Evil Within

by Richard S. Tuttle

  "Or it could simply be that Orro has foreseen my death," frowned Winona. "We shall never know."

  "I think we will know very shortly," replied the Arin soldier. "I heard Jared speaking earlier this evening. It sounds like King Zinan is within two day's ride of here."

  Winona nodded without reply. Her eyes swept over the sleeping forms in the campsite once again, but she turned to face Sandar as soon as she realized what she was doing. Once again she appeared to be embarrassed, but Sandar did not pursue it.

  "What is he really like?" she asked after a while.

  "King Zinan?" asked Sandar.

  "Prince Antion," replied Winona. "He acts very nice on the trail, and the other rulers seem to respect him, but that does not mean a lot to me. What do the people of Arin think about him?"

  "Arinites think the world of Prince Antion," Sandar answered, "as they do every member of the royal family. I know in some countries the royalty think themselves above the people, but Arin is not like that. King Caedmon thinks of himself as a servant to the people, and so do the rest of the royals in Arin. Prince Antion used to travel around Arin a great deal. He would always stop in a village or small town and talk to the citizens. If there were a problem that they were working on, he would join with them to help. I have seen him help build a barn and harvest a crop. He would always be invited to spend the night with a family, and he often did. He held no false airs of being above the people."

  "That is so hard to imagine," admitted Winona. "Can the people really respect him after they learn that he is no different from them?"

  "The people love him," Sandar beamed. "Princess Glynis spends at least one day each week in the marketplace buying goods for needy people. She does not spend money from the royal treasury, but rather her own personal allowance."

  "A nice sentiment," replied Winona, "but surely her allowance comes from the treasury in an indirect manner?"

  "Probably so," agreed Sandar, "but that is of no concern to the people. The funds are hers no matter where they come from, and she is free to do with the gold as she wishes, but her actions show that she cares more for the people of Arin than herself. Everything the royal family of Arin does is for the people. You cannot imagine how good that makes my countrymen feel."

  "I think I can imagine it," Winona replied after a short pause to think about it. "Is Princess Glynis his wife?"

  "Wife?" Sandar echoed with surprise. "Oh no. She is his sister."

  "Then he is unwed?" Winona asked hesitantly.

  Sandar sighed and bit his lip as he began to understand what was going through Winona's mind. His eyes fell to the ground and he shook his head.

  "Prince Antion is not married," he said softly, "but when he is betrothed, it will be to a princess of one of the nine kingdoms. That is a tradition as old as Arin itself. Prince Antion would no more break such a tradition than he would cheat a citizen in the marketplace. He would not be a prince if he acted so poorly."

  "You answered that delicately," Winona smiled thinly as sadness fell over her face.

  "I am sorry," Sandar said softly, "but you are entitled to the truth. One could not miss the attachment growing between you and Prince Antion, but nothing will ever come of it. Do not blame him, Winona. It is not a decision that is his to make."

  "You are imagining things," Winona blushed vividly. "I never claimed any attachment to your prince."

  "You did not have to make a claim," Sandar replied. "Prince Antion is an easy man to love. On the trail you stare at him constantly, and you blush and turn away whenever he catches you staring at him. That is nothing to be ashamed of. Were I a woman, I would feel the same as you do, but I am not. The best I can do is to offer my life to protect his."

  "I think I was sent on this mission to protect Jared," confessed Winona, "But I find myself thinking about protecting Antion instead. Perhaps my foolish mind did seek some sort of union after this was all over, but I can see that will never happen. Perhaps it would be better for me to give my life protecting him after all. I see no future for myself in a few day's time."

  "We will be extremely fortunate to survive the next few days," offered Sandar. "Put your mind on protecting Jared, and I will protect Prince Antion. If the Land of the Nine Kingdoms is to survive, those two must not be allowed to perish."

  "I will concentrate on Jared," promised Winona. After a few moments of awkward silence, she continued, "You won't mention this to anyone, will you, Sandar? It is embarrassing to know that one's affections are not mutually shared."

