Griffin's Destiny (8 page)

“Stick to this road and you should be all right. I doubt any of the castle guard will patrol this far west.” Magnes turned and looked at Ashinji. “You won’t know you’ve crossed the border until you see the swamp.”

“We’ll smell it long before we see it,” Ashinji commented with a wry smile. He grasped his gelding’s coarse mane and swung onto the animal’s back. The horse sighed and shifted from foot to foot.

Magnes climbed onto his own mount and maneuvered it next to Ashinji’s.

“When you see Jelena, tell her I love her and I’m looking forward to seeing her again,” he said.

“I will,” Ashinji replied. He and Gran watched as Magnes turned his horse onto the northbound road and, just before he urged the animal into a trot, Ashinji called out, “Magnes, wait!”

Magnes pulled the horse to a stop and waited for Ashinji to catch up, a questioning look upon his face. “Tell your sister I said ‘thank you,’” Ashinji said.

Magnes cocked his head in puzzlement. “For what?” he asked.

“Thessalina could’ve given in to her commanders and had me killed, but she didn’t. Instead, she let me live. I’m grateful to her for that.”

“I’ll tell her, my friend,” Magnes replied. He tapped his horse with his heels and the animal lurched into a lazy trot. Ashinji watched for a moment, then guided his mount over to where Gran waited. Together, the two elves started up the northwest road.

They rode for a while in silence before Gran spoke. “What you did back there, for Magnes…”

Ashinji looked sharply at her, frowning. “You were watching us?” he asked, shocked that she would intrude into such a private thing.

“I didn’t scan either of you, if that’s what you think, but yes, I
kept
watch, just in case you got into trouble,” she huffed. “Oh don’t look so offended, young man! You are completely untrained—which is a situation that should be rectified if at all possible, I might add—and you could have easily wiped out a part of your friend’s mind he needed in order to function. Psychic surgery is a procedure that should only be done by a fully trained mage.” Her scowl was so dire, Ashinji flinched before it and looked down at his hands, feeling like a child caught misbehaving.

“I had to do something for him, Gran. I couldn’t let him go on suffering,” he said.

“You were not responsible for Magnes’ pain, Ashi,” Gran snapped.

“That’s where you’re wrong!” Ashinji retorted, looking up. “I was the source of his unhappiness! I thought of a way I might help him, so I did what I had to, and it worked.”

He and Gran glared at each other for a few moments, but then the old mage sighed and shook her head. A ghost of a smile played about her mouth. “Yes, it worked,” she admitted. “And now that I’ve finished scolding you, I’ll praise you for a job well done.” She paused, then said, “Tell me what happened on the hill with the slave catchers.”

Ashinji hesitated, unwilling to give voice to his deed. After a few tense moments of silence, he finally said, “I don’t really know. I was furious at Seijon’s death. I knew I had to stop his killer before he attacked you. The energy just…came out of me. I didn’t consciously call upon my Talent at all because I thought it was blocked.”

“Yes, it
was
.” Gran pinned him with ice-blue eyes, her brow furrowed. After a few heartbeats, she let out a sharp exhalation. “It seems, Ashi, that somehow, you have been able to overcome the block your mother put on your Talent, all on your own, which is just extraordinary.” She paused to look thoughtfully into the distance. “It really is unfortunate your mother could not find the courage to go against tradition and send you to the Kan Onji. You’d have made a formidable mage.”

“My mother did what she thought best,” Ashinji responded, tight-lipped with anger. “You, of all people, have no right to criticize her!” As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt a rush of regret. “I’m sorry, Gran,” he murmured. “I should not have said that. It was cruel of me.”

“No, Ashi, you are right to defend your mother. It is true that I’m the least fit person to be Amara’s judge. What I should have said was, it is a great pity your mother felt she could not send you to the Kan Onji.” She looked at him and smiled. “It’s not too late, Ashi. You can still become a mage, if you wish.”

“I don’t know, Gran,” Ashinji replied. “I’ve never been anything else but a soldier. My warrior’s skills are what will be needed in this fight. Becoming a mage is, well, it just seems like an impractical goal right now. And besides, neither of us knows if we’ll even survive what’s to come.”

