Cadmians Choice (52 page)

Fhentyl nodded, less
than happily.

“Also, the renegades
will likely be wearing uniforms of silver and black.”

“Like those in the
east?”

“The colors are the
same. I don’t know about the design. Now... if those weapons are brought out,
your Myrmidons will need to aim at the carts. That’s where the power supplies
are. We’ll go over all of this tonight, and again tomorrow, after I meet with
the Cadmian majer.” Dainyl paused, then gestured. “If you’d gather the
officers, Fhentyl.”

“Yes, sir.”

As Fhentyl hurried
off, Dainyl considered what he had said. Too little information, and
subordinates didn’t know enough to act effectively. Too much, and most were
confused. Deciding how much was always the problem.

Within moments,
Fhentyl returned with the undercaptains.

“Captain...
Undercaptains,” Dainyl began, “we’re headed for an operation in Hyalt. We’ll be
stopping short of Hyalt tonight. There appears to be a group of rebel alectors
who have taken over the regional alector’s headquarters in Hyalt, and we will
have to handle this with both force and delicacy. We don’t believe that they’re
aware that we yet know the situation, but if we appear in force, that will
certainly show that. That’s why we won’t fly all the way to Hyalt today, and
why we will have a two-part plan tomorrow.” He paused, letting his words sink
in. “I’ll brief you in more detail tonight, but I wanted to let you know what
you’re facing.” He smiled, wryly. “Especially since I promised to tell you at
the first stop after leaving Dereka. As soon as you tell your squads, we’ll be
lifting off again.”

“Yes, sir,” replied
all five officers in unison.

“Let’s go.”

Dainyl let
Undercaptain Hyksant tell first squad before he headed back to rejoin Galya and
her pteridon.

“Submarshal, sir...”

“Yes, Galya?” Dainyl
stopped short of her and the pteridon.

‘These rebels ...
they’re really alectors?”

“We don’t know if all
of them are alectors, but most are. The Marshal of Myrmidons has been aware
that something was happening for a time, but until we had firm reports of
forbidden weapons, he felt he needed to defer action.”

“Sir... if I might
ask ...” ventured the petite alectress. “Forbidden weapons?”

“Like your skylance,
without a pteridon. They’re forbidden because they deplete lifeforce.”

The Myrmidon nodded.

“Mount up!” ordered
Undercaptain Hyksant.

Dainyl slipped into
the saddle, far more stiffly than the lithe Galya. He’d be sore, very sore, by
the time they reached Hyalt, yet once he had flown day after day. But being
sore was going to be the least of his difficulties. Of that he had no doubt.

It took Mykel almost
a glass to ride back to the compound. He had barely dismounted and blotted his
forehead when he saw Undercaptain Loryalt heading across the courtyard toward
him. Despite the cooler air and the breeze, the ride back had been hot, and
parts of his back stung where sweat had gotten to the burns, despite the
dressings.

“Sir? I’ll take your
mount.” One of the Seventeenth Company rankers—Eisent—appeared.

“Thank you.” Mykel
handed over the roan’s reins.

Undercaptain Loryalt
continued to cross the dusty courtyard toward Mykel. The majer waited.

Loryalt stopped. “Sir.”

“Undercaptain. What
happened?”

“It was Sacyrt, sir.
He was off-duty, and he slipped out sometime last night. He met one of the
tavern wenches and took her off. He’d even paid for a room in one of the...
houses.”

“What passes for the
local brothel? Or one of them?”

“Ah ... yes, sir.”

“Then what?”

“Her man—we don’t
know if he was actually her husband—he followed them and surprised them. He
demanded coins.”

Mykel shook his head.
“That’s an old trick.”

“Sacyrt thought so,
too. He laughed at the fellow.”

“And?”

“The idiot pulled a
knife. There was a fight. Not much of one. Sacyrt killed him and then ... he
had his way with the woman. She didn’t like that much. He beat her some, and
the women in the house called for the patrollers. Sacyrt barred the door. They
came down here ...”

“Wait a moment,”
Mykel said. “He left last night. I didn’t hear anything when I left this
morning.”

“No, sir. He checked
in last night, then slipped back out He didn’t meet her until maybe two-three
hours before dawn. They were drinking some in the room. Probably wasn’t until
close to dawn when all this happened. The patrollers took their time. They
decided he was crazy, and they waited. They didn’t know, not then, that he’d
killed the other man. The body was in the room. The patrollers got to the
compound just after you and Fourteenth Company left. I didn’t know Sacyrt had
killed anyone then.”

