by Pedro Urvi
“No?” Viggo said, pretending to look surprised, then deeply confused.
“Of course not,” Ingrid said firmly. “We have a code of honor. We might like or dislike our monarchs and those who serve them, but we don’t kill our own people without a good reason.”
“I don’t know …” Viggo spread his arms in an apologetic gesture. “Sometimes I get distracted … and someone dies …”
“Viggo! No distractions! We don’t kill Norghanians, and that’s that!”
“My, aren’t we touchy … just let me remind you, in case you’ve forgotten, I’m an Assassin.”
“That’s different,” Ingrid objected. “If they send you on a mission to murder someone, it’ll be because they’re not innocent.”
Viggo smiled from ear to ear. “How innocently honorable and upright you are.”
Ingrid began to blush. “I’m what?”
“Rectitude and honor personified, and it’s quite true, all the missions I’m given are against villains, traitors, rapists and that class of people. Never against good people,” he added with crushing sarcasm, making it very clear that it was not what Ingrid was expecting.
Lasgol shook his head. “I know our King and his brother have no qualms about who they order to be eliminated or sabotaged. Still, the rule stays. We don’t kill innocent Norghanians, particularly in an ambush with no escape-route.”
Viggo gave a snort. “You take all the joy out of life,” he complained, and waved his arms at the sky.
“We do it just to annoy you,” Ingrid told him
Viggo gave a comic grimace, then turned to Lasgol. “Well then, weirdo, you tell me how we’re going to take the Star from them. What’s your grand plan? Because they aren’t going to just give it to us, and if they decide to make trouble, we’re going to have a pretty hard time.”
“I still haven’t finished thinking the whole plan out … but I have some ideas I think might work …”
Viggo put his hand to his forehead. “Great, that sounds really promising.”
Lasgol gave a deep sigh. “What wouldn’t I give to have Egil here.”
“But he’s not here,” Ingrid pointed out. “We’re going to have to work it out for ourselves. He must have enough on his hands with his own problems.”
Lasgol nodded. He knew he had to think of an idea, and a good one, or else there would be bloodshed.
They stopped to rest for a moment. Lasgol sat down under a tree and told Camu and Ona to leave him alone for a moment.
Camu was surprised by the request. Why? he wanted to know. He was looking at Lasgol with his head on one side, blinking hard.
I need to think.
I help. Ona can’t. She not so smart.
Don’t say that about Ona. She’s very smart.
Good, yes. Strong, yes. Smart, no.
Don’t be like that. Her problem is that she can’t communicate with us the way you do. But that doesn’t mean she’s not smart, because she certainly is.
Ona moaned beside Lasgol and rubbed her head against his leg.
If you say … Camu tilted his head to one side, then the other, staring at the panther.
See how she understands us? But the poor thing can’t communicate what she’s thinking to us.
I teach.
Well, that would be really good. See if you’re capable of developing a skill that’ll allow Ona to communicate with you.
I do, Camu said confidently.
Good. Now go with your sister and try. I’ll be here thinking of a plan for the ambush.
Ambush?
Lasgol knew immediately that he should never have mentioned it. Yup …
Ambush fun.
Lasgol snorted in frustration. No, it’s not fun. Go with Ona.
Camu wagged his long tail enthusiastically and left.
Lasgol began to turn the plan over in his mind as he consulted the map of Norghana he was carrying. The strike needed to be accurate and swift, in the blink of an eye. The main problem was to find the right spot for it. They were almost certain of the road the column intended to follow. Looking at the map, he considered different spots where they could carry out the ambush.
Ingrid crouched down beside him. “Everything all right?”
“Yeah … I need to find the best spot, that’s all.”
“If I can be any help, here I am.”
“Thanks, Ingrid.” It occurred to him to ask her for her opinion. “Where would you not expect to be ambushed?”
“Hmmm … interesting. I see what you’re up to, thinking about possibilities. Let me think about it,” she said, and ran her hand through her golden hair.
