And even as the thought came to her, a man in a hooded cloak stepped through the ruined doors.
"That's quite enough," he said, voice strong and commanding.
Lucan lifted his sword and dagger. "You. I should have known."
"Yes," said the hooded man. "It's been a long chase, hasn't it? But it's over now."
He reached up and drew back his hood.
"Oni?" said Caina.
It was indeed the old man who had brought her the letter from the magi. But gone was his servile expression, the cringing light in his eyes. He stood with power and confidence, looking at Lucan with amused disdain.
And he wore the ornate robes of a master magus, bound about the waist with a purple sash.
"Yes," said the old man. "Oni. A nickname when I was still an apprentice. But these days I am mostly known as Master Sidonius."
Lucan waved his sword over the carnage. "This is your doing?"
"Only indirectly," said Sidonius, stepping into the room. "My experiment seems to have been most effective. Ah, Countess." He turned an amused smile in Caina's direction. "I should put that throwing knife down, if I were you. Your reputation is most fearsome, and I assure you that I have warded myself against every weapon you possess. You can try it, if you wish, but the results would be... entertaining. For me. Less so for you, I fear."
Caina hesitated, the throwing knife ready in her gloved hand. He was only fifteen paces away. She could put the knife into his throat at that distance.
But that mocking smile held more confidence than she liked.
"You resumed your murderous experiments, I see," said Lucan.
"I have," said Sidonius, studying Lucan. "You caused me a great deal of trouble, you know. Years of work, lost. Fortunately, my efforts met with considerably more success in the capital. As you have seen for yourself." He drew a wand from beneath his cloak. It was a human leg bone, carved with strange runes, the symbols flickering with green fire. "Slave, come forth!"
The door to the cellar shattered, and Jabin strode into the room, heedless of the carnage. An anguished wail rose from his throat at the sight of Sidonius.
"Free me!" shrieked Jabin.
"So you did it at last," said Lucan with disgust. "Found a way to turn a dead man into your puppet."
Sidonius smiled. "The fool thought I had given him a bauble to ward away steel weapons. Little did he know that his death at your hands would unlock its true power. And look at him." The old magus smiled. "His soul is bound to his dead flesh. His skills are mine to command, mine to use, free of the limitations of a living body. The experiment has exceeded my wildest hopes."
"Such a triumph," spat Lucan.
"Oh, it is," said Sidonius. "The process is... surprisingly easy. My brother magi and I shall be able to raise an army of these puppets in short order. Then we can at last bring that fool upstart of an Emperor to heel, and lead the Empire to a new golden age, a golden age built upon the light of reason and arcane science."
"A golden age built upon murdered men enslaved by necromancy," said Caina.
Sidonius ignored that. "And revenging myself upon you, my lord Lucan, is merely a bonus. You have caused me a great deal of trouble. Watching your death shall be most sweet."
"You made a mistake," said Caina.
Now Sidonius did look at her, a sneer on his face. "Oh?"
"You got me involved," said Caina.
Sidonius laughed. "You were an afterthought, Countess. I needed to test my experiment against a formidable foe. And who better than the storied Ghost Countess, the woman who has slain so many master magi! This is indeed a glorious day. Today is the beginning of the end for the Emperor. Today I shall revenge myself upon my enemy, and the woman who has caused the Magisterium so much trouble shall perish."
Caina flung her throwing knife at his throat. At the last second some unseen force seized the blade, spun it around Sidonius's head, and sent it hurtling back at Caina. She twisted to the side, the knife passing so close her face that she felt it brush against her hair.
"I told you not to do that," said Sidonius. He pointed the bone wand at Jabin. "Slave! Kill her! You, Lucan, I shall deal with myself."
Lucan sprang at Sidonius, sword and dagger leading. But Sidonius flicked his wrist, and Lucan froze in place, suspended in midair by Sidonius's power. The old man flicked his wrist again, and Lucan hurtled across the room to crash into the far wall. Caina sprinted towards Sidonius. The old man might have warded himself against steel, but if she could knock him down, get her hands around his neck...
