Foretellers (The Ydron Saga Book 3) (29 page)

“What is it?” asked Sylene.

Frantic at a new vision that was suddenly surrounding her, wide-eyed and consumed by its terror, she now grasped Sylene’s arms.

“It’s Simo.”

“Simo?” asked Sylene. Cocking her head, her face took on a look of confusion as she asked, “What about him?”

Roanna looked at her friend in desperation as she experienced a growing sense of helplessness.

“He won’t reach the fortress,” she gasped.

Sylene knitted her brow and asked, “What do you mean?”

“Soldiers will intercept him before he gets there. They will find his tattoo and imprison him.”

“No!” exclaimed Sylene. “You must be mistaken. He’ll be alright.”

“We should have gone with him,” said Roanna.

“But then they’ll take him to the fort, won’t they?”

Roanna shook her head.

“They’ll take him somewhere else. I don’t know its name.”

Sylene stared and Roanna could see she was caught between hoping Roanna was wrong and believing she was right. Roanna wished she could offer any reassurance at all that she might be mistaken, but she could not.

“Mother?” gasped Pandy.

She glanced up and looked out the window. One moment she had been poring over maps, discussing strategies and possible outcomes with Lord Sitheh, and the next, she saw her mother propped atop a wagon bed a few miles to the south. On occasions like this, she wondered whether “farseer” was a more accurate descriptor than “foreteller,” since looking across space was sometimes becoming as easy as looking across time. In the end, she was what she was despite whatever labels the people appended. When she returned her awareness to the room, Lord Sitheh was staring.

“She has come,” rejoiced Pandy in a voice barely louder than a whisper. Grinning, she raised an arm and pointed south.

The warlord turned to the window to look. But even with the ubiquitous torchlight, all appeared dark through the glass and it was only possible to discern the indistinct movements of those outside, outlined in amber. It took time for her to make him understand that Roanna had not actually arrived at the fort, but was still several miles distant. Once he comprehended, he assembled a rescue party and equipped them with food, water and a physician.

“I have to tell you,” he said, shaking his head once the gates had closed behind them, “my mind still wants to reject all of this—the mind-reading, the predictions—until I remember what you and Peniff have already accomplished.”

It was almost midnight when the searchers returned and Pandy ran to the gate to intercept them. Two women wrapped in blankets rode at the party’s center, mounted on horses the rescuers had taken with them. A grimy woman with light colored hair, whom Pandy did not recognize, was sitting upright in the saddle, keeping watch over another with a head of stringy dark strands. Although that one was slumped across the horse’s neck, face down and turned away, Pandy recognized her form at once.

“Mother!”

At her cry, the debilitated one raised her head and searched through the torch light.

“Mother!” Pandy repeated and this time they locked eyes.

“Pandy?”

Roanna touched a hand to her lips.

“My child!” she gasped.

She made an effort to climb down, but cried aloud when she tried to put her weight on a stirrup and halted her attempt. The one beside her leapt to the ground and hurried to assist her. Struggling to help Roanna position her foot, she grabbed her by the thigh and forearm and eased her to the ground.

A dozen running steps brought Pandy beside them. Roanna straightened as, all at once, Pandy’s arms were around her. As sobs wracked both of them, mother and daughter embraced, pausing briefly to look into each other’s eyes or regard the other’s face, to touch a cheek, to exchange kisses, before drawing each other close again. They repeated these acts, at a loss for what to say, for what else to do, alternately laughing and sobbing for several long minutes.

“Oh, dear!” Roanna exclaimed when at last they broke apart. “Please pardon me,” she said, looking back and forth between Pandy and Sylene. “I’m forgetting my manners.”

She introduced them, sketching her history with Sylene, as Sylene and Pandy took each other’s hands.

“Thank you so much for taking care of her,” Pandy told her, then added, “Mother, Sylene, I would like to introduce you both to a friend.”

She gestured at Lord Sitheh, who had been patiently waiting a few feet away throughout the exchange. The two women turned.

“This is the man responsible for saving you,” said Pandy.

He was not dressed in finery at this hour. Instead, he had on a white muslin shirt that hung loosely over the dark leather breeches he wore for comfort while working in his quarters. The leather vest and boots that completed his attire did nothing to distinguish him from any of the others, so it was only natural that Roanna and Sylene stood speechless and frozen when Pandy said, “This is Lord Obah Sitheh.”

The warlord smiled at their bewilderment.

