Arwhon sent a silent call to Krissi who came hurtling down to land in the circle and came to him, sitting by Arwhon’s side.
“You don’t understand Tooth. I don’t like killing. I would rather not kill, ever, but I always seem to be placed in a position where I must. Claw lives and if you have any injured from last night’s attack, I can heal them too.”
Tooth looked taken aback at this turn of events. What he had thought was not what was. Looking confused, he watched as Arwhon healed Claw then, curious to see what could be done with this man’s magic, he led Arwhon through the crowd to an area where the wounded lay. Some were seriously wounded; bearing sword cuts roughly bound in rags while others had thrust wounds to the abdomen which everyone knew would eventually kill them. Painfully. Yet others were burnt from the fire Arwhon had to use. He began, kneeling beside first one then another, quickly using the healing magic he knew so well. Each Luper he’d finished with rose from where he’d been lying and showed off a tiny scar to the many others who’d gathered to watch the display of healing magic. In short order, all the wounded had been healed and were back with their fellows, bewildered yet hale.
Arwhon turned to Tooth.
“Luper should not be slaves. All the races should be free. Soon I will be going to deal with your Masters. I don’t want you fighting in Myseline for the Q’Herindam because more people will die. Man and Luper. Come with me to talk to our General and work out your differences. There may be a way the Luper can stay here in the north of Myseline until I’ve finished dealing with the Q’Herindam.”
Tooth agreed and calling out some red jerkins to accompany him, followed Arwhon and Shiri across to the other Luper camp. Here Arwhon signalled to Joeeti to come with them as he returned to the Myseline army. Before they left the massed Luper behind, Krissi took to the air and couldn’t resist a few low swoops over both Luper camps before winging off to hunt and feed.
The General was amazed when Arwhon returned with the Leader of the Luper. Arwhon took pains to explain the Luper had been enslaved by the Q’Herindam many, many years ago and the Luper had only attacked Myseline on the orders of their Masters. Arwhon also explained he was shortly going to travel to the Forbidden Lands to confront the Q’Herindam and deal with those who were trying to harm Man. He left Tooth and the General talking and went off to have his own private conversation with Shiri.
“We’ll have to leave here soon. Durhain’s Pass needs reopening so Trade can resume. Now there are no more taxes on goods coming in to Myseline and Staril is Head of Trading, I hope to see Trading with the rest of the Lands become commonplace again.”
Shiri looked a little doubtful.
“I don’t know if I have enough power to move all the rockfall from Durhain’s Pass with Earthmagic, Arwhon. I saw a huge amount of debris blocking it.”
Arwhon shook his head.
“I don’t expect you to clear it, Shiri but you can help me when I do. Really, we should leave tomorrow in case there are Q’Herindam forces entering the Grand Valley. I hope Cringle made it to Crossroads and persuaded the Commander of the Militia to send a force up to Forbidden.”
“I’m certain he did. Cringle is a very resourceful young man. Although I was doubtful when you first chose him, now I realise how proficient he is at all he learns. In fact, I miss him around the camp.”
A soldier approached as they chatted, bearing the message that the General wanted to see them both. They followed the messenger back to the General’s tent. When they were shown to seats before the General’s table, they found him in conversation with Tooth. The General paused, studying Arwhon’s face before speaking.
“You omitted to tell me you fought one on one in hand to hand combat with the Champion of the Luper, Arwhon.”
Arwhon looked up from studying the matting at his feet, glancing over at Tooth before replying.
“It was the honourable thing to do. Tooth called me a coward and I could see from his viewpoint that I was no better than his Masters. I had to prove I didn’t just rely on magic.”
He could see the General re-evaluating his opinion of him. From the brief clash of the Myseline and Luper forces, the General had gained first hand knowledge of the ferocity and skill of the Luper and now he realised the truth about Arwhon. He looked at the strange eyed pair sitting in front of him and silently gave thanks they weren’t the enemy.
