The Fifth Dawn (19 page)

Glissa slammed the bag shut again, to the muffled surprise of Geth’s cursing cranium.

“What is this, Raksha?” Glissa demanded.

“I’m a ‘who.’ And I can hear you, you know!” Geth’s head shouted. Glissa dropped the bag on the ground, which elicited a yelp.

“This was sitting on a platter in the center of my dining table when I returned to my tent this morning,” Raksha said, slipping into informality. “It said it had an offer from Yert.”

The head in the bag cackled like a lunatic when the Kha said the name, but Glissa ignored it.

“Yert?”
Glissa said. “Yert—Yert’s dead.”

“Death is relative in the Dross,” the bag said.

“What’s a Yert?” Lyese asked.

“Someone I thought was long gone.” Glissa leaned down and flipped the bag back open. “All right, Geth. I’m sure you’ve got a wonderful tale about why your head’s sitting there in a bag, but I don’t care. Just talk. What’s Yert got to do with this? You told me you killed him. And if you aren’t honest with me, I
will
step on you. Hard.”

“No need for threats, my dear, old friend,” Geth’s head simpered. “Here to talk, yes I am. Yes, indeed. Yert says talk, I talk. We talk. All of us ta—”

Glissa pointedly raised her boot.

“So, yes, talking. Yert—oh, he’s one to watch. Yes indeed,” the Geth’s face took on a dark scowl. “An up-and-comer, that one. Should have watched him, eh? Should have made sure …” The head blinked and took on a more placid expression Glissa didn’t buy for a minute. “But I digress. Been doing that a lot lately. I think my brain’s getting a touch of the rot. Yert, he sends a message.”

“How is this dead man sending me a message, and why? What did you
really
do to him?” Glissa said.

In reply, Geth’s eyes rolled back into his head, leaving empty, blood-red sockets. When the head spoke again, it sounded very different. These tones were much more controlled, a great deal more menacing, over a hundred times as cold as ice, and disturbingly familiar.

“Glissa,” Geth’s head said with what the elf girl barely recognized as Yert’s voice. The sound no longer carried tremors of fear and weakness. This voice was strong, clear, and cold. “And Raksha Golden Cub, I believe? And … how lovely. A new girl. Perfect. I would say it is an honor to meet my noble enemy at last, dear Kha, but I do not wish to start out with lies. Plenty of time for lies later.”

Glissa saw Raksha bristle, but the leonin remained silent.

“Get to the point, Yert,” Glissa snapped. “That
is
you, right? Nice way to repay a kindness. I won’t make the same mistake twice.”

“It is only because of the kindness you showed me that I am speaking with you now.” Yert’s voice slithered. “But you are distracting me, Glissa. You are very good at that, you know.”

“You talk to much,” Glissa replied. She brandished her sword and leveled the tip at one of Geth’s red eyes. “Are you using those eye sockets, too?”

“You’re no fun anymore, you know that?” the head replied. “All right, no more small talk. I have your mage, the Neurok. She is alive, for now. But her life is in your hands, Glissa.”

“Bruenna?” Lyese gasped. “Glissa, we’ve got to—”

“Yes, Glissa, you’ve got to! It’s tragic!” Yert squealed in a juvenile falsetto. “Time to start rending the garments and wailing at the moons!” The head cackled, for a moment sounding much more like its original owner. “So tell me, who’s the sharpshooter? Do I detect a family resemblance?”

“What do you want, Yert?” Glissa demanded.

“Isn’t it obvious? I want you, Glissa. Come to me, of your own free will, and I shall release the mage.”

Glissa swallowed, and tried hard to sound blasé as she replied, “The Neurok knew what she was getting into. You’re crazier than I thought if you think that’s any kind of offer. How do I even know she’s alive?”

“Glissa, don’t even think about it,” she heard Bruenna’s voice say through Geth’s cracked lips. Geth’s expression contorted into a crude approximation of Bruenna, a mask of equal parts anger, fear, and grim determination. “He’s going to kill me any—”

“I think that’s enough,” Yert’s voice said, and Geth’s face broke into a wicked smile. “There, that’s all the proof you get. However, I am willing to sweeten the deal. I shall call off my nim. We shall stay within the Mephidross. Kha, I will end all attacks agains the leonin. All I ask in return is the elf girl. Really, it’s not as if you need two, is it?”

Raksha spat. “You’re a fool if you think the Kha would so easily betray a friend.” But something about his expression made Glissa think he might not be as sure as he sounded.

