Part 39 (1/2)

The army had finally arrived.

TWENTY-ONE.

RetributionI he whistles and bells sounded the mob's doom as well I as our salvation, and they and the Tovieti knew it. A A. group of them charged the docks, but were broken against the arrows coming in from the transports and from the welcoming force I'd quickly a.s.sembled.

The riverboats moved to the docks then, and gangplanks dropped and long lines of men snaked across them, carrying their weapons with the ease of long familiarity. They paid no mind to the jeers and chants coming from other parts of the waterfront, but keenly looked about, evaluating a new battlefield, and, as like, what loot might present itself.

There was no singing, no flas.h.i.+ng display, and I wanted to grab each of the surviving Helms by the throat and say, ”See, this is what soldiers are, not your empty bulls.h.i.+t of trumpets, parades, and banners.”

General Turbery and Tenedos arrived just as the formation's de facto commander, normally head of the Varan Guard, was disembarking. He was a tall, rawboned man, cleanshaven, with short hair and a scar-seamed face, Domina Myrus Le Balafre. I knew him by reputation, a brawler, a swordsman, a duelist who'd killed more than his share, and a supremely confident and able battle commander.

*He saluted General Turbery.

”I thought you might never come,” the general said.

”I thought the same,” the domina said. ”We should have expected opposition the minute we put out down the river. But we didn't... and paid hard for our confidence. But no matter now.

”Sir. I have the honor to present the relief force for Nicias, thirteen regiments strong, six of horse, seven of foot. We await your orders.”

General Turbery hesitated, thinking. Tenedos stepped forward.

”Sir, may I offer a suggestion?”

Domina Le Balafre scowled at him.

”Who the blazes are you, sir, if I might ask?”

”Seer Laish Tenedos, special adviser to the general of the armies. Sir.”

The two men stared hard at each other. Domina Le Balafre was the first to lower his gaze, but I felt the clash of wills had just begun. General Turbery turned to the seer.

”Go ahead, sir. You've always been the first with an idea.”

”Sir,” Tenedos said, ”I think we should not wait, not develop a firm plan. Let us move immediately. Put the regiments into the parks, break them down into battle formation, and move them out into the city at first light. The Tovieti will never expect that.”

General Turbery blinked, then turned to Le Balafre.

”Can that be done?”

The domina was as startled as the general. Then he considered, and smiled tightly.

”Yes. We can manage that. Yes, indeed. That would be a short, sharp shock for the rabble. Sir, I can guarantee the Varan Guard will be ready, and... let me think... at least half, most likely more of the regiments. Maybe all of them,” he thought aloud. ”I'd suggest you only hold one of them back. The Seventeenth Ureyan Lancers won't be ready to fight.”

My own regiment! Apang touched me. What had happened? Le Balafre went on to explain, and now we found why the army was so late. They'd not been able to move downriver as fast as they should, because the supplies and new driving belts for the TaKIer-type transports ”somehow” weren't waiting at dockside as had been arranged. But things had not come to real grief until they entered the great delta, upstream from Nicias, just below the city of Cicognara. They'd encountered dense river fogs that forced them to tie up for days.

”Did you not recognize sorcery, sir?” Tenedos said.

”I pay little heed to magicians,” Le Balafre said. ”This time, it was my error.”

General Veli, the expedition's commander, had realized time was running short, and so, in spite of the weather, had set out once more. The fleet had become lost in the delta, taking dead-ended pa.s.sages or channels that shallowed uselessly. In one long, narrow strait they'd been attacked. The flags.h.i.+p had been hit by huge boulders, catapult-launched, ”although how the h.e.l.ls the G.o.ds-d.a.m.ned rebels managed to build them, let alone wrangle them into position in those G.o.ds-d.a.m.ned swamps, is beyond me.” The s.h.i.+p lost way, listed, and began sinking, and then archers came from hiding and volleyed arrows into the men trying to swim to sh.o.r.e.

”They killed General Veli then. And that's when the Lancers were crippled. They had their domina, uh...”

”Herstal,” I put in, in spite of myself. Le Balafre gave me a dark look-captains don't interrupt dominas-but said nothing.

”Herstal, yes, that's it, plus their adjutant and about half of their senior captains had gone on the flags.h.i.+p for a conference. We only fished a handful of men from the water, none of them officers.”

So my old enemy, Captain Lenett, was dead. Oddly, I was disappointed-I had been looking forward to a chance to show him he'd sadly misjudged me. Now, I'd never have the opportunity.

Three other riverboats had been sunk, but the fleet had rescued most of the men. Their attackers vanished into the swamps as rapidly as they'd emerged.

They went on, and found the main channel, then lost it again.

”It was then I had a bit of an idea,” Le Balafre said, smiling grimly. ”I'd heard, just rumors, y'know, about these sc.u.m and their strangling cords. They haven't come yet to Varan, where we'll give them a warm welcome.

”But I thought I' d have a peep into the gear of the riverboat pilots and officers. You'll never guess what I discovered in eight of them.”

”What did you do with those Tovieti when you'd discovered them?”

”Why, hung them, of course. They made pretty decorations on the boat's cranes, dangling and kicking like pomegranates in a summer wind.” He looked hard at Tenedos, probably expecting shock from the civilian.

”Good, sir,” Tenedos said warmly. ”Very good indeed. I promise you you'll have more strange fruit to admire before you leave Nicias.”

Le Balafre nodded approval. ”After that, we had no further trouble, and we came on Nicias late last night. We didn't dock because, frankly, we didn't know what our reception was. Glad you were able to hold out.”

”Yes,” General Turbery said. ”Now, let's get the soldiery ash.o.r.e.It'll be a long day preparing for the morrow.”

”One thing before we move, sk,” Tenedos said. ”This matter of the Lancers?”

”Yes?”

”I had the pleasure of having a troop of them guard me when I was in Kait, and-”

”You'rethat Tenedos, eh?” Le Balafre interrupted. ”My apologies for being rude before, sir. You did well, sir. Very well indeed.”

”I thank you.” Tenedos turned back to Turbery. ”As I was saying, I found them to be excellent soldiers.

I think it would be a pity to lose their services now.”

”You have a suggestion?”

”I do. Name Captain a Cimabue their domina. He's from the regiment, and has served well.”