Foretellers (The Ydron Saga Book 3) (27 page)

She awoke lying on a bed with the blankets drawn up to her chin. When her eyes finally focused, she saw Peniff and Lord Sitheh standing over her.

“What happened?” she asked.

“I would ask you the same,” said the warlord. “We touched and you collapsed. Peniff said he caught a glimpse of something that might concern me, but your thoughts became incoherent before he could make out the details.”

“Perhaps. I… I’m not sure,” she said.

She struggled to sort through her memories, believing there was an urgency to what had transpired. She could feel it. If only she could retrieve what she had seen…

She sat upright. All at once, visions swam around her, coalescing one moment, dissipating in the next. One moment, she saw them clearly. The next, before she could articulate, they evaporated as dreams sometimes do for a sleeper upon awakening.

“Lord Sitheh,” she said, grasping part of what she saw. “You are expecting reinforcements from Pytheral.”

He nodded.

“Don’t trust the first brigade. The regiment that will follow will be genuine, but not the first.”

He gazed at her askance and the corners of his mouth began to turn up. She could see he was about to dismiss what she said and she knew that he should not. She cursed the cloud of confusion muddling her mind and her head began to hurt as she fought to drag an elusive thought back to the surface. Lord Sitheh had started to chuckle when it came to her.

“There was another thought gazer… not Peniff… ”
Mastad!
she swore to herself when the words would not come.

Peniff turned to Lord Sitheh and explained, “She’s referring to a spy, Captain Xanthis, who infiltrated your forces at barakMaroc.”

Pandy nodded emphatically as she fought to retrieve the rest.

“He has told Hath Kael what you are doing,” she said, “and Kael is sending imposters. They will arrive here by midday and intend to wreak havoc if you allow them inside the fortress.”

Lord Sitheh turned to Peniff and again the thought gazer nodded.

“The events are clear in her mind,” he said, “and I believe her.”

The warlord stroked his chin and paused to consider.

“It would hurt my cause if I were to attack them and it turned out you were wrong.”

“But I’m not… ,” Pandy said.

Peniff put a finger to his lips to silence her objection, so she waited for him to speak. What was needed now, she understood, was a rational response, not an emotional outburst.

“Pardon my intruding into your thoughts,” he told the warlord, “but I can see you have met Tai Comer. That encounter made you privy to certain information of a personal nature which no imposter would know. Use them to question the party’s commander. Don’t let Pandy’s youth deceive you. I say this with the same degree of confidence as when I informed you about Darva’s abductor.”

Pandy kicked the covers aside and stood beside the warlord.

“I would not insult you with anything false,” she added, locking eyes.

She wanted to say more, but bit back the words, knowing he would need to believe her prediction on his own if he were to trust her in matters of even greater consequence. The events that would follow would bear her out, but she hoped it would not require the decimation of the troops inside these battlements to drive the lesson home. She wished she could foretell how this matter would evolve, but so much of it hinged on both his immediate decision and others that would follow. She smiled when he announced what he would do next, allowing her to see parts of the future solidify.

“You are right,” he told Peniff. “I can uncover a liar. We will locate and intercept them and either welcome their aid or eliminate them.”

Pandy interjected, “They have been routed south from Chadarr through Deth and are taking the northern road out of Pytheral.”

Lord Sitheh cocked his head and raised his brows. When Peniff nodded confirmation, the warlord said, “Thank you.”

“Thank you for your confidence,” she replied. “You won’t regret it.”

“Take care of yourself,” he told her as he strode from the room.

She and Peniff exchanged glances.

“What happened?” Peniff asked. “Before we brought you here?”

She shook her head.

“I’m not sure. It’s never happened before. I touched his hand and it seemed as if certain things flowed from him into me. Images of important things. I think I’m evolving.” She paused. “There’s something else.” She clenched her lips. “Someone else,” she corrected. “If we can bring him in with us, it will tip matters in our favor.”

“May I look?” he asked.

“Of course you may.”

A minute passed while Peniff explored.

At last, he said, “I can’t see him clearly, but I believe you are right. All I can tell is he lives south of here and will be instrumental in the battle’s outcome.”

“If you’ll recall,” she said. “You mentioned him earlier when we were still in Mostoon.”

Peniff nodded.

“It will take the four of us,” she said. Peniff arched a brow and Pandy explained, “You’re forgetting my mother.”

