Quest for Lost Heroes (34 page)

'Sit,' said Asta Khan. 'Warm yourselves.' He turned to Oshi. 'I am not a demon; I am worse than demons. But you have no need to fear me.'

'Thank you, sir. Thank you,' said Oshi, bowing deeply.

Asta Khan ignored him, locking his gaze to Chien. 'And you do not fear me at all, man of Kiatze. That is good. I am not comfortable around fearful men. Sit! Sit! Make yourselves comfortable. It is long since I had visitors.'

'How long have you been here?' Chien asked, settling himself by the magical fire.

'I came when my lord was murdered. He was Tenaka Khan, the Khan of Wolves, the Prince of Shadows,' related the old man, his eyes shining with pride. 'He was the Great One, the heir of Ulric.'

'I believe I have heard the name,' said Chien. Anger flashed in Asta's eyes, but he masked it and smiled thinly.

'All men have heard it, even the soft-bellied Kiatze. But let it pass. Your people are renowned for cynicism -but I watched you fight, Chien-tsu. I saw you kill Kubai and the others. You are skilful - and fast. Very fast.'

'And you have need of my skills, old father?'

'I see your mind works as swiftly as your body. Yes, I have need of you. And you have need of me. It makes for an interesting debate, I think. Which of us needs the other more?'

'Not at the moment,' replied Chien. 'As matters stand I need you not at all.'

'Then you know how to get into the Khan's palace?' asked Asta.

'Not yet. But I will find a way.'

'No,' said Asta, 'you will not. But I can take you on a path which leads to the throne room. Alone you would not survive, for there are the Dwellers in the Dark to stop you. I will give you Jungir Khan. I will give you the means of vengeance.'

'And in return, old father?'

'You will aid the
ghosts-yet-to-be
.'

'Explain further.'

Asta shook his head. 'First we will eat. I can hear your servant's belly rumbling. Take your bow and walk from the cave. A deer is waiting there - kill it.'

Chien rose and walked back to the cave entrance. The old man was right for a doe stood trembling near the entrance, her eyes open and unblinking. Chien notched an arrow and stood for a moment looking at the beast, then he turned and retraced his steps.

'Oshi, take a knife and despatch the beast. There is no sport there.'

Asta Khan cackled loudly, rocking back and forth on his haunches.

Chien ignored him. 'Tell me of Tenaka Khan,' he said and the old man took a deep breath.

'He was the sun and moon of the Nadir people - but he was cursed with tainted blood. Half Drenai, half Nadir, he allowed himself to love a woman. I do not mean to take her for his own - although he did this. But he surrendered his soul to her. She died giving birth to his daughter Tanaki, and in dying she took part of the Khan's soul to Hell or Heaven. He ceased to care about his life, allowing the years to drift by. His son, Jungir, poisoned him. That is Tenaka Khan. What more do you wish to know?'

'You were his shaman?'

'I was and I am. I am Asta Khan. I placed the Helm of Ulric on his head. I rode beside him when he conquered the Drenai, and the Vagrians, when the armies of the Nadir rode into Mashrapur and Lentria. He was the fulfilment of our dreams. He should never have died. He should have lived for ever, like a god!'

'And what do you seek, Asta Khan?' asked Chien. 'Not merely vengeance?'

Asta's eyes shone for a moment, then he looked away. 'What I desire is of no concern to you. It is enough that I can give you that which you desire.'

'At this moment I desire nothing more than a hot bath.'

'Then you shall have one,' said Asta, rising. 'Follow me.' The old man rose and walked to the back of the cave, where a shallow pool had filled with melted snow from a fissure above. Asta knelt by it, dipping his hand to the water. He closed his eyes and spoke three harsh-sounding words which were lost on Chien. The water began to bubble and hiss, steam rising.

'A hot bath for the Kiatze lord,' said Asta, standing. 'Is there anything else you require?'

'A young concubine to read me the works of Lu-tzan?'

'Make do with the hot bath,' Asta told him, striding away.

