by Ryk E. Spoor
Tobimar pushed open the window. “Come on. We have to see if we can locate him.”
“Tell Xavier or Kyri?”
“We haven’t got anything to prove our suspicions, yet,” Tobimar said, and jumped lightly to the ground ten feet below. Poplock followed, landing with a thud on Tobimar’s shoulder. “Oof! You’re heavier than you look. Anyway, without proof we’d be getting into an argument that wouldn’t go anywhere.”
At least we don’t have to be subtle, Tobimar thought. Everyone knows we’re back. Poplock was silent on his shoulder, and the walk to Evanwyl proper was ten minutes of quiet worry.
It wasn’t just Rion, either. Searching the temple’s records—which hadn’t been fast or easy—had turned up just enough to confirm that Justiciar’s Retreat was located to the west, several hours’ travel at least, and a vague description of the Retreat itself. But nothing about the defenses or the diversion wards.
Kyri and the others hadn’t had any better luck with the Watchland; if the location of the Retreat was somewhere in his mind, it was buried deep. Toshi was of the opinion that only the right conditions would trigger the memory, and of course they had no idea of what those conditions would be.
And they were running out of time. The research, interrogation, and experimentation had used up two weeks. The five natives of Earth would be leaving soon. Neither Tobimar nor Kyri could argue that their friends’ mission was less urgently vital than their own, not when said mission would be a direct assault on one of the most ancient achievements of the King of All Hells. No, the five would have to leave, and soon.
The familiar sign of the Balanced Meal was visible ahead. “Okay, where do you want to start?” asked Poplock.
He nodded towards the nearer building across from the inn. “Up top. We’ll get a good vantage point of a lot of the city that way.”
“Okay. But what if he’s running off to the Retreat?”
“Then we’ve totally lost him. But I’m pretty sure he hasn’t.”
Poplock’s grip tightened as Tobimar—after a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching—sprinted up the side of the small warehouse. “Not saying you’re wrong, but why?”
The roof was flat and solid, one of the few stone structures in a town made mostly of wood. It was a perfect observing platform, and Tobimar began a swift circle of the perimeter, looking out over Evanwyl in its somewhat disordered tangle of roads and houses and buildings, shading out into farms in the distance.
“He hasn’t been caught yet,” he said, answering the Toad’s question. “The Retreat’s hours away; he’d never get back in reasonable time. So if he’s headed for the Retreat, he’s throwing away all his work in staying with us, for what? A report that we’re still in the area but haven’t found anything? I can’t see that being enough to justify the loss.”
“Can’t argue that, I guess.” Poplock gazed out, large eyes seeming wider in the darkness. Tobimar knew that the Toad’s natural sight was better in the dark than a human’s, but he had his own trick; after so much practice in the last few months, it was just a matter of closing his eyes and focusing for a moment to bring up the High Center.
There was a clarity to the world now; it was dark, but at the same time it was as bright as day to the senses that High Center gave him. The shadows beneath trees were luminous with possibility, with the vectors of what was and what could be, and even what had been.
Almost instantly he saw something he had not before: a tall shape, kneeling in an alleyway over another figure, with a sense of danger lingering above it. Even if it’s not Rion, that’s something we’d better look at. “There!”
Poplock squinted. “Got it. Yeah, let’s move.”
With High Center already up, he could channel the strength and speed of his soul, leaping from the roof to the ground in a single motion and hitting the street at a sprint, ignoring the mist of rain and fog.
“Rion!” he said as they came up.
The figure, that he could now definitely recognize, jumped at his name, but as he turned Tobimar saw to his surprise an expression of relief, not guilt or anger. “Tobimar? Thank the Balance. Help me, would you?”
He was kneeling over an unconscious young woman.
Good actor? Or what? “What happened?”
