Kei's Gift

by Ann Somerville

  Kei held his hand and crouched down. “Not yet,” he said soothingly, his hand on Arman’s forehead. “I just want you to rest for a while, and not worry about anything.”

  “I...need....” Actually, he didn’t know what he needed, but his body seemed to. Kei’s face blinked out.

  When he woke, Kei and Tiko were having a low-voiced, urgent sounding conversation on the other side of the room. “...speed things up,” he heard Tiko say.

  “Kei?”

  Kei left Tiko standing there and came back to Arman’s side. “How do you feel?”

  His head was pounding and he still felt sick. “Not...great.... How long did I sleep?”

  “Not that long. Now, don’t try to move—you’re not going anywhere today.”

  Arman still wanted to sit. With an exasperated look, Kei found him a couple of pillows to prop him up, then fetched him some water which he insisted Arman drank before he would let him speak. Arman obeyed with an ill grace and handed the mug back to him. “I don’t understand. Aren’t you in a hurry to get to Darshek?”

  Tiko came away from where he was leaning against the windowsill. “More than ever, general. Kei says you’re ready to cooperate with the Rulers. What are your conditions for that cooperation?”

  “All our soldiers returned to Kuprij.”

  Tiko grunted. “We don’t want them anyway, so that’s no hardship.”

  “I still want to minimise loss of life—the problem however, isn’t that. I haven’t been able to think of any plan that would actually work, however many deaths there were—because your people will die.”

  “But if the Rulers were able to provide answers to that, you’ll assist us? Betray the Prij?”

  Arman’s gut turned over at the phrase, but he still nodded. “To the limited extent of helping right the wrong of the hostage situation. If the intention of the Rulers is to overrun Kuprij, then I won’t lift a finger to help. Does that satisfy you?”

  Tiko nodded. “That’s fair. I’ll tell them that now, see what they say to it.”

  “Wait...how can you do that when we’re hundreds of miles from Darshek?”

  That only earned him a smug grin. “Never mind about that, general. Now, Kei’s had a word with the healer here and they both think two days’ rest here would do you more good than a week on the road, so you’ll be staying here. However, I’m going to send your men on—they can make better progress if we don’t have to take your condition into account. They could be in Darshek nearly a week sooner if the wagons travel as fast as they’re able to. I don’t need your permission—but I’d like your consent anyway, since they’re your men.”

  “No, go ahead—even if they’re prisoners, it will be easier on them. Kei—you won’t travel with them?”

  Kei shook his head. “No, I’m not really needed. They’ll stop at the villages en route, and be checked over, but I wouldn’t expect any problems at this stage. You’re by far the worst case, and you remain my primary concern.”

  “Until Albon, you mean.”

  Kei bit his lip. “Yes, I suppose. It depends on various things.”

  Like what? But Arman knew better to ask here and now.

  Tiko clapped his hands and rubbed them together, looking a lot more cheerful than Arman could remember him appearing. “Right, I’ll give the orders for their departure. We’ve got the stores loaded, and there’s no reason to delay. General, do you want to speak to them again?”

  “Do they want to speak to me?” He hadn’t missed the looks on his men’s faces during the court, or been confused as to why they were so angry.

  “I think...maybe it’s best for your peace of mind if they don’t,” Tiko said with a surprising amount of kindness in his tone. “You’ll see them again in Darshek.”

  “General Jozo can take charge of them...or.... Ah.” Tiko’s expression said it all. So poor Jozo was dead. He hadn’t asked because he didn’t think they’d tell him, but he’d suspected as much from the way all their hopes seemed to be pinned on him. Not that Jozo would have made any concessions. He’d have slit his own throat before doing so, and was probably even now watching from the heavens and wishing Arman would do the same. Sorry old friend. This has to be this way.

  “I’m sorry, general,” Tiko said gently. “But they’ll be well treated, I assure you. We haven’t saved their lives only to lose them through neglect or cruelty later.”

  “I’m sure,” Arman agreed. “Wish them good luck.”

