The Line of Illeniel

Chapter 17

Back at the remains of our campsite Marc was chatting amiably with Cyhan. The large fighter was still buried almost to his neck, so he didn’t have much choice in the matter. I might have felt sorry for him but Marc was an excellent storyteller. I doubted he had been bored.

“How was it? Is the road clear?” asked Marc.

“It is now,” I said bluntly. I didn’t bother asking Cyhan if he would behave, with a few words I opened the earth up around him so he could climb out. I figured he was pragmatic enough to let bygones be bygones, now that the situation was resolved. “Let’s get moving. We have a long day ahead of us.”

The large man looked me over carefully as he came up out of the hole. A tense moment followed as I waited to see what he would do. “You sure it’s wise letting me out after that?” he asked calmly.

“I did what I needed to do,” I answered. “I don’t see the need to make an issue of it. Would you prefer to go back in the hole?” Despite my bravado I was working hard to keep my voice even.

“At least you’re learning,” he answered me.

“Learning what?”

“Not to waste your time attacking me with your fists. You didn’t hesitate, and you effectively neutralized my ability to threaten you with a minimum of effort,” he dusted some of the dirt from his clothing. “If you were my student I would be pleased.”

“And since I’m not your student?”

“I’ll make sure you don’t get the chance next time,” he gave me a wicked grin. A smile on the big man was unusual and sight of his teeth made me uneasy, bringing to mind images of a dangerous animal.

A short while later we were riding down the road, mules in tow. When we got to the site of the slaughter Cyhan insisted on stopping to examine the bodies. I didn’t bother arguing. They should know what sort of man they were traveling with anyway. Marc joined him but Penny stayed on her horse, she had seen enough already. Neither of us spoke.

When the two of them returned I could see the shock on Marc’s face but Cyhan was more reserved. “I’ve never seen anything quite like that,” the veteran commented. “What did you use?”

“Rocks,” I pulled one out of my pouch and flipped it in his direction. He caught it deftly.

“Where did you get that idea?” he asked.

“I have an active imagination.” Sarcasm is one of my strong suits.

“Some of them looked like they were running.”

“I thought they might have friends,” I said simply. I wasn’t about to show him any of my self-doubt.

“Maybe,” he said. “Some of them definitely had families; by their gear and clothing I could tell a few of them were guardsmen from the city.”

Guilt shot through me, thinking of their wives and children, but I fought it down. “They should have picked a better way to make extra money.” He grunted but didn’t say anything else.

We rode in silence after that. Marc tried to start up a conversation a few times but even he couldn’t overcome the dark cloud that hung over us. Penelope refused to even acknowledge his questions. Cyhan was less reticent but he wouldn’t respond with anything more than one syllable answers. Marc didn’t bother trying to engage me.

That evening we made camp without having encountered any more people on the road. Penny sparred with her teacher and even I could see she was starting to improve. She had a serious intensity about her now. After we had eaten Cyhan suggested she take watch with me. In his own way I suppose he was trying to give us an opportunity to make up.

“I’d rather not,” she said simply, and that was that.

Once my turn at watch was done I slept restlessly. I woke often, dreaming of the men I had slain. At one point I even dreamt of the stone lady. She was looking down on the bodies of the men I had killed. Slowly she moved from one to the next, leaning down to put her hand on their chests. As she touched each one the earth drew them down, until they were no longer visible. When she finished she looked at me and I could see tears in her eyes, glimmering crystals that fell endlessly to the still earth. She opened her mouth to speak to me but I couldn’t hear her words. She was at once both beautiful and sorrowful. Though I couldn’t hear her it seemed she was pleading with me, asking for something, but whatever it was I knew it was no longer in my power to give.

I woke suddenly, sweating. Glancing around the camp I saw Penny sitting next to Cyhan. They were talking softly, and he had his arm around her shoulder. He was probably trying to make her feel better but the sight kindled a dark fire in my belly. I closed my eyes to shut out the sight. It wasn’t my concern anymore anyway. She would need someone after I was gone. Assuming I could manage to find a way to get rid of our accursed bond.

Dawn came early, as it usually did. We broke camp quickly and set off down the road. Birds were singing and there was a mild breeze, which carried the pleasant smells of flowers and growing things to my nose. In short it was a miserable day. I’ve never understood why Mother Nature was so clueless with regard to my moods. Women were supposed to have excellent intuition after all. Then again I had long suspected Mother Nature was a bitch by choice.

Penny seemed to have recovered from our fight the day before. She was chatting amiably with Marc, a relief for him I’m sure. It had never been easy for him to be silent. Even Cyhan seemed more sociable, today he had increased the length of his responses from one syllable to several words. Sometimes he even put forth the effort to use whole sentences.

All in all, the lively atmosphere served to highlight my antisocial behavior. At one point Marc rose closer and after a moment I realized he was speaking to me.

“What?” I asked. I hadn’t been paying attention.

He sighed dramatically, “I was asking if you’re looking forward to getting back home.”

“Not particularly,” I replied. The thought of home just reminded me that I had broken things off with Penny. My bed would seem extremely empty after more than a year of sharing it with her.

“So what are you brooding about?” he inquired.

