A rustle in the bushes to Iren’s left made him pause. He hadn’t noticed any patrols on this hill, but that didn’t mean they weren’t here. He stared in the direction the noise had come from, alert for any movement.
Nothing happened. It must have been an animal or the breeze blowing the stiff plants against one another. He resumed his crawl.
“I could have killed you just now, if I’d wanted to.”
Iren froze. He knew that voice. It haunted his dreams.
He stood and revealed his presence on the hill. “Rondel,” he spat the name like a curse. “How did you find me?”
Rondel was five feet away, the brush up to her waist. That was good; with Rondel’s shorter height, the plants would slow her more than they would Iren.
The old Maantec pointed to a hill east of them, perhaps a mile distant. “I was observing the same situation you were, though I’m sure in more detail.” She gestured with her thumb at her eyes. They sparked with Lightning Sight.
“Then you know about the war?” Iren asked.
“From Melwar’s own lips. They’re going to Ceere.”
“No they aren’t. I’m going to stop them.”
Rondel half-smiled. “Are you now? Here I thought you might be going to join them.”
“Don’t lump me in with Melwar. Once I finish with you, I’m going down there to sink those ships.”
“Once you finish with me? As I remember our last meeting, you were the one lying helpless on the ground.”
Iren unsheathed his sword. “I’m different now. You won’t win this time.”
Rondel drew her dagger. “Well, do your best.”
She was goading him. That was Rondel’s style. She didn’t make the first move.
Still, Iren was surprised. He’d been off guard when Rondel had snuck up on him. Why hadn’t she taken advantage and slain him then? Even if Rondel was confident of victory, she wouldn’t risk even the smallest chance of losing if it wasn’t necessary.
She must have some other purpose. “If I’d wanted to,” she had said. Did that mean she didn’t want to kill him?
That was impossible. Were it not for Minawë, Rondel would have murdered him the last time they’d fought. There was no way the old woman’s attitude had changed. She considered Iren evil like his father.
Which meant she did want to kill him, just not at that moment. Why? What was she planning?
“Whatever you’re thinking of using, make it flashy,” Rondel said. “Let’s give the people of Hiabi a good show.”
Iren smirked. If she wanted flashy, there was always Muryoka. Here on this hill, there wouldn’t be much to destroy even if the technique wasn’t perfect.
But a flawed Muryoka would at best kill Iren along with Rondel. Worse, a poorly aimed shot could end up in the heart of Hiabi. Iren wanted to stop Melwar, not obliterate a city.
“I’m in a hurry,” Rondel said. “If you won’t start, I will.”
She held out her right hand and grasped one of the bushes next to her. Sparks jumped between her fingers.
Iren’s brow furrowed. What was the point of that?
Then he realized what the hag had done. The dry tinder burst into flames, and the dense scrub spread that fire. In seconds an inferno engulfed them both.
Iren took off through the choking haze of heat and smoke, trusting in the Muryozaki’s healing power to recover from any burns. He couldn’t see Rondel, which must have been her intention all along. Lightning Sight would likely still detect him.
He cursed as he ran. Even though it benefited Rondel, Iren didn’t understand her strategy. Melwar’s ships were only a few miles away. Hiabi was even closer. Every Maantec down there would see the burning spectacle, and Melwar and Hana might recognize it for what it was: a battle between Dragon Knights.
A glint of reflected firelight was all the warning Iren received. Rondel leapt in, her dagger thrusting at his head.
Six months ago the blow would have brained him. Today, his training at Goro and Chiyo’s farm saved his life. Iren saw the blade coming and blocked.
Rondel’s eyes widened momentarily, but they quickly returned to normal. The old hag followed up with a series of frantic slashes that forced Iren to retreat.
Iren was shocked. The flames, starting the fight, this wild assault . . . none of them were Rondel’s style. She preferred a defensive fight. Lightning Sight and her fast speed gave her an instantaneous reaction time. It was to her advantage to wait until her opponent committed to an attack before she struck. She would end a fight quickly if the opportunity presented itself, but she was more apt to study an opponent and figure out a weakness to exploit.
