Bastial Frenzy (The Rhythm of Rivalry: Book 4) (21 page)

Then he remembered he’d had the same feeling with Vithos. He’d never really known the Elf before they were both outcast and Vithos had started telling jokes. Was Terren more like Vithos than Zoke realized?

Terren’s hard tone returned when he spoke next. “It’ll take some time to strategize with Hem, but we must determine what else Hiller could have planned before we storm their wall. I hate to admit it, but we weren’t prepared to be blindsided while still in Corin Forest. It disrupted everything, and we’ve lost many because of it.”

“Is there a chance you’ll retreat?” Zoke kept his tone indifferent to hide his opinion—that the Humans wouldn’t be able to bring down Tenred’s massive stone wall.

“That’s not an option. We must scare Hiller into peace. If we leave Tenred undamaged, they’ll be ready to attack us shortly. If they march with the Krepps, then hope is lost. We need to prevent this at all costs.”

“But I don’t believe this battle is in your favor any longer. You don’t know what’s waiting behind their wall. That same reason is why the Krepps lost. They underestimated you Humans.”

“Whether or not this battle is in our favor makes no difference. We have to fight, and we have to win. Otherwise, this war will soon be over.”

“I understand.” Zoke didn’t wish to retreat. He only felt it was important to learn the Humans’ thoughts on this battle. He craved to deal
vantikar
to Sawdar and Brady, though he still worried his sister was there.

Soon, he heard the voices of others in the Kyrro Army. They were just through the trees ahead. But there was something bothering Zoke that he wanted to know before Terren got too involved with the other officers to answer more questions.

“How is it you can speak to me about jokes and I can remind you of your nephew so soon after we were forced to run in shame?”

“Shame?” Terren was incredulous. “We’re still here, aren’t we? We haven’t fled back to Kyrro. You honestly feel shame?”

“Yes. To flee is always an embarrassment to the warrior and his family. I’m sure the Krepps that came to Kyrro feel heavy shame and will receive many insults. This doesn’t happen with you Humans?”

“We’ve done no dishonor. But I won’t to try to change your mind. The shame you feel comes solely from within yourself. If you don’t wish to feel it, then that’s your problem to solve.”

“I wouldn’t try to get rid of it. We should feel shame when we flee, for the fear of shame makes us…” He couldn’t remember the right word in common tongue. It was a phrase he was too used to hearing in Kreppen.

“Morons that are more likely to be killed,” Terren said.

“Not courage,” Zoke said, ignoring Terren. “But close to that. What’s the word?”

“Courageous, but I like what I said better.”

Some fighters were having their wounds looked at by chemists. The rest were focused on feeding themselves and each other, as well as passing leather water pouches back and forth. The sight of Zoke caused a few people to jump at first as he followed Terren through the thousands. Most were men, tall, large, and loud—or perhaps those were the Humans he noticed first. There were females—mages and chemists, and a psychic or two. But they looked miniscule, like children. It was what Zoke first thought of Effie because of her size. So he figured these women were just as tough as she was.

For a breath, he wondered why she and Steffen hadn’t come. But there were many Human actions he didn’t understand. It was easier to end his curiosity than find the answer.

Reela tended to blend in more so than the other women, for she was tall with more girth, and she wore a stern expression that was found on many of the men’s faces. Her ears were what separated her. Though they weren’t noticeable from afar, like Vithos’ ears, they still poked out enough from her thick brown-blonde hair that Zoke could spot them from where he stood.

“It looks like something has happened in the time we were gone,” Terren commented. “The officers appear concerned. I’ll go speak with them.”

Then Zoke noticed it too. There was worry in the hushed dialogue and long looks, not only between the officers—who were standing in a circle—but among many of the other Humans as well.

As Zoke crossed through various groups, one woman among five men questioned him. “You went with Terren to the edge of the woods, right?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“Did the enemies retreat?” All the men became silent as they waited for Zoke’s answer.

