'You're courting death and damnation.'
'Is that all? I am the mistress of both, Sanara, and neither holds any fears for me.'
'We shall see. But why cause so much grief? There's still time to mend your ways.'
'Oh, fiddle me another air, you pathetic little whinger!'
'Don't say you weren't warned.'
'You plucked the words from my mouth,' Jennesta intoned menacingly, then slashed her hand through the water, breaking their connection.
She conceded to herself that dealing Sanara a similar fate to Adpar wouldn't be as easy. Sanara's protection was so much stronger. But she resolved to put the task near the top of her list.
Stryke and the band were still on their hill when dawn broke.
Shafts from the rising sun glanced off the structures below. Birds were singing.
Those of the band on sleep rota started to wake. Stryke had hardly slept at all. Coilla hadn't much either.
'Are they never still?' she wondered, nodding at the settlement.
People moved around purposefully, even at this hour. Materials were being carted to the temple and hoisted up the scaffolding.
'They're a busy lot,' Stryke replied. 'They worked on the building all night.'
There were humans outside the gates too. Some on foot, some riding along the front of the walls on horses.
Yawning, Jup said, 'They do seem to have patrols then.'
'They'd be fools not to,' Haskeer muttered.
Alfray stretched. 'Decided what we're going to do yet, Stryke?'
'Go in, I reckon, open and peaceable.'
'If you say so.'
'You seem doubtful.'
'We all are, a bit,' Coilla told him. 'We'd be hostages to fortune if things go wrong.'
'What else can we do? Like I said—' He looked over his shoulder, downhill, away from the settlement, an attentive expression on his face.
'What? What is it?' Coilla said.
Alfray joined in. 'Stryke?'
'Something's coming,' Stryke declared.
Haskeer stared at him. 'Huh?'
Then they saw them. A group of riders on the trail into the valley.
'Gods!' Jup exclaimed. 'They must be a couple of hundred strong.'
Coilla shaded her eyes with a hand. 'And they're orcs.'
'By the Square, they are," Alfray confirmed. 'What do you reckon this is, Stryke?'
'If our luck's out, it's another of Jennesta's hunting parties.'
'They've seen us,' Haskeer informed them.
Some of the mounted figures were waving shields and spears.
'They don't look hostile,' Jup said.
'Unless it's a trap,' Haskeer warned.
'I told you so, Stryke!' the dwarf blurted out. 'Farsight!'
'What do you mean?' Stryke was uncomfortable.
'You knew they were coming before we saw them. They made no noise. So how?'
'Just a . . . hunch.' He was aware of them looking at him strangely. 'What's the matter, don't any of you ever trust to instinct?'
Alfray nodded towards the riders. 'This isn't the time. What are we going to do about them?'
Stryke sighed. 'I'm going down to them. You and Coilla come with me, along with four grunts.'
He turned to Jup and Haskeer. 'You two assume command until we get back.'
If any of them thought this was a bad idea they didn't say it.
Stryke, Coilla and Alfray started down the hill; mustering Orbon, Prooq, Vobe and Finje on the way.
They arrived on the level at the same time as the mounted orcs. They looked peaceable. Many were smiling. Stryke thought that a couple of them were among Katz's bodyguard back in Drogan.
A corporal in the front rank seemed to be in charge. He hailed them. 'I'm Krenad. Well met! You're Stryke, right?'
'What of it?'
'It's you we've come to join.'
'I'm not recruiting.'
Corporal Krenad's face lost some of its shine.
'Hear him out, Stryke,' Coilla whispered.
When Stryke spoke again it was more placatingly. 'Where you from?'
'All over, Captain. Most of us deserted Jennesta's horde. The rest we picked up on the way here. And there's others coming, no doubt of that.'
'Why? Why do so many of you persist in following me?'
'I would have thought that was obvious, sir.' the corporal responded in a baffled tone.
'How did you know where to find us?' Alfray interrupted.
'From Jennesta, in a way.'
'What?' Coilla said.
