Adventurers Wanted, Book 4: Sands of Nezza (37 page)

“You’ll have a hard time finding anything like a quiet place in this camp,” said Virgil. “There are too many happy soldiers and too much work to finish before we move in the morning.”

“At least it is quieter here than outside,” said Alex, sitting down. “Please, continue what you were doing. I wouldn’t want to keep Tom from practicing.”

“We were almost finished. Perhaps we should get some sleep,” said Tom, glancing at Virgil.

“Yes, we should,” Virgil agreed. “We need to relieve Dain and Skeld later tonight, so sleep would be a good idea.”

“Relieve Dain and Skeld?” Alex asked.

“They are keeping an eye on Rallian,” said Virgil. “With so many new faces in the camp, and now that we are so close to Karmus, I thought it best for two of us to remain close to the king at all times.”

“Yes, that is a good idea,” said Alex. “Thank you.”

“It is what you asked us to do,” said Virgil.

Alex smiled. “I’m glad you all stayed in Nezza to help Rallian, and to help me.”

“It is an honor to be of service,” said Virgil. “But now it will be an honor to get some sleep.”

Tom and Alex both laughed. The two adventurers moved to one side of the tent, and Alex put out the lights so they could sleep. Alex left only one candle burning and sat looking into the flame. His mind was filled with questions, and they all came back to why.

“Why?” Alex whispered to himself.

Why had Magnus done nothing? Why had he not killed Rallian when he had the chance? Why had the serpent let Rallian live? What was Magnus’s plan for Nezza? The questions kept coming, but Alex couldn’t find any answers. He took a deep breath and remembered what the retired adventurer Savage had said.

He will have at least three plans,
Savage’s voice echoed in Alex’s mind.
One to defeat you, a second one for his own escape, and a third one that you never thought about.

Leaning back in his chair, Alex closed his eyes. His head hurt and that made it hard to think. Magnus might have three plans—he might have even more—but knowing that didn’t help. Alex desperately wanted to discover just one plan, the one that Magnus was working on now.

The pain in Alex’s head continued to grow, and then, all at once, he felt peaceful. He looked around, realizing he had slipped into a dream. A warm light shined from behind him. Ahead of him was the gentle slope of a hill and a low stone wall. He was at the edge of the shadowlands, at least in his dream.

He stood looking down at the wall, trying to find some meaning to his dream. For a moment he thought he saw someone just beyond the wall, and then he realized there were two people, but Alex couldn’t make out who they were. As the figures moved deeper into the shadowlands, Alex felt a mix of sadness and joy, but he didn’t know why.

The dream shifted, and Alex found himself in a dimly lit corridor. Torches burned along the stone walls, but there was nothing to see. He moved forward, but the stone walls went on and on, unbroken and unchanging. There was something he needed to find, something he desperately wanted. He started to run, but running didn’t bring him closer to his goal.

Finally, when he could run no more, Alex stopped and reached forward. An invisible barrier stopped his hand. He pushed against the barrier, and it seemed to bend, just as the barrier around the great arch had done. He leaned forward, pushing as hard as he could, and slowly the barrier moved.

Alex continued to push, and, inch by inch, he moved forward. He knew the thing he wanted most was just beyond the barrier. If he could only bend it far enough, he would find what he was looking for. He struggled for what felt like hours, never reaching his goal. He thought one more step would be enough, one more step and he would have his answers. He pushed with all his might and then fell forward into darkness.

Alex woke with a start. His candle was still burning, but there wasn’t much of it left. He rubbed his eyes and listened. He could hear Virgil snoring softly on the other side of the tent, and he let his own eyes close. Almost immediately his eyes snapped open again, and he knew something was very wrong.

“What is it?” Stonebill questioned.

Alex held up his hand to silence the bird and then placed it over Virgil’s mouth before shaking him awake. Virgil looked lost for a moment but regained his senses quickly. Alex woke Tom as well, muffling Tom’s yelp of surprise when he woke.

“What is it?” Virgil whispered.

“Listen,” said Alex.

“I don’t hear anything,” said Tom.

“When was the last time you didn’t hear anything at night?” Alex asked.

“Before we started traveling with the army,” Virgil answered, understanding what Alex was telling them. “It is too quiet. Something is wrong.”

