It was early the next morning when Liam left the tribe, having stayed up
late the previous night, sitting around the campfire with the men of the
tribe and listening to stories about his mother's time riding with the
Bloody Hawk. They asked him to bring their greetings to those members of
the tribe who were serving with the King's Own, a force that seemed to have
many Bazhir members as well as the young noblemen it traditionally
contained.
Before Liam left, he asked Kourrem, as the shaman of the tribe, to put a strong illusion on him to hide his telltale features. It wasn't that he was ashamed of them, but they were very unusually and would attract a lot of notice, especially in Tortall, where Alanna the Lioness was one of the most popular modern heroes.
With a little guidance from the tribe sentries, he found the road again and continued along it, past Persopolis, the only Bazhir city, and into the green fields of the hill country. He now truly felt that he was coming home. The Bazhir desert, while technically a part of Tortall, was in reality a very different place and not all of the tribes kept their allegiance to King Jonathan as ruler of Tortall.
A few days later, almost an hour's brisk walk from Corus itself, Liam paused on a hill in a clearing in the Royal Forest to gaze at the idyllic view spread out before him. A quiet rustle, that only a trained Shang would notice as out of place, caused him to spin automatically into a fighting crouch.
He was only just in time, as men poured out from the undergrowth. From their dress, they were merely a band of common robbers, driven by hunger to attack solitary travellers, but even they could kill him with their numbers.
Liam despatched the first quickly, and pressed grimly on with the slaughter. The only way he, without a horse, would be able to escape, would be by killing them all, or by killing enough of them to scare the others away.
Arrows flew at him from the trees as he wove and spun in the fray. One hit him solidly in the shoulder. Liam yelled in pain and leapt at the archer, who was unwisely standing close to the combat. Soon, bleeding from freely from his wound, he was the only one left alive, and staggered on along the road to the city, praying that he would reach help before he died.
It was a while later when two horsemen came past. They stopped when they saw him. He was truly a sorry sight, as his makeshift bandage, hastily applied one handed, had long since fallen off and he was lying in the dust of the road, unconscious and covered in blood.
The knight leapt from his horse and dropped to his knees beside the unconscious youth.
"Alan, fetch the bandages from my saddlebags. We'll have to take him into Corus with us, if he survives."
The other man, who appeared, at about nineteen, a few years younger than his master, fetched them hastily and together they managed to stop the bleeding. Liam stirred sluggishly from his stupor.
"Who are you?" Alan asked urgently. "Who are you looking for? Who are you from?"
"Cooper," Liam managed to groan before slumping again. Alan looked startled.
"We'd better take him to Grandfather, and fast!" he said, forgetting for the moment his lowly status as a squire. "He might have important information."
"You're probably right. Take his pack and help me lift him up in front of me. He doesn't look heavy enough to burden Hunter."
Together, the pair brought Liam to the town house of Sir Myles of Olau, the King's spymaster and the generally acknowledged court drunk and, by adoption and marriage, Alan's grandfather.
"Grandfather!" Alan called, after they'd been admitted by a silent servant. "We found a man on the road, hurt badly! All he managed to say was Cooper!"
Myles came out of his study at a run and took one look at them.
"Take him upstairs quickly Faleron," he ordered. "Alan, run and fetch Eleni now! This poor lad isn't one of mine, but he's plucky enough be all accounts. He might be a messenger from your father."
Myles's wife, a healer, joined them hastily. She laid gentle, skilful hands on the wound and frowned, looking up at the others.
"He's bound in an illusion spell, a strong one. I'll have to break it before I can heal him. Alan, I'll need your help."
Alan placed his hands over hers, allowing her to draw from his strength and his gift. With a surge of power, the illusion broke, and Liam reverted to his normal appearance. Myles looked him over carefully and chuckled.
"Silly boy, Alan. He wasn't saying your father's name; he was saying his own. There's only one person I'd expect to look like this and arrive in this sort of condition, and that's young Liam. He obviously takes after your mother."
Alan stared at him.
"Liam? But we haven't heard from him in years, not since he went to Shang!"
"I know that's where he went, look at his hand if you don't believe me. The Shang mark their own, when they come to the mastery. He's good, Alan, or he wouldn't have that, possibly even better than your mother in her extreme youth, and she was famous world-wide for her sword work. I just wonder how many he was up against to come to us like this."
At last, Eleni finished and came out of her healing trance. She sat down heavily into the closest chair. The healing had taken many hours. Sir Faleron had ridden out again along the road in search of evidence, and had returned looking stunned. He announced the total body count as thirty-one. Thirty-one men, and Liam had, completely alone, killed them all in one day.
It was the next day before Liam stirred. He opened his eyes to see Sir Myles looking jubilantly down on him, not having left his bedside throughout his unconsciousness.
"Grandpapa?" he said drowsily. "How'd I get here?"
"Your brother found you, little one. How are you feeling now?"
"Hungry. Can I get up? I was due at court the day I was in the fight - what day is this anyway? The others will be worried about me if I'm late."
Myles smiled at him.
"Don't worry Liam, that was only yesterday. I'm sure they'll know that you're okay and you can fend for yourself, else you wouldn't be Shang, would you now? I'll send them a message if you want. I take it you want to surprise everyone with your arrival? So, the message will be private. You youngsters. All right, you may go to court tomorrow, before you ask, so long as you spend today in bed. You know that healings make you tired, and you needed one. Your parents are arriving tomorrow too, so you'll be able to see them."
