Shades of the Past: The Morcyth Saga Book Six (29 page)

“What do you talk about?” she asks.

“Oh, the war. The adventures James and I have
had, my time in the Pits,” he tells her.

The grin she’s been holding back is all but
breaking through the barriers she’s erected in an effort not to
make him feel bad. “Do you ever talk about her?”

“What?” he asks.

“Have you ever asked her a question about her
life? Her thoughts?” She pauses a moment to let that sink in.
“There are many different types of women in this world,” she
explains. “Most of the ones you’ve been acquainted with probably
have cooed and gone all mushy when you tell them of your
exploits.”

“Isn’t that what women want?” he asks in all
seriousness.

A soft laughter breaks through her barrier.
Shaking her head she says, “Not one such as Aleya. If you want her,
you need to think of her as more of an equal. She needs to feel you
are interested in her as a person.”

He turns to look at her, a thoughtful
expression playing across his face.

“Ask her about her life, her past, what she
hopes for the future,” she goes on. “And for goodness sake, just
listen when she talks. Don’t interrupt or she will think you aren’t
interested in what she’s saying. Your deeds gained her interest,
but alone they won’t gain her heart.”

Nodding, he begins to see where he’s gone
wrong. “Thanks,” he says to her.

“Just be patient. That’s the most important
thing a man can do where a woman is involved.”

“I will,” he assures her then nudges his
horse to move up the line to ride next to Aleya.

“Think he’ll listen?” Errin asks as she pulls
up next to her.

“We’ll see,” states Delia.

Up ahead they watch as Jiron pulls next to
her and says something. Delia holds her breath in expectation until
Aleya slightly turns her head in Jiron’s direction and replies.
Both Delia and Errin let go their pent up breath at the same
time.

“She really does like him,” Errin states.

“I know,” replies Delia. “We were talking
about just that thing a few days ago. He only needed to be shown
the way.”

“Just hope he doesn’t make a mess of it,”
says Errin.

“Of course he will, he’s a man,” Delia says
and then turns to Errin with a grin. “They can’t help
themselves.”

At that they break out into soft laughter at
the expense of all males everywhere.

Throughout the rest of the day they continue
to push on toward Korazan. James periodically checks the
surrounding area for any hostiles which may be on an intercept
course. But other than the odd traveler, there doesn’t appear to be
anyone around. Just after their midday break to give the horses a
breather, he discovers that the force they ambushed back at the
road is once again on the move after them, though half a day
behind. Now augmented by the foot soldiers that have caught up with
them from Al-Zynn, they outnumber them by more than two to one. On
the plus size, in order to keep their two forces together, they
have to travel at the speed of the foot soldiers which is greatly
less than a horse and thus will continue to fall further
behind.

“If they get too close we’ll have to slow
them down again,” James states.

Nodding, Illan replies, “At the rate they’ll
be moving, it isn’t likely going to be a problem.”

Occasionally their scouts report forces on
the move which James readily finds once he knows where to look.
They’re never more than a score or two and none are heading in
their direction.

By the end of the day, he’s able to at last
see Korazan in his mirror. Still hours away, if they travel a
couple more hours by nightfall, they will be within striking
distance for the following morning.

At this point, Illan begins sending out
groups of eight riders whose purpose is to find and detain anyone
who might raise the alarm. If they can strike with surprise in the
morning they’ll not lose as many men.

“There’s a force of men camped on the north
side of town,” James tells Illan.

“How many?” he asks.

He studies the image a moment then says, “A
couple hundred.” He glances over to him and adds, “Most are foot
soldiers.”

“Good,” he states. Turning to where Ceadric
rides just behind them, he waves him closer. “Time to send them
in.”

Ceadric nods and moves further back into the
column. Shortly after that two riders, wearing the regular garb of
those living in the Empire, detach themselves and race for Korazan.
Dressed as one of them, these two men will attempt to find out
strengths and deployments before the morning’s attack. James felt
very fortunate to discover that several of the Raiders had a
working knowledge of the Empire’s tongue.