  “I will. I’ll be back later. I think Kei would appreciate you not trying to do too much today.”

  Kei scowled at Tiko’s back as he departed. “Damn soldiers—damn soldiers with paternal delusions. But he’s right—I do want you to take it easy, Arman. Felik thinks the jolting and the position really isn’t helping you heal—so we’re going to see what we can do to improve that for you.”

  Kei went to take the pillows away, but Arman wouldn’t let him. “No, damn it. Not until someone explains how Tiko can get orders from his masters so far away soon enough to make a difference.”

  Kei brushed back a loose lock of hair from Arman’s face, but wouldn’t meet his eyes. “At some point, you’ll know too much about our defences for us to let you leave, not at least without being completely assured you won’t betray that knowledge. I’m trying to give you the choice to be able to leave even if you don’t help us. Do you understand?”

  “I think so...but if you have some kind of secret weaponry, it could make all the difference to the success of the plans you want me to make.”

  Kei sighed and leaned his elbow on the bed. “I know. It comes down to mutual trust, and I don’t expect you to trust the Rulers any more than they can trust you, not until you meet. So we’re going to try and speed up that day, but it has to happen in a manner that doesn’t injure you or cripple you.”

  “You’re not going back to Ai-Albon yet, are you?” He found Kei’s hand and squeezed it. “You’re not ready?”

  Kei nodded, and now looked at Arman with sorrowful eyes. “ I just can’t face it. Being here, feeling the villagers, knowing their reactions to what I’ve seen, done and experienced will be similar.... Once the hostage situation is solved, tempers will be less fraught, and perhaps with some distance...but not now.” He laughed wryly, but there was no humour in it. “You know, Jik wanted to kill me today. Kill you too, with his bare hands—all because you killed their boy. But he can’t imagine how you might have felt exactly the same way because their son killed Loke.”

  Arman squeezed Kei’s fingers again. “Jik hasn’t had you to help him.”

  “Jik wouldn’t listen even if he did. There was some trouble while you were unconscious—he turned up here with a knife and now he’s being sat on somewhere at the other end of the village. Hasn’t he learned anything from today?” Kei’s eyes flashed with indignant anger. “Revenge doesn’t take away the pain.”

  “No,” Arman said regretfully. “It doesn’t. But I can understand his reaction.”

  “So can I. But he’s still wrong.”

  “He’s in good company—I imagine the whole village is out for our blood.”

  Kei smiled suddenly. “No, you’re wrong about that. Rei actually said he was very grateful you’d come to the court, so they had a chance to know what had happened that day, the real reasons. He even said he was very sorry another child had died. Um....”

  “What?”

  “Well...Seya asked me to ask you. I know Loke’s not buried here or anything, but they really feel bad he died because of one of their people’s crime, and they can’t even offer compensation to his mother. They want to put a little marker up in the graveyard here, so on the Day of the Ancestors, they remember to thank him too and wish him well in his new life.”

  Arman had thought he had no more tears left in him, but he was wrong. His vision blurred up painfully as he said, “That...would please Mari, I think. It would be fitting.”

  “It doesn’t offend you, an alien religion honouring your kind?”


  Arman made himself smile. “Loke will know what is meant by it—and he'll also know which belief is right by now. So it will cause no offence. I think it’s an honourable thing to do.”

  “So do I. I’ll tell her, and I’ll also tell her you’re going to try and have their people sent back.”

  “The chances are incredibly slim. Were I to walk in with a thousand men up the Avenue of the Gods, I think it wouldn’t be enough.”

  “I know that but I’m still grateful you’re prepared to try.” Kei stood. “Now, rest. I’ll bring you some lunch but you aren’t going to be moving around today at all. Your body needs a break from that. Your mind needs a break too,” he added softly. “Do you feel it was worth it, what happened today?”

  “You opposed my wishes. I didn’t want to cause more pain.” Arman was still angry about that, and Kei knew he was. “I was trying to close the wound.”

