The Last Wizard of Eneri Clare (76 page)

At that point, one of the gryphons in Drogue’s employ appeared at his shoulder, catching his attention, whereupon Valour wheeled in mid-air, front hooves pawing at the empty sky, and horse and rider bolted off into the far end of the valley. She assumed the defeated mountain lord was fleeing from more bad news.

“I suppose I should offer him terms, or request a formal surrender, or some such,” she sighed. “Blast! I don’t even know how these things work…” she admitted, still staring at the action in the valley below.

“Boone will know.” Tvrdik also had his eyes glued to the theater of battle, where the Legionnaires were beginning to cheer and hug one another in triumph. “I went down to the healer’s tents,” he added, absently, “There were no…we didn’t…no one was killed.”

She sighed, “I was dreading the question.”

They both stood there for a moment, battered and weary, somewhat dazed, but beginning to grasp the reality of their victory. Tash looked on from a few yards away, his great tail swishing back and forth. No one had the energy to speak, or think, or make the next move.

Someone else made it for them. Shar came galloping up the rise, breathless and wild-eyed, “Master! My lady! I have been searching for you everywhere. Someone has arrived in camp with urgent news. He is desperate to speak with you both.”

Jorelial Rey was first to regain her demeanor of authority, “Who is he, Shar? What does he want?”

“I’m sure I do not know, but he looks like he has been through something terrible, and he arrived on the back of a…a dire-wolf, my lady.”

Jorelial Rey and Tvrdik exchanged a wary look, and came to full attention. “Come on,” the Lady Regent ordered, “Tash will take us. Thank you, Shar. We’ll see you down there.” She helped the dragon-wary mage onto Tashroth’s back, and climbed up behind him, favoring her swollen ankle. Up into the air they rose and tipped sideways, banking the turn. Tvrdik closed his eyes and gripped the bony ridge in front of him until his knuckles were white. Down they swooped, to the place where Lord Corbin Maygrew was standing just beside the wall of blue. But, well before they landed, Jorelial Rey recognized the tall, bedraggled figure standing with stooped shoulders between Corbin Maygrew and a very large wolf.

FORTY
What Fresh Hell?

“M
ARK!” SHE SHOUTED, SCRAMBLING OFF
of Tashroth’s back before he could find a clear place to touch the ground, people scurrying in every direction to make way.

“Mark.” she yelled again, dropping to the dirt and limping toward him, despite the searing pain in her damaged ankle.

“Hey, be careful,” Tvrdik called after her, “you’ll undo all the good we did on that leg…,” but then he, too, recognized the identity of the newcomer, and was sliding down Tash’s side right behind her.

The young bard was scraped and filthy, and trembling from head to foot, but had refused any assistance until he had spoken to them. Corbin Maygrew was propping him up while he fought to catch his breath. Reaching his side, Jorelial Rey looked him over, sizing up the details, and then, grasping both of his arms, tried to make eye contact with the distraught man.

“Mark,” her voice was low and measured, “What happened? Where is Delphine? Darian?”

Mark choked back a sob, but he got the words of his story out, “Lady Rey, we were discovered. One of Drogue’s gryphons followed your messenger to us and saw us out picking berries. I-I was several yards away when he appeared. I could only save one of them. He took Delphine.” His voice broke on her name.

“His Highness?”

“Safe. I grabbed him in time and ran with him. Baldezir here and his family were watching over us, and his wife has conducted my family, the king, and Lynette to a secret place of safety that only shepherds know. But the gryphon flew off with your sister…I couldn’t get to both of them. She…she ran off in the other direction to draw the creature away from Darian. She shouted at me to save the king. Oh gods!” He put his hands over his face and sobbed in earnest now. Jorelial Rey let go of the bard, wincing now with the pain of this news. Gears were turning in her mind.

“You did the right thing, Mark. As awful as this is, you had little choice. You protected the king, just as I charged you to do.” She turned to the wolf, who was sitting erect beside Mark, panting from the exertions of their difficult journey. “Baldezir, is it?”

“Yes, my lady.”

Mark composed himself again and interrupted, “He carried me all the way here at a breakneck pace in order to find you…”

Rel nodded, “Sir, our entire kingdom is grateful for your extraordinary service at this critical hour. No matter what happens, I will see you knighted for your courage when this is over.”

Baldezir made a small bow and fixed his great yellow eyes on her, “Lady, my people are more than happy to do our part in thwarting men like Drogue. But I thank you for your kind acknowledgement.”

The Lady Regent waved her arm. “Someone bring water and meat here!” she called. A few unoccupied legionnaires claimed the assignment, and scurried away toward the camp. Tvrdik stepped in and pulled Mark into his long arms, enfolding him with all the compassion and comfort of a brother, while grasping for some inspiration that might help Delphine. Delphine…sweet Delphine – his first real friend in this place. They couldn’t just leave her to the tyrant.

