Athyra (14 page)

Savn helped him drink.

“Back down,” said Vlad.

Savn and Polyi helped Vlad lower himself, and when he was flat once more, his breathing was labored. He shut his eyes, and in a few minutes his chest rose and fell normally. Savn became aware for the first time of the smell of Vlad’s sweat—very much like the smell of a human who had been working hard or was ill. About the time Savn had decided that Vlad had fallen asleep, the Easterner opened his eyes again and said, “Food?”

Polyi said, “Where—?”

“I’ll get it,” said Savn.

He found the sack and rummaged around in it until he found the food. As he tore off a piece of bread, he noticed that his hand was trembling. “What should I give him?” he asked the Master.

“The bread is fine, and perhaps some cheese.”

“Put a spring onion on it,” said Vlad, “and whatever herbs you have.”

Savn did so, and then frowned. “Is it all right?” he asked Master Wag.

“Yes,” said the Master. “You may season the cheese. You must not put another scallion on it.”

Savn held Vlad’s head. Vlad managed a couple of laborious bites before he shook his head and asked for water. Savn supplied it, and Vlad leaned back once more, and this time he did fall asleep. While he slept, Savn tried a bite. Not bad, he decided. He offered some to his sister, who declined with a quick shake of her head.

“He’ll sleep for a while now,” said Master Wag. “Let’s start a fire.”

“Is it safe to leave him here?”

“Probably. But if your sister wants to help you find wood, I can watch him.”

“Would you like to help, Polyi?”

“All right,” she said in a small voice.

They took one of the torches and made their way out to the woods. “Savn,” said Polyi when they were alone. “What is—?”

“Why did you follow us?”

“I thought you’d know where he was.”

“Well, you were right. Now what? Are you going to tell Speaker where we are?”

“I don’t know.”

They gathered sticks and fagots from the thinly wooded area above the caves.

“Why are you helping him?” she said.

“Because he’s my friend, and because everyone else is after him, and he didn’t do anything.”

“Didn’t do anything? You saw Reins.”

“What makes you think he killed Reins?”

“What makes you think he didn’t? And what about all those men of His Lordship’s?”

“They attacked him.”

“Well, but what’s he doing here, anyway? Who is he?”

Savn remembered some of the things Vlad had uttered while feverish, and didn’t answer.

They brought the wood back into the cave. “Where shall we put the fire?” asked Savn.

“Over here,” said the Master. “Even though his fever is broken, we don’t want him getting too warm. Burn the cloth, keep the fire going, and I’ll return tomorrow. You should sleep, too.”

Savn nodded. The three of them built the fire together, after making certain there was enough of a draft to carry the smoke out of the cave.

“Tomorrow,” said the Master.

“I’ll still be here,” said Savn.

“You will?” asked Polyi.

“Yes.”

Master Wag left without another word, taking one of the torches to guide him out. Savn made a pillow out of Vlad’s pack, another out of one of the blankets, and stretched out on the hard cave floor. “I’m tired,” he said. “We’ll talk more after I’ve slept.” Actually, he doubted that he’d be able to fall asleep, but he didn’t know what to tell his sister.

As it turned out, he was wrong; he fell asleep almost at once. Savn woke up to a not-unpleasant, wet warmth in his ear, accompanied by a nibbling that was almost affectionate and tickled. He rolled away from it, but the hard floor of the cave woke him more fully, and as he realized what was licking his ear, he sat up abruptly with a half-stifled scream. The smaller of the jhereg scurried away, then turned to look at him, its wings folded in tightly and its snakelike head bobbing up and down. Savn had the feeling that he was being laughed at.

“What happened?” said Polyi.

“Nothing,” said Savn, feeling himself blush and hoping Polyi couldn’t see his face in the dim light. The fire had gone out and so had one of the torches. The other torch was burning strongly.

Savn glanced at Vlad, who was awake and staring at the ceiling, apparently oblivious to the comedy being performed around him.

“How do you feel?” asked Savn.

“Water.” His voice seemed no stronger than it had be—

fore. Savn wondered how much time had passed, and was surprised to learn that it had been almost four hours.

“A moment,” said Savn. He lit a new torch and replaced the one that had gone out, then stepped into a side cave and relieved himself. When he returned, he found the skin and made sure there was still water in it, then helped Vlad to drink. Vlad seemed to have some difficulty swallowing. When he had done so, he said, “Weak.”

“Food?”

“Later.”

