across the rocks. I ran at the back of the line, followed only by Elston, when I caught motion in the corner of my eye. I twisted back, saw a Xne'kal leap down from a rock and drive his spear through Elston's back and out his chest. My sword crashed into the Aelf's head and blasted him back away from the old man, but Elston was already dead.
I ran on, vaulted a boulder, and landed myself beside Morai. Ivan and Dav hunkered down behind large rocks to our left. We lay in a natural bowl ringed by large stones. It was a place of relative safety, but the Xne'kal superiority of numbers made the outcome of any battle inevitable.
I caught my breath and looked over at Dav. "They got Elston."
Dav swore and Ivan gritted his teeth. Dav tapped Ivan on the shoulder and jerked his head at us. Ivan nodded. Dav turned to us. "We're going to get you two out."
"No." Morai and I answered at the same time.
Dav smiled and shook his head at our foolishness. "Fine. Then get ready because here they come."
We stood as an even dozen Xne'kal clad in mountain-leopard skins ran across the rocks toward us. One threw a spear and without thinking I dodged to the side and plucked it out of the air as I had done before in exercises at Talianna. I sheathed my sword and brandished the spear. The Xne'kal stopped their advance and cheered delightedly.
Dav swore. "If we live through this, Talion, I'll surrender to you."
I shook my head. "I can understand a few of the words they said and I think my action just made us 'worthy' foes. I'm not sure what that means, but I'm afraid it's just made them more determined to kill us." I looked up and set myself because the Xne'kal, having paid us enough tribute, attacked.
The majority of Xne'kal concentrated on Dav and Ivan. Two attacked me, and my skill with a spear clearly surprised them. The first lunged at my stomach, but I parried the blow and riposted to his throat. I twisted the spear free by snapping the butt up to catch the second warrior in the face. The blow turned him half around and my return slash with the spearhead cut a ragged bar sinister across his pale chest.
We successfully repulsed their first attack. Morai had killed one and wounded another. Five Xne'kal lay dead between Dav and Ivan, though Dav just smiled and said, "With Ivan here, all I have to do is keep count of his kills." The other Xne'kal retreated and we waited.
I couldn't understand why they hadn't thrown their darts at us. No larger than crossbow quarrels, the weapons were tipped with a thin, three-inch-long flint blade. A dart rested in the rocks nearby and I saw that its point was thoroughly stained with their poison. It occurred to me that they might have attacked with handheld weapons because we had nothing to throw back at them, but I couldn't imagine that courtesy being extended to us much longer.
Another dozen warriors materialized at the forest edge. They advanced more slowly and were almost stately in their approach. They chanted something I couldn't recognize, but from the rhythm and range it had to be a martial song of some sort.
The four of us foolishly stood and watched them march forward. They continued toward us and I dried my hands against my jerkin. I saw Ivan do the same thing and we shared a smile over it. Then we both sobered because another dozen warriors rose and marched behind the first group.
Dav looked over at Morai and me. "See those tall rocks up there?" He pointed at a circle of stones halfway up the steep granite spire behind us. We nodded. "When they come, get up there. We'll hold them off."
"No." Morai's voice was adamant.
"Yes. Damn you Morai, you'll get up there. We'll buy you that time, you use it to take as many of them with you as possible. You've never followed my orders since I've known you, but do it this one time, please."
Morai scowled. "I'll do it. And I'll kill a dozen for each of you."
Dav smiled. "That's the spirit. Here they come. Go!"
Before we turned to run, I hurled the three spears I'd collected and saw two Xne'kal felled by their own weapons. I spun, scurried after Morai, reached him at the hill base, and scrambled up on all fours behind him. I heard the Xne'kal cry out below us and a spear shat
tered on a rock beside my head, but that happened at the bottom of the hill. Once we reached our new breastwork the spears stopped, but the screaming did not.
I didn't see any of the fight but from the look of pain on Morai's face I knew Dav and Ivan must have sold themselves dearly. Nine new Xne'kal bodies lay dead beside them, and other Xne'kal carried six wounded warriors back toward the forest.
I turned to Morai and laid a hand on his shoulder. "They made a mistake by not taking us in the forest."
