[Sword of Truth 9] - Chainfire

by Terry Goodkind

  There were traps made of the iron sections all over the city, usually at intersections. Once the sections were lifted they couldn't easily be lowered. The panicked horses would be gored on the spikes or at the least wouldn't be able to escape the confinement created by the obstacle. As the cavalry charged up onto the spikes, the soldiers would either be thrown off their horses and likely injured or killed, or they would have to dismount in order to try to deal with the obstruction. Either way, the archers would then have a much better chance of picking them off than if they were just charging past.

  The men manning the sections of spikes were instructed to judge the situation and not to necessarily pull the spikes up just as the cavalry ran up to them. In some cases it would be better to wait until some of the men had already charged past. If there was a large number of cavalry this would allow the defenders to split the enemy force, not only spreading confusion among the attack, but breaking it apart, severing the lines of command, making it lose its advantage of unity, and making it easier to deal with the fragmented force. Decisively eliminating the cavalry was essential to stopping the invasion.

  Nicci knew, though, that in the panic of facing a frightening wall of charging enemy soldiers screaming for blood, such careful plans tended to be forgotten. She knew that at the sight of such fearsome soldiers with weapons raised, some of the men would flee, failing to raise the spikes before they did. Nicci had seen such terror before. That was why she had placed redundant sections of spikes.

  Nearly everyone in the city was committed to its defense. Some would be more effective than others. Even women at home with children had supplies of things, from rocks to boiling oil, that they intended to throw down on any invading soldiers. There had not been a lot of time to make extravagant weapons, but there were men everywhere with stacks of spears. A sharpened pole wasn't fancy, but if it took down a cavalry horse or impaled a man, it was fancy enough. It didn't matter if it was cavalry or foot soldiers, they all had to be defeated, so there were men of the city by the thousands with bows. With a bow, even an old man could kill a vigorous, muscular, hulking young soldier.

  An arrow could even take down a wizard.

  It would be futile to have the men of the city trying to fight experienced soldiers in a traditional battle. They had to deny the Order's soldiers everything they were used to using.

  Nicci's object had been to make the city one big trap. Now, she had to draw the Order into that trap.

  To that end, she saw Ishaq's wagon rumbling toward her. People scattered out of the way. Ishaq pulled back on the reins and drew the big horses to a halt. A cloud of dust boiled up.

  He set the brake and leaped down off the wagon, something she wouldn't have expected he could do with such agility. He held his hat on with one hand as he ran. He was holding something else up in his other hand.

  "Nicci! Nicci!"

  She turned to the men with her. "You'd all best see to the things we've discussed. I don't think we have more than a few hours."

  The men looked surprised and alarmed.

  "You don't think they will wait until morning?" one asked.

  "No. I believe they will attack this evening." She didn't tell them why she thought so.

  The men nodded and rushed off to their assignments.

  Ishaq came to a panting halt. His face was nearly as red as his hat.

  "Nicci, a message." He waved the paper before her. "A message for the mayor."

  Nicci's insides tightened.

  "A group of men rode in," he said. "They were carrying a white flag, just as you said they would. They brought a message for 'the mayor.' How did you know?"

  She ignored the question. "Have you read it, yet?"

  His face went red. "Yes. So did Victor. He is very angry. It is not a good thing to make the blacksmith angry."

  "Do you have a horse, as I requested?"

  "Yes, yes, I have a horse." He handed her the paper. "But I think that you had better read this."

  Nicci unfolded the paper and read it silently to herself.

  Citizen mayor,

  I received word that the people of Altur'Rang, under your direction, wish to renounce their sinful ways and bow again to the wise, merciful, and sovereign authority of the Imperial Order.

  If it is true that you wish to spare the people of Altur'Rang the total destruction we reserve for insurrectionists and heathens, then as a token of your good intent and willing submission to the jurisdiction of the Imperial Order, you will bind your lovely and loyal wife's hands and send her to me as your humble gift. Fail to turn over your wife as instructed and everyone in Altur'Rang will die.