“Yes, no one was there.”

“I see.”

When Zoke continued forward, he heard that group sharing the news with others. Zoke realized he could’ve asked the woman what happened in the time he was gone, and she would’ve told him. He wouldn’t have thought to ask anyone but Vithos, Alex, or Reela. It was comforting to know others would speak to him if he needed information.

When he got to his group, Alex explained, “One officer and his men haven’t come back yet.”

“Could he just be taking longer than the rest?” Zoke asked.

Alex shook his head solemnly. “All he needed to do was search the forest to our northwest to make sure no enemies were preparing another trap. It shouldn’t take this long. Everyone else finished a while ago. There isn’t a lot of forest for each team to cover. Something definitely happened.”

“Then why haven’t we gone to find out what it is?” Again, Zoke found himself confused by the Humans’ behavior. Krepps would’ve gone the moment they suspected their enemies were there.

“Might be trap,” Vithos said. “So many traps.”

“We’re waiting for the officers,” Alex said. “They’ll know what to do.”

Behind Zoke, the boisterous men suddenly had quieted. He could hear the rustling of their weapons and armor as they stood. Turning, he found their commander, Hem, walking through. He seemed to be headed toward Zoke and those around him.

“You three, you’re going northwest with Terren.” Hem pointed to Zoke, Vithos, and Reela.

Alex puffed out his chest. “I’m requesting to join them.”

“I can’t allow that. The more there are, the likelier our enemies will see them.”

“Then let me go in Zoke’s place.”

“No. You stay here.”

Alex’s brow furrowed. But when Reela went to her toes to whisper something in his ear, he seemed to understand.

“Go,” Hem commanded. “There’s no time to waste.” He pointed to where Terren was waiting with one of his bulky arms waving his sword.

“What did you tell Alex?” Zoke asked Reela as they jogged.

“The truth—that his brother doesn’t want him going because he’s worried about his safety.”

“Then why didn’t he just say that?”

“Because Hem must be a commander first and a brother second.”

“Everyone understand,” Vithos said. “Only you ask.”

Even Vithos, with his lesser grasp on common tongue, wasn’t confused by the lack of emotion between the brothers. Embarrassed, Zoke resolved to say no more about it.

Vithos lowered his head apologetically. “Must be hard, Zeti with enemies. I no mean insult.”

“That’s not why I mentioned it,” Zoke said.

“It’s alright.” Reela gestured with her hand that he didn’t need to continue. “We understand.”

They think I want Alex and Hem to act more like brothers because of Zeti?
Zoke wanted to correct them, but he started to wonder if they might be right. They were psychics, after all.

Terren’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “Now it’s time for the three of you to stay quiet and listen. Twenty men and women led by a very competent officer haven’t returned. They could’ve been killed or captured. I can’t imagine any other reason for their disappearance. It was their task to investigate these woods.” He extended his arm. “They were not to go past five hundred yards ahead of us, nor were they to veer more than fifty yards in either direction. The sections of the forest to the left and right of this area were covered by other teams, and nothing suspect was found.”

“Did those teams hear anything?” Reela asked.

“Some thought they might’ve heard shouting,” Terren said. “Hem believes a trap awaits anyone who follows the same path as the group that disappeared. So we’ll be coming around from the west. Come this way, and remember to keep quiet. Zoke, use that Kreppen eyesight to search for bodies in the trees. You’ve seen the camouflage they wear, right?”

“Yes.”

“Keep your footsteps light, and watch the ground for irregularities—gatherings of leaves that could be covering a trap, taut string, that sort of thing. Reela and Vithos, let me know immediately when you sense anyone’s presence.”

Zoke tried to study every tree while watching the ground as well. But he soon came to realize he couldn’t monitor the whole forest at once, not without stopping for minutes at a time. But Terren walked quickly, expecting Zoke and the two psychics to keep up.

He stepped on a small stick. It broke with a snap. There was a sound in the bushes. The two psychics pointed their palms at it. Terren and Zoke drew their swords.

