20. Before the Storm

I was really starting to understand the Lioness's aversion to the cold. The North was naturally a harsh climate, but at this time of year made it especially brutal. My hands were numb and frozen in the grip around Peachblossom's reins. The only warmth keeping me focused as the wind whipped around me came from Jump who rode behind me, and Anita, behind him, her hands clutching my cloak. I had wound a scarf around my neck and across my mouth in attempt to insulate the sparrows, but still couldn't feel anything from them. Muffled, I called out to them.

"Hey, you two doing alright in there?"

Two soft peeps answered, but didn't sound very convincing. The wind cut through my hood like paper. Carefully I dug my fingers under the collar of the cloak and felt around for my feathered friends. One at a time, shielding them from the biting wind, I drew them out of my hood and tucked them down next to Jump. He whined as I did, and I gave him a pat.

"I know they're not doing too well, but it's all I can do right now."

Glancing over my shoulder, I took in the condition of my other passenger.

"Anita?"

Her leather cloak shielded her from the winter weather better than my woolen one. She lifted her head and nodded. I turned my gaze to sweep behind us where the masses of White Tiger soldiers packed down the broken snow. Our pace was steady, considering that the men on foot had to walk through a mess of white powder churned up by the hooves of the calvary. Even with the winds cutting down the Atum Plain, the snow collected in packed sheets up to two feet deep. Horses did not have much difficulty wading through the crust, but a person on foot would quickly become exhausted. However, we were still not moving fast enough for my tastes. Something nagged me in the back of my mind to go on - that I was needed.

A dark figure on horseback came towards us. It was Anpu, the general of the White Tiger army. His head bare and snow frosting his hair, he pulled up next to Peachblossom.

"Sir Domitian, I have just received word from the Seers."

My heart tried to go in two different directions at once.

"You are to go ahead of us to the Eire of Horus and do what you may to prepare for our arrival. The daughter of Leon is to go with you."

I frowned. "Is that so smart? We have yet to create a new plan now that Maggur is expecting us."

"It is not my place to question orders."

Anita nudged me in the back. "It is fine. Ride on."

With no encouragement from me, Peachblossom's strides doubled in length as we pulled away from the line. As the forces behind us faded into a black crawling mass I asked,

"Why do you think everything's fine?"

She shifted her pack on her shoulders before answering. "The battle is not your concern but my father's. You and I must find the Protector."

"How will we get into the town?"

"We will have help."

With a shrug I turned back into the fierce wind.

888

The sky was a dark powdery gray by the time we reached the stone walls of the outlaying town of Horus. Snow was lightly falling, but thankfully the wind had diminished against the sheltering mountainside. The Scanran's had a talent for building into rock faces. Through the dim white of snow I could make out the warm yellow squares of windows far up above. Dismounting from Peachblossom, I lifted Jump, who wore a wool lined canine jacket from a fawning villager in Cairo, to the ground. Anita slid easily to the ground on her own. Very gently I tucked my feathered friends into the front pocket of my shirt. Giving a rub to Peachblossom's forehead, I followed Anita to the wall.

Maggur wasn't one to concern himself with the common people so it surprised me that the walls around the town were so well built. Huge granite blocks had been cut in such a way that their ends interlocked and strengthened themselves. They rose three stories into the sky with no opening except the massive main door made from ironbound shale plates over thick timber. I measured it with a military eye. No guards were visible on patrol. There were no slots along the edge of the wall which would protect a bowman as he fired his arrows or crossbolts. The only heavy defenses were centered directly over the gate which was simply another story of stone which housed the entryway. Overall, the outer defenses would be nearly perfect against any great army. One such as the White Tigers marching behind us.

Anita had moved away from me as I inspected the obstacles. Slogging through the now knee-deep snow, I raised an eyebrow as she touched the stone blocks one by one as she passed them. Just before I opened my mouth to question her, she paused.

"The Eire of Horus was built long before Maggur ever came to power. It has been a stronghold for the tribes for centuries but only a select few know this one weakness. Even fewer have the power to access it."

In a few deliberate movements, she touched the four corners of the block in front of her. Whispering something under her breath, she repeated the action and stepped back. Accompanied with the sound of rasping gravel, the surface of the stone popped open. Anita vanished inside. I turned and waved to Peachblossom before trying to follow.