"Thank you."
Before Liam left, he asked Kourrem, as the shaman of the tribe, to put a strong illusion on him to hide his telltale features. It wasn't that he was ashamed of them, but they were very unusually and would attract a lot of notice, especially in Tortall, where Alanna the Lioness was one of the most popular modern heroes.
With a little guidance from the tribe sentries, he found the road again and continued along it, past Persopolis, the only Bazhir city, and into the green fields of the hill country. He now truly felt that he was coming home. The Bazhir desert, while technically a part of Tortall, was in reality a very different place and not all of the tribes kept their allegiance to King Jonathan as ruler of Tortall.
A few days later, almost an hour's brisk walk from Corus itself, Liam paused on a hill in a clearing in the Royal Forest to gaze at the idyllic view spread out before him. A quiet rustle, that only a trained Shang would notice as out of place, caused him to spin automatically into a fighting crouch.
He was only just in time, as men poured out from the undergrowth. From their dress, they were merely a band of common robbers, driven by hunger to attack solitary travellers, but even they could kill him with their numbers.
Liam despatched the first quickly, and pressed grimly on with the slaughter. The only way he, without a horse, would be able to escape, would be by killing them all, or by killing enough of them to scare the others away.
Arrows flew at him from the trees as he wove and spun in the fray. One hit him solidly in the shoulder. Liam yelled in pain and leapt at the archer, who was unwisely standing close to the combat. Soon, bleeding from freely from his wound, he was the only one left alive, and staggered on along the road to the city, praying that he would reach help before he died.
It was a while later when two horsemen came past. They stopped when they saw him. He was truly a sorry sight, as his makeshift bandage, hastily applied one handed, had long since fallen off and he was lying in the dust of the road, unconscious and covered in blood.
The knight leapt from his horse and dropped to his knees beside the unconscious youth.
"Alan, fetch the bandages from my saddlebags. We'll have to take him into Corus with us, if he survives."
The other man, who appeared, at about nineteen, a few years younger than his master, fetched them hastily and together they managed to stop the bleeding. Liam stirred sluggishly from his stupor.
"Who are you?" Alan asked urgently. "Who are you looking for? Who are you from?"
"Cooper," Liam managed to groan before slumping again. Alan looked startled.
"We'd better take him to Grandfather, and fast!" he said, forgetting for the moment his lowly status as a squire. "He might have important information."
"You're probably right. Take his pack and help me lift him up in front of me. He doesn't look heavy enough to burden Hunter."
Together, the pair brought Liam to the town house of Sir Myles of Olau, the King's spymaster and the generally acknowledged court drunk and, by adoption and marriage, Alan's grandfather.
"Grandfather!" Alan called, after they'd been admitted by a silent servant. "We found a man on the road, hurt badly! All he managed to say was Cooper!"
Myles came out of his study at a run and took one look at them.
"Take him upstairs quickly Faleron," he ordered. "Alan, run and fetch Eleni now! This poor lad isn't one of mine, but he's plucky enough be all accounts. He might be a messenger from your father."
Myles's wife, a healer, joined them hastily. She laid gentle, skilful hands on the wound and frowned, looking up at the others.
"He's bound in an illusion spell, a strong one. I'll have to break it before I can heal him. Alan, I'll need your help."
Alan placed his hands over hers, allowing her to draw from his strength and his gift. With a surge of power, the illusion broke, and Liam reverted to his normal appearance. Myles looked him over carefully and chuckled.
"Silly boy, Alan. He wasn't saying your father's name; he was saying his own. There's only one person I'd expect to look like this and arrive in this sort of condition, and that's young Liam. He obviously takes after your mother."
Alan stared at him.
"Liam? But we haven't heard from him in years, not since he went to Shang!"
"I know that's where he went, look at his hand if you don't believe me. The Shang mark their own, when they come to the mastery. He's good, Alan, or he wouldn't have that, possibly even better than your mother in her extreme youth, and she was famous world-wide for her sword work. I just wonder how many he was up against to come to us like this."
At last, Eleni finished and came out of her healing trance. She sat down heavily into the closest chair. The healing had taken many hours. Sir Faleron had ridden out again along the road in search of evidence, and had returned looking stunned. He announced the total body count as thirty-one. Thirty-one men, and Liam had, completely alone, killed them all in one day.
It was the next day before Liam stirred. He opened his eyes to see Sir Myles looking jubilantly down on him, not having left his bedside throughout his unconsciousness.
"Grandpapa?" he said drowsily. "How'd I get here?"
"Your brother found you, little one. How are you feeling now?"
"Hungry. Can I get up? I was due at court the day I was in the fight - what day is this anyway? The others will be worried about me if I'm late."
Myles smiled at him.
"Don't worry Liam, that was only yesterday. I'm sure they'll know that you're okay and you can fend for yourself, else you wouldn't be Shang, would you now? I'll send them a message if you want. I take it you want to surprise everyone with your arrival? So, the message will be private. You youngsters. All right, you may go to court tomorrow, before you ask, so long as you spend today in bed. You know that healings make you tired, and you needed one. Your parents are arriving tomorrow too, so you'll be able to see them."
"Thank you."
