by Tom Larcombe
“You've skirted around the truth a couple of times. But I'll let it slide. I'm guessing this is a bit personal for you.”
Merlin peered at Bobby with his Sight.
“That explains it. Did you know you have a spark of magical talent yourself?”
“I thought it might be something like that. I can tell when people are lying and how far off the truth they're going. It doesn't always work when the other person is drunk though, I found that out with the other wizard I mentioned.”
“Is that something you've always had or did you have to practice?” Merlin asked.
“I've always been able to do it. Used to get me in a lot of trouble when I was a little kid and would call adults out about lying to me. My brother now, he's got a lot more of the spark, that's what our grandmother called it anyhow, but it all seems focused on engines.”
“You may both have other talents that you can develop with practice. Most wizards do.”
“Which brings me to the questions I wanted to ask...” Bobby said.
The rest of the drive was filled with Bobby asking questions and Merlin making suggestions about things to try. After they got out of the truck in Bonn, Merlin paused.
“If you give me a way to contact you, I'll send you some written instructions that might help, assuming I survive. I'll also give you the name and contact information for my superior, he might be able to help you if I can't.”
“Thanks, I'll try to find you a ride with someone going right up to the front. I don't envy you trying to get through the fighting though.”
“It shouldn't be a major problem,” Merlin said.
He set a cloaking shield on himself.
“We'll do it like this.”
Bobby looked around for Merlin. When he couldn't see him, Bobby thrust his hand out into the area where Merlin had just been. His fingers ran into a concealed chest.
“That'll do unless some stray bullets come your way.”
Merlin shimmered into view.
“There are things I can do about that also.”
“I'll believe you after what I've seen. Now, I need to go and report in. Then I'll find a driver headed to the front. You just wait here.”
Merlin and Gunter sat down. It was a long time since their last meal so Merlin handed over one of the chocolate bars he'd received earlier in the night. The two men sat and ate. After a while Gunter spoke up.
“I was surprised by how much you told him.”
“After I found out he was an untrained wizard, I didn't want to hold anything back. Any knowledge can be useful.”
“I meant before that.”
Merlin thought back.
“I think he has more than just the talent for detecting lies. He might be a mental healer of a sort. I've known some of those in the past and they make it very easy for you to open up to them.”
“You may be right. I felt a similar urge but thought it better to stay silent. I learned my lesson about speaking too freely before we left Germany.”
Abruptly, Merlin remembered that Gunter had deserted his country at Merlin's behest.
“I'm sorry Gunter, I never should've tried to leave you behind. I should have told you what I knew and let you make your own decision.”
“Yes, you should have. My decision would have been the same though. I would give anything to remove the madness at the heart of my country and you're the only one doing anything about it.”
Merlin remained silent since he didn't know how to reply to that. He took the opportunity to jot down John's contact information on a small scrap of paper.
Several minutes later Bobby returned.
“I found a guy leaving for the front in about twenty minutes that's willing to give you a ride. You'll have to hurry to catch him though. Grab your gear and follow me.”
Merlin and Gunter stood. They followed Bobby as he rushed off into the darkness.
“He'll get you within a couple miles of the fighting,” Bobby said. “He's a bit rough but a good man all the same. I used to work with him.”
Merlin handed over the scrap of paper.
“Thank you Bobby, here's the address for my superior that I said I'd give you.”
“You can contact me with this address,” Bobby said, handing over his own scrap of paper. “And here's the truck. Kevin's a good man but... Well, he's rough around the edges. You'll see.”
Bobby led them to the cab of the truck.
“Hey, Kevin. You here?” he called.
“These the one's looking for the fight?” a gravelly voice answered.
“Yup. Merle and George, meet Kevin. Kevin, Merle's the smaller of the two and the hard looking one is George.”
“Good to meetya.” rumbled the voice.
The lights of the truck came on and Kevin stood up from where he was leaning into the cab. Merlin craned his head back to look him in the eyes and felt Gunter stiffen beside him.
Kevin stood over a foot taller than Gunter, and he was nearly as broad as he was tall. His hands were just below Merlin's eye level and were marked prominently with scars. As Merlin made eye contact he couldn't help but notice that the man's nose appeared to have been broken and poorly set, multiple times. His eyes dropped back down the man's hands.
Are those knife scars on his knuckles? Merlin wondered.
“Kevin here is one of the few drivers to survive trying to make a delivery in the middle of an attack. More accurately, he was making his delivery when the Krauts broke through. One of them tried to take his truck and supplies, but Kevin took the rifle and bayonet away from the Kraut and drove his truck back out, bringing a bunch of our boys with him.”
Kevin flexed his hands, the scars catching the light.
“He thought I was scared of the knife on his rifle, but I know knife fighting. Had to deal with it a lot while growing up,” Kevin said.
“Like I told you Kevin,” Bobby said. “I want to be sure they make it where they're going safely.”
“They going to the fighting? Ain't nothing safe up there, it's crazy,” Kevin answered.
