Neversfall (13 page)

“Sir…” she started but didn’t know how to finish. He was asking her to spy on Adeenya. She couldn’t think of anything less becoming a Maquar, let alone an officer.

“I know. I don’t like it, either, but I’ve put a lot of thought into this.”

“Tell me,” she said.

Jhoqo smiled a little at her boldness and stood straight again. “Wait a moment, Terir. Maybe this is premature. Did you see her during the battle with the intruders?”

Loraica thought back to the fight and shook her head.

“Now a mission that she led to find the invaders failed,” he said. “And she was very eager to speak with the formian prisoners. And she took that halfling prisoner with her on her mission.” He stepped away from the wall, looking stern. “And she seems too friendly with our durir, doesn’t she?”

Loraica could see the thought process on his face and knew his mind was working furiously through a puzzle. “Sir… collusion with the enemies? Leading her troops into a trap? Trying to divide our command?”

Jhoqo patted his hands in the air. “I just don’t know what to make of any of it, and I want to be sure of her and her soldiers. Maybe I am being too cautious, but I’d rather be too careful than not careful enough.”

Loraica fell silent for a while in the darkness. “Didn’t Khatib examine her troops when we first met up? I thought he found them to be acceptable. Did he study her as well?”

Jhoqo shook his head. “It would have been an insult to examine her. Khatib may have secretly checked her out, but he’s no longer around to ask,” the commander said ruefully.

Loraica considered for a few moments. She didn’t know Adeenya and had no reason to trust her, but spying still felt wrong. She looked into Jhoqo’s face and thought about how many times his clever thinking had saved her life. Her decision was made.

“Aye, sir. I’ll watch her.”

Jhoqo smiled, clapping Loraica on the shoulders before turning to leave the wall. She resumed her patrol and spotted the rodent on the plains again. Whom did it trust? Whom did it doubt? Probably no one, she thought and envied the furry creature.

+

Vou will free us,” the formian said.

Taennen turned back and faced Guk. His strange, alien face, somewhat obscured in the dimness, was devoid of curiosity or hope. Taennen thought about what to say and decided on the truth. “I don’t know.”

“You will free us,” Guk said, again with no question in his voice.

Of course Taennen would free them. They didn’t need to be held any longer. Taennen nodded and began to speak. His mouth opened but no words came out. He could feel his mouth moving, trying to form the word “yes,” but something was stopping him. He reached for the cell door to release Guk, his mouth still moving without sound.

His hand stopped shy of the door, his fingers trembling. He couldn’t remember why he was going to release the formian. He was sure he was going to do so, but why? He turned and faced Guk, who cocked his head to one side with a twitch of his neck.

Thoughts of why he was doing what he was doing flitted across his mind. Taennen tried hard to grab those fleeting thoughts, but they felt slippery and flew away each time he

reached out for them. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

Images of the formians free in the courtyard played themselves out before his mind’s eye, but beyond those images he couldn’t seem to find the explanation. Reason and sense seemed to be images of their own, sharp-beaked birds pecking away at those scenes of the freed creatures. Suddenly the formian images shattered in his mind, and Taennen’s eyes popped open and he stared at Guk.

“What did you…” he said. “How?”

Guk’s antennae twitched and his head straightened, but the formian did not speak or otherwise move. Taennen realized that the thoughts and images had not come from his mind but from Guk’s. Somehow the formian had attempted to convince Taennen to free him and his comrades. Taennen felt in control of himself again but knew he had come close to freeing the creatures.

“You’re loose,” Taennen said, seeing that Guk had broken the bindings on his hands and had partially removed the blindfold. When had that happened? How long had he been under Guk’s influence?

“We’ll double the bindings this time,” he said. Taennen turned for the jail door, wanting nothing more than to leave, when Guk spoke again and stopped him in his tracks.

“You want the one that killed the wizard,” the formian said, his voice softening from its usual vibrato.

Taennen focused his mind against further intrusion. “How do you know about that?”

“We hear. We see. We are prisoners, but we are not stupid.”

“What about the wizard, then?” he asked, uncertain why he bothered. He strained to search his mind again, making sure the thoughts were his own.

