by Joe Jackson
A couple of younger hands ran to the farmhouse when the band of winged strangers turned up the road toward it. By the time Kari and her friends reached the house, Captain Machall and his family had emerged to watch the arrivals. Even before Kari stopped her horse mere yards from the landowner and dismounted, he was laughing heartily and gesturing for his family and employees to be at ease. Once Kari dismounted and set Little Gray down safely, Captain Machall approached.
Lawrence looked much like Kari remembered him. His skin was a light brown but he had green eyes, which seemed to be uncommon among humans of his skin tone. His hair was shaved down short with a bald spot on the top that suggested he wore hats – or helmets – far too often. His face was wide and cheery, almost set into a permanent smile, something Kari recalled him having to work to “correct” when acting as a captain under her. His features were accented by a short but well-tended beard and mustache that framed his face nicely, and made his smile seem so much more fluid and friendly.
“Colonel!” he said formally, snapping Kari a military salute when they stood almost face to face.
“Oh, knock that off,” Kari returned. She reached for a hug and the human embraced her tightly, patting her back. When they split apart, Kari laid her hand on his shoulder and met his eyes evenly. “You look great. It’s so good to see you again.”
“I look great?” Lawrence echoed. “Sweet Jesus, Kari, if I didn’t know better, I’d think you looked younger than the last time I saw you.” He turned and beckoned the woman and two young men on the front porch to come down. “This is my wife Gwerine, and these are my sons, Darius and Jamal.”
“So this is the woman you never shut up about?” his wife asked teasingly. Gwerine looked one part warrior woman, one part lady of the house, one part no-nonsense mother. She had fair features and long hair bunched into a tail. Her skin was of a lighter tone than her husband’s, but she had the dark eyes that were more common to their kin. Her smile looked almost out of place on her features, but it was warm and genuine nonetheless.
“Karian Vanador, Hand of Zalkar, by his grace,” Kari said, shaking the woman’s hand. She shook with Darius and Jamal as well when they came up and introduced themselves politely. They were in their late teens, and each looked like a combination of the best of their parents’ features. Kari hefted up Little Gray and sat him on her hip. “This is my son, Grakin junior.”
“Haha, you had a kid!” Lawrence exclaimed, and though Little Gray didn’t understand what was being said, he high-fived the captain without delay. “Who’s the lucky man?”
Grakin came forward and introduced himself. He was walking stiffly after being in the saddle for so long; he clearly wasn’t a rider, and Kari wasn’t sure if he’d ever been on a horse before this trip. He shook hands graciously with Lawrence, and Kari’s friend congratulated her mate on his “fine catch.” Grakin took the comment well in stride; Lawrence had a personality that was very open and honest, but that some people didn’t take to well. Sometimes being too forward and speaking his mind got under peoples’ skin. Kari figured that was their problem.
“Oh my God, is that…is that a syrinthian?” Lawrence asked when Se’sasha stepped down out of the carriage.
“Yes, but don’t be alarmed; she’s an ally,” Kari said, putting a hand back on her friend’s shoulder to keep him from getting worked up. “She’s a part of the reason I came to see you.”
“Well, let’s not all stand out on the walk gawking at each other,” Gwerine said after a minute. “Come on inside, rest your legs and have a drink. We can put you up for the night, but you’ll have to stay up in the hay loft in the barn. The house is a bit crowded these days with two teenaged boys.”
Kari chuckled. The rest of her companions came forward and she introduced everyone by name to her friend. Se’sasha was the last to come forward, and Kari introduced her by her full name. Lawrence didn’t seem intent on shaking hands or hugging the priestess, but he soon declared that if Kari trusted her, he would too. He gestured for Kari and her friends to follow and led them all inside.
The inside was cramped but efficient, and Kari could tell even from the ground floor that there would be little room upstairs for visitors. Every chair and stool and crate in the immediate area was brought around the supper table so everyone could have a seat. Kari sat beside Grakin with their son on her lap, and across from her sat Gwerine with Lawrence standing beside her. Kari’s friends waited for her to start the conversation back up, but amusingly enough, it was Jamal who spoke first.
