Abuud: the One-Eyed God (30 page)

"I agree with Arik," decided Tedi. "It is not just the value of the Sword of Heavens that matters. It is the function of it. Without it we have no chance of defeating Sarac."

"But we have to get to the Island of Storms," frowned Wylan. "What choice do we have?"

"We can give Bin-lu something else of value," sighed Tedi.

"What else of value do we have?" inquired Wylan. "Surely nothing as valuable as the Sword of Heavens."

"No, Tedi," Arik shook his head. "I know how much that means to you. We will find another way to get to the island."

"He is only going to hold it while we have the boat," responded Tedi. "It is not like I will be losing it forever."

"What are you talking about?" interrupted Wylan.

"Tedi is thinking of giving Bin-lu his necklace," frowned Arik. "It is his only remembrance of his mother."

"It is not my only remembrance," argued Tedi. "I have many memories of her. Besides, I agree with you about not giving up the sword. The necklace is all we have that will satisfy Bin-lu's need for assurances that we will return his boat."

"Are you sure about this?" asked Arik.

"My mind is made up," nodded Tedi. "Let us find Bin-lu before the day is spent. I don't fancy spending a night on the water in a strange place."

Tedi stood up and started down the beach in search of Bin-lu. Arik hurried after him, and Wylan grabbed the reins of the horses and followed. Finding Bin-lu in the masses of fisherman proved to be a daunting task, but Tedi finally found the scrawny lad sitting with his back to the old scow.

"I thought you would come back," grinned Bin-lu. "Only a crazy men would want to go to the Island of Storms, and crazy men have no choice over their actions."

"What is so bad about the Island of Storms?" Tedi asked as Arik and Wylan caught up to him.

"The sea is nasty out there," Bin-lu began. "And nobody comes back from that island. It is haunted."

"Then why are you letting us use your boat?" asked Arik. "I mean if you do not expect us to return, you cannot expect to see your boat again."

"Not true," grinned Bin-lu. "I think when you get close to the island, you will turn around and come back. If you don't, then the pretty sword is mine."

"Not the sword," interrupted Tedi as he pulled the necklace from under his tunic. "This necklace is what we shall leave with you."

Bin-lu's eyes widened as he stared at the necklace. He hesitantly reached out his hand and touched the necklace. Bin-lu's face broke in a wide grin.

"Necklace is acceptable," Bin-lu nodded vigorously.

"Tell me more of this island," prompted Arik.

Bin-lu's face clouded over with fear and concern. "Island of Storms is not a friendly place," he began. "Some say there are cannibals living on the island, and wild beasts unlike anywhere else. Many people have tried to go there because they think it is an ancient holy place, but they are never heard from again. Sometimes the wreckage of their boats is found, but never any bodies."

"So there is nobody who has ever seen this island and lived to tell about it?" questioned Wylan.

"Oh, no," responded Bin-lu. "Many have seen the island. I have seen the island, but I have never dared to set foot upon it."

"So we have a deal?" asked Tedi.

"We have deal," grinned Bin-lu. "I will help you load things from the horses to the boat."

"The horses are coming with us," declared Arik.

"No," Bin-lu shook his head. "Horses no good on the island. There is no beach, and to enter the island you must climb a great wall of rock. The mountain comes right down to the sea."

"Well we cannot just leave the horses here on the beach," argued Wylan.

"I will take care of your horses," promised Bin-lu. "My uncle has a farm outside city. He has many horses and a big barn. Horses will be safe."

"Alright," agreed Arik. "How long will it take us to reach the island?"

"With good wind," replied Bin-lu as he watched Arik inspecting the sails, "you will be there by darkness. The problem is the wind changes a lot out there. That is why they call it Island of Storms. There is a strong current running between the island and the Horn of Lanoir. You must avoid that. The current is very dangerous."

"Wylan," called Arik, "go with Bin-lu and take the horses to his uncle's farm. Tedi and I will get this boat ready for the voyage."

Wylan nodded and followed Bin-lu up the beach while Arik and Tedi secured their belongings aboard the scow.

"Are you sure this thing is up to the voyage?" Tedi asked.

"The hull is in good shape," mused Arik. "The sails have not been used in a long time, but I do not see any tears or fraying in them. I think it will be alright for a day's voyage."

