Wielder's Fate (38 page)

He knew there were going to be supply and space issues in the city.  Kavar was a large city but not nearly as populous as Candus.  With the influx of the troops and all of the refugees, Kavar would be filled to bursting.  It would be difficult for any city to suddenly support more than double its own population.  He shook his head as he lay down to sleep.  He would have plenty of time to worry about everything in the morning.  The long march and intense fighting prior to leaving Candus had left him exhausted, and it only took moments for him to drop off into a deep sleep.

A knock at his door awoke him.  He quickly got out of bed and threw open the door, wondering if the galdaks were attacking.  A messenger stood calmly in the stone hallway.  The soldier didn’t appear rushed or flustered, and Blaize allowed his quickly beating heart to slow down.

“Proceed,” Blaize commanded calmly.

“Commander General Blaize,” the soldier began, “the galdak horde has just been spotted to the north.  It appears they are setting up camp.  Commander Bentley requests your presence at the eastern gate.”

Blaize nodded to the messenger and sent him on his way.  He dressed and fitted on his weapons.  Surprisingly, he felt well rested.  He wondered what time it was as he made his way down the stone hallway.  A sentry opened the outer door for him as he exited the barracks.  He was happy to see that it was dawn and that he had managed to get a full night’s rest after all.

He quickly made his way through the city to the eastern gate.  In the dim morning light, he noticed even more than he had the night before how crowded the city had become.  A disquieting thought crossed his mind.  As the battle progressed and soldiers died, part of the overcrowding problem would be relieved.  He grimaced at the thought and pulled up near the base of the gate.  He located Commander Bentley at the top of the high wall nearby and ascended the stairs to join him.

“Commander General Blaize,” the commander of the city guard said in welcome.  “I trust you slept well.”

“I did, thank you,” Blaize replied.  “I hope you got some sleep as well.”

“I got some,” Commander Bentley answered with a smile.  “Our scouts arrived before dawn to announce the approaching galdak horde.  Our sentries in the watch towers soon confirmed the position of the horde as the sky grew lighter.  The beasts haven’t moved any closer since.  It seems they are currently setting up their camp.”

Blaize looked eastward and located the large camp in the distance.  The distance to the camp seemed equal to the distance left by the galdak horde outside of Candus.  He assumed their methods would be similar to those employed previously.

“Should we expect an attack today?” Commander Bentley questioned.

“Not during the day,” he answered.  “They will rest today and attack when night falls.”

“Are you certain?”

“No one can know for sure, but I assume they will follow the same pattern as at Candus.  They always attacked at nightfall and returned to their camp at dawn.”

“So they are nocturnal beasts?”

“Yes,” Blaize stated.  “At least, that is how they have behaved so far.”

Blaize commenced to explain in greater detail how the battles had played out at Candus.  He began by explaining the frenzied attacks by the creatures and their tendencies to continue fighting to the death rather than retreating.  Their strength and size were detailed.  The galdaks’ method of scaling the walls and the formations in which they attacked were also explained.  Blaize finished by relating what the galdak wielder had done after defeating Traven in a duel.  Commander Bentley listened intently to everything.  He thought for a moment and then posed a question.

“But the galdak wielder never joined in the battle after?” the commander asked.

“No,” Blaize replied.  “I’m not sure why.  I suppose he knew that the horde’s numbers would eventually overwhelm us.  Regardless of the reason, I expect him to make an appearance tonight.  If not, we’ll count ourselves lucky.”

“What of the human wielder?  Will he join in our defense?”

“I’m not sure,” Blaize replied.  “He left the battle at Candus to find an object that would allow him to better defend us.  We haven’t heard anything from him since.  Hopefully, he’s not far behind the galdaks and will join us soon.”

“Do you really expect him to return?” the commander asked.  “I heard rumors that he fled the battle in disgrace, having been nearly killed by the galdak wielder.”

“The Wielder Traven will return,” he replied confidently.  “Whether or not he was successful in his quest, I can’t say.  It is true that he was defeated by the galdak wielder, but he is no coward.  He is one of the most honorable and courageous men I know.  He will rejoin us as soon as possible.”