“Tooth and I have come to an agreement. The Luper can stay in the northernmost part of Myseline for now, occupying the forests and wild areas while you go to deal with the Q’Herindam. If food becomes scarce, I’m sure the King will approve purchase of cattle for feed. At least for a few months. Joeeti will become second in command of all the Luper here in Myseline.”
“What about the farmers who were displaced?” Arwhon asked.
Tooth replied in his gravelly voice.
“They will be guaranteed safe passage to go back to their farms. No harm will come to them. We are sorry for those we killed but until you talk to us, we do not understand the order of things.”
Arwhon was relieved. Agreement was reached. Now he could go. The General continued.
“The Army is to fall back to Bentwood where we’ll camp for a while. In that way we can be supplied from Encarill or Trugor and be ready to march in any direction at short notice. Besides, I do like the Inn there.”
With both sides in general agreement there wasn’t much more to discuss. With Tooth’s concurrence, the General decided to leave a few of his braver scouts behind to keep an eye on the Luper but he doubted there would be a problem.
It was early when Arwhon and Shiri set out well ahead of the army which was still in the process of breaking camp. They rode with purpose, Mehgrin’s Wall towering to their left as they travelled back toward Bentwood and by late the following afternoon they arrived at the inn Arwhon favoured. Duran and Rancid were taken to the stables and Arwhon and Shiri partook of the luxuries available, starting with a bath together.
The next morning, refreshed and feeling replete after a large breakfast, they took the road to the obstructed Durhain’s Pass. It took a couple of days easy riding for them to arrive at the steep uphill section of the road and another day to climb to where the Pass once was.
When they eventually arrived, Arwhon dismounted and walked up the last hundred yards to obtain a closer view of the house size boulders amongst the debris closing the Pass. Shiri joined him and stared up, far above. As far as she could see there was only more rocks and boulders piled up. It had been a mammoth task closing the Pass but whoever did it had gravity and mountains of rock on their side. It would be a far harder task to try and remove the blockage. She said as much to Arwhon but he just had an enigmatic smile on his face as he studied the jumble of rock in front of him. At last he confided in Shiri.
“If we clear this away, there’s nothing to stop whoever caused this from doing it again. Therefore I’m going to attempt to burn a hole right through all this rock, one big enough for loaded wagons to pass through. Do you think you could use your Earthmagic to divert the molten rock away from the road so it runs down the mountain to one side of the track?”
Shiri was frankly amazed at the sheer magnitude of Arwhon’s plan. Her life growing up in the Darkwood had been full of tales of great events but none matched the scale of Arwhon’s proposal. He must be very sure of his magic to attempt such a thing but then again, Arwhon wasn’t prone to exaggeration.
“Yes, I think I could manage that Arwhon. When do we start?”
“Now,” Arwhon answered, a strange look in his eyes.
He walked back down to Duran and gathered the reins to lead the big grey stallion down lower to a flat area, cut into the hill on the first hairpin bend, below and to one side of the Pass. Shiri understood what he was doing and Rancid soon joined Duran. Arwhon then strode up to a spot right in front of where the pass used to be and motioned Shiri to stand well off to one side. Then he raised both arms, pointed his hands at the rock and thought of what he wanted. Fire sp
rang from them in a roaring gush of white hot power and Arwhon concentrated.
Rock heated up until it became red hot and started to melt, at first just trickling slowly but the power of the flames built as Arwhon settled into the task and soon the rock around the initial spot he started on grew hotter and hotter until more and more lava flowed from it. Shiri pushed the slow moving, red hot lava to the north of the roadway with Earthmagic, initially working to keep the flow clear of the road which zigzagged down the mountain in a long series of switchbacks. The hardening rock flow initially acted as a gutter and naturally took the fresh lava away from the road. The more the rock flowed, the higher the gutter became and eventually a tube formed, making Shiri’s task easier.
At first, Duran and Rancid were alarmed by the noises and vaporous flows but reassurance from Shiri settled Rancid and Duran, knowing Arwhon was not troubled, settled too.
Arwhon rotated his hands to increase the size of the hole being cut into the rock and although the temperature where he was standing was enough to quickly immolate an ordinary man, Arwhon stood unharmed as he worked, his Firemagic protecting him.
