‘Um...how about, ‘Dale we’re about to murder everyone in this room’,’ Eibhear responded grimly.
‘I guess that will work for me,’ Dale thought drily.
Corleo turned back to face the captives and Dale felt the tension in the room rise dramatically. He knew what was about to happen even before Eibhear could reach his thoughts.
‘Five seconds,’ Eibhear thought and Dale tensed himself. He leaned his head forward and pressed his shoulders gently against the lid of the chest.
‘Now!’ Rudiger shouted.
Dale flung the lid of the chest back and jumped out in time to see the four warriors leap towards the nearest soldiers. He dashed behind Rudiger and grabbed Raline by the hand then turned for the door, wishing it was already open. Rezon slammed his uninjured fist into the face of a soldier and at the same time his foot smashed the door clean from its hinges, opening the way for Dale. Dale saw that the huge warrior had his injured arm held tightly against his chest. He pulled Raline through the doorway and ran for the trees. For a few minutes he could hear shouting and screams coming from the hut, and then there was a brief silence before the four warriors burst from the building. Soldiers appeared from within the surrounding buildings. They backed away cautiously as the four warriors ran forward threateningly. To the soldiers’ surprise the four warriors suddenly turned away and dashed into the forest following in Dale and Raline’s footsteps. Dale and Raline stopped when they caught up.
‘Keep moving!’ Rudiger ordered.
Everyone sprang forward. They ran, but soon slowed a jog and eventually to a swift walk as they were not followed. At the top of a high ridge of forested hills they reached a small abandoned hut. They had a look around but decided there was no point in stopping there. The roof was gone and it seemed the entire structure would crash to the ground if someone breathed hard enough against one of the walls. The view from the top of the hill was magnificent, and when they moved into the nearby trees they found the strangest of sights. Water was bubbling out of the ground and pooling in a small rocky basin. What caught everyone’s attention was the slight steam rising from the water. They felt the water and it was pleasantly warm. The warriors took no particular interest, but both Dale and Raline longed to bathe in the warm water. Unfortunately no-one felt they had put enough distance between themselves and their previous captors, so they left the hills and moved downstream into the rocky valley. It was hours before Rudiger suggested they stop.
‘Do you think it’s safe to hide here?’ asked Raline.
‘It seems like a good enough place,’ said Eibhear.
‘Why?’ Raline wondered.
‘For the last two hours we’ve crossed no visible tracks. I’ve seen no evidence at all that anyone has been this way lately. And if you look around, the entire area ahead of us is a massive jumble of rocks. There’s bound to be somewhere dry we can rest, and since we left that old hut we’ve been passing springs, so we’ll have water. I can’t speak for the rest of you, but I’m more tired than I’ve ever been in my life. I’ve been smashed over the head with a lump of wood and I’ve lost more blood than- Oh stop feeling guilty Dale! This wasn’t your fault!’
‘Actually it was my fault,’ said Dale quietly, looking down at the ground. ‘Just to set the record straight, I was supposed to be watching whilst Eibhear got some sleep, then I was going to have a sleep when he woke up.’ No-one spoke as Dale sighed miserably. ‘It was raining and I heard the sound of the stream change and I went upstream to see if we were going to have to get out of there in a hurry. When I came back those people had taken Eibhear and-’ Dale felt his voice catch in his throat when he remembered seeing Eibhear’s body lying on the ground, covered in blood and appearing dead. ‘Eibhear, I’m so sorry!’
‘Dale they might have taken us anyway,’ Eibhear pointed out. ‘And if you’d been calmly sitting beside me when they’d arrived - I said this before - you’d probably be dead. As it was, you managed to stay alive long enough to get us out of there. If it wasn’t for you we might still be stuck back in that horrible little hut. Rudi, Ben, Rez and Raline would anyway, and we’d have no clue where they were.’
‘I’ll bet you could have escaped from those people even without the knives,’ Dale observed.
‘Not necessarily,’ Eibhear contradicted. ‘Not with our hands tied and having been beaten half to death. You certainly made the job easier. And getting Raline out safely at the same time would have been very difficult.’
‘Let me look at your arm,’ said Rudiger, turning to Rezon. ‘We need something to splint this with and some fabric to bandage it.’
