Grand Vizier of Krar

by W. John Tucker

  Ooggah’s decision was a good one. The next morning they found schools of decent sized fish about a mile north of the mouth of Panners Stream. The orbears could hear the commotion made by large groups of humans near the river mouth, and there were two large ships just offshore, so Ooggah told the others to keep their distance and use the mangrove swamps for cover. Anyway, if any human momentarily saw an orbear’s head above the surface of the water, they would probably assume that it was just some dumb sea creature. It was well recognised among orbears that humans considered themselves to be the only intelligent creatures on the planet. For their part, orbears respected the fact that many humans were cunning and dangerous despite being physically weak and inept.

  Around midday Ooggah sensed a change in her mood. Someone might be in danger. However, the feeling was too remote to call her family together.

  Her feeling grew until she decided to move closer to Panners Stream to see if the humans were brewing up anything that might endanger her family. She waded out of the water and moved into the cover of the palm trees and vegetation at the high-water mark, not exactly jungle this close to the coast yet good enough for Ooggah to keep out of the sight of humans.

  Using a gait that might have seemed lumbering to humans but was actually swift, silent and efficient for moving through the undergrowth, Ooggah came to within fifty paces of the mouth of Panners Stream. She could see the warships very clearly now. She heard human chatter and the slap of oars in water upstream. Then she saw two dragon boats speed out of the river toward one of the waiting ships. Both ships were preparing to sail.

  Ooggah was shocked to see Gold-hair and Purple-eyes bound up in one of the boats. There was nothing Ooggah could do against so many armed men, so she watched and waited until the boats came alongside the big ship and Gold-hair and Purple-eyes were hauled up the side. Ooggah could see clearly what was happening on the main deck.

  Ooggah’s heart wept when she saw the javelin suddenly appear and pierce Purple-eyes and she heard the despairing agony of Gold-hair’s cry.

  Ooggah was huge. If she had been able to reach the enemy leader she could have twisted his head with the same ease she had seen a human once do to a chicken. Her size also made it difficult to leave cover without being seen. Nonetheless, she crept silently across the narrow beach and into the sea.

  Purple-eyes appeared to be dead when Ooggah reached him, six fathomes underwater. The ship above was now moving away quickly. Purple-eyes had two lances still in him. She would need to bring him away before she removed the lances, just for the slight hope that he might still be alive.

  Ooggah wanted so much for him to be alive. He was a good man, respectful of orbears, and it was obvious that Gold-hair loved him.

  Ooggah carried Purple-eyes gently ashore and away from the danger zone. Not knowing how to save humans, she decided to treat him as though he were her own orbear child. Trying not to disturb the lances too much, she blew air into his lungs until she heard a faint wheezing breath as the undamaged lung came to life. The damaged lung, Ooggah thought, was probably lost even if he survived. She then tied a large sheet of bark around him with vine so his wounds would not move too much as she carried him.

  As she moved further into the jungle, she called her family with urgent hoots. She asked her granddaughters to find the thick, black honey of the Giganbee. This was a rare bee of the jungle and the only one feared by orbears, mainly because it was the size of a human fist and stung with great enthusiasm. Her granddaughters’ eyes widened with apprehension. When they saw the sad sight of Purple-eyes they hurried forth without further hesitation. Ooggah then called for the others to find her the broad, medicinal leaves of the Poultice Plant, used by orbears to dress and sterilize any injury.

  When her family had brought her the honey and the leaves, Ooggah gently laid Purple-eyes on his side. She slowly and carefully packed his wounds with the resinous black honey and, as the honey set and the flow of blood eased, she cautiously pushed the barbed lances through his body until both wounds were free and firmly packed with honey resin. She attended to him slowly and carefully for the rest of that day and deep into the night until she thought her patient could be carried through the jungle to the cavern. By that time Purple-eyes had lost a lot of blood but his wounds had been sealed and bound around with the leaves of the Poultice Plant, secured by vines and the sheet of bark. It took all night and much of the next morning to get Purple-eyes back to the cavern, all members of the family taking turns to help Ooggah keep him still and to moisten his lips with fresh rainwater mixed with Giganbee honey.