Late morning became afternoon which was rapidly becoming evening and although Shiri was drawing Earthmagic from the mountain beneath her as she needed it, she was still tiring from the effort of concentrating on the Earthmagic for so long. The tube of hardened lava trailed down the mountain, its far end red and slowly questing, as yet more molten rock ran into the upper end of the pipe. She had long ago given up looking at the incandescent fire Arwhon was working with and had made wards for herself to protect her body from some of the heat being given off by the lava. All of a sudden there was an audible ‘pop’ and a whooshing sound as Shiri felt a gust of wind tug her hair as it blew east through the huge hole in the rock blocking the pass. Arwhon lowered his arms and turned. His face was tight with fatigue but otherwise he seemed to be fine. A wry smile crossed his face.
“It’s tiring, holding my arms up for so long,” he said, “But the tunnel is now through to the other side. By the way, an excellent job of diverting the molten rock.”
Shiri wanted to join Arwhon but where he stood was still too hot for her.
“What now? She called through the waves of heat.
“We’ll ride Duran and Rancid through to Cumbrisia’s End.” He caught the look on her face. “Don’t worry, I can shield us all.”
The trip through the red hot tunnel was something which both amazed and frightened Shiri. Its smooth walls, bored through the solid stone of the blockage, created a tube of rock. Their mounts trusted them implicitly, although there was plenty of nervousness apparent through the bonds as they progressed through the still red-hot tunnel. When they emerged on the Cumbrisia side, Shiri looked back and saw a perfectly round hole in the debris which had fused the rock together so there was no danger of it ever caving in again. The light from the setting sun was just visible as it beamed through from the far end. Shiri could not but help to marvel at the sheer raw power of Arwhon’s Firemagic.
They arrived at Chalc’s old hut in Cumbrisia’s End as the last of the light faded.
The next morning, after a cold night, which was no problem for a Fire Mage, Arwhon and Shiri went up the slope to the ‘Flying Pig’ so Arwhon could have a word with the innkeeper. Shiri sat outside the inn, looking over the buildings of the village she could see around the square but they didn’t appear any different from the last time they were here just two months ago. Really, in the scheme of things, Cumbrisia’s End wasn’t worth much. Even tactically it was limited to garrisoning a small force to hold Durhain’s Pass but Myseline wasn’t much of a threat to anyone, far more bucolic than bravado. Arwhon came back out of the inn.
“There’s been no trouble here. Durhain’s Pass being closed seems to have made little difference to the locals. We’ll carry on down the hill and see if Cringle managed to get the Crossroads garrison mobilised.”
Soon they were riding back down the Grand Valley. It was truly spectacular, as the leaves on the deciduous trees had changed colour, ready to fall and the evergreens stood in stark contrast. A cool breeze soughed through the branches above the road. At times they rode with the sun on them and other times through dappled shade. By the time the afternoon was near over, they rode into Penultimate which appeared peaceful enough.
The old stableman greeted them as he strode up to Duran and gently stroked the big grey’s muzzle. Duran didn’t normally allow such familiarity but seemed to make an exception for the bent old hostler, greeting him as an old friend, large rubbery lips nuzzling the wrinkled hand. Arwhon was pleased. This old man had been good to him each time he’d passed through Penultimate.
“Lose yer little Cheshwon servant did yer.” The old man asked with slight amusement.
“Yes. He ran away because we were so hard on him.” Arwhon replied in mock disgust.
“Yup, kids is too soft these days,” replied the old man. “Good job yer took care of the Dominion.”
Arwhon suddenly paid more attention to the old groom. The man was a lot sharper than he appeared to be.
“What’s your name? I can’t keep calling you ‘old man.’
“Call me Alven if yer needs a name. It’ll do.”
“Right Alven. Have you heard anything from Forbidden by any chance?”
“Only that half the Crossroads Garrison arrived there. Not much traffic this way on account of the Pass is closed. Now you folks turn up. Pass open agin, is it?”