“We need to get to Rallian’s tent as fast as we can without making any noise,” said Alex.

“What do you want me to do?” Stonebill questioned.

“Search the camp and the land around us,” Alex answered. “Look for anyone or anything that is out of place. If we are about to be attacked, it would be good to know from which direction the attack is coming.”

Stonebill flew out of the tent as soon as Alex finished speaking. Alex put out the candle and led Virgil and Tom into the darkness. Torches and campfires were still burning, filling the spaces between tents with strange shadows. The silence pressed in on them, and every move they made sounded far too loud. Alex looked at the places where he knew guards had been, but there was no one to be seen.

It only took a minute or two to reach Rallian’s tent, and they all froze in the shadows a few yards from the entrance. Someone else was moving toward the tent, coming from the opposite direction and moving almost as quietly as they were. Alex put his hand on his sword, ready to fight if he needed to.

In the dim light, Alex could make out the figure of a man in armor, and as the man moved toward the tent, Alex recognized him. It was Colesum, Talbot’s oldest son, and he wasn’t alone.

Moving forward into the torchlight, Alex found a spot where Colesum could see him. He held up his hand to keep Colesum from calling out, and then pointed at his eyes and waved his hand at the tents around them. It took a moment before Colesum understood what Alex was asking: Had he seen anyone in the surrounding tents? Colesum shook his head and pointed at Rallian’s tent. Alex nodded and moved forward, Virgil and Tom right behind him.

A low moan came from inside Rallian’s tent as Alex and Colesum reached to pull back the flaps that covered the entrance. They both rushed forward at the sound, and what they found made Alex’s heart stop. Bodies covered the floor of the tent.

“Father!” Colesum cried out, rushing forward.

“Skeld!” Virgil yelled at the same moment, pushing past Alex.

Alex’s head spun, his brain unable to take in what he was seeing. He caught hold of a tent pole to keep himself from falling and closed his eyes to block everything out.

Control yourself,
Alex thought.
There’s work to be done, and you need to control your emotions.

Pushing away from the tent pole, Alex went to Lord Talbot. Talbot had been lying across one of the tables as if he were dead, but he let out a groan of pain as his son moved him to a chair.

“The others,” Talbot mumbled in a weak voice. “They need your help.”

There was a rough-looking wound on one side of Talbot’s head, but no other obvious injuries so Alex moved to Skeld. Virgil had propped up his cousin and pulled open his shirt to reveal a wide gash in Skeld’s side. Blood was still gushing out of the wound, and Alex knew he only had seconds to act.

Alex put his hand over Skeld’s wound and set his magic to work. His hand seemed to glow for a moment, and Skeld let out a gasp of pain. For a few seconds, Alex kept his hand in place, and when he took it away, the gash in Skeld’s side was only a dark red line.

“They were only shadows,” Skeld mumbled. “We couldn’t see them until they came in here, into the light.

“Where is Dain?” Alex asked.

“Here,” Tom answered from the opposite side of the tent. “He . . . I don’t . . . I can’t . . .”

Tom’s halting words were clear to Alex. He knew before he saw his friend that there was nothing he could do. Tom was sitting on the floor, holding up the dwarf and staring into his vacant face. Alex reached down and closed Dain’s eyes, careful to avoid the arrows buried in his chest.

“He’s gone,” Alex said, putting his hand on Tom’s shoulder. “There is nothing we can do for him now.”

“My father is badly hurt,” Colesum said, looking at Alex. “You must help him.”

“I’m not important,” Talbot said in a weak voice. “They’ve taken Rallian. You must go after them. You must save the king.”

“We will,” said Alex, moving back to Talbot.

Alex ran his fingers across Talbot’s head wound, and slowly the blood stopped flowing. He let his magic do its work, and then he added more magic to help clear Talbot’s mind. He needed to know what had happened, and Talbot was the only one who could tell him.

“Check the other lords,” Alex said to Colesum, though his eyes never left Talbot’s face. “Make sure they are not hurt.”

“They would all be dead—and myself as well—if not for these two adventurers,” Talbot said.

“Tell me what happened,” Alex said. “I need to know everything you saw.”

“I . . . I was in the back of the tent, resting,” Talbot started. “My head was pounding, and I was lying down to ease the pain. I heard a crash, as if a table had been overturned, and I came to see what had happened.”

