Scarred Man (18 page)

‘Where are we heading, Itxtli?' Myrrhini asked.

‘Usterust,' Itxtli replied.

‘Why?'

‘We are going to sail across the Silvered Sea. It will be quicker and safer.'

‘Why safer?'

Itxtli gave her a speculative look, as if unsure how much she knew, or perhaps wondering whether to trust her. After a brief pause, he looked away.

‘The faster we get you where you need to be, the safer we will all be,' he said.

Anger, unexpected and hot, welled up inside her. She drove her heels into the flanks of her horse and pushed right up beside Itxtli until their knees touched. He looked at her with surprise which changed to shock when she reached out and grabbed the front of his jerkin to pull him sharply towards her.

‘Now you listen to me,' she shouted. ‘You have taken me against my will, kept me a prisoner, forced me across the whole of C'sobra and now it is time for you to give me some straight answers.'

Itxtli reached up with one hand and held her fist in his. His eyes never left hers as he slowly exerted pressure on her hand. Their horses stopped moving and they stared into each other's eyes while Myrrhini felt her hand being slowly crushed. The pain built while Itxtli's knuckles whitened. Myrrhini felt her hand give a little crack and gasped at the sudden rush of new pain.

‘Don't ever touch me again,' Itxtli whispered, giving her hand a sharp jerk that pulled her off balance. She wavered in her saddle but grabbed the pommel with her other hand to prevent herself from falling. He kept hold of her hand while she struggled back to balance in the saddle. Her fist was throbbing and she bit her lip to keep from crying with the pain. She stared back at Itxtli with blazing eyes. After a few moments, he broke eye contact and released her hand.

‘What sort of man are you?' she snapped as she snatched her hand back and cradled it against her breast. ‘Is it noble in your society to hurt women? Is that how you gain respect, by picking on women?'

Itxtli glared back at her, but she thought there was more hurt than anger in his gaze. He grabbed his reins and wrenched his horse away. Myrrhini watched him ride off. A sudden movement flickered across the edge of her vision.

‘What was that?' she said.

Itxtli looked around, saw where she was pointing and switched his gaze. There was nothing there. He shook his head and continued riding. After a moment of staring at the shadowy undergrowth, Myrrhini shook her reins and
followed. Around her, the rest of the Agents also continued, but they talked quietly among themselves, occasionally flicking glances her way, and at their achulti's back. Every now and then, a low chuckle would sound, but it was quickly bitten off whenever Itxtli looked back.

They set camp just before the edge of the forest, with a stretch of farmland visible through the trees. The forest was too dense for tents, so after a cold meal, they lay wherever they found a comfortable place and slept.

Myrrhini tried to make herself comfortable as she curled up against the bole of an ancient tree, but could not find any way to sleep. She turned and twisted for a long time, unable to rest. Finally, she gave up and stood. The air was chill without being cold, still and clear. Myrrhini walked towards the light that trickled in from beyond the edge of the trees. The Agent on guard gave her a companionable grunt as she passed him, which she returned. The moonlight was sufficient — even under the trees — for her to pick her way past the exposed roots and tangled undergrowth. Vines dangled from heavy boughs overhead and small creatures scuttled about at her every step. The sounds of the night crowded in, making her nervous. Despite how long she had been away from the Place, and how many nights she had spent, many of them alone, many of them huddled under scant — if any — shelter, she still did not enjoy the night outside. The memory of that black shape that had flashed past them earlier returned. She wrapped her arms around her chest and shivered.

The fire behind her flickered as it died, its orange glow barely competing with the silver moonlight, adding colour to the trees and bushes. Her eyes were accustomed to the dim light and were able to pick out the shapes and textures of the trees. They were so different from the harsh, rough-barked trees of her home with their dark, nearly black, needles and upward-reaching branches. These were smoother, with thicker, more horizontal branches that groaned and creaked from time to time under the weight of their leaves. The leaves were large and rounded with coloured veins that ran outwards from a central rib. Everything about this forest was so different from the one that surrounded the Place. Everything this night seemed to remind her of how far away from home she was. Even her clothes, so warm and yet so coarse in weave and cut, were unlike anything she had ever worn. And warm. How often in her life had she felt so warm outside of her bed?

