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51


Kyri sagged to her knees, trying to support herself on her sword, feeling utter exhaustion weighing her down like a leaden cloak. Tobimar ran to her, his friend Xavier reaching her at the same time. Together they helped her stand. “Are you all right, Kyri?” Tobimar asked.

She smiled, and through the exhaustion she felt a different weight, one of guilt and doubt and self-hatred, lifting, fading away. “I am . . . I think more ‘all right’ than I’ve been in a long time, Tobimar Silverun,” she said. “With all of your help,” her gaze took in Tobimar, Xavier, and little Poplock who was just now making his way back to them, “I’ve . . . I’ve just finished avenging my brother. Thank you.” She heard her voice break, felt tears of relief and gratitude stinging her eyes. “Thank you all, more than I can say in just words.”

“You are very welcome, Kyri,” Tobimar said, and his blue eyes were smiling at her. “Believe me when I say it was an honor to be part of such magnificent justice and vengeance.”

“He talks prettier than I do, I think,” Xavier said, “but helping you kill off those things and save everyone around? I’m all for that. You’re welcome.”

“Same here,” Poplock said. “Glad we ended up on the right side. And I’d guess there’s a lot more work to come, if one of the Justiciars was gone totally bad, eh?”

She smiled again wryly. “I am very much afraid so. But,” she said as she managed a wobbly step forward, “I’m not ready to do anything else quite yet.”

She looked over at the little Toad. “I seem to recall, just before things took another turn for the worse, that you were suggesting looting my fallen enemy’s house.”

“Look,” Poplock said reasonably, as they all started towards the stairs, “we’ll have to get moving pretty quick anyway—none of us want to get caught explaining this, right? And if you’re fighting the Justiciars like this, you’ll need help, you’ll need resources, you’ll need money. This—” he used a Toadish grunt-bounce that conveyed complete disgust, “he didn’t have any family except the false Justiciars, so where are all his valuables going?”

She had to admit the little Toad had a point. A large point. Why leave her enemies with resources she could deprive them of? It was . . . only just that she take what she could use and deprive them of the rest, as this was a war. She nodded slowly. “I . . . can’t argue. But afterwards . . . we set it to the torch.” She looked at Tobimar as they entered.

He looked serious. “He was a monster, and I would guess that he’d done things we don’t want to know about.”

“You’re right.”

“Done. First pillage, then burn. Remember to get the order right.” Poplock dropped off of Tobimar’s shoulder and started to examine the cases around the room.

“I’m starved,” Xavier said. “Dunno about you people, but I’ve been moving pretty constantly for the last day or so.”

“Well,” Tobimar said, glancing at Poplock, “we’ve got at least a few hours before we have to go, and everyone knows Thornfalcon had gourmet tastes.”

Kyri looked at the one table and shuddered. “Not in this room. And you’d better be very, very careful what silverware, glasses, and so on you use. Those,” she pointed to the shattered remains of some glassware on the floor, “almost got me killed.”

Poplock bounced over to them, squinted sideways at the pieces, pulled out a strange greenish lens, and examined the material. After a few moments he sat back. “Whoo. That’s good work. But don’t worry, I’ll check stuff out for you. It’s something I’m good at.”

With Poplock’s help, the four of them soon assembled a feast on Thornfalcon’s kitchen counters and the three humans sat at a small table near the counter, while the little Toad continued his exploration and accounting of the useful materials available in the house. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be listening to you. I’ve got good hearing.”

“How in Terian’s name did you find us?” Tobimar asked Xavier.

“Well,” Xavier said, studying the assorted foods as though intimidated by the choices, “I’d been told I had to find you quick, and so when I came to that one village I was going to ask about where to go. And so I hear this guy getting on his horse, saying ‘That Adventurer says Thornfalcon may be in trouble.’

“So I remembered that you guys were officially ‘Adventurers’ and asked him quick if it was you, and he said yes and said you’d gone off to help Thornfalcon. He then rode off to warn people, he said, but he’d pointed off to the south so I started running in that direction.”

“But I was down that path,” Kyri said, puzzled. “Without directions you just couldn’t have found the right one.”

“You’re probably right,” Xavier said with a grin, taking a leg from a roast brushhen, “but once you guys started fighting this Thornfalcon guy? Lights all over. It was like following a lightning storm that sat in one place. The lights went down for a while, but by then I had a line on the direction, and by the time you started in on the monsters I could hear you.”

“Good luck for us,” Tobimar said, and Kyri nodded her agreement.

She looked over at Tobimar. This Xavier’s a different matter, I think, but . . . “So,” she said, cutting a slice of coilserpent, “did Toron send you after me?”

“No,” Tobimar answered, filling his own plate, “King Toron didn’t mention you d—”

King Toron?”

