Wielder's Fate (29 page)

His ears began picking up all sorts of sounds in the surrounding forest.  A broken twig here and a rustle of needles there.  He concentrated more intently on his surroundings but didn’t sense anything near him.  His toe suddenly caught on a rock, and he pitched forward.  He caught himself on the ground and stood back up, thankful he hadn’t ended up in the freezing water of the stream.

He decided it would be unwise for him to continue any further in the darkness.  It was hard to see much of anything, and he was exhausted.  He glanced around, looking for a good place to lie down for the night, but all he saw were the fog and vague shadows.  Darian had said there were wild beasts on the mountain, and he wasn’t about to go to sleep without some kind of shelter.

Traven closed his eyes and focused on the flow of particles around him.  It seemed as though there were some large rocks to his left, not far from the stream.  He opened his eyes and carefully made his way towards them.  All he could see were tree trunks and thick fog until the rocks suddenly appeared in front of him.  He walked around them until he found a small nook between two of them that looked like it would work.  He thrust his spear into the nook to make sure nothing else was occupying the space.  After satisfying himself that it was indeed empty, he settled down with solid rock at his back and sides.  He positioned the spear so that it pointed outward with its tip about half an arm span off the ground.  If anything did come upon him while he slept, it would have to come at him from the front.

He pulled his fur coat snuggly around him and tried to get comfortable.  The moist air seemed to seep into his bones, making it impossible to get completely warm, even within the confines of the heavy coat.  Despite the lack of comfort, he was so exhausted that he quickly drifted off to sleep.

Something suddenly caused him to jerk awake.  It was still dark, but the air appeared to be getting slightly lighter.  He listened intently, trying to discover what had pulled him from his sleep.  All was silent.  He leaned back and shifted his position in an attempt to get comfortable.  Perhaps it had been nothing.  Just as he closed his eyes, he heard a low growl.

23

Kalista sat atop her horse at the edge of the road and watched as the last of the refugees passed her and made their way into the camp area.  Night had completely fallen much earlier, but it had taken until now for all of those traveling from Candus to reach the camp.  She put both hands over her mouth and stifled a yawn.  It had to be at least midnight now.  She had chosen to stay awake until everyone had reached camp and wondered if it had been wise.  It would make it that much harder to get up in the morning.

The day had been long and taxing.  She had thought her march with the Kalian Army had been difficult, but the memory of it seemed easy compared to the current task before her.  A group filled with both the elderly and the extremely young made it difficult to travel at much more than a slow walk.  The sluggish pace had made it necessary to keep the citizens moving until slightly after nightfall in an effort to get them as far away from the city as possible.

Her day had been filled with people worried about the possessions they had been forced to leave, people complaining that they could not walk any further, and with the cries of babies.  She supposed it broke up the monotony of the trip, but it was definitely not pleasant or encouraging.  There were some parts that had been better.  Several times she had been able to help small children find their way back to their mothers.  Seeing the relief on their faces when they were reunited with their families made those tasks the easiest to bear.  Reassuring people that they could in fact keep walking and that all would end well was more trying on her patience.

Hopefully, the citizens would grow accustomed to the long days of walking and not complain as much.  However much she disliked the grumblings, she could not blame those that vented their frustrations.  It was a hard thing to be forced from your home and left wondering whether it would still be intact when you were allowed to return to it.  These were definitely trying times.

Kalista would have felt better if they had covered more ground, but she supposed they were far enough to be beyond any threat of the galdaks.  She led her horse over to her tent.  She could see several campfires still in use, but the majority of people had retired for the night.

“My Princess.”

“Yes,” she said as she turned towards one of her guards, wondering what he needed.

“I know it has been a long day,” he began timidly.  “But I was wondering if I might ask a favor of you?”

“Go on,” she said tiredly.

