Sen rode out well before dawn, his son Sadaiyo beside him, at the head of a force just over eight hundred strong-large enough to be an effective barrier for a time, yet small enough to, hopefully, fool the Soldarans into believing they would have little trouble taking back the valley. With Sakehera in place, the plan would be set and the elves as ready as they could possibly be.
Raidan witnessed Sen’s departure from atop the battlements of Tono Castle, an agitated Odata at his side. From the heights, the army looked like a slim column of ants marching out across the valley floor. The valley itself lay empty as part of the deception. The bulk of the elven forces were in place, positioned among the rocky crags that ringed the valley like dragon’s teeth.
Behind the fortress-hidden by its sturdy walls-awaited the cream of Alasiri’s army. These units were composed of the toughest, most seasoned warriors, men and women who’d been battle-tested through years of border defense on the eastern and northern frontiers.
One hundred and fifty years of peace with the Soldarans had not meant any respite for Alasiri’s armed forces. In the east, they battled nomadic tribes from the windy steppes, whose warlords decorated their battle standards with the severed heads of their enemies. In the north, bearded, pale-haired warriors attacked by sea in dragon-prowed longships. Alasiri had always been a beleaguered nation, surrounded on all sides by humankind who coveted the elves’ fertile land and resources.
Raidan sighed and rubbed his aching eyes. He couldn’t remember when he had last slept. “How many more have fallen sick?”
Odata drummed her gloved fingers on the stone parapet. “Seven, at last count, all among the household staff. So far, our luck appears to be holding. No more guards have gotten sick, and I’ve heard no reports of anything unusual among the army.”
“It’s science, Odata, far more than luck, that’s prevented this plague from spreading,” Raidan commented.
The Lady of Tono sniffed. “Respectfully, my lord Prince, I believe in luck and the One who bestows it. You speak of science and how it has the power to explain everything, yet you still have no idea what causes this sickness.” She paused to wet her lips before continuing. “I believe the Goddess has sent this plague and this war to us as a sign. People have been turning away from Her, turning their backs on She who created us! The temples are empty, the priesthood is dwindling…There are some holy days where I and my family are the only ones attending worship in our village.”
Raidan regarded Odata thoughtfully, one eyebrow raised. “My lady, I had no idea you were so…pious.” He nearly said zealous but thought better of it.
Odata returned his look with a frown. “If the elven people hadn’t been so shamefully negligent in their duty to Her, then none of this would be happening.”
Raidan said nothing; instead, he pushed off from the wall and walked along the rampart toward the stairs. Odata stalked along beside him in silence. Guards stationed at regular intervals along the parapets saluted as he passed; they saluted their commander and prince, not their king, for Raidan’s orders had been obeyed and no one outside the small group who’d been present at Sonoe’s arrival knew of Keizo’s death.
Raidan felt a twinge of unease as he thought of his brother’s Companion. She seemed undeniably different somehow, yet changed in a way too subtle for him to articulate. He had initially ascribed it to grief, but now he was not so sure.
She had taken charge of the other mages competently enough, and they had all seemed content to let her, even the cranky old man who had been in command. She had even improved upon their magical strategy, and had volunteered to ride out with Sakehera’s force.
“I have a few showy tricks I can use…Nothing too lethal,” she had explained. “It will make them think our vaunted magical reputation is mostly myth, so when my mages hit them with the real thing, it will be that much more demoralizing. Also, I can direct the magical attacks much more efficiently if I’m on the battlefield.”
Sen Sakehera had agreed, and so Sonoe had taken two other mages and together, they had ridden out with the Lord of Kerala. For no reason he could explain, Raidan felt relieved to see her go.
“I expect Sakehera to engage the enemy shortly after sunrise,” he said to Odata. The Lady of Tono had turned out in full battle dress, a graceful willow tree motif decorating both breast and back plates. Raidan knew her to be a competent commander and a decent swordswoman, but he also knew it had been years since she had last swung a weapon in battle. He hoped she would do the sensible thing and stay behind Tono’s walls, letting her eldest son lead her troops onto the field when the fight came to the gates of the castle.