“If you need to ease yourself, there is a place not far from here, but you’ll have to get up and—”

“I’m all right for now,” said Vlad.

“Over there?” said Polyi. “I’ll be right back.”

The jhereg who had nuzzled Savn did the same to Vlad, who attempted a smile. Savn, watching, had mixed feelings. A little later, Vlad announced that he was ready to eat, and Savn and Polyi helped him do so. The bread was going stale but was still edible. Vlad had another drink of water. Then, with Savn’s help, he pulled himself over to the nearest wall so he could sit up and lean against it. With no warning or explanation, both jhereg suddenly turned and began flying out of the cave. Vlad did not appear surprised. Savn wondered if they could see in the dark, like bats and dzur.

“What are we going to do?” asked Polyi.

“I don’t know,” said Savn. “It depends on Vlad.”

“Do?” said the Easterner weakly. “About what?”

“Well, they must still be after you.”

“Yes.”

“Can you teleport out of here?”

“Not now.”

“Why?”

Vlad searched Savn’s face. “Too weak,” he said at last.

“Oh.”

“Must recover first,” said Vlad.

“And then?”

Vlad looked slightly puzzled, as if Savn had asked him whether harvest came before or after planting. “Then I

must kill Lord Smallcliff, of course,” he said, and, as if producing such a long sentence had exhausted him, he fell back asleep.

She felt his unhappiness as if it were a cord that connected them, though she didn’t express it to herself that way. But there was a feeling of painful unease that made its way into her consciousness, and it was connected to the Provider, to his injuries.

They spiraled up from the caves, stopping below the overcast, and they began their search out over the bare fields between the town and the woods. She hated hunting.

She enjoyed flying, and she enjoyed searching the ground for food, but she didn’t like chases, and she certainly didn’t like fights. In one case, she was certain to get tired; in the other, she might get hurt. And—

There was a movement, small and furtive, almost directly below her. She told her lover, but made no sudden moves. They rose and described a slow, leisurely turn. Her straining eyes picked out a patch of brown that didn’t quite blend with the surrounding grass and weeds. They continued past it once more, dividing up and selecting the best angles from which to attack. If one had to hunt, it was better together.

And sometimes, one had no choice.

Chapter Twelve

I will not marry a fat old cook,

I will not marry a fat old cook.

For the larding pan I’d be forsook.

Hi-dee hi-dee ho-la!

Step on out ...

After the silence that followed Vlad’s declaration, Polyi echoed Savn’s own thoughts: “He can’t mean it.”

Savn stared at the sleeping Easterner, but the things he’d said while delirious wouldn’t go away. “I don’t think so either,” said Savn at last. “But ...”

“But what?” said Polyi when he didn’t continue.

“But I don’t know. Let’s get the fire going.”

“All right.”

They managed to get the fire started, and after some discussion, decided there was enough wood to keep it going for a while without having to leave the cave again, which neither of them felt inclined to do.

“Mae and Pae must be pretty worried about us,” said Polyi.

“Yeah,” said Savn.

“Well, I think we should tell them where we are,” said Polyi. Savn shook his head. “They’ll tell Speaker, sure as drought in summer.”

Polyi stared at the sleeping Easterner, and Savn could practically feel her thinking, So what! And the worst of it was that he didn’t know how to answer that thought.

A few minutes later there was the sound of flapping wings. Polyi jumped and stifled a shriek, and the two jhereg landed on the floor of the cave.

“It’s all right,” said Savn. “They’re tame.”

“Tame?” said Polyi, sounding on the verge, of hysteria.

“Well, I mean, they’re friends of his.”

She stared at the Easterner wide-eyed, while the larger of the jhereg deposited what looked like a dead norska. They walked triumphantly over to Vlad and sat down near his head.

Polyi looked a question at Savn, who said, “I guess he wanted meat.”

“But how—?”

“Let’s find something we can use as a spit.”

Polyi looked at him, questions dancing on her face, but she didn’t ask any of them. They looked through the wood they’d collected and found something suitable, while the two jhereg seemed to be arguing with each other about whether the norska should be eaten right away. Savn settled the issue by taking it away from them and proceeding to skin it as best he could, which earned him an angry hiss from the larger jhereg.

“Sometimes,” said Savn, “people say really funny things when they’re feverish. Once Needles had the Dry Fever for almost two days, and she—”

“It doesn’t matter,” said Polyi. “He can’t mean it.”

