Chapter 18
Over a month had passed since the Sons of the Black Sword had arrived in Vadal City, and still there had been no sign of demons yet. Tensions ran high. Many high-status men doubted their new Thakoor’s decision to ally their house not only with the Maharaja who had recently threatened them, but also with the infamous criminal who had brought shame to their name. Outright violence between the groups had been surprisingly rare, though, partly because the outsiders remained on the outskirts of the city, but mostly because the Vadal warrior caste respected Jagdish enough to honor his wishes for them to remain civil.
But Ashok knew that with three great armies gathered in and around Vadal City, and each of them having new recruits joining their banner by the day, it was only a matter of time before someone did something foolish enough to cause a real conflict between them. The situation was like having too much Fortress powder stored in the back of one constantly shaking wagon. Ashok could feel the static building, and an inadvertent spark would be enough to blow it all to pieces.
As a bearer, Ashok was required to accept all challenges, just in case the sword might find someone better, but oddly enough no one had made an attempt since he had been here. Ashok was thankful for that. Any man he was forced to cripple or kill would be one less available to fight the demons. Still, he could tell that jealousy was growing, and soon, someone would try. All it would take was one prideful warrior of status to spit himself on Angruvadal and their entire alliance could be in jeopardy.
It would be good to remove himself from the volatile mix for a time.
Thera had assured him she would handle things without him. The Sons’ officers had preparations well in hand, so Ashok had taken Horse and ridden south following the Martaban, hoping the shard in his chest would help him catch the demons’ scent. The map the collector had drawn for them was rough and did not correlate with the landmarks aboveground so Ashok could only guess where the ancients’ path lay beneath.
Three days south of Vadal City, Ashok still hadn’t smelled demon in the air, and he knew he would have to turn back soon. With the situation so volatile he couldn’t risk being away for too many days. What was taking the demons so long? The collector believed that much of the passage beneath the northern part of Lok had been collapsed centuries ago, so perhaps it required a great deal of demonic labor to clear their way through. Did demons have a worker caste? It was an odd thought, but mankind only ever saw the ones who came onto land, and those were clearly warrior equivalents. What manner of society did the vile creatures conceal beneath the waves?
On the fourth day of scouting, Ashok began to doubt himself. Was it possible that the Voice had led them astray? Or that Rada’s interpretation of the ancients’ terms had been incorrect? Perhaps the Capitol really had been the Great City of Man all along, and they had already failed. If so, the march to Vadal had been in vain and their time was already up. The new age had begun, and it was one where man would be gradually hunted until all their lives were extinguished.
Ashok dismissed such melancholy thoughts because down that path lay nothing but defeat. He would scout for one more day before turning back. Instinct pushed him to follow a certain road.
On the morning of the fifth day, Ashok discovered something odder than demons.
Since the routes had been reopened, the trade roads had been exceedingly busy. As everyone had learned about the demons appearing in the desert, opportunistic merchant caravans that would normally be heading for the grand bazaar of the Capitol were turning toward Vadal City instead, hoping to profit from the hungry armies camped there. To pass among the merchants unnoticed, Ashok had dressed as a worker and kept Angruvadal hidden beneath his cloak. Should he encounter any officials he was armed with official traveling papers, stamped by both Jagdish and Devedas, which should be enough to placate any Law-abiding man.
So Ashok wasn’t concerned when he saw a large contingent of warriors riding north on the trade road. However, when he noticed that they were flying the banners of two different houses beneath a flag of diplomatic truce, he became curious. It was odd seeing men of Kharsawan and Thao riding together, as there had been many skirmishes between those houses over control of Neeramphorn recently. So he stopped in the middle of the road and waited for what he estimated to be at least five hundred warriors to reach him. It didn’t take long, since they appeared to be in a hurry.
“Move aside or be trampled, merchant,” shouted the lead rider, who was dressed in Kharsawani red.
“I am no worker. I would speak to your commander. Where is your Vadal escort?”
“We’ve left them far behind.” The scout’s mount trotted toward him, but then Horse snorted angrily at this invasion of his space, and the much smaller animal danced back fearfully. “Whoa!”
“Beware my Horse, warrior. He does not tolerate the insolence of lesser beasts.”
“Our passage is approved. We’ve got no escort but our papers were stamped by the Vadal border guards. You’d best get out of the way for there are high-status men coming through.”
“Who?”
“That’s a secret, but trust me, friend, you don’t want to offend these notables.”
“Some consider me notable as well.”
The scout was young, clearly inexperienced, and when he looked over Ashok in his humble attire, he must have thought him a liar. “Sure they do.”