Geth’s head somehow lolled over sideways to make empty eye socket contact with the Kha. “Really? Don’t even want to think about it, eh? That doesn’t sound like a great leader of the noble
leonin people, and so on and so on.” The head sighed, a sound that came out as more a wet wheeze. “Glissa seems to think this is all up to her. But what do the rest of you say? Your Kha is ready to give up peace for a single elf.”

The elf realized she was surrounded by six war-weary soldiers, soldiers who had been fighting the same terrible enemy for a very long time and had seen far too many friends die at the hands of the nim. Soldiers who had just risked their lives on a distant mountain to help Glissa yet again while their fellows defended the den home.

“Raksha …” she said warily, glad she already had her sword drawn. Doing so now would have looked far too aggressive, but the weight in her palm helped her to steady her voice. The Kha looked deeply into Glissa’s eyes, as if searching for the answer to his dilemma. If he was, it didn’t take him more than a few seconds to find it.

“Leonin do not negotiate with nim,” the Kha growled. He cast a steely glare at the female warriors. “Nor do we offer up the lives of friends in acts of abject cowardice. Try again, creature.”

“You’re killing Bruenna as we speak,” the head replied. “Well, you’re killing parts of her. If you’re foolish enough to try and deceive me, you’ll force me to expand my efforts. Internal organs are even more fun to play with. Tasty, too.”

Suddenly, the head shot into the air and swiveled to face Glissa, hovering just out of sword reach. “This is not a negotiation, this is the offer,” Yert’s voice snarled. “Take it or leave it.”

Glissa seethed. Slobad was still missing, and the answers to finding him—and learning why Vektro and the goblins had attacked her—were up that mountain. Even now, Memnarch might be torturing Slobad to death. But if she didn’t do something immediately, Bruenna would surely die.

Something in her gut told her the Guardian wanted her goblin
friend alive. Since Memnarch had not issued any demands, it seemed increasingly unlikely that the reason was to simply ransom the goblin for Glissa’s spark. As easily as that, her decision was made. It was not a logical decision; it was visceral, but her instincts told her it was right.

“All right, Yert. You win,” the elf girl said. “Release Bruenna, and stop fighting the leonin, and I’ll … ugh … come to you.”

Raksha and Lyese both opened their mouths to object, and Glissa silenced them both with a glare.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” the head replied. “You have heard the offer. I expect to see you within a day. If not, the mage dies. Then, and only then, I will call off my nim.” With that, Geth’s eyes rolled back into place, gazing up at Glissa.

“Wait, you’ve got to be reasonable—” Glissa said and picked up the grisly transmitter by both ears.

“I miss anything?” Geth’s head asked.

“Geth?” Glissa snapped. “Let me talk to Yert.”

“Sorry, he’s really going to be tied up for the rest of the day,” Geth replied, “Or maybe it was other people getting tied up, and he’s merely preoccupied. Such a busy fellow, my old pal—”

Glissa dropped Geth’s head into the pack without warning and shut the bag. She called the others into a huddle, hopefully out of earshot.

“You cannot—” Raksha began with a whisper.

“I can and I am,” Glissa replied in kind.

“You would have to fight your way through the nim. Alone. That is madness,” Raksha said.

“What about Slobad?” Lyese asked.

A familiar sinking feeling set in. “He’s just going to have to hold on,” Glissa sighed. “Memnarch wants him alive for some reason, I’m sure of it.”

“Perhaps the Kha could speak with this Dwugget alone,” Raksha replied. “We are somewhat experienced in these matters.”

“This isn’t at all the behavior of the Dwugget I know,” Glissa said. “He may not be in a negotiating mood. When Vektro comes too, he can lead you there. Or one of the other goblins. How will I find you after I get Bruenna?”

“Return to Taj Nar. If the mage can signal us, we shall find
you,”
Raksha rumbled. “We see now a simple retrenching will not be enough. We need a new battle plan.”

“I knew it!” Lyese whispered excitedly. “Raksha and I can talk to the goblins, Glissa, while—”

“No. No, no, no,” Glissa said, and added, “No.” She scowled when she saw the set of Lyese’s jaw. “And don’t argue.”

Lyese simply stared incredulously at her sister, and Glissa thought of the many, many times over the years she’d been forced to lie to her mother about her whereabouts. One didn’t become the greatest hunter in the Tangle by getting in every night by sundown and studying with troll scholars and elf academics. Raksha coughed unconvincingly.

“Think, Glissa. Say you’re Dwugget.”

