Fate's Pawn 28

 

Chapter 28

 

The journey took three days, being mostly uphill. The wolves were suspicious at first of pulling the sleighs until Vulk pointed out that barrels of meat were carried on the sleighs, and the magic of the humans and trógling were needed to take off the preservation charms so it tasted fresh.

It was early days, and they could learn to work together over this mission.

The wolves wanted to avoid Toróg as well, as Toróg would eat wolf; and were happy to show a region beyond where the Toróg hunters usually bothered to go. Kaz was using memories of rock formations. Which being so, they set up a camp, sleeping in the sleighs, which had hoops over them with canvas tops to keep out the weather. Food must be cold, since the sensitive noses of the Toróg would soon pick up the scent of a fire. It was moderately unpleasant, but they took turns at activating the warming runes carved in the sleighs with a smear of blood, which made it bearable.

Fortunately, the back entrance to the trógling pens was not a region where the Toróg wanted to go, and Kaz was able to scout them fairly successfully, and plan a good way in, and back to the sleds. Three days of scouting was enough.

“We go just before dawn,” said Kaz. “Toróg are nocturnal, and will have settled down to relax and rest, if not actually to sleep. I’m giving the rings to Protasion and Polia, as Polia speaks the Toróg language; everyone else is to be waiting in the mouth of the cave, to help us get them to the sleds, and to be a rear guard if need be. All clear?”

“All clear,” said Protasion.

“All clear,” said Lelyn. Those left in the mouth of the tunnels would not be having an easy task, as they must be alert at all times.

 

Kaz, Rynn, Vulk, Protasion, and Polia walked along a projecting ridge towards the cave entrance used by the despised and debased Toróg cousins, the tróglings. The sky was becoming lighter as the sun approached the horizon, preceded by his daughter, the dawn. The blue moon was setting her ravaged body to rest for the daytime, and the passageways were empty.

“Why don’t trógling just slip out?” Polia murmured in a low tone.

“Some do. Most die for being unable to survive without being able to make a serious escape plan, with caches of food and so-on,” said Kaz. “Having enough is a problem, let alone extra to be able to hide it somewhere safe from wild animals, where one can find it. In the summer, there are attempts; but any trógling would freeze to death if trying an escape in winter. It’s the perfect time.”

 

Kaz crept ahead. She knew that it was possible for others to hear her use of Darksense, though few would perhaps realise the meaning of its direction, and might put it down to echoes.

The pens were guarded by a patrol of half a dozen warrior trógling; and they would have to be dealt with one way or another.

Kaz walked forward, motioning the others to lurk.

“I’ve come to rescue the other trollkin,” she said. “Are you with me, and ready for freedom, or do you oppose me?”

The leader raised a crossbow.

“I’ll take that as a no,” said Kaz, regretfully. She used her sword to parry the crossbow bolt, a skill she had been practising assiduously since Zon’s death. From her position lurking, Rynn shot the leader. It was not a tactically sound thing to do, as he was essentially disarmed for having discharged his weapon, and left Rynn’s leader against five others; but two of the other trollkin put down their weapons and assumed the squatting position of submission. The other three turned to run to warn someone.

Kaz hated killing from behind, but they could not be permitted to raise an alarm, and none of them got more than a few steps.

The two who submitted risked a quick look at each other of relief that they had made the right choice.

“Fall in,” said Kaz.

Used to following orders, they fell in.

There were perhaps two dozen trollkin in the food pens, of all ages. It was no more than a blocked off section of corridor with some shallow scrapes in the walls for families, and a walkway at a higher level which the guard used.

“Get up,” said Kaz, firmly. “You are coming with me.”

Dully, they got up, mothers clasping children; expecting death, but not knowing what else to do.

Kaz was aware of some whispering, and followed her instinct to go round what turned out to be a blind corner, where a mother was hiding a child of about nine years old under such straw as they had for beds.

“Ah, I am glad some of you are not cowed,” said Kaz, smiling at the terrified mother. “I am the Daykaz, the Daywalker spoken of in whispers. You and your child will go far. Come.”

“M…mistress?” said the mother.

“Just Kaz,” said Kaz. “Come, small one!”

The child emerged, carrying infants, presumably her siblings. She looked wary.

“Hurry, please,” said Kaz. “The longer we stay, the more risk there is. We’re taking you far away, but please keep moving.”

They had been discovered, and might not trust Kaz or her motives, but sullen obedience kicked in.

Kaz motioned to Rynn to bring up the rear; Rynn would detect any followers and would make an adequate whipper-in. Kaz went up and down the line, making sure they kept moving. The time between leaving the caves and reaching the sleighs would be cruelly hard on them partly because of the light, and partly because of the cold. It could not be helped.

Kaz was up near the cave entrance and her enemy sense prickled.

“Trouble,” she said, quietly, to Protasion. “Get them to the sleighs, and get going. I’ll delay pursuit.”

“I don’t have to like it,” grumbled Protasion.

“No,” said Kaz.

She stepped out into the light, and her sword whipped up to parry a crossbow bolt for the second time that day. This was a heavy bolt, however; and the big Darkling Toróg waiting was wearing iron.

Protasion, following, gasped.

Vulk, just behind, turned to Protasion.

“I’m expendable,” he said. “I swear that if I live through this, I will do for my people what she does for hers, and take them to freedom and beg Alethos to remove the taint of chaos.”

He jumped to hear a chime.

“You get used to it, after a while,” said Protasion. “Fate is pleased with you.”

 

A lot of things happened all at once as Protasion led the frightened trógling away from the combat, and the big Darkling drew his axe. Kaz ignored the self-satisfied chime, and Vulk had his own first divine experience as he felt the ability to become a wolf as he chose, and heard the voice,

“I am well pleased with you, my son. Aid my Chosen.”