"Anita?"

There was more rasping of stone before a block of cold gray light opened a few feet ahead. I could just barley stand inside the tunnel, however, Peachblossom's shoulders would be scraping the ceiling. He stuck his head in and snorted.

"Hey, if you can't make it, we'll come back for you later."

Ears back, the war horse stooped and grunted his way through, leaving a few small clumps of hair behind in some places. When he stumbled out the other side, he promptly turned to bite my shoulder.

"What was that for?"

He shook his entire body and snorted pointedly at his last ordeal.

"It's not my fault that you're so big. You wanted to follow me."

Turning I caught the stare Anita was giving us. I shrugged sheepishly. She merely rolled her eyes and closed the tunnel. We had come out in what looked like the slums of the town. Piles of trash overflowed into one another with an occasional shack tucked in an artificial hollow. My foot broke through a crust of ice over a vial-smelling puddle. I couldn't help blessing the small luck that even though winter in the mountains may be brutal, it at least spared me the true nature of the dumps and kept the smells to a minimum.

"Come on, we need to find a place to hide before nightfall."

Whistling to Jump who had found a particularly interesting sent, I followed her from the rubbish heaps into a slightly more populated area - slightly being a key word. Keeping my voice low, I said,

"I'm assuming you know of such a place."

She nodded, her eyes continually scanning the dark doorways of the sheds and shacks we passed. "Your horse is a novel sight in town these days. It's something which many will not forget quickly. We must get to the square."

That statement confused me. Squares were the center of a city or town, where people would most likely be gathered in any number. If we were trying to avoid being seen, then why were we headed right to the middle of our problem? A whisper drifted to my ears.

"I never thought I'd be back here again."

I decided to fall back on one of my Lord Raoul's lessons: If you're in a situation you don't understand, then shut up.

We reached the square soon enough. It was empty except for puddles of muddy snow. Anita frowned, then made her way to the door of a larger house with a sign giving the name Stone Tavern. She knocked and called out,

"Misha! It's cold out here!"

After a long moment the door opened slightly and a bright blue eye looked us both up and down.

"What do you want?"

Anita smiled. "Misha, how's your son? He must be about five or six now?"

The eye widened and the door opened to reveal a pale young woman. "Anita Karr?"

"Atch, I'm back from nowhere."

"What are you doing here?"

Anita glanced around the square behind us once more. With a sigh, she pushed back the hood of her cloak and stepped past the still startled woman.

"We need to put the horse up in the old stable. No one knows were here, and hopefully it will stay that way for some time yet. I come with a promise from my clan."

"Ani? Anita?"

My hand went to my sword at the voice of another in the room. A man had just stepped through a back door in the room. He carried an empty barrel which hit the floor with a hollow thunk. Black lines tattooed in the pattern of feathers traced down bare arms to the elbow. A single lock of pale brown hair hung over his eyes, both which were fixed on my companion in shock.

"Tavis."

Neither moved. I looked from one to the other, sensing a long history coming to a circle, a history where my presence was not needed or desired. Quietly I caught the other woman, Misha's, attention and we slipped out the door.

888

Tavis swallowed. "How have you been?"

"Since Daxon died? Horrible. Since our people became divided? Miserable. Since I knew that you had forgotten about me? Wretched."

He gripped the table top with both hands. "I never forgot you."

"You broke our promise. Our pact that we would always come together if something bad happened to one of us."

"I don't think death was what we had in mind."

A harsh laugh drew his attention. Anita had turned her back on him, untying the wet cloak from her shoulders.

"The three of us were such children back then. Especially you."

He frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

She waved a dismissing hand then began fingering her damp hair. "You, what you did when you found out I was to marry Daxon. You left us."

"It wouldn't have been right for me to stay. He knew it too, and he understood, so why can't you?"

"Daxon knew?" Her nervous hands stilled.

Tavis slowly moved to stand behind her. "You were the love of both our lives. He was happy to share your love with me, but when the decision was made, I had no more right to share - even though he was still willing to give. I had to leave for my own sake, for the three of us." He sighed. "Anyway, you didn't even really know what you wanted. We were just friends in your mind, not lovers."

