Fire And Ice (Book 1)

by Wayne Krabbenhoft III

  “What do we have here? You would not happen to be that Anagassi they were searching for?” He spoke without any accent and in a deep voice that went perfectly with his large frame. “Strange, you do not look like a Karand to me.”

  Coran tried to move, and found that he could, slowly. It was like trying to move while buried in mud. The expression on the man’s face went from arrogance to confusion.

  “How are you doing that? You should not be able to...”

  That was as far as he got. Coran broke free from whatever was holding him and swung his blade in an upward motion. The sharp steel took the wizard’s arm off at the elbow. The man shrieked in pain, and surprise. Coran did not wait to see what would happen next, not when it involved a wizard. He raced for the balcony, and just made it before a ball of fire struck the curtains where he had just passed.

  Coran scraped his fingers in his hurry to descend to the next balcony. As he jumped for the tree a shout came from above. Coran lost his grip on the branch and crashed into a lower one. He barely managed to grip that one enough to drop the last six feet to the ground with some sort of control.

  Glancing up he saw a man on the top balcony looking out over the rail. He had no choice now but to make a run for it. Guards would certainly be coming to check the garden. Running, he jumped and propelled himself up and over the wall before the alarm of his being spotted left the watcher’s mouth.

  He ran through the streets to keep ahead of any pursuit. The problem was a running man was a beacon to any guards patrolling the streets. As he came out onto a crossing street two figures shouted at him.

  “Great,” he said to himself as he ran in the opposite direction. The sound of his footsteps echoed off the walls of the buildings.

  Shirri placed three traveling packs into the boat along with Coran’s western style blade. Already in the boat were the quiver of arrows, a bow, and a lit lantern. There were full water skins with the packs as well. They would be needed if they had to stay in the boat longer than expected.

  She had to admit it was a good plan the Midian had devised. Almost brilliant. His scruples would get him killed though. Risking not only his life, but the mission he said was so important to him. He was foolish to try and save men who accepted their own risks. It was foolish, yet why did she think it so...so...noble?

  “Now I am the fool,” she berated herself. He had that effect on her and it made her angry. There was something about him that was different than other men. She wondered if he was the one She’al’s teachings had foreseen. It was troubling.

  Karands were very close-mouthed about anything connected to She’al, and that included speaking of talents, and the power wielded by some. That was why she had not told him of her own abilities to heal others. For some reason that didn’t feel right anymore, like she was lying by omission.

  She froze, and her mouth went dry at the sound of approaching feet. A shade of a man that became Miko crept down to the dock and slipped into the boat smoothly. She was angry with herself for reacting in such a way. Someone could have put a knife into her while she sat there frozen in terror.

  Miko glanced around in the dark. “He is not here yet?”

  “No,” she told him.

  “We will give him a few more minutes.”

  “We cannot leave without him,” she said quickly and was surprised by her own declaration.

  The trader from Arencia looked at her with a serious expression on his once chubby face. He had slimmed down in the more than two months of traveling and hiding. “He is right that the fleet must be destroyed. If it sails, then Summerhall falls, and the rest of us will fall soon after. That much I believe to be true.”

  She didn’t like it, risking her life like this, but she had no argument against Miko’s statement. She instead watched the darkness intently, hoping he would come.

  They waited longer than the few minutes Miko had allotted. When a distant shout was heard from the city they knew that their time had run out. Miko used an oar to push off from the pier, then set himself to begin rowing out into the harbor. Shirri sat at a second set of oars and matched his pace. She would pull her own weight.

  “His father is going to kill me,” Miko said quietly, shaking his head sadly.

  Coran avoided any more direct encounters as he raced for the docks ahead of his pursuers. The two who had spotted him couldn’t keep up and once away from them he stuck more to the shadows along the sides of buildings.

  He heard confused shouting from somewhere behind him as he neared the docks. He stopped to look for guards, but no one was in sight. They were all around the piers currently in use by the fleet. The one he came to ended about fifty feet out and swayed slightly in the water. It was also the furthest out from the town.

