Sword of Wrath (Kormak Book Eight) (8 page)

Rhiana pulled herself out of the water, clambering up the rope webbing on the sides. Water dripped from her skin. Her clothes clung to her body, revealing her form. Some of the men came closer to look; some of the women turned away scandalised. Kormak wondered if this was going to cause any trouble on the voyage.

She sprang over the bannister, landing lithely on her feet, dripping water onto the deck. Kormak pushed through the crowd of admirers around her and made his way to her side.

“That was refreshing,” she said. “Why did you not join me?”

“Carrying this sword interferes with my swimming,” Kormak said.

She laughed and went below. Kormak followed her. The murmurings faded behind him. There might indeed be trouble about this for both of them, but at that moment, he did not care.

O
utside
, the night-black ocean sloshed against the side of the ship. The calls of the sailors on watch sounded in the darkness. The chandelier swung over the large oaken table bolted to the cabin floor in the admiral’s dining chamber.

Hugo arrived bearing a tray with flasks of wine, and plates of sliced bread and olive oil to dip it in. Outside the wind was picking up.

Zamara sat at the head of the table. Kormak sat to his right. Next to him was Rhiana, across from her was the windcaller. Orson Waters sat next to Zamara on the left hand side. He clapped as the food came in, and smiled at one and all. The big man beamed warmth.

As Hugo poured the wine, Zamara said, “I am glad you could join us, Goodman Waters.” He turned his goblet around in his hands and studied the huge man hulking over the table, as if wondering how someone with no title had managed to get there.

“I am honoured to be here,” said Waters. “I am sure there are many more worthy of the privilege of dining with the Captain-General of next year’s treasure fleet.”

Was there an undertone of mockery in that throaty voice, Kormak wondered? It was hard to tell.

“Come now,” said Zamara. “You must have seen a score of us come and go.”

Zamara clearly relished using that
us.
He knew he was in exalted company. The Admirals of the Treasure Fleet took a share of all the cargoes they transported.

“I have seen a score of you become very wealthy indeed,” said Waters. “And I sincerely hope that you do too, Admiral Zamara. I am fortunate enough to count some of your predecessors among my friends, and—I am not ashamed to admit—customers.”

“What exactly do you do, Goodman Waters?” Rhiana asked.

Waters favoured her with a smile. “I import cloth and spices, and all manner of things from Siderea. I ship back furs and scents and exotic herbs and carvings. I arrange lines of credit for those who cannot do so themselves.”

“Goodman Waters started off as a goldsmith,” said Windcaller Serena. “He is now a banker to the wealthy. On both sides of the ocean. And not just within Siderea.”

She spoke with the certainty that she would not offend the merchant. These two knew each other. There was little surprising about that, if Orson Waters often travelled by galleon between Terra Nova and Siderea. He made a gesture of mock humility, placing one huge hand over his heart. “It is true. I have even arranged lines of credit for your order, Sir Kormak.”

“I am sure Grand Master Darius is suitably grateful.”

“There is no need for him to be grateful,” said Serena. “Our friend made an ample profit.”

There was an edge to her words. The two of them might know each other, but they were not necessarily friends. Or perhaps they just wanted people to think that.

“Nothing wrong with making a profit,” Zamara said. “I hope to make one myself on my voyage back to Siderea.”

“I am sure we can all drink to that,” said Waters. He raised his glass in a toast. Kormak drank his wine considerably watered; he did not like having his senses dulled. He let some sit on the tip of his tongue while he tried to taste any poison that might be in it. It was not that he feared being poisoned at Zamara’s table; it was simply habit.

Hugo entered with the food. The smell of roasted chicken and boiled vegetables filled the room. Zamara proceeded to carve off the meat while Hugo distributed the plates for the vegetables. “Have you ever been to the Far Colonies before, Captain?” Waters asked Rhiana.

“I have sailed through the Viridian islands and made port in Maial a few times,” she said.

“It is a lovely place if you can stand the weather. So hot and so humid. Built on the ruins of an ancient Lunar city. The ruins of a Temple Ziggurat still loom over the town. I don’t know how much longer it will last. The locals use it as a quarry.”