Chien stripped his clothes and slid into the pool. The water was hot but not uncomfortable, despite having reached boiling point. He recalled the story of Hai-chuan, a young man accused of stealing a royal gem. Hai-chuan had pleaded innocence, and was sentenced to trial by ordeal. He had to place his hands in a pot of boiling water. If he was innocent, the gods would protect his flesh; if guilty, his skin would blister and burst. He was from the mountains and he begged the magistrate to allow him to suffer his ordeal directly under the gaze of the All-father in Heaven. Touched by his piety, the magistrate agreed and Hai-chuan was taken to the top of a high mountain. There they boiled a pot of water and he placed his hands within it. There was not a mark upon him - and he was freed. Later he sold the gem and lived like a prince. Chien smiled. It was due to the altitude, he knew. Water boiled at a much lower temperature in the mountains.

He lazed for a while in the water, then climbed out and returned to the fire to sit, naked, by the flames.

Oshi had cut the best pieces from the loins of the doe, and the smell of cooking meat filled the cave.

'Now tell me of the
ghosts-yet-to-be
,' said Chien.

*

Tanaki watched the men ride away, then eased herself to her feet, stifling a groan as pain roared through her. Unsteadily she rose and straightened her back. Nausea threatened to swamp her, but she forced her stomach to remain calm.

'You should rest,' said Kiall, who had moved alongside her, one hand held out.

She made no reply. Bending to one side, she gently stretched the muscles of her waist and hips. Lifting her arms over her head, she eased the tension in her neck and shoulders. Her father had taught her these exercises many years before. 'The warrior's body,' he had said, 'must always be supple.' More confident now, she spun on her heel and leapt, twisting in the air. She landed clumsily.

'Can I help?' asked Kiall.

'Yes. Hold out your hands.' He did so and her long leg swung up, her heel resting on his palms. She bent forward, grasping the back of her ankle, holding the position for a while and then switching to the other leg. Finally she lifted the blanket from her shoulders and stood naked before Kiall. He blushed and cleared his throat. 'Place your hands on my shoulders,' she said, turning her back on him, 'and gently press at the muscles with your thumbs. Where they are rounded and supple, move on. Where they are knotted and tense, ease them.'

'I do not know how,' he told her, but tentatively his hands touched her skin. She sat down on her blanket with Kiall kneeling behind her. Her skin was smooth and white, the muscles beneath strong and firm, as his fingers moved over her.

'Relax, Kiall. Close your eyes. Think of nothing. Let your hands search.'

His fingers slid down over the shoulder-blades. The muscles on the right side felt as if pebbles had been inserted into them. With great care he rubbed at them, growing more confident as the tautness faded. That is good,' she told him. 'You have fine hands - healing hands.'

He could feel himself becoming aroused, and hated himself for it. After what she had been through, it was wholly wrong for a man to react to her in this way. His hands losing their sureness, he stood and walked away. Tanaki covered herself with the blanket cloak and lay back on the ground. The pain of her body was less now, but she would never forget the abject humiliation she had suffered. The memory of the sweating men, the stink of them, the pawing and the pain would remain with her always. She shivered and rolled to her feet. Kiall's horse stood tethered nearby; she saddled him and stepped into the stirrup, easing herself to his back. Kiall saw her and ran forward. 'Where are you going?' he asked, his voice full of concern.

'I cannot start the rest of my life dressed like this,' she said. 'My clothes are down there in the hall. And I will need weapons.'

'I'll come with you,' he offered, holding out his hand. She took it and he vaulted to the saddle behind her. 'This is not wise, Tanaki.'

'The merits cannot be decided until we are done,' she told him.

The bodies had been removed from the settlement, but dried blood still stained the ground and the wood of the auction platform. Tanaki slid from the saddle and entered the hall. Kiall tethered his horse and moved to the ramparts, keeping watch for Nadir warriors. As the minutes passed, he felt his tension rise. Hearing the sound of booted feet on the steps he whirled, scrabbling for his sabre. Tanaki laughed at him. She was clad now in trousers of soft oiled leather and high riding-boots. Her upper body was clothed in a matching hooded tunic, and two short swords were belted at her hips. Over her shoulder was slung a fur-lined cloak of black leather, and in her hand she carried a canvas pack.

