Hope (24 page)

Quickly, everyone fly over them and flee toward the village!
Derrek’s Communication echoed in their minds as they all flew over the Daemon line.

The adrenaline rush allowed Kathryn to keep up with the others for a good 300 feet before exhaustion overtook her. The armored Daemons pursued them. She could no longer flap her wings. Before she fell, Derrek gripped her arm and swung her up to hold her around the waist as he continued to fly as quickly as his chest wound would allow. His wings carrying two, they fell behind the others, getting closer to the Daemons.

Hook and Seri’s squads swarmed between them and the Daemons. The thirty armored Daemons didn’t stand a chance against fifty angry knights. There were some wounded, but no casualties among the new squads. The knights annihilated the Daemons.

Hal took Kathryn from Derrek and they flew along the road between the village and the castle. Below, three squads of knights led by Sir Lanclor escorted rows of villagers and wagons to the castle. They halted as the winged squads landed among them. Derrek’s entire squad was among the wounded to be loaded into the available wagons. Kathryn wasn’t the only one carried and placed into the wagon. She lost consciousness shortly thereafter.

"Sir Lanclor, Derrek had the sense to cast a fire spell upon himself to slow the bleeding. Some of the others weren’t as quick-witted, but we were able to save the rest of his squad," Vetera said quietly so as not to wake the sleeping patients around him. Derrek seemed to have heard his comments and roused.

"All of them, Master Vetera? What of Lady Kathryn?" Derrek’s eyes were unfocused, but his voice firmed.

"Lady Kathryn suffered no physical wounds, but she’s suffering from extreme exhaustion. She won’t be back in training for over a week." Vetera sounded annoyed that people would be foolish enough to exhaust themselves.

Sir Lanclor agreed with him. He had sent Lady Kathryn with Derrek’s squad not expecting any type of battle. He’d been angry about their earlier confrontation and never thought throwing an inexperienced knight in with an advanced squad like Derrek’s would cause such damage. Almost all of Derrek’s squad had died, possibly because Lanclor had given them a rebellious amateur to baby-sit.

"Derrek, I’m not sure what I can say to earn your forgiveness. Lady Kathryn had no battle experience and I just sent her with you into unexplored territory. You shouldn’t have had to baby-sit a green knight in the midst of a battle." Lanclor would have to give him another squad to command. His previous squad was one of the most respected in the Knighthood. The loss of so many graywings would be a burden, but there were many with great potential. Lanclor would have to rearrange the squads to spread around some of the veterans.

Derrek’s eyes focused upon him and widened in surprise. "Forgive you for putting Lady Kathryn with my squad? Lady Kathryn is the only reason we’re still alive. She cast high-level lightning spells that killed over seventy armored Daemons! She managed to cast dozens of shield spells as well, which saved us numerous times. Sir Lanclor, she exhausted herself to save us. She baby-sat
us
more than anything." He shook his head at Lanclor's ignorance, and then his eyes sagged with weariness from his healing.

The Knight-Commander left him to his rest as he exited the Healer quarters
.
Lady
Kathryn had saved Derrek’s squad. Why did he find that so hard to believe? He always expected the worst of people, as that’s usually what he saw. In the past, he’d witnessed knights who were masters in the practice ring quiver in fear on the battlefield, causing the deaths of those around them with their inability to defend their position. Lanclor needed to learn to have more faith in people.

He walked toward Alextor’s throne room to report on the battle and on the valley Lady Kathryn saw. The throne room guards swung open the door in front of him and announced his presence to Alextor. Lanclor strode down the carpeted path that ended in a large table overseen by a powerful chair upon a small raised dais.

Alextor sat at the table, studying a large map littered with red flags indicating recent Daemon encounters. Lanclor halted in front of the table, standing in respectful silence until Alextor chose to acknowledge his presence. Alextor looked up from his map, his face exhausted, but his eyes alight.

"Lanclor," he said with a nod. "What do you have to report?"

"Lord Alextor." Lanclor saluted his childhood friend, following the rules of the ridiculous game of politics. "Daemons attacked the village of Southker, nearly killing all of its inhabitants. Hook’s squad saved as many as they could and I ordered Lady Kathryn to join Derrek’s squad to aid Hook with scouting."

Alextor inhaled sharply. "You sent Lady Kathryn into battle without my permission? Tell me, Lanclor, do you think just because we grew up together you can ignore my commands, not even knowing the reasons behind them?"

Lanclor could tell he was furious, but Alextor's words only ignited his own anger. "I knew your reasons behind them; I just chose to overlook your dishonor of Lady Kathryn and let her gain the experience she needs to help the Knighthood. Just because you fear for this woman’s safety doesn’t mean you can shield her from her duty."

"Duty? That is your expertise, isn’t it?" The anguish in his voice was a startling change from his previous words of anger. "Is it your duty to alienate all of those around you, those who shared in your happiness, your excitement, your grief?"

Lanclor didn’t know how to respond. This would always hang in the air between them, something that had breached the walls of their friendship that no mason could repair. As much as Alextor respected him, Lanclor was someone Alextor could never afford to trust. The leader of the Knighthood could trust him with his life, but not his friendship. Lanclor wouldn’t let him.

"I’d like to finish my report if that’s okay, Milord?" Alextor nodded in defeat. "Lady Kathryn joined Derrek’s squad and scouted the area south of the village. She believes she found the valley with the red river. Before they could return to the village, they were set upon by over 100 armored Daemons."