He nodded again, adding, “Let’s find the commissary. You need to eat.”

Two days passed as they waited for the warlord to return. And though the battle preparations continued, the fortress had grown unusually hushed. None voiced their concern, but the usual banter, the small talk and jocularity, had all but disappeared. Commands and responses still flew between officers and subordinates, but the soldiers worked in relative silence as all minds went to their lord’s uncertain fate.

A short while after dusk, Pandy climbed to the top of a battlement, wrapped a blanket around herself and perched cross-legged on a parapet wall. Clouds obscured the stars, but bonfires and torches illuminating the surrounding plain revealed that none of the outliers had yet retired and she wondered if the level of activity was, at least in part, a subconscious attempt to keep hope alive.

“I thought you’d have gone to bed by now,” Peniff said as he came up behind her. A brief display of ball lightning—a string of blue-white pearls of electricity—flashed across the heavens and, for an instant, lit up the encampments. Thunder boomed and he asked, “Are you worried?”

Instead of answering, she asked, “Is it always like this?” keeping her eyes on the surrounding encampments. “Doesn’t anyone ever sleep?”

“There’s a lot to be done,” he replied. “Once the fighting begins, there won’t be time for any of this.”

He gestured toward the men stocking the fortress’s warehouses.

“The battle is still days away,” she objected.

Returning the conversation to the matter she had so carefully avoided, he said, “Something is troubling you. What is it?”

“I’m fine,” she said.

He sat down beside her and she could feel his eyes on her.

“You’re not worried about Lord Sitheh?” he asked.

She shook her head.

“He’s fine. I saw what happened out there,” she said, gesturing toward the direction Lord Sitheh had gone. “He should be returning any time.”

“That’s good. I thought you were wondering if he’s still alive.”

After a period of silence Pandy sighed, then turned to face him, regarding his features in the glow of torches on the battlements.

“I’m sorry. No, I’m not worried about him and I am waiting for him to return, but I’m also trying to see what’s coming next. The lands are in a state of flux. My mother used to teach me about critical moments. These days, so many are arising I don’t know if I can act on all of them.”

“We’ve had this conversation.”

She paused, then said, “But now there’s the young man, and I am afraid if I can’t bring him into the picture… Did I tell you he can’t travel on his own?”

Peniff shook his head.

“If we can’t somehow transport him here, things may not go well.”

Peniff placed his hand on hers.

“Do you see the eventual outcome less clearly than before?”

“I’ve never seen the eventual outcome,” she said. “I only saw that I could make necessary changes that would affect… well… everything.”

“Then that’s all you should worry about. Tens of thousands are working toward what they believe is the proper resolution. Didn’t you so much as say that any one of these decisions or actions could have an important effect?”

Pandy nodded.

“Then your job, as I see it, is to guide Obah Sitheh toward the right course of action for him. As matters evolve, I suspect what is needed to defeat Hath Kael will become increasingly apparent. Your job will be to point out the things Lord Sitheh’s advisors cannot. I suspect you have already done much to secure his confidence.

“As for the changes you’re experiencing,” he said, “that’s really what’s worrying you, is it not?”

She grunted an affirmation.

“I suspect as you evolve you’ll have a better understanding what to do next. Most people your age are simply undergoing the transition from childhood to adulthood. If that weren’t already overwhelming enough, in your case, on top of everything else, your abilities are emerging at the same time you’ve been dropped into all of this.”

He gestured expansively to indicate the fortress and the surrounding encampments.

“Take things as they come. Don’t try to get too far ahead of yourself. Come to me whenever you feel the need and we can discuss your concerns. You probably can’t even count all the decisions you’re facing—all the critical moments—can you?”

Pandy shook her head.

“If you confine your thoughts to the most immediate problems and set all other matters aside until they become unavoidable, you’ll probably cope much better.”

The blare of trumpets interrupted and a new display of heavenly electricity revealed a cavalry battalion approaching between the endless rows of tents. In no particular formation, outwardly drained and exhausted, the gold, blue and crimson standards they flew were all that identified them as Lord Sitheh’s warriors. The force was still large and Pandy had no idea how many there had been on the day they departed. Even so, she knew they had been substantially reduced, an indication they were not returning from the welcoming or diplomatic mission Lord Sitheh had hoped for.