'She's coming here, with an army. Big one. And not all the warriors she leads feel disloyalty the way we did. Far from it. Travelling light, we outpaced her. She's been trailing you for a while now, and one of her dragon handlers spotted you.'
'Well, we knew she was heading for Drogan,' Alfray conceded.
'Once you were spotted moving down the inlet she decided to skirt the forest,' Krenad explained.
'At least the centaurs should be spared her attention,' Coilla said.
'Oh, it's you she wants. Badly. But that ain't all.'
She raised an eyebrow. 'It gets worse?'
'There's another army ahead of her, coming this way too. Unis, we reckon. Both should be here in a day or so.'
'Shit, it does,' Coilla murmured. She turned to Stryke. 'You can't send them away. Not with Jennesta and the gods know who else on our heels.'
Stryke looked doubtful.
'We're on the end of a peninsula, if you hadn't noticed,' Alfray put in. 'If we have to fight our way out of this box some extra help's going to be useful.'
Stryke considered that.
'Come on,' Coilla urged. 'Military logic alone tells you it makes sense.'
'All right,' Stryke relented. 'For now. But until we get things sorted you're under my command, right, Corporal?'
'Yes, sir! That's just what we want.'
Somebody in the ranks shouted, 'When do we start fighting?'
'I've no plans for that!' he returned. Then he addressed the four Wolverine grunts. 'Get these soldiers billeted.' To the corporal he added, 'You'll take your orders from these troopers as though they were mine. Understood?'
Krenad nodded.
Stryke turned and began trudging back up the hill, Coilla and Alfray in tow.
'Damn,' he breathed. 'A force this large is going to make the Manis think we're here to attack.'
Coilla shook her head. 'Not necessarily. Not if we get in there now and explain things. An open-handed approach, as you said.'
'Maybe it's providential that these orcs have come,' Alfray pronounced.
Stryke glared at him.
Coilla smiled. 'Looks like you're being cast as a leader whether you like it or not, Stryke.'
He glanced back at the expectant warriors. 'I don't want this.'
'You've got it. Cope.'
12
Holding aloft a flag of truce, and on foot, Stryke marched to the settlement's gates. Coilla, Alfray and Jup went with him. Haskeer had been left in charge of the forces outside.
A group of Mani guards, half a dozen strong, appeared at the gates as Stryke's party reached them. They were dressed uniformly in dark brown jerkins and black trews with high leather boots. All wore swords. and two or three had bows looped over their arms.
'Well met,' Stryke said. 'We come in peace.'
One of the guards wore a green arm sash that seemed to indicate his seniority. 'Approach in peace and we accept you in that spirit,' he responded, apparently reciting a protocol. He departed from it to add. 'Why have you come?'
'To speak with your leader.'
'We have no one leader. There's a council made up of the people's elders, the military and the priesthood. Decisions are taken communally.'
'Fine. Can we see somebody from the council then?'
'We don't refuse audiences unreasonably, but tell me the nature of your business.'
'We simply seek the protection of your walls while we rest before moving
on.'
'You have a large force with you, and you're orcs. Is our protection necessary?'
'Even orcs need to sleep, and these are anxious times. And we're no threat, you have my word on that. We'd even be prepared to give up our weapons.'
That seemed to tilt the balance.
'That's not an easy offer for an orc to make, I think,' the officer said. 'You can keep your weapons. But be warned that trickery will be met by force.' He pointed up at one of the watchtowers, then another on the opposite side of the gates. Several archers stood in each, bows notched. 'Your movements will be shadowed, and they have orders to cut you down at any sign of violence.' He gave a light, almost apologetic smile. 'You'll understand the need for our caution.'
'Of course. Like I said, anxious times.'
The officer nodded. Then he led them into the settlement.
'That's a promising start,' Coilla whispered.
Before Stryke could answer, they were facing another welcoming committee. It consisted of two humans they took to be elders, and a straight-backed military type whose triple green arm patches implied high rank.