“I heard they go there during the Masque of Death, to mock Xothak, the Lord of Skulls, the devil god whose home it once was,” said Zamara. “To show that the followers of the Holy Sun are not afraid.”

“Masque of Death?” Kormak asked.

“It is the great riotous carnival of the year. Everyone dons fancy dress and no one acknowledges rank or class,” said Orson. “It is quite a spectacle. We should arrive just before it begins, if the winds blow true.” He looked at Serena.

“We should,” she said, “but we still have a long way to go.”

“I have heard the tribes of the interior are unfriendly,” Rhiana said. Waters looked at Zamara, as if he was wondering how the admiral would respond to the implication that the natives were less than ecstatic with Siderean rule.

Zamara gestured with his left hand, indicating that he should speak.

“There have been uprisings,” Waters said. “Outlying estates and plantations have been attacked, but the vast majority of the natives are content. Now.”

“They are obviously not much like the Aquileans then,” said Kormak. “Every time the Sunlanders have attempted to annexe my native land, they have been swiftly ejected.”

“You sound almost as if you are proud of that, Sir Kormak.” Waters said.

“I am simply stating a fact.”

“There is something about the way you state it, though. In any case, the situation is quite different in Terra Nova. We have brought the natives the benefits of the true religion and stable government. We have suppressed the tribal warlords and the cannibals, and see that they receive the justice of the King-Emperor.”

A faint smile curled up the corners of the fat man’s mouth. His eyes glittered. There was a definite note of mockery in his words. It was as if he knew he needed to praise the King-Emperor’s rule, but wanted his listeners to understand that all was not well.

“I notice that you number one of the natives among your bodyguards,” Kormak said. “A woodsman. He has an interesting collection of tattoos.”

“Urag has been in my service for many years. Before that, he hunted escaped slaves. That takes a hard man, believe me. Those tattoos are lodge symbols, showing he has shared blood brotherhood with one of the jungle clans. You need such contacts if you are to survive in those green hells. I think he finds life in my service more congenial. He has risen to be one of my personal bodyguards. ”

“The folk of the interior are said to be fierce warriors,” Rhiana said.

“They are,” said Orson. “And great trackers and hunters too. Men like Urag must match them in every way. ”

“It is said that worship of the Old Ones remains strong among them,” Zamara said. He had clearly been studying the subject and wanted to let the others know it.

“Indeed, and the further from our lands the tribes are, the stronger that worship is,” said Orson.

“I believe the Eldrim they worshipped were of a very dark sort,” said Zamara. He looked at Kormak as if to judge the guardian’s response.

Orson considered his words for a moment then said, “They were. Of the darkest sort. They fell to the Shadow and formed a dark pantheon that ruled over the lands we call Terra Nova. Or so legend has it. The Dark Ones were destroyed and banished by the Angels of Light during the Elder Wars. Xothak is the only name that it is known to us, but there were others. Their memory lingers on among the tribes. Or so Count Balthazar assures me, and he has spent more time among the tribes than any man I know.”

Silence settled over the table. Everyone present seemed to be considering the implications of the merchant’s words, and all gazes flickered over to Kormak as if they expected him to draw his sword and slay them just for broaching such a subject.

“He must have led an interesting life, your friend Balthazar.”

“He is a scholar, and has written many monographs on the tribes and their religions. You will most likely meet him, Sir Kormak, when we reach Terra Nova. I am sure he would be delighted to make your acquaintance.”

“If he is an expert on the Old Ones, I may have reason to seek him out,” Kormak said. He left the words hanging in the air. No one took the bait.

“The colonies remain very profitable,” said Serena, taking a morsel of chicken up on a small silver eating spike. “Very nicely cooked.”

“For ship’s food, you mean,” said Zamara with an indulgent smile.

“By any standards,” said Serena. “I see you plan on eating well while you are away from civilisation, Admiral Zamara.”