  "There is no point in wagging one's tongue about things best not repeated," Sandar replied. "I will not whisper a word about our talk tonight."

  * * *

  The warriors rode single file through the thick forest. Prince Derri set a slow pace and kept his eyes set on the forest floor. As the sun began to lower, the Salacian prince silently signaled for a halt. He slid off his horse and knelt before it, his eyes studying the tracks that he had come across. His brow knitted with deep furrows as he tried to count the individual prints. Eventually he shook his head and rose to his feet. When he turned around, he found Prince Antion standing behind him.

  "That looks like a lot of prints," The Arin prince said softly.

  "More than twenty," nodded Prince Derri, "and they are fairly fresh. It could be as many as forty or fifty. It is hard to tell for sure."

  "Borundans?" asked Prince Antion.

  "No," Prince Derri replied, "at least they were not shoed by the Borundan army, but who can tell these days. Their army has grown so large and so quickly that they might be using public smiths in Koar for all we know. All I can say is that a large group of riders turned onto this trail not too long ago."

  "How long ago?" asked the Arin prince.

  "Perhaps an hour," shrugged Prince Derri. "Certainly not much longer than that. Should I seek another trail?"

  "We must be getting awfully close to the Koar-Anatar Road," frowned Prince Antion. "We are bound to bump into somebody fairly soon no matter which path we take. I would rather be behind a large group than run into one head on. Keep a close eye on their tracks. If we start getting too close, we will take a break and let them move on ahead of us."

  Prince Derri nodded and remounted his horse. He waited until Prince Antion was back on his Odessian beauty before leading the group forward. As the sky began to darken, Prince Derri halted again.

  "Are we catching up to them?" Prince Antion asked as the Salacian prince hovered over the tracks.

  "We are," Prince Derri nodded, "but what concerns me more is that they just split into two groups. I don't like it."

  "You think they are setting up an ambush?" asked the Arin prince.

  "Quite possibly," nodded Prince Derri. "We came over a hill about a mile back. It is conceivable that they saw us behind them when they reached that summit. In any event, it is getting too dark to keep an eye on their tracks. I don't think we should continue onward tonight."

  "I agree," stated Prince Antion, "but they might come back if we don't stumble into their ambush."

  "That is a possibility," shrugged Prince Derri, "but every night is a danger for us this far south. Even if we turned around to put some distance between us, they still might backtrack to find us. It is your call, Antion."

  "Find us a secure campsite," ordered the Arin prince. "We will camp without going any further, but we will not leave ourselves unprotected this night."

  Prince Derri looked curiously at his blood brother, but Prince Antion turned and walked back to his horse. The Salacian prince turned the group around and within a half hour had selected a clearing well off the trail. As the group set up camp, Prince Antion stood in the center of the clearing and slowly rotated to view the surrounding woods. Slowly a plan began to form in his mind.

  "Talot," Prince Antion called softly, "start a small fire. We might as well enjoy a hot meal tonight. We will not get another chance."

  Everyone stopped what he or she was doing and turned to stare at the Arin prince as
if he had gone mad. Prince Antion ignored them all and waved for Winona to join him. The warrior from Harangar crossed the clearing and stood in front of the Arin prince, but she did not voice the question that was on everyone's mind.

  "I want you to use the Talent tonight," instructed Prince Antion. "You will need to use the Talent within me to toughen the skin of each of us."

  "But we are within a day's ride of King Zinan," Winona protested. "If your well is empty when Jared meets his brother, our mission is doomed to failure."

  "I think your protection only lasts a day," replied Prince Antion. "At least that is what it did in the deserts of Odessia. If I am wrong, we will delay the meeting between Jared and his brother until I am refilled."

  "How could you know how long it lasts?" asked Winona.

  "I used my knife to test my skin the last time you protected me," answered the Arin prince. "Besides, Orro taught me to understand what is within me. His purpose was to allow me to shut off Jared's flow when I ran empty, but it also allows me to sense when I am full. Do not fret about it, Winona. I am not about to endanger Jared at this late stage, but we must survive this night if we are to ever meet up with King Zinan."

