Not pulling your strikes. Excellent. Now, to demonstrate your readiness to lead. In striking distance, he moved in suddenly, batting one of Eshra-Zunia’s opponents away like paper. His blades sang as they cut through the air for her back. In spite of his being wrapped in deception, she sensed the attack and dove away, causing his blades to cut only air.
One of her four remaining opponents had a chance to attack her and took it. He lunged in, using all the speed his blades gave him. It wasn’t enough. Eshra-Zunia dropped to the ground, parrying the attack so that it passed only a hair’s width from her head, cutting some of her hair. Eshra-Zunia rolled back into Maru-Ashua, slamming into his legs. Caught off-guard, he was forced to stumble backward, letting his perception blanket fall in order to dance over Eshra-Zunia’s blades, which sang as she tried to cut his feet off at the calves.
Eshra-Zunia’s eyes followed the legs of her new opponent up to meet the warlord’s eyes. She knew who she was fighting with and how much trouble she was in. He read fear in her eyes, which resolved to determination. As he brought his own blades down on her prone form, he gave her a smile of approval.
Eshra-Zunia intelligently rolled away instead of trying to parry his attack, causing his blades to cut the stone where she had been with a shower of sparks. As she distanced herself from him, she kicked out, throwing the warrior, who had cut her hair, out of the battle. Eshra-Zunia pulled her feet under her and performed a final back roll, using her head and hands to push off and coming back to her feet. She didn’t pause, and thrust at one of her other attackers, her mouth and eyes showing the grimace of an engaged warrior. He managed to parry her attack, but not before receiving a damaging cut to his arm. His blood flowed from the wound. Still, he did not disengage.
The three warriors synchronized with the warlord as they began a series of attacks. Eshra-Zunia’s speed pushed her beyond the abilities of all, but the warlord. In a brilliant series of parries and ripostes, she finished off all her other opponents. Try as she might, she could not defeat Maru-Ashua. Her blades never found even a trace of his armor or body. But his blades sang and were stained with her blood from the series of minor cuts he managed to achieve.
You will do well; time to end this. He stepped in close and sparks flew as their blades clashed. That will be enough. No one will say I gave her any consideration.
“Enough,” he said as her blades were coming at him in a thrust. He didn’t bother to parry them and stood straight.
Her blades stopped, vibrating at the sudden cessation of motion. Her face was drenched in sweat, as was his own. She stood still and then came to attention, saluting him with her crossed blades. Her eyes burned over her blades at him in pride and exhilaration from the fight.
He nodded to her. Not a single warrior on the field was moving, having all stopped to witness the incredible display of skill and power. He nodded to her. “Meet me in the throne room in half a mark.”
The field rang as all the odassi were brought out in salute to both of them.
Maru-Ashua saluted Eshra-Zunia and sheathed his blades after first wiping them clean. He turned and walked back into the command post, all the warriors jumping aside to provide him a clear path. His command sergeant major fell into step with him, following him into the interior. Once they were alone, the command sergeant major chuckled. “I doubt even General Enon-Anos will care to test her after that.”
Entering his private chambers, he nodded. “That was my secondary goal. Let us see if we can beat her to the throne room.”
Maru-Ashua was in the throne room, cleaned and refreshed, thirty seconds before Eshra-Zunia walked in. He had managed to get to the throne and look bored just before she opened the door. Looking at her, he noted her hair was pulled back in a knotted ponytail. Shouldn’t have combed your hair. You might have beaten me. Oh well, now you’ll never know how often you came to almost beating me someplace. He smiled, which she interpreted as meaning her time to get there was, at least, acceptable.
As she strode towards him, the command sergeant major stepped over to the doors and bowed as he left. Eshra-Zunia and Maru-Ashua were alone in the throne room. Eshra-Zunia knelt on one knee before him, head held high, looking at him for his orders.
“Stand.”
