by Tony Roberts
Sherea frowned. “And what will that achieve?”
“It’ll leave footprints. When I cross tonight I will conceal myself so nobody will see me, night vision or not. I may be able to hide during the crossing, but I can’t do anything about the footprints. So by walking over already, I’ll be leaving a trail I’ll have already made.”
Sherea scoffed. “Hah! And then when you walk off the bridge you’ll leave new prints.”
“I doubt it, Captain, the trees block snowfall. There’s no snow lying on the forest floor. I’ll be in the trees before anyone knows it.”
Theruddas rubbed his chin. “Exactly how are you going to conceal yourself?”
Faer shut her eyes, thought about her inner self and willed a wall of darkness up through her pores. Darkness spread from her and blotted out all light all round her. Sherea stood up, grabbing her sword, Via scrambling to her feet likewise. Theruddas stepped back and waved his hands before him. Light burst from his palms, illuminating the interior of the tent, but it did not push back the sphere of darkness that reached halfway from Faer to himself. In fact it was advancing. He hissed through his teeth and snarled an incantation, pointing his finger at the middle of the blackness. A bolt of lightning blasted from his hand and vanished into the darkness. The area of nothing hesitated, steadied, then advanced again.
Theruddas gasped and threw up his arms one last time before the tip of Faer’s sword suddenly appeared and was only halted a hand’s width from his throat. The darkness dissipated and Faer was standing there, a curious look on her face, her sword motionless.
“What did you do?” Sherea gasped, astonished.
Faer didn’t look at her. Instead she slid her sword back into its sheath and stepped back, her eyes boring into the sage’s. “You sent a bolt at me that would have killed anyone else,” she said accusingly.
“I – panicked,” Theruddas said, sweat coating his face. “I – I knew you had magic resistance, so it mattered not. I merely wanted to stop you.”
Faer half turned and sneered at him. “Sage, don’t try that again or you’ll get a full attack of dark elf abilities and you won’t survive.” She turned to Sherea. “My darkness will hide me from anyone or anything. It will last long enough for the crossing before it fades away. Whatever your opinion of that, I simply will not go in that river.”
Sherea regarded her through narrowed eyes. “Very well; your abilities may be of use – anyone who can better Theruddas here has some power.” She looked at Via. “You may relax; there is no danger.” Via put her sword away and visibly relaxed, but she never turned her eyes from Faer.
“I’m going to walk across that bridge now,” Faer said. “If anyone wishes to accompany me, now’s the time to say so. Otherwise cower in your tents.”
Sherea stepped forward, straightening her belt. “I will accompany you.” She turned as Via stepped towards her. “You stay here and guard my tent. I shall return shortly.”
“But mistress…” Via protested.
“Enough!” Sherea cut her retainer off with a curt downwards slash of her hand. “Do as I command!”
Via bowed in submission. She did, however, give Faer a look of pure malice. Sherea gestured Faer precede her out into the snow. As they made their way to the bridge, Faer looked quizzically at the captain.
“Is Via your lover, too?”
“Does that disgust you, half elf?”
“No; just curious. She seems utterly dedicated to you.”
Sherea regarded Faer for a moment. “She is. I saved her life when she was a mere child, and the army looked after her. When she became old enough I took her as my lover. Oh, do not judge me, Dark One, she wished it too. She felt – gratitude? Is that the right word? – for saving her life. I suppose she worshipped me. I doubt you understand that.”
“But I do, Captain. A great responsibility.”
Sherea looked sharply at her companion. “Hmm, maybe you do. So, having Via is a great comfort to me – it also makes me feel much more secure knowing I have her by my side to watch over me. She’s jealous of you, you know.”
Faer nodded. “I wondered about her attitude towards me; I thought she was just another elf hater, like the villagers in the place I grew up.”
“Lonely, were you?” Sherea smiled. It wasn’t a pleasant one.
“Sometimes yes – I coped. And you?”