Alven looked up sideways with a twinkle in his eye as he asked and Arwhon couldn’t resist.
“Yes the pass is open, though it’ll be a little warm for travelling through for a few days. Remember, you still know nothing. Agreed?”
The old man nodded, tapping his nose with his index finger as he appraised the young man before him, happy to be one of the first to receive new information. Arwhon had changed since the first time Alven had seen him. In so many ways and now he had a strange, beautiful companion constantly with him. Alven still loved hearing the honesty in the lad’s voice when he spoke. It did his old heart good to know there was still Truth in the land.
Riding down to Forbidden was pleasant for Arwhon and brought back memories of Chalc. He wondered how the former blacksmith was doing now and how his marriage to Lareeta was working out. It should be solid, as they both truly loved and admired each other. He glanced over at Shiri riding beside him, mounted on Rancid, and his heart stirred. He could not imagine his life without her. The time she had been tortured by the Empress Martine and a Q’Herindam Mage had truly made him realise what she meant to him. He could not place her in the way of danger ever again, in case he lost her.
Shiri felt Arwhon’s gaze on her and looked over at him. Just before he smiled she caught the intensity on his face. He was brooding on something.
It took several more days on horseback before they both felt traces of the unmistakable greasiness of Q’Herindam magic in the air. Rounding the large rock beside the road they came upon Forbidden once again. The town was brighter than Arwhon had ever seen it. The pall that used to hang over it was gone but still Arwhon felt uncomfortable. This town held bad memories for him and for others he knew. Raleen had told him what had happened here when she came through Forbidden with Redbeard.
Suddenly, the pair of them were hailed by a soldier stepping forward from the side of the road where he’d been sitting beside a large bush.
“State your name and business in Forbidden,” the man ordered.
Arwhon told him and the soldier saluted.
“Sorry Sir, but we have to knows what’s going on. Orders of the Captain.”
“As it should be soldier and you should call me Arwhon. This is Shiri. Now can you tell me where I may find the man in charge of the Crossroads Militia.?”
“That’d be the Captain and he’s most likely at the inn, Si…. Arwhon. The one called The Lonesome Gryffon.”
At that moment a shadow fell over the soldier and he looked up to see a real live
gryffon gliding overhead. His face paled and he sagged to the ground, his knees gone suddenly weak. Seeing a legend had that effect on some people. Arwhon touched Duran gently with his knees and the big grey carried on.
Reining up in front of The Lonesome Gryffon, Arwhon noticed Vixen tied up to the hitching rail wearing a really comfortable looking saddle. The little pony raised her head, tossing her mane as she whinnied to welcome Duran and Rancid.
What was Vixen doing here?
Arwhon and Shiri dismounted and entered the inn to find Cringle sitting at a table finishing his lunch. His Servant leapt to his feet and rushed over to welcome Arwhon and Shiri before seating them and going to the kitchen to fetch them both something to eat.
When Cringle sat back down, Arwhon looked at him levelly.
“Why aren’t you in the Darkwood Cringle? I needed you to tell Vehrin’del everything. It’s where I told you to wait.”
Cringle looked abashed and glanced to Shiri for help but none was forthcoming on this occasion.
“I’ve already been there and given Vehrin’del all the news but it’s creepy. The Darkwood’s sick. I wanted to help you fight the Q’Herindam so I asked Vehrin’del if I could come here and wait for you both. She said I could. Vixen made good time and we only arrived here yesterday. Besides, you never said I had to stay in the Darkwood.”
Arwhon realised his Servant had done everything asked of him and more and the Ring agreed with Cringle, thereby confirming Arwhon’s pleasure at the sight of Cringle again.
Noticing the food in front of him Arwhon began to eat and regaled Cringle with tales of their adventures since Cringle had left them to travel under Mehgrin’s Wall. He described the Luper in detail, just in case Cringle should come across any. Finished eating, he pushed his plate away.
“Can you tell me where I can find the man in charge of the Militia, Cringle? I need to inform him about recent events.”
Arwhon listened to the reply and left, pausing in the doorway on his way out.
The Q'Herindam Page 26