‘I have fabric,’ said Dale, pulling the stolen tunic over his head. ‘I’d rather go naked then ever be seen in this awful uniform again.’ Rudiger made no comment. He took the tunic from Dale and began to tear it into strips. Dale peeled off the trousers and threw them down. Ben picked them up, tore off the lower part of each leg and threw the considerably shorter trousers back to Dale. He eyed them dubiously, and then pulled them back on, deciding it was probably better to wear them than to go naked. He turned away and stalked towards a nearby tree. The lowest branches were within his reach, so he tried to snap off the smoothest and straightest. It was too strong for him to break, and he gave a growl of displeasure. He grabbed the branch with both hands, lifted his feet and bounced up and down, putting his entire weight on the branch which stubbornly refused to snap. Ben watched for a few moments before interceding politely.
‘May I?’
Dale let go of the branch and watched as Ben reached up and snapped the limb neatly from the tree. He gave a sigh of annoyance and then shivered as the cool breeze began to increase.
‘You might regret giving your shirt away,’ Ben commented. Dale said nothing, but he knew Ben was right. He was cold. Then he remembered what the men in the uniforms had done to his friends and he grimaced angrily. He’d rather be cold. He picked up a scrap of fabric and carried it to where water was running from cracks in the rocks. He soaked the rag and took it back to where the four warriors sat and he began to help as they cleaned their wounds. He worked as quickly as he could, returning again and again to the stream to wash the cloth until he had removed as much blood as he could from everyone’s injuries. Rezon’s arm was now bandaged to the smooth stick, and Ben had used Dale’s torn trouser legs to make a rough sling for his brother’s arm.
‘I’ll find us a place to sleep,’ Ben murmured, disappearing into the rocks. He returned only minutes later. ‘There’s good enough place in the rocks just ahead of here.’ Everyone followed him tiredly to a small but flat area of rocks where one massive boulder lay atop several others, leaving a sheltered space between. The warriors began to gather armloads of leaves and dried grass and they piled it together in a depression in the rocks and Rezon laid his shirt across the pile, making a small bed for Raline.
‘I was probably the last one of us to get any rest,’ said Ben, ‘so I’ll keep first watch whilst everyone else gets some sleep.’ Without waiting for an answer he left the cave and sat himself down on the rocks. No-one bothered to argue. Each of the warriors removed their shirts and rolled them up, tucking them under their heads as pillows. Rezon lay down and Raline snuggled against him, making sure she didn’t disturb his broken arm. Dale simply lay down on the ground and went to sleep. He opened his eyes briefly when Eibhear pushed his own rolled shirt under Dale’s head, then again when Ben draped his shirt over Dale’s cold body, but he was so tired he didn’t even bother to argue. He knew the warriors could sense his gratitude. He fell into an unusually deep sleep.
Chapter 25
Loyalty
‘Well, that was...horrible,’ Timbul observed, as they ran from the burning Sanctuary. So intense had been the confusion between the battling guards, that the guardians’ attempts to stem the attack had entirely failed.
‘I can’t believe we got out of there alive,’ said Araas glancing over his shoulder as they ran. ‘Where to?’ Timbul stopped running and turned
to look at the massive blaze.
‘We have to find where Evan’s taken Kelian and the Empress first, and we need to find the Queen and everyone else. That fire can’t be natural!’
‘It didn’t smell natural,’ Garran agreed. ‘It was bad enough to stand my hair on end. It looks like Callian was right. It must have been heat sap. Look at the tower!’ They watched in awe as the tallest part of the Sanctuary was caught up in flames. ‘Come on Callian!’ urged Garran. ‘Where are you?’
‘Here.’ Garran jumped as Callian’s silhouette appeared in front of the glaring blaze.
‘What kept you?’ asked Timbul, wondering why Callian did not turn to face them.
Callian’s voice was hard. ‘There were more than a hundred servants trapped in the lowest kitchen store room. They didn’t make it out the eastern entrance and they were screaming out for help.’
‘Why were they in there? Did they think they’d be safe-’ Garran broke off as he caught his brother’s thoughts. He cursed angrily. ‘You think they were herded in there to die?’
‘I’m sure they were. Someone called Marlea; one of the fallen.’ Callian didn’t turn to face his brother as he spoke.