Rion stared out into the darkness. “I was just looking around the town—hiding, as we agreed, since we’re not announcing that I exist yet. And then just as I was heading up the cross-alley towars Mizuni’s, I heard a sound like a faint scream or gasp. I got up there,” he pointed back, to the very roof that Tobimar had just been on, “and I saw Helina struggling with…something. Dark and shadowy. Couldn’t make it out exactly. But I figured that my secret wasn’t worth risking her life, so I charged toward them. The thing…” He suddenly shuddered. “It looked sort of human, but the eyes…yellow, hungry, and the hair was pale white. Dark clung to it, like it was covered with shadow, but it looked almost white under the shadow.
“Still, I had my sword out and took a cut at it. It was dead silent, didn’t even hiss or anything, but it fought back and I don’t know how long I was dueling it. Finally…I drove it off, and it disappeared into the darkness. Helina had collapsed. I don’t know why, though, and she won’t wake up, and I couldn’t figure out what to do.”
Poplock was scuttling around the area that Rion had indicated the duel took place; Tobimar knew what he was looking for. But in the meantime…“All right, Rion, we’ll take care of it from here. You go back to the estate—and I mean straight back.”
Rion paused, then his gaze dropped. “Of course. You’re wise not to trust me. I just hope…hope we can find a way to get rid of that doubt. Somehow.” He got up, sheathed his sword (which had been on the ground near him) and headed up the deserted streets towards the Vantage estate.
Tobimar waited until Rion was well out of sight. “Well?”
The little Toad made a wrinkled face. “Mostly his own bootprints all over…but they do look like a fighting pattern. Like he was fighting something that wasn’t leaving prints. Right there,” he pointed to the wall, “there’s a cut that’s pretty much certainly from his sword, like he cut at something and it ducked. What about her?”
“She’s…cold. Not dead, though. Unconscious. Don’t know why.”
Poplock hopped back to the girl Rion had called Helina. “She’s not much older than you.”
“I don’t think she’s as old as me. Maybe younger than Kyri.” He looked at her hair, which was as black as the night but otherwise similar to Kyri’s. Not surprising. I would guess that if you go back generations enough, everyone’s related to everyone in this small a country. “I think I’d better get her to the Temple. You go after Rion and make sure he’s headed back.”
As Tobimar picked her up, though, the girl stirred, and suddenly pushed away with a weak scream. It was all Tobimar could do to keep her from dropping straight to the pavement. “Get away! Get a…”
Helina’s eyes focused, and widened. “…oh! Oh, Lord Silverun!”
Tobimar found himself being almost strangled by a desperate embrace, and could feel Helina shaking. “Ugh! Um, it’s all right, Helina. I’m going to take you to the Temple.”
She nodded, but only fractionally released her grip.
“What happened? Do you remember?”
For a few moments she was silent, still gripping him tightly, then slowly, slowly, she released him. “I…I was walking home from the Balanced Meal,” she said, and swallowed. That gave Tobimar time to place why she looked somewhat familiar; she was one of the servers at the inn, he’d seen her several times before.
“And…?” he asked quietly.
“And…” she drew a long, shuddering breath, “and…suddenly someone stepped out in front of me, at the end of this alley. I thought it was maybe Mizuni out for a walk, but then I saw the eyes.” She swallowed again, and almost collapsed. Tobimar could tell she was still terribly weak—far weaker than a mere fright would explain. He helped her put an
arm over his shoulder and started walking with her to the Temple of Myrionar. “Yellow, glowing eyes. I wanted to run as soon as I saw them, but my legs wouldn’t move!”
So far this fits with Rion’s story. Part of him was disappointed, another part cautiously optimistic. “Anything else?”
“Oh, Balance, yes. There were…shadows crawling over it, darkness stuck to it like cobwebs when you push through them, and it came closer and I…” she bit her lip. “I…found myself almost relaxing, like it was all right, all the fear fading to the back, and it reached out and everything went all hazy.” She frowned. “The last thing I remember is a shout, a distant shout, and falling.”
“I’ll go look and see if I can find this thing,” he said. “But here we are at the Temple. Seeker Reed!” he said, seeing the young priest-trainee. “Take Helina in; she’s been attacked by something which seems to have drained her in some way. She’s terribly weak.”
