"Why the eastward group?" asked the Arin prince.
"For us to cross their path," explained Prince Derri, "one of the groups will surely spot our tracks. It doesn't matter whether it is the eastern group or the western group that we attack, but it must be one of them. I chose the eastern group because they will be coming back this way after they set up camp. We can set up an ambush and destroy the group and then cross to the south. We will have at least a half day's lead on the rest of the group because it will take them that long to realize that one of their groups is missing."
"I don't know." Prince Antion shook his head. "Why can't we just wait until they move on completely? We could hide here for a few days."
"The group that heads northeast out of their new camp is bound to come across our tracks and follow them here," answered Prince Derri. "The sunburst is very effective in open terrain like this. Only a windstorm could hide our tracks, and we cannot conjure those at will."
Prince Antion fell silent for a moment as he stared at the shelter and the warriors in front of it.
"We will discuss all of this with everyone in the morning," the Arin prince finally declared. "While I agree that there is no reason to alarm everyone before the night's sleep, we cannot remain here for the day without an explanation. They have the right to know that an army might be passing by us tomorrow."
"Agreed," nodded Prince Derri. "I will even let the last shift of the sentries know in advance in case the Borundans arrive early."
* * *
The stars shone brightly in the moonless sky, and Talot gazed up at them in wonder as he often did from the jungles of Lom. As always, the giant felt small and insignificant in comparison to the multitude of heavenly bodies.
"Do you ever wonder what is up there?" Winona asked softly.
"Always." Talot nodded. "No matter how chaotic things get down here, the stars always appear quiet and peaceful as if they are watching us with emotionless eyes and wondering what we are making such a fuss about."
Winona glanced at the soft-spoken giant as if seeing him for the first time. Her brow knitted at his rational and peaceful thoughts.
"You are not a prince," she said softly. "You are not even an Arinite. Why are you risking your life to protect the Arin prince?"
"I don't know," admitted Talot.
"You don't know?" puzzled Winona. "Do you mean he asked you to protect him, and you did not even ask yourself why you should?"
"Prince Antion never asked me to do anything," replied Talot. "From the moment I met him, I felt something drawing me to him. It is hard to explain, but I am compelled to stand by his side, no matter what happens."
"Even unto death?" frowned Winona. "Do you think he is using the Talent to compel you?"
"Prince Antion has no control over the Talent within him," Talot shook his head. "If I were to tell him in the morning that I was going home, he would thank me for having stood by him and then he would wish me a safe journey. Prince Antion has never asked any of us to stand by him, yet we all will. And yes, we will stand by him to the death. Each of us may have a different reason for being here, but we are joined by a common goal. We will see Prince Antion and Jared all the way to that final confrontation with King Zinan."
"And after that?" probed Winona.
"I do not know," frowned Talot. "I suspect that most of us will not survive long enough to worry about the answer to that question. Let me ask the same question of you. Why are you with us?"
"Orro commanded me to accompany them to the final battle," replied Winona.
"So you feel nothing drawing you towards Prince Antion?" questioned the giant. "You are merely serving your king?"
"Orro is not a king." Winona started to protest, but she quickly realized that Talot meant no slight by his words. "Yes," she continued softly. "I am following the orders of Orro. I would not be here if I had a choice."
"But you do have a choice," Talot pointed out. "No one has the right to demand your life as a token of your devotion. You might not be welcomed back in Harangar, but you could live elsewhere."
"That is unthinkable," frowned Winona. "It is an honor to serve Orro in any way that I can. I am blessed to have been called upon to serve him."
"So you are driven by the thought of the accolades that you will receive when you return home?" inquired Talot.
"I will not be returning to Harangar," Winona replied in almost a whisper.
"Why not?" Talot asked as he dropped his gaze from the stars and stared at the scout. "Why would you not return?"
"I do not know," admitted Winona. "I suppose that Orro has predicted my death before the end of this mission. He did not tell me, and I chose not to question him."
"That is not right," Talot shook his head. "While the rest of us realize that we will probably die before the end of our journey, each of us is here of our own choosing. No one demanded that we join, and no one should demand that you do. You should refuse."
Winona felt uncomfortable and conflicted with the giant's words. She truly felt that it was unfair of Orro to ask this sacrifice of her, yet she also knew what an honor it was. As much as she wanted to agree with the giant, she could not force the words out of her mouth.
"Your culture does not allow you to express your true feelings," Talot smiled sympathetically. "Do not try to. I understand the turmoil within you. I know that you are a capable fighter, but you should not get involved in the battles of our world. You should hang back from the fights and protect Jared. The rest of us will try to protect both of you. I personally will do whatever I can to see you returned safely to Harangar, and I am sure the rest of the group would feel the same."
"You are kind," Winona replied, "but I think your words are merely warm thoughts on a cold night. The others do not like me. I know that, and I accept it, but I certainly do not expect them to protect me. I cannot imagine any prince putting his life in danger for a scout. That is not the way life works."
Talot stared at the young woman in the darkness. Her face was beautiful, but he could detect a bitter curl to her lips. He shook his head with sadness.