  "So you are confident that we will be attacked?" asked Winona.

  "I am," nodded Prince Antion. "Capri is notorious for bandit raids, and I think that is who we have been following. They will come when they think we are all asleep."

  "That is why you allowed the fire," Winona nodded with understanding. "They will know where we are anyway."

  "Exactly," smiled Prince Antion. "Will you use the Talent?"

  "Of course," Winona quickly agreed.

  * * *

  Babul dismounted and tied his horse to a tree. He signaled to his men, and they also dismounted and secured their horses. The almost full moon tinted the forest with pale light, but the bandit leader's eyes were focused towards the occasional flickers of fire that were barely visible deeper in the forest. He waited for his men to become still before cocking his head to listen to the sounds of the forest.

  "Do you think they are asleep yet?" asked a small rat-faced man. "Their fire still burns."

  "Perhaps the fools think that the fire will keep the animals at bay," shrugged Babul. "These men are obviously not Caprians, Alan. If they were, they would not be camping around here. This is our territory."

  "Still," Alan said nervously, "maybe we should wait a while longer."

  "There are only a handful of them," scoffed Babul, "and forty of us. What are you afraid of?"

  "Nothing," lied the rat-faced man.

  "Then be quiet and do what you are told to do," snapped Babul as he started waving his hand to gather his men around him.

  When the bandits had gathered around their leader, Babul issued terse instructions.

  "I want a complete ring around their campsite," ordered Babul. "We will approach the camp with stealth, and I want everyone to be in step. I would prefer to capture these men rather then kill them."

  "Why?" asked one of the men. "It is safer just to kill them while they sleep."

  "Because these men are sneaking through the forest," Babul answered with a tone that mocked the questioner. "That means that they have something to hide, and I want to know what it is. What they are hiding might very well be more valuable to us than what they are carrying with them. Don't question my orders. Just obey them. Nobody enters the clearing until we are all surrounding it. Move out."

  The bandits moved quietly through the trees. Babul and his group waited a while to give the others a chance to get around to the rear of the clearing before moving forward. They moved at an agonizingly slow pace to avoid making noise, so it annoyed Babul when he heard a distant tinkling sound. He halted and cocked his head, but he heard no further noise. Suddenly irritable, the bandit leader started his group forward again.

  The approach to the campsite took over fifteen minutes because of the slow pace, but Babul eventually stood at the edge of the clearing and gazed into it. The fire was still burning brightly, and the forms of eight blanket-covered men were clearly visible. The Bandit leader grinned broadly and his irritation immediately evaporated. He looked across the clearing to see if all of his men were ready, but the others were difficult to see. The brightness of the fire made looking into the dark woods difficult, but he knew that his men must be ready.

  With a bold stride, Babul entered the clearing and drew his sword. The rest of his men followed his example and forty men crowded into the clearing and surrounded the sleeping forms. Babul extended his sword towards the nearest body and flicked off the blanket. Gasps rang out around the clearing as everyone saw that there was no man under the blanket. Instead, the blanket had covered piles of branches and a pack. Babul's men immediately tore the blankets off the other sleeping forms, and Babul instantly realized his error.

  "Ah, Babul," came a voice from the forest, "I told you that I never wanted to meet you again, yet here you are. What am I to do with you?"

  Babul's eyes grew large, and his mouth fell open as he recognized the voice of Gunnar. The bandit leader spun towards the source of the voice, but he could not see anything in the dark woods. Babul's hand started shaking and he quickly sheathed his sword to avoid having anyone see his nervousness. Summoning his will to keep the terror out of his voice, Babul ordered his men to sheath their swords. The bandits looked at their leader as if he had gone mad, but Babul replied angrily at their hesitancy.

  "I said to sheath your weapons," shouted Babul. "These people are not to be harmed. Do it now, or I will cut you down myself."