  In the service of the merciful Creator,

  Brother Kronos,

  Commander of His Excellency's reunification force.

  Nicci crushed the message in her fist. "Let's go."

  Ishaq replaced his hat and scrambled to catch up with her as she marched toward the wagon. "You don't seriously intend to do as this brute demands, do you?"

  Nicci put a foot on the iron step and climbed up onto the wagon's wooden seat. "Let's go, Ishaq."

  He muttered to himself as he climbed into the wagon beside her. He threw off the brake and flicked the reins, yelling for people to get out of the way as he swung the wagon around. Dirt and dust spiraled up off the wheels as he turned the wagon around in the road. He cracked his whip above the horses' flanks, crying out to urge them away. The wagon slid around and finally straightened as the horses threw their weight against the hames.

  Nicci held on to the side rail with one hand as the wagon lurched ahead, letting her other hand, with the message crumpled in her fist, rest in the lap of her red dress. She watched without seeing as they raced through the streets of Altur'Rang, past buildings and storefronts, other wagons, horses, and people on foot. Low sunlight flickered through rows of trees to the left as they raced north along the wide boulevard. At vegetable, cheese, bread, and butcher stands under awnings, some drab and some striped, a press of people were buying up all the food they could before the impending storm.

  The road narrowed as it passed into ancient sections of the city, becoming clogged with wagons, horses, and people. Without slowing much at all, Ishaq swung his two big draft horses off the main road and took shortcuts through alleyways behind tightly packed rows of buildings where entire families lived in a single room. Laundry stretched on lines that crisscrossed small yards and in a number of places, strung between opposing second-story apartments, stretched across the alleyway over their heads. Nearly each tiny plot in the back of the crowded buildings was used for growing food or keeping chickens. Wings flapped and feathers flew as the birds panicked at the sight of the wagon thundering past their yard.

  Ishaq deftly handled the team as it raced at a frightening speed, guiding them around obstacles of shacks, fences, walls, and random trees. He called out warnings as he charged across busy roads. Startled people drew back, letting him pass.

  The wagon turned up a street Nicci remembered all too well, following beside a short wall that eventually curved it along the entrance road to the warehouse doors of Ishaq's transport company. The wagon bounced into the rutted yard outside the building and came to a crooked halt in the shade of huge oaks rising above the wall.

  Nicci climbed down as she saw one of the double doors opening. Apparently having heard the noise Victor emerged from the building, glowering like he intended to murder the next person he could get his hands on.

  "Have you seen the message?" He demanded.

  "Yes, I have. Where's the horse I asked for?"

  He pointed a thumb back over his shoulder toward the open door. "Well, what are we going to do now? The attack will probably come at dawn. We can't allow those soldiers to take you back with them to the army. We can't let them leave and report that we won't do as Kronos demands. What are we going to tell them?"

  Nicci tilted her head toward the building. "Ishaq, would you go get the horse, please?"

  He made a sour face. "You
ought to marry Richard. You make a good pair. You are both crazy."

  Startled, Nicci could only stare at the man.

  She finally found her voice. "Ishaq, please, we don't have a lot of time. We don't want those fellows to go back empty-handed."

  "Yes, Your Highness," he mocked, "allow me to get your royal mount for you."

  "I've never seen Ishaq act like that," she said to Victor as she watched the man stalking toward the door, muttering curses under his breath.

  "He thinks you're crazy. So do I." Victor planted his fists on his hips. "Has that ruse back at the stables with the spy gone bad? Or is this what you planned all along?"

  In no mood to discuss it with the man, Nicci returned the glare in kind. "My plan," she said through gritted teeth, "is to get this over with as soon as possible and to keep the people of Altur'Rang from being slaughtered."

  "What's that got to do with turning you over to Brother Kronos as a gift?"

  "If we allow them to attack at dawn, they will have the advantage. We need them to attack today."