Viggo was watching them a little further away, stroking Ona. Camu, who had come over to the panther, was now chasing after a butterfly which had flown past them. He seemed to want to eat it.
“Don’t worry, I’m having trouble deciding. Any help will be welcome.”
“I think hollows, narrow paths, mountain passes, thick forests, are all places where I’d expect an ambush. Where I’d least expect it would be somewhere very visible, like an open stretch of country, for instance.”
Lasgol nodded repeatedly. He consulted the map again, thinking for a while longer, until he had finally tied up all the loose ends of his plan, including the spot where the ambush would take place.
“I’ve got it,” he announced, and showed them the spot on the map.
“This is a stretch of open land with a river,” Ingrid said.
“Exactly. They won’t expect anything there.”
“It’s very near the fortress,” Viggo pointed out. “If we fail, they could run away and take shelter in it. They’d get away from us.”
“That’s why we can’t afford to fail. There won’t be any second chance. It has to come out right first go.”
“It’ll still take them a couple of days to get to this point,” Ingrid pointed out.
“All the better. We’ll make good use of the time we have.”
“To do what?” Viggo asked.
“To prepare a sublime ambush,” Lasgol said with a smile.
“Now the weirdo’s sounding like Egil. Your plan had better be as good as his usually are.”
“Maybe not as good, but I think it’ll work.”
“That’s the way to talk,” Ingrid said. She gave him a slap on the shoulder.
Viggo gave him a twisted smile. “Fine … now tell us about it, in detail.”
Lasgol explained his plan and the preparations they would have to make to ensure it worked. He reminded them that they only had a single chance. If the Star eluded them and reached Skol, they would lose it forever. Only someone trained especially in illicit entry, or with a Gift that enabled him to become a human shadow, could manage to get into the second most impressive fortress in the realm, surpassed only by the royal castle in Norghania. Not even Viggo would be able to do it. His friend was good, but not as good as that.
“Yes, I am.”
“No, you’re not,” Ingrid shot back.
“Well, we’ll see about that.” Viggo crossed his arms and grimaced in disapproval at this underestimation of his abilities.
“Let’s hope not,” Lasgol said. “If all goes according to plan, there won’t be any need to see anything.”
“It’s a pretty complicated plan … on the other hand it might not work,” Viggo commented, pretending to look regretful.
“The plan’s good,” Ingrid said. “We’ll make it work. I’m sure of that.”
Ona and Camu came to their side, and the panther moaned and lay down at Lasgol’s feet.
What we do? Camu asked hopefully.
You’d better stay out of this. The plan’s a complicated one and the risk’s very high.
I want take part.
Viggo saw that they were looking at Lasgol sadly. “What’s with the little fiends?” he asked.
“They want to help.”
Viggo pretended to shiver. “Honestly, it gives me gooseflesh every time I think you can communi
cate with them by thought.”
“They could help,” Ingrid said. She was watching them, thinking about the plan.
“The fiends? No way. We’ve got enough problems with the plan as it’s laid out to put these two in it as well. They’re sure to mess it up.”
“I don’t think it would be a problem,” Ingrid said thoughtfully. “They could even be an asset.”
Yes, we asset. Ingrid know, Camu transmitted excitedly to Lasgol.
“You think so?” Lasgol asked. “I’m not so sure … it’s risky … and they don’t always follow orders …”
Yes, follow. Well-behaved.
Lasgol shook his head. Ona will be, he pointed out. You won’t.
I well-behaved, Camu insisted.
“I don’t like this idea,” Viggo said.
Lasgol too was reluctant. “I’m not convinced either …”
“Let me explain what I’ve worked out,” Ingrid said, “and how these two might make the plan stronger in one particular way. Listen.”
As they listened to Ingrid’s idea, their expressions changed. When she had finished, they looked at one another.
