Aakuta: the Dark Mage (13 page)

“I do not wish to sacrifice this horse,” replied Aakuta. “I think I like this one.”

“But did you not hear me?” Werner asked urgently. “A Kamaril squad is being sent to kill you. They will be here in mere minutes.”

The sound of galloping horses rose in the distance. Werner kicked his horse and started moving away swiftly, but Aakuta halted his animal. He turned around and faced the charging soldiers. As the Kamaril squad came into view, shouts of recognition rippled through their ranks. Swords were drawn, and orders were shouted.

Aakuta sat calmly and raised both arms as he pointed towards the squad of soldiers. As the squad got closer, flame leaped from Aakuta’s fingertips. The soldiers saw the threat too late. They tried to halt their horses, but fire enveloped them. Horses and humans alike screamed as the fire consumed the squad. In moments it was all over. The remains of the squad smoldered on the road. Aakuta turned to leave and saw Werner right behind him.

“I thought you left,” Aakuta stated.

“I came back to help you,” gulped Werner, “but I can see that you do not require any help. I cannot imagine such power.”

Aakuta stared at Werner for several moments as if lost in thought. Suddenly, he smiled.

“You shall travel with me, Werner,” the dark mage said. “Perhaps you can turn away those who come looking to abuse my power.”

“Live out in the open?” replied Werner. “There is nothing out there. What would I do?”

“Where else would you go?” questioned Aakuta. “And what is it you wish to do?”

“I don’t know,” confessed Werner after a few minutes of silence. “Free men in Khadora are an oddity. I am sure that Lord Druck will inquire about me. He will find me wherever I go. My days are limited.”

“Not if you have my protection,” responded Aakuta. “I may have need of someone who can do things for me. I do have certain rules, though. I wonder if you can abide by them?”

“What are the rules?” asked Werner.

“You shall never interfere in what I do,” began Aakuta. “You will obey without question, and you will never discuss what I do in private with anyone.”

“Sounds like a slave,” frowned Werner.

“No,” Aakuta shook his head. “If you ever wish to leave me, you may, but I will erase things from your memory before you leave. When I have no need of your services, you may do whatever you wish. I now have more gold than I know what to do with, so you will never be hungry or lacking in any way. The choice is yours.”

Werner thought about the mage’s proposition for some time before he answered.

“This erasing of my mind,” he asked, “will I forget everything?”

“Only from this moment until the time you leave me,” replied the mage. “You will still remember who you are and what you are running from. It will be as if you just left the Kamaril estate.”

“Then I shall do it,” decided Werner. “You must know that the Kamaril will come looking for us soon, though. Lord Druck will be greatly offended when he learns his squad is dead and he is out one hundred thousand gold.”

“Then it is time to move on,” shrugged Aakuta. “I have had a yearning to visit Khadoratung. Perhaps we shall go there and try to figure out what this script is really worth.”

“It is worth what is says,” assured Werner. “That is why Lord Druck tried to get it back. I know of moneymen in the capital who will negotiate it. We can trade it off for notes of smaller value for a minimal fee.”

“Already you are earning your keep,” responded the dark mage. “Let us get off this road and find another path to the capital.”

* * *

The Torak soldiers grew tense as they approached the ambush site. Eyes constantly swept the forests on both sides of the road, but nothing was visible. The three wagons loaded with watula rumbled along, kicking up small puffs of dust. The squad of soldiers escorting the caravan was evenly spread before it and after it.

When the first fire arrows flew from the woods, it was not so much a surprise, as it was a relief. A sudden gust of wind generated by the air mage forced the fire arrows to miss the wagons. The soldiers in front of the wagons immediately jumped from their horses and nocked arrows to their bows. The soldiers in the rear did likewise as the wagons picked up speed. The air mage continued to protect the wagons by channeling small gusts of wind and hurling them at the arrows.

The screams in the forest started before the Torak soldiers on the road even made it to the gully that paralleled the road. Arrows struck many Torak soldiers, but the men kept on moving towards cover. When the squad reached the gully, they took cover and waited. Screams rang through the woods in every direction. Suddenly, gray clad warriors raced onto the road. The Torak soldiers struck them down with arrows. Another group of gray warriors flooded onto the road and were followed by Torak soldiers. In moments it was over and the silence was broken only by the murmurs of the wounded.