“Yes. No one can kill His Lordship anyway, because of the box.”

“That’s right.”

Savn set the bloody skin aside for the moment, wondering what to do with it so it wouldn’t attract pests. They worked the makeshift spit through the norska.

“What should we set it on?” asked Polyi.

“I don’t know. Two of the logs?”

“What if they catch fire?”

“Well, we don’t have any big stones or anything.”

“We could just sit on each side of the fire and hold it.”

“I guess. How long will it take to cook?”

“I don’t know.”

“Can you tell when it’s done?”

“Can you?”

“Maybe,” said Savn, and motioned Polyi over to the other side of the fire. “Best to keep it as high as we can, so we don’t burn it.”

Blood and fat dripped on the fire, sending the flames higher and making the cave alarmingly bright, but after only two minutes Polyi announced, “My arm’s getting tired.”

“Mine too,” Savn admitted. “I don’t think this is going to work.”

“Well, what should we do?”

They moved away from the fire and set the slightly warmed norska down on the floor of the cave. Savn glanced at Vlad, and observed that the Easterner was awake, and watching him intently.

“Why don’t you see if you can find something,” said Savn.

“Me?” said Polyi.

“You,” said Savn.

She started to argue, then scowled and got up. “Take a torch with you,” he said. She didn’t answer.

Savn turned to Vlad and said, “They brought you some dinner; we’re trying to figure out how to cook it.”

He nodded. “Pour wine over it,” he said. “My flask—”

“All right,” said Savn, and continued, “You said some funny things while you were feverish.”

Vlad’s eyes narrowed. The torchlight illuminated the side of his face nearest Savn, and the shadow of his forehead made his eyes seem very dark. “Tell me,” he said. His voice was forceful, in spite of its weakness.

“You used the word ‘Morganti’ several times.”

“Did I? I’m not surprised.” He paused to collect his strength. “You know what it means?”

“Yes. It’s a weapon that kills, not only the body, but—”

“Yes. Well, that’s probably what they’ll use on me if they catch me.”

“Who?”

Vlad didn’t answer for a moment, and Savn thought he had fallen asleep again, because his eyes were closed. Then he opened them and said, “The people who are after me.”

“That isn’t what His Lordship’s men used.”

“No,” said Vlad, frowning, “it isn’t.” He screwed his eyes tightly shut, then opened them again. He stared straight ahead, looking puzzled, then shook his head as if dismissing a line of thought. “What else did I say?”

“Lots of stuff. Most of it I couldn’t understand. And there were names and things.”

“And?”

“And you said, ‘I won’t kill for you anymore.’”

“Oh.” Vlad seemed to consider this. “Anything else?”

“Just before you fell asleep, you said you were going to kill His Lordship.”

“Did I? I must have been very tired.”

“To think it?” said Savn. “Or to say it?” Savn waited, but Vlad made no answer to this. Savn said, “Why do you hate him so much, anyway?”

Vlad’s widened nostrils flared. When he spoke, his voice was almost normal.

“He’s a necromancer. He works with souls. When he needs one, he takes it, and does what he will. Do you understand what I’m saying? Does that mean anything to you? Would you like it if your life was snuffed out one day, with no warning, and for no crime, just because someone needed your soul, the way you might need a yard of cloth? What sort of person does that, Savn?”

Then he fell back, and he seemed to fall asleep at once.

A few minutes later Polyi returned. “I’ve found a couple of stones that might work,” she said. “But you’re going to have to help me roll them in.”

“All right,” said Savn.

“Did he wake up?”

“Yes.”

“Did he tell you anything?”

“Yes. He really is going to kill His Lordship.”

The smell of cooking norska filled the cave, and Vlad still slept as Savn and Polyi continued their discussion. “I still say we should tell someone,” said Polyi. Savn shook his head. “Even if no one will believe us?”

“Even so.”

The jhereg watched them, seemingly fascinated. Savn doubted they could understand the conversation, and hoped he was right.

“And even if His Lordship isn’t in any danger?”

“How can you know that?”

“No one can kill him, because he hides his soul in a magic box.”

“Well, we should still—”

“And even if they kill Vlad, if they find him?”

“He might be lying about that, you know,” said Polyi.

“I don’t think he is,” said Savn.

Polyi started to speak, looked at the sleeping Easterner, and shut her mouth. Savn turned the spit once more. Fat dripped; the fire blazed up, then died down again. Savn’s mouth was beginning to water and his stomach was growling.