When the scouts report that Korazan lies
about two hours away, Illan calls a halt. Cold rations and no fires
is the order this night. No chances will be taken that might alert
anyone as to their whereabouts.

While waiting for Devin to bring him his
dinner, James takes out his mirror and does one final check. The
force pursuing them still remains far behind and isn’t looking as
if they are going to catch up to them any time soon. Elsewhere it
still looks like nothing else is heading their way.

“You okay?” Jiron asks as he approaches.

Looking up, James sees him carrying two
plates of food, he hands one to him. Taking the offered food, he
says, “Just worried.”

Jiron sits on the ground opposite him.
“Aren’t we all?” he questions as he takes a bite. “We aren’t
exactly in a safe environment.”

“It isn’t that,” he explains. “Remember when
we were on the way to rescue Miko, the whole area seemed to be
practically teeming with soldiers.” When he sees Jiron nod he adds,
“Now there doesn’t appear to be anyone around. It feels like they
are up to something.”

“Perhaps,” he says through a mouthful of
food. “It could also be that most of their forces are either in
Madoc or over to the east taking on the Kirkens. Keep in mind too
that since I met you, you’ve managed to reduce the numbers of their
army by quite a lot.”

“Still, it just doesn’t feel right,” he
insists. They eat in silence a moment while they each mull it
over.

“What are you doing here?” Delia asks as she
joins them.

“What?” asks James.

“Not you,” she replies and then points to
Jiron, “him.”

James arcs an eyebrow at him and grins. He
knows what she’s talking about.

“That poor girl is sitting there all alone
and here you are,” she says accusingly. Turning her head, she draws
Jiron’s gaze over to where Aleya sits by herself. Her head turns
briefly in their direction when she takes notice looking her way,
then returns to her plate of food.

“If you don’t get over there right this very
minute I’m going to send Scar and Potbelly over there to keep her
company,” she tells him.

“Don’t do that,” he says as he gets to his
feet. “She already has enough problems without adding them to it.”
With a nod to James, he leaves them and makes his way over to
her.

Delia sighs after he leaves them and sits in
the spot he just vacated. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with
that boy!” Glancing over her shoulder, she sees Jiron has taken a
seat next to her and is engaging her in conversation.

James can see the smile playing across her
lips as she turns back to him. “Some of us take more effort than
others,” he says.

“You got that right,” she replies. “But I
think Jiron is heading in the right direction. At least he wants to
do right.”

“That he does,” he agrees.

Just then he sees Devin approaching. “I laid
out your things over there,” he says, pointing to an area near the
center of the encampment.

“Thanks,” James replies.

Nodding his head, he excuses himself and then
makes his way over to join the rest of the recruits at their
meal.

He and Delia sit there and talk about
inconsequential things as the light continues to fade. Before it
becomes too dark, they each say goodnight and make their way to
their respective bedrolls.

As James lies down upon his he thinks about
what’s going to happen tomorrow and prays he thought of everything.
Laying his head back, he gazes up at the stars beginning to appear
in the sky above and lets his mind wander. He knows part of the
reason for tackling Korazan tomorrow is in retribution for the
slavers’ role in the death of his best friend Dave. The other part
is simply that slavery is an evil blight upon the world and one
which should be every good man’s duty to hinder and stop.

It takes awhile, but he’s able to finally
subdue the thoughts running through his mind and fall asleep.

Sitting up in the dark, he looks around,
unsure of what woke him. The night is peaceful, the stars overhead
giving some light with which to see. Making a quick survey of the
sleeping forms around him, he realizes that he is the only one
awake except for the shadow of a sentry walking the perimeter. All
is as it should be but here he sits, wide awake and all traces of
sleep gone which is unusual.

A soft breeze blows across the slumbering
forms, ruffling his hair with a gentle caress. Taking another look
around, he still fails to discover anything out of the ordinary so
settles back down to sleep. That’s when he notices a light emerging
from an old tear in the front of his tunic. The sight of the light
sends a shiver down his spine and the hairs on the back of his neck
stand up.

Grabbing the chain holding the medallion
bearing the Star of Morcyth, he pulls it out of his shirt. Light
bathes the immediate area as it clears his collar.
This is not
good!
He gets to his feet and holds aloft the medallion,
turning full circle as he gazes around the camp. Light only comes
from the medallion in certain circumstances, so far all of which
have been bad.

Continuing to cast quick glances around the
camp, he quickly moves over to where Miko lays. Kneeling down
beside him, he lays a hand upon his breast and shakes him. “Miko!”
he whispers urgently.

“Wha…?” Miko asks groggily until he sees the
light coming from the medallion. Snapping awake, he turns his eyes
on James.

“I don’t know,” he replies. He’s about to say
something else when Miko suddenly grabs him and rolls to the
side.

“Attack!” he yells as he rolls with James
quickly. When he comes to a stop, James is behind him and the Star
of Morcyth is in his hand. “Up! We’re under attack!” Holding the
Star high, he gets to his feet as the Light seems to enfold the
shadow.

James looks around him and sees a shadow
being held at bay by the light coming from the Star. Suddenly,
green light flares from the side as Brother Willim and the Hand
summon their power. “James!” Brother Willim shouts, “Behind
you!”

Turning, he finds another shadow almost upon
him. Holding up the medallion before him, he bathes the shadow in
its glow. Not nearly as effective as the Star, it slows the
creature but doesn’t halt its progress. He sees one of Ceadric’s
Raiders charge it with a sword. “Stop!” he calls to the man but the
man pays him no heed. Striking out with his sword, the man attacks
the shadow. When the sword comes into contact with it, the man
spasms violently before falling to the ground where he lies
still.

“Together!” Brother Willim orders the rest of
the Hand as a greenish glow surrounds the shadow before him.
Stopping in its tracks, the shadow begins to shrink in on itself as
the glow surrounding it becomes more pronounced.

Lights spring up around the camp as men
quickly light lanterns and torches. “Ceadric!” shouts Illan as he
quickly gets over his shock.

“Sir!” replies Ceadric.

“Send out men and see if an attack is
imminent,” he orders.

“Yes, sir!” he replies. Grabbing several men
standing nearby, he begins organizing scouting parties.

The shadow before Miko also begins to shrink
as the light from the Star intensifies. A ring of onlookers
surrounds them as Miko and the Hand battle the shadows, both are
now half their original size. For a moment the shrinking halts then
all of a sudden, they wink out. As they disappear, so too does the
light from the Star and the medallion. The greenish glow
surrounding the Hand remains as they keep vigilant.

A blazing orb springs into life above them
bathing the entire area with light. A quick look reveals no other
shadows in the area. The light also reveals two lines of dead
bodies, each line the path taken by one of the shadows. In their
passing, they killed all they touched.

“You okay?” Illan asks as he comes to James’
side.

“I think so,” he says. “If it weren’t for
Miko’s quick thinking, they may have had me.”

Illan casts a quick glance to Miko and says,
“Good job.”

“Thank you,” he replies as he begins moving
toward the body of the Raider who fell when he attacked the shadow.
The light from the Star flares briefly but winks out a moment
later. Getting up, Miko looks to them and shakes his head, then
begins moving to the nearest of the unmoving men on the ground on
the off chance he can still be of help.

“This wasn’t an attack on us,” Jiron
says.

“No,” agrees Illan, “it wasn’t.”

The two lines of dead bodies lie in an almost
straight line from the edge of the encampment. It’s quite obvious
that they knew who they were after and where he was.

“From this point on,” Illan says, “you have a
guard near you while you sleep.”

“My brethren and I will be honored to have
that duty,” Brother Willim says.

Illan gives him a nod just as Ceadric
returns.

“No one else is out there,” he reports.

“Keep the men out,” he tells him. “I want a
revolving pattern around the camp in case more are on the way.”

“What should the men do if they encounter
one?” Ceadric asks.