Part 12 (2/2)
The sound of a fir up the trail warned Conan that Decius was at hand The Cieneral, then fell behind his you here, Oyzhik?” Decius asked
”Tales ca ht have So King Eloikas decreed that the palace would bar its gates and send forth the Guard to be your shi+eld at the end of your journey”
Conan hoped that King Eloikas had been speaking for the ears of the doubtful rather than out of any real belief that this Guard could defend an apple orchard fro a master who had neither silver nor wisdorave in this Godless land
”We thank you, Oyzhik,” Decius said ”Captain Conan, return to the camp and wake Raihna and ht?” Oyzhik's question cah-pitched as if he had been gelded
”We are now in good strength, Oyzhik,” Decius said ”The trail is clear, or you would not be with us And our foes will not be expecting us towe could do”
To Conan, struggling to choke back laughter, a night ht cause the plump Guard captain to fall down in a fit, or at least to faint froh, until Decius dismissed him Then he hastened down the trail toward the ca ahead, he let out such a roar of laughter that half the men jerked awake at once
Raihna thrust her head out of the tent they shared ”Share the jest, Conan, if it is so fine”
Conan hed harder It would not do to insult the Palace Guard before the captain-general's ht is that Count Syza for us The Palace Guard has come out, and Decius wants us on the march before he can take a deep breath!”
Raihna's head bobbed and vanished, and all around hi the Eloikas
He had seen es, and not only in wealthy lands such as Turan He had known of Vendhyans ould not have housed their tiger-hunters in so ajar The outer wall cruht have walked over it upright Holes gaped in every roof that Conan could see, and he did not doubt that under each hole was a puddle of muddy water from every rain in the last ten years
A beaten-down patch of earth set about with thorn hedges round A collection of huts that a swineherd would have disdained ht have been a barracks Otherwise, Conan had no idea of where the Palace Guard lived, or of where Raihna's ht find quarters
Since Decius's men joined them, he had heard s Some folk, it appeared, believed that the palace was so wretched because Eloikas was saving his gold for a time of need
Conan would believe in that hoard, as he would believe in the will of the Gods, when he saith his own eyes For now, he suspected that the cache was so secret that even King Eloikas had forgotten where to lay hands on it
Oyzhik hurried into the palace to report their arrival to the king
Conan and Raihna busied themselves with their y fields and wretched hovels stretching downhill from the palace They were likewise careful to keep the caravan beyond bowshot of the brooding forest uphill The forest held trees Conan had never seen before, in shapes he did not wish to see again, and no birds sang within it
Conan let Raihna stand close to him, but he laid no hand on her Both were aware of Decius's eyes upon them, more especially upon Raihna
”This land pleases me less with each new turn of the trail,” Raihna said ”Will you come with me and my men if we choose to leave at once?”
”Best wait for your pay if you want-forgive ain”
It was also not noticing her unease, bordering on fear Gratitude for that shone in her s that it will buy nothing but a burial shroud, and a poor one at that!” she said
Then, ”Conan,” Raihna went on, raising her hands as if to grip his shoulders, ”if we leave, would you come with us as far as the nearest civilized land? I think you have hopes to win sorave? That's what this land seems to promise Raihna, I said in plain words that I would be at your side wherever you went Does a shi+eld jump off of a man's arm because it thinks he's overmatched?”