Chapter 10
*
Author's note: This story is getting very long . . . I don't really know much myself about what is going to happen, so please don't be irritated if I'm a bit vague.
Thank you to all the nice people who reviewed my work. And thanks especially to Kirsty who listens to me talk (constantly) about my stories, and gives me advice without complaining (much).
Oh, by the way, if you see a sentence with a little '-' at either side, -like this,- it means that Vho and Kalathan are talking. It isn't exactly mindspeech, but the whole 'joined mentality' thing means they can talk. I wasn't going to have any special symbol for it, but it all got so confusing . . .
*
Edern's reassurances comforted Vho as she listened to the others talking over and discarding plan after plan. It helped to know that the Companions were on her side, even if they wouldn't disclose that to their Heralds as yet. If they weren't helping her, she would be tempted to go warn Kalathan what was happening, and damn the consequences.
The latest plan was basically a no-brainer. They would continue as they had been, and unmask the rest of the conspiring lords and arrest them. There was very little mention of what would happen to Kalathan, Vho noticed.
She decided to raise that point, out of a perversity that was a side effect of the lifebonding Vho particularly enjoyed. "Ahem -" She started. The plotters turned to face her, irritated resignation filling their faces. Vho had already deflated several promising ideas. "What exactly happens to Kalathan in this plan?"
Elspeth rolled her eyes. "By Valdemaran law he is a criminal," She said impatiently. "A criminal is less important in the scheme of things than getting rid of a dangerous ring of criminals."
Vho smiled. "Finally, a straight answer!" She said, enjoying the astonished looks of her companions. Elspeth in particular seemed very suspicious of Vho's sudden capitulation, but appeared to accept it.
-You're not going to let them kill me are you?-
It was Kalathan's voice, a mixture of astonishment and fear. Vho blinked in silent surprise. Of course it had always been a possibility that Kalathan would learn how to use their unique lifebonding as easily as Vho did, but Vho hadn't expected this.
-Don't worry,- She responded comfortingly, -They won't hurt you.-
-Are - are you a God?-
Vho nearly burst out laughing at Kalathan's worried question. -No,- She reassured him, still very much amused. -No, I'm not. But me, and all the other Heralds, are Chosen by messengers of the Gods.-
-Messengers?- Kalathan was incredulous, but he seemed relieved that he was not facing a deity, only a fellow mortal. -Really?-
-Well, sort of. The original King of Valdemar prayed to the Gods, and they sent him the Companions, the horse-creatures, to Choose good people to help him run the country.-
-Oh,- Kalathan sounded nonplussed.
Vho thought with some amusement that this was a strange conversation to be having with someone she'd never met, and someone who was technically her enemy.
-Yes, it is, isn't it?- Kalathan agreed with her.
-I don't think we have to be enemies,- Vho offered tentatively.
-Good. I don't want to be your enemy.-
*
The next day, Vho told Kalathan that they were loriganaela.
-That would explain a lot,- Kalathan said. Vho blinked. She hadn't expected him to take it at all well. -Why not?- There was amusement in his voice. -Anyway, a loriganaela couple shouldn't keep secrets.-
-Particularly not that they are loriganaela.- Vho agreed. Then, because soon he would find out anyway if their mind meld continued, she opened her mind and let him see all the information about how their lifebonding was different.
-That does, also, explain a lot,- Kalathan said after absorbing the information. After he felt Vho's astonishment at his easy acceptance, she felt it as the muscles in his face stretched into a grin. -It must be me getting your attitudes, passive girl,- he teased.
"Vho," The girl startled, hearing a real voice instead of the mental rapport she was sharing with Kalathan. "Vho, I want to talk with you." It was Silverfox, pulling his dyheli even with Edern. Kalathan's confusion was one with her own. "You're rather quiet today. Are you angry because we are favouring Valdemar over your lifebonded?"
-This guy doesn't have a clue,- Kalathan told her.
-Shush.- "I'm fine."
"It's just that you're so inward focused." Silverfox said. "You don't seem to pay any attention to anything we say. Is there anything wrong?"
-What am I meant to say?- Vho asked with dismay.