Mykel nodded. He didn’t
like it, but the timing made more sense. “I heard there were some injuries in
the duty squad.”

Loryalt did not quite
meet Mykel’s eyes. “Yes, sir. They had to break into the room. Sacyrt tried to
take Siliast’s weapon. Siliast didn’t want to shoot. Somehow, Sacyrt broke his
arm. The squad leader clubbed Sacyrt, and they tied him up and brought him
back. We’ve got him in the gaol below. It took some doing to get him tied up
there. The patrollers took care of the locals.”

“Were they sure
Sacyrt killed the man?”

“Yes, sir. Dartyl
made sure of that. Stabbed right through the eye. The body was cold.”

“Well have to deal
with this quickly. We’ll hold the court-martial in the town square tomorrow
morning, beginning a glass after muster.” Mykel looked squarely at Loryalt. “You
are responsible for making sure all witnesses are there, and that Sacyrt is
there as well. Under no circumstances must he escape. If you have trouble with
the patrollers or anyone, let me know immediately.”

“In the town square?”

“I want every person
in town to be aware of what happens.”

“You sound like you
think it’s all his fault, sir.”

Even knowing what he
had felt about Sacyrt, Mykel wasn’t all that certain. He forced a pained smile.
“There are two possibilities, Undercaptain. He is guilty, or he is not. If he
is not guilty, everyone in Hyalt must know that and must understand why. Do you
see why?”

“Yes, sir.”

“If we hold a private
court-martial here, and he is not guilty, what do you think will happen? Do you
want your men going into town alone or late?”

“No, sir.”

“The same is true if
he is guilty. The townspeople must see that we will punish our own.”

“Yes, sir.” Loryalt
nodded reluctantly. “You’ll preside?”

“Yes, but I’d like
you to request that the town justicer sit beside me.”

“Yes, sir.”

Mykel could sense the
undercaptain’s confusion. “It’s a gesture of respect. It doesn’t change
anything. Now ... you have a great deal to do.”

“Yes, sir.” Loryalt
nodded, then turned.

Mykel walked slowly
toward his quarters. In a way, he wished that Sacyrt had just knifed someone in
the tavern, but like everything else, neither the court-martial nor the
situation with the locals was going to be simple. But the sooner he addressed
it, the better. Things could only get uglier and worse.

The way station was
hardly adequate, but it had a spring, and enough shelter under roof for the
twenty-three Myrmidons. Still, Dainyl was stiff when he rose on Quattri. Even
stretching and bending didn’t help that much. It had been years since he’d
slept on a way-station pallet, and he hadn’t missed that experience in the
slightest. He also did not enjoy the field rations that much, but since the
plan was his, he had no one else to blame. Before eating, he studied the maps a
last time to refresh his memory of the area.

After eating, he
turned to Fhentyl. “I’ll be taking Galya and one other flier to pay a call on
Majer Mykel.”

“Just two pteridons,
sir? You think that’s safe?”

“Two. We won’t be
going anywhere near the RA’s redoubt. Not until I confer with the majer. There’s
also a fairly high line of hills just to the north and east of the compound.
Directly north, the hills are too rugged. The compound is at least five vingts
west of the town.”

“Strange, that is.”

Dainyl silently
agreed, but that was the way it was and had been for hundreds, if not
thousands, of years. “When I get back, we’ll meet with the undercaptains and go
over what comes next.” He paused. “If... just in case, I don’t come back, take
the entire company and find Majer Mykel and learn everything you can. Leave the
RA alone. Then take the entire company straight to Elcien.”

“Not back to Dereka?”

“No. To Elcien, and
report directly to the marshal.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Who else would you
suggest accompany Galya and me?”

“Undercaptain Hyksant
has suggested Dyrmant, sir. He’s quite good with the lance. So is Galya.”

Dainyl nodded and
went in search of Galya and Dyrmant. Not surprisingly, they were ready, their
pteridons away from the others, to the north of the waystation, facing into the
light breeze from the west.

“Submarshal, sir.”

“Ready to fly?”

“Yes, sir.”