“I wish I had your conviction,” Commander Bentley stated.  “I am confident we can defend these walls against hundreds of thousands of these monsters, but I am not sure what we can do to counter magic.  It would be invaluable to have a wielder to stand with us and defend against the unknown powers of the galdak wielder.”

“Traven will join us,” Blaize repeated.  “I just hope he found what he was looking for and is traveling to us swiftly.  In the meantime, we’ll have to defend the city as best we can without him.”

“Agreed,” the commander responded.  “My five thousand guards and I are at your service.”

“Thank you.  We have all day to prepare for the attack.  We will be better prepared than we were for the initial attack on Candus.  First of all, I would like you to have all of the blacksmiths in the city work earnestly at furnishing the guards on the walls with as many tools as possible for cutting the chains of the grappling hooks that the galdaks will use to scale the walls.  The fewer that reach the top, the better.”

Blaize was about to proceed with orders when a breeze hit him square in the face, and he distinctly heard his name.  Commander Bentley looked around in confusion.  Blaize glanced around as well and saw that no one else was near enough to have said it.

“What was that?” the commander asked, still searching for the source of the voice.  “You heard it too, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” Blaize replied.

Another breeze blew against his face as he looked northward.

“I . . . am . . .  coming . . .”

Blaize smiled as he recognized Traven’s voice.

“Four . . . days . . . away . . . I . . . have . . . it . . .”

His smile grew larger.  He had hoped Traven was closer but was excited to hear that his young friend had been successful in his search.  It was a relief to know that he was alive and on his way.  Commander Bentley was still looking around nervously, and his face was decidedly pale.  Blaize chuckled at the man’s discomfort.

“Don’t worry,” he said.

“We just heard a phantom’s voice out of thin air saying it is coming for us and you tell me not to worry?” the commander questioned with a hint of fear.

“It was only a message from the Wielder Traven,” Blaize explained.  “He found what he was searching for and will join us in four days.”

“Are you sure?” Commander Bentley asked incredulously.

“Of course I am.”

“Is it truly possible to send messages over so great a distance?”

“It is something that wielders can do.  It is called whispering on the wind.  Traven can also see far into the distance.  In fact, he is probably looking at us right now.”

Commander Bentley jerked his attention to the sky and looked around uneasily as if trying to determine if there was any evidence that Traven was watching them.  He finally turned his attention back to Blaize with a wary smile.

“I guess I’ll have to trust you,” the commander said.  “If the Wielder Traven arrives in four days like you say he will, then I will know for sure of his power.  Until then, I hope not to hear any more disembodied voices, especially at night.”

Blaize chuckled again as he stared out at the galdak’s camp.  He remembered the awe he had felt the first time he had seen the ambience used and didn’t blame the commander for his reaction.

It was comforting to hear that Traven had been successful.  With the help of the special object, he would hopefully be able to challenge the galdak wielder and defeat him.  Even if he wasn’t able to defeat the powerful wielder, the object should be valuable in helping Traven defend against the wielder’s attacks.

His thoughts turned more serious as he was reminded of the size of the horde setting up camp in the distance.  There were still hundreds of thousands of them, and he only had around sixty thousand soldiers at his command.  Four days.  They would have to hold the galdak horde at bay for four days before Traven would be able to help them.  As long as the galdak wielder remained absent from the battle, it shouldn’t be too difficult even with the disparity of numbers.  On the other hand, should the galdak wielder join in the attack, the next four days would be extremely difficult.

Blaize glanced at the sky to the north, almost imagining that he could feel Traven’s eyes on him.  He smiled and motioned with his hands for his young friend to hurry.  He then turned to Commander Bentley and continued explaining what needed to be done to prepare for the attack.  They only had until nightfall to have everything ready.

31

Kalista sat up with a satisfied sigh and stretched.  There was a small palace in Kavar, but she had chosen to stay in the city’s finest inn instead.  The beds of the luxurious inn were as good as any of those in the palace, and the food was better.  She had decided to allow some of Gavin’s relatives from Candus to stay in the palace rooms that she had been offered.  They had been grateful, and Kalista was happy to not be in the midst of the constant bustle of the palace.  She was glad she had chosen the inn.

