Tears of War (20 page)

A sharp intake of breath from some of the Border Guards and the hard look in Alrendoc’s amber eyes told her that Vaddoc was indeed recognized.

Vaddoc approached, his shoulders squared and his face impassive. Kirynn wondered how it would feel when it came time for her to face the judgment of her birthplace, even if the King of Boromar did know the truth about magic. A slight shift ran through the Border Guards though not all of them looked on with distrust or hostility. Interesting.

Alrendoc turned his stony eyes on Kirynn. “You expect me to trust what you say when you bring a traitor into our midst?”

“Vaddoc is the traitor?” She shot him an icy look. “And what are you? Vaddoc was as loyal as anyone else. In fact, it took him some time to be able to sever the ties and his loyalty to Shadereen and the Border Guard. Perhaps if those he was loyal to hadn’t been so ready to kill him, he wouldn’t have had to abandon everything.”

“It is the law,” Alrendoc said, his tone flat.

Kirynn shrugged. “It’s a stupid law.”

“People who can use magic go insane. I have yet to see anything to convince me otherwise.”

Kirynn laughed darkly. “Oh but my dear King, Vaddoc and I can both use magic. Do you see us running about torturing people?”

Alrendoc’s brows drew down at her casual address of him. “The day is early yet. I will wait and withhold judgment, but do not expect me to trust you yet.”

“You don’t have to trust us at all.” Kirynn shrugged. “In fact, you can tell us to leave now and we will. If you wish to take on the Shadow Riders by yourself or break under their rule that is your business. You are, after all, the wise and powerful ruler of this nation. We wouldn’t presume to know any better than you.” He eyed her uncertainly, as if trying to decide whether or not she had just insulted him.

Vaddoc’s approach turned the king’s attention to the man that had once sworn allegiance to him. His face was devoid of expression as he looked the king in the eye. “Alrendoc.”

The Border Guards around them shifted, a barely audible angry muttering running through them. But again, not all of them.

“Vaddoc.” Alrendoc’s brows knit together in a scowl. “Is this the proper way to greet me?”

“I greet you as one equal to another. My allegiance belongs to my dragon and Galdrilene.”

“You are not a king and a Border Guard’s pledge is for life.”

Vaddoc smiled slightly. “My old life ended the moment Namir hatched. And I am indeed equal to you. Not that Galdrilene’s hierarchy is set up quite the way you are used to.”

“I will not have this,” Alrendoc’s voice rose slightly. “This woman said you would leave, I am asking you to leave. Be gone from Marden and Shadereen. You are not welcome here.”

Kirynn shrugged. “If you wish. If you decide in the future that you would like help defending your city, I am sure you can find us. However, I’m afraid we will not be leaving Shadereen. We will not interfere with the working of your nation, but there is at least one village we promised to protect and we won’t break that promise. Any other villages that come to us for protection against the Shadow Riders will also be guaranteed that protection.”

She didn’t wait for Alrendoc’s response. With Vaddoc at her side, she walked away.

“Wait!”

Kirynn stopped and turned to see who had spoken. A balding man, short for a Shaderian, pushed past the Border Guards. Alrendoc turned his glower on the man. “This is decided and not up for discussion.”

The man glared back, his golden eyes hard. “It is not all up to you, Alrendoc. When it comes to national defense, the Council of Seven has a say. I think we should hear them out. Thus far they have not behaved in the way of the Shadow Riders. I have no wish to bow under the rule of sadistic people who take pleasure in causing harm. I am intelligent enough to know we are not capable of defending the people of Shadereen from the whims of the Shadow Riders. I am not alone in feeling it is in our best interests and those of the nation to hear them out. Our people have suffered enough and we are not the leaders we should be if we send away a chance to put a stop to this nightmare.”

He turned from Alrendoc and addressed them. “I am Lord Deslin of House Menar and a member of the Council of Seven.” He spread his hands in a placating gesture. “Please, will you reconsider leaving? Join us instead within the council room so we may further discuss your intentions and what you can do to protect Shadereen.” Deslin glanced at the dragons perched on the curtain wall. “I promise, no harm will come to your dragons.”

Vaddoc snorted. “Of that I am sure. You do not yet have the weapons or knowledge to take down a dragon. All you will do now if you attempt something is irritate them. I will warn you, however, if our safety is compromised once we are inside, our dragons will come to our defense, even if that means tearing the keep apart.” He smiled slightly. “And you will have to answer to a little girl in the village of Welan as to why you tried to harm ‘her’ dragon.”

Deslin cast a nervous glance at the red and the gold. “I promise. All four of you are safe.”