“I would normally not be so bold as to trouble you with trifling matters, but my sister begged me to make a request of you.  My five year old niece has been sick for some time, and the evacuation of the city has been very hard on her.  My sister tried to comfort her by telling her that she would be traveling with the High Princess of Kalia.  The long day has been hard on the little girl, and the excitement of travelling with a princess has faded.  She misses the familiarity of her home, and the stress is taking its toll on her fragile body.  My sister wondered if you would be willing to condescend to visit the poor girl.  I understand if you are unable to fulfill her wishes.”

As tired as she was, the plea of a mother for a sick child pulled at her heartstrings.  She longed to go to sleep but could not deny the request.  If her visit could help to ease the little girl’s suffering, the loss of sleep would be worth it.

“I will come,” Kalista stated as she straightened in her saddle.  “Lead the way.”

A look of surprise crossed the guard’s face before he bowed deeply and thanked her.  He then turned and led her through the camp.  Her other guards closed in around her and accompanied her towards their comrade’s sister.  The small group slowly made its way through the giant camp.

It was nothing like the organized camps of the Kalian Army.  Tents of varying sizes and qualities had been hastily thrown up wherever there was enough space for them.  Some were clustered together tightly while others stood alone.  It quickly became apparent to Kalista that the different classes of citizens had remained separate on the march.  They passed from a large section of bigger tents with organized paths around them to an ever larger section of small, disorganized tents.  There were also numerous people clustered together on the ground without any tents at all.

Some of them turned to see who was passing through their midst, but most continued to sleep, undisturbed.  Kalista quickly became concerned by the large number of people without tents.  What would happen during a rain storm?  She was surprised when the guard pulled up next to a shabby group of people clustered around a small campfire that was now no more than coals.  Several in the group looked up with exhaustion clearly written across their faces.

The eyes of one of the women lit up when she recognized her brother and Kalista.  She hurriedly got to her feet.  In her arms she held a small bundle of raggedy blankets.  Kalista gave a start as she realized there was a small girl wrapped in the bundle.  The child looked half starved with sunken eyes and sharp cheekbones.  One bony arm hung out of the bundle limply.  Kalista blinked rapidly and bit her lip in an effort not to cry at the piteous sight.  The little girl’s eyes were closed.

“Is this her?” she asked in a whisper so as not to disturb the sleeping child.

The guard nodded in response.  Kalista slipped off her horse and stood next to the little girl’s mother.  The small child convulsed several times but her eyes remained closed.

“I am sorry she is asleep and will not be able to see me,” Kalista said quietly to the woman.

“She never really sleeps anymore,” the mother responded sadly.  “She simply drifts in and out of consciousness.”

The mother lowered her head to her daughter and whispered something that Kalista could not hear.  The girl’s eyes shot open almost instantly.  A large smile split her emaciated face.

“Is this a dream?” the little girl asked quietly.

“No,” her mother responded with tears in her eyes.  “The Princess has come to visit you.”

Kalista’s eyes welled up with tears as the little girl’s eyes shone with an excitement and life that seemed out of place on the weakened body.  Kalista reached out and put her hand on the sunken cheek of the little girl.

“What is your name?” she asked.

“Callie,” the little girl responded.

“How do you feel, Callie?”

“Tired,” Callie responded.  “We travelled far today.”

“We did,” Kalista agreed.

“Mom says it was to keep us safe,” the little girl said.  “Are we safe now?”

“Yes,” Kalista responded with a smile.  “We are safe.  Now you better get back to sleep.  We have to get up early tomorrow so we can get to Kavar soon.”

“I could sleep better if it wasn’t so cold,” Callie said.  “But I’ll do my best to sleep well tonight.”

Kalista untied her long, soft cloak and laid it on top of Callie.

“Here,” she said.  “This will help you stay warm.”

Callie’s eyes lit up once again with the light that contrasted with her gaunt face.

“Thank you,” she squealed as she hugged the cloak tightly against her tiny frame.