The Torak soldiers in the gully rose cautiously and gathered in the center of the road. From both sides of the road, more Torak soldiers emerged from the forest.

“I want a count of the enemy,” shouted Cortain Talli as the Torak officer strode to the center of the road. “Any wounded are to be brought to me here on the road. Each squad, count your own men. I want to know of any deaths or injuries to Lord Marak’s forces.”

Black clad Torak soldiers ran in every direction. The abandoned horses were rounded up and the wagons halted. It took an hour before Cortain Talli had the information he wanted.

“A full corte of gray warriors are accounted for,” reported a Torak soldier. “All are dead except for the two before you. We had some light injuries, mostly to the escorting squad, but none are serious. The Qubari armor proved to work well.”

“Excellent,” smiled Cortain Talli. “Separate the prisoners. I want to talk to them one at a time. Did you search the dead?”

“We did,” nodded the soldier. “They carried nothing on them besides their weapons, not even a coin among them.”

The soldiers escorting the wagons had regrouped and mounted. They awaited permission to continue their journey. Cortain Talli approached one of the prisoners and knelt down before the seated man.

“Who are you?” asked Cortain Talli.

The gray warrior did not reply. The cortain drew a knife and held it to the prisoner’s throat.

“I will ask you again,” Talli said threateningly.

“I will answer no questions,” spat the prisoner. “You cannot expect a prisoner to break his Vows of Service by giving you information. I will give new Vows of Service and nothing more.”

“Gray warriors do not honor their Vows of Service,” retorted the cortain. “While I know that you are not really a gray warrior, I have every right to treat you as one. Do you forget that you are not wearing your clan colors?”

The blood drained out of the prisoner’s face as he glanced down at his gray clothes. In Khadora, captives of war were treated honorably. They were forced to swear new Vows of Service to their captors, but gray warriors belonged to no clan. As such, they were not entitled to any dealings of honor, because they were men without honor. Cortain Talli could do whatever he wished with a captured gray warrior, and the prisoner suddenly realized it.

“But I am a clansman,” protested the prisoner. “You say you already know that. Treat me with respect.”

“Not while you are clothed in gray,” Talli shook his head. “Do you wear your clan colors underneath?” he asked as his knife cut into the neckline of the prisoner’s gray tunic.

“No,” pleaded the prisoner. “We hid our uniforms on the other side of the rise.”

“We will see about that,” Cortain Talli said as he signaled for one of his soldiers. “What clan do you belong to, and where did you hide your uniforms?”

The prisoner hesitated as the summoned soldier approached.

“There will be great trouble if I answer your question,” protested the prisoner. “You do not know who you are dealing with.”

“I aim to know,” insisted Cortain Talli. “As a gray warrior, your death will linger for days. If I decide that you are a clansman, I will take you prisoner, and your fate will reside with Lord Marak.”

“Lord Marak will be dead within the fortnight,” sighed the prisoner. “What good will issuing vows to him do for me?”

“I am not sure,” shrugged the cortain. “Either way, you will still be alive a fortnight from now. If you cooperate, you will probably be defending Lord Marak. If not, you will be wishing for a death that is long overdue.”

“I am from the Nordon clan,” confessed the prisoner. “Our uniforms are hidden in a cave just beyond the ridge. You will find it by looking for a large lightning struck tree. The cave is just behind it.”

Cortain Talli nodded to his soldier and the man took off running.

“You made the right choice, soldier,” Talli said to the prisoner. “Lord Marak will not be dying anytime soon. Why is a member of the Lords’ Council attacking our caravans?”

“That is something that I cannot answer,” objected the prisoner. “I am still under Vows of Service to Lord Patel of the Nordon clan. You are asking me to violate those vows, yet you know that I cannot.”

“Imperial soldiers coming!” shouted one of the Torak soldiers.

Cortain Talli rose and gazed down the road. A full corte of Imperial soldiers were approaching. He walked away from the prisoner and tried to meet the new arrivals before they started asking too many questions. As he approached them, he saw that they were escorting a mediator for the Lords’ Council. He bowed out of respect for the mediator.

“Greetings, Katzu,” said Cortain Talli.