  "Today!" Victor glanced west, toward the low sun. "But it will be dark soon."

  "Exactly," she said as she leaned in the back of the wagon and retrieved a length of rope.

  Victor stared off at the heart of the city as he thought about it. "Well, all things considered, I guess it would be better not to face them in the day, on their terms. If we could somehow get them to attack today, they would soon run out of daylight. That would work to our advantage."

  "I will bring them to you," she said. "You just be ready."

  The creases across Victor's forehead deepened. "I don't know how you're going to get them to attack today, but we'll be ready if they do."

  Ishaq came out of the warehouse leading a white stallion covered with mottled black spots. The mane, tail, and legs below the hocks were black. The horse looked not only elegant, but had a tough demeanor about him, as if it would have boundless endurance. Still, it wasn't what she had been expecting.

  "He doesn't look all that big," she said to Ishaq.

  Ishaq gave the horse an affectionate rub on its white face. "You did not say big, you said that you wanted a steady horse that would not spook easily, one that had a fearless spirit."

  Nicci took another look at the horse. "I just assumed that such a horse would be big."

  "She's a crazy woman," Ishaq muttered to Victor.

  "She's going to be a dead crazy woman," Victor said.

  Nicci handed Victor the rope. "This will be easier if you stand on the wall, after I'm mounted."

  She stroked the horse under his jaw and then his silky ears. The animal nickered his appreciation and nudged his head against her. Nicci held his head and trickled a thin thread of her Han into the creature, giving him a bit of calming introduction. She ran a hand over his shoulder and then along the side of his belly as she inspected him.

  Without comment, Victor climbed up the wall and waited until she boosted herself up and was seated in the saddle. Nicci arranged the skirts of her red dress and then unbuttoned it to the waist. She pulled her arms out of the sleeves one at a time, holding the front of the dress against her chest and then holding it up with her elbows as she lifted her hands toward Victor, her wrists pressed together.

  Victor's face went as red as her dress. "Now what are you doing?"

  "These men are experienced Imperial Order troops. Some will be officers. I spent a lot of time in the Order's camp. I was widely known—to some as the Slave Queen, and to others as Death's Mistress. It's possible that certain of these men may have served in Jagang's army during that time and so they very well may recognize me, especially if I were to wear a black dress. Just in case, I'm wearing a red dress.

  "I also need to give these men something to stare at to keep them off guard and hopefully from recognizing me. It will disrupt the usual calculating judgment of soldiers such as these. It will also get Kronos's attention and make him think that the 'mayor' is desperate to appease him. Nothing rouses the blood lust in these kind of men more than weakness."

  "It's going to get you in trouble before you even get to Kronos."

  "I'm a sorceress. I can take care of myself."

  "Seems to me that Richard is a wizard and carries a sword charged with ancient magic and even he got into trouble when he was greatly outnumbered. He was overpowered and nearly killed."

  Nicci again lifted her hands out toward Victor, wrists together.

  "Tie them."

  Victor glared at her a moment before finally giving in. With a growl he set about binding her wrists. Ishaq held the reins just under the horse's bit as he waited.

  "Is this horse fast?" she asked as she watched Victor wrapping rope around her wrists.

  "Sa'din is fast," Ishaq told her.

  "Sa'din? Doesn't that mean 'the wind' in the old tongue?"

  Ishaq nodded. "You know the old tongue?"

  "A little," she said. "Today, Sa'din will need to be as swift as the wind. Now listen to me, both of you. I don't intend on getting myself killed."

  "Few people do," Victor griped.

  "You don't understand; this will be my best chance to get near Kronos. Once the attack begins it would be difficult not only to find him, but, even if we did know where he was, it would be next to impossible to get close to him. He would be dealing death against the innocent in ways you cannot even imagine, spreading fear, panic, and death. That makes him valuable to them. In battle their soldiers will be looking for anyone trying to take out their wizard. I have to do it now. I intend to end it tonight."