“Myrionar’s Justice! Here, Helina, sit down.” Reed drew out one of the benches. “I will call the Arbiter immediately.”
“Good. I’ll be looking for whatever did this.”
He returned to the alley, but pretty soon came to the conclusion Poplock had. Rion’s bootprints were scuffed all over the end of the alley in a way that could indicate a combat, but there wasn’t any trace of another combatant except a few marks that showed sword blows gone astray, presumably aimed at this enemy.
That sort of argued against Rion’s story, but not entirely. There were quite a few monsters, ranging from hungry spirits to vampires to things from beyond other veils, including demons, that could fight you without leaving obvious traces.
There was a scuffling in the alley behind him. He glanced back, saw Poplock bouncing towards him. “Well?”
“He went straight back to the estate,” Poplock confirmed, reaching his accustomed position on Tobimar’s shoulder. “Didn’t even go slow, went as fast as he could manage and still stay hidden.”
Tobimar kicked pensively at the dirt. “Her story fit his.”
“Hmph. That’s interesting. Though depending on what Rion really is, convincing someone to believe a particular story isn’t hard to do.” The Toad shifted his weight. “The real problem I have with his story is timing. Took too long, from the time I came back to get you to the time we found him. I can’t believe the fight he described took fifteen, twenty minutes. Can’t believe it took half that. Most fights are measured in seconds.”
“I know what you mean,” Tobimar agreed, as he started retracing their steps to the Vantage estate. “And that would mean he spent an awfully long time, relatively speaking, in that alley with Helina. He could’ve picked her up and carried her somewhere.”
Poplock grimaced. “Of course, he could argue he was frozen with indecision—carrying her anywhere would reveal his presence, especially if she woke up, and since we haven’t decided whether he is the real Rion, we’ve been pretty emphatic about him hiding it. Heck, this wandering around at night is pushing it, no matter how good he is at hiding and how well he knows the land.”
“I guess. But I don’t know that I’d swallow that argument. If we don’t, though…what was the point? What did he do to Helina, and why?”
“You took her to the Temple, right? Maybe old Kelsley will have answers for us.”
Tobimar nodded. “We’ll have to check in tomorrow. But we’d better get answers soon. Won’t be long before Xavier and his friends have to leave…and then it’ll be you, me, Kyri…and Rion.”
Chapter 21
“A vampire?” Kyri repeated in shock. There hadn’t been a vampire of any type in Evanwyl for years, maybe decades, at least as far as she knew.
“And it might be Rion,” Poplock said.
She found herself half out of her chair, hammering her fist down on the table. “Rion is NOT…!” Then she realized how ridiculous her reaction was. These are my friends and best companions. They wouldn’t say things like this to me idly. She sat back down slowly, not looking at either of them as she took a drink of water from the glass nearby. Then she looked up at them, deliberately meeting both Poplock and Tobimar’s gazes. “I’m sorry. Please, tell me what you know and why you think…think Rion might be involved.”
“Well…” Tobimar looked hesitant. Poplock took over.
“We’ve been keeping tabs on him all along. You guys decided to let him walk around if he kept himself out of the public eye, but—sorry!—we don’t trust him all the way yet. So me and Tobimar have been watching him. We were also thinking of having Xavier in on it, but him and Rion have gotten to be pretty tight.” She noticed a small furrow in Tobimar’s brow at that. I don’t think he’s aware of how he’s a little jealous of that; he and Xavier spent a long time together and got to be good friends, too.
The realization her friends had decided to follow her brother around—and not tell her—was a bit of a jolt, but she didn’t need to be told the logic. And since Xavier’s group was leaving this afternoon, they couldn’t hold off on telling her any longer, either. “Go on.”
“Well, most of the time we didn’t see something too suspicious. But then a few days ago there was that attack on Helina…”
“Helina? What does she—”
“If you’d let me finish you wouldn’t need to ask!” Poplock said acidly. “Like I said, there was that attack on Helina, but the details of what we know weren’t in what went around the village.” He detailed what had happened the night that he’d lost Rion temporarily, then continued, “Arbiter Kelsley kept it quiet while we looked into things, but he’s about ninety percent sure that it was a vampire that attacked her.”
