Battleaxe (57 page)

“More than you think, Axis. You will see when we ride. Now, come say goodbye to your brother. For the time being.”

As Axis and Belial emerged from the dungeons Arne fell into step behind Axis, handing his commander his cloak and gloves. There was hardly any space to move, and Axis and Belial had to push their way through units of men standing in formation. Everyone was under strict orders to be as quiet as they could so that the Skraelings would have little warning about what was to happen, but Axis heard his name being murmured in greeting as he passed the ranks of men, and many reached out their hands and touched his shoulder as he passed by.

By the gates what was left of the Axe-Wielders sat their mounts, firebrands burning brightly in their hands, Belaguez standing at their head, saddled and ready to run, impatient for his master and for the battle ahead.

To one side of the Axe-Wielders stood Borneheld, and beside him Faraday, Timozel at her shoulder, their own horses saddled and
waiting behind them. Yr waited further back; she would remain with Faraday. Axis smiled, but as he crossed the courtyard towards them he spotted Ogden and Veremund sitting on their placid white donkeys.

“Well, Sentinels, who do you ride with today? Do you fight your way north with me or do you run south with Borneheld?”

Ogden sniffed. “We will tread our own paths for a while, Axis SunSoar. But you will not lose us for long, I think.”

Axis regarded them for a moment. For so many months they had annoyed him. Now he found himself trusting them, despite the disturbing riddle of the Prophecy. “Then take care of yourselves, Sentinels. And of your ridiculous donkeys.” He pulled the soft droopy ear of the nearest donkey affectionately. “I’m sure that you will return to annoy me as soon as you can.”

Veremund leaned over and touched Axis’ shoulder briefly. “Find peace, Axis SunSoar.”

“Find peace, gentlemen,” Axis replied softly, then he turned and strode over to Borneheld. For a moment they stared flatly at each other.

“I hope you die out there today, brother,” Borneheld finally said, his voice thick with forced bravado. “It is the only reason I let you go.” He suddenly wished that he had followed his original plan of having Axis hung like a criminal here in this courtyard.

“The only reason you let me go was because you knew you couldn’t execute me without the entire garrison rebelling. I will not die out there, Borneheld. One day I will return. Wait for that day and know that it will arrive.” Both Axis’ eyes and voice were chilling and Borneheld only just managed to stop himself from stepping back. He forced a sneer to his face, but knew it was not very convincing. Axis’ mouth curled in contempt and he turned away. The next time he saw Borneheld he hoped it would be at the point of his sword.

Axis stepped over to Timozel and stared at the man’s gaunt face for a long moment. “You are a changed man, Timozel, and I do not think that I like what you have become. I hope that your loyalty to Faraday will not fade as quickly as your loyalty to me.” He suddenly reached out and grabbed Timozel’s tunic front, pulling the man close
until their faces were only a handspan apart. “Look after her, Timozel! Get her safely away from this death trap! If you value the vow you swore her as Champion then
get her safely out
!”

Timozel’s face hardened and he wrenched himself away from Axis’ hand. “I live for Faraday,” he said, his voice thick with anger, “and I do not need you to tell me how to protect her!”

Axis moved away from the man and his face softened as he looked at Faraday.

“Live, Faraday,” he said quietly. “You know I could not bear it if you died.”

Her eyes filled with tears and she reached out and touched the thread about his arm for an instant. “Mother be with you,” she whispered, “and with me. I will strive to live, Axis, and hope that you will live for me.” She no longer cared if Borneheld realised her true feelings for Axis. It no longer mattered. She had done her duty and kept Borneheld from killing Axis.

Borneheld looked between the two of them and frowned.

“Borneheld,” Axis said lightly, “I have just realised that I have not claimed my brotherly kiss from your new bride. I apologise for being so tardy. I cannot think what could have come over me to forget my courtly manners so.” Without giving Borneheld a chance to reply he leaned forward, seized Faraday by the shoulders, and kissed her hard on the mouth, once, and then once again.

He released her and stood back. “My Lady Faraday, Duchess of Ichtar, accept what will probably be my last salute as BattleAxe of the Axe-Wielders.” He clenched his fist over the golden axes on his black tunic coat and bowed jerkily from the waist. “And remember your vows. Every last one of them.” He turned away without waiting for a reply, brushed past Borneheld, who was still looking stupefied at Faraday, and mounted Belaguez.

“Axe-Wielders, are you ready?” he cried in a clear voice.

“Wait!” A dark figure rode forth on a black stallion, a burning brand in his hand. Lord Magariz. “I ride with the StarMan,” he cried to all those assembled in the courtyard, ignoring Borneheld’s furious shout of denial. “Who will ride with me?”

“We will!” the cry rang out behind him, and a long column of men who had been waiting behind the stable blocks now rode out to join Magariz. There were well over fifteen hundred of them, all wielding flaming brands, and each with a thread tied about his arm.

“You will die for this betrayal, Magariz!” Borneheld screamed in fury. “Ride with my unnatural brother now, but never think to receive any mercy from me when you crawl back begging for my favour! I will hunt you down and kill you for what you do here this day!”

