Scabbard's Song (12 page)

down or taken prisoner, and were back where we started. Soldier was never so convinced by the futility of war as in this valley. He remained with Fabulet for the next two or three days, letting the princes father believe he was staying for good, then slipped away during the night. He had at least broken one of the riddles, so his time in the camp had not been in vain. The raven was well pleased with his efforts in discovering that a praying mantis had to be found, but he asked, was it a real insect or one made from jade? Looking at the remaining two riddles, said Soldier, using the valley-edge mountain paths to continue his journey, rather than run into the other army laying siege to Ged, I would say that it will be a carving of sorts. The other two riddles speak of silver and gold objects. While green things may be found to be common in nature, gold and silver are not so. What are we looking for then, a treasure house? Possibly, or a temple. You often find carvings of great beauty in temples. We must continue our search and speak with as many locals as do not show hostility towards us. Towards you, you mean. All I have to do is watch for eagles. True. And theres one now, circling overhead. There was indeed a mountain eagle gliding on a spiral thermal high above their heads. The raven hunched down into himself. They are evil birds, those eagles, he muttered. I imagine that worms must say the same thing about ravens. Worms are not high creatures, they dont count. Tell that to a worm. The pair continued to banter with each other, until Soldier spotted a cabin in a lonely pass that took them over the other end of the mountain range and out of the valley of Ut and Ged. They reached the log dwelling just as the sun was going down. Clearly the place was being used, for smoke was coming from a hole in the roof. Soldier found an area where lush long grass grew and hobbled his horse. Then he went to the door of the cabin and knocked loudly. When he received no answer he opened the door and stepped inside, peering around in the dim light. Finally his eyes fell on an elderly figure hunched over a fire, cooking, in the corner. The occupant of the cabin recognised Soldier almost as quickly as Soldier recognised him. Both let out a gasp of astonishment. Then the other man quickly drew a dagger. You followed me here! he cried. It was part of the agreement that I should not be pursued into this godforsaken land. Humbold! said Soldier, shocked. I had no idea. You have come to kill me, despite your oath not to harm me. Soldier was sorry for that oath, but in fact he was honour-bound to keep it, no matter how much his hatred for the other man rose like bile to his throat. Your presence was unknown to me, or I would not have stopped here, replied Soldier coldly. I have come from the cities of Ut and Ged, in the last valley . . . Humbold was looking blank. You did not see them? said Soldier. Did you not witness two great armies at war? I came along the ridges, between two mountain ranges, and have seen no other human soul - apart from a cloak-and-dagger gang who followed me into the Unknown Region. Humbolds face turned black with anger. Those snivelling brats, Guido and Sando. They sent a death squad after me. I caught one of their cloaked killers in a noose and let him dangle there until he told me what his mission was, then I kicked away the log that held him up. The others? I slit their throats while they slept around their camp fire Left them like dead bats, their black garments flapping in the night winds. Did those royal brats think they could kill me that easily? Soldier was determined not show that he was shocked and ignored this little anecdote. We obviously came by different paths. Well, you have reached the hut first. Yet I must have somewhere to shelter the night. You are safe from harm so far as I am concerned. I wish I could feel the same about myself, for I fear I shall have to sleep with one eye open tonight, with a foul fiend like you for a bedfellow Seeing that Soldier was just as surprised to see him as he was to lay eyes on the knight who had caused his downfall, Humbolds courage returned. Clearly Soldier was not chasing him but on a mission of his own. His lip curled in revulsion at having to share his hut with the knight. The ex-chancellor and ex-king began to complain and make claims. I found this hut first. You should find another. Impossible, the darkness has fallen and it seems likely it will freeze tonight, here high in the mountains. Thats not my fault. And I shall not share my food. I didnt ask you to, and would not, Any food of yours would turn to ashes in my mouth. Good. Yes, good. You will sleep in the woodshed. Soldier raised his eyebrows. Oh, I will, will I? You have ordered it? By what authority? That of chancellor or that of king? You are a broken man, Humbold. You do not give orders I, on the other hand, am consort of the queen of Zamerkand. Uppity, arent we? sneered