“Yergwain is an inflexible idiot,” Leno snorted. “He nearly threw me out of our family household when he found out I was learning magic, claiming it wasn’t something a ‘nobleman’ should bother with. If it weren’t for the fact that my father intervened on my behalf, he would have.”
“You are a remarkable girl, you are,” Wangdu noted. “I would not have known to act as you did, I wouldn’t. But I suspected you were blind, I did – your behavior on the ship gave you away, it did.”
“I already knew,” Tur’Ba said, coming closer to the bunch. “I noticed it a long time ago, back when we were in Nir’Thik.”
“You did?” Euleilla gasped, astonished. “How?”
“During the riot, your hair flipped up once. I saw your eyes. Or what’s left of them, that is.”
Euleilla didn’t say anything for a moment. She really had nothing to say in response to that. Leaving them all in silence seemed inadequate... but she had no idea what to say.
Leno, however, was horrified. “My god... what’s left of them? I thought you meant you were born blind – what happened to you?”
Euleilla shuddered slightly. “It’s... a bit of a long story, and one I am not comfortable telling. Maelgyn knows, of course, as does gramps. Ask one of them to tell you – I don’t ever want to relive that again.”
They moved the conversation to other, more pleasant things, and chatted for some time while they continued down the path towards the village Euleilla had sensed. If, perhaps, the pace was a little more sympathetic to Euleilla’s needs, no-one said anything.
Stopping to check on something, she frowned. “Someone’s coming down this path from the village.”
“One person, or more than one?” Sir Leno asked.
“At this distance, it’s hard to say,” Euleilla admitted. “But I think it’s only one. It could be two or three if they’re gathered close together. I’ll be able to tell you with more certainty the closer we get.”
“One is good, it is,” Wangdu said. “We’re looking for one, we are.”
“Every day, a ‘guide’ is supposed to leave from the village and wait for us,” Sir Leno explained. “He’s supposed to be alone, and he’s supposed to wait three hours, but the less time he is exposed the better. How far away is he?”
“About a mile,” Euleilla answered after a few seconds of study.
“A mile in three hours, huh? I think we can manage that,” one of the two crewmen of the Greyholden who she didn’t know said.
“If we ran,” Tur’Ba pointed out hesitantly, “We’d probably be there in under ten minutes.”
Euleilla sighed. She’d just been getting used to a pace which allowed her to avoid the natural hazards of her hike, but if it was important enough she could manage it. “I suppose I could manage the run. The faster we move, however, the less reliable my special senses can be.” Some of the others, in particular Leno and the sailors, also looked frustrated, but they recognized the need to move swiftly.
“I hate endurance runs, but if it’s just a mile that’s practically a sprint for me,” Sir Leno said. Euleilla might have almost thought he was bragging, but that didn’t seem to fit with the man she was coming to know. “I had to train like that in full plate armor, which is much heavier than this light leather gear we’re wearing today. I’ll make it easy.”
“I am an Elf, I am,” Wangdu proclaimed proudly. “We do not tire from such a simple thing as running, we don’t.”
“Er, hey, wait,” one of the two Greyholden sailors intervened. “We’re navy, not army – we aren’t used to such things as long hikes over rough terrain and the like. Running across this? Well... uh... we’re not likely to manage it that well.”
Euleilla sighed. It was her turn to lead, it seemed. “I’m not likely to ‘manage it that well,’ either, but I’m going to run anyway. So, are you coming or not?”
With that, she shrank the sphere of her ‘sight’ down to just over a mile, collected the magic that freed up to enhance her muscles and skin, and started running down the path. She noticed that, while she was the first to leave, Tur’Ba, Wangdu, and Sir Leno (also enhancing himself with magic) quickly caught up with her. The two seamen, in the end, were running as well... although they were exerting themselves far more and were lagging behind quite a bit. She and the others slowed their pace slightly – though not by much – to allow them to stay in sight, but other than that spared them no mercy.