“Just signal your commander when he nears.” Ashok nudged Horse and they moved onto the grass along the side of the road. “I have no time for foolishness.”
“Alright, but I’ll warn you my commander’s not a patient man.”
As Horse grazed, Ashok watched the column approach. There were men of Thao and Kharsawan at the head, riding side by side, flying banners of yellow or red with various designs upon them denoting garrisons that Ashok was unfamiliar with. As they rode past, he could tell that these warriors were travel weary, as they were drenched in sweat, covered in dust, and their horses had clearly been pushed hard for many days.
The scout spotted a senior warrior and called out to him. “Sir, this merchant wishes to speak to you.”
The roik barely slowed. “Oceans, boy, I told you there’s no time for trades. We’ve got enough supplies to get to Vadal City already. Tejeshwar will have my head if we’re delayed one unnecessary minute. We’re not stopping for Vadal baubles.”
“Are you here to answer the Maharaja’s call?” Ashok asked.
The officer pulled back on his reins and broke away from his men to ride toward Ashok. “You know of the call for aid?”
“I was the first one Devedas asked. I am Ashok Vadal.”
“Ashok Vadal!”
That cry was repeated over and over. Heads jerked Ashok’s direction. Within seconds his name had stopped an army in its tracks. The inexperienced scout may have been confused, but the seasoned combatants took one look at Ashok and knew that this was no mere worker. His wearing a light merchant’s cloak was like draping a sheepskin over a tiger. It fooled no one who knew what an apex predator looked like.
The road fell quiet except for the stomping of nervous hooves.
Ashok glanced at the scout, who was now gaping in fear at the greatest criminal in the world. “I told you some would consider me notable.” Then he turned his attention back to the roik. “Tell me why you are here.”
The man swallowed nervously before responding, “We escort the illustrious Tejeshwar Kharsawan to Vadal City.”
A Thao risalder bravely called out, “And we escort the legendary Kaladhar Thao.”
Ashok shrugged, as those names meant nothing to him.
Except as soon as two other warriors broke off from the center of the group and rode his way, Angruvadal warned him what he was dealing with here.
It was another bearer.
No. Two bearers.
The regular warriors seemed glad to get out of their way. The bearers stopped, side by side, ten feet away from Ashok in order to study him. The Kharsawan man was younger than Ashok, muscular, thick-necked, stone-faced, and wearing finely crafted armor despite the warmth of the day and the length of the journey. The Thao appeared a bit older than Ashok, but short and wiry thin, dressed in a simple robe and turban, but with a gray mustache of impressive length in the fashion the hill folk loved.
They both had ancestor blades.
There was no need to draw them for confirmation, for each of them had surely been warned by the instincts contained in his sword that another deadly threat was present.
The Thao spoke. “You are a bearer.” It was not a question.
It would be best to keep this gathering polite, so Ashok slowly moved his cloak aside so they could see sheathed Angruvadal.
Horse, being the only one present who always wanted a fight, snorted derisively at the other bearers’ mounts. Horse did not care about black steel. Horse was probably the only animal in the world who might fight a demon if given the chance. Ashok patted Horse on the neck to calm the fierce beast, as he would prefer to not unleash three of the most powerful magical weapons in the world pointlessly on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere.
Nothing else was said for a long time as they sized each other up. Ancestor blades only picked the best among men, so there was no question that everyone here was exceedingly dangerous.
“I heard that Angruvadal had been broken,” said the Thao.
“The stories must’ve got that wrong, because that’s clearly an ancestor blade at his side,” said the Kharsawani warrior. “Unless this isn’t the real Ashok.”
“Only a madman would pretend to be me. It is true that Angruvadal shattered. I later claimed Akerselem from Bharatas Akershan in battle.”
“That can’t be,” the Thao scoffed. “Akerselem killed my great-grandfather. Akerselem is curved like an Akershani saber. From the straight sheath, that’s the shape of a traditional Vadal long sword.”
“I willed the blade into a more familiar form.”
“You willed it?” he asked incredulously. “We can do that?”
“Yes. Also, my condolences for your great-grandfather.”
He laughed. “No great loss. From all accounts great-grandfather was a right bastard…I’m Kaladhar Thao.”
“I am Ashok Vadal.” He looked toward the Kharsawani bearer, who was still scowling daggers at him.
“We speak to a wanted criminal.”
“I have been pardoned by Maharaja Devedas.”
“And a casteless in possession of a sword.”
“The casteless have been declared whole men. Some whole men are allowed to carry weapons.”