Yes! Plan good! Camu transmitted happily.
Lasgol sighed resignedly. Let me think about it.
Viggo shrugged. “She’s got a point there. They’d strengthen the plan.”
Ona, who had been informed of the plan by Camu, roared in agreement.
In the end Lasgol had to admit that Ingrid’s idea strengthened his plan. To ignore it would be plain stubbornness, but at the same time he was afraid for his two friends.
Are you sure you want to do it? It’s going to be dangerous.
Yes, we want, both of us, Camu transmitted. He began to do his dance of happiness, flexing his legs and wagging his long tail excitedly.
“All right …” Lasgol said, although in his heart he was uneasy about the fate of his four-legged friends.
“That’s it, then,” Ingrid said, putting an end to the discussion. “All five of us are in it.”
Promise me you’ll be very careful and you’ll follow my orders without straying.
Promise, Camu said. He put his right foreleg on Ona’s back and nodded as if both of them were a blessing from the heavens.
Lasgol could not help smiling. You’re in a class of your own, he transmitted, and stroked their heads.
Chapter 6
The group escorting the Star of Sea and Life, with the Ice Mage Maldreck in the lead, emerged from a fir-wood to follow a path which led into a wide area of tall grass. A little further ahead, a river of deep, turbulent water came down from the mountain to cross the plain on its way to the sea.
Maldreck looked out alertly at the expanse which spread out in front of his eyes. All he could see was tall grass, a bridge which crossed the river further ahead, and a couple of traders who were approaching the bridge.
“How far is it to the fortress, Resgusen?” he asked the most senior of the Royal Guards.
“We’re half a day away. Once we cross this open stretch we’ll be able to see the great Fortress of Skol on the horizon.”
“Wonderful. I’m looking forward to getting there and putting this Object of Power under lock and key.” The Mage glanced at his saddlebag.
“You needn’t worry. Nobody’s going to try and seize it.”
Maldreck nodded. “I guess not. Nobody knows we’re carrying it, and even if anybody had found out, it would be a risky business to try anything.” He narrowed his eyes and touched his Ice Mage’s staff, which he was carrying attached to the other saddle-bag which hung from his horse’s rump.
“It certainly would be,” Resgusen agreed, with a twisted smile. He reached for the huge double axe he carried slung over his back and tapped it affectionately, as though greeting a loved one.
The Ice Mage took a good look behind him at the dozen men who were escorting him. They were as big as Savages of the Ice, and nearly as brutal. They spoke little, and when they did so they seemed to bark. They certainly did not appear able to maintain a civilized conversation, much less an entertaining one. They were good with their weapons, much less so with their heads. They were riding huge Norghanian horses, which judging by their size and strength looked more like draft horses than steeds. These horses had been especially selected for the use of the Royal Guard. Horses which were less strong could not carry them for more than a couple of days without exhausting themselves under the joint weight of rider, armor and weapons.
“Anyway,” Maldreck went on, “let’s not be too trusting now we’re almost there. The man who trusts too much tends to live a very short life in the North,” he recited as if it were a proverb.
“There’s nothing but a stretch of tall grass and the river Ulo as far as the eye can see,” Resgusen pointed out. “Nobody could surprise us here, and once we’ve crossed that grassland, we’ll be just a step away from Duke Orten’s fortress. There’s nothing to worry about.”
“It must be my distrustful nature, but I won’t be at ease until we’re inside the fortress and I can hand over the Star.”
“We’ll follow the Duke’s orders. Nothing’s going to stop us from carrying out our task.”
Maldreck nodded his approval.
They noticed that the two traders were now coming toward them from the opposite direction. The first was on a cart laden with barrels and sacks, pulled by two strong mules. After him came the second cart pulled by two oxen, carrying a man who looked like a vendor of oil tins. They were moving at the same slow, weary pace and must have been travelling together, since mules are a great deal faster than oxen.