“Our dad says you killed fifteen demons single-handedly taking Atrice during the War,” he said. “Is that true? Dad says you were the best fighter they had in the whole brigade, even better than the Warlord himself.”
Knowing smiles sprouted on all the faces around the table, and Kari chuckled. “I’m not really sure,” she answered. “I was busy fighting while your father was keeping a tally of how many things I killed, I guess.” Lawrence stood up straight and folded his arms across his chest, which only made everyone laugh. “I’m kidding. Your father was the best captain I had under my command. With him and his men following me, we were able to hold off what seemed like an entire battalion of the serilis-rir as a diversion at the south road.”
“Serilis-rir, right,” Lawrence said. “Guess we don’t call them demons anymore. So, not that I’m not happy to see you again, my friend, but what brings you down this way? You say it has something to do with this snake-girl?”
Se’sasha gave the captain a strange look. Kari wondered if the priestess had understood the words snake-girl even across the language barrier. Kari said, “As part of the plan that set her free, I promised that sword you’re holding to someone. That’s what I had to come here for. I hope you still have it.”
Lawrence nodded and patted Darius on the shoulder. “Go get that forbidden sword out of the cellar, will you? The one I always tell you boys not to touch.” He turned back to Kari once his son ran downstairs to do as he was told. “I’ve kept it hidden just like you asked. Never even let my boys take it out of the scabbard I got for it. Always seemed a bit of a shame to let such a fine weapon go to waste, but…”
“But you don’t want to wield the sword that killed some of our friends and heroes,” Kari finished with a nod. She could see her companions were interested to know what she was talking about, but she and Lawrence kept quiet until Darius returned with the scabbarded katana. Once she held it in her hands, Kari slid it out of the scabbard just enough to see the marking at the base of the blade, near the crossbar. It was the same marking her own swords carried: the symbol that marked it as a weapon crafted by Terx, the harmauth smith who served the celestials.
“So that’s one of Taesenus’ swords,” Aeligos commented, and the mood around the table grew much more somber at those words. It was clear from the many faces that not one person there – with the exception of Se’sasha, of course – was ignorant to the significance of the name or the weapon. Dozens of heroes and champions of the Light Forces during the Apocalypse had been killed and decapitated by the sword Kari now held in her hands. Even the death of its owner didn’t soften the weight of the blow that such knowledge brought.
Kari nodded. “I took it from his lifeless arm after I cut it off of him in battle,” she said. She sat back with a sigh and bounced Little Gray on her thigh so he wouldn’t get antsy over a conversation he couldn’t understand. “By the time he came after me, he’d already killed so many of our champions and heroes: Torrie Cantabler, Ellen Morrigan, Avatar Jason Bosimar, Troy Terkani, William Wagner…the list goes on and on. All told, I think he was said to have killed over a hundred champions in single combat. You have to figure this sword is responsible for a lot of that.”
“How did you beat him?” Eli asked. “I’d heard he was nearly unbeatable in combat, and that only Kaelariel had finally bested him near the War’s end.”
Kari shrugged. “Suler Tumureldi was a very particular teacher. His first rule of combat was simple: �
��defense prevents defeat; if you cannot be defeated, there can be only one outcome.’ Taesenus was a phenomenal swordsman, but even though he was vicious, he was predictable. He enjoyed cutting off peoples’ heads in combat, not after, so I knew what to expect from him when he came after me. So I toyed with him…the man had a temper like you wouldn’t believe. After heckling him for several minutes, he got reckless, and I cut his arm off with a fairly simple riposte. People always expect that I’m going to describe this fantastic fight with lunges and jumping swings and whatever else. It wasn’t like that. We were both consummate professionals when it came to swordplay, and our duel was fairly neat and clean. He made a mistake, and I took advantage of that and sent him fleeing. That’s all.”