“I’m going to my private chapel to pray, Highness,” Odata said as the two of them descended into the inner yard. “You are welcome to join me, of course.”
Raidan shook his head. “Thank you, but no, my lady,” he replied.
“As you wish, my lord Prince.” Odata inclined her head and left him standing alone by the stairs.
Taya, how I wish you were here! The sudden ache of longing caught Raidan by surprise. We’ve been separated by duty before, but this time, it’s different. Yes, my life has been at risk, but never have the stakes been so high! If we fail here, I will probably never see you again, my love, for it will mean the end of everything.
The prince went in search of his sons.
***
He found both young men back at the royal pavilion. Kaisik assisted his older brother with the elaborately painted armor Raidu had commissioned just for this day.
“Father!” Raidu called out as Raidan entered. “Your Heir and your spare are ready. It’s killing time!” He pumped his fist in the air, face stretched in a savage grin.
“You would do well to shed some of that arrogance,” Raidan shot back. “This is no game, Raidu. If you don’t keep your wits about you, if your concentration flags for even an instant…”
“My concentration will be perfect, Father, and so will Kaisik’s” he said, looking down at his brother, who crouched on the floor, fighting with a stubborn strap at Raidu’s ankle.
“Kaisik!” Raidan snapped, then instantly regretted his irritable tone as his younger son flinched. “You don’t need to do that,” he said in a gentler voice. It had never bothered him before, but now he hated to see Kaisik in so servile a posture. “You’ve not yet armed yourself, Son. Call for a servant to help you get ready. I need to speak with your brother.”
“Yes, Father,” Kaisik answered as he scrambled to his feet. “Father, am I to ride out with you and Raidu today?” Raidan needed no Talent to sense his younger son’s mood.
The boy is afraid, and yet…
The prince saw determination in Kaisik’s sea-green eyes.
He wants to conquer his fear and acquit himself well today.
Raidan felt a newfound pride in the boy that he had not felt before. “I can’t risk both of you unless it’s absolutely necessary, so no, Kaisik, you will stay behind and help defend the castle from the ramparts,” he said, then added to lessen the sting, “Don’t think I haven’t noticed what a good shot you’ve become, Son.”
The boy looked down at his feet for a moment, then nodded. “You know what’s best, Father, but I would rather be with you and my brother,” he replied. Without another word, he brushed by them and left the tent.
“Why won’t you let Kaisik come with us? He’s got to prove himself sometime, you know.”
Raidan glared at his eldest son. “He’ll never be able to prove himself as long as you keep treating him like your manservant.”
“That’s not fair, Father,” Raidu shot back. “I’ve always looked out for him, always protected him…”
“Be quiet, Son,” Raidan commanded. “This is not the time for us to talk about your relationship with your brother. I need to discuss what will happen should I fall in battle today.”
Raidu swallowed hard and his body tensed.
That got his attention!
“If I die, you will be king. Do you re
alize what that means?” Raidan stared into his son’s eyes.
“Of course I do, and I’ll be ready, but you’re not going to die today, Father,” Raidu insisted, frowning. He had a way of tilting down one eyebrow that instantly transformed his face into a masculine version of Taya’s.
Again, Raidan felt longing for his wife, like a shard of glass, pierce his heart. “Denial won’t change things, Son. I may die today, and I won’t feel easy unless I know you understand what must be done if I do.” He held up his hand to forestall the protest forming on Raidu’s lips. “Just listen! If Sen Sakehera survives the initial battle, and I don’t, then he will be in complete charge of the army. You follow his directions without question. He will be Alasiri’s last hope to avoid total conquest.”
Raidan paused to gauge his son’s reaction. Raidu had grown somber, with not the slightest hint of insolence in his eyes. “If the worst should happen and Sakehera also falls, then you must take whatever forces we have left, abandon the valley and retreat to Sendai.”