Minutes passed as she and Peniff attempted to identify the warlord among the battle weary. Most of the returning several hundred would remain camped on the plain, but since he and his retinue would come inside, they turned their attention toward the gates.

“Any sign?” asked Peniff

Pandy shook her head and smacked the wall with the flat of her hand.

“Mastad!” she swore. “I’m sure he survived. Can you spot him by his thoughts?”

Peniff shook his head.

“I’ve touched him before, so, yes, I can tell he’s definitely down there somewhere. But my ability is purely directional, so I can’t pick him out.”

Without conferring further, they arose and descended to the yard below. There, amid the milling confusion, they held hands to avoid becoming separated or stepped on.

Several minutes passed.

All at once the gates opened and sergeants began calling out orders. They sent for physicians and stable boys, requested splints and litters for those too injured to walk, bandages and tourniquets to staunch the bleeding of the seriously wounded, water for the thirsty and more water still to wash their wounds. Cries went up for medicines and salves to treat those in need of more immediate care and Pandy suspected the field hospitals outside the walls were pressed even more.

“There!” she cried and squeezed his hand. She pointed through the sea of onlookers. “That’s him.”

She pulled Peniff with her as she insinuated herself into any opening between the incoming troops and those waiting to meet them. Peniff nearly lost her twice, so he held tightly to her wrist.

Abruptly, amid all the confusion, Lord Sitheh appeared, gripping the pommel as he climbed down from the saddle. The lines in his face had deepened, thought Pandy, and there was a sadness in his eyes she had not seen before.

“Lord Sitheh!” she shouted.

The warlord raised his head, as if with great effort, and scanned the crowd.

“Lord Sitheh!” she cried again.

This time, his eyes went straight to her. He nodded and the downturned corners of his mouth came up ever so slightly.

“Thank you,” he said when she arrived beside him. She could just make out his words through all the noise. “You were right. Had you not warned me, they would have destroyed us. As it is, I lost almost half of those who went with me.”

His knees buckled and a sergeant standing nearby caught him before he collapsed.

“Get a physician!” he cried as he cradled him.

As Sitheh’s features wavered in the torchlight, Pandy noticed the blood across his face and the stains and damage to his armor. While men hurried to his aid, Lord Sitheh caught her looking.

“We will talk in the morning,” he said as they carried him away.

The seniormost of Pandy’s escort knocked on Lord Sitheh’s door. They had awakened her perhaps a quarter hour earlier. They had been polite but also insistent.

“Lord Sitheh wishes to see you in his quarters at once,” the lieutenant told her through the crack as she held the door ajar.

Wrapped in a blanket, both for warmth and for modesty, she had struggled to think, even as her mind and body cried out for sleep. She had wanted to order them away, then crawl back into to bed. Instead, she muttered, “What time is it?” When the lieutenant replied, “The fifth hour,” she nodded dumbly, shut the door and dressed as fast as she was able. A moment later, she joined them in the hallway, knowing the day was too important to spend in bed.

“Come in,” Lord Sitheh called.

Turning from the map on his desk, he smiled when the lieutenant ushered her inside.

“The quartermaster just brought a pot of steaming mure tea,” he told her. “Would you care for some?”

“Yes, please,” she replied before making her way to the chair he had drawn for her.

“Honey as well?” he asked.

“Yes, please.”

Lord Sitheh smiled again, then turned to the officer still at attention in the doorway. When he dismissed him, the officer saluted. He started to turn, but halted and asked, “Shall I post a guard, My Lord?”

“No, thank you, Lieutenant. That won’t be necessary.”

When they were alone and the warlord was pouring her tea, Pandy noticed that, except for two narrow scabs, one running down the side of his neck and the other across his forehead, he seemed unmarked.

“You’ve healed well,” she observed.

“I looked far worse than I was,” he said, and handed her the cup. “Battle is ugly and leaves quite a mess, but sometimes, if one is fortunate—and I was more fortunate than I deserved—cleaning oneself afterward is sometimes all that is needed. That and a good night’s sleep.”

“You nearly collapsed,” she reminded him before taking a sip.

“I had been fighting for two days without letup,” he replied, and drank some of his own, gasping when he swallowed. “It’s quite good. Don’t you agree?”

Pandy nodded and took another.

The warlord cradled his cup between his palms, leaned forward and studied her.