It had felt great to sleep so well and so comfortably after such a long march.  She smiled as she looked around the tastefully furnished room.  The paintings of flower gardens and orchards hanging in gilded frames were beautiful, but what she was admiring most were the rich, dark wooden panels of the walls.  It was comforting to have four solid walls around her while she slept.

She pushed down her blankets and got out of bed.  Her muscles were stiff from fourteen days of riding, but she finally felt rested.  She walked over to the shuttered windows and pushed them open.  The morning light appeared gloomy under the darkly clouded sky.  She frowned at the sight.  It appeared that the depressing clouds that had arrived with the galdak horde in Candus had finally caught back up with them.

Kalista wondered if the galdak horde had reached the city.  She knew that the monsters had not been very far behind them.  As of yet, she had heard no commotion.  If the galdaks had arrived outside the city during the night, it seemed they had not yet launched an attack.

Her gaze drifted down from the gloomy sky to the crowded grounds surrounding the inn.  Her room, located in the corner of the third floor of the establishment, afforded her a decent view of the surrounding area.  What would have been a lovely garden was now a refugee camp teeming with tents and people.  The congestion would be just as bad throughout all the parks, gardens, and open spaces in the city.  She sighed at the thought and reached out to close the shutters as a cool breeze blew through the open window.

“. . . Kalista . . .”

Her hands froze on the shutters and a quiet gasp escaped her lips.  The sound of the voice had sent a thrill through her entire being.  She glanced around for who had addressed her but saw no one.

“ . . . I . . . am . . . coming . . .”

Understanding flooded her features as another burst of air blew into her room, bringing the words with it.  She recognized the voice and the means with which the message had been carried to her.  It was Traven whispering on the wind.

“. . . Four . . . days . . . be . . . safe . . .”

Her heart began racing, not out of fear, but out of excitement.  Traven was safe and would be there in four days.  She waited several more moments to ensure that she had received the entire message and only then finished closing the shutters.  She took several steps backward and sat down on the edge of her bed.  Her face broke out into a large smile.  Traven was thinking of her.

Kalista supposed she should be more focused on the help he would provide in defending the city, but what occupied her thoughts more was the happiness she would feel having him near her once again.  A blush colored her cheeks as she realized what she was thinking.  Her current feelings were in stark contrast to how she had felt when being reunited with Gavin ten days prior.

When the Royal Army had overtaken the citizens of Candus on the road to Kavar, Kalista had easily spotted Gavin from a distance.  She had been happy to see him alive and well, but no feelings of joy had sprouted in her heart.  No overwhelming sense of relief had fallen over her.  In fact, she had felt slightly uneasy and depressed.  She was no expert when it came to love, but she was quite certain the feelings she had felt when seeing her fiancé safe and alive were not those that predicted a happy union.

Kalista had spent the last ten days trying to replace her feelings of doubt with ones of surety and happiness but had so far been unsuccessful.  She had begun to wonder if the lack of joy was merely a result of the dire position of her country.  Was it possible that she would feel no emotion other than distress until the war was over?  She had almost believed that to be the case until now.

There was no denying what she was currently feeling.  Her heart leapt within her at the thought of seeing Traven once again.  It was as if a ray of light had just pierced through the gloomy clouds covering the city.  The red in her cheeks deepened at the realization.  Her feelings brought with them a whole host of future problems.  Nevertheless, she would happily bury the future problems for now and focus on the immediate problems that her people were facing.  She summoned her maids and had them get her ready for the day.  While they performed their duties, Kalista’s thoughts turned back to the strains that the overcrowding of the city would cause.

Her position had obviously allowed her to secure the best room in the best inn in the city.  Others of high rank and means had purchased the rest of the rooms in the city’s inns.  All others had been forced to find open spaces where they could set up their tents.  The shortage of available rooms had already caused contention the previous night, and she was sure the problem would not readily go away.  There were still many people who had plenty of money to rent a room but were forced to remain in their tents because there were no vacancies.