“Just an animal,” Reela said.

They continued.

A feeling of dread was grinding in his stomach.
What if Zeti is with the enemies in this forest?
If they’d dressed her in the same brown and green shirt and pants, he wouldn’t recognize her. She’d only ever worn old, gray leather. Did this mean he would have to stop Terren from killing any female Krepp they found in the trees? What if it wasn’t her…and one of the Humans was injured or killed because Zoke protected her? His dread became worse. He glanced at Reela’s neck, at the bruises where he’d choked her. He was thankful he hadn’t dug his claws into her soft flesh.

Alex nearly cut off my arm,
he remembered, thankful that he hadn’t. It was frightening how he’d lost control of himself. That had never happened before. He wondered if it could happen again, perhaps if Zeti shot at him.

“Zoke, you’re breathing too loud,” Terren complained.

“Why angry?” Vithos asked.

Zoke didn’t know how to answer, so he said nothing.

“It’s Zeti, isn’t it?” Reela looked as if she was going to touch Zoke, but her hand retracted.

“Quiet,” Terren said. “Watch for enemies. Hopefully we’ll be coming up behind them.”

They began to change direction as they continued, circling around. Zoke checked each tree he could see. But some angles made it impossible to tell if someone was hiding on a branch until he passed beneath it and could look from the other side.

Vithos stopped and pushed out his arms to halt everyone. “Someone near,” he whispered.

Reela caught their attention by jabbing a finger toward the branches of a tree ahead of them. Someone was sitting with his legs flat along the thick branch, watching the forest. His back was to them. There was a short bow latched onto his back, a quiver on the other shoulder, and some sort of bottle filled with a clear substance in his right hand.

Terren guided them back. Behind the wide trunk of a tree, he whispered, “Zoke, peer out and see if you can find anyone else.”

Zoke squinted. He thought he saw others in the trees farther from them. When his gaze fell to the ground, there looked to be a body dressed in Kyrro garb.

“I need to get closer,” he whispered. “It looks like there are others and maybe our fallen comrades. Let me sneak to that tree there.” He pointed to one that would give him a better vantage point.

Terren nodded, and Zoke crept through the grass. His soft footsteps sounded as loud as the beat of a drum to him, but he knew he couldn’t move any quieter.

He made it to the tree, pressed his back against it, and waited to hear if he’d been spotted. Relief washed over him when he heard nothing. Slowly, he leaned out.

In nearly every tree, he could see someone with a bow and a potion of some kind. There was one body on the ground, and all but one foot was covered by a cluster of bushes. Then he saw more. One was buried under rocks. A thick clump of grass mostly concealed two or three bodies. They were everywhere he looked closely. It was the missing group. They’d been killed, their bodies hidden. Hem was right—this was a trap.

So that must mean hundreds of them are waiting to surprise whoever comes looking for the missing group, but where are they all?
Zoke could see maybe ten enemies.

Terren was motioning for him to return to their tree. But a gruesome sight took his focus. There was a pile of bodies—of men and women from Kyrro. They were against a tree with a mound of dirt hastily thrown over them. From the flesh he could see protruding out, much of it had been burned—but not with fire. He’d seen people who’d been killed from fireballs, and this was different. The burns were in small patches, and they scarred the skin a disgusting vivid green.

His wits returned, and he went back to Terren.

“They killed everyone who’s missing,” he whispered. “I can see some of their bodies.”

“We need to figure out how many there are and where they’re hidden,” Terren said. “They’re expecting us to come from the southeast, and it looks like we’re behind them now. Follow me. We need to determine their perimeter, and we must hurry before they decide to move or retreat.”

Terren quickly guided them away from the archer in the tree they’d first seen. Zoke didn’t have a grasp as to where they were in the forest, but it seemed that their enemies couldn’t be this far out when he’d spotted some of their archers so far back, facing the opposite way.