Vulk had the sense of having suddenly been granted more knowledge, as an initiate.

“But don’t I have to go through a ceremony to prove my worthiness?”

“You just did.”

Vulk, awed, shifted into wolf form, and went for the glyph-lord as Kaz engaged an enemy, bigger and better trained than she. Vulk ran in, snarling, to hamstring the fellow, which would give Kaz a chance.

Meanwhile, the tróglings had paused to stare, and one of them muttered ‘Daywalker.’

Kaz felt her skin tingle, then burn, and bit down on a cry of pain as she started glowing, the pain of it almost unbearable.

“Sweet love! Open yourself in prayer and offering,” said Alethos’s mind voice. Kaz obediently did so, and the pain diminished, and the glowing reduced.

“What was it? Did he cast a spell on me? I did not see it!” Kaz was a little panicked.

“Your first worshippers worshipped you; but you are not equipped to take it yet,” explained Alethos. “You are receptive to power from prayer, and sacrifice of the magic force that runs through all, but not how to store or dissipate it from your body. I have done that for you, and I will see that you are better equipped in future. I did not realise your followers would try to raise you to minor goddess before you had become a hero. But it’s been done before, do not worry.”

“I must tell them just to worship you,” said Kaz.

“That boat pulled out of the harbour and sailed,” said Alethos. “I’ll find you an amulet of magic storage for now. Were you going to hit him, any time soon?”

Kaz, who had been frantically parrying the big war axe, ignored that snide aside, and danced in, parrying the axe once more, which was being damaged by her blade. The limping Toróg bellowed in rage, and swung the axe up high above his head, ready to smash it down on her head, and Kaz reversed stroke, activated her ring of fireblade, and cut upwards to the belly, then diving between his legs and rolling before the axe could descend on her.

The glyph lord was mortally wounded, but Kaz was spent, and quietly passed out as her opponent fell, and Vulk ripped out his throat.

Alethos manifested, and picked her up.

“Take her on your back, Vulk, and catch up with the others,” he said.

Vulk did so, awed, and got to the sleighs as they were about to set off.

“Is she….” Protasion let the question hang.

“She seems to be alive, but overcome,” said Vulk, transforming as Protasion lifted Kaz from his back. “She was glowing. I… will you laugh at me, if I tell you that Alethos materialised, and put her on my back?”

“Why would I laugh at you? Who is he but Death, and what does the prophecy say?”

“I… but surely that is not what such a curse means?”

“It may not have been meant as such, but Alethos’s mother is Fate, and she cheats.”

 

Vulk and Polia were rapidly coming to the conclusion that their world had changed quite radically, and that these young people were considerably more than quite hard initiates of a war god; but spoke of him almost familiarly.

“Wait one gods-damned minute!” said Vulk. “Were we played when she kept saying we couldn’t manage the discipline? Suckered in to be a saviour of the Lycoids, and… what?”

“Kaz doesn’t waste talent,” sniggered Lelyn. “You should be hearing a chime about now.”

“Yes, and one when I initiated,” said Vulk, “And when I swore to rescue lycoids.”

“That’s the one I heard when you swore. It’s Fate letting you know you worked out something important,” said Protasion. “I’m sure Kaz is getting one only louder to let her know she did the right thing in feeling you were needed. And we do also appreciate you saving her, may I say, my sword-brother.”

“I was glad to do so,” said Vulk. “And perhaps you will all help me to steal Lycoids for Alethos?”

“Gladly,” said Protasion.

“That raddled old, manipulative, interfering besom!” said Kaz, sitting up and rubbing her head.

“That’s no way to talk about your future mother-in-law,” said Lelyn.

“She set me up to introduce what I believe she calls ‘another piece on the board,’” said Kaz. “Welcome to the world of being a pawn of Fate, Vulk.”

“I daresay I shall come to terms with it,” said Vulk.

“What about me?” asked Polia. “Am I just incidental?”

“Oh, no,” said Kaz. “You’re Vulk’s prop and stay, as my friends are mine. And that is important. Unless Fate has a larger part for you, and that, she will doubtless announce smugly at the right time.”

 

The run to the hills overlooking Melokome was uneventful, which had been the whole point of having sleighs and wolves to pull them; though the wolves would not come into the farm. Kaz went round and petted all of them, which had them rolling around in the snow like puppies.

“And what now?” asked Protasion.

“Now? We give them a day round to eat, and rest, and then we take them on board the ship,” said Kaz. “Pythas has arranged accommodation in Mesolimnos until we can take them to the temple in the abandoned city. And in the meantime? In the meantime, we start to raid the Selenites, and take slaves from them, sabotage their efforts, and let them know they have an enemy. Once this first raid is known about, other trógling will come looking, and that means the Toróg, too, will be diminished. We start searching for hidden places like our cave in the woods, and then we can hit slave coffles hard and fast, and make them disappear.”

“It’s all about preparation,” said Evgon, nodding.

“Yes, and in getting people used to seeing us around, and writing us off as adventurers,” said Kaz. “Bandit hoards and their hideouts being on our agenda.”

“Looking innocent whilst plotting the downfall of the Selenite Empire,” said Kuros. “I can get behind that.”

“And Hakon and his friends, Zalmox and Alcitha also swore to oppose them,” said Kaz. “I suggest we sort out several teams to go ‘adventuring,’ and preparing for war.”

“To war!” toasted Protasion, with his water bottle.

“To the end of chaos!” answered Kaz.

They all drank to that.

 

End of ‘Fate’s Pawn.’

The next story is ‘Death’s Knight.’