But then Jabin was on her. The dead man moved with superhuman speed and strength, his sword stabbing and slashing. Caina ducked, rolled across the floor, scrambled back to her feet. Sidonius laughed, gesturing in a spell as Lucan floated into the air, shuddering with pain.
"Free me!" wailed Jabin.
A slave. Sidonius had called Jabin a slave. And the magi never understood that slaves yearned to rise against their masters. That bone wand seemed to be some sort of controlling totem. If Caina could get her hands on that...
Of course, she had to get away from Jabin first.
Her eyes darted to Lucan's coat.
Caina backed away, and the dead man stalked after her, raising his sword.
His sword.
Jabin might have superhuman strength... but his sword would not.
Caina's back thumped against the wall, and Jabin stabbed. She ducked, and the sword point slammed into the wall, the blade shattering with a horrid metallic screech. Jabin overbalanced, and Caina kicked his knee. This time the dead man lost his balance and toppled to the floor, landing with a heavy thump.
Caina sprinted across the room and reached into Lucan's coat.
"Countess, Countess," said Sidonius. He flicked a finger, and Lucan hurtled away from her to smash into the wall again. "You cannot outrun my experiment forever. Sooner or later it will kill you."
"Shut up and catch," said Caina, throwing the clay flask she had taken from Lucan's coat.
Sidonius snorted and flicked his wrist again, and Caina closed her eyes as she heard the flask shatter in midair.
An instant later she felt the dazzling glare against her eyelids, and heard Sidonius scream. Caina opened her eyes, saw the master magus reeling, his hands pressed to his eyes. She raced forward and wrenched the bone wand from his hand. Even through her gloves, the thing felt... icy. And wet. As if it had been dipped in congealing blood.
She spun and leveled at the wand at Jabin, who came to a halt in front of her.
"Jabin!" shouted Caina. "I release you from your master!"
Nothing happened. Jabin did not move.
Sidonius barked out a laugh, bloodshot eyes ablaze with murderous fury. "Fool! That totem is bound to me! No one else can use it." He lifted his hands, bright green flames crackling around his fingertips. "You're almost as vexing as Lucan. Forget the experiment. I'm just going to kill you myself."
There was nothing else to do. Caina smashed the bone wand against the floor with all her strength. It shattered with a flash of green light, yellowed splinters tumbling.
"You idiot!" screamed Sidonius, striding forward, the fire between his hands brightening. "Do you have any idea how much work..."
An anguished howl cut off his protest.
Sidonius screamed as Jabin leapt upon him. Master magus and dead man went down in a heap. There was a blinding flash of green light, and Jabin, or what was left of Jabin, flew across the room in smoldering pieces. Sidonius crumpled to the floor, wheezing, trying to breathe through a crushed throat.
Caina looked down at him.
"You should be more careful," she said, "about afterthoughts."
Sidonius reached a hand towards her, and then died.
Caina turned her back on him and helped Lucan to his feet.
* * * *
A few days later Caina sat alone in her chambers in the Imperial Citadel, reading.
A knock came at her door. Her maid rose to answer it, and L
ucan walked into her sitting room. He had a limp, and some bruises on his face, but was otherwise none the worse for wear.
"Lord Lucan Maraeus to see you, my lady," said the maid. "Again."
Caina closed the book and lifted her eyebrows.
"Countess," said Lucan with a crooked grin. He bent over her hand and kissed her fingers. "If I invite you to a ball for a fourth time, will you spurn me?"
Caina hesitated. For a brief moment it seemed as if she saw two futures before her, two paths traveling in different directions.
Did she always need to walk her path alone?
She made up her mind.
"Well," she said, smiling at him. "Why don't you ask and find out?"
Well Enough
Lauren K. Moody
If a "good landing" is defined as one you walk away from, then perhaps returning from a journey with the person you were supposed to watch over still alive makes you a "good" bodyguard.