“The tribes are all heathens,” said Waters. He quite clearly did not want to let the subject of their conversation die. Perhaps he wished to show he was not intimidated by the presence of a guardian. “They worshipped the Moon and other things before Solar missionaries went among them. Of course, they burned—and some say ate—the first of those, but eventually they were shown the error of their ways. It was work, though. Some of their shamans were powerful magicians. I am surprised your order had not a chapter house in Maial, Sir Kormak.”

“My order had its work cut out for it even in the Old Kingdoms.”

Waters widened his eyes and closed his fist. “There is a lot of gold in Terra Nova. Silver too, and other things. Cathedrals and churches and chapter houses are usually built where there is money to pay for them.”

“Are you offering to sponsor the building of a chapter house?” Kormak asked.

“No but I am surprised that King Aemon has not offered to do so.”

Zamara offered some more wine around. “I think the King-Emperor will do so eventually. At the moment, he is bent on making sure that every town and village in Siderea has its own temple.”

“As is his right,” said Waters. “But I am ashamed to say there are those who feel that they get little for all the gold they send to the King-Emperor as taxes.”

Zamara gave a sharp intake of breath. “Most of the gold that comes out of Terra Nova comes from mines owned by the King-Emperor.”

“I know this, Admiral. You know this. I am merely saying that there are those who feel differently.”

“They might have a point,” said the windcaller. She smiled at Orson and then at the others.

“There are some who could construe that remark as treason,” said Zamara. His handsome face was a mask. His eyes held a wary look. The conversation was veering into dangerous places and he knew it.

“Then the king himself is guilty of treason,” the windcaller said. “He has said very much the same thing to me.”

Silence fell over the table. Kormak exchanged looks with Rhiana. She blew him the faintest of kisses. Clearly, she understood as well as he did that the purpose of Serena’s remark was not to be treasonous, but to make it clear that she had talked with the king on such a touchy subject.

Having let the point sink in, Serena continued, “At the moment his priority is to settle matters in the kingdom itself, but the day will come when he turns his full attention to the Far Colonies, and sees they get the treatment they deserve.”

She stared directly at Orson as she spoke. The fat man smiled, took a bite from his drumstick, swallowed and then said, “That is good news indeed, Windcaller. I will pass along that message when we reach Maial.”

Zamara looked a bit put out, as well he might with his thunder stolen. He took another drink of wine. “I have heard there are many strange ruins in Terra Nova.”

“Many,” said Orson Waters. “Maial is built on them. The moon worshippers built many huge structures that were temple, fortress and city wrapped into one. And they were not the only ones. Remnants of the Elder Races can be found scattered through the jungles and swamps. There are sand demons in the deserts of the high plateau as well.”

Zamara frowned. “I do not have fond memories of such places. The last time Sir Kormak and I were among Elder World ruins, we fought a pitched battle with monsters.”

Orson Waters’ eyes crinkled. “That sounds like an interesting tale.”

“Aye,” said Zamara and proceeded to tell it.

Rhiana started to play footsie with Kormak under the table. They did not need to hear the tale. They had been there.

* * *

R
hiana removed
her shirt and hung it on the peg above the small narrow bed.

“Will every night between here and Maial be like that?” Kormak asked.

“No. They will be less interesting. Still, it could be worse. If we did not have the windcaller with us, we would be cooped up on the ship for nearly two months. As it is, we should only be stuck with each other for twelve days after we leave Fort Wrath. There will hardly be time to get sick of everybody’s boasting and everybody letting everyone else know how important they are.”

“Well, that’s something to look forward to,” Kormak said. He listened to the sound of the waves and the tread of the sailors on the deck above. The ship creaked and rolled.

“I might get off at Fort Wrath if this keeps up,” Rhiana said. “Smugglers from there run regularly to Port Blood.”

“I might join you.”

She looked at him sidelong. “You are joking, of course.”

He leant back on the bed and put his hands behind his head. “I suspect Admiral Zamara would not let me slip away. Prince Taran has probably given him instructions concerning that.”

“We could still manage it. It’s something to keep in mind if you ever need to find your way to Port Blood.”