'You have all you need?' he asked.

'Not quite. I need the head of Tsudai - but that will come to me.'

They rode back to the camp-site and tethered the horse. Tanaki drew her swords. 'Come,' she said to Kiall, 'show me your skill.'

'No. I ... I'm not very good. I am not a warrior, you see.'

'Show me.'

Embarrassed, he drew his sabre and dropped into the stance Chareos had taught him. As she leapt forward his sabre blocked her thrust, but she spun, her second sword-blade falling to touch his neck. 'You are too stiff,' she told him.

'I loosen up when I am afraid,' he said, with a smile.

'Then be afraid!' she said, her voice low and chilling. Her sword swept towards his head and he jumped back, but she followed him in. He blocked one thrust, then a second . . . she spun, but he dropped to his knees, her blade slashing the air where his head had been. As her sword sliced down, he dived to his left and rolled. 'That is better,' she said, 'but unless you are a master - which you are not - you should fight with sabre and knife. That would double your killing power.'

Sheathing her blades she walked to the brow of the hill, staring out over the land.

Kiall joined her. 'You still intend to rescue your lady?' she asked him.

'Yes, if I can. But she is not my lady, she never was. I know that now.'

'You blame me for that, Kiall.'

'I blame you for nothing, Princess. I was foolish. I had a dream, and I thought that dream was real.'

'We are full of dreams,' she said. 'We long for the unattainable. We believe in the nonsense of fables. There is no pure love; there is lust and there is need.'

'I do not believe that, Princess.'

'Another dream you think is real?'

'I hope not. There is so much sadness and hate in the world. It would be a terrible thing if love was an illusion.'

'Why did you walk away from me earlier, when you were touching me?'

'I ... I don't know.'

'You lie, Kiall. I could feel the growing warmth in your hands. You wanted to bed me, did you not?'

'No!' he replied instinctively, then looked away, reddening. 'Yes, I did,' he said angrily. 'And I know it was wrong.'

'Wrong? You are a fool, Kiall. It was honest lust - do not be ashamed of it, but do not write poems about it either. I have had fifty lovers. Some were gentle, some were cruel, and some I even grew fond of. But love? If it existed, I would have found it by now. Oh, Kiall, do not look so shocked. Life is short. Joy is everything. To deny that is to deny life.'

'You have the advantage of me,' he said softly. 'I do not have your experience of life. I was raised in a village, where we farmed and we raised cattle and sheep. But there were people there who had been together for half a lifetime. They were happy; I believe they loved one another.'

She shook her head. 'A man and a woman are drawn together by animal passions; they stay together for security. But if a better, perhaps richer man comes along, or a younger, more beautiful woman, then - and only then - can you test their
love
. Look at you, Kiall. Three days ago you loved a woman enough to risk death for her. Now you say you did not love her after all. And why? Because I appeared. Does that not prove my point?'

He remained silent for several seconds, staring out over the horizon. Finally he spoke. 'It proves only that I am a fool. That is not hard to do.'

Tanaki moved to him. 'I am sorry, I should not say these things. I thank you for rescuing me. I will be grateful to you all the days of my life. It was noble of you - and courageous. And I thank you also for walking away back there; that was considerate. But give me a few days and I will teach you joy.'

'No!' he said. 'I do not want to learn that kind of joy.'

'Then remain a fool,' she snapped, turning and stalking away to sit alone.

*

For almost three weeks the questors journeyed more deeply into the lands of the Nadir, moving across the desolate Steppes towards the far, grey mountains. Occasionally they stayed in small Nadir tent settlements, but mostly they camped in hidden gulleys, caves or hollows. There was no sign of pursuit, and they saw nothing of the soldiers of Tsudai.