Her eyes then slowly shut, and she began snoring softly.  Kalista stepped back from the little girl and remounted her horse.  The girl’s mother kept crying and thanking her for her kindness as she turned her horse and headed back towards her own tent.

The guard who had requested the visit also thanked her.  Kalista could see tears in the strong man’s eyes.  She nodded graciously as they slowly made their way through the camp.  The little girl’s face haunted her thoughts as she looked around.  She wondered how many other families were traveling with the sick and afflicted.  She could only imagine how hard it must be for the mother of the little girl to walk all day while carrying the child in her arms.  She turned back to the guard.

“Take your sister a horse tomorrow morning,” she commanded.  “Also, see that she has a tent for tomorrow night.”

The guard thanked her and assured her he would fulfill her command.  Kalista yawned once again as she finally reached her tent.  It was time for her to sleep.  First thing in the morning she would discuss the needs of those who were travelling without tents or with inadequate provisions.

She dismounted and entered her own tent.  One of her maids was still awake, just inside the tent flap, waiting for her.  Kalista smiled in greeting and allowed her maid to help prepare her for sleep.

It was not long before she was secure and comfortable on her cot.  She almost felt guilty for the accommodations she had.  She let her muscles relax and tried not to worry about everything that was happening around her.  If they kept up their current pace, it would take another thirteen days to reach Kavar. 

Luckily, there were plenty of supplies, and there would be safety and security when they reached Kavar.  Until then, they would have to keep up a decent pace and trust that the Royal Army would keep the galdaks at bay long enough for them to reach their destination.

Kalista wondered how the night’s battle was progressing.  Commander General Blaize had said he might choose to abandon Candus as soon as all of its inhabitants were safely on their way to Kavar.  The beautiful city would most likely fall tonight or the following night.  It saddened her to think of the impending destruction that awaited the fair city.

She hoped Gavin was staying safe.  She also hoped there would be minimal casualties to the Royal Army during the night’s battle.  The army already had an evacuation plan in place and should be able to implement it easily if necessary now that the citizens were safely out of their city.  That in itself should keep the casualties to a minimum.

For now, she needed to focus on the refugees.  She would see that their needs were met and that they made it to Kavar safely.  They would need to break camp and leave early in the morning to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the galdaks.  They would not truly be safe until they reached Kavar.  The sooner they arrived, the better.  Kalista sighed and shifted on the cot.  The little girl’s face and fragile body still haunted her.  She would work hard in the morning to see that those like Callie were taken care of.

* * * * *

Blaize intently watched the battle taking place from his strategic perch atop a section of the city wall.  His troops were fighting valiantly and so far had kept the galdaks outside the city.  The battle had begun in earnest just after sunset and had continued raging for half the night.  He saw no reason why it wouldn’t last until dawn, just like the rest of the nights.  However, tonight he planned on using a different strategy.

The soldiers had worked hard to prepare for the night’s stratagem.  Blaize had ordered them to continue fighting as normal until midnight so as not to arouse the suspicion of the galdaks.  The time appointed to change their strategy and implement his plans was close at hand.  He took a deep breath and motioned for several of his messengers.  He had never signaled a retreat before.  As much as he disliked the idea of ceding ground to the galdaks, he knew it was currently his best option.

He gave the messengers their orders and sent them on their way.  He took a deep breath.  He had done it.  The signals would soon be lit, and the retreat would begin.  Blaize consoled his pride by reminding himself that he had not ordered just a simple retreat.  The Royal Army would not be running away.  They would be strategically destroying a large portion of the opposing force as they moved to a more defensible position.

Blaize waited patiently for the beacon fires to be lit.  It wasn’t long before the four fires at the outside base of the walls burst into flames.  His soldiers immediately began falling back into the city, abandoning the walls.  It was done at a measured and staggered pace to keep the enemy ignorant that it was being done voluntarily.  The galdaks would only think they were slowly pushing the humans back.  Blaize turned and surveyed the streets of the city.  Everything was ready.