“We know who killed him. It was not the invaders.” “What?” Taennen said. The statement could not have caught him more off guard.

“We saw the one who killed the wizard,” Guk said. “Who then?” Taennen asked.

“When we are freed, we will tell you,” the formian replied.

Taennen turned for the door again. To his surprise, Guk did not scramble for him to remain. Either the formian was telling the truth, or he was a far better gambler than one might think. His bluff called, Taennen faced Guk again.

“How do you know who did it?”

“We saw someone enter the tower.”

Taennen cast his eyes around the room as the other formians watched him intently. There were many eyes between them. Maybe some of them had been watching the battle. And maybe one of them had seen something. The windows in the structure were small and high, but it wasn’t impossible.

“Tell me, and I’ll speak to my commander about freeing you.”

“Free us first.”

“You know I can’t agree to that,” he said, deciding that sometimes in a bluffing contest only the man telling the truth could win. It sounded like one of his father’s adages.

Guk’s mouth appendages clacked together as Taennen stared at the creature. The other prisoners stared at him with similarly stolid expressions on their faces. Taennen would have given a finger for a hint of insight into the minds of these strange formians. With no response forthcoming, Taennen decided that his only choice was to fold his hand. He shrugged and headed for the door.

“We do not lie,” Guk said behind him.

Taennen continued through the door, not looking back. Even if the formian knew who killed Khatib, that did not change his position. He could not promise the ant creatures freedom even if they could grant his fondest wishes; it simply was not within his power.

He emerged into the courtyard and grabbed one of the guards by the shoulder. “The big one is free of his bindings. Get at least three others and bind him again,” Taennen said. “This time do it right and double it, if not triple it! Do not, under any circumstances, let anyone in there alone with him.” The durir turned in the direction of his bunk for much needed rest. His stomach wound still ached and nothing would do for it what sleep could.

+ + + + +

Adeenya woke to the smell of roasting meat. Her stomach’s rumblings urged her from her new quarters toward the cooking fires in the courtyard. The bright morning was warm, the citadel walls effectively blocking the fierce plains winds she could hear whistling above her. She was pleased to see Maquar and Durpari soldiers breaking their fasts together, sharing tales and tactics, telling one another about their respective homelands.

She could not deny her disappointment from the night before, but she felt confident that they had done their best to track the attackers. The halfling, Corbrinn, intrigued her, and she felt badly that he had been returned to the holding building. She dared not broach that topic with Jhoqo yet, certainly not so early in the morning.

She settled down with a plate of food, thanking the soldier who’d cooked it. She couldn’t identify the meat, but she knew a Durpari fikrie sauce when she smelled one. The

tart and spicy flavors coated her tongue and pried her tired eyes wide open.

Taennen approached and motioned to the ground next to her. Heavy eyelids, puffy cheeks, and other signs hinted that he had chased sleep through the night yet it had eluded him. She waved to him, and he sat beside her. They ate together in silence for a short while, the sun warming her neck and shoulders as it rose higher in the sky behind her.

“Good sauce,” he said.

“It’s made from two different fruits and more spices than I can remember,” she replied.

“Congratulations on the expedition.”

She turned a curious eye on him and was rewarded with a genuine smile. “We didn’t find much.”

“Any expedition where everyone returns unharmed….” he said, leaving the sentence unfinished as he bit into a piece of meat.

Adeenya couldn’t stop a chuckle and agreed. “And what about here, Durir? Any news? I’ve not spoken with the commander yet.”

Taennen’s face turned dour. “Twelve dead, Orir. Seven Durpari and five Maquar.”

Adeenya bowed her head, offering a prayer of balance to the Adama, asking for the powers that be to replace what had been taken.

“Your dorir can give you the list, sir,” Taennen added.

“How did the invaders get in?” she asked. “Even opened, the gates should have forced them all into one spot.”

Taennen blew out a long breath. “We still don’t know. And then there’s Khatib.”

She placed her plate on the ground and turned her body square to his.

“He was locked in. I’ve no doubt about that,” Taennen said.

“Then they found a way to break the lock?” she said.