“The others appear unhurt,” Colesum interrupted when his father paused. “Drugged, I would guess. They appear to sleep, but they won’t wake up.”

“Yes, drugged,” Talbot said. He coughed a little, and then went on with his story. “I heard the sounds of battle before I entered this part of the tent. I drew my sword and hurried forward. I found the tent filled with black guards. The two adventurers were fighting madly for their lives and trying to keep them from taking Rallian at the same time. I . . . I joined the fight, but I was unable to turn the tide of battle. There were too many of them, and they took the king as they retreated.”

“Was Rallian alive?” Alex asked urgently. “Do you know if he was alive when they took him?”

“He seemed to be unconscious, but they had tied his hands behind him,” Talbot answered. “You do not take time to tie up a dead man.”

“We must go at once,” said Alex.

“Go? Go where?” Colesum questioned.

“After Rallian,” Alex answered. “How many men do you have with you, Colesum?”

“Twenty,” Colesum answered. “We were scouting the road to Karmus, and finding no guards on duty when we returned, we hurried here.”

“Have your men saddle fresh horses,” Alex ordered. “We need to move as fast as we can.”

“But how will we find them in the darkness?” Colesum questioned. “They could be taking him anywhere. We need to consider our camp. It appears that all our men have been drugged. If Lazar’s army attacks us now, they could slaughter us all.”

“Do as the wizard commands,” Talbot said, putting his hand on Colesum’s arm. “Go, and save our king, whatever the cost.”

“I hear and obey,” Colesum answered with tears in his eyes.

Alex doubted Lazar’s army would attack their camp, but he still didn’t want to leave Talbot injured and alone.

“Of your twenty men, how many are married?” Alex asked.

“About half,” Colesum answered.

“Leave the married men here to help your father,” said Alex. “Have them splash fresh water on the faces of everyone who’s been drugged. If that doesn’t work, force the sleeping men to drink.”

“That will only leave twelve of us to go after Rallian,” Colesum said in a concerned tone.

“Thirteen,” Virgil corrected.

“You mean fourteen,” said Tom.

“I can ride,” Skeld mumbled from the floor.

“Lie still and rest,” Alex said to Skeld. “If you break open that wound, I’ll let you bleed to death.”

Stonebill swooped into the tent and landed on the table next to Alex.

“Only part of the army has been drugged,” Stonebill reported. “And only those soldiers camped closest to Rallian’s tent. The rest of the army is resting, the guards alert. Lazar’s army isn’t anywhere close, but I did see a group of men who looked more like shadows then men. Rallian was with them, and they are riding hard toward Karmus.”

“Then we will follow them,” said Alex. “Can you catch them along the road?”

“It will take some time, but I believe I can,” Stonebill answered.

“Then go after them, follow them, and bring me word about where they take Rallian,” said Alex.

“As you command,” Stonebill replied and flew out of the tent.

“What news?” Colesum questioned.

Alex shared the information Stonebill had brought. The others were relieved to hear that most of the army had not been drugged and that there was no sign of Lazar’s army.

“I will get the army moving as soon as I can,” said Talbot. “With luck, we should be able to get at least part of the army to Karmus before midday.”

“Good,” said Alex. “You must save the people of Karmus, as Rallian wished.”

Alex wondered if he was doing the right thing. He didn’t know why Magnus had arranged for Rallian to be taken. He had no idea what he was about to ride into. He was certain, however, that it would be dangerous. Magnus would guess that he would come looking for Rallian; Magnus would be ready and waiting.

“What did Skeld mean when he said the black guards were only shadows?” Virgil asked as they hurried out of the tent. “Was it because they couldn’t see them until they were in the light?”

“I would guess that Magnus put some spell on them,” Alex answered. “Something to hide his men in the shadows so they could sneak up on the guards without being seen.”

“His men?” Colesum questioned.

“The black guards may claim to serve Lazar, but they really serve Magnus,” said Alex.

“There are still a lot of shadows,” said Virgil, looking into the darkness around them. “If they are hidden by magic, there could be more of them, anywhere.”

“The men who took Rallian are riding south, to Karmus,” said Alex. “Whatever Magnus has planned, it will happen in Karmus.”