Thinking of her home brought a wave of sadness across her. So many dead, so much ancient lore destroyed. She remembered the library with its vast store of books, scrolls and artworks, all destroyed, all burned, if Hinrik was to be believed. And were the two of them the only ones left? An Eye and her Bane. And neither of them Acolytes of Varuun.

Was the entire order now gone?

And if it were, would anyone miss it? Would anyone lament the passing of the Acolytes of Varuun?

How many would ever know they existed?

The forest ended abruptly, and she found herself standing at the edge of a field. It shone, waving
silver and gold in the moonlight. Now that she was out of the forest, she could see the sky, clear and black, stretching forever. Stars glinted, bright specks like shards of diamond flickering in inconstant light. The constellations wove their eternal magic, wheeling across the sky forever trapped in their pursuit of each other. The Great Spiral, the Sorcerer, the Claw, the Watcher, all stared down at her with … With what?

Contempt?

Pity?

Disinterest?

Boredom?

‘Crossing soon.' Itxtli's voice startled her.

‘What?' she snapped. Her hand still ached from where he had crushed it in his. He was standing beside a tree not three paces from her, so still she'd had no idea he was there.

Itxtli pointed up to where Yatil was about to kiss her big sister. ‘Crossing soon,' he repeated.

Myrrhini shrugged. ‘So?'

‘Don't you ever wonder what a new Crossing will bring? Where you will be at the end of it?'

‘That will depend on you, won't it? Don't you have the final say about your prisoners?'

‘I do.'

‘So tell me, Achulti, what will this Crossing bring me? Where will it take me?' When he did not respond, she stepped closer to him, sensing him stiffen at her closeness. Her anger built once more. ‘Where will you take me?'

‘I have already told you, we are heading to Usterust.'

‘Oh, yes, I remember, the sooner we get there, the sooner we will be safe.' She took another step so that she was almost touching him. ‘But you never did tell me why that would be any safer.'

He tried to pull back, but he was already against the tree. Myrrhini leant into him slightly, pressing her breasts against him, feeling his chest rise and fall.

‘Tell me, Achulti. What is so unsafe here?'

He raised his hands and placed them on her shoulders, pushing her back gently. His grip both pushed and held her, so that when she slightly lost balance against an exposed tree root, he kept her steady.

‘Come with me,' he said. He released her shoulders, but his right hand ran down her arm to her wrist, her hand, and held it. She did not pull away, but let him lead her away from the forest edge. After several paces, he stopped and turned to the west.

‘You want to know what is so unsafe.' He pointed over her shoulder, up into the night sky. ‘Look up there.'

‘What am I looking at?' she asked.

‘That.'

Rising from the western horizon like a plume of smoke was an area of utter black. Through it, no stars shone. The light of the sisters fell into it and vanished. Staring at it, Myrrhini felt a deep shiver of fear.

‘What is that?'

Itxtli shook his head. ‘No one knows. Not even the Blindfolded Queen.'

‘Which is why she wants me,' Myrrhini whispered.

‘What?'

Myrrhini did not answer him as her Seeing came back to her:
A darkness grown out of a city. A creature of malevolence burst from the ground, roaring its defiance. Its arms reached out to encompass the entire city, setting it to flames. Sounds of battle rose to her ears — screams, dying, the clash of weapons — but above it all was the insane laughter of this thing of chaos and hunger. Inexorably, like ripples on a pond, the darkness spread out of the city to engulf the whole world, plunging it into despair and chaos.

‘It has truly begun,' she whispered. ‘Slave, where are you now? Now that I need you?'

‘What are you talking about?'

Myrrhini did not look away from the vast rising dark. ‘The end of the world,' she said calmly. ‘Take me to Usterust, take me to your queen. It doesn't matter now. You have taken my peace from me and nothing else can suffice.' She turned to face Itxtli, and stared into his eyes, black in the night. ‘You and your queen have doomed us all.'