  He ran low out onto the unstable planking, searching the water along each side. The boat was gone which meant that Miko had been successful, and Coran was late. Straining his eyes he barely made out the form of a boat out on the water, moving away from him. Even if it wasn’t them he had no alternatives. He took off the long, brown robe and threw it into the water. It was followed by the curved sword. It would only drag on him while he swam. He took a few running steps and dove head first into the harbor. He pulled himself through the water as fast as he could, but the boat was too far ahead. He knew if it was them they would stick to the plan and be stopping once they reached the middle of the harbor, so he didn’t risk a shout.

  The boat did stop finally and he started to close the distance. As he came along side he heard a muffled oath from Miko. The trader saw who it was and helped him into the rocking boat. Shirri looked pleased to see him from where she sat holding a lantern.

  “It took you long enough,” Miko grumped, but he smiled as he said it. “I take it you were successful in letting them see you.”

  Coran grinned sheepishly. “More than once.” He suddenly remembered the map and yanked it out from beneath his shirt. He unrolled it carefully. The ink was a little smeared in a couple of places from the water, but it was still legible.

  “Is that what we came all this way for?” Miko asked as he looked at the paper.

  “Yes.”

  “Good. Now let’s finish this and get out of here,” Miko suggested.

  “About time,” Shirri added irritably. Her scowl was hiding the grin she first wore when he had climbed into the boat.

  Coran took the bow and one of the arrows. The arrows had a cloth dipped in oil wrapped around each tip. The cloth ignited once it touched the flame from the lantern. He raised the burning arrow and aimed it at one of the group of ships. It made a flaming arc in the night sky as it descended onto the deck. The ship was immediately engulfed in flames that quickly spread to the next ship beside it. By the time it neared the third, two more arrows were already on their way. Thirty two arrows, and thirty bonfires later he put down the bow in the bottom of the boat.

  Miko took up his oars and began moving them away from the town. “Nice fire,” he commented.

  Coran grabbed the second set of oars and added his strength to the effort. Shirri sat in the rear of the boat. All three of them watched the destruction they had wrought. The destruction he had caused, since it was all his idea. The once mighty fleet was now a massive conflagration. Red, yellow and orange light reflected across the surface of the water. The whole harbor appeared to be on fire. Flames leapt up dozens of feet into the air. A burning mast toppled, and crashed across the decks of two more ships.

  Terk said the stuff spread over the decks was volatile, but he had no idea it would work so well. “What was in those barrels again?” he asked.

  “Fire oil,” Miko answered. “The Ithanians came up with it I think. Very rare stuff. It is dangerous just to handle. That is why few will risk using it.”

  “I can see that,” Coran nodded. The inferno behind them was evidence of that.

  They rowed past a finger of land that separated the harbor from the Sea of Karand. Out of sight of the ships, the light made the sky appear t
o burn. After what they had seen there was a feeling among the three that precluded speech.

  Coran turned his head around and saw the ship that was their destination. This might be just as difficult a situation as Lornth was. As they rowed nearer, heads began to appear along the railing. Big, hairy heads by the outlines he could make out. The ship itself was long and narrow, it was built for speed. Some of the men looking down at them pointed and shouted to one another, others were shouting about the light coming from Lornth. It was difficult to discern one from another, so many were talking at once. Another man approached the railing and shouted for quiet in a commanding voice. At least no one had begun shooting arrows at them.

  “What’s your business here, and be quick about it!” the man who seemed to be in charge called to them.

  Coran stopped rowing and raised the lantern enough so they could see his face. He gestured with his thumb back over his shoulder. “I wore out my welcome.”

  The comment elicited some scattered chuckling from among the crew. “Haul them up. Let’s hear what they have to say,” the man ordered in a slightly less hostile tone.

  It was only a few minutes later that they found themselves on the deck facing a dangerous looking crew. All of them were large, around his height and a few who were taller. They all wore shaggy beards of every color. A variety of axes and swords hung from their belts. One stood out from the others. He had shoulders like an ox and his hair and beard were yellow. He was older and then some, yet untouched by gray.