"You have not taken the time to know the people that you travel with," Talot said softly. "These princes are not who you think they are. I have been in battle with these men, and I can tell you that they would not hesitate to endanger themselves to save any member of this group."
"I do not think you are lying," Winona chose her words carefully, "but I find what you are saying hard to believe. Princes do not unnecessarily endanger themselves. If one of them took a risk, it was because there was no other choice."
"Tell that to Sandar when next you see him," smiled Talot. "He begged Prince Antion and his father to abandon him when he was wounded in Borunda. They both refused to leave him behind although they knew that it placed their lives in great danger. Or ask him about the time that the three princes snuck into Captain Xero's camp to scatter their horses and strike a blow against the enemy to make them more cautious."
Winona frowned in disbelief.
"Or ask Monte how we entered Goodland to confront the attackers of a poor merchant," Talot continued. "Ask Jared how Antion and Derri chased killers through the forests of Capri to save Jared's father. Winona, I do not follow Antion because he is a prince. When I first met him, he did not mention that he was a prince. In fact, he hid his identity so that he could travel the Land of the Nine Kingdoms without announcing his arrival. Prince Umal and Prince Derri also traveled as mere merchant warriors. Your thoughts regarding these men are wrong."
"And I should believe you?" Winona retorted, the soft tone of her voice betraying the harsh challenge of her words. "You are one of them."
"Guilty," chuckled the giant. "You should not take my words as proof of the quality of these men, but neither should you judge them by ancient tales of other princes. Watch them closely as we travel. Observe what they do and how they do it. When you have taken the true measure of each of them, then judge them by any standard you wish. You will not find them lack
ing."
Winona locked eyes with the giant and slowly nodded. "I shall do as you suggest," she promised. "I have found nothing to endear me to your princes, but your words are not the first to reach my ears in their behalf. I will observe them and give them a fair hearing, but do not expect me to sing their praises as you have. I have no use for royalty even if they do turn out to be human like the rest of us."
* * *
The sun sat high in a cloudless sky, and rivulets of melting snow wound through the valleys created by the huge snowdrifts. Prince Umal and Winona were prone near the summit of the largest dune of snow in the area as they watched the Borundans ride by. Only after the Borundans were out of sight did either of them speak.
"Derri was right," sighed Prince Umal. "I counted one hundred besides the officer."
"And ten of them will come back this way tomorrow?" asked Winona. "Why can't we just flee now and be done with it?"
"It is early in the day yet," replied the Odessian prince. "If they travel an entire day, then ten will return tomorrow, but it could be as early as today if they only travel half a day. If we were to flee right now and the patrol came back in an hour, we would not be able to rest at night. The Borundans would chase us until they caught us. Derri's plan is to lower their number by ten and give us at least a half day's head start."
"Whittling off a small group makes a good deal of sense," nodded Winona, "but can't we just avoid them altogether?"
"Can you make our tracks disappear?" asked Prince Umal. "If not, the Borundans will discover them. There is no direction that we can go that will avoid all of their patrols. The last place we want to engage the bulk of the Borundan force is on this frozen wasteland. We need to get into the forests south of here to have any chance of survival. Let's go report what we have seen."
Prince Umal and Winona rose and slid down the hill to their horses. A few moments later they arrived where the group was hiding.
"One hundred plus an officer," reported Prince Umal. "They are definitely Borundans, too."
"Today or tomorrow?" Prince Antion asked Prince Derri. "Which do you think is more likely?"
"It is early in the day," mused the Salacian prince. "I suspect that they started before sunrise. I would guess that the patrol would come back today, but I can't be sure."
"If they follow the same path back," interjected Prince Umal, "we could attack them near here. I noted some positions from the lookout that would make for a good ambush."
Prince Antion glanced around at the members of the group before replying. "Set it up, Umal. I want Jared somewhere safe, preferably at the lookout point where he will be far from the battle. Have Winona stay with him as his last line of defense. If the Borundans don't arrive by sunset, we will gather back here and wait for the morning."
"None of them can be allowed to escape," interjected Prince Derri. "If just one of them gets away, we will have Borundans breathing down our necks as we race southward."
"None of them will escape," promised Price Umal. "Mount up and I will direct each of you to an appropriate spot."
The Odessian prince directed Winona to take Jared up to the lookout spot and then began assigning the others spots for the ambush. Winona and Jared stretched out in the snow and watched the preparations being set. The men took special care to make sure that their tracks were not easily detected as they got into position.
"This will be over quickly," Winona commented with admiration for the placement of the archers. "The Borundans will not know what hit them."
"I do not care for these battles," sighed Jared as he slid down so that he could no longer see over the summit. "Even when they look easy, there is always a chance that things will go wrong. Let me know when it is over."
Winona shrugged and let Jared move away from her. She was intrigued by the preparations as she visualized the Borundans riding into the ambush. As she looked to the west, she suddenly saw the Borundans in the distance. Her eyes flashed back to the ambush zone to see if everyone was ready. Satisfied that Prince Umal had finished in time, she returned her attention to the approaching Borundans. She had expected to see them riding slowly and looking for tracks, but the men were racing eastward at a gallop.