  “If you close a wound over an infection, you end up with gangrene. Better to leave it open a little and let it heal from the base up, than to stitch over at the top and lose a leg later. You made a great impact today—opened people’s eyes up when they were firmly closed before. Don’t regret it, even at the cost of some pain to some people.”

  “I’m not at all sure the analogy works,” Arman said dryly. “But it’s done. If I can get the hostages back then I will feel I have atoned a little.”

  “As you say. Now, I told you to rest.” He leaned down and whisked away the cushions while supporting Arman’s back, then pressed his head down gently with a hand on his forehead. “You’ve done all you need to for now.”

  Yes, for now. But he still had to save these sixty-nine people he’d wrongfully removed from their homes. That would make facing a little village court look like a walk through a field of flowers.

  Chapter : Return to Darshian 7

  Kei sat on a stool, watching Arman sleep and taking a guilty pleasure at the warm peace he got from holding his hand. Such a shame it didn’t work both ways, although Arman derived a little comfort from having him near.

  He wasn’t sure how he felt now he’d decided to delay a return home. Myka would kill him. Reji would kill him. But at the same time, the decision which had been giving him such agony had been made, and there were many definite benefits, at least to Darshian. He felt sure that Arman would be able to solve the hostage situation. He didn’t know how, or whether the Gifted would make a difference—they’d never been used in a war before, or even in serious defence. Most of them were rather odd, independent people, isolated from all but each other by their powers and their infertility. They were honoured and privileged, serving Darshek in many important ways, but they were also feared a little, even by the lesser gifted. The Rulers couldn’t force their cooperation, only ask. A lot might depend on whether they liked Arman or not, as simple as that.

  As for Arman himself...Kei sometimes found himself astonished at how thoroughly the man was entwined in his heart, and how deeply it would hurt to say good-bye. It wasn’t even—or mainly—the relief he got from his internal misery, because he was growing used to that. He’d survive in some fashion even without Arman’s help. It was simply that Arman offered him the kind of intellectual stimulation his parents used to give him, with the affection he’d come to expect from Reji, but with a need of his own that Reji didn’t have. Reji was a self-sufficient person, a free spirit, which made him an undemanding and joyful lover. But Arman longed for stability and peace in his home life—how ironic he was married to someone who would forever deny him both. It was also what Kei longed for—a quiet life, pursuing his researches, serving those he loved, and sharing his life with someone who was his and he, theirs.

  In another time, in another place.... Kei felt destined to look forever across a gulf created by circumstance at those he loved—or those he could so easily love. He could only hope that after he had a chance to consult with the masters at the academy in Darshek, he might find the answer to what was troubling him, and be able to return to Ai-Albon to live as he wished. He couldn’t help but worry that Arman’s future looked even less secure than his own.

  The front door opened and Tiko stepped in. Kei put his finger to his lips to signal him to be quiet. Tiko waved at him to come outside.

  Kei got his cloak and followed. “Neki can watch him for a little while,” Tiko said. “You and I need to talk about the journey plans, and I want you to see something.”

  Tiko’s soldier slipped inside the house—Kei could trust the man to come find him if there was a problem, which he wasn’t expecting. “Word’s come back—the Rulers want him up there with all possible speed, and want me to work out a way of doing that.”

  “And will they tell him the truth?”

  “When they meet him, yes. They don’t seem too concerned by his conditions—it’s only what one would expect. You’ve done a good job with him.”

  Kei grabbed his shoulder and glared at him. “And what does that mean, exactly?”

  His anger surprised Tiko. “Just what I said. You’ve convinced him to help.”

  “I did nothing of the sort. He came to that conclusion on his own—he always said he would help, but he had to decide what he would give up to do that. You know if he does this, he’ll be treated as a traitor. He might never be able to go home.”

  “Yes. But he’s burned that wagon already, if you ask me. The minute those men of his get back to Kuprij, the general’s a dead man.”

  Kei went still, shocked to his core. “No. Surely they understand.”

