Draggah (28 page)

Rafe blinked, his eyes trying to adapt to the sudden change.  Tiberius felt the pressure of the magical light pressing to enter the physical world.  Sweat broke out on his forehead.  He had thought that working with light would be easier than fire, but it wasn
’
t.  The book said working with light required a gentle touch, but he felt like he was holding back a tidal wave.

It is so slight that even the smallest gesture can influence it.  The closest physical analogy is water.  Like water, light offers no resistance.  One can plunge one’s hand into a bowl of water with hardly any effort at all, yet one cannot grasp it in one’s hand no matter how strong one is.  In many regards, water must be cradled, directed, and then allowed to be.  Likewise, light requires the most sensitive touch.  The wizard’s mind must be strong, but gentle, and then allow the light to be what it is.

He looked at Rafe
’
s hand.  He knew he couldn
’
t keep the light back for much longer.  Rafe
’
s hand was covered in a sticky substance, but it wasn
’
t blood.

“
Tiberius,
”
Rafe said quietly. 
“
What is that?
”

“
I don
’
t know,
”
Tiberius replied.

He could see the tiny bits of wooden stems that were stuck to Rafe
’
s fingers.  It looked like tree sap and it gave Tiberius a shiver just looking at it.

“
I think we need to get it off you as soon as possible,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
There could be some type of transference.
”

“
What are you talking about?
”
Rafe asked.

“
Your hand.  What are you talking about?
”

“
Look!
”
Rafe pointed.

Tiberius hadn
’
t bothered to look around.  His light was shining out into the darkness all around them.  It wasn
’
t as bright as day, in fact the light was harsh, almost like the light from a bolt of lightning but sustained.  In the distance, in what should have been the darkness surrounding the camp, there were figures moving.

“
Is that people?
”
Tiberius asked.

“
If so, they aren
’
t here to visit,
”
Rafe said. 
“
We have to get back and warn the others.
”

“
What do you mean?
”

“
The Rogu,
”
Rafe said. 
“
It
’
s their job to defend the camp.  The Hosakli raid other tribes.  For food, resources, women.  It
’
s how they survive out on the plains, Tiberius.
”

Rafe was now hauling his friend back, pulling him by the arm.  Tiberius let the light fade away.  He didn
’
t want to clamp down on the spell.  He wanted to control it.  As soon as the spell was over, he felt a wave of dizziness sweep over him.  His hands were trembling.

“
It will be okay,
”
Rafe said.

“
I
’
m fine,
”
Tiberius said.

From the camp, Te
’
sumee, the lead hunter of the Rogu, came rushing up.  He looked excited.  There were several other Rogu with him and they all had their wooden clubs in hand.

“
Tiswanee!
”
he said loudly. 
“
How did you know?
”

“
Know what?
”
Ti asked.

“
About the raid.  We saw the Kepsmee approaching.  But we are ready for them now.
”

“
Kepsmee?  What
’
s that?
”
Tiberius asked.

“
A raiding party from another tribe,
”
Te
’
sumee said, his eyes flashing. 
“
They will not catch us unaware now.
”

“
Good,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
Rafe, go with them.
”

“
I
’
ll get my sword,
”
Rafe said.

“
No, no,
”
Te
’
sumee said. 
“
We do not use blades.  We do not want to kill them.
”

“
They
’
re attacking our camp,
”
Rafe said. 
“
We have to defend ourselves.
”

Te
’
sumee handed Rafe a club.

“
We will, Great One.  You will see.  We will capture them, then trade them back for women.  It is good, yes?
”

“
Very good,
”
the other Rogu said.

“
Tonight we fight, then tomorrow, we will take our rewards.
”

The Rogu began to chant.  They shouted and jumped around.  Tiberius wasn
’
t sure what to think of their excitement.  He certainly wasn
’
t looking forward to a fight.  He was so tired he just wanted to lie down, but there would be no rest this night.