Mark was grateful for the support, still trembling with emotion. But he straightened and spoke again, determined to set some action in motion, “Baldezir thinks he will not harm her until he can find some way to use her as a bargaining chip, since things have not gone well for him here on the field. We may yet have a chance to rescue her, but every moment is precious.”

Jorelial Rey was pacing. Hobbling, but pacing nevertheless.

“That man is capable of anything – we mustn’t underestimate him. But, I agree that she is probably still alive. I will go to him and see what he wants in exchange for her safe return.”

Tvrdik’s eyes widened, “My lady, you cannot hand over to the foe a victory that was so hard won by our friends this day. You cannot let him terrorize you like that.”

“I can offer him myself in exchange…”

“You
cannot
! You are needed here. We will find another way to get her back without that…” This was Lord Maygrew, vehement in siding with Tvrdik, but Rel was becoming more agitated by the moment.

“Then, what
can
we do? How will we find her? We don’t even know where she is…”

They did not have to wait to find out. Almost as Lady Rey spoke the words, a sound caught all of their attention. It came from overhead – a strident shriek something like a horse’s neigh, only tinged with a whiff of madness. Lord Drogue was back, circling over them on a dark winged horse – Valour. Muscular black wings beat the air in rhythm, while the horse’s powerful frame reared up from an invisible floor and struck at the clouds with his forelegs. Drogue moved with confidence in his seat on the beast. He was an experienced horseman who read his mount’s every movement with ease. Seated sideways on the saddle in front of him, bound at wrist and ankle and gagged as well, secured on the steed only by Drogue’s left arm around her narrow waist, was Delphine. Even from that distance, they could see the expression in her eyes, which flashed both defiance and terror.

Mark stepped out, gripping Tvrdik’s arm like a vise. “Delphine!” he called upward. In response, they heard laughter, hard and mirthless, and the voice of Lord Drogue, amplified by a trick of simple sorcery, so that each of them heard every blood-curdling word as if he stood beside them.

“Yes, my young harper, Delphine. Sweet, lovely Delphine. We are having a little tete-a-tete, your
bride
and I. Oh, yes, word has reached me of your recent nuptials. I must congratulate you, you lucky cur. She is most charming company, I must say.”

Only Corbin Maygrew’s strong arm kept Mark from lunging after his tormentor, a futile gesture in any case.

Every eye on the field was turned upward to a sky now vacant, save for the lone dark rider on his flying steed. All remaining conflicts ceased. The shield bearers lowered their weapons, as did any of Drogue’s warriors who were still in play. The sun had begun sinking toward the western horizon and shadows of twilight were slowly creeping over the landscape. Still, the figures of the dark flying horse with its sharp-featured rider and helpless captive stood out in clear relief. Everything had come down to this: all their preparation and efforts, the future of an entire kingdom, against the life of one girl.

“Let her go, Drogue.” It was Jorelial Rey’s most commanding tone. “She is only a girl. She is no threat to you.”

“Ah, my Lady Rey. So nice to see you once again. And to hear you plead so affectingly for your sister – how sweet. But, why would I let her go when she is so very useful to me right now?”

“What do you want for her?” the Lady Regent responded, making a monumental effort to contain her fury. “I will offer myself in exchange for her safety…” The others glared at her, but Drogue just laughed.

“Now that is a very generous gesture, my dear, very generous indeed, but I am afraid I have no use for you. You are far too shrewish for my tastes, my lady. I suspect we would never get along.”

“How dare he talk to you like that?” Lord Maygrew rumbled on the ground, and seemed about to shout something threatening. But the Lady Rey touched his hand, and threw him a look that silenced him. She addressed the dark rider again.

“Alright, then. But everyone has his price. You know I want my sister back, unharmed. I know there is something you want. What is it, Drogue? Surely, we can come to an agreement.”

Mark was staring upward in horrified silence, unable to move or speak, or even breathe, for fear the slightest error would send his beloved to her doom. Tvrdik kept a firm hand on the young bard’s shoulder, while scouring his memory for some magic he could wield that would snatch Delphine from the clutches of her captor. Nothing he could come up with seemed foolproof, and they could afford no fumbled attempts.

Drogue adopted a tone of mock ennui. “Oh, I don’t know,” he sighed, “I weary of this game. There isn’t much you could offer me that I care about…” They all gasped as he spurred Valour higher in the air and leaned Delphine over his arm, as if to drop her. “Unless, of course, you could tell me where to find little King Darian? Now, that might be a fair trade – one golden-haired little boy for one red-headed sweet maid? I hardly think I’d even be getting the best of that bargain, but I’d be willing to overlook that.”

They circled overhead one more time. Jorelial Rey shouted up, “Now, you know I cannot do that, Drogue. We are all sworn to protect our king with our lives. That is not negotiable.”

“But it is what I want,” he whined.

“What else can I tempt you with?” She was desperate, but kept her voice conversational, with a monumental effort, “Riches? Land? Amnesty, a commission, titles? Name it. If it is in my power, I can make it happen instantly. Surely there is something that will satisfy you?”