He nodded and shifted melon-sized rocks over between the taller stones that formed our breastwork. "They don't know how bad a mistake it was. I'll kill every Xne'kal in this forest if I have to."
"I'll help."
He nodded solemnly. "Then start piling these rocks in the cracks. They'll figure we don't want any holes in our wall, but I intend these to go crashing down on any Aelf stupid enough to try and come up after us."
We set up the rockslides and took turns watching. I'd just sat down when Morai spotted something. "Talion, come look at this."
I stood and my height betrayed me. A Xne'kal jumped up from the base of the hill, screeched out a chilling war cry, and threw a dart. Morai laughed aloud because, at that distance and up a hill, it was an impossible throw.
"Damn," I said stiffly.
Morai shot me a sidelong glance. "Just another one to kill. See, he's run off. No problem."
I swallowed hard. "Problem." I turned and Morai saw, for the first time, the dart I held in my right hand and the hole in my left shoulder.
I sat down before I fell and tossed the dart aside. "Don't move, Morai, and don't let them think they've gotten me. Keep watching them. Describe to me what they are doing. Anything, just keep talking."
He looked very unsure, but did what I told him to do. "Ah, I count about a hundred of them out there. One is all dressed up in wolf skins and has eagle feathers in his hair. He looks important." Morai stared harder down at the Xne'kal, then cursed. "Oh, no, there's trouble. The one who hit you is up on a rock, dancing around and shouting at the one in feathers."
Morai's voice barely registered. I consciously slowed my breathing, closed my eyes, and dropped into a trance. I drifted inward and instantly located the poison as it spread from the wound. Already it chewed into my chest muscle and I was weakening fast. I had to stop it before I became too weak to fight.
I reached out with my mind and stopped the blood flowing to and from the wound. That prevented any more venom from infecting me, but I already felt the burning tendrils of pain that warned me I'd not been fast enough to get it all. I forced the pain to subside and slowly came back to reality.
I wiped my brow on my right forearm and fished my sling from the pouch of stones at my belt. "Where is the one who got me?"
"He's still jumping around on the rocks. They're near Ivan's body. The one who got you is pointing up here and then pointing at a group of about fifteen warriors. If I had to guess, he's trying to convince the one in feathers to let them take us. The one in feathers is having fun denigrating the other's combat effectiveness."
I nodded and got to my feet. "It sounds like rival clans or warrior societies competing. If the Aelf in the wolf skins hates the leopard warriors, maybe I can help him out." I spun the sling and stepped into the open. I whistled loud and defiantly.
The Xne'kal on the rock jabbered, capered, and pointed at me. He poked a finger at his own shoulder and laughed.
I cast the stone with all my might.
The stone flew straight and found its target. The warrior flipped back as if I'd cut his legs from beneath him. He toppled from the rock and all I could see were his feet but, after a couple of twitches, they didn't move a bit.
Morai turned to me in surprise. "You hit him in the forehead!"
"Sorry." I sagged back against the granite cliffside as a wave of nausea washed over me. "I wanted to hit him in the mouth." I coughed and winced. "Did that stop them?"
Morai looked back at the Xne'kal, then shook his head. "No, one of the other leopards has picked up the argument." Morai laughed easily, "And they've moved back out of your range."
I tore a piece of material from my pants and stuffed it into the hole in my shoulder. "Are they coming?"
Morai turned and nodded with a smile on his face. "Yeah, all fifteen of them, but no more than that."
Morai swam in and out of focus. I felt hot and very tired, but I forced myself up and dropped another stone into the sling. The rockslide killed ten. I killed two more halfway up the slope. They were badly shaken by the rockslide anyway, and were fighting their way up the hill so that was no great feat. Morai killed a pair at the breastwork and finished the last one, who made it all the way into our haven, with a rock.
Morai stood, raised the bloody rock high, then casually tossed it down the hill. "Come on, send more."
Pain shot through my upper body and chills racked me. "Don't antagonize them. We may have eliminated old Wolf Chiefs rival for power. He might be grateful." I shivered and collapsed.
Morai spun to catch me, then froze and stopped breathing. I turned my head to follow his gaze and saw a radiant Aelven sorceress extending a glowing hand to me. I reached out and touched her; then an ebon bolt of agony smashed me senseless.
