Part 12 (1/2)

He took a deep breath and suddenly realized he was without weapons. Knowing he wouldn't be without company for long, he forded the river. On the other side he stood for a moment, listening, then called, 'I know you're there.'

Seconds later two elves appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. 'Welcome, Jim Dasher,' said one of them.

Jim took a moment in the gloom, then smiled and stepped forward. 'Thank you, Trelan. It is good to see you again.' They gripped one another's hand, and Jim said, 'I need speak with your Queen and Lord Tomas.'

To the other elf, the one called Trelan said, 'I will guide him and send back another to watch the ford with you.' Then he was off at a quick trot, leaving Dasher only a moment in which to react and catch up with him.

Jim knew from his previous visit that he was going to be running all night and most of the morning to reach the Queen's court from this part of the Elven Forest, so he let his mind relax and started thinking about keeping up with the indefatigable elf. He had only been on the trail for five minutes when he started thinking of Michele again, and cursed himself for a love-struck fool.

CHAPTER TEN - Summons.

BEK STOOD COVERED IN BLOOD.

'Stop!' shouted Martuch, his mentor within the Sadharin battle society.

The human disguised as a Dasati Deathknight stood quivering with rage, his eyes wide and his sword poised as he sought out another enemy to kill. Martuch, Valko and half a dozen other members of the White stood in a semi-circle behind Ralan Bek, each of them also awash in gore. The Deathknights, who secretly served the enemies of the Dark One, had been swept up in the Great Culling as had every other Dasati with a sword, but no one, not even the most seasoned warrior had seen anything like what they had just witnessed.

A company of perhaps thirty-five young Deathknights had ridden down a boulevard and happened upon an enclave of Lessers who had gone to ground and risked coming out at sundown too early. As the cityscape was bathed in the orange glow of sunset, the broad street became a scene of carnage.

Before Martuch could order his group to circle away from the conflict, Bek had urged his varnin forward, riding as if he had been in the saddle all his life. Before the young Deathknights had known he was upon them, six were dead. He moved like a being possessed, killing eight before the others could join in.

'They're all dead,' said Martuch.

Bek's eyes burned with an inner light that frightened even this battle-hardened Dasati. 'Let's find more!'

'No,' said Valko. 'The Culling is over.' He looked at the fifteen bodies that littered the street. 'These... shouldn't have died.' He looked torn between his Dasati heritage which relished the slaughter and his newfound respect for life which counted it a waste of potential. 'The Culling was over before this began.'

Martuch looked towards the others. 'Loot the bodies. Not to do so would draw unwelcome attention to us. Better to be thought brigands than heretics.'

Valko's group quickly stripped the bodies of trophies, leaving the corpses in the street for the Lessers to dispose of. As they were securing their trophies behind the saddles of their varnin, a band of riders rounded a corner a long city block away and approached. Valko's company took up position without being ordered, for while the Culling might officially be over, Bek would hardly be the only warrior caught up in the bloodletting and ready to continue killing.

As the group approached, Martuch said, 'Lower your weapons.'

The riders approaching were half a dozen temple Deathknights wearing the TeKarana's palace colours. They were escorting a pair of Hierophants, those priests given the responsibility of ensuring that everyone in the realm came to wors.h.i.+p the Dark One. In antiquity they might have been spreaders of the word, but since His Darkness's rise to pre-eminence, no evangelical mission was required, and now they primarily served to ferret out heresy and act as spies for the TeKarana.

'Praise to His Darkness!' said the leader.

All bowed their heads for a moment and repeated the invocation. The other priest quickly took stock of the corpses on the ground. 'How many of your company lies here?'

Martuch spoke calmly. 'None.'

'Indeed?' questioned the first priest. 'I count thirty-five dead warriors and half-again as many Lessers, yet only nine of you sent them all to His Darkness?'

Valko said, 'We had the advantage of surprise.'

Without a hint of boastfulness, Bek calmly said, 'I killed six before they knew we were upon them. When they turned to face me, two more died and then my companions were upon them from another quarter. Confusion served us-'

'And these were young, barely blooded warriors,' added Hirea. 'I am Master Hirea of the Scourge, and I have taught everyone here, including Lord Valko, of the Camareen. These are my most exceptional students, and these... things things,' he said with contempt of the dead, 'were barely better than Lessers themselves. It was an easy killing. Little glory, really'

'You are of the Scourge, yet you ride with the Lord of the Camareen, who is of the Sadharin if I am correct. Is this right?' asked the first priest.

'I was staying with Lord Valko when the call for the Culling came. It seemed prudent to remain with his company rather than risk returning to my own enclave.'

Looking directly at the young ruler of the Camareen, the second priest said, 'And you let him live?'

'He was my teacher,' said Valko. 'The Scourge and the Sadharin have ridden together for many years; we have not crossed swords since my grandfather's times. We have many ties.' His tone said he was finished with the topic and his defiant glare challenged the two priests to continue this line of questioning at their peril.

The politics of the societies were traditionally ignored by the Dark One's priests, but overlong alliances were often viewed with suspicion, for the art of ruling such a murderous population was in keeping factions from growing too powerful. The two priests knew as well as anyone who the potential threats to order were, and while the Scourge and the Sadharin were both venerable societies, they were not especially powerful or influential, especially on Omadrabar. They might be a power to contend with on Kosridi, but here on the capital world of the Dasati Empire, they were just another pair of provincial battle societies.

The second priest studied Bek. 'Are you Scourge or Sadharin?'

Bek glanced down and realized that the badge given to him by Martuch had been dislodged during the struggle. As he started to answer, Martuch said, 'He is my retainer. He is Sadharin.'

The first priest raised his eyebrows and his expression became one of interest. 'A student? From his demeanour and the numbers of dead at his feet I would have thought him at least a master in your ranks, if not a captain.'

'He has promise,' said Hirea dismissively. 'But among those I tutor, he is but another student.'

After a long moment of consideration, the first priest said, 'Then you will not mind if he leaves your side.' Pointing at Ralan he said, 'What are you named?'

'I am Bek,' said the human disguised as a Dasati warrior.

'Bek,' intoned the Hierophant, 'you are called!'

For the briefest second Valko and Martuch exchanged glances. Both felt the instinct to attack, to prevent the Dark One's servants from taking Bek away, but they also both knew that despite not being as powerful in their use of magic as the Deathpriests, these two Hierophants alone could tip the balance against Valko's group.

Martuch said, 'You must go with them.' Softly, so that only Bek could hear him, he added, 'Do nothing to reveal yourself. We will contact you before the end of this day. Go.'

Bek sheathed his sword and said to the priest, 'Called?'

'The TeKarana always needs prodigious warriors. The training is arduous and far more taxing than what you have endured at the hands of your old teacher-' he stressed the word 'old' in a way that would have got him killed had he not been protected by another magic-user and a dozen temple guards '-and should you survive, you will earn a place attending the Dark One's most loyal servant, his personal guard.'

'Should you achieve special merit,' said the other priest, 'you may be chosen to join his most n.o.ble order, the Talnoy.'

Bek grinned. 'Is there killing to be done?'

'Always,' answered the first priest with a grin to match Bek's. 'Today's Culling was just a taste. A banquet of death will soon be laid before the faithful.'

'Then I will come with you,' said the blood-drenched youth.

He mounted his varnin and wheeled around, falling in with the guards who followed the priests.

As they rode down the boulevard and the first stirrings of normal life returned to this part of the city, Valko said to Martuch, 'What do we do now?'