by Dan Decker
Helam’s habit of keeping guards had started five years ago, right after the tournament in which Adar had bested the man. Helam had only kept two guards back then. Adar wondered what had happened to make him want to keep more. Perhaps Helam's strength was beginning to fail him and he needed the additional support.
It was disappointing to Adar that he had been delayed and unable to meet up with Semal before Helam arrived. Semal wasn’t going to be pleased with Adar for bringing Helam to breathe down their necks and it was unlikely that Adar would even make it into the archives now.
Nelion went to push her way into the building, but one of the guards moved into her path and held out his hand. The man was taller than her and even had a few inches on Adar. The sneer on his face deepened when he looked at Adar. It was replaced with a failed attempt at an ingratiating smile when he noticed the triple swords on Adar’s collar.
“Turn back,” the guard said to Nelion. “You’re not allowed in.” He faced Adar. “General Adar, I presume. We've been notified of your presence and General Morgol wanted me to inform you that we have the situation under control.” There was a pause where the man should have inserted a “sir” but it passed while the guard gave Adar a condescending look. Adar wasn’t able to keep the scowl off his face.
“If it’s under control, why did we get attacked?” Adar motioned back to the alleyway. “There’s a female body back there. Send some men to fetch it. We need to get her identified.”
“A girl gave you that cut?” The guard was sneering again, looking at scratch on Adar’s arm. Melyah! Adar had been so preoccupied he hadn’t even noticed it.
“That’s an order, soldier.” Adar folded his arms and stared the man down. The woman hadn’t even come close to touching Adar because she’d never had the chance, but he didn’t feel the need to explain that to this idiot. “Do you use that insolent tone with all your superior officers?”
The guard grimaced, leaving Adar’s question unanswered, and after a few tense seconds motioned to the other guard who took off at a run.
“Could you let the general know I’m here?” Adar asked, trying to keep the anger from showing in his voice. He only half succeeded and came off more gruff and clipped than he intended.
“He asked to not be disturbed.”
“That was an order,” Adar snapped and wished that he didn’t. A Radim soldier from any army was duty bound to honor the order of a superior officer, but like so many things in Rarbon, it wasn’t what it once was.
The man before him had the look of someone that Adar would rather hang than give orders too. It was a risky thing to give an order if he didn’t think it was going to be followed. He was faced with enforcing it, punishing the offender, or letting it go. None of those were good options when the soldier didn’t report to him. He was spared the trouble of deciding how to respond to the disobedience when the door of the archives opened and Semal stepped out, followed by Helam and several more guards.
When they’d first met several years ago, Adar had been surprised to learn that Semal was in his early fifties. On appearance alone, Adar would have pegged him as being on the upward side of sixty. All the time he spent indoors with his nose in a book or scrunched over a scroll hadn’t been good for him. Semal’s grey hair was lit by the moonlight and it gave him a surreal glow. His wrinkled face was normally pale but now, it was red and he was breathing in huge gulps.
“If you hide what happened,” Semal said, “there will be consequences when it comes out that the Kopal are back and you had advance warning. The people have a right to know. Bakker’s death won't have been for nothing if it means the truth comes out.” When Semal mentioned the duty of providing warning, a brief look of anger and contempt crossed Helam's face. It appeared that Semal had touched a nerve with that one.
“Tell your stories to whoever you want,” Helam said, “but you’re making many assumptions merely because I’ve dismissed your wild notions.” Helam was about the same height as Adar and was just past fifty. The sides of his hair were tipped with grey, but for the most part it still held its original black, the top of this head didn't appear to have a hair out of place. “Because of your ordeal tonight, I’ll ignore you’re accusation that I am somehow involved with the Kopal. We’re dealing with a bunch of thieves, nothing more. I’m also going to overlook the fact that you were caught breaking into the archives.”
“I have a right to be in there. The archives are open to the public.”
“True,” Helam said dryly, “but most come during the daytime, when it’s open.” Semal didn’t have an answer for that, or at least not one that he was willing to say aloud, Adar had never known the man to be at a loss for words.
“Gregary,” Helam said, speaking to the guard Adar had been talking to before Semal and Helam had shown up. “Escort Semal to the gate and see that he has a guard to see him back home. We wouldn’t...” He trailed off as his eyes settled onto Adar.
One of the personal bodyguards accompanying Helam approached Adar and stopped several feet away. The man’s arms were about as thick as Adar’s legs and his neck looked like it should have been on an ox or a bull. He was more than a head taller than Adar and had skin dark as the night. His shaven head glistened in the moonlight.
Helam snorted from behind the large man and his words had a sharp sarcastic edge. “Tymy, this isn’t any way to treat an honored and distinguished guest such as General Rahid.” The big man gave Adar a toothy grin that didn’t touch his eyes and a slight bow that was as stiff as it was proud.
Helam walked out in front of Tymy and smiled. When he had first noticed Adar, his eyes had narrowed and his face had been covered with rage, but by the time he’d come forward, he’d taken on a different look altogether. He looked like he was trying for serene and in control but his eyes betrayed the lie.