They crunched onto the bridge, pausing for a moment as it swayed slightly. They then continued. Sherea shrugged. “My upbringing is none of your concern. I have made a life here in this army and I do not wish to change it any time soon. I am valued, respected and have a position of some note. Unlike you, so it seems, mercenary,” Sherea sneered.
Faer glanced at the officer, then carried on her way to the end of the bridge. She stopped and surveyed the forest which started a matter of feet from them. The track that led from the bridge passed in between two large maples, their branches and twigs denuded of leaves, then vanished into the gloom. “You don’t like mercenaries.”
Sherea looked left and right along the wall of trees, saw nothing and turned to the half elf. “No.”
“Like to tell me why?”
“Not particularly, but just for you and because I’m sure you’ll never come out of there alive, I’ll leave you with something to remember me by. You and other mercenaries are whores. You sell yourself to the highest bidder, and have no loyalty except to your own purse. There are no places for friends to people like you.”
Faer fought a rush of anger that burned in her chest. “We are on the same side, Captain.”
“For now, yes, but next year? You could so easily be working for an enemy and you and I would be fighting one another.”
“Little change from the present,” Faer observed.
Sherea grunted in amusement. “How true. People like me and the others here are much more reliable and I can depend on them much more, because we fight for our kingdom. It doesn’t change from year to year.”
“So why turn on your kingdom then, if that is the case? You were a rebel – a traitor, even – until you won, and then you became a freedom fighter.”
Sherea glared at Faer. “I had personal reasons.”
“So do I, Captain. Don’t prejudge me just because I don’t fight for a king, or a kingdom. I don’t fight for money, either; ask Theruddas. He knows what my terms in taking this job were.” She turned round and began walking back, Sherea alongside her. “You may look down on me because I have different points of reference to you, or that I have no lord and master whose capricious moods I am subject to, but you and I, we’re fairly similar. Warriors we both are, and we do what we do because of our respective experiences in the past. I don’t really know you, and you don’t know me. But let’s part not on bad terms, but on good ones. We may never meet again, or we could share some humorous stories in some tavern in the years to come. Who knows?” she held out her hand to the officer and waited, motionless, the soft flakes of snow caressing her face.
Sherea stood stone-faced for a moment. Then she nodded slightly and grasped Faer’s forearm. They gripped each other’s arm for a few heartbeats, then separated. “Don’t think I’m going to make any special arrangements for you, Blade,” Sherea said gruffly. “I’m only here because you’re trying to recover the king’s heir. Other than that I really wouldn’t care one bit about you.”
“I’m not asking you to invite me to your bed, Captain,” Faer said testily. “All I’m asking is for some respect; I’ll return the compliment if you do show me some.”
“Hmm,” Sherea said, then walked on, her hands behind her back. She stopped, irritated that Faer had not moved. “Oh, come on,” she said testily, “a last warm drink before dark.”
Faer grinned and followed, pleased she had melted at least some of the icy façade of the captain. Via was not overjoyed at Faer’s entrance but dutifully made the hot sharp-tasting infusion favoured by the higher classes of society. She knelt by Sherea’s side, saying nothing, while Faer sat cros
s-legged on the floor facing the captain. Theruddas was not there which made the atmosphere less tense, Via notwithstanding.
After they had finished their drink, Faer glanced out of the flap. The sky was getting darker and the guards were lighting torches, placing them in holders on poles around the small camp.
“We shall wait ten days, no longer,” Sherea said as Faer got slowly to her feet. “Then we shall be going. Our food and supplies will not last any longer. I hope you succeed, but I have my doubts.”
Faer nodded. “Don’t give up on me too easily, Captain. You may yet see me again.” With that she left, heading for her tent. The sky was darkening rapidly, and the snow was still falling, although much more gently. She slipped into her tent, retrieved her pack and fixed it to her back, making sure her sword was still easily reachable. A quick adjustment to a couple of straps and she was ready.