“How long?” asked Polyi, who was evidently feeling the same way.

“I don’t know. How do you tell when it’s done?”

“Well, it’s brown on the outside. Pae always cuts it open, though.”

“Yeah, but what does he look for?”

“I guess if it looks like it’s ready.”

Savn scowled and found Vlad’s dagger, and cut open the norska. Some of the flesh was white, but some of it seemed translucent. “Well?” he said.

“I don’t know what norska should look like,” said Polyi. “I’ve never eaten any.”

“Well, I don’t think it’s done. Let’s let it cook some more.”

“I’m hungry,” said Polyi.

“Me, too.”

She stared at the fire and the roasting norska, and said, “Why does he hate His Lordship so much?”

“I don’t know, exactly. But he thinks His Lordship killed Reins, and—”

“He couldn’t have!” said Polyi.

“Why not?” said Savn.

“Well, because, he just couldn’t have.”

“I don’t know. But Vlad thinks so, and I guess he liked Reins or something.”

“Liked him? Were they, you know, lovers?”

“I don’t know.”

“They must have been,” said Polyi. “I mean, you don’t go killing somebody just because he killed someone you like, do you? If people did that, we’d have killed every soldier in the army by now.”

“Well, I don’t know if it’s the same thing.”

“Why not?”

“Because ... I don’t know. Maybe you’re right.”

“I’ll bet they were lovers.”

“So now you think maybe His Lordship really did kill him?”

“Well, no, I’m not saying that.”

“Then what?”

“Well, just that maybe Vlad thinks so.”

“He seemed pretty sure.”

“So? He’s an Easterner; maybe they’re always like that.”

“Maybe,” said Savn, and fell silent.

This was, he realized, what anyone would call an adventure, and it felt like it. Yes, in a way it was terrifying, but it also had an odd, storylike quality to it—it wasn’t quite real.

Savn had never seen people killed before his eyes, and yet here was this Easterner talking very seriously of killing His Lordship. None of it had a sense of being his own memories; it was as if these were things he heard of in a song. The cave was real, and the feeling that he had embarked on something that he’d be able to tell stories about for the rest of his life; but the death and danger were off in the distance, not actually present, like when he had been standing outside of his house. He kept coming back to that experience, he decided, because it puzzled and intrigued him, and because it seemed to mark a starting point. It had seemed, at the time, to be the beginning of something, but he hadn’t expected it to be the beginning of a time when he would be going through one thing after another that seemed unreal. In retrospect, though, it made a certain kind of sense.

He looked at Polyi. Was it real for her? She was wearing a frown of great concentration. He hoped that whatever her thoughts, they were not carrying her into a place she’d have trouble coming back from, because that would be truly, truly sad. For that matter, how was it going to affect him when it was over? Would he have nightmares for the rest of his life? Would he and Polyi wake up screaming for no reason that they could explain? He shuddered.

He caught Polyi glancing at him speculatively, and it occurred to him that she had seen him with the Easterner, and heard him agreeing that something that she might—

no, would see as a great crime—was reasonable. He thought about trying to explain things to her, but realized that he really had no explanation; he was going to have to wait until she brought it up herself, if she ever did.

After a time, she said hesitantly, “Savn ...”

“What is it, Polyi?”

“Will you tell me something?”

“Sure.”

“Do you like Lova?”

“Vlad, wake up,” said Savn. “I think the food’s ready.”

“I’m awake,” said the Easterner in a voice so low Savn could hardly hear it.

“Let’s see the norska.”

Savn suddenly wondered how much of the conversation Vlad had overheard, and decided it had been stupid to talk about it right in front of him in any case. He took the spit off the stones and showed it to Vlad.

“It’s done,” announced the Easterner. “Help me sit up.”

Savn and Polyi put the spit back on the stones, then helped him sit up.

“Now I want to stand.”

Savn said, “Are you sure you should—”

“And help me to the latrine.”

“Oh. All right.”

They took his arms and helped him up, and guided him to the other cave, and held him up until he was done. Then they brought him back and helped him sit up against the wall of the cave. The jhereg scampered along with him all the way. He sat there for several moments, breathing deeply, then nodded. “Let’s eat,” he said. While they’d been helping him, part of the norska had burned slightly, but the rest was fine.

They ate in silence at first. Savn thought it was one of the best things he’d ever eaten. He wasn’t certain what Polyi thought, but she was eating with great enthusiasm.