“Just drop them where you're delivering your load. Get them there safe and that'll do.”
“I can do that. George looks like he might last a while up there. Merle? I don't know, the boy doesn't seem that tough.”
“Kevin, you have no idea, and you shouldn't talk about people while they're standing right in front of you,” Bobby said.
“Why not?” Kevin asked.
“Never mind. Merle might surprise you if things go bad, just do your best to drop them off safe and sound.”
“Well, gotta be going. You boys climb in the truck, okay?” Kevin said.
Merlin and Gunter went around to the passenger side of the cab and slid in. When Kevin climbed into the driver's seat, the entire truck tilted to that side.
“We're off. Don't know why you boys want to go there, but Bobby was sure itchin' to help you make it.”
“How long until we get there?” Merlin asked.
“Bout an hour or so. Be quicker but the roads are bad, real bad,” Kevin answered.
Despite Merlin's doubts about Kevin's abilities, the ride went as well as it could. Which is to say, they were bounced and jounced all over the cab but Kevin kept the truck on what was left of the road all the way to their destination. When he pulled into a clearing Merlin saw a group of soldiers move out into the light.
“This here's as far as I go,” Kevin said. “Fighting's about a mile that way.”
He pointed to the east.
His directions were unnecessary. For the past fifteen minutes Merlin had occasionally seen flares up in the sky and heard gunshots from the east.
“Thank you Kevin,” Merlin said.
Gunter nodded his thanks.
“S'okay, I owed Bobby a favor. This takes care of it. Don't know what you two are doin' but if you go after the Krauts, get a couple for me.”
Gunter turned away from Kevin after the last remark. He looked east, to the skies over the battlefield.
“I hoped we might be able to get through easily. It doesn't sound as though that will be the case though,” he said.
“There's the Rhine to worry about as well. I don't know exactly how we're going to cross it yet. My concealment shield is good but it won't hide the ripples and waves we'd make in the water,” Merlin added.
“That's a question for tomorrow I think. I'm tired so I'm guessing you're exhausted and still awake through willpower only. We need to find a place to bunk out for the night.”
“But we need to keep moving,” Merlin protested.
“We need to get some rest. If the army is stalled here, there must be a reason. We'll try to find out when we're more alert, after we get some sleep.”
Merlin nodded reluctantly.
Gunter approached one of the soldiers unloading the truck. He asked the soldier a question and Merlin heard the laughter that was his response. Gunter came back over.
“There's nothing resembling real quarters here. Most of the soldiers are sleeping under the stars.”
“That's good enough for me,” Merlin said. “How about we try to find an open spot beneath some of those trees.”
He gestured to the woods the soldiers had exited to greet the supply truck.
Gunter led the way over and after a few minutes, they found a mostly clear area that wasn't already occupied. By the time Gunter laid out his blankets Merlin was curled in a ball on the bare ground. The last thing Merlin noticed was Gunter putting a blanket next to him and getting him to roll onto it before covering him with a second one.
* * *
It was well past dawn when Merlin woke. The smell of something cooking invaded his dreams, drawing him up from the depths of sleep. He sat up and saw Gunter cooking over a tiny fire. When the smell from his dreams hit him while he was awake, his stomach growled.
“Breakfast?” Merlin asked.
“I can make some for you after. The fire has to be kept small so I can only cook a little at a time.
“Can you heat some water? I have some small packets of tea and coffee from the audience at the show.”
“Coffee would be welcome. I never did understand the British love of tea,” Gunter said.
Merlin handed over a packet of coffee.
“Heat some water and we'll both have it.”
Gunter nodded vigorously and set a canteen, filled with water, close beside the coals of the small fire. After a few minutes he poured the water into a pair of cups and added the coffee packet. He sipped at his coffee with a grateful sigh and then began to cook a second portion of food for Merlin while he ate his own finished breakfast.
The smell of wood smoke was light in the air. Merlin would have been surprised that he smelled it at all except theirs was not the only cooking fire in view. The air was also redolent with the smell of oils and unwashed soldiers. Merlin shivered in the light breeze as he wrapped his fingers around his cup for the warmth.
The coffee was strong and bitter. Merlin, used to the tea he normally drank at home, felt a jolt from the caffeine that woke him right up and made him feel more alert. When he finished eating the food Gunter cooked for him, Merlin felt nearly human again.
“Now, we need to find out how to get through the lines,” he said.
“If we find out why the advance has stalled, maybe you can help with that and we can travel with the army,” Gunter said.
“They move too slowly, we'd never get there.”
“Let's get some information first and then decide what to do.”
Merlin nodded his assent, so the two men packed their gear and headed towards the Rhine. They crested a small hill and the river lay well below them. The top of the hill offered them a good view and what movement they saw seemed to be headed south along the river.
“We need to find out where they're going, see if there's a way across,” Merlin said.
“We might be better off simply being in earshot rather than asking outright,” Gunter replied.
“Why?” Merlin asked, then he thought better of it. “Oh, to avoid arousing suspicion since they all seem to know what's going on?”