Magariz reined his stallion to a halt in front of his former lord. “’Ware, Borneheld,” he said softly, “of the death penalty already hanging over your own head for the murder of FreeFall SunSoar. With that stroke you cut the ties that bound me to you. My own honesty compels me to ride with the man who commands my respect, not the man who has lost it.” He wheeled his stallion over to Axis. “Will you accept my oath of loyalty and service, Axis SunSoar?”

Axis reached out and gripped his hand. “Gladly, Magariz, gladly. You and yours are welcome at my side.” The man’s support touched him deeply; Magariz and his men were risking ostracism, possible death, by joining him. He glanced at Belial, mounted and waiting behind him, and thanked whatever gods were listening that he had men like Belial and Magariz at his back.

He opened his mouth again to call to the Axe-Wielders, but he realised that he could not use that name. “My friends,” he called simply, “do you stand ready?”

“We follow your voice and we are ready, SunSoar!” they cried as one, and emotion briefly threatened to overwhelm Axis.

He stared at Borneheld for a moment, still standing furious and disbelieving at Magariz’s treachery. “I go now to claim my heritage, brother,” he said softly, “and when I return, ’ware!”

Axis wheeled Belaguez around and the gates began to swing open, admitting the excited whispering of the Skraelings. “Then let us ride!” he cried, seizing a flaming brand from a guard standing close by. “Let us ride!” He brandished the fiery torch and spurred the dappled grey stallion forward through the gates.

SunSoar’s command rode and fought as if possessed, as indeed they were, fighting for and with the Mother. Belial and Magariz had instructed them carefully and now that they had the StarMan at their head, how could they lose? The three thousand rode together in tight formation, their flaming torches held in front and to the side, burning their way through the mass of Skraelings in front of them. The grey mass writhed and screamed, falling back from the flames, weeping and wailing and whispering in horror at the nasty, horrid brights that the manlings thrust their way. The SkraeBolds screamed at their wraiths, for they had taught them not to fear fire, but these were no ordinary flames—they glowed emerald at their tips. Every so often a wraith was not quick enough to duck out of range, and as the flame touched the unlucky Skraeling it would flare into a bright pillar of emerald fire, then fizzle out of existence in the snow.

The soldiers screamed Axis’ new name, SunSoar. Belial and Magariz had told them of the meeting atop the Keep roof, of Axis’ heritage, and of his claim to be the StarMan. The One who would lead them to victory against Gorgrael. Few of the Axe-Wielders had any reason to doubt what they said, they had known and fought under Axis for years and they already knew that he was the man to die for, none other. The men who followed Magariz in his disloyalty to Borneheld were among the many regular soldiers who had no trouble believing it either. Many of them had ridden on patrol with Axis and had seen first hand how he could lead to victory against the Skraelings; their admiration of his leadership had spread.

As they rode through the town, the Skraelings leaping out of their way, Axis stood high in his stirrups and brandished his fire torch high. “SkraeBolds! Can you hear me?” he screamed. “Will you let me go so easy? Do you give up the chase so easy? Shall I tell Gorgrael how untrustworthy, how cowardly, his lieutenants are? Don’t you want the chance to bring Gorgrael my head?”

The SkraeBolds heard and Axis’ words inflamed them. They redoubled their efforts, driving the Skraelings before them to follow
Axis and his company. The watchers in Gorkenfort could see the Skraeling mass turning to chase the riders.

Jorge, watching atop the walls, clutched the stone battlements in excitement. “By Artor!” he bellowed, not caring who heard his elation. “They’re following him out of the town. See! Even now he swings north.” At this distance Axis’ command was simply an indistinct mass of light, but that was enough. That was enough. “We are saved!” He turned to Roland, gasping in breathless excitement beside him. “Axis has saved us!”

They rode until they could feel the horses tire beneath them, then they turned to fight the Skraeling host which had seethed out of the town after them.

“Shall we give Borneheld and Achar some breathing room, my friends?” Axis cried to Belial and Magariz, a grin of sheer excitement lighting his eyes. “Shall we make our stand here?”

Horses and riders milled about them and Belial shouted orders, getting the excited men in formation behind Axis. All wanted to stand and fight. They had been running before the Skraelings too long. Before them rode Axis SunSoar, StarMan. They knew he would lead them to victory, who could doubt it?

The Skraelings, emboldened both by the SkraeBolds’ urgings and the sight of the riders running before them for two hours, did not wait. They could see that many of the burning brands had gone out. They could see the manlings’ horses stumble as they tired. They knew that they outnumbered the men some fifty to one and they knew that there was some good eating awaiting them. They did not stop to think of the danger.

Axis waited until they were close, very close, waited until he could see the silvery orbs glistening in anticipation and the jaws working and slavering in the front ranks of the Skraelings. He waited until their frantic whispers filled his ears, then he stood high in his stirrups, graceful and easy even though Belaguez skittered excitedly underneath him.

“In the name of the Mother,” he called, his voice clear and
powerful, “and of the Stars that watch above, lend aid to me and mine now.”