“I can’t believe you just used consummate in a sentence,” Ty joked, and though it drew annoyed glances from Sonja and Aeligos, Kari started laughing.
“I guess I did,” she said. “And judging by your look, I guess I even used it right.”
“Did you kill Sekassus’ son in similar fashion?” Eli asked. Lawrence and his family looked at the half-corlyps curiously for a few moments, but then his words made them turn their attention back to Kari.
“More or less,” Kari said with another shrug. “He had a worse temper than Taesenus did. Every time I attacked him, I was really just baiting him into attacking me and, hopefully, making a mistake. I had to toy with him and make sure he knew it. The more frustrated you get in battle, the dumber you get. You remember that well, don’t you, Lawrence?”
Lawrence nodded. “That’s why the Warlord was such a successful leader: he always kept a level head, even when our brigade was ambushed, cut off, outnumbered, whatever the case may have been. If I may say so, he picked a great chain of command, and that’s what kept so many of us alive throughout the War.” Kari nodded. “So what’re you going to actually do with this sword now?”
“Don’t ask,” Kari said simply and quietly. “I’ve been assured it’s going to someone who wants it as a curiosity, not someone who intends to use it. I don’t like it, but that’s the bargain I made, and I have to trust it.”
Everyone went quiet, so Gwerine stood up and clapped her hands together. “Well, who’s hungry?” she asked, which roused everyone’s spirits. “How about we cook up some supper, and maybe you and Lawrence can tell us about some of your victories during the War?”
Kari was agreeable to that. Grakin helped Gwerine prepare the meal, and Lawrence showed Kari and her companions around the orchards a bit. He explained that life had been quiet and calm since his return from the War, something he was thankful to his God for. His wife and sons had managed to stay sheltered in Lajere through the darker years of the conflict, and the farm had been in good condition when they all returned. Things were profitable and he was living happily and comfortably, which he said was all he ever really wanted. Kari took his words in with a smile, wondering if she might find the same peace on the estate she had been given by the Duke.
Dinner was delicious and filling, and a nice break from the road rations Kari and her companions had been eating during their trip. Kari and Lawrence went back and forth trading their perspectives on several key battles during the War, but the one point both of them always agreed on was the brilliance of the Warlord, Kris Jir’tana. The brigadier general was more often called the Warlord, something Lawrence adhered to more than Kari. Their tales of his tactical brilliance impressed even Aeligos, who Kari knew had a keen tactical mind despite his lack of real experience in large-scale battles.
While most of them prepared the hay loft to be used for sleeping quarters, Aeligos and Typhonix went into town and sold off the horses and the carriage. As Aeligos expected, he was able to get a fair resale price on them, since horses were always in demand and the carriage was in good condition. They wouldn’t need the beasts or the carriage going forward: Sonja assured Kari that she could transport them to Atrice, which was the closest place she’d been to Se’ceria’s mysterious valley.
The farewell from Lawrence and his family the next morning was warm, and the captain and Kari exchanged promises to see each other when opportunities presented themselves. Kari did get one other thing from her talks with Lawrence: he gave her the names of several master tradesmen and exporters with whom he worked or sold his harvests to on the wholesale market. Kari was glad to have some clue who to speak to when she took over her estate, and Typhonix had also taken an interest in Kari’s affairs as a landowner.
Sonja took her companions to the clear area before the Machall farmhouse, and Kari was glad to see the confidence in her sister-in-law. After a final farewell, Sonja cast forth her arcane power, and it felt to Kari like she was suddenly grabbed and yanked sideways through a tunnel of wind. When her mind could focus again, Kari found herself and her friends on the road just east of Atrice.