She stood, as did he. He said, “I declare you to now be in command of this outpost, with all the rights and responsibilities that entails.”
The smallest of frowns crossed her face.
He smiled the first genuine smile he had ever allowed her to see. “Come, let us ride.”
He did not give her time to speak again until they were riding alone, up into the canyon their valley rested at the mouth of. Eshra-Zunia’s eyes were unfocused and her forehead slightly creased. He knew she was trying to probe his actions. “The ceremony this evening with the generals is for the warriors. But Outpost One requires no such cermony.”
“I don’t perceive your meaning.”
“I do not have time to teach you all that I know. This looks like a good place.” He stopped his horse and slid off of it. Eshra-Zunia followed him. He looked back to the east at his outpost and the rolling hills beyond. The hills were stained a shade of pink as the sun set. “I cannot explain. It is something you will have to puzzle out for yourself. I was given command in the same manner, as was my warlord, and I believe his before.” He turned and looked at her. “But not all of our predecessors.”
She stood, waiting.
“Eshra-Zunia, there are secrets and the outpost has some intelligence. My predecessor warned me, as I am warning you now, the walls do not forget. I have learned many things in my long service. In keeping my oaths, I am unsure what I can or cannot share. Therefore, I am only sharing that which was shared with me, as you are now ordered to pass on to your successor, if you can.”
Eshra-Zunia nodded.
He pulled one of his odassi out and held it out for her inspection. “Compare this to your own.”
Eshra-Zunia pulled one of her odassi out and held it up to mirror his. It looked almost the same, except the maker’s marks were not identical. The warlord’s odassi had a stylized cat silhouette in profile, over an oblong moon that looked more like an egg. The warlord’s odassi also had a golden tsuba, or cross-guard, compared to her own silver tsuba. His blade felt different, older, and somehow radiated calmness.
He replaced his blade in his belt. “My odassi is an original from the beginning of the Nhia-Samri. At that time, few warriors had an odassi. While both blades have nearly identical powers, they are as different as a child to an adult. The new odassi are assigned, made for each warrior, and given to them as part of their final days of training.”
Eshra-Zunia nodded understanding.
He placed his hand on the hilt of his fine blade. “These are not assigned. The Grand Warlord Shar-Lumen himself cannot give these blades to anyone. These blades choose who they will. I cannot explain it. But should you ever see someone with these blades, no matter their rank, respect that warrior and know they have in them the greatest potential.”
Eshra-Zunia looked at his blades and nodded. “I understand.”
“These are not things you should speak of to anyone except of warlord rank. Now, come. We have much ceremony to deal with. I shall take my chosen officers in the morning and ride, I believe for the last time, to Hisuru Amajoo.”
As they mounted, Eshra-Zunia commented, “I note that four of your chosen officers carry similar odassi.”
Maru-Ashua smiled. “An interesting observation.”
Thoughts spun around his mind like a whirlwind. Ditani is my uncle! Argos is my grandfather. Why didn’t anyone tell me? Did I really mess up in accepting Illa? I stepped over the line to becoming a God and I have no idea what that means. This is all too much. Looking at Illa, he saw she was watching him with that smile. I don’t have to look. I can feel her all the time now. When she saw he was looking at her, she swelled with pride, and he could feel the energies she was giving him surge. Even in questioning his actions, s
omething inside reassured him this was the right path and Illa was the right choice.
Ticca stared into the fire, and Ditani watched him and waited. You lied to me, Ditani! But the moment he thought that, he knew it was not true. Ditani had never once lied to him, he was sure of it. He closed his eyes and let the events and memories of the past few cycles settle into a new order of things.
I was isolated because of my power and potential. So the Guild had to know what I was. Or, at least, Councilor Nillo knew. He dropped enough hints. But why keep me in the dark? Why leave me ignorant? It would be stupid to not teach me what I needed to know. That thought stopped him. He wormed it around and looked at it from every angle. Yes, it would be stupid to not teach me what I needed, and neither Argos nor the Guild is stupid. I am missing something.
