"Either of us could die in the next few weeks," he said quietly.
She nodded. "I know."
"I'd be happier knowing you were safe."
Sonea narrowed her eyes at him. He smiled.
"No, I will not start that argument again, but... you test my loyalties, Sonea."
She frowned, not understanding. "How?"
He reached out and ran a finger across her brow. "It doesn't matter." The corner of his mouth curled upward. "It's too late, anyway. I started to fail that test the night you killed the Ichani."
She blinked in surprise. Did that mean...? for that long...?
He smiled. She felt his hands slip around her waist. As he pulled her closer, she decided her questions could wait. She reached up and traced the curl in his lips with the tip of her finger. Then he leaned forward and his mouth met hers, and all questions were forgotten.
25
A Chance Encounter
Gorin, Rothen had discovered, were fnistratingly slow walkers. The enormous beasts were the favorite of merchants, however. They were strong, docile and easy to handle and direct and much more resilient than horses.
But they were impossible to hurry. Rothen sighed and glanced back at Raven, but the spy was dozing among the sacks of cloth in the cart, a wide-brimmed hat covering his face. Rothen allowed himself a smile and turned his attention back to the road. The previous night, they had hired rooms above a bolhouse in a town called Coldbridge. The spy, posing as Rothen's cousin, had drunk more bol than anyone ought to be able to, then spent the night swaying from his bed to the piss drain and back again.
Which probably meant Raven was doing a much better job at playing the part of intrepid merchant than Rothen was. Or am I supposed to be the sensible older cousin?
Rothen adjusted his shirt. The closely fitting garment was much less comfortable than robes. He was grateful for his traveller's hat, however. Though it was early morning, the day was promising to be a hot one.
A haze of dust hung in the air over the road and blurred the horizon. No mountains had appeared in the distance, though he had been travelling for two days. Rothen knew that the road ran near-straight to Calia, where it split into two. Turn left and it took you north to the Fort; turn right and you headed northeast to the South Pass. That was where he and Raven were headed.
It seemed strange to be travelling northeast to a southern pass, Rothen mused. The route was probably named for its location in the mountains, not for its general position in Kyralia. He had come close to it once, while visiting his son during the summer break five years ago.
He frowned as he thought of Dorrien. His son was watching the road to the Pass, and a meeting was inevitable. Rothen would have to explain where he was going, and why, and Dorrien wasn't going to like it.
He will probably try to join us. Rothen snorted quietly. That's an argument I'm not looking forward to.
It would be several days before he faced his son, however. Raven had said it took six or seven days to reach the South Pass by cart. By then Sonea will have been in Sachaka for fifteen days, Rothen thought. If she stays alive that long.
He had been relieved to hear from Lorlen that Akkarin had contacted the Higher Magicians, now five days ago. Sonea had been alive. Lorlen had also described an overheard discussion between two Sachakans that disturbed Rothen greatly. Whether the strangers were Ichani or not, they clearly wanted Akkarin and Sonea dead.
"They called them 'the Kyralians,' " Lorlen had said. "I hope this doesn't mean they'll treat all Kyralians entering Sachaka the same way. Kyralian merchants have been making the journey to and from Arvice safely for years, though, and say they see no reason why that might have changed recently. Just be careful."
"Someone's approaching," Raven said. "From behind us."
Rothen glanced at the spy. The man shifted slightly, and one eye appeared beneath the brim of his hat. Looking down the road, Rothen realized that he could see movement beyond the dust stirred up by their passing. Horses and riders emerged from the cloud, and Rothen felt his pulse quicken.
"Magicians," he said. "Balkan's reinforcements for the Fort."
"Better move to one side of the road," Raven advised. "And keep your head down. You don't want them recognizing you."
Rothen pulled gently on the reins. The gorin tossed their heads halfheartedly, and slowly moved to the left side of the road. The sound of drumming hoof beats drew nearer.
