The Invisible Chains - Part 2: Bonds of Fear (10 page)

some light snacks, a few board games, and each other’s company.

Lorcko of Iramid always sat with his group of friends, admirers,

followers, and sycophants at the same three tables in the right front

corner of the Prince’s Waterhole, as the pages had baptized the

canteen. An appropriate name, since the main ingredient of every

drink was water. The name was crudely painted on a board that

hung behind the bar. Of course, about three hours after the opening

they had shortened it to the Hole, and dirty jokes and innuendos

abounded.

Lorcko smiling at you meant you were permitted to sit down at

this most coveted of places. For today. Lorcko speaking to you meant

that you needn’t ask anymore. The rules were never formulated. They

had been promulgated and were maintained by cynical looks, raised

eyebrows, yawns, questions that remained unanswered, suddenly

halting conversations, or boisterous laughter when you passed.

That day there were about eight of them. Lorcko smiled, laughed,

or nodded, whichever was most suitable, at exactly the right moment,

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but in fact he was observing another, much smaller group at a little

table next to one of the windows. Ambrick of Keyld was having an

animated conversation with two friends. One of them, he was almost

certain, was Sterff, the future count of Rivrant. The other one he

didn’t know. Strangely enough, none of them had ever tried to join

the golden table. Oh well, he was not too proud to make the first

move.

Whatever they were discussing, it had to be something the three

of them were excited about, as the frequent laughter, broad gestures,

and constant grinning indicated. It was the most remarkable

thing. That ordinary, plain, good natured face with the crooked

teeth and the slightly askew nose, came to life when Ambrick was

talking to his friends. You couldn’t call it handsome by any stretch

of the imagination, but it definitely gained a certain charm and

attractiveness.

When Ambrick’s two companions stood up and said goodbye,

he excused himself and lazily went over to the table by the window.

His friends knew better than to join him, nor were they surprised,

since most of them knew about his occasional attraction to nature’s

stepchildren.

“Ambrick. I saw your friends had to go. May I replace them and

keep you company?” he asked, flashing his most charming smile.

“Ah, Iramid. What a surprise,” Ambrick answered, totally not

surprised. “We’re not on duty anymore, so you don’t have to speak to

me, you know.”

He was going to make this difficult. Good, Lorcko loved a

challenge.

“I know, so it must be that I want to talk to you, mustn’t it? And

since we’re not on duty anymore, please, call me Lorcko.”

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Ambrick raised his eyebrows.

“Now I’m really getting worried,” he said, and he chuckled.

“Please, sit down.”

“Thank you.”

“What exactly is it that you want?”

Stubbornly staying recalcitrant was a tactic that left Lorcko

indifferent.

“Why would I want something, Ambrick? During last week I got

to appreciate you and now I’d like to get to know you better. But first,

can I offer you something to drink?”

Ambrick looked at him as at a strange child that needed to be

indulged.

“If you insist, Ira— eh, Lorcko. A cup of what passes for wine

here, please.”

When he returned with the two cups of wine, he took care to lean

over Ambrick’s shoulder as he put his drink in front of him, letting

his long, raven black hair fall against his companion’s cheek. After

washing it, he had rinsed it a few times with lilac scented water.

“You smell nice,” Ambrick said, not totally devoid of sarcasm. “A

bit like a garden. Lucky for you it’s winter, or you would have a bee

problem.”

“Thank you,” Lorcko said, although he had caught the mocking

undertone, managing to nevertheless lay a whole world of gratitude

in those two words.

He flickered his white, very straight and regular teeth at Ambrick.

“Don’t you think it’s strange. We’ve been on duty together for

most of the week and we know so little about each other. Let’s make

up for that.”

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Ambrick smiled his crooked teeth. Lorcko looked fascinated at

the thin mouth.

“Well, what do you know? There’s real charm there,” he thought,

surprised.

“I find that hard to believe, Lorcko. I may not know you that

intimately, but I know enough about you. Your reputation has

preceded you.”

“And what have you learned from that, precisely?” he asked,

smiling, refusing to fall into the trap and become peeved or angry.

“Let’s see. One, you are a bit of a flirter. Two, you’re very

handsome, and that nobody had to tell me as I have eyes. In fact,

you’re extremely attractive and you know it. You also use it.”

“I have not heard anything too terrible, so far,” Lorcko said with

what was meant to be calm confidence, but he couldn’t prevent some

doubt seeping through.

“No, of course not,” Ambrick conceded graciously. “Hey, if you’ve

got it, use it. And I am no prude. Provided everybody involved is clear

about the terms, I see no harm in some healthy fun. Far from. There

are however a few problems when you are one of the factors of the

equation.”

“Really?” Lorcko said.

“Talk. Talk. Go on. Talk. The more you do, the sooner I will find an

opening.”

“I’m afraid so. One has to wonder why you would take the trouble

to scent your hair and come over from the golden table to this far

more humble one. With one look from under those long eyelashes of

yours, you could get the most handsome guys in your bed. I bet you

could even get that head page, you know, the one that looks a bit like

a constipated bear cub with disheveled fur—”

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“Ramaldah.”

