It was an unseasonably cool morning in Medora. The blue mists of daybreak clung to the fields in a futile effort to avoid the coming rays of the sun. A few birds cawed loudly as they made for their destination somewhere in the open purple sky. Tannis never bothered with the superstitions about seeing birds in the sky before a journey. He couldn't remember if it was supposed to be a good omen or a bad one. Either way he thought it was ridiculous that people placed so much importance on such trivial things. The way he saw it, the gods would decide what ultimately happened to him, birds or no birds.
The ground was firm again around the stables. The recent rains had turned the network of dirt roads in the area into a sloppy mess of mud and muck. Aside from any paths in the woods or random trails, the stables were the only place where there were dirt roads in Medora. The neatly paved stone roads were not only cleaner, but necessary for the army to move swiftly if they were needed. Luckily the Vindyri had the sense to pave many of their roads as well, so there would be little trouble in getting to the front line in good time.
These particular stables were larger than the ones deeper inside Brinn. Most of the ones in the city were for horses that were owned by the people, and pulled carts and wagons to keep the economy active. Here at the outskirts of the city, the warhorses were kept. Tannis walked in through the broad opening and was greeted with the smell of fresh oats and the sounds of horses eager to leave their stalls. Most of the horses came to their stall door to see who was coming. The one at the end snorted and tossed his head erratically, clearly showing his excitement.
Tannis didn't show his own excitement, but he had to fight the urge to grin at the beast. This horse cared for no other being but him, and that loyalty made him feel good. The only other person that the horse paid any attention to was his son. Rommus had always said that the horse probably thought they smelled similar.
He finally reached the last stall and put a hand to the horse's muzzle to calm him. He appeared to be a midnight blue color in the muted light of the coming dawn, but the horse was as black as the raven hair of the Medorans. His coat shined like no other, accenting his enormous muscles. Rhodiir was no ordinary horse. Like Tannis he was larger than normal, and his whole body was meatier and fuller than the average steed. His muscles were large and toned, and his legs were thicker and heavier to support the massive weight. He was a proud animal, a great warrior, and even a friend.
Some soldier had already come and saddled and harnessed him, and Tannis was certain he was fed as well. He opened the stall door and Rhodiir strode out in his typical noble manner. Tannis ran his hands over his flanks, checking him over for nothing in particular. It was all part of their ritual, but he claimed to "check" the animal so that no one would realize he was actually petting him. Rhodiir always stood still and allowed Tannis to touch him for as long as he liked, so he knew the horse enjoyed it as much as his master did.
Rhodiir cocked his head and snorted. He obviously heard someone coming before Tannis did, but he could read the animal's thoughts. He turned to the entrance and waited for someone to come into view. A soldier from the Star Legion came around the corner, accompanied by Pirius Tecadelion, the younger son of the Emperor.
"Gentlemen," Tannis said, "make it quick. We are preparing for war and must be going."
"Of course, General," the soldier said. "I am from the Star Legion, and I will be going as well. I come because I have news of your son. You must forgive me for the delayed news, but I was not the one to hear it, and I deliver the message that was meant to come from another."
"What is wrong? Is Rommus all right? Why are you bringing me this news and not the original soldier?"
"Your son is fine, General. The first soldier to hear the news was my brother, and he has had an accident." The man stood tall, but tears fought to fill his eyes. "He fell from his horse and was found by the roadside between here and Taburdum. He was in bad shape, and he has died."
"I am sorry to hear that, soldier. Find comfort in the fact that he died serving Medora, and no matter how small the task was, it was important. What was his message?"
"He was sent by Commander Soterus from Taburdum before they left for Vindyrion. Rommus had passed through there and met with Soterus. He sends news to you that you are permitted to take the weapons you need from his forge, and that he had some sort of encounter with Mages, but he is unharmed." The man breathed in a few ragged breaths in an attempt to fight the tears that were brimming in his eyes. "If there was more to the message, I am afraid he died before he could tell us. I am sorry General Tirinius."
Tannis put his hand on the man's shoulder. "Do not be sorry. You have done well, and so did your brother. The information is more important than you realize. What is your name, soldier?"
"Heona is my name," he said.
"Heona I want you to stay here with your family in their time of tragedy. I don't want your mother to lose two sons if I can help it."
The man straightened and stood a little taller. "With all due respect General, I wish to come to the battle. The Empire needs me, and I have a duty to uphold."
Tannis looked down into the man's eyes for a moment. "Very well, Heona. I am glad that you have chosen this path. Go now and prepare for war with the others. I wish to speak with the Emperor's son." The man quickly saluted and left the stable.
Pirius leaned against the wooden wall next to him and crossed his arms. "The information was more important than he realized? Was it some kind of code that you and Rommus use?"
"No, it is no code. It's not even important news," Tannis said as he went back to checking his horse.
"Then why did you tell him that? I don't understand."
"We must comfort our friends in their time of need. It did not do any harm to let him think his brother's mission was more important than it really was. If a sentence can make a man feel better about the honor of his brother, then I will say it."