"Feel free to gawk, though," Raven added. "They'll expect that."
The spy was sitting up now. Rothen turned and peered under the rim of his hat at the approaching magicians. The first to pass the cart was Lord Yikmo, the Warrior who had been Sonea's special tutor last year. The magician did not even glance at Rothen and Raven as he passed.
The other magicians thundered by, kicking up a dense cloud of dust in their wake. Raven coughed and waved a hand.
"Twenty-two," he said, climbing onto the seat beside Rothen. "That'll double what's at the Fort. Is the Guild sending magicians to the South Pass?"
"I don't know."
"Good."
Rothen looked at Raven, amused.
"The less you know, the less an Ichani can learn from you," the spy said.
Rothen nodded. "I do know that the South Pass is being watched. If the Ichani enter there, the Guild will be alerted. Those at the Fort should have time enough to ride back to Imardin and join the Guild. The distance is about the same, from either pass."
"Hmmm." Raven clucked his tongue, as he had a habit of doing when he was thinking hard. "If I were these Ichani, I would use the South Pass. There are no magicians there, and no Fort, so they can enter without using any power in fighting. That doesn't bode well for us, I'm afraid. Though..." He frowned. "These Ichani do not know how to fight as one. If the entire Guild faces them, it may be able to kill one or two. If the Guild is split, however, there is no danger of that. The Fort may be the better option."
Rothen shrugged and turned his attention to guiding the gorin back from the side of the road. Raven spent a little time in thoughtful silence.
"Of course, the Ichani may be an invention of the former High Lord," he said eventually, "created simply to convince the Guild to let him live. And your former novice believed him."
Seeing his companion's sidelong look, Rothen scowled. "So you keep reminding me."
"If we are to work effectively together, I need to know what is between you and Sonea, and her companion," Raven said. His tone was respectful but also determined. "I know it is not simple loyalty to the Guild that motivated you to volunteer for this mission."
"No." Rothen sighed. Raven would keep prying until he was satisfied he had all the information he could get. "She means more to me than just another novice. I took her from the slums and tried to teach her how to fit in."
"But she didn't."
"No."
"Then Akkarin took her hostage, and you couldn't do anything about it. Now you can."
"Maybe. It would be nice if I could just slip into Sachaka and take her back." Rothen glanced at the spy. "Somehow I don't think it's going to be as easy as that."
Raven chuckled. "It never is. Do you think Sonea might be in love with Akkarin?"
Rothen felt a flash of anger. "No. She hated him."
"Enough to learn forbidden magic and follow him into exile, to ensure he survived long enough for, as she put it, the Guild to come to its senses?"
Taking a deep breath, Rothen pushed away a nagging fear. "If she believes these Ichani exist, it would have been easy for him to convince her to do all those things for the sake of the Guild."
"Why would he, if the Ichani weren't real?"
"So she would follow him. He needs her."
"What for?"
"Her strength."
"Why teach her black magic, then? That gained him nothing."
"I don't know. She said she asked him to. Perhaps he could not refuse without losing her support."
"So now she's potentially as powerful as h
e. If she discovered he was lying, why wouldn't she return to Imardin, or at least tell the Guild?"
Rothen closed his eyes. "Because... just because..."
"I know this is distressing," Raven said in a low voice, "but we must examine all the possible motivations and consequences before we meet them."
"I know." Rothen considered the question, then grimaced. "Just because she has learned black magic, doesn't mean she is powerful. Black magicians grow stronger by taking energy from others. If she hasn't had the opportunity to do that, Akkarin may be much more powerful than her. He may also be keeping her weaker by taking all her strength from her each day - and he may have threatened to kill her if she communicates with the Guild."
"I see." Raven frowned. "That doesn't bode well for us either."
"No."
"I hate to say it, but I am hoping we find your novice in such a situation. The alternative is much worse, for Kyralia." He clucked his tongue. "Now, tell me about your son."
