This Battle Lord's Quest (15 page)

Chapter
Eighteen

Around

It snowed during the night. Not a lot, but enough
to cause Fortune to stomp his feet irritably. “Trackers hate snow, you know.
Makes it damn near impossible to follow anything.”

Mastin looked up from where he was warming his
hands over the campfire. “I thought it would make the job easier.”

“It is,” the Mutah hunter acknowledged. “If your
quarry walked on
top
of it afterwards. That’s not the case with us.
We’re looking for Atty’s tracks
under
the stuff. What’s worse, once the
stuff melts, the runoff could obliterate a lot of clues.”

Yulen looked up at the gray clouds interspersed
amid the treetops. “Doesn’t feel like it’s going to snow through the day.”

“Doesn’t to me, either,” Fortune agreed.

“So what do we do?” the Second inquired.

“We go east.”

The others looked at Renken, who sat huddled in one
of Mastin’s heavy sweaters. Knowing the weather was expected to turn cooler,
Yulen had insisted everyone pack for warmth. But since Atty and the others had
planned on returning home before the change, they hadn’t taken any additional
clothing.

“What makes you think we should head in that
direction?” Mastin asked.

“Because I haven’t seen any signs that say
otherwise,” Fortune responded.

“We could have missed them,” Yulen noted. “A few
hundred yards, and we could have passed each other.”

Fortune shook his head. “The tracks from the pond
went east.”

“Why would she still be hunting if she’s hurt?”
asked Mastin.

“She wouldn’t be,” Renken said. “If she’s hurt, she
could be confused. Yulen, didn’t you did say your head hurt? She could be
disoriented.” He turned to the Mutah. “I say we keep going eastward.”

Fortune pointed to a location not far from where
they’d pitch camp. “I made a note where I last saw her tracks. I haven’t seen
any more markings on any trees since we’d found where the coon attacked. I can
sweep away what fell last night, but if we get another inch or two of powder,
we’re out of luck.”

“Then I suggest we move out now,” Yulen said,
getting to his feet. The others helped to break camp.

“Stay behind me on your horses,” the hunter
ordered. “That way I won’t have to worry about any of you walking over and
destroying any signs.”

They resumed their trek through unfamiliar
territory, making slow progress as Fortune used a small tree branch to brush
away the thin layer of ice crystals. The weather was amenable, and eventually
the sun was allowed to peek through a break in the clouds.

During this time, they came across several more
small clearings. At one, Fortune got down on the ground and inspected a small
hole beneath a large tree. Yulen watched him sniff at the entrance, and bit his
tongue to keep from distracting the man. Finally, Fortune sat back on his heels
and wiped his hands on his thighs.

“She spent the night in there.”

Yulen blinked in surprise. “In
there
?” He
could imagine a ground squirrel or chipmunk taking up residence, but never a
full-sized human being.

“How?” Mastin piped up, apparently thinking the
same thing.

The hunter got to his feet and picked up a small
shrub lying next to the hole. “It’s larger inside. Must have been a den for an
animal at some point. She must have used this to block the entrance, so nothing
could go in after her.” He smiled slightly.

“What’s funny?” Yulen asked.

Fortune held the bush up to the Battle Lord. “Smell
it.”

He did. A pungent, rotten smell assailed him. Yulen
jerked his head back and automatically wiped his nose. “What is that?”

“It’s aptly named stink wood. You have to get right
up close to it to smell it, but critters, especially bugs, can detect it a mile
away. The plant developed it as a defensive measure to keep animals from eating
its seeds and leaves. We use it as a repellant.”

He tossed it away and picked up a second small
branch. Using light, sweeping motions, he brushed away the snow in several
places until he found one that made him pause. Yulen scrutinized the man’s
moves, paying close attention to how the hunter worked.

“Find something?”

“Yeah.” Fortune pointed east. “She went that way.”

Renken loudly cleared his throat, and Mastin tried
to muffle his laughter. Even Yulen was hard-pressed not to smile. If Fortune was
aware of their amusement, he didn’t comment. Instead, he slipped into the
forest, making the others scramble to their horses to join him.

At one point later on, when they stopped
momentarily to rest, Yulen approached the ex-mercenary where he sat apart from
the rest. The man was aware of his presence, but made no comment.

“How’s the chest?”

Renken answered with a crooked grin. “I’ve had
better days.”

“I wanted to ask a question. You’ve done some
bounty hunting in your time, haven’t you?”

“Some.”

“I’ve noticed you’ve been closely watching
Fortune’s techniques.”

Again, the man lifted the corners of his mouth.
“You’re never to old to learn new tricks.”

“What’s your take on all this?”

Renken lifted an eyebrow. “Are you asking me if
we’ll find Atty alive?”

“I’m asking you to contribute anything you feel
might be necessary to help us find her.”

“Even if it contradicts Fortune?”