“We’re heading south
to Hyalt. I’d like you to fly fairly low, no more than a hundred yards above
the high road. Just follow it to the town, and we’ll set down in the old
garrison or as close as you can.”

Both Myrmidons
nodded.

Galya mounted, and
Dainyl followed, after cinching his flying jacket closed, taking the silvery
saddle behind hers and checking the harness and strapping in.

The pteridon leapt
into the light wind, its leathery blue wings spreading. Dainyl could sense the
burst of Talent energy required as the pteridon climbed, turning southward in a
slow arc before steadying on a course just to the east of and parallel to the
high road that led into Hyalt.

Below, the grass
appeared greener from the air than it had merely underfoot. A faint haze
clouded the southern horizon, suggesting warmer air might soon be approaching.
There were few huts or steads on the rolling hills to the north of Hyalt, but
almost immediately, they passed over a ridge that held a narrow road that
hugged the ridge and headed eastward.

Dainyl followed the
road with his eyes and noted that it ended in a small hamlet below a modest
wood on the north side of the ridge. After a time, he looked forward again.

Ahead was Hyalt,
looking from a distance more like a hodgepodge of reddish and brown buildings
clustered randomly around the high road. Below, Dainyl could see clearly the
walls and buildings of the new Cadmian compound on a knoll just to the norm of
the town and east of the high road. Majer Mykel had definitely picked a spot
that was designed for defense, and from the stream on the east side, one with
water as well. That didn’t surprise Dainyl, not where the majer was concerned.

Because of what he
had seen in the Table at Lysia, Dainyl could pick out the town square. He
frowned. There were a goodly number of Cadmians, mounted and in ranks, on one
side of the square, as well as townspeople. Should he land there?

He decided against
it. He had no idea where the majer was, and it was probably better to start
with the garrison.

“That must be the
garrison there, on that rise to the west.” Galya gestured. “It’ll be tight
setting down there.”

“Set down in the road
outside, then.”

“Yes, sir.”

Dyrmant continued to
circle, skylance out, as Galya brought her pteridon down into a flare. The long
wings barely missed the walls of the garrison.

As Dainyl dismounted,
he could see that Galya also held her skylance at the ready. “Just wait here.”

Galya nodded.

Dainyl took a score
of steps toward the gateless entry.

“Sir... Marshal?”
stuttered the sentry.

“Submarshal Dainyl.
Where’s Majer Mykel?”

“Sir, he’s not
here....”

“Submarshal, sir!”
called a stronger voice.

Dainyl saw a familiar
captain’s face, but had to search for the man’s name for a moment. “Captain
Rhystan.”

“Yes, sir.” Rhystan
came to a halt short of the submarshal and stiffened slightly. “You’re looking
for Majer Mykel? He is holding a court-martial. One of the rankers killed a
local who was trying to get coins from him. The majer felt the locals should
see the process.”

Dainyl glanced mrough
the gap where the gates had once been into the near-ruined courtyard beyond.

“The court-martial is
in the town square, sir,” continued Rhystan. “The majer felt that holding the
proceeding here would not have been appropriate, for a number of reasons.”

“I can see that. I’ll
ride down there, then. I’ll need a mount.”

“I’ll send a squad
with you, sir.” The captain gestured to the sentry. “Tell Wholent to mount
second squad and report here with a spare mount for the Submarshal. On the
double.”

“Yes, sir!”

Dainyl surveyed the
captain. Unlike Mykel, he clearly had no Talent, and he seemed slightly older
than the majer. “How have matters been going here, Captain?”

“Did you receive the
majer’s dispatch to you, sir? I wouldn’t want to cover what you know.”

“His report is one of
the reasons I’m here. His wording was cautious, but he seemed to suggest that
matters were anything but what might be expected.”

“Submarshal, sir,
that is a fair statement. The majer has often been known for his directness.
When he is not... so direct, that is always for a reason.”

“What might that
reason be, Captain?”

Dainyl could sense
Rhystan’s discomfort, but he looked down at the Cadmian officer, waiting
patiently.

“There have been
strange creatures in the quarry,” Rhystan finally went on, “and the flying
beasts like small pteridons. In addition, at least one member of the former
garrison here may have been killed with a weapon resembling your sidearms, sir.
With that, and with what the majer saw of the troopers in strange uniforms and
weapons similar to the skylances, he was most concerned.”