He was laughing again, that irritating, skin-crawling laugh. “You just don’t get it, my lady, do you. I told you once before that I have everything I need already – save one thing only. I am not interested in your puny favors. I will be king here. That is my price.”

Tvrdik could hold his tongue no longer, “Give it up, Drogue. Look around you. Despite your wealth, and power, and skill at intimidation, you have lost the day. You underestimated the power of good folk defending their homeland, and a principle. You are defeated. Your army is broken. You cannot win. You may dispatch Delphine, and me, and all of us here, but you will never be king in Eneri Clare. Let the girl go, and surrender, and it will go far easier for you.”

“Ah, it’s the famous mage, now, is it? Brave words from someone so young and inexperienced. I have a bone to pick with you, mage. Did you not appreciate the lovely gift I sent to you, my personal selection for you? Did you have to go and destroy her? Was that done like a gentleman? I went to such pains to surprise you – where is the gratitude, I ask you? You, sir, have cut me to the quick.”

“What is he talking about?” the Lady Regent snapped.

“Never mind. I’ll tell you later.” Tvrdik whispered, turning an odd shade of purple.

Drogue went on, “She was a lovely thing. I rather liked her myself. Hmmm, since you were so thoughtless, and broke the plaything I sent to you, perhaps I should show you how it feels, and break yours…” and Drogue seized Delphine by her slender waist, and held her out over the rocky valley floor. She closed her eyes without a sound, but those on the ground watching cried out in terror for her.

Jorelial Rey forced herself to appear unrattled, and tried once more to appeal to Drogue’s better nature. There had to be some small remnant of a human being still flickering in the ugly caricature he had become. “Please,
please
,” she cried, “my Lord Drogue, do not harm my sister. She has never done you, or anyone else any harm. She is a poet, a singer – not a politician or a warrior. Even you could not be so heartless as to slaughter an innocent for no reason. You have family yourself – friends, perhaps? You can imagine…do not do this just for spite.”

At this the dark rider’s cackling laughter crescendoed to its highest peak. Something in her earnest plea had quite amused him, as he drew Delphine’s slim form back onto the seat in front of him. He seemed to be wiping his eyes with the other hand, as Valour, neighing, hovered in the air.

“Oh, you lot are so entertaining. I confess I have not had this much fun in an age. Poor, deluded children that you are. You
deserve
a child king, yes, you do. You still have no idea at all with whom you are dealing.” More laughter and eye-wiping. “Such a heartfelt plea! I don’t know whether to laugh or weep. My dear girl, I
never
do things just for spite; I do them to suit my purposes. Master mage, you point out that I underestimated the performance of your raggle-taggle mob on the battlefield. That much, perhaps is true. You were creative, I’ll give you that. Clever, too – even downright amusing. I am a bit peeved that it has not been as simple a task as I had imagined, to achieve my goal. But, achieve it I will, make no mistake. And, speaking of underestimating things, you all don’t seem to understand that all of the chaos you see on this field, all that has happened today – it makes no difference. I care not for any of this; it is but a chessboard where the game is yours today. But I will take the tournament. I
will be king
, whatever it may cost. I have come too far, done too much, crossed too many lines to be denied my prize now.”

Rel was confused, “What do you mean by that? Only months ago, you were a respected member of the court.”

This sent him into a whole new fit of merriment. The man was insane. He shifted Delphine to his other arm with a carelessness that elicited gasps from everyone on the ground. “Oh, yes, I played my part well: the disaffected mountain lord so concerned by the idea of a child king, then alienated by being snubbed in the election… Tsk, tsk, tsk, you fools! Do you not know a fine performance when you see it? It was always my intention to have the throne. I have been working at it systematically for years. Now, I am at last so close I can taste it, and nothing will stop me.”

“Working at it systematically…?” Jorelial Rey still could not wrap her brain around that statement.

“My goodness, do you think it is an easy thing to arrange for
both
halves of a royal couple to take to the sea together, and then to create a large enough storm to insure that they would never see their home again? It was genius, I tell you. No one suspected a thing. Mother Nature’s most brutal trick. A shame that stupid little imp wasn’t on board with them.”

The group watching from below had swelled in size as many of the Legion’s fighters hastened to the scene, wanting to help in some way, and drawn to hear the interchange between Lord Drogue and their own leaders. This last announcement produced a wave of shock and horror that nearly felled some of the company.

“Ye gods…” Corbin Maygrew mumbled, “it’s murder – no,
regicide
! How could we have missed it?”

“You see,” Drogue went on, quite proud of his achievements, and elated to finally have the opportunity to brag about them to an audience, “I play to people’s weaknesses. Yours, my dear, is a ridiculous sentimental attachment to this useless creature here. Darian’s was his longing for adventure and fresh experience, while the queen just couldn’t bear to be parted from him, even when wisdom dictated it was prudent. Now, in your father’s case…”