I regained consciousness four weeks later in an infirmary bed in Talianna. My head ached and buzzed fiercely but my shoulder was curiously numb. White gaze swathed my left shoulder. Marana sat at my right and held my hand.
She smiled broadly, leaned over, and kissed my forehead. "Welcome back to the land of the living."
My first words stuck in my throat. Marana poured me a cup of watered wine and I sipped at it. "Thank you, for the greeting and the wine." I looked around and confirmed my location. "This question may sound strange, but how did I get here?"
Marana shrugged. "I only got back two days ago myself, and you were here by then. Rumor has it someone brought you in on a travois. He told Lord Hansur that a bandit brought you out of Woodholm after a battle. The bandit gave you over to him and told him to bring you to Talianna."
A Wizard drifted into the room and smiled politely. "Ah, I'm glad to see you up on schedule. How do you feel?" I sighed weakly. "Halfway between dead and dying?" The magicker nodded. "It stands to reason. You were dehydrated when you got here, and you hadn't eaten much according to your guide. We managed to clear up most of those problems, and I would certainly like to meet the person who cast the first spell on your shoulder. It saved the nerves in that arm."
The Wizard grimaced and looked at my medical record. "I'm afraid, despite that first spell, the poison did a lot of damage and you'll have a scar on that shoulder. It will also take some time for you to build that shoulder back up, but other than that you should recover perfectly well. And the other thing shouldn't bother you at all."
"Other thing?" I sipped some more of the wine. "What other thing?"
The Wizard frowned and seated himself on my bed. He gently took my left hand, turned it palm down, and passed his hand above it. I felt magick energy trickle over it and, for a moment, the purple outline of a wolf's-head glowed on the back of my hand. The Wizard shrugged. "No one but Aelves can see it."
I slowly twisted my left hand, but I couldn't see it. "What is it?"
The Wizard shook his head. "In various Aelven rituals a person is marked with the equivalent of a magical brand. As nearly as we can tell it marks you as a warrior in the wolf caste."
"Oh." I smiled to myself and Marana squeezed my hand. "Is the person who brought me here still around? I'd like to thank him."
The Wizard shook his head. "He stayed until we told him you would recover then he left."
I scowled. "That's too bad. I would have liked to thank him."
The Wizard frowned. "I told him the very same thing. But he said he had to be going and that you could owe it to him. That's strange, isn't it?"
It was, but people had odd reactions when involved with Talions. Marana laughed and I smiled. "If I owe him a debt, I gu
ess you should tell me his name."
The sorcerer nodded. "He called himself Morai."
Chapter Seventeen
Talion: Loath: Champion
I escorted Morai from the Castel, less because I didn't trust his thieving heart than from fear some zealous guardsman might discover him leaving the way he got in and end up worse for the encounter. I turned to head off to the ballroom as a servant closed the keep door behind Morai and found Halsted hovering at my shoulder with a smile on his face. "I had thought, my lord, you might have become lost in the unfamiliar surroundings."
I threw off a quick laugh. "I appreciate your concern, but I was merely guiding someone who mistook my quarters for those of the Earl of Cadmar."
Halsted gave no sign of any suspicions about my explanation. He turned and waved me to precede him. "You are needed in the ballroom because it is time for the presentation of gifts to the Princess."
I hesitated, and Halsted smiled, all-knowing. "I have selected Adric to bear a bottle of your family's wine in your stead."
I nodded appreciatively, then bent and whispered something in Halsted's ear. He backed away and looked me over again, then smiled very broadly. "Yes, my lord, an excellent idea. I will see to it personally."
I thanked him and found my way back to the ballroom. I entered through the main doorway—the one centered in the wall left of the stairway to the throne room—and immediately crossed to Count Patrick's side. He smiled when he saw me and covertly pointed out where I should stand.
A small wooden platform served as a dais at the base of the stairs. Rich, blue-satin bunting swathed its sides and a darker blue carpet covered the top of it. A low-backed wooden throne sat on it, and the Princess was seated therein. She smiled when I appeared at her right hand, but the icy stare that accompanied the smile cut at me like a winter gale.
"We are so pleased you could rejoin us, Lord Nolan." Though the smile stayed on her face, the tone of her voice managed to be yet more cold than her stare.
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