As Akkarin stopped, Sonea breathed a sigh of relief. Though she had grown used to the long days of walking, every rest was welcome. The morning sun was warm and made her feel sleepy.
Akkarin stood at the top of a short slope, waiting as she trudged up to meet him. Reaching the top, Sonea saw that their way was blocked by another crevasse. This one was broad and shallow. Looking down, she caught her breath.
A ribbon of blue ran down the middle. Water rushed around boulders and cascaded down short drops in the ravine floor before running away toward the wasteland. Trees and other vegetation crowded the banks of this little river, and in places extended out to the rock walls on either side.
"The Krikara River," Akkarin murmured. "If we follow it, we will reach the road to the South Pass."
He looked at the mountains. Sonea followed his gaze and noted how the gap between the peaks on either side of the ravine was much wider than the rest. She felt a twinge of excitement and longing. Kyralia lay beyond that gap.
"How far to the Pass?"
"It is a long day's walk." He frowned. "We should get as close as possible to the road, then wait until darkness." He looked down at the ravine. "Though Parika must be at least a day's travel behind us now, his slaves will be there, watching it for him."
He rose, then turned to face her. Guessing what he intended to do, she grasped his hands.
"Let me do it," she said, smiling.
Drawing magic to her will, she created a disk beneath their feet, then lifted them up and over the lip of the ravine. She lowered them down between the trees and they landed on a patch of grass.
Looking up, she found Akkarin regarding her closely.
"What are you looking at me like that for?"
He smiled. "No reason." He turned away and started walking along the river. Sonea shook her head and followed.
After so long walking in the dry slopes of the mountains, the sight of so much clean running water and vegetation lifted her spirits. She imagined rain falling high up, gathering into streamlets and then streams, all joining to form the river that flowed through this ravine. Glancing behind, she wondered where it ended. Did it continue though the dry wasteland below?
The trees and undergrowth made travelling a little harder, however. Akkarin moved to the shadows by one wall, so they could avoid the vegetation as much as possible. After an hour, they encountered a thick forest that seemed to stretch from one side of the ravine to the other, blocking the river from view. In single file, they pushed their way through undergrowth, and as they walked on, the sound of water splashing over stone grew ever louder. When they emerged into the sunlight again, they found their way blocked by a wide pool.
Sonea drew in a breath. Above them stood a rock wall over which the river fell in wide sheets of water to fill the pool below. The sound of it was deafening after the silence of the mountain slopes. She turned to Akkarin.
"Can we stop?" she asked eagerly. "We can stop, can't we? I haven't had a real bath for weeks."
Akkarin smiled. "I guess a short stop won't hurt."
She grinned at him, then sat on a nearby rock and pulled off her boots. As she stepped into the shallows of the pool, she let out a gasp.
"It's freezing!"
She focused her mind and sent heat out into the water. Her ankles began to warm. Moving slowly, she waded deeper. She found that she could keep the water around her comfortably heated if she did not move too abruptly and stir up eddies of cold.
As her trousers soaked up the water, they grew heavier. She could see that the pool was much deeper at the middle. When the water was just past knee-deep, she stopped and sat down, immersing herself to the neck.
The rock floor was a little slimy, but she didn't care. Leaning back, she slowly let her head fall beneath the surface. As she came up for air, she heard a sloshing nearby. She turned to see Akkarin wading into the water. He stared intently at the pool, then suddenly dived under the surface. A splash of icy cold water engulfed her, and she cursed.
She watched him glide under the water. When he surfaced, his long hair was plastered to his face. He flicked it back and turned to regard her.
"Come here."
She could see his feet kicking beneath the water. The pool was deep. She shook her head.
"I can't swim."
He glided a little closer, then rolled onto his back. "My family used to spend every summer by the sea," he told her. "We swam nearly every day."
Sonea tried to picture him as a boy, swimming in the ocean, and failed. "I lived near the river a few times, but nobody swims in that."
