Part 15 (1/2)

Secure from the bolts and arrows of the Empire's sentries, a bareheaded messenger carrying a green bough rode along the drover's road, then up into the canyon, and slipped out Sorcerer and a (jentUrnan 145.

of sight in a cl.u.s.ter of high-topped evergreens.

Among the trees, Ottaviano and Golias watched the big-chested bay horse trot toward them with tall Dewar in his bright cloak on its back. When he arrived, Otto held the horse's head as the sorcerer dismounted.

”You're not going to believe this one,” Dewar said, grinning.

”Try me,” Golias said. ”He wants my head, and then it's all pardoned.”

Dewar shook his head, grinning still. ”Better than that.” Otto handed the horse's reins to a groom, murmuring ”You're welcome” to himself with a sidelong glance at Dewar. ”Let's go inside, shall we?” he said aloud.

They walked to Ottaviano's tent. Ottaviano turned and said ”Well?” softly as soon as they were inside. ”The man has imposing taste in wine,” Dewar said. ”Everybody knows that,” Otto said. ”What else?” ”He is imposing in height as well.” ”Dewar, knock it off. What did he say?” ”I thought I'd start with things you'd recognize as true, to enhance the improbability of his proposal. Here you are: If you and Golias will haul up and trek off with him to join Prince Herne in his defense of the Holy Homeland against Prince Prospero-”

”Then the rumors are true!” exclaimed Ottaviano. Golias snorted.

”I said they were,” Dewar said coolly. ”I also said it worked to your advantage. If you will do this, you, Ottaviano, become Baron of Ascolet, and you, Golias, are pardoned and named Prince; you both are permitted to bathe in the Well's fire, taken into the familial fold, and bygones go by the board.” Dewar smiled slightly. ”I think there is not much flexibility in this offer. The Marshal indicated that several times, subtly; he murmured that the Emperor's clemency should not be tested.” ”Baron of Ascolet,” muttered Ottaviano. ”My first thought on hearing that, Otto, is that it is no less than your father had.”

146.

I&zo6etfi ”That is true,” Otto said. ”For Golias, pardon.” ”Which is no small thing, considering how they feel about you,” and Dewar nodded to Golias.

”I don't give a black s.h.i.+t what they think. Anything else?”

”Not that he spoke of then. That may be the one item for which we can negotiate more: land for you.”

”I'd settle for cash.”

”You might not be able to get that. Wars tend to leave governments long on good intentions and short on coin.”

”Cash on the nail,” said Golias. ”What do you want to do, Otto?”

”I'll have to think about it.”

Golias snorted. ”He's offering this now because he'll take heavy losses and probably lose.”

”I do not tell futures,” Dewar said, bowing slightly.

Otto leaned back and drummed his fingers lightly. ”I'd rather have it be an independent country again,” he said. ”They will think I've sold short. I'll think I've sold short. For the privilege of facing down the man the Emperor fears more than anyone alive.”

”Is there a deadline?” Golias asked.

”I said you would tell him tomorrow at the same hour and so on whether it be acceptable or we desire more time in consideration. If we attack or move in the meantime, he will consider that a refusal and hostilities go on as previously scheduled.”

”I wonder if he's stalling for time,” Otto muttered. This hadn't occurred to Dewar. He lifted his eyebrows.

”Why?”

They looked at one another and then at Golias, who, a veteran of war with Landuc, was most familiar with the opponent.

Golias said, ”Reinforcements.”

”Not that I've seen,” Dewar said. ”I wonder where they'd come from. They seem to be throwing everything to Herne. Rightly, too; Prospero is a greater danger, though distant.”

”Then he wants to finish this up and head out after Prospero,” Ottaviano decided. ”Hm.” He slouched further Sorcerer and a Qentfaman 147.

down in his chair, tipping it, and propped his feet on a chest. ”Is there any advantage to us in continuing to fight here, now, if Gaston really wants to leave?” he asked, half-aloud.

”Prince Gaston isn't going to walk away from the fight,” Dewar said, shaking his head. ”Think of what people would say.”

”No, no. I'd never expect that. Maybe if Prospero marched on the capital, Gaston would evaporate for a while and come back later,” Otto said testily. ”I wonder ...” His voice trailed off; he took his oblong red folding knife from his pocket and began tapping it against his left palm. ”Prospero,” he said in an undertone.

Golias poured wine for himself. ”It's to Prospero's advantage that we delay Gaston here,” he said.

”It is,” Dewar said. ”No doubt he's very grateful to you.”

”How grateful do you think he is?” Otto asked his pocket-knife, cleaning a bit of grit from its handle with a fingernail, then opening the knife and beginning to clean his fingernails.

Dewar chuckled softly, shaking his head.

”What's funny?” Otto asked.

”I think it sounds like a good question,” Golias said. ”How grateful is he? Can he beat the Emperor's offer?”

”You just send round and ask him,” Dewar said. ”Do you think he doesn't know about you, about the war here? Of course he knows. If he were interested in prolonging it, you would have heard from him, or from a proxy.” He glanced at Golias for a moment. ”Have you?”

Ottaviano looked up from his knife, his attention caught by the sharp note in Dewar's voice. ”Have you?” he echoed, when Golias said nothing.

”Not lately,” Golias said. It was true; he had heard nothing from Prospero for the past twenty-five days. Twenty-five days ago, he had received payment in advance for the coming quarter's mayhem, a s.h.a.ggy pony trotting up to him with four bags of well-m.u.f.fled coins in its panniers. Golias had counted the coins, had slapped the pony and sent it trotting back wherever it came from, and a few days later had entered into contract with Ottaviano-at the rate of 14S -=>.

pay Otto had agreed to, which had been one and a half times Golias's last.

Otto had been somewhat surprised by the answer, but Golias had pointed out that the costs of doing business, for the independent man, had increased steeply.

”What did you hear and when?” Otto asked.

Golias gave Dewar a look of unveiled dislike. ”I've worked for him,” he said.

”Doing what?”

”That's confidential, Your Highness,” Golias retorted.

”So it is,” agreed Ottaviano, nodding. ”I beg your pardon. I didn't mean to pry.” Otto admired the underhanded, yet open, way in which Dewar had just made him aware that Golias's interest, after all was said and done, was in staying alive and getting paid for it, not in settling; had warned Golias that he knew more than Golias might like about the mercenary's business affairs; and had pointed out courteously that deals struck with Prince Prospero were unlikely to benefit anyone but Prospero. Dewar, one of these days, would make somebody a h.e.l.l of a Privy Counsellor.

”Don't see any point getting in touch with the Duke of Winds, now that you put it that way,” Otto said, frowning a little. ”If he wanted to exploit this, he'd have made an offer. Maybe what he wants is to face Prince Gaston fast- before he's had the expense of a drawn-out fight, before he has to spread himself out holding territory,” He thought, trying to second-guess Prospero. Prince Ga&ton was probably much better at doing so. Ottaviano began fiddling with his pocket-knife again. ”What was it the Marshal said about the offer, Dewar?”

”That the Emperor's clemency should not be tested. Those were his words,” Dewar said. ”I suspect strongly that the corollary is that, if you refuse now, there will be scant clemency later. Clemency does tend to decay, if not plucked promptly.”

Golias grunted. ”Clemency. Yeah. We get to go fight for Avril, instead of ourselves.”

Dewar shrugged. ”Fighting and causes and so on aside,” he observed, ”they are much alike, being baron of a large Sorcerer and a (jentfeman 149.