  The bandits reluctantly began sheathing their swords, but they also looked around anxiously, wondering who the people were and where they were. To answer the question, Prince Antion walked into the clearing. The bandits moved aside to allow the stranger a direct path to their leader. Prince Antion walked up to Babul and stared him in the face.

  "Thank you, Babul," Prince Antion said softly. "I really did not want to kill so many men tonight."

  "I did not know whose camp this was," Babul said nervously. "We mean you no harm."

  Some of the bandits grumbled under their breath at their leader's cowardice, but Babul ignored them. He knew the caliber of the men they faced, and he knew that forty men were no longer such a large force. Even forty bandits were no match for eight professional warriors, especially ones with the training that Gunnar and his friends had.

  "You asked what you should do with me," Babul continued nervously. "Let me lead my men away from this camp. We are no threat to you and your party."

  "You are correct about that," smiled Prince Antion, "but can I trust you?"

  "You can trust me," Babul nodded vigorously. "We will even stand guard around your campsite if you wish. We will not let anyone disturb your night's sleep."

  "This is rubbish," snarled one of the bandits as he lurched at Prince Antion from behind.

  The man's sword struck the Arin prince across the arm only a second before an arrow pierced the bandit's skull. The bandit's body collapsed in a heap and his sword fell near the fire. The other bandits turned to look into the woods for the hidden archer, but no one could see him.

  "Do not blame me for his actions," pleaded Babul. "You heard me give orders not to attack you."

  "What kind of man is this?" one of the bandits near Prince Antion gasped. "His arm isn't even bleeding. That swing should have severed his arm."

  The other bandits gasped and took a few steps backwards. They appeared ready to bolt into the forest, but the Arin prince refused to let them leave. He could not afford to have word spread throughout Capri about this encounter.

  "Anyone who flees will be killed," Prince Antion said clearly. "Everyone remains until I decide what is to be done about this heinous attack on my camp."

  "Listen to me, Gunnar," pleaded Babul. "I was wrong to attack Kerzi. I know that now, and I have paid a heavy price for it. I am no longer welcome in Goodland or any other city. We steal mostly to eat now. There are no more
caravans to attack now that the Borundans have invaded. Have mercy on me. I gave instructions that no one was to be killed tonight. If you doubt me, ask any of my men. They will tell you the truth."

  "I doubt that any of your men are capable of the truth," retorted Prince Antion, "but I think I actually believe you, but that does not answer the question of what I should do with you."

  Babul steeled his nerves and stepped closer to Prince Antion. He spoke in a whisper so that his men could not distinguish his words.

  "I know who you really are, Gunnar from the north," revealed Babul, "yet I have told no one, not even my men. Can you not tell that I am being sincere? I wronged you and your friends, and you taught me a lesson that I will never forget. Indeed I felt humiliated at first and I swore revenge, but I soon realized how wrong my actions had been. I will do anything to make it up to you, but please spare my life."

  "And who do you think I am?" asked the Arin prince.

  Babul turned and glanced at his men to make sure that none were close enough to hear. He leaned closer to Gunnar's ear and whispered, "Prince Antion of Arin."

  "You and I are going for a walk in the woods, Babul," Prince Antion said loudly. "If any of your men try to leave before we return, they will die. Come with me."

  Chapter 69 - Empty Hourglass

  Empty Hourglass

  Prince Antion led the bandit leader into the woods and away from the campsite. When they were far enough away that no one could possibly hear the conversation, the Arin prince stopped and faced Babul.

  "How do you know what you know?" asked Prince Antion.

  "You are wanted by the Borundans," Babul answered. "They have posters with your likeness all over Capri."

  "Now I really don't know what to do with you," sighed Prince Antion. "I am not one who likes to kill, Babul, but I cannot let the Borundans know that I am in Capri."

  "I will never tell," promised Babul. "I have not even told Alan or the others. Besides, I am hoping that Arin can defeat the Borundan scum so that Capri can return to normal. You see, I am also wanted by the Borundans, as is every bandit in the country. We are to be killed without question, so there is no way that I could sell you out even if I wanted to, which I don't."