“And what if we can’t hold Sendai, Father?”
“Then your first duty is to survive and to ensure the survival of the elves as a people. If that means,” he had to force his next words past tense lips, “surrender and submission, then so be it. The elves can’t liberate themselves if they’re all dead. Our people will need a living Onjara as well, to eventually lead them back to freedom.”
Raidu lifted his chin and clenched both fists. “I have no intention of ever surrendering to the humans, Father,” he said. “I would rather die, and so should every okui. We’ll slaughter as many of them as we can until they kill the last of us. Then, they can have the hikui dregs for their slaves!”
“Goddess’ tits!” Raidan shouted. Raidu flinched and stepped back. “Son,” the prince continued, struggling to keep himself in check. “The elves as a people must survive . That is the most important…no, the only thing that matters. Swear to me… swear , Raidu, that you will obey my orders should the battle not go our way!”
The younger prince’s gaze remained unwavering, but the slight drop of his shoulders told Raidan his son had yielded.
“Yes, Father. I swear.”
Raidan regarded his son, who stood before him brimming with such vitality and youthful arrogance, and his heart ached with sadness.
If only my children could be spared this calamity , he thought. He sighed and turned away. “When you’re ready, meet me at the castle gates,” he said over his shoulder as he left the tent.
***
The predawn darkness roiled with the sounds of an army readying itself for battle. Men and women shouted, horses neighed, armor clanked and harness jingled. The smells of wood smoke, dry grass, and horse manure permeated the air. High on the castle battlements, a bell rang the hour.
Raidan made his way through the controlled maelstrom, cursorily acknowledging the salutes of his troops. When he reached the outer gates, he found Odata and Morio waiting for him. The contingent of mages assigned to help with the frontal defense waited there as well.
The old man whom Sonoe had supplanted had charge of them. He stepped up to Raidan and sketched a bow. “My lord Prince, we will need an area up on the walls where we can view the entire battlefield so we might effectively aim our attacks. The captains up there won’t let us position ourselves in front. They say we will interfere with the archers!”
“Master…”
“Katram, my lord.”
“Master Katram, you and your fellow mages can position yourselves against the western tower. You should have a clear view of the valley and you’ll have the archers on the tower to cover you.”
“We require no additional protection, my lord Prince,” Katram sniffed. “But I suppose it does make more sense for us to be against the tower. Very well.” He gestured for the other mages to follow and the group headed toward the stairs leading up to the battlements.
“You never have put much faith in magic, have you, Highness?” Odata said as she watched the mages threading their way through the swirl of moving bodies filling the yard.
“Not true. I’ve always had the utmost faith in magic,” Raidan countered. “I’ve lived with Alasiri’s premier mage for over forty years, so I’m quite familiar with what magic can and can’t do. It will give us a much needed advantage, but it can’t save us in the end if we fail militarily.”
Morio shifted from foot to foot. Raidan glanced at the other man’s face and it looked as though the Lord of Ayame had something especially bitter in his mouth he had to chew.
“What’s troubling you, Morio?” Raidan asked.
Morio took a deep breath, much like a man does before diving into deep water. “I don’t like having to say this, especially now,” he replied. He looked through the gates at the frenzy of activity beyond.
Raidan felt a flash of annoyance. “Please say what you need to, my lord!” he growled.
“Very well.” Morio’s black eyes narrowed as he spoke. “It’s about Prince Raidu. I’ve had a chance to observe him closely these past weeks, and it pains me greatly to say this, but I must. If you should fall, then I don’t have much faith in his ability to lead. He is simply not ready!”
“If not my son, then who?” Raidan asked. A swell of anger rose within him, threatening to sweep away all his self control. “You’ve already made it clear you won’t support my niece Jelena. If not my son, or my brother’s daughter, then who? ”
Morio remained silent for a few heartbeats. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “It seems disaster hems us in on all sides.”