“I’m glad to see you’ve arrived safely,” he said. “These are dangerous lands. Let’s get both of you something to eat, then find someplace warm for you to sleep.”

Sylene interrupted.

“Pardon me, My Lord, if I’m speaking out of turn, but a friend of ours—his name is Simo—started for the fort hours before our rescuers arrived. He should have been here by now. I am afraid something may have happened to him. Have you seen him or had any word of him?”

“I’ve been busy all day, so, no, I wouldn’t have,” apologized the warlord with a shake of his head. “I’m sure someone will have encountered him if he found his way here. I’ll spread the word first thing tomorrow. It’s late and the men are all busy with their preparations, but I’m sure we can look for him in the morning.”

Once Roanna and Sylene had finished expressing their gratitude, noticing that, despite their wraps, they both had begun trembling, Pandy put her arms around them.

“Let’s get you inside.”

Drawing them close, she turned them toward the commissary, saddened when she looked ahead to see no amount of searching would turn up Simo.

Unable to sleep, Pandy arose before dawn. Events were in flux as forces beyond her control kept altering the future despite her repeated attempts to analyze and pin them down. She needed to sort certain matters out, but her room felt so cramped and stifling she was verging on panic and had to get out.

Reinforcements from Deth and Pytheral were at last on their way, and timing their arrival would be crucial to Lord Sitheh’s strategy. Grave new events were brewing in the north that also concerned her. She needed someplace roomy enough that she could breathe, tranquil enough that she could think. It would be an hour or more before breakfast would be served so she headed to the commissary. Expecting a quiet stroll, she stepped into the yard, only to be greeted by the prior night’s furor.

Doesn’t anyone ever sleep?

Still toiling by torch light, men carrying baskets of arrows ascended to the battlements or else wheeled barrows of stone, possibly for future repairs, from one site to another. Across the yard, the gates ground open and two empty wagons departed clearing much needed space.

When she and one of the men collided, almost upending her, she decided to pay more attention to where she was going and less to the preparations. She turned up the collar of the coat Lord Sitheh had given her and increased her pace, arriving at the commissary entrance a few minutes later. She stepped inside and the unexpected confronted her.

Against the wall at the far end of the room, beyond the rows of tables and benches, two people, seemingly familiar, hunched together conversing. Thinking it unlikely they should both be about at such an early hour, believing she must be mistaken, she eased toward them, endeavoring not to disturb them. She had almost reached the aisle between their table and the nearer row, when she realized she was right.

“Mother? Lord Sitheh? What are you doing here?”

The two turned to look and the intensity on their faces transformed into smiles.

“Pandy!” Roanna exclaimed and attempted to rise.

She slid her chair away from the table, but pain seized her, causing her to reach for her back and remain seated. Embarrassed, she grimaced and smiled weakly. Lord Sitheh frowned at her discomfort, appeared concerned, but said nothing. She sighed and raised both hands in a reassuring gesture.

“Your mother has been providing me with a great deal of useful information,” Lord Sitheh said.

Pandy glanced from one to the other, placed her hands on her hips and shook her head.

“Y-you should be in bed,” she stammered, gesturing toward her mother. “Look at you. You can’t even stand up. Last night you could barely climb down from your horse. Yet now, the suns have not even risen and you’re sitting here… ”

She paused when she noticed the cups on the table.

“ …sipping tea? Can’t whatever information you’re providing wait a few more hours until you’re properly rested?”

Roanna shook her head.

“I’m sorry, but no, it cannot,” she replied. As Pandy opened her mouth to object, Roanna added, “You are not the only one with crucial information.”

All at once Roanna’s look softened and her composure crumbled. She broke into tears.

“By the gods, please forgive me.” She ran her hands through her hair. “I must be crazy. I’ve been searching for you for Siemas knows how long, and now that you’re here… ”

When she couldn’t go on, Pandy went to her. Lord Sitheh appeared ill-at-ease at such an emotional display but, to his credit, he bided his time, comporting himself as a nobleman ought, and said nothing.

“It’s alright,” Pandy said as she dropped to one knee. Taking Roanna’s hand into hers, she said, “I’m just afraid for you.”

Roanna smiled through her tears.

“I understand. You were also fearing for my safety when you pushed me overboard.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have.”

Roanna shook her head.

“You were right. You saw what was coming and did what was necessary.” She wiped her face with her sleeve and added, “And look what has happened: we’re both alive and we’re together.” Her face clouded over. “And now I’m snapping at you.”