  “I am Dwynnel, the Captain of the North Wind,” he introduced himself while surveying the three he had taken aboard. “Who are you?”

  “I am Coran,” he told the captain. He gestured to Miko. “This is Miko, a trader from Arencia and my friend. And she is Shirri, from Crecy.”

  The captain nodded thoughtfully. “Now tell me why I shouldn’t have all of you thrown over the side right now.” There were some more chuckles from among his men.

  “Overboard!” Miko was shocked at the suggestion.

  Coran waved a hand at him to be silent. He knew that only the truth would work with Northmen. This captain was a lot smarter than he looked. “Like I said, my name is Coran, Coran Tyelin. I was sent here by Stemis, High king of Summerhall to spy on our enemy.”

  “And the fire? Was that your work?”

  “With some help, yes. What you see burning is about two hundred ships that were intended to carry an army to Summerhall.”

  The chuckles turned to concerned whispers. Some of the crew eyed him more seriously and fingered their weapons. The captain ignored them. “Why should I believe a Midian. And even if you are telling me the truth, there is no reason to let you stay on my ship.”

  Coran was afraid of this. Northman courtesy at its finest. He took a step towards the captain and several men drew weapons, but the captain dismissed them with a wave. Coran stopped close enough, and spoke low enough, so it would be difficult for others to hear. “I have the blood of the North,” he said and the captain frowned with doubt. “Tirese of Leanesse.” The effect was what he had hoped for. He was lucky to have found a well informed captain. Most would not recognize the name, or understand its meaning.

  “Watch these two.” he indicated Miko and Shirri. “Don’t hurt them. I need to speak with this one alone.” The captain led him to the prow of the ship and ordered everyone to back off. While he waited for his crew to move away he eyed Coran with a renewed interest. “That is something not well known. It would be embarrassing to King Edric if it ever became common knowledge. I must ask you to elaborate, just to be sure.”

  Coran nodded. He expected as much. “My father is Lord Oran of Tyelin. My mother was Anya, daughter of Tirese of Coleson, the same Tirese who was the daughter of the King of Leanesse.”

  The captain appeared to be satisfied with his lineage. “Now that I look closely I can see a slight resemblance to Edric’s family. Why are you here, on my ship?”

  “We needed a way out of Lornth. Since we were in the harbor anyway, setting fire to the ships, this seemed a logical escape route. I also hoped that you might be able to give us passage to Summerhall.”

  “I can’t take you that far. Not right now anyway. The narrows around Crecy are in the hands of the Easterners.”

  “Can you take me as far as that?” He might be able to find passage from there. Then he remembered his promise to Ruan. Maybe he could find someone to carry a message the rest of the way.

  “I can do that,” the captain agreed, not sounding totally convinced. That he agreed was the important part. Northmen did what they said they would do. Dwynnel shouted to his crew for them to show the two Karands to their quarters, and for them to be ready to set sail, before turning back to Coran. “You said you were sent here to spy?”

  “I was.”

  “Did you find out anything useful?”

  “A few things,” Coran replied carefully. His assessment of the Captain’s intelligence seemed to have been accurate.

  “Perhaps you would be willing to share some of it?” Dwynnel suggested. It was more than a suggestion, not a threat, but he expected something in return for the passage.

  “I believe that can be arranged.”

  Chapter 22

  The Return to Crecy

  The wind blew his dark hair off his forehead as he weaved his way past members of the crew, busy at their various tasks. He was not very familiar with ships and could only guess at what they were doing. He could hear some of the talk as he neared the prow and the Karandi woman who sat there with her legs crossed and her hands on her knees.

  “Karands. Strange lot,” one of the sailors said.

  “Don’t know why the Cap’n said to leave them alone.”

  “....don’t go against his orders or....”

  Coran took a spot along the railing beside her as the talk faded behind him. Her eyes were closed and her chin held high. He watched the dark mass of land on the horizon slide by on the right side of the ship. The smell of the sea was intoxicating. It filled him with a sense that he was getting somewhere, a sense of freedom. It was the same way he felt when he rode a horse to a hilltop to see what was on the other side.

