He stroked his beard for a moment. “Dav Koehl is the obvious choice.”
“Ai,” she replied, nodding, “but I need him focused on the war as my Defender Commander, not splitting his time in council meetings.”
“What about Tennen Beltran?”
She tapped one of her fingers on the armrest and grew thoughtful. “That’s an interesting choice.”
“The man’s a healer, so you have your compassionate viewpoint for the greater good. He also has defender’s blood in him. I swear, he doesn’t so much cure injury and illness but attack them with the Healing Aspect.”
Desde folded her hands and bounced them against her chin, thinking. “I hadn’t thought about that. He worked tirelessly to cure my father and gave him a peaceful death when he couldn’t. And you know how insightful he is. He’s also well respected by the Fal’kin.” She inhaled and made a guilty grimace. “But he’s not exactly charismatic. Which, unfortunately, must be near the top of a provincial leader’s list of skills. I’ll have to think about that one.”
“Well, who do you want?” Kaarl asked.
She smiled and took his hand again. “The two people I want to offer my council as choices are the two people which they’d least likely approve.”
He squeezed her hand and released it. “She’s too young.”
Her smile faded but did not disappear. “Your illustrious ancestor Jasal was sixteen when most of the province wished to elevate him to prime.”
He shrugged in agreement. “He was not installed as prime until he was twenty-three. Because he was too young.” He held out his hands, rendering her choice moot.
“And, unfortunately, you’ll be otherwise occupied. I’m afraid my choice in second will have to wait a bit longer.” She straightened in her chair. “I’m glad you came. There has been a development overnight.”
If his wife’s sudden change in demeanor hadn’t raised a warning, the whisper his Defending Aspect gave him would have. “What is it?”
“I had a vision. Tetric and Mirana saw it, too.”
“Two Rivers Ford will be attacked,” came a deep voice behind him.
He turned to look over his shoulder.
Tetric Garis strode into Desde’s study. “Seer Prime Kellis Pinal,” he said as he inclined his head in a bow.
She waved him off. “Tetric, you’ve known me for thirty summers. It is hard enough to hear that title from others, even more so from you.”
Kaarl turned back to face his wife, more than a little irritated that his wife and the Trine were wasting time on pleasantries. “What? Why didn’t you wake me? The Ford will be attacked?”
“You have been fighting since before the Reckoning turned, Ëi ama. I wanted to give you at least one night’s rest. Besides, there is little you can do at the moment,” she replied. “We saw what we think are several hundred Ken’nar make a play for our garrison at Two Rivers Ford. We saw a second, much larger force, presumably our own, engage them. We believe we will be successful in turning them back but it appears many will still be killed. We are working to understand the plan of attack and divine a precise time frame.”
Tetric nodded and sat in the chair next to Kaarl. “The vision was difficult to interpret for many reasons. There are still many questions to be answered.”
Kaarl gripped the chair’s armrests. “Those bridges are the gateway into southern Kinderra. If the Dark Trine controls the Ford—”
“The Ken’nar will march across the rest of the continent, ai,” the other man finished. “But, as Desde said, the attacking force does not appear to be large. Kin-Deren has more than enough Fal’kin to stop them. Your daughter had the same vision as we did.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning, the more seers that receive the same vision, the greater the likelihood the event will actually occur,” the Trine replied, his words clipped with annoyance. “This one, however, still remains a bit unclear. Young Mirana was quite disconcerted by it when she told me.”
Desde leaned forward. “One moment, Tetric. Are you telling me my daughter came to you first with this? Before you both came to me?”
He waved a hand to dismiss her concern. “Do not be upset with her. Apparently, she had been awakened by this vision, as you and I had been. I heard her in the hall. She was obviously distraught, so I comforted her, and together we walked through the vision. Then we came to see you.”
She tugged at her bottom lip, then slapped her hands down flat on the desk. “Damn that girl. What is wrong with her? She should have come to me immediately.”
“My prime, it was only a matter of moments between the time she came to me and when we both spoke with you,” he said.
