Bloodsongs by Robin W Bailey

Author:Robin W Bailey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Published: 1986-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Who are you, Gentle Stranger,

A wizard or a clown?

You caught me in your magic

When I thought I’d fallen down.

Do you know your own beauty,

Like a spark of the evening star?

In the shadow of your passion

Can it matter who you are?

Together they walked away from the tower. The mud squished over the toes of their boots as they passed among the storm-flattened tents where the main body of Kel’s soldiers had resided. She almost smiled at the way canvasses were strewn over the landscape.

She shifted the weight of the saddle she carried and glanced at Ashur as he plodded beside her. She would have to ride him soon. It was the only way to reach Kyr in time. But there was another thing to do before she had to slap leather on his poor back.

“I can carry that for you,” Telric offered.

She shook her head. “You’ve got enough with that sack of supplies.” She gave him a look from the corner of her eye. He, too, had armed himself from Kel’s store of weapons. With some food in him he looked stronger. If only he’d had time for a bath. She looked away again and tried not to inhale too deeply.

The land had been cleared to form a wide, circular plain around the tower. She knew they must be near the edge of the Keled steppes, though the terrain was still relatively flat, but the hills of Shai-Zastari could be no more than another day’s ride to the north. She shuddered, recalling Sha-Nakare and the terrible fireflies. Had she followed the Lythe River south instead of to Kyr after that night, she might have stumbled upon her son’s demesne.

When they reached the first struggling shrubs and saplings of the surrounding forest, Frost stopped and set aside her burden. “Wait for me,” she told Telric, and he set down his sack and gave her a quizzical look. She turned and stared back across the immense clearing. The tower rose like a black and menacing column that held up the bleak gray sky.

“It’s clear to me now,” she said at last. “I was confused, but now I see. It’s like I’ve awakened from a long, troubling dream.” She rubbed her hand along Ashur’s sleek neck and tangled her fingers in his mane.

She filled her lungs with a deep breath and drew herself erect. “I’ve accomplished things. Kimon’s spirit is free to find rest.” She forced a tiny smile. “And I’ve avenged you, Telric, though perhaps it doesn’t count since you weren’t dead.”

Telric interrupted with a surprised grin. “You came to avenge me?”

She shrugged. “You’d have done the same for me.”

He scratched at the stubble on his chin. “I did try,” he reminded her.

Their eyes met, and she saw the depth of his feeling for her. He had said he loved her. She didn’t need her witchcraft to know it was true. Perhaps all her confusion had not ended. Kimon was dead, and Lycho, who had been kind to her, was also dead. What would become of Telric if she dared to let him get so close?

All men die, she reasoned.

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