  Victor and Ishaq shared a look.

  "I want everyone to be ready," she said. "When I come back I expect there will be some very angry people behind me."

  Victor looked up after yanking the knot tight. "How many angry people?"

  "I intend to have their entire force right on my heels."

  Ishaq gently rubbed Sa'din's face. "What are they going to be angry about? If I may ask."

  "Besides trying to take out their wizard, I intend to give the hornets' nest a good stiff whack."

  Victor sighed irritably. "We'll be ready for them when they attack, but once you go in there I'm not so sure you will be able to get away."

  Nicci wasn't either. She remembered a time when she went about her plans not caring if she lived or died carrying them out. Now she cared.

  "If I don't come back, then you will just have to do your best. Hopefully, even if they kill me, I will be able to take Kronos out with me. Either way, we've laid a lot of surprises for them."

  "Does Richard know what you had planned?" Ishaq asked as he squinted up at her.

  "I expect he knew. He had the good grace, though, not to make me feel any more afraid by arguing with me about what I know I must do. This is not a game. We are all fighting for our very lives. If we fail, then innocent, decent people are going to be slaughtered in numbers that stagger the imagination. I've been on the other end of attacks like this. I know what's coming. I'm trying to prevent it. If you don't want to help, then just stay out of my way."

  Nicci looked at each man in turn. Chagrined, they both kept silent.

  Victor went back to his work and quickly finished up with binding her wrists. He pulled a knife from his boot and sliced off the excess length of rope.

  "Who do you want to take you to the soldiers who are waiting?" Ishaq asked.

  "I think you'd better take me, Ishaq. While Victor alerts everyone and sees to the preparations, you will be a representative of the mayor."

  "All right," he said as he scratched the hollow of his cheek.

  "Good," she said as she picked up the reins.

  Before she could say anything else, Victor cleared his throat. "There is one other matter I've been meaning to talk to you about. But we've both been busy…"

  Victor uncharacteristically looked away from her.

  "What is it?" she asked him.

  "Well, ordinarily I wouldn't say anything, but I think maybe you ought to know." />
  "Know what?"

  "People are beginning to question Richard."

  Nicci frowned. "Question him? What do you mean? Question him in what way?"

  "Word has gotten around about why he left. People are worried that he is abandoning them and their cause to chase phantoms. They question if they should be following such a man. There is talk that he's… that he's, you know, deranged or something. What should I tell them?"

  Nicci took a deep breath as she collected her thoughts. This was what she had feared. This was one of the reasons she had thought it important that he not leave—especially the way he did, right before the attack.

  "Remind them," she said as she leaned toward him, "that Lord Rahl is a wizard, and a wizard can see things—such as hidden, distant threats—that they cannot. A wizard does not go around explaining his actions to people.

  "The Lord Rahl has many responsibilities other than just this one place. If the people here wish to live free, to live their own lives as they wish, then they must choose to do so for their own sake. They must trust that Richard, as the Lord Rahl and as a wizard, is off doing what is best for our cause."

  "And do you believe that?" the blacksmith asked.

  "No. But there is a difference. I can follow the ideals he has shown me while at the same time working to bring Richard back to his senses. The two are not incompatible. But the people must trust in their leader. If they think he is a madman they may fall back on fear and give up. Right now we can't afford that risk.

  "Whether Richard is sane or not it doesn't change the validity of the cause. The truth is the truth—Richard or no Richard.

  "Those troops coming to murder us are real. If they win, then those who are not killed will be enslaved once more under the yoke of the Imperial Order. If Richard is alive, dead, sane, or mad, it does not change that fact."

  Victor, his arms folded, nodded.

  Nicci moved her leg back and pressed her heel into Sa'din's side, moving his rump closer to the wall. She turned the back of her shoulders to the blacksmith standing on that wall beside her. "Pull my dress down to my waist, and be quick about it—the sun will be setting soon."