"They are coming too fast," Winona said with concern. "They will rush right through the ambush zone without much chance for anyone to aim at them."
Jared wiggled his way back to the top and peered over the summit. "We must warn everyone," he said with urgency as he started to rise to his feet.
Winona quickly wrapped her arms around Jared's legs and toppled him into the snow.
"Let me go," scowled Jared. "Our men will never get them all. We must warn them quickly."
"All you will accomplish," Winona said sternly, "is alert the Borundans to our position. It is not only our people that will see you. The enemy will see you, too. There is nothing that we can do to help the others. There is no time."
Chapter 60 - Ambush
Ambush
Prince Antion sat in the snow half way up a snowdrift waiting for the Borundan patrol to come by. He was not in a position to see the track to the west, but he could see the summit of the tallest snow dune where Winona and Jared were hidden. The prince was watching when Jared rose to his feet and raised his arms. When Winona pulled Jared down, the Arin prince rose to his feet, an ill feeling rushing though his body. He moved cautiously around the snowdrift until he could see to the west. The prince's mouth hung open in surprise as he saw the small Borundan column racing towards the ambush zone.
"Trouble coming!" Prince Antion shouted, knowing that the Borundans would not hear him over the noise of their horses. "I am going to slow them down."
At the summit of the tallest snow dune Winona released Jared and peered over the edge. She was too far from the Arin prince to make out his words, but his shout alerted her to some change in plans. She stared uncomprehendingly as the Arin prince slid down the snowdrift he had been hiding on and stood in the middle of the narrow valley between two large snow dunes.
"What is he doing?" gasped Winona. "The Borundans will see him for sure."
"He knows that," Jared said anxiously. "He is trying to make the enemy slow down so that our archers can kill them."
"But he will surely die," retorted Winona.
"If these Borundans are not killed," countered Jared, "we will all die. If just one of them escapes the ambush, a hundred men will descend on us within the hour. We will never survive such an attack."
"But the prince will die," repeated Winona. "Surely he knows that?"
"He knows," Jared said. "He has sworn to protect me so that I might stand against my brother. He is doing the only thing he can do to keep his promise."
"Your power is worthless without Antion," Winona snapped. "Zinan will crush you."
The Borundans rounded a distant snowdrift and began galloping down a long straightaway towards the Arin prince. Winona heard the Borundans shout when they saw the prince standing in the middle of the trail with his sword drawn. The Borundans immediately slowed as they tried to identify any threat to themselves. Winona ignored the Borundan riders and stared intently at Prince Antion.
Jared continued to watch the Borundans closely. Their heads swiveled in every direction as they looked for anything out of place. He could well imagine their confusion at finding a single, horseless man standing in their path with his sword drawn in an endless wasteland of snow. The Borundans stopped completely as their eyes scanned the surrounding snowdrifts. Jared ducked his head down so that they would not see him. As he turned to make sure that Winona's head was also hidden, he found the woman passed out beside him. His brow knitted with concern as he pulled her body away from the edge and turned her over. Her heart was still beating, but her breathing was shallow. He wondered what to do.
A shout from the Borundans distracted Jared, and he scrambled back to the lip of the summit. He watched in fear as the Borundans charged towards Prince Antion with their swords drawn. They were halfway to the Arin prince
when the first bowstrings sang out in a melody of ambush. The last four Borundan riders toppled from their horses, but the others continued charging towards the Arin prince.
A blur of movement behind Prince Antion caught Jared's eye. He turned to see Prince Umal on his Odessian beauty charging up behind the Arin prince. The Odessian prince's horse leaped into the air and sailed over the Arin prince to land directly in front of the charging Borundans. His scimitars slashed out on both sides of him as another volley of arrows raked the enemy.
Two Borundans managed to get around the Odessian prince and converged on Prince Antion. The Arin prince turned and slashed his sword deep into the side of one of the riders, but the other Borundan slammed his sword into Antion's back. Unfazed by the attack, Prince Antion pivoted and drove the tip of his sword into the second Borundan. A deathly silence fell over the trail as Prince Umal sheathed his scimitars and rode up next to the Arin prince. He dismounted and inspected Antion's back.
"You are not bleeding," Prince Umal frowned.
"You sound disappointed," quipped Prince Antion. "He probably hit me with the flat of his blade."
"Your furs tell a different story," retorted Prince Umal as he spread the cut furs wide and examined the Arinite's skin. "They have been sliced by a sharp blade. You have quite a welt, but your skin is not broken. I have never seen anything like it."
"I was lucky," shrugged the Arin prince. "Gather their horses. We need to get away from here as soon as possible."
Prince Antion turned to see the others leaving their hiding spots and converging on the Borundan bodies. He sheathed his sword and hurried to where he had hidden his horse. He mounted his Odessian beauty and rode up the large snow dune to find Jared kneeling over Winona. He dismounted and knelt by Jared's side.
Evil Within Page 72