  Back in the cavern, Ooggah remembered something that her mother had told her about using hot stones to warm a convalescing orbear. She ordered her granddaughters to enter the sky ship and remove all of Gold-hair’s crystal clusters. Ooggah was too big to get down the stairs into the lower chamber of the vessel but she had poked her head in the previous morning and had seen the clusters faintly glowing, just like hot stones.

  She laid Purple-eyes gently on the ground while her granddaughters placed forty-five crystal clusters all around him. Ooggah and her granddaughters took turns looking after him. The only other thing they could do was hope that he survived. Perhaps Gold-hair would be able to come for him one day.

  When Purple-eyes became feverish, they treated him with cool, moist leaves. When his lips became dry, they constantly wet his lips and his mouth. When he called out, they would calm him by stroking his brow and through his hair. When he shivered, they moved the crystal clusters closer around him. The clusters seemed to grow roots into the ground, so they tried not to break these when they moved them.

  After a week, Purple-eyes woke up for a few minutes. After that, he would wake up from time to time, eat a little fruit and black honey, and take some water. He could still not talk as humans do, and he did not yet seem to recognise where he was or what had happened to him.

  In fact, Telko felt so weak and was in so much pain, especially when he moved, that he could not focus on what was happening. He sensed that someone was helping him and he felt grateful for that. The only conscious thoughts that crept into his mind, when it managed to rise above his pain, were about Blan. He could not remember who she was or from whence she came, and yet he yearned for her and wished he had the strength to go out to find her.

  41

  Mountain Pass – 8th to 11th October

  Blan’s return across the mountains was uneventful, albeit hard work. She listened carefully to all of Gardolinya’s mountain lore and his stories about the pass and its history. He seemed keen to teach her everything he knew about the subject. She did find it interesting, and it was a way of keeping her mind from dwelling on her grief.

  Gardolinya taught Blan how to handle the four mountain horses they had with them. He also pointed out all the landmarks and false trails so she would know how to cross the mountains herself. She did not think that she would ever want to do that, but she did find that she could update the Actio’s map of the pass by calling up Praalis. With Actio 8 operating from a known location, Actio 28 could identify its own position more accurately.

  Having discovered how to update the map of the pass, Blan worked on updating other geographic information held by Actio 28. She communicated with Arnapa and found that she was inside Austra Castle. Similarly, she located Nightsight on the beach at Port Island. That was sufficient for Actio 28 to pinpoint the locations on the map, and from that Blan discovered the extent to which the sea level had changed since the Actios had been programmed. Eventually the map changed to allow for this. Blan then saw Austra Great Harbour appear on the map where it had previously been shown as a valley. The coast of Arctequa retreated, very slightly in some places but alarmingly in others. Slave Island, once joined to the mainland, contracted to the shape of the island that Blan knew from her captivity and from maps she had later seen in Citadel Library. Meanwhile, Blan became more adept at explaining to Actio 28 what she wanted, and she started to feel more confident about someday fin
ding out how to access the Geodes and Communicors.

  When they reached the ruined fort on the western side of the mountains Blan and Gardolinya were surprised to find a campsite housing five hundred soldiers, all equipped with mountain horses, weaponry and supplies, in addition to the contingent placed there by Count Tor to guard the fort. Blan quickly spotted the bearded figure of Tor giving instructions to some officers.

  “My dear friends,” Tor exclaimed when he saw Blan and Gardolinya approaching, “Praalis told me to expect you.” Then he held Blan’s hands gently between his and, in a sombre voice, said, “Please accept my heartfelt thoughts for your loss, Blan, from myself, the Council and all the people of Proequa. Telko was a fine man and a great leader.”

  “Thank you,” Blan replied as she remembered standing with Telko in this very spot just sixteen days ago.

  After a pause, Blan said, “All these soldiers look as though they are ready to cross the mountains. Arnapa will be pleased for the support. Can you spare them?”