‘Marlea!’ Garran almost spat out the words. ‘He hates me, he hates Nandul, he hates Milgorry, he hates...well he hates everyone! What in all hell is he doing here in Tathra?’
‘We can discuss this later,’ said Callian.
‘You didn’t get there in time, did you?’ Garran asked and Callian shook his head grimly, still not looking directly at Garran. ‘They burnt to death?’ Garran’s voice lowered to a horrified whisper. Callian sighed heavily and a feeling of failure flowed from him.
‘So we track him down and return him?’ asked Araas furiously.
Callian finally turned to face them and he spread his hands. His face, arms, neck, hands and chest were splattered with blood and gore. Garran’s face whitened at the repellent sight.
‘I guess you already caught up with him.’
‘Did you take his thoughts before you...’ Araas looked away, feeling a little sickened by the sight of Callian.
‘I did,’ said Callian shortly. ‘Let’s find Evan.’
‘I guess there’s no way he’d let either Kelian or Cahndrech out of his sight. Can you hear his mind?’ asked Timbul.
‘This way,’ said Callian confidently, turning south.
* * *
Asdul pushed his way through the prickly bushes and knocked softly on the small iron banded door. It opened a crack. He pushed it back and slipped into the dark little tunnel.
‘I think it’s safe. I don’t think there’s a person left in Tathra who isn’t watching the Sanctuary burn.
‘It’s on fire?’ asked Cahndrech, aghast. ‘What happened?’
‘I’m not entirely sure Empress, but with your permission, we’ll make for the silahfohr Evan mentioned and work out what’s happening when we get there.’
Cahndrech held tightly onto Kelian’s hand and Pevita clung to Evan as they moved through the park and out onto the street. To Asdul’s annoyance, a small child about the age of Kalinya ran across the street right in front of the Empress. He stopped and stared at the girl in surprise then dropped to his knees. He was dressed in reasonably good quality clothing but he was dirty and barefooted.
‘Empress!’ he exclaimed. ‘Your house is on fire and everyone is looking for you! Everyone’s gone over to the Sanctuary to get you out. Mother sent me to try to find Superior-Commander Asdul. I’ve been searching for you for ages!’ he finished, standing up. ‘I have to tell mother!’ He turned and raced away, shouting for his mother at the top of his lungs as he ran.
‘Child!’ Asdul shouted after him. He sighed as the child disappeared. ‘So much for remaining unnoticed. Let’s keep moving. Oh no!’ He stepped in front of Cahndrech and drew his sword as several more people ran towards them. The people stopped in shock as they saw Asdul standing with his sword drawn protectively in front of the Empress. Some simply stood staring in astonishment whilst other knelt and bowed before their Empress. One man came forward. He bowed low before Cahndrech.
‘Empress,’ he said, ‘what would you have us do?’
‘Traitors are attacking the Sanctuary. Our Empress must be taken to safety. Please stand aside,’ Asdul commanded. The man immediately moved aside. He glanced towards the burning Sanctuary.
‘You won’t be able to go back there judging by the size of that fire.’ He looked sadly at Cahndrech. ‘We love our little Empress as much as you do, soldier! There must be something we can do to help!’ His eyes moved curiously to Kelian. ‘And you’re the King of Alkira. I’ve seen you before!’
‘You have?’ Kelian asked in disbelief.
‘Yes. I was staying at the Inn in Warbilla when you passed through there once.’
Asdul considered the man’s earnest face. ‘Don’t tell anyone you’ve seen the Empress. Her safety may depend on only the right people knowing where I’m taking her.’ He glared around in frustration at the crowd which was growing on every side. ‘Just keep moving,’ Asdul said to Evan. ‘And keep your sword ready.’
They arrived at the Silahfohr without incident, other than the fact that the crowd had grown significantly. By the time Asdul led the Empress and Kelian inside, hundreds were crammed into the surrounding streets.
Callian, Araas, Timbul and Garran slowed to a walk as they approached the crowd.
‘So much for getting the Empress to safety in secret,’ Garran grumbled. He tried to push his way through the crowd but was stopped by a row of stubborn looking men and women forming a barricade in front of the door. ‘We need to get through to the Empress. Stand aside!’