Itxtli silently followed her back to the camp and stood by her as she eased herself back into the space between the roots, leaning against the mossy trunk. When she was as comfortable as she was likely to get, he nodded a bow and walked away.

Myrrhini fell asleep, to be troubled by dark dreams of violence and war and death. When she awoke, stiff and sore, the sun was hidden behind dark clouds. The Agents were already up and
preparing to move on. She ate and they left the forest behind.

It was colder out in the field under the grey sky than it had been at night under the forest canopy. The wind, coming now from the south, was bitter, carrying a new scent Myrrhini had never smelt before — the sea. At first, it was little more than a slight tang, a taste of salt, a hint of something rotting, but the closer they came to the coast the smells became stronger and more pungent. The salt, the powerful scent of massed humanity, the stench of a harbour. Her eyes watered and her stomach churned. By the time they came to the walls of Usterust, she was weak with nausea. She leant forward on her saddle and rested her face on Chicahua's mane as the Agents led her inside the walls. The gates were open and apparently guarded in a somewhat desultory fashion as they simply rode in without so much as a pause.

After so long riding through wilderness, the sound of the hooves on the hard roads seemed loud and echoed from the buildings that crowded in alongside them. Coupled with the smells, the noises nearly overwhelmed her completely. People stopped to watch as the Agents passed by, their conversations following them along the road. Myrrhini felt the stares, heard the muttering, and cringed under the pointed fingers.

Why are they so interested?

Itxtli led them through the streets of Usterust towards the harbour. They passed a large paved area filled with people, every one of whom seemed to Myrrhini to be shouting or laughing, or gesticulating
with their hands. She had never seen so many people in one place in her life. For a moment, she felt a flicker of panic at the sheer volume of noise and mass of humanity, but she took a deep breath and urged her horse on into the swirling throng.

It was a market where it seemed that anyone could buy anything but slaves. She recalled the stench, the sense of despair at Venste and after that, this town felt oddly happy. The people all seemed to be enjoying themselves in their noise and energy. She looked around, seeing stalls selling food, animals, jewellery, clothes and even weapons. Every stall holder looked to be busy, selling, buying, arguing, bartering, or just shouting for the sake of it.

Itxtli rode through the people, apparently hardly noticing them, and they in turn parted before him and those following him. The noise continued unabated. Myrrhini stared, trying to make sense of it all, but failed.

As they left the market, they rode close to a small stall selling herbs and various condiments. Over the flood of new smells, Myrrhini caught a faint hint of something she recognised. She reached out and grabbed Itxtli by the arm.

‘Stop,' she shouted.

Itxtli turned in his saddle to regard her, but did not slow in his progress. His scowl was angry, but his eyes were curious.

‘Why?'

‘I need to buy something here.'

‘It can wait.'

Myrrhini yanked at him, almost unbalancing him. ‘No!' she shouted. ‘It can't.'

Itxtli wrenched his reins and brought his horse to a halt. ‘Tell me,' he said.

‘I need to buy something here,' Myrrhini repeated, pointing at the stall. The man standing behind the table under the shelter of a simple canvas sheet watched the exchange with a curious smile on his face. Itxtli looked away from Myrrhini to the stall. His eyes narrowed and he realised what was on offer. He dismounted and helped Myrrhini to do the same.

She accepted both his help and the coins he offered before stepping up to the stall. A curious crowd had gathered around, having seen the brief disagreement and the subsequent stopping of the Agents. Myrrhini chose to ignore their stares as she faced the stall holder who watched her examine the jars and bottles containing his stock. His face showed surprise when she reached out to pick up a small open jar containing some dried leaves and berries.

‘This,' Myrrhini said.

One or two of the onlookers muttered among themselves at her choice, and the merchant scratched at his beard.

‘All of it?' he asked.

Myrrhini looked closely at the sad little collection of leaves and berries before nodding. ‘All of it.'

‘I think I shall close early, then,' the merchant said. ‘This is worth more than the rest of my poor stock combined.'

‘Nonsense,' Myrrhini scoffed. ‘You can pick this up anywhere. It grows wild.'