One of the elders stepped forward. 'I'm Councilman Traylor, this is Councilman Yandell. Greetings. And Commander Rellston here leads our armed forces.'
The Commander didn't speak or even break a smile. He was in his prime, as far as the orcs could tell when it came to humans, with the beginnings of grey in his hair and full blond beard. His bearing, manner and weathered features spoke of a life as a soldier. He surveyed them with hard eyes.
Stryke remembered himself and responded. 'Greetings. I'm Stryke. These are some of my officers. Thank you for making us welcome.'
Rellston snorted. 'You're the Wolverines, right?' It wasn't really a question.
There seemed no point denying it. 'Yes.'
'I've heard you've been causing trouble in various parts.'
'We don't go looking for it, and any we've caused has been with Unis.' That wasn't entirely true, but it wouldn't have done to be totally honest.
'Maybe so,' Rellston replied sceptically. 'Let me tell you that trouble isn't something we encourage here. We try to live peaceable, and regard our neighbours, but at the end of the day we just want to be left alone. Anybody bringing us strife, particularly if they're of another . . . race, gets dealt with.'
Stryke was glad Haskeer wasn't with them. The gods knew how he'd react to the Commander's pomposity and attitude. 'We're here with no bad designs,' he assured him. Thinking of the star he knew that to be at least half a lie.
'What do you want of us?'
'Nothing that will do you harm.'
'To be specific?'
'We only need to rest in a safe place. We won't even ask for provisions or water.'
'Nevertheless, this isn't a haven for charity cases.'
'Remember we fight for the same cause.'
'That's debatable.'
Stryke didn't take the hook. In any event the Commander was more or less right.
Before anything else could be said they were joined by two more humans, an adult female and a boy child.
She was tall and slim, with long black hair, its glossy locks enfolded by a headband studded with discreet opalescent gems. Her complexion was peachy, her eyes cobalt blue. They matched her golden corded robe and the patterning on her soft suede boots. Her face was open and seemed kindly. In so far as orcs and dwarfs could judge such things, she would be considered handsome by her kind.
Traylor said, 'This is Krista Galby, our High Priestess.'
Stryke named himself for her. She held out a hand. The gesture almost startled him, unused as he was to human customs. But he took it, careful not to squeeze her slender, elegant fingers too hard, and shook. The hand was soft and warm, and quite unlike the healthy, rough clamminess of an orc's touch. Diplomatically he hid his distaste.
'These are some of the famous Wolverines,' Traylor informed her.
'Indeed?' the priestess responded. 'You have bloodied a few noses in recent times.'
'Only ones we found stuck in our business,' Coilla said.
Krista laughed. It sounded genuine, unforced. 'Well said! Although of course I do not approve of violent behaviour.' She added, 'Unless strictly justified.'
Coilla, Alfray and Jup were introduced as Rellston looked on disapprovingly. Then Krista laid a tender hand on the boy's head, ruffling his ebony hair and drawing a shy smile from him. 'This is my son. Aidan.'
There was no mistaking that he was her offspring, even to orc eyes. He shared his mother's likeness and her comely features. Stryke reckoned him to be seven or eight seasons old.
He noticed also that Krista Galby obviously had authority here. The others, even the Commander in his surly way, acted deferentially to her.
'What is the purpose of your visit?' she asked.
Stryke didn't get the chance to explain as Councilman Yandell spoke then, for the first time. 'Stryke and his company wish our protection.' He glanced Rellston's way. 'The Commander has some reservations on the matter.'
'He is right to be prudent about our security,' she replied tactfully, 'and as ever we are all grateful for his vigilance.'
Stryke suspected he was witnessing a play-off between the spiritual and temporal powers in this place. He thought she was handling it well.
'But I see no reason to doubt the good intentions of our guests,' she went on, 'and it is a principle of our community that we welcome all who come without malice.'
The pair of elders nodded in agreement.
'You would have them stay without limit?' Rellston queried.
'I would have them benefit from the usual custom, Commander, and enjoy our hospitality for a day. I'll take responsibility for them. Is that acceptable to you, Captain?'