“You’re exhausted,” said Pandy, patting her hand.

“I see you have another guest, M’Lord,” a man interrupted. “Will she be joining you?”

Pandy glanced back to see a man in loose cotton attire standing a few feet away.

“Yes, Tonas,” Lord Sitheh replied. “Before the others file in, will you please bring us breakfast?”

“Yes, M’Lord,” Tonas said, giving a deferential nod.

As he turned to go, Lord Sitheh told Pandy and Roanna, “We should enjoy what may be our last chance for civility. Once the fighting begins, no one will be eating in here. The kitchen will still prepare food, but you’ll have to take it and eat where you can.

“Now tell me, Roanna. Where were Kael’s forces heading?”

She kissed Pandy’s hands and released them, then turned to face Lord Sitheh.

“They were heading through Chadarr to a broad plain northeast of there. I believe they may have already arrived, since I saw this several days ago.”

“That agrees with what your daughter told me. Do you know if Lord Cargath’s forces have joined them?”

“No. I don’t believe so. The ones the man with the topknot was leading… He is Hath Kael, is he not?”

Lord Sitheh nodded.

“ …skirmished with Cargath’s troops before turning toward the plain.”

Pandy added, “As I told you earlier, Colonels Kanagh and Hol have been successful in securing their allegiance. Once they have acquired the rest of the supplies they require, which should be any time now, Colonel Hol will lead them here. Meanwhile, Colonel Kanagh has turned south to lead the Pytherali forces.”

Lord Sitheh nodded.

“I should promote them both to generals if they arrive here in time.”

Breakfast arrived, interrupting the conversation. Once all had eaten and Roanna began to nod, with the aid of two soldiers, Pandy escorted her to her room.

“You’ve grown so much,” Roanna said as Pandy tucked her into bed. “You’re not the little girl I remember. Has your foresight grown as well?”

Pandy nodded saying, “Yours too. You seem much more certain when you speak.”

Roanna related the event she believed led to her current mental state, adding, “Many visions are clearer, when they come at all. I’m hoping my foresight will return for good. Everything feels wrong without it. It’s these headaches that concern me. I’m so afraid something in my head is not as it should be.”

Pandy didn’t like what she foresaw and wanted to say more, but couldn’t bring herself to add to her mother’s worries. “You should sleep now,” she said as she drew up the covers. “I’ll stop by later to see how you are doing.”

Still wanting a place where she could think, Pandy went to the stables.

Unlike horses that one can tuck into individual stalls, endaths require room. There was no place for them outside the fort, so Lord Sitheh, recognizing their worth as a means of rapid transportation, had determined to make room for them. After much deliberation, he cleared out one entire stable, of which the fortress had three, picketing the horses it had housed outside the walls, not unlike the cavalry’s mounts, and moved the endaths in.

Pandy opened its door and kept it ajar to admit light, taking time to allow her vision to adjust before entering. It was just after dawn, so a few minutes passed before she could see well enough.

Straw covered the floor to facilitate cleanup and most hayracks still held whatever silage the endaths had not yet consumed. A water trough made of mortared stone lined one of the walls and half a dozen or so wooden buckets were stacked, one inside the next, at one end of it.

The moment she entered, Chossen and Vyten turned to face her. Their lowered necks, like the droop of tails, seemed more a product of their disposition than an accommodation for the low ceiling. Lacking windows to admit any light, the room seemed more a dungeon than a stable and it soon became apparent that those windows that had existed before the endaths moved in had been walled over.

“I am so sorry!” she cried.

She looked back at the still-open door and realized at once how dark it would be if she were to close it.

“I didn’t realize… ” she began.

So struck was she by their adverse circumstance, embarrassed it was she who had brought them here, Pandy could not complete the thought. As if to forgive her, Vyten stretched out his head and brushed her cheek with his.

“I can’t help you now,” she said. “War is coming. But I promise, as soon as it is safe, I’ll get you out of here.”

Chossen moved close, caressed her arm and Pandy sighed.

“May I stay with you a while?” she asked.

Both endaths half-blinked their eyes as a sign of assent.

Settling onto a pile of straw in a corner of the room, Pandy put her back against the wall and, for a while, merely listened to the sounds they made: the crackle of straw as the endaths shifted stance and a soft guttural lowing she’d never noticed before.

Are they communicating, she wondered, or are these merely habitual sounds? No matter, she decided. After a while, she turned her mind to the heart of her concerns.