"I hope you meant to say two day's voyage," chuckled Tedi. "I am not planning on this being a one-way trip."

"Are you sure about the necklace, Tedi?" Arik asked softly.

"Yes," nodded Tedi. "I thought a lot about it last night when I was on watch. Although I never want to lose it, we will survive without it. The same cannot be said about the Sword of Heavens. Besides, I know that it belonged to your mother and not mine."

Silence fell over the old scow as Arik and Tedi continued to ready the craft for the voyage to the Island of Storms. By the time Wylan and Bin-lu returned, the boat was ready to be dragged to the sea. Tedi took off the necklace and carefully handed it to Bin-lu.

"Guard this well," Tedi said. "It is worth more than gold to me. It was my mother's, and I want it back when we return."

Bin-lu nodded vigorously and bowed slightly. "I shall protect it better than my most prized possession," he said. "May the winds be at your back."

They dragged the scow into the water, and Tedi leaped aboard to unfurl the sails. The rest of the boys waded into the water and pushed the boat further into the sea. Wylan was next to haul himself over the side of the boat while Arik and Bin-lu continued to push the boat. Eventually, Tedi got some wind into the sails and Arik climbed aboard. Bin-lu continued to push until the water rose too high for him to maintain his footing. He stood in the water and waved to the three boys as the wind filled the sails. The scow headed for the open sea.

Bin-lu returned to the beach and pulled the necklace from his pocket. He marveled at the beauty of it and clasped it around his neck. For the next two hours, Bin-lu strode up and down the beach showing off the necklace and relishing the admiration of his friends. Having impressed all of his friends on the beach, Bin-lu strode into the city center. He saw a large crowd and headed towards it.

Bin-lu worked his way into the crowd to see what was attracting everyone. As he got to the front of the crowd, he saw a group of soldiers and a large cart that had a cage built upon it. Four strong horses were attached to the cart, and Bin-lu squinted to see the people inside the cage. The prisoners were unremarkable, and Bin-lu did not see anyone he knew inside the cage. The soldiers often came through Barouk with prisoners on the way to Ongchi and always a crowd gathered to look for friends or relatives. Bin-lu shrugged and turned to leave the crowd when he felt a strong hand grasp his arm. Bin-lu tried to shake his arm free and then looked over his shoulder with a scowl on his face. He immediately cringed when he saw that it was a soldier who had seized him and not someone jockeying for position.

Bin-lu's first thought was to run through the crowd to safety. Although he had done nothing wrong, the soldiers seldom needed an excuse to arrest anyone. Often they grabbed boys off the street to serve in the army, but he had never heard of that happening with a prison wagon before. The prison wagon was used to haul criminals before the Emperor. Bin-lu tried again to shake free from the soldier, and the soldier called for help as he clung tightly to Bin-lu. Soon Bin-lu was dragged from the crowd towards the prisoner wagon.

"I have done nothing," shouted Bin-lu. "I am not a criminal."

An officer approached the two men holding Bin-lu and slapped Bin-lu's face. He grabbed Bin-lu by the hair and yanked his head upward.

"Throw him in the wagon," ordered the officer. "Tie his hands to the bars."

Bin-lu was dragged to the back of the wagon and thrown inside. Before he could even right himself, his arms were seized through the bars and his hands were lashed tightly to the cage. His face still stinging from the slap, Bin-lu tried to figure out what he could have done to be considered a criminal as the wagon started rolling towards the gates of the city.

***

"See that deer?" asked Master Khatama as he pointed into the woods.

"Yes," nodded Niki.

"Call it over here," instructed Boris.

"If I shout it will run away," frowned Niki. "Why should I chase it?"

"Not with your voice," sighed Boris. "Use your mind. Direct your thoughts to the deer and tell it to come to you."

Niki's eyebrows rose as she looked at Master Khatama. At first she thought he was teasing her, but his face was quite serious. She turned her gaze to the deer and tried to figure out how she should call it.

"Close your eyes," instructed Master Khatama. "Do not be distracted by sights. Think only of the deer. Now, within your mind, talk to the deer as if you were standing next to it having a conversation. Urge it to enter the campsite so that you might touch it."

Niki sat with her eyes closed as she struggled to make believe she was talking to the deer. She tried pleading and commanding, but she felt no response from the deer. Frustrated by the lack of response, Niki sighed and opened her eyes. Her mouth fell open, and she emitted a screech as she saw the deer standing before her. The startled deer bounded out of the campsite in a flash.