“What type of vampire? There’s at least three I know of.”
“Five, as far as I know,” Tobimar said. “We think it’s the sort called, more formally, the Curseborn.”
“Balance. They’re almost universally monsters, aren’t they?”
“Yup,” Poplock said, no trace of humor in his voice. “Transfer the curse by blood exchange, feed off of both blood and soul, usually go insane from the transformation, and even if they recover they’re usually pretty much monsters from then on. Tough to kill because they’re fast, strong, and invulnerable except for a few difficult-to-exploit weaknesses. Helina’s description of what she saw could match one that was very powerful—a very old one—and that’d be even harder to kill.”
“How does Kelsley know it’s a vampire?”
“The first and strongest indicator,” Tobimar said, “is the signature bite—twin punctures. Kelsley said he found them, er, lower down, where ordinary circumstances would never lead them to be discovered. Then there was her weakness, which Kelsley determined was due to her spiritual energy—her soul—being severely drained of energy, as well as to a significant though not dangerous loss of blood.”
“With that as a clue,” Poplock said, “I did a little poking around and found that there were at least two other people in Evanwyl—both women—who showed similar symptoms over the last few weeks, before Helina. Though they just claimed they were sick—no one mentioned an attack or anything. They just suddenly got ill, no warning.”
Kyri tried to think about this rationally. “So your theory is that Rion is the vampire in question, and that normally he would complete his…feeding and then use whatever mental magic or powers he has to make the person forget they were attacked, but you interrupted him. Right?”
“I am not entirely convinced,” Tobimar said, with a glance at Poplock. “Helina’s story has a couple of inconsistencies if I assume it was Rion who attacked her, the most important being that she claims she heard a shout, and then felt herself falling to the ground as her last memory before blacking out. But she was already on the ground, and had been for at least a couple of minutes, when we came running up to Rion. If her memory is even close to accurate, then whoever shouted as she lost consciousness wasn’t us—and would seem likely to have been Rion, as his story would have it.”
“Of course, if he can mess with minds, he
could’ve already started, and her story isn’t accurate,” Poplock said.
Kyri found the idea that Rion might actually be a monster incredibly painful. It had been so hard not to believe in him at first, and now…“Do we have any way of proving this?”
Tobimar frowned. Both he and Poplock were silent for a few minutes.
“I honestly don’t know,” Tobimar said after a while. “We already knew he was made from something dark, at least in part. We’ve seen what happens when Xavier’s blade touches him. But all that means is that his essence isn’t entirely human and holy, which tells us nothing we didn’t know. He’s walked plenty in sunlight, but if he’s really one of the ancients then walking the sunlight is something he can do pretty well, even though it probably weakens him. And as Khoros once pointed out to me, the fact that a wooden stake kills a man doesn’t say much as to whether he is in fact a vampire, so to speak.”
“About the only think I can think of that might work is if you directly interrogate him about it using that powerful truth-sense you can get from Myrionar. If you’re willing to do it.”
A part of her wanted to refuse, but with great difficulty she did not even permit that part of her to voice an objection. I need to remove this doubt—or reveal the truth—and this is for our good, not just mine. If it truly is Rion, this will do him no harm, and if he is not, it may save us all. “I will see if he is willing.” She stood. “Now.”
Poplock and Tobimar both looked relieved, which at least confirmed that she was making the right decision. Our general truth-senses have claimed he was genuine, but this will be something more detailed…and confrontational. Very, very few things could carry off a deception under those conditions.
They found Rion reluctantly handing Xavier’s LTP handheld game console back to its owner. She couldn’t quite repress a smile, even under these circumstances. Rion had been bitten hard by the fascination of the strange electronic game device, just as Tobimar had during his travels with Xavier. This was another reason that he and Xavier had bonded so much during their relatively short acquaintance. “Rion, could we talk to you?”