She gripped the armrests tighter. “You do not understand. She has been most disobedient of late. Criminally so.”
The Trine pursed his lips. “You are more afraid than angry.”
“Forgive me for troubling you with Kin-Deren’s—and a mother’s—concerns,” she replied.
Kaarl regarded the tall man. “I would think you would be the last person she’d want to speak with. She hardly knows you.”
Tetric held his gaze. “Sometimes a stranger is the best person with whom to speak.”
Is that so? The memory of their conversation after the grynwen attack came back to him. The man had no interest in comforting their daughter. No, he wanted to pry into her mind. “What do you mean by that? We love our daughter.”
“Exactly. How much did you tell your father—or Toban, for that matter—when things troubled you?” he replied. “I don’t believe, however, I was first on her list either. I think her little midnight escapade might have involved a certain herbsboy. She was coming in from the outside.”
Kaarl sat up sharply. “Escapade?” He turned to his wife. “Just exactly how close are Mirana and Teague?” He remembered more than a few midnight escapades of his own. With Desde. She frowned and shook her head, quelling the notions that had flown up in his mind.
“The real concern here is the Ford, not your daughter’s adolescent transgressions,” the Trine continued as annoyance crept back into his voice.
“I appreciate your kindness to our daughter, but the next time Mirana is distraught from a vision, we will be the ones to comfort her. We will discuss with her what she may or may not have seen,” he replied, not disguising his own irritation.
The Dar-Azûlan stroked his beard with his long fingers. “I don’t think you can comfort her regarding some of the things she sees. They are enough to terrify a Trine.”
Kaarl straightened in his chair. “What are you—”
“Gentlemen, please. I will deal with Mirana later,” Desde said. “Tetric is right. We have other priorities at the moment.”
He sat back. His wife was correct. “You said there would be several hundred Ken’nar. Do you have a better estimate?”
“Perhaps five hundred,” she said.
For the first time in a long, long time, hope warmed him. “Kin-Deren province has nearly two thousand Fal’kin. If the dark bastard thinks he can have our Ford, he’s about to be proven wrong.”
She nodded. “My thoughts exactly.”
“We il’Kin are few now, but we will serve at your word. How soon are we talking?” he asked.
“That is the one great concern. Timing will be an issue,” she replied. “We’re trying to narrow it down, but we think it will be in a few sevendays.”
“Within the month,” Tetric replied.
“That soon?” A sudden thought occurred to him. He glanced at his wife with a confident sneer. “That might be a boon.”
The tall Trine shifted in his seat. “How so?”
“The contingent from Varn-Erdal province is due at the garrison for their tour of duty about that time. We met up with some Varn-Erdalans late last autumn as we patrolled the border. They said Defender Prime Vallia Edaran has been so—what was the word that the defender used?—so ‘displeased’ with the incessant attacks in Varn-Erdal by the Ken’nar in the last few su
mmers, she wished to inspect the readiness of the Two Rivers Ford garrison herself. She’s even sending her daughter Defender Second Liaonne Edaran to be stationed there.”
Desde grinned, her mahogany eyes as hard as burl wood. “With Vallia and Liaonne both at the Ford, I almost feel sorry for the Ken’nar.”
Kaarl chuckled evilly. “Almost.”
Tetric settled deeper into his chair and folded his hands. “I seldom have come across defenders more vicious than you, Kaarl.”
“I am not vicious. I am thorough,” he said, “Vallia. Liaonne. They are vicious.”
“Vallia’s displeasure is not unfounded,” the Trine said. “Varn-Erdal has suffered more than any other province of late save Kana-Akün. Now that not one, but two provinces stand broken, means it is time to change how we look at this war. That is also why I am here.” He turned to Kaarl. “We need to unite our forces. It is time.”
“That is not your decision to make,” Desde said. “It is the decision of the Steward of the Quorum of Light.” She gestured to Kaarl with her chin.