Lauren was born and raised in a suburb of Chicago, between rural Wisconsin and urban Illinois, and has been fascinated with in-between places ever since. She discovered books about dragons when she was ten and never looked back. Since then, she's branched out into TV shows about space cowboys, comic book superheroes, fairy tale movies, and all other manner of speculative fiction. When she ventured off to Knox College she began work with five other students to found genre magazines on campus, serving as editor for the online SF/fantasy magazine The Third Level for two years. She earned a B.A. in Creative Writing and a number of other accolades. After graduation she focused on working on her novels, scripts, screenplays and short stories.
"Well Enough" is her first sale. Lauren has been reading SWORD AND SORCERESS since she was old enough to pick out her own library books, and those stories, the women in them and the authors who wrote them, inspired her to write her own. She couldn't be happier to be joining the ranks of those who helped her believe she could tell the stories she wanted: exciting stories starring girls. She can be found online at http://anthimeria.dreamwidth.org.
Red dust circled the village wall, kicked up by a dry wind from the north. The solid reddish wall felt cool on my back. I leaned against it with my eyes closed, listening as the happy chatter of people wishing Niani good-bye filled the early morning like a flock of birds. Light flared against the inside of my eyelids as the sun climbed over the horizon. Before long, the sun would bake the earth and make travel through the savanna miserable. I'd hoped we would be well on our way by then.
Dwenna, a proper city, awaited at the end of the road today. I nearly moaned aloud, thinking of the bath waiting for me in the university barracks. Dust, sand, and savanna plant detritus had worked their way into my armor and coated my skin over the last two months, and I looked forward to scouring every inch.
Cracking my eyelids, I squinted against the glare to see whether Niani's admirers were finished with her.
A round-cheeked toddler sat in the crook of Niani's elbow and tugged hard on a fistful of her black and gray braids. Niani's neck bent at an odd angle, trying to accommodate the tugging. I stifled a laugh as the child's mother waded through the crowd to rescue my charge.
As the young woman pried her toddler's fingers open, Niani tilted her head my way and glared at my amusement. I shut my eyes and tried to relax against the wall again. I didn't want her to see that her dislike bothered me. Today marked the last day of our journey together, and I saw no reason to upset the status quo before I got my bath.
* * * *
I gripped the pommel of my sword in one hand and resisted the urge to triple-check the rest of my uniform. I'd completed my training almost a month ago, and since then had been biding my time in the practice arenas, waiting for my first assignment. Cool, damp air wafted in through the window beside Guardmaster Suliam's door, the last remnants of the rainy season. The breeze brought welcome relief as I tried to keep my excitement under control until he called me in.
One of the university mages, a large, older woman, stormed up the staircase, right past me, and into Guardmaster Suliam's office without knocking. I flinched as the door slammed behind her.
"What are you on about, Suliam, assigning me a bodyguard?" Her raised voice cut right through the wooden door.
"Raiders have been hitting villages along the Hani River since the wet season began, Niani. There's no reason to think they'll stop in the dry," Guardmaster Suliam said, his voice steady and mostly muffled by the door.
Jhasa Magical University was the premiere center of magical learning below the Great Northern Desert. Guardmaster Suliam commanded its bodyguards, who were well versed in the eccentricities of mages.
The mage made a frustrated noise and pounded her fist against what sounded like the Guardmaster's desk. I flinched again. "I've been traveling alone for the last thirty years and never once had problems! I don't need or want a bodyguard."
"Until the army on the northern border reports that they've cleared the area, every mage going north will have a bodyguard." His tone brooked no argument.
"Suliam—"
"The Headmaster would have my neck if something happened to you because I let you argue me out of giving you a guard." That seemed to end the argument, as a moment later Guardmaster Suliam called, "Darmura!"
Steeling myself, I put on a pleasant expression and entered the Guardmaster's office. Guardmaster Suliam sat at his desk, calmly ignoring the blustering mage who stood to my left. She took in my uniform and sneered.
"Guardmaster Suliam," I said, nodding a greeting.