Even at the slower pace, it only took them about eight minutes before Sir Leno caught sight of the person they were looking for. The sailors were gasping for breath quite loudly, but could still safely hide with the others while Leno investigated the messenger.
Leno approached the man casually (after she had confirmed for him that it really was just one person) and began a seemingly innocent conversation about the weather. This was why Wangdu, the only person who really knew all the details behind the planned meeting, needed to pawn the mission off to Sir Leno – Maelgyn was too important to risk, and any Dwarves and Elves would be unable to hold such a casual conversation with someone if it were, in fact, the wrong man.
After a few moments of conversation, Leno waved to the rest of them. Evidently, the right things had been said and it was time for them to meet. Euleilla stepped forward, but as she did she began to get a great sense of danger. She checked around, and found no-one else was present – the sense of danger her schlipf was sending to her emanated from the stranger.
What’s wrong? Euleilla thought to her.
I don’t know, the schlipf replied. All I know is that there is something really wrong with that man – and I don’t know what. I don’t think he’s going to strike just yet, whatever the problem is, but stay cautious and ready to act.
I will, she answered. This is what you sense when he isn’t even going to strike? It’s almost overwhelming!
My apologies. I’ll try to dull the sensations a bit – otherwise, the warning of an impending attack could disable you before he strikes.
Thank you, she thought to her schlipf.
Slowly, and carefully remaining out of the stranger’s reach, she followed Wangdu and the others up to meet their contact. The man seemed to be breathing rather heavily – heavier than even the two sailors who had exhausted themselves running to the meeting site – but from his magical aura she could tell he was still quite strong.
“Come on,” the stranger wheezed. “Things should be clear, now, but we’ve only got a few minutes to get to Iggleton before people start setting up shop in the market and it gets too crowded to be safe. If we take too long, we’ll have to wait until nightfall.”
“We’ll make it,” Sir Leno said. “Especially if we run.” Even the stalwart Tur’Ba joined in the groans at the suggestion of yet more running, but beyond the grumbles no-one protested.
Euleilla hated running – it really disoriented her – but she managed it the whole way with little more than a few scratches and bruises from being whipped by twigs and branches. They made it to the clearing in which Iggleton had been built and saw the village was, indeed, clear of pedestrians. Her schlipf, however, gave her the feeling she was being watched – something she would mention once they were under cover again.
Even more breathless than before, the contact gestured to one of the houses nearest the forest. “Come on – the Baron’s inside.”
Moving as rapidly as possible, Euleilla and the six men silently crossed the empty ground to the small house, and disappeared inside. When they entered the building, the contact quickly ushered them into a back room where Baron Uwelain stood waiting.
“Good to see you all, here,” the Baron began. “I’ve got great news.”
“Really?” Leno answered, sounding surprised.
“Yes. It seems our plans are going forward sooner than expected. Bailack, there, was a great help,” Uwelain explained.
“I see,” Leno said, and suddenly Euleilla’s sense of danger flared – not from the man she now knew was named Bailack, but from
Wangdu and Sir Leno. It only took her a split second to recognize, however, that she was not the one endangered.
With an explosion of magically enhanced strength, Leno sent a breath-stealing blow to Bailack’s body. A muffled crack came from the wheezing man’s chest, and he fell hard. With a quick motion, Wangdu’s Elven lance was directed at the man’s throat.
“Don’t even try to scream, do not, unless you want my spear buried in your brain,” the Elf warned dangerously.
Bailack coughed up some blood, and nodded slowly. “Okay.”
“What’s going on?” Tur’Ba asked, his voice shaking. The two sailors seemed quite distressed as well, but Euleilla had a funny feeling she knew what was going on.
That was confirmed a moment later when Uwelain stepped forward. “Someone gag him, fast – we can’t afford to spend all of our time making sure this spy stays quiet. We probably should just kill him and be done with it, but there’s some hope he could be used as a bargaining chip.”
“He’s a spy, then?” Euleilla mused. “That would explain the aura I was getting from him. I also noticed that we were being watched on our way in, but I couldn’t say anything at the time without giving my discovery away.”