In this battle, though, she fought like something possessed. Instead of taking her time and working out a strategy, she cut and thrust with reckless abandon. Iren had no idea what drove her, but he no longer had time to think. It was simply block or be gutted.
Rondel pushed Iren farther up the hill. The sea breeze carried the fire with them, so no matter how far Iren went, flaming bushes still surrounded him. He wanted to kill Rondel, to take revenge for his parents, but he couldn’t get in any attacks. The old hag was pushing herself harder than he’d ever seen.
Sweat poured off Iren. The fires threatened to overwhelm him, and still Rondel pressed her assault.
In desperation Iren cast a shield of light around himself. Rondel struck it twice, but then she stopped. A similar, larger shield had protected both Iren and Rondel from Feng’s attacks two years ago. Rondel wasn’t going to breach this one.
Still, Iren knew it would only give him a few seconds to catch his breath. He would need them all to figure out how he was going to live through this mess.
* * *
Minawë flew in low, her seagull form angling around the junks to get a closer look at them. They had thick hulls, likely several feet of solid wood.
Crushing those, even with the vine-like kelp Rondel had described, would be next to impossible. Minawë would have to manipulate the kelp from the shore, and the farther she was from the plants she controlled, the more magic she needed to use.
Maybe she didn’t need to sink them all. Each one she damaged was one fewer Melwar could wield against Lodia. If Minawë sank enough, Melwar wouldn’t risk an invasion.
Minawë banked and headed for the beach to find an out-of-the-way spot to attack the junks. As she did, she caught sight of Rondel’s diversion. The old woman had set the hill north of the city on fire. No doubt such an inferno so close to Hiabi would draw the Maantecs’ attention. Minawë just hoped Rondel wasn’t anywhere near the blaze.
* * *
Hana Melwar stood at the railing of the junk Shadeen. Next to her, her new namesake watched the flames rising from the hill north of Hiabi.
“A spyglass,” the shogun ordered. A few seconds later a sailor ran up to him and handed one over.
“It’s late in the year for a fire,” Hana said.
“It is,” Shogun Melwar replied, “which is why I guess that this one is unnatural. It spreads too quickly.”
He looked through the spyglass. “I am correct. There you are, Rondel.”
“Rondel Thara?” Hana asked. “What’s she doing here?”
The shogun smiled. “Fighting Iren Saitosan, and setting the hill alight as she goes. Each stab of her rondel is only to distract Iren so he will not notice. As she runs, she creates sparks in her right hand that ignite the brush.”
“Why would she do that?”
Shogun Melwar lowered his spyglass. “Perhaps she wishes to remove the scrub. It is tall enough to hinder her, but not tall enough to slow Iren. Still, it seems like a poor long-term strategy. Iren can heal himself if the flames burn him, but Rondel cannot.”
He stroked his chin a moment. “Okthora’s Law,” he said at last. “Rondel is as obsessed with carrying it out as Iren is with avenging his parents’ murders. She has abandoned rational thought in her desire to kill him.”
Hana watched the blaze grow to engulf the hill. “Sh
ould I go over there? With all that going on, I could kill them both before they realize I’m there.”
The shogun raised his spyglass again. He watched the combatants for more than a minute before he said, “You will remain here. We have a schedule to keep. No matter who survives their fight, they will be in no condition to follow us to Lodia.”
Hana nodded and turned away, but as she did, a thought struck her. When Rondel had last traveled to Hiabi, the Forest Dragon Knight had come with her. Could she be nearby as well?
No, she couldn’t. That Kodama had risked her life to stop Iren and Rondel’s fight. She would never let those two battle this way. Rondel must have made her return to Aokigahara.
It was too bad. Hana had looked forward to a rematch.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Out of Options
Iren eyed Rondel through the solid light of his shield. Inches outside the barrier, the old woman paced like an animal. She was breathing hard, and she had burns all over her body.