‘Over my dead body!’ one of the men shouted loyally and cries of ‘Stop them!’ and ‘Don’t let them in!’ and ‘They could be traitors!’ rose on every side. Garran gave a sharp huff of both admiration and frustration as the citizens closed together forming a human wall.
‘Callian,’ he whispered. ‘How many of these can you influence at once. I don’t want to hurt anyone. They’re good people.’
‘There are far too many,’ Callian replied, ‘but even if I could, that might mean anyone could walk into this place. Right now, this crowd is probably the best thing that could have happened.’
‘So how do we get in?’ Timbul asked.
‘We ask Cahndrech or Kelian to let us in,’ said Araas, eyeing Timbul as if he considered the question to be an incredibly stupid one.
‘Oh, of course,’ Timbul grinned sheepishly at his own idiocy. ‘Go on then.’
Seconds later the door opened and Asdul stood in the doorway. Behind him, Garran could see Cahndrech’s little face peeping out from behind Kelian and Evan and six guards. They were standing in front of the little girl defensively. In the background stood the old servant Nali, the Vocopulis, the boy Kalinya and Administrator Tappy, all looking nervously at the gathering.
‘Empress!’ many in the crowd cried out, spying the little girl. Hundreds of people dropped to their knees.
‘Where is Garran?’ Asdul cried out, and the crowd became silent. ‘Where are the guardians?’ Timbul, Araas, Callian and Garran walked forward, amidst cries of amazement and uncertainty. ‘Let them through!’ Asdul shouted. Everyone watched in awe as Garran and the guardians moved through the crowd.
‘Garran!’ Cahndrech called with relief as she saw the warrior. The crowd cried out when they heard her voice.
‘Superior-Commander, what do you want us to do?’ a man shouted before Asdul could disappear back inside the Silahfohr. Asdul hesitated, eyeing the people distrustfully. Callian leaned down and whispered in the soldier’s ear and he smiled. He raised his hand and the crowd became silent.
‘Right now, these six guards are the only soldiers I can be sure are still alive,’ said Asdul. ‘If you want to help, you can, but there are conditions. The first is that you have to let one of these guardians examine your mind. After what happened in the Sanctuary today, I’ll take no chances. Wh
o is willing?’ Hands shot up everywhere. ‘Good,’ said Asdul, nodding in appreciation, ‘but no children. Before you agree to this, you need to know this will not be the end of bloodshed. Who is still willing?’ Hands were raised once again. ‘Callian, how fast can this be done?’
‘If you just want to know if they are loyal, it won’t take long,’ said Callian. ‘Tim and Araas will help.’ Kelian watched as a crowd of determined looking men and women assembled in front of the guardians.
‘Can you sense whether the others escaped?’ he asked Callian.
‘Yes. At least, I can sense that they’re alive. When we left the Sanctuary they were moving towards the docks.’ Kelian asked no more, but his worry intensified the longer he waited for the guardians to finish their task. All three guardians were tired when they had finished. Callian went inside the Silahfohr. Already Asdul had eight strong men and women standing guard around the Empress, alongside her remaining six guards.
‘Empress Cahndrech, I must find the Queen and her companions,’ said Callian.
‘Of course. Do you know where they are?’ the girl asked eagerly.
‘I think so, but if anything happens to us...will you be alright?’
‘Yes. Asdul is here and Garran is here too now. Asdul is putting out word for soldiers from other cities to come to our aid. Kelian wanted Tappy to stay and act as Ambassador, as well as to help me - as an advisor. Evan can take him back to Alkira when the situation here is resolved.’
‘Good. There is none better than Administrator Tappy if you want sound political advice,’ said Callian. ‘No matter what happens don’t become separated from Garran. If traitors come for you, Garran is your best chance of escape.’
‘Garran can’t stay in Tathra forever,’ Cahndrech observed wisely. ‘There are too many problems in Nyinaku. Asdul will stay with me and Evan has Kelian’s permission to stay as well, for as long as he is needed.’
‘That’s lucky,’ said Callian, glancing towards Evan who was holding fast onto Pevita’s hand, ‘since he can’t seem to let go of the Princess. Now, we must hurry away. Tell me Empress, where will you go?’
Child Of A Guardian And Of The Free (Book 3) Page 20