Humbold Not out here, youre not. Here you are just an outcast with ugly blue eyes I could go out of that door and find ten locals now who would gladly burn you at the stake for a witch. Look at you, the ex-king sneered, half a man, if that! You dont even know who you are what you are, or where you came from. Thats where youre wrong, Humbold, cried Soldier, unable to stop himself from revealing information which might be useful to his enemy, for I am Valechor, knight of a border kingdom between the greater homelands of the Scots and the Angles. I know who I am. Humbold glanced down at Soldiers side and sneered again Ah, you found your sword. Your memory returns, piece by piece. You will have remembered Drummond then, your deadly enemy Soldier was astonished. You know of Drummond? Humbold laughed He visited me no, not before you arrived, or I would have killed you the instant you entered Zamerkand for the first time. He came to me while you were wandering the deserts of Uan Muhuggiag and I promised him the next time you were m my power I would give you to him. Unhappily, that never happened Where is the bastard now? cried Soldier, his memory stirring as he placed his hand on his sword. I would have peace with him, but if he will not agree to peace I will fight him any time, any place. Single combat Just the two of us. Is he such a coward still that he needs to hide from me? Such were the contradictory feelings that fought for possession of his mind, Soldier was ever and aye switching between peace and war. I have such a passion in me when I hear that name, he groaned, I fail to control myself . . . You know he is no coward. You and he have faced each other in battle many times He would fight you tomorrow But there is a power which keeps you apart, for you are both keys in the destiny of two worlds the world you both come from and the world you are in now. Only one key fits the lock to the future. Is it you, Soldier? I hope not. I hope and pray to the gods and the magi wizards that it is Drummond. How do you know all this, while I do not? cried Soldier in anguish. You are a mere puppet of this world. A throne-sitter. A man who has fed on his own ambition in one place. I am well travelled . . . Do you know why? Soldier was thrown. Know why what? Why you are so travelled, you idiot. Soldier allowed the insult to pass over him. Im sure you can tell me, you seem to know everything about me. Because you are cursed. You have the wandering curse, placed on you by the witch you killed at the massacre of the Drummond clan. Each time you try to settle down, raise a family, live a happy life, something occurs to send you on a quest. The curing of a scarred wife, the curing of a mad wife, the curing of a wife with amnesia. Havent you seen it yet, you dolt? You are always off somewhere, roaming in the wilderness, never allowed the pleasure of settling, the contentment and peace of a stable existence. Oh what a fool you are, Soldier. I laugh at your simplicity, your stupidity Humbold looked down at Soldiers hand. Even now you have only just guessed that your sword holds your lost memories. They flowed into it before it flew from your hand into the raging torrent of a river in your last battle in that border kingdom of which you speak. From there your memory, trapped within your sword, was taken by the flowing waters to the resting place of all lost swords, in the underground lake of this world. How is that possible? Why, all the waters of the earth, of all shadow worlds, are joined together in some way a stream flows into a river, a river into a sea, a sea is part of an ocean. They carry such objects to their destination . . . Not that, not that. How is all of this possible? Wait, listen. You used a phrase there. Shadow worlds. What is that? Why, have you never been to school, Soldier? Have you never talked properly with our philosophers and priests? With those who know of the spirit kingdoms? No, of course not. You are a warrior, not a scholar. You would not waste your time with airy-fairy theories of the universe, would you? So many of our young men and women have no interest . . . but that is neither here nor there. Those of us who are wise went to the sages, asked them questions, listened to the answers. I may be, in your eyes, an evil man, Soldier. But I do not lack intelligence. I am a learned evil man. You brag, but let us hear the story! Since we are trapped here together, I shall repeat the lesson I learned, when I studied with the priests. The world is one place, like a bright fire in a cave, but it throws shadows on the cave wall, which are worlds themselves, dimmer and somewhat different from the original due to the uneven surface of the rock face on which they dance. You live in a shadow world, Soldier. And my old world, that is the true one! gasped the knight. Humbold sniggered. You are more foolish than I thought. Of course not. That too is a shadow. You and I are mere men. We could not live on the original. Why, it