'It's all we need,' Stryke confirmed.
The elders made their excuses, stating that there was much work to be overseen, and left.
Rellston lingered. 'Do you require an escort, ma'am?' he asked pointedly.
'No, Commander, that won't be necessary.'
With a parting glare he moved off.
'You must forgive him,' she told the Wolverines. 'Rellston is a good military man but he lacks . . . shall we say a rapport with other races. We aren't all like that.'
Coilla changed the subject. 'There seems to be so much activity here. Can we ask what's going on?'
The High Priestess pointed in the direction of the magic geyser, its upper plume visible above the rooftops. 'All we do revolves around that.'
'When did it start?' Alfray wanted to know.
'There was a small escape when the community was established some years ago, when I was no older than Aidan here. It's the reason the founders chose this place. Just lately the cleft has grown to what you see now.'
'The escape of so much energy must be bad for the land,' Jup remarked.
'Very bad. But we've never found a way to cap it. So we've turned to another solution.'
'What might that be?'
She looked at them for a moment, seeming to weigh things in her mind. 'I'll show you,' she decided. To her son, she said, 'Aidan, back to your studies.' It was obvious he would have preferred to stay, but under her beaming gaze he obeyed. They watched as he ran into the settlement's jumble of streets.
Krista headed the Wolverines in a different direction. As they walked, Jup, in an undertone, said, 'Just a day . . .' Stryke gave a small nod. He knew full well they needed to work fast to achieve their aim in that short a time.
The High Priestess lead them toward the heart of the settlement. On the way they were the object of curiosity, but no overt hostility. Then they took a path that fetched up at the half-built temple.
It was an imposing structure, even unfinished. The material being used for facing was marble, as they'd suspected, and the pillars on either side of the entrance, six in all, were as tall as mature oaks. A flight of broad steps swept up to the great double door entrance, which was guarded by troopers with pikes. The interior was lit by lamps a
nd brands, and there was a hint of that most precious material, stained glass. Hundreds of men and women swarmed in and out of the building, and over the wooden scaffolding encasing it. Wagons lined up to deliver their loads.
'I'm sorry,' Krista apologised, 'but we aren't allowing anyone in unless engaged in the construction work. Visitors would only slow things down.'
Stryke suspected that wasn't the main reason. 'It's an amazing achievement,' Alfray marvelled, straining his neck to take in the uncompleted domed roof.
'We're very proud of it,' she answered. 'Do you know anything about our system here?'
Jup spoke for all of them. 'Nothing beyond you being Manis and sharing our loyalty to the true gods, and a respect for Nature.'
'Yes, that's right. But here in Ruffetts we've melded some of our own traditions to that. Our belief is that creation functions as a triad. On a secular level, that's how we govern ourselves, with major decisions made by a board of Citizenry, Military and Priesthood. The dictum of a trinity upholds our spiritual life too. We call them Harmony, Knowledge and Power.' She nodded at the temple. 'This is Knowledge. Come and see Harmony and Power.'
Intrigued, they followed her, taking a southward avenue. At length they came to the middle clearing and its circle of blue stones. Up close, their true enormity came home to them.
But the magic geyser at the circle's centre was much more impressive.
'The energy's strong here,' Jup said. 'Very strong. I can almost taste it.'
Stryke thought he could too, like he'd been sucking a chunk of metal. He had goosebumps all over his flesh, and was aware of a faint ringing in his ears. But orcs weren't supposed to be susceptible to the magic, and neither Alfray nor Coilla commented on any effects, so he kept his counsel.
'This is Harmony,' Krista explained. 'These particular stones have a certain . . . property. I admit we don't really understand what it is. We do know they can attract and direct the earth energy.' She indicated the pyramid. 'Then it goes there, to Power, to be stored.'
'And you've done this?' Jup asked.
A slightly downcast expression passed across the Priestess' face. 'Not yet. But we think we're close. The earth energy is a mysterious force. We know so little about it.'
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