“I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am. Had you not warned me, I would likely have admitted them.” He paused and shook his head. “It would have been awful. They could have slaughtered us to a man and that might have ended everything.”

He shook his head and smiled.

“I’ve never placed much stock in seers,” he said. “It’s only because of my experience with Peniff that I listened to you at all.”

He took another sip and paused to regard her.

“You’re quite young. May I ask your age?”

“Fourteen years, My Lord.”

He shook his head.

“That alone would have gone against you, had Peniff not vouched for you. It seems I have a great deal to learn,” he said and set his cup aside.

“Forgive me for saying so,” said Pandy. “But you’re not that old yourself, for a warlord I mean.”

She still had a difficult time determining the age of her elders. Even so, she assessed him to be younger than forty, several years older than Darva to be sure, but certainly not much past that.

“Sometimes circumstances require us to mature long before we would have otherwise,” he said. “I’m sure you understand.”

Pandy nodded.

“The urgency of our times demands much from us,” he added.

“Not just our times,” she said. “Today is urgent.” When he cocked his head, she said, “Tai Comer is sending a regiment to assist you: two cavalry and two infantry battalions. They will arrive before midday.”

His eyebrows went up and she explained, “When they arrive, you must immediately dispatch one of each to… ” She looked up and curled her fingers around her chin. “I can see the places in my head, but don’t know their names.”

“Sit here,” he said and drew another chair closer beside him. Indicating the map, he said, “Perhaps this will help.”

She changed places and set the cup aside. He rotated the drawing, then poured her more tea.

“We are here,” he said, pointing. “This is the plain of barTimesh where scouts tell me Kael is assembling all of his forces.”

She shook her head.

“A third of them at most,” she said. “Enough to present an impressive show, to be sure, while convincing you that you have the upper hand. Instead, he intends to send the larger part down through the Nagath Valley and past… Is this barakMaroc?” she asked and touched the spot with her finger.

“It is,” he replied.

“He intends to overrun it, then divide what remains of his forces afterwards. Some he will use to take Bad Adur—he is aware of how few are stationed there to protect it, thanks to Captain Xanthis.” She returned her gaze and indicated another spot with a finger, “—while the rest will swing westward, rounding the southern tip of the Han’nah to attack barakMall from the East.”

Sitheh’s eyebrows went up.

“If you dispatch one of each battalion Lord Comer is sending as soon as they arrive —one cavalry and one infantry—to the Nagath Valley and one of each to Bad Adur, the first cavalry brigade can reach the northernmost reach of the Han’nah mountains a full day before Kael’s forces arrive at the valley’s northern approach.”

She looked up from the map to face him. Placing both hands on the table, she leaned toward him and said, “It is critical that the cavalry brigade you send to the Han’nah does not confront them. Let Kael’s forces pass.”

The warlord stared back in rapt fascination.

“Instruct them to remain hidden within the mountains’ recesses until the last of Kael’s forces have moved past. Only then, when Kael’s have travelled half a day beyond, will you release them. That way, they will believe they are facing only infantry.

“During this time, move the second battalion of the Pytherali infantry into Bad Adur to augment the troops that are already there and place the other cavalry brigade around barakMaroc. In doing so, you will have enough reinforcements in place to secure the port city and more than enough to defend the fortress. With the first cavalry battalion attacking from their rear, Kael’s forces will be caught in the middle and you can crush them.”

Lord Sitheh blinked.

“By the gods,” he gasped.

There was a long pause as the two locked eyes and their breaths came in unison.

In a voice not much louder than a whisper, he said, “Three days ago, I would have taken you for a silly little girl who daydreams far too much for her or anyone else’s good. But, yes. Were I he, I would do exactly the same.”

He pounded his fist on the table, then rose. Suddenly, he stopped.

Half to himself, he asked, “Who, I wonder, convinced Tai Comer to act at such a fortuitous time?”

Pandy looked at him.

“Colonels Kanagh and Hol.”

“You know their names?” asked Lord Sitheh, dumbfounded by her certainty.

She nodded.

“But who dispatched them? I certainly did not.”

“I did.”

He stared at her.

“Or rather, it was General Barral at my request.”

“Curiouser and curiouser,” he said, before sitting back down to discuss with a fourteen year old girl the best way to deal with Garmak En and what had been, until recently, Lord Essem Cargath’s army.