Akkarin chuckled. "Not willingly, anyway."
He turned over again and swam toward the waterfall. As he reached it, his shoulders rose out of the water and he stood regarding the fall. He ran a hand through the curtain of water, then stepped through it.
A faint shadow of him was visible for a moment, then nothing. She waited for him to return. After several minutes she grew curious. What had he found behind there?
She stood up and made her way around the pool. It was little more than ankle deep at first, then grew steadily deeper as she neared the waterfall. By the time she had reached the beginning of the curtain, the pool was past waist deep, but she could feel that the rock slope angled upward under the fall.
She ran a hand through the falling water. It was heavy and cold. Bracing herself, she moved through the curtain and felt her knees meet rock.
A ledge had formed behind the fall, at about shoulder height. Akkarin was sitting in it, his back against the wall and his legs crossed. He smiled at Sonea.
"It's quite private in here, if a bit cramped."
"And noisy," she added.
Hoisting herself up onto the ledge, she turned and put her back to the wall. The greens and blues of the outside world colored the curtain of water.
"It's beautiful," she said.
"Yes."
She felt fingers curl around her hand and looked down.
"You're cold," he said.
He lifted her hand and covered it with both of his. His touch sent a warm shiver down her spine. She looked at him, noting that the stubble on his chin and jaw had grown into thick hair. He might not look too bad with a beard, she mused. And his clothes certainly leave less to the imagination when they're wet.
He lifted one eyebrow.
"What are you looking at me like that for?"
She shrugged. "No reason."
He laughed, then his gaze dropped from her own. She looked down, then felt her face warm as she realized that her own clothes were plastered against her body. She moved to cover herself, but felt his hands tighten about hers. Looking up, she saw the mischievous glint that had entered his gaze, and smiled.
He chuckled and drew her close.
All thoughts of time, the Ichani, and decently dry attire slipped out of her mind. More important matters demanded her attention: the heat of bare skin against skin, the sound of his breathing, pleasure flaring up like fire through her body, and then how comfortable i
t was, curled up together on the ledge.
Magic has its uses, she thought. A cold, cramped space can be made warm and cozy. Muscles tired from walking can be revived. To think I once would have given this away, out of hatred for magicians.
If I had I wouldn't be with Akkarin now.
No, she thought as reality struck hard, I'd be a blissfully ignorant slum dweller, completely unaware that immensely powerful magicians were about to invade my home. Magicians who will make the Guild look humble and generous.
She reached out to the falling water. As her fingers met the curtain it parted. In the gap she saw the trees and pool outside... and a figure.
She stiffened and snatched her hand away.
Akkarin stirred.
"What is it?"
Her heart was racing. "Someone is standing beside the pool."
He drew himself up onto his elbows, then frowned.
"Be quiet a moment," he murmured.
The muffled sound of voices reached them. Sonea felt her blood turn to ice. Akkarin scanned the wall of water, his eyes halting at a natural gap in the curtain farther along the ledge. He slowly pushed himself onto his hands and knees and crept toward the gap.
As he reached it he paused, then his face hardened into a scowl. He turned to her and mouthed a word: Parika.
Reaching for her shirt and trousers, Sonea struggled into them. Akkarin appeared to be listening. She crept to his side.
"... no harm. I only sought to be ready for your return," a woman said meekly. "See, I have gathered stingberries and tiro nuts."
"You should not have left the Pass."
"Riko is there."
"Riko is asleep."
"Then punish Riko."
There was a wordless protest, then a thump. "Forgive me, master," the woman whimpered.
"Get up. I don't have time for this. I haven't slept for two days."
"Are we going straight into Kyralia, then?"
"No. Not until Kariko is ready. I want to be well rested before then."
Silence followed. Through the curtain of water, Sonea saw movement. Akkarin crept away from the gap to her. She felt his arm circle her waist, and she leaned against the warmth of his chest.
The High Lord bmt-3 Page 34