“We’ll see,” Gran muttered.

***

“There they are. The Shihkat Fens. We’ve made it home, Gran.”

The elderly mage nodded. “We may be back in Alasiri, but we’ve got a long way to travel yet.”

Ashinji raised his hand against the glare of the midday sun off the shimmering expanse. From this distance, the Fens looked like a vast lake, but as the two travelers drew closer, the landscape resolved into a patchwork of stagnant pools slimed with brilliant green algae, weed choked sinkholes, and hillocks covered in tough, brown grasses. The warm, wet air reeked with the smell of decay.

“I know there are trails leading through, but without a guide, we’d have little chance of finding our way,” Ashinji said.

“We’ll have to go around, then,” Gran replied, her voice low and resigned. The necessity of bypassing the swamp would add at least two extra days to their journey.

Despite the inhospitability of the land, Ashinji knew people did inhabit the Fens, making their living by hunting, trapping, and fishing. The fresher pools and running streams harbored abundant life—fish, frogs, turtles, and crayfish—while the thickets abounded with rodents and other small mammals, as well as snakes, lizards, and songbirds. Migratory waterfowl used the larger ponds as stopovers along their ancient flyways. The hardy folk who chose to live within this world were an unconventional lot, content to exist outside the normal structures of elven society.

A large chunk of the eastern end of the Fens fell within the borders of Kerala, but by tradition, Kerala’s lords claimed no jurisdiction over it or anyone living there. The Shihkat Fens existed as a world unto itself, one in which, at this point in time, Ashinji had no wish to enter.

At sundown, they stopped to make camp beneath a stand of willows. They had been living off the land for several days, relying on Gran’s animal charming spells to bring small game within reach and supplementing their diet with wild greens and berries

After a meager supper of cold, stringy rabbit, Ashinji hobbled the horses to prevent them from wandering too far and Gran cast a simple warding spell around the campsite. Almost as soon as he lay down on his thin blanket, Ashinji fell asleep, too exhausted to wonder or even care if Gran’s wards would be enough to wake him in the event danger threatened.

The next morning, he woke to find the skin of his arms and legs dotted with itchy red welts, the result of a nocturnal insect attack. As he scratched the lesions, he wondered why Gran’s wards could keep out some predators but not others. Gran herself appeared untouched.

Perhaps the miserable little bloodsuckers don’t like the taste of mage’s blood!
Ashinji thought.

After two more days of travel, the Fens yielded to drier land and the travelers steered northeast in a direct line that would bring them to Kerala Castle. Everything around him looked familiar; Ashinji felt his spirits lifting.

At sunset, a little over a year after his brother’s betrayal had cast him down into a life of slavery, Ashinji rode across the bridge connecting Kerala Castle to the mainland and halted at the outer gate.

I made it back! Against all odds, I’m home!

The gate stood shut against the coming night. Ashinji slid off his horse, walked to the postern door and pounded on it with his fist.

After a few heartbeats, the peephole slid open.

“Who goes there?” The voice sounded more irritated than challenging.

Ashinji stepped closer so the guard could see his face in the rapidly failing light. “Tell Captain Miri and Seneschal Iruka that Ashinji Sakehera has returned,” he said softly. The guard let out a startled yelp and the peephole slammed shut. A heartbeat later, the postern door flew open and a pair of excited guardsmen tumbled out. Both men began talking at once.

“My lord! This is unbelievable…”

“You’re alive! We were told you’d been killed…”

“At the Battle of the Saihama Fords! It’s been…”

“At least a year. Lord Ashinji, where have you been all this time?”

Ashinji held up both hands and the two guards fell silent. “Please,” he said in a broken voice. “Lady Chiana and I just need to rest for a while. Then we’ll tell our story.” He indicated Gran, still mounted, with a lift of his chin. “One of you go help the lady, and will the other please go fetch Captain Miri and the seneschal now.”

“Yes, Lord Ashinji!”

“Yes, my lord!”