is too bright for our eyes, too hot for our flesh, too fierce for our souls. We would go blind, melt, evaporate on such a place. Even the Seven Gods could not survive there, let alone mere mortals. Perhaps the original is heaven, where only a spirit, a soul, may survive. Some preach that. Others say it is unobtainable, that you have to be another sort of being to exist there, to enjoy its wondrous light and joy I have it now! cried Soldier in desperation, wondering at the revelations he was hearing in this simple hut on a hillside in some forest in the middle of nowhere. Revelations from the mouth of a despised enemy, a creature not worth the dirt on the ravens claws. Did he deserve this? Enlightenment from the lips of one who hated him? He looked despairingly at the raven, who had its head cocked to one side, listening, listening. You are lying to me to make me feel weak and vulnerable. Humbold looked at Soldier in amazement and shook his head in a weary fashion. The raven said, He speaks the truth, Soldier. Soldier whirled on the bird. You know of these things too? No, but I know when a man is telling the truth. Soldiers heart was heavy. He felt he was, after all, no better than Humbold, a man he despised. He too had slaughtered, revenge his only motive. With his hand on his sword, his memory flowed back, trickled back, like muddy water into his waiting mind. His first bride, Rosalind, she had been a Drummond too! He had, like a cousin of his, a knight named Lochinvar, fallen in love with one of the enemy. Lochinvar had snatched his bride from the marriage altar and had ridden away with her to a happy life. Not so Valechor. He too had run away with his beloved, but they had been pursued, out into the snowy wastes of the forest, and there she was cut down by a Drummond sword. Her own brother! Ye gods! Her own brother. And so the ancient family feud had burst forth anew, spewing its blood over the land, Valechor killing Drummond, Drummond killing Valechor, until this knight Valechor had trapped the whole Drummond clan and wiped them out but for one man. He was the one who now pursued him, out of one world, into the next. Their hatred for each other was blinding and fierce. Yes, he too had killed a bride, a Drummond bride, sheathed in armour and unrecognisable as a woman, and incurred the same uncontrollable hatred from his enemy. What a field day the gods were having with the pair of them. They were pawns packed with passion, their emotions bleeding from their eyes. How terrible. Well I want no more of it, said Soldier, humbly recognising the worthlessness of his soul at this moment. If I see Drummond, I shall pass him by without a word. Ha! cried Humbold. And I have to share a cabin with this dolt from nowhere. Youre welcome to leave. The wind has just risen. I can hear it howling through the trees. By my reckoning you will be frozen before you reach the downward path. Off you go, then! Clever bastard! Yes. Then I shall stab you in your sleep do not close your urrgghhh . . . Soldier had crossed the room in two bounds. His face had twisted into fury. Inside he felt such hate for this man it would take but a spark for him to break Humbolds neck like a twig. As it was he gripped the mans throat, squeezing. Fear flowed into Humbolds eyes. His fingers clawed uselessly at Soldiers iron grip. He knew at that moment he was but a thread away from death and he was utterly terrified. Please! he managed to gasp, as he tried to prise the strong fingers from his throat. Please! Soldier was so enraged he could hardly speak. If if you if you take one single step towards my my bed in the night, I shall crush you like a bug - you understand? You understand? Humbold forced a quick and agonising nod. Soldier let him go, realising that once again he had succumbed to his passions. Humbold fell gasping and choking on to the floorboards. Soldier turned his back on the man and went out to see to his charger. He had to do something to let his anger cool. His horse was in the full force of the blizzard where she was. Soldier led her behind the cabin, but Humbolds ass was in the sheltered lean-to, taking up most of the room. Soldier had no alternative but to take the mare inside the cabin with him. The animal just about squeezed under the doorway and her hoofs clumped on the wooden floor. There was not a great deal of space in the cabin, bu.t the sloping roof rose on the west side and Soldier took her and stood her by the tiny glassless window. There she remained, clearly glad to be out of the storm, and watched the wind battering the trees through the funnelled hole which served as a vent. Humbold rose from the floor, rubbing his neck. He stumbled to a bunk bed he had made his own and sat on its edge. There he remained, staring at the floor. Well, that was an exciting episode, Im sure. Now I suppose we can all settle for the night? These words had been spoken by the raven, who had been perched on the end of Soldiers bunk on the opposite