“What?” He shook his head in disbelief. “Surely your father would have made you steward upon his death?”
“No, thankfully, he did not. Being a prime is burden enough to bear.” She pushed a piece of parchment toward him. “He named you steward in the interim until the Quorum of Light convenes in the autumn. With you half a continent away and on the move for most of the Reckoning, I had no way to reach you with the news until now.”
“Toban can’t do that,” Tetric said. “Kaarl’s not even a prime.”
He nodded. “I agree with you for once, Ëi cara.”
She tapped the document. “Ai, it flies in the face of a thousand summers of Kinderran tradition, but there is nothing in either the Book of Kinderra or the Ora Fal’kinnen that bars it. My father knew our laws better than those who wrote them.”
“My place is on the back of a horse—an amulet in one hand, a sword in the other. Not hiding behind walls sitting on a stone chair in the Quorum chambers.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Is that what you think the Quorum steward does? Is that what you think I do?”
He exhaled, frustrated. “No, of course not. But I am a defender. My life exists to be in defense of Kinderra.”
“And could still be,” the Trine said. “Perhaps Toban’s move isn’t so ridiculous after all.”
He scowled. “What do you mean?”
Tetric leaned toward him. “I want you and your il’Kin to fight with me. Only the steward can order when and where the il’Kin fight. With you as steward, there is one less impediment to their deployment.”
Shock and anger fought for control of Kaarl’s emotions. “I wouldn’t be fighting with you. I would be fighting for you. I take orders from no one.”
“You took orders from Toban,” the Dar-Azûlan said evenly, “and, you took orders as a provincial Fal’kin once.”
The naked ambition of Tetric’s request was beyond belief. Kaarl rose from his seat. “You’ve spent summers trying to extinguish the il’Kin, believing it is a waste of effort when Kinderra has your Dar-Azûlan provincial troops as a strike force. Now, you are trying to do the next best thing by controlling it outright.”
The tall man stood. “It is a waste of effort. My province, if you can call it that, has nothing for my men and women to protect. Barren steppe. Nomads who herd stinking deer. I willingly commit my troops to safeguard all of Kinderra’s provinces. I am a Trine, and such is my duty. The il’Kin are bound to no specific province for much the same reason. We both exist to support provincial troops. We have exactly the same mission. The only reason the il’Kin exists at all is that, for most of Kinderra’s history, no Trine lived to intercede for her on a continental basis. It makes no sense to have two units with the same goal—one answering to me and one answering to you.”
Kaarl remained standing. “I see no problem with that. Neither did Toban. Neither did the Quorum itself. For summers. Kinderra is large, and neither of us can be everywhere at once. There are more than enough black-armored bastards for both of us to fight.”
As he expected, the other man did not back down. “There is no greater sword and amulet in the land than yours. I would put you at the head of the entire combined force. You could do with them as you will. Have units embedded in every province, ready for your orders at a moment’s notice.”
“You don’t think I’ve already petitioned for that?”
“You would be greater to me than my second.”
“I am no one’s second,” he growled between locked teeth.
“Two Rivers Ford is about to be attacked. Despite the small force, the fighting will be brutal, from what I’ve seen. The Fal’kin will suffer losses. Ask your wife.” The Trine gestured toward the door and the hall beyond, “Aspects Above, man, ask your daughter!”
He took a step toward the other man. He was well aware his silver gaze could be unsettling to others, even more so when he was furious. As he hoped it was now. “I will find a way.”
Again, the tall Trine did not acquiesce. “You lost half of your forces within two seasons. How do you plan to protect the garrison there with the paltry nineteen of you?”
“Gentlemen!” Desde warned. “Tetric, obviously Kaarl’s being facetious.”
Kaarl ignored his wife and leaned in close. “You stood by and watched them be slaughtered,” he said, bitter memories dropping his voice into a low snarl.
The other man moved closer still, standing toe to toe. “How many times must I tell you? I had to attack when the moment was right. The loss of your tens would have been hundreds. Sacrifices had to be made.”