  Tor replied, “Soldiers we sent north to help our allies have been returning. They were cut off weeks ago by an enemy advance. Having nowhere else to go, they escaped into the foothills and made their way back here. As each group arrives, we keep half of them here to help defend Proequa and we will send the other half across to Austra County. This is the first contingent.”

  “Arnapa and Nightsight will be delighted,” Blan promised.

  As if he had read her thoughts Tor said, “It was a very risky venture. A leader must often act against his heart-felt wishes. I could not wager our core defence on the prospects of success at Austra Castle. However, now it is indeed a success, I applaud Arnapa and Nightsight and it is in all our interests for me to help cement their victory.”

  Having guessed what was in store for him, Gardolinya ventured, “I suppose you want me to lead all these soldiers back over the mountains.”

  “It’s not for me to order you to do anything, Master Gardolinya, but your help would earn the gratitude of our people.”

  Gardolinya smiled despite his missing teeth. He reached across to embrace Blan in farewell and then dismounted.

  “Blan, I must confer with Gardolinya and my officers about the crossing.” Tor apologized for leaving her. “I have brought Neep here to escort you back to the citadel.”

  “Thank you, Tor, but I don’t need an escort,” Blan replied. “I can ride on my own with my own sad thoughts.”

  “But there is another to consider,” Tor said. “One who would not be kept away from meeting you here.”

  “Blan!” cried Memwin as she came into sight, running as though in a race with Neep who was walking behind in great strides. “I’m so glad you’ve come home, Blan.”

  Blan dismounted and lifted the little girl up in her arms. “I’ve missed you too, Memwin, but I have to go on another journey now to help our allies at Port Fandabbin.”

  That was when Blan broke down again and wept, Memwin weeping with her.

  “You miss Telko so much, I know, but don’t forget that others love you too,” Memwin said at last through her tears.

  “I know that,” said Blan.

  “Neep, my friend, I must stay here tonight to learn more about the course of the war around Port Fandabbin,” Blan explained. “Please take Memwin back without me. I’ll be perfectly safe on the northern road by myself.”

  “Port Fandabbin has been blockaded by sea for the last nineteen days and the enemy armies are advancing rapidly from the north and east,” Neep reported. “The beacon messages say that marauding bands of enemies have been seen as far south as Plupo River. The main fighting is now nearing the city of Quolow and along the coast north of Port Fandabbin.”

  “Where is Quolow?” Blan asked as she lifted Actio 28 from her bag. She remembered seeing it on a map but had not paid much attention.

  “Quolow is Fandabbin’s most powerful remaining ally. It’s on a lake about ten leagues south of where Polnet River flows into Southport River. The latter meets the sea at Port Fandabbin. Quolow is about eighty leagues inland, or a hundred leagues from Port Fandabbin by the shortest river route. It is also about a hundred and eighty leagues north of Proequa City, two hundred and fifty by the shortest road,” said Neep.

  Blan located the position on the map displayed by the Actio and, after questioning Neep some more about the town’s surroundings, succeeded in getting the Actio to record not only the position of Quolow but also the position of the adjacent lake which had not existed when the Actio had been programmed.

  “If I need to go to Port Fandabbin overland, how should I do it?” Blan then asked. She was aware that the distance Neep had mentioned would be an enormous challenge, at least as far as travel overland was concerned. The mariners of the day would not be alarmed by the prospect of a two hundred and fifty league voyage, yet such a journey across land would not be lightly undertaken.

  Neep raised an eyebrow with concern. “The best route by far is via Quolow. Follow Proequa River to the tributary nearest the Arctequa Backbone, go over the pass and across country for about five leagues to Polnet River, then down Polnet River, past Quolow, to Southport River and then to the River Docks of Dabbin. But the enemy could have advanced as far as Quolow by the time you get there, and you might meet marauding bands anywhere along Polnet River. It would be exceedingly dangerous. Are you really contemplating such a journey?”

  “I trust your discretion, Neep. I must take this Actio to Carlcan Fandabbin and I refuse to risk anyone else’s life in doing so.”