“Cortain Talli,” replied the mediator. “I see that we have interrupted a battle of some proportions. What is going on here?”

“I am surprised that you remember me,” Talli replied as he tried to be sociable.

“I rarely forget a face,” Katzu responded. “You are avoiding my question.”

“A Torak caravan was attacked,” sighed Cortain Talli. “We managed to defeat the attackers.”

“I have heard rumors of Torak caravans that have gone missing,” declared Katzu as he gazed at the carnage. “It would appear that gray warriors attacked you. I hope your losses were not too severe?”

Cortain Talli’s mind whirled with the knowledge that Katzu represented the Lords’ Council and that a member of that council had just attacked the caravan. He was not sure if Katzu would carry news of the encounter back to the capital. Lord Marak would be furious if everyone knew who his enemy was before he knew.

“The battle turned in our favor,” Talli finally replied. “I do hope these Imperial troops were not sent out to aid in the battle?”

“They are my escort,” answered Katzu. “I must mediate a border dispute. I sense that there is more to what is happening here than you care to tell me, Cortain. You are aware that I am a representative of the Lords’ Council?”

“I am very aware of that,” nodded Talli as he realized that any of the Imperial soldiers would be free to tell of what they saw. “In fact, your arrival presents me with a problem. May I speak to you privately?”

Katzu frowned, but he nodded as he dismounted. Cortain Talli led him off to the side of the road. Katzu waited patiently for the Torak cortain to speak.

“This is the fourth Torak caravan that has been ambushed,” Talli began. “The wagons and cargo are not being stolen. They are being destroyed. All evidence of the ambushes is swiftly removed. The last ambush was not totally in secret. One of our men escaped and reported it. This time we stationed two cortes of men in the forest beforehand. We were very successful in destroying the attackers. In fact, we took two of them captive.”

“Then you have had a great day,” shrugged Katzu. “I sense different feelings from you, though.”

“Indeed,” nodded Talli. “These are not gray warriors at all. They are clansmen disguised as gray warriors.”

“That is inexcusable,” Katzu scowled. “What clan would allow such a despicable act?”

“That is where my nervousness comes in, Katzu,” explained Cortain Talli. “I am supposed to personally deliver that information to Lord Marak. If you and the Imperial troops report what you have seen here today, Lord Marak’s enemy will be forewarned. That would put the Torak clan in grave jeopardy.”

“I think it would serve notice on your enemy that you are not to be trifled with,” argued Katzu. “I do not see the problem?”

“What if I told you that the clan that these gray warriors are from,” Talli asked softly, “sits on the Lords’ Council?”

Katzu’s face grew pale and his veins bulged. “I would demand a full investigation and an appropriate punishment for your lies,” Katzu answered sternly. “Do not besmirch the reputation of the Lords’ Council.”

“I do not wish to,” Cortain Talli said nervously, “but I have my Vows of Service to Lord Marak to uphold. If I could prove to you that a member of the Lords’ Council ordered this attack, would you agree to hold off telling anyone until Lord Marak approves it? Surely you can understand the gravity of such a thing.”

“Any member of the Lords’ Council could crush the Torak clan without using more than a portion of his army,” nodded Katzu. “What proof do you have of this allegation?”

“I just began interrogating one of the prisoners before you arrived,” answered Cortain Talli. “He admitted that he was a soldier in the Nordon clan. Their uniforms are hidden in a cave beyond the ridge. I sent a man over there to investigate.”

“Bring me the prisoner that you have not interrogated,” demanded Katzu. “Do not speak to him.”

Cortain Talli nodded and walked over to the second prisoner. He grabbed his arm and brought him to his feet. The man looked around as he was guided towards Katzu. He saw the Imperial troops and shook his head.

“I am Katzu,” the mediator declared when the prisoner was halted in front of him. “I am a mediator for the Lords’ Council. What clan do you belong to?”

“I have nothing to say,” scowled the prisoner.

“Let me make something clear to you,” Katzu said calmly, “I represent the Lords’ Council. Not even a lord sitting on the Lords’ Council would dare to defy me without full approval of the entire council. Your Vows of Service cannot even shield you from answering me. The Lords’ Council supersedes your vows. Now, I know that your uniforms are already being gathered from the cave beyond the ridge. Make this easy on yourself. Answer my question.”