Yulen looked over his shoulder where the hunter was
sitting a few yards away with his back to a tree, his head bowed and his eyes
closed. “I know the man is an expert hunter, but so are you. And in the short
time Atty and I have been married, I’ve learned a lot about the differences
between Mutah and Normals. Mostly about our innate differences. For instance,
Atty is superior to me when it comes to the bow, but I’m superior when it comes
to the sword.”

“What you’re saying is that each of us brings
something different to the table.”

“Exactly.”

“Because of who we are.”

“And because of our own life experiences and
training,” Yulen concluded. “It’s not always the physical differences.”

Renken glanced at the Mutah. “So far, I haven’t
found fault with anything the man’s done. I’ve learned a few things, though.”

“But?”

When Renken didn’t respond, Yulen persisted.

“There’s a big ‘but’ hanging between us.”

“He’s a Mutah tracking another Mutah. His senses
are tuned to a degree we can only dream of having.”

“Garet.” His tone made it clear he wanted the man
to get to the point.

The man turned back to the Battle Lord. “But she’s
your wife, and somehow the two of you are connected. I don’t care where he
takes us. I don’t care what signs he finds, or what trail he follows. In the
end, you’ll be the one who finds her, not him.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Because, if you remember, I was there when Atty led
a whole damn platoon to New Bearinger to rescue you. I was with her when she
led us into the woods to fight the Bloods. I was right in the middle of it, and
I saw proof of that connection. I watched her reactions, and yours are so much
like hers, it gives me chills to watch.”

“Time’s up. Let’s go,” Fortune announced loudly,
suddenly.

They resumed their saddles, and nothing more was
said.

A short while later, Mastin noted what Yulen had
been observing.

“Is it me, or is the scenery changing?”

“It’s getting rockier.” The Battle Lord called a
halt. “Let’s go on foot for a ways.”

Another fifty yards, and the forest seemed to
suddenly open itself. The men found themselves standing on top of a cliff that
jutted out over a huge, vast valley. For a long while, no one spoke as they
stared at the view and tried to comprehend the enormity of what they were
seeing. It was Mastin who finally spoke.

“Ho-lee shit.” It was a soft and irreverent remark
that summed it up perfectly.

Renken came to stand beside the Battle Lord. “It’s
been years since I’ve seen the mountains, but I’ve never seen this. It’s
incredible.”

Slowly, cautiously, Yulen moved closer to the edge,
while trying to remain at a safe distance and still be able to peer down the
throat of the canyon.

“I don’t see anything. Just more forest and some
strange rock formations.”

“Neither do I.” Mastin joined them.

The sound of pebbles being disturbed drew Yulen’s
attention to the hunter walking back and forth across the barren, open area.
Fortune caught his questioning glance.

“I’ve lost the trail. Unless I can find something,
we’ve come to a standstill.”

“What do we do now?” Mastin asked.

Renken held a hand outward and gestured at the
panorama. “That way’s east. That has to be where Atty’s headed.”

“Do you think she’s down there?” the Second
questioned, incredulous.

“There’s no other possible answer,” answered
Fortune. “Unless she backtracked, which is not out of the question.”

Renken looked to Yulen. “Do you think she
backtracked, and we simply missed her?”

Yulen closed his eyes and focused. Letting his
heart search for hers. Trying to find that small, bright spark that was her
spirit, and praying it was leading him in the right direction.

“I think she went forward. Somehow. I don’t know
how, but she’s on her way down into that valley.” Scrutinizing the landscape,
he could reach only one conclusion. “We have to find a way down, as well.”

Fortune pointed off into the distance. “It looks
like there may be a way over there. Regardless, it’s definitely going to be
steep.”

Renken nodded. “We’ll have to go back into the
forest and follow the rim of the cliff. Looks to be at least another day, maybe
two, to reach that area, and no telling how many days to reach the floor of the
valley.”

Yulen picked up a fist-sized rock and threw it out
into the void. The chunk arced gracefully as it disappeared below. No one was
able to hear it land.

“If any of you wish to go back to Alta Novis now,
you have my blessing for a safe trip. But I have to continue onward. I can’t
stop until I find out one way or another what’s happened to Atty.”

Fortune grumped loudly. “You’re not getting rid of
me that easily. I’ve known that girl since before she was born.”

“I’m definitely in it for the long haul, too,”
Renken reassured the man.

Mastin walked over and clapped Yulen in the
shoulder. “We’re four for four here. It’s your call.”

Breathing a deep sigh of relief, Yulen glanced up
at the sky. “What’s the weather going to do, Fortune?”

“Get colder, but I don’t smell any more snow. At
least, not for the next day or so.”

“Good. Let’s get to moving. Since we’re not having
to walk behind you anymore, we’ll be able to cover more ground in a day’s
time.”

Wordlessly, the four men returned to where they’d left
the horses, saddled up, and plunged back into the forest to find a way down to
the valley floor.