-You're on your own, sweetheart.- Kalathan responded with a mental laugh.
:You could pretend that you were finding out more about the conspiracy of lords,: Edern told her. :Come to think, it's not a bad idea.:
-Who?- Kalathan asked with surprise.
-You explain- She told Edern, hoping he was still listening in and could explain for himself. Then she turned her attention back to Silverfox, trying to ignore the conversation going on in her head.
"I've been spying on Kalathan," Vho lied. "I'm trying to get some more names for Elspeth."
"Oh," Silverfox seemed rather abashed, and dropped back to ride with Firesong again. Vho rather theatrically closed her eyes.
-That was entertaining,- Kalathan smirked.
:Indeed.: Edern seemed to be getting along fine with Kalathan.
-For verisimilitude, could you give me some names?- Vho asked. -Elspeth will bite my head off, else.-
-Anything for a beautiful woman,- Kalathan told her mock-gallantly. To her intense pique, Vho found herself blushing.
*
"Lord Javer is the ringleader," Vho reported later. "He is an apprentice mage himself, and it was him who found and identified the mage after he saw the signs of a mage battle on a dead Herald."
"Which one?" Elspeth asked curiously. The knowledge that Kalathan had killed one of the Heralds was obviously new to her.
"Herald Debra," Vho said after a consultation with both Kalathan and Edern.
"But she died in a landslide!" Elspeth objected. "About six months ago, in - oh," Elspeth's protest fell flat. "She was in the Comb . . ."
"Indeed," Vho said. "Anyway, Javer is the Lord of Festrenne, a small holding up in the far North. All the Lordlings around there are slightly bitter at their lot. The land isn't much good for farming, and they don't have much money. And they can't afford enough fighters to get more, better land. So they thought they could assassinate the queen, the heirs and the council, and use mage controlled bandits to seize the throne. All they needed was a mage with a reason."
"Who were the other lords?" Elspeth asked keenly.
"There are seven of them as well as Lord Javer." Vho continued. "Nabol, Garold, Meron, Arfur, Pierce, Josten and Willem."
Elspeth nodded after each name. "They are all minor nobles. Don't spend much time at court. Spend too much on their wardrobes and personal luxuries. All of them cheat on their wives - constantly and openly. No Heraldic connections." Elspeth saw Vho's stunned expression and smiled. "When I was the Heir, I had to memorize things like that."
*
The next day, Vho's group passed a destroyed village - one that Kalathan had 'punished for blasphemy'. Even after the Skybolts had cleaned up a little, it was horrendous.
The village had been partially burnt down, but charred timbers still stuck up out of the ruins of houses, like spears clawing at the sky. In some more sheltered areas, the road was badly discoloured with reddish stains, and sticking out from under a pile of rocks and rubble stuck a human foot.
Elspeth rode up to her, sadness in her eyes. "This is what Kalathan did," She said in regretful triumph. "These are the acts of the man you're protecting. He killed these people, destroyed this village."
"Couldn't they have buried him?" Vho asked sickly, indicating the man in his crude rubble tomb.
"They did," Elspeth said in a stony voice. She pointed out at the field, where row upon row of unmarked graves stood, the raw, clay soil showing up sharply against the stubbly, fallow, green grass. Vho wanted to be sick.
-Oh, Gods,- Kalathan said weakly, sounding as ill as Vho felt. -Did I do all this?- Self hate and disgust filled his mind, and Vho felt an echo of it herself, though for different reasons.
You allowed yourself to forgive the perpetrator of this? Vho asked herself in shock, knowing Kalathan could probably hear her and not caring. You allowed yourself to like him?
:It wasn't Kalathan who did this, Vho.: Edern, too, seemed disgusted by the slaughter that had happened here. :Not really. Not any more. He is a totally different person now.:
-I'll still have to remember it, though,- Kalathan said soberly. -It'll still be on my conscience.-
:And that proves that you are different.:
* * * * *
'dulce et decorum est pro patria morai'
For people who don't speak Latin, that means 'It is sweet and proper to die for one's country.' And no, that's not a hint of things to come. It's just fun to say.