“Hmmm…”
“Forgive Tejeshwar, Ashok Vadal. My Kharsawani friend is a devoted stickler for the Law, only the Law’s been full of surprises lately.”
“I have noticed.” Ashok gave a polite bow toward the suspicious young bearer. “I respect your hesitance in showing any courtesy to a known lawbreaker. We live in troubled and confusing times.”
Tejeshwar was forced to agree. “That we do.”
“I would point out that it is not required that you respect the man, but you must respect the decision of his sword.”
The Kharsawani nodded at that wisdom, and then grudgingly returned Ashok’s bow. “I am Tejeshwar of the Guntur garrison, bearer of mighty Khartalvar. Let our meeting be a calm one.”
The nearby warriors in red all breathed a sigh of relief at that pronouncement. Their bearer must have had a reputation for taking offense. There had probably been a few duels fought along the way.
“I’ve heard legends about Black-Hearted Ashok,” Kaladhar mused. “It’s said you’ve killed a thousand men and a hundred demons.”
“The first count is low. The second is exaggerated…Why do the bearers of two houses ride together across a third house’s land?”
“We encountered each other on the road south of Apura and we were traveling to the same destination,” Tejeshwar explained. “It was logical for us to join forces.”
“You go to present yourself in Vadal City?”
The younger bearer nodded. “That we do.”
This was good news. One black-steel blade had made a difference in the Capitol. Three would be an incredible help. Still probably not enough to win, but they’d make the demons bleed that much more to earn their victory. “I am impressed that any of the great houses would heed the Maharaja’s call for aid enough to risk their bearers.”
Tejeshwar gave Ashok an odd look. “My house didn’t dispatch me. I was drawn north long before I heard about the Maharaja’s plea.”
“The same,” Kaladhar agreed. “In fact, my Thakoor didn’t want me to leave. Said it was too risky. I had to bully the man and tell him if I was forced to choose between his commands and the wishes of my sword, the sword was going to win. If my Thakoor dies angry, he’s got heirs to replace him. If our sword shatters in disgust, we’re through.”
Ashok was puzzled by this. “Your ancestor blades sent you here? Both of you?”
“Did yours not? Otherwise, this is quite the coincidence to find you here.”
Ashok had to respect the Thao’s wisdom. “Then it was no accident, as it was by instinct I took this road.”
“I hesitate to call what I was feeling an instinct,” Tejeshwar said. “It was more of an incessant banging of a drum that wouldn’t stop until I relented and said I would go. Visions of demons terrorized my sleep and even my waking hours until I set out in the direction Khartalvar desired.”
“I thought I was alone in experiencing this, until I heard Tejeshwar’s tale. We even had the same dreams about demons rampaging. I think these dreams were really the memories of the first ancestors long ago, when the demons fell from a sky filled with fire. I felt a profound guilt, as if I were shirking a duty I didn’t even know I’d been assigned. I knew we would be needed, and soon. I don’t know if it is just us being goaded like this, or if all the bearers have been experiencing such promptings.”
Since he understood now that all black steel was united in purpose, Ashok hoped every bearer felt that way. He had not experienced this himself, because he was already where Angruvadal needed him to be, but if the rest of the bearers got here in time, they might just have a chance.
“I believe heeding those visions was a test of your worthiness, bearers.”
“If so, then we have passed,” Kaladhar said. “My sword has been at peace as long as I’m moving in the right direction. From how strong the promptings were, I suspect any bearer who resists will either be slain by his own blade and replaced, or the ancestors’ revulsion at their current bearer’s cowardice will be so great that it will break the sword in disgust.”
“Then I hope they heed the warning. The black-steel ghosts know the final battle of our age is upon us. We will either defeat the demons there or man’s time is done,” Ashok explained. “It was for this purpose we were given black steel to begin with. Omand’s Great Extermination was nothing in comparison to what is coming if we fail. Then the demons will show man what a great extermination really means.”
Tejeshwar glanced nervously toward their unseen destination in the north. “As much as I’d like to, I can’t argue with your assessment, Black Heart. For the five years I’ve carried Khartalvar it has never been so demanding. Never before have I been left with such a foreboding sense of menace. I know it was for this moment we were chosen.”
The ground rumbled beneath them.
Birds leapt from the nearby trees. While the soldiers struggled to control their mounts, Horse reared back and then stomped angrily on the soil that had offended him. After a few seconds, the trembling stopped.
“Are earthquakes common here?” Tejeshwar asked.
“No.” Ashok could sense a distant evil stirring far below. “That was demons.”
The army of hell was making progress.
Ashok could only hope that the remainder of the ancestor blades were as persuasive as these two had been.