Torn By War: 4 (The Death Wizard Chronicles) (14 page)

“Your greeting honors me,” Lucius said. “But one thing confuses me. Did you say
Sir
Elu?”

“Elu is now a member of the queen’s personal guard,” Laylah said respectfully.

“And a brave member, at that,” Rajinii added. “He also asks good questions. Where
are
the other members of your company?” She turned to Julich, who stood nearby. “Have you lost track of them, captain?”

Lucius laughed. “Not so, your highness. Captain Julich has been a most gracious host.” Then he quickly explained why the others had been left behind. As he spoke, Torg approached, almost timidly.

“Lucius,” he said, “it
is
good to see you, though after the way I treated you the last time we were together, you and Bonny are probably not so happy to see me. For what it’s worth, please accept my apologies.”

“You had your reasons for being angry,” Lucius said. “And you kept Laylah alive. That is the most I could ask for.”

“She did the same for me. But as Laylah said, these are tales best told with mugs in hand. The great battles approach, but it appears that a few more days of peace remain. Let us cross the river and see if the Daasa will follow.”

“I will come too,” Rajinii said. “Tonight, we will feast beneath the moon.”

They boarded a flat barge large enough for ten horses and riders. The barge was attached to a cable on the far bank. Once unfettered and released into the powerful current, it arced across the river. Soon after, they were safely on the other side, where hundreds of cheering horsemen greeted them.

This impressed Lucius, but his attention was soon derailed by the sight of Torg and Laylah riding side by side a stone’s throw ahead. Something the wizard said caused the sorceress to laugh. Lucius felt his old jealousy arise.

Instantly Bonny was beside him. “Would you like me to go away? It seems, once you got a look-see at Laylah, you forgot all about me.”

Though Bonny’s vehemence startled Lucius, he realized that she was right. Before he could apologize, the queen rode over and patted Bonny on the back.

“It appears I’m not the only one who’s jealous of Laylah. It’s easy to see how men like Torg and Lucius would be attracted to her.”

Lucius grunted. “No offense, your highness. But would you mind if I spoke to Bonny about this in private?”

“A man who speaks his mind, even to a queen!” Rajinii laughed, then urged Arusha forward.

“Bonny, listen . . .” Lucius said.

“Don’t worry, Lucius. You don’t need to explain . . .”

“Bonny!”

“What?”

“I’m not trying to explain, I’m trying to apologize.”

“For what?”

“For my behavior. I’ve spent the past two weeks half-believing Laylah was dead. I mean, how could she have possibly escaped the druids? Then, seeing her alive was . . .
jarring
. I’ve known her for a long time.”

“I know . . . I know . . .”

“
Please
let me finish. For a moment, I returned to my old habit of obsessing over her and feeling as if she’s my possession . . . stolen by
him
.” He gestured toward Torg. “But if you’ll forgive me this one last time, I
promise
you it won’t happen again. I have no idea what the future holds for me. Less than a month from now, most of us will probably be dead. But if we somehow survive all this,
you
are the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. I swear it.”

The pirate woman smiled. “Ah, Lucius, it’s not like I caught you in bed with her. You were just acting a little flirty, that’s all.”

“I love you, Bonny.”

“Elu loves Bonny too,” the Svakaran cried from below. “Elu loves all his wonderful friends.” And then he surged forward to join the queen, leaving Lucius and Bonny to their laughter.

AT NOON THEY came to the edge of the forest on the western side of Cariya. Elu was the first to see the Daasa and his other companions on the far bank, and he dismounted and began leaping around and waving his arms.

“Look,
great one
!” he shouted to Torg. “It’s Ugga and Bard—and the white-haired lady who fought the dragon!” Then the Svakaran suddenly quit jumping and lowered his head. “But not Rathburt. He is still gone.”

Torg dismounted and joined Elu near the riverbank. “I’m sorry, my friend. But Peta herself told you that he still lives.”

“Unless Elu was dreaming.”

“I think not. I sense Rathburt’s presence somewhere in the forest. Perhaps it’s safer if he remains out of sight until the fighting is over. As you know better than anyone, he sometimes has trouble staying out of his own way, much less a druid’s.”

This made Elu chuckle and seemed to cheer him up. “If
you
sense him, then he
must
be alive.”

By then, Laylah had joined them. “I sense him too,” she said.

As the three spoke, Lucius and Bonny made their way to the water’s edge. The wizard found himself laughing hysterically at the sight of Ugga and Bard bounding around like overgrown boys. But Jord stood with arms crossed, a green aura shimmering around her motionless form. Torg wondered if anyone else could see the magical emanation.

Meanwhile, the Daasa had noticed Lucius and Bonny, and thousands gathered along the river’s edge, resembling a massive herd of pink Buffelo pondering a dangerous crossing. Torg had no idea if they could make it or not, having never witnessed firsthand how well they could swim. He was amazed when a lone Daasa suddenly plunged into the currents and disappeared beneath the surface. For what seemed like an impossibly long time, it remained submerged, but then it sprang from the water and scrambled up the bank. In an instant, it was dripping at Lucius’ feet, its thick backside waggling excitedly. The firstborn and pirate hugged its soaked fur. Torg wasn’t certain, but he thought he saw tears in their eyes.