Ashinji squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, battling a wave of vertigo that threatened to pitch him to the ground. He had never before in his life felt so drained, not even after the times he had survived lethal matches on the sands of the Grand Arena. That kind of fatigue had always left his mind strangely energized; the sheer thrill of escaping death for him acted as a potent mental stimulant. What he felt now seemed something else entirely, as if he had expended all his energy in the effort to get back home, and now had nothing left. He didn’t know how much longer he could remain on his feet and conscious.

Gran came up beside him, leaning on the young guardsman for support. She brushed his forearm with her fingertips and a warm jolt of energy flowed up Ashinji’s arm and dispersed throughout his body. He instantly felt better, but guilt made him turn to Gran and chide her. “You shouldn’t have done that, Gran. You need all of your strength.”

“Don’t tell me what to do with what’s mine, young man,” Gran responded. “If I choose to give away my energy, then I will and you’ve got no say in the matter.” Ashinji saw the tenderness in her eyes that belied the tartness of her words. He sighed and kissed her cheek.

“My lord, please come inside.” the guardsman begged, gesturing toward the postern door.

“Take Lady Chiana and send someone out to get the horses,” Ashinji ordered. “I’ll wait here.”

“Straight away, my lord,” the guard responded. Gran allowed herself to be led through the door, offering no resistance, head bowed, her once firm, determined step reduced to a shuffle. Seeing her in such a state, Ashinji felt equal parts guilt and gratitude pierce his heart like twin thorns.

Without her skills and strength, I might never have made it back. I owe her a tremendous debt.

Ashinji did not have long to wait before another guard, a woman this time, emerged from the postern. “L…Lord Ashinji,” she stammered. “Ai, Goddess, it’s true. You are alive!” She fell to one knee, grabbed Ashinji’s hand and pressed it to her lips. “It was like all our hearts had been torn out, my lord, when word came you’d fallen in battle.” She looked up and smiled. “But now, here you are, alive. The One is truly merciful!”

Sadaiyo, you have much to answer for!
Ashinji thought. Fighting to keep the bitterness out of his voice, he replied, “It’s good to be home.”

He placed the horses’ lead ropes into the guardswoman’s hand. “Please, take the horses and see to it they get a thorough rubdown and an extra ration of grain.” He gave each horse a parting slap on the neck as the guard led them away.

I owe those ugly beasts
, he thought.
They’ve earned their extra grain and much more.

Ashinji waited until the horses had passed through the postern before he crossed over the threshold into the lower yard of Kerala Castle. Another guard waited inside to close and bar the door for the night. “Welcome home, Lord Ashinji,” the man said.

Before Ashinji could respond, a familiar voice shouted his name. He turned to see Gendan rushing toward him, sobbing, arms outstretched. Ashinji braced himself as the other man swept him into a crushing hug. For a few precious moments, all considerations of social hierarchy fell aside. They were just two friends, caught up in the sweetness of unexpected reunion.

“Gendan, I can’t breathe!” Ashinji gasped, laughing. Gendan released his grip and stepped back, wiping his streaming eyes and nose on his sleeve. He opened his mouth to speak but only a wordless gasp emerged.

It took a few more moments before the captain mastered himself enough to speak. “Welcome home, my lord,” he said, his voice still rough with tears. He bowed, and with that act, he and Ashinji became once again lord and liegeman. “The lady that rode in with you is in my office. One of my guards is giving her a cup of tea as we speak.” Ashinji began walking and Gendan fell in beside him.

“Thank you, Gendan,” Ashinji replied. “As soon as she’s had her tea, have someone escort her to the keep. She’s just about reached the limits of her strength.”

“Begging your pardon, my lord, but you look pretty done in yourself,” Gendan commented.

“That’s a very polite way of saying I look like shit, my friend,” Ashinji said, grinning. “It’s been a long journey, Gendan. I know everyone wants to know what happened to me and where I’ve been, but right now, all I want is a bath and some sleep.” Gran’s gift of energy had all but dissipated; Ashinji felt a black wall of exhaustion looming over him, threatening to crush him at any moment.