The scar on the side of Adar’s chest flared with pain and he had to keep his hand from subconsciously touching it. He’d made that mistake in the past and had hated seeing the small gloating look that had danced across Helam’s face.
Although it had been years since the incident, Adar found that it acted up with pain whenever he was around Helam, almost as if it was calling out for the injustice to be righted.
When Adar had bested Helam in the competitive duel, there had been thunderous applause. Later that night when Helam had caught Adar unaware and half drunk, Adar had barely been able to escape with his life.
He had learned several painful lessons that day, the most important of which had been that Helam was a man that would even the score, whatever the price. Another was the cost of being drunk when confronted by an enemy; consequently, Adar had never touched alcohol again.
Now, with Helam standing before him, Adar found that his heart beat faster and he was beginning to growl, it was low and quiet enough that nobody seemed to notice. He took a slow breath as he regarded the man.
His first instinct was to try to goad Helam to anger, but that would have been a mistake, even if he hadn’t been surrounded by Helam’s men on the Paroke army grounds. The Radim armies were Adar’s first focus and he would have to be careful in how he interacted with Helam until Adar had figured out what to do with him. Adar imagined how it must gall Helam that Adar alone could move to the next rank of Rahar while Helam would forever be stuck as a general.
“What are you here for Adar?” Helam asked. “Don’t you trust our investigation skills? I’ll make sure to send you a full report of the incident.” Adar didn’t doubt Helam would, but he was certain that it wouldn’t contain anything of use about what had happened.
“Why would somebody attack Semal?” Adar wondered aloud. “I imagine that it’s the same reason Semal felt like he had to hide what he was doing from you.” Leaving the accusation that Helam was involved with the Kopal all but spoken. Helam didn't blink at the implication nor did he miss a step.
“This is the work of thieves. Not the Kopal. We have vaults with ancient and valuable treasures. It isn’t the first time th
at someone has tried to break in.”
Adar nodded his head as if in agreement, but removed the mask he’d taken off the dead Kopal woman from his pocket and held it up for the others to see. “That doesn’t explain why I just killed a woman trying to attack her.” He nodded his head to Nelion. “This mask hasn’t been seen in Rarbon for sixteen years. There was a man that escaped, though I managed to wound him before he ran.”
“We’ll find him.” Helam frowned. “Where did you wound him?” Was it just his imagination or had there been a slight waver in Helam’s voice as he asked the question?
A thought occurred to Adar about the wounded man. During the heat of the chase, he’d forgotten that the man had been well trained. He was certain he'd faced the man before in tournaments and practice. Was there something distinctive about the way the man fought? Nothing came to mind, but Adar would give it some thought.
That didn’t change the fact that there were only three or four men as skilled as their assailant had been and one of those men was Molach, Helam son.
Had there been enough time for Molach to report to Helam? Adar tried to think how long it had been since he and Nelion had been attacked. Half an hour?
They'd been on the roofs for quite some time. Possibly an hour?
Either way, there had been plenty of time for Molach to meet up with his father.
Adar watched Helam as he spoke. “I cut his side and arm.” A flicker of recognition on Helam's face was followed by a surge of anger. Both emotions disappeared as his face became a mask of calm that didn’t reach his eyes. It took effort for Adar to keep from reaching for his sword or one of the daggers he kept hidden. He wondered if he should have been looking for the father instead of the son, but Helam wasn't favoring his arm or side. While the wound Adar had inflicted on the assailant hadn't been mortal, it had been enough to make it awkward for a man to move. Helam wasn't having a problem getting around.
“Gregary,” Helam said, “have the guards search for a man with those wounds. In the meantime, until we know more, a mask isn’t enough evidence to start the witch-hunts again. I don't need to remind you of the damage those caused.” He looked at his guards and motioned towards Semal.
“You’re forgetting about the corpse,” Adar said. “I tried to take the Kopal woman alive, but she swallowed sycanon root before I could stop her. Sound familiar?”
“You are free to make—” Helam was cut off by the sound of an arrow thunking into Gregary's chest, piercing the guards light armor and causing him to cry out. Prior to being hit by the arrow, he'd still been standing in front of the door. When Helam had pointed at Semal, Gregary had stepped over and right into the arrow's path.
Adar looked back in the direction the arrow had come from and saw a hooded figure on the roof of a building across the street from the archives. When the figure saw that he’d been spotted, he ducked down.
“Evidence enough for you?” Adar growled, his eyes locking onto Helam who had followed the arrow back to its source.
“Bleeding Melyah!” Helam said muttering something else under his breath that Adar didn't pick up. Adar thought he had heard the words boundaries in all that but couldn't have been certain. Helam started barking orders.
Even though the street had been empty moments before, Gregary's scream had drawn a few people. Some came out into the open while others looked through windows. After a glance to ensure that none of them were hooded like the Kopal, Adar turned his attention to the downed guard.
Helam was ordering his remaining men to pull Semal to safety when Tymy picked Helam up and sprinted back into the archives. The last remaining guard pulled Semal in after him.
Gregary was still breathing and Adar judged that the arrow had missed his heart, but he didn't know enough about it to say for sure. Gregary could live if they hurried. Nelion had just disappeared into the archives when Adar called out to her for help.
