| |
So Close, So Far
––––––––
JIRA (MARCH) 13, 1538
Twelve days into Prince Terosh’s Kireshana journey
Kireshana Path, Calsol Forest
Crouched behind the thick trunk of a cal tree, Lucas Telon held the kamad dagger with his right hand then flipped it to his left hand and back again. Despite the lengthy blade, the dagger had nice balance. If the weapon were slightly longer it might be considered a short sword. The black handle fit easily in one hand. The blade appeared to have clean curves up to the pointed tip, but Lucas had seen the damage the teeth could do. The microscopic, inverted teeth would slip smoothly into flesh but chew and claw their way back out. The kamad dagger was still new enough to make Lucas think about how to handle the weapon without losing a finger.
He sighed at the tediousness of his next task. It was as boring as the variety of trees around him: cal trees and more cal trees. Occasionally, an exciting mutation would cause a cal tree to have an overabundance of pale green leaves instead of the usual deep green ones.
Lucas’s orders from Lady Mavis Altran were to cause chaos along the Kireshana trail in case she decided Prince Terosh should be captured or eliminated. If there needed to be an incident involving the prince, the Lady preferred it be one of many rather than the only thing to occupy potential investigators.
King Teorn had forbidden the Coridian Assassins from participating this year, but since mavericks abounded in their ranks, Lucas figured posing as one would be safe enough. He refocused as a lone young man approached. After waiting for the man to pass, Lucas slipped up behind him and slit his throat before the victim even knew he was there. Lucas shook his head with disappointment and cleaned the dagger.
What happened to standards against weaklings and fools?
A half-hour later, Lucas found another ideal location to wait for a victim, but it took almost a full hour before two young women came his way. When he stepped out of his hiding place, they froze. He flashed a quick, tentative smile to put them at ease, but it only worked on one young lady.
The other woman locked eyes with him and read the deadly intent there. She pulled her kerlak pistol and shot at him. The beam went wide by a half-meter, but as a sign of respect, Lucas killed her before practicing with his new kamad dagger.
Her friend experienced the full attention of the dagger’s many sharp teeth. Screams filled Lucas’s ears as the woman died.
As he admired his work, he marveled at how easily a smile could disarm people. His charms held more sway over women than men, but Lucas prided himself on being able to get what he needed from people. The soft crunch of swiftly approaching footsteps crashed through his warm sense of self-satisfaction. Rushing to his pack, Lucas shoved the kamad dagger out of sight before drawing his banistick and kerlak pistol to meet the approaching threat. As an afterthought, he fired several times into each body.
It’s a shame to destroy such fine work.
He waited tensely to discover the footsteps’ owner.
Reia appeared at the clearing’s edge, bracing against a tree trunk to keep from entering the open space. Her right hand clutched her banistick and her expression mixed curiosity, caution, and dread.
“Why are you here?” Lucas demanded.
“I could ask you the same,” Reia replied.
“I killed them.” Lucas tried to keep his voice casual.
The words clearly unsettled Reia, but her grip on the tree kept her upright. She tried to respond but barely managed a strangled noise of acknowledgement.
“Some heartless beast carved them up and left them to die,” Lucas explained. “I ended their pain.”
“How did you know they would die?” Reia’s soft question seemed reasonable, but her eyes remained condemning.
“We’re not all healers. We do what we can,” said Lucas, surprised by the depths of his bitterness.
Before Reia could respond, Prince Terosh and his cadre of guards crashed onto the scene like wild korvers. Reia fled before they could really see her.
Lucas longed to pursue her, but instead, he braced to face a second round of questions.
“My Prince, this is not a good idea,” hissed one of the prince’s guardians.
“Why not?” the prince stopped to regard his soldier.
“He just killed those two women,” argued the dark-skinned soldier.
“We don’t know that for sure,” returned the prince. “Besides, if it is true, then we have even more reason to question him.”
As the prince and his guards approached, instinct told Lucas to flee. He might have been able to fulfill his Alliance orders if Royal Guards didn’t surround the prince. Lucas wished his orders had been to kill. Capturing always involved much more work. He might actually need the RT Alliance team waiting for him in Huz Mon.
So close, yet so far.
The expected pleasantries never happened.
The prince swaggered forward and demanded answers.
“Who are you? What happened here? Where is the other Ranger?”
Lucas wanted to stuff a kerlak beam through the boy’s arrogant face. With great effort, he kept his hands still to avoid a misunderstanding with the Royal Guards. They tended to shoot first when defending one of their precious royals. Not that Lucas blamed them. The royal family’s history was as turbulent as a windstorm.
“Ranger Lucas Telon at your service, Highness,” Lucas said, realizing he hadn’t answered the questions. He bowed as custom demanded. “I came upon these unfortunates and eased them into eternity. I’m not sure where the other Ranger went. She and I have different missions.”