"That was excellent," congratulated Master Khatama.

"I don't believe it," Niki shook her head. "I was waiting for it to talk back to me. I never imagined that it even heard me."

"Animals have very little communications skills," remarked Boris. "Still it understood what you wanted."

"But then I scared it away," pouted Niki.

"You cannot blame the poor creature for being scared," chuckled Boris. "This confirms my suspicions about your capabilities. We shall work each day on improving your skills."

"How do you know all of these things?" asked Niki. "Talking to animals does not sound like a skill a merchant would have."

"It is a skill that you have," corrected Boris as his face clouded in a frown. "I do not remember where I learned about people with powers such as yours. Perhaps I traveled with one at some time in the past."

"What are you doing with that stick?" Niki asked after a long moment of silence.

"I am making a new staff," answered Boris as he rubbed oil over the long pole. "This is a very fine piece of wood and will make a wonderful staff."

"You already have a staff," Niki said as she watched Boris rubbed the wood with sand.

"Quite true," nodded Boris, "but one never passes up such a fine opportunity. You never can tell when another staff might come in handy."

"Are you making it for me?" asked Niki.

"Are you skilled with a staff?" responded Master Khatama.

"No," frowned Niki. "I have had lessons, but I am not good at it. I am not good at a lot of things."

"So you are normal then," laughed Boris. "People have talents, but nobody is good at everything. Concentrate on what talents you have, and do not dwell on those that you are not suited for."

"How long before we get to where we are going?" questioned Niki.

"I am not sure," answered Boris. "We are entering Lanoir tomorrow, so it should not be too much longer. Barouk is on the southern coast, so it will be a few days yet."

"Will you be able to find the boys when we get there?" inquired Niki.

"Oh yes," smiled Master Khatama. "We will find them. Just like I found them in Cleb. Don't worry about finding them."

***

"A moment of your time?" questioned Mitar Vidson as he entered the study.

Duke Tredor looked up from his desk and frowned. "What is it?" he asked.

"I need to speak to you about increasing the number of men in your protection detail."

"Increasing?" echoed Duke Tredor. "I have already increased the number of your men that I employ. I have thirty of them bumbling around here now. Why would I ever need more?"

"I guess because you have the distinction of alienating every single member of the Council," retorted Mitar without inflection. "We have three verified reports of assassins with you as their target. It would appear that you are a very unpopular man at the moment."

"Three?" gasped Duke Tredor as he tried to imagine which three councilors had hired the assassins. "Who is hiring them? Why can't you just eliminate the assassins?"

"We are a protective force," replied Mitar Vidson. "We are not engaged in any offensive actions. Until the assassins try to kill you, we have no cause to act. Besides, your enemies would just hire more assassins. Making the assassins execute their plans buys us time. Time that is needed to gain knowledge of the next attempt. Please do not try to tell us how to do our job. We are experts at it."

"How many more men?" sighed Duke Tredor.

"Another twenty are required," declared Mitar Vidson.

"Twenty more?" cried Duke Tredor. "That is five thousand crowns a day. I cannot afford that much."

"Very well," nodded the head of the Koman Mercenary Company as he turned to leave.

"Wait," shouted Duke Tredor. "I just meant that the price was exorbitant, not that I could not afford it. I want the carriage brought around," he said as he scribbled an authorization to increase the mercenary force.

"I do hope you are not planning another visit to Duke Everich," sighed Mitar. "Your security is hard enough to maintain without you sitting in a carriage outside his gates."

"The Palace Shadow then," bargained Duke Tredor. "I have to talk to somebody to make them realize that I do not need to be eliminated."

"I will give the order as I leave," smiled Mitar as he picked up the authorization.

Duke Tredor watched him leave and pondered about how he could get himself out of the middle of this mess. He still had not been able to talk to Duke Everich. Both times he had managed to get as far as the Everich estate, Duke Everich had not been in. Tredor was still confused as to why Duke Everich had ended the Council meeting so abruptly. Perhaps it was time to switch allegiance once again. He did not like bowing to Duke Graves, but he was sure that at least one of the assassination attempts must be from him. With the signal that his carriage was ready, Duke Tredor left the estate and headed for the Palace Shadow.