“
We will stand double watch around the camp tonight, Tiswanee,
”
Te
’
sumee said. 
“
The Kepsmee won
’
t attack right away.  They will certainly move around and attack from a different direction.
”

“
Are you sure?
”
Rafe asked. 
“
We saw them.  We took away their element of surprise.
”

“
No, they must attack tonight.  To return to their tribe empty handed would be a great dishonor.
”

“
So they
’
ll attack,
”
Tiberius said,
“
and we just have to sit and wait for them?
”

“
The Rogu will be ready.
”

“
What if there are more of them than there are of us?
”

“
Nothing shall stop us,
”
Te
’
sumee said. 
“
We have slain the Draccon.  We are a great tribe of warriors.  We shall prevail.
”

“
I
’
ll join them,
”
Rafe said. 
“
But you might be ready with that light spell of yours.  It wouldn
’
t hurt to be able to see who we
’
re fighting.
”

“
Okay,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
But I need some rest first.
”

“
You stay at your shelter, Tiswanee.  The Rogu will defend you, never fear,
”
Te
’
sumee said.

“
I wish I had his confidence,
”
Rafe said.

“
Me too,
”
Tiberius agreed.

Rafe bent down, and scrubbed his hand on the thick grass.  When he stood up, the sap was gone.

“That worked better than I expected,
”
he said.

“
Better than I would have guessed too,
”
Tiberius said, inspecting his friend
’
s hand by the light of a fire. 
“
If you feel anything, you let me know right away.
”

“
Like what?
”
Rafe asked.

“
I don
’
t know,
”
Tiberius admitted. 
“
Woody, maybe?
”

“
Don
’
t joke,
”
Rafe said.

“
Who says I
’
m joking.
”

Chapter 21

Lexi

She couldn
’
t imagine what was taking Tiberius so long.  He and Rafe had left the shelter almost an hour before.  She
’
d seen the harsh light that Tiberius conjured just like everyone else in their adopted tribe. Now rumors were spreading that another group of Hoskali hunters were closing in on the camp.  Olyva had slept through it all, and part of Lexi couldn
’
t help but envy her. At least Olyva wasn
’
t worrying herself sick the way Lexi was tempted to do.

Lexi wouldn
’
t want to be caught unaware in another raid; that was exactly how she had been captured by their current tribe.  It was not a happy memory for her.  And it didn
’
t help that the women in Tiberius
’
harem were so noticeably agitated.  Lexi hadn
’
t been happy about Tiberius inheriting wives, but the women had understood her position as Ti
’
s lover.  They had given the couple space and taken care of many of the domestic duties Lexi knew she would have been miserable performing.  Now she realized they were all at risk, and if the camp was overrun by raiders, she and Tiberius could be separated.

Lexi paced back and forth, waiting for Tiberius to return.  She didn
’
t like being tied to someone who obviously didn
’
t seem concerned enough to keep her informed about what was going on.  It was one of the many reasons she didn
’
t like being in love.  In Avondale, she kept her distance from everyone.  She knew people, and was known by some, but she wasn
’
t close to anyone.  If she had to cut ties and leave to protect herself, she could, and she had no regrets about that.  In fact, when Tiberius had been banished, she had done exactly that, leaving the city to be with him.  Now, however, she couldn
’
t just escape.  She felt like a prime target, which bothered her as well.  She was different from the other women in the camp.  She dressed differently, acted differently; in the chaos of an attack, she would stand out.  Her first instinct was to find a more secure place to wait and see what would happen.  She hated being in the camp.  The light from the fires all around her limited her vision, but made her along with everyone else in the camp easy to see.

She checked to make sure her Wangorian dagger was ready for use in her belt.  The curved blade, with its intricate markings which showed the incredible craftsmanship of the weapon, was razor sharp.  It was only as long as her hand from palm to fingertip, but she had used it to take the lives of two men the night she had stolen it.  She felt better when she gripped the leather wrapped handle.  If she had to fight, she thought to herself, she would be ready.

Tiberius finally returned, but he didn
’
t look good.  She could see from a distance that he seemed pale and shaky.  He also looked concerned, all of which triggered her knee-jerk reaction to flee before things got messy.  She forced herself to stay and as she waited for him to join her near the fire that was burning in front of the Swanee
’
s shelter, she heard his other wives gathering close behind her.  They were whispering, and snatches of their conversations carried to her.  They were all afraid, all hoping that Tiberius would use his magic to protect them, but the way he looked to Lexi, she doubted he could even help himself.

“
What
’
s wrong?
”
she said as soon as he was close enough to hear her.

“
Everything is going to be fine,
”
he said.

“
We know about the raiders.
”