The question irritated me. He knew bloody well why I was out of sorts. He would also know that a public conversation was unlikely to improve things. “I was considering various methods for killing people. If war is coming to our lands I’ll need plenty of fresh ideas. I’m certain I can’t use stones to kill them all one by one, so I was thinking of ways to kill men in large groups.”

“That’s a really damned morbid way to spend your morning,” he commented sarcastically.

“I prefer to think of it as pragmatic.”

“It would be more practical if you spent your time trying to figure out how to make up to Penny,” he shot back.

I noticed the others were watching us. The last thing I wanted was to discuss my situation with Penny in front of them. “Go on ahead,” I waved at them. “I need to iron some things out with my friend here.”

“Sure,” Cyhan said. Penny pretended she hadn’t heard any of it. The two of them kept riding while I stopped my horse and faced Marc.

“You presume that I want to make up with Penny,” I told him once they were out of earshot.

He stared at me carefully, “Don’t give me that bullshit Mordecai. I’m the king of bullshit and I’ve known you far too long.”

“Is your goddess worried that if I don’t make up with Penny it will spoil her plans?” It was nonsense but I wanted to throw him off balance.

“The man I grew up with would never have acted like you did yesterday, not without a reason. Whatever you’re planning you need to talk to someone. How else will you know whether you’re being reasonable or deluding yourself?” he said, ignoring my insult.

“Why should I trust a god-ridden cast off?”

“Because I’m your goddamned friend!”

Something gave way inside me, “Alright, if you want my thoughts you’ll have to promise this stays between us.”

“That’s the first real insult you’ve given me today,” he answered coolly. There had never been any reservations between us before, nor had he ever betrayed my confidence.

“I’m going to die soon Marc. Penny had a vision not long ago.”

“What? Are you sure?”

“She’s certain, and I believe her… that’s part of the reason I didn’t want to accept her as my pact-bearer.”

Comprehension dawned visibly on his face. He chewed the thoughts over for a few moments before speaking again. It didn’t take him long though, he was a quick thinker. “So you think being a jackass will convince her to agree to end the bond?”

“I don’t know. Either that or I’ll figure a way to undo it myself. In any case when I’m gone it will be easier for her if she’s not head over heels in love with me. It will be easier for me too,” I finished.

“No it won’t. I swear, sometimes you’re the biggest idiot I’ve ever met,” he replied ruefully.

“Sometime in the next six months I have to kill an army’s worth of people. There’s no way we’re going to get enough men and supplies in half a year to stop an entire nation. What do you think that’s going to do to me Marc? I should be glad I’m dying. Do you think anyone can do that and just go back to living a normal life?” I asked.

“That’s precisely why you need her. You are going to need your friends and family. You’re going to need her support. If you cut yourself off from everyone you will turn into a monster,” he said emphatically.

“It doesn’t matter! I’ll be dead! What part of that are you not getting?” I shouted back at him.

“You don’t look dead to me. I don’t know what’s going to happen in six months. Maybe you will die, maybe you won’t. Recently I’ve come to believe in miracles, if you hadn’t noticed. But the most important thing, whether you accept that or not, is that if you cut yourself off from everyone you love, you might as well be dead already. Why rush things? Live! Make the most of the time you have!”

“She’s more important than that,” I said simply.

“Is that what it all boils down to? Her? Then you’re doubly a fool! This isn’t the way to get her to agree to break the bond.”

“Fine! You’re such a damn genius when it comes to women, why don’t you tell me how to get her to agree to it!?” I snapped.

Marc gave me a dark smile, “Think Mort, remember the past.”

“Huh?”

He leaned in closer, till our faces were barely a foot apart and explained, in detail, exactly how to get her to agree. The audacity of his idea shocked me.

“There’s no way I can be sure that will happen!” I exclaimed.

“You don’t have to be sure. Just lie; you’re the powerful wizard after all. No one has a clue what you can and can’t do… or know,” he gave me another of his most dazzling smiles.

“Lie to her?” I had never considered such a thing. “It doesn’t seem right.”

“You’ll be doing it to save her life remember?”

“That’s the same reasoning she gave for lying to me. How is this different?” I asked.

“It isn’t. Perhaps that will make it easier for you to forgive and forget in the meantime.” He leaned back in his saddle stretching as he looked to see how far down the road our companions were. “Just remember one thing Mort.”

“What’s that?”

“You have always been my best friend. I think of you as a brother. Hell, I’m closer to you than I am to my brother. I’m on your side so don’t shut me out again. If there is anything I can do to change the outcome I will, and I’ve got a pretty strong ally now. Don’t give up hope while you still have life in you,” he got down off his horse and walked over to mine.

I dismounted and gave him the hug I should have given him when I first saw him in the capital. Whatever else he was now, he was still my friend. We remounted and rode after Cyhan and Penny, urging our horses to a faster pace so we could catch up.

Neither Cyhan nor Penny asked us what we had talked about, and I didn’t volunteer any information. We rode the rest of the day listening to Marc’s stories about his adventures among the ladies of Albamarl. For a holy man he certainly had some wicked tales. Penny and I both laughed at a few of them, though we still weren’t talking. My heart was a bit lighter now that I had some hope, at least hope for her.