"By the Goddess! Over 100 armored. Did they escape?"

"Derrek lost almost all of his squad, but he and Lady Kathryn survived. Apparently, Lady Kathryn cast some high level lightning spells and killed over seventy of the armored Daemons. She exhausted herself, but Master Vetera believes she’ll fully recover in a week or so."

"Over seventy armored Daemons? I didn’t even think that was possible. She’s powerful indeed. I fear for her safety, but we’d be fools not to train such a powerful weapon. I apologize for my anger before. You were right to send her into battle. I just wish you would have talked to me about it first."

That was the first time Lord Alextor had ever apologized to him in his current role. "With your permission, I’ll now take my leave to arrange the evacuation of the southern villages."

"Permission granted. Just make sure to use at least three squads if there’s that many armored Daemons about down there. I wish Lady Kathryn had already recovered so she could join the evacuation effort. Keep me informed."

"Yes, Milord." Lanclor saluted with his fist to his heart and withdrew from the throne room.

"Please, she will die without healing! Please, I'm begging you, give me a voucher!" The man knelt in the dirt in front of the Council Hall. The passersby avoided looking at his misery, all too used to seeing this display of emotion over a healing voucher rejection.

"I'm sorry. The Council has made its decision. It’s the will of the Goddess that your daughter will die. I'm only a Council guard. I must make sure you’re on your way or I’ll have to call the Royal Guard," the Council guard said. He was simply doing his job.

"No, they must reconsider! I won’t leave until they—" The man rose to his feet and began raising his voice.

Guardsman Mikael interceded while Lanclor hung back, shocked at the Council's apathy. "Sir, please come with me. I’ll need to hear what happened to your daughter and make a report." Mikael grabbed the man's arm and he came along without a fight. The defeat in his eyes was heartbreaking. Lanclor joined Mikael as he guided the man into an alley, well away from the eyes and ears of the busy throng. "Now, tell me what happened. Maybe I can help."

The hope rekindled in his eyes and he explained. "My daughter was helping me bring in our herd. Something spooked them and they ended up trampling her after she fell from her horse. She has internal bleeding and her only hope is a healer. It's all my fault. I should have just let her play instead of making her help me with the chores. I only wanted to teach her responsibility." He sobbed and it took Mikael several minutes to quiet him.

"You only need a voucher for a registered healer, right?" Mikael asked him in a quiet voice.

"Registered? What other type is there?" The man narrowed his eyes.

"I know a number of people who dabble in healing but who are not registered healers. You’d be going to them at your own risk in terms of them being able to help you, but you would also not be breaking the law. A friend of mine leads a mercenary company. He has a man in his squad with a promising gift for healing."

Mercenaries. Lanclor hated mercenaries. A bunch of filth fighting for money.

Mikael handed the man a piece of paper. "Go to this address and ask to see Drewton. Explain the situation and tell him a Guardsman gave you his name. He’ll help you." Mikael nodded in farewell and the man hurried from the alley.

Lanclor shook his head in disgust. "You sent that man to a mercenary for help? His daughter will be dead by the time he raises enough money."

Mikael glared at him. "Drewton is a good man. We ran into each other many cycles ago while chasing the same man. In the end, Drewton ended up saving my life and I returned the favor a few cycles later."

Lanclor snorted, but remained quiet.

"Drewton's a Royal Guardsman stuck in the mercenary company. Don't judge someone before you even know him." Mikael turned and left the alley, leaving Lanclor standing slack-jawed behind.

Lanclor gathered himself and stepped from the alley just in time to see Mikael walk into a tavern across the street. He joined him a short while later and sat down at a battered table in the corner with his back to the wall. It was the same as the other five taverns they'd visited that day.

Mikael began to let it slip in a casual conversation in various pubs about the "legal loophole" of the healing vouchers. He would incorporate it into a conversation innocently, and the ears surrounding his table would pick it up. For a while, Lanclor was sure he saved many of peoples’ lives as they flocked to various healers not of the Healer's Guild.

After a short while, the word must have reached the Council and they closed the loophole. Now, the Council regulated all healing magic. This didn’t include the Knighthood as they were outside the realm of the Council laws. Lanclor dropped a few names to Mikael who let everyone know there were many knight healers who were willing to provide this service if approached properly.

To deny healing was against the Goddess. Lanclor didn't care how they tried to justify it. He longed to expose the corruption of the Council, but he didn’t have the time or any idea of the method. The Daemons grew more aggressive, the number of Changed men was increasing, and as he tried to investigate the rising murders, his patience failed.

Mikael complained he no longer found comfort in his fellow Guardsmen as they discussed petty thefts and magic voucher violations. What Mikael had seen went so far beyond the normal crimes seen by Guardsmen every day; Lanclor suspected he was starting to view himself as an outsider.

Lanclor assumed he'd get a new knight before the cycle was out.

"Mikael, I think it's time for you to take some time off," Guard-Commander Warren said in a concerned voice. "I hate to say it, but you've been working too hard trying to link these Changed men with the black quills in the Daemons. There probably is no connection. We may just have another ally out there who wants to remain anonymous. I can't see anything wrong with killing Daemons."

"Maybe you're right." Mikael's frustration started to affect his work. Lanclor had spoken to Warren earlier in the week and found out Mikael snapped at his fellow Guardsmen. "Maybe I should take Jenna to Filippe's so she can meet her cousins. I haven't seen them in over two cycles. With your permission, I'd like to leave for a couple days and take a break."