Gunter nodded.
The two of them walked down the hill towards the paths being used by the troops. They sat down beneath a tree near the path and listened while appearing to rest. It was nearly an hour before they heard anything of use.
“Yeah, the bridge finally collapsed. It killed half the engineers on it when it went. But we got a lot of men and material over it first and they're being reinforced by the pontoon bridges to either side of the destroyed bridge of Remagen.”
Merlin turned to Gunter.
“So, we have a way across. Where is Remagen?”
“I'm not that familiar with this area but I think it's maybe ten or twenty miles to the south. It can't be far if they have troops moving to it on foot and they aren't complaining about it.”
“Let's go then.”
“Merlin, how do you think we're going to get across the pontoon bridges. It sounds like they're in constant use.”
“Bribery, illusion, concealment, whatever seems appropriate when we get there. We need to go Gunter. Nimue and my daughter are depending on me.”
Gunter sighed and shouldered his bag. The two men stepped out onto the trail and turned south, following the soldiers that had been moving in that direction all morning.
* * *
Fours hours of walking brought them in sight of a heavily damaged railway bridge. A pontoon bridge spanned the river immediately beside it. Merlin's pace grew faster but Gunter stopped him with a word.
“Wait!”
Merlin rolled his eyes.
“What now Gunter?” he asked.
“You know they won't let us on the bridge just because we're there. Wait and decide how we're going to cross before we get too close,” Gunter replied.
Merlin stopped and watched the traffic on the bridge for a few minutes.
“They're spacing units out as they go across. I think a concealment shield and sneaking across between two of the units will be our quickest option.”
“How long can you hold a concealment shield on the two of us while we're moving?” Gunter asked.
“With the charged crystals I have with me, several hours. But I'd prefer not to use them all right now. I think they'll be needed later on.”
“Then how long using just one?”
“Thirty minutes or so if we're moving at the pace they are. That should be long enough for us to get across and lose ourselves on the other side before people start noticing us again,” Merlin said.
“Then let's do it that way, but first we take a break. We've been walking for hours and we should probably eat something as well. I've noticed that you have more difficulties with your magic when you're tired or hungry.”
Merlin fumed but conceded the point. The two of them sat down and broke out some food. After about fifteen minutes Merlin stood again.
“We've rested and eaten something. Can we move on now?”
Gunter slowly stood.
“You know that if you exhaust yourself or get yourself killed that you're not going to be able to help her, right?”
Merlin sighed and looked at the ground.
“Yes, but it's taking so long.”
“And it will take longer still. I'm going to make sure that you're in shape to actually do what you have to when we arrive. You remember that I'm intimately aware of the strength of Ave's mind, yes? You'll need all your strength later on to deal with her.”
Merlin and Gunter continued to approach the bridge. When the trail they followed took them out of sight for a moment, Merlin took the opportunity to hide them both behind a concealment shield.
“You'll be able to see me and I you, just like when we were under Nimue's shield,” Merlin said. “But we should be unnoticed by everyone else. Be careful not to bump into someone.”
Merlin heard Gunter mutter something that sounded suspiciously like:
“Teach your granny to suck eggs
why don't you.”
The two of them slipped onto the bridge just behind a unit that was crossing. They made their way across the bobbing bridge carefully, falling slightly behind the men they were following. When Merlin placed a foot on the far bank of the river he felt something akin to an electric shock.
Who would place an alarm ward here? I wonder if they have wizards present in the troops already across, he thought.
The two of them moved behind a pile of debris so Merlin could dispel the concealment. When they stepped out again, they were in the middle of the troops establishing a bridgehead on the eastern bank of the Rhine.
They moved east, listening to the soldiers they could hear talking. None of them seemed to know where the current front line was, just that it was farther east.
* * *
Chapter 7
Merlin paused for a moment when he heard groans of pain. He looked for the source and found a medical tent set up nearby. The wounded in it were waiting for transportation back across the river. He recognized the man sitting, propped up, in the sunlight outside the tent.
“Gunter isn't that Anthony?”
Gunter looked over.
“That's Tony, he was your student when? About a year ago was it?”
“Yes, let's pause for a moment. I noticed an alarm spell when we came across the bridge. I want to know why they set it. What were they expecting?”
Merlin knelt down in front of his former student. He tried to get Anthony's attention but there was no reaction to anything he did.
Merlin switched to looking at him with his Sight. Anthony's shields were tightly locked about him and coruscating with an oily purple sheen. He winced and Gunter asked.
“Is there something wrong? He looks unwounded.”
“It looks like something has his shields locked down tightly to his body and it's trying to get through them. He may be fighting that attack entirely on the inside and can't spare any attention for the physical, or perhaps it already got through and did something to his mind.”
“Is there anything you can do?”
“Give me a moment. I haven't seen this type of attack before. It's vaguely similar to what's occurring with Nimue but only in some ways.”
Merlin examined Anthony closer. He found that the purple sheen was integrated into the shields, not something on the surface as he'd originally thought.