  After a few minutes, he couldn’t ignore her any longer and his curiosity got the better of him. “What are you doing?” he finally asked. He waited until he thought that maybe she hadn’t heard him. He opened his mouth to ask again when her eyes opened and she turned her head up to peer at him with those spirited brown eyes.

  “It is none of your business,” she answered rudely. Her legs uncrossed and she moved to stand. She stumbled slightly on the rolling deck and gave him a look that dared him to make a comment. The thought hadn’t crossed his mind, since he had stumbled a few times himself at the unfamiliar movement.

  “I didn’t mean to pry.” He tried to sound reasonable, but feared that the exasperation he felt at her attitude was noticeable.

  She hesitated, and her face softened. “You are different from anyone I have ever known before.” She sounded troubled, but offered no more explanation. “I was seeking myself.” She indicated where she had been sitting. “It is from the teachings of She’al. We shut out everything around us and concentrate inward. It helps us to be calm when needed. Sometimes it can give us answers to things that...trouble us.”

  “And which were you doing?” he asked. “If you don’t mind telling me.”

  “Seeking answers. Much has changed in my life since I last saw Crecy, or Ruan.”

  He didn’t want to push too much so tried another question. “These teachings, I take it they are only for Karands?”

  A little of the fire returned to her voice. “Of course. It is only for those Karands who follow She’al. Do you not have your own teachings?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Do you not seek guidance from Dios? Is he not the god of the Midians?” she said, obviously confused.

  “Well, yes. But we do not seek guidance from him.”

  “Why not?”

>   He had to remember that she was not Midian, and had her own beliefs. “We are taught that the Creator first made the world, and then the stars. He created Naturus, the power that drives all life. After that he brought forth the gods to watch over the world and men. To do that the gods each chose a people to care for.”

  “That is what we are taught as well, but you sound as if you do not believe it?”

  “I believe in the Creator, but if there are gods to watch over us, I have never seen one.” The existence of Dios was a point of disagreement for more than a few Midians. That meant that the existence of any of the lesser gods was in question. That was also the reason that some Midians chose to ignore the current threat for what it was. If there was no Dios, how could there be a Destroyer? Coran realized that he might have just answered the question. He was starting to believe in the threat, which meant he had to accept the possibility of Dios being real. Most Midians did but Coran had always had a difficult time truly believing it himself. He preferred to keep his focus on men and armies instead of intangible deities.

  “She’al is real and she guides our people.” Shirri stated it as fact, and he must have said something to offend her, because he could tell that she was getting angry. “Perhaps your Dios no longer finds your people worthy of guidance. Perhaps that is why he has hidden himself from your kind for so long.” She stomped across the deck in anger, leaving him shaking his head.

  He needed some answers and Miko had them. If anyone could put reality before belief he could. At least he hoped he could. Those answers could have something to do with the coming conflict.

  Just the person he wanted to find came out on deck. Shirri brushed by the man without a word. Miko stared at her disappearing back. He turned back, and seeing Coran, came toward the prow. He was careful not to get in any of the sailors’ way. They made no secret of their dislike for Karands. Whatever the Captain said about leaving them alone, Miko wasn’t going to take any chances.

  “What did you say to her this time?” the trader asked him casually. If he knew why she was so irritable all the time he never explained it. Coran went over the conversation he had with Shirri. When he finished Miko stood there, frowning. “This time I have to agree with her. You are a fool.” He checked to make sure none of the crew was too close. “We take our beliefs very seriously. They are not discussed with outsiders. If you were to ask one of these Northmen about Nortia they would not be too friendly. Many of my people do not understand Midians. Some of those that think they do, see you as immoral for your lack of belief. I, on the other hand, have some knowledge of it from talking with your father. Your people have been deprived of guidance for so long you forget it ever was there. That is not your fault. For some reason Dios has decided to let you guide yourselves, or perhaps it is the Creator’s plan. For my people, it is not our place to question the gods.”