It had to have been Argos who came to me in the ethereal realm. No other God could respond so fast and find me. Argos had a link to me by family and by the journeyman ritual incantation. It was a male entity and one of tremendous power, so it was very likely Argos, which explains the feelings of pride, love, and hurt. The memory of the feelings he had gotten from the other entity came back. The other entity felt guilty, I remember that clearly. He felt guilty and hurt at what he asked of me. This means that I am being used for something important. There is a catastrophe coming, and he is using me to try to prevent it. We need to figure out what is going on, and I am sure it has something to do with Magus Vestul’s research.
Ticca was on the same track as he was, because she had opened the pouch, pulled out the papers it held, and was looking through them again.
“Ticca, may I see those again? These have to be the focal point. Careful plans have been made by many powerful people, including the Gods. All of them are centered on what that pouch holds.”
She nodded and handed them over, except for a couple of maps, which she was studying. “I am thinking the same thing. Something vital is in these papers, which the Nhia-Samri want very badly. The Gods are trying to prevent them from getting them. What I don’t understand is why not destroy them? They’re just paper.”
Ditani shook his head. “If it were that simple, my master wouldn’t have summoned Duke from the north and travelled to Llino to meet him. Actually, I don’t understand why he went to Llino at all. He could have asked Duke to meet him at his home, where he was safe and secure. He even hid the identity of Duke from me. He was always mysterious, but rarely this secretive.”
Ticca looked at Ditani with frustration. “You are not a servant. You said it yourself: you are a hero. So stop with the pretending. We know you are in this up to your neck.”
Ditani looked shocked. “I never lied. I have run errands for the Guild and Magus Vestul for many hundreds of years. I am just Magus Vestul’s servant. He sent me to the Guild in Llino to help some friends for a while because he knew I wanted to be sure my nephew was okay. But really, I am a servant; otherwise, I would not have obeyed the command to not tell Lebuin who he or I was.”
Lebuin looked at Ditani and felt no deception. Ticca, on the other hand, needed more convincing. “Really? The son of Argos works for a living as a servant?”
Ditani looked her in the eyes. “We all have to live and work. I am not a God, nor do I have magical capabilities. My only assets are a being of good health, having a strong mind, and being long-lived. I could be some merchant or have become a lord of some country. Except I don’t have the mind for business, and I don’t like being responsible for many more than my own family. I was raised on the open plains of Karakia, running with the warriors and hunting for my tribe. If you think about it, being a servant to one of the most powerful men in the world has many benefits. Magus Vestul lived for many thousands of years. Do you think just any twenty-year-old valet would be able to understand the meaning of that and provide the necessary aid? I am almost two thousand years old and Magus Vestul has known me since birth. He invited me to work for him when I was five hundred years old. I liked the idea, and so accepted. He was a good master and a friend. He was almost as powerful as any God. It was an honor to work for him, as it will be an honor for Illa to serve Lebuin well over the coming thousands of years.”
He thought he couldn’t be more surprised today, but that last stopped all his thoughts, and he stared at Ditani over the top of the papers.
Illa was surprised by it, too, because she blurted out, “Thousands of years? I am only human—I cannot possibly live that long.”
Ditani looked at her in a fatherly fashion. “My dear sweet High Priestess of Lebuin, since your God didn’t know what he was doing when he accepted you, based on what I saw, he accepted your gift of service. You are bound to him. Your level of acceptance is a gift rarely given by any God and then, only for rare, exceptional servants. You will live as long as he does. You will also die the moment he dies. You are not just his follower, you are his high priestess—more, you are his first disciple. You need no longer worry about growing old or sickness. You do still need to eat, sleep, and be healthy, as your highest duty is to generate and gather energy for Lebuin. Lebuin’s energy will, without his thought, sustain your life when you are in need.”