Pirius brought a hand to his dimpled face. "I see. Aren't you at least concerned for Rommus's safety? It's why I made sure to bring that soldier here before you left."
"Rommus is a man. He's a strong, capable man, even if he lacks drive. The fact that he had an encounter with Mages days ago can't be changed now, and he has the sense to lay low for a while. I already went to his forge myself and retrieved the weapons that the assassins needed, so the message is fairly useless to me."
"You know, one more thing confuses me Tannis. Why would you tell him that he could stay here? Isn't the war more important than one man and his misery? That's the kind of thing I expected you to say."
"It is absolutely true, young Tecadelion. You know me well. My reason for it was simply that I saw how he was affected by his tragedy, and I did not want his condition to compromise the men around him. Men depend on each other in battle, and I did not want other men in danger because of this man."
"And yet you still let him go off to war?" Pirius shook his head in confusion. "I am afraid I don't understand these things at all."
"You are young, Pirius. Some things make better sense when you have a few years behind you. I could see in his eyes that he is a determined warrior, and that he will most likely use this war to forget his troubles, and maybe even bring some peace to his heart in his service to Medora. It's just something a General can see."
Pirius shook his head again. "I still don't quite understand, but I guess that is why I am not a General. What about these Mages? They seem to be causing quite a bit of trouble lately. Are you going to do anything about them?"
Rhodiir tossed his head and snorted, obviously wanting to be away from the stranger in front of him and off to battle. "The laws of this land do not permit us to punish a whole group of peaceful people for the actions of a few. For all we know, the Mages involved were not Mages at all. I have seen it happen before. People fear Mages, and a criminal can get away with a lot if he dresses like one."
"That sounds dangerous to me. I think we should be able to uncover these Mages and find out what it is they actually do. They ar
e supposed to be able to talk to the gods, but if they can, they certainly don't bother to tell us what they say."
"I don't know if they can converse with the gods or not, but I think they would ignore all the gods but one. Most Medorans believe they worship only Inshae, and not all seven gods."
"Right. All the more reason to uncloak them," Pirius said.
Tannis gently persuaded his steed out of the stable and into the soft glow of the coming morning. Pirius followed his lead. "Tell me, Pirius, what do you know of Inshae?"
"He is the god of death; an evil god."
"That's an accusation I have heard countless times. But what makes you think he is evil? Has he harmed you or anyone you know?"
"He took my mother when I was born."
Tannis breathed in a calm, patient breath. "Do you know why the god of life holds a pair of balances, Pirius?"
"No I don't. What does Terinopus have to do with the god of death?"
"All of the gods are necessary. Just because they are charged with a duty that we feel is unfair to us does not make them evil. The god of death is no more evil than the god of life. You simply don't understand his role."
"I understand that he is the one to take us to Morendiir, the city of the dead. I know that death is natural and a part of life, but you can't prove that he is good, just as I cannot prove he is evil."
Tannis looked down at the man and felt a little pride. Mostly Pirius did not discuss any issue like this, and it was good for him to do so. One day, if Uritus were unable, Pirius would rule the Empire. He needed to focus on more than just women if he would ever be able to do so.
"Very true, young Tecadelion. I cannot prove he is good or evil. But death itself is no more evil than birth. I can only assume that the gods in charge of both are equally indifferent to the matters."
"And the pair of balances? What do they represent?"
"They represent exactly what you think they do; balance. While humans live a life of imbalance, the gods exist in a different way. You cannot have death without life, nor life without death. Black and white, good and evil, yesterday and tomorrow; it is all balanced by the gods."
"Then why would a single god have control over the balance?"
"For the same reason an Emperor has control over an Empire. Take Medora as an example. The Emperor has control over the balance of the empire, but he has men beneath him to control certain things. As General, it is my duty to protect the Medorans, though I do not rule over them. The Empire functions as a unit, but your father controls the direction in which we move."
"Gods, empires, good, evil; who can keep track of all this? Why are things not simpler, like when I was a boy?"
"I think that is the reason that we adore children and let them get away with things. We realize that their world exists only as far as they can see. Knowledge eventually comes to destroy the innocence, and the damage is irreversible. We let them hold on to that innocence because we know that it will soon be gone forever. Maybe we parents feel a little of the innocence though our children."
"So now I have to add parenting to my list of complications?" Pirius smiled up at the giant man as he got on his horse. "I think I'll avoid that one for as long as I can."
Tannis turned his horse and looked to the northeast. He could see a hazy cloud of dust in the growing morning light. Pirius looked and saw the same thing.
"What is that? The Vindyri troops again?"
Tannis was totally confused by the sight. "I don't know. I don't understand it. It can't be the Vindyri; they are back in Vindyrion away from the battle. It has to be the Bhoors. But how can they move an army at night? And how can they possibly be close enough for us to see them from here?"
Pirius squinted at the sight, his dimples creasing his cheeks. "Perhaps they are farther away than it seems, and their army is just so large that the dust cloud can be seen from a greater distance."
"Let us hope that their army is not anywhere near that large, young Tecadelion."
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