He looked up and gestured to the mage. "Darmura, this is Niani, constructionist mage third class. She's been hired by Governor Tuako to survey and repair wet season damage, and reinforce infrastructure in villages without regular access to a mage. Niani, Darmura will be your bodyguard."
I nodded, hiding my trepidation behind a polite smile. Niani glared at me.
* * * *
From what I could see, Niani really didn't need a bodyguard on her rounds. Every village we arrived in welcomed her with open arms, thrilled to see their homes, walls, bridges and roads reform under her hands. They became even more excited when they learned it would take more than the average wet season to dislodge her work. If anyone had wished Niani ill, the entire village would have risen up to defend her. So far, two months of dusty roads and acacia trees were the worst we'd faced.
A bored bodyguard is doing her job, I reminded myself. The goal was to keep Niani from getting attacked, not just to protect her if an attack should happen.
Two loud thumps made me open my eyes. Niani stood in front of me, leaning on her walking stick and, surprise! Glaring.
"Ready to go?" I asked, smiling. I'd never been able to adopt the blank-faced stoicism of most bodyguards. Besides, my consistently polite manner confused and annoyed Niani, a worthy accomplishment as far as I was concerned. Guardmaster Suliam assigned me to her; it's not as though I chose to follow her around. I would protect her whether she liked me or not.
Niani harrumphed and set out. Dwenna lay a day's journey east, and as it was situated where the Hani met three cross-desert caravan routes, was a major center of trade. Our path should come alongside the river at about noon, which would be a relief from the heat carried off the Great Northern Desert.
I followed Niani in silence, as usual. I knew she must be accustomed to walking great distances alone, but even after two months, days of walking through the savanna bored me to tears. Flat grassland stretched in every direction, dotted by the widespread branches of acacia trees. The rhythmic thump of Niani's walking stick lulled me into a sort of walking trance. Guardmaster Suliam's training held, though, and I remained more or less aware of our surroundings.
Hours later, with the sun bearing down from directly above, the scent of water shook me from my trance. A band of green with shimmering blue at its center heralded the Hani. Water and a good place to stop for the midday meal lay a short walk away.
A stand of acacia shaded the road between us and the river.
Movement around one of the trees caught my eye, and I quickened my step to reach Niani's side. Most large predators had been cleared out of inhabited areas, but wild dogs and sometimes even lions wandered into human territory.
Metal glinted in the trees and before I could draw my sword, the thwip of an arrow leaving a bow accompanied blossoming pain in my thigh. I yelped and felt the leg start to give underneath me.
"What—?" Niani startled backward a step, staring at the arrow in my leg with wide eyes.
I clutched the grip of my sword and steadied myself. Pain made sweat break out all over my skin. The wound felt bad but not mortal.
Another thwip. This arrow landed in the pounded earth at Niani's feet.
I drew my sword and pushed a stumbling Niani behind me. Her walking stick hit the ground and dust puffed up around it.
"Pulling a blade. That's not smart." A man dressed in northerner's robes, a sword sheathed at his side, stepped out of the trees. A man and a woman, also dressed in the northern style, emerged behind him. Both had bows trained on us. Their robes were dirty, thin from long use rather than fine cloth. The mens' turbans and woman's headcloth were coarse and crooked.
"Raiders," I said. Niani took a sharp breath.
The man and his archers walked closer. "We need the mage's services. If you cooperate, we'll let you go after."
"I'm sure," I said. This might be my first assignment, but I wasn't stupid. Stabbing fire from my thigh shook my leg, but I did my best to keep my voice even. "Be on your way, now. I can take you, and she's not helpless."
The man scoffed and the woman archer's hand tightened on her bow. "Fazima can kill you from here. She didn't miss. Surrender and we let you both live. Try to fight and I'll have Fazima put an arrow through your eye, and get rid of the mage when we're done with her, too. Wouldn't want to leave a witness."
My leg throbbed. Warm blood slid down my thigh. Fighting the pain, I considered our options. Running was out, and for all my boasting, I couldn't do much about the archers with my injured leg. Meekly surrendering was also out of the question.
Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and Sorceress XXV Page 24