He blinked in surprise, then closed his eyes as though realizing something painful. “Oh, Terian and Chromaias. You don’t know.”

“Know what?”

He sighed, “The news will only just be getting here anyway. I have no idea how you got here so fast—I saw you the day I had my first audience with the King. If you’d stayed just a few more days—”

“I had . . . reasons to move as fast as I could. And I got lucky, met an old man along the way who—”

“Had a funny five-sided hat,” the Toad and Xavier said at the exact same time. Poplock’s voice was slightly muffled, as it was coming from one of the cupboards.

Kyri stared in that direction. “How did you know?”

“Khoros,” sighed Tobimar.

“Who is this ‘Khoros’?”

“Look, we need to all figure out what’s going on here,” Poplock said. “Tobimar, you tell her your story, I’ll tell mine, Xavier tells his, and she tells hers. Then if we have any questions left, we ask them.”

The black-haired Skysand Prince grinned. “Oh, I’m sure we’ll have questions left. But you’re right, we should stop asking random questions and getting confused.” He bowed across the table to Kyri, then looked abstracted for a moment, as though trying to put his thoughts in order. Finally he began speaking.

“I am the Seventh of Seven—the Seventh child of my mother, the Lord of Waters, ruler of Skysand, as she was the Seventh child of her mother. In the normal way of things, I would have lived there and become a ruler in my own right—likely of one of the Seven Cities, or—perhaps—become Lord of Waters myself, if my siblings had died or chose not to take the burden, or my mother chose me above them.

“But we have an ancient history, and a tradition that goes beyond family or rulership . . .”

As he talked, Kyri began to get an impression of the young man before her, and found herself slightly intimidated. I spent most of my time waiting for other people to save my world. He was exiled to gain the chance of saving his people . . . more than four years ago. He’s been travelling and adventuring all that time, and I’ve just been praying and studying.

A new horror came over her as she heard of the disasters that had befallen Zarathan, one after the other, after she left; the death of the King, the slaughter of the Artan and others of the Forest Sea, attacks on others . . . And if this is all connected . . . Myrionar, what is happening to the world?

At one point, Tobimar broke off—it was while he was describing his first sudden confrontation with Xavier—and stared at her in a way that made her near to blushing. “What?”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Tobimar looked embarrassed. “I didn’t mean to stare, but . . . your eyes. They’re just about exactly like Xavier’s. I’ve never seen that precise shade of gray, and it’s also their size, the intensity . . . Really, if I didn’t know better, I’d swear you had to be related.”

Suddenly she remembered that day, as they were approaching Zarathanton. “By the . . . I think I actually saw those five! A tall blond boy, two dark-haired boys, and two girls, all strikingly beautiful, and . . . yes, it was you, Xavier! I remember, because you looked so much like my sister Urelle.”

“I look like your sister?” Xavier echoed. “Well . . . I hope that’s good. I admit . . . we do look kinda alike. But given that we’re from different planets I doubt we’re actually related.”

“Urelle?” Poplock’s voice came from another room, over the sound of clinking—something small sorting through heavy silverware, she suspected. “Isn’t your middle name—?”

“Uriel,” Xavier said slowly. “That’s . . . pretty weird.” He suddenly glanced up. “Hey, I remember now! I saw you and . . . what, your mom, maybe? Leaving the Castle, right before we went in!”

Kyri felt a pang from Xavier’s innocent mistake, but smiled. “That was my aunt, but yes, I was there.”

Tobimar looked at the two of them again, obviously still struck by the similarities, then shrugged. “Another piece of a puzzle that we can’t quite fit into the picture . . . yet. Anyway, let me go on . . .”

They had finished their meal by the time Tobimar was done; Poplock then came in to give his summary, and rest after what was obviously strenuous work. Kyri didn’t feel entirely comfortable with the looting, so she didn’t watch or inquire much. She knew the discomfort was silly; anything valuable Thornfalcon had should be used against the false Justiciars, or destroyed so they couldn’t use it. Still, the sound of someone cheerfully breaking open cabinets to root around inside and find whatever caught their fancy . . .

In some ways, Poplock’s story was even more startling than Tobimar’s. The idea of that minuscule Toad somehow disrupting the plans of a great demonlord, of destroying an entire hidden enclave of mazakh and worse, and rescuing Tobimar from certain death some years later, was both comical and sobering. But she’d seen all too clearly just how dangerous Poplock could be.

“And so we came in and found out Thorny wasn’t nearly as nice a guy as he should have been, and kept him busy long enough for you to join us.” Poplock finished. “So that’s about it for me. Your turn, Xavier.”