Vaddoc inclined his head a fraction. “We would be most pleased to accept your invitation.”

As they followed Deslin past the assembled Border Guards and through the door of the keep with the rest of the Council and a still scowling Alrendoc on their heels, Syrakynn sent,
“Please be careful. I don’t trust them.”

Kirynn glanced back at the red before stepping through the door.
“Neither do I.”

Vaddoc knocked on the familiar wooden door of the small house at the edge of Marden. Three long days of talks had finally resulted in the king and Council of Seven deciding their best defense against the Shadow Riders would be siding with Galdrilene.

Now, as the Council worked to figure out how to implement Dragon Law in Shadereen, Vaddoc finally had time to visit his family. A small knot of worry bound up inside him. Would they accept him? Or would they still continue to feel that he had shamed them when he left?

The Border Guards were left reeling after finding out several of their members had been to Galdrilene. The welcome from those who’d been and from the men that helped Emallya get him out of Marden, had eased the tension he’d felt about returning home. The Border Guards as a whole, as well as the king and the Council, knew he hadn’t abandoned his Watch for no reason.

The knot in his stomach tightened as the latch on the other side of the door slid back. It opened, revealing the face of his mother. Her graying hair hung loose and there were new lines in the familiar face. Her eyes widened and then she embraced him in a tight hug.

“Vaddoc,” she breathed. When she stepped back, tears shimmered in her eyes. “I was not sure what to think when I heard you returned, and riding a dragon no less.”

He swallowed and squared his shoulders. “I had to leave. They would have killed me for nothing. Magic does not drive people insane and not all dragons are bad.”

Her eyes warmed as she smiled at him. “I know, son, I know. Come in. Your sisters will be back from the market soon and will be delighted to see you.”

Vaddoc frowned slightly. “What do you mean, you know?”

She took his hand and led him into the house. “Vaddoc, I can use magic. Not a lot, certainly not to the degree you do, or even mages like your aunt. But enough that I have never had to use flint to set a fire in the hearth since I was a few years younger than you.”

Vaddoc glanced at the mantel over the hearth. The flint lay there, as it always had. “But there has always been flint there.”

His mother laughed softly as she closed the door. “Of course there has. I had to keep appearances up after all.” She waved her hand as if it was of no consequence. “Besides, your sisters often set the fire these days. So far neither of them have shown any magical ability, and if they do, it may not present as fire.” She laid her hand on his cheek. “From what I hear, you use light. Although it sounds like you have brought a fire rider with you.”

Vaddoc chuckled. Nothing ever seemed to be the way he once thought it was. “Yes, Kirynn uses fire.”

“Will I meet her?”

He nodded. “She is out with her dragon right now.”

His mother glanced at the door. “And your dragon, where is he and what is his name?”

Vaddoc sat down at the table as his mother placed plates of food and pitchers of drink on the table. Some things never changed. His mother and Marda would get along very well. Both believed every situation was made better with good food. “His name is Namir and right now he hunts. He has to go quite far for that. The dragons will not hunt livestock unless given permission from the owner of the animals.”

She nodded and sat down across the table from him. “You must tell me everything. Arnya is with the girls and will be back soon. I know she is anxious to find out how everything went.”

Vaddoc paused over a bite of food, thinking back to that foggy night when he’d left Marden. So much had happened since then. It was going to be a long tale.

T
he sun slowly edged its way behind the peaks of the mountains to the west as Mckale and Maleena rode toward a large village a short way from the walls of Taragen, the capitol city of Calladar. He gauged the sun’s descent; they would arrive just after full dusk. It would be the hour of the evening meal; the streets would be largely empty. The sharp chill in the air made having the cowls of their cloaks pulled up natural and the falling light would make it difficult for people to see them.

They had stayed with the Ke’han a full week. The last three weeks on the road had been long and hard. He glanced at Maleena as she yawned. He sensed her exhaustion. The journey had been harder on her than him. He was used to grueling travel. During the last week she’d been more tired than usual, although she never complained and never asked to stop early.

He glanced ahead at the village. The lampposts had been lit and glowed softly in the distance. It wouldn’t be long now. He was anxious to get her someplace warm where she could get proper sleep in a soft bed. Hopefully, his family would welcome him back. His father knew about Galdrilene and the dragons. He wouldn’t turn them away.

Maleena yawned again. She hadn’t eaten much the last couple of days either, insisting she was too tired to eat. Worry nagged at him as he studied her. She wasn’t getting sick was she? He reached for Nydara,
“Is Maleena alright? Do you sense any illness trying to take hold of her?”

“No, she just feels tired,” came the silver’s sending from high above. “There is no illness in her.”