*
Author's note: This story is getting very long . . . I don't really know much myself about what is going to happen, so please don't be irritated if I'm a bit vague.
Thank you to all the nice people who reviewed my work. And thanks especially to Kirsty who listens to me talk (constantly) about my stories, and gives me advice without complaining (much).
Oh, by the way, if you see a sentence with a little '-' at either side, -like this,- it means that Vho and Kalathan are talking. It isn't exactly mindspeech, but the whole 'joined mentality' thing means they can talk. I wasn't going to have any special symbol for it, but it all got so confusing . . .
*
Edern's reassurances comforted Vho as she listened to the others talking over and discarding plan after plan. It helped to know that the Companions were on her side, even if they wouldn't disclose that to their Heralds as yet. If they weren't helping her, she would be tempted to go warn Kalathan what was happening, and damn the consequences.
The latest plan was basically a no-brainer. They would continue as they had been, and unmask the rest of the conspiring lords and arrest them. There was very little mention of what would happen to Kalathan, Vho noticed.
She decided to raise that point, out of a perversity that was a side effect of the lifebonding Vho particularly enjoyed. "Ahem -" She started. The plotters turned to face her, irritated resignation filling their faces. Vho had already deflated several promising ideas. "What exactly happens to Kalathan in this plan?"
Elspeth rolled her eyes. "By Valdemaran law he is a criminal," She said impatiently. "A criminal is less important in the scheme of things than getting rid of a dangerous ring of criminals."
Vho smiled. "Finally, a straight answer!" She said, enjoying the astonished looks of her companions. Elspeth in particular seemed very suspicious of Vho's sudden capitulation, but appeared to accept it.
-You're not going to let them kill me are you?-
It was Kalathan's voice, a mixture of astonishment and fear. Vho blinked in silent surprise. Of course it had always been a possibility that Kalathan would learn how to use their unique lifebonding as easily as Vho did, but Vho hadn't expected this.
-Don't worry,- She responded comfortingly, -They won't hurt you.-
-Are - are you a God?-
Vho nearly burst out laughing at Kalathan's worried question. -No,- She reassured him, still very much amused. -No, I'm not. But me, and all the other Heralds, are Chosen by messengers of the Gods.-
-Messengers?- Kalathan was incredulous, but he seemed relieved that he was not facing a deity, only a fellow mortal. -Really?-
-Well, sort of. The original King of Valdemar prayed to the Gods, and they sent him the Companions, the horse-creatures, to Choose good people to help him run the country.-
-Oh,- Kalathan sounded nonplussed.
Vho thought with some amusement that this was a strange conversation to be having with someone she'd never met, and someone who was technically her enemy.
-Yes, it is, isn't it?- Kalathan agreed with her.
-I don't think we have to be enemies,- Vho offered tentatively.
-Good. I don't want to be your enemy.-
*
The next day, Vho told Kalathan that they were loriganaela.
-That would explain a lot,- Kalathan said. Vho blinked. She hadn't expected him to take it at all well. -Why not?- There was amusement in his voice. -Anyway, a loriganaela couple shouldn't keep secrets.-
-Particularly not that they are loriganaela.- Vho agreed. Then, because soon he would find out anyway if their mind meld continued, she opened her mind and let him see all the information about how their lifebonding was different.
-That does, also, explain a lot,- Kalathan said after absorbing the information. After he felt Vho's astonishment at his easy acceptance, she felt it as the muscles in his face stretched into a grin. -It must be me getting your attitudes, passive girl,- he teased.
"Vho," The girl startled, hearing a real voice instead of the mental rapport she was sharing with Kalathan. "Vho, I want to talk with you." It was Silverfox, pulling his dyheli even with Edern. Kalathan's confusion was one with her own. "You're rather quiet today. Are you angry because we are favouring Valdemar over your lifebonded?"
-This guy doesn't have a clue,- Kalathan told her.
-Shush.- "I'm fine."
"It's just that you're so inward focused." Silverfox said. "You don't seem to pay any attention to anything we say. Is there anything wrong?"
-What am I meant to say?- Vho asked with dismay.