“Let’s get to the bridge and cross it before those traders get there,” Maldreck said.
“They’re just traders, they don’t pose any threat,” Resgusen said. He did not understand what was worrying the Mage.
“I know, but that bridge isn’t very wide, and if they start crossing it before us, we’ll have to wait till they’ve finished. I don’t want to have to wait for them.” His tone suggested that it was offensive for him to have to give way to mere traders.
“True enough.” Resgusen turned in his saddle. “Speed up now!” he called to his men.
A moment later the group was making for the bridge at a brisk trot. The traders were approaching too, but much more slowly. For a moment it looked as though the column was not going to not reach the bridge in time to cross before the carts, but it was only an optical effect produced by distance and the tall grass. The horses were considerably faster than the carts, and had soon drastically reduced the distance that separated them from the bridge.
“We’ll get there before they do,” Resgusen assured Maldreck. They were both riding at the head of the column. The rest were in double file, with a final soldier bringing up the rear.
“Good. All we need is for one of the carts to lose a wheel in the middle of the bridge.”
“True, it’s a long bridge, but it’s a rather narrow one. There’s only room for a cart and not much else.”
“I’m not sure we’d manage to cross with a cart in the way. I might, but not the Royal Guards.”
“Oh, they’d get across,” Resgusen said, “but it’d be on top of whoever got in their way. I’m afraid we’d have two traders less in Norghana.”
Maldreck raised his eyebrows. “The Royal Guard mounts are impressively large and strong. My horse looks like a pony beside them.”
Resgusen gave a brief laugh. “Horses must be on the same level as their riders,” he replied ironically.
“Very true. Those soldiers would look ridiculous on small horses,” Maldreck agreed. He said nothing about the veiled insinuation about his own mount and his riding skills.
The two traders on the other side, seeing the soldiers already approaching the bridge at a trot, stopped their carts, the first tugging the reins of his mules and the second shouting at his oxen and using his stick. The soldiers stepped on to the bridge of stone and wood, and the hooves of the enormous horses echoed on the floorboards. The
stone structure of the bridge made sure that it would bear the weight of that group, and even that of a much bigger one.
Maldreck smiled to see the traders stopping to let them pass and watching respectfully from the other end of the bridge. They were a couple of elderly men wearing clothes of good quality, but which had seen many winters by now. They must be men who had spent their time trading between cities, and knew that it was not a good idea to get in the way of armed soldiers. The riders would not have to trample them down, which would make crossing the bridge easier and cleaner. They would soon be at the other side, and almost at their destination.
The riders were halfway across the bridge when there came a clinking sound, then a moment later a second. It was followed by a third and then a fourth, as if the horses were stepping on glass as they went along the wooden floor. The riders did not notice, since the sound was muffled by that of the horses’ hooves, which made far more noise.
Suddenly there came an explosion of earth and smoke. The first trap, which the horses had activated as they passed, reached the last rider fair and square. The explosion was a vertical one, so that it surrounded him, stunning and blinding him and taking him completely by surprise. The horse panicked, reared and threw off its rider, who was left on the ground trying to recover while his horse galloped away in terror.
The second trap was activated a moment later, but this was not the same type. There was a small explosion, and a violet gas rose abruptly from the ground and spread in all directions. The trap reached the next two riders as they passed over it. Both of them tugged at their reins in an attempt to control their horses, but the poor beasts, frightened by the first trap and now by the gas which enveloped them, were trying to escape. The explosion had not physically harmed the horses, who merely felt the strength of the spread of the gas under their feet. They were strong and heavy, and so were unaffected, but they kicked uncontrollably and threw off their riders. One of these fell into the water on one side, striking the parapet in his fall, while the other went straight into the water on the opposite side.
They were not aware of it, but the hidden traps were being activated by Maldreck and Resgusen as the riders passed over them. The leaders themselves were out of reach of the traps, because the activation had been intentionally delayed in order to catch the riders who were following them.