Then he spun the brand high into the sky. Just as it reached the pinnacle of its arc, just before it started to spin down towards the Skraeling host, the brand exploded into an emerald ball of fire. As it fell it expanded and threw off smaller balls of spitting, hissing green fire.

The SkraeBolds, winging their way above and behind the leading ranks of the Skraelings, screamed in fear and frustration. They paused just long enough to hurl an order for dispersal at the Skraelings and then, as the emerald fire hurtled down towards them, they faded from sight.

The instant the fire hit the Skraeling mass it expanded and strengthened, feeding upon more and more of the wraiths. Thousands of Skraelings burned that clear frosty morning in the northern reaches of Gorken Pass, died screaming and whispering amid the Mother’s anger and retribution. Others died as the men pushed their horses in among the confused mass, reaching down to grab their stringy hair and put out the light in their eyes with a vicious thrust of a sword. The emerald fire did not touch those who wore the threads about their arms.

It was a rout, and only when there were no more Skraelings left to kill did the men rein their horses in and watch the remaining wraiths flee back towards Gorkenfort.

“Pray we have bought them enough time,” Belial whispered, his face drawn with exhaustion.

“Pray that Borneheld got them out of Gorkenfort before the Skraelings returned,” Axis replied just as quietly. “Pray that he can rally Achar to hold them at Jervois Landing…until I return.”

I
n the cold evening air they sat their horses at the base of the Icescarp Alps.

“We will not follow you in there,” Belial said quietly, his eyes on the massive black cliffs that reared out of the snow-covered plains before them. “That is for you alone.”

Axis turned to him. The excitement of the morning had faded, and now his face was as exhausted as everyone else’s. “And you?”

Belial was silent for a moment, his eyes drifting over the black cliffs. Then he dropped his gaze to Axis. “I will take your army and ride south through eastern Ichtar, the WildDog Plains, until I find us a safe haven. I doubt the Skraelings will bother us overmuch. They will want to push south after Borneheld rather than east. We will wait in the southern WildDog Plains for you, Axis SunSoar, perhaps even Sigholt if it remains free of Skraelings. Do not take too long to rejoin us.”

Axis’ eyes shone with tears. He gripped Belial’s hand and arm. “I thank you for your friendship and support,” he said quietly, “and I will rejoin you as quickly as I am able.” He let Belial’s hand go and slid off Belaguez, handing the stallion’s reins to his lieutenant and patting the horse’s neck in affection. “Look after my horse for me, Belial. I will need a good mount when I return.”

He turned to Magariz and gripped the man’s hand. “I thank you for your support as well, Magariz. I pray that you will not suffer for it.”

“Then come back to us quickly,” the scar-faced man smiled. “I do not know who will reach us first, Gorgrael or Borneheld, and I do not know which will be the most dangerous!”

Axis laughed and saluted his men, smiling and waving at their cheers. Then he turned and walked towards the base of the cliffs, not knowing what to expect.

His army sat their horses silently, staying to bear witness to whatever would happen next.

Axis’ booted feet scrunched through the snow, and he threw his cloak back over his shoulders. He had been walking for some ten minutes, the black rock of the cliffs now only fifty or so paces away, when the five Icarii birdmen who had been watching his approach landed softly in the snow in front of him.

Axis stopped. Two he recognised, HoverEye and SpikeFeather, but the other three he did not. Two of them had the black wings that HoverEye and SpikeFeather sported, but like FreeFall the fifth had pure white wings, golden hair…and pale blue eyes. He wore no clothes over his upper body and Axis could see that his torso bore the scars of a recent battle.

Looking into his face Axis could see reflections of his own.

He opened his mouth to speak, to say something, but he could not find the words to say. He could not take his eyes from his father.

StarDrifter slowly stepped forward, his eyes locked into those of his son. That this man was his son StarDrifter had absolutely no doubt, the man’s blood sang to him, called to him, screamed for him, and StarDrifter could feel his own blood calling back.

StarDrifter’s mouth thinned at the black uniform that the man wore and his eyes glittered angrily. He stopped a pace from his son and they both stood and stared at each other. Axis’ eyes were filled with tears, but StarDrifter’s were utterly dry.

Slowly, hesitantly, StarDrifter reached out a hand and laid it flat on Axis’ breast, feeling his son’s heart beating frantically under his
fingers. Then StarDrifter’s fingers convulsively clutched into the black material of Axis’ tunic and with one vicious twist he ripped the insignia of the crossed golden axes from his son’s breast and hurled the piece of material away to flutter unwanted across the ice-bound wastes at the foot of the Icescarp Alps.

StarDrifter’s anger faded as the hated emblem blew away. He hesitated, then stepped forward and embraced Axis, speaking the ritual words of greeting normally uttered only to a newborn baby.

“Welcome, Axis, into the House of SunSoar and into my heart. My name is StarDrifter SunSoar and I am your father. Sing well and fly high, and may nothing and no-one tear your feet from the path of the Star Dance again.”

Axis wrapped his arms about his father and held him tight, the tears finally sliding free from his eyes.