“What’s it like outside?” Leno asked, ripping a piece of cloth.
“Let me check,” she said, concentrating her senses on looking outside of the walls which enclosed them. “Uh oh.”
“Uh oh?” Leno asked with a huff as he gagged Bailack.
“Small groups of people are moving to surround the house. Most of them have swords and knives, a few appear to have spearpoints or arrowheads on them. Everything is of a quality you would expect for professional soldiers.”
Uwelain nodded. “A few days ago, ‘King’ Paljor’s men discovered that I was planning to help Sviedan Royalty reclaim the islands. They learned of my initial contact plans, and imprisoned me in this house to set a trap for you. I’d estimate about eighty to a hundred soldiers are waiting in the surrounding households, ready to attack us. Bailack may be of some use as leverage, but I fear we’ll have to surrender anyway.”
“I am not sure I agree with that assessment, I’m not,” Wangdu said, a confident smirk in his voice. “Sir Leno is a Second Class mage, he is. The Lady, here, is a First Class, she is. I am an Elf, I am. You and these two sailors are not half-bad when it comes to hand-to-hand combat, you aren’t. And Tur’Ba, here, could be called a Dwarven Axeman, he could.”
“A Dwarven Axeman?” Uwelain repeated doubtfully. “I find that hard to believe. But the rest of that sounds impressive. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a few mages on their side, too, though.”
“One,” Euleilla said, checking the nearby Borden Islanders carefully. “Not powerful – maybe Third Class, at best. He’ll be a bit of a problem, but nothing we can’t handle.” She paused, hearing her schlipf tell her something new. “There’s something which concerns me a bit more, however. Several of them have torches.”
“They’re going to burn us out!” Uwelain growled. “I figured we only had three options – surrender, fight, or die. Well, they aren’t offering to let us surrender, so it looks like we’re down to two. And I don’t particularly want to die.”
Euleilla sighed, pulling in her magic to prepare for the fight. “We’ve got a few minutes before they’re in position to spring their trap. I should rest before I do anything – I’ve been steadily draining myself of magic for the past two days straight, trying to keep us from being seen. I suspect the rest of you need a few moments of rest, as well, given all the running it took for us to get here.”
Tur’Ba coughed. “I don’t understand any of this. Maybe, while we’re resting up, you could explain to me just how it is you knew Bailack, here, was a spy?”
“Code words,” Sir Leno explained. “Always remember to plan for as many contingencies as you can foresee – and for those you can’t. Uwelain set up a series of code words and phrases to mean certain things.”
“I almost didn’t use them,” Uwelain explained. “I don’t know who you are... Sir Leno, is it? But I recognized the Elf and the Lady, and figured if they were with you I was speaking to the right people. But where is his highness?”
“Running a separate mission elsewhere on the island, by now – I’m not exactly sure where. I wasn’t at the meetings.”
Uwelain clucked. “If we survive this battle I’m going to need to get in touch with him. He is now the only chance of reunifying Borden and Svieda.” He stepped over to Euleilla and bowed quickly before continuing. “Lady Euleilla, your safety is our top priority. We could win public support if you and Maelgyn present your marriage to my people. Yours is the first of a commoner to a royal since the time of Sword Princess Ivari and her husband, Laimoth. The evidence we have uncovered about Sho’Curlas’ complicity in our rebellion might be enough of a tool to get the nobility to decide a return to Sviedan rule is preferable to what we have now. Sword ‘King’ Paljor has greatly disaffected the ruling nobility, and now there are many among us who have been looking for some way to break his power. We believe there might be enough for the Lords to replace him with Sviedan rule if the civilian Senate showed there was popular support, but you must survive for that to happen. If I fall, your highness, then—”
A loud crash and an explosion interrupted him. “Rest time is over,” Sir Leno sighed. “We have to break out of here and cut through their line back to the forest. Then we run to safety.”
“I will take the vanguard position, I will,” Wangdu declared. “I have certain Elven skills which may be useful in that role, I have.”