He squeezed his hands into fists. “Those sacrifices were not yours to make.”
“I said, that is enough!” Desde jumped to her feet. “Sit down. Both of you. Now. That was two summers ago, Kaarl. It is over. Nothing can change the outcome now. Leten pone morte cin morte.”
Let the dead lie with the dead. Would she feel that way if it had been her men and women who had been cut down? He glared at Tetric a moment, then sank into his chair as the taller man took his seat. His wife was right again. They were dead, and nothing could bring them back.
“Lord Trine, you hold my awe with your Aspects,” she said, “but what you are suggesting is no less than cutting out the heart of the steward’s responsibility. How could Kaarl possibly serve you and the Quorum at the same time in a position like that?”
Tetric steepled his fingers and stared at him. “The only reason your husband would even consider honoring your father’s directive is he would still be in command of the il’Kin, is that not so?”
Kaarl’s hands remained in fists. He said nothing. The answer was obvious.
“Ëi cara, I am not trying to take away your power.” The Trine held out his hand, expecting him to take it. “I am giving you a way to accept the role and still hold your birthright.”
“I cannot make a decision like this now. To join our forces and accept your offer would essentially dissolve the steward’s position. That will be for the Quorum to decide. Not I. Furthermore, we have a battle to plan for.”
“There is no time to wait,” the Trine pressed. “The Quorum members will decide whatever you decide. Do you want to be a protector or a politician?”
Anger began to tug at Kaarl’s Defending Aspect. His amulet warmed the skin of his chest. “We have disagreed on many things, Tetric, but I have never called into question your dedication to your duty.”
“Kaarl, please,” his wife said, holding up her hand to stop any more of his replies. She turned to Tetric. “My husband is right. Your proposal affects the whole of Kinderra. War is on our doorstep, and I am never one to believe any victory is easy. I need your help, both of you, to stop Ken’nar at the Ford.”
The Trine rose again from his chair and moved around it to place his hands on its back. “I hope you will reconsider my offer. Is not our ultimate goal to end this war? Combining our forces will go a long way to achieving
the peace I thought we both want so desperately.” He left, the door swung shut, closed by an unseen hand.
Kaarl could not shake the unmistakable feeling of dread coiled like a viper in the pit of his stomach. He had learned to distinguish between his Defending Aspect and common intuition well before he chose his amulet. This time, he felt both.
“What do you intend to do?” Desde asked quietly.
“I don’t know. I’m not a seer.” He rose and picked up the jadelite carving. “If become steward, I won’t even be a defender anymore.”
He crushed the stamp with his hand and his Aspect, leaving the pieces on the desk.
CHAPTER 10
“What an enigma the Aspects are. They reveal all but say nothing.”
—The Codex of Jasal the Great
“I’ve taught you better than this. Or at least I thought I had. Perhaps this is as much my mistake as yours.”
“No, Mother,” Mirana said. “This has nothing to do with you. You’re right. I should have come to you immediately and told you about the grynwen attack. I was terrified I might have distracted Father at precisely the wrong moment when I called to warn him.” She glanced at her father. “When you didn’t call later, I didn’t know what to think. I was frightened, so I didn’t say anything.”
Her mother’s hands were folded in front of her, a false semblance of calm. Her knuckles were clenched white. Her father leaned back against her mother’s desk, his mind closed as tightly as his folded arms.
Her father shook his head slowly. “You’ve studied enough military tactics with your mother as a seer. Tell me why you think I did not return your call?”
She lowered her eyes to avoid the accusation and the disappointment in her father’s silver gaze. She focused instead on the shards of jadelite scattered on her mother’s desk. Brepaithe Toban’s tiger stamp. It was broken. She used to play with it. She loved that stamp. She picked up a jadelite fragment.
“You had to remain under U’Nehíl so the Ken’nar in Falantir would not sense your location.”
She could stare at the stone shards all she wanted to avoid her father’s gaze, but her mother’s mind was not to be ignored.
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