She poked her head back out and regarded him as if he were crazy. When she didn't move any further, he asked for help with Gregary again and this time got her to come out after she scanned the nearby rooftops. Adar grabbed Gregary by the shoulders while she picked up his feet and together they pulled the guard inside.
The building was dark when they entered, but Tymy had out a flint and was lighting a lantern. The sparks lit his face and gave him a surreal appearance in the dark of the room.
“Send for the doctor,” Nelion said, cutting Adar off as he was about to say the same thing. “Your man isn’t dead.”
The lantern lit with a flare of light and the glow cast the rooms into shadow. Helam stood beside a round table, Semal and the other guard were on the other side.
The guard still had Semal by the arm and Adar couldn't decide if it was a protective action or if he was trying to keep Semal from escaping. Motioning to Nelion with his head, they moved Gregary to the table and set him down.
Helam felt for Gregary's pulse and nodded. “It's strong. Tymy, fetch the doctor and more men.” There was a hesitant pause before he continued. “Find Hanri and tell him I want to be updated immediately with any developments. He’ll know what I mean.”
Tymy had just stood up and put his flint back into a bag that hung from his shoulder. He looked from Helam to Adar and back, as if questioning the order. Helam must have understood what the big man had been about to say because he cut Tymy off as he opened his mouth.
“Run, I'll be fine until you return.”
As Tymy left, Adar made a mental note to learn who Hanri was and how he fit into the structure of Paroke army. The order to find Hanri might be a coincidence but it was probably related to what had just happened. What did Helam want to be updated about? If he wasn’t connected to the Kopal, maybe he’d known of their involvement and for some reason wanted to keep it quiet. Either way, knowing who Hanri was would provide insight into why Helam had thought of him right after Gregary had been shot.
Tymy's departure left the room in silence while they endured the sounds of Gregary's gasps for breath.
Helam turned to his other guard. “Secure this building. Make sure we’re the only ones here.” The guard lit another lantern and left to sweep the rooms.
“Still thinking this is the work of thieves?” Semal asked Helam.
“Kopal or thieves,” Helam said. “Doesn't matter. They're fools for killing one of my guards.”
Adar hid a frown. Was this a setup to try to allay Adar's suspicions about Helam's involvement with the Kopal? If that was the case, it had been put into place and executed quickly. Helam was capable of many things, but did he have the forethought to plan something like this? He would have known that Adar was on base because he'd received the messenger, but it was unlikely he'd have known what Semal was up to, given the way they'd been talking earlier.
Much as Adar hated to admit it, he couldn't make a logical connection between the attack that had just happened and Helam. This might mean that Helam wasn’t connected to the Kopal after all. Helam could be vindictive and was always putting together political schemes, but that didn't mean that he was one of those idiots that believed the Hunwei were bringing salvation.
“Deny it all you want—” Adar began only to have Helam cut him off.
“Melyah!” Helam said. “My guard was just shot and I have several bodies to deal with on top of the panic this will cause, stop trying to force your political—”
“If you can't open your eyes, Helam,” Adar said, “or won't, it will be a small matter for me to convince others of the truth and you'll be taken for a fool. They will know what that mask signifies.”
“If I wanted your advice, I'd ask for it. Do you hear me asking? You don't know the half of what goes on in this city and if you think that you're going to get yourself made Ghar so you can rule, think again. Your ascension would be the worst thing that could happen short of the Hunwei invading. I don't need an idiot like you to tell me how to run my army.”
Adar processed the stream of words as Helam hurled them his way and was sur
prised at the loss of composure. There wasn't anything said that Adar didn't already suspect Helam of believing but having him lose his temper and confirm to the others in the room that he didn’t support Adar was something else. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Adar realized that he should be angry, but he was too shocked. The man that was almost always in control, who had plans and backup plans for those plans had lost his temper again.
While Adar wouldn't mind taking credit for the break in demeanor, he couldn't claim any for the raw edge to Helam's tone. Something else was going on here.
“If I'd thought you'd make a better Ghar than me, I'd happily stand aside and support a new law that would allow you to ascend. I'd even forgive you for what you've done if I thought you were worthy of it, but you're not. You lack the honor and trust required. I will stand in your way every bit as much as you intend to block my own.”
It was the first time that Helam and Adar had traded barbs publicly. In private, on the tournament grounds when nobody was close enough to hear, insults were the way that they talked. That conversation was usually left on the tournament grounds. Helam’s dislike for Adar had been apparent, but he appeared supportive. Until now.
The silence in the room was punctuated by Gregary's grasping hold on life. Several minutes later, when Tymy returned with the doctor and additional men, Helam renewed his order to show Semal and Nelion to the gate and invited Adar to go with them. The order no longer included protection for Semal and Adar couldn’t decide if that was intentional or if Helam had forgotten about it in light of everything else.
Adar took one last look at Helam before he left, Helam’s anger still bubbled at the surface but there was more to it than that. Helam looked like he was in pain, but it hadn’t been caused by Adar or by what had transpired between them today. Something else was indeed going on, but as to what it was, Adar didn't have the foggiest notion.