She realized quickly that his was the strangest tale of all, and one that she wasn’t going to understand in full for a long time. But the important points of his venture—the pain of losing a beloved brother, grief and vengeance, a second chance granted, these she understood and empathized with so strongly it ached within her.

It also sent a chill down her spine. There are far too many similarities here. Is that the doing of this Khoros? Or someone or something else? A force we haven’t yet heard of?

But Xavier continued his story—which of course dovetailed at times with Tobimar’s, but then split off. “Then I got to the Broken Hills like you said”—he nodded to Tobimar—“and started looking. Of course, that little mountain range isn’t so little up close, and I was afraid I wasn’t going to find anything. I mean, at least this Idinus guy has a known address.” He grinned, but his face was . . . tense, and the grin faded.

“What’s wrong, Xavier?” Tobimar asked. “You didn’t find him?”

“Oh, no, I found him all right. Well, I think it was him, even though it was a her when I met him. If that makes any sense?”

Tobimar nodded slowly, and so did Kyri. Kyri said, “In the legends, the Wanderer wears many faces. He’s been old and young, man or woman, Artan and human and Child of Odin, wizard and warrior and sage. So yes, it makes sense. He’s definitely a man, but he can assume many forms and will take those, and other names, when it suits his purpose.”

“Okay. Well, she never said she was the Wanderer, but she kinda implied it.” A shadow passed over his face again. “I can’t . . . talk about everything she said. Some of it’s personal to me, other parts are just for the others in my group. Anyway, after we were done talking, she told me that I needed to hurry, that you would need me soon. And she gestured and poof!, there I was at the near end of the Broken Hills.

“So I made my way towards Evanwyl, got into that town—Gharis?—yeah, Gharis, and you know the rest.”

Kyri smiled, then became more solemn. “Mine’s not quite as travelled a narration, I suppose, but there’s a lot to tell you. For me . . . for me it started when my parents died . . .”

She was aware of Tobimar’s eyes on her, and those of Xavier, and there was warmth and sympathy there that she knew was not feigned. After learning the Justiciars were corrupt, she’d wondered if she would ever truly be able to trust again, and known that just the thought was a dangerous one; someone who could have no trust would never know true justice. But she could sense that Tobimar was telling her the truth, that Xavier was as honest as she, and without them and their strange companion Poplock she would already be dead. And she remembered Aunt Victoria’s words: “. . . you will perhaps find the allies you need . . .”

“. . . and I grabbed my Raiment and put it on, getting outside just in time to keep Thornfalcon from finishing you off,” she concluded. “So Justice was balanced in the moment of our meeting; we saved each other from the same threat.” She looked over at Xavier. “And then you saved us both, and together we finished the job. So once more, Justice was balanced in that moment.”

Tobimar laughed and pushed away from the table. “Yes, I guess that’s so!” He stood up, looking around.

“But these attacks you’ve described, and your quest . . . I agree with you. There must be some connection. Thornfalcon, these false Justiciars, Myrionar’s silence, the assassination of the King,” she stumbled over that, the idea that such a thing—which had not happened since perhaps the Fall itself—could have been accomplished, “. . . the attacks on the Great Forest and even Artania itself . . . and the five people from your world, Xavier, and this Khoros.”

“I think he’s trying to fight against whatever’s in charge of these attacks,” Xavier said. “I don’t like him—even less, the more I’ve learned about him—but he’s on the side of the angels, I think.”

“Probably.” Kyri thought for a moment. “The name is vaguely familiar. But why would Toron not tell you about me?”

“Yeah,” Xavier said. “That’s really bugging me, too. If he’d told us at the right time, heck, we might all have been going together.”

“Except,” Kyri said slowly, “you couldn’t have caught up with me even if you’d known right away. Because Khoros himself made sure of that.”

Tobimar frowned. “That’s true. But let’s think about it from Toron’s point of view. He said that he was doing his best to also guess what Khoros wanted us to know and not know. If he was right, then there must be some advantage to us not knowing.”

“Well, let’s look at that,” Poplock said. “If we’d known, we would’ve come up here knowing the Justiciars were bad. We’d have been weeks . . . no, still months, behind you, too. Knowing they were bad, we wouldn’t have gone over to contract with them, so we wouldn’t have gotten into the Temple and gotten their info.” He looked over at Xavier. “You’d probably have stuck with us. Maybe wouldn’t have met the Wanderer, or not until a lot later. Maybe we’d have gotten into a fight with one of these Justiciars by ourselves and gotten killed. Or we’d have been more careful sneaking around, and we wouldn’t have been hot on Phoenix’s trail, so we wouldn’t have shown up in time to save her.”

“And right now the Justiciars think you’re on their side . . . or at least a dupe for them,” Kyri said slowly. “We might be able to use that.”

