Hero in the Shadows (49 page)

Song Xiu stepped in. “You are not a fool, Yu Yu Liang. You are a brave man, and you fight well. With a touch of the meld you could be very good.”

“They are coming again,” said Kysumu.

“Then let us not keep them waiting,” said Ren Tang.

The
Riaj-nor
swept forward. The mist rolled toward and around them. Winged creatures appeared overhead, throwing barbed darts down on the fighting men. The
Riaj-nor
drew daggers from their belts and hurled them up at the demons. They fell from the sky to be stabbed to death. One warrior tore a dart from his shoulder and leapt, grabbing a creature by the ankle. Huge black wings flapped furiously, but the combined weight bore both of them down. The
Riaj-nor
stabbed the dart through the creature’s bony chest. As it died, its talons ripped across the
Riaj-nor’s
throat. Blood sprayed over Yu Yu. Swinging around, he hacked off the demon’s head.

Ren Tang went down. Yu Yu leapt across his fallen body, delivering a mighty blow to the chest of the huge bearlike beast that had downed him. The blade sank deep. The creature bellowed in pain and fell back. Ren Tang rose to his feet. There was blood on his face, and a flap of skin was hanging from his temple.

The fighting was furious now. The demons were above
them and all around them, but still the
Riaj-nor
drove forward into the mass.

More than half the Men of Clay were dead, but the demon hordes were thinning now.

Yu Yu was close to exhaustion. Ice was clinging to his wolfskin jerkin. He tripped and fell across the body of a dead
Riaj-nor
. Kysumu hauled him to his feet.

The mist parted.

A warm breeze blew across the ruins.

And the demons vanished.

Song Xiu put his arm around Yu Yu and pointed to a line of cliffs. “There is the gateway,” he said.

Yu Yu peered through the gloom. He could see a flickering blue light against the gray stone. But it was not the light that caught his attention.

It was the two hundred black-garbed
Kriaz-nor
warriors who were moving out to form a defensive line.

Yu Yu swore. “After all we’ve been through, you’d think we deserved a bit of luck,” he grumbled.

“This is luck,” said Ren Tang. “You can’t feast on the hearts of demons.”

Yu Yu looked at him but made no response. Despite the attempted lightness of tone, Ren Tang looked bone weary. Song Xiu leaned on his sword and swung to assess the remaining warriors. Yu Yu did the same. There were just over a hundred
Riaj-nor
left standing, and many of them carried wounds.

“Can we beat them?” asked Yu Yu.

“We don’t have to beat them,” said Song Xiu. “We just have to get through them and reach the gateway.”

“We can do that, though, hey?”

“It is why we came,” said Song Xiu.

“Let’s do it,” said Ren Tang. “And then I want to find a town and a tavern and a fat-assed woman. Maybe two.”

“Taverns or women?” asked another warrior.

“Taverns,” admitted Ren Tang. “I’m a little too tired to want
more than one woman.” Putting aside his sword, he lifted the bloody flap of skin back into place, pressing his hand against the wound. Song Xiu moved alongside him, drawing a curved needle from a small pouch tucked into his waist sash. Swiftly he stitched the upper section of the wound.

“Well,” he said, “if you don’t want both women, I’ll take one.”

“Aye,” Ren Tang answered with a quick grin. “So let us not waste any more time. Let’s sweep away these ugly vermin and then get drunk.”

“Agreed,” Song Xiu said with a brief smile. Then he took a deep breath and swung to Yu Yu. “I heard what your friend told you earlier. He was wrong then, but his words are right at this time. You cannot come with us on this last fight. We will not be able to protect you. And once we break through, we will not be able to protect ourselves.”

“What do you mean?”

“As our swords touch the gateway, they will simply cease to be. They will be absorbed by the spell that was placed there.”

“Then you will all be killed,” said Yu Yu.

“But the gateway will be closed,” pointed out the
Riaj-nor
.

“I will not stay behind,” insisted Yu Yu.

Ren Tang stepped in. “Listen to me. Despite my hatred of them, I have to admit that these
Kriaz-nor
are great fighters. We cannot both battle them and look after you. Yet if you come, we will be forced to try to protect you. You see the predicament? Your presence will lessen our chance of success.”

“Do not be sad, Yu Yu,” said Song Xiu. “It was for people like you that Qin Chong and I and the others surrendered our humanity. It is pleasing to me that you are here, for it shows that we did not take this path in vain. Your friend Kysumu can come with us. He will represent humans in this encounter. It is what he wants. He has no true love of life. He knows no fears, as he knows no joys. That is why he can never be the
hero you are. And that, my friend, is why
you
were the
pria-shath
. Without fear there can be no courage. You have fought beside us, ditchdigger, and we are proud to have known you.” He held out his hand. Yu Yu blinked back tears as he shook it. “Now we must fulfill our destinies,” said Song Xiu.

The
Riaj-nor
formed a fighting line with Ren Tang, Song Xiu, and Kysumu at the center.

Yu Yu stood by miserably as they walked slowly toward the ancient enemy.

Waylander looked into Ustarte’s golden eyes. “You are telling me that I am dying? I feel fine. There is no pain.”

“And no heartbeat,” Ustarte said sadly.

Waylander sat up and felt for his pulse. She was right. There was nothing. “I do not understand.”

“It is a talent I did not know I had until we crossed the gateway. One of my companions, a lovely child named Sheetza, was stabbed. Her heart, too, had stopped beating. I healed the wound—as I have with yours—and sent a surge of my power into her blood, causing it to continue to flow through the body. She lived for some hours, and then, as the spell faded, she died. You have a few hours left, Waylander. I am sorry.”