*****
Atrice was a beautiful city. Liberated early in the War, Earl Jacob Morrigan had wasted no time rebuilding and fortifying his city. Where once it had been open and free to expand to its citizens’ desires, it now had a high wall and gates. Despite this militant addition, it was still one of the most picturesque cities on Askies Island, bordered on one side by the majestic peaks of the northern Barrier Mountains, and on a second side by the endless expanse of the Sandur Jungle. Its eastern face, by comparison, looked out over the broad plains of the northern heartlands. To the north was Dryad’s Lake and its waterfall, long a sight that tourists and adventurers alike went to see.
Kari wondered how many members of her Order had been sent to investigate the lake and its reported ability to capture souls. It brought Kari’s mind back to what Amastri had said about her master not being a collector of souls, and Kari realized it was a subject she honestly was rather ignorant about. She knew about possession, and she believed that people had souls that were drawn to their deity’s realms when they passed. Whether or not sorcerers or demons or demon kings could steal those souls and hold them prisoner, she wasn’t sure. She certainly hoped it wasn’t so, and from Amastri’s words, it seemed the part-elven woman felt the same.
Her belly gurgled, and Kari put her hand to it, concerned. She wasn’t sure what sort of effects, if any, using arcane transportation had on an unborn child. The others showed concern, but her stomach settled after a minute and she assured them everything was fine. Grakin came and touched the armor over her belly, and she fell lightly and happily into his embrace. She was just starting to really show, and it wouldn’t be much longer before her armor would be too tight. She could loosen the straps to accommodate a larger belly, but it would widen the seams on the sides and, she mused, she shouldn’t really be out adventuring when she was showing that much.
The group headed toward the city along with some light traffic coming in from the distant heartland farms or from other cities. The large, mixed group of rir and serilian-rir didn’t really attract that much attention, but people stopped or gave a wide berth when they saw Se’sasha. The syrinthian priestess was mindful of their fearful or distrustful glances, but she kept her attention on the road ahead and stayed close to Kari. Kari touched Se’sasha’s shoulder lightly, and the syrinthian girl looked up and tried to manage a smile.
The guards overseeing traffic at the gate watched Se’sasha with wary-eyed stares, but the humans did nothing to impede the group’s progress when they saw Kari’s dog tags. Once inside the gates, the group was assailed by the sights, sounds, and smells of a populous and busy city. Atrice wasn’t just a farming town: it was also a logging community, it had mines in the western mountains, and it was a stopping point for caravans coming through the mountain passes from the west coast. Humans, rir, and even the occasional elf filled the streets, though the elves were of the darker variety. Unlike their fair-skinned cousins of Laeranore, these were of darker skin tones that resembled the bark of the ancient trees they lived among.
Kari didn’t know much about the dark elves other than that they were as xenophobic as the elves of Laeranore. They preferred to
live among their own kind, though occasionally they did appear in the towns near the mountains. Despite their reputation, they weren’t a marauding or hostile race, but they got antsy and had a tendency to go to war when people encroached on their lands. The ones here in Atrice didn’t look friendly, but they also didn’t appear to be troublesome. At least until one of them saw Se’sasha.
The dark elf didn’t attack, but he put his hand to his hilt and yelled at Se’sasha in the elven tongue. The dialect and accent were a little different than the one Kari knew, but she could understand what he said well enough: the snakes shall not return to the summer valley. Kari got between the elf and Se’sasha and held her hand up for calm. Before she could speak a word, a couple of human watchmen jogged over and demanded to know what was going on.
Kari introduced herself to the guards by name and rank, and after only the slightest delay of surprise, they saluted her respectfully. “I think our elven friend here was just a little surprised to see a syrinthian,” Kari explained, and only then did the guards fix their own suspicious gazes on the snake-woman. “She is under my authority and protection, and we’re just passing through. We want no trouble, not with your city or with the elf or his people.”
“The snakes shall not return to the summer valley,” the elf warned again, in the common trade tongue this time.
“I wonder if he’s one of the ones that attacked us when we found Se’ceria,” Eli mused, putting his hand menacingly on the head of his hammer. The gesture drew warning glances from the guards, but the half-corlyps didn’t back down.