Chapter
Nineteen

Questions

On the other side of the fire, Paas sat up, crossed
her legs, and rested her arms on her knees. “You
think
your name’s Aggee?
It’s probably similar, which is why it rings a bell.” She shrugged. “Fine by
me. I have to call you something. Might as well call you Aggee until you say
differently.”

Aggee watched as the woman turned the spear over
the fire, to allow the meat to cook on the other side. Paas had removed the
glowing necklace and set it to one side, and it lit up the area like a tiny
lantern.

“How long will that thing keep shining?”

“Usually a day’s worth.”

“What’s in it?”

“Some kind of solar powered piece of metal. I’m not
real knowledgeable about it. My ancestors found quite a few of them in the
ruins many, many years ago.”

“Ruins?”

“Yeah. We live among them, my tribe does. It used
to be a big city that got washed away after the moon burst, and the ruins are
all that’s left of it.”

“How many of you live there?”

“You mean, how many are in my tribe? I would say a
couple hundred. The Hassee tribe is bigger. Probably
the
biggest. Our
scouts tell us they have nearly six hundred.”

“Hassee tribe?”

“They live across the lake.”

“What other tribes are there?”

“The fiercest is the Orlins tribe. They’re the ones
you have to watch out for. They’ll shoot you as soon as say hello. Then there’s
the tribe that lives in the caves up in the mountains. They’re the Kintuck
tribe. They don’t come down out of the mountains very often, so I’ve been told.
At least, I’ve never encountered one, but I know what they look like in case I
do.”

Aggee frowned at her. “What they look like?”

“Yeah. Each tribe has its own markings.” Paas ran a
finger over the triangle in the middle of her forehead, then touched the
parallel lines running from her lower lip, down her chin and neck. “This is how
others can tell I’m from Lanta.”

“Are you Mutah?”

“What’s Mutah?”

“A mutant.”

Paas’ eyes widened drastically. “Sweet Stephen, no!
Why would you suggest such a thing?” From her body language, Aggee could tell
the idea was more than objectionable. It was disgusting to her.

“I saw those marks on your face and arms. I was
wondering. I’m sorry if I offended you.”

Paas waved a hand in dismissal. Leaning over the
fire, she checked on the voles. “Almost done. Won’t be much longer.”

Aggee stared at what she could see of the cavern.
Now that her eyes had adjusted to the surrounding darkness, she was able to make
out the shadows of shapes lying outside the light’s range.

“Paas, why didn’t you kill me when you approached
me?”

“What makes you think I didn’t want to?”

“I don’t know. A hunch?”

The warrior woman played with the fringe on her
leather vest. “I was prepared to,” she admitted. “I watched you for the longest
time before I approached you. I saw you were injured. You looked so lost.” She
paused, then added, “Would you have tried to kill me?”

“Only if you had made the first move.” The
revelation surprised her. The answer had come out effortlessly, without the
need to think first. Aggee realized her gut reaction was her real self. That
she wasn’t normally a vicious or warlike person. Yet, at the same time, she
knew she would have tried to protect herself by whatever means she could.

Across the fire, Paas chewed on her lower lip. “I
can’t believe you’ve managed to survive the forest, alone, on foot, and with
just a knife. You’re either the bravest woman I’ve ever met, or the stupidest.
And you still don’t recall where you’re from?”

Warily, Aggee shook her head.

“What’s the last thing you remember?”

East.
The
word popped into her head without any accompanying pain.

“Go east.”

Aggee watched as Paas’ eyebrows nearly crawled into
her hairline.

“To
go
east? You mean, from the west?” The
woman made a disparaging sound. “That’s impossible! Everyone knows no one can
live in the fallen heavens!”

“Why not?”

“It’s too dangerous! The creatures up there are
monstrosities! Look at
you!
” She waved a hand in Aggee’s direction. “You
said you encountered a coon, right? How big was that thing?”

Teeth. Blood. Screaming. Yelling.

Arrows. The eye. The nose.

The memories flashed hard, bright, and hurtful.
Then, following them, she saw the image of the dead coon lying on its belly at
the edge of the pond. For the first time, she realized the animal didn’t have a
tail. Didn’t coons have thick, bushy tails?

“I think it was about twenty feet long. I didn’t
pay that much attention to it, except I seem to recall it didn’t have a tail.”

“But it was still huge, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

The warrior woman snorted, having made her point.
“One thing you’re not is Lanta. You’re not Hassee, either. I’d be willing to
bet you’re also not Orlins or Kintuck.”

“If I’m not from any of those tribes, or from the forest
you call fallen heavens, then what am I? Where do you think I’m from?”

“Hell if I know.” The woman checked on the meat,
using her knife to test for doneness. “Dinner’s ready. Let’s eat and go to
sleep. With you not at a hundred percent, it’s going to take most of the day
for us to reach the valley floor.”

“Before we eat, I have one more question.” Aggee
smiled. “Where does one go pee in a place like this?”