“That’s the one. I bet you could even charm him into your bed,

if you set your mind to it, although he means to keep his future wife

pregnant for the duration of her natural life, and despite the fact that

he has already given names to about all of his dozen or so children to

be. The boys, anyway. You see, Iramid—”

“Lorcko, please. Lorcko.”

“You see, Lorcko,” Ambrick obliged, “Not only do I have eyes. I

also have a mirror. And yet, I have the distinct impression that you

are here to, eh... seduce me?” He let the sentence end in a lingering

question.

“I see,” Lorcko said. “To begin with, like you, I can’t help how I

look. You’re perfectly right. I’ve never had trouble finding partners

that most people would envy me. But what if I were to tell you that I

have grown tired of all that intoxicating beauty? What if I were to tell

you that in my experience most of those pretty boys are rather empty

headed? What if I were to tell you that, no matter how handsome

they are, you really have seen it all around the third time you bed

them?”

He paused and managed to look shyly from under the eyelashes

Ambrick had alluded to only a few moments ago.

“You see,” he said softly, “if all there is to be had is physical beauty...

It is like eating a full, and let me add, delicious meal, yet still feeling

ravenous afterwards. It leaves you unfulfilled. And that is why there

have been so many. You tend to keep looking, hoping that the next

one might finally still that hunger. I admit freely that it has taken

me quite a while to realize that. In the meantime my reputation has

become what it is.”

Ambrick remained impassive, at least outwardly.

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“Lately I find,” he continued, sighing, “that friendship, even

companionship, is far more preferable. So is emotional, even

intellectual rapport. The fire of lust is but a flash in the pan. It burns

spectacularly, but extinguishes itself quickly. True affection lasts

longer. Don’t overrate physical beauty. It fades with time, and already

I dread the day that I will see in somebody’s eyes that hint of pity

that will tell me that the inevitable is starting to happen. You, on the

other hand, have charm. I saw it, when earlier you were talking with

your friends. I don’t know what you were talking about, but I saw

your eyes shine—”

“Falconry. The three of us are passionate about it.”

“Ah. It changed your whole demeanor. It truly transformed you,

talking enthusiastically with friends about something all of you love.

And it made you, well, extremely attractive.”

“It really did, as a matter of fact.”

“The kind of attractiveness that will never age or wither away. On

the contrary, it will only get better, more intense with age. Like a fine

wine that matures with age. Me, it made me... envious.”

Neither of them spoke for several minutes, nor did they look at

each other.

“I’m obviously boring you,” Lorcko said resignedly and started to

get up. He grinned self deprecatingly. “So, if you will excu—”

“Stay,” Ambrick said. “I believe it is my turn to get us drinks.”

Lorcko smiled at him and sat down again.

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“I’ve put all the things I think you should take with you on the

expedition on the table there. Could you take at look at them, please,

and see if anything is lacking?”

Arranulf looked expectantly at Hemarchidas. As of late the

Cheridonian was wont to be absentminded. At first he had supposed

it had to do with the many responsibilities the prince discharged

upon him, but that didn’t account for the aura of melancholy that

hung around him.

“I’m sure everything I will be needing is there, Arranulf. And

more,” Hemarchidas said with a cheerless smile.

“Please, come and look for yourself. After all you’ll be away for at

least ten days, maybe more. We must make sure.”

Hemarchidas rose from his chair and walked over to the table.

He looked at all the items that were neatly sorted and stacked.

“I’ll be needing all that?” he asked.

“It’s still cold and sooner or later it will rain. So you’ll need at

least a few changes of clothing. And as for the patriph... I thought that

after a few days you might begin to miss it.”

Hemarchidas laughed.

“You would think nobody would miss something as horrible as

patriph, would you? But you are right, after a few days without, I get

this strange hankering for it.”

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79

“I suppose it reminds you of home,” Arranulf said. Then, after as

slight hesitation. “Are you homesick?”

Hemarchidas looked at Arranulf in wonder.

“No, I don’t think so. There’s Lethoras, to begin with, and there are

a lot of my fellow tribesmen around. I would have thought it would

be you who would be more liable to miss familiar faces around him.

Me, I’m much too busy to feel homesick anyway.”

“I must admit that sometimes I miss my grandmother and uncle

Threnn. Or someone to confide in.”

“Still at loggerheads with that grouchy page of Bortram? Olyann?”

“Obyann. And no, he’s quite a nice guy once you get to know him.

He’s quick to anger, but it never lasts long. He will threaten to hurt

you severely if you were to accuse him of being softhearted. But he

never will, and he really is.”

“I heard you two took that strange, impertinent kid under your

wings. The one that’s a bit slow.”

“Rahendo? Rahendo isn’t slow. He’s quite clever, actually. Nice

company, too. He’s just... weird.”

“Well, then, as far as I can tell, you should count yourself lucky.

You seem to have made friends and to get along quite well with them.”

“You’re right, of course.”

Hemarchidas looked inquisitively at his page, who became

flushed in the face.

“Aha,” he said, “I think I understand. Everything is fine, but you