  “Actio?” Neep raised an eyebrow again.

  “This crystal cluster,” Blan pointed to it, “our secret weapon.”

  “Blan, I dare say you have subtle reasons for what you propose which I can’t hope to understand, but you will need help along the way. You can’t do this alone. My duties won’t permit me to come with you. However, there are many who would die to protect you.” Neep had softened her usually austere and official tone to such an extent that Blan could easily imagine her as a caring mother. Something then occurred to Blan.

  “Neep! Am I to congratulate you? How long…?” Blan asked in a lighter tone.

  “Aw, it will be another six months yet,” Neep said, her dark face blushing slightly, “How did you guess? It doesn’t show yet, given my frame.”

  “Just a guess,” said Blan, or perhaps it was intuition. “You must be very pleased.”

  “Not as pleased as my husband and Zeep,” Neep joked. “After all, I’m the one who has to do all the work. Zeep is very pleased; it takes a lot of pressure off her. The family, and indeed the whole duchy, expect one or the other of us to make sure that the line of Herald continues.”

  Blan smiled in acknowledgement. Then she wondered, for the first time ever, what it might be like to be a mother with her own babies. She had the curious sensation that Telko was near. Stifling her tears, she forced her mind back to business.

  “Neep, where is Belspire?”

  “That was the greatest city of Arctequa, greater even than Port Cankrar. It was destroyed early in the last war. I have never been to it. It is at the southern end of Belspire River, where it joins Southport River, about a hundred leagues inland from Port Cascade, considerably further from Port Fandabbin, and about seventy leagues from Quolow by river. Surely you don’t want to go there? It will have been overrun by the enemy.”

  “Just looking at options,” Blan confessed. It would take her a while to get Actio 28 to accept the location and update its map.

  Memwin was deeply disappointed and wanted to go with Blan. However, she stopped complaining when Blan reminded her that Fenfenwin would have wished her daughter to remain safe in Proequa. As a matter of fact, after the attack by Craskren, Memwin felt safer out in the field than in the city but she kept quiet for now. She was formulating her own plan.

  It was not so easy for Blan to persuade Praalis, nor Kem and Nwarpaw who were visiting him when Blan made contact by Actio. They became very anxious when she told them that
she intended to go to Port Fandabbin; even more when she said she would be going alone. She knew it was hard on them but she felt compelled to follow the path she had chosen.

  “Port Fandabbin will soon be under siege. The Dabbinans will need one of the Actios to communicate with us, especially with Azimath, and to track the enemy. Moreover, I believe that I will soon solve the problem of reading the enemy’s messages. I have done a lot of work on that and on updating the Actio map.”

  “What if you are captured?” Praalis pleaded.

  “I have found a way of locking out any user but myself,” Blan replied. “To anyone else Actio 28 will just be a lump of crystal. It will only recognise me. When I safely reach Port Fandabbin, I will unlock it for Duke Carl.”

  “Wait until Azimath breaks through the blockade,” Praalis implored. “He will be able to get to Port Fandabbin in as little as five or six days sailing and have a team of canoeists and divers bypass the blockade to take the Actio to Carl. Your journey will take many weeks, even if you can evade enemy patrols.”

  “Locking and unlocking an Actio involves a complicated series of interactions which are easier for me to do than to explain. I would need to be there on both occasions. We don’t know when Azimath will be able to depart. It might be months away, so it is best that I go without delay. I plan to use the rivers Polnet and Southport. So long as I get to Port Fandabbin before the land siege begins there will be no need to risk other lives by attempting to take an Actio through the sea blockade.”

  “But you don’t know the country or the rivers. Who will guide you?” Praalis asked weakly, already guessing Blan’s answer.

  “Actio 28 will guide me,” Blan asserted. “Admiral Wayhooay gave me some gold coins he had been keeping for Telko. I can buy what I need along the way. Neep is bringing you my medallion for safekeeping so it will not be at risk or identify me to enemies. Black Knight was so preoccupied by anger when he captured Telko and me that he never searched us.”