As she half-crawled, half-scuttled out of the tent, she saw two pairs of legs before her. She stood up. Theruddas and Via were standing there. Theruddas was no different than he had been, but Via was now dressed for hard travelling and armed to the teeth, a curious half-smile to her face.
“What’s all this?” Faer asked, puzzled.
“She’s coming with you,” Theruddas gestured to the woman with the street-urchin hair.
“What?”
Theruddas smirked. Faer really wanted to wipe the look from his face. “Did you really think we’d send you in there on your own? Via here is one of our best scouts, an expert tracker in fact. Something to do with a country upbringing scavenging for a living, until she was picked up by Captain Sherea.”
“Sherea happy with this? I mean, Via’s her all-in-one entourage.”
Via spoke for the first time, her voice low and soft. “She has no choice; Theruddas carries the king’s seal and whatever Theruddas orders, we have to obey.”
Faer stood, her fists on her hips. “And you think we’ll have a better chance with you coming along? Aren’t you worried about the tales of horror in there?”
Via shrugged. “Only one way of finding out, isn’t there?”
“Damned late in telling me this; now I’ve got to get used to having a companion right at the moment of setting off! So what’s your particular strength? Sword? Knife?”
“Both. But I’m more of a tracker – I can pick up footprints and tracks, and the hope is I’ll find traces of where the heir is being held.”
Faer blew out her breath. She eyed Theruddas. “You think you’re being clever in hiding your intentions from me. One day you’ll be too clever and mess up.”
Theruddas shook his head. “You’ve got a lot to learn, Blade. In fact, you’re Via’s protection; she’s the one leading this mission. Your job is to stop her getting killed. Via will find the heir and bring him back. You are to make sure nobody stops her.”
Faer swore. “You mean all along I was going to be nothing but a glorified guard?”
Theruddas smiled openly. “Now you’re getting it.”
“So why not do it before if Via here is such an expert tracker?”
“Oh come on, Blade, use your wits. We’ve never had a warrior with your abilities fall into our laps before. We suddenly realised here was someone who could possibly get the job done. So – it’s now dark. You’d be best on your way. Ten days, remember.”
“I thought you’d be cutting the time, seeing Via’s coming too.”
Theruddas snorted and turned his back. “Get going; the sooner you’re away from us the better.”
Faer faced Via. “So, what’s the relationship then? You lead? I lead?”
“Let’s get along without animosity. We’ll work better together that way. I’ll lead when tracking; you lead when fighting needs to be done. Other than that – well we can pool our knowledge and resources together.” She smiled.
Faer watched her as she walked towards the bridge, then set off after her. “What about the darkness? You won’t be able to see.”
“Then you take my hand and lead me.” Via stood ready near the bridge. “We’d best be quick – that spell doesn’t last long, does it?”
Faer shook her head. “Very well, let’s go.”
She took a deep breath, took Via by the hand, swore again, then willed the darkness up out of her.
SIX
To Faer, the walk over the bridge was no different than a stroll in the gloom of a winter’s day. Her eyes, adapted over millennia of evolution, expanded to capture every last mote of light and showed her the bridge, the snow, and the trees. She held on firmly to Via, who stumbled on in her wake, trusting in the elfin girl before her.
The sphere of darkness around them followed their route across the bridge and onto the cold, snow-covered ground on the forest side of the bridge. Only five or six paces more and the first trees were reached. Faer looked to left and right, then continued, her feet crunching through the powdery snow, then the dry ground made up of compacted leaf mulch and dead twigs.
The darkness dissipated and Faer stopped, leaning against a tree trunk. She brought Via close to her. The night was totally dark to the human girl, so Faer put her lips to her ear and whispered softly into it. “We are into the forest. I see nothing or hear nothing so far. The ground is free of snow.”
Via nodded. She could see Faer’s shape indistinctly, but nothing much else. She leaned towards Faer, and the half elf guessed she was trying to speak back, so she gently guided her mouth towards her ear. Via leaned too far and almost slipped so Faer took hold of her and the two stood, arms round each other in a close embrace, whispering into each other’s ears.