“Do the other lords lack faith in my son?”
Raidan saw his answer in Odata’s eyes. “Your great lords will obey your orders, my lord Prince,” she murmured.
“I need to attend to something,” Raidan said. “Stay here. I’ll return shortly.” He turned on his heel and stalked away. As he passed through the gates, he heard Odata calling after him, but he ignored her. He had no real errand. He just needed to walk.
Morio thinks disaster hems us in and my son is not fit to lead. The worst of it is he’s right!
Raidan’s bleak thoughts beat against the inside of his head like bats as he moved along the base of the wall toward the west tower. The area lay deserted; the companies camped here had already vacated it. The fading stars overhead presaged the approach of the new day.
Sakehera’s forces should already be in place and ready to engage the Soldarans.
The storm is almost upon us.
“Prince Raidan!”
The hail came from somewhere up ahead. Raidan halted in his tracks and peered into the darkness. He could just make out a figure trotting toward him.
A scout, perhaps?
He waited while the figure approached.
“My lord! I’m so glad I found you!” The voice sounded familiar; Raidan felt certain he had spoken to this man before.
“Have you something to report to me, scout?” he called out.
“Yes, my lord…something very important.” The man stopped a stone’s toss from the prince and bowed.
Raidan moved closer so he could see the man’s face. “Goddess!” he exclaimed. “You’re alive!”
“Yes, my lord. Very much so,” Ashinji Sakehera said.
Showdown at the Pass
Captain Sakehera! Where have you been all this time?” the prince demanded.
“That is too long a story for right now, your Highness.” Ashinji raked his hands through his tousled hair. “I’ve ridden from Sendai to find you.” From the look of the camp, Ashinji guessed the army stood ready to march.
I’ve gotten here with barely a moment to spare.
The prince’s armor clinked as he moved closer. “You came from Sendai? Then my niece must know…”
“Please, my lord, you must listen. I don’t have much time!”
Prince Raidan frowned. “I’m listening,” he said.
Ashinji took a moment to gather his wits and clear the fog of weariness from his mind. It stru
ck him that Raidan might not know of his brother’s death. “Your Highness, the king is dead,” he said.
The prince nodded. “Yes, I know. Lady Sonoe has come to Tono to take charge of the mages, per my wife’s orders. She informed me of my brother’s passing.”
So that’s how she plans to complete the spell that will open the Void. She’s going to use the other mages to boost her power.
“Where is Sonoe now, your Highness?” Ashinji had already scanned the camp and had detected nothing unusual, but then, the entity controlling Sonoe’s body would shield itself well.
“She rode out with your father a short while ago. Lord Sakehera is to hold off the Soldarans for a time at the valley entrance, and Lady Sonoe offered to help with some diversionary magic. What’s all this about, Captain?” Ashinji could sense the prince’s growing impatience.
“My lord, your wife must have told you something about Jelena’s…about the magic she carried within her, and what the Kirians needed to do about it.” Ashinji spoke quickly now.
“Yes, she did.” Raidan paused, then asked, “What happened? Did the Kirians succeed?”
Ashinji tried to keep his voice from breaking, but he couldn’t. “No my lord. They failed…Jelena is dead.”
Raidan gasped and uttered a soft curse.
“One of their own betrayed them,” Ashinji continued. “Sonoe must have been in league with the enemy all along. At the crucial moment, when Jelena’s death released the magic within her, Sonoe opened a way for the enemy to escape its prison. She had a double betrayal planned. She tried to enslave the spirit by speaking its true name, but it was ready for her.”
Ashinji shuddered at the memory of Sonoe’s hideous demise. “She paid for her betrayal with her life. The thing that came here two days ago is not Sonoe! It only wears Sonoe’s flesh. The Kirians call it the Nameless One, but it’s the undead spirit of your ancestor, the sorcerer king Shiura Onjara. Somehow, Sonoe found out his true name. He… it is now in possession of the very thing the Kirians fought so hard to keep from it.”
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