“And,” Xavier said with a surprised grin, “none of them know anything about me. As far as your enemies are concerned, I don’t exist. And while I’m going to have to get going pretty soon,” he continued, “I’m not just bailing on you until I know this whole situation’s under control.”

Tobimar suddenly laughed. “And we’re sitting here talking it all out without any reluctance. Don’t you see how hard that would’ve been?”

Kyri blinked. Of course. “Even if I’d somehow beat Thornfalcon on my own, assuming I’d lived . . . I’m working alone. I have to be wisdom and caution as well as Justice and Mercy, and a battle with Thornfalcon would have made me terribly cautious. If you showed up claiming to be willing to help me, I’d have had to be even more careful. I’d have to spend days, maybe weeks, figuring out if I could trust you, or if you were part of the enemy’s deeper game.”

“Well, we could still be, I guess.” Poplock said, voice echoing hollowly from upstairs.

“Anything’s possible,” Kyri admitted with a grin, “but Thornfalcon didn’t expect an interruption, and certainly didn’t expect to lose his head. And no one making up a story would ever have come up with yours, Xavier.”

“Heh. No argument there. I don’t believe this story sometimes, and I’m it.”

Tobimar nodded, and seemed about to answer, then glanced out the window and started. “By the Seven . . . I think I’m starting to see some light out there. We need to go. There’s still so much for us to talk about, and decisions to make . . . but not here, I think.”

“No,” Xavier said, “being caught in the mansion of a recently murdered guy doesn’t sound like a good idea to me.”

Kyri looked out, saw that the window did not reflect pure black, but had hints of shapes of the outdoors in it now. “You’re right, Tobimar, Xavier. Poplock?”

The little Toad bounced down the stairs, stuffing some last little object into his neverfull pack. “I think I’ve got most of the stuff that’s safe to take, valuable, and not traceable. I could set some of my flares—”

“No,” Kyri said.

Tobimar nodded. “Of course, it’s your right to—”

“I mean, no, we’re not going to torch the mansion,” she said slowly.

The other two goggled at her; a part of her almost laughed, because for a moment Tobimar looked nearly as pop-eyed as his Toad companion. “What?”

“I think we have a perfect opportunity here, but we have to leave the evidence for what Thornfalcon was in order for it to work.”

Poplock frowned. “You mean I have to put everything back?” His distress was so comically exaggerated that Xavier failed to repress a snort of laughter.

She shook her head, and did smile. “No. We already argued that, and it’s true that he had no heirs except the Justiciars. Since I’m the one true Justiciar, that makes it mine to give away . . . especially,” and she was no longer smiling, “since he admitted to planning the deaths of my family, and did kill my brother . . . and with his monsters, a lot of other people in Evanwyl, too. Blood-debt, now paid. You didn’t take anything of the evidence, and that’s all that matters.”

“Oh,” said Xavier. “I get you. You’re going to try the straight-ahead move.”

Tobimar was looking at her speculatively, those brilliant blue eyes showing the beginnings of understanding. “You’ll be taking a drought-damned risk, if you want to do what I think.”

“Maybe . . . maybe not as much as you think,” she answered, and felt hope rising. “Thornfalcon was bad through and through, and I suppose Bolthawk and Skyharrier might be too. But I know that wasn’t true of Mist Owl and Shrike,” and I’m sure it’s not true of Condor, please let it not be true, “and even Thornfalcon was shocked to find out it was me. I can’t keep that secret forever anyway; part of the reason it’s worked at all is that they know where I went and why, and it would be almost impossible for me to be here again.”

“Oh, oh, I think I see where you’re hopping,” Poplock said. “Might work. If we can do it right.”

“It relies on what they already know—and what we know,” Kyri said. “And on what I’m betting that innkeeper, Vlay, would have done after you left.”

She could see Tobimar’s brows lower, then raise in comprehension. “That look . . . he knew about Thornfalcon!”

“Makes sense,” Xavier said.

“And if he knew that, he had to be one of their agents. Once he suspected what was going on, he’d have used one of the village messengers, sent someone straight to Evanwyl—the city—the man you saw, Xavier, and going probably to the Watchland, maybe to the Temple where the Justiciars would be sure to check in. He couldn’t send anything to Justiciar’s Retreat, that’s not accessible if you aren’t one of them, but the Watchland and the Temple would cover pretty much any chances.”

Tobimar suddenly grinned. “And we can use that—and me—against them!” The grin grew sharper. “And with Xavier as a reserve.”

“Something they’ll never see coming,” he said, with an answering grin.

The smiles, and the sudden certainty that they were right, wiped away the exhaustion. “Yes,” she said, returning the smile, “I think we can. Because we have one other ally . . .”


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