Keeva stepped forward from where she had been standing in the shadows of the trees. “There must be something you can do,” she said, dropping to her knees beside the Gray Man.

“How many hours?” Waylander asked.

“Ten, perhaps twelve at the most,” Ustarte told him.

“The boy must not know,” said Waylander, rising to his feet. He walked back through the trees to where Emrin and Niallad were sitting by the trail. As Niallad saw him, he scrambled to his feet.

“I did not mean to shoot,” he said.

“I know. It barely pierced the skin. Come, walk with me.” Niallad stood very still, fear showing on his face. “I will not harm you, Niall. We need to talk.” Waylander led the boy to a
cluster of rocks beside a fast-flowing stream, and there they sat as the sun sank below the mountains. “Evil creeps up on a man,” said Waylander. “He starts out on a mission he believes is just, and with every killing he darkens his soul just a little more. He lives neither in the day nor in the night. And one day this man of twilight, this … Gray Man … finally steps into the dark. As a young man I tried to live a decent life. Then one day I arrived home to find my family butchered. My wife, Tanya, my son, my two baby girls. I set out to hunt down the nineteen men who had taken part in the raid. It took me almost twenty years to find them all. I killed every one. I made them suffer as Tanya had suffered. They all died in dreadful agony. I look back on the torturer I became, and I barely recognize the man. His heart was stone. He turned his back on almost everything of value. I cannot tell you now why he—I—accepted the contract to kill the king. It no longer matters why. The simple fact is that I did accept, and I did kill him. And in killing him I finally became as evil as the men who murdered my family. I tell you all this not to excuse myself or to ask for forgiveness. Forgiveness is not yours to give. I tell you simply because it may help you in your own life. You fear being weak. I see that fear in you. But you are not weak, Niall. One of the men who slaughtered your parents was in your power, and you upheld the chivalric code. That is strength of a kind I never possessed. Hold to that, Niall. Hold to the light. Keep that code in your heart with every decision you make. And when one day you are faced with a rival or an enemy, make sure you do nothing that would bring you shame.”

With that Waylander rose, and the two of them walked back to the horses. Waylander gathered up his bow and loaded it. He called the four prisoners to him. They shuffled forward uncertainly.

“You are free to go,” he said. “If I see you again, you die. Now get out of my sight.”

The four men stood for a moment, then one walked away into the forest. The others waited to see if Waylander would shoot him. When he did not, the others followed. Waylander approached Emrin. “There should be no pursuit now,” he said. “Their horses are far away. So take the high road and bring Niall and Keeva to the capital. If the lad is strong enough, he will win over the other nobles and become the duke. I want you to stand beside him.”

“I will, sir. Where are you going?”

“Where you can’t follow, Emrin.”

“No, but I can,” said Keeva.

Waylander turned to her. “You told me you did not wish to become a killer. I respect that, Keeva Taliana. If you walk with me now, you will have to use that bow.”

“There is no time for debate now,” Keeva said grimly. “I shall come with you to stop the magicker. Just in case—for any reason—you are unable to do so.”

“Then let it be so,” he said. “And now we must go. We have some hard riding to do.”

“There is no need to ride,” said Ustarte. “Come, stand with me and I shall take you where you wish to go.”

Waylander and Keeva moved alongside her.

Niall called out. “For what it is worth, Gray Man, I do forgive you. And I thank you for all you have done for me.”

Ustarte raised her hands. The air shimmered before her. Then she stepped from sight, Waylander and Keeva disappearing with her.

16

T
HE MASSIVE NAVE
of the temple was thronged with people: mothers holding fast to their children, husbands staying close to their loved ones. Hundreds of the citizens of Carlis had taken refuge there, with workers, merchants, tanners, and clerics all huddled together. A few soldiers were with them, men who had been ordered to watch for the renegade priest Chardyn.

Priests moved among the crowds, offering blessings and leading prayers.

The corpse of an elderly man lay by one of the walls, the face covered by a cloak. His heart had failed. The body was a reminder of the perils that awaited them outside. Fear was palpable everywhere, and conversations were held in hushed whispers. The topic was the same everywhere. Would the hallowed walls keep out the demons? Were they safe within this holy place?

A white-robed figure moved into sight, climbing the steps to the high altar. A cry went up from the crowd as they recognized Chardyn. People began to cheer. Relief swept through the crowd.

Chardyn stood in full sight of them all and spread his arms. “My children!” he bellowed. Several of the soldiers moved forward. Chardyn looked down at them. His voice thundered out. “Stand where you are!” he ordered.

Such was the power in his voice that the soldiers stopped
and glanced at one another. The crowd would tear to pieces any who tried to bring harm to the priest. The soldiers relaxed.

“The duke is dead,” said Chardyn, transferring his gaze to the crowd. “He was slain by sorcery. And now demons stalk the land. You know this. You know that a magicker summoned hell hounds to kill and maim. That is why you are here. But let me ask you this: Do you think these walls might protect you? These walls were built by men.” He fell silent, his eyes scanning the silent congregation. Then he pointed at a large man standing at the center of the throng. “I see you, Benae Tarlin! You and your team constructed the south wall. What power do you possess that will hold back demons? What magic did you invest in these stones? What ward spells did you cast?” He waited for an answer. The crowd swung to stare at the hulking man, who reddened and said nothing. “The answer is none!” roared Chardyn. “They are merely walls of stone. Cold, lifeless stone. And so, you might ask, where is the sanctuary against the evil that is outside? Where can we hide to be safe?” He paused and allowed the silence to grow.