“We need to go deeper to evade any possible watchers, whether they be human or otherwise.”
“I’ll go lead, but the ground is uneven. Shall I follow the track?”
“Yes. We walk arms round each other’s waists – more stable and I won’t fall over your feet following you.”
Faer took hold of the scout and they slowly walked together, Faer on the right, Via blindly putting one foot in front of the other. Where the ground climbed or fell, they slowed until the scout got a secure foothold. It was slow progress but just before midnight they stopped. The wind had died away and although it was cold, the biting edge of the wind was gone. Faer saw some animals but they were deer or other such herd animals, disturbed out of their sleep.
“Let’s settle down for the night,” Via said softly. “I’m tired.”
“Me too.” Faer guided Via to a thicker growth of trees and they slipped down against two trunks, slipping off their packs. Faer helped with the blankets and they both tucked themselves up. It was too dark for Via to do anything other than lie down and sleep. Faer remained awake for a while, looking about her, but all she could see were small creatures and insects. Nothing threatening or sentient showed itself. If there was anyone or anything out there, it or they were keeping a low profile.
After a short time, she heard Via’s deep and even breathing and guessed she was asleep. Reassured, she snuggled down onto the ground, adjusted an uncomfortable spot, then shut her eyes.
It was just getting light when she awoke. The forest was coming alive with the sounds of birds and animals waking. Via was already up and moving about, taking a drink from her water skin and eating cold meat. She sat on a rock, eyeing Faer. Faer slowly stretched, looked about, rolled over and got to her feet cautiously. She indicated to Via whether all was fine or not, and Via shrugged.
They would still be as quiet as they could for the moment. Faer took a drink and ate some food herself and studied the environment. Apart from the trees she could see the occasional shrub or clump of flowers where the trees were at their thinnest. Here in these places the ground was frosty.
The ground was generally brown with dead leaves and pieces of branches or twigs. There were occasional rocks sticking through the brown carpet and the land rose here and there in irregular mounds. Faer caught sight of a badger’s set entrance some way off deeper into the forest. Any further than a hundred paces the gloom and fo
rest blocked her vision.
It was devoid of life but she knew creatures were watching them. The sound of birds high up took her attention. They would indicate if anything threatening approached. For now they were merely flying around irritated at the presence of the two women.
Faer stood next to Via who got up. They continued to whisper quietly. “We go on along the track?”
Via nodded. “For now. Once we’re deep into the forest we can check to see what tracks I find. Here it won’t be of any use – too many creatures using it.”
They packed up their sparse camp and returned to the track. It ran emptily in both directions, so they took the route deeper into the forest. The land rose, fell and the track twisted. Gradually it grew narrower and fainter, and eventually became nothing more than an animal track. Via knelt and studied the track, Faer standing above her, looking in every direction. Cries of various beasts came to them, near and far, and rustling of shrubs betrayed small creatures.
"Hmm.” Via looked up and squinted into the distance.
“Anything of interest?”
The scout looked up. “Perhaps. Something – or someone – has been this way recently.” She pointed to a faint mark by the side of the path. It was hard for Faer to make out what it was. “Humanoid, definitely. Heavy, wearing a shoe or boot. No idea if it’s human or otherwise, but it went in that direction,” she pointed off to the left and ahead. “It’s something.” She stood up, straightened her tunic and took a couple of steps off the path. She turned. “Coming?”
Faer came to stand alongside. “You’re going to follow whoever or whatever it is?”
“Why not? It’s the only indication of intelligent life I’ve seen, so for want of a better option, I propose we go find the owner of this print.”
“And if - or when – we find it?”
Via’s lips twitched. “We decide at that time.”
They continued, Via following what she declared as a clear path through the forest. Faer couldn’t see what she was following, although once or twice there were marks on the ground. Via once paused and looked left and right across the line of their route. She pointed to more tracks. “Two or three two-legged beings. Older tracks. Our quarry went straight on here.”