The success of the first Daasa created an exodus among the rest. Hundreds of them crossed, shaking themselves dry and then rolling over and over in the soft grass. The spectacle amused the Jivitan horsemen, and they laughed and slapped their thigh armor with their gauntlets. Their destriers paid the Daasa no more heed than they would a pack of friendly dogs.

Of everyone in attendance, Rajinii seemed the most amazed. She had never before seen a Daasa up close, but she had heard enough about them to be curious. The queen walked over to Torg and Laylah and pressed her hand against her heart.

“How can such marvelous creatures become the killers you describe?” she said.

“The first time I saw them,” said Julich, who stood nearby, “my words were the same, your highness.”

“They are but ten thousand, and yet they killed almost every villain in Duccarita,” Torg said. “The pirates and slave traders are not the equal of druids, but the monsters that haunted its alleys also succumbed.”

By then, Lucius and Bonny had joined them, overhearing much of what was said.

“We saw them kill a bunch of druids when they fought in the forest,” Bonny said proudly. “When we . . . they get mean, they are a handful.”

“Your highness, I would recommend that as many of your men and women as possible commune with them,” Lucius said. “The Daasa seem to fight at their hardest when they believe we are in danger. We need to imprint upon them that the armored horsemen are also friends.”

“Make it so,” the queen said to Julich. And then she began shouting orders to others. “Raise the pavilions. Prepare the feast. Joy and festivity will be a rare commodity in the coming days, but tonight there will be plenty of both, the
One God
willing.”

In the late afternoon, Jord, Ugga, and Bard joined the others. There was a great deal of hugging and back-slapping, and Ugga, in characteristic fashion, burst into tears. Horse-drawn wagons began to arrive with food, drink, and other supplies. Workers erected twenty large pavilions, each with eight sturdy posts, and they stretched white canvas over the peaked roofs. Then they placed a single round table made of white balsa in the center of each pavilion, each with sixteen chairs.

A fire pit was prepared and a simple feast devised on the open plain: roasted boar, boiled eel, cabbage stew, and elderberry wine. It was past dark by the time the guests had arrived from Jivita—more than three hundred, all told—with twenty squadrons forming a perimeter guard.

Queen Rajinii presided over Torg’s table. Laylah, Elu, Lucius, Bonny, Jord, Bard, and Ugga joined them. Also present were Manta, Captain Julich, General Navarese and Archbishop Bernard. Sitting on the wizard’s right—
standing
in the chair, actually—was “Burly” Boulogne, who made even Elu look large.

“I can see that you haven’t yet taken my advice to seek safety,” Torg whispered to the enchanter.

“And miss all the excitement?”

Queen Rajinii raised a hand-held gong and rang it once. A surprisingly vibrant sound filled the air. All else went silent, including the Daasa and horses.

“Bless us,
Ekadeva
,” she said after the first ring.

She rapped the gong again.

“We thank you for the bounty of your gifts.”

Then a third time.

“Amen.”

She turned to Torg. “Many honored guests are among us, you not the least of them. Though our faith in the
One God
is strong, we do our best to respect the beliefs of others. Is there anything you would like to say before we eat?”

Torg stood and faced the gathering. When he spoke, he made certain that all in attendance could hear his voice by adding a touch of magic to amplify and sweeten his voice.

“Thank you, your highness, for your beneficence. Rarely in Triken’s long history has there been a greater need for the forces of good to put aside their personal differences and unite as one. None among us here desire dominion or enslavement. Freedom is our banner—and we will fight and die beneath it, without exception. All living beings have much in common. Life is a struggle, and there are no givens. None truly know when or if the next meal will come. Each morsel of food is a gift from the sun, air, rain, and ground. May all here tonight . . . the weakest and strongest . . . youngest and oldest . . . human and beast . . . behave in a manner that is worthy of this gift.”

The Tugars among them shouted, “
Ema
!
Ema
! (Yes! Yes!)” And then there was a great clattering of sword against sword.

On that night, good fellowship abounded. General Navarese made peace with Archbishop Bernard and then with Torg, though he remained confused over the events that had transpired five nights before when he had mysteriously awoken in the queen’s bedchambers.

The Daasa made new friends too. Even the destriers grew to love them. When midnight approached, the pink creatures wandered one by one into the forest to sleep, preferring the trees to the open plains. Torg noticed that Lucius and Bonny followed them, hand in hand. Then he looked around for Laylah and saw that several Tugars encircled her, each of whom seemed entranced by whatever story she was telling. Rajinii was speaking to Navarese, Bernard, and several other members of the Privy Council. Torg watched them all with mindfulness. He noticed a light touch on his arm.

Jord stood beside him, the green aura still strong. “Have you noticed the difference?”

“My lady?”

“The difference in Lucius.”

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Lucius is of the Daasa,” Jord said.

“I knew that already. How is that different than before?”

“Lucius is of the Daasa—in
all
ways. And he is now aware.”

Torg arched an eyebrow. Now he understood, and it amazed him. Then he realized that if Bonny were to be with Lucius, she too might know this. “And the pirate?” Torg said.