  “Yes, they do. They understand one of their generals freely and without any coercion sat in an enemy gathering and told them the Prijian invasion was wrong. You gave me to understand the sovereign of Prij wasn’t the most forgiving person in the world. What do you think will happen when she hears about that?”

  “But...to make a man live in exile, or to return to be killed.... How can we ask that? How can he even offer?”

  Tiko shrugged. “As for your last point, well, he has more of a conscience than most Prij, or maybe he really did lose his mind when that boy of his died. Living in exile may be hard, but I’d rather one of them did it than seventy of ours. At least he’s had a choice about it.”

  “But...do you think he’s realised that yet?”

  “You tell me, healer. Does he strike you as someone who does things without thinking? Normally? Because he strikes me as a thinking man, and a clever one. Which is why the Rulers want to meet him before they tell him much because this might just be some huge trick.”

  “It’s not,” Kei protested. “I know it’s not.”

  Tiko laid a kindly hand on his arm. “I know you think you know, but if you’re completely truthful, you’re not unbiased and you know you’re not completely in control of your gift.” As if reminded by his own words of that very fact, he took his hand away, even though, in fact, Kei was no longer troubled by the milder emotions he sensed from others. “I’m not calling you a liar, nor do I say you’re wrong. But you’re not a military man. He strikes me as sincere. But he wouldn’t be a general at his age if he wasn’t very good at inspiring confidence.

  Kei felt depressed at hearing this—that Arman’s great sacrifice was still seen as a game by the Rulers, and even by Tiko, when Kei knew how much it hurt him. “I still stand by my belief in him. Now, show me this thing.”

  Tiko led him to the edge of the village to the wainwright’s workshop. Actually the wainwright, Ruik, was also the village carpenter, the same man who’d made the clever chair for Arman’s convenience so quickly. “Oh, you found him. Come in, healer. Tiko said you might be interested in my little cart.”

  Kei frowned. “I know nothing about wagons or carts.”

  “You don’t need to,” Tiko said with a grin. “Come over here.”

  He was taken to the back of the workshop, where an odd-looking, lightweight cart stood. “I built this for my son, who likes racing urs beasts and wanted to see if a way could be found to race the carts too. This beauty is one
of the fastest I’ve designed, and see this?” He showed how the seat was suspended in leather webbing. “That absorbs a lot of the jolting. Makes it a sweet ride.”

  Kei was still puzzled. “The general can’t drive such a thing.”

  “No, I know. But Ruik has a larger cart in which he can fix such a seat at the back. The general could sit in it, tolerate faster speeds, and the cart being smaller, will also move much more easily than the wagons. The only problem is the cart is too small to sleep in, but he doesn’t need to sleep all day, does he?”

  “No. He only does that because he’s in the dark and forced to lie down. If he could sit, especially forward...and you would lift him in and out just as easily?”

  Ruik nodded. “The cart is designed so you can slide the box out from the structure. All it needs is four fit men to lift it from the back with poles. I built it to move smaller loads around the place that didn’t need a wagon for the job. I can make a throne for his majesty so wonderful the Rulers of Darshek would claw each other’s eyes out just for the right to sit in it.”

  He grinned as he described it, and Kei smiled in response. “All right. Make it and we can test it—how long will that take?”

  “Oh, just today and tomorrow. I don’t have to build most of it from scratch, just modify a few things I have.”

  Ruik reminded Kei of his father when he’d hit upon an idea. His enthusiasm was infectious. Maybe this strange object really would come to life.

  Tiko took him away from Ruik’s preparations, over to one corner of the workshop near the stove. “Now, this cart can do nearly twice the speed of the wagons, but the beasts can’t. We could easily do a good fifty miles a day—more if we were lucky with the weather and the road, and the beasts were the best quality.”

  Kei stared. “But that would mean we could be in Darshek in three weeks or less.” The journey by wagon usually took over five—much longer on foot, of course. They would be travelling as fast as unencumbered beasts could do.