For all that she was still dangerous, perhaps even more than usual. Something about this fight was different for her.
It wasn’t the chance to kill him that drove her. Against Iren’s father, Rondel had been as cold and emotionless as in any fight Iren had seen her undertake. There had to be another reason driving this savage behavior.
Then again, the reason didn’t really matter. What mattered was that by fighting this way, Rondel had sacrificed her biggest advantage: her strategic mind. Her aggression had overpowered Iren at first, but now that he saw it, maybe he could turn it to his advantage.
Iren raised the Muryozaki at the same time that he lowered his shield. Rondel leapt on him at once, slashing high at his head. Iren sidestepped the blow and attacked for the first time in their battle. He aimed a low cut at Rondel’s right hip.
The old hag almost died then. She was so focused on her strike that she had overextended herself. She couldn’t block in time. At the last second, though, she spun on her heel, came in close to Iren, and thrust her dagger at his right shoulder.
The wicked dodge and counter caught Iren flat-footed. Jolting pain shot through him as Rondel’s blade pierced his arm. He leapt back, retreating from Rondel to give the Muryozaki time to heal him.
But Rondel wasn’t going to give the sword the chance. She dashed forward and lunged low at Iren’s knees. He blocked, and even though his right arm was still injured, he used his apparent disability to take Rondel by surprise. He channeled magic into his right finger and fired at her head.
The blow connected, and Rondel stumbled backward. It wasn’t enough to finish her, but at least it proved Iren could hit her. More important, while she recovered, the Muryozaki could finish healing him.
The brushfire had shifted farther up the hill, so the flames and smoke were now beyond the two foes. Iren was glad for the change. At last he could see Rondel clearly.
She attacked again, fifteen strikes in less than three seconds. Iren blocked every one. He took off downhill. Rondel chased him, and soon the pair exchanged blows at a pace so fast anyone watching from the city must have seen nothing but two blurs flashing across the hillside.
How long they battled that way, Iren didn’t know. Unfortunately, the fight was progressing just as Divinion had said it would. Iren’s speed training allowed him to keep pace with Rondel, but that was the best he could manage. It wasn’t enough to win.
He only had one chance. He hated to risk it, but the longer this fight dragged on, the more likely Rondel would kill him. Even if she didn’t, more time also allowed for Melwar or Hana to interfere.
Iren stopped and raised his shield again. Rondel paused outside the barrier. She didn’t try to attack it this time.
“Am I doing better than you expected?” Iren asked.
Rondel scowled. “You’ve kept up well,” she admitted.
“It’s about time you respected me.”
To Iren’s surprise, the old woman closed her eyes, shook her head, and smiled sadly. “I’ve respected you from the moment you healed Dirio in Veliaf,” she said. “If you ever lost that respect, it’s because you let Melwar wrench you away from the kind person you used to be. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry we ended up this way. Killing you isn’t something I wanted to do.”
“That’s good,” Iren said, “because you aren’t going to kill me.” He switched the Muryozaki to his right hand and held out his left one, palm up. “Let me show you why.”
* * *
Minawë crouched behind a piece of driftwood on the beach. With her long leather cap obscuring her green hair, she would be all but invisible to the anchored ships.
In her right hand Minawë clutched the Forest Dragon Bow. Its energy flowed through her, and she sent that power into the sand and out into the water. As Rondel had claimed, there were plants out there, though they felt unlike any Minawë had interacted with. Their speech had a long rhythm to it, a flow like the waves that came and went.
Strange as the kelp were, Minawë could understand them well enough. She told them the mission she had for them, and they knew they could handle it.
Minawë focused her attention on the most distant ship. With luck everyone would be watching Rondel’s diversion. They wouldn’t be looking back over the water.
Guided by Minawë’s magic, the kelp beneath her target ship grew. Their stems lengthened and thickened until they rose from the sea. They attached to the ship, lashing themselves to any imperfections they could find in the wood.