"But you still weren't there when he died. You didn't even send word."

"Another one to list against Maggur the Red. I was bound to him still. I had heard of a rebellion being put down, and the names of the leaders, but it made no impact on me until it was too late."

When she finally looked up at him, tears were silently tracing their way down her face. "And now? What do you feel about it now?"

"Now," He brushed at the dampness, "Now I wish I could have been there, taken his place, done anything to keep this pain from killing you inside out."

Anita buried her face against his chest. "Losing you would have done the same thing. I needed you both. Marriage or not, you and Daxon were my whole world."

Pulling her closer, Tavis gently kissed the top of her head. He knew that war was coming. He knew that the Protector needed every bit of help they could give her. He knew, and yet he still stood unmoving as the one he thought he had lost years ago finally returned. His heart lay in the fractured woman clinging to his shirt.

888

When I had returned from taking care of Peachblossom in the run down stable behind the tavern, I took care to ignore the redness in Anita's eyes. Everything would be explained later, or else I was not meant to know. Warily I reevaluated the newcomer. Misha had told me that he was the son of the chief of the Black Hawk clan and was the one who formed the rebellion within the Eire.

We all sat around the table as Misha served us stew over some kind of boiled grain. It was hot and filling so for a while there was no sound except the scraping of spoons. A slight tug on my pants made me look down to my right. A young boy stood there, a finger in his mouth and blue eyes solemnly observing. I smiled.

"Hey kid. Wanna seat up here?"

He nodded and climbed up on the bench next to me.

"Geo! How many times to I have to tell you not to leave the back room when there's company?"

I handed the boy my bowl and let him finish what was inside. "No harm done. He's just got a healthy curiosity."

"A bit too healthy. The Red gathered all the children in this region into his fortress under the guise of protecting them."

My stomach sank. The man, Tavis, must have read my expression.

"I'm not the only one then, who knows his true nature. The Protector knew as much also."

Stunned, I asked, "You know Keladry?"

"Of course, we stole the children right out from under Maggur's nose."

Unable to help myself, I started laughing. The gods have strange ways of working in the world. No matter where she goes, my Lady knight finds allies and ways to use her beloved laws of chivalry. Still chuckling, I took a sip of water before explaining myself.

"Last summer I helped her do the same thing at Rahhausak where they were making those iron beasts. That's really when this all started. Maggur got word of Tortall's lady knights and wanted to meet them."

Tavis's eyes darkened. "I was there. I helped your friend as best I could, but Maggur is very aware of what goes on among his soldiers."

"So where is she now?"

"She is still inside the fortress."

"Alone?"

"Atch, mostly, the Red has taken his troops out to meet your own, he left last night."

"Last night?" I got to my feet. "We didn't see anything as we rode in. We haven't seen anyone in the town either."

Anita reached over to her bow and arrows. "They're setting up a trap for my people."

A wheezy laugh at the door was ill timed in my opinion. It came from an ancient old woman with mismatched eyes. Leaning heavily on a cane, she stumped towards us.

"A trap atch, one of their own making which will trap themselves."

Anita gasped. "Divina!"

"It is me, child. I have been here all along, waiting, watching. The Protector is also waiting and watching. She will know when it is her time. And so will you." Blue and red fixed on me. "Now, however, is not that time. Sit down, young one, for your love is blinding you."

Surprises were starting to lose their effect on me. Keladry herself could walk in the door next and I would have simply nodded - well, probably not just a nod, but the idea's the same. I sat down with a groan.

Misha brought out a chair for the ancient White Tiger seer. Others were beginning to fill the room, older men, women, and a few youth. Even with such a crowd, hardly a word was said. They stared at me with open curiosity and some suspicion but were more focused on Divina and Tavis. When not one more person could fit into the room, the seer rapped the floor with her cane.

"The time has now come for what you have all been suffering for. The Red has taken the fighting men, convinced them that they are all that matters. We must now prove them wrong. The prophesy is coming to a close. A great battle will be fought. You must have courage, or Scanra will fall and be blown away by the breath of Shu, the god of the sky."