“What about the screams?” asked the prince.
“One screamed as she saw me. You heard a cry for mercy.”
“I heard a cry of pain,” the prince retorted. His eyes searched Lucas for truth.
“Are the two different? Could you ignore such a cry?”
“No, I suppose not.” The prince sounded disappointed to have his suspicions fade. He fell silent for a blessed moment, but his next question almost made Lucas flinch. “What is your mission?”
“To protect the derringers.”
“You’re a Kireshana guardian?” The prince’s doubts were evident. When Lucas didn’t confirm or deny it, the prince tried a different question. “How do you know your mission differed from the other Ranger?”
“Pardon?” Lucas asked.
“You said your missions differed. How do you know?”
“She is a healer,” Lucas explained. “I doubt the Ashatan Council would send someone like her on a mission such as mine. As you can see, the Kireshana has many dangers.” He gestured to the bodies.
“Yes, so many predators,” said the prince.
***
JIRA (MARCH) 13, 1538
Same Day
Kireshana Path, Calsol Forest
As Ranger Reia Antellio laid her head down for the night, she reflected on the journey thus far. It had started out with a hundred last-minute Kireshana preparations. She recalled the dark green Melian Maiden robes, grateful to have had the opportunity to change to normal clothes once darkness fell that first day. The comfortable pants, plain shirt, and trusty travel cloak she now wore better suited her. The waterproof, acid resistant, light cloak with color that ranged between blue and black, depending on shadows, was probably her most prized possession next to her banistick and caydronan sack.
Scenes of the last week and a half charged through her head, but it was better than thinking about her recent encounter with Lucas. The memory of the farewell with Kiata and Todd tugged at Reia. She had tried to turn it into a happy occasion by giving them a belated wedding gift. Gathering the herbs and flowers had been a labor of love, but the glass frame Reia had used to press them into a work of art nearly decimated her small stash of savings. The worry that had crossed her sister’s normally inscrutable features and her breath-taking hug made Reia think.
Master Niklos had spent several weeks briefing her on the Kireshana mission, and Master Corida and Master Telon had added bits of wisdom. The briefings with Lucas had been awkward. She still had a hard time wrapping her mind around his new rank. Her inability to predict every danger annoyed her.
She tried to balance the annoyance with amusement, recalling the young woman she’d spent the first hour or so jogging alongside. The pretty, dark-skinned woman had talked nonstop about Prince Terosh’s fine blue eyes.
Great, now I’ve got to see his eyes.
As the image of the child dressed in Melian Maiden robes came to mind, Reia wondered how the girl fared thus far. She hoped the child was still alive, but there was no guarantee. The somber thought brought her back to today’s encounter with Lucas. She had enjoyed the peaceful morning until a woman’s scream shattered the serenity. A second pained cry followed, just barely preceding a third and final scream. Reia had sailed to the scene in time to hear the high-pitched whine of kerlak pistol blasts.
The confrontation with Lucas had been short but intense. Something bothered her, but she couldn’t quite identify it for a long time. His last statement was telling.
“He’s jealous,” she concluded at last. Reia had long wondered why Lucas fixated on her. At first, she found his attention flattering, but she quickly realized he cared only for himself. Reia had seen love draw Kiata and Todd closer together, but the thought of becoming like Lucas made her uneasy.
The scene replayed, and she tried recalling her impressions. Her first glimpse of Lucas standing between the bodies had been important, but she wasn’t sure why.
The scene played yet again, and Reia focused on Lucas’s expression.
He’s surprised, defensive, and ... guilty.
Reia pondered where she’d come up with guilty. She studied the scene again. The tilt of Lucas’s head had indicated excitement and challenge. His right shoulder dipped down and back. That was his tell. He prided himself on controlling his facial features, but Reia had endured enough of his attention to recognize the subtle gesture.
After another hour of tossing and turning, Reia resigned herself to not getting any sleep and entered a meditative state that sacrificed sleep for deep thinking.
What about the dead? The thought startled her. Reia assumed Lucas would care for the bodies he had created, but she felt guilty for not thinking of them sooner. Shaking off the restful state, Reia got to her feet and gathered materials for two small fires.
Within minutes both fires burned strongly in shallow, hand-dug pits. Staring into the flames, Reia thought about the two dead strangers. The effort seemed inadequate. She imagined how she would feel if the fires were for Kiata and Todd and real grief brought tears to her eyes.
As the tears fell, a song came to mind, so she sang softly.
“Here we are once again
Singing for the dead.
Here we are once again
Lamenting life lost.
May this song carry
The dead up to rest.
May it be that when we fall
Someone will sing over our graves.
May it be that when we fall
Someone will carry us on wings
Made of sweet songs.
Then life will go on.”
She sang the song twice through, once for each life lost, before solemnly burying the flames.