“It isn’t that simple,” Taennen said. “Jhoqo believes the attackers got the passphrase from the citadel’s former wizard.”

“A traitor?” Adeenya said.

“Maybe,” Taennen said, “or they may have tortured the phrase out of his or her mind.”

“That makes sense, I suppose,” she said. “But you don’t seem certain.”

Taennen glanced around and said, “One of the prisoners told me that Khatib’s murderer was not one of the attackers.”

Adeenya’s head swam with too many questions. She did not know where to begin. “Which prisoner? How did they see?”

“The big formian,” Taennen replied as he looked at the ground. “Guk.”

Adeenya sighed. The word of the formians meant less than nothing. “You can’t be serious. Who does he say is the traitor?” she asked.

“He won’t tell me until I free the formians.”

“Who do you think did it, if Guk’s not just spinning tales?”

Taennen dropped his fork to his plate and set both on the ground. “I haven’t any idea. There are over two dozen people in this camp that I do not know. It could have been any of them.”

“You assume it was one of my people?” she replied, turning to see the man’s face turning red. “I…” he stammered.

Taennen stared at her for several moments before

holding out his left hand, palm up. He gripped his left wrist with his right hand and closed his eyes while lowering his head. Adeenya was humbled by the gesture, remembering its roots. Before Southerners learned of the Adama they lived very differently by often savage rules. If a man stole or even offended someone, a common punishment was the removal of his hand. Offering one’s hand in such a gesture as Taennen was doing was a sign of great apology and acceptance of wrongdoing.

“Besides, it probably wasn’t anyone here,” he said. “Jhoqo is right. The last wizard of this place probably died right after revealing the passphrase. Poor soul.”

Adeenya nodded, but she just wasn’t sure. She debated telling him about her pendant. “Why would the formian lie?” she said.

“For his freedom, of course,” Taennen replied.

“Yes, I suppose. He just…” she said.

“What?”

“He just doesn’t seem dishonest,” Adeenya said. “Frightening in his goals, yes. But not dishonest.”

Many moments of silence passed between them. All around the courtyard, soldiers from both armies went about their duties, some on watch, some inspecting the small buildings, others hauling the dead bodies toward the citadel gate. They would be taken outside and burned some distance from the fortress.

“Time to start new,” Adeenya said, quoting the founder of the Adama.

“The beginning is the beast,” Taennen said.

“What?”

He turned toward her, a weak smile on his face. “My father used to say that every time he was working on a new spell or making a new piece for a customer.”

Adeenya agreed. “He was full of quotes. You said he was good.”

Taennen nodded. “He was the best enchanter in Estagund.”

“Then I’m not sure I understand what you said about him needing the coin. He must have been a wealthy man if he was that good.”

Taennen shook his head. “He refused to use his magic on weaponry or armor.”

Adeenya lifted an eyebrow. “In Estagund, I’d imagine that limits one’s business opportunities tremendously.”

Her companion affirmed her thought. “I should have known before I did,” Taennen said. “Who makes an honest living putting charms and dweomers on jewelry and decorations?”

She still could think of nothing else to say about the topic. Taennen had lost one father and gained a new one in the same day. The idea of making such a choice at a young age was beyond her. Knowing that Jhoqo had taken the boy in should have made her feel more warmly toward the man, but Adeenya still found the whole situation unsettling.

She decided to change the subject. “So where do we start on Guk? Where does the beast begin?”

“If Jhoqo is right about the former wizard of this place, then we have nothing to do, no leads to follow.”

“You might have guessed this about me, Taennen, but I don’t like to sit idle,” she said. She wasn’t going to tell him about the pendant, she decided. She couldn’t trust him with that part of the puzzle. She hated the feeling, but Adeenya felt little reason to trust anyone at that moment.

Taennen grinned and said, “I figured as much.”

“So even if Guk is a dead end, even if he’s just trying to con his way to freedom, it’s still a lead worth following

simply because it’s there. If Jhoqo’s right, then it won’t lead us to this supposed mystery person of Guk’s, but we might find some other information of use. We both know that the formian knows more than he’s saying,” she said.