Minawë let the kelp build. She had probably gathered enough to sink the junk, but she didn’t want to risk attacking too soon. She didn’t want the Maantecs to realize what was happening until it was too late to stop.
At last she was ready. Minawë poured the full might of her magic into the kelp, and it erupted up the junk’s sides. It climbed onto the masts and rigging and ripped them all down. The ship was crippled.
But that wasn’t good enough. The junks could be repaired. The only way to ensure they didn’t travel to Lodia was to sink them.
That proved a harder task. The ship’s thick hull resisted compression, and the kelp lacked sharp edges or thorns to cut with.
Even so, Minawë wouldn’t give up. This was their only chance to stop Melwar before he set off for war. She was the only one who could do this.
Sweat poured off her, but finally the kelp broke through the hull. A sickening crunch reached Minawë over the ocean’s waves. She gulped. It wasn’t just that the sound would alert the Maantecs to what she was doing. It was also the realization that she’d just cast a thousand men into the sea.
She released her spell on the kelp; the vessel was doomed now. Minawë could see it sinking, see the dots leaping off it as the crew tried to save themselves. Most would swim to shore and live, but any soldiers in armor would sink along with their ship.
Minawë put both hands on the beach and panted. She hadn’t expected destroying one ship to be so draining. She had no idea how she was going to take down eleven more.
There was no time to worry about it. The Maantecs on the remaining ships were running about the decks. They knew they were under attack now.
Let them worry. Maybe it would make them second-guess launching a war that would inflict the same fear.
* * *
Today should have been Shogun Katashi Melwar’s moment of glory. Instead he had to listen to the sound he abhorred most: chaos.
His soldiers ran about the Shadeen’s deck, pointing and shouting. Even as the Mountain Wind finished sinking, new tangles of kelp wrapped themselves around the Abyss.
Melwar took it in without emotion. This had been Rondel’s plan all along. Melwar had thought she had attacked Iren to satisfy Okthora’s Law, but Iren had just been a fortunate means to create a diversion.
That left Melwar two choices. He could stay and root out the Forest Dragon Knight, or he could order his fleet to withdraw prematurely. Most of the soldiers were already on board, but some of the supplies still had to be loaded
.
He scanned the beach with his spyglass, but he could not spot the Kodama. There were piles of driftwood she could hide behind, and numerous dunes as well.
“Shogun?” Hana asked. “What are your orders?”
Melwar frowned. If he left now, the Forest Dragon Knight would have time to claim at least two more ships before they rowed out of her reach. If he stayed and searched for her though, she would have time to destroy even more.
That made the difference. The supplies they already had should last until Lodia. More to the point, even if he found and killed Iren, Rondel, and the Forest Dragon Knight, those victories would be meaningless if he lost his fleet.
“Retreat,” Melwar commanded. “Pull the fleet away from the kelp beds. Get us into deep water and moving north. We head for Lodia.”
He could tell Hana wanted to question him. She wanted to stay and butcher the Kodama who had proven herself so dangerous.
In the end Hana’s loyalty won out. She ran to the ship’s helmsman and gave the command to withdraw. The helmsman changed course, and the sailor in the crow’s nest signaled with flags for the other ships to do the same.
As they retreated, Melwar put his spyglass back on Rondel. She had been so strong and beautiful once. It was hard to look at her now, at this frail remnant the loss of her biological magic had made her. Iren fought more or less evenly with her. Had he seen her in her prime, the boy never would have challenged her.
But then, Iren himself was a remnant, a half-human bastard who could never hope to measure up to his full-blooded father. To think Melwar had once considered the man vital to his plan to restore the Maantecs. To think he had once considered Rondel beyond his abilities. Now the pair were nothing more than a distraction.
Melwar lowered his spyglass. There was no point in watching any longer. Those two had cost him enough. Today’s losses were his fault. He had let them divert his attention. The only thing worthy of his focus now was the war.
The Flames of Dragons Page 16