-You're on your own, sweetheart.- Kalathan responded with a mental laugh.
:You could pretend that you were finding out more about the conspiracy of lords,: Edern told her. :Come to think, it's not a bad idea.:
-Who?- Kalathan asked with surprise.
-You explain- She told Edern, hoping he was still listening in and could explain for himself. Then she turned her attention back to Silverfox, trying to ignore the conversation going on in her head.
"I've been spying on Kalathan," Vho lied. "I'm trying to get some more names for Elspeth."
"Oh," Silverfox seemed rather abashed, and dropped back to ride with Firesong again. Vho rather theatrically closed her eyes.
-That was entertaining,- Kalathan smirked.
:Indeed.: Edern seemed to be getting along fine with Kalathan.
-For verisimilitude, could you give me some names?- Vho asked. -Elspeth will bite my head off, else.-
-Anything for a beautiful woman,- Kalathan told her mock-gallantly. To her intense pique, Vho found herself blushing.
*
"Lord Javer is the ringleader," Vho reported later. "He is an apprentice mage himself, and it was him who found and identified the mage after he saw the signs of a mage battle on a dead Herald."
"Which one?" Elspeth asked curiously. The knowledge that Kalathan had killed one of the Heralds was obviously new to her.
"Herald Debra," Vho said after a consultation with both Kalathan and Edern.
"But she died in a landslide!" Elspeth objected. "About six months ago, in - oh," Elspeth's protest fell flat. "She was in the Comb . . ."
"Indeed," Vho said. "Anyway, Javer is the Lord of Festrenne, a small holding up in the far North. All the Lordlings around there are slightly bitter at their lot. The land isn't much good for farming, and they don't have much money. And they can't afford enough fighters to get more, better land. So they thought they could assassinate the queen, the heirs and the council, and use mage controlled bandits to seize the throne. All they needed was a mage with a reason."
"Who were the other lords?" Elspeth asked keenly.
"There are seven of them as well as Lord Javer." Vho continued. "Nabol, Garold, Meron, Arfur, Pierce, Josten and Willem."
Elspeth nodded after each name. "They are all minor nobles. Don't spend much time at court. Spend too much on their wardrobes and personal luxuries. All of them cheat on their wives - constantly and openly. No Heraldic connections." Elspeth saw Vho's stunned expression and smiled. "When I was the Heir, I had to memorize things like that."
*
The next day, Vho's group passed a destroyed village - one that Kalathan had 'punished for blasphemy'. Even after the Skybolts had cleaned up a little, it was horrendous.
The village had been partially burnt down, but charred timbers still stuck up out of the ruins of houses, like spears clawing at the sky. In some more sheltered areas, the road was badly discoloured with reddish stains, and sticking out from under a pile of rocks and rubble stuck a human foot.
Elspeth rode up to her, sadness in her eyes. "This is what Kalathan did," She said in regretful triumph. "These are the acts of the man you're protecting. He killed these people, destroyed this village."
"Couldn't they have buried him?" Vho asked sickly, indicating the man in his crude rubble tomb.
"They did," Elspeth said in a stony voice. She pointed out at the field, where row upon row of unmarked graves stood, the raw, clay soil showing up sharply against the stubbly, fallow, green grass. Vho wanted to be sick.
-Oh, Gods,- Kalathan said weakly, sounding as ill as Vho felt. -Did I do all this?- Self hate and disgust filled his mind, and Vho felt an echo of it herself, though for different reasons.
You allowed yourself to forgive the perpetrator of this? Vho asked herself in shock, knowing Kalathan could probably hear her and not caring. You allowed yourself to like him?
:It wasn't Kalathan who did this, Vho.: Edern, too, seemed disgusted by the slaughter that had happened here. :Not really. Not any more. He is a totally different person now.:
-I'll still have to remember it, though,- Kalathan said soberly. -It'll still be on my conscience.-
:And that proves that you are different.:
* * * * *
'dulce et decorum est pro patria morai'
For people who don't speak Latin, that means 'It is sweet and proper to die for one's country.' And no, that's not a hint of things to come. It's just fun to say.