Ticca had stopped looking at the maps and was looking at Illa with an interesting expression. Illa had gone red in the face and her eyes had opened wide. She looked over at him again, and he felt a surge of energy from her immense pride. She is proud and joyful at this. Heavens, I cannot believe I am going to live that long, and now I have a follower who will live as long as I. In that context, the whole idea of Ditani being a servant to Magus Vestul made a lot more sense.
Illa looked back at Ditani. “Will you teach me all you know of the Gods and service to them?”
This wasn’t the reaction Ditani had expected, because he looked like something hadn’t gone according to plan. “Well, it will take some time. But you and I will have a lot of that. Trust me, Lebuin here, will vanish into his work for cycles or years on end, forgetting about everything else, unless you bring him his meals and remind him to eat, sleep, and wash up. So we should have plenty of time to talk about such things.”
“Um, Ditani, would you please stop talking like I’m not here?”
Ditani looked over with a fake look of surprise. “Oh, my Lord, I thought you were studying those papers. Sorry. Do you need something?”
He could feel the blood rushing to his face. “Don’t do that. It is embarrassing.”
“Which proves you are still a real person.” Ditani winked at Illa. “That is lesson number one. Occasionally, remind them they are just like people everywhere.”
Illa giggled, and feeling even more embarrassed, he went back to examining the papers. Damn, he can be so annoying sometimes. He noticed Ticca was trying unsuccessfully to suppress a giggle, so he gave her an annoyed look, which broke her hold on her laughter, and the three of them all burst out laughing. After a moment, he joined them. They laughed for what felt like a long time. When one of them managed to stop, they would look around and start all over again. It released a lot of tension. Afterward, they sat around giggling as they tried not to look at each other.
Lebuin could tell whenever Illa looked at him because he got a small rush of energy. He looked inside and found that all his energy channels felt normal again. The energy he was getting from Illa was minor, compared to what he could pull from the nearby mana lines. He reached out and refilled all his reserves. He activated his long-overdue comfort incantations and felt a lot better as the grime and dirt fell from him. Well, I might be a God, but it still feels good to be clean.
‘HOLD!’ The power behind the command was unbelievable, and the voice rang in his mind, or ears, or both. He understood what he was instructed to do, and dropped his comfort incantations instantly. ‘Such mana is not yours to waste.’
He sat up straight, looking around, trying to identify where the commanding entity was. Ditani, Ticca and Illa were all immersed in their own thoughts and not looking at him. None of them appeared to have heard the voice.
Ticca, Ditani, and Illa looked at him.
‘I am between. Come now.’
With the command, came the understanding of how to do that. He focused inward and then pushed away from himself. He felt his mind separate from his physical body, and the silver strand connecting him to his body spun out. Once more, he found himself between. Again, there were the blazing energies of the beings close to him. He recognized them.
Ticca was a blazing powerhouse focused entirely in the physical realm. Next to Ticca hung the soft, but also powerful, silvery entity that was what remained of Kliasa, daughter of House Elaeus. He could see Kliasa’s energies sustaining her here close to Ticca by a silver strand. Which would be her connection to the boots. Since he was there on his own power, as well as not near death, his awareness was clearer. Kliasa had many such silver stands connected to her, and he could feel or see that she was drawing energy from all of them. That is interesting.
Also near was another powerful male presence which existed both in the physical and between realms. That is Ditani. He was near me in the temple, too. He had to have been one of the two voices I heard when I woke up the first time. I wonder who the second female voice was, that sang me back to sleep with my mother’s songs.
Another female presence, which glowed a soft gold, was there. Although he was not sure why, he knew it was much more powerful than normal humans. Yet it was still significantly less than Ticca or Ditani. There was a golden thread connecting his consciousness to it, and he knew it was Illa. He reached for the thread to Illa, but before he could do anything with it, a potent force blocked him, causing him to release his hold.
Thread Strands (Golden Threads Trilogy) Page 7