“You don’t even know Dwugget,” Glissa snapped.

“Not my point,” Lyese replied. “Say you’re Dwugget, and you see these guys.” She jerked a thumb at the commandos, who looked up curiously. “You’re going to call out the goblin guard and maybe something even worse than that meathead Vektro. Now say you see the Kha and his consort—”

Glissa’s eyes narrowed, and Raksha’s muzzled dropped open.

“—Or, the Kha and a dignitary from the Tel Jilad Chosen,” Lyese deftly continued. “From a distance he might even think I’m you.”

“She has a point,” Raksha ventured. “Her presence should help us avoid another confrontation. But we should go alone, in
case more patrols or ‘meatheads’ are about.” Glissa noted Lyese began to blush dark green. “My warriors shall serve you as they would me, Glissa. They will see you to Bruenna, and help you free her from this Yert.”

“Flare,” Glissa muttered. “All right, but if anything happens to her, Raksha …”

The Kha merely cocked his head to one side and arched an ear. “Your sister shall return alive.”

“I’m holding you to that, your Kha-ness,” Glissa said. “Thank you. Lyese.” She stepped forward gingerly swept her sister into a hug that sent pain down her injured arm, but Glissa ignored it. She leaned in to Lyese’s ear and whispered so only her sister could hear—she hoped. “And behave yourself. Don’t trust anyone, except maybe Raksha—I really think he’s a good man, but I thought Dwugget was too. Remember, a ruler is always going to have his own priorities. And that might not include marrying the Viridian princess, so get that look out of your eye.”

Glissa stepped back and held her sister at arm’s length. Lyese nodded solemnly, but soon couldn’t hold back a lopsided grin. The younger elf blushed a deeper green.

“The most important thing is to find out if they know anything about Slobad. An alliance is important, but if we can’t figure out why Memnarch was willing to send so many levelers after Slobad, that all might be beside the point.” Raksha nodded his agreement as Glissa continued. “If you can’t get to the Prophet, try to find someone else who might know something. But if you do get a chance to talk to Dwugget,” Glissa said, “tell him what happened down below, in the interior—what I told you. Both of you fill in the story for him. He probably knows more about the big picture than you think. Tell him about Slobad. If he really is following Krark, he should help you. If not, we’re going to have to fight Memnarch without the goblins’ help.”

Raksha looked a little ruffled at suddenly being on the receiving end of the orders but nodded in agreement. “We shall,” he said.

“I just hope we don’t have to fight too many of the goblins,” said Lyese, rubbing her sore wrists. “They don’t fight fair.”

“Neither should you,” Glissa said. “You should fight to survive.”

Raksha arched the wiry whiskers on his brow at this dishonorable notion, but said nothing.

“Take care of yourself, big sister,” Lyese said. “Go save Bruenna, and we’ll meet you back at Taj Nar.”

“Yes you will. I’m not about to become the bride of Yert,” Glissa said.

Raksha reached under his breastplate and pulled out a small gemstone pendant hanging from a chain. The stone glowed a faint yellow in the dim light. Without ceremony, the Kha pulled it over his head and offered it to Glissa. “Take this,” he said. “It will protect you from the necrogen mists. They can become toxic over several days’ exposure. Hopefully you won’t be in there that long.” He shrugged and added, “You might also say it’s lucky.”

“Thanks. Now to see if I can get there in time,” Glissa said, placing a hand to her temple. “There’s got to be a way to cover the distance. Where are your pterons?”

“Safely out of the fight. They are more a hindrance than a help in such close quarters, and frankly Taj Nar can’t afford to lose even one. That said, you shall take my personal mount,” Raksha rumbled as he waved the nearest skyhunter over. “This is Lieutenant Ellasha. Lieutenant, we are placing you under the command of Glissa, Chosen One and Champion of the Tangle. Do you understand?”

Glissa groaned inwardly. Her supposed status as “Chosen One” was, as far as she was concerned, still in dispute. “Chased
One” was more like it. Raksha’s lieutenant didn’t seem to find her title that impressive. Ellasha let her lip curl just enough to reveal the tips of her fangs before military demeanor took over and she nodded curtly. “Yes, my Kha.” The leonin lieutenant flipped Raksha a crisp salute and returned to securing the goblin prisoners.

Glissa saw that the leonin had left a few of the goblins’ weapons lying about—neither team was going to be able to take a number of angry goblin prisoners along, but leaving them tied securely without some way to eventually escape was tantamount to murder.