“Good,” Sir Leno said. “Tur’Ba, I want you to stay at her highness’ side and keep her safe. She’s powerful with magic, and from what I’ve been told can handle herself well with hand-to-hand, but given how much intense magic can exhaust a person she may need periodic rest and recovery periods. I’ll cover the rear. Uwelain, bring the prisoner. Forge, Mogs, protect the flanks. Milady, we’re going to be protecting you so that you can unleash whatever magic you have – but don’t hesitate to rest if you need a moment to recover. The rest of us should be able to hold them off for a while. It will be much worse if you strain yourself to where you’re left defenseless.”
“Thank you, Sir Leno,” Euleilla said, taking her position in their impromptu formation. She wasn’t sure she liked being so far out of the action, but then again she was at a disadvantage at close range despite her skill with the quarterstaff.
With their small party organized, the counter-attack began when Wangdu blew out a wall so that they could ambush the ambush around the door.
Once out of the building, Wangdu continued to lead the counter-attack, using his Elven magic to call forth a growth of vines that surrounded the house. With a great tearing sound, the vines dug into the wall, crushing it and throwing the remaining pieces from the house
“Quickly!” he urged. “The roof cannot hold for long without the wall’s support, it cannot!”
They made it about fifty paces before they were swarmed by the attacking soldiers. Euleilla and Leno shielded the others from enemy weapons as best they could with their magic, while Wangdu, Forge, and Mogs attacked.
“Fools!” the person Euleilla recognized as the attackers’ mage declared. “What do you hope to accomplish against all of us? Do you actually think you can escape? I am a mage, and can make each of our soldiers as strong as any ten of you! You are nothing against me!”
“So, a First Class mage is nothing against you?” she replied, sending a blast of magic his way using the mage dueling skills Maelgyn had taught her.
“Er, First Class?”
“And an Elf, perhaps?” came the call from Wangdu, who grew vines to secure the attacking mage in place.
“While not as powerful as her ladyship,” Sir Leno declared, launching his own magical attack. “I also have some skill in the art of magic, myself, and would formally be rated Second Class.”
Their three-pronged attack literally crushed the
opposing mage, killing him instantly. Their lone mage gone, the other attackers faltered briefly before redoubling their efforts.
Sir Leno’s group had gained the advantage, but Euleilla feared her strike on the mage had tired her prematurely. When she rested, things would be tough for them and she knew it. Still, she knew enough of combat to obey her orders, so when she started to feel herself tire she knew what she had to do.
“My magical defenses are going to collapse in a moment, Tur’Ba,” she warned. “Prepare yourself.”
“Right,” the Dwarf said, clutching his axe tighter and bringing it to a more defensive position. “I’m ready.”
With a sigh, Euleilla withdrew her magic to the tightest circle she could. Her schlipf senses were so full of dangers that they were useless except for detecting immediate, direct attacks on her person. What little magic she was still expending told her that Leno was still providing enough of a shield to prevent archers from shooting arrows at her, but hand-held weapons were still getting through. However, beyond the sounds of the battle, she couldn’t tell what was going on around her.
At one point, someone came close enough that even her withdrawn senses could detect him. She blocked a sword strike with her staff, but her planned counterattack was rendered moot when an axe swung in and nearly chopped the swordsman in half. Blood and other visceral matter splattered on her, but she knew better than to react. It was, she supposed, the first time she was in a battle close enough to feel the blood spill on her as she fought instead of in the aftermath, but she’d dealt with worse.
By the time she had regained her powers enough to return to the battle, it was almost over. To her amazement, there appeared to be a wall of bodies around her. The only loss they had taken was Forge – though she wasn’t even sure of his fate, since she couldn’t seem to find him alive or dead.
On the other hand, the small remainder of the soldiers who had been attacking them were routed and fleeing. Euleilla hesitated.
“Is it over?” she asked.
“For now,” Uwelain answered. “We need to get out of here, though – I don’t know if they have any forces in reserve, and if so how soon they can regroup.”
In Treachery Forged (The Law of Swords) Page 34