The Hungering Flame (15 page)

Baelan sheathed his dagger and dug something from a stack of gear in the back of the wagon. The knight pulled the stopper from a bulging waterskin with a wet pop. Water spilled out onto the dusty floor of the cage as Baelan pushed it through the bars.

“
Take it slow,
”
Baelan whispered, dribbling water onto Garrett’s parched lips. The water was the sweetest that Garrett had ever tasted.

“
Why are you helping him?
”
Sir Kae demanded, his voice trembling with fury.

“
Have you forgotten your oaths?
”
Sir Baelan said.

The other knights said nothing.

Garrett managed to swallow a gulp of water and coughed, almost choking. Baelan waited for Garrett to breath freely again before giving him more to drink. At last, Garrett could drink no more. The water swelled his stomach like an icy stone, but his terrible thirst was gone.

“
Thank you,
”
Garrett whispered.

Baelan looked away, stoppering the waterskin and returning it to its place among the gear. The big knight turned and climbed back to the front of the wagon. His horse drew alongside, and Baelan swung back into the saddle to ride ahead, out of Garrett’s sight.

Garrett drifted between a sleep of troubled dreams and the waking nightmare of his captivity. He woke from a fitful sleep when the wagon stopped moving. Thin clouds stretched like wisps of pink flame across the dark blue sky above. A cool night breeze chilled his aching body.

Garrett tried to move, but the muscles in his limbs felt like stone. His joints throbbed in pain with every movement. He lay still, too tired to cry.

He lifted his head at the sound of the cage door swinging open. Sir Baelan pushed a heavy blanket through the door, covering him.

“
Please,
”
Garrett said,
“
my hands... tied too tight.
”

Baelan’s eyes tensed, and his jaw muscles tightened. His eyes fell.
“
Try not to think about it,
”
he said.

“
Please,
”
Garrett sobbed,
“
I didn’t kill the king! I didn’t...
”

“
Shh!
”
Baelan hissed. He lowered his voice,
“
If you speak of the king again, I’ll put the gag back in!
”

“
But...
”

“
Hold your tongue boy!
”
Baelan whispered,
“
I’m trying to make this as easy on you as I can.
”

A cold realization washed over Garrett, chilling him far more than the night air.
“
You
know
I didn’t do it!
”
he whispered.

Baelan clenched his teeth, looking around warily.
“
I don’t know anything!
”
he growled,
“
but I swear by my honor, if you don’t keep silent...
”

Garrett said nothing for a moment. At last he asked the one thing he needed most to know...
“
Why?
”

Baelan looked sick.

“
Sometimes,
“
the knight sighed,
“
we face hard choices. We come to a place where we must do something monstrous... because the alternative is unimaginable.
”

Garrett closed his eyes.

“
Your life will be over soon,
”
Baelan said,
“
and I can guess that it hasn’t been an easy one. I’m sorry for that. But know this, your life is traded for the lives of many. There is honor in that, boy, even if you didn’t choose this.
”

Garrett
turned his head, trying to look away.

“
I’ll bring you a bit of food once I’ve seen to the camp,
”
Sir Baelan said,
“
We’ve got three more days travel to the bluffs where the Chadiri are camped. Keep your silence, and I’ll make your time pass as easily as it may. The others won’t believe you, even if you tell them the truth.
”

Baelan stood up and shut the cage door, latching it again.
“
The pain will be over soon,
”
he said,
“
I’m sorry.
”
The wagon creaked as he took a step to go.

“
Wait,
”
Garrett said, looking up.

Sir Baelan stopped.

“
Can you pull my hood back over my head?
”
Garrett asked.

Baelan walked around the side of the cage and reached through the bars to tug the hood back over the top of Garrett’s head, hiding his scars.

“
Thanks,
”
Garrett said, his voice cold and flat.

Sir Baelan said nothing, but climbed down from the wagon and walked away.

****

The following morning, Garrett managed to work himself into a sitting position against the bars while the wagon rolled along beneath a cloudless sky. His wrists felt wet where the cords bit into his flesh and the skin there burned with throbbing pain. He wondered if he would lose the use of his hands. He wondered as well if it even mattered anymore. He passed the time by testing his fingers, pressing his thumbs against each fingertip in turn. All the while, he imagined what it would be like to be Max Zara, riding at the head of an army of zombies, with the Astorrans’ cries for mercy falling on dead ears.

From time to time, Garrett would look over at the knights riding beside the wagon and smile at them, his eyes shadowed beneath his hood. He imagined each one of them moldering beneath their rusted armor, riding forever atop dead horses in the service of a deathlord. Before long, none of them would ride within a dozen
yards
of the wagon, all finding excuses to range farther out in the fields beside the rode or to ride ahead.

Shortly after noon on the third day, Sir Kae drew his horse alongside the wagon and spoke.
“
You see those cliffs on the horizon?
”
he asked.

Garrett looked at him, saying nothing.

“
That’s where the Chadiri are camped,
”
Kae said,
“
The highlands beyond fell to them years ago. They know better than to come down here and face us on the open field.
”

Garrett looked toward the dark bluffs that stretched far away to the North and South.

“
That’s where you’re going,
”
Kae laughed,
“
Right into their nest. I almost feel sorry for you… but then I remember that you stabbed a brave and noble man in the back… you filthy coward!
”

Garrett looked at the knight again. He felt only a cold rage now in his heart.
“
I bet you want to kill me pretty bad, don’t you?
”
Garrett asked.

“
I’d like nothing better!
”
Sir Kae hissed, his hand going to the pommel of his sword.

“
Then do it!
”
Garrett shouted, louder than he had ever shouted before,
“
Just do it, why don’t you? I’m sick of this! Just hurry up and do it!
”

Kae’s sword was halfway clear of its sheath when Sir Baelan rode his horse between the young knight and the wagon.

“
That’s enough!
”
Baelan
roared,
“
Kae, ride away, now!
”

Kae’s horse cantered and kicked but pulled away. Kae glared back at Garrett, his hand still on the grip of his scabbarded blade.

Baelan leveled his gloved finger at Garrett.
“
Control yourself, boy!
”
he shouted,
“
Meet your fate like a man!
”

Garrett bit his tongue to silence, his chest heaving with rage. In that single moment he made a decision. No matter what was to come, no matter how much life he had left, he would never be a boy again.

Sir Baelan rode at the head of the column of knights, holding his sword by the blade above his head. None of the others had their weapons drawn. The wagon followed close behind, rolling and thumping over the grassy hummocks of the lowland plains. Before them rose the dark cliffs of the Chadiri highlands. Between the Astorrans and the cliffs, a patrol of red-clad soldiers rode out to meet them.

The wagon creaked to a halt as thirty Chadiri warriors fanned out into a broad crescent, flanking the knights on either side.

“
State your purpose, Astorran,
”
the Chadiri captain, a young, lean-faced man with a strange accent, called out. His shoulder pauldrons looked slightly more ornate than those of the other Chadiri that Garrett had seen, and gold threaded trim formed the hem of his red silk doublet.

“
I, Sir Baelan, Gatewarden of Braedshal, would
speak
with your legion’s prince on behalf of King Cabre
Verdaan
.
”

The Chadiri captain narrowed his eyes.
“
I thought your king’s name was Haerad?
”

Baelan remained silent for a moment.
“
The king was murdered,
”
Baelan said at last,
“
slain by… an assassin. His son, now king, wishes to forge an alliance with your nation against the Gloarans. I have the details of his proposal in a sealed document to be delivered to your prince.
”

The Chadiri captain looked taken aback by Baelan’s words. He shared a look with the mustached man astride the horse beside him before clearing his throat and speaking again.
“
That is… welcome news, sir knight, I will deliver this message personally to the Skyhammer at once.
”

“
My instructions are to deliver this myself,
”
Baelan said, his voice tense but emotionless.

The Chadiri captain chuckled,
“
You
have
delivered it, Gatewarden. I am Callister Felix, Stormfist of the Kriesslegion, as close to a prince as you are likely to find in the service of the Empire.
”
The warrior on the horse beside him smiled, but said nothing, his eyes still on the Astorran knight before him.

Sir Baelan hesitated a moment, then lowered his sword, sliding it back into its scabbard without touching the grip. He drew forth a sealed scroll from his saddlebag, and rode toward Callister Felix.

The mustached man at Felix’s side moved his horse closer to his captain and laid his hand on the pommel of the heavy sword that hung from his saddle horn. Baelan paid him no heed but rode slowly forward, close enough to extend the sealed document within Felix’s reach.

Callister Felix nodded graciously and took the scroll from Baelan’s hand.
“
Thank you, Sir knight, your king shows
great
wisdom
for one so recently come to power
.
”

Garrett saw Sir Kae’s horse shuffle nervously at the back of the Astorran column, its reigns clutched too-tightly in the young knight’s fists. Sir Baelan simply bowed his head once and then backed his horse away from the Chadiri line, his eyes still on Callister Felix.

Felix casually slipped the document into his own saddlebag and then looked up again.
“
What’s in the wagon?
”
he asked.

Garrett saw Baelan’s shoulders slump a little. His own heart beat faster, and he fought to control his breath. He choked down the urge to scream, tensing his lips into a furious scowl of defiance.

“
The… king sends to you the assassin who killed King Haerad,
”
Sir Baelan said, his voice dry and hoarse.

Callister Felix flashed a crooked smile.
“
Why?
”
he asked.

“
The assassin is a Gloaran emissary,
”
Sir